Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi Koki Co., Ltd.

Isamu Komatsu

Takao Umeda

Toru Miyasaka

Osamu Namikawa

Masayasu Anzai

Nobuyoshi Hoshi

Takao Kumasaka

Yuzuru Simazaki

Shigetaka Fujiwara

Susumu Akimaru

Tetsuya Nagata

Koji Kato

Teruaki Mitsuya

Yasuo Takuma

Tatsuo Igawa

Yasushi Hashimoto

Youji Hirose

Minoru Seino

Akira Terakado

Toru Sugawara

Tsukasa Yamauchi

Yasushi Kimiwada

An electrostatic recording apparatus and a management system thereof wherein the recording apparatus includes a photoconductor drum having a cap provided at an opening of the drum and a photoconductor sheet wound on a portion of the drum other than the opening, with the photoconductor drum being rotated. The cap is electrified and a capacitor is provided between the cap and a terminal and charged through the cap to maintain the cap in an electrified state. A potential of the terminal is equal to a ground potential or a potential approximating the ground potential. Further, a controller is provided for discharging the electrified electric charge of the cap in response to a discharge instruction. A managing system may be provided for judging the state of the electrostatic recording apparatus.

Electrostatic recording apparatus with electrified cap and managing

Device and method for evaluating a defect of a photoconductive body in which the position and number of defects such as pinholes in the photoconductive body are detected. The defect evaluation device includes a charger, a photoconductive body moving mechanism, a surface potential sensor, a position sensor detecting the position of a cap member on the photoconductive body and an arithmetic operation unit and a diagnosing device. A rotating photoconductive drum is charged by the charger, and the charged surface potential of the drum is measured by the surface potential sensor. The measured position is determined by the position sensor. The measured values by the surface potential sensor is subjected to differentiation processing by the arithmetic operation unit to determine a differentiation value dV/dt of the surface potential V of the photoconductive body with respect to time t. The diagnosing device detects a position on the photoconductive body whose surface potential abruptly changes, from the dV/dt to thereby determine a fatal detect.

Electrostatic recording apparatus, method of controlling the apparatus,

In a developing apparatus in which a developer containing magnetic particles is carried on a developer carrier to form a magnetic brush and a latent image on a latent image carrier opposing the developer carrier is developed by the magnetic brush, the magnetic brush bristle height and the developing gap are controlled to keep density of a first color image and density of a second and the ensuing color images in color development at predetermined values or more, thereby maintaining quality of printed images stably. There are also provided method and apparatus of measuring the bristle height of the magnetic brush of the developing apparatus, which bristle height is a parameter indispensable for control of the above developing condition, under the dynamic condition that the developing roller rotates.

Magnetic brush with bristle height equal to developing gap

A potential of a reference potential measure section is set to a desired value of a potential of a drum surface (charge receptive surface) such that a potential of the reference potential measure section and a potential of the charge receptive surface are detected by a surface potential detect device during a rotation of the drum to obtain a difference between the values of the measured potential, so that an operation of a charger is controlled to be reduced to zero, thereby changing the potential of the charge receptive surface. This enables the surface potential to be precisely controlled without necessitating a frequent calibration of the surface potential detect device. In addition, the potential of the reference potential measure section is appropriately set depending on a develop condition so as to prevent a toner, when the portion passes a developer at a position over a circumferential area of the drum, from being fixed thereonto. Moreover, a potential of the reference potential detect section and a potential of the charge receptive surface are detected by use of the surface potential detect device so as to examine a difference therebetween and a distribution thereof, which enables a change as well as an irregular variation of the potential due to deterioration of the charge receptive surface to be analyzed. Based on the analysis, it is possible to detect the deterioration of the photoconductive body as the charge receptive surface so as to evaluate the life thereof. Furthermore, when an information processing system is configured by combining a computer with an electrostatic recording apparatus according to the present invention, there can be provided a picture quality control system effecting a precise control depending on a characteristic of the photoconductive body.

An electrophotographic charger of the type in which a plurality of corona wires extend in the axial direction adjacent to and separated from the surface of a photosensitive drum in order to charge the surface. A plate-like etching grid is interposed between the corona wires and the drum to ensure the charge is uniformly placed on the drum. The grid is divided into a number of individual removable grids so that the distance between each grid and the adjacent corona wire, and the distance between each grid and the drum surface is substantially uniform.

Charger for electrophotography having a grid assembly

A developing device is of non-contact development type in which a toner is jumped to a photoconductor to develop a latent image on the photoconductor. The developing device is controlled in height of a developer-agent layer on a developer roll, and sets a developing gap between the photoconductor and the developer roll in such a manner that a driving electric field required for jumping of the toner can be maintained at the air gap between the photoconductor and a developer-agent layer on the developer roll and developing bias voltage can be brought to a value lower than charged electric potential of the photo-conductor. By setting the developing bias voltage to the valve lower than the charged electric potential of the photoconductor, jumping of additional or unnecessary toner is restricted so that contamination of an image and a recording sheet can be prevented. Further, a multi-color recording apparatus having this developing device prevents toner developer agents different in color from being brought into contact with each other to form a clear multi-color image without mixing in color and contamination.

Developing device and multi-color recording apparatus

Non-contact type developing device and method for electrophotographic recording system. The pitch of magnetic poles on a developing sleeve carrying a developer is selected to fall within a predetermined range or is varied such that the pitch increases as the circumferential distance from the point where the gap between the developer carrier member and a photosensitive member is minimum. The bias voltage applied to the developing sleeve is controlled in accordance with a change in the size of the gap between the surface of the photosensitive member and the layer of the developer on the developer carrying member. Alternatively, the bias voltage is applied throughout a period in which the charged region on the photosensitive member is opposed by the developing sleeve.

Electrophotographic recording method and apparatus with non-contact

A toner of a first color incorporated into a development appartaus for second color is charged to a polarity opposite to a polarity of a charge of an electrostatic latent image for the second color by a frictional action with a toner in the development apparatus for the second color. The toner of the first color incorporated into the second development apparatus is caused to adhere to a charge-non-released region of a drum, whereby accumulation of the first toner in the second color development apparatus is prevented. The first and second toners are electrostatically transferred onto a paper by a bias electric field having a polarity opposite to that of the toner images, whereby at reversal development of the second color, the toner of the first color adhering to the charge-non-released region is prevented from being transferred onto the paper. Further, the toner of the first color, incorporated in the second development apparatus, changed reversly in its polarity, or reduced to about zero in the charge quantity can be removed by electrical and mechanical removal means provided in the second development apparatus.

Method for forming multi-color toner image

In an electrophotographic recording method in which electric charge is uniformly applied to the surface of a photoconductive drum, the drum surface is then exposed to a first information light beam to form a first negative latent image, the first negative latent image is developed with a first two-component developer, the drum surface is further exposed to a second information light beam to form a second negative latent image, and the second negative latent image is developed with a second two-component developer to produce a two-color toner image, the toner content in the second two-component developer is larger than that in the first two-component developer.

Method for developing an electrostatic latent image in an

Disclosed is a second toner developing apparatus for use in a two color electro-photographic recording apparatus in which a photosensitive drum is uniformly charged, subject to a first exposure, developed with a first toner, subject to a second exposure, and then developed with a second toner. The second developing apparatus is provided with a rotary sleeve for performing magnetic brush development and a fixed magnet disposed within the rotary sleeve. The fixed magnet includes a plurality of magnetic poles of the same polarity provided close to each other, so as to temporarily separate the second developer from the surface of the rotary sleeve at the position of these same polarity magnetic poles. An electrostatic attraction electrode attracts the first toner mixed in the thus separated second developer to thereby remove the first toner from the second developer.

Developing apparatus

A solid state relay or controlled switch for connecting an AC power source to a load includes a solid state switching circuit in which a semiconductor controlled rectifier element, such as a photothyristor, thyristor or light-AC controlled element, is ignited by an external control signal, thereby to feed a load with an alternating current. A zero voltage switching circuit which executes switching when the instantaneous value of the amplitude of the supply voltage of the AC load current is zero or a value close thereto is connected to the rectifier element. As an improvement, a series circuit consisting of a resistor and a capacitor are connected between the base and emitter of a transistor in the zero voltage switching circuit. Thus, a zero voltage switching solid state relay whose withstand voltage build-up rate is enhanced and whose switching is endowed with a hysteresis characteristic is provided.

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Takahagi, Japan

Isamu Komatsu