Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Kenya Komada

Kazuhiro Yuasa

Rikio Kasahara

Nobuo Iwata

Susumu Takahashi

Koji Sakamoto

Hideaki Mochimaru

Yutaka Kodama

Hisao Murayama

Misao Tanzawa

Takefumi Adachi

Shiroh Kondoh

Yoshiaki Kondo

Junichi Hirasawa

Masahiro Tomita

Yui-Kuan Tan

A sheet feed mechanism of an image recording apparatus comprises a lifter mechanism movable between a first position in engagement with a cassette that holds a sheet thereon and a second position in disengagement with the cassette, a first urging mechanism for urging the lifter mechanism to the first position with a first urging force, a second urging mechanism for urging the lifter mechanism to the second position with a second urging force that acts opposite to the first urging force, and a control mechanism connected the second urging mechanism, wherein the control mechanism is adapted to engage with the cassette when the cassette is mounted on the image recording apparatus for causing a change in the second urging forces depending on whether the cassette is mounted on the image recording apparatus or the cassette is dismounted from the image recording apparatus, such that the second urging force is smaller than the first urging force when the cassette is dismounted from the image recording apparatus and such that the second urging force is larger than the first urging force when the cassette is mounted on the image recording apparatus.

Sheet feed mechanism of image recording apparatus

An image forming apparatus of the type including a plurality of process means for developing an electrostatic latent image provided on an image carrier to produce a visible image, transferring the visible image to a transfer material, and cleaning the image carrier after the image transfer. The image carrier and at least one image forming unit are individually removably mounted on a body of the apparatus. A first and a second sensor are provided for sensing, respectively, the end of the life of the image forming unit and that of the image carrier. Even when the end of the life of the image carrier is sensed, an indication for urging a person to replace the image forming unit being used is not produced if the life of the image forming unit has not expired, allowing the apparatus to be continuously used. It is not until the end of the life of the image forming unit is sensed next that an indication for urging a person to replace both of the image carrier and the image forming unit is produced.

Image forming apparatus

A cartridge for use in an electrophotographic apparatus is loaded with various expendable process units which need periodic replacement such as a charger, developing unit, and cleaning unit. At least the charger and cleaning unit are mounted on the cartridge integrally with each other. The cartridge is held in a body of the apparatus in such a manner as to be rotatable between a replaceable position and a set position.

Process unit cartridge for an electrophotographic apparatus

An image forming device for electrostatic recording apparatus which has a plurality of replacement units, and a case holding the replacement units and is integrally removable from the device body by sliding toward one direction, and in which each replacement unit is placed in operable position when the replacement unit holding case is set to a given position in the device body. In the replacement unit holding case, provided is a mechanism for automatically removing the position of each replacement unit further away from each other than the given setting position of each replacement unit, by pulling out the case from the device body.

Image forming device for electrostatic recording apparatus having a

A record head of an image recording apparatus is reciprocally tilted to suitably vary the contact condition between the surface of the record head and that of a recording medium, thereby removing toner particles which are momentarily stuck to the record head surface. To maintain styluses of the head unchanged in position, the reciprocation of the record head is effected for the interval between the end of a recording cycle for one page and the start of the next recording cycle for another page, which interval has no influence on the image recording operation.

Record head cleaning device for image recording apparatus

An image recording apparatus which sequentially performs a series of electrostatic or electrophotographic recording steps in accordance with the movement of a recording medium which is shaped as an endless belt. A section of the apparatus adapted to movably pass the belt around a drive roller, idle rollers and a tension roller have a unitary cassette configuration. Chargers, a recording head and other instruments located above the belt cassette are commonly mounted on a single base member. The belt cassette and base constitute an upper unit which is bodily movable away from a housing of the apparatus toward an open position thereof.

Removable belt mechanism for image recording apparatus

A development apparatus for developing latent electrostatic images to visible or transferable images of high quality for use in electrophotographic copying apparatus, electrostatic recording apparatus, facsimile apparatus or other recording apparatus, in which a development roller is in arc-contact with a latent-electrostatic-image-bearing flexible recording medium and is capable of supplying a sufficient amount of toner to the recording medium for development of the latent electrostatic images, without requiring any delicate adjustment of the gap between the development roller and the recording medium or of the gap between the development roller and a doctor blade for regulating the thickness of a toner layer on the development roller, and without increasing the rotary speed of the development roller to conventional speeds, and the doctor blade is also capable of performing charge injection to the toner with high efficiency, whereby images can be developed with high quality with a minimum deposition of toner on the background.

Development apparatus for developing latent electrostatic images

A multi-stylus head comprising a plurality of segmented electrodes aligned in at least one row and multiple styli aligned in a row and grouped corresponding to the segmented electrodes. The multi-stylus head is capable of forming electrostatic latent images on a dielectric layer of a recording material by applying a voltage to the segmented electrodes and the multiple styli. In order to prevent the image density of the electrostatic latent images from becoming uneven in the direction normal to the recording scanning direction, the grouped multiple styli are shifted relative to the segmented electrodes in the direction of the recording scanning direction.

Multi-stylus head

A printing system for a facsimile transceiver includes a first sheet feed means for feeding a recording sheet toward a latent image forming station intermittently at a variable speed in accordance with an input compressed data signal. The sheet is temporarily detained to form a loop in a predetermined position past of the latent image forming station. A second sheet feed means causes the sheet to advance farther toward developing and fixing station sequentially at a constant speed by each predetermined amount in correspondence with a detained amount of the sheet. The developing station is provided with a developing member which is rotated at a constant speed in synchronism with the operation of the second sheet feed means. The fixing station is provided with a flashing light source which is energized in relation with the operation of the second sheet feed means.

Printing system for facsimile reception apparatus

A device for transporting a flexible sheet from one device wherein the sheet is processed at one speed to another device wherein the sheet is processed at another speed. The device comprises two pairs of rollers, one pair of rollers disposed on the downstream side of the path of movement of the sheet and adapted to rotate at a rate higher than the rate of rotation of the other pair of rollers disposed on the upstream side thereof. The rotation of the pair of rollers disposed on the downstream side is temporarily initiated to cause the leading end portion of the sheet to be nipped thereby and then held for a time interval, so as to permit the portion of the sheet interposed between the two pairs of rollers to buckle up and form a loop before transporting at the higher rate is begun by reactivation of the downstream pair of rollers.

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Yokohama, Japan

Kenya Komada