Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Kohta Sakaya

Shinichi Arasawa

Tamotsu Ikeda

Yasunobu Ogata

Tomofumi Yoshida

Jin Sam Park

Yoshiharu Takahashi

Goo Chul Jung

Tetsumaru Fujita

Chikara Hiraoka

Tomohiro Kubota

Naoki Nakatake

Atsushi Takehara

Shigeo Nanno

Toshikane Nishii

Yoshitaka Sekiguchi

Makoto Matsushita

Masayuki Hayashi

Yasuhide Ohkubo

Shunsuke Hamahashi

Kenji Nakamura

Yasunobu Shimizu

Tomoya Adachi

Masahiro Samei

Osamu Saito

Hitoshi Fujiwara

Yoshihiro Kawakami

Toshio Ogiso

Shintaro Yamada

Jong Ho Park

Yutaka Naitoh

Tomohiko Fujii

Kuniyori Takano

Yasuharu Kawarasaki

Kenta Kashiwagi

Min Jae Chung

Seong Ryeol Pyo

Kyo Sik Woo

Goo Chui Jung

Yoshihiro Fukuhta

A toner conveying device includes a toner conveying section and a toner conveyor. The toner conveying section includes a bent portion and an outlet port. The bent portion bends in a predetermined direction. The outlet port discharges toner. The toner conveyor is bendable and driven by a driving device to rotate to convey toner. The toner conveyor is disposed in the toner conveying section such that a first end of the toner conveyor is coupled to the driving device and a second end of the toner conveyor is a free end. The toner conveyor includes a reverse-flow conveying portion, between the outlet port and the free end, to convey the toner from the second end to the first end.

Image forming apparatus with a toner conveying device having a reverse-flow conveying portion

A toner container is detachably attachable to a developing device. The toner container includes an outlet to discharge toner contained in the toner container, an agitating member to agitate the toner in the container, a coupling to transmit a driving force to the agitating member, a shutter to open and close the outlet, a lever disposed at one end of the container and a pivoting portion disposed at the other end and connected by a common shaft such that both rotate together, and the lever and the coupling are disposed at the one end in a mutually non-overlapping manner when viewed from the axial direction of the common shaft.

Toner container having a shutter, a lever disposed on one side, and a pivoting portion on the other side which rotate together with a common shaft

A toner container is detachably attachable to a developing device. The developing device includes an inlet to be poured with a toner, an inlet shutter to move between a closed position, at which the inlet is closed, and an open position, at which the inlet is open, a biasing mechanism to bias the inlet shutter toward the closed position, an engaged structure provided in the inlet shutter, an engaging structure to engage with the engaged structure and to retain the inlet shutter at the open position against a biasing force of the biasing mechanism, and an engagement releasing structure provided in the inlet shutter and to release an engaging state between the engaged structure and the engaging structure. The toner container includes a contacting surface to contact with the engagement releasing structure and to make the engagement releasing structure release the engaging state.

Toner container with an operating structure disposed on a first side, a shutter disposed on a second side, and a lock

Toner container with an operating structure disposed on a first side, and a shutter disposed on a second side

Toner container, developing device, process cartridge, and image forming apparatus that include a toner container contacting surface to contact with a developing device engagement releasing structure

A unit includes a part that is detachably attachable relative to an other unit, wherein the other unit includes an opening through which image forming powder is supplied from or received by the other unit, and a shutter that opens and closes the opening, and a collecting member that collects the image forming powder falling from at least one of the opening and the shutter by making contact with the shutter when detaching the unit from the other unit.

Collecting member to collect image forming powder

A separator for separating a recording medium from a fixing rotator includes a separation body including a front end and a conveyance path side face. The front end is disposed in proximity to an outer circumferential surface of the fixing rotator. The conveyance path side face faces a conveyance path where the recording medium is conveyed. At least one rotary separation aid projects beyond the conveyance path side face of the separation body toward the conveyance path. The rotary separation aid is rotated by the recording medium as the recording medium comes into contact with the rotary separation aid.

Separator, fixing device, and image forming apparatus

A toner container includes a container body that is used to house a toner and that is detachably attachable to a mounting portion in a developing device; and an operating member that is used to open and close a shutter. The shutter as well as the operating member includes an engaging portion that can engage with a linking member which is disposed in the mounting portion and which can perform a reciprocating linear movement. In the state in which the container body is not mounted in the mounting portion, the shutter and the operating member are in a non-linked state with each other. In contrast, in the state in which the container body is mounted in the mounting portion, the shutter and the operating member become able to be linked to each other via the linking member.

Toner container, developing device, process cartridge, and image forming apparatus that include an operating member to move a shutter for a toner outlet via a linking member

A developer amount detector to detect an amount of developer inside a developer container includes a light-emitting element; a light-receiving element; a first light guide including a first end disposed to face the light-emitting element and a second end disposed inside the developer container, covered with a translucent cover including a light-emitting face; a second light guide including a first end disposed to face the light-receiving element, a second end disposed inside the developer container, covered with a translucent cover including a light-receiving face to face the light-emitting face across a gap; and a cleaner including a sliding portion to slidingly contact the light-emitting face and the light-receiving face. The cover of each of the first and second light guides includes a material lower in chargeability with the sliding portion than a material of a body of each of the first and second light guides.

Developer amount detector, developing device, process unit, and image forming apparatus

A developing device includes a developer container, a developer bearer, a partition to divide an interior of the developer container into a first compartment to which developer is supplied and a second compartment in which the developer bearer is disposed, main communication openings provided at both ends of the partition, a sub-communication opening provided in an intermediate portion of the partition, developer conveyance members provided in the first compartment and the second compartment to circulate developer between the first compartment and the second compartment, and a developer amount detector to detect an amount of developer in a detection area positioned in the first compartment and adjacent to the sub-communication opening.

Developing device, and image forming apparatus and process unit incorporating same

An image forming apparatus includes: an image carrier unit that includes an image carrier and is configured to be capable of being housed in and removed from an image-forming-apparatus main body; an exposure device that is arranged close to the image carrier to form an electrostatic latent image; a retracting mechanism that holds the exposure device close to the image carrier when the image carrier unit is housed in the image-forming-apparatus main body, and holds the exposure device away from the image carrier when the image carrier unit is being removed from the image-forming-apparatus main body; a covering member that covers the retracting mechanism in a state where backlash of the exposure device at least in a main-scanning direction is allowed; and a guide mechanism that positions the exposure device in the main-scanning direction when the exposure device comes closer to the image carrier through the retracting mechanism.

Image forming apparatus including a covered retracting mechanism

Powder container

A fixing device, including a fixing member; an opposing member contacting the fixing member to form a fixing nip; plural separation assisting members; a contact direction biasing member contacting an end of the auxiliary separation members to the surface of the fixing member; a contact and release switching member switching contacting the end of the auxiliary separation members to the surface of the fixing member and releasing the end of the auxiliary separation members therefrom; a fixing exit guide member guiding a recording medium to a discharge direction and separated from the fixing member by the separation assisting member; a first rotating member near the auxiliary separation members downstream from an end thereof; and a second rotating member guiding a recording medium guided by the fixing exit guide member in the recording medium conveyance direction while rotating.

Fixing device and image forming apparatus

A mechanism for guiding a recording medium into a nip formed between a first rotary member subjected to heating, and a second rotary member pressed against the first rotary member includes a guide member and a biasing member. The guide member is disposed upstream from the nip to guide the recording medium therealong. The biasing member is connected to the guide member to mechanically bias the guide member. The guide member is subjected to a constant biasing force from the biasing member and to a pressure force from the recording medium. The pressure force is opposite the biasing force and variable with a stiffness of the recording medium being guided. The guide member is movable to different operational positions depending on the biasing and pressure forces acting thereon.

Media guide mechanism, fixing device and image forming apparatus incorporating same

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Hyogo, Japan

Kohta Sakaya