Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.

Fujitsu Corporation

Fujifilm Business Innovation Corp.

Hitachi, Ltd.

Nichias Corporation

Zenith, LLC

Other

Kouichi Kimura

Mitsutoshi Hongo

Toshinori Sasaki

Hideki Kuge

Kota Nishii

Mizuki Sugino

Keita Yano

Tatsuo Takagi

Katsura Adachi

Masanobu Ishizuka

Kei Tanaka

Shogo Kamiya

Masakatsu Eda

Norio Ogawahara

Takashi Ohashi

Yoshiyuki Motoyoshi

Osamu Horiuchi

Yoshihisa Miyahara

Takanori Sasaki

Hiromi Furuya

Takashi Matsubara

Hideaki Koizumi

Yoshiaki Kato

Masataka Konishi

Minoru Sakairi

Satoshi Nakamura

Takayuki Yamashita

Yasunori Fujimoto

Takashi Ochi

Tetsuya Mochida

Hitoshi Kawaguchi

Kazushi Kobayashi

Hiroki Uchida

Yasutaka Naito

Toyohiko Awano

Kenichi Shibata

Yasuto Okabayashi

Junpei Amano

Satoshi Matsuzaka

Hiromasa Yamaoka

Noriyuki Miyoshi

Noboru Hirakawa

Haruhiko Nishida

Tadashi Okamoto

Shingo Akiyama

Ryuji Katsuno

Masakazu Takahashi

Toshimasa Toyama

Norimasa Fujiwara

Kouta Nishii

Makoto Hasegawa

Takashi Ohhashi

Hiroshi Daigo

Koichi Imazu

Yuzaburo Iwasa

Akira Fukuchi

Naohiro Yoshida

Tomohiko Hara

Hitoshi Hamasaki

Kouichi Okazawa

Masanobu Ishizuki

A paper transport device includes a transport mechanism that transports paper to which an image is transferred to a fixing device while sucking the paper and a switching mechanism that switches between suction regions in a width direction of the transport mechanism, which corresponds to a width direction of the paper, according to a size of the paper.

Paper transport device

A pressing device includes a first pressurization unit; a second pressurization unit that is provided to face the first pressurization unit, and sandwiches and pressurizes a medium moving in a contact region formed between the first pressurization unit and the second pressurization unit; and a contact region variable unit that changes a width dimension of the contact region along a moving direction of the medium in a state of maintaining a contact pressure on an outlet side of the contact region, in varying a contact state of the contact region.

Pressing device and pressing process apparatus using the same

An image forming apparatus, includes: an image forming unit that forms a toner image on a medium; a heating unit that is provided on a downstream side in a transport path from the image forming unit and that is configured to heat a medium being transported in a non-contact manner; a fixing unit that is provided on a downstream side in the transport path from the heating unit and fixes the toner image on the medium; a shielding unit to which force is applied so as to be inform a closed state in which the heating unit is shielded; and an open state forming unit configured to receive power supply to drive the shielding unit so as to form an open state in which the heating unit is opened, and maintain the open state while the power is being supplied.

Image forming apparatus including heater with movable shield

A fixing device includes: a heating unit configured to heat a medium to be conveyed along a conveyance path by radiation; and a shielding unit made of non-metallic material, the shielding unit being configured to form a shielding state in which radiation from the heating unit is shielded and a non-shielding state in which radiation from the heating unit is not shielded, in which the shielding unit being expanded in a direction intersecting the radiation in the shielding state and is stored in the non-shielding state.

Fixing device and image-forming apparatus

A belt-type transport device includes a belt, a pressure unit, a nip forming unit, a belt stretching roller, an inclination controller, a contact unit, and a support unit. The belt is an endless belt, has an outer circumferential surface and an inner circumferential surface, and is to be rotated. The pressure unit is in contact with the outer circumferential surface of the belt. The nip forming unit presses the belt against the pressure unit so as to form a nip through which a recording medium is to be transported. The belt stretching roller is disposed inside the belt and stretches the belt. The inclination controller controls inclination of the belt stretching roller. The contact unit is provided along a width direction of the belt and is in contact with the inner circumferential surface of the belt. The support unit supports the contact unit such that the contact unit is able to follow inclination of the belt which is changed due to the inclination of the belt stretching roller.

Belt-type transport device, fixing device, and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a heating unit that heats a recording material, a contact member that is positioned upstream or downstream from the heating unit in a transport direction of the recording material and is in contact with the recording material, the contact member being configured in such a manner that a portion of the contact member that is in contact with the recording material moves with the recording material, a temperature detection unit that detects a temperature of the contact member, and a control unit that controls, based on a detection result obtained by the temperature detection unit, an output of the heating unit.

Temperature detection for a fixing system of an image forming apparatus

A preheating device includes two first inverting members disposed at different positions while obliquely intersecting a feeding direction of a continuous recording medium on which an unfixed image is formed, the first inverting members inverting the recording medium by passing a back surface of the recording medium, on which the unfixed image is not formed, therealong before a fixing operation, and at least one heating rotating body disposed at a position further on an outside than a side edge portion of the recording medium in the feeding direction to preheat the recording medium before the fixing operation by passing a portion of the back surface of the recording medium present between the two first inverting members so that the portion of the back surface is wound around the heating rotating body.

Preheating device, fixing system, and image forming apparatus

A fixing device includes a rotatable endless belt, a heating source that heats the belt, a pad member having a sliding surface abutting on an inner surface of the belt, and a pressure roller that presses an outer surface of the belt toward the sliding surface and rotates to rotate the belt. The pressure roller works together with the belt to fix an unfixed toner image onto a medium that bears the unfixed toner image by allowing the medium to enter between the roller and the belt. Assuming that the sliding surface is divided into upstream and downstream regions in a moving direction of the belt, the upstream and downstream regions both have recessed curved surfaces in the moving direction. A first curved surface corresponding to the upstream region has an average curvature that is larger than that of a second curved surface corresponding to the downstream region.

Fixing device and image forming apparatus

A fixing device includes an endless belt, a fixing rotating body that fixes, in cooperation with the belt, a toner image formed on a recording medium nipped between the fixing rotating body and the belt while rotating in contact with the belt, a support member that supports a load with which the fixing rotating body nips the recording medium with the belt so as to form a nip portion to nip the recording medium between the belt and the fixing rotating body, a driving unit that circulates the belt in a state in which the fixing rotating body is separate from the belt, and a wind-on rotating body on which the belt is wound at a position adjacent to the support member on an upstream side in a direction of transport of the recording medium to the nip portion.

A data structure of index information for retrieving pair character strings on a computer at high speed is provided. A method of retrieving a pair character strings appearing in close proximity of each other in a document using the index information at high speed is also provided. Bits of a suffix array of reference document data are rearranged, thereby creating index information LSA localizable, or usable as an index for a subregion of the document. Through use of this, a process of dichotomizing a region, where the entire document is designated as an initial region, is repeated and positions of index information for a query character string in the reference document data are gradually detailed. The distance between the pair is evaluated and candidates are narrowed down. Finally, positions where the pair character strings occur in close proximity of each other are identified.

Pair character string retrieval system

A medium transport device includes a rotating member forming a nip region with a facing member; a guide member configured to rotate in first and second directions opposite to each other; a protrusion serving as a positioning reference for the guide member; and a restricting member including first and second surfaces. The restricting member restricts rotation of the guide member in the first direction such that the guide member does not rotate beyond a position at which the first surface is in contact with the protrusion and at which the guide member guides a sheet medium in an intended direction, and restricts rotation of the guide member in the second direction such that the guide member does not rotate beyond a position at which the second surface is in contact with the protrusion and at which the guide member is not in contact with the facing member.

Medium transport device and image forming apparatus

A heating device includes: a heating member heating a recording medium; a pressure member forming a heating pressure portion with the heating member, through which the recording medium passes; a tensioning member facing the pressure member across the heating member, and providing a tension to the heating member; a peeling member placed downstream of the heating pressure portion and adjacent to the tensioning member, and peeling off the recording medium from the heating member; and an inside heating unit heating the heating member and controlling meandering of the heating member, the inside heating unit including: a secured center shaft; an outer circumferential portion rotating about the center shaft; a heater placed inside the outer circumferential portion to heat thereof from inside; and a heat reflecting member secured to the center shaft and placed at each end portion of the outer circumferential portion, and that reflects heat from the heater.

Heating device including a heating member, a pressure member, a tensioning member, and an inside heating unit, and an image forming apparatus

A heating apparatus of the present invention includes a press member that undergoes driven rotation by contacting a heating member that rotates, the press member conveying a recording medium while nipping the recording medium between the press member and the heating member; a contact and separation mechanism that contacts the press member against the heating member and separates the press member away from the heating member; and a drive mechanism that rotationally drives the press member when the press member is separated from the heating member by the contact and separation mechanism.

Heating apparatus and image forming apparatus

A belt device includes a belt; a driving unit that is provided inside the belt and drives the belt; a supporting unit that is provided inside the belt and supports the belt; and a position determination member that is fixed to one end in an axial direction of the driving unit or the supporting unit and comes in contact with an edge portion of the belt in the case where the belt is mounted so as to determine a position of the belt.

Belt device and fixing device

A sheet guide sheet guide for guiding a recording sheet includes an outermost surface layer brought into contact with a recording sheet, which is formed of a material having a water contact angle of approximately 50&#xb0; or less and one of a pencil hardness of 9H or more and a Mohs hardness of 4 or more.

Sheet guide, fixing device and image forming apparatus

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Kouichi Kimura