Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Kunihiko Kitayama

Toshiaki Nagashima

Kiyoshi Oyama

Ei Yamamoto

Isao Komatsu

Yuji Sakemi

Masami Izumizaki

Koji Amemiya

Akio Ohno

Kiyoharu Tanaka

Kohei Deno

Motohiro Fujiwara

Motoaki Tahara

Genta Sato

Shigeru Ohki

At the time of an end of an image forming job (YES of S), a controller causes a blade and a developing roller to be separated from a photosensitive drum (S). At that time, the controller controls separation timing of the belt and the developing roller so that the developing roller is separated from the photosensitive drum before a surface position of the photosensitive drum contacted to the developing roller at a contact position at the time of a start of separation of the blade from the photosensitive drum reaches a developing position with the separation of the blade. According to this, even when a liquid accumulation reaches the developing position depending on the separation of the blade, the developing roller has already been separated from the photosensitive drum before the liquid accumulation reaches the developing position and therefore, the liquid accumulation is not collected by the developing roller. When the liquid accumulation is not collected by the developing roller, color mixture due to the liquid accumulation does not occur.

Image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a corona charger including a discharging wire and a grid electrode for charging a photosensitive drum at a charging position and an exposure device for exposing the drum charged by the charger at an exposure position which is at a downstream side of the charger (in a rotational direction of the drum) at the charging position. The grid electrode includes a first portion having openings and a second portion having only a non-opening portion in a charging region for charging the drum in a longitudinal direction of the charger, and the second portion includes a downstream side peripheral portion at a downstream end of the grid electrode with respect to the rotational direction. In a cross-section orthogonal to the longitudinal direction and including the charging region, the downstream side peripheral portion is intersected by a straight line passing through the exposure position and the wire.

Image forming apparatus having grid electrode with opening and non-opening portions

A cleaning device includes a blade and a seal member including a first portion having first, second and third surfaces and including a second portion having a fourth surface. The first surface opposes a free end surface of the blade. The second surface is connected with the first surface. The third surface is connected with the first and second surfaces and is perpendicular to the free end surface. The fourth surface is parallel to the third surface and the free end surface. A first interior corner line is formed by the free end surface and the third surface so as to be substantially parallel to a thickness direction of the blade. A second interior corner line is formed by the third surface and the fourth surface so as to be connected with said first interior corner line and be substantially parallel to a height direction of the blade.

Cleaning device and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes an image forming portion that forms an image on a sheet, an upper unit that is movably mounted above the image forming portion, and a sheet processing apparatus that processes the sheet, having the image formed thereon by the image forming portion, by a processing portion. In addition, a stacking portion on which the sheet processed by the sheet processing apparatus is stacked is disposed between the image forming portion and the upper unit The sheet processing apparatus includes a sheet conveyance path that guides the sheet, having the image formed thereon by the image forming portion, to the processing portion, and the sheet conveyance path is opened with a moving operation of the upper unit.

Image forming apparatus with movable upper unit to access a sheet conveyance path

A driving force transmitting apparatus includes a driving source, a drive pulley rotatable by a driving force supplied from the driving source, a follower pulley rotatable with a member to be rotated, and a belt member extending around a cylindrical surface of the driving pulley and a cylindrical surface of the follower pulley. In addition, an intermediate transmission member contacts the driving pulley and the follower pulley, and the intermediate transmission member has a rigidity higher than that of the belt member.

Driving force transmitting device and image forming apparatus including the same

An image forming apparatus, in which a trailing edge regulation portion is moved to a position according to a sheet contained in a cassette body to regulate a position of the sheet. A positioning lever is swingably provided to the trailing edge regulation portion to be engaged with a rack tooth row provided on the cassette body. The trailing edge regulation portion is held by the positioning lever at a regulation position according to the sheet. When a force in a sliding direction is applied to the trailing edge regulation portion, the trailing edge regulation portion is moved to be brought into pressure contact with the positioning lever, thereby regulating movement in an engagement releasing direction of the positioning lever engaged with the rack tooth row.

An image forming apparatus comprises an image forming unit for forming a toner image on a sheet, a fixing unit for fixing the toner image transferred on the sheet by heat, a cooling fan for cooling the sheet by supplying air to the sheet fixed by the fixing unit and an oscillating member. The oscillating member has a flat portion formed at the leading end side and shields the flow of air supplied by the cooling fan into the fixing unit.

Image forming and fixing apparatus with cooling fan

The image forming apparatus includes a rotatable image bearing member, a latent image forming device, a developing device, a transferring device, and a corona charging device having a discharge wire and a surrounding shield member and being arranged downstream of a developing position on the image bearing member with respect to its rotational. A density detecting member detects a density of the toner image on the image bearing member at a position downstream of a discharge position of the corona charging device with respect to the rotational direction and upstream of a transfer position. An air flow path is formed through the inside of the shield member and an air is sucked from the image bearing member side toward the shield member. Toner scattered from the developing device side and headed to the density detecting member can be reduced, and ozone near a post charging device can be removed.

The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus comprising: an image bearing member; toner image forming means for forming a plurality of toner images on the image bearing member; primary transfer means for superimposing the plurality of toner images on the image bearing member on one another in succession to primary transfer the same to a moving intermediate transfer belt in a primary transfer region; a driving source for moving the intermediate transfer belt through a driving transmitting member with respect to a driving roller which supports the intermediate transfer belt and which moves the intermediate transfer belt; a secondary transfer means for collectively secondary transferring the toner images on the intermediate transfer belt to a recording material; removing means which can abut against and separate from the intermediate transfer belt in a approaching and separating region on the intermediate transfer member and which removes toner on the intermediate transfer belt; and locus varying means which shortens a length of a moving locus from the approaching and separating region of the intermediate transfer belt to the primary transfer region while the removing means is in abutment against the intermediate transfer belt, as compared with a moving locus from the approaching and separating region of the intermediate transfer belt to the primary transfer region while the removing means is separated from the intermediate transfer belt.

Image forming apparatus performing primary image transfer from an image forming means to an intermediate transfer belt and secondary image transfer from the belt to a recording material

An image forming apparatus having an image forming portion for forming an image, a drive source for generating a driving force for driving the image forming portion, a drive gear for transmitting the driving force from the drive source, a drive shaft for transmitting the driving force to the image forming portion, a first gear and a second gear fitted to the drive shaft and meshing with the drive gear, and a biasing member engaged with the first gear and the second gear and capable of circumferentially biasing the two, wherein in a state in which the first gear and the second gear mesh with the drive gear, it is possible to change over the biasing member to a biasing state and a bias releasing state.

Image forming apparatus and driving apparatus for image forming means used in the image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a process unit detachably mountable to a main assembly of the apparatus, the process unit including an image bearing member for bearing an electrostatic image and a process unit actable on the image bearing member, the process unit having a rotational shaft; a driving shaft, substantially co-axial with the rotational shaft, for rotating the rotational shaft; and a drive transmitting member, engaged with the driving shaft and with the rotational shaft, for transmitting a driving force to the rotational shaft from the driving shaft. The drive transmitting member is engaged with the driving shaft with play and is engaged with the rotational shaft with play.

Image forming apparatus having drive transmitting member

To provide an exposing apparatus including a first fixing member which positions and fixes a vicinity of an exposing unit on a side of a photosensitive body, and a second fixing member which fixes a vicinity of an end of the exposing unit on a side opposite to a location fixed by the first fixing member for preventing the exposing unit from being inclined when positioning and fixing the exposing unit.

Exposing unit having first and second fixing members

An image forming apparatus includes an image carrying member for carrying an image, a developing unit for developing an electrostatic image on the image carrying member, and a toner storage unit for storing the toners and replenishing the toners to the developing unit. In the image forming apparatus, a residual quantity of the toners within the toner storage unit is detected, and a quantity of toners substantially replenished to the developing unit from the toner storage unit is integrated. When a deficiency of the toner residual quantity is detected during a consecutive image forming operation, there is stopped and inhibited the image forming operation when an integrated value of the replenishing toner quantity reaches a predetermined value since the deficiency of the toner residual quantity was detected.

A toner cartridge mountable to a cartridge mount of a main assembly of an image forming apparatus comprising an electrostatic latent image bearing member, and a toner container for containing toner for developing an electrostatic latent image on the image bearing member, wherein the cartridge is disposable in a mounting position, where the toner cartridge can be mounted on or dismounted from the cartridge mount, and a toner supply position, where toner can be supplied into the container from the toner cartridge. When toner is to be supplied into the container, the toner cartridge is rotated in a predetermined direction from the mounting position to the supply position, and when the toner cartridge is to be dismounted from the cartridge mount, the toner cartridge is rotated in the opposite direction. The toner cartridge includes a container body for containing the toner, and a toner discharge opening is provided in the container body for discharging toner from the container body. A shutter opens and shuts the discharge opening. A shutter support supports the shutter for movement between a closed position and an open position. A projection located at a corner portion of the support is engageable with an engaging portion of the cartridge mount, wherein when the toner cartridge is at the toner supply position, the projection is engaged with the engaging portion to prevent removal of the toner cartridge from the cartridge mount.

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Abiko, Japan

Kunihiko Kitayama