Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Makoto Ohsaki

Yasunori Kawaishi

Jun Okamoto

Hiroyuki Fushimi

Takashi Bisaiji

Takeyoshi Sekine

Hiroshi Yamasita

Kouta Fujimdri

Nobuo Kasahara

Takeshi Shintani

Masahide Yamashita

Kazunori Bannai

Noriyuki Kimura

Yoshihiro Sakai

Jun Aoto

Kazushige Taguchi

Yasuo Hirano

Hideya Furuta

Mitsuru Seto

Mitsuru Mamizuka

Kenichi Mizuma

Tatsuo Hirono

Shigeru Fukuda

Shinju Nagatsuna

The current methods and systems for cleaning residual ultra-fine spherical toner from an image forming surface discloses the application of aspherical toner to a cleaning blade. The aspherical toner is generally larger than the ultra-fine spherical toner which provides a superior image on an image-carrying medium. According to one preferred embodiment of the current invention, the aspherical black toner is placed in a predetermined area outside of a desired image area where the ultra-fine spherical toner in multiple colors is placed. The aspherical toner is transported to the cleaning blade before the multi-color toner reaches the cleaning blade. Since the aspherical toner applied at a contacting edge of the cleaning blade provide an effective seal or trap between the cleaning blade and the image forming surface, the ultra-fine spherical toner is effectively removed from the image forming surface.

Methods and systems for cleaning residual toner from image developing

In an image forming apparatus of the type transferring a plurality of toner images of different colors sequentially formed on an image carrier sequentially to an endless intermediate transfer body one above the other by primary transfer, and then transferring the resulting composite color image to a transfer medium by secondary transfer, the intermediate transfer body is provided with surface energy, surface tension or adhering force which is greater than or equal to the corresponding value of the image carrier, but smaller than or equal to the corresponding value of the transfer medium.

Image forming apparatus

Methods and systems for cleaning residual toner from image-developing

An image forming apparatus which insures stable image transfer at all times with no regard to aging and environment. An electrometer is located in close proximity to and opposite to a transfer region where an image carrier and a transfer medium face each other. A voltage to be applied to an electrode which applies a transfe voltage to the transfer medium is controlled in response to the output of the electrometer such that the electric field in the transfer region remains constant.

Image forming apparatus with transfer medium and electrometer positioned

An image forming apparatus has a plurality of developing containers for developing an electrostatic latent image of a latent image carrier by toners having colors different from each other except for black; a black developing container for color for storing black toner for color and operated when the developed image on the latent image carrier every color is overlapped and transferred onto a transfer material to provide a color image; a black developing container for a monochromatic image for storing black toner for a monochromatic image and operated when the monochromatic image is obtained; and a device for arranging the respective developing containers such that the developing containers are opposite to the latent image carrier. The other image forming apparatuses are also shown.

Image forming apparatus having a separate black developer stored for a

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Yokohama, Japan

Makoto Ohsaki