Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Masamichi Ikeda

Toshirou Kasamura

Toshihiko Kusumoto

Masashi Ohashi

Nobukazu Sasaki

Naoki Okuda

Yasunori Maeda

Akiyoshi Kimura

Minoru Nada

Takashi Ozawa

Ken Tanabe

Yoshikuni Toyama

Katsumi Munenaka

Masafumi Takagi

Yasuhide Hishikawa

In an image forming apparatus, while an engaging pawl of a driving unit for driving a cleaner for cleaning a charger performs one reciprocating movement along the charger, an engaging projection of the cleaner engages the engaging pawl. Hence, when the charger is remounted after first detaching it from the image forming apparatus, engagement between the cleaner and the driving unit can be securely performed. As a result, cleaning of the charger can be securely performed after mounting the charger on the image forming apparatus.

Image forming apparatus including cleaning means for cleaning charging

An image forming apparatus in which a developing device for developing a latent image is exchangeable includes an opening for permitting mounting and dismounting of the developing device relative to a main assembly of the image forming apparatus, a path along which the developing device is movable between the opening and a predetermined position in the main assembly, a movable door for opening and closing the opening, and a device for mechanically coupling the door and developing device to move the developing device along the path in association with opening and closing action of the door.

Image forming apparatus having exchangeable developing device

An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member, image forming station for forming a latent image on the image bearing member, a conveying passage extending toward the image bearing member to guide a developing device, a first moving mechanism for engaging with the developing device in the conveying passage and moving it in a substantially horizontal plane, wherein the image bearing member, the latent image forming station, the conveying passage and the first moving mechanism are provided in a main body of the image forming apparatus, a device for accommodating a plurality of developing devices. The accommodating device is mounted to the main body, the accommodating device includes, a second moving mechanism for moving the developing device opposed to the conveying passage into the conveying passage in a substantially horizontal plane and an accommodating case having partition stages arranged substantially vertically for accommodating plural developing devices and movable together with the developing devices accommodated therein, and a driver for transmitting a driving force selectively to the first driving mechanism, the second driving mechanism and the accommodating case.

Developing device accommodating apparatus and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes accommodating assembly for accommodating a plurality of developing devices on stages arranged substantially vertically and having first driving mechanism for moving the developing devices in a substantially horizontal plane, an image formation assembly for receiving selected one of the developing devices moved out of the accommodating assembly and for further moving it in a substantially horizontal plane, the image formation assembly including systems for forming images using the developing device, the accommodating assembly further including an opening for allowing a the developing device to be loaded into the accommodating assembly.

An image forming apparatus wherein a latent image is formed on an image bearing member, corresponding to the image information to be recorded by the charging and exposure steps effected to the image bearing member. The latent image is developed, and the developed image is transferred onto a transfer material. The developing device is movable between its operative position where it is capable of developing the latent image on the image bearing member and its inoperative position where the developing device is retracted from the operative position. A control device is provided to effect the movement of the developing device between the operative position and the inoperative position at other than the image exposure step or not during the transfer step.

Image forming apparatus with movable developing device

Growing community of inventors

Yokohama, Japan

Masamichi Ikeda