Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Ando Electric Company

Masaru Yamagishi

Kenji Ishii

Takayuki Nishimura

Koichi Kudo

Yasufumi Takahashi

Hidehiko Fujiwara

Hiroaki Takagi

Yasuo Niikura

Takahisa Koike

Takeshi Akai

Takashi Fukumoto

Katsuya Kawagoe

Toshihiro Shimada

Hideyuki Takayama

Junya Takigawa

Minoru Takahashi

Tadashi Matsuoka

Katsuhiko Miki

Hideaki Matsui

Nobuo Inoue

Masahiro Ashikawa

Yuichi Hirose

Satoru Takano

Hikaru Fukasawa

Satoshi Aizawa

Tatsuya Watahiki

Yousuke Edo

Atsunori Yoshida

Ryo Kanno

Yasunori Hino

Yasuharu Gaman

Kouki Sakamoto

Nobuyuki Shimodaira

Takashi Koshinuma

Hiroshi Komuro

Takuhei Minami

Takuro Kamiyai

A stacking apparatus includes a conveyance unit, a stacking unit, and a separation member supply unit. The conveyance unit conveys sheets for circuit board. The stacking unit stacks the sheets. The separation member supply unit supplies a separation member to separate the stacked sheets at any position. The separation member supply unit places the separation member on the sheet in being conveyed.

Stacking apparatus

A disclosed to-be-transferred object length measurement device includes a first rotating body; a passage detection unit detecting a passage of the to-be-transferred object; a rotation amount measurement unit measuring a rotation amount of the first rotating body in a first measurement period; a second rotating body feeding the to-be-transferred object; a speed detection unit detecting a first feeding speed and a second feeding speed of the to-be-transferred object; and a calculation unit calculating a feeding distance of the to-be-transferred object per a predetermined rotation amount of the first rotating body based on the first feeding speed, and further calculating a length of the to-be-transferred object based on the rotation amount of the first rotating body in the first measurement period, the feeding distance, and the second feeding speed of the to-be-transferred object in the second measurement period.

To-be-transferred object length measurement device and image forming apparatus and computer-readable storage medium

A first engaging member makes a first engagement with a first locking member to lock an edge guiding unit. A second engaging member makes a second engagement with a second locking member to lock the edge guiding unit. The first locking member is movable to a first retract position and a second retract position. When the first locking member moves to the first retract position, the second engagement is released in conjunction with a release of the first engagement, and when the first locking member moves to the second retract position, the first engagement is released while maintaining the second engagement.

Recording-medium storage device and image forming apparatus

A starting unit starts, in parallel with a blowing operation for a first tray, a blowing operation for a second tray that is to perform a feeding operation next. When a predetermined time elapses after starting the blowing operation for the second tray, a feeding unit switches from the first tray to the second tray, and feeds the recording medium from the second tray. When the blowing operation is performed for a number of trays before switching the trays and the number of trays is equal to or larger than a predetermined number, a control unit limits the number of trays for performing the blowing operation.

Feeding method, feeding device, and image forming system

A device for measuring intensity of a transmitted light, includes a first measuring unit that measures a first intensity of a light transmitted through a medium on a conveying path in its thickness direction and outputs a first measured value; a second measuring unit that is arranged adjacent to the first measuring unit, measures a second intensity of the light transmitted through the medium in the thickness direction, and outputs a second measured value; and an operating unit that obtains a true measured value from the first measured value and the second measured value.

Transmitted-light-intensity measuring device, medium identifying device, medium conveying device, and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a sheet size detection device including a sheet width direction regulating member, a sheet conveyance direction regulating member, two levers, a detection sensor, and a pattern supplementing device. The levers each have a concavo-convex pattern and interlock with the regulating members, respectively, and are superimposed to have the same center of rotation and the same locus formed by a leading end of the concavo-convex pattern. The concavo-convex pattern of at least one of the levers is shaped to prevent, in a detection pattern, erroneous detection attributed to positional displacement of the concavo-convex pattern. The detection sensor including push switches detects the sheet size according to a combined concavo-convex pattern formed by the superimposed levers. The pattern supplementing device supplements the concavo-convex pattern of the at least one lever to prevent, in another detection pattern, erroneous detection attributed to the shaping of the concavo-convex pattern.

Image forming apparatus, sheet size detection device, and sheet size detection method

A tray unit can accommodate a stack of recording mediums. A side fence performs alignment of the stack of the recording mediums in one direction and an end fence performs alignment in another direction. A first lever has a first corrugated portion and it pivots with the tray unit according to sliding motion of the side fence. A second lever has a second corrugated portion and it pivots with the tray unit according to sliding motion of the end fence. A sensor is provided integrally with the tray unit and has portions that are selectively pressed by a composite corrugated portion formed of the first corrugated portion and the second corrugated portion.

Paper feed tray, paper feeding apparatus, and image forming apparatus including paper aligning units

A medium discrimination device includes a transmitted light quantity measurement device arranged to measure a transmitted light quantity in a thickness direction of a printing medium on a conveyance route, and configured to perform a measurement of the transmitted light quantity at each time the printing medium is conveyed, a measurement value memory device storing a result of the measurement performed by the transmitted light quantity measurement device, a medium setting device configured to previously set a type of printing medium to be used, a medium information memory device storing information of a transmitted light quantity assigned to each printing medium to be set by the medium setting device, and a control processing unit configured to perform paper type detection on a first printing medium, and double feed detection on following printing mediums.

Medium discrimination device, image forming apparatus, and program having simplified mechanism

A double-sided image forming device comprises a double-side operation unit. The double-side operation unit includes a sheet reversing unit including a switchback conveying path for reversing a front side and a back side of a sheet conveyed from an image forming unit, and a reconveying path for reconveying the sheet to the image forming unit so as to form an image on the back side. The switchback conveying path has a length smaller than a length of a conveyable maximum-size sheet. The double-side operation unit can slide from/toward a body of the double-sided image forming device in a direction perpendicular to a direction of conveying the sheet. A rear end guide is further provided in the switchback conveying path so as to guide a rear end of a large-size sheet.

Double-sided image forming device having a turnable guide guiding a rear end of a large-size sheet

A sheet reversing and discharging device of the present invention conveys each of a tab sheet and an ordinary sheet in a particular manner. Before a tab sheet enters a reversal tray, a drive roller is driven in the reverse direction while a driven roller is lowered into contact with the drive roller beforehand. The drive roller and driven roller pull in the tab sheet in the direction of conveyance until the tab of the tab sheet moves away from the tip of a path selector. The drive roller and driven roller surely convey the tab sheet to the reversal tray after the tab has moved away from the above tip. Whether or not the tab has moved away from the tip is determined on the basis of a period of time elapsed since a sheet sensor adjoining the inlet of the device has sensed the trailing edge of the tab sheet.

Sheet reversing and discharging device and image forming apparatus using the same

A sheet conveying device includes conveying means respectively located at an upstream side and a downstream side on a sheet conveyance path. First drive means rotates the upstream conveying means at a constant speed while second drive means rotates the downstream conveying means at a variable speed. When the second drive means accelerates the rotation of the downstream conveying means, speed adjusting means causes the conveying speed of the upstream conveying means to reflect the acceleration. The sheet conveying device insures smooth, reliable conveyance even when a sheet extends over both of the upstream and downstream conveying means.

Sheet conveying device and image forming apparatus including the same

A duplex recording method for an image forming apparatus stores page-by-page image data in a storage in the order of page and records, among the image data, two consecutive pages of image data on the front and rear of a recording medium, respectively. At this instant, the method records the image data on the rear of the recording medium carrying an image on the front and a new recording medium alternately by using an interleaf control system. Assume that images are continuously recorded on the fronts of n consecutive recording media at the initial stage of printing. Then, the method continuously records images on the fronts of n&plus;1 consecutive recording media at the final stage of printing. An apparatus for practicing the method is also disclosed.

Duplex image recording method and apparatus with interleaf control

A sheet guide device to guide a sheet being conveyed in a sheet conveying path of the device includes a device to adjust widthwise sheet positioning by regulating side edges of the sheet. The adjusting device is provided in a curved part of the sheet conveying path. The sheet guide device further includes a sheet conveying roller to convey the sheet. The adjusting device is positioned on a shaft of the sheet conveying roller and is slidable along the shaft. The sheet conveying roller reverses a conveying direction of the sheet. The adjusting device unitarily includes a guide member to guide the side edges of the sheet.

Sheet guide device with sheet position adjusting mechanism and image forming apparatus using the same device

A tester detects an abnormality in a quiescent power supply current of a device under test. In the tester, a programmable voltage generation source controls a power supply unit, providing a device under test with power. A test pattern generator applies test patterns repeatedly to the device under test. Power supply current to the device under test is converted into voltage values by a detection resistor. A spectrum analyzer unit finds a differential between voltage values occurring between opposite ends of the detection resistor, and voltage values proportional to power supply current values of a device known to perform properly, as measured beforehand. The spectrum analyzer ouputs a power of a fundamental wave of a frequency spectrum obtained by applying the EFT method to the differential. The decision unit prestores spectrum reference values Po as the maximum values for power of the fundamental wave, giving a decision that the quiescent power supply current is abnormal if the power is in excess of the spectrum reference value. The decision is sent out to a CPU, and displayed on a display unit.

Tester for detecting an abnormal quiescent power supply current in a device under test

A miniature duplex sheet feeding device for an image forming apparatus is disclosed. A duplex unit is positioned above an ordinary sheet feed tray loaded with a stack of sheets. The duplex unit has an intermediate tray for stacking sheets each carrying an image on one side thereof, and a bottom plate movable back and forth in an intended direction of sheet refeed. The sheet feed tray and duplex unit share a single sheet pay-out means. The bottom plate includes separators for retaining the leading edge of the sheet stack and allowing the stack to be bodily shifted to a preselected refeed position.

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Kanagawa, Japan

Masaru Yamagishi