Brother Kogyo Kabushiki-kaisha

Mitsuyoshi Uehara

Eiji Yokota

Eiji Tanaka

Masaaki Tsukamoto

Hiroshi Igarashi

Tsutomu Suzuki

Fumio Morita

Naohisa Kinoshita

Hiroyuki Funahashi

Kazuhiko Takagi

Makoto Hasegawa

Hideo Yoshihara

Takanobu Hirayama

Isao Kagami

Mitsuaki Inoue

Masaru Mizuno

An image forming unit includes structure to prevent leakage of initial developer containing magnetic carrier and magnetic toner from a case. The image forming unit includes a photoconductive drum, a developing sleeve, and a trimming blade. Auxiliary sealing members are attached to the opposite ends of the trimming blade to stop up gaps between side sealing members in sliding contact with the opposite ends of the developing sleeve, and a protective sheet is removably inserted in the gap between the developing sleeve and the trimming blade. Ferromagnetic strips capable of being magnetized by the magnet roller are attached to the reverse side of the protective sheet at the opposite sides of one end of the protective sheet. The ferromagnetic strips magnetically attract the developer that is about to leak through the gaps to completely prevent leakage of the developer.

Mechanism to prevent toner leakage from an image forming unit

In separating one of a plurality of sheets stacked in a cassette from the remainder, a separation pad holder facing one side of the circumference of a sheet feed roller, which is rotatably driven, is urged in such a manner that a separation pad is brought into contact with or separation from the circumference of the sheet feed roller. Accordingly, an uppermost sheet can be pushed out in separation by friction force. When the sheet reaches a pair of sheet feed rollers, the separation pad holder can retreat with the interference of a projection formed in the separation pad holder by its own tension of the sheet across each circumference of the sheet feed collars and the pair of sheet feed rollers, thus eliminating friction generated between the separation pad and the sheet.

Sheet feeder

An image forming apparatus in which probability of sheet jamming is reduced and jammed sheet can be easily removed. The apparatus is provided with a guide plate, a movable guide plate defining a sheet feed passage therebetween, and a first sheet feed roller. A detachable sheet cassette is provided for attachment to a main body portion of the apparatus. In the sheet cassette, are provided a second sheet feed roller and a leaf spring which urges the second sheet feed roller toward the first sheet feed roller when the sheet cassette is attached to the main body portion. The sheet feed passage is opened by pivotal movement of the movable guide plate when the sheet cassette is detached from the main body portion, to thereby facilitate removal of the jamming sheet from the sheet feed passage.

Image forming apparatus having detachable sheet cassette

A sheet feeding device used for an image forming device which has a print part, such as the laser printer. A control part drives a separation roller installed under the print part and the paper supplying roller and supplies the printing paper to a resist roller individually. When a predetermined time passes afterwards, the control part drives the resist roller and transports the printing paper to the print part. In this case, a curve part enables miniaturization of the entire device as a result of being installed in a vertical part of the sheet guide.

Sheet feeding device

A paper feeding apparatus for the printer having an intermittent mechanism between a driving motor and both a paper feed roller and a platen. The intermittent mechanism allows both the platen and the paper feed roller to rotate simultaneously and also allows only the platen to rotate while the paper feed roller is suspended, so that a sheet of printing paper is set straight along the platen. When the rotational direction of the driving motor is reversed to reverse that of the platen, the driving motor stops rotating for a limited period. Under such conditions the sheet is fed properly in response to the rotation of the platen, being free from the inertia force of the sheet and from the platen's vibration.

Paper feeding apparatus for printer

Growing community of inventors

Nagoya, Japan

Mitsuyoshi Uehara