Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Sony Group Corporation

Naoki Iwata

Koji Suzuki

Yuichi Ueno

Shigekazu Enoki

Kunihiko Tomita

Hisao Murayama

Hiroshi Takashima

Shigeru Watanabe

Hiroshi Yokoyama

Hideaki Mochimaru

Yasukuni Omata

Norimasa Sohmiya

Chiemi Kaneko

Junko Tomita

Akira Sawada

Ichiro Komuro

Takatsugu Fujishiro

Katsuhiro Aoki

Tomotoshi Nakahara

Kazuhiro Nishido

Shigeki Sawa

Masami Tomita

Takeshi Saito

Hiromasa Takagi

Kenji Yokoyama

Hidetoshi Yano

Shinichi Kuramoto

Hiromitsu Takagaki

Jun Aoto

Seiji Muramatsu

Hiroaki Adachi

Yasuo Hirano

Kazuo Nojima

Toshiyuki Kimura

Motoi Orihara

Tomoe Hagiwara

Nobuhiro Shima

Kohichi Katoh

Kazuki Kozuma

Further improvement in usability is promoted. An information processing device () includes a control unit () that executes processing of displaying an operation area having a predetermined shape in an edge area of a display screen, and moving the operation area to a center area of the display screen by a first operation set in advance as a predetermined operation on the operation area.

Information processing device, information processing method, and information processing program

An energy-saving fixing apparatus for use in image formation apparatuses such as a copying machine is disclosed. A recording medium is sandwiched by a pair of belts, having belt tension between 0.001 and 5.4N/mm, for a period between 50 and 1000 ms. The recording medium is pressurized at pressure between 0.007 and 2.7 Ns/mm by a nip constituted by a heating roller and a pressurizing roller. The recording medium is conveyed with its toner image carrying side being adhered to one of the belts without being cooled.

Fixing method, a fixing apparatus, an image formation method, and an image formation apparatus

An image fixing apparatus having a linear heating body with an endless belt entrained around thereon, using an electrical power supply to provide pulsating power to the linear heating body. Additionally, a pressure body interposes the subject to be fixed containing an image on the endless belt, and the image is heated by the linear heating body through the endless belt. The subject is thereafter cooled and removed from the endless belt. The image is formed by using a toner containing a binder which contains a resin as a main component. Either the softening point or the melting point of the toner is between 50&#xb0; C. to 160&#xb0; C., and the viscosity of the toner is between 10 to 10centi-poise at a temperature greater than either the softening point or the melting point of the toner.

Image fixing apparatus using pulsating power for heating

A fixing device includes a pressure belt that holds a recording medium by electrostatic force and carries the recording medium. The recording medium has a toner image on a surface that is not in contact with the endless pressure belt. A fixing belt fixes the toner image on the recording medium that is held by the pressure belt.

Fixing device and image forming apparatus for holding a recording medium by electrostatic force

An oilless toner including at least (A) a cyclic olefin resin; (B) a resin having one or more carbon-carbon double bonds therein; and (C) a wax.

Oilless toner

An image forming method begins with a first image transfer step for thermally transferring a first toner image from a first image carrier to a second image carrier contacting it. Subsequently, in a second image transfer step, the first toner image carried on the second image carrier and a second toner image newly formed on the first image carrier are thermally transferred to opposite sides of a recording medium substantially at the same time. Higher image transfer temperature is assigned to the second image transfer step than to the first image transfer step. An impurity collecting device is associated with a pair of registration rollers which stop the recording medium for a moment to thereby synchronize the recording medium to the toner image.

Image forming apparatus and an impurity collecting device associated with registration rollers

An image transferring device of the present invention includes a first and a second intermediate image transfer body whose surfaces endlessly move while forming a nip in contact with each other. When a sheet nipped by the nip is being conveyed toward a side downstream of the nip in the direction in which the above surfaces move, a first toner image transferred from an image carrier to the second intermediate image transfer body via the first intermediate image transfer body beforehand is transferred to one side of the sheet. At the same time, a second toner image transferred from the image carrier to the first image transfer body beforehand is transferred to the other side of the sheet. One of the two intermediate image transfer bodies is less deformable than the other intermediate image transfer body in the direction of thickness.

Method, system and apparatus for transferring toner images to both sides of a recording medium

An image forming method of the present invention begins with a first image transfer step for thermally transferring a first toner image from a first image carrier to a second image carrier contacting it. Subsequently, in a second image transfer step, the first toner image carried on the second image carrier and a second toner image newly formed on the first image carrier are thermally transferred to opposite sides of a recording medium substantially at the same time. Higher image transfer temperature is assigned to the second image transfer step than to the first image transfer step. Additionally, the second image carrier has a greater roughness than the first image carrier.

Image forming method having transfer temperature difference and apparatus for the same

An image forming apparatus of the present invention includes a first and a second intermediate image transfer belt contacting each other to form a nip for secondary image transfer. While the nip is heated, a sheet is passed through the nip to thereby transfer toner images respectively formed on the first and second belts to opposite surfaces of the sheet at the same time. The nip is sized such that image transfer and fixation can be effected at temperature higher than the melting point or the softening point of toner by 5&#xb0; C. to 50&#xb0; C.

Image forming apparatus configured for double sided printing

A developing device having a plurality of sleeves is provided for high-speed development and the prevention of an abnormal image, for example, thinning of a line image. An AC bias is effectively applied, so that the base contamination is suppressed to obtain a smooth image without obvious grains. Among the plural sleeves, a bias towards the photoreceptor side is applied to an upstream-side sleeve, and a bias in the reverse direction is applied to a downstream-side sleeve. Alternatively, an AC bias with a low frequency is applied to the upstream-side sleeve and an AC bias with a high frequency is applied to the downstream-side sleeve. In addition, an AC bias with a large amplitude is applied to the upstream-side sleeve, and an AC bias with a small amplitude is applied to the downstream-side sleeve.

Developing device having plurality of biased magnetic sleeves

A multicolor image forming method in which a plurality of latent images are sequentially formed and developed on an image carrier on top of each other on the image carrier. The second and any successive color toners are developed in a non-contact manner. A developed image on a photoconductive element is prevented from being contaminated by subsequent developing stages and toner on the photoconductive element is prevented from contaminating the developer in the subsequent developing stages by reducing the amount of toner which improperly flies between the photoconductive element and the developing stages. Such a prevention of the flight of toner can be accomplished by keeping the potential of the toner on the photoconductive element within a predetermined threshold of the voltage of the toner in the subsequent developing stages. Also, properties of the various toners can reduce the improper flight of the toner such as by controlling the relative amounts of hydrophobic SiO.sub.2 within the toners, controlling the average volume particle size of the toners, controlling the average volume particle size and the average number particle size, and controlling the voltage difference between the toner on the photoconductive element and the toner in the subsequent developing stage(s).

Multicolor image forming method preventing contamination of toner on an

A developing apparatus forms multiple toner layer and stably obtains predetermined toner charging amount and toner layer thickness, and further uniformly supplies the toner onto the toner carrying roller along its entire length. In the developing apparatus, a brush-like toner supplying roller having brush fibers and a second toner supplying roller are disposed at a predetermined interval and respectively brought into contact with a developing roller. The brush-like roller is first brought into contact with the developing roller after passing through the developing area on a photosensitive body opposing thereto, and the brush-like roller rotates in an inverse rotational direction to that of the developing roller at the contact position. The second roller is brought into contact with the developing roller after passing through the contact position with the brush-like roller, and rotates in a same rotational direction as that of the developing roller at the contact position.

Developing apparatus

In an image forming apparatus, a developing device includes an upper and a lower feed roller intervening between a developing roller and a toner hopper and contacting the developing roller. The upper and lower feed rollers feed toner to the developing roller. The two rollers rotate in opposite directions to each other in order to move the toner existing therebetween from the hopper side to the developing roller side. The device is capable of forming a laminate developer layer of uniform charge and uniform thickness on the developer carrier, and eliminating the need for a seal member between a casing and the developer carrier or simplifying its configuration.

Developing device for an image forming apparatus

A method of developing latent electrostatic images and a developer-bearing member for use in the method are disclosed, which method includes the steps of (a) forming numerous micro closed electric fields near the surface of a rotatable developer-bearing member which comprises an electroconductive support and a surface layer formed thereon comprising an electroconductive organic polymeric matrix and numerous minute charge-retainable insulating segments distributed at least one the surface of the surface layer, by electrically charging the surface of the charge-retainable insulating segments; (b) supplying a one-component type developer comprising toner particles to the rotatable developer-bearing member to hold the developer on the rotatable developer-bearing member to hold the developer on the rotatable developer-bearing member by the numerous micro closed electric fields; and (c) bringing the rotatable developer-bearing member near or into contact with a latent-electrostatic-image-bearing member which bears a latent electrostatic image to develop the latent electrostatic image with the one-component developer to a visible toner image.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Naoki Iwata