Lexmark International, Inc.

Funai Electric Company Ltd.

Lexmark Internatioanl, Inc.

Randal Scott Williamson

John Andrew Buchanan

James Richard Leemhuis

Edmund Hulin James, Iii

Virgil Johnson, Jr

Brian Scott Carpenter

Gregory Alan Cavill

Kyle Bradley Martin

Steven Robert Komplin

Johnnie A Coffey

Gary Allen Denton

David Lee Merrifield

Neal Douglas McFarland

Guion Yuvano Lucas

Matthew Lee Rogers

Adam Jude Ahne

Mark William Amann

Jason Paul Hale

John Wayne Gassett

James Paul Drummond

Jay Scott Siekmann

Gina Marie Johns

Brian M Langness

Richard Louis Goin

Martin Alan Johnson

Daniel Lee Thomas

Gregory Leon Hutchison

Lane Thomas Butler

Jonathan Andrew Wharton

Keith Bryan Hardin

Barry Baxter Stout

Jeffrey Lawrence Tonges

Kelly Ann Killeen

Bryan Christopher Scharf

Charles Stanley Aldrich

Douglas Laurence Robertson

Brian Andrew Naro

Herman Anthony Smith

Brian Anthony Reichert

Eugene David Allen

William Pohl Corbett, Jr

Michael Kelley Webb

Robert Michael Meadows

Trey Dustin Gilliam

Mark Aaron Neal

Brandon Sung-Hwan Song

Miles Edward Anderson

Sarah Marie Springer

Virgil Johnson

Edmund H James Iii

A first replaceable unit is provided for use with a second replaceable unit in an electrophotographic image forming device. The first replaceable unit includes a latch movable between a latching position for latching the first replaceable unit to the second replaceable unit and an unlatching position for permitting the first replaceable unit to separate from the second replaceable unit. The latch is positioned to contact a latch catch on the second replaceable unit in order to prevent the first replaceable unit from separating from the second replaceable unit when the first replaceable unit is mated with the second replaceable unit and the latch is in the latching position. The latch includes a cam follower surface for contacting a camming surface on the second replaceable unit during mating of the first replaceable unit with the second replaceable unit to cause the latch to move toward the latching or unlatching position.

Toner cartridge latching

A sealing assembly according to one example embodiment includes a housing and an imaging component positioned on the housing. A seal has opposed first and second edges extending along a longitudinal dimension of the seal. A lateral dimension of the seal is perpendicular to the longitudinal dimension and extends in a direction from the first edge to the second edge. The seal is attached to the housing along the first edge and contacts the imaging component along the second edge. Upon attachment to the housing, the seal is elastically deformed from an unassembled state in which the second edge has a first profile that varies in the lateral dimension along the longitudinal dimension to an assembled state in which the second edge is deformed relative to the first profile to a second profile having less variation in the lateral dimension along the longitudinal dimension than the first profile.

Sealing assembly for an electrophotographic image forming device

A toner container includes a housing having a toner reservoir. An input gear is positioned on the housing for mating with a corresponding output gear in an image forming device when the toner container is installed in the image forming device. A toner agitator is movably positioned in the reservoir. The toner agitator is operatively connected to the input gear such that rotation of the input gear in a first rotational direction causes movement of the toner agitator for agitating toner in the reservoir. An encoded member is encoded with authentication information of the toner container and is operatively connected to the input gear such that rotation of the input gear in a second rotational direction causes movement of the encoded member for communicating the authentication information of the toner container to a controller of the image forming device when the toner container is installed in the image forming device.

Toner container having a common input gear for a toner agitator assembly and an encoded member

A toner cartridge according to one embodiment includes a body having a reservoir for storing toner and a rotatable developer roll mounted on the body and in fluid communication with the reservoir. A portion of an outer surface of the developer roll is exposed along a front of the body for supplying toner from the reservoir to a corresponding photoconductive drum on an imaging unit when the toner cartridge is installed on the imaging unit in an operative position of the toner cartridge relative to the imaging unit. A first engagement member positioned on a rear of the body is configured to engage a corresponding second engagement member on the imaging unit when the toner cartridge is installed on the imaging unit to retain the toner cartridge in a storage position of the toner cartridge relative to the imaging unit with the developer roll spaced away from the photoconductive drum.

Replaceable units of an electrophotographic image forming device having a shipping or storage separator

A replaceable unit is removably installable in an image forming device. The replaceable unit includes a rotatable input gear that is positioned to mate with an output gear of the image forming device. The replaceable unit includes an encoded member that is encoded with identifying information of the replaceable unit and that is operatively connected to the input gear such that rotation of the input gear causes movement of the encoded member. The replaceable unit includes an alignment guide on the exterior of the replaceable unit. The image forming device includes a sensor supported by a sensor housing. The alignment guide is positioned to contact and move the sensor housing during insertion of the replaceable unit into the image forming device to align the sensor with an exposed portion of the encoded member for reading the identifying information from the encoded member by the sensor.

Sensor positioning by a replaceable unit of an image forming device

A toner container includes an encoded member that is encoded with identifying information of the toner container and that is operatively connected to an input gear of the toner container such that rotation of the input gear causes movement of the encoded member for communicating the identifying information to a sensor. A first alignment guide on the first side of the toner container includes a top surface that is unobstructed to contact a sensor housing from below when the toner container is installed in an image forming device. At least a portion of the top surface of the first alignment guide inclines upward and rearward for contacting and lifting the sensor housing upward during insertion of the toner container into the image forming device for aligning the sensor with an exposed portion of the encoded member.

Toner container having an encoded member and an alignment guide for locating a sensor relative to the encoded member

Toner cartridge

A replaceable unit for an electrophotographic image forming device includes a housing having a reservoir for holding toner. An electrical connector is positioned on a first side of the housing. The electrical connector includes an electrical contact for contacting a corresponding electrical contact in the image forming device and a magnetic sensor electrically connected to the electrical contact. The electrical connector is movable between a first position and a second position. When the electrical connector moves from the first position to the second position, the electrical contact of the replaceable unit moves from a retracted position to an operative position. When the electrical connector moves from the first position to the second position, the magnetic sensor moves from a misaligned position to an aligned position with a point in a path of movement of a magnet for sensing a magnetic field of the magnet.

Replaceable unit for an electrophotographic image forming device having a magnetic sensor

A component separator system for use with an electrophotographic image forming device according to one example embodiment includes a first replaceable unit and a second replaceable unit for use in the image forming device. The second replaceable unit is manually separable from the first replaceable unit. The first replaceable unit is mateable with the second replaceable unit in an operative position of the first replaceable unit relative to the second replaceable unit with a first imaging component of the first replaceable unit in operative contact with a second imaging component of the second replaceable unit. Engagement of a first engagement member of the first replaceable unit with a second engagement member of the second replaceable unit retains the first replaceable unit in a storage position relative to the second replaceable unit with the first imaging component spaced away from the second imaging component.

Shipping or storage separator for replaceable units of an electrophotographic image forming device

Growing community of inventors

Georgetown, KY, United States of America

Randal Scott Williamson