Mitsubishi Chemical America, Inc.

Other

Richard Irving Stow, Ii

Guerry Leonard Grune

Jon Peter Zogg

James Richard Crickmore

Heidi Wachter

A hopper engagement device includes a base member having an orifice releasably engaging with a toner container. The orifice is provides an interference fit with an opening of the container. The engagement device includes a sealing member on the container wherein the sealing member includes an adhesive portion configured to engage an outer surface of a lid. When the lid is opened, the sealing member is peeled off from an opening of the container. A toner refilling kit includes a hopper engagement device having an orifice and a toner hopper container having a removable sealing member having an adhesive portion. The adhesive portion engages an outer surface of a hopper cover when the container engages the hopper engagement device. A toner container includes an opening and a sealing member attached to the opening. A refill kit includes a base member having an orifice and a toner container.

Toner hopper engagement device, a toner container, and a toner refill kit

An ink replacement reservoir, refill container and refill method are provided. The replacement reservoir is reusable, and is used as an initial replacement for a previous single-use only reservoir. Once the initial replacement has been effected, subsequent replenishment of the reusable reservoir is accomplished utilizing a refill container or bottle. Since the refill container or bottle need not interface or fit within the confines of the image forming apparatus, it can be of a simple inexpensive design. To minimize the possibility of leakage or scattering of toner, the refill container preferably mates with the reusable replacement reservoir so that the refill container is opened only when mating with the reservoir and so that the refill container must be closed in order to disengage the refill container from the reservoir.

Ink reservoir, ink reservoir refill container, and ink refill process

An improved grounding plate or contact assembly is provided for a photosensitive drum of an image forming apparatus such as a printer or photocopier. The arrangement ensures contact between the grounding plate/contact assembly and a contact area disposed on an interior surface of the drum regardless of the rotational orientation of the grounding plate/contact assembly with respect to the drum. In a preferred form of the invention, the grounding plate includes a plurality of circumferentially spaced contact members and is mounted upon a flange which is inserted into the end of the drum. Since the circumferential spacing of the contact members is less than a length of a laser scribed contact area on the interior surface of the drum, contact between the laser scribed area or patch and one of the contact members is ensured despite variations in the rotational or angular position of the flange with respect to the drum. Additional advantages are provided by the arrangement of the radially outwardly extending contact members with respect to a radially inwardly projecting contact member (which contacts a grounding shaft) so that satisfactory contact is not diminished by deflection of the contact members as the flange is assembled onto a drum and a grounding shaft is inserted through the flange.

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Hampton, VA, United States of America

Richard Irving Stow, Ii