Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Sadayuki Iwai

Hideki Kosugi

Makoto Obu

Yusuke Takeda

Katsuaki Miyawaki

Shuji Hirai

Takeshi Iijima

Tsuneo Kurotori

Toshio Inada

Takeo Tsukamoto

Yoshinori Hayashi

Tomoko Takahashi

Naoki Miyatake

Naoto Shiraishi

Hisao Shirasawa

Kazunari Tonami

Tohru Nakano

Yuichiro Kanoshima

Ayako Iino

Kozoh Sudoh

Yoshinori Nakagawa

Hajime Oyama

Yukimichi Someya

Hiroshi Koide

Naomi Sugimoto

Mitsuru Takahashi

Katsuhiro Echigo

Katsuhiro Aoki

Yuki Oshikawa

Noriyasu Takeuchi

Yuuji Sawai

Seiichi Miyakawa

Mie Yoshino

Eiichi Ohta

Mugijirou Uno

Kunio Hibi

Takashi Kawashima

Misao Tanzawa

Masakazu Muranaka

Itsuo Ikeda

Masako Yoshii

Tsumori Satoh

Junroh Uda

Youichi Ueda

Hidenori Kanno

Katsufumi Kumano

An image output apparatus includes a receiving unit that receives first information from a first radio contact element that performs a close-range radio contact; an image processing unit that forms image data of an image to be output from the first information; and an image output unit that outputs the image to an output medium from the image data.

Image output apparatus using close range radio contact wherein radio contact element is attached to document on which an image is recorded

An image forming apparatus includes an image carrying member, a development unit, a first driving unit, a second driving unit, and a cleaning blade. The image carrying member forms a latent image thereon. The development unit develops the latent image formed on the image carrying member. The first driving unit drives the image carrying member. The second driving unit drives the development unit. The cleaning blade, contactable against the image carrying member, removes materials including toner remaining on the image carrying member. When an agent-empty development unit is filled with a developing agent, the second driving unit is activated to start a driving of the development unit, and the first driving unit is activated to start a driving of the image carrying member after starting a developing agent filling operation to the development unit.

Image forming apparatus and method of activating the apparatus during filling with developing agent

A charging device including an electron discharging device for forming a latent electrostatic image on an image bearing member and containing an spbonding material and an electroconductive portion.

Charging device, and process cartridge and image forming apparatus using the same

An image forming apparatus includes a plurality of toner-image forming units. Each toner-image forming unit includes a photosensitive drum and a charging unit that is arranged to abut against or remain detached from the photosensitive drum, and that electrically charges the photosensitive drum. Each of the toner-image forming units forms an image of a different color. At least one of the charging units functions as a corona charging unit and at least another one of the charging units functions as a non-contact charging unit.

Image forming unit, process cartridge, and image forming apparatus

An image forming method and apparatus is disclosed. The method may include charging a rotating latent image bearing member with a rotating charger selected from at least one of contact chargers and short range chargers; irradiating the rotating latent image bearing member with imagewise light to form an electrostatic latent image on the latent image bearing member; developing the electrostatic latent image with a developer including a toner having a charge to form a toner image on the latent image bearing member; transferring the toner image onto a receiving material; and forming an electric field between the charger and the latent image bearing member after the toner image transferring such that charged materials present on the surface of the charger fly toward the latent image bearing member.

Image forming method and image forming apparatus

A method of arranging a plurality of image forming sections, each of which includes a developing device and a cleaning device. The method includes arranging the plurality of image forming sections side by side along an inclined image carrier; and positioning the cleaning device above the developing device of other image forming sections in one of nearby ones of the plurality of image forming sections.

Method for arranging image forming sections

A tandem image forming device for an image forming apparatus of the present invention includes a plurality of image forming means arranged side by side along an intermediate image transfer belt. The image forming means each include a developing device and a cleaning device arranged around an image carrier. One of nearby image forming means has its cleaning device positioned above the developing device of the other image forming means, e.g., an agitating section forming part of the image forming means. This configuration insures smooth circulation of a developer and therefore obviates an irregular developer distribution while reducing the overall size of the image forming device.

Image forming apparatus including a transfer belt having image forming units disposed thereabout

Tandem image forming device having a side-by-side arrangement of image forming sections

A charge removing unit is provided in order to control the surface potential of an image bearing element by removing charge from a surface of the image bearing element before a toner image is transferred from the image bearing element to a transfer medium. Surface potential controlling units are provided upstream of a contact area between the image bearing element and the transfer medium in order to control the surface potential of the transfer medium so that a toner on the image bearing element does not shift to the transfer medium.

Method of image transfer, method of and apparatus for image forming

A toner image transfer method for transferring a toner image formed on a latent image carrier onto a transfer image carrier. A reference running speed of the latent image carrier VA and a reference running speed of the transfer image carrier VB are set substantially as VA=VB=V. A relative speed &#x394;V between the latent image carrier and the transfer image carrier is changed in vibration at a high speed to positive and negative sides around the reference running speed V, thereby to carry out an image transfer.

Toner image transfer method, toner image transfer device and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus of the present invention includes an image carrier on which a toner image is to be formed, and a sheet support member for conveying a sheet, carrying the toner image thereon, in cooperation with the image carrier. The image carrier and sheet support member are driven such that their surfaces move in the same direction, as seen at a contact position where the two surfaces face each other via the sheet. An electric field, forcing the toner image toward the image carrier, and an electric field, forcing it toward the sheet, are formed between the surface of the image carrier and that of the sheet at positions upstream and downstream, respectively, of the contact position in the direction of movement of the sheet.

Image forming apparatus for reducing toner scatter

A potential difference between a surface potential of a photo sensor and a surface potential of an intermediate transfer belt is set such that a discharging occurs at an image section and no discharging occurs at a non-image section. Once a discharging has occurred at the non-image section on the photo sensor, the potential of the non-image section of the photo sensor is attenuated. Further, the polarity of the toner that slightly remains on the photo sensor at a developing time is inverted by the discharging.

Image formation method for amplifying differences in potential for image and non-image sections of photo sensor

An image formation device for forming an image on an image supporting member by an image formation unit. The device includes first and second transfer units that transfer an image formed on the same image supporting member to a recording medium having front and back sides, and an inverting unit that inverts the front and back sides of the recording medium by an inverting path while conveying the recording medium from the first transfer unit to the second transfer unit. The inverting unit includes a branched nail and conveyance rollers.

Dual sided image printing device and method

An image forming apparatus of the present invention includes at least one rotatable image carrier, an image forming device for forming different images on the image carriers, a first image transferring device for transferring the images from the image carriers to a first image transfer body driven to move via a first image transfer position where it faces the image carriers, and a second image transferring device for transferring the resulting composite image from the first image transfer body to a second image transfer body driven to move via a second image transfer position where it faces the first image transfer body. The moving speed of each image carrier is equal to the moving speed of the second image transfer body. A period of time necessary for the surface of the first image transfer body to move from the first image transfer position to the second image transfer position is a natural number multiple of the period of speed variation occurring on the above surface.

Image forming apparatus with an intermediate image transfer body and provisions for correcting image transfer distortions

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Sadayuki Iwai