Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Satoshi Tsuruya

Takayuki Tanaka

Yoshikuni Ito

Yasuhiro Horiguchi

Katsuhiro Sakaizawa

Takeshi Fujino

Kenji Karashima

Jun Suzuki

Shinichi Nishida

Masahiro Shibata

Masaru Shimura

Seiichi Shinohara

Osamu Iwasaki

Takehiko Suzuki

Kazunari Hagiwara

Takahiro Kawamoto

Shinichi Tsukida

Norihisa Hoshika

An image forming apparatus sequentially transfers toner images formed on a plurality of photosensitive drums onto an intermediate transfer member or a transfer material to form an image. The image forming apparatus includes an intermediate transfer belt provided with electrical conductivity, and a power supply for applying a voltage to a secondary transfer roller to pass a current from the secondary transfer roller to the plurality of photosensitive drums via the intermediate transfer belt, thus primarily transferring the toner images from the plurality of photosensitive drums onto the intermediate transfer belt.

Image forming apparatus having a power supply common to primary transfer and secondary transfer

The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus that forms an image by consecutively superposing toner images that have been formed on a plurality of photosensitive drums, on an intermediate transfer member or a transfer medium. The image forming apparatus is made compact and operates at a low cost. Since a current supply member supplies a current in a rotational direction of an intermediate transfer belt, multiple first transfer portions do not need corresponding voltage sources. Even in the case where a charging member supplies a current, the potential of the intermediate transfer belt is maintained at a predetermined potential by a constant-voltage element connected to support rollers.

Image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus sequentially transfers toner images formed on a plurality of photosensitive drums onto an intermediate transfer member or a transfer material to form an image. The image forming apparatus includes an intermediate transfer belt provided with electrical conductivity, and a power supply for applying a voltage to a current supply member contacting the outer circumferential surface of the intermediate transfer belt to pass a current from the current supply member to the plurality of photosensitive drums via the intermediate transfer belt, thus primarily transferring the toner images from the plurality of photosensitive drums onto the intermediate transfer belt.

Image forming apparatus configured to perform a primary transfer of a toner image from a plurality of image bearing members to an intermediate transfer belt by following a current in circumferential direction with respect to the intermediate transfer belt

An image forming apparatus sequentially transfers toner images formed on a plurality of photosensitive drums onto an intermediate transfer member or a transfer material to form an image. The image forming apparatus includes an intermediate transfer belt provided with electrical conductivity, and a power supply for applying a voltage to a current supply member contacting the intermediate transfer belt to pass a current from the current supply member to the plurality of photosensitive drums via the intermediate transfer belt, thus generating electric discharge on the upstream side of each of primary transfer sections.

A color printer has multiple developing-agent-containing cartridges each having storage units, and a cartridge holding unit for rotatably holding the developing-agent-containing cartridges. With one of the multiple developing-agent-containing cartridges positioned at an image formation position, a latent image on an image carrying member is developed by the developing agent contained in the developing-agent-containing cartridge. An access position where the storage units of the developing-agent-containing cartridges are accessed is a position other than the image formation position. This provides an image formation device and a control method thereof whereby storage units provided to developing-agent-containing cartridges can be accessed in a precise manner.

Image formation apparatus, and control method for image formation apparatus

Composition for accessing a memory in image formation apparatus and method for accessing a memory in image formation apparatus

The present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus in which each of the plurality of image forming station includes an image bearing body, a developer for developing latent image on the image bearing body by toner, and a cleaner for effecting cleaning of toner on the image bearing body. The toner image on the image bearing body is transferred to a carrying member side; toner on the carrying member is collected by the cleaner via the image bearing body. A volume of the cleaner of first image forming station of the plurality of image forming station to contain toner made is larger than a volume of cleaners of other image forming stations to contain toner.

Image forming apparatus having cleaner devices for performing improved cleaning operations

A developing apparatus includes a developer carrying member for carrying a developer to develop an electrostatic image formed on an image bearing member with the developer; a developer regulating member regulates an amount of the developer carried on the developer carrying member; and a controller for controlling a potential difference between the developer carrying member and the developer regulating member such that the potential difference is larger in at least a part of non-developing operation than in a developing operation when the developer carrying member carries the developer.

Developing apparatus and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a flexible charging member, which forms a nip portion between itself and an image bearing member. The charging member charges the image bearing member and is applied with a voltage when the charging member at least charges the image bearing member for an image formation. The nip portion is provided with an electrically conductive particles developing device for developing an electrostatic image formed on the image bearing member with a developer. The developing device executes a developing operation and, at the same time, executes a collecting operation for collecting a residual developer on the image bearing member. The voltage is a superposed voltage with a direct current voltage and an alternating current voltage having a peak to peak voltage, which is less than a peak to peak voltage of the alternating current voltage applied to the charging member when the charging potential of the image bearing member converges under the condition that the charging member charges the image bearing member without the conductive particles.

Image forming apparatus with superposed direct current and alternating current charging voltage

An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member, a flexible changing member and a developing device. When a first area to be an image forming area of the image bearing member, is present in a nip portion, a superimposed voltage resulting from a direct current voltage and an alternating voltage having a peak to peak voltage smaller than an alternating voltage applied when a charging potential of the image bearing member is converged is applied to the charging member. When a part of a second area to be a non-image area of the image bearing member exists in the nip portion, a direct current voltage without an alternating voltage is applied to the charging member.

Image forming apparatus featuring application of superimposed DC and AC voltages and DC voltage

An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member; an electrostatic image forming unit for forming an electrostatic image on said image bearing member, the electrostatic image forming unit including a flexible charge member for electrically charging the image bearing member, the charge member forming a nip between the image bearing member and itself and is supplied with an oscillating voltage, wherein electroconductive particles are provided in the nip; and a developing unit for developing an electrostatic image formed on the image bearing member with a developer, the developing unit being capable of a residual developer on the image bearing member, wherein a frequency f (cycle/sec) of the oscillating voltage and a peripheral speed v (mm/sec) of the image bearing member satisfy &verbar;f/v&verbar;&gE;12 (cycle/mm).

An image forming apparatus includes a plurality of cartridges each having a toner container and a memory. The plurality of cartridges are detachably mountable to a main body of the image forming apparatus. A plurality of supply systems supply toners to the respective toner containers of the plurality of cartridges. A control system writes information in the respective memories of the plurality of cartridges. When a new cartridge is mounted, the control system writes color information corresponding to a mounting position in the memory of the new cartridge.

Growing community of inventors

Mishima, Japan

Satoshi Tsuruya