Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Seiichi Shinohara

Satoru Inami

Junichi Kato

Yusuke Nakazono

Masahiro Yoshida

Syuhei Kawasaki

Masahiro Shibata

Katsuhiro Sakaizawa

Kojiro Yasui

Takayuki Namiki

Satoshi Tsuruya

Hiroshi Sato

Takehiko Suzuki

Masanobu Saito

Hironobu Isobe

Satoshi Sunahara

Atsutoshi Ando

Yasufumi Yoshino

Shinichi Tsukida

Atsushi Numagami

Toshiyuki Karakama

Hiroomi Matsuzaki

Jun Hirabayashi

Tetsuo Uesugi

Masanori Tanaka

Yasunori Chigono

Harumi Ishiyama

Hiroki Ogino

Masaaki Matsushita

Fumito Nonaka

Kazuhisa Shida

Shunsuke Mizukoshi

Kuniaki Tamagaki

Koichi Suwa

Motonari Ito

Ryosuke Kanai

Masaki Furutani

Masatomi Yoshida

Masanobu Saitou

An image forming apparatus includes a rotatable image bearing member, a charging member, a developing unit, a cleaning member, and a supply container. In an accommodating portion of a new developing unit, an initial developer which is a developer in a predetermined amount is filled in advance. The initial developer contains toner particles of which charge polarity is a predetermined polarity, and to the toner particles of the initial developer, lubricant particles of a polarity opposite in charge polarity to the predetermined polarity are externally added. A supply developer which is the developer accommodated in the supply container contains the toner particles. An external addition amount of the lubricant particles to the toner particles in the supply developer is smaller than an external addition amount of the lubricant particles to the toner particles in the initial developer.

Image forming apparatus in which initial developer is filled in advance

In a toner cartridge configured such that, by rotating a toner housing portion relative to a shutter in a state in which a first portion-to-be-engaged is engaged to a first engaging portion of a developing unit, relative positions of a cover and the shutter are displaced from first relative position, in which a closing portion opposes a second opening, to second relative position, in which the interior of the toner housing portion communicates with the developing unit through a first opening and the second opening, and a second portion-to-be-engaged is engaged to a second engaging portion of the developing unit, thereby being attached to the developing unit, a biasing member is provided in order to exert a biasing force for generating relative rotation between the cover and the shutter in a direction for displacing the relative positions thereof from the second relative position to the first relative position.

Toner cartridge, developing unit, process cartridge, and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a rotatable photosensitive member including a photosensitive layer and a light transmitting surface layer provided outside the photosensitive layer; an exposing unit configured to expose the surface of the photosensitive member to a laser beam which deflects in a main scan direction substantially perpendicular to a moving direction of the surface of the photosensitive member, so that a latent image formed on the surface of the photosensitive member in the main scan direction; and a controller configured to control a pulse width of an image signal for switching, on the basis of image data, between projection and non-projection of the beam from the exposing unit. The controller controls the pulse width such that it is smaller than when the thickness of the surface layer is larger.

Image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes: an image bearing member to rotate; a charging member to charge a surface of the image bearing member; a charging voltage applying portion to apply an alternating-current voltage having a predetermined charging frequency to the charging member; and an exposing portion to perform image exposure and background exposure. A plurality of modes are settable for the image forming apparatus, and the plurality of image forming modes include image forming modes different in a background potential difference which is a potential difference between a surface potential of the image bearing member after the surface of the image bearing member is charged and before the charged surface is exposed by the exposing portion and a surface potential of a portion of the surface of the image bearing member which has been subjected to the background exposure.

Image forming apparatus having a plurality of modes different in background potential difference

The engagement between a fixing member and a resin member is released and the resin member is separated from a frame thereby separating a bearing member from the frame. Parts to be used in a developing device are replaced or the developing device is replenished with a developer. The resin member is connected to the frame to connect the bearing member to the frame. The fixing member is inserted into a through hole to engage with the resin member and fix the resin member to the frame, thereby fixing the bearing member to the frame.

Reproduction method for developing device

A developer container configured to contain developer to be used for image formation, includes a first electrode provided in the developer container, a second electrode provided opposing to the first electrode configured to detect an electrostatic capacitance between the first electrode and the second electrode, to detect a quantity of the developer, a conveyance member provided between the first electrode and the second electrode and on a bottom surface side inside the developer container, and configured to convey the developer contained in the developer container, and a vibration imparting member configured to impart vibration to the conveyance member, wherein the developer on a developer conveyance surface of the conveyance member contacting the developer is conveyed by the vibration of the conveyance member.

Developer container, cartridge, and image forming apparatus

A developer accommodating container for accommodating a developer includes: a flexible container provided with an opening for permitting discharge of the developer; a sealing member for sealing the opening in a state in which the sealing member is bonded to a periphery of the opening, wherein the sealing member is capable of exposing the opening by being removed by pulling; and a reinforcing portion, provided at least as a part of the periphery of the opening, for decreasing a degree of deformation of the opening.

Developer accommodating container, process cartridge and electrophotographic image forming apparatus

A process cartridge for an image forming apparatus includes a developing roller, including a shaft member and an elastic layer therearound, for developing operation while contacting an image bearing member with a peripheral speed difference; a toner supplying roller contactable to the developing roller; a regulating member, contactable to the developing roller, wherein a length of the regulating member is shorter than that of the developing roller; and a cleaning blade, contactable to the image bearing member. The developing roller has a region capable of carrying the toner regulated by the regulating member and a region, outside thereof, both of which regions are contactable to the image bearing member, wherein the cleaning blade extends over the regions when the cleaning blade is contacted to the image bearing member. The shaft member has an outer diameter in a region outside a first contact region between the regulating member and the developing roller, and an outer diameter in a second contact region between the toner supplying roller and the developing roller wherein the former outer diameter is smaller than the latter outer diameter.

Process cartridge and image forming apparatus

In an image processing apparatus that includes an order placement means for executing an operation associated with order placement of an expendable used in an image forming apparatus, data associated with image formation is accumulated to have a timing associated with order placement as a trigger, and the operation of the order placement means is controlled on the basis of the accumulated value. In this manner, redundant orders for expendables can be prevented.

Image processing apparatus, method of placing order for expendables of image processing apparatus, storage medium, and program

An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member; a plurality of developing devices for developing electrostatic images formed on the image bearing member with developers, the developing devices including respective developer carrying members for carrying respective developers; moving means for moving a selected one of the developing devices to an operative position, wherein each of the developer carrying members is movable selectively to be in contact with or spaced from the image bearing member at the operative position; wherein the apparatus is operable in a first image formation mode in which an image is formed using the plurality of developing devices and a second image formation mode in which an image is formed using one of the plurality of developing devices, and wherein the developer carrying member which is at the operative position in the first image formation mode is capable of being spaced from the image bearing member by a first distance during non-developing-operation, and the developer carrying member which is at the operative position in the second image formation mode is capable of being spaced from the image bearing member by a second distance during non-developing-operation, and wherein the second distance is smaller than the first distance.

A developing cartridge is detachably mountable to a main assembly of an electrophotographic image forming apparatus. The cartridge includes a developing roller, for developing an electrostatic latent image formed on an electrophotographic photosensitive member, having an elastic roller portion and a shaft portion supporting the elastic roller portion, a developer regulating member; a protecting member including a contact portion provided for contact with the elastic roller portion when the protecting member is demountably mounted between the developing roller and the developer regulating member; and a supporting portion for supporting the contact portion and provided for contact with the elastic roller portion when the protecting member is demountably mounted between the developing roller and the developer regulating member. The contact portion has a hardness which is not less than a predetermined value and not more than a hardness of the elastic roller portion.

Process cartridge, developing cartridge and developing roller

An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member; a plurality of developing devices for developing electrostatic images formed on the image bearing member with developers, the developing devices including respective developer carrying members for carrying respective developers; moving devices for moving a selected one of the developing devices to an operative position, wherein each of the developer carrying members is movable selectively to be in contact with or spaced from the image bearing member at the operative position. The apparatus is operable in a first image formation mode in which an image is formed using the plurality of developing devices and a second image formation mode in which an image is formed using one of the plurality of developing devices. The developer carrying member which is at the operative position in the first image formation mode is capable of being spaced from the image bearing member by a first distance during non-developing-operation. The developer carrying member which is at the operative position in the second image formation mode is capable of being spaced from the image bearing member by a second distance during non-developing-operation, wherein the second distance is smaller than the first distance.

Image forming apparatus operable in two image formation modes using either one developing device or a plurality of developing devices

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

Growing community of inventors

Mishima, Japan

Seiichi Shinohara