Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.

Fujifilm Business Innovation Corp.

Shota Makita

Iori Togu

Takashi Akaike

Mutsumi Kikuchi

Nao Kato

Shinichi Oba

Yosuke Kuwata

Kazuya Nishimura

Ryuji Hattori

Koutarou Yoshihara

Kazunori Koshimori

Yuta Hoshino

Katsuyuki Nishizawa

Takafumi Wakai

Shinichi Ohba

Sakae Yoshioka

Kenji Hayamizu

Provided is an image forming unit contained in a flexible bag and held to allow a cushion member to absorb shock. The image forming unit includes: an image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed; a developing device including a developing unit that is configured to develop the electrostatic latent image by turning around a turning center and coming into contact with the image carrier; and a developer accommodating portion that accommodates a developer for use in the developing device. The image forming unit also includes a restricting portion that is provided on an outermost portion of the developing device to come into contact with the cushion material so that rotation of the developing device is restricted.

Image forming unit and image forming apparatus having restricting portion to prevent rotation

A sensor holder includes a holder body that accommodates a sensor, a first snap fit that presses the sensor from a rear surface of the sensor, and two second snap fits that fix the holder body to the housing at at least two points.

Sensor holder and sensor housing unit

A developing device includes a developer storing unit that stores a developer before use of the developing device, a developer containing unit that contains, when the developing device is used, the developer stored in the developer storing unit such that the developer is capable of being stirred by the developer containing unit, a developer holding unit that is provided in a portion of the developer containing unit and that holds the developer contained in the developer containing unit and moves the developer in a rotation direction, a sealing unit including a sealing tape portion that seals a slit-shaped opening formed in the developer storing unit along a longitudinal direction of the developer storing unit while the sealing tape portion is capable of being pulled out and that seals the slit-shaped opening of the developer storing unit by being removably fixed onto an edge of the opening and an extended tape portion that is folded at an end of the sealing tape portion in a longitudinal direction of the sealing tape portion and that extends along the sealing tape portion in such a manner as to project outward beyond the sealing tape portion, a scraping unit that is disposed at an end portion of the developer storing unit in the longitudinal direction and that causes the extended tape portion of the sealing unit to move while making frictional contact with the scraping unit so as to scrape off developer powder deposited on the extended tape portion and on the sealing tape portion, which follows movement of the extended tape portion, and a holding unit that is disposed outside the scraping unit in the longitudinal direction of the developer storing unit with a space formed between the holding unit and the scraping unit and that holds the extended tape portion and the sealing tape portion such that the extended tape portion and the sealing tape portion are capable of moving.

Developing device with sealing unit, process cartridge using developing device, and image forming apparatus

An image forming unit includes an image carrier, a developer carrier, a development housing, and a guide member. The image carrier forms an electrostatic latent image. The developer carrier is in contact with the image carrier while rotating about a rotation axis and facing the image carrier to develop the electrostatic latent image. The development housing accommodates a developer and rotatably supports the developer carrier at one end with an opening portion that is open to the image carrier. The development housing includes an agitation path in which the developer is agitated and a feed path through which the developer is fed to the developer carrier. The guide member is disposed below the opening portion and includes an inner surface opposing the development housing to form a flow path that guides a current of air produced with rotation of the developer carrier in a direction away from the developer carrier, and to guide a recording medium to the image carrier with an outer surface opposite to the inner surface. Dust contained in the current of air is deposited on the inner surface of the guide member.

Image forming unit and image forming apparatus

A replenishment system includes a rotator, a path, and an accumulator. The rotator is disposed above a transport path along which a developer is transported and below a replenishment path for toner. The rotator rotates about an axis extending in a transport direction of the transport path while holding the developer. The path is provided downstream of the replenishment path in a rotation direction of the rotator, along a part of an outer circumference of the rotator. The path allows the toner from the replenishment path to move therealong in the rotation direction to the transport path. The accumulator is provided in an area including the path and extending from the path outward in a radial direction of the rotator. The accumulator accumulates the developer shifted upward from the transport path.

Replenishment system, developing device, and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, a developing roller, a biasing member, and a fluctuation preventing member. A latent image is formed on the image carrier. The developing roller is provided to face the image carrier and develops the latent image on the image carrier. The biasing member is provided on an outside of an end portion of the developing roller and biases the image carrier and the developing roller in a direction where the image carrier and the developing roller approach each other. The fluctuation preventing member is interposed between the image carrier and the developing roller and prevents, along with the biasing member, a fluctuation in a distance between a surface of the developing roller and a surface of the image carrier in a region where the image carrier and the developing roller face each other.

Image forming apparatus and image forming unit

A developer carrier includes a transmitting member that is rotatable and transmits a driving force; and a developer carrying member that carries developer and is provided coaxially with the transmitting member, the developer carrying member being rotatable when receiving the driving force from the transmitting member, the developer carrying member being displaceable with respect to the transmitting member in an intersecting direction that intersects an axial direction of the transmitting member.

Developer carrier, developing device, and image forming apparatus

Provided is an image forming apparatus including an image carrier on which a latent image is developed, a developing roller that is provided to face the image carrier to perform development for the latent image of the image carrier, an urging unit that urges the image carrier and the developing roller so that the image carrier and the developing roller approach each other, and a distance regulating unit that includes a viscoelastic body that is deformed according to a change of a distance between the image carrier and the developing roller, and regulates at least one of a maximum value of the distance between the image carrier and the developing roller and a minimum value of the distance between the image carrier and the developing roller so that the distance between the image carrier and the developing roller falls within a predetermined range.

Developing roller support device including a viscoelastic body for regulating a distance between image carrier and developing roller

Provided is an image forming apparatus including an image carrier on which a latent image is developed, a developing roller that is provided to face the image carrier to perform development for the latent image on the image carrier, an urging unit that urges the image carrier and the developing roller so that the image carrier and the developing roller approach each other, and a distance regulating unit that includes a viscoelastic body that is deformed according to a change of a distance between the image carrier and the developing roller, and regulates at least one of a maximum value of the distance between the image carrier and the developing roller and a minimum value of the distance between the image carrier and the developing roller so that the distance between the image carrier and the developing roller falls within a predetermined range.

Image forming apparatus, developing device, and developing roller support device including a distance regulating unit

Image forming apparatus and bearing

An electronic-component attachment structure includes an electronic component and a support member. The electronic component has a connection electrode exposed on a surface of a substrate. The support member supports the substrate of the electronic component in abutment with an attachment surface so as to allow the connection electrode to be externally connectable. The support member has a positioning supporter that elastically deforms by being relatively joined to a positioning portion provided in the substrate and that positions and supports the substrate to the attachment surface with restoring force generated as a result of the elastic deformation.

Electronic-component attachment structure, attachable-detachable unit, and image forming apparatus

A developing device includes a developer holding body, a container, a contact member, and a restriction member. The developer holding body supplies a developer to an image holding body. The container accommodates the developer holding body and is formed with an opening portion facing the image holding body. The deformable contact member is fixed in the container and on a downstream side of the opening portion body in a rotation direction of the developer holding body and includes a tip end which extends toward an inner side of the container and which contacts with the developer holding body. The restriction member is disposed on an image holding body side of the contact member and restricts the tip end of the contact member from deforming so as to be in a state where the contact member is directed toward an outer side of the container.

Developing device and image forming apparatus

A spacing device includes a spacing member that spaces first and second rotating bodies having first and second shaft portions, respectively, apart from each other. The spacing member is provided on the second shaft portion and includes a supporting portion that supports the first rotating body; and an opening through which the second shaft portion extends and including an idling portion that allows a hook part of the second shaft portion to rotate idle, and a catching portion that catches the hook part. The first and second rotating bodies are spaced apart when the hook part is in the catching portion and the first rotating body is supported by the supporting portion. The first and second rotating bodies are allowed to rotate when the spacing member rotates until the supporting portion is oriented downward in a direction of gravitational force and the hook part moves to the idling portion.

Spacing device and image forming apparatus

A developing device includes a housing that includes an accommodating portion, a development opening portion, a developing roller, and a supply receiving portion; an opening/closing member; a guiding portion; and an elastic pushing member. The opening/closing member includes a body, a guide portion, and an extended protrusion, the body having a cutaway end portion, the guide portion being provided at left and right end portions of the body except where the cutaway end portion exists, the extended protrusion being formed by causing at least a portion of an end portion of the body to extend and protrude in an opening direction. The housing is provided with a sandwiching holding portion that holds at least a portion of the extended protrusion of the opening/closing member by sandwiching at least the portion of the extended protrusion by the sandwiching holding portion and the supply receiving portion.

An imaging unit includes a support body; a photoconductor supported by the support body; a developing device supported by the support body to swing about a pivot arranged at a pivot portion, and including a development roller having a gap holding member that contacts a portion of the photoconductor; and a driven coupling member provided at a first end portion of the development roller, and removably coupled to a driving coupling member to which a rotational power is transmitted. The pivot portion is arranged so that the developing device swings toward the photoconductor by self weight. The driving or driven coupling member has at least three protruding portions that restrict rotation of the developing device when the members are coupled. The development roller rotates in a generation direction of an action that causes the developing device to swing toward the photoconductor when receives the rotational power and is rotationally driven.

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Shota Makita