Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Ricoii Company, Limited

Takamasa Hase

Hiroshi Yoshinaga

Kenji Ishii

Takahiro Imada

Toshihiko Shimokawa

Masaaki Yoshikawa

Shuutaroh Yuasa

Naoki Iwaya

Takeshi Uchitani

Tadashi Ogawa

Takuya Seshita

Teppei Kawata

Kensuke Yamaji

Hiromasa Takagi

Kazuya Saito

Yutaka Ikebuchi

Arinobu Yoshiura

Ippei Fujimoto

Hajime Gotoh

Akira Suzuki

Masahiko Satoh

Yoshiki Yamaguchi

Tetsuo Tokuda

Kenichi Hasegawa

Akira Shinshi

Takashi Seto

Daisuke Inoue

Kazuhito Kishi

Takayuki Seki

Yasunori Ishigaya

Yuusuke Furuichi

Yuji Arai

Tomoya Adachi

Yukimichi Someya

Masahiro Samei

Atsushi Yamamoto

Shinya Nakayama

Takashi Fujita

Minoru Masuda

Hiroshi Yamada

Hideki Sugiura

Hiroshi Seo

Satoshi Ueno

Shuntaroh Tamaki

Masanao Ehara

Shinichi Namekata

Ryota Yamashina

Kazunari Sawada

Yasuhiko Ogino

Shohta Kobashigawa

Susumu Matsusaka

Ryuuichi Mimbu

Takumi Waida

Yukiko Iwasaki

Tsuneyasu Nagatomo

Kentaro Yamashita

Mototaka Iwama

Tetuso Tokuda

Masahide Yamada

Akiyasu Amita

Akiyoshi Sabu

Hideyuki Santo

Seiji Saitoh

Suzuka Amemori

Ryohei Matsuda

Masahiko Ishikawa

Tatsuya Morita

Rintaro Takahashi

Kohsuke Nagata

Ryohhei Sugiyama

Hironori Yamaoka

Akio Takei

Maiko Koeda

Shogo Nakamoto

Kenji Yoneda

Yutaka Ikebuchii

Shuutaro Yuasa

Kenji Ishi

Kousuke Nagata

A fixing device includes a fixing rotator to fix an unfixed image on a recording medium, a pressure member disposed opposite the fixing rotator to press an outer circumferential surface of the fixing rotator; a heating source disposed inside an inner circumferential surface of the fixing rotator to heat the fixing rotator, and a composite member disposed inside the inner circumferential surface. The composite member includes a first member, a second member attached to the first member, and an inspection region for measurement of glossiness. The first member and the second member have a difference in glossiness. The inspection region allows identification of which one of the first member and the second member is present on a surface of the inspection region based on the glossiness of the inspection region, and determination of that the fixing device has a desired fixing configuration based on a result of the identification.

Fixing device, image forming apparatus, and inspection method

A fixing device includes a first rotator and a second rotator that form a nip therebetween and fix an image on a recording medium that enters the nip. A heater heats at least one of the first rotator or the second rotator. A controller controls the heater to switch between a first heating and a second heating, to switch from the first heating to the second heating before the recording medium enters the nip, to start the second heating at a time prior to a nip entry time at which the recording medium enters the nip by a delay time period taken for the heater to conduct heat to the nip, and to continue the first heating before the second heating for at least one control cycle at a duty cycle of power supplied to the heater. The duty cycle is not greater than 40%.

Fixing device and image forming apparatus with a controller to switch between a first heating and a second heating

An image forming apparatus includes a fixing device and a drive transmission mechanism. The fixing device fixes an image on a sheet by application of heat and pressure. The drive transmission mechanism changes a conveying speed of the sheet in the fixing device between an image forming mode and a lamination mode. The conveying speed of the sheet in the fixing device in the lamination mode is lower than the conveying speed of the sheet in the fixing device in the image forming mode.

Image forming apparatus which changes speed in lamination mode

A heating device includes a first heat member and a second heat member. The first heat member is configured to heat a sheet on a liquid applied face. The second heat member is configured to heat the sheet on an opposite face opposite the liquid applied face of the sheet. A temperature of the second heat member to heat the sheet is higher than a temperature of the first heat member to heat the sheet.

Heating device, liquid applying apparatus, image forming apparatus, post-processing apparatus, and conveying device

A conveying device includes a pair of rotary bodies and a movable member. The pair or rotary bodies includes a first rotary body disposed in a first region, and a second rotary body disposed in a second region and facing the first rotary body across a sheet conveyance passage through which a sheet applied with liquid is conveyed. The movable member is disposed upstream from the first rotary body in a sheet conveyance direction. The movable member is configured to move between the first region and the second region with respect to the sheet conveyance passage. The movable member is configured to move to the second region in a middle of conveyance of the sheet between the first rotary body and the second rotary body.

Conveying device, liquid applying apparatus, image forming apparatus, and post-processing apparatus

A novel heating device includes a heating member configured to heat a sheet on an opposite face opposite a liquid applied face. The heating member has a curved portion along which the sheet is conveyed and warped so that the liquid applied face has a concave shape.

A fixing device includes a rotary endless fixing belt; a nip forming member disposed in an interior of the fixing belt; a rotary opposed member to contact the nip forming member via the fixing belt to form a nip together with the fixing belt; a heat source to directly heat the fixing belt at a portion other than the nip, including at lease one heat-generation part disposed outside lateral ends of a maximum area of the fixing belt where a recording medium passes through, wherein a recording medium carrying an unfixed image is conveyed to the nip and the fixing device fixes the unfixed image onto the recording medium; and a shielding member disposed between the fixing belt and the heat generation part of the heat source and configured to shield heat from the heat source at least at an area outside the maximum passing area of the recording medium.

Fixing device and image forming apparatus

A fixing device includes an endless belt rotatable in a predetermined direction of rotation and a nip formation assembly disposed opposite an inner circumferential surface of the endless belt. An opposed rotary body is pressed against the nip formation assembly via the endless belt to form a fixing nip between the endless belt and the opposed rotary body through which a recording medium bearing a toner image is conveyed. A belt holder contacts and supports each lateral end of the endless belt in an axial direction thereof. The belt holder is isolated from the opposed rotary body with a first interval interposed therebetween in the axial direction of the endless belt.

Fixing device capable of enhancing durability of endless belt and image forming apparatus incorporating the same

An image forming apparatus includes a resistive heat generator, a temperature detector, and a power controller that detects a temperature-resistance property of the resistive heat generator before the resistive heat generator is used when the resistive heat generator is removably installed. The power controller obtains power supplied to the resistive heat generator and a change in a temperature of the resistive heat generator, that is detected by the temperature detector, while the power controller supplies the power at a predetermined power duty cycle for adjustment to the resistive heat generator. The power controller calculates the temperature-resistance property of the resistive heat generator based on the power and the change in the temperature that are obtained. The power controller adjusts a power duty cycle at which the power is supplied to the resistive heat generator in use of the resistive heat generator, based on the temperature-resistance property.

Image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a heating device including a heat generator and a resistance value identifier, a body, a resistance value acquisition unit, a detector to detect detachment and attachment of the heating device from and to the body, and an electric power controller. The resistance value identifier corresponds to a resistance value of the heat generator. The resistance value acquisition unit acquires the resistance value from the resistance value identifier. The electric power controller causes the resistance value acquisition unit to acquire the resistance value when the detector detects detachment and attachment of the heating device. The electric power controller changes a lighting duty of the heat generator when the acquired resistance value of the heat generator is different from the resistance value before the detector detects detachment and attachment of the heating device.

Image forming apparatus configured to control a lighting duty of a heat generator

A fixing method is provided including the step of fixing a toner on a recording medium with a fixing device. The toner has a binder resin, a colorant, and a release agent, and has a release agent amount indicator of from 0.01 to 0.20. The release agent amount indicator is represented by a ratio (P/P) of an intensity (P) at a wave number of 2,850 cmto an intensity (P) at a wave number of 828 cmof the toner measured by a Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy attenuated total reflection method. The fixing device includes a fixing rotator driven to rotate by a driving source, a pressure rotator driven to rotate by rotation of the fixing rotator, a fixing belt interposed between the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator, and a heater to heat the fixing belt.

Fixing method, image forming method, and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a power controller that starts an examination mode by an external operation. The examination mode detects a temperature-resistance property of a resistive heat generator. The power controller supplies power at a predetermined power duty cycle to the resistive heat generator. The power controller obtains the power supplied to the resistive heat generator and a change in a temperature of the resistive heat generator, that is detected by a temperature detector, while the power controller supplies the power at the predetermined power duty cycle to the resistive heat generator. The power controller calculates the temperature-resistance property of the resistive heat generator based on the power and the change in the temperature that are obtained. The power controller adjusts a power duty cycle at which the power is supplied to the resistive heat generator based on the temperature-resistance property.

Growing community of inventors

Shizuoka, Japan

Takamasa Hase