Brother Kogyo Kabushiki-Kaisha

Takashi Yasuda

Takashi Shimizu

Takashi Suzuki

Yoshifumi Kajikawa

Kazuma Hinoue

Mitsuru Horinoe

Fan Xu

Tomoyasu Yabuki

Yuichi Matsushita

Naoya Kamimura

Koji Abe

Toshio Furukawa

Tomoya Ichikawa

Masaaki Furukawa

Kensuke Miyahara

Masanari Yoshikawa

Yohei Nishimura

Fran Xu

An image forming apparatus, including: a photoconductor; a developing device; a developer storage; a supplier configured to supply developer; an optical sensor; and a controller configured to execute: a developing process of developing an electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor; a usage-amount obtaining process of obtaining a usage amount of the developer; a supplying process of supplying the developer to the developing device every time when the obtained usage amount becomes equal to or greater than a first threshold; and a detecting process of detecting, by the optical sensor, an amount of the developer in the developing device every time when the obtained usage amount becomes equal to or greater than a second threshold larger than the first threshold, and wherein the controller is configured to execute the detecting process in a period different from a period in which the developing process is being executed.

Image forming apparatus and method of controlling the same

An image forming apparatus, including: a housing; a photoconductor; a developing unit configured to form a developer image on the photoconductor; a developer cartridge storing developer, the cartridge being removably mountable on the housing, a supplier configured to supply the developer from the developer cartridge to the developing unit; and a controller configured to execute a first printing process of forming a developer image by use of the developer supplied from the developer cartridge, when the developer cartridge is being mounted on the housing, and a second printing process of forming a developer image by use of the developer remaining in the developing unit, when a usage amount of the developing unit is not less than a predetermined value and the developer cartridge is not being mounted on the housing, wherein the controller does not execute the second printing process when the usage amount is less than the predetermined value.

Image forming apparatus and control method thereof

A toner cartridge is mountable on a developing device including a developing roller. The developing device develops an electrostatic latent image formed on a photo conductor. The toner cartridge includes a housing in which toner is stored, and an auger rotatable and configured to supply the toner in the housing to the developing device. In a case where the developing device is installed on an image forming apparatus in a state in which the toner cartridge is mounted on the developing device, rotation of the auger is started before formation of the electrostatic latent image corresponding to a sheet is started, based on a signal indicating that the image forming apparatus detects the sheet.

Process unit, developing cartridge and toner cartridge for use with image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus, including: a photoconductor; an exposing device configured to expose the photoconductor and form an electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor; a developing device including a developing roller configured to form a developer image on the photoconductor; a transfer device configured to transfer the developer image to a sheet; a developer storage storing developer; a supplier configured to supply the developer from the developer storage to the developing device; a sheet feeder configured to convey the sheet toward the transfer device; a sheet sensor configured to detect the sheet conveyed toward the transfer device; and a controller, wherein the controller is configured to start a supplying process of supplying, by the supplier, the developer to the developing device before formation of the electrostatic latent image corresponding to the sheet is started, based on a signal indicating that the sheet sensor has detected the sheet.

A photosensitive drum is rotatable about a first axis extending in a particular direction. A frame rotatably supports the photosensitive drum. A developing roller is rotatable according to driving force about a second axis extending in the particular direction. A surface of the developing roller contacts a surface of the photosensitive drum through toner. A resistance generating member generates a resistance torque TQserving as resistance between the frame and photosensitive drum in a case where the photosensitive drum rotates relative to the frame. In a case where the developing roller rotates according to the driving force in a state where the surface of the developing roller contacts the surface of the photosensitive drum through toner, the resistance torque TQis smaller than a torque TQthat causes the photosensitive drum to rotate due to friction between the surface of the developing roller and the surface of the photosensitive drum.

Process cartridge and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus, including: a photoconductor; an exposing device configured to expose the photoconductor and form an electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor; a developing device including a developing roller configured to form a developer image on the photoconductor; a developer storage storing developer; a supplier configured to supply the developer from the developer storage to the developing device; and a controller configured to execute: a rotating process of rotating the developing roller; a developing process of developing, by the developing device, the electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor; a supplying process of supplying, by the supplier, the developer to the developing device; and a stopping process of stopping rotation of the developing roller after the supplying process has been suspended in a case where the supplying process is being executed.

A developing device for an image forming apparatus may include a seal and a casing to prevent leakage of developer. In some examples, the seal member may include multiple side surfaces while the casing may include projections that may abut and contact various surfaces of the seal member. According to one arrangement, the casing may include first, second and third protrusions, where each protrusion is configured to abut and contact a corresponding surface of the seal member. Additionally, the second projection may protrude in a position inside of the first projection while the third projection may protrude in a position between the first and second projections.

Casing projections of an image forming apparatus configured to support a seal of a developing device

An image forming apparatus includes: a first photosensitive drum for a monochrome printing mode; second and third photosensitive drums for a color printing mode; a moving unit moving a medium from the first photosensitive drum via the second photosensitive drum to the third photosensitive drum; charger devices for charging the photosensitive drums; transfer devices for transferring developer images on the photosensitive drums to the medium; and a control unit configured to control charging biases of the charger devices and transfer biases of the transfer devices. The control unit executes, in the monochrome printing mode, an energy saving control in which an absolute value of a charging bias applied to the charger device for the third photosensitive drum is smaller than an absolute value of a charging bias applied to the charger device corresponding to the second photosensitive drum.

Growing community of inventors

Nagoya, Japan

Takashi Yasuda