Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Canon Kasei Kabushiki Kaisha

Toshihiro Otaka

Hiroshi Inoue

Tomohito Taniguchi

Noriaki Kuroda

Seiji Tsuru

Atsushi Ikeda

Masaaki Harada

Shinji Doi

Hisao Kato

Hiroyuki Osada

Yoshimasa Sawada

Hideyuki Takagi

A charging member is disclosed having a support and at least one cover layer provided on the support., The cover layer has an outermost layer of the cover layer placed at the outermost surface of the charging member; the outermost layer contains i) composite particles composed of first metal oxide particles coated with carbon black, ii) second metal oxide particles and iii) a binder.

Charging member including coated and uncoated metal oxide particles

In a charging member having a support and one or more cover layer(s), the ten-point average surface roughness of the surface of the charging member, the height of a hill of the surface of the charging member, the area at the part of the hill, and the area of a region surrounded by hills each having the height H (&#x3bc;m) and other hills each having a height of not less than the height H (&#x3bc;m), and not including any hills having a height of more than 0.5H (&#x3bc;m) satisfy a specific relationship. Also, a surface layer of the charging member contains high-molecular compound particles whose average particle diameter is between 2 and 50 &#x3bc;m and whose range of particle size distribution of average particle diameter is above 0&#x3bc;m and not greater than 7 &#x3bc;m.

Charging member, process cartridge, and electrophotographic apparatus

In a conductive member having a support and provided thereon at least one cover layer, the cover layer has a surface layer, and the surface layer contains fine particles. In the surface layer, fine particles present at the surface-layer lower part corresponding to a range within 30% of the total layer thickness from the lowermost plane have an average particle diameter which is larger than the average particle diameter of fine particles present at the surface-layer upper part corresponding to a range within 30% of the total layer thickness from the uppermost plane. A process cartridge and an electrophotographic apparatus have such a conductive member.

Conductive member, and process cartridge and electrophotographic apparatus which make use of the same

Growing community of inventors

Shizuoka, Japan

Toshihiro Otaka