Brother Kogyo Kabushiki-kaisha

Yohei Hashimoto

Makoto Souda

Nao Itabashi

Isao Kishi

Yasuhiro Suzuki

Wataru Yamaguchi

Kouji Watanabe

Yuji Tokoro

Yoshiya Tomatsu

Hirotaka Mori

Hikaru Iino

Masato Makino

Masao Ichiyanagi

Wen Chen

Junichi Hashimoto

Junichi Yokoi

Koji Abe

Noriyuki Kawamata

Yukio Shiohara

Masahito Saeki

Shintaro Sakaguchi

Tetsuya Okano

Toshio Sakai

Masamitsu Ukai

Atsushi Ozawa

Hiroshi Nobe

Kazuya Kamikawa

Hiroyuki Ominato

Hiroyuki Okuchi

Yasuhiro Hosokawa

Junichi Hiraoka

Kiyomitsu Kumazawa

A drum unit includes: a frame; a first photosensitive drum; a second photosensitive drum; a charger; and a storage medium. The frame includes: a first frame plate; a second frame plate spaced apart from the first frame plate in a first direction; a third frame plate connecting one end of the first frame plate to one end of the second frame plate; and a fourth frame plate connecting another end of the first frame plate to another end of the second frame plate. The first photosensitive drum and the second photosensitive drum are rotatably supported by the frame. The second photosensitive drum is spaced apart from the first photosensitive drum and positioned closer to the third frame plate than the first photosensitive drum to the third frame plate in a second direction. The storage medium has an electrical contact surface positioned at an outer surface of the third frame plate.

Drum unit having electrical contact surface positioned at outer surface of frame and image forming apparatus provided with the same

An image-forming apparatus includes: a housing having an opening; a top cover configured to cover the opening; a short-range wireless communication circuit board attached to the top cover; a relay circuit board attached to the top cover; and a first wiring connecting the short-range wireless communication circuit board and the relay circuit board to each other. The short-range wireless communication circuit board includes: an antenna configured to transmit/receive radio waves; and a circuit electrically connected to the antenna. At least a part of the circuit and at least a part of the relay circuit board are overlapped with each other in an up-down direction.

Image-forming apparatus including short-range wireless communication circuit board and relay circuit board arranged to partially overlap with each other

A cleaning unit is attachable to and detachable from a main body of an image forming apparatus including a photosensitive drum and a belt configured to contact the photosensitive drum. The cleaning unit includes: a frame; and a handle. The frame is configured to accommodate therein developing agent collected from the image forming apparatus. The handle includes: a pair of first parts; and a second part. Each of the pair of first parts extends from the frame in an extending direction perpendicular to an axial direction of the photosensitive drum in a state where the cleaning unit is attached to the main body. The pair of first parts includes a lock mechanism for locking the cleaning unit to the main body. The second part extends in the axial direction and connects the pair of first parts to each other.

Cleaning unit including handle having lock mechanism for locking cleaning unit to main body of image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a housing having an opening, a cover movable between an open position and a closed position, a first photoconductive drum and a second photoconductive drum, a first exposing head having a first boss and rotatably coupled to the cover, a second exposing head having a second boss and rotatably coupled to the cover, and a cam rotatably coupled to each of the first exposing head and the second exposing head. The cam is configured to rotate each of the first exposing head and the second exposing head. The cam includes (i) a first elongated hole into which the first boss fits and extending a direction intersecting a movement direction in which the cam moves and (ii) a second elongated hole into which the second boss fits and extending in a direction intersecting the movement direction of the cam.

Image forming apparatus having cover with link to support exposure heads

An image forming apparatus includes a housing, a drum cartridge, a developing cartridge including a developing roller and movable between a contact position and a spaced position, a first spacing member configured to move the developing cartridge between the contact position and the spaced position, a first cam configured to move the first spacing member, and a lock member movable between a lock position at which the photoconductive drum is locked to the housing and a lock releasing position at which the lock of the photoconductive drum with respect to the housing is released. The lock member is configured to move from the lock releasing position to the lock position by being pushed by the first spacing member.

Image forming apparatus including developing cartridge

A conveyance roller is configured to convey a sheet having passed through a fixing device toward a photosensitive drum. A gear train is switchable between a transmission state in which the gear train transmits power from a motor to the conveyance roller and a transmission release state in which the gear train does not transmit the power from the motor to the conveyance roller. A movement member is movable between a first position at which the movement member causes the gear train to be in the transmission state and a second position at which the movement member causes the gear train to be in the transmission release state. A cam is configured to cause a development roller to move between a contact position and a separation position. The movement member is movable between the first position and the second position in conjunction with movement of the cam.

Image forming apparatus

A cam transmits and blocks light emitted from a light emitting portion. The cam moves to: a first position at which first and second cartridges are attachable to and detachable from a housing; a second position at which a first development roller contacts a first photosensitive drum, the second position being a position at which the cam has moved in a first direction from the first position; and a third position at which the first development roller is separated from the first photosensitive drum and a second development roller is separated from a second photosensitive drum, the third position being a position at which the cam has moved in the first direction from the second position. During an initial operation, based on a detection result of the sensor, a controller determines which of the first position, the second position, and the third position the cam is located at.

Image forming apparatus configured to determine position of cam based on detection result of sensor

A belt unit includes: a drive roller; a drive shaft having an axis defining an axial direction and rotatable together with the drive roller about the axis; a bearing rotatably supporting one end portion of the drive shaft; a driven shaft; a driven roller rotatable together with the driven shaft; an endless belt looped over the drive roller and the driven roller under tension; a first frame; and a second frame spaced away from the first frame in the axial direction. The first frame includes: a facing section supporting one end portion of the driven shaft; and a bearing holder holding the bearing. The second frame rotatably supports another end portions of the drive shaft and the driven shaft. The bearing holder is positioned closer to the second frame than the facing section is to the second frame in the axial direction.

Belt unit including first frame provided with bearing holder positioned closer to second frame, and image-forming apparatus provided with the belt unit

A first waste-toner box includes a detection switch wherein a state of the detection switch changes depending on an amount of waste toner stored therein. A second waste-toner box without the detection switch is initially mounted on a housing. The first waste-toner box is mounted after replacement of the second waste-toner box. A sensor circuit detects the state of the detection switch. In a case where the second waste-toner box is mounted on the housing, a controller detects a full state of waste toner stored in the second waste-toner box based on a dot count that is a number of dots forming a toner image formed on a sheet; and in a case where the first waste-toner box is mounted on the housing, the controller detects a full state of waste toner stored in the first waste-toner box based on the state of the detection switch.

Image forming apparatus including technique of detecting full state of a waste-toner box

A sheet conveying device is configured to start feeding, before a trailing end of a preceding sheet passes a detector, a next sheet following the preceding sheet, based on a calculated sheet length. If the trailing end of the preceding sheet has not been detected by the detector when a counted value reaches a particular count value, the driving of a sheet feed unit configured to feed sheets may be stopped while a conveying unit configured to convey the sheets is continuously being driven. Subsequently, based on the detector detecting the trailing end of the preceding sheet, the driving of the sheet feed unit may be resumed.

Sheet conveying device and image recording apparatus

A display device includes a light guide member, a light source substrate and a liquid crystal panel. The light guide member has a first incidence surface, and an emission surface orthogonal to the first incidence surface. The light source substrate has a light source emitting light toward the first incidence surface, and a substrate on which the light source is arranged. The liquid crystal panel has a second incidence surface arranged to be inclined relative to a surface of the substrate in a position where the liquid crystal panel faces the emission surface of the light guide member. A second angle between the emission surface and the surface of the substrate is greater than 0&#xb0;, and is equal to or smaller than a first angle between the second incidence surface and the surface of the substrate.

Display device and image forming apparatus

An image forming system, image forming apparatus and tray for the same are provided. The tray supports sheets and may include a coupling including first and second connectable members, a cam and clutch. The coupling allows the driving force to be transmitted when the second connectable member is in a connected position and block the driving force to be transmitted when the second connectable member is in a disconnected position. The cam is rotatable by the driving force to be in a transmitting or a blocking state. The clutch allows the cam to rotate when activated and prevents the cam from rotating when deactivated. A controller can activate the clutch to transmit or block the driving force to the load and deactivate the clutch when the cam is placed in the transmitting or blocking states.

Image forming apparatus and image forming system including clutch and controller which controls whether clutch allows drive force to be transmitted to driving member

Growing community of inventors

Nagakute, Japan

Yohei Hashimoto