Konica Minolta, Inc.

Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.

Yohei Yamada

Toru Kasamatsu

Mikiyuki Aoki

Kouei Cho

Yukinobu Iguchi

Tatsuya Eguchi

Tadayuki Ueda

Eiji Nishikawa

Satoshi Miyajima

Akimasa Ishikawa

Takanobu Shiki

Kenichi Hayashi

Taku Kimura

Satoru Sasaki

Takatoshi Hamada

Yasuomi Mitsui

Morio Kinoshita

An image forming system includes: an image forming apparatus; and an image reading apparatus that reads an image, wherein temperature correction patches with the same color are formed at a reference position and a comparison position, the image reading apparatus includes: a scanner that reads respective colors of the temperature correction patches at the reference position and at the comparison position; and a colorimeter that performs colorimetry to the temperature correction patch at the reference position, the image forming apparatus includes: a detector that detects a temperature of the temperature correction patch at the reference position; a first calculator that calculates a color difference of color values of the temperature correction patches at the reference position and at the comparison position; and a second calculator that calculates a temperature distribution, and as a temperature difference between a first position and a second position increases, the color difference increases.

Image forming system, image reading apparatus, and image forming apparatus including means for determining a temperature distribution in a paper medium

Image forming apparatus comprises an electric power supply circuit board, an electric power control unit, functional circuits, and an electrical power saving circuit. The electric power control unit executes constant voltage control, to make electrical potential of a remote sensing location constant. The functional circuits are connected with the electric power supply circuit board. The electrical power saving circuit switches the state of functional circuits between the state in which they are provided with electric power and the state in which they are not provided with electric power. The electrical power saving circuit sets the contact point of the input side of the circuit, in which the consumption electrical current or the behavior guarantee minimum electrical voltage is the largest, out of the electrical power saving circuit and functional circuits provided with electric power, as the remote sensing location.

Electric power supply device which can reduce the amount of power consumption

An image forming apparatus detects that the temperature of a fixing member reaches a lower limit value at which the temperature once reduced by the start of a heating and fixing process to a paper turns to rise, after an image forming operation starts, and determines the type of the paper based on at least one of an elapsed time from a predetermined reference time point after the image forming operation starts to a time point at which it is detected that the temperature reaches the lower limit value, and a temperature difference between the temperature of the fixing member at the reference time point and the lower limit value.

Image forming apparatus

In an image forming apparatus according to the present invention, when an image forming operation is started from a standby state, electric power is supplied to a heater by switching to a first fixing control to turn on and off the heater to heat a heating roller with a fixed duty ratio based on the detected temperature of the heating roller, and thereafter, when detecting a state that the falling detected temperature reaches a lower limit value at which the detected temperature turns to rising, electric power is supplied to the heater by switching to a second fixing control which changes a duty ratio in accordance with a temperature difference between the detected temperature and a target control temperature.

A unit checking device is provided which checks whether a unit detachably provided to a device body is new or old. The unit checking device includes a transistor for checking provided in the unit and configured to be destructed by power supplied from the device body; and an inspection device provided in the device body and configured to determine whether or not the transistor is destructed by applying a voltage to the transistor.

Unit checking device, unit, and image forming apparatus

The apparatus includes first and second terminals, an electrical conductor placed around at least the second terminal, a first current applying unit, an abnormal circumstances determining unit, a second current applying unit, and an informing unit. The first current applying unit applies current between the first terminal and the second terminal. The abnormal circumstances determining unit determines whether there is an abnormal circumstance at the connection between the apparatus and the unit side circuit, under the condition that the current is applied by the first current applying unit. The second current applying unit applies current between the first terminal and the second terminal, in case that the abnormal circumstances determining unit determined that there is not an abnormal circumstance of the connection. The informing unit informs the abnormal circumstance of the connection, in case that the abnormal circumstances determining unit determined that there is the abnormal circumstance of the connection.

Apparatus for detecting an abnormal circumstance at a connection between the apparatus and an attached detachable unit

An electric power supply control device comprises a first converter, at least one second converter, and an electrical voltage control unit. The second converter can work in intermittent oscillation, and converts outputting electrical voltage from the first converter. The electrical voltage control unit controls the outputting electrical voltage of the first converter, so that the outputting electrical voltage is equal to or less than a minimum value of upper limits of operating electrical voltage of the second converter, and is more than or equal to a maximum value of lower limits of operating electrical voltage of the second converter, and at least one of the second converter performs low electric power behavior.

Electric power supply control device which can increase power converting efficiency

An image forming apparatus for performing laser exposure is provided. The image forming apparatus includes a driving circuit for supplying drive current to a laser light source in accordance with an image pulse signal; a pulse width expansion portion for expanding a pulse width of the image pulse signal supplied to the driving circuit; and an adjustment control portion for setting, based on state data indicating a state related to light emission start characteristics of the laser light source, a value of the bias current supplied as a part of the drive current to the laser light source and an amount of expansion of the pulse width in such a manner that laser light emission occurs in a period of time having a length equal to a length of a pulse width of each pulse in the image pulse signal.

Image forming apparatus that matches laser light emission time to pulse width of image pulse signal

An image forming apparatus having image supporting members and developing devices provided for a plurality of colors respectively, and a developing bias source. The developing bias source includes DC power circuits provided for the colors respectively, an AC power circuit provided for use in common for all of the colors, and an element provided for at least one of the colors other than black. The developing bias source generates developing biases by superimposing an AC voltage output from the AC power circuit on DC voltages output from the DC power circuits and applies the developing biases to the respectively corresponding developing devices. The element maintains a constant voltage having a potential of an opposite polarity to a potential of charged toner used for the development. The developing bias source further superimposes the constant voltage on the developing bias for the at least one of the colors other than black.

An image forming apparatus that forms a color image by layering toner images of different colors includes: a photoreceptor on which an electrostatic latent image is formed through charging and exposure; an exposure unit performing exposure-scanning on the photoreceptor in accordance with image signal; an intensity determination unit determining exposure intensity according to image forming condition; and a timing determination unit determining a timing of inputting image signal for each scanning line, wherein the exposure unit has a delay duration differing depending on the exposure intensity and being from input of image signal of each pixel to be exposed to exposure of the pixel at the exposure intensity, and the timing determination unit obtains the delay duration corresponding to the exposure intensity, and determines the timing such that image signal of an initial pixel to be initially exposed is input the delay duration before the initial pixel is exposed.

Image forming apparatus for controlling misalignment in image forming position between colors

An image forming apparatus includes a temperature sensor detecting an operating ambient temperature of the polygon motor, and a controller controlling the polygon motor and the paper feed mechanism. If the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is equal to or greater than a preset temperature, the controller controls, before operation for giving a command to start image formation is performed, the polygon motor to rotate; increases, in response to the operation, a rotational speed of the polygon motor up to a rated speed; and controls the paper feed mechanism to start conveying a sheet of paper at a time when a period of time variable depending on the detected temperature has elapsed, the period of time being preset to be shorter as the detected temperature increases, in expectation of a time required for the rotational speed of the polygon motor to reach the rated speed.

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Hino, Japan

Yohei Yamada