Patent application number | Description | Published |
20080298844 | DEVELOPING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCLUDING SAME - A developing device including a developing unit configured to develop an electrostatic latent image formed on a latent image bearing member with a developer comprising a toner and a carrier, and a circulation unit configured to collect the developer from the developing unit and return the developer to the developing unit. The circulation unit includes a container including a main body having an inverted cone shape, a supply opening provided in a top thereof, and a discharge opening provided in a bottom thereof, configured to hold a part of the developer and provided on an upstream side from the developing unit relative to a direction of circulation of the developer. The container includes a plurality of agitation members configured to agitate the developer collected from the developing unit and fresh toner so that a plurality of flows of the developer is produced in the container. | 12-04-2008 |
20080298845 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - The development device includes a development member and a circulation member. The development member develops an electrostatic latent image formed on a latent image carrier with a developer including toner and a carrier to make the electrostatic latent image visible. The circulation member receives the developer discharged from the development member and conveys the developer back to the development member. The circulation member includes a container provided upstream from the development member in a conveyance direction of the developer to store the developer. The container includes an agitator provided inside the container and agitates and mixes the developer and fresh toner supplied to the container. The agitator includes a rotatable agitation member in which one or more holes are formed through which the developer passes to mix the fresh toner and the developer to be agitated in the container. | 12-04-2008 |
20090028611 | DEVELOPING SYSTEM AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCORPORATING SAME - A developing system includes a developing unit, a mixing container, a rotary feeder, an air pump, and an airflow regulator. The developing unit is configured to convert a latent image into visible form using a developer. The mixing container is separated from the developing unit and is configured to hold and mix part of the developer after use. The rotary feeder is configured to dispense the developer from the mixing container to a delivery path. The air pump is configured to supply compressed air to deliver the dispensed developer to the developing unit through the delivery path. The airflow regulator is located where the rotary feeder connects to the delivery path, and is configured to prevent the compressed air from flowing toward the rotary feeder from the delivery path. | 01-29-2009 |
20090123174 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING METHOD - An image forming apparatus and method for developing a latent image on an image bearing member includes the image bearing member, an air flow generator, and an air intake device. The image bearing member is configured to bear the latent image on the surface thereof. The airflow generator is configured to generate airflow to transport a developer. The air intake device is configured to connect outside the image forming apparatus with the airflow generator to draw air from outside the image forming apparatus to supply the air to the airflow generator. | 05-14-2009 |
20100061774 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A development device includes a developer carrier, and a developer conveyance path. The developer carrier carries and conveys developer having a magnetic property. The developer carrier includes a plurality of magnetic poles provided inside the development carrier. The developer conveyance path is provided above the developer carrier and conveys the developer by a flow of air such that the developer is conveyed parallel to the developer carrier. The developer conveyance path is provided with a first developer outlet disposed above the developer carrier and open along a direction of conveyance of the developer to discharge the developer to the outside of the developer conveyance path to directly supply the developer to the developer carrier. | 03-11-2010 |
20100124443 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A development device includes a development portion to develop a latent image formed on a latent image carrying member with developer including toner and carrier particles, a circulation unit to convey the developer collected from the development portion to a supplying unit in the development portion, the circulation unit including a container to store the developer, disposed upstream from the development portion in a direction in which the developer is circulated, and a first agitator provided inside the container, to agitate and mix the collected developer and fresh toner supplied to the container, the first agitator formed by multiple linear members. | 05-20-2010 |
20100143000 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCLUDING SAME - A development device includes a development mechanism, an agitation unit connected to the development mechanism, to agitate and mix together the developer collected from the development mechanism and fresh toner, and a transport member to transport the agitated developer from the agitation unit to the development portion. The development mechanism includes a developer carrier to carry the developer, multiple supply ports disposed at different positions in an axial direction of the developer carrier, through which the agitated developer is supplied to the development mechanism, a discharge port, a developer supply member to supply the developer to the developer carrier while transporting the developer in the direction parallel to the axial direction of the developer carrier, and a developer collection member to collect the developer from the developer carrier. | 06-10-2010 |
20110268478 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - The development device includes a development member and a circulation member. The development member develops an electrostatic latent image formed on a latent image carrier with a developer including toner and a carrier to make the electrostatic latent image visible. The circulation member receives the developer discharged from the development member and conveys the developer back to the development member. The circulation member includes a container provided upstream from the development member in a conveyance direction of the developer to store the developer. The container includes an agitator provided inside the container and agitates and mixes the developer and fresh toner supplied to the container. The agitator includes a rotatable agitation member in which one or more holes are formed through which the developer passes to mix the fresh toner and the developer to be agitated in the container. | 11-03-2011 |
Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090317106 | DEVELOPING DEVICE USING TWO-COMPONENT DEVELOPING AGENT AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS PROVIDED WITH SAME - A developing device capable of mixing and agitating toner and a developing agent efficiently and without applying unnecessary stress, efficiently adjusting the amount of charge on the developing agent without being affected by external disturbing conditions, and continuously supplying a developing agent having the appropriate toner concentration and amount of charge in just the necessary quantity. The amount of charge on the developing agent discharged from the developing unit is adjusted (reduced) by an ionized air flow, so that it is possible to improve the dispersability of the replenished toner, and quickly adjust the appropriate amount of charge without applying unnecessary stress. The developing agent that is raised from below upwards by a screw is moved downward by an agitation member, and again gathered in around the screw in a circulating flow. In this way, the developing agent within the whole developing agent agitation unit is uniformly mixed. This circulating flow of the developing agent increases the probability of contact, and decreases the amount of damage to the developing agent. When the amount of charge is reduced before agitation using the ionized air flow, the toner can be uniformly charged up to the appropriate value. | 12-24-2009 |
20110182610 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A development device includes a developing section to visualize a latent image formed on a latent image carrier with developer including toner and carrier. The development device has a developer supply opening and a developer collection opening, a circulation unit to transport the developer collected from the developer collection opening of the developing section to the developer supply opening of the developing section and including a developer container to store the developer collected from the developing section disposed upstream from the development section in a direction in which the developer is circulated, and a developer cooler to cool the developer contained in the developer container. | 07-28-2011 |
20110229207 | DEVELOPING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A developing device includes a developer supply part and a developer collecting part, wherein the developer supply part has a developer inlet port for introducing a developer supplied from a reservoir into the developer supply part and a developer extraction port provided on the side of the developer inlet port to remove a portion of the developer so as to define a quantity of the developer to be introduced in the developer supply part, and wherein the developer extraction port and the developer collecting part are connected to the reservoir. | 09-22-2011 |
20120057890 | Development device and image forming apparatus incorporating same - A development device includes a development portion, to develop a latent image formed on a latent image carrier with developer, disposed close to the latent image carrier; a developer agitation container to agitate the developer, provided separately from the development portion; a transport system connecting the development portion and the developer agitation container, through which the developer is transported from the developer agitation container to the development portion by air; and a developer retainer to temporarily retain the developer, disposed downstream from the transport system, to which the developer remaining in the transport system escapes. | 03-08-2012 |
20120114349 | Developing Device And Image Forming Apparatus - In a disclosed developing device, a developing part includes a developer carrier for circulating a developer inside the developing part and for supplying the developer to an image carrier, a developer supply member for supplying the developer to the developer carrier, and a developer collection member for collecting the developer which is not used. A developer stirring part is arranged at a different position from a position of the developing part. A developer conveyance part carries the developer by an air conveyance in a developer conveyance path from the developer stirring part to the developing part. A developer detection part includes an opening which communicates between the developer supply member and the developer collection member, is arranged at a downstream side in a flow direction of the developer below and near the developer supply member, and detects whether the developer exists in a vicinity of the developer supply member. | 05-10-2012 |
20120230733 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCORPORATING SAME - A development device includes a development portion to develop a latent image; an agitation container to contain developer; a circulation system through which the developer is circulated between the development portion and the agitation container; a developer replenishing device to supply fresh developer to the agitation container; an agitator, provided inside the agitation container, to agitate and mix the developer collected from the development portion and the fresh developer from the developer replenishing device; and a developer escape chamber to discharge surplus developer in the agitation container, projecting from and continuous with the agitation container, the developer escape chamber defining a communication pathway in a side of the agitation container between the agitation container and the developer escape chamber through which the developer is moved between the agitation container and the developer escape chamber and having a discharge opening whose lower end is positioned higher than the communication pathway. | 09-13-2012 |
20140112687 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCORPORATING SAME - A developing device to develop with two-component developer an electrostatic latent image includes a developer bearer to carry thereon developer supplied to the latent image bearer, a first conveyance channel disposed adjacent to the developer bearer, a second conveyance channel disposed adjacent to the first conveyance channel and farther from the developer bearer than the first conveyance channel, a first conveying member disposed in the first conveyance channel to agitate and transport developer supplied to the developer bearer, a second conveying member including a spiral blade winding around a shaft to transport developer in the second conveyance channel in a predetermined developer conveyance direction, and a collected-developer guide to guide a part of developer that leaves the developer bearer to the second conveyance channel beyond the first conveyance channel. | 04-24-2014 |