Abstract: 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.

Abstract: A contact charging roller includes a support member and a conductive coating member. The conductive coating member is composed of a seamless tube that contains at least (1) a non-polar resin or a styrene-type thermoplastic elastomer excluding a poly(styrene-hydrogentaged butadiene-styrene) block terpolymer and (2) a polar resin or an elastomer having a polar functional group containing at least nitrogen or oxygen, and contains carbon black in an amount of 10% to 60% by mass with respect to the total mass of the non-polar resin or elastomer and the polar resin or elastomer.

Abstract: To provide a developer level control blade which ensures uniform wear of its blade member, enables well precise control of the touch pressure against the developer carrying member to achieve a proper pressure against the developer, and can keep the toner melt adhesion from occurring even in long-term service, a developer level control blade is used which has a stated peripheral shape, is to be disposed in touch with a developer carrying member for transporting a developer, holding the developer on its surface, and is used to control the level of the developer to be held on the surface of the developer carrying member. The control blade has a laminated structure in which a support member and a blade member are bonded, and the blade member has a stated surface free energy.

Abstract: Charging roller has at least a support member and a conductive covering member, the charging roller where a value of tan ? expressed in a ratio of a storage elastic modulus and a loss elastic modulus by dynamic viscoelasticity in a cross sectional direction of the charging roller at 25° C. is 0.2 or more in a range of 1 to 20 kHz and 0.2 or less in a range of 1 to 10 Hz, or a charging roller where the conductive covering member is constructed of two or more layers and a value of tan ? in at least one layer other than a surface layer is 0.2 or more at 10 Hz in a range of 10 to 50° C. and a value of tan ? in a cross sectional direction of the whole charging roller is 0.2 or less at 10 Hz in a range of 10 to 50° C.

Abstract: A charging roller for a contact charging assembly is provided including a conductive substrate, an elastic layer which covers the periphery of the conductive substrate, and a seamless tube externally so fitted as to cover the periphery of the elastic layer. The seamless tube constitutes a surface layer of the charging roller, and the charging roller has a surface of 3.0 ?m or less in ten-point average roughness (Rz jis 94) and 0.10 mm or less in roughness curve average length (RSm).

Abstract: In a conductive roller having a conductive substrate, a conductive elastic layer and a conductive cover layer, the conductive cover layer is formed of a seamless tube containing a thermoplastic polymer, the surface of the conductive roller is coated with an inorganic compound the particle surfaces of which have been subjected to hydrophobic treatment, and the roller having been coated therewith has a glossiness of from 7.5% or more to less than 22.0%. This conductive roller can make toner and external additives less adhere to the roller surface, can prevent the faulty images due to the adhesion of photosensitive-member abrasion dust and can well perform charging in the image reproduction from the initial stage to the last.

Abstract: This invention provides a process for producing a conductive rubber roller having small aspect ratios of inner and outer diameters, having a stable measure of its inner diameter, having uniform cell distribution and being free from non-uniformity of hardness and electrical resistance in the peripheral direction. The process has a step of continuously extruding a tube composed of a specific unvulcanized rubber composition from a rubber extruder in a microwave vulcanizing unit, and a step of foaming and vulcanizing the tube by using a microwave irradiator having a microwave irradiation zone 4 m or less in length while being transported at given speed. The foamed rubber tube has an inner diameter 20 to 35% smaller than the outer diameter of the conductive core material over the whole region in the lengthwise direction, and the conductive core material is press-fitted into the foamed rubber tube without using any adhesive.

Abstract: An electroconductive rubber roller constituted of an electroconductive metal core and an electroconductive crosslinked rubber layer including an epichlorohydrin-based rubber, wherein the epichlorohydrin-based rubber is at least one copolymer selected from the group consisting of an epichlorohydrin-ethylene oxide copolymer and an epichlorohydrin-ethylene oxide-allyl glycidyl ether ternary copolymer. The ethylene oxide unit in the epichlorohydrin-based rubber is in a content of 40 to 90 mol %, and, the electroconductive crosslinked rubber layer has a heat quantity (enthalpy: ?H) 5 mJ/mg or less as measured by a differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and indicated by a peak appearing within a range of ?20 to 150° C.

Abstract: A conductive rubber roller comprising a conductive core material and provided thereon a rubber layer; the rubber layer being formed by using a rubber composition containing as rubber components at least a polar rubber and an ethylene oxide-propylene oxide-allyl glycidyl ether terpolymer; the ethylene oxide-propylene oxide-allyl glycidyl ether terpolymer having a melt peak temperature of from 20 to 30° C. and a melt enthalpy change ?H of from 40 to 70 mJ/mg as measured with a differential scanning calorimeter; and the allyl glycidyl ether in the ethylene oxide-propylene oxide-allyl glycidyl ether terpolymer being in a copolymerization ratio of from more than 10 mol % to 20 mol % or less.

Abstract: A blade for electrophotographic apparatus which has a blade member formed of a polyurethane resin, wherein the polyurethane resin is a resin produced by using a polyurethane raw-material composition containing at least the following components (A) to (E): (A) a polyisocyanate; (B) a polyol having a number average molecular weight of 2,000 or more and 4,000 or less; (C) a chain extender having a molecular weight of 200 or less: (D) a polyol having a number average molecular weight which is smaller than the number average molecular weight of the component-(B) polyol and is larger than the molecular weight of the component-(C) chain extender; and (E) a urethane curing catalyst.

Abstract: In a process for producing a cleaning blade, a blade formed of a urethane resin is impregnated with an isocyanate compound at its surface portion. Thereafter, warm air or hot air is blown on the blade surface to remove the isocyanate compound remaining thereon, and then the urethane resin that forms the blade is allowed to react with the isocyanate compound with which the blade stands impregnated, to form a cured layer.

Abstract: A blade member manufacturing process using no mold and a developer quantity control blade manufacturing process using this blade member are disclosed in which a material for the blade member is extruded onto a charge control face face-transferring sheet in a uniform thickness, and solidified to form a layer, and the layer is cut into the shape of a blade member.

Abstract: Charging roller has at least a support member and a conductive covering member, the charging roller where a value of tan ? expressed in a ratio of a storage elastic modulus and a loss elastic modulus by dynamic viscoelasticity in a cross sectional direction of the charging roller at 25° C. is 0.2 or more in a range of 1 to 20 kHz and 0.2 or less in a range of 1 to 10 Hz, or a charging roller where the conductive covering member is constructed of two or more layers and a value of tan ? in at least one layer other than a surface layer is 0.2 or more at 10 Hz in a range of 10 to 50° C. and a value of tan ? in a cross sectional direction of the whole charging roller is 0.2 or less at 10 Hz in a range of 10 to 50° C.

Abstract: In a conductive roller having a conductive substrate, a conductive elastic layer and a conductive cover layer, the conductive cover layer is formed of a seamless tube containing a thermoplastic polymer, the surface of the conductive roller is coated with an inorganic compound the particle surfaces of which have been subjected to hydrophobic treatment, and the roller having been coated therewith has a glossiness of from 7.5% or more to less than 22.0%. This conductive roller can make toner and external additives less adhere to the roller surface, can prevent the faulty images due to the adhesion of photosensitive-member abrasion dust and can well perform charging in the image reproduction from the initial stage to the last.

Abstract: A blade member manufacturing process using no mold and a developer quantity control blade manufacturing process using this blade member are disclosed in which a material for the blade member is extruded onto a charge control face face-transferring sheet in a uniform thickness, and solidified to form a layer, and the layer is cut into the shape of a blade member.

Abstract: A contact charging roller composed of a support member and a conductive coating member is disclosed. The conductive coating member is composed of a seamless tube that contains a non-polar resin or elastomer and a polar resin or elastomer.

Abstract: In a developing assembly comprising a developer-carrying member and a developer quantity control blade kept in pressure contact with the developer-carrying member, the developer-carrying member has a deformation percentage D of 0.5% or less in the direction of pressure contact, and the developer quantity control blade has a ten-point average roughness Rz of from 0.3 ?m to 20 ?m at its surface on the side kept in contact with the developer-carrying member (a charge control face). The developing assembly can prevent faulty images such as lines and uneven images due to the deformation of developer-carrying member even though any deformation due to the pressure contact of the developer quantity control blade has taken place in the developer-carrying member while the developing assembly is stopped.

Abstract: 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.

Abstract: To provide a developer level control blade which ensures uniform wear of its blade member, enables well precise control of the touch pressure against the developer carrying member to achieve a proper pressure against the developer, and can keep the toner melt adhesion from occurring even in long-term service, a developer level control blade is used which has a stated peripheral shape, is to be disposed in touch with a developer carrying member for transporting a developer, holding the developer on its surface, and is used to control the level of the developer to be held on the surface of the developer carrying member. The control blade has a laminated structure in which a support member and a blade member are bonded, and the blade member has a stated surface free energy.

Abstract: 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.