Abstract: A multi-beam generating device has plural semiconductor lasers, optical fibers to propagate laser beams generated by the semiconductor lasers, an optical fiber array to propagate the laser beams passed through the optical fibers, and an optical waveguide device provided with waveguides to propagate the laser beams having passed through the optical fiber array. Each of the waveguides has a core layer and a clad layer; a pitch between adjacent waveguides in the arrangement is narrower on the output section side where the laser beams emit than on the input section side where the laser beams enter; a width of the core layer is narrower in the transverse direction that is the direction of the arrangement of the waveguides than in the vertical direction; and a difference in refractive index between the core layer and the clad layer is larger in the transverse direction than in the vertical direction.

Abstract: The invention is to provide a multi-beam light source where the interval of core portions is reduced and the core portions are arranged on a straight line. The multi-beam light source includes a first substrate where a plurality of optical fibers each having a core portion and a clad portion surrounding the core portion coaxially are fixed at predetermined intervals, and a second substrate where a plurality of similar optical fibers are fixed at predetermined intervals. The first and second substrates are put and bonded on top of each other so that the core portion of each optical fiber on the second substrate is inserted between core portions of adjacent optical fibers on the first substrate, and the core portions of the optical fibers on the first and second substrate are arranged substantially on a straight line.

Abstract: A fixing unit where an operating force for releasing a nip can be reduced with a small-sized configuration. The fixing unit has a heating roller including a heating element, a pressure belt, pressure arms, pressure springs, and nip load releasing units. The pressure belt is supported in an intermediate position between the pressure arms 3. One end portions of the pressure arms are brought into contact with the pressure springs respectively. The other end portions of the pressure arms are brought into contact with the nip load releasing units respectively. When a load applied to the pressure belt is released by the nip load releasing units, the other end portions of the pressure arms move away from the heating roller.

Abstract: An angle ? between a principal ray of incident light incident on an optical fiber via a lens system and a marginal ray of reflected light nearest to the principal ray of the incident light when the reflected light is the incident light reflected on an entrance end surface of the optical fiber is larger than an angle ? between the principal ray and a marginal ray of the incident light. A receiving surface is provided separately from an inner surface of a light-passing hole so that the reflected light is received by the receiving surface. Therefore, the reflected light from the entrance end surface of the optical fiber is prevented from returning to a semiconductor laser light source to thereby attain improvement in stability and high reliability of laser light output of the semiconductor laser light source.

Abstract: According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a belt unit including: a belt that is formed in an endless shape; a first roller that supports the belt from an inner side of the belt; a second roller that supports the belt from the inner side of the belt; regulation walls that are disposed on both sides of the second roller and that each includes a boss protruding outwardly, the boss having a tapered portion; and plate frames that are disposed on both sides of the belt and that each includes: a first groove portion that supports the first roller; and a second groove portion that supports the second roller, the second groove portion having a rounded edge formed to be run on by the boss through the tapered portion.

Abstract: According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a rotary member including: a rotating main body; and support members that are formed to be supported by bearings, wherein each of the support members includes: a spindle core formed of a first metal; and a cylindrical sheath that sheathes a portion of the spindle core where slidably contacting respective one of the bearings and that is formed of a second metal different from the first metal.

Abstract: A driving force transmission device superior in reliability with suppressed rotation fluctuation. The driving force transmission device has gearing reception portions, three arm portions and a press member. The gearing reception portions are formed in the inner circumference of a rotor. The arm portions extend from a shaft radially. The arm portions can be elastically deformed. The arm portions have engagement tooth portions for transmitting a driving force of the shaft to the rotor. The press member presses the rotor to bend the arm portions in the direction where the rotor is pressed. In that state, the gearing reception portions gear with the engagement tooth portions.

Abstract: A multi-beam image forming apparatus includes a beam generating unit 101, an optical scanner 102, an image processing unit 103 for dividing image data into several areas in a primary scanning direction, and image writing units 106 and 107 for writing an image while switching multiple laser beams in accordance with each of the areas in the primary scanning direction in a printing region based on the divided image data, wherein the image processing unit 103 judges continuity of the image data when dividing the image data, so that the image processing unit 103 divides the image data at an image data portion having continuity and transmits the divided image data to the image writing units 106 and 107. The multi-beam image forming apparatus is provided as an apparatus in which scan positions can be aligned accurately both in the primary scanning direction and the secondary scanning direction and which is suitable for wide printing.

Abstract: An air current distributing apparatus includes: a cylinder having a first air port communicated with a supply source of an air current and also having a second, a third, a fourth and a fifth air port respectively communicated with an injection port of the air current; a main rotor rotated in the cylinder; and a subrotor rotated in the cylinder, wherein the main rotor has a cutout portion for selectively communicating the first air port with at least one of the second and the third air port according to the rotary position, and the subrotor has a cutout portion for selectively communicating the first air port with at least one of the fourth and the fifth air port according to the rotary position. When the air current distributing apparatus is used, a plurality of air currents are formed by one blower.

Abstract: A method of diagnosing a state of a horizontal synchronizing signal is provided for an optical scanner, which includes a rotary polygon mirror having a rotation sensor, a control clock competing with a signal of the rotation sensor to control the rotary polygon mirror to a constant speed, a laser beam illuminating the rotary polygon mirror to be used in a scanning operation, and a scanning beam detector detecting the laser scanning beam at a prescribed position and outputting a horizontal synchronizing signal to trigger a control of the scanner. The method includes using the optical scanner, and presetting an effective period of outputting the horizontal synchronizing signal by counting the control clock for the rotary polygon mirror, the counting being triggered by a previous horizontal synchronizing signal.

Abstract: An axis-to-axis distance between a heating roller and a back-up roller is expanded beforehand in inserting a thick paper to prevent a rush/exhaust impact when fixing the thick paper without changing a condition of pressing mechanism.

Abstract: An inkjet recording head includes a base member, an ink channel unit, a plurality of piezoelectric elements, and a dynamic vibration absorber. The ink channel unit is formed with a plurality of nozzle holes and a plurality of ink pressure chambers. The ink channel unit includes a diaphragm that defines part of each ink pressure chamber. Each piezoelectric element has one end fixed to the base member and another end attached to the diaphragm. Each piezoelectric element generates displacement in a displacement direction for deforming the diaphragm to eject ink droplets through a corresponding one of the plurality of nozzle holes. The dynamic vibration absorber is mounted on the base member for damping vibrations of the base member due to a resonance, the resonance occurring in a frequency range less than or equal to a predetermined frequency.

Abstract: A sheet feed apparatus including: a sheet storage tray that store a plurality of sheets; an suction belt that suctions an uppermost one of the sheets and conveys the sheet along a sheet conveyance surface; a nozzle including, first ejection openings that are disposed on both side ends across a substantially center portion of the suction belt and eject air toward the plurality of sheets, and a second ejection opening that is disposed at the substantially center portion of the suction belt and ejects air toward the suction belt; and a projecting member that projects downward with respect to the sheet conveyance surface, the projecting member being provided at a position opposite the nozzle with respect to the suction belt.

Abstract: According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for assembling a semiconductor laser device, including: preparing a laser chip including: a substrate; stripe waveguides that are formed on the substrate and that each includes a gain producing area and a window area; electrodes formed on the stripe waveguides; an insulating layer formed on the electrodes; a metal layer formed on the insulating layer; projections arranged at an interval in the window areas; and joining structures connected to the electrodes and formed in the window areas; preparing a submount including: a first solder; second solders arranged at the interval; and submount electrodes connected to the second solders; contacting the laser chip to the submount by fitting the projections with respect to the second solders; and heating the submount and the laser chip.

Abstract: An ink jet recording head unit includes a plurality of nozzle elements, a plurality of piezoelectric elements and a driving unit. The plurality of piezoelectric elements is provided in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of nozzle elements. Each piezoelectric element has a positive pole and a negative pole. Each piezoelectric element expands and contracts when a voltage potential difference between the positive pole and the negative pole is varied. The plurality of nozzle elements includes a first nozzle element and a second nozzle element adjacent to the first nozzle element. A first piezoelectric element and a second piezoelectric element correspond to the first nozzle element and the second nozzle element respectively. The driving unit controls the first piezoelectric element and the second piezoelectric element to expand and contract in a complementary manner.

Abstract: To accomplish high-speed fixing which requires high-precision temperature control, or fixing of high-quality color images on various kinds of paper without increasing the size and production cost of the temperature detecting means and contaminating the back sides of paper by toner that comes off from the temperature detecting element, an image forming device is equipped with a fixing device comprising a heating roller, a pressing belt which forcibly contacts the heating roller, and a temperature detecting means which touches the surface of the heating roller to sense the surface temperature of the heating roller, wherein a cleaning means to clean the belt surface is provided on a place which is corresponding to a place at which the contact-type thermistor touches the heating roller.

Abstract: The invention provides a multi-beam light source including a light guide array by which the yield can be improved. An array pitch P2 of entrance surfaces of light guide pattern is 1/N as wide as an array pitch P1 of exit surfaces of optical fiber arrays. The number of the light guide patterns is N or more times as large as the number of optical fibers. The exit surfaces of a plurality of the optical fibers are coupled with the entrance surfaces of a plurality of the light guide patterns opposed thereto.

Abstract: According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a laser diode array including: a laser array chip including: a substrate; and at least three of laser diodes that are formed on the substrate; first electrodes that are formed on each of the laser diodes so as to be isolated from one another; a sub-mount; and second electrodes that are formed on the sub-mount so as to correspond to the first electrodes and so as to be isolated from one another, wherein the laser array chip is mounted on the sub-mount through the first electrodes and the second electrodes, and wherein, among contacting surfaces between each of the first electrodes and a corresponding one of the second electrodes, a contacting area of a central one of the contacting surfaces is larger than that of an end one of the contacting surfaces.

Abstract: A liquid discharging head includes: a plurality of nozzles that discharge liquid droplets; and a plurality of piezoelectric elements that generate pressure for discharging liquid droplets from the respective nozzles, wherein the piezoelectric elements are performed with repolarization process to set non-uniformity of the droplet discharging characteristics of the nozzles to be in a predetermined range by combining adjustment of a polarization sensitivity and adjustment of a polarization voltage for each of the piezoelectric elements.

Abstract: According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet feeding device including: a tray holding sheets; a chamber having an opening and generating a negative pressure thereinside; a suction belt that suctions and conveys a first sheet from the sheets and that is configured to be rotatable along with the chamber and deformable into a concave shape along with the opening; a regulating member disposed inside the opening to regulate a concaving amount of the suction belt; a sheet gate disposed in a sheet feeding passage to be opposed to the suction belt and configured to retreat when contacted by the suction belt; and a nozzle that blows air toward the sheet and toward the suction belt.