Patents by Inventor Kaname Watariguchi

Kaname Watariguchi has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11947275
    Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic apparatus including: an electrophotographic photosensitive member; a voltage application unit configured to cause discharge from an electroconductive member to the electrophotographic photosensitive member; a charge transfer amount detection unit configured to detect a charge transfer amount per unit time resulting from the discharge from the electroconductive member to the electrophotographic photosensitive member; and a charging potential control unit, wherein V1 and V2 defined by specific procedures for the electrophotographic photosensitive member satisfy a relationship represented by the following expression (E-4): 100V1<V2?V1 (E-4), and wherein the charging potential control unit is configured to control the charging potential of the electrophotographic photosensitive member at the time of image formation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2024
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shuhei Iwasaki, Kaname Watariguchi, Akihiro Maruyama, Kenichi Kaku, Michiyo Sekiya, Kohei Makisumi, Tatsuya Yamaai, Hideharu Shimozawa, Naoki Fukushima
  • Publication number: 20230333494
    Abstract: The process cartridge is a process cartridge to be removably mounted onto a main body of an electrophotographic apparatus, the process cartridge including: an electrophotographic photosensitive member; a toner; and a developing member, wherein the electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a surface layer that is a polymerized film of a composition containing at least one kind of monofunctional (meth)acrylic compound selected from the group consisting of: a monofunctional (meth)acrylic monomer; and a monofunctional (meth)acrylic oligomer, and at least one kind of tri- or higher functional (meth)acrylic compound selected from the group consisting of: a tri- or higher functional (meth)acrylic monomer; and a tri- or higher functional (meth)acrylic oligomer, wherein the toner contains a toner particle and a hydrotalcite particle as an external additive, and wherein the hydrotalcite particle contains fluorine in filter fitting analysis of STEM-EDS analysis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 3, 2023
    Publication date: October 19, 2023
    Inventors: KANAME WATARIGUCHI, CHIHARU NAKAZONO, HIDEHARU SHIMOZAWA, TSUTOMU NISHIDA, ATSUSHI OKUDA, TAIJI KATSURA
  • Publication number: 20230288867
    Abstract: A process cartridge detachably attachable to a main body of an electrophotographic apparatus, the process cartridge including an electrophotographic photosensitive member, a toner, and a developing member that feeds the toner to the electrophotographic photosensitive member, wherein the electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a surface layer containing a (meth)acrylic resin having a urethane structure, the toner includes a toner particle and a hydrotalcite particle as an external additive, and the hydrotalcite particle contains fluorine in filter fitting analysis in STEM-EDS analysis.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2023
    Publication date: September 14, 2023
    Inventors: HIDEHARU SHIMOZAWA, KANAME WATARIGUCHI, CHIHARU NAKAZONO, TSUTOMU NISHIDA, ATSUSHI OKUDA, TAIJI KATSURA, YUICHI KIKUCHI
  • Publication number: 20230288836
    Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic apparatus including: an electrophotographic photosensitive member; a voltage application unit configured to cause discharge from an electroconductive member to the electrophotographic photosensitive member; a charge transfer amount detection unit configured to detect a charge transfer amount per unit time resulting from the discharge from the electroconductive member to the electrophotographic photosensitive member; and a charging potential control unit, wherein V1 and V2 defined by specific procedures for the electrophotographic photosensitive member satisfy a relationship represented by the following expression (E-4): 100V1<V2?V1 (E-4), and wherein the charging potential control unit is configured to control the charging potential of the electrophotographic photosensitive member at the time of image formation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 14, 2023
    Publication date: September 14, 2023
    Inventors: SHUHEI IWASAKI, KANAME WATARIGUCHI, AKIHIRO MARUYAMA, KENICHI KAKU, MICHIYO SEKIYA, KOHEI MAKISUMI, TATSUYA YAMAAI, HIDEHARU SHIMOZAWA, NAOKI FUKUSHIMA
  • Publication number: 20230288826
    Abstract: Provided is a process cartridge removably mountable onto a main body of an electrophotographic apparatus, the process cartridge comprising an electrophotographic photosensitive member, a toner, and a developing member configured to supply the toner to the electrophotographic photosensitive member, wherein, in filter fitting analysis in STEM-EDS analysis, a hydrotalcite particle comprises fluorine, and wherein, when a number-average primary particle diameter of a particle A is represented by “m” [nm], a content ratio of the particle A with respect to the surface layer is represented by “p” [vol %], and a number-average primary particle diameter of the hydrotalcite particle is represented by “h” [nm], the “m”, the “p”, and the “h” satisfy the following expressions, respectively: 5?m?300??Expression (1); 5?p?40??Expression (2); and 60?h?1,000??Expression (3).
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 6, 2023
    Publication date: September 14, 2023
    Inventors: CHIHARU NAKAZONO, KANAME WATARIGUCHI, HIDEHARU SHIMOZAWA, TSUTOMU NISHIDA, ATSUSHI OKUDA, TAIJI KATSURA, YUICHI KIKUCHI
  • Publication number: 20230101167
    Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic photosensitive member including a support, an undercoat layer, a charge-generating layer, and a charge-transporting layer in the stated order, wherein with regard to an S0, an S1, an S2, an S3, and an S4 determined by a specific procedure (A), a ratio S1/S0 is 0.34 or less, and one of the S2, the S3, or the S4 is a positive value, and the other two thereof are negative values, or two thereof are positive values, and the other one thereof is a negative value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 25, 2022
    Publication date: March 30, 2023
    Inventors: Hideharu Shimozawa, Kaname Watariguchi, Kenichi Kaku
  • Publication number: 20230075407
    Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic photosensitive member having a feature in that, in a graph that is obtained by a method of measuring an EV curve, and that has a horizontal axis representing I and a vertical axis representing V, when V at I=0.500 [?J/cm2] is represented by Vr [V], a maximum value of S [V·?J/cm2] represented by S=I·(V?Vr) in a range of I=0.000 to 0.030 [?J/cm2] is represented by Smax [V·?J/cm2], and a product of a light amount Ii [?J/cm2] on the horizontal axis and a potential Vi[V] on the vertical axis at a point of intersection between an approximate straight line in a range of I=0.000 to 0.010 [?J/cm2] and an approximate straight line in a range of I=0.490 to 0.500 [?J/cm2] is represented by Si=Ii·(Vi?Vr) [V·?J/cm2], a ratio of Si to Smax, which is represented by AR=Si/Smax, satisfies AR?0.10.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 29, 2022
    Publication date: March 9, 2023
    Inventors: Kohei Makisumi, Kaname Watariguchi, Kenichi Kaku, Haruyuki Tsuji
  • Publication number: 20230059696
    Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic photosensitive member that includes a support, a charge generation layer on the support, and a charge transfer layer on the charge generation layer and that satisfies specifications on an EV curve based on a measurement method of NESA-EV curve. The electrophotographic photosensitive member can exhibit high character quality and a digital gradation characteristic in a low-line-number halftone while maintaining an analog gradation characteristic in a high-speed process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 21, 2022
    Publication date: February 23, 2023
    Inventors: Kaname Watariguchi, Kohei Makisumi, Kenichi Kaku, Haruyuki Tsuji
  • Publication number: 20230055856
    Abstract: An electrophotographic photosensitive member has a charge generation layer having a film thickness of 0.2 ?m or larger and a charge transport layer on a support, wherein in a case where, at 23.5° C. and 50% RH, the photosensitive member is subjected to operations and measurement of: specific (1), (2), (3) and (4), an absolute value of a slope ? of a linear approximation straight line is 4×10?3 or smaller, in a range where the electric field strength E is 10 to 40 V/?m, which is expressed by a relational expression between a recombination constant Pe and an electric field strength E, which is obtained from a specific graph which has been obtained by repeatedly performing the specific operations and measurement of (1) to (4) while changing Iexp from 0.000 to 1.000 ?J/cm2 at intervals of 0.001 ?J/cm2.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 13, 2022
    Publication date: February 23, 2023
    Inventors: Michiyo Sekiya, Kaname Watariguchi, Kenichi Kaku
  • Publication number: 20230058278
    Abstract: The electrophotographic apparatus includes: an electrophotographic photosensitive member; a charging unit; an image-exposing unit; a charge transfer amount-sensing unit for sensing the amount of charge transferred to the electrophotographic photosensitive member; and an exposed portion potential-controlling unit for controlling the potential of each of the exposed portions of the electrophotographic photosensitive member based on a sensing result, which is obtained by charging the electrophotographic photosensitive member with the charging unit, performing image exposure with the image-exposing unit in at least one light amount weaker than a light amount in which the normalized radius of curvature R of the electrophotographic photosensitive member represented by the following equation (E1), the normalized radius of curvature being obtained by a method of measuring an EV curve, shows a minimum, and in at least two light amounts stronger than the light amount in which the normalized radius of curvature shows th
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 27, 2022
    Publication date: February 23, 2023
    Inventors: Akihiro Maruyama, Kenichi Kaku, Shuhei Iwasaki, Kohei Makisumi, Michiyo Sekiya, Kaname Watariguchi, Hideharu Shimozawa, Tatsuya Yamaai, Takanori Mitani, Satoshi Nishida
  • Publication number: 20230059041
    Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic apparatus which uses a light emitting diode array as an exposure unit and exposes a photosensitive member to a quantity of light from the LED array whose average light quantity satisfies 0.8×Emin or more and 1.1×Emin or less on condition that a normalized radius of curvature R of a normalized graph derived from the E-V curve of the photosensitive member has a minimum value of 0.24 or less, and a light quantity at the minimum value of the normalized radius of curvature R is Emin [?J/cm2]. This electrophotographic apparatus prevents both the occurrence of image unevenness due to light quantity variation among the elements of the LED array and the generation of ghost images due to a rest potential.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 29, 2022
    Publication date: February 23, 2023
    Inventors: Kenichi Kaku, Akihiro Maruyama, Shuhei Iwasaki, Tatsuya Yamaai, Kaname Watariguchi, Michiyo Sekiya, Kohei Makisumi, Hideharu Shimozawa
  • Publication number: 20230059773
    Abstract: An electrophotographic photosensitive member includes: a support; an undercoat layer; a charge generation layer; and a charge transport layer, wherein the undercoat layer contains a polyamide resin and a titanium oxide fine particle, and on the surface of the undercoat layer, an arithmetic mean roughness Ra and an average length Rsm of a roughness curve element both according to JIS B0601:2001 satisfy Ra?50 nm and 0.1?Ra/Rsm?0.5; and the charge generation layer contains a hydroxygallium phthalocyanine pigment, wherein the hydroxygallium phthalocyanine pigment includes crystal particles having a crystal form exhibiting peaks at 7.4°±0.3° and 28.2°±0.3° at Bragg angles 2? in a spectrum of X-ray diffraction using a CuK?, ray; and in a size distribution of the crystal particles, which is measured using small-angle X-ray scattering, a peak exists in a range of 20 to 50 nm, and the peak has a half-value width of 50 nm or smaller.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 25, 2022
    Publication date: February 23, 2023
    Inventors: Tatsuya Yamaai, Kaname Watariguchi, Kenichi Kaku, Shuhei Iwasaki, Akihiro Maruyama
  • Patent number: 11500301
    Abstract: An electrophotographic photosensitive member, which is suppressed in occurrence of fogging and is excellent in abrasion resistance. In the electrophotographic photosensitive member, an outermost surface layer of the electrophotographic photosensitive member comprises a polymerized product of a composition comprising at least a polyrotaxane and a monomer having a polymerizable reactive group, and a chain molecule of the polyrotaxane has two blocking groups at both terminals thereof, and a (meth)acryloyloxy group of a cyclic molecule of the polyrotaxane forms a bond.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hideharu Shimozawa, Kenichi Kaku, Tsutomu Nishida, Kazunori Noguchi, Akihiro Maruyama, Kaname Watariguchi, Takashi Anezaki, Haruyuki Tsuji
  • Patent number: 11493853
    Abstract: An electrophotographic photosensitive member having a support and a photosensitive layer on the support, wherein the electrophotographic photosensitive member comprises a surface layer comprising a polymerization product of a composition containing polyrotaxane and a charge transporting substance, and the polymerization product including a bond between the polyrotaxane and the charge transporting substance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hideharu Shimozawa, Kenichi Kaku, Tsutomu Nishida, Kazunori Noguchi, Akihiro Maruyama, Kaname Watariguchi, Takashi Anezaki, Haruyuki Tsuji
  • Patent number: 11340553
    Abstract: The process cartridge includes an electrophotographic photosensitive member having a first support and a photosensitive layer; and a charging member. In the photosensitive member when an electric current is measured which flows when a voltage is applied to a surface while being varied, a gradient a1 of a low electric field region and a gradient a2 of a high electric field region satisfy a2/a1?1.50, in a graph. The charging member includes a second support having an electroconductive outer surface, and a second electroconductive layer including a matrix and a plurality of domains being dispersed in the matrix, at least a portion of the domain is exposed to an outer surface which includes at least the matrix and at least a portion of the domain, and a volume resistivity ?M of the matrix is 1.00×105 times or higher of a volume resistivity ?D of the domain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2022
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kaname Watariguchi, Kohei Makisumi, Fumiyuki Hiyama, Yuichi Kikuchi, Kazuhiro Yamauchi, Hirotaka Araki, Seiichi Miyazawa
  • Patent number: 11249407
    Abstract: The electrophotographic photosensitive member has: a cylindrical support; a charge generating layer formed on the cylindrical support; and a charge transport layer formed on the charge generating layer, the charge generating layer contains a hydroxygallium phthalocyanine crystal having a particular CuK? characteristic X-ray diffraction peak, a titanyl phthalocyanine crystal having a particular CuK? characteristic X-ray diffraction peak or a chlorogallium phthalocyanine crystal having a particular spectral absorption spectrum as a charge generating material, and in the charge generating layer, with respect to the film thickness of the charge generating layer, when a region from the central position of an image forming area to the end position of the image forming area is divided in the axial direction of the cylindrical support into five equal regions and the average film thickness of the charge generating layer in each region satisfies a specific condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2022
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kaname Watariguchi, Tomohito Ishida, Masataka Kawahara, Michiyo Sekiya, Kohei Makisumi
  • Patent number: 11237493
    Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic photosensitive member which enables a reduction in unevenness in distribution of the post-exposure potential of the photosensitive member and a reduction in unevenness in life of the photosensitive member in the axial direction. An electrophotographic photosensitive member, including a cylindrical support, a charge generating layer, and a charge transport layer in this order, wherein when a region from a central position of an image formation region of the electrophotographic photosensitive member to an end position of the image formation region in the axial direction of the cylindrical support is equally divided into five regions, average film thicknesses of the charge generating layer in the five regions satisfy specific relations in a film thickness of the charge generating layer and average film thicknesses of the charge transport layer in the five regions satisfy specific relations in a film thickness of the charge transport layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2022
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kohei Makisumi, Kaname Watariguchi, Masataka Kawahara, Tomohito Ishida, Michiyo Sekiya
  • Patent number: 11181837
    Abstract: An electrophotographic photosensitive member, including a cylindrical support, a charge generating layer formed on the cylindrical support, and a charge transport layer formed on the charge generating layer, in which in the charge generating layer, when a region from a central position of an image forming region to an end position of the image forming region in an axis direction of the cylindrical support is divided equally into five regions, film thicknesses of the charge generating layers in each of the regions satisfy a specific relationship with each other, and in the charge transport layer, when a region from the central position of the image forming region to the end position of the image forming region in the axis direction of the cylindrical support is divided equally into five regions, film thicknesses of the charge transport layers in each of the regions satisfy a specific relationship with each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2021
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Michiyo Sekiya, Kaname Watariguchi, Masataka Kawahara, Tomohito Ishida, Kohei Makisumi
  • Patent number: 11137716
    Abstract: There is provided a process cartridge detachably attachable to a main body of an electrophotographic apparatus, the process cartridge including: an electrophotographic photosensitive member and a charging member, in which when average local potential differences of calculated lengths in the electrophotographic photosensitive member is calculated based on a specific method, a maximum value of the average local potential difference is 2 V or more, the charging member includes a support and an electro-conductive layer, the electro-conductive layer has a matrix and domains dispersed in the matrix, a volume resistivity ?M of the matrix is at least 1.00×105 times a volume resistivity ?D of the domain, and a specific calculated length SCP [?m] and a specific value relating a distance between the domains Dms [?m] satisfy SCP?3×Dms.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 5, 2021
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Fumiyuki Hiyama, Kaname Watariguchi, Kohei Makisumi, Kazuhiro Yamauchi, Yuichi Kikuchi
  • Patent number: 11126097
    Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic photosensitive member in which discharge streaks generated in an end portion can be suppressed. The electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a cylindrical support, a charge-generating layer, and a charge-transporting layer in the stated order. In the electrophotographic photosensitive member, when a region between a center position and a 90% position situated at a 90% of a length of from the center position to one end of the electrophotographic photosensitive member in an axial direction thereof from the center position, is defined as a region X, and a region between the 90% position and the end of the electrophotographic photosensitive member is defined as a region Z. Average thicknesses in regions obtained by equally dividing the region X into five and regions obtained by equally dividing the region Z into three satisfy particular relationships.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Tomohito Ishida, Kaname Watariguchi, Masataka Kawahara, Michiyo Sekiya, Kohei Makisumi