Abstract: A developing device includes a developing member that develops an electrostatic latent image on an image carrying member with developer; a housing that houses and supports the developing member and has an open part facing the image carrying member; a storage portion provided inside the housing and storing the developer; and a leakage suppressing member provided at an edge of the open part that is on a downstream side in a direction of rotation of the developing member, the leakage suppressing member suppressing leakage of the developer from the housing toward the image carrying member. The housing has an opening on the downstream side in the direction of rotation with respect to the leakage suppressing member and on an upstream side in the direction of rotation with respect to the storage portion, the opening being open from a side of the developing member toward the outside of the housing.

Abstract: Managing contact groups entails receiving email header information for electronic messages sent during a certain period of time. Each header includes unique identifiers for the sender and each recipient. The set of these unique identifiers from each header forms a de facto group. For each group, the process computes a usage value based on the number of distinct messages corresponding to the group. The process also identifies a set of saved groups, where each saved group is a set of unique identifiers of people, and each saved group has a usage value. The usage value is 0 when the saved group does not equal any de facto group. The process compares the de facto groups and their associated usage values to the saved groups and their associated usage values, and provides a recommendation to modify the set of saved groups based on the comparisons.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image holding member on which an image is held, and a transfer unit transferring the held image to a recording material, wherein the transfer unit includes, a transfer roll disposed to be opposite to the image holding member, forming a transfer electric field, and transferring the image to the recording material, a drive unit applying driving force to the transfer roll, a torque limiting machanics limiting an upper limit of torque which acts on the transfer roll, and an inertia member provided to increase an amount of inertia with respect to the transfer roll and moving the transfer roll with inertia in a direction in which a speed difference between the image holding member and the transfer roll is decreased when the upper limit of torque acts on the transfer roll.

Abstract: A magenta toner includes a binder resin containing a polyester resin having a dodecenylsuccinic acid structure as a constituent unit, and a solid solution of C.I. Pigment Violet 19 and C.I. Pigment Red 122, the magenta toner having an amount of the solid solution of from 2% by mass to 30% by mass based on the total mass of the toner.

Abstract: The post-processing device includes: a binding unit that forms a cut in a sheet stack and cuts a part of the sheet stack into a predetermined shape to form a tongue portion in the sheet stack, the tongue portion having a part where one end part of the tongue portion is not separated from the sheet stack, and binds the sheet stack by bending the tongue portion and inserting the other end part of the tongue portion into the cut; and a sheet stack transport unit that transports the sheet stack in an orientation such that the one end part of the tongue portion in the sheet stack bound by the binding unit is on a downstream side of the other end part of the tongue portion in the sheet stack transport direction.

Abstract: A heating device includes: a heating member that heats a recording medium; a pressure member that forms a heating pressure portion between the pressure member and the heating member by coming into pressure contact with the heating member, the heating pressure portion passing through the recording medium; a tensioning member that is placed to face the pressure member with the heating member interposed therebetween, and that provides a tension to the heating member; and a guide member that guides the recording medium having passed through the heating pressure portion, and that is movable between a first secure position and a second secure position.

Abstract: An image input and output system is provided in which a common operation screen for a plurality of image output devices having different attributes is displayed. Based on attribute information of each of printers, the server generates a signal for generating an operation screen, and transmits the signal to the scanner. At the scanner, image data is inputted, and a common operation screen, which is generated based on the signal for generating the operation screen, is displayed on a display panel. When information designating the printer and information relating to an output format of an image is inputted from the display panel, the inputted information and the image data are transmitted to the server. The server transmits, to a designated printer, the image data and the information relating to the output format of the image, which are transmitted from the scanner, and images are outputted.

Abstract: A sensor device includes: a member that has an aperture facing a target measuring position through which a target to be measured passes; a sensor that is provided in an opposing relation to the target measuring position, and that measures a physical quantity of the target at a sensor surface facing the aperture; and a moving member that reciprocates a movement in a predetermined direction, and includes: a cleaning unit that cleans the sensor surface by contacting the sensor surface while the moving member moves to at least one of an outward movement and a return reciprocal movement; an applying portion that applies to the moving member a force in one direction of the reciprocation movement; and a manipulation portion that is moved by an operator against the force applied by the applying portion in an direction opposite to that of a direction of the force.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes: a receiving unit for receiving an additional image data to be overlaid on an output image, a modification unit for modifying the additional image data received by the receiving unit so as to shorten the processing time of converting the additional image into a binary image compared with before it modified, a storage unit for storing the additional image data modified by the modification unit, a converting unit for converting the modified additional image data stored in the storage unit into a binary image data when instruction of overlaying the additional image on the output image has been done, and a drawing unit for drawing the binarized additional image data converted by the converting unit on the output image.

Abstract: There is provided a laminated body that includes a metal layer comprising an electroconductive metal layer and a metal oxide layer disposed on each side of the electroconductive metal layer; and a resin layer or an elastic layer disposed on at least one side of the metal layer. There is also provided a producing method of the laminated body. Furthermore, there is provided a fixing belt and an image forming device.

Abstract: An instruction sheet making section of an instruction sheet editor displays on a GUI icons of services capable of being executed by using a service list sent from a service search server. Further, the instruction sheet making section also displays logic icons of linking processing patterns of the respective services. An instruction sheet making section combines the services provided by one or more service processing sections and makes an instruction sheet, by using service icons and logic icons selected by a user, while referring to and utilizing I/F information sent by the service processing section. Therefore, it is possible to easily combine the services capable of being executed on a network and produce a workflow.

Abstract: An electrophotographic toner having a core-shell structure including a crystalline resin in its core region or a sea-island structure including a crystalline resin in its island region, wherein the toner has 1) a resistance of 5.0×1012 ?·cm or higher, 2) a dynamic viscosity coefficient of 3×103 Pa·s or higher at a temperature which is 50° C. higher than a melting point of the crystalline resin, and 3) a dynamic viscosity coefficient of 1×105 Pa·s or lower at a temperature which is 10° C. higher than the melting point of the crystalline resin.

Abstract: An optical address type spatial light modulator has a plurality of optical address type light modulation layers stacked on each other, each having a liquid crystal layer for reflecting visible light in a specific wavelength band or a liquid crystal layer for absorbing visible light in a specific wavelength band and coloring and a photoconductive layer for absorbing the visible light in the specific wavelength band and changing the resistance value in response to the light intensity of the visible light absorbed, the liquid crystal layer and the photoconductive layer being stacked on each other between electrodes.

Abstract: A magenta toner for developing electrostatic images provided which contains a binder resin and a colorant, wherein the colorant includes a mixed crystal of two or more colorants and when a solid patch is fixed on art paper complying with the ISO standard by using this toner, a resulting fixed image color satisfies at least one of the following formulae (b*)<0.85 (a*)?67.92; and (b*)>?7.94(a*)+591.85. The color difference ?E between the color of the fixed image and the color characterized by L*: 46.6, a*: 75.1 and b*: ?4.4 is preferably less than 6. The colorant is preferably a mixed crystal of a quinacridone colorant and a monoazo colorant. Moreover, the invention provides a method for producing the magenta toner, a developer containing the magenta toner, and an image-forming method using the magenta toner.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a photosensitive drum, scuff rollers to move a continuous recording paper along a transfer path, a tractor disposed upstream from the scuff rollers, back tension rollers disposed upstream from the tractor to exert a tension on the recording paper, a speed controller to adjust the transfer speed of the recording paper, and a pressure controller to adjust the pressure acting on the recording paper. The speed controller adjusts the circumferential speed of the back-tension rollers and/or scuff rollers and the pressure controller adjusts the pressure of the back-tension rollers and/or scuff rollers in order to reduce positional deviation of the recording paper.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an IC chip IF, which is located in the vicinity of an original base where original papers are stored. Under a condition that the original papers are put on the original base, the image forming apparatus reads data from an IC chip attached to one sheet or more sheets of these original papers put on the original base and then, processes image data read from the original paper on the basis of the data read from the IC chip.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an optical head, a magneto-optical head, and a disk apparatus, that have high light efficiency, can realize high-density recording medium and perform high-speed recording and reproduction, and can prevent erroneous record or erroneous reproduction, and a manufacturing method of the optical head. When a converged beam enters an incident surface of a transparent condensing medium, its refracted beam is condensed on a light-condensed surface and forms a light spot. Since leaking out to an aperture formed on an outer surface of the light-condensed surface of this light spot, near field light is scattered by a micro metal member. In addition, since, also in the micro metal member, plasmon resonance occurs by the irradiation of a laser beam, near field light leaks out therefrom. This near field light becomes propagation light and enters a recording medium of a disk, and recording into the recording medium is performed by this light.

Abstract: A data transmission control information acquisition section generates data transmission control information based on control information exchanged between applications of a data transmitter and a data receiver before data transmission is started. A data transfer control section determines a bandwidth to be used by the data transmission, transmission start time, etc. in a shared transmission medium in a unified manner based on the data transmission control information and current bandwidth use conditions, and transmits the thus-determined information to the data transmitter. The data transmitter transmits data to the data receiver via the transmission medium under unified management.

Abstract: Command sequences that form a meaningful unit in terms of syntax are integrated into drawing and environment contents corresponding to the type of command. Clusters are formed from the drawing contents and the environment contents required to process those drawing contents, and the clusters are assigned to processors, respectively. The assignment of the clusters to the processors is carried out on the basis of drawing loads and the efficient distribution of resource information. The processing results of the processors are recovered in the order in which the command sequences are produced, whereby the completeness of an image is assured.

Abstract: There is provided an image forming apparatus wherein the life of the photosensitive member is not extremely limited by scratches, abrasion, or the like. Also, there is provided an image forming apparatus free from such problems as image blurring due to products formed by electric discharge or foreign matters like paper powder (talc) transferred from the paper. Further, in an image forming apparatus for forming an image using an electrophotographic photosensitive member through the cycle of charging, latent image formation, development, and transfer, abrasion of the surface layer of said electrophotographic photosensitive member is in the range of 0.1 to 2.0 nm by the use of 1 kilocycle. An example of the preferred embodiments includes a charging device, exposing device, toner developing device, and transfer device disposed in the order of process sequence, and at least the charging device and the transfer device spaced from the electrophotographic photosensitive member.