Patents Examined by Carla J Therrien
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Patent number: 11435676Abstract: A focus adjustment method is disclosed. The focus adjustment method includes depositing, using a print apparatus, print agent onto a printable substrate, the print apparatus comprising a photoconductive surface and a writing head having a first end and a second end, the writing head having an array of light sources to emit radiation onto the photoconductive surface during a printing operation. The method also includes during said depositing, moving the writing head relative to the photoconductive surface, between a first position and a second position, to create a printed image. The method also includes determining, based on the printed image, for each of a plurality of locations along the writing head, a position of the writing head relative to the photoconductive surface at which the writing head is most focussed.Type: GrantFiled: May 31, 2019Date of Patent: September 6, 2022Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.Inventors: Oron Ambar, Zvi Erlich, Haim Vladomirski
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Patent number: 11429035Abstract: A light emitting device includes: a first light-emitting-element row that includes light emitting elements arranged in a row in a main scanning direction; a second light-emitting-element row that includes light emitting elements arranged in a row in the main scanning direction and that is positioned in such a manner that at least a portion of the second light-emitting-element row overlaps the first light-emitting-element row in a subscanning direction; and a light-emission control unit that switches a light-emitting-element row caused to emit light between the first light-emitting-element row and the second light-emitting-element row at a switching point that is set at a position in an overlapping portion in which the first light-emitting-element row and the second light-emitting-element row overlap each other.Type: GrantFiled: May 5, 2021Date of Patent: August 30, 2022Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.Inventor: Kyoji Yagi
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Patent number: 11429060Abstract: A drum unit includes: a frame; a first photosensitive drum; a second photosensitive drum; a charger; and a storage medium. The frame includes: a first frame plate; a second frame plate spaced apart from the first frame plate in a first direction; a third frame plate connecting one end of the first frame plate to one end of the second frame plate; and a fourth frame plate connecting another end of the first frame plate to another end of the second frame plate. The first photosensitive drum and the second photosensitive drum are rotatably supported by the frame. The second photosensitive drum is spaced apart from the first photosensitive drum and positioned closer to the third frame plate than the first photosensitive drum to the third frame plate in a second direction. The storage medium has an electrical contact surface positioned at an outer surface of the fourth frame plate.Type: GrantFiled: March 19, 2021Date of Patent: August 30, 2022Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Isao Kishi
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Patent number: 11429049Abstract: An image forming device includes a first detection sensor unit that detects a toner image formed on an image carrier; a second detection sensor unit that detects the toner image disposed to be separated in the main scanning direction with respect to the first detection sensor unit and formed on the image carrier; and a controller. The controller causes: an image carrier to carry toner images indicating a first test pattern and a second test pattern, and discriminate a difference from a determination condition with respect to a first determination result based on a first threshold value and a second determination result. The controller determines a component to be an occurrence cause of the difference based on a combination of the first determination result and the second determination result when it is determined that the difference is present.Type: GrantFiled: May 11, 2021Date of Patent: August 30, 2022Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Masahiro Kodo
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Patent number: 11415908Abstract: A light source according to the present invention is for an exposure device of a multifunction peripheral and includes a multi-beam light source. Two laser diodes included in the multi-beam light source are individually driven by a laser driver. Reference signals Vref1 and Vref2 used to control the light emitting power of the laser diodes are individually generated by two reference signal generation circuits. The reference signals Vref1 and Vref2 are each generated by processing including digital calculation, and at least one of the reference signals Vref1 and Vref2 includes a component for correcting the relative output difference of the laser diodes.Type: GrantFiled: April 1, 2021Date of Patent: August 16, 2022Assignee: SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Kazutaka Matsumoto
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Patent number: 11415921Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a control portion, a switching processing portion, a determination processing portion, and a release processing portion. The control portion includes a detection portion that detects abnormality regarding an image forming portion, and controls the image forming portion. When the abnormality detected by the detection portion is a first abnormality, the switching processing portion switches an operation mode of the image forming apparatus from a normal mode to a stop mode in which the control portion is stopped. When a specific operation is performed in a case where the operation mode is the stop mode, the determination processing portion determines whether or not a second abnormality is continued, based on a record result of detection of the abnormality. When it is determined that the second abnormality is continued, the release processing portion releases regulation on a removal of a developer storing portion.Type: GrantFiled: August 30, 2021Date of Patent: August 16, 2022Assignee: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.Inventor: Masayuki Mochizuki
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Patent number: 11415906Abstract: A housing includes a first side wall having a first opening and a second side wall arranged spaced away from the first side wall in a first direction. A drawer detachably supports a drum unit. The drawer moves through the first opening between an inside position at which the drawer is located inside the housing and an outside position at which the drawer is located outside the housing. An LED unit moves between: a first position at which the LED unit exposes the photosensitive drum; and a second position at which the LED unit is farther away from the photosensitive drum than at the first position and the LED unit is closer to the first side wall in the first direction than at the first position.Type: GrantFiled: March 11, 2021Date of Patent: August 16, 2022Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Shougo Sato
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Patent number: 11409219Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit, an acquisition unit, and a controller. The image forming unit forms images of an output material set including multiple types of output materials. The acquisition unit acquires image information of the output material set transmitted from a terminal apparatus. The terminal apparatus provides an identifier for identifying the output material set to each of the multiple types of output materials included in the output material set and transmits image information of each of the multiple types of output materials. The controller controls, in a case where the image information of the multiple types of output materials for each output material set is ready, the image forming unit to form the images of the output material set.Type: GrantFiled: September 13, 2019Date of Patent: August 9, 2022Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.Inventors: Kazuma Hosoda, Kana Omura, Hideo Kimura, Kyoko Matsushita, Takumi Nishikata
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Patent number: 11409220Abstract: According to examples, an apparatus may include a processor and a memory on which are stored machine-readable instructions that when executed by the processor, may cause the processor to print a first indicia at a first region on a first side of a print medium. The instructions may also cause the processor to print a second indicia at a second region on the first side of the print medium, in which the second region may be spaced a prescribed distance from the first region along a first edge of the print medium. In some examples, a relative position of the first indicia to the second indicia may correlate to a skew correction value for the first edge of the print medium.Type: GrantFiled: July 11, 2019Date of Patent: August 9, 2022Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.Inventor: Mark J. Wibbels
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Patent number: 11402774Abstract: A fixing device includes a fixing film, a heater for heating the fixing film, a heater holder including a heater holding portion holding the heater, and a pressing roller forming a nip between itself and the fixing film to be heated by the heater. In the nip, a toner image carried on a recording material is fixed. The heater holder includes an opposing surface which is provided on a side upstream of the heater holding portion with respect to a recording material feeding direction and which opposes the pressing roller, a lubricant holding portion provided on the opposing surface, for supplying a lubricant to between the fixing film and the heater, and a projected portion provided on the side upstream of the heater holding portion with respect to the recording material feeding direction and projecting toward the pressing roller from the opposing surface.Type: GrantFiled: August 26, 2021Date of Patent: August 2, 2022Assignee: Canon Kabushiki KaishaInventor: Toru Imaizumi
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Patent number: 11397397Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, a charging unit, an exposure unit, a developing unit, a transfer device, a sensor, and a processor. The processor compares a surface potential difference between a first surface potential and a second surface potential of the image carrier to a threshold to detect that a surface potential difference exceeding the threshold is generated in the image carrier in a state where the supply of the developer from the developing unit to the image carrier is inhibited, the first surface potential being a surface potential of the image carrier to which the transfer bias measured by the sensor is not applied, and the second surface potential being a surface potential of the image carrier to which the transfer bias is applied.Type: GrantFiled: July 6, 2021Date of Patent: July 26, 2022Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Hiroki Tashiro
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Patent number: 11385579Abstract: According to at least one embodiment, an image forming apparatus includes a voltage measuring device, a fixing device, and a controller. The voltage measuring device measures an input voltage. The fixing device includes a heater that heats a sheet. When the measured voltage becomes equal to or greater than a threshold value, the controller determines a heating timing of the heater based on the voltage and activates the heater at the determined heating timing.Type: GrantFiled: April 19, 2021Date of Patent: July 12, 2022Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Yohei Doi
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Patent number: 11385587Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a first detector detecting an operation sound based on a sound wave received by a receiver; a second detector detecting basis weight of recording material based on an ultrasonic wave transmitted from a transmitter and received by the receiver; a switching unit that switches destination of a reception signal from the receiver between a first path to the first detector and a second path to the second detector; and a controller that controls the switching unit such that the reception signal is output to the first path at a first timing and to the second path at a second timing. When a predetermined condition is satisfied, the controller controls the switching unit such that the reception signal is output to the second path at the first timing or to the first path at the second timing.Type: GrantFiled: March 25, 2021Date of Patent: July 12, 2022Assignee: Canon Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Atsunobu Mori, Yohei Suzuki, Seiji Hara, Yasuhisa Matsumoto, Junya Azami, Masafumi Monde, Hirotaka Shiomichi, Tatsuya Hotogi
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Patent number: 11385582Abstract: An image forming device includes a transfer unit that transfers a toner image onto a recording medium that has first and second surfaces and is conveyed in a conveyance direction; a main heating unit arranged downstream of the transfer unit in the conveyance direction, and which contacts and heats the recording medium and fixes the toner image onto the recording medium; a reversing unit that reverses front and back of the recording medium having a first toner image fixed onto the first surface; and a preheating unit arranged between the transfer and main heating units in the conveyance direction and that heats the recording medium having a second toner image transferred onto the second surface. The preheating unit heats the recording medium so that a temperature of the first surface is lower than a softening point of a toner before the recording medium is heated by the main heating unit.Type: GrantFiled: May 28, 2021Date of Patent: July 12, 2022Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.Inventors: Tokuya Sakamoto, Takayuki Yamashita, Tetsuro Kodera, Kosuke Yamada, Yoshiki Shimodaira, Masato Yamashita
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Patent number: 11378896Abstract: According to aspects of the present disclosures, a controller of an image forming apparatus is configured to determine, when printing is started, whether a particular condition is satisfied, the particular condition being satisfied when an elapsed time from a time when the polygon mirror starts rotating to a time when a rotation speed of the polygon mirror has reached a determination speed which is slower than a target speed is less than an upper limit time, when the particular condition is determined to be satisfied, feed the sheet from the sheet tray with the feed roller before the rotation speed reaches the target speed, and when the particular condition is determined not to be satisfied, feed the sheet from the sheet tray with the feed roller after the rotation speed has reached the target speed.Type: GrantFiled: March 22, 2021Date of Patent: July 5, 2022Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Takato Mori
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Patent number: 11360406Abstract: An image forming apparatus, including: a photoconductor; a developing device; a developer storage; a supplier configured to supply developer; an optical sensor; and a controller configured to execute: a developing process of developing an electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor; a usage-amount obtaining process of obtaining a usage amount of the developer; a supplying process of supplying the developer to the developing device every time when the obtained usage amount becomes equal to or greater than a first threshold; and a detecting process of detecting, by the optical sensor, an amount of the developer in the developing device every time when the obtained usage amount becomes equal to or greater than a second threshold larger than the first threshold, and wherein the controller is configured to execute the detecting process in a period different from a period in which the developing process is being executed.Type: GrantFiled: September 21, 2020Date of Patent: June 14, 2022Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Takashi Suzuki, Kazuma Hinoue, Takashi Yasuda, Takashi Shimizu, Yoshifumi Kajikawa
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Patent number: 11347165Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming portion, a belt, an inner roller, an outer member, an inner roller position changing mechanism, an acquiring portion, and a controller. In a case that information acquired by the acquiring portion shows that first and second recording materials are coated paper, the controller controls a position changing mechanism so that a position of the inner roller when a toner image is transferred onto the second recording material is changed to a second position. In a case that the information acquired by the acquiring portion shows that the first and second recording materials are plain paper, the controller controls the position changing mechanism so that the position of the inner roller when the toner image is transferred onto the second recording material is maintained at a first position.Type: GrantFiled: June 17, 2021Date of Patent: May 31, 2022Assignee: Canon Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Yutaka Kakehi, Ryosuke Tsuruga, Tatsuya Kohno, Manato Kobayashi
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Patent number: 11340541Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, an exposure device, a developing device, a primary transfer device, a secondary transfer device, and a control unit. The exposure device exposes the image carrier to form an electrostatic latent image on the image carrier. The developing device forms a toner image by developing the electrostatic latent image using toner. The primary transfer device primarily transfers the toner image to a transfer body. The secondary transfer device applies a transfer bias to secondarily transfer the toner image to a recording medium. The control unit applies a cleaning bias to the secondary transfer device to remove residual toner after the secondary transfer. When the control unit determines that the toner image based on the exposed electrostatic latent image is not secondarily transferred at a predetermined timing, the first cleaning processing is performed until the subsequent processing is started.Type: GrantFiled: February 24, 2021Date of Patent: May 24, 2022Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Kazufumi Ishida, Ken Iguchi
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Patent number: 11334003Abstract: A binary ink developer (BID) may include a power supply electrically coupled to an electrode, a developer roller, and a cleaner roller. The BID may also include a controller to determine a level of image ghosting based on a sum of currents at the electrode, the developer roller and the cleaner roller, and instruct the power supply to provide an adjusted voltage to the cleaner roller in response to a determination of the level of image ghosting.Type: GrantFiled: December 18, 2018Date of Patent: May 17, 2022Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.Inventor: Eric G. Nelson
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Patent number: 11320762Abstract: An image forming apparatus including a controller configured to switch between a first speed printing where a polygon mirror rotates at a first speed and laser light is at a first power and a second speed printing where the polygon mirror rotates at a second speed slower than the first speed and laser light is at a second power lower than the first power. The polygon mirror rotates at the first speed and laser light is at the first power when a first test pattern is formed. The polygon mirror rotates at the first speed and laser light is at the second power when a second test pattern is formed. The first speed printing is executed based on a detection result of the first test pattern. The second speed printing is executed based on a detection result of the second test pattern.Type: GrantFiled: March 16, 2021Date of Patent: May 3, 2022Assignee: TOSHIBA TEC KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Takahiro Kojima