Patents Examined by Hoang X Ngo
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Patent number: 11921442Abstract: A transport device includes a transport path that includes an opening through which a developer flows into the transport path, an opening and closing portion that is provided to be movable along the transport path and that opens and closes the opening, and a transport body that is disposed in the transport path, that includes a blade formed in a spiral shape on an outer periphery of a shaft portion, that transports the developer flowing into the transport path through the opening and moves the opening and closing portion to an opening position with the blade by rotating forward, and that idly rotates with respect to the opening and closing portion moved to the opening position in a case of forward rotation.Type: GrantFiled: October 24, 2022Date of Patent: March 5, 2024Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.Inventors: Takashi Anzai, Satoru Ishii, Toshio Takiguchi
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Patent number: 11921453Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a latent image forming device and a visualizing device. The latent image forming device forms a latent image with an adhesive on a base material. The visualizing device causes particles to adhere to the latent image to visualize the latent image as an uneven image. The particles each contains an insoluble substance.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2022Date of Patent: March 5, 2024Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.Inventors: Shintaro Yamada, Akihiro Kawasaki, Hiroaki Katoh
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Patent number: 11914324Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a casing having an opening; a cover for opening and closing the opening; a cartridge attachable to the casing through the opening; and a controller. The casing includes a first memory. The cartridge includes a second memory storing consumption state information representing a consumption state of the cartridge. The controller performs: determining whether the cartridge attached to the casing is unused; storing, when the attached cartridge is unused, the consumption state information acquired from the second memory in the first memory; determining, when the image forming apparatus is powered on or the cover is closed, whether the consumption state information in the first memory and the consumption state information in the second memory match; permitting use of the cartridge when the two sets of consumption state information match; and prohibiting use of the cartridge when the two set of consumption state information does not match.Type: GrantFiled: November 10, 2022Date of Patent: February 27, 2024Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Yuki Fukusada
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Patent number: 11914323Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a main body housing; a developing cartridge attachable to and detachable from the main body housing; a drum cartridge attachable to and detachable from the main body housing; and a developing guide for guiding attachment and detachment of the developing cartridge to and from the main body housing. The developing cartridge includes a developing roller and a developing memory for storing information. The drum cartridge includes a photosensitive drum. The developing guide is movable together with the developing cartridge between a first position where the developing roller is in contact with the photosensitive drum and a second position where the developing roller is separated from the photosensitive drum. The developing guide includes a developing memory terminal configured to be in contact with the developing memory in a state where the developing cartridge is attached to the main body housing.Type: GrantFiled: September 24, 2021Date of Patent: February 27, 2024Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Yasuo Fukamachi, Kazutoshi Nakamura, Masaaki Furukawa
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Patent number: 11906918Abstract: In an example, a printing apparatus may include, a rotatable shaft, a removable drum mounted on the shaft and a fixing element to fixedly couple the removable drum to the shaft, so that the removable drum is to rotate with the shaft. The printing apparatus may also include a heater, a printing apparatus satellite component located adjacent to the removable drum and engageable with the removable drum and a controller. The controller may be to receive a command to prepare the removable drum for removal; and in response, control the shaft to rotate the removable drum; control the heater to heat the removable drum while it rotates; and control the printing apparatus to engage the satellite component of the printing apparatus with the removable drum while it rotates.Type: GrantFiled: December 14, 2022Date of Patent: February 20, 2024Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.Inventors: Lavi Cohen, Yossi Yaacobov, Tomer Bunker
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Patent number: 11899392Abstract: A drum cartridge includes: a drum frame to which a developing cartridge including a storage medium having an electrical contact surface is detachably attachable; a photosensitive drum; a transfer roller; and a conveying roller. The drum is rotatable about a first axis extending in a first direction and positioned at one end portion of the frame in a second direction. The transfer roller is rotatable about a second axis extending in the first direction and in contact with the drum. The conveying roller is rotatable about a third axis extending in the first direction and separated from the transfer roller in the second direction. A first opening of the frame is positioned between the transfer roller and the conveying roller in the second direction. The electrical contact surface is exposed to an outside through the first opening in a case where the developing cartridge is attached to the frame.Type: GrantFiled: May 5, 2022Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Takashi Shimizu, Koji Abe
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Patent number: 11892797Abstract: An image forming apparatus, having a main housing, a first photosensitive drum, a second photosensitive drum, a first developing device to supply toner to the first photosensitive drum, a second developing device to supply toner to the second photosensitive drum, a first reloading device to reload the first developing device with the toner, and a second reloading device to reload the second developing device with the toner, is provided. The first reloading device has a first reloading port, which accepts the toner for reloading the first developing device. The first reloading port is openable to an outside of the main housing. The second reloading device has a second reloading port, which accepts the toner for reloading the second developing device. The second reloading port is openable to the outside of the main housing.Type: GrantFiled: June 6, 2022Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Yasutada Kato, Shunsuke Ishii, Masatoshi Shiraki, Shougo Sato
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Patent number: 11892785Abstract: An inorganic compound particle supply member includes inorganic compound particles, and the Young's modulus of the inorganic compound particle supply member is lower than the Young's modulus of a supply object to be supplied with the inorganic compound particles.Type: GrantFiled: November 4, 2022Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.Inventors: Masato Ono, Masayuki Seko, Koichi Matsumoto, Daisuke Tanemura, Masato Furukawa, Hiroaki Tanaka, Yosuke Kubo, Shigeru Fukuda, Iori Nishimura
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Patent number: 11892783Abstract: A powder transporting device includes a first agitating and transporting section that agitates and transports powder, a receiving section that receives the powder from the first agitating and transporting section, a second agitating and transporting section that is arranged below the first agitating and transporting section in a vertical direction and agitates and transports the powder, an upward transport section that is arranged on a downstream side in a transport direction of the second agitating and transporting section and transports the powder transported from the second agitating and transporting section to the first agitating and transporting section above, and a speed increasing section that increases a rotation of a rotating shaft of any one of the first agitating and transporting section, the second agitating and transporting section, or the receiving section and transmits the rotation to the upward transport section.Type: GrantFiled: May 30, 2022Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.Inventor: Toshihiro Goda
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Patent number: 11892789Abstract: A fixing belt, in which, in a measurement of a Fourier transform power spectrum of a surface profile of an inner peripheral surface of the fixing belt, a ratio of an average of a power spectral density at a wavelength of 2 ?m or more and 6 ?m or less to an average of a power spectral density at a wavelength of 10 ?m or more and 50 ?m or less is 0.82 or more and 0.92 or less.Type: GrantFiled: January 11, 2023Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.Inventors: Junko Yamasaki, Kenta Shingu, Hideaki Ohara
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Patent number: 11886135Abstract: An example lubricant applying device includes a rotatable applicator, a solid lubricant source to supply lubricant to the applicator, an urging member to urge the lubricant source to contact the applicator, and a guide member to restrict an urging of the lubricant source along a displacement direction. In a transverse cross section of the lubricant applying device that is taken orthogonally to a rotation axis of the applicator, a reference line extends from a contact surface of the lubricant source to the rotation axis of the applicator, in a direction parallel to the displacement direction of the guide member. In the transverse cross section, the lubricant source has a width that is substantially orthogonal to the displacement direction. The lubricant source is positioned to offset a widthwise center of the lubricant source to a downstream side of the reference line, in the rotational direction of the applicator.Type: GrantFiled: June 15, 2021Date of Patent: January 30, 2024Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.Inventors: Koichiro Takashima, Yasuyuki Ishii, Yoichi Yoshida
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Patent number: 11880155Abstract: An image forming device comprising circuitry. The circuitry generates an image pattern in which two or more types of patch images are combined and changes a value of image data around at least one type of patch image of the two or more types of patch images to less than a maximum value of image data of the at least one type of patch image when the two or more types of patch images are combined.Type: GrantFiled: October 25, 2022Date of Patent: January 23, 2024Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventor: Katsuhiko Maeda
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Patent number: 11880154Abstract: An image forming system includes: an image former that forms a label image on a long sheet conveyed in a sheet conveyance direction on a basis of a print job; an image defect detector that detects an image defect of the label image that is formed; and a sheet conveyer that conveys the long sheet in accordance with the label image where the image defect is detected after execution of the print job has been completed.Type: GrantFiled: May 12, 2022Date of Patent: January 23, 2024Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.Inventor: Tatsuya Kitaguchi
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Patent number: 11880152Abstract: A heater is to face a pressure element via a belt and is to heat the belt. The pressure element sandwiches and conveys a sheet together with the belt. The heater includes a heat generating element, a couple of electrodes, and a protective layer. there are the electrodes on both sides of the heat generating element in a conveyance direction of the sheet. Both sides of the heat generating element in the conveyance direction are connected to adjacent electrodes.Type: GrantFiled: December 23, 2022Date of Patent: January 23, 2024Assignee: Toshiba Tec Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Kazuhiko Kikuchi, Osamu Takagi, Chie Miyauchi
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Patent number: 11868063Abstract: A developing device includes a developer carrier to carry a developer, a conveyance path to circulate the developer and supply the developer to the developer carrier, a discharge path extending from the conveyance path and including a discharge port to discharge a portion of the developer, as excess developer, and a valve body provided between the conveyance path and the discharge port. The valve body includes an inlet side oriented toward the conveyance path and an outlet side disposed opposite the inlet side to allow a passage of the excess developer from the conveyance path through the valve body toward the discharge port, when a pressure applied to the inlet side is greater than a pressure threshold value.Type: GrantFiled: February 1, 2021Date of Patent: January 9, 2024Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.Inventor: Yuya Kato
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Patent number: 11868077Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a drawer, a first drum cartridge having a first shutter, a second drum cartridge having a second shutter and a shutter driving member. In a state in which the shutter driving member is positioned at a first positon, the first shutter is positioned at a first closed position at which a first discharging outlet of the first drum cartridge is close and the second shutter is positioned at the second closed position at which a second discharging outlet of the second drum cartridge is close. In a state in which the shutter driving member is positioned at the second position, the first shutter is positioned at a first open position at which the first discharging outlet is open and the second shutter is positioned at a second open position at which the second discharging outlet is open.Type: GrantFiled: November 1, 2022Date of Patent: January 9, 2024Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Aya Adachi, Shougo Sato
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Patent number: 11868069Abstract: An image forming system includes the following. An image former forms an image on a recording medium. A laminator performs lamination in which a film is laminated on a surface of the recording medium on which the image is formed by the image former. A hardware processor obtains information regarding image forming by the image former and that determines a condition of the lamination by the laminator based on the obtained information regarding the image forming.Type: GrantFiled: October 6, 2022Date of Patent: January 9, 2024Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.Inventor: Yuki Yamauchi
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Patent number: 11868071Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit configured to form an image on a sheet based on image forming condition, a reader configured to convey the sheet and read a test image on the sheet while the sheet is conveyed, and a controller configured to control the image forming unit to form the image and the test image on a same sheet, control the reader to read the test image on the same sheet, and generate the image forming condition for adjusting a density of an image to be formed by the image forming unit, based on a reading result of the test image by the reader.Type: GrantFiled: November 17, 2022Date of Patent: January 9, 2024Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventor: Hirotaka Seki
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Patent number: 11846894Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a developer container to accommodate developer containing toner, a developer bearing member to rotate while bearing the developer accommodated in the developer container and develop the electrostatic latent image borne on an image bearing member into a developer image, a detection portion to output remainder amount information corresponding to an amount of the developer accommodated in the developer container, and a notification portion capable of notifying a first state indicating that a remainder amount of the developer accommodated in the developer container is a first amount or more and a second state indicating that the remainder amount of the developer accommodated in the developer container is less than the first amount. The notification portion notifies one of a plurality of states including the first state and the second state on a basis of the remainder amount information output from the detection portion.Type: GrantFiled: August 24, 2022Date of Patent: December 19, 2023Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Masaaki Sato, Koji Wada, Tsuyoshi Ogawa, Koji Fujinaka, Takao Sameshima, Tomio Noguchi, Akitoshi Toyota, Susumu Nittani
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Patent number: 11846896Abstract: A toner cartridge includes: a casing extending in a first direction; a toner conveying unit; a first cover; a shutter; a memory; and an electrical contact surface electrically connected to the memory. The casing includes a first toner accommodating portion having an opening. The first cover and the shutter are positioned at one end portion of the first toner accommodating portion in the first direction. The first cover has a discharge opening. The shutter has a shutter opening and a first protrusion extending in the first direction and positioned farther from the one end portion of the first toner accommodating portion than the first cover is in the first direction. When the toner cartridge is mounted to a developing device, the first protrusion is fixed in position relative to the developing device and the casing is pivotable together with the first cover relative to the developing device.Type: GrantFiled: February 8, 2022Date of Patent: December 19, 2023Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Masaaki Furukawa, Hideshi Nishiyama