Abstract: A recovery container includes a container body, a discharge port, an opening/closing part, a guide part, and an inclination suppressing part. The container body with a recovery path is removably attached to an attachment target. The powder transported through the recovery path is discharged to outside through the discharge port. The opening/closing part closes the discharge port. In an attached state in which the container body is attached to the attachment target, the opening/closing part is push-opened by a periphery of a recovery port provided in the attachment target. The guide part extends in the attachment direction of the container body to guide movement of the opening/closing part. The inclination suppressing part comes into contact with a portion of the attachment target before the periphery of the recovery port comes into contact with the opening/closing part to suppress inclination of the container body.

Abstract: A developing apparatus includes a developer conveyance member including a rotatably supported flexible sheet having a first distance between its rotation axis and an edge of the flexible sheet in a state where the flexible sheet is unbent. A lid of a developing container includes a corner portion that extends a storage space outward of an imaginary circle with a radius of the first distance centered on the rotational axis, and a contact portion which protrudes from an inner surface of the corner portion to an inner side of the imaginary circle and with which the flexible sheet contacts while the conveyance member is being rotated. The contact portion has a distal edge shaped such that a distance between the distal edge and the rotation axis increases toward a downstream side in a rotation direction of the conveyance member as viewed in the direction along the rotation axis.

Abstract: A powder transport device includes a transport unit, a spiral first transport member, and a first driving unit. The transport unit has a transport path. The first transport member is rotatably disposed in the transport path and rotates forward to transport powder. The first driving unit drives the first transport member to rotate. The first driving unit rotates the first transport member in reverse when both (i) a non-operation time during which the first transport member is not rotated and (ii) detection information on a temperature satisfy a condition.

Abstract: In a cartridge, a developing roller is configured to rotate around a first rotational axis extending in a predetermined direction and to carry developer thereon, the developing roller having a first end and a second end apart from each other in the predetermined direction, a from-first-to-second direction being defined along the predetermined direction as being directed from the first end to the second end. A developing electrode is formed of a conductive material and is configured to be electrically connected to the developing roller, the developing electrode including a main part and a protruding portion protruding from the main part in the from-first-to-second direction. A detection body is formed of an insulating material and is rotatably supported by the protruding portion, the detection body including a first opening that exposes part of the protruding portion and a covering portion covering part of the protruding portion.

Abstract: Examples disclosed herein relate to magnetic carrier bead separation in dual-component printing. The present disclosure relates generally to a device, method, and system for magnetic carrier bead separation. In an example, a printing device includes a developer sump to hold a plurality of carrier beads. The example device also includes a roller to move a subset of the plurality of carrier beads from an attachment point on the roller to a release point through a rotation of the roller, wherein the subset of the plurality of carrier beads return towards the developer sump after they are released at the release point. The device includes a magnetic separator located between the release point and the attachment point that guides a magnetized carrier bead of the plurality of carrier beads away from the developer sump and the roller.

Abstract: A printer may include a main body and a development cartridge attachable to and detachable from the main body. The development cartridge may comprise a developing portion in which a photoconductive drum and a developing roller are provided, a waste toner container to receive waste toner removed from the photoconductive drum, a toner container connected to the developing portion and to receive toner, and a toner refilling portion connected to the toner container and to refill toner through the toner refilling portion into the toner container. The printer may include a communicating portion provided in the main body to be connected to the toner refilling portion to provide an access the toner refilling portion from outside of the main body when the development cartridge is attached to the main body.

Abstract: A tubular fuser device rotates and is in contact with a sheet on which a positively charged toner image is formed to fix the toner image to the sheet. The fuser device includes a tubular substrate made of a metal, a rubber layer covering the outer periphery of the substrate, an adhesion layer covering the outer periphery of the rubber layer, and a surface layer made of a resin covering the outer periphery of the adhesion layer. In the fuser device, a charge decay ?V at a moment 120 seconds after end of charging a surface of the surface layer to ?1 kV is zero, and an electrostatic capacity per unit area C in a thickness direction of the fuser device is equal to or less than 3.30 pF/cm2.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a photosensitive drum; a developing roller; a separation mechanism for moving the developing roller between a contacting position contacting the photosensitive drum and a separated position separated from the photosensitive drum; a first tray; a first sheet feed mechanism for feeding a sheet from the first tray toward the photosensitive drum; a first sheet sensor for detecting passage of the sheet at a prescribed position; and a controller. The controller of the image forming apparatus is configured to perform: when a printing operation is performed onto the sheet ted from the first tray, feeding the sheet in the first tray to the prescribed position and maintain the sheet; moving, on or after the first sheet sensor detects the sheet, the developing roller to the contacting position.

Abstract: A developing device includes a developer container, a developer carrier, and first and second members for stirring/conveying. The developing container has a first partition wall between first and second chambers, communication portions through which those chambers communicate at opposite ends of the first partition wall, a developer supply port, and a developer discharge portion. The first member stirs and conveys developer in the first chamber in a first direction. The second member stirs and conveys developer in the second chamber in a second direction and includes a regulating portion and a discharging blade. The developer container includes a second partition wall between the first chamber and the regulating portion. The second partition wall is lower than the first partition wall, and an upper end part of the second partition wall is between upper and lower end parts of the rotary shaft of the second stirring/conveying member.

Abstract: In an image-forming apparatus, a fixing device includes first and second fixing members; and a pressure modifying mechanism. The first and second fixing members form a nip. The pressure modifying mechanism modifies a nip pressure at the nip to one of a first nip pressure and a second nip pressure smaller than the first nip pressure. A controller performs: a converting process to convert print data into raster image data; an image-forming process to form a developer image on a sheet using the raster image data; and a fixing process to fix the developer image to the sheet with the fixing device at the first nip pressure. When a second converting process is not completed before a prescribed time following completion of a first fixing process has elapsed, the controller further performs a nip pressure reducing process to modify the nip pressure from the first to the second nip pressure.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member, a developing member, a controller configured to carry out switching control between a first state in which the developing member is caused to act on the image bearing member and a second state in which the developing member is not caused to act on the image bearing member, a transfer member, and a detector configured to read density information of the recording material. The controller detects a fog density on the basis of a difference in density information between a fog non-occurrence region of a non-image region of the recording material in the second state and a fog occurable region of the non-image region of the recording material in the first state.

Abstract: A cleaning rod includes a rod-like member, a slidable portion which is provided on a free end side of the rod-like member with respect to a direction in which the cleaning rod is inserted and which is slidable on a light emergent surface of a lens of an image forming apparatus, and a restricting portion configured to restrict movement of the slidable portion in a direction away from the light emergent surface with respect to an optical axis direction by contacting the holder at each of free ends of opposing wall portions of a holder of the image forming apparatus from a side opposite from a side where a photosensitive member of the image forming apparatus is provided with respect to the optical axis direction in a state in which the slidable portion contacts the light emergent surface.

Abstract: A developer cartridge including a housing to contain a developer and including a developer outlet from which the developer is dischargeable. A transport member is arranged inside the housing to rotate to transport the developer to the developer outlet. A volume adjustment member is insertable inside the transport member opposite to the developer outlet to adjust an inside volume of the housing.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming engine, a re-conveyance path configured to guide a sheet, on which an image is formed by the image forming engine, to be switched back and re-conveyed toward the image forming engine. The apparatus also includes a discharge tray, and a discharge path configured to guide the sheet in a sheet discharge direction toward the discharge tray. A stack lever is configured to contact a top surface of the sheet on the discharge tray and press the sheet toward the discharge tray. A guide member is configured to form a part of the re-conveyance path, extend up to a position downstream of the stack lever in the sheet discharge direction above the stack lever, and guide the sheet being conveyed along the re-conveyance path, between the guide member and the stack lever.

Abstract: A powder container includes a powder container body having a cylindrical form to store powder. The powder container body includes a conveyer, a large diameter portion, a small diameter portion, and a boundary portion. The conveyer conveys the powder stored in the powder container body in a longitudinal direction of the powder container body. The large outer diameter portion has an outer diameter on a cross section orthogonal to the longitudinal direction. The small outer diameter portion has an outer diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the large outer diameter portion on the cross section. The boundary portion connects the large outer diameter portion and the small outer diameter portion.

Abstract: A waste toner collecting device includes a waste toner container, a detector, and an auger. The waster toner container is to collect waste toner. The detector is to detect an amount of waste toner collected and accumulated in the waste toner container. The auger is to disperse the waste toner in the waste toner container. The auger includes a first blade to transport the waste toner in a first direction toward the detector in the waste toner container, and a second blade to transport the waste toner in a second direction opposite to the first direction in the waste toner container. The second blade includes a first blade section having a waste toner transport rate greater than a waste toner transport rate of the first blade.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a first processor configured to control a transporter that transports a sheet and a first image forming section that forms an image on the sheet transported by the transporter, and a second processor configured to control a second image forming section that forms an image on the sheet transported by the transporter. The first processor and the second processor are contained in a single housing. The first processor is configured to perform transport preparation for transporting the sheet at the transporter and receive, from the second processor, a completion notification corresponding to a preparation command, for performing image formation preparation in the second image forming section, transmitted to the second processor via an inside of the housing, and subsequently cause the transporter to transport the sheet and the first image forming section to form the image.

Abstract: A powder container includes a collection port to communicate with an outlet port of a body or removable component, and to receive and collect powder flowing out through the outlet port. There is a shutter to open and close the collection port, and a rotation portion to be engageable with an engagement portion which is to open and close a cartridge shutter to open and close the outlet port through which the powder flows out. An operation device is to rotate the rotation portion in conjunction with an operation of the operation device, and a contact portion is included in the rotation portion to contact a restriction member. The contact portion is to cancel the restriction member from restricting rotation of the engagement portion.

Abstract: A developing device includes a developer bearer, a developer regulator, a developer supply passage, and a stopper. The developer bearer includes a magnetic field generator and is configured to bear a developer containing toner and magnetic carriers and conveys the developer to a developing area by rotation. A stopper prevents the developer blocked by the developer regulator from moving to a surface of the developer bearer, while securing a supply path for passing the developer in the developer supply passage to the developer bearer between the stopper and an upper end of a side wall of the developer supply passage that is opposite to the developing bearer. A width of the supply path in a direction perpendicular to a direction of a rotation axis of the developer bearer is in a range of 7%-10% of a circumference of an outer diameter of the developing bearer.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a first determining portion for determining the presence of a first image with at least a first number of pixels having a density-related value of at least a predetermined value continuously arrayed in a subscanning direction, and with at least a second, greater, number of pixels having the density-related value of at least the predetermined value continuously arrayed in a main scanning direction. It also includes a second determining portion for determining a target temperature at which to maintain a fixing portion based on the presence of the first image, when a determination result indicates the presence of the first image, or based on a density-related value of a second image different from the first image, when the determination result indicates the absence of the first image. The apparatus controls power to the fixing portion to maintain its temperature at the determined target temperature.