Abstract: To provide a process cartridge, a drum unit capable of receiving a driving force from the main assembly, and an image forming apparatus including the process cartridge. A cartridge is provided with a movable member having a driving force receiving portion. The movable member moves between an advanced position and a retracted position.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a housing, a cover, a maneuver lever, a first locking member, and a second locking member. The cover is attached to the housing and is rotatable about a rotation axis. The maneuver lever is attached to the cover and extends parallel to the rotation axis. The first and second locking members are attached to the cover and are configured to engage with the maneuver lever. The first locking member is rotatable about a first axis perpendicular to the rotation axis between a locked position and an unlocked position. The second locking member is rotatable about a second axis parallel to the first axis between a locked position and an unlocked position. When the maneuver lever moves from the closed position to the open position, each of the first locking member and the second locking member rotates from the locked position to the unlocked position.

Abstract: An image forming system includes a recording processing portion, an acquirement processing portion, and an output processing portion. The recording processing portion records a consumed amount of a consumable consumed by an image forming apparatus per predetermined unit time. The acquirement processing portion acquires prediction data that indicates a predicted consumed amount of the consumable per the unit time for a time period from a predetermined standard time, based on a comparison result between: a first record result corresponding to a first time period extending to a reference time; and a second record result corresponding to a predetermined second time period extending to the standard time, among a record result recorded by the recording processing portion, the reference time being a predetermined specific time period earlier than the standard time. The output processing portion outputs the prediction data acquired by the acquirement processing portion.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing unit including a fixing belt having a surface to which a lubricant is applied, a heater contacting the surface and including heating elements arranged along a width direction of the belt and including first end second end heating elements and a central heating element, and a pressing roller capable of pressing and rotating the belt, a power supply configured to supply power to the heating elements, and a controller configured to determine a first amount of power to be supplied to the central heating element and a second amount of power to be supplied to each end heating element such that the first amount is greater than the second amount, and control the power supply to supply the first and second amounts to the central heating element and each end heating element before controlling the pressing roller to rotate.

Abstract: A system with a container including a protrusion, and a receiver to receive the container. The receiver includes a slide block that is movable relative to a body of the receiver, the slide block including two surfaces, a first surface, initially contacted by the protrusion of the container during insertion of the container into the receiver, having a first slope to resist movement of the container towards the receiver, and a second surface, subsequently contacted by the protrusion of the container during the insertion of the container into the receiver, having a second slope to interact with the protrusion of the container to assist movement of the container towards the receiver. This construction provides the user with a changing insertion force to indicate proper mounting of the container.

Abstract: A process cartridge having a drum cartridge and a toner cartridge is provided. The drum cartridge includes a photosensitive drum, a cleaner, a conveyer tube, a developing roller, and a developing device. The toner cartridge is attachable to the drum cartridge and is located on a side of the developing roller opposite to the photosensitive drum in an attaching direction. The toner cartridge includes a waste toner container to store the toner conveyed through the conveyer tube and a toner container to store the toner to be supplied to the photosensitive drum. The toner container communicates with a developing chamber in the developing device and is located at least partly between the waste toner container and the developing chamber. The conveyer tube extends in the attaching direction and is arranged to overlap the photosensitive drum, the toner container, and the waste toner container in a view along an axial direction.

Abstract: A recording material cooling device includes a belt, a plurality of rollers, a belt cooling member, a recording material feeding member, a deposited matter removing member, a deposited matter receiving container, a roller holding member, and a supporting member for supporting the roller holding member so as to be swingable between a first position where the belt and the recording material feeding member contact each other and a second position where the belt is spaced from the recording material feeding member. The supporting member supports the roller holding member so that a swing center is positioned on one end side with respect to a rotational axis direction of the rollers. The receiving container includes a wall surface portion for preventing overflow of the deposited matter received through an opening of the receiving container when the roller holding member is positioned in the second position.

Abstract: A drum cartridge includes: a photosensitive drum rotatable about a drum axis extending in an axis direction; a drum cleaner including a cleaning member cleaning a circumferential surface of the photosensitive drum, and a cleaning housing accommodating transfer residual toner removed from the circumferential surface of the photosensitive drum by the cleaning member; a first drum side plate supporting a first end portion of the photosensitive drum; a second drum side plate located distant from the first drum side plate in the axis direction and supporting a second end portion of the photosensitive drum; a pipe located between the first drum side plate and the second drum side plate in the axis direction and extending in the axis direction; and a conveyor device conveying the transfer residual toner from the cleaning housing to the pipe.

Abstract: A drum cartridge includes: a drum frame to which a developing cartridge is attachable; a photosensitive drum; and a first storage medium. The drum frame has one end portion and another end portion spaced apart from the one end portion in a first direction. The photosensitive drum is rotatable about a first axis extending in a second direction and is positioned at the one end portion of the drum cartridge. The first storage medium includes a first electrical contact surface. The first storage medium is positioned at an outer surface of the drum frame, the outer surface being exposed in a state where the developing cartridge is attached to the drum frame.

Abstract: A fixing device includes: a preheating unit configured to heat a recording medium above the recording medium in a non-contact state with the recording medium, the recording medium being held at a leading end of the recording medium having a recording surface on which an image is transferred, the recording medium being transported such that the recording surface faces upward; a blowing unit disposed on a side opposite to the preheating unit with respect to the recording medium and configured to blow air onto the recording medium below the recording medium; a main heating unit disposed on a downstream side of the preheating unit in a transport direction of the recording medium and configured to contact the recording medium to heat the recording medium; a detection unit disposed on an upstream side of the preheating unit in the transport direction and configured to detect a transport posture of the recording medium; and a control unit configured to control the blowing unit based on a detection result of the dete

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a developing roller configured to develop an electrostatic latent image on a photosensitive drum to form a toner image; a belt onto which the toner image is transferred; a detection unit configured to detect a density of an image for detection formed on the belt; and a controller configured to perform hue adjustment based on a detection result of the detection unit. The image forming apparatus performs image formation in a second mode using a color gamut different from a color gamut in a first mode, and the controller obtains a lookup table, which indicates a correlation between image data to be used and input image data in the second mode, based on the detection result in the first mode and a correlation of density between the first mode and the second mode.

Abstract: An operating method of an image forming apparatus including estimating an accumulative usage of toner in a toner cartridge, determining initial remaining life information of the toner cartridge and indicating a remaining amount of the toner based on the estimated accumulative usage of the toner, obtaining weight information indicating a first weight of the toner cartridge at a first time point at which the remaining amount of the toner is within a predetermined range, determining a correction factor indicating an error factor between the estimated accumulative usage of the toner and an actual accumulative usage of the toner, based on the obtained weight information and the estimated accumulative usage, and correcting an amount of toner to be used in an image forming operation to be performed after the first time point based on the correction factor, and determining adjusted remaining life information based on the correction factor.

Abstract: The external cover is a cover to cover a coupling mechanism. The coupling mechanism is disposed in a space between an image forming apparatus and an optional device that is disposed on a side of the image forming apparats and couples the optical device with the image forming apparatus. The exterior cover has an upper portion and a side portion. The upper portion extends in a front-back direction of the image forming apparatus, which is perpendicular to a direction in which the optional device and the image forming apparatus face each other; the upper portion covers an upper end portion of the coupling mechanism in the space. The side portion covers a front end portion or a back end portion of the coupling mechanism. The external cover is composed of a combination of multiple, identically shaped cover members.

Abstract: According to one embodiment, an image forming apparatus includes a rotatable photoconductor, a laser light source configured to output a laser beam according to an image, a polygon mirror positioned to reflect the laser beam while rotating and cause the laser beam to be incident on the photoconductor along a main scanning direction to form an electrostatic latent image, a photodetector configured to detect the laser beam reflected by the polygon mirror, a developer, a transfer mechanism, and a processor. The processor (a) controls the laser light source such that a light emission intensity of the laser light source is constant when the laser beam is incident on the photodetector, regardless of a rotation speed of the polygon mirror and (b) controls the output timing of the laser beam based on a detection result of the photodetector.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a main body and a cover including a first surface part and a second surface part. The cover includes a first protrusion formed on the first surface part and extending in a first direction and a second protrusion formed on the second surface part and extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. The main body includes an engaging portion engaged with the first protrusion and a groove portion formed along the side surface part and having an opening that opens the front surface part so that the second protrusion is capable of being inserted into and extracted from the main body in the first direction. The groove portion has a portion inclined in a manner that the groove portion is located at a further upper side in a vertical direction as the groove portion becomes closer to the front surface part.

Abstract: A heating apparatus includes a cylindrical film and a pressing element that rotates with the cylindrical film and forms a nip with the cylindrical film. A medium is conveyed through the nip from an upstream side to a downstream side. The heating apparatus further includes a guide member arranged inside the cylindrical film and including a first end portion that contacts the cylindrical film at a location that is downstream of an upstream end of the nip, and a substrate arranged inside the cylindrical film and on which a heating element is disposed. An upstream end of the substrate is located downstream of the first end portion of the guide member.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a first fixing member, a second fixing member, a heater, a temperature sensor, a sensor holder, and a first frame. The temperature sensor detects a temperature of the first fixing member or the second fixing member. The sensor holder is configured to hold the temperature sensor and is fixed on the first frame. The first frame is made of metal and includes a first bend, a second bend, a third bend, a first wall, a second wall, a third wall, and a fourth wall. The second wall is connected to the first wall via the first bend. The third wall is connected to the second wall via the second bend. The fourth wall is connected to the third wall via the third bend. The first wall and the second wall form an acute angle.

Abstract: A fire-spread prevention member is interposed between an electrical component and a combustible member. The fire-spread prevention member includes a bent portion that is disposed outside an outer edge of the electrical component and bent to a side on which the electrical component is disposed. The fire-spread prevention member is made of non-combustible material.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a rotatable fixing belt, a pad, a rotatable pressing member, a pressing member driving source, an auxiliary driving roller, and a transmission mechanism for transmitting a driving force from the pressing member driving source to the auxiliary driving roller, wherein a peripheral speed of the auxiliary driving roller is faster than a peripheral speed of the pressing member, and a steering roller provided so as to stretch the fixing belt at the inner surface of the fixing belt in a position downstream of the auxiliary driving roller and upstream the pad with respect to a rotational direction of the fixing belt. The steering roller adjusts a position of the fixing belt with respect to a widthwise direction of the fixing belt by inclining the fixing belt so as to be positioned within a predetermined range.

Abstract: A printing apparatus includes: plural image forming units accommodating colorants of the same color; and a controller that forms an image of one color using the plural image forming units.