Patents by Inventor Akira SHIMODAIRA

Akira SHIMODAIRA has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 12140888
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a conveyance unit that conveys a recording medium in contact with one surface of the recording medium along a conveyance path; a plural intermediate transfer bodies that are arranged in a conveyance direction on the other surface side of the recording medium of the conveyance path and to which toner images formed by a plural image forming sections are primarily transferred; a plural secondary transfer units that are arranged in a conveyance direction and secondarily transfers the toner images of the plural intermediate transfer bodies to the other surface of the recording medium conveyed by the conveyance unit; and one or more rotating bodies of which peripheral surfaces are in contact with the other surface of the recording medium conveyed by the conveyance unit between one secondary transfer unit and another secondary transfer unit, among the secondary transfer units arranged in the conveyance direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2024
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Satoshi Tejima, Akira Shimodaira
  • Patent number: 12050416
    Abstract: A cleaning device includes a blade-shaped cleaning member of which a tip formed by an elastic body is arranged to be pressed against an endless belt and that cleans a surface of the endless belt; and a driven roller that is arranged to face the cleaning member via the endless belt and is driven and rotated with movement of the endless belt and of which an outer peripheral surface is formed by an elastic body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2024
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Naoya Mitamura, Akira Shimodaira, Kiho Mitomo
  • Publication number: 20240241473
    Abstract: According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a cleaning device including: an elastic plate-shaped cleaning unit that has a tip portion disposed in contact with a surface of an object-to-be-cleaned which moves in a predetermined direction, is provided to be inclined in a direction facing a moving direction of the object-to-be-cleaned, and cleans hot-melt powder remaining on the object-to-be-cleaned; a facing unit that is disposed in contact with a back surface side of the object-to-be-cleaned and is provided to face the cleaning unit across the object-to-be-cleaned; and a heating unit that heats a contact portion of the cleaning unit to a temperature lower than a softening point of the powder by heating the facing unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 24, 2023
    Publication date: July 18, 2024
    Applicant: FUJIFILM BUSINESS INNOVATION CORP.
    Inventors: Kiho MITOMO, Akira SHIMODAIRA
  • Publication number: 20240103405
    Abstract: A scraping device includes: a scraping part that comes into contact with a rotating contact part to scrape off attached matter attached to the contact part; a rotation part that rotates; and an applying part that is attached to the rotation part, rotates with the rotation part, and strikes the scraping part to apply an impact to the scraping part.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 1, 2023
    Publication date: March 28, 2024
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Takuya Ogino, Akira Shimodaira, Yukihiro Ichiki
  • Publication number: 20240103426
    Abstract: A cleaning device includes: a plate-like cleaning member that cleans a cleaning target surface, which is moved with toner attached thereto, of a cleaning target body by scraping the toner with a part of a distal end surface of the cleaning member contacting the cleaning target surface; a body that has a storage space that stores waste toner that has fallen after being scraped by the cleaning member; and a transport member disposed in the storage space of the body at a position below the distal end surface of the cleaning member to transport the waste toner stored in the storage space along a longitudinal direction of the cleaning member. The transport member includes a non-transport portion that exerts no transport force in a direction along the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 11, 2023
    Publication date: March 28, 2024
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Akira Shimodaira, Yukihiro Ichiki
  • Publication number: 20240103423
    Abstract: A cleaning member includes: an elastic contact plate that includes a distal end surface with a corner portion to be brought into contact with a cleaning target surface, which is moved with toner attached thereto, of a cleaning target body; and a support plate bonded to the elastic contact plate from a back surface side of the elastic contact plate to support the elastic contact plate, the support plate being more rigid than the elastic contact plate. The distal end surface of the elastic contact plate projects from a distal end surface of the support plate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 3, 2023
    Publication date: March 28, 2024
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Tatsuya TAKAHASHI, Naoya MITAMURA, Akira SHIMODAIRA
  • Publication number: 20240103427
    Abstract: A cleaning device includes: a plate-like cleaning member that cleans a cleaning target surface, which is moved with toner attached thereto, of a cleaning target body by scraping the toner with a part of a distal end surface of the cleaning member contacting the cleaning target surface; a body that has a storage space that stores waste toner that has fallen after being scraped by the cleaning member; and a transport member disposed in the storage space of the body at a position below the distal end surface of the cleaning member to transport the waste toner stored in the storage space along a longitudinal direction of the cleaning member. The transport member includes a non-transport portion that exerts no transport force in a direction along the longitudinal direction of the cleaning member.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 17, 2023
    Publication date: March 28, 2024
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Akira SHIMODAIRA, Yukihiro ICHIKI
  • Patent number: 11809098
    Abstract: A cleaning device includes a cleaning member that removes toner from a surface of an image holder by bringing an upper end portion into contact with the surface from a downstream side in a rotation direction of the image holder, a housing that supports the cleaning member and that stores the toner removed from the surface of the image holder by the cleaning member, and a transport member that is provided in the housing and that transports the toner stored in the housing to an outside of the housing at the same height as a contact portion of the cleaning member that comes into contact with the surface of the image holder or at a position above the contact portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2023
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Akira Shimodaira, Tomoya Oki, Naoya Mitamura
  • Publication number: 20230305442
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a conveyance unit that conveys a recording medium in contact with one surface of the recording medium along a conveyance path; a plural intermediate transfer bodies that are arranged in a conveyance direction on the other surface side of the recording medium of the conveyance path and to which toner images formed by a plural image forming sections are primarily transferred; a plural secondary transfer units that are arranged in a conveyance direction and secondarily transfers the toner images of the plural intermediate transfer bodies to the other surface of the recording medium conveyed by the conveyance unit; and one or more rotating bodies of which peripheral surfaces are in contact with the other surface of the recording medium conveyed by the conveyance unit between one secondary transfer unit and another secondary transfer unit, among the secondary transfer units arranged in the conveyance direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 18, 2022
    Publication date: September 28, 2023
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Satoshi TEJIMA, Akira SHIMODAIRA
  • Publication number: 20230305444
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a conveyance unit that conveys a recording medium in contact with one surface of the recording medium along a conveyance path; a first image forming group that is provided on the other surface side of the recording medium in the conveyance path, and includes plural image forming sections that form a toner image; a second image forming group that is provided on a downstream side in a conveyance direction of the first image forming group on the other surface side of the recording medium in the conveyance path, and includes plural image forming sections that form a toner image; a first intermediate transfer body that is provided on the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the first image forming group, and to which the toner image formed by the plural image forming sections of the first image forming group is primarily transferred; a second intermediate transfer body that is provided on an upstream side in the conveyance direction of the second image forming group, a
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 3, 2022
    Publication date: September 28, 2023
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Akira SHIMODAIRA, Satoshi TEJIMA
  • Publication number: 20230305446
    Abstract: A cleaning device includes a cleaning member that removes toner from a surface of an image holder by bringing an upper end portion into contact with the surface from a downstream side in a rotation direction of the image holder, a housing that supports the cleaning member and that stores the toner removed from the surface of the image holder by the cleaning member, and a transport member that is provided in the housing and that transports the toner stored in the housing to an outside of the housing at the same height as a contact portion of the cleaning member that comes into contact with the surface of the image holder or at a position above the contact portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 4, 2022
    Publication date: September 28, 2023
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Akira SHIMODAIRA, Tomoya OKI, Naoya MITAMURA
  • Publication number: 20230305445
    Abstract: A cleaning device includes a blade-shaped cleaning member of which a tip formed by an elastic body is arranged to be pressed against an endless belt and that cleans a surface of the endless belt; and a driven roller that is arranged to face the cleaning member via the endless belt and is driven and rotated with movement of the endless belt and of which an outer peripheral surface is formed by an elastic body.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 15, 2022
    Publication date: September 28, 2023
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Naoya MITAMURA, Akira SHIMODAIRA, Kiho MITOMO
  • Patent number: 11442381
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image carrier that carries an image; a developing device that develops a latent image formed on the image carrier into a visible image formed of powder; an intermediate transfer body to which the visible image is transferred from the image carrier and that temporarily transports the visible image; a transfer device that transfers the visible image on the image carrier to the intermediate transfer body; a first cleaning device that cleans the image carrier by collecting powder that remains on the image carrier; a first collection container that receives the powder collected by the first cleaning device; a second cleaning device that cleans the intermediate transfer body by collecting powder that remains on the intermediate transfer body; a second collection container that receives the powder collected by the second cleaning device; a feeding device that supplies a transfer-process bias to the transfer device; and a changing unit that changes the transfer-process bias sup
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2022
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Kazunari Yamagishi, Akira Shimodaira
  • Patent number: 11366413
    Abstract: A sheet-member guide structure includes a first guide member that guides a sheet member from a fixing unit to a transport roller unit, the fixing unit fixing an image formed on the sheet member to the sheet member by heating the sheet member that is transported, the transport roller unit transporting the sheet member; and a second guide member that comes into contact with the sheet member to which the image has been fixed by the fixing unit and guides the sheet member to the transport roller unit, the second guide member being disposed downstream of the first guide member in a transporting direction in which the sheet member is transported and being made of a material having a thermal conductivity higher than a thermal conductivity of a material of the first guide member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2022
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventor: Akira Shimodaira
  • Patent number: 11334008
    Abstract: A sheet-member guide structure includes a first guide member that guides a sheet member from a fixing unit to a transport roller unit, the fixing unit fixing an image formed on the sheet member to the sheet member by heating the sheet member that is transported, the transport roller unit transporting the sheet member; and a second guide member that comes into contact with the sheet member to which the image has been fixed by the fixing unit and guides the sheet member to the transport roller unit, the second guide member being disposed downstream of the first guide member in a transporting direction in which the sheet member is transported and being made of a material having a thermal conductivity higher than a thermal conductivity of a material of the first guide member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2022
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventor: Akira Shimodaira
  • Patent number: 11327420
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a transfer unit configured to transfer second charged images superposed with one another onto a holding surface of a recording medium on which at least one first charged image has been electrostatically held and a static eliminating unit disposed upstream from the transfer unit in a transport direction of the recording medium and configured to remove static electricity from the recording medium electrostatically holding the at least one first charged image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2022
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventor: Akira Shimodaira
  • Publication number: 20220128934
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image carrier that carries an image; a developing device that develops a latent image formed on the image carrier into a visible image formed of powder; an intermediate transfer body to which the visible image is transferred from the image carrier and that temporarily transports the visible image; a transfer device that transfers the visible image on the image carrier to the intermediate transfer body; a first cleaning device that cleans the image carrier by collecting powder that remains on the image carrier; a first collection container that receives the powder collected by the first cleaning device; a second cleaning device that cleans the intermediate transfer body by collecting powder that remains on the intermediate transfer body; a second collection container that receives the powder collected by the second cleaning device; a feeding device that supplies a transfer-process bias to the transfer device; and a changing unit that changes the transfer-process bias sup
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 11, 2021
    Publication date: April 28, 2022
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Kazunari YAMAGISHI, Akira SHIMODAIRA
  • Publication number: 20220100141
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image bearing member that has a toner image formed thereon while rotating and that retains the toner image until the toner image is transferred; a charging unit that receives an image-formation charge voltage having a predetermined first polarity and used for electrostatically charging the image bearing member; an exposure unit that radiates exposure light onto a region of the image bearing member so as to form an electrostatic latent image on the image bearing member, the region of the image bearing member receiving the image-formation charge voltage applied by the charging unit; a developing unit that uses a toner to develop the electrostatic latent image formed on the image bearing member by the exposure unit; a transfer unit that nips a transfer member by working together with the image bearing member and that receives a transfer voltage having a second polarity opposite to the first polarity between the transfer unit and the image bearing member so as to transfer t
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 8, 2021
    Publication date: March 31, 2022
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Kazuki Kuramoto, Akira Shimodaira
  • Patent number: 11262674
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a transport belt, a first intermediate transfer belt, and a second intermediate transfer belt. The transport belt is disposed along a transport path extending in a vertical direction. The transport belt is configured to transport a recording medium while coming into contact with one surface of the recording medium. The first intermediate transfer belt is configured to sandwich the recording medium together with the transport belt. An image is transferred from the first intermediate transfer belt to the recording medium. The second intermediate transfer belt is disposed above the first intermediate transfer belt. The second intermediate transfer belt is configured to sandwich, together with the transport belt, the recording medium which is in a state where the recording medium is sandwiched between the first intermediate transfer belt and the transport belt. An image being transferred from the second intermediate transfer belt to the recording medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 7, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2022
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Yukihiro Ichiki, Akira Shimodaira, Keita Hashimoto, Toshihiro Goda, Masaki Suto
  • Patent number: 11262697
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a medium transport path; a first image transport path that is disposed so as to oppose the medium transport path and along which an image to be formed on the medium is transported; an image forming part that forms the image and is disposed adjacent to the first image transport path; and a second image transport path that is disposed so as to oppose the medium transport path, that is located at a distance from the image forming part, and along which an image to be formed on the medium is transported, the second image transport path, the first image transport path, and the medium transport path, together surrounding the image forming part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2022
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
    Inventors: Toshihiro Goda, Yukihiro Ichiki, Akira Shimodaira, Keita Hashimoto, Masaki Suto