Patents by Inventor Atsushi UEMATSU

Atsushi UEMATSU 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).

  • Publication number: 20160062259
    Abstract: A charging member includes an electro-conductive substrate and an electro-conductive resin layer. The electro-conductive resin layer contains a binder, a plurality of bowl-shaped resin particles, and a plurality of hollow particles. The charging member has a surface having recesses due to openings of the bowl-shaped resin particles and protrusions due to edges of the openings of the bowl-shaped resin particles, where the positional relationship between one bowl-shaped resin particle and the hollow particles lying in the vicinity of the bowl-shaped resin particle is that the number of the hollow particles being in the space under the bowl-shaped resin particle in a predetermined depth is at least four in average.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 27, 2015
    Publication date: March 3, 2016
    Inventors: Noboru Miyagawa, Tomohito Taniguchi, Masahiro Watanabe, Taichi Sato, Takehiko Aoyama, Atsushi Uematsu
  • Patent number: 9274442
    Abstract: Provided an electrophotographic image forming apparatus comprising an electrophotographic photosensitive member and a charging member. The electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a charge transport layer as a surface layer having a matrix-domain structure including specific resins. The charging member comprises an electro-conductive substrate, and an electro-conductive elastic layer. The electro-conductive elastic layer comprises a binder, and holding a bowl-shaped resin particle having an opening, so that at least a part of the bowl-shaped resin particle is exposed, and the charging member has a concavity derived from the opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle on the surface thereof, and a protrusion derived from an edge of the opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle on the surface thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Taichi Sato, Tomohito Taniguchi, Noboru Miyagawa, Takehiko Aoyama, Atsushi Uematsu, Masahiro Watanabe, Yuki Yamamoto, Harunobu Ogaki, Akihiro Maruyama, Takashi Anezaki, Daisuke Miura, Hirofumi Kumoi
  • Publication number: 20150277244
    Abstract: Provided an electrophotographic image forming apparatus comprising an electrophotographic photosensitive member and a charging member. The electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a charge transport layer as a surface layer having a matrix-domain structure including specific resins. The charging member comprises an electro-conductive substrate, and an electro-conductive elastic layer. The electro-conductive elastic layer comprises a binder, and holding a bowl-shaped resin particle having an opening, so that at least a part of the bowl-shaped resin particle is exposed, and the charging member has a concavity derived from the opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle on the surface thereof, and a protrusion derived from an edge of the opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle on the surface thereof.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 18, 2015
    Publication date: October 1, 2015
    Inventors: Taichi Sato, Tomohito Taniguchi, Noboru Miyagawa, Takehiko Aoyama, Atsushi Uematsu, Masahiro Watanabe, Yuki Yamamoto, Harunobu Ogaki, Akihiro Maruyama, Takashi Anezaki, Daisuke Miura, Hirofumi Kumoi
  • Patent number: 9098006
    Abstract: The roller member has a substrate and an electroconductive elastic layer. The elastic layer has a crown shape of which an outer diameter at the middle in the lengthwise direction is larger than those at its both ends. The elastic layer includes a bowl-shaped resin particle. The surface of the roller member has concavity derived from an opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle and a protrusion derived from an edge of the opening of the resin particle. The relation in the restoring rate for elastic deformation between at the middle of the roller member and at its both ends is such that: on the surface of the elastic layer the restoring rate is larger at both ends than that at the middle, and at the position of depth t ?m from the elastic layer surface the restoring rate is larger at the middle than that at both ends.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2015
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi Uematsu, Noboru Miyagawa, Taichi Sato
  • Patent number: 9075333
    Abstract: Provided is a charging member for suppressing the vibration of a charging roller which occurs owing to a difference in circumferential speed in a longitudinal direction when the roller is rotated to follow a photosensitive member, and suppressing a banding image caused by the vibration of the charging roller over a long period of time. The charging member includes a substrate and an elastic layer. The elastic layer contains a rubber having a polar group and hollow particles each having a shell containing a crystal of calcium carbonate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2015
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi Uematsu, Tomohito Taniguchi, Taichi Sato
  • Publication number: 20150003874
    Abstract: There are provided an image forming apparatus in which the generation of lateral streak images due to a decrease in the in-nip discharge intensity is suppressed while at the same time the generation of spot-like images due to abnormal discharge caused by smudges on the surface of a charging member is suppressed, and a process cartridge. The image forming apparatus and the process cartridge each has: a charging member containing a resin particle having a plurality of pores inside thereof; and a toner in which the coverage ratio X1 of a surface of the toner with silica fine particles is 50.0 area % or more and 75.0 area % or less, and when a theoretical coverage ratio with the silica fine particles is X2, a diffusion index represented by formula 1 satisfies formula 2. diffusion index=X1/X2??(formula 1) diffusion index??0.0042×X1+0.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 26, 2014
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Inventors: Takehiko Aoyama, Tomohito Taniguchi, Noboru Miyagawa, Taichi Sato, Atsushi Uematsu, Masahiro Watanabe, Yoshitaka Suzumura
  • Publication number: 20150003872
    Abstract: There are provided an image-forming apparatus that inhibit the occurrence of a longitudinal streak image attributed to a cleaning failure, and a process cartridge. The image-forming apparatus and the process cartridge each have a charging member with a surface having a concavities derived from an opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle, and a protrusions derived from an edge of the opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle, the coverage ratio X1 of a surface of the toner with the silica fine particles is 50.0 area % or more and 75.0 area % or less, and when a theoretical coverage ratio of the toner by the silica fine particles is X2, a diffusion index represented by the formula 1 satisfies the formula 2: diffusion index=X1/X2??(formula 1) diffusion index??0.0042×X1+0.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 26, 2014
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Inventors: Tomohito Taniguchi, Takehiko Aoyama, Taichi Sato, Noboru Miyagawa, Masahiro Watanabe, Atsushi Uematsu, Yoshitaka Suzumura
  • Publication number: 20140334843
    Abstract: A charging member including an electro-conductive substrate, an electro-conductive elastic layer, and an electro-conductive surface layer, wherein the elastic layer includes a polymer having a unit derived from ethylene oxide and at least one particle selected from the group consisting of graphite particles and graphitized particles; wherein a particle-exposing portion where the particle is exposed is present on the surface of the elastic layer; the surface of the elastic layer including the particle-exposing portions is coated with the surface layer; the surface layer includes binder resin and resin particles dispersed in the binder resin and has a plurality of protrusions derived from the resin particles on the surface; when the resin particles in the surface layer are orthographically projected onto the surface of the elastic layer, areas other than projected areas of the resin particles on the surface of the elastic layer overlap the particle-exposing portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 21, 2014
    Publication date: November 13, 2014
    Inventors: Tomohito Taniguchi, Taichi Sato, Atsushi Uematsu
  • Publication number: 20140301754
    Abstract: The roller member has a substrate and an electroconductive elastic layer. The elastic layer has a crown shape of which an outer diameter at the middle in the lengthwise direction is larger than those at its both ends. The elastic layer includes a bowl-shaped resin particle. The surface of the roller member has concavity derived from an opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle and a protrusion derived from an edge of the opening of the resin particle. The relation in the restoring rate for elastic deformation between at the middle of the roller member and at its both ends is such that: on the surface of the elastic layer the restoring rate is larger at both ends than that at the middle, and at the position of depth t ?m from the elastic layer surface the restoring rate is larger at the middle than that at both ends.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 3, 2014
    Publication date: October 9, 2014
    Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi Uematsu, Noboru Miyagawa, Taichi Sato
  • Publication number: 20140270853
    Abstract: Provided is a charging member for suppressing the vibration of a charging roller which occurs owing to a difference in circumferential speed in a longitudinal direction when the roller is rotated to follow a photosensitive member, and suppressing a banding image caused by the vibration of the charging roller over a long period of time. The charging member includes a substrate and an elastic layer. The elastic layer contains a rubber having a polar group and hollow particles each having a shell containing a crystal of calcium carbonate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 28, 2014
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Atsushi Uematsu, Tomohito Taniguchi, Taichi Sato
  • Publication number: 20140255838
    Abstract: A process cartridge that can suppress production of a banding image attributed to contact rotation of an electrophotographic photosensitive member and a charging member and output a high-quality image is provided. The charging member includes an electro-conductive substrate and an electroconductive resin layer, the resin layer contains a binder, a conductive fine particle, and a bowl-shaped resin particle having an opening, and the surface of the charging member has a concavity derived from the opening of the bowl-shaped resin particle and a protrusion derived from the edge of the opening thereof. The electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a support and a photosensitive layer, and the surface layer in the photosensitive member contains a specific resin (?), a specific resin (?), and a specific compound (?).
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 22, 2014
    Publication date: September 11, 2014
    Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hidekazu Matsuda, Daisuke Tanaka, Atsushi Uematsu
  • Patent number: 8446650
    Abstract: A document conveying device, include a conveyance roller which conveys a document that is attached to a conveyance roller shaft; and a flywheel connected to the conveyance roller shaft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2013
    Assignee: NEC Access Technica, Ltd.
    Inventors: Toru Uchida, Yasukazu Nagura, Atsushi Uematsu
  • Publication number: 20100328738
    Abstract: A document conveying device, include a conveyance roller which conveys a document that is attached to a conveyance roller shaft; and a flywheel connected to the conveyance roller shaft.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2010
    Publication date: December 30, 2010
    Applicant: NEC ACCESS TECHNICA, LTD.
    Inventors: Toru UCHIDA, Yasukazu NAGURA, Atsushi UEMATSU