Patents by Inventor Hironori Yamaoka
Hironori Yamaoka 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).
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Patent number: 11946153Abstract: A copper or copper alloy electroplating bath has two or more electrolytes. The two or more electrolytes include at least one selected from nitric acid and a nitrate. The two or more electrolytes can form electrodeposits, such as a group of high-aspect bump electrodes, that have a uniform height or thickness at high speed.Type: GrantFiled: January 16, 2020Date of Patent: April 2, 2024Assignee: ISHIHARA CHEMICAL CO., LTD.Inventors: Masaru Hatabe, Hironori Murakami, Fuka Yamaoka
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Publication number: 20230158970Abstract: A camera holding structure for holding a vehicle-mounted camera includes: a window separating a vehicle interior space from a vehicle exterior space; and a holding member fixed to an inner surface of the window and holding the vehicle-mounted camera. The holding member includes a fixing frame that is fixed to the inner surface of the window and a hood that protrudes from the fixing frame toward an inside of a vehicle and defines a field-of-view space of the vehicle-mounted camera on a vehicle inner side of the window. The fixing frame has an opposing surface that opposes the inner surface of the window and is attached to the inner surface of the window, the opposing surface being provided with at least one marking part that is visible from outside the vehicle.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 18, 2022Publication date: May 25, 2023Inventors: Hironori YAMAOKA, Tadahiro MATORI
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Patent number: 10852671Abstract: A fixing device includes a fixing rotator, a pressure rotator, a cleaner, and a moving assembly. The cleaner contacts and cleans a cleaning target, which includes one of the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator. The moving assembly moves the cleaner between a contact position at which the cleaner contacts the cleaning target and a separate position at which the cleaner is apart from the cleaning target. The moving assembly includes a biasing member that presses the cleaner to move to the contact position. The moving assembly moves the cleaner from the contact position to the separate position against a biasing force of the biasing member. The moving assembly moves the cleaner from the separate position to the contact position while increasing and then decreasing the biasing force of the biasing member greater than the biasing force applied when the cleaner is located at the contact position.Type: GrantFiled: November 6, 2019Date of Patent: December 1, 2020Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Takahiro Imada, Yoshio Hattori, Yoshikuni Sasaki, Hironori Yamaoka, Yasunori Ishigaya, Takumi Waida
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Publication number: 20200249603Abstract: A fixing device includes a first rotator and a second rotator disposed opposite the first rotator. A heater heats one of the first rotator and the second rotator. A cleaner is disposed opposite the second rotator. A temperature detector is disposed opposite the second rotator at an opposed position being within an increased conveyance span where a first sheet is conveyed and being outboard from a decreased conveyance span in an axial direction of the second rotator where a second sheet smaller than the first sheet is conveyed. The temperature detector detects a temperature of the second rotator. A mover moves the cleaner between a contact position where the cleaner contacts the surface of the second rotator and a separation position where the cleaner separates from the surface of the second rotator based on the temperature of the second rotator, that is detected by the temperature detector.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 26, 2019Publication date: August 6, 2020Inventors: Yasunori ISHIGAYA, Yoshio HATTORI, Yoshikuni SASAKI, Hironori YAMAOKA, Takahiro IMADA, Takumi WAIDA
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Publication number: 20200159149Abstract: A fixing device includes a fixing rotator, a pressure rotator, a cleaner, a moving assembly, and a temperature detector. The fixing rotator heats and fixes a toner image onto a recording medium. The pressure rotator presses against the fixing rotator. The cleaner contacts and cleans a cleaning target, which includes one of the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator. The moving assembly moves the cleaner between a contact position where the cleaner contacts the cleaning target and a separate position where the cleaner is apart from the cleaning target. The temperature detector detects a temperature of one of the cleaner and the cleaning target.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 7, 2019Publication date: May 21, 2020Applicant: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Takumi WAIDA, Yoshio HATTORI, Yasunori ISHIGAYA, Yoshikuni SASAKI, Takahiro IMADA, Hironori YAMAOKA, Hiromasa TAKAGI, Keitaro SHOJI
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Publication number: 20200159148Abstract: A fixing device includes a fixing rotator, a pressure rotator, a cleaner, and a moving assembly. The cleaner contacts and cleans a cleaning target, which includes one of the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator. The moving assembly moves the cleaner between a contact position at which the cleaner contacts the cleaning target and a separate position at which the cleaner is apart from the cleaning target. The moving assembly includes a biasing member that presses the cleaner to move to the contact position. The moving assembly moves the cleaner from the contact position to the separate position against a biasing force of the biasing member. The moving assembly moves the cleaner from the separate position to the contact position while increasing and then decreasing the biasing force of the biasing member greater than the biasing force applied when the cleaner is located at the contact position.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 6, 2019Publication date: May 21, 2020Applicant: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Takahiro IMADA, Yoshio Hattori, Yoshikuni Sasaki, Hironori Yamaoka, Yasunori Ishigaya, Takumi Waida
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Patent number: 10401766Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing rotator rotatable in a predetermined direction of rotation, over which a recording medium is conveyed, and a heater to heat the fixing rotator. A temperature detector detects a temperature of the fixing rotator. A controller performs a primary productivity control to define a primary productivity rate of printing per unit time based on the temperature of the fixing rotator that is detected by the temperature detector. The controller calculates an amount of power suppliable to the heater and performs a secondary productivity control simultaneously with and separately from the primary productivity control. The secondary productivity control defines a secondary productivity rate of printing per unit time based on the amount of power suppliable to the heater. The controller selects one of the primary productivity rate and the secondary productivity rate whichever is lower as a productivity rate of the image forming apparatus.Type: GrantFiled: October 14, 2016Date of Patent: September 3, 2019Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Ryohhei Sugiyama, Hiroshi Ono, Hironori Yamaoka, Motoyoshi Yamano, Yoshikuni Sasaki, Tetsuo Tokuda
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Patent number: 10191423Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing belt stretched across a first roller and a second roller including an elastic layer. A pressure rotator presses against the second roller via the fixing belt to form a fixing nip between the pressure rotator and the fixing belt. A recording medium bearing a toner image is conveyed through the fixing nip. A clearance detector detects a clearance between the first roller and the second roller. A mover moves the pressure rotator with respect to the second roller in a pressing direction in which the pressure rotator presses against the second roller via the fixing belt and a separation direction in which the pressure rotator separates from the second roller. A controller controls an amount of movement of the pressure rotator moved by the mover toward the second roller based on the clearance detected by the clearance detector.Type: GrantFiled: September 19, 2017Date of Patent: January 29, 2019Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Ryohhei Sugiyama, Hironori Yamaoka, Takashi Sakamaki, Tetsuo Tokuda, Akiyasu Amita, Shinichi Namekata, Yohhei Watanabe, Fumihiro Hirose, Teppei Kawata, Masateru Ujiie
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Publication number: 20180088502Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing belt stretched across a first roller and a second roller including an elastic layer. A pressure rotator presses against the second roller via the fixing belt to form a fixing nip between the pressure rotator and the fixing belt. A recording medium bearing a toner image is conveyed through the fixing nip. A clearance detector detects a clearance between the first roller and the second roller. A mover moves the pressure rotator with respect to the second roller in a pressing direction in which the pressure rotator presses against the second roller via the fixing belt and a separation direction in which the pressure rotator separates from the second roller. A controller controls an amount of movement of the pressure rotator moved by the mover toward the second roller based on the clearance detected by the clearance detector.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 19, 2017Publication date: March 29, 2018Inventors: Ryohhei SUGIYAMA, Hironori YAMAOKA, Takashi SAKAMAKI, Tetsuo TOKUDA, Akiyasu AMITA, Shinichi NAMEKATA, Yohhei WATANABE, Fumihiro HIROSE, Teppei KAWATA, Masateru UJIIE
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Patent number: 9817345Abstract: A fixing device includes a heater, a fixing rotator, a pressure rotator to press against the fixing rotator to form a fixing nip between the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator, through which a recording medium is conveyed, a moving device to move the pressure rotator in directions in which the pressure rotator comes into contact with and separates from the fixing rotator, a thermal expansion amount predictor to predict an amount of thermal expansion of the fixing rotator while the recording medium is conveyed, and a nip width adjuster to control a moving distance of the pressure rotator moved by the moving device toward the fixing rotator, depending on the amount of thermal expansion of the fixing rotator predicted by the thermal expansion amount predictor, so as to adjust a width of the fixing nip to maintain a substantially constant width of the fixing nip.Type: GrantFiled: November 16, 2016Date of Patent: November 14, 2017Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.Inventors: Motoyoshi Yamano, Tetsuo Tokuda, Yoshikuni Sasaki, Hiroshi Ono, Hironori Yamaoka, Ryohhei Sugiyama, Kohichi Utsunomiya, Arinobu Yoshiura, Hideo Nagafuji
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Patent number: 9715201Abstract: A fixing device includes a fixing rotator rotatable in a predetermined direction of rotation and a pressure rotator to press against the fixing rotator to form a fixing nip therebetween, through which a recording medium bearing a toner image is conveyed. A rotation load applicator is coupled to one of the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator to apply a rotation load to the one of the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator. The rotation load is in a range of from 0.1 Nm to 0.6 Nm.Type: GrantFiled: June 14, 2016Date of Patent: July 25, 2017Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Takamasa Hase, Takashi Fujita, Seiji Saitoh, Kenji Ishii, Akiyasu Amita, Kenichi Hasegawa, Takashi Seto, Tetsuo Tokuda, Hiroshi Seo, Hironori Yamaoka
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Patent number: 9696672Abstract: A drive transmission unit transmits driving force to a driven unit including a driven rotator coupled to the drive transmission unit via a unit coupler. The drive transmission unit includes a driving source, a drive transmission member to transmit driving force from the driving source to the driven rotator by engaging the driven rotator, and a basal plate with a turning shaft portion at one end thereof. The basal plate supports the driving source and the drive transmission member thereon. The drive transmission unit is turned around the turning shaft portion together with the driven unit in a direction substantially orthogonal to a direction of a driving reaction force applied to the drive transmission member when the driven rotator receives the driving force from the drive transmission member.Type: GrantFiled: April 19, 2016Date of Patent: July 4, 2017Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.Inventors: Hiroshi Ono, Tetsuo Tokuda, Yoshikuni Sasaki, Hironori Yamaoka, Ryohhei Sugiyama, Yamano Motoyoshi
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Publication number: 20170146933Abstract: A fixing device includes a heater, a fixing rotator, a pressure rotator to press against the fixing rotator to form a fixing nip between the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator, through which a recording medium is conveyed, a moving device to move the pressure rotator in directions in which the pressure rotator comes into contact with and separates from the fixing rotator, a thermal expansion amount predictor to predict an amount of thermal expansion of the fixing rotator while the recording medium is conveyed, and a nip width adjuster to control a moving distance of the pressure rotator moved by the moving device toward the fixing rotator, depending on the amount of thermal expansion of the fixing rotator predicted by the thermal expansion amount predictor, so as to adjust a width of the fixing nip to maintain a substantially constant width of the fixing nip.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 16, 2016Publication date: May 25, 2017Applicant: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Motoyoshi YAMANO, Tetsuo TOKUDA, Yoshikuni SASAKI, Hiroshi ONO, Hironori YAMAOKA, Ryohhei SUGIYAMA, Kohichi UTSUNOMIYA, Arinobu YOSHIURA, Hideo NAGAFUJI
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Publication number: 20170131666Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing rotator rotatable in a predetermined direction of rotation, over which a recording medium is conveyed, and a heater to heat the fixing rotator. A temperature detector detects a temperature of the fixing rotator. A controller performs a primary productivity control to define a primary productivity rate of printing per unit time based on the temperature of the fixing rotator that is detected by the temperature detector. The controller calculates an amount of power suppliable to the heater and performs a secondary productivity control simultaneously with and separately from the primary productivity control. The secondary productivity control defines a secondary productivity rate of printing per unit time based on the amount of power suppliable to the heater. The controller selects one of the primary conductivity rate and the secondary productivity rate whichever is lower as a productivity rate of the image forming apparatus.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 14, 2016Publication date: May 11, 2017Applicant: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Ryohhei SUGIYAMA, Hiroshi ONO, Hironori YAMAOKA, Motoyoshi YAMANO, Yoshikuni SASAKI, Tetsuo TOKUDA
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Patent number: 9645535Abstract: A fixing device includes a rotational member configured to convey and heat a sheet-shaped recording medium, the rotational member including a first heating member and a second heating member provided in parallel to a rotational axis of the rotational member in an interior thereof, the first heating member including a first heat generation part, the second heating member including a second heat generation part and an auxiliary heat generation part adjacent to the second heat generation part, a common temperature sensor configured to sense a temperature of the first heating member and a temperature of the second heating member, and a control part configured to control a ratio of a rate of lighting of the first heating member and a rate of lighting of the second heating member based on the temperature of the first heating member and the temperature of the second heating member.Type: GrantFiled: June 23, 2014Date of Patent: May 9, 2017Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.Inventors: Hironori Yamaoka, Shinichi Namekata, Tsukasa Satoh
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Publication number: 20170003633Abstract: A fixing device includes a fixing rotator rotatable in a predetermined direction of rotation and a pressure rotator to press against the fixing rotator to form a fixing nip therebetween, through which a recording medium bearing a toner image is conveyed. A rotation load applicator is coupled to one of the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator to apply a rotation load to the one of the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator. The rotation load is in a range of from 0.1 Nm to 0.6 Nm.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 14, 2016Publication date: January 5, 2017Inventors: Takamasa HASE, Takashi Fujita, Seiji Saitoh, Kenji Ishii, Akiyasu Amita, Kenichi Hasegawa, Takashi Seto, Tetsuo Tokuda, Hiroshi Seo, Hironori Yamaoka
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Publication number: 20160306311Abstract: A drive transmission unit transmits driving force to a driven unit including a driven rotator coupled to the drive transmission unit via a unit coupler. The drive transmission unit includes a driving source, a drive transmission member to transmit driving force from the driving source to the driven rotator by engaging the driven rotator, and a basal plate with a turning shaft portion at one end thereof. The basal plate supports the driving source and the drive transmission member thereon. The drive transmission unit is turned around the turning shaft portion together with the driven unit in a direction substantially orthogonal to a direction of a driving reaction force applied to the drive transmission member when the driven rotator receives the driving force from the drive transmission member.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 19, 2016Publication date: October 20, 2016Applicant: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Hiroshi ONO, Tetsuo TOKUDA, Yoshikuni SASAKI, Hironori YAMAOKA, Ryohhei SUGIYAMA, Yamano MOTOYOSHI
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Patent number: 9141048Abstract: A fixing device, corresponding to a plurality of sheet passing widths, includes a rotating member configured to convey a recording medium, rise in temperature, and fix toner; temperature sensors configured to detect the surface temperature of the rotating member; heating members including at least one heat generating unit, provided inside the rotating member; and a control unit configured to control a heating state obtained by the heating members. The heat generating units are provided not to overlap each other in the direction of the sheet passing width orthogonal to the recording medium conveying direction. The temperature sensors are only placed at positions corresponding to the heat generating units used when printing on the recording medium having a minimum width. The control unit controls the heating state in accordance with the surface temperature, a sheet passing width, and an operational state of the rotating member that changes with time.Type: GrantFiled: March 12, 2014Date of Patent: September 22, 2015Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Tsukasa Satoh, Hironori Yamaoka, Shinichi Namekata
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Publication number: 20140376938Abstract: A fixing device includes a rotational member configured to convey and heat a sheet-shaped recording medium, the rotational member including a first heating member and a second heating member provided in parallel to a rotational axis of the rotational member in an interior thereof, the first heating member including a first heat generation part, the second heating member including a second heat generation part and an auxiliary heat generation part adjacent to the second heat generation part, a common temperature sensor configured to sense a temperature of the first heating member and a temperature of the second heating member, and a control part configured to control a ratio of a rate of lighting of the first heating member and a rate of lighting of the second heating member based on the temperature of the first heating member and the temperature of the second heating member.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 23, 2014Publication date: December 25, 2014Applicant: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.Inventors: Hironori YAMAOKA, Shinichi NAMEKATA, Tsukasa SATOH
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Publication number: 20140270824Abstract: A fixing device, corresponding to a plurality of sheet passing widths, includes a rotating member configured to convey a recording medium, rise in temperature, and fix toner; temperature sensors configured to detect the surface temperature of the rotating member; heating members including at least one heat generating unit, provided inside the rotating member; and a control unit configured to control a heating state obtained by the heating members. The heat generating units are provided not to overlap each other in the direction of the sheet passing width orthogonal to the recording medium conveying direction. The temperature sensors are only placed at positions corresponding to the heat generating units used when printing on the recording medium having a minimum width. The control unit controls the heating state in accordance with the surface temperature, a sheet passing width, and an operational state of the rotating member that changes with time.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 12, 2014Publication date: September 18, 2014Applicant: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.Inventors: Tsukasa SATOH, Hironori YAMAOKA, Shinichi NAMEKATA