Patents by Inventor Hiroyuki Kunii
Hiroyuki Kunii 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: 7369803Abstract: A fixing device for fixing image information on a recording medium passing a nip of the present invention includes a rotatable member for transferring and conveying a non-fixed image, a first heating means for heating an image present on the rotatable member and a rotatable pressing member forming a nip in combination with the rotatable member. A heat pipe extends in parallel to the axis of the rotatable member. A radiating member is positioned at one end of the heat pipe while a heating member is positioned at the other end of the heat pipe.Type: GrantFiled: December 1, 2005Date of Patent: May 6, 2008Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita, Shigeo Kurotaka, Hisashi Kikuchi, Yukimichi Someya, Toshihiko Baba, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji, Kohji Ue
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Patent number: 7333760Abstract: A fixing device including a magnetic field generating device to generate a magnetic field, a fixing member to heat a recording material by heat generated in a first recording material passing area having a first width on the fixing member by electromagnetic induction heat generation by the magnetic field formed by the magnetic field generating device, a pressing member to form a nip portion where the pressing member and the fixing member press against each other to fix an unfixed image on the recording material, and at least one radiation heating device configured to heat a second recording material passing area having a second width.Type: GrantFiled: June 24, 2005Date of Patent: February 19, 2008Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Toshihiko Baba, Shigeo Kurotaka, Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita, Hisashi Kikuchi, Yukimichi Someya, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji, Kohji Ue
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Patent number: 7299003Abstract: A fixing belt is heated by electromagnetic induction. The fixing belt has a heat generating layer that has a thickness not greater than 40 ?m and a releasing layer that has a thickness not less than 10 ?m. A toner that includes at least a binder resin, a colorant, and a mold releasing agent, and has a glass transition temperature in a range of 35° C. to 50° C. and an outflow-start temperature in a range of 80° C. to 110° C., is used.Type: GrantFiled: January 28, 2005Date of Patent: November 20, 2007Assignee: Ricoh Company, LimitedInventors: Shigeo Kurotaka, Masami Tomita, Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita, Toshihiko Baba, Hisashi Kikuchi, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji, Yukimichi Someya, Kohji Ue
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Patent number: 7269384Abstract: A transfer-fixing unit for use in an image forming apparatus having an intermediate transfer member and a transfer-fixing unit, which includes a pressure member and a transfer-fixing member. The intermediate transfer member receives a toner image thereon. The transfer-fixing member has a deformable surface layer thereon, and directly receives the toner image from the intermediate transfer member, and transfers and fixes the toner image to a recording medium while deforming the surface layer in response to surface irregularities of the recording medium. The transfer-fixing member forms a nip portion with the pressure member and presses the recording medium at the nip portion when the recording medium passes through the nip portion with a nip time.Type: GrantFiled: July 11, 2005Date of Patent: September 11, 2007Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Yukimichi Someya, Takashi Fujita, Atsushi Nakafuji, Katsuhiro Echigo, Hiroyuki Kunii, Shigeo Kurotaka, Hisashi Kikuchi, Toshihiko Baba, Kohji Ue, Hiromitsu Takagaki, Hirohmi Tamura
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Patent number: 7254362Abstract: A fixing device containing at least one fixing member configured to fix a toner image on a transfer material, which includes a first substrate and a pressing member configured to form a nip with the at least one fixing member, which includes a second substrate, and a heater. At least one of the at least one fixing member and the pressing member further contains a heat insulating layer overlying the first or second substrate.Type: GrantFiled: November 8, 2004Date of Patent: August 7, 2007Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Hisashi Kikuchi, Takashi Fujita, Yukimichi Someya, Katsuhiro Echigo, Hiroyuki Kunii, Shigeo Kurotaka, Atsushi Nakafuji
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Patent number: 7233762Abstract: An unfixed toner image on a transferring and fixing belt is passed through a pair of toner integrating rollers. A surface side of the toner integrated that is in contact with a paper, is heated by a halogen heater to impart a tackiness required for fixing. As a result of this, a temperature of a surface side of the toner that is in contact with the transferring and fixing belt is not as high as a temperature of the surface side of the toner that is in contact with the paper. Therefore, even if the toner is pressurized, and transferred and fixed at a fixing nip, a difference in an area of the toner is small. This enables to achieve a good image quality.Type: GrantFiled: March 18, 2005Date of Patent: June 19, 2007Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Hiroyuki Kunii, Katsuhiro Echigo, Hisashi Kikuchi, Atsushi Nakafuji, Yukimichi Someya, Shigeo Kurotaka, Toshihiko Baba, Kohji Ue, Takashi Fujita
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Publication number: 20070104520Abstract: An image forming apparatus, includes an image forming mechanism configured to form an image, and a fixing unit configured to fix a toner image formed on a recording medium. The fixing unit includes a fixing device having a first endless moving member configured to rotate, and a second endless moving member configured to rotate to form a nip area together with the first endless moving member to fix, at the nip area, a toner image disposed on the recording medium onto the recording medium with heat and pressure, the second endless moving member including a surface layer having a universal hardness HU and a maximum nip surface pressure P each within a predetermined range.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 28, 2006Publication date: May 10, 2007Inventors: Atsushi Nakafuji, Hiroyuki Kunii, Yukimichi Someya, Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita, Hisashi Kikuchi, Toshihiko Baba, Shigeo Kurotaka
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Publication number: 20070065188Abstract: A first guide member and a second guide member guide a recording medium into a nip between a transfer member and a nip-forming member. The first guide member and the second guide member are arranged so as to form a substantial V-shape with tip of the V-shape being toward the nip. A distance between the first guide member and the second guide member at the tip being equal to or less than 5 millimeters.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 15, 2006Publication date: March 22, 2007Inventors: Hiromitsu Takagaki, Takashi Fujita, Atsushi Nakafuji, Hirohmi Tamura, Hiroyuki Kunii, Kohji Ue
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Patent number: 7177580Abstract: An image forming apparatus, includes an image forming mechanism configured to form an image, and a fixing unit configured to fix a toner image formed on a recording medium. The fixing unit includes a fixing device having a first endless moving member configured to rotate, and a second endless moving member configured to rotate to form a nip area together with the first endless moving member to fix, at the nip area, a toner image disposed on the recording medium onto the recording medium with heat and pressure, the second endless moving member including a surface layer having a universal hardness HU and a maximum nip surface pressure P each within a predetermined range.Type: GrantFiled: November 29, 2004Date of Patent: February 13, 2007Assignee: Ricoh Co., Ltd.Inventors: Atsushi Nakafuji, Hiroyuki Kunii, Yukimichi Someya, Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita, Hisashi Kikuchi, Toshihiko Baba, Shigeo Kurotaka
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Patent number: 7139520Abstract: A fixing device including a fixing belt, a drive roller and a press roller. The drive roller is configured to drive the fixing belt, and press roller is arranged so as to face the drive roller across the fixing belt, and exert pressure toward the fixing belt. The drive roller and the press roller are able to rotate so that the peripheral velocity of the drive roller is greater than the peripheral velocity of the press roller. According to the fixing device image defects, including image difference, are less likely to occur when fixing an image on a recording sheet.Type: GrantFiled: June 21, 2004Date of Patent: November 21, 2006Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Katsuhiro Echigo, Shigeo Kurotaka, Takashi Fujita, Toshihiko Baba, Hisashi Kikuchi, Yukimichi Someya, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji
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Patent number: 7127202Abstract: An intermediary transfer apparatus for transferring an unfixed image from an intermediary transfer member to a recording medium is disclosed. The intermediary transfer apparatus includes a heating unit for selectively heating a prescribed portion of the intermediary transfer member on which the unfixed image is situated, in a width direction of the intermediary transfer member, the width direction of the intermediary transfer member perpendicularly intersecting the direction in which the unfixed image is conveyed.Type: GrantFiled: June 23, 2004Date of Patent: October 24, 2006Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.Inventors: Takashi Fujita, Shigeo Kurotaka, Yukimichi Someya, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji, Hisashi Kikuchi, Katsuhiro Echigo, Toshihiko Baba, Kohji Ue
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Publication number: 20060140689Abstract: A fixing device for fixing image information on a recording medium passing a nip of the present invention includes a rotatable member for transferring and conveying a non-fixed image, a first heating means for heating an image present on the rotatable member and a rotatable pressing member forming a nip in combination with the rotatable member. A heat pipe extends in parallel to the axis of the rotatable member. A radiating member is positioned at one end of the heat pipe while a heating member is positioned at the other end of the heat pipe.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 1, 2005Publication date: June 29, 2006Inventors: Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita, Shigeo Kurotaka, Hisashi Kikuchi, Yukimichi Someya, Toshihiko Baba, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji, Kohji Ue
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Publication number: 20060088349Abstract: The fixing unit satisfies following three conditions. That is, (1) 2.4×103×d/(TC×t)<T0, where d is a thickness of the unfixed toner layer in meters, TC is a thermal conductivity of toner in W/mK, and t is the fixing time in seconds; (2) a temperature Ttop of a topmost layer of the toner layer is not greater than the minimum temperature TOFF at which the hot offset of the surface of the first fixing member occurs when the fixing time is set to 1 seconds; and (3) a temperature Tbot of a bottommost layer of the toner layer that is in contact with the recording medium is not less than the lower limit temperature TMIN for fixing of the surface of the first fixing member when the fixing time is set to 1 second.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 12, 2005Publication date: April 27, 2006Inventors: Yukimichi Someya, Takashi Fujita, Hisashi Kikuchi, Katsuhiro Echigo, Shigeo Kurotaka, Toshihiko Baba, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji
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Patent number: 7010257Abstract: The fixing unit satisfies following three conditions. That is, (1) 2.4×103×d/(TC×t)<T0, where d is a thickness of the unfixed toner layer in meters, TC is a thermal conductivity of toner in W/mK, and t is the fixing time in seconds; (2) a temperature Ttop of a topmost layer of the toner layer is not greater than the minimum temperature TOFF at which the hot offset of the surface of the first fixing member occurs when the fixing time is set to 1 seconds; and (3) a temperature Tbot of a bottommost layer of the toner layer that is in contact with the recording medium is not less than the lower limit temperature TMIN for fixing of the surface of the first fixing member when the fixing time is set to 1 second.Type: GrantFiled: December 10, 2004Date of Patent: March 7, 2006Assignee: Ricoh Company, LimitedInventors: Yukimichi Someya, Takashi Fujita, Hisashi Kikuchi, Katsuhiro Echigo, Shigeo Kurotaka, Toshihiko Baba, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji
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Publication number: 20060019082Abstract: A fixing member heat bonds a toner on a recording material. The fixing member includes a releasing layer, a layer of elastic material, below the releasing layer, and a layer of adiabatic and hygroscopic material, below the layer of elastic material. The layer of elastic material includes a layer of electrically conducting material to pass electric currents, an adiabatic, elastic, and hydrophobic material, and a porous material to the release of the moisture absorbed by the layer of adiabatic and hygroscopic material.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 9, 2005Publication date: January 26, 2006Inventors: Hisashi Kikuchi, Toshihiko Baba, Shigeo Kurotaka, Atsushi Nakafuji, Hiroyuki Kunii, Yukimichi Someya, Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita
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Publication number: 20060013624Abstract: An image-fixing apparatus including a fixing belt; a fixing member; a pressure member; and a heating source, wherein the fixing belt is heated by the heating source, wherein the fixing member is brought into pressure contact with the pressure member via the fixing belt to form a nip and a paper carrying an unfixed toner is allowed to pass through the nip, thereby fixing the unfixed toner on the paper, and wherein the toner to be used includes a binder resin, a colorant, and a releasing agent, and wherein the toner has a ½ flown-out temperature of 115° C. to 145° C. and has a storage elastic modulus (G?) at 190° C. of 200 Pa or more.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 12, 2005Publication date: January 19, 2006Inventors: Shigeo Kurotaka, Masami Tomita, Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita, Toshihiko Baba, Hisashi Kikuchi, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji, Yukimichi Someya, Kohji Ue
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Publication number: 20060008302Abstract: A transfer-fixing unit for use in an image forming apparatus having an intermediate transfer member and a transfer-fixing unit, which includes a pressure member and a transfer-fixing member. The intermediate transfer member receives a toner image thereon. The transfer-fixing member has a deformable surface layer thereon, and directly receives the toner image from the intermediate transfer member, and transfers and fixes the toner image to a recording medium while deforming the surface layer in response to surface irregularities of the recording medium. The transfer-fixing member forms a nip portion with the pressure member and presses the recording medium at the nip portion when the recording medium passes through the nip portion with a nip time.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 11, 2005Publication date: January 12, 2006Inventors: Yukimichi Someya, Takashi Fujita, Atsushi Nakafuji, Katsuhiro Echigo, Hiroyuki Kunii, Shigeo Kurotaka, Hisashi Kikuchi, Toshihiko Baba, Kohji Ue, Hiromitsu Takagaki, Hirohmi Tamura
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Publication number: 20050286920Abstract: A fixing device including a magnetic field generating device to generate a magnetic field, a fixing member to heat a recording material by heat generated in a first recording material passing area having a first width on the fixing member by electromagnetic induction heat generation by the magnetic field formed by the magnetic field generating device, a pressing member to form a nip portion where the pressing member and the fixing member press against each other to fix an unfixed image on the recording material, and at least one radiation heating device configured to heat a second recording material passing area having a second width.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 24, 2005Publication date: December 29, 2005Inventors: Toshihiko Baba, Shigeo Kurotaka, Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita, Hisashi Kikuchi, Yukimichi Someya, Hiroyuki Kunii, Atsushi Nakafuji, Kohji Ue
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Patent number: 6957036Abstract: A fixing member heat bonds a toner on a recording material. The fixing member includes a releasing layer, a layer of elastic material, below the releasing layer, and a layer of adiabatic and hygroscopic material, below the layer of elastic material. The layer of elastic material includes a layer of electrically conducting material to pass electric currents, an adiabatic, elastic, and hydrophobic material, and a porous material to the release of the moisture absorbed by the layer of adiabatic and hygroscopic material.Type: GrantFiled: January 9, 2004Date of Patent: October 18, 2005Assignee: Ricoh Company, LimitedInventors: Hisashi Kikuchi, Toshihiko Baba, Shigeo Kurotaka, Atsushi Nakafuji, Hiroyuki Kunii, Yukimichi Someya, Katsuhiro Echigo, Takashi Fujita
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Publication number: 20050207801Abstract: An unfixed toner image on a transferring and fixing belt is passed through a pair of toner integrating rollers. A surface side of the toner integrated that is in contact with a paper, is heated by a halogen heater to impart a tackiness required for fixing. As a result of this, a temperature of a surface side of the toner that is in contact with the transferring and fixing belt is not as high as a temperature of the surface side of the toner that is in contact with the paper. Therefore, even if the toner is pressurized, and transferred and fixed at a fixing nip, a difference in an area of the toner is small. This enables to achieve a good image quality.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 18, 2005Publication date: September 22, 2005Inventors: Hiroyuki Kunii, Katsuhiro Echigo, Hisashi Kikuchi, Atsushi Nakafuji, Yukimichi Someya, Shigeo Kurotaka, Toshihiko Baba, Kohji Ue, Takashi Fujita