Abstract: A toner including toner particles including a binder resin, a colorant, and an inorganic particulate material present on a surface of the toner particles. The toner particles have a surface roughness (Ra) of from 1 to 30 nm, a standard deviation of the surface roughness of from 10 to 90 nm and include 1 to 20 convexities per 1 ?m, which have a height not less than 10 nm.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus performs electrophotographic image forming using a toner and includes an image bearing member configured to bear an electrostatic latent image on a surface thereof, a developing mechanism configured to develop the electrostatic latent image in to a toner image by using a toner, a transfer mechanism configured to transfer the toner image from the image bearing member to an image receiver, a cleaning mechanism including a cleaning blade and configured to remove a residual toner on the image bearing member after toner image is transferred to the image receiver. The toner includes a binder resin and a colorant, forms a toner powder layer, and satisfies an inequality Y??0.05X+0.029, in which “X” expresses a porosity of the toner powder layer after uniformly compressed at a constant force and “Y” expresses a torque value obtained by rotatably sticking a conical rotor into the toner powder layer.

Abstract: A dry toner for developing electrostatic images, including a colorant and a binder resin which comprises a copolymer resin having (A) a polyol resin moiety having a main chain of polyoxyalkylene and obtained by reaction of (a) an epoxy resin, (b) a dihydric phenol, and (c) an alkylene oxide adduct of a dihydric phenol or a glycidyl ether thereof; and (B) a polyester resin moiety obtained by reacting an alkylene oxide adduct of a dihydric phenol or a glycidyl ether thereof with a polycarboxylic acid, wherein the weight ratio of the epoxy resin of the polyol resin moiety (A) to the polyester resin moiety (B) is 95:5 to 60:40, wherein the epoxy resin includes at least two kinds of bisphenol epoxy resins having different number-average molecular weights, and wherein the binder resin has an acid value of not greater than 5.

Abstract: A carrier for electrophotographic developer comprising carrier particles, each carrier particle having at least one surface-coating layer by resin material, wherein the surface-coating layer containing an acrylic resin and a silicone resin, the acrylic resin is in an amount ranging 10 to 90 wt. % based on the total amount of resin coating ingredients. The carrier shows no accumulation of toner-spents, therefore can obtain a stable electric charge, and has no layer scraping in binder resin layer, therefore can obtain a stable electric resistance, hence occurs no deterioration of images reproduced, by using acrylic resin having high anti-abrasive and high surface energy, whereas it has strong adhesiveness and high fragility, in combination use of silicone resin having poor anti-abrasive and small adhesiveness but has low fragility, thus is hard to cause a toner spent and hard to integrate the spent constituents due to its low surface energy.

Abstract: A toner for electrophotography contains a binder resin, a colorant and a releasing agent and has a viscosity, a storage modulus (G′) and a loss modulus (G″), in which the viscosity is 1×103 Pa.s or more and a loss tangent (tan &dgr;) as the ratio of G′ to G″ is 0.4 or more at temperatures from 140° C. to 170° C.

Abstract: A toner for electrostatic image development in which the weight concentration of polar-solvent-soluble material is 1000 &mgr;g/g or less, based on the toner, and an image forming method comprising a step of forming a toner image by developing a latent electrostatic image by using the toner for electrostatic image development.

Abstract: A developer container has a main part accommodating a developer therein and is detachably attached to a main part of an image forming apparatus. The developer container comprises an outlet provided at a side of the developer container to discharge the developer from the developer container. An input unit is provided adjacent to the outlet and has a small-diameter portion an inside diameter of which is smaller than a diameter of the container main part wherein, when the developer container is attached to the image forming apparatus, the input unit is engaged with a drive motor of the image forming apparatus to receive a rotating force of the drive motor. A developer guiding unit causes the developer inside the developer container to be moved to the outlet beyond the small-diameter portion of the input unit by rotation of the developer container.

Abstract: A toner including toner powders having an aggregation not greater than 20% and circularity not less than 0.93.

Abstract: A powder conveying device of the present invention includes a powder storing portion storing powder, and a pipe configured to guide the powder from the powder storing portion to a destination positioned below the powder storing portion. The pipe extends downward from the powder storing portion toward the destination, then bends with an inclination angle smaller than the preceding inclination angle relative to the horizontal, and then connects to the destination.

Abstract: A method and apparatus of image forming include a process cartridge detachably mounted therein. The process cartridge includes a photoconductive element and a housing storing the photoconductive element and including a guide portion guiding the process cartridge. The guide portion faces an inner wall of the image forming apparatus or another process cartridge adjoining thereto and guides the adjoining process cartridge. The guide portion slidably engages with a portion of the process adjoining cartridge . The guide portion varies in shape according to its position in the image forming apparatus. The guide portion may be separately formed from or integrated with the housing. A method and apparatus of an image forming includes an image transfer mechanism and a plurality of process cartridges arranged in parallel. Each of the process cartridges includes photoconductive elements and a housing, and forms an image for a single separated color.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a frame, a plurality of process cartridges, and a guide mounted to the frame. The guide mounted to the frame includes a plurality of guide portions having supporting surfaces arranged at predetermined different heights and on which the plurality of process cartridges are detachably placed, and is configured to guide the plurality of process cartridges placed on the supporting surfaces along a path between respective first positions and respective second positions.

Abstract: A toner including a binder resin, a colorant, and a product of an iron compound containing an aromatic hydroxylcarboxylic acid as a ligand and represented by the formula (I) described in the specification, wherein the product has such a characteristic that a filtrate obtained by filtering a dispersion of 10 g of the product dispersed in 200 ml of purified water provides an electric conductivity of not greater than 600 &mgr;S/cm.

Abstract: An image forming process and apparatus, the apparatus including a toner container, a transfer belt below the toner container, a process cartridge below the transfer belt, and an imaging device below the process cartridge. The process cartridge includes a rotating image carrier having an image carrier surface, a brush roller in contact with the image carrier surface, a charging member in contact with the image carrier surface and configured to transfer a charge to the image carrier surface, and a casing including a miler in contact with the image carrier surface and arranged to separate the brush roller from the charging member.

Abstract: Spherical toners having excellent fusibility are disclosed. The toners are fusible at low temperatures and are excellent in preservability and therefore charge properties, flowability, and transferability do not deteriorate. The toners contain a colorant and a nitrogen-containing polyester resin, in which the concentration of nitrogen at the surface of toner particles is higher than the concentration of nitrogen of the entire particles. The ratio of the surface concentration to the overall concentration is from 1.2 to 10. Additionally, the nitrogen-containing resin is preferably a polyester resin modified by urea bonds. Also, it is preferred that the toner particles are substantially spherical having an average spherity E of from 0.90 to 0.99.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus of the present invention includes an apparatus body, an image carrier for carrying a latent image on its surface, and a developing device for developing the latent image to thereby produce a corresponding toner image. A removable member is removably mounted to the apparatus body and positioned in the apparatus body such that a distance between the removable member and a surrounding member around it varies when the removable member is being mounted to or dismounted from the apparatus body. A frame surrounds at least one of the removable member and surrounding member. A contact member contacts, when the removable member is being mounted to or dismounted from the apparatus body, the frame to thereby determine a distance between the removable member and the surrounding member.

Abstract: A developer, which includes a base toner containing at least a binding resin and a coloring agent; and inorganic fine particles; wherein the base toner satisfies 105≦SF-1≦130 and 120≦SF-2≦180, wherein SF-1=((absolute maximum length of a particle of the base toner)2/area of the particle of the base toner)×(&pgr;/4)×100, wherein SF-2=(peripheral length of the particle of the base toner)2/(area of the base toner)×(¼&pgr;)×100, wherein the inorganic fine particles have an average particle diameter that ranges between 30 nm to 160 nm.

Abstract: An external additive for a toner for electrophotography which contains oxide fine particles which contain silicon, in which the oxide fine particles have a primary particle diameter of 30 nm to 300 nm in number average, a standard deviation &sgr; of a particle size distribution of the primary particle diameter satisfies a relation of: R/4≦&sgr;≦R in which the R expresses the primary particle diameter,

Abstract: A toner composition including toner particles; and an external additive located on the surface of the toner particles and including Si, wherein the toner composition satisfies the following relationship, (PSi2p (1 min)−PSi2p (30 min))≦0.8 eV, wherein PSi2p (1 min) and PSi2p (30 min) represent positions of the Si2p peaks of the Si element of the toner composition when the toner composition is subjected to an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis after the toner composition is mixed with a carrier for 1 minute or 30 minutes using a TURBULA mixer at a revolution of 20 rpm, respectively.

Abstract: A toner for developing a latent electrostatic image which includes a binder resin and a coloring agent. In the toner, a coverage with the coloring agent on a surface of the toner is 1.5% by atom to 15% by atom, and the toner contains 2% by weight to 15% by weight of the coloring agent.

Abstract: An external additives for electrophtographic toner comprising finely divided oxide particulate including a silicon compound and a compound for doping said oxide particulate, wherein particle diameter of the primary particle of said finely divided oxide particulate is in the range of 30 nm to 150 nm, and the primary particle of said finely divided oxide particles is substantially spherical shape having the roundness in the range of 0.95 to 0.996, is provided. And this external additives is capable of evading from the embedding of external additives into toner even if after the toner is held in the storage under the condition of high temperature and high humidity, thereby the additives is capable of showing sufficient functions as fluidizing agent and charge supplement agent, and is capable of inhibiting an abnormal charge elevation even after being stored under the low temperature and low humidity.