Patents by Inventor Masashi SONOYAMA

Masashi SONOYAMA 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: 10474076
    Abstract: A fixing device fixes a toner image onto a piece of paper by conveying the piece of paper formed with the toner image while nipping the piece of paper at a fixing nip, and includes: an endless belt that is rotated; a pressing member that presses the belt; a support member that supports the pressing member; a sheet wound around the pressing member along the conveyance direction; and a pressurizing member that forms the fixing nip with the belt, wherein a part of an upstream region of the sheet existing more on an upstream side in a winding direction than a contact region contacting the belt and the pressing member and a part of a downstream region of the sheet existing more on a downstream side in the winding direction than the contact region are interposed between the pressing member and the support member, and are fixed by pressing force.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2019
    Assignee: Konica Minolta, Inc.
    Inventors: Masashi Sonoyama, Hidetoshi Katayanagi, Yoshikazu Kuribayashi, Tomoya Sato, Hiroyuki Maeda
  • Publication number: 20190137916
    Abstract: A fixing device fixes a toner image onto a piece of paper by conveying the piece of paper formed with the toner image while nipping the piece of paper at a fixing nip, and includes: an endless belt that is rotated; a pressing member that presses the belt; a support member that supports the pressing member; a sheet wound around the pressing member along the conveyance direction; and a pressurizing member that forms the fixing nip with the belt, wherein a part of an upstream region of the sheet existing more on an upstream side in a winding direction than a contact region contacting the belt and the pressing member and a part of a downstream region of the sheet existing more on a downstream side in the winding direction than the contact region are interposed between the pressing member and the support member, and are fixed by pressing force.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 18, 2018
    Publication date: May 9, 2019
    Applicant: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Masashi Sonoyama, Hidetoshi Katayanagi, Yoshikazu Kuribayashi, Tomoya Sato, Hiroyuki Maeda
  • Patent number: 9170537
    Abstract: A fuser for fixing an unfixed toner image on a recording material includes: an endless belt body heated by a heat source; a pressing body moved to be connected to and disconnected from an inner peripheral surface of the belt body; a pressure roller member making pressure-contact with the pressing body through the belt body; a tension body moved to be connected to and disconnected from the inner peripheral surface of the belt body, contrary to the connection and disconnection movement of the pressing body; and a rotation transmitting unit configured to transmit a rotational force of the pressure roller member to the belt body using the tension body, while the pressing body is separated from and the tension body makes contact with the inner peripheral surface of the belt body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 27, 2015
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Yoshikazu Kuribayashi, Hidetoshi Katayanagi, Etsuaki Urano, Hirotaka Kanou, Masashi Sonoyama, Tomohiro Takagi
  • Publication number: 20150220031
    Abstract: A fuser for fixing an unfixed toner image on a recording material includes: an endless belt body heated by a heat source; a pressing body moved to be connected to and disconnected from an inner peripheral surface of the belt body; a pressure roller member making pressure-contact with the pressing body through the belt body; a tension body moved to be connected to and disconnected from the inner peripheral surface of the belt body, contrary to the connection and disconnection movement of the pressing body; and a rotation transmitting unit configured to transmit a rotational force of the pressure roller member to the belt body using the tension body, while the pressing body is separated from and the tension body makes contact with the inner peripheral surface of the belt body.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 28, 2015
    Publication date: August 6, 2015
    Applicant: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Yoshikazu KURIBAYASHI, Hidetoshi KATAYANAGI, Etsuaki URANO, Hirotaka KANOU, Masashi SONOYAMA, Tomohiro TAKAGI