Patents by Inventor Naoichi Asakura

Naoichi Asakura 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: 9008535
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus including: a fixing unit including a heating rotational body, and configured to perform heat-fixing by putting a sheet having an unfixed-image formed thereon in contact with the heating rotational body; and a mechanism including a plate-like water droplet guiding member and a condensation collection container, and configured to receive water droplets at an upper surface of the water droplet guiding member, guide the water droplets towards the condensation collection container, and collect the water droplets at the condensation collection container, the water droplets generated above the fixing unit by condensation of water vapor that rises from the sheet during the heat-fixing and falling therefrom. When viewing the image forming apparatus from above in a vertical direction, the condensation collection container is disposed outside a sheet passing region in a sheet width direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2015
    Assignee: Konica Minolta, Inc.
    Inventors: Masahide Wakayama, Naoichi Asakura, Yasuaki Tomoda
  • Patent number: 8632066
    Abstract: A paper sheet cassette includes a paper sheet containing part for loading and containing paper sheets, a pair of side edge positioning members provided so as to move toward or away from each other in a width direction of the paper sheets for determining a position of the paper sheets in their width direction, an interlock mechanism for synchronously moving the pair of side edge positioning members toward or away from each other, a latch member which is movable along with a first member of the pair of side edge positioning members and is provided with a lock tooth portion formed thereon, and a lock member which has a latch claw which can be brought into or out of engagement with the lock tooth portion and is movable along with a second member of the pair of side edge positioning members.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2014
    Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Yasuo Nakamura, Naoichi Asakura
  • Publication number: 20130272744
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus comprising: a fixing unit comprising a heating rotational body, and configured to perform heat-fixing by putting a sheet having an unfixed-image formed thereon in contact with the heating rotational body; and a mechanism comprising a plate-like water droplet guiding member and a condensation collection container, and configured to receive water droplets at an upper surface of the water droplet guiding member, guide the water droplets towards the condensation collection container, and collect the water droplets at the condensation collection container, the water droplets generated above the fixing unit by condensation of water vapor that rises from the sheet during the heat-fixing and falling therefrom. When viewing the image forming apparatus from above in a vertical direction, the condensation collection container is disposed outside a sheet passing region in a sheet width direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 15, 2013
    Publication date: October 17, 2013
    Applicant: Konica Minolta, Inc.
    Inventors: Masahide WAKAYAMA, Naoichi ASAKURA, Yasuaki TOMODA
  • Publication number: 20130154180
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a sheet cassette, a sheet feed roller, and a separating blade. An image forming section and a sheet conveying path for conveying a sheet to the image forming section are placed in a position within the width of a cassette body defined in a sheet feeding direction and above the cassette. The tip of the separating blade is placed in a portion of stacked sheets accommodated in the cassette between a front end portion and a rear end portion of the cassette. The sheet feed roller is placed in a position between the front end portion and the rear end portion of the cassette and apart from the tip of the separating blade toward the rear end portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 11, 2012
    Publication date: June 20, 2013
    Inventors: Naoichi ASAKURA, Kouki MURAMOTO
  • Publication number: 20120194839
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus having: a reader section for reading image data of a document; a printer section for printing the image data read by the reader section as a toner image on a sheet of a print medium; and a cooler section; wherein the printer section comprises a tray for receiving the sheet with the toner image printed thereon; wherein the reader section has an opposed surface opposed to the tray; and wherein the cooler section sucks air outside the printer section and the reader section, sends the air along the opposed surface and blows the air to the sheet being fed to the tray.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 24, 2012
    Publication date: August 2, 2012
    Applicant: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Taisuke MINEMURA, Naoichi Asakura
  • Publication number: 20110285075
    Abstract: A paper sheet cassette includes a paper sheet containing part for loading and containing paper sheets, a pair of side edge positioning members provided so as to move toward or away from each other in a width direction of the paper sheets for determining a position of the paper sheets in their width direction, an interlock mechanism for synchronously moving the pair of side edge positioning members toward or away from each other, a latch member which is movable along with a first member of the pair of side edge positioning members and is provided with a lock tooth portion formed thereon, and a lock member which has a latch claw which can be brought into or out of engagement with the lock tooth portion and is movable along with a second member of the pair of side edge positioning members.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 16, 2011
    Publication date: November 24, 2011
    Applicant: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Yasuo NAKAMURA, Naoichi Asakura
  • Patent number: 6535705
    Abstract: In order to provide a process cartridge which has a simple mechanism and can be easily positioned with respect to an apparatus body and securely mounted on the apparatus body even in a half-locked state or a half-inserted condition, the process cartridge 200 includes a unit 201, a positioning member 202, a holding member 203 and a restricting and releasing mechanism 204. The unit 201 includes an element used for an image forming process. The positioning member 202 has a positioning member which engages with an engagement portion 125, 126 formed on the image forming apparatus to position the process cartridge 200 at a predetermined mount position in the image forming apparatus. The holding member 203 holds the unit 201 to allow displacement of the unit 201 relative to the positioning member 202. The restricting and releasing mechanism 204 is arranged to restrict or release the displacement of the unit 201 relative to the positioning member 202.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2001
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2003
    Assignee: Minolta Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Naoichi Asakura, Toru Matsui, Hideyuki Nukumi
  • Publication number: 20010016126
    Abstract: In order to provide a process cartridge which has a simple mechanism and can be easily positioned with respect to an apparatus body and securely mounted on the apparatus body even in a half-locked state or a half-inserted condition, the process cartridge 200 comprises a unit 201, a positioning member 202, a holding member 203 and a restricting and releasing mechanism 204. The unit 201 comprises an element used for an image forming process. The positioning member 202 has a positioning member which engages with an engagement portion 125, 126 formed on the image forming apparatus to position the process cartridge 200 at a predetermined mount position in the image forming apparatus. The holding member 203 holds the unit 201 to allow displacement of the unit 201 relative to the positioning member 202. The restricting and releasing mechanism 204 is arranged to restrict or release the displacement of the unit 201 relative to the positioning member 202.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 22, 2001
    Publication date: August 23, 2001
    Inventors: Naoichi Asakura, Toru Matsui, Hideyuki Nukumi
  • Patent number: 4987451
    Abstract: The present invention discloses an image forming apparatus comprising an image forming unit attachable to the body of the image forming apparatus and having at least a developing device which has a toner receiving opening, a toner supply member attachable to the body of the image forming apparatus and having a toner supply opening opposed to the toner receiving opening at a predetermined position when the unit is attached to the body of the image forming apparatus for supplying toner to the developing device through the toner supply opening, a covering member for selectively covering the toner supply opening, a fixing member for fixing the unit to the body of the image forming apparatus, and a moving member disposed in the body of the image forming apparatus for moving the covering member so that the toner receiving opening is open when the unit is fixed to the body of the image forming apparatus by the fixing member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 1990
    Date of Patent: January 22, 1991
    Assignee: Minolta Camera Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Akihiro Hikosaka, Hitoshi Sakai, Takayoshi Yoshihara, Naoichi Asakura