Patents by Inventor Naoki Nonoyama

Naoki Nonoyama 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: 11221566
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus performs primary transfer of single-color toner image onto an intermediate transfer belt and performs secondary transfer of the toner image onto a sheet, and includes: single image forming unit forming the single-color toner image; single toner supply bottle containing replenishment toner; and first and second support members supporting the belt. The image forming unit is closer to the first member than the second member in a belt rotation direction. The bottle includes: single bottle body; and supply unit near one end of the body in the rotation direction. The other end is (i) closer to the second member than the one end is in the rotation direction and (ii) distant from the image forming unit in a support member direction from the first member toward the second member by one to three times a length of the image forming unit in the support member direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2022
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Koji Soda, Yusuke Hashimoto, Naoki Nonoyama, Youichi Itagaki, Hitomi Kawata
  • Publication number: 20200393777
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus that performs primary transfer of single-color toner image onto an intermediate transfer belt and performs secondary transfer of the toner image onto a sheet, and includes: single image forming unit forming the single-color toner image; single toner supply bottle containing replenishment toner; and first and second support members supporting the belt. The image forming unit is closer to the first member than the second member in a belt rotation direction. The bottle includes: single bottle body; and supply unit near one end of the body in the rotation direction. The other end is (i) closer to the second member than the one end is in the rotation direction and (ii) distant from the image forming unit in a support member direction from the first member toward the second member by one to three times a length of the image forming unit in the support member direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 4, 2020
    Publication date: December 17, 2020
    Inventors: Koji SODA, Yusuke HASHIMOTO, Naoki NONOYAMA, Youichi ITAGAKI, Hitomi KAWATA
  • Patent number: 10534289
    Abstract: A toner container attachable to and detachable from a main body of an image forming device and including: a first chamber containing toner; a second chamber adjacent to the first chamber through a partition wall and downstream of the first chamber in a toner supply direction; and a switching member in the second chamber that is movable or rotatable and has a shell structure. The partition wall has a first aperture. A bottom wall of the second chamber opposing the partition wall has a second aperture and sits on the main body. The shell has third and fourth apertures. The fourth aperture coincides with the second aperture when the third aperture coincides with the first aperture, and the first aperture is closed by the shell when the third aperture faces an inner wall surface of the second chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2020
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Shuan Yang, Naoki Nonoyama, Shigeru Sawano
  • Publication number: 20190121257
    Abstract: A toner container attachable to and detachable from a main body of an image forming device and including: a first chamber containing toner; a second chamber adjacent to the first chamber through a partition wall and downstream of the first chamber in a toner supply direction; and a switching member in the second chamber that is movable or rotatable and has a shell structure. The partition wall has a first aperture. A bottom wall of the second chamber opposing the partition wall has a second aperture and sits on the main body. The shell has third and fourth apertures. The fourth aperture coincides with the second aperture when the third aperture coincides with the first aperture, and the first aperture is closed by the shell when the third aperture faces an inner wall surface of the second chamber.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 12, 2018
    Publication date: April 25, 2019
    Inventors: Shuan Yang, Naoki Nonoyama, Shigeru Sawano
  • Patent number: 9352593
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus including: a housing; a display whose display surface is provided on a front-surface side of the housing; an image forming unit provided in the housing and configured to form an image on a recording sheet; and an ejector configured to eject the recording sheet with the image formed thereon from inside to outside of the housing in a direction approaching the display surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2016
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Masaki Hata, Kiyomitsu Koyama, Osamu Akiyama, Hiroshi Mizuno, Yasuaki Tomoda, Naoki Nonoyama
  • Patent number: 9158236
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus supplies toner to an electrostatic latent image on a circumferential surface of a photosensitive rotating member to develop the electrostatic latent image, and includes: a photosensitive unit including the photosensitive rotating member and a pair of support frames rotatably supporting the photosensitive rotating member at its axial ends; a developing unit including a developing sleeve that is longer in its rotational axis direction than an element tube of the photosensitive rotating member in its rotational axis direction, and a pair of bearings provided outward from axial ends of the element tube and rotatably holding the developing sleeve at its axial ends; and a forcing member relatively forcing the developing unit toward the photosensitive unit to bring the bearings into abutment with the respective support frames, such that a gap between the developing sleeve and the photosensitive rotating member is maintained at a predetermined value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2015
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Yasuaki Tomoda, Naoki Nonoyama, Yoshitaka Kuroda
  • Patent number: 8913946
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus that is orientatable in either a first position or a second position, the second position being different from the first position in inclination with respect to a horizontal plane, comprising: a platform configured to be stacked with a plurality of recording sheets used for image formation; a pickup roller in contact with the recording sheets and configured to pick up the recording sheets one at a time; a pressing member applying pressure to the platform against the pick-up roller; and a pressure changer causing the pressing member to change an amount of the pressure according to whether the image forming apparatus is in the first position or in the second position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2014
    Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Shigeru Sawano, Masashi Kawai, Naoki Nonoyama
  • Publication number: 20140193179
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus supplies toner to an electrostatic latent image on a circumferential surface of a photosensitive rotating member to develop the electrostatic latent image, and includes: a photosensitive unit including the photosensitive rotating member and a pair of support frames rotatably supporting the photosensitive rotating member at axial ends thereof; a developing unit including a developing sleeve that is longer in a rotational axis direction thereof than an element tube of the photosensitive rotating member in a rotational axis direction thereof, and a pair of bearings provided outward from axial ends of the element tube and rotatably holding the developing sleeve at axial ends thereof; and a forcing member relatively forcing the developing unit toward the photosensitive unit to bring the bearings into abutment with the respective support frames, such that a gap between the developing sleeve and the photosensitive rotating member is maintained at a predetermined value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 17, 2013
    Publication date: July 10, 2014
    Applicant: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Yasuaki TOMODA, Naoki NONOYAMA, Yoshitaka KURODA
  • Publication number: 20140169822
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus including: a housing; a display whose display surface is provided on a front-surface side of the housing; an image forming unit provided in the housing and configured to form an image on a recording sheet; and an ejector configured to eject the recording sheet with the image formed thereon from inside to outside of the housing in a direction approaching the display surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2013
    Publication date: June 19, 2014
    Applicant: Konica Minolta, Inc.
    Inventors: Masaki Hata, Kiyomitsu Koyama, Osamu Akiyama, Hiroshi Mizuno, Yasuaki Tomoda, Naoki Nonoyama
  • Publication number: 20140169841
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus comprises: an imaging unit including imaging subunits that are arranged in a vertical direction, each of the imaging subunits forming a toner image of a different color; an intermediate transfer belt having a running surface that runs vertically along the imaging subunits, and on which the toner images are primary-transferred and superposed; a secondary transfer unit secondary-transferring the toner images on the intermediate transfer belt to the recording sheet; and an ejection unit having an outlet and a conveyance path extending vertically, the ejection unit conveying, to the outlet via the conveyance path, the recording sheet on which the toner images have been secondary-transferred, wherein when viewed from a front of the image forming apparatus, the imaging unit is arranged behind the intermediate transfer belt, and the conveyance path is arranged in front of the intermediate transfer belt.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 17, 2013
    Publication date: June 19, 2014
    Applicant: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Hiroshi MIZUNO, Osamu Akiyama, Yasuaki Tomoda, Naoki Nonoyama, Kiyomitsu Koyama, Masaki Hata, Shiro Umeda, Koji Soda
  • Publication number: 20130259554
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus that is orientatable in either a first position or a second position, the second position being different from the first position in inclination with respect to a horizontal plane, comprising: a platform configured to be stacked with a plurality of recording sheets used for image formation; a pickup roller in contact with the recording sheets and configured to pick up the recording sheets one at a time; a pressing member applying pressure to the platform against the pick-up roller; and a pressure changer causing the pressing member to change an amount of the pressure according to whether the image forming apparatus is in the first position or in the second position.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 18, 2013
    Publication date: October 3, 2013
    Applicant: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Shigeru SAWANO, Masashi Kawai, Naoki Nonoyama
  • Publication number: 20120163864
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image processor, an exterior housing, a fixing unit, an outlet, and a first partition. The image processor is configured to transfer a toner image to a recording medium. The exterior housing accommodates the image processor. The fixing unit is configured to fix the toner image, transferred by the image processor to the recording medium, onto the recording medium. The outlet is on the exterior housing and communicates with a conveyance path extending from the image processor toward the fixing unit. The first partition is adjacent the outlet on the exterior housing. The first partition separates the image processor and the fixing unit from one another.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2011
    Publication date: June 28, 2012
    Applicant: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Junichi Tanimoto, Naoki Nonoyama
  • Patent number: 8152164
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus including first and second pairs of rollers for feeding a print medium; the second pair of rollers being disposed downstream from the first pair of rollers; a first detector for detecting the print medium slack in a specified degree by contact with the print medium, the first detector being disposed between the first pair of rollers and the second pair of rollers; a second detector for detecting either the first pair of rollers or the second pair of rollers need a specified value of driving torque; and a controller for controlling either a feeding speed at which the print medium is fed by the first pair of rollers or a feeding speed at which the print medium is fed by the second pair of rollers based on either outputs from the first detector or outputs from the second detector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2012
    Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Ryoichi Yamamoto, Hiroyuki Maeda, Naoki Nonoyama, Kuniaki Ohbayashi, Ryo Hirano
  • Publication number: 20110148035
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus comprising a first pair of rollers for feeding a print medium; a second pair of rollers for feeding the print medium, the second pair of rollers being disposed downstream in a print medium feeding direction from the first pair of rollers; a first detector for detecting the print medium slack in a specified degree by contact with the print medium, the first detector being disposed between the first pair of rollers and the second pair of rollers; a second detector for detecting either the first pair of rollers or the second pair of rollers need a specified value of driving torque; and a controller for controlling either a feeding speed at which the print medium is fed by the first pair of rollers or a feeding speed at which the print medium is fed by the second pair of rollers based on either outputs from the first detector or outputs from the second detector.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 22, 2010
    Publication date: June 23, 2011
    Applicant: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Ryoichi YAMAMOTO, Hiroyuki Maeda, Naoki Nonoyama, Kuniaki Ohbayashi, Ryo Hirano
  • Patent number: D894268
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Yusuke Hashimoto, Naoki Nonoyama, Hiroshi Tanimoto
  • Patent number: D904511
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2020
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Yusuke Hashimoto, Naoki Nonoyama, Hiroshi Tanimoto
  • Patent number: D987716
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2023
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Shigeru Sawano, Naoki Nonoyama