Abstract: Compositions containing at least four kinds of amino acids selected from the group consisting of serine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, glycine, alanine and proline as active ingredients are useful for improving joint function and skin function and have high safety and permit continued ingestion or administration.

Abstract: Compositions, containing glycine and serine and having a content ratio of glycine to serine (glycine/serine) of not less than 0.6 in weight ratio are effective for improving cognitive function, and have an effective preventive or improving effect on a decline in cognitive function and cognitive dysfunction, are highly safe, and enable continuous ingestion or administration.

Abstract: Compositions containing at least four kinds of amino acids selected from the group consisting of serine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, glycine, alanine and proline as active ingredients are useful for improving joint function and skin function and have high safety and permit continued ingestion or administration.

Abstract: The present invention provides an apparatus having a carriage, in which, even when a toothed belt having a fine tooth pitch and low tooth height is used to drive the carriage, a jumping phenomenon of the toothed belt is positively prevented to thereby achieve stable scanning of the carriage without requiring a driving motor having a large capacity and an additional carriage position detecting device. A member for preventing the jumping of the toothed belt is disposed to create a predetermined gap with respect to a back surface of the toothed belt and is inclined with respect to the back surface by a predetermined angle at a position where the member is opposed to the back surface of a portion of the toothed belt to which the carriage is connected, in the vicinity of the driving pulley for the toothed belt connected to the carriage on which a head is mounted.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a recording apparatus which has a positioning means for manual sheet feeding for aligning a sheet feeding position, and a positioning means for auto sheet feeding provided on an auto sheet feeder for aligning the sheet feeding position, and a sheet fed from the auto sheet feeder does not abut against the positioning means for manual sheet feeding, when the auto sheet feeder is attached to the recording apparatus main body.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a recording apparatus which has a positioning means for manual sheet feeding for aligning a sheet feeding position, and a positioning means for auto sheet feeding provided on an auto sheet feeder for aligning the sheet feeding position, and a sheet fed from the auto sheet feeder does not abut against the positioning means for manual sheet feeding, when the auto sheet feeder is attached to the recording apparatus main body.

Abstract: A printing apparatus has high reliability both in manual feeding and in automatic feeding of a printing medium, and a feeding control method controls the printing apparatus. In the case of manual feeding of a sheet as the printing medium, the sheet is transported by an LF roller for an amount sufficient for feeding the tip end of the sheet to a discharge paper sensor located on the downstream side of a paper path with respect to a printing head. Judgment whether paper feeding is successful or not is made depending on whether the sheet is detected by the discharged paper sensor. On the other hand, in the case of automatic feeding using an automatic feeding apparatus, the operation of transporting the sheet to the discharged paper sensor is not performed. By this, in the case of automatic feeding, it becomes unnecessary to backwardly feed the sheet before initiation of printing so that the rotation amount of the LF roller is minimized.

Abstract: A feeding apparatus, a printing apparatus and a feeding control method can simplify control software significantly on a printing apparatus side and can provide freedom of design in the feeding apparatus. A communication port is provided for communication between the feeding apparatus and the printer. The feeding apparatus performs paper feeding operation after receiving a paper feeding command from the printer. When a sheet is fed in the printer, a feeding operation completion signal is transmitted to the printer. On the other hand, rotation of a feeding roller is resumed at a slightly earlier timing than a rotation start timing of a transporting roller. Therefore, back tension on the sheet by the feeding roller is minimized, and positioning the top of the sheet by the transporting roller is enhanced reliably.

Abstract: A carriage moving apparatus for transmitting a driving force to a carriage by a toothed timing belt, and reciprocally moving the carriage includes the projected portions of the belt protruding on the opposite sides of the timing belt. The projected portions of the belt have their central axes passing through substantially the center of the widthwise cross-section of the timing belt and are engaged with a carriage engaging portion formed on the carriage.

Abstract: A recording apparatus for recording an image on a sheet material, includes an outer case having a box-shape, a convey path for conveying a sheet material within the outer case, a recording device disposed within the outer case and adapted to effect recording on the sheet material conveyed by the convey path. Opening portions formed in the outer case provide an inlet and an outlet of the convey path. A lid member closes at least one of the opening portions defining the inlet and the outlet, and wherein flexion of the outer case is reduced by closing the opening portion or portions by means of the lid member.

Abstract: A recording apparatus has a battery as a driving power source of the recording apparatus, a holding portion for holding the battery, and a connecting device for electrically connecting the recording apparatus and the battery to each other when the battery is held in the holding portion. A biasing device biases the battery on a side opposed to a mounting direction of the battery when the battery is held in the holding portion, and a fixing device fixes the battery held in the holding portion against the biasing force of the biasing device.

Abstract: A feeding apparatus, a printing apparatus and a feeding control method which can simplify control software significantly on a printing apparatus side and can provide freedom of design in the feeding apparatus. Communication port is provided for communication between a feeding apparatus and a printer. The feeding apparatus performs paper feeding operation receiving a paper feeding command from the printer. When a sheet is fed in the printer, feeding operation completion signal is transmitted to the printer. On the other hand, rotation of a feeding roller is resumed at slightly earlier timing than rotation start timing of a transporting roller. Therefore, back tension on the sheet by the feeding roller is minimized, and positioning top of the sheet by the transporting roller is enhanced reliability.

Abstract: The present invention provides an apparatus having a carriage, in which, even when a toothed belt having fine tooth pitch and low tooth height is used as driving transmitting means to the carriage, a jumping phenomenon of the toothed belt is positively prevented thereby to achieve stable scanning of the carriage without requiring a driving motor having a large capacity and additional carriage position detecting means. A member for preventing the jumping of the toothed belt is disposed to create a predetermined gap b with respect to a back surface of the toothed belt and is inclined with respect to the back surface by a predetermined angle &thgr; at a position where the member is opposed to the back surface of a portion of the toothed belt to which the carriage is connected, in the vicinity of the driving pulley for the toothed belt connected to the carriage on which a head is mounted.

Abstract: A recording device comprises a drive mechanism section for effecting recording on a recording object material, and an exterior cover for covering the drive mechanism section, the exterior cover having a plurality of cover members separated by at least one partition surface, wherein for two cover members to be combined with each other out of the cover members, a partition surface of one cover member is provided with a projection which functions as a fulcrum when the other cover member pivots on an axis parallel to the partition surface, and partition surfaces of the two cover members are coupled to each other by an engagement structure which engages when the two cover members move away from each other, on one side with respect to the axis, while being coupled by fastening with a screw on the other side.

Abstract: A skew feed or damage in the sheet in automatic feeding is avoided. In an image forming apparatus provided with a printer for recording an image, the printer is provided with a feeding port for enabling manual insert sheet feeding and an automatic sheet feeder (ASF) is detachably mounted on the feeding port to enable automatic sheet feeding through the feeding port. As shown in the drawings, the printer is provided with a printer sheet guide for manual insert sheet feeding, while the ASF is provided with an ASF sheet guide for automatic sheet feeding, and the ASF sheet guide is displaced toward the inner side of the sheet by a predetermined amount with respect to the printer sheet guide. Thus, the sheet automatically fed utilizing the ASF sheet guide does not contact the printer sheet guide, whereby the skew feed of the sheet and the damage to the sheet end can be prevented.

Abstract: The present invention provides a sheet feeding apparatus and an image forming apparatus, in which excellent mounting ability is achieved and damage and dislodging of a recording apparatus can be prevented. A mounting opening for mounting the recording apparatus is formed in a side surface of an apparatus body comprised of an ASF upper case and an ASF base. When the recording apparatus is mounted, after the recording apparatus is rested on a recording apparatus supporting portions for supporting the recording apparatus for shifting movement in a mounting direction, the recording apparatus is guided along the recording apparatus supporting portions in the mounting direction. By providing an eaves portion substantially in parallel with the recording apparatus supporting portions, an upward movement of the recording apparatus is regulated when and after the recording apparatus is mounted.

Abstract: A sheet supplying apparatus includes a sheet supporter for supporting sheets, a supply rotary device for feeding out the sheets supported by the sheet supporter, a separation member for separating sheets fed by the supply rotary device one by one by elastically changing an inclination angle of the separation member when the sheets fed by the supply rotary means abut against and ride over the separation member, and a sheet guide member removably disposed above the sheet supporting means and adapted to guide the sheet in such a manner that the sheet is subjected to resistance of the separation member smaller than resistance from the separation member to the sheet when the sheets are supplied from the sheet supporter.

Abstract: The present invention provides a sheet supplying apparatus comprising a sheet stacking means for stacking a plurality of sheets, a sheet supply means for feeding out the sheets stacked on the sheet stacking means, a separation means for separating the sheets one by one by abutting the sheets against the separation means to cause elastic angular change in the sheet thereby to ride the sheet over the separation means, and a guide means having a guide surface for guiding the sheet separated by the separation means toward a downstream side, and wherein the sheet stacking means is provided at its downstream end with a projection which protrudes toward downstream sides of the separation means and of the guide surface of the guide means.

Abstract: In a toner supply control system for a printing device, a toner supply unit supplies a developing unit of the printing device with a two-component developer containing toner particles and carrier particles in accordance with a first control signal. A storage unit stores information concerning a plurality of toner marks formed on an electrostatic latent image carrying member of the printing device and developed by the developing unit. The toner marks respectively have patterns related to condition of the two-component developer. A selecting unit selects one of the toner marks in accordance with a second control signal. A sensor optically reads the toner mark formed on the electrostatic latent image carrying member and generates a detection signal. A first control unit generates the second control signal on the basis of the condition of the two-component developer. A second control unit generates the first control signal on the basis of the detection signal.

Abstract: A two component developing apparatus includes a container (2a), a developing agent conveying means (20) for conveying a two component developing agent consisting of toner and carrier to an image carrier (1) from the container (2a), a mixing device (21, 22) for mixing the toner and the carrier in a toner storage section (28) of the container (2a), and a toner supplier (25) for supplying the toner in the toner storage (28) into the container (2a). The toner supplier (25) includes a toner supplying rollers (26, 27) which can vary a flow of toner per unit time and a controller (44) for controlling the supplying rollers (26, 27) on the basis of the detected flow of toner. The flow of toner per unit time at the supplying rollers (26, 27) is controlled on the basis of a consumption rate of toner. The toner supplying rollers may have cells or holes on their surface.