Abstract: To provide an image forming method including conveying a toner by means of a toner supply device that supplies the toner from inside a toner housing container into a developer housing section of a developing device with the use of a screw pump, and forming an image on a recording medium by developing a latent image on a latent image bearing member to form a toner image with the use of a developer and by transferring the toner image to the recording medium by means of a transfer device, wherein the toner is formed by adding small particle size silica to toner base particles, and wherein when A represents the average degree of circularity of the toner, and B, expressed as percent by mass, represents the amount of the small particle size silica relative to the mass of the toner base particles, the expression ?18A+17.92?B??34A+33.96 is satisfied.

Abstract: An image forming method including charging an image bearing member by applying combination of DC voltage and AC voltage with frequency of 6.5 to 8.5 cycle/mm; irradiating the image bearing member with light to form an electrostatic image; developing the electrostatic image with a developer including toner to form a toner image; transferring the toner image onto a receiving material; fixing the toner image; cleaning the image bearing member with a blade; then applying a lubricant to the image bearing member; and then spreading the lubricant with a spreading member countering the image bearing member. The toner includes toner particles granulated in an aqueous medium; and at least three kinds of external additives including a first particulate hydrophobic silica, a particulate hydrophobic titanium oxide and a second particulate hydrophobic silica respectively having BET specific surface areas of 20 to 40 m2/g, 40 to 80 m2/g, and 130 to 300 m2/g.

Abstract: A toner including a binder resin and a colorant which produces a torque of from 1.4 to 2.0 mNm, when a cone rotor having a vertical angle of 60° and grooves on a surface thereof intrudes into a bulk of the toner at an intrusion speed of 5 mm/min for a depth of 20 mm while rotating at a rotation speed of 1 rpm. The bulk of the toner is formed by consolidating 30 g of the toner in a cylindrical container having an internal diameter of 60 mm for 60 seconds with a consolidation load of 585 g.

Abstract: An image forming method, including charging the surface of an image bearer with a charger; irradiating the charged surface of the image bearer to form a latent image; developing the latent image with a toner to form a visible toner image; transferring the toner image onto a transfer medium directly or through an intermediate transferer; removing the toner remaining on the surface of the image bearer with a cleaning blade; applying a lubricant to the surface of the image bearer; and fixing the toner image on the transfer medium, wherein the toner is a water-granulated toner having the following properties (1) to (4): (1) a volume-average particle diameter of from 3.0 to 7.0 ?m; (2) an average shape factor SF-1 of from 120 to 160; (3) an average shape factor SF-2 of from 100 to 140; and (4) a BET specific surface area of from 2.5 to 7.0 m2/g.

Abstract: To provide a protective cover capable of enhancing convenience in connecting and disconnecting an external output line and the like without impairing safety. In a protective cover placed on a side wall of a casing and covering a hollow part in which an output part of an apparatus housed in the casing is provided, the cover is characterized by including an outer lid which is supported by a hinge provided at an upper end to be openable and closable, and is provided, at a part close to a lower end, with a first locking member engaging with a catching member that is provided at a lower part of the hollow part, and an internal lid which is rotatably mounted to a position corresponding to the output part in an inner surface of the aforesaid outer lid to cover the output part. The internal lid is supported by a hinge.

Abstract: A toner, including a parent particulate material including a colorant and a binder resin, and an external additive including particles having an average primary particle diameter from 80 to less than 150 nm in an amount of from 0.03 to 2% by number, particles having an average primary particle diameter from 5 nm to less than 15 nm in an amount of from 50 to 95% by number, and particles having an average primary particle diameter from 15 to less than 40 nm in an amount of from 5 to 40% by number, and the particles having an average primary particle diameter from 80 to less than 150 nm include particles having an average primary particle diameter not less than 200 nm in an amount of from 10 to 30% by number, and have a weight reduction rate not greater than 3.00% when heated from 30 to 250° C.

Abstract: A toner, including at least a binder resin; a colorant; and a modified layered inorganic mineral in which at least a part of ions between the layers are modified with an organic material ion, wherein the toner includes at least one external additive having an average primary particle diameter of from 80 to 180 nm and an aspect ratio of from 0.7 to 0.95.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus including an image bearing member to bear a latent electrostatic image, a charging member to charge a surface of the image bearing member, an irradiation member to irradiate the image bearing member to write the latent electrostatic image, a development member to develop the latent electrostatic image with a toner to form a visualized image, a transfer device to transfer the visualized image directly or via an intermediate transfer body to a recording medium, a fixing device to fix the transferred image transferred on the recording medium and a cleaning device to remove residual toner remaining on the image bearing member.

Abstract: A toner including toner particles including a binder resin, and a modified layered inorganic material in which at least part of interlayer ions is replaced with an organic ion, and a fatty acid metal compound located on a surface of the toner particles; and an external additive located on the fatty acid metal compound, wherein the external additive is a material different from the fatty acid metal compound. An image forming apparatus including an image bearing member; a developing device configured to develop the electrostatic latent image with a developer including the toner; a transfer device; and a fixing device. A method for preparing the toner including dispersing or emulsifying a toner composition including a modified layered inorganic material to prepare toner particles; mixing a fatty acid metal compound with the toner particles; and second mixing the toner particles with an external additive.

Abstract: In an electrophotographic photosensitive member having a support at least the surface of which is conductive, and a photoconductive layer formed thereon containing an amorphous material composed chiefly of silicon, the photoconductive layer has two or more layer regions, and protuberances in a layer region adjoining to a layer region that is closest to the free surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member have been stopped from growing at the surface of that layer region in which the protuberances occur. The protuberances has been stopped from growing not to become so large as to appear as image defects on images. Also disclosed is a process for producing such an electrophotographic photosensitive member.

Abstract: A hardcoat film comprises a substrate film, and a hardcoat layer laminated on at least one side of the substrate film, wherein a reflectance of the hardcoat layer at a wavelength within 400 to 600 nm has a mean ripple amplitude of 1% or less. The hardcoat film has decreased iris patterns. There is also provided an antireflection film having a low surface reflectance and a neutral tone of color, and an equipment for display including the film.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus including an image bearer; a charging device charging the image bearer; a light irradiating device irradiating the charged image bearer with light to form an electrostatic image; a developing device developing the electrostatic image with a developer including a toner to form a toner image on the image bearer; a transfer device transferring the toner image; and a cleaning device cleaning the image bearer, wherein the volume average particle diameter of the toner is greater than 5.0 ?m and less than 5.5 ?m, the content of toner particles having a particle diameter of not greater than 4.0 ?m is not higher than 20% by number, the ratio of the first shape factor SF-1 to the second shape factor SF-2 is from 1.00 to 1.15, and the content of toner particles having a SF-2 of not less than 115 is not less than 67.8% by number.

Abstract: A toner is provided including a binder resin and a colorant, wherein the toner has an average shape factor SF-1 of from 130 to 160, and includes toner particles having a shape factor SF-1 of from 100 to 115 in an amount of not greater than 2% by number, and wherein the toner is prepared by a wet granulation method, along with an image forming apparatus and process cartridge using the toner.

Abstract: An electrophotographic photosensitive member is provided minimizing the absorption of image exposure having a short wavelength in a surface layer and keeping good electrophotographic properties including resolving power. The electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a conductive substrate, and a photoconductive layer and a surface region layer sequentially superimposed on the conductive substrate. The surface region layer is composed of a non-single-crystal silicon nitride film containing an Group element in the periodic table and a carbon atom and using at least a silicon atom and a nitrogen atom as base materials. In the surface region layer, the Group 13 element content with respect to the total amount of constituent atoms has distribution having at least two local maximum values in the thickness direction, and an the average concentration of nitrogen atoms is 30 atm % to 70 atm %.

Abstract: The invention provides a process for producing a negative-charging electrophotographic photosensitive member which can improve the adherence between a first layer and a second layer without lowering the effect of lessening image defects and realize a reduction in overall costs, a negative-charging electrophotographic photosensitive member produced by the process, and an electrophotographic apparatus. In the process for producing a negative-charging electrophotographic photosensitive member, a first layer is deposited on a substarte, at least the vertexes of protuberances are removed, the substrate with the first layer deposited theron is placed in a film forming furnace, the first layer surface is plasma-treated with a gas containing at least a Group 13 element in the periodic table and a dilution gas composed of at least one selected from hydrogen, argon and helium, and a layer formed of a non-single-crystal material is deposited as the second layer on the first layer.

Abstract: To provide a high-image-quality electrophotographic photosensitive member having a high sensitivity for a wavelength close to 380 to 500 nm, remarkable image resolution property in which absorption of the wavelength is hardly recognized, working-environment characteristic and high safety and superior in abrasion resistance and fabrication easiness and reducing optical memories and an electrophotographic apparatus using the high-image-quality electrophotographic photosensitive member. In the case of an electrophotographic photosensitive member having a substrate, photoconductive layer formed on the substrate and surface layer formed on the photoconductive layer and using silicon and nitrogen atoms as base material and containing an amorphous material containing at least oxygen atoms, the surface layer contains nitrogen atoms as an average concentration shown by the following expression (1) and contains oxygen atoms by the maximum value Omax of the number of oxygen atoms in the thickness direction: 0.

Abstract: Provided is an electrophotographic photosensitive member having a photoconductive layer on an electrically conductive substrate, the photoconductive layer being formed from a non-single-crystal material constituted by at least silicon atoms as a base material, and a non-single-crystal layer region constituted by silicon atoms and carbon atoms as base materials, the non-single-crystal layer region being laminated on the photoconductive layer, in which the content distribution of the oxygen atoms to a total amount of component atoms in a thickness direction within the non-single-crystal layer region has a peak.

Abstract: An electrophotographic photosensitive member is provided which can keep at a minimum the absorption of image exposure light of 380 to 500 nm in wavelength in its surface layer and concurrently can satisfactorily keep electrophotographic properties including resolving power. The electrophotographic photosensitive member has a substrate, and a photoconductive layer and a surface layer in this order provided on the substrate. The surface layer includes an amorphous material composed chiefly of silicon atoms and nitrogen atoms and containing at least oxygen atoms and carbon atoms, and the ratios of the numbers of the respective oxygen atoms, carbon atoms and nitrogen atoms to the total number of oxygen atoms, carbon atoms and nitrogen atoms contained in the amorphous material are each within a specific range.

Abstract: A soundproof engine-driven operating machine has a small installation area, is easy to assemble and disassemble, and has superior cooling effects. The soundproof engine-driven operating machine includes an engine, an operating machine main body that is driven by the engine, a base frame that supports the engine and the operating machine main body in a vibration-proof structure, and a case fitted to the base frame and accommodating the engine and the operating machine main body. One part of the case includes a first-story chamber accommodating the engine and the operating machine main body, first and second heat exchangers, each having a cooling fan and being arranged above the first-story chamber, the first and second heat exchangers performing heat conversion relating to the operation of the engine by using the cooling fans, arranged separately in a ventilation path, and a second-story chamber accommodating a muffler for discharging engine air.