Patents by Inventor Shigeru Emoto

Shigeru Emoto 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: 8268526
    Abstract: The present invention relates to toner compositions containing: toner particles made of: binder resin; colorant; and a wax which is dispersed in the toner particles, where the toner composition satisfies relationship (2): B?394?400A? when 0.950<A??0.965 (2) where A? represents an average circularity of the toner composition, B represents a content of toner particles having a particle diameter not greater than 3 ?m expressed in % by number, and a concentration of the wax at a surface of the toner particles is larger than a concentration thereof in the center of the toner particles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 18, 2012
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroto Higuchi, Fumihiro Sasaki, Shinichiro Yagi, Shigeru Emoto, Junichi Awamura, Naohito Shimota, Masami Tomita, Toshiki Nanya, Takahiro Honda, Maiko Kondo
  • Patent number: 8187784
    Abstract: A toner composition including toner particles, wherein the toner particles are prepared by a method in which toner constituents including at least a binder resin and a colorant are kneaded upon application of heat to prepare a toner constituent mixture; the toner constituent mixture is dissolved or swelled in an organic solvent capable of dissolving or swelling at least the binder resin to prepare an oil phase liquid; the oil phase liquid is emulsified in an aqueous liquid to prepare an emulsion; the emulsion is coagulated; and then the coagulated emulsion is dried to prepare the toner particles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2010
    Date of Patent: May 29, 2012
    Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
    Inventors: Hiroshi Yamashita, Masami Tomita, Shigeru Emoto, Tsunemi Sugiyama
  • Patent number: 8137883
    Abstract: A toner is provided including a binder resin and a wax having primarily C—H and C—C bonds, and having a melting point of 50 to 90° C., wherein the wax is present in a surface portion of the toner in an amount of from 0.1 to 4.0% by weight, wherein the amount of the wax is determined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR); and the use of the toner in an image forming method, image forming apparatus, developer and toner cartridge containing the toner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2012
    Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
    Inventors: Ryota Inoue, Shigeru Emoto, Naohiro Watanabe, Masahide Yamada, Akinori Saitoh, Masahiro Ohki, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Shinichi Wakamatsu, Takayuki Yoshii, Eiji Sawamura
  • Patent number: 8124308
    Abstract: Toner and a developer which are excellent in cleaning property and fixing property at low temperature, and capable of forming images with high quality are provided, along with a method for their production. A toner producing method involves dispersing and/or emulsifying an oil phase or a monomer phase containing a toner composition and/or a toner composition precursor in a water-based medium to granulate, wherein the toner has an average circularity of 0.925 to 0.970, and the toner composition and/or the toner composition precursor has a layered inorganic material in which at least a part of interlayer ions in the layered inorganic material has been exchanged with organic ions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2012
    Assignee: Ricoh Company. Ltd.
    Inventors: Naohiro Watanabe, Shigeru Emoto, Yohichiroh Watanabe, Masahide Yamada, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Masahiro Ohki, Akinori Saitoh, Ryota Inoue, Osamu Uchinokura, Junichi Awamura
  • Patent number: 8026031
    Abstract: Toner and a developer which are excellent in cleaning property and fixing property at low temperature, and capable of forming images with high quality are provided. A toner prepared by dispersing and/or emulsifying an oil phase or a monomer phase comprising a toner composition and/or a toner composition precursor in a water-based medium to granulate, wherein the toner has an average circularity of 0.925 to 0.970, and the toner composition and/or the toner composition precursor has a layered inorganic material in which at least a part of interlayer ions in the layered inorganic material has been exchanged with organic ions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 27, 2011
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Naohiro Watanabe, Shigeru Emoto, Yohichiroh Watanabe, Masahide Yamada, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Masahiro Ohki, Akinori Saitoh, Ryota Inoue, Osamu Uchinokura, Junichi Awamura
  • Publication number: 20110223530
    Abstract: A toner is provided including a binder resin and a wax having primarily C—H and C—C bonds, and having a melting point of 50 to 90° C., wherein the wax is present in a surface portion of the toner in an amount of from 0.1 to 4.0% by weight, wherein the amount of the wax is determined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR); and the use of the toner in an image forming method, image forming apparatus, developer and toner cartridge containing the toner.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 20, 2011
    Publication date: September 15, 2011
    Inventors: Ryota Inoue, Shigeru Emoto, Naohiro Watanabe, Masahide Yamada, Akinori Saitoh, Masahiro Ohki, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Shinichi Wakamatsu, Takayuki Yoshii, Eiji Sawamura
  • Patent number: 7989131
    Abstract: A toner is provided including a binder resin and a wax having primarily C—H and C—C bonds, and having a melting point of 50 to 90° C., wherein the wax is present in a surface portion of the toner in an amount of from 0.1 to 4.0% by weight, wherein the amount of the wax is determined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR); and the use of the toner in an image forming method, image forming apparatus, developer and toner cartridge containing the toner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2011
    Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
    Inventors: Ryota Inoue, Shigeru Emoto, Naohiro Watanabe, Masahide Yamada, Akinori Saitoh, Masahiro Ohki, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Shinichi Wakamatsu, Takayuki Yoshii, Eiji Sawamura
  • Patent number: 7939238
    Abstract: A dry toner for developing an electrostatic image, including a toner binder containing a urea-modified polyester. The toner has an average sphericity of 0.96 or more and contains no more than 30% by weight of particles having a sphericity of less than 0.95.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2011
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Yamashita, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Shigeru Emoto, Masami Tomita
  • Publication number: 20110086308
    Abstract: Toner and a developer which are excellent in cleaning property and fixing property at low temperature, and capable of forming images with high quality are provided, along with a method for their production. A toner producing method involves dispersing and/or emulsifying an oil phase or a monomer phase containing a toner composition and/or a toner composition precursor in a water-based medium to granulate, wherein the toner has an average circularity of 0.925 to 0.970, and the toner composition and/or the toner composition precursor has a layered inorganic material in which at least a part of interlayer ions in the layered inorganic material has been exchanged with organic ions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2010
    Publication date: April 14, 2011
    Inventors: Naohiro WATANABE, Shigeru Emoto, Yohichiroh Watanabe, Masahide Yamada, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Masahiro Ohki, Akinori Saitoh, Ryota Inoue, Osamu Uchinokura, Junichi Awamura
  • Publication number: 20110045403
    Abstract: A toner composition including toner particles, wherein the toner particles are prepared by a method in which toner constituents including at least a binder resin and a colorant are kneaded upon application of heat to prepare a toner constituent mixture; the toner constituent mixture is dissolved or swelled in an organic solvent capable of dissolving or swelling at least the binder resin to prepare an oil phase liquid; the oil phase liquid is emulsified in an aqueous liquid to prepare an emulsion; the emulsion is coagulated; and then the coagulated emulsion is dried to prepare the toner particles.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 29, 2010
    Publication date: February 24, 2011
    Inventors: Hiroshi Yamashita, Masami Tomita, Shigeru Emoto, Tsunemi Sugiyama
  • Patent number: 7879523
    Abstract: A toner composition including toner particles, wherein the toner particles are prepared by a method in which toner constituents including at least a binder resin and a colorant are kneaded upon application of heat to prepare a toner constituent mixture; the toner constituent mixture is dissolved or swelled in an organic solvent capable of dissolving or swelling at least the binder resin to prepare an oil phase liquid; the oil phase liquid is emulsified in an aqueous liquid to prepare an emulsion; the emulsion is coagulated; and then the coagulated emulsion is dried to prepare the toner particles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2011
    Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
    Inventors: Hiroshi Yamashita, Masami Tomita, Shigeru Emoto, Tsunemi Sugiyama
  • Patent number: 7820350
    Abstract: A toner containing a colorant, and a binder resin, wherein the toner is prepared by dissolving or dispersing a colorant, a precursor of the binder resin having a site capable of reacting with an active hydrogen group-containing compound, the active hydrogen group-containing compound, in an organic solvent, to prepare a toner constituent mixture liquid, dispersing or emulsifying the toner constituent mixture liquid, in an aqueous medium while subjecting the precursor to a reaction with the active hydrogen group-containing compound, to prepare a toner dispersion, and removing the organic solvent from the toner dispersion; the binder resin contains a modified polyester having an isocyanate-derived binding site; the Sn content in the toner is 800 ppm or less; the content of a metal which is non Sn and derived from a polyesterified catalyst is 10 ppm to 200 ppm; and the content of a metal which is non Sn and derived from an isocyanated catalyst is 10 ppm to 200 ppm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 26, 2010
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masahide Yamada, Shigeru Emoto, Naohiro Watanabe, Masahiro Ohki, Akinori Saitoh, Shinichi Wakamatsu
  • Publication number: 20100233609
    Abstract: The present invention relates to toner compositions containing: toner particles made of: binder resin; colorant; and a wax which is dispersed in the toner particles, where the toner composition satisfies relationship (2): B?394?400A? when 0.950<A??0.965 (2) where A? represents an average circularity of the toner composition, B represents a content of toner particles having a particle diameter not greater than 3 ?m expressed in % by number, and a concentration of the wax at a surface of the toner particles is larger than a concentration thereof in the center of the toner particles.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 7, 2010
    Publication date: September 16, 2010
    Inventors: Hiroto HIGUCHI, Fumihiro Sasaki, Shinichiro Yagi, Shigeru Emoto, Junichi Awamura, Naohito Shimota, Masami Tomita, Toshiki Nanya, Takahiro Honda, Maiko Kondo
  • Patent number: 7736826
    Abstract: A toner composition including toner particles including at least a binder resin; and a colorant, wherein the toner composition satisfies at least one of the following relationships (1) and (2): B?14 when 155<A?180; and B?0.6A?79 when 145?A?155,??(1) wherein A represents a shape factor SF-1 of the toner composition and B represents a content of toner particles having a particle diameter not greater than 3 ?m; and B?14 when 0.920?A??0.950; and B?394?400A? when 0.950<A??0.965??(2) wherein A? represents an average circularity of the toner composition and B represents a content of toner particles having a particle diameter not greater than 3 ?m.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2010
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroto Higuchi, Fumihiro Sasaki, Shinichiro Yagi, Shigeru Emoto, Junichi Awamura, Naohito Shimota, Masami Tomita, Toshiki Nanya, Takahiro Honda, Maiko Kondo
  • Patent number: 7702271
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus including an image bearing member; a charger; a light irradiator; a developing device; a transfer device; an image bearing member's cleaner; and a fixing device, wherein the fixing device includes a fixing member configured to fix a toner image upon application of heat and pressure thereto; a pressing member configured to press the recording material toward the fixing member; and a cleaning member configured to clean a surface of the fixing member and/or the pressing member, wherein the cleaning member has an outermost layer including a reactive material which increases viscoelasticity of a binder resin of the toner by reacting with the binder resin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 20, 2010
    Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
    Inventors: Hiroshi Yamada, Fumihiro Sasaki, Shigeru Emoto, Jun Okamoto, Shinji Ohtani, Hiroto Higuchi, Naohito Shimota, Shinichiro Yagi, Junichi Awamura, Tomomi Suzuki, Masami Tomita, Toshiki Nanya, Yoshiki Yamaguchi
  • Patent number: 7695883
    Abstract: To provide a toner containing an ethyl acetate-soluble polyester component and an ethyl acetate-insoluble polyester component, wherein the toner is granulated in an aqueous medium, the ethyl acetate-insoluble polyester component is obtained by elongating and/or cross-linking a modified polyester resin during granulating and/or after granulating, the modified polyester resin is produced by condensation polymerization of an acid component and at least one type of diol compound selected from aliphatic diol and alicyclic diol in the presence of a catalyst, and the mass average molecular weight of the modified polyester resin is 10,000 to 100,000.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 24, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 13, 2010
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masahide Yamada, Ryota Inoue, Naohiro Watanabe, Shigeru Emoto, Masahiro Ohki, Akinori Saitoh, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Shinichi Wakamatsu, Toshiki Nanya, Naohito Shimota, Hiroshi Yamada, Junichi Awamura, Tomomi Suzuki, Kazuyuki Hirai, Kazushige Yasumatsu
  • Patent number: 7666563
    Abstract: A toner is provided including a binder resin including at least one polyester resin in an amount of from 50 to 100% by weight, and a colorant having a specific formula, wherein the toner has a shape factor SF-1 of from 120 to 150 and a shape factor SF-2 of from 125 to 180; and a developer using the toner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2010
    Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
    Inventors: Masahiro Ohki, Naohiro Watanabe, Ryota Inoue, Masahide Yamada, Akinori Saitoh, Shigeru Emoto, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Shinichi Wakamatsu
  • Patent number: 7563555
    Abstract: A toner composition including toner particles including a binder resin including a modified polyester resin, and a second resin having a weight average molecular weight of from 2,000 to 10,000; a colorant; a release agent; and a particulate material which is present at least a surface portion of the toner particles while embedded into the surface portion, wherein the binder resin has a glass transition temperature not lower than 35° C. and lower than 55° C., and wherein the particulate material has an average particle diameter of from 0.002 to 0.2 times that of the toner particles. A developer including the toner composition and a carrier having a layer thereon which includes at least an acrylic resin and a silicone resin, and a method for fixing an image of the toner composition are also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2009
    Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
    Inventors: Yohichiroh Watanabe, Masanori Suzuki, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Hiroshi Yamashita, Takuya Saito, Naohiro Watanabe, Masami Tomita, Shigeru Emoto, Shinichiro Yagi, Hiroshi Yamada, Toshiki Nanya, Tadao Takigawa
  • Publication number: 20090162780
    Abstract: A dry toner for developing an electrostatic image, including a toner binder containing a urea-modified polyester. The toner has an average sphericity of 0.96 or more and contains no more than 30% by weight of particles having a sphericity of less than 0.95.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 12, 2009
    Publication date: June 25, 2009
    Inventors: Hiroshi Yamashita, Tsunemi Sugiyama, Shigeru Emoto, Masami Tomita
  • Patent number: 7550245
    Abstract: The object of the present invention is to provide a toner having a uniform composition of toner materials among toner particles, excelling in charge stability, enabling high-quality images without substantially causing fog and toner scattering, and having a small diameter and a narrow particle size distribution. The present invention also provides an effective production method of the toner, and an image forming method and the like using the toner. For this end, the present invention provides a method for producing a toner in which a dissolved and dispersed solution of toner materials is dispersed as dispersion particles in an aqueous medium containing no organic resin fine particles to prepare an oil droplet-in-water dispersion, and organic resin fine particles are added to the oil droplet-in-water dispersion to thereby granulate a toner in the presence of the organic resin fine particles.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2009
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Ryota Inoue, Shigeru Emoto, Yohichiroh Watanabe, Naohiro Watanabe, Masahide Yamada, Akinori Saitoh, Masahiro Ohki, Tsunemi Sugiyama