Abstract: An ice supplying apparatus, being provided in a refrigerator, includes an ice maker unit, which is configured to supply ice pieces produced therein to an outside of a freezer room door; an ice storage unit, which is configured to store the ice pieces produced by the ice maker unit; an ice discharger unit, which is provided within the ice storage unit to discharge the ice pieces below; and a shrinking portion, which is provided in the ice storage unit and defines an interior space thereof as small as it goes down, through building up a lower surface, among interior surfaces defining that interior space of the ice storage unit, for supporting the ice pieces stored therein from a lower potion thereof, by a surface inclining to a horizontal direction, wherein the ice discharger unit is disposed in a lower portion of the shrinking portion.

Abstract: An ice supplying apparatus 100, being provided in a refrigerator 1, comprises: an ice maker unit 22, which is configured to supply ice pieces produced therein to an outside of a freezer room door; an ice storage unit 110, which is configured to store the ice pieces produced by the ice maker unit; an ice discharger unit 112, which is provided within the ice storage unit to discharge the ice pieces below; and a shrinking portion 111, which is provided in the ice storage unit and defines an interior space thereof as small as it goes down, through building up a lower surface 113, among interior surfaces defining that interior space 301 of the ice storage unit 110, for supporting the ice pieces stored therein from a lower potion thereof, by a surface inclining to a horizontal direction, wherein the ice discharger unit 112 is disposed in a lower portion of the shrinking portion 111.

Abstract: An ice supplying apparatus 100, being provided in a refrigerator 1, comprises: an ice maker unit 22, which is configured to supply ice pieces produced therein to an outside of a freezer room door; an ice storage unit 110, which is configured to store the ice pieces produced by the ice maker unit; an ice discharger unit 112, which is provided within the ice storage unit to discharge the ice pieces below; and a shrinking portion 111, which is provided in the ice storage unit and defines an interior space thereof as small as it goes down, through building up a lower surface 113, among interior surfaces defining that interior space 301 of the ice storage unit 110, for supporting the ice pieces stored therein from a lower potion thereof, by a surface inclining to a horizontal direction, wherein the ice discharger unit 112 is disposed in a lower portion of the shrinking portion 111.

Abstract: Provided is a small-sized electrophotographic apparatus for which maintenance such as disposal of a jam of sheets, replacement of consumables including toner, or replacement of components to be periodically replaced can be facilitated.

Abstract: An electrophotographic apparatus includes a plurality of image forming devices, wherein each image forming device includes a developing device having a tip end part and a toner storage part coupled to the tip end part. A thickness of the tip end part is smaller than a thickness of the toner storage part. An exposure device, which is an LED array, is arranged near the tip end part.

Abstract: Provided is a small-sized electrophotographic apparatus having a double face printing function, which can print at a high speed even during double face printing.

Abstract: A photo conductor and exposure integrally-formed type apparatus is of a drum type, and is rotated at a fixed speed in a clockwise direction. A residual toner attached to a surface of the photo conductor is removed by a cleaner, and a charging device applies a charge load uniformly to a surface of the photo conductor layer so as to charge the photo conductor layer. A light emitting layer exposes the photo conductor layer in a luminous area from an inner side, and forms a latent image on the photo conductor layer. The latent image formed on the photo conductor layer is developed by toner by a developing device, and forms an apparent image by the toner attached to the latent image. Further, the toner image appearing on the photo conductor layer is transferred on a recording medium by a transfer device. Accordingly, since no movement exists between an exposure point and an image forming point in the luminous area, an image deterioration caused by the movement is not generated.

Abstract: Provided is a small-sized electrophotographic apparatus having a double face printing function, which can print at a high speed even during double face printing.

Abstract: To invisibly embed additional information in a base pattern and to visualize the additional information, a dislocation is provided in a boundary between the base pattern compose of striped thin lines and the additional information pattern composed of striped thin lines. This dislocation makes the stripes of the patterns discontinuous. The additional information pattern is invisibly embedded in the base pattern such that a sequence of dislocations in the stripes forming the boundary is at an angle equal to or larger than a predetermined angle with respect to the stripe direction.

Abstract: A banknote handling device embedded in an outer wall, in which a shutter for a deposit/withdrawal port is stably operated even in a rainy weather condition, including a door having an outer surface exposed outdoors, for covering a deposit/withdrawal port, incorporates a rain water draining means for draining rain water falling onto the outer surface of the door, outside of the device. The rain water draining means comprises an inclined surface incorporated in the outer surface of the door, a water channel through which rain water dripping from the outer surface of the door flows, and a drain pipe for receiving rain water flowing from the water channel, and draining the rain water outside of the device.

Abstract: A low cost and high accuracy replacing part identification system capable of detecting and excluding the dishonest use of an image forming apparatus containing a consumable. A memory storage device having a particular ID number stored therein is attached to a toner cartridge. If the toner cartridge is used, hysteresis data (data that cannot be re-written to its original value) is stored in the memory storage device and the ID number is stored in an ID storing unit to prevent the cartridge from being able to be used by other apparatuses. Since a control unit detects the number of time of use and a toner level detecting unit detects the data of a toner level in the toner cartridge to store as the hysteresis data in the memory storage device, a toner cartridge which imitation toner was refilled can be detected and prevented from being used.

Abstract: An electrophotographic apparatus comprises a plurality of image forming devices overlapped one another. The image forming device comprises a developing device comprising a tip end part and a toner storage part coupled to the tip end part. A thickness of the tip end part in an overlapped direction is smaller than a thickness of the toner storage part. An exposure device is arranged in a location, in which the tip end part is small in thickness. A toner regulatory blade extends in a direction along a normal to the overlapped direction and arranged so as to come into contact with a developing roller from a direction following rotation of the developing roller.

Abstract: Provided is a small-sized electrophotographic apparatus for which maintenance such as disposal of a jam of sheets, replacement of consumables including toner, or replacement of components to be periodically replaced can be facilitated.

Abstract: Provided is a banknote handling device embedded in an outer wall, in which a shutter for a deposit/withdrawal port is stably operated even in a rainy weather condition. According to the present invention, the banknote handling device including a door having an outer surface exposed outdoors, for covering a deposit/withdrawal port, incorporates a rain water draining means for draining rain water falling onto the outer surface of the door, outside of the device. The rain water draining means comprises an inclined surface incorporated in the outer surface of the door, a water channel through which rain water dripping from the outer surface of the door flows, and a drain pipe for receiving rain water flowing from the water channel, and draining the rain water outside of the device.

Abstract: A low cost and high accuracy replacing part identification system capable of detecting and excluding the dishonest use of a replacing part containing a consumable and an image forming apparatus employing the same. A data carrier having a peculiar ID number stored therein is attached to a toner cartridge. If the toner cartridge is used once, hysteresis data is stored in a data carrier and the ID number is stored in an ID storing unit to prevent the toner cartridge from being able to be used in other apparatuses. Since a control unit detects the number of times of use and a toner level detecting unit detects the data of a toner level to store the data as hysteresis data in the data carrier, the toner cartridge in which imitation toner was refilled can be detected from the fluctuation thereof.

Abstract: An apparatus for sorting and distributing sheet-like items, such as postal matter. A feeder successively feeds the sheet-like items to a stacker which is positioned above the feeder and on which the sheet-like items are stacked in an upright position. Both the feeder and the stacker have a bottom surface. The bottom surface of the stacker is normally positioned at a first distance above the bottom surface of the feeder. A bottom surface opening mechanism is able to open the bottom surface of the stacker to permit sheet-like items stacked in the stacker to be transferred to the feeder. A bottom surface moving mechanism is able to move the bottom surface of the feeder unit and the bottom surface of the stacker unit toward each other so as to position the stacker bottom surface at a second distance above the feeder bottom surface, with the second distance being less than the first distance, and is able to return the bottom surfaces to a position in which they are spaced by the first distance.

Abstract: A paper sheet sorting apparatus comprising a device for reading the information recorded in paper sheets and a device for sorting the paper sheets in accordance with the information thus read, is disclosed. The load of recognizing the information is detected by a load detector. In accordance with the load detected by the load detector, the interval between the paper sheets supplied or the speed at which the paper sheets are transported is changed. In this way, the interval of the papers sheets entering the reading device is changed. The number of paper sheets having the information that cannot be recognized and hence cannot be sorted is reduced, while at the same time improving the processing speed.

Abstract: An apparatus for sorting and distributing sheet-like items, such as postal matter. A feeder successively feeds the sheet-like items to a stacker which is positioned above the feeder and on which the sheet-like items are stacked in an upright position. Both the feeder and the stacker have a bottom surface. The bottom surface of the stacker is normally positioned at a first distance above the bottom surface of the feeder. A bottom surface opening mechanism is able to open the bottom surface of the stacker to permit sheet-like items stacked in the stacker to be transferred to the feeder. A bottom surface moving mechanism is able to move the bottom surface of the feeder unit and the bottom surface of the stacker unit toward each other so as to position the stacker bottom surface at a second distance above the feeder bottom surface, with the second distance being less than the first distance, and is able to return the bottom surfaces to a position in which they are spaced by the first distance.

Abstract: An overlap detection apparatus having a conveyance path for conveying letters including a letter release section where the letters are not held, a bending section formed in the letter release section, and a butt into which the forward end of the letters released from the conveyance path in the bending section is brought into contact. A detector is provided for detecting the forward end of a letter on the butt and an overlap judging arrangement for judging an overlap of letters based on the result of detection by the detector. The detector includes a light source for projecting light on the surface of a letter and a line sensor having a plurality of light receiving elements arranged in a line, wherein the line sensor detects a shadow of the forward end of the letters cast by the light source.

Abstract: A small-size apparatus for sorting sheets or the like can form a delivery route by repeating sorting operation and prevent an overflow of sheets or the like. To this end, auxiliary sorting compartments are provided in an accumulator in the sorting operation for the first time, and when an overflow occurs, the allocated sorting compartments are shifted each by one compartment to the side of the auxiliary sorting compartment. In the first-time sorting operation, destination codes and thicknesses are stored in memory, and by the destination codes and thicknesses stored, overflow is predicted, a plurality of sorting compartments are allocated. By this arrangement, the sheets or the like can be prevented from overflowing, so that those sheets or the like which are rejected need not be manually added afterwards, and the efficiency of the sorting work can be improved.