Patents by Inventor Takaaki Yanagisawa

Takaaki Yanagisawa 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: 5627631
    Abstract: A developer replenishing device for replenishing a developing device with a developer, and a developer container for use therewith. The developer container, or toner bottle, has a mouth portion at one end thereof which is smaller in diameter than a hollow cylindrical main body. At the end of the bottle provided with the mouth, a shoulder has the inner periphery thereof partly raised to the edge of the mouth portion to form a raised portion for scooping up a toner. In addition, a part of the inner periphery of the circumferential wall of the bottle which is contiguous with the raised portion is also raised toward the axis of the bottle about which the bottle is rotatable, thereby forming another raised portion. When the bottle is mounted to a bottle holder, which is included in the replenishing device, substantially horizontally with the mouth portion oriented sideways, the bottle is rotated to raise the toner from the bottom of the main body to the mouth portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 1996
    Date of Patent: May 6, 1997
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hideo Ichikawa, Takeshi Saito, Sunao Ikeda, Nobuhiro Makita, Seiji Ozawa, Shigeru Yoshiki, Takaaki Yanagisawa
  • Patent number: 5500719
    Abstract: A developer replenishing device for replenishing a developing device with a developer, and a developer container for use therewith. The developer container, or toner bottle, has a mouth portion at one end thereof which is smaller in diameter than a hollow cylindrical main body. At the end of the bottle provided with the mouth, a shoulder has the inner periphery thereof partly raised to the edge of the mouth portion to form a raised portion for scooping up a toner. In addition, a part of the inner periphery of the circumferential wall of the bottle which is contiguous with the raised portion is also raised toward the axis of the bottle about which the bottle is rotatable, thereby forming another raised portion. When the bottle is mounted to a bottle holder, which is included in the replenishing device, substantially horizontally with the mouth portion oriented sideways, the bottle is rotated to raise the toner from the bottom of the main body to the mouth portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 1995
    Date of Patent: March 19, 1996
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hideo Ichikawa, Takeshi Saito, Sunao Ikeda, Nobuhiro Makita, Seiji Ozawa, Shigeru Yoshiki, Takaaki Yanagisawa
  • Patent number: 5455662
    Abstract: A developer replenishing device for replenishing a developing device with a developer, and a developer container for use therewith. The developer container, or toner bottle, has a mouth portion at one end thereof which is smaller in diameter than a hollow cylindrical main body. At the end of the bottle provided with the mouth, a shoulder has the inner periphery thereof partly raised to the edge of the mouth portion to form a raised portion for scooping up a toner. In addition, a part of the inner periphery of the circumferential wall of the bottle which is contiguous with the raised portion is also raised toward the axis of the bottle about which the bottle is rotatable, thereby forming another raised portion. When the bottle is mounted to a bottle holder, which is included in the replenishing device, substantially horizontally with the mouth portion oriented sideways, the bottle is rotated to raise the toner from the bottom of the main body to the mouth portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 1993
    Date of Patent: October 3, 1995
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hideo Ichikawa, Takeshi Saito, Sunao Ikeda, Nobuhiro Makita, Seiji Ozawa, Shigeru Yoshiki, Takaaki Yanagisawa
  • Patent number: 5441177
    Abstract: A toner container is rotatably mounted to a toner replenishing device for discharging toner thereto upon rotation of the toner container. The toner container includes a cylindrical member for containing toner to be discharged. A cap member covers the mouth portion of the cylindrical container and is rotationally mounted thereon. A shutter selectively closes an opening of the cap member. When the toner container is mounted to the toner replenishing device and rotationally driven thereby, the cap member is prevented from rotation and the shutter is opened to permit discharge of toner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 1993
    Date of Patent: August 15, 1995
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Takaaki Yanagisawa
  • Patent number: 5367363
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus has two units which are engageable with a photoconductive element and provided with a substantially identical configuration. Various electrophotographic process devices including a developing device and a cleaning device and to be arranged around the photoconductive element are selectively arranged in the two units. The photoconductive element is passed over two rollers such that part of the element forms parallel flat portions. The two units and the photoconductive element are rotatable integrally with each other.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 1991
    Date of Patent: November 22, 1994
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Tsukuru Kai, Masayuki Ohtani, Takaaki Yanagisawa, Hisashi Ishijima, Masaaki Nagano
  • Patent number: 5245385
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus reduces the level of noise escaping therefrom via an opening. The noise is generated from a motor which drives an image forming part in the image forming apparatus, from a radiator fan which radiates heat inside the apparatus to the outside via the opening, and from an exhaust fan which passes harmful air through a filter and then exhausts harmless air to the outside via the opening. The image forming apparatus generates a predetermined sound wave and collides it with the noise so that the predetermined sound wave and noise cancel each other out.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 1991
    Date of Patent: September 14, 1993
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kenji Fukumizu, Hiroo Kitagawa, Fumihiko Ishikawa, Tadao Koike, Takaaki Yanagisawa, Satoshi Kanda