Patents by Inventor Yukio Tabata

Yukio Tabata 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: 8748072
    Abstract: A method for producing a toner, including ejecting a toner composition liquid containing at least a resin and a colorant periodically from a plurality of nozzles into a chamber using a vibration unit, so as to form droplets in a gas phase; and solidifying the droplets, wherein the droplets are transported by transport air flow selected from at least one of vertical downward air flow and rotational air flow, and the method can prevent toner particles from aggregation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 10, 2014
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Takahiro Honda, Yukio Tabata, Yohichiroh Watanabe, Kazumi Suzuki, Shinji Ohtani, Yoshihiro Norikane
  • Patent number: 7713671
    Abstract: A toner, which is semispherical and has plural dents on the surface, including a binder resin; and a pigment, wherein a circle circumscribing a circular profile of the toner provides an average envelopability (AE) of 10 to 10,000 particles thereof of from 74 to 84%, which is measured by the following formula: AE(%)=(AC?AD)/AC×100 wherein AC is an area of the circle and AD is a total sum of areas of the dents.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2010
    Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
    Inventor: Yukio Tabata
  • Publication number: 20090317738
    Abstract: A method for producing a toner, including ejecting a toner composition liquid containing at least a resin and a colorant periodically from a plurality of nozzles into a chamber using a vibration unit, so as to form droplets in a gas phase; and solidifying the droplets, wherein the droplets are transported by transport air flow selected from at least one of vertical downward air flow and rotational air flow, and the method can prevent toner particles from aggregation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 22, 2009
    Publication date: December 24, 2009
    Inventors: Takahiro HONDA, Yukio Tabata, Yohichiroh Watanabe, Kazumi Suzuki, Shinji Ohtani, Yoshihiro Norikane
  • Publication number: 20080014523
    Abstract: A toner, which is semispherical and has plural dents on the surface, including a binder resin; and a pigment, wherein a circle circumscribing a circular profile of the toner provides an average envelopability (AE) of 10 to 10,000 particles thereof of from 74 to 84%, which is measured by the following formula: AE(%)=(AC?AD)/AC×100 wherein AC is an area of the circle and AD is a total sum of areas of the dents.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2007
    Publication date: January 17, 2008
    Inventor: Yukio TABATA
  • Patent number: 7313336
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a plurality of color toner development devices, a recycled toner development device, at least one cleaning device, a toner collecting and supplying device, and an image pattern generation device. The plurality of color toner development devices store separate color toners, and the recycled toner development device stores recycled toner. The at least one cleaning device removes toner remaining on at least one image carrying member after a transfer operation. The toner collecting and supplying device stores and supplies the removed toner to the recycled toner development device. The image pattern generation device generates image patterns developed by the plurality of color toner development devices and the recycled toner development device based on a characteristic of developer and a color of the recycled toner stored in the recycled toner development device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2007
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Ichiro Kadota, Atsushi Shinozaki, Nekka Matsuura, Hisashi Shoji, Kazumi Suzuki, Nobutaka Takeuchi, Satoshi Muramatsu, Yukio Tabata, Motohiro Usami
  • Publication number: 20060013604
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a plurality of color toner development devices, a recycled toner development device, at least one cleaning device, a toner collecting and supplying device, and an image pattern generation device. The plurality of color toner development devices store separate color toners, and the recycled toner development device stores recycled toner. The at least one cleaning device removes toner remaining on at least one image carrying member after a transfer operation. The toner collecting and supplying device stores and supplies the removed toner to the recycled toner development device. The image pattern generation device generates image patterns developed by the plurality of color toner development devices and the recycled toner development device based on a characteristic of developer and a color of the recycled toner stored in the recycled toner development device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 15, 2005
    Publication date: January 19, 2006
    Inventors: Ichiro Kadota, Atsushi Shinozaki, Nekka Matsuura, Hisashi Shoji, Kazumi Suzuki, Nobutaka Takeuchi, Satoshi Muramatsu, Yukio Tabata, Motohiro Usami
  • Patent number: 6020103
    Abstract: A liquid toner for use in a liquid developer contains a dispersion medium and toner particles, each of which toner particles contains a coloring agent and a binder agent and is dispersed in the dispersion medium, the toner particles comprising small toner particles with a particle diameter of 0.1 .mu.m or less in an amount of 20 wt. % or less of the total weight of the toner particles, and having an average particle diameter of 0.3 to 5 .mu.m. Using the above-mentioned liquid toner in which the amount of the toner particles is controlled to 5 to 100 wt. % of the total weight of the liquid toner, a latent electrostatic image formed on a photoconductor can be developed to a toner image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2000
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kazuo Tsubuko, Akihiko Gotoh, Tsuyoshi Asami, Yukio Tabata
  • Patent number: 4853707
    Abstract: A non-impact electrothermic recording method using an ink sheet comprising at least an electroconductive base layer, an electroconductive thin layer and an electroconductive image transfer ink layer, with the effective resistance of the ink sheet being in the range of from 50.OMEGA. to 20 K.OMEGA.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 1988
    Date of Patent: August 1, 1989
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshiyuki Kawanishi, Yukio Tabata
  • Patent number: 4536437
    Abstract: In an electrothermic non-impact image transfer recording material for use in an electrothermic non-impact recording method in which the electrothermic non-impact image transfer recording material is superimposed on a recording sheet, a recording electrode with multiple recording styli and a return electrode are placed in contact with the recording material, and image-delineating signal voltage is applied across the recording material through the recording electrode and the return electrode, so that an ink is transferred imagewise from the recording material to the recording sheet, the improvement wherein the electrothermic non-impact image transfer recording material comprises a base layer and an ink layer, with an intermediate layer interposed between the two layers when necessary, and the base layer comprises as the main components a polyamide resin binder, such as an aromatic polyamide or nylon, and carbon black.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 1983
    Date of Patent: August 20, 1985
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshiyuki Kawanishi, Yukio Tabata
  • Patent number: 4484200
    Abstract: In a non-impact recording apparatus comprising (i) a recording head comprising (a) a recording electrode consisting essentially of a plurality of recording styli, and (b) a return electrode, which are embedded in an electrically insulating support member, and (ii) an image-delineating signal application apparatus which applies image-delineating electric current between selected recording styli and the return electrode so as to generate Joule's heat in the portions in an ink ribbon containing an electroconductive thermo-fusible ink material immediately below the recording styli and to soften the ink material, thereby transferring the softened or fused ink material in image patterns to a recording medium, the improvement wherein, on the side of the recording head in contact with the surface of the ink ribbon, there is formed a groove portion out of contact with the surface of the ink ribbon between the recording electrode and the return electrode, thereby preventing the deposition of a layer of the electrocondu
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 1982
    Date of Patent: November 20, 1984
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yukio Tabata, Toshiyuki Kawanishi
  • Patent number: 4461586
    Abstract: An ink ribbon for use in electrothermic non-impact recording comprising an electroconductive base layer and an electroconductive thermal-transferable ink layer which are layered. The base layer comprises a binder resin and an electroconductive material dispersed uniformly in the binder resin, while the electroconductive thermal-transferable ink layer comprises a thermoplastic material and an electroconductive material uniformly dispersed in the thermoplastic material, with the surface resistivity .rho.b of the base layer being greater than the surface resistivity .rho.i of the ink layer, and the softening or melting point Tm1 of the binder resin in the base layer being higher than the softening or melting point Tm2 of the thermoplastic material in the ink layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 1982
    Date of Patent: July 24, 1984
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshiyuki Kawanishi, Yukio Tabata
  • Patent number: 4425569
    Abstract: A non-impact recording method and apparatus capable of printing with electroconductive thermal-transferable ink on a receiving surface, with uniform image density and high resolution, and with minimum energy consumption, by embodying the steps of superimposing on a receiving surface of a recording sheet an ink ribbon comprising an electroconductive thermal-transferable ink material; placing a recording electrode having a plurality of recording styli in contact with the ink ribbon, and a return electrode in contact with the ink ribbon, the return electrode disposed at a predetermined distance from the recording electrode, substantially parallel to the recording electrode, with the contact areas with the ink ribbon of the recording electrode being smaller than the contact area with the ink ribbon of the return electrode, which predetermined distance is in the range of 2.times.d.ltoreq.Lm.ltoreq.200.times.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 1982
    Date of Patent: January 10, 1984
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshiyuki Kawanishi, Yukio Tabata
  • Patent number: 4420758
    Abstract: Electrothermic non-impact recording method and apparatus capable of printing with electroconductive thermal-transferable ink on a recording medium by reciprocating a recording head relative to the recording medium, which recording head comprises (i) a plurality of recording styli and (ii) a return electrode in contact with an electroconductive ink ribbon comprising a thermal-transferable ink material, the ink ribbon being in contact with a receiving surface of a recording medium; by applying between selected recording styli and the return electrode an image-delineating electric current, through resistor elements, each of which is connected between each of the recording styli and each of the output terminals from which the image-delineating electric current is output, the resistance of each resistor element being in the range of 1/10 to 10 times the resistance of the portion of the ink ribbon between each recording stylus and the return electrode, thus causing the image-delineating electric current to flow thr
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 1982
    Date of Patent: December 13, 1983
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yukio Tabata, Toshiyuki Kawanishi
  • Patent number: 4415903
    Abstract: An electric ink transfer recording method for obtaining a recorded matter which comprises putting a sheet to be recorded and an ink sheet generating Joule's heat when electrified and having a thermo-melting ink layer together; applying electricity to said ink sheet by contacting a return circuit electrode with the ink sheet and a recording electrode needle (stylus) with the surface of the ink sheet and impressing pulse voltage thereupon; and transferring the ink from the ink sheet to the sheet to be recorded, characterized in that an insulating liquid is interposed between the ink sheet and the recording electrode needle when obtaining the recorded matter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 1982
    Date of Patent: November 15, 1983
    Assignee: Ricoh Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshiyuki Kawanishi, Yukio Tabata
  • Patent number: 4382420
    Abstract: An apparatus for developing a latent electrostatic image formed on a photoconductive recording material in a dry type electrophotographic copying machine typically employing a one-component type developer comprises a conductive electrode held in contact with the developer. The electrode is connected to a power source through a switching device and serves to charge the developer to a predetermined polarity with a predetermined potential before the latent image is developed. In this way, the latent image can be developed selectively as either a normal image or a reverse image quite easily.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 1981
    Date of Patent: May 10, 1983
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Teruyuki Ohnuma, Seiichi Miyakawa, Nobuo Mochizuki, Hajime Oyama, Yukio Tabata