G03G15/00

IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS
20170308026 · 2017-10-26 ·

An image forming apparatus arranged to form an image on a recording material, the image forming apparatus including an object, an electrically conductive member; and an urging member arranged to urge the electrically conductive member towards the object and to electrically couple the electrically conductive member and the object to each other. In the image forming apparatus, the electrically conductive member is formed of a material having a low elastic coefficient that is lower than that of the urging member.

IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS
20170310838 · 2017-10-26 ·

A friction member that abuts against a rotating member being fixed to a display portion and that stops the rotating member being fixed to a display portion by frictional resistance of an abutting surface accommodates the rotating member into a predetermined accommodating position in a reliable manner by changing a frictional force of the friction member.

IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

An image forming apparatus including an image forming unit, a discharging portion, a supporting portion, an image reading portion, and a switching portion is provided. The image forming unit is configured to form an image on a sheet. The discharging portion is configured to discharge the sheet on which the image has been formed. The supporting portion is configured to support the sheet discharged by the discharging portion. The image reading portion is configured to read, at a reading position, the image formed on the sheet. The switching portion is configured to switch between causing the sheet discharged by the discharging portion to be conveyed to the supporting portion and causing the sheet discharged by the discharging portion to be conveyed toward the image reading portion. The sheet conveyed toward the image reading portion is conveyed to the reading position after conveyance by the discharging portion is finished.

SHEET STACKING TRAY, AND SHEET POSTPROCESSING DEVICE/IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCLUDING THE SHEET STACKING TRAY

A sheet stacking tray includes a first stacking portion, a second stacking portion, and a base portion. In a sheet widthwise direction perpendicular to the sheet discharge direction, the first stacking portion includes a first sheet stacking surface having a first stacking width within a range from one half of a sheet width of a maximum-size sheet to be discharged up to the sheet width of the maximum-size sheet. The second stacking portion includes a second sheet stacking surface having a second stacking width smaller than the first stacking width. A border between the first stacking portion and the second stacking portion lies on a discharge-direction upstream side of a contact point where a leading end portion of the maximum-size sheet comes into contact with the sheet stacking part while the sheet is discharged.

SHEET LOADING DEVICE, AND SHEET POST-PROCESSOR AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS PROVIDED WITH THE SAME

A sheet loading device is provided with a sheet ejection portion, a sheet loading portion, a first detection mechanism, a driving device, a second detection mechanism, and a control portion. The driving device drives the sheet loading portion to ascend/descend between an upper surface detection position and a reference position made to descend by a prescribed distance from the upper surface detection position. The second detection mechanism detects that the sheet loading portion is at the reference position. In a case where sheets of the same type are ejected continuously from the sheet ejection portion, the control portion controls beforehand the sheet loading portion to ascend from the reference position to the upper surface detection position and sets a loadable number of sheets of the sheet loading portion in accordance with an ascending time of the sheet loading portion.

IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

An image forming apparatus includes a photosensitive member; an exposure portion configured to expose the photosensitive member to light depending on image information to form a latent image on the photosensitive member; a developing portion configured to develop the latent image into a toner image with toner; and a transfer portion configured to transfer the toner image from the photosensitive member onto a recording material. The image forming apparatus changes a surface movement speed of the photosensitive member at timing prior to predetermined timing, when a moving speed of a recording material at the transfer portion changes, by a predetermined time.

IMAGE FORMING SYSTEM AND IMAGE FORMING METHOD
20170308014 · 2017-10-26 · ·

An image forming system for transferring foil onto an image to be foil-pressed formed by a toner to perform foil pressing print includes: an image forming unit that forms a normal image or the image to be foil-pressed on a recording material; an operation reception unit that receives an operation of selecting a foil pressing mode of causing the image forming unit to form the image to be foil-pressed or a normal mode for causing the image forming unit to form the normal image; an image data analysis unit that analyses the image data and acquiring the amount of each toner; and a determination unit that determines whether to interrupt the image forming operation. When the amount of toner not used for the image to be foil-pressed is a predetermined first threshold or more, the determination unit determines to interrupt the image forming operation.

POWDER DETECTION DEVICE AND TONER REPLENISHMENT DEVICE
20170308020 · 2017-10-26 ·

A toner detection device includes sensor cases, optical sensors, a cleaning member, a motor, and a control unit. The sensor cases include detection surfaces and are placed on wall surfaces of a hopper container. The optical sensors are housed in the sensor cases and detect presence or absence of toner at a specified elevation through the detection surfaces. The cleaning member slides and rubs on the detection surfaces. The motor moves the cleaning member. In case where the cleaning member is to be stopped, the control unit controls the motor so as to stop the cleaning member in a region in which the cleaning member does not come into contact with the detection surfaces.

IMAGE FORMING SYSTEM AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

An image forming system includes an image forming apparatus, an image reading apparatus, a connecting conveyance path that branches from a second main conveyance path of the image reading apparatus and joins a first sub conveyance path of the image forming apparatus, and configured to convey an original from the image reading apparatus to the image forming apparatus. The system controls conveyance of the original so that a first side becomes a side that faces an image forming unit if the first side of the original is designated as the image formation side or so that a second side becomes the side that faces the image forming unit if the second side of the original iFs designated as the image formation side.

IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

An image forming apparatus including an image forming unit, first and second discharging portions, first and second supporting portions, an image reading portion, and first and second switching portions is provided. The first switching portion switches between causing a sheet bearing an image formed by the image forming unit to be discharged to the first supporting portion by the first discharging portion and causing the sheet to be conveyed toward the image reading portion that reads the image. The second switching portion switches between causing the sheet whose image has been read to be conveyed toward the second discharging portion that discharges the sheet whose image has been read to the second supporting portion and causing the sheet to be conveyed toward the image forming unit. The image reading portion is disposed above the first discharging portion and further on the inside of the apparatus than the second switching portion.