Patent classifications
G03G21/1875
CARTRIDGE INCLUDING HOLDER FOR HOLDING ELECTRICAL CONTACT SURFACE AND METHOD OF RECYCLING CARTRIDGE
A cartridge includes: a housing; a storage medium; and a holder. The storage medium has an electrical contact surface. The holder is movable relative to the housing. The holder includes: a first holder member; and a second holder member. The first holder member has a pawl portion and is configured to hold the electrical contact surface. The second holder member includes a corner portion. The pawl portion is engageable with the corner portion. The second holder member has a through-hole. An engagement part of the pawl portion engaging with the corner portion is accessible from outside the second holder member through the through-hole in a state where the pawl portion engages with the corner portion.
Image forming apparatus capable of detecting attachment state of toner container
An image forming apparatus includes a motor, a container detection sensor, and a controller. When a toner container is attached, the motor generates a driving force for rotating a toner conveying member in the toner container. The container detection sensor is arranged at a position where the container detection sensor comes into contact with an outer periphery of a cam connected to the toner conveying member when the toner container is attached. The controller distinguishes between at least three attachment states of the toner container based on a sensor signal of the container detection sensor.
Image forming apparatus transmitting request to cancel agreement for another image forming apparatus
In an image forming apparatus, a consumable is mounted in the main casing. The consumable includes a consumable memory. A controller performs a consumable determination process to determine based on type information stored in a consumable memory whether the consumable mounted in the main casing is a special consumable. The controller performs a transmission process in a case where the consumable determination process determines that the consumable mounted in the main casing is the special consumable. The transmission process transmits via the communication interface a request to an external device which communicates with the image forming apparatus. The request is to cancel an agreement which is concluded for another image forming apparatus as a contract subject. The another image forming apparatus is different from the image forming apparatus.
Image forming apparatus
An image forming apparatus that has an image bearing member to be removably mounted to the image forming apparatus includes an intermediate transfer member, a toner detection unit, an exposure device, a forming unit, and a judgment unit. The judgment unit judges a mounting state of the image bearing member based on whether the toner detection unit detects a toner image transferred on a surface of the intermediate transfer member. When the image bearing member is mounted, first and second patterns of toner images are formed apart by a predetermined interval in a rotation direction of the intermediate transfer member. Where the toner detection unit detects the first and second patterns of toner images, the judgment unit judges that the image bearing member is mounted. Where one of the first and second patterns is not detected, the judgment unit judges that the image bearing member is not mounted.
Chip dismounting and mounting device
A chip dismounting and mounting device, matched with a chip mounting part on a process cartridge. The chip dismounting and mounting device is capable of dismounting a chip disposed on the chip mounting part or mounting the chip on the chip mounting part. The chip dismounting and mounting device can smoothly dismount the chip on an exhausted process cartridge without damage and smoothly mount the dismounted chip on a new process cartridge. This alleviates the inconvenience for the user to dismount a chip on the exhausted process cartridge and mount the chip on the new process cartridge.
Developing cartridge
The developing cartridge herein has a housing, a developing roller rotatably supported by it, the developing roller rotating about an axis in a direction, a supply roller rotatably supported by the housing and configured to convey a developer to the developing roller, the supply roller having a supply roller shaft, a driving gear on a driving side of the housing in the direction, and an electrode electrically connected to the developing roller shaft. The electrode has first and second parts, and an intermediate part connecting them. The first part is on an opposite side of the driving side of the housing, the second part is on the driving side, and the opposite side of the driving side and the driving side are opposite ends of the housing in the direction, and the second part is simultaneously in contact with the supply roller shaft and the developing roller shaft.
Process cartridge and image forming apparatus
A process cartridge mountable in and dismountable from an image forming apparatus includes a frame, a storing portion provided on a mounting surface of the frame and configured to store information on the process cartridge, a projection projecting outwardly of the mounting surface in a direction normal to the mounting surface, and an electrical contact portion mounted on the projection and electrically connected to the storing portion.
Image forming apparatus to which cartridge is attachable and including controller capable of determining whether cartridge is attached to image forming apparatus
An image forming apparatus includes a controller, a main body frame, a cartridge and a display. The cartridge includes a memory, a cartridge data terminal and a cartridge detection terminal. The controller includes a main body data terminal and a main body detection terminal. The main body data terminal is electrically connected to the cartridge data terminal. The main body detection terminal is electrically connected to the cartridge detection terminal in the case where the cartridge is attached to the main body frame. The controller is configured to perform determining whether the main body detection terminal and the cartridge detection terminal are electrically connected with each other. The controller is configured to perform displaying a determination result of the determining whether the main body detection terminal and the cartridge detection terminal are electrically connected with each other on the display.
Cartridge including holder for holding electrical contact surface and method of recycling cartridge
A cartridge includes: a housing; a storage medium; and a holder. The storage medium has an electrical contact surface. The holder is movable relative to the housing. The holder includes: a first holder member; and a second holder member. The first holder member has a pawl portion and is configured to hold the electrical contact surface. The second holder member includes a corner portion. The pawl portion is engageable with the corner portion. The second holder member has a through-hole. An engagement part of the pawl portion engaging with the corner portion is accessible from outside the second holder member through the through-hole in a state where the pawl portion engages with the corner portion.
Decoupling between consumable and image forming apparatus
An example image forming apparatus includes a coupling device to perform coupling or decoupling between the image forming apparatus and a consumable, a sensor to sense an opening of a cover of the image forming apparatus, and a processor. When receiving an opening sensing signal of the cover from the sensor, the processor determines whether the consumable coupled to the image forming apparatus corresponds to a consumable access condition, and based on a result of determination, transmits a signal requesting decoupling of the consumable corresponding to the consumable access condition to the coupling device.