A binary ink developer assembly includes a plurality of rollers, gears, and end caps. The rollers are in contact with each other to form a nip. Each roller includes a plurality of bearings. The gears include gear teeth. A respective gear has an involute tooth profile and applies a gear force at a pressure angle corresponding to the involute tooth profile to rotate at least one roller. The end caps are coupled to the bearings. At least one slot arranged to form a slot angle substantially equal to the pressure angle and to receive a respective bearing to support a respective roller.

A cartridge includes a rotatable member, a rotatable rotational force receiving member, a preventing member including an accommodating portion, a rotatable coupling member including a free end portion which includes a rotational force receiving portion and including a connecting portion connected with the preventing portion to be partly accommodated in the accommodating portion so that a rotational axis of the coupling member permits tilting thereof relative to a rotational axis of the rotational force receiving member, a shaft portion. The preventing member includes a supporting portion for supporting ends of the shaft portion so as to prevent the shaft portion from moving in a rotational direction of the rotatable member to transmit the rotational force received from the shaft portion via the supporting portion to the rotational force receiving member.

A drive transmission apparatus includes an engage member that is rotatable in a radially displaced state with respect to a shaft member and an engaged member that is rotatable centering on an axis parallel with the shaft member. The engage member and the engaged member are engaged with and disengaged from each other by relatively moving along an axial direction. The drive transmission apparatus further includes a moving portion which can move the engage member in a direction in which a rotational axis of the engage member approaches an axis of the shaft member in a disengaged condition in which the engage member is disengaged from the engaged member. The moving portion thus regulates offset amount of the engage member in the disengaged condition, so that the engage member and the engaged member reliably engage with each other.

A developer cartridge is provided, which includes a toner cartridge, a developer stifling device located in the toner cartridge, a supply roller for supplying a developer to a developer roller, a developer roller for developing an electrostatic latent image on a photoconductor, and a power receptor for driving only one of gear sets of the above means to receive a power. The power receptor is rotatably fixed at two or more predetermined positions. An initial position of the power receptor is a power receiving position. A power receptor moving device includes a press block, a baffle block, a spring, and a torsion spring. The power receptor moving device is controlled by the press block. When the press block of the power receptor moving device is pressed downwards, the power receptor is rotated to another power receiving position due to the action of the torsion spring. The present invention is applicable to various types of machines.

A control member 76 for controlling transmission and blocking of a rotational force by a clutch is rotatably supported by a supporting member which supports a developing frame. a locking portion provided on the control member 76 rotates between a position retracted from a locked portion of the clutch and a position for engaging with the locked portion.

A driving mechanism includes a first gear mechanism, a motion conversion mechanism, an actuator, and a mechanical clutch. The mechanical clutch includes an input gear that includes a plurality of engaging portions engageable with a displaced portion on a first position. The mechanical clutch switches to a connected state and a non-connected state corresponding to whether or not the engaging portions each engage with the displaced portion of the actuator. The connected state is a state where the rotational power of the first gear mechanism is transmitted to the motion conversion mechanism. The non-connected state is a state where the rotational power of the first gear mechanism is not transmitted to the motion conversion mechanism. The plurality of engaging portions are formed on a plurality of positions within a range of a default center angle less than 180 degrees in a circumferential direction of the input gear.

A developer cartridge includes a developer container, a casing, a sealing member, and a drive input. The developer container is configured to sealingly contain developer therein. The developer container has an outlet through which the developer flows out of the developer container. The casing is configured to accommodate the developer container therein. The casing supports the developer container to allow the developer container to rotate about an axis thereof in a rotating direction. The sealing member is configured to seal the outlet. The drive input is configured to transmit rotational driving force to the developer container. The sealing member is fixed to the casing.

A developing cartridge includes: a casing; a developer container; a developing roller; an unsealing mechanism; a first rotary body; a second rotary body; and a delayed transmission mechanism. The developer container is sealed to accommodate developer. The unsealing mechanism unseals the developer container. The first rotary body is provided at the unsealing mechanism. A drive force from a drive source is transmitted to the first rotary body and the second rotary body. The second rotary body transmits the drive force to the developing roller. The delayed transmission mechanism delays transmission of the drive force to the second rotary body for at least a prescribed time after transmission of the drive force to the first rotary body is initiated. The prescribed time is equivalent to a time that elapses from a moment the unsealing mechanism begins rotating to a moment the unsealing mechanism has unsealed the developer container.

A control portion has a conversion portion that converts image data to be used for forming a recorded image by using either a first conversion condition which has been set such as to obtain a first gradation characteristic in the image to be formed on the recording material when a first image forming operation is executed or a second conversion condition which has been set such as to obtain a second gradation characteristic, which is different from the first gradation characteristic, in the image when a second image forming operation is executed, a peripheral velocity ratio between an image bearing member and a developer bearing member being larger during the second image forming operation than during the first image forming operation, and enables the first image forming operation or the second image forming operation to be performed on the basis of converted image data.

A developer cartridge may include a gear configured to be movable between an enagement position in which the gear engages an auger or supply gear to provide toner from a toner container to a developing unit and a disengaged position in which the gear does not engage the auger or supply gear. The gear may be moved by a cam and/or cam gear from the engagement position to the disengaged position and vice versa. The cam gear may include toothless and toothed portions to allow the developer cartridge to maintain the movable gear in either the engagement position or the disengaged position. In some arrangements, an urging member such as a spring may bias the cam gear in a rotation direction, while a lever may provide a counteracting force when the movable gear is to be maintained in a particular position.