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US 12,498,648 B2Granted
Image forming apparatus
AssigneeKYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.
InventorsMasataka Okada, Masaki Kadota, Yuji Kamiyama
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, a charging unit, an exposure unit, a developing unit, a transfer unit, a cleaning blade, and a controller. The controller detects printing-coverage rates on a basis of plural areas divided in the longitudinal direction of the image carrier. Upon occurrence of a difference exceeding a specified threshold value among the coverage rates of the plural areas, the controller executes, for a duration of specified aging time, aging process in which the image carrier is driven into rotation in its charged state.
Claims10
An image forming apparatus comprising:
- an image carrier which has a photosensitive layer on its surface and which is driven into rotation;
- a charging unit for electrically charging the surface of the image carrier;
- an exposure unit for exposing to light the surface of the image carrier electrically charged by the charging unit to form an electrostatic latent image;
- a developing unit for developing the electrostatic latent image into a toner image;
- a transfer unit for transferring the toner image to a recording medium;
- a cleaning blade for scraping away toner remaining on the image carrier;
- and
- a controller, wherein
- the controller detects coverage rates on a basis of plural areas divided in a longitudinal direction of the image carrier, derives area-basis average coverage rates resulting from averaging the area-basis coverage rates, and if a difference between maximum and minimum values of the area-basis average coverage rates has exceeded a specified threshold value, the controller executes, for a duration of specified aging time, aging process in which the image carrier is driven into rotation in its charged state, and
- the controller decides whether or not to perform the aging process based solely on the difference and the threshold value.
7 more elements
An image forming apparatus comprising:
- an image carrier which has a photosensitive layer on its surface and which is driven into rotation;
- a charging unit for electrically charging the surface of the image carrier;
- an exposure unit for exposing to light the surface of the image carrier electrically charged by the charging unit to form an electrostatic latent image;
- a developing unit for developing the electrostatic latent image into a toner image;
- a transfer unit for transferring the toner image to a recording medium;
- a cleaning blade for scraping away toner remaining on the image carrier;
- and
- a controller, wherein
- the controller detects coverage rates on a basis of plural areas divided in a longitudinal direction of the image carrier, derives area-basis average coverage rates resulting from averaging the area-basis coverage rates, and if a maximum value of a ratio of the area-basis average coverage rates has exceeded a specified threshold value, the controller executes, for a duration of specified aging time, aging process in which the image carrier is driven into rotation in its charged state, and
- the controller decides whether or not to perform the aging process based solely on the ratio and the threshold value.
7 more elements
An image forming apparatus comprising:
- an image carrier which has a photosensitive layer on its surface and which is driven into rotation;
- a charging unit for electrically charging the surface of the image carrier;
- an exposure unit for exposing to light the surface of the image carrier electrically charged by the charging unit to form an electrostatic latent image;
- a developing unit for developing the electrostatic latent image into a toner image;
- a transfer unit for transferring the toner image to a recording medium;
- a cleaning blade for scraping away toner remaining on the image carrier;
- and
- a controller, wherein
- if a difference between maximum and minimum values of printed-character total numbers on a basis of plural areas divided in a longitudinal direction of the image carrier has exceeded a specified threshold value, the controller executes, for a duration of specified aging time, aging process in which the image carrier is driven into rotation in its charged state, and
- the controller decides whether or not to perform the aging process based solely on the difference and the threshold value.
7 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.