Image forming apparatus and image forming method
AssigneeToshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorKei Kobashigawa
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A CPU computes a saturation moisture content on the basis of a temperature and a relative humidity detected by environment detection means, and multiplies the saturation moisture content by a square of the relative humidity, thus obtaining an environment parameter value. The CPU sets a proper development contrast potential using the environment parameter value according to a correlative approximation expression with pre-calculated development contrast potentials.
Claims11
An image forming apparatus which includes image forming means for forming a latent image on a photoconductor using a developer of a single color or a plurality of colors, thus forming an image, the apparatus comprising:
- an environment detection section that detects an environment of the developer including a temperature and a relative humidity, the environment detection section being provided near a developing section that supplies the developer of the single color or the plurality of colors;
- a computing section that computes an environment parameter value on the basis of an environment condition detected by the environment detection section;
- a determination section that determines a development contrast potential for each of the colors of the developer, using the environment parameter value computed by the computing section;
- and
- a control section that controls the image forming means so as to obtain the development contrast potential determined by the determination section.
An image forming apparatus which includes image forming means for forming a latent image on a photoconductor using a developer of a single color or a plurality of colors, thus forming an image, the apparatus comprising:
- a temperature detection section that detects a temperature, the temperature detection section being provided near a developing section that supplies the developer of the single color or the plurality of colors;
- a first computing section that computes a saturation moisture content from the temperature detected by the temperature detection section;
- a relative humidity detection section that detects a relative humidity, the relative humidity detection section being provided near the developing section that supplies the developer of the single color or the plurality of colors;
- a second computing section that computes an environment parameter value from the relative humidity detected by the relative humidity detection section and the saturation moisture content computed by the first computing section;
- a determination section that determines a development contrast potential for each of the colors of the developer, on the basis of the environment parameter value computed by the second computing section;
- and
- a control section that controls the image forming means so as to obtain the development contrast potential determined by the determination section.
An image forming method with use of image forming means for forming a latent image on a photo-conductor using a developer of a single color or a plurality of colors, thus forming an image, the method comprising:
- detecting a temperature near a developing section that supplies the developer of the single color or the plurality of colors;
- computing a saturation moisture content from the detected temperature;
- detecting a relative humidity near the developing section that supplies the developer of the single color or the plurality of colors;
- computing an environment parameter value from the detected relative humidity and the computed saturation moisture content;
- determining a development contrast potential on the basis of the computed environment parameter value;
- and
- controlling the image forming means so as to obtain the determined development contrast potential.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.