US 2015/0309450 A1Published application

Image forming apparatus

AssigneeKYOCERA Document Solutions Inc.

InventorsYosuke SAITO, Nobuyuki HAYASHI, Takahiko MURATA

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Abstract

An image forming apparatus includes image forming units, static eliminating sections, a mode switching section, and an exposure switching section. The static eliminating sections outputs first and second light. The mode switching section switches a state a between a first mode in which all of the image forming units are operated and a second mode in which only a first image forming unit is operated. In a second image forming unit located upstream next to the first image forming unit, the exposure switching section causes the image bearing member of the second image forming unit not to be irradiated with the first light and causes the image bearing member of the first image forming unit to be irradiated with the second light in the second mode.

Claims16

Dependent claims

An image forming apparatus including an endless intermediate transfer belt that circulates and a plurality of image forming units arranged along the intermediate transfer belt, the image forming units each including an image bearing member, a development section that develops an electrostatic latent image on a surface of the image bearing member, a primary transfer section that transfers an image to the intermediate transfer belt, and a cleaning section that cleans the surface of the image bearing member, image forming units forming respective images in different colors on a surface of the intermediate transfer belt in a superimposed manner, the image forming apparatus comprising:

a plurality of static eliminating sections each provided in a corresponding one of the image forming units and each configured to output first static eliminating light and second static eliminating light from between the primary transfer section and the cleaning section, the first static eliminating light traveling upstream in terms of a circulation direction of the intermediate transfer belt, the second static eliminating light traveling downstream in terms of the circulation direction of the intermediate transfer belt;
a mode switching section that selectively switches a state of the image forming units among a plurality of modes including a first mode and a second mode, the first mode being a state in which all of the image forming units are operated, the second mode being a state in which only a portion of the image forming units is operated, the portion of the image forming units being at least one first image forming unit located on a downstream side in terms of the circulation direction of the intermediate transfer belt among the image forming units;
and
a static elimination exposure switching section that in a second image forming unit located upstream next to the first image forming unit in terms of the circulation direction of the intermediate transfer belt among the image forming units,
causes the image bearing member of the second image forming unit to be irradiated with the first static eliminating light and causes the image bearing member of the first image forming unit to be irradiated with the second static eliminating light while the first mode is selected, and
causes the image bearing member of the second image forming unit not to be irradiated with the first static eliminating light and causes the image bearing member of the first image forming unit to be irradiated with the second static eliminating light while the second mode is selected.

3 more elements

An image forming apparatus including an endless intermediate transfer belt that circulates and a plurality of image forming units arranged along the intermediate transfer belt, the image forming units each including an image bearing member, a development section that develops an electrostatic latent image on a surface of the image bearing member, a primary transfer section that transfers an image to the intermediate transfer belt, and a cleaning section that cleans the surface of the image bearing member, the image forming units forming respective images in different colors on a surface of the intermediate transfer belt in a superimposed manner, the image forming apparatus comprising:

a plurality of static eliminating sections each provided in a corresponding one of the image forming units and each configured to output first static eliminating light and second static eliminating light from between the primary transfer section and the cleaning section, the first static eliminating light traveling upstream in terms of a circulation direction of the intermediate transfer belt, the second static eliminating light traveling downstream in terms of the circulation direction of the intermediate transfer belt;
and
a reflector configured to reflect the second static eliminating light in a furthest downstream image forming unit upstream in terms of the circulation direction of the intermediate transfer belt, the furthest downstream image forming unit being an image forming unit located the furthest downstream in terms of the circulation direction of the intermediate transfer belt among the image forming units.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/693,172Filed 22 Apr 2015
Priority: JP 2014-08881823 Apr 2014
Published: 29 Oct 2015
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification4 codes

G03G 15/0136
For transferring a pattern to a second base: transfer member separable from recording member or vice versa, mode switching
G03G 15/0189
Using more than one reusable electrographic recording member, e.g. one for every monocolour image: primary transfer to an intermediate transfer belt
G03G 21/08
Eliminating residual charges from a reusable imaging member: using optical radiation
G03G
Electrography