Image forming apparatus including a charging device that contacts a portion of an image carrier belt spanning a driving roller and method of use
AssigneeRicoh Company, Ltd.
InventorToshiya Satoh
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An image forming apparatus includes an endless image carrier belt configured to be spanned around a driving roller and a driven roller and moved by a friction force provided from an outer circumference surface of the driving roller when the driving roller is rotated, a charging device configured to contact an outer surface of the image carrier belt to charge the image carrier belt. The outer surface of the image carrier belt which the charging device contacts is a portion of the image carrier belt contacting the driving roller.
Claims12
An image forming apparatus comprising:
- an endless image carrier belt spanned around a driving roller and a driven roller such that the image carrier belt is moved by a friction force provided from an outer circumference surface of the driving roller when the driving roller is rotated;
- a charging device contacting an outer surface of the image carrier belt so as to charge the image carrier belt,
- wherein the outer surface of the image carrier belt which the charging device contacts is also a portion of the image carrier belt spanned around the driving roller;
- and
- an exposing device configured and adapted to expose the image carrier belt charged by the charging device, and to form an electrostatic latent image on the image carrier belt.
An image forming apparatus comprising:
- an image carrier belt;
- means for moving the image carrier belt and a driven roller by a friction force between the image carrier belt and the image carrier belt moving means;
- and
- charging means for charging the image carrier belt by contacting an outer surface of the image carrier belt,
- wherein the image carrier belt contacts the image carrier belt moving means such that the outer surface of the image carrier belt which the charging means contacts is also a portion of the image carrier belt contacting the image carrier belt moving means, and
- an exposing device configured and adapted to expose the image carrier belt charged by the charging means, and to form an electrostatic latent image on the image carrier belt.
An image forming method comprising the steps of:
- rotating a driving roller around which an image carrier belt is spanned so as to move the image carrier belt by a friction force between the image carrier belt and the driving roller so as to move a driven roller;
- and
- charging the image carrier belt with a charging device contacting an outer surface of the image carrier belt,
- wherein the outer surface of the image carrier belt which the charging device contacts is also a portion of the image carrier belt spanning the driving roller, and
- an exposing device configured and adapted to expose the image carrier belt charged by the charging device, and to form an electrostatic latent image on the image carrier belt.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.