- Patent Title: Image forming apparatus including developing devices, developing containers, and changeable conveyance paths between the developing devices and the developing containers
-
Application No.: US15976057Application Date: 2018-05-10
-
Publication No.: US10409196B2Publication Date: 2019-09-10
- Inventor: Toshio Koike , Jun Shiori , Teppei Kikuchi , Michiharu Suzuki , Kazuhiro Aso , Keinosuke Kondoh , Tadashi Ogawa , Hideo Yoshizawa
- Applicant: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
- Applicant Address: JP Tokyo
- Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
- Current Assignee: RICOH COMPANY, LTD.
- Current Assignee Address: JP Tokyo
- Agency: Xsensus LLP
- Priority: JP2017-101228 20170522
- Main IPC: G03G15/01
- IPC: G03G15/01 ; G03G15/08 ; G03G15/00

Abstract:
An image forming apparatus includes an intermediate transferor to rotate in a predetermined rotation direction, a plurality of image bearers disposed along the intermediate transferor to bear latent images, a plurality of developing devices to develop the latent images, a plurality of developer containers to contain developers, and a plurality of conveyance paths each corresponding to a respective one of the plurality of developing devices and a respective one of the plurality of developer containers to supply the developers to the plurality of developing devices respectively. An arrangement of the plurality of developing devices in the predetermined rotation direction is configured to be changed without changing an arrangement of the plurality of developer containers. A layout of the plurality of conveyance paths is configured to be changed without changing connections between a supply source and a supply destination of the plurality of conveyance paths.
Public/Granted literature
- US20180335721A1 IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS Public/Granted day:2018-11-22
Information query