Patent 7574162 was granted and assigned to RICOH COMPANY,LTD. on August, 2009 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A toner container includes a container member with a spiral member therein that contains toner and conveys the toner toward an opening in conjunction with a rotation of the spiral member. A toner supply device includes a conveyor tube through which the toner discharged from the toner container is conveyed with gas, and a screw pump that sends gas into and evacuates gas from the conveyor tube.