Abstract: A fixing device includes a cylindrical film, a planar heater, a heat conduction member, a supporting member, a limiting member for limiting heater end portions with respect to a generatrix direction of the film so as to prevent the end portions from moving in a heater thickness direction relative to the supporting member, and a pressing member. A fixing device state is switchable between a first state in which a press-contact force in the nip is enough to fix the toner image and a second state in which the press-contact force in the nip is smaller than the press-contact force in the first state. A surface where the supporting member opposes the heat conduction member has a shape such that with respect to the generatrix direction, a central portion of the film is projected toward the pressing member to a greater extent than an end portion of the film.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus capable of changing a state of power supply to respective parts of the apparatus with less user operation. When a sleep recovery button is depressed in a power saving mode, a button depression time is measured, and whether a length of the measure depression time exceeds a threshold value is determined. If the depression time exceeds the threshold value, a normal power mode is selected as power mode after transition. If the depression time does not exceed the threshold value, another power saving mode is selected as power mode after transition. According to the selected power mode, a state of power supply to respective parts of the apparatus is changed.

Abstract: An image pickup apparatus including a photoelectric conversion element, first, a shutter speed for still-image pickup is set. Next, an image-pickup frame rate is set on the basis of the shutter speed for still-image pickup. Then, an operation of the photoelectric conversion element is controlled such that picked-up images are output at the set image-pickup frame rate. When the image-pickup frame rate that is set is higher than a moving-image-reproducing frame rate, a frame for use in a moving-image reproduction is generated from a plurality of frames of the picked-up images and reproduction is performed at the moving-image-reproduction frame rate.

Abstract: An image fixing apparatus includes a first conveying path on which a sheet is conveyed, a first fixing unit that fixes a toner image on a sheet conveyed on the first conveying path, a second conveying path on which a sheet is conveyed, wherein the second conveying path branches from the first conveying path in a bifurcation provided on a upstream of the first fixing unit and joins into the first conveying path in a confluence provided on a downstream of the first fixing unit, and a second fixing unit provided on a upstream of the bifurcation or on a downstream of the confluence or on the second conveying path. Time to convey a sheet from the bifurcation to the confluence through the first conveying path and time to convey a sheet from the bifurcation to the confluence through the bypass conveying path are nearly equal.

Abstract: This invention aims at preventing a peeling phenomenon occurring on the surface of a foamed product. In order to achieve this object, an injection-molded product formed in accordance with injection molding by mixing a foaming agent in a molding resin material, is formed by molding using a mold having a heat insulating material on a surface of its cavity forward in a moving direction of a portion where the molding resin material molten and injected for forming the molded product has an injection speed of at least 1.5 m/sec to 2,000 m/sec in the cavity of the mold.