Abstract: A developer container includes a developer accommodating body, a discharge body including a developer discharge opening, and a rotatable member including a plurality of rotation portions arranged in a rotational direction of the rotatable member with a space therebetween. In addition, a storing portion stores a predetermined amount of the developer to be discharged and forms a communication path for fluid-communication between an inside of the discharge body and the discharge opening. A coil spring is provided in the communication path and contractable and expandable in a direction of the communication path, with the coil spring capable of being urged by the rotation portions while the rotatable member rotates.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a first toner image forming unit, a second toner image forming unit, and a transfer section. The first toner image forming unit forms a first toner image with use of a first toner. The first toner includes a binder resin. The binder resin has a weight-average molecular weight that falls within a range of from 12297 to 14019, both inclusive. The second toner image forming unit forms a second toner image with use of a second toner. The transfer section transfers the first toner image onto a print medium, and transfers the second toner image onto the print medium in a region that overlaps a portion or all of a region where the first toner image has been transferred. The print medium includes a polymer compound.

Abstract: An image forming device of an intermediate transfer method of transferring a toner image formed on an image carrier to a sheet of paper through an intermediate transfer body, the image forming device including a transfer roller which is disposed facing the image carrier across the intermediate transfer body, and which forms a nip part with the image carrier; a movement mechanism which moves the transfer roller in a direction along a movement direction of the intermediate transfer body; a pressure varying mechanism which changes a pressing force of the transfer roller on the intermediate transfer body; and a hardware processor which controls the movement mechanism and the pressure varying mechanism, and which sets a contact position and the pressing force of the transfer roller on the intermediate transfer body based on paper information of the sheet of paper as an image formation target.

Abstract: There is provided a process for heat transfer printing, comprising: electrostatically printing a transparent release composition onto a transfer material (1) to form a release layer (2) disposed on the transfer material; (1) electrostatically printing an electrostatic ink composition to form an image layer (3) disposed on the release layer (2); applying a heat-activatable adhesive composition to the image layer to form a heat-activatable adhesive layer (4); contacting the heat-activatable adhesive layer (4) with a target substrate (5) under conditions such that the heat-activatable adhesive layer (4) is activated to adhere to the target substrate and the release layer (2) is softened; and separating the target substrate (5) and the transfer material (1) such that the heat-activatable layer (4), image layer (3) and release layer (2) are transferred to the target substrate.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image forming unit configured to form an image on a continuous transfer medium on the basis of image data of a job; and a controller configured to manage the job and control the image forming unit, wherein the controller has a function of adjusting an image print position on the continuous transfer medium when a job medium width size specified in the job is different from a fed medium width size used in printing.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus which includes a plurality of parts including a rotating unit and which uses the plurality of parts to form an image on a sheet is shown. The apparatus includes the following, a sheet conveyor, an image former, and an image reader. A hardware processor controls a conveying interval of the sheet by the sheet conveyor, controls the image former to form an image on the sheet and to output the sheet, detects a defect from the read image data, and diagnoses a failed part in which the defect is detected periodically based on information of the detected defect and a cycle of the part. When the failed part is diagnosed, the hardware processor controls the image former to form an image for failure diagnosis and sets a conveying interval of the sheet by the sheet conveyor larger than the conveying interval in normal image forming.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a printing part including: an image carrier on a surface of which an electrostatic latent image is to be formed; a developing device that develops the electrostatic latent image to generate a toner image; a transfer device that transfers the toner image to a paper sheet; a fixing device that fixes the toner image; and a cleaner that removes toner remaining on the image carrier; a selection part that allows a user to select one of a plurality of automatic detection modes; a paper conveying part including: a paper feeder that supplies the paper sheet; a conveying roller that conveys the paper sheet; and a timing roller that supplies the paper sheet to a transfer position; a detector that detects a characteristic of the paper sheet; and a hardware processor that detects a paper type category, and controls the printing part under image forming conditions.

Abstract: A moving device, which is included in an image forming apparatus, includes a cam, a moving body, a biasing body, a drive source and a drive transmission device. The moving body is configured to be moved by the cam. The biasing body is configured to apply a biasing force to bias the moving body toward the cam. The drive source is configured to apply a driving force to the cam. The drive transmission device is configured to transmit the driving force to the cam and includes a load applying body configured to apply a load to a rotation of the cam.

Abstract: A magnet roller includes a magnet portion for generating magnetic force such that a plurality of peaks are formed in a magnetic force distribution. The magnet portion includes a plurality of magnetic poles. A cross section of the magnet portion includes a portion in which a distance from an axial center of the magnet portion to an outer edge of the magnet portion continuously changes in the circumferential direction. The magnetic force on a surface of a developing sleeve at a position corresponding to each of the plurality of magnetic poles is determined by (i) a distance from each of the plurality of magnetic poles to the developing sleeve in a radial direction of the developing sleeve and (ii) a magnitude of magnetic force in each of the plurality of magnetic poles. The distances from the plurality of magnetic poles to the developing sleeve in the radial direction are different.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a contact portion that comes into contact with a recording material transported; a heat source that heats the contact portion and has a counter surface and an opposite surface, the counter surface facing the contact portion; a high-thermal-conductivity portion provided on the opposite surface of the heat source and extending in a width direction intersecting a transport direction of the recording material, the high-thermal-conductivity portion having a higher thermal conductivity than the contact portion; a low-thermal-conductivity portion provided between the opposite surface of the heat source and the high-thermal-conductivity portion and having a lower thermal conductivity than the high-thermal-conductivity portion; and a temperature detector that detects a temperature of the heat source and is provided on the opposite surface of the heat source and at a position shifted from the high-thermal-conductivity portion and the low-thermal-conductivity portion in the transport direction.

Abstract: An intermediate transferor (22;501) for an image forming apparatus includes a base layer (11), an elastic layer (12) layered on the base layer (11), and fine particles (13) on the elastic layer (12) to form an uneven surface of the elastic layer (12). The fine particles (13) have a volume resistivity of 1×100 ?·cm to 1×106 ?cm.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a rotating unit, a heating unit configured to heat the rotating unit, and a pressure member configured to nip a recording material between the rotating unit and the pressure member and to convey the recording material. A control portion is configured to change the rotating unit from a rotating state to a halt state. A setting portion is configured to set a heating temperature of the heating unit in the rotating state according to information of a basis weight of the recording material. In addition, a determining portion is configured to determine whether or not a heating operation of the heating unit in the halt state is to be performed according to the information of the basis weight of the recording material.

Abstract: An image forming unit of an image forming apparatus includes a developing device and a toner replenishing unit that replenishes the developing device with toner. The toner replenishing unit includes an upper toner container, a lower toner container, a toner conveyance unit, and a replenishment control unit. The upper toner container and the lower toner container are disposed in a staggered manner in an apparatus body. When the upper toner container becomes empty, the replenishment control unit controls the toner replenishing unit so as to replenish the developing device with the toner from the lower toner container.

Abstract: A support for an electrophotographic photoreceptor includes a cylindrical cut pipe having a cut surface as the outer peripheral surface. The outer peripheral surface has an arithmetic average waviness Wa of 0.15 ?m or less in the axial direction and a peak count PPc of 100 or more and 990 or less in the axial direction.

Abstract: An intermediate transfer belt includes, on a surface in contact with a photosensitive drum and a cleaning blade, a plurality of grooves formed along a moving direction of the intermediate transfer belt in a width direction which intersects the moving direction of the intermediate transfer belt. Further, the intermediate transfer belt includes a plurality of first regions in which adjacent grooves in the width direction are arranged at a predetermined interval, and a second region which is positioned between the plurality of first regions and in which an interval between adjacent grooves in the width direction is different from the predetermined interval. The second region is arranged outside, in the width direction of the intermediate transfer belt, a range in which a patch toner is to be formed in concentration correction.

Abstract: The image forming apparatus includes: an openable/closable cover that is movable between a closed position in which the connection unit is covered and an open position in which the connection unit is exposed to the outside; and an interlocking mechanism that causes an on/off operation of a power switch and an opening/closing operation of the openable/closable cover to operate in conjunction with each other, wherein the interlocking mechanism moves the openable/closable cover from the open position to the closed position in conjunction with an off operation by which the power switch is switched from an on state to an off state, and the interlocking mechanism moves the openable/closable cover from the closed position to the open position in conjunction with an on operation by which the power switch is switched from the off state to the on state.

Abstract: A cleaning blade includes an edge portion made of an elastic material having a rebound resilience value R35 at 35° C. and a 100% modulus value M35 at 35° C. that satisfy the relation R35??4.8 M35+42.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a photosensitive drum, an exposure device, a supporting member and a main adjustment member. The photosensitive drum is provided for each of colors forming a color image. The exposure device is configured to emit a laser light on each of the photosensitive drums to form an electrostatic latent image. The supporting member is configured to support end portions of rotation shafts of all the photosensitive drums. The main adjustment member is configured to shift the supporting member in a vertical plane to adjust a skew of the laser light.

Abstract: In a warm-up period of a fixing apparatus of the present disclosure, a control unit supplies first electric power to a heater and thereafter supplies second electric power larger than the first electric power to the heater. The timing of starting to supply the second electric power is determined according to the degree of an increase in temperature sensed by a temperature sensing member after a driving signal is transmitted to a driving source.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus including: a photoreceptor drum; an intermediate transfer belt; a primary transferer; a secondary transferer, and a hardware processor which suppresses speed change of the intermediate transfer belt at a timing of the sheet entering the secondary transferer and at a timing of the sheet being ejected from the secondary transferer, wherein the hardware processor calculates speed changes of the intermediate transfer belt and the photoreceptor drum at the timing of the sheet entering the secondary transferer and at the timing of the sheet being ejected from the secondary transferer, and calculates a transmission rate between the intermediate transfer belt and the photoreceptor drum based on the calculated speed changes, and the hardware processor adjusts an operation amount of the driving roller based on the calculated transmission rate.