Abstract: A fixing device for thermally fixing a developer image transferred onto a recording sheet, includes: a flexible fusing member which is flexibly deformable; a heating element; a nip member disposed in such a manner as to contact with a surface of the flexible fusing member and to allow the flexible fusing member to slide along the nip member; a reflecting plate configured to reflect radiant heat from the heating element in a direction toward the nip member; a backup member configured to nip the flexible fusing member with the nip member to thereby form a nip portion for the recording sheet between the flexible fusing member and the backup member; and a stay configured to support both end portions of the nip member. The reflecting plate has at least one flange portion, and the flange portion is held and supported between the nip member and the stay.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, a transfer unit, and a control unit. The image carrier has a surface to bear a toner image thereon. The transfer unit has a transfer member to transfer the toner image onto a recording sheet conveyed in a conveyance direction for trailing-end borderless image formation and duplex image formation. The transfer unit is configured to form the toner image on the recording sheet without forming a margin at a trailing end of the recording sheet in the conveyance sheet in the trailing-end borderless image formation. The transfer unit is configured to form the toner image on front and back faces of the recording sheet in the duplex image formation. When a width of the toner image formed in a borderless image area of the recording sheet in the trailing-end borderless image formation is smaller in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction than a threshold value, the control unit permits the duplex image formation.

Abstract: A fixing roller that may include: a rotary shaft; an elastic layer that is provided at the circumference of the rotary shaft, and a surface layer that covers the circumference of the elastic layer and includes creases, wherein the creases are provided at both axial end portions of the surface layer, and a portion of the surface layer between the axial end portions thereof is smoother than the axial end portions.

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a toner-conveying roller that has high toner-conveying property and in which a roller-shape thereof is less likely to be transferred to the image, a mold capable of manufacturing said roller, and a method of manufacturing said mold. The toner-conveying roller according to the present invention has a shaft body and a urethane foam layer formed around the shaft body, and recesses and protrusions are irregularly formed on a circumference surface of the urethane foam layer. The mold for manufacturing the roller according to the present invention has recesses and protrusions irregularly formed on the inner surface of a mold for manufacturing the roller.

Abstract: A developing device includes a case, an agitating member, a moving mechanism and a detecting device. The case contains a developer inside. The agitating member is rotated in the case to agitate the developer while conveying the developer in a rotation axis direction. The moving mechanism reciprocates the agitating member in the rotation axis direction in accordance with the rotation of the agitating member. The detecting device detects a developer amount contained in the case.

Abstract: In an image forming apparatus, a first abnormality detection portion detects an abnormality in a fixing portion based on a change rate of a temperature detected by a temperature detecting portion and a first reference change rate that is set in advance. A first temperature control portion performs a temperature control of a heat source by a first feedback control method based on the temperature detected by the temperature detecting portion. A second temperature control portion performs a temperature control of the heat source by a second feedback control method based on the temperature detected by the temperature detecting portion, the second feedback control method being smaller in temperature change rate than the first feedback control method. A detection prohibiting portion prohibits the abnormality detection by the first abnormality detection portion during the temperature control performed by the second temperature control portion.

Abstract: A developing device includes a housing, a development roller, and a roller gear. The roller gear is disposed at one axial end of the development roller and transmits a rotational drive force to the development roller. The development roller includes a sleeve and a coating layer. The coating layer is formed by dipping the sleeve in a dipping bath with the sleeve directed axially vertically. The development roller is mounted to the housing such that a lower axial end of the development roller at the time of the dipping is an opposite axial end to the one axial end at which the roller gear is disposed.

Abstract: Provided is a fixing member including an annular base material, and an innermost layer that is formed on an inner circumferential surface of the annular base material, the innermost layer including heat-resistant fibers.

Abstract: A fixing device may include a first fixing member, and a second fixing member, and may be configured to heat-fix a developer image on a recording sheet at a fixing nip formed between the first fixing member and the second fixing member. The fixing device may further include a charge-removing member arranged upstream of the fixing nip in a conveyance direction of the recording sheet and in a vicinity of a conveyance path of the recording sheet conveyed towards the fixing nip, and including a main body part and an end edge positioned at an edge of the main body part, and an insulating member arranged between the conveyance path and at least the entire end edge of the charge-removing member.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a first photosensitive member and a second photosensitive member that form images having different colors, a transfer belt that transfers the images formed on the first photosensitive member and the second photosensitive member onto a recording sheet, a first motor that rotatingly drives the first photosensitive member and the transfer belt, and a second motor that rotatingly drives the second photosensitive member. After the startup process of the first and second motors has been completed, the rotation speed of the second motor is controlled while maintaining the rotation speed of the first motor unchanged so that the second rotation phase of the second photosensitive member rotatingly driven by the second motor is the same as the first rotation phase of the first photosensitive member rotatingly driven by the first motor.

Abstract: Provided a charging member including an electro-conductive substrate and a surface layer. The surface layer includes a binder resin, and a resin particle that roughens the surface layer. A surface of the charging member has a plurality of protrusions each derived from the resin particle. The resin particle has a pore inside thereof, has a porosity Vt of 1.5% by volume or more and 45.0% by volume or less, and has a first and second regions. The first region has a porosity V1, the second region thereof has a porosity V2, and V1 is larger than V2.

Abstract: The present teachings provide a fuser member. The fuser member includes a substrate layer. The substrate layer substrate layer includes a paraformaldehyde modified polyimide. An intermediate layer is disposed on the substrate layer. A release layer is disposed on the intermediate layer. A method of manufacturing the paraformaldehyde modified polyimide is disclosed.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a forming unit configured to form a detection patch on a recording material and a detecting unit configured to detect the detection patch on the recording material being conveyed at a first conveying speed. After the detecting unit detects the detection patch, the recording material with the detected detection patch is conveyed at a second conveying speed higher than the first conveying speed.

Abstract: In test modes correcting at least one of an exposure timing of a first exposure portion and an exposure timing of a second exposure portion after transferring test toner images on an endless belt, a control portion is configured to be able to start the exposure of the first exposure portion after a position of an intermediate transfer belt, having been located at a developing position when a developing bias is started to be applied to the second developing portion, arrives at a transfer position.

Abstract: An induction heating fusing device and method of an image forming apparatus including: a pressure roller; a heating element that forms a fusing nip together with the pressure roller and is rotatable; an inductor that is installed in a rotation axis direction on the outer circumference surface of the heating element, includes a main coil and a plurality of control coils located on the main coil, and inductively heats the heating element; and a controller that selectively drives at least one of the plurality of control coils depending on the width of a printing paper passing though the fusing nip, and controls the main coil and the plurality of control coils so that a current direction of the main coil and a current direction of the plurality of control coils become the same as or opposite to each other depending on the width of the printing paper.

Abstract: A charging device which includes a grid that has a curvature surface placed to face an outer circumferential surface of a photoconductive drum; a carrying member that carries the grid in a portion having a curvature to form the curvature surface of the grid; and position adjusting mechanisms that moves a position of the carrying member to adjust a position of the grid in a sub-scanning direction of the photoconductive drum, an imaging cartridge and an image forming apparatus having the same.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method for managing the triboelectric charge potential of a two-component xerographic developer over a wide range of variables. In particular, the present embodiments uses the addition of second and third carrier particles to a developer comprising toner particles and first carrier particles to adjust the tribo electric charge potential of the developer. Various parameters (system responses), including Vmag, laser power, relative humidity, toner and carrier age, and image scan data, are used to determine the requisite amounts of the second and third carrier to achieve a desired shift in tribo electric charge potential of the developer.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus, comprising: an attachment unit to which a load for image formation is attached; an applying circuit configured to apply an applying voltage to the load; a voltage detection circuit configured to detect the applying voltage; a current detection unit configured to detect a load current; and a control device, wherein the control device is configured to: subject the applying circuit to constant current control in accordance with a detected value of the current detection unit so that the load current becomes a target current; and switch to a constant voltage control by which the applying voltage is controlled to become a target voltage when an absolute value of the load current is smaller than a determination value and an absolute value of the applying voltage is larger than or equal to a threshold during execution of the constant current control.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a transfer device to transfer a toner image formed on an image bearing member onto a recording medium, a sheet separation device to separate the recording medium from the image bearing member, a sheet separation bias application device to apply to the sheet separation device a sheet separation bias in which an alternating current (AC) component is superimposed on a direct current (DC) component, and a transfer bias application device to selectively apply to the transfer device one of a DC transfer bias having a DC component and a superimposed transfer bias in which an AC component is superimposed on a DC component. Upon application of the superimposed transfer bias to the transfer device, the sheet separation bias applied to the sheet separation device is changed from the sheet separation bias applied upon application of the DC transfer bias to the transfer device.

Abstract: The image forming apparatus includes an image forming section that forms a patch image T on a recording material P, a fixing unit that fixes the patch image, a spectral color measurement device that irradiates light onto the patch image T that was fixed by the fixing unit, and measures reflected light from the patch image, a white reference plate disposed facing the spectral color measurement device; and a control unit that controls a density or a chromaticity of an image based on a result obtained by measuring the patch image and a result obtained by measuring the white reference plate by means of the spectral color measurement device. It is thereby possible to improve the color measurement accuracy of a color measurement device.