Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing member, a pressing member, heat generators, temperature detectors, a power source, and a heat controller. The heat generators include a first heat generator and second heat generators corresponding to an imaged area and a blank area, respectively, of a recording medium. The heat controller controls a power source according to data provided by the temperature detectors, such that a heating area of the fixing member heated by one of the second heat generators located adjacent to the first heat generator acquires a temperature of T1??T, where T1 is a temperature corresponding to the imaged area higher than a temperature T2 corresponding to the blank area, and ?T is a temperature lower than a difference between T1 and T2. The heat controller changes ?T between when a first side thereof is printed upon duplex printing and upon single-sided printing.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image bearer, a charger, an exposure device, a developing device, an image density sensor, and a controller. The controller is configured to charge the image bearer, expose the image bearer with a first exposure that saturates potential of the image bearer after exposure to form a latent image pattern on the image bearer, develop the latent image pattern into a toner pattern while changing a developing electrical field, detect a first image density of the toner pattern, determine developing bias and charging bias, form patterns with the first exposure and a second exposure smaller than the first exposure, detect a second image density of the patterns, and determine an exposure to output an image based on the second image density, the first exposure, and the second exposure.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member to bear a latent image on a surface thereof, a developing unit to develop the latent image on the image bearing member with toner, a driving unit to drive the developing device, a storage unit to store a cumulative travel distance of the developing roller at predetermined timing, a total travel distance of the developing unit, and control conditions for the developing unit, a controller to obtain a difference between the total travel distance of the developing roller and the cumulative travel distance up to a predetermined point in time in image forming operation and to instruct intermittent printing in which continuous printing is limited to a certain number of pages in a predetermined time period when the difference is equal to or greater than a threshold travel distance, and an operation unit in which the control conditions are set.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus capable of continuous image formation on multiple pages includes an image bearer to bear an image, a latent image forming unit to form a latent image on the image bearer, a developing device to develop the latent image with toner, a temperature sensor to detect temperature inside the developing device or adjacent to the developing device, a controller to impose a limit on a quantity of pages in continuous image formation and cancel the limit according to a detection result generated by the temperature sensor, and a report unit to report time data indicating when the limit is imposed.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing member, a pressing member, heat generators, temperature detectors, a power source, and a heat controller. The heat generators include a first heat generator and second heat generators corresponding to an imaged area and a blank area, respectively, of a recording medium. The heat controller controls a power source according to data provided by the temperature detectors, such that a heating area of the fixing member heated by one of the second heat generators located adjacent to the first heat generator acquires a temperature of T1??T, where T1 is a temperature corresponding to the imaged area higher than a temperature T2 corresponding to the blank area, and ?T is a temperature lower than a difference between T1 and T2. The heat controller changes ?T between when a first side thereof is printed upon duplex printing and upon single-sided printing.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a plurality of image forming units each with an image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed, and each with a developing member for developing process on the electrostatic latent image, wherein the image forming apparatus superimposes toner images of the respective colors to form a composite color image; when images on a plurality of pages are formed, the developing members of the respective colors are started or stopped in response to presence or absence of latent images of the respective colors on a page that is targeted for image formation; and when the image forming unit starts to be driven, a developing member, corresponding to a color whose latent image is not to be formed on a first page of the plurality of pages, is not started.

Abstract: Disclosed is an image forming device including a fixing unit that fixes a first image to be fixed onto a sheet, the first image to be fixed being supported on the sheet, a target fixing temperature varying unit that varies a target fixing temperature during a time period in which a fixing process is performed, and a gradation processing unit that applies a gradation process to first image information. The target fixing temperature varying unit varies the target fixing temperature for the sheet of the recording medium to which the fixing process is applied, depending on presence or absence of a halftone process, and depending on a type of the gradation process to be utilized.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus capable of continuous image formation on multiple pages includes an image bearer to bear an image, a latent image forming unit to form a latent image on the image bearer, a developing device to develop the latent image with toner, a temperature sensor to detect temperature inside the developing device or adjacent to the developing device, a controller to impose a limit on a quantity of pages in continuous image formation and cancel the limit according to a detection result generated by the temperature sensor, and a report unit to report time data indicating when the limit is imposed.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a developing device including a developing roller to bear a developing agent to develop a latent image formed on an image bearing member, a cooling device to reduce an internal temperature of the image forming apparatus, a controller to calculate a travel distance of the developing roller to control the cooling device, and a memory unit to store the total travel distance of the developing roller. The controller calculates the total travel distance of the developing roller every Y minutes in the last X minutes, and a difference between the latest total travel distance of the developing roller and the total travel distance stored Z minutes ago by the memory unit to obtain the total travel distance during Z minutes and operate the cooling device for W minutes after image forming operation where the difference is equal to or greater than a threshold value M.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier; a latent-image forming unit configured to form a latent image on the image carrier; a developing unit configured to develop the latent image on the image carrier with a developer applied onto a developer carrier; a temperature detector configured to detect an internal temperature or an ambient temperature of the developing unit, the internal temperature and ambient temperature varying depending on a temperature of the developer carrier; and a control unit configured to control restriction on number of pages on which image formation is allowed to be performed continuously and cancellation of the restriction, based on the temperature detected by the temperature detector.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus capable of executing continuous image forming operation forming images on more than one page includes a temperature detector that detects internal or surrounding temperature of a developing device correspondingly changing to temperature of a developer bearer. A temperature information acquiring device acquires information of ambient temperature outside of the image forming apparatus. A controller switches a current operation mode to an intermittent image forming operation mode intermittently including a braking time period not to allow image formation and cancels the intermittent image forming operation mode in accordance with detection result of the temperature detector. The intermittent image forming operation mode allowed to continuously form images only on a prescribed limited number of sheets. The controller varies the braking time period in accordance with the ambient temperature detected by the temperature information acquiring device.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus including a fixing unit configured to fix a not-yet-fixed image on a recording medium, includes a fixing target temperature changing part configured to change a fixing target temperature at a time of a fixing process; and a gradation processing part configured to carry out gradation processing on image information. For each sheet of a recording medium on which the fixing process is carried out, the fixing target temperature is changed based on whether halftone processing is carried out and a type of gradation processing to be used.

Abstract: Disclosed is an image forming device including a fixing unit that fixes a first image to be fixed onto a sheet, the first image to be fixed being supported on the sheet, a target fixing temperature varying unit that varies a target fixing temperature during a time period in which a fixing process is performed, and a gradation processing unit that applies a gradation process to first image information. The target fixing temperature varying unit varies the target fixing temperature for the sheet of the recording medium to which the fixing process is applied, depending on presence or absence of a halftone process, and depending on a type of the gradation process to be utilized.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier; a latent-image forming unit configured to form a latent image on the image carrier; a developing unit configured to develop the latent image on the image carrier with a developer applied onto a developer carrier; a temperature detector configured to detect an internal temperature or an ambient temperature of the developing unit, the internal temperature and ambient temperature varying depending on a temperature of the developer carrier; and a control unit configured to control restriction on number of pages on which image formation is allowed to be performed continuously and cancellation of the restriction, based on the temperature detected by the temperature detector.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus including a fixing unit configured to fix a not-yet-fixed image on a recording medium, includes a fixing target temperature changing part configured to change a fixing target temperature at a time of a fixing process; and a gradation processing part configured to carry out gradation processing on image information. For each sheet of a recording medium on which the fixing process is carried out, the fixing target temperature is changed based on whether halftone processing is carried out and a type of gradation processing to be used.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a developing device including a developing roller to bear a developing agent to develop a latent image formed on an image bearing member, a cooling device to reduce an internal temperature of the image forming apparatus, a controller to calculate a travel distance of the developing roller to control the cooling device, and a memory unit to store the total travel distance of the developing roller. The controller calculates the total travel distance of the developing roller every Y minutes in the last X minutes, and a difference between the latest total travel distance of the developing roller and the total travel distance stored Z minutes ago by the memory unit to obtain the total travel distance during Z minutes and operate the cooling device for W minutes after image forming operation where the difference is equal to or greater than a threshold value M.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member to bear a latent image on a surface thereof, a developing unit to develop the latent image on the image bearing member with toner, a driving unit to drive the developing device, a storage unit to store a cumulative travel distance of the developing roller at predetermined timing, a total travel distance of the developing unit, and control conditions for the developing unit, a controller to obtain a difference between the total travel distance of the developing roller and the cumulative travel distance up to a predetermined point in time in image forming operation and to instruct intermittent printing in which continuous printing is limited to a certain number of pages in a predetermined time period when the difference is equal to or greater than a threshold travel distance, and an operation unit in which the control conditions are set.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a plurality of image forming units each with an image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed, and each with a developing member for developing process on the electrostatic latent image, wherein the image forming apparatus superimposes toner images of the respective colors to form a composite color image; when images on a plurality of pages are formed, the developing members of the respective colors are started or stopped in response to presence or absence of latent images of the respective colors on a page that is targeted for image formation; and when the image forming unit starts to be driven, a developing member, corresponding to a color whose latent image is not to be formed on a first page of the plurality of pages, is not started.