Abstract: A fixing device includes a fuser member, a stripper member, an endless rotary belt, a heater, a pressure member, and a belt cooler. The stripper member is disposed parallel to the fuser member. The endless rotary belt is looped for rotation around the fuser member and the stripper member in a longitudinal, conveyance direction of the belt. The heater is disposed adjacent to the belt to heat the belt. The pressure member is disposed opposite the fuser member via the belt. The fuser member and the pressure member press against each other via the belt to form a fixing nip therebetween. The recording medium after passage through the nip remains in contact with the belt as the belt moves from the fuser member toward the stripper member, and separates from the belt as the belt passes around the stripper member.

Abstract: A glossing device includes a first roller, a second roller, an endless rotary belt, a third roller, a heater, a belt cooler, and a suction mechanism. The second roller is disposed parallel to the first roller. The endless rotary belt is looped for rotation around the first and second rollers. The third roller is disposed opposite the first roller via the belt. The heater is disposed adjacent to the belt to heat the belt. The first and third rollers press against each other via the belt to form a nip therebetween. The belt cooler is disposed inside the loop of the belt downstream from the first roller and upstream from the second roller for cooling the belt. The belt cooler includes at least two mutually spaced cooling elements that together form a gapped contact surface for establishing thermal contact with the belt.

Abstract: A glossing device includes a heater member, a stripper member, an endless rotary belt, a pressure member, and a belt cooler. The heater member is subjected to heating. The stripper member is disposed parallel to the heater member. The endless rotary belt is looped for rotation around the heater member and the stripper member in a longitudinal, conveyance direction of the belt. The pressure member is disposed opposite the heater member via the belt. The heater member and the pressure member press against each other via the belt to form a glossing nip therebetween. The recording medium after passage through the nip remains in contact with the belt as the belt moves from the heater member toward the stripper member, and separates from the belt as the belt passes around the stripper member. The belt cooler is disposed adjacent to the belt to cool the belt.

Abstract: A glossing device includes a heat roller, a stripper roller, an endless, rotary glossing belt, a first belt cooler, a pressure member, an endless, rotary cooling belt, and a second belt cooler. The heat roller is subjected to heating. The stripper roller is disposed parallel to the heat roller. The glossing belt is looped for rotation around the heat roller and the stripper roller. The first belt cooler is disposed adjacent to the glossing belt to cool the glossing belt. The pressure member is disposed opposite the heat roller. The cooling belt is looped for rotation around the pressure member. The second belt cooler is disposed adjacent to the cooling belt to cool the cooling belt. The heat roller and the pressure member press against each other via the glossing belt and the cooling belt to form a glossing nip therebetween through which the recording medium is conveyed.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a first roller, a second roller, an endless rotary belt, a third roller, a heater, a belt cooler, and an upstream guide member. The second roller is disposed parallel to the first roller. The endless rotary belt is looped for rotation around the first and second rollers. The third roller is disposed opposite the first roller via the belt. The heater is positioned adjacent to the belt to heat the belt. The first and third rollers press against each other via the belt to form a nip therebetween. The belt cooler is disposed inside the loop of the belt downstream from the first roller and upstream from the second roller for cooling the belt. The belt cooler has a convex contact surface. The upstream guide member is disposed inside the loop of the belt upstream from the contact surface to guide the belt.

Abstract: A gloss applicator, disposed downstream from a fusing device for fusing a non-fused image on a recording medium, includes a pair of pressure units, an endless belt, and a belt suction unit. The pair of pressure units define a gloss nip therebetween through which the recording medium is passed to enhance glossiness of the fused image. The endless belt, disposed in one of the pressure units in an extended loop configuration, transports the recording medium thereon. An outer face of the endless belt can contact the fused image on the recording medium. The belt suction unit, disposed inside the endless belt loop, exerts suction on the endless belt to locally deform a given portion of the endless belt and separate the recording medium from the endless belt at the given portion as a separation position.

Abstract: A gloss applier includes a heating roller disposed inside a loop formed by an endless belt to heat the endless belt; a pressing rotary body pressed against the heating roller via the endless belt; a cooler disposed inside the loop formed by the endless belt and downstream from the heating roller in a direction of rotation of the endless belt, the cooler to cool the endless belt as a recording medium in contact with the endless belt is conveyed by the endless belt; a separation roller disposed inside the loop formed by the endless belt and downstream from the cooler in the direction of rotation of the endless belt, the separation roller to separate the recording medium from the endless belt; and a cooler shifter contacting the cooler to move the cooler bidirectionally to cause the cooler to contact and separate from the endless belt.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a first roller, a second roller, an endless belt, a third roller, a heater, a cooler, and a belt tensioner. The second roller is parallel to the first roller. The endless belt is looped for rotation around the first and second rollers. The third roller is opposite the first roller via the belt. The heater is in at least one of the rollers to heat the roller to in turn heat the belt. The cooler is inside the loop of the belt between the first and second rollers to cool the belt. The first and third rollers press against each other to form a nip therebetween through which a recording medium is conveyed. The belt tensioner is in contact with the belt to tension the belt in a transverse direction perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the belt.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit to form a color toner image using a color toner and a transparent layer using a transparent toner on a sheet of recording media, a sheet conveyance unit to transport the sheet, a 3D display lens forming unit disposed downstream from the image forming unit in a sheet conveyance direction, and a controller. The 3D display lens forming unit includes a shaping member including an uneven portion having predetermined surface unevenness, and a pressure member to press the shaping member against the sheet, forming a shaping nip between the shaping member and the pressure member. The 3D display lens forming unit shapes the transparent layer that is an outermost layer on the sheet into a stereoscopic display lens by transferring the surface unevenness of the uneven portion of the shaping member to the transparent layer formed on the sheet.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing unit and a fixing process managing system. The fixing process managing system, including a mode switchover unit, controls a time mode and a temperature mode for heating a fixing member. In the time mode, the fixing unit is determined to be ready for a fixing process when a given time elapses after activation of the image forming apparatus. In the temperature mode, the fixing unit is determined to be ready for a fixing process when a temperature of the fixing member attains a given reference temperature after activation of the image forming apparatus. The mode switchover unit selects between the temperature mode and the time mode. The fixing process managing system selects the temperature mode instead of the time mode when a supply amount of electrical power to the fixing unit is determined to be below a required electrical power supply level.

Abstract: A gloss applicator, disposed downstream from a fusing device for fusing a non-fused image on a recording medium, includes a pair of pressure units, an endless belt, and a belt suction unit. The pair of pressure units define a gloss nip therebetween through which the recording medium is passed to enhance glossiness of the fused image. The endless belt, disposed in one of the pressure units in an extended loop configuration, transports the recording medium thereon. An outer face of the endless belt can contact the fused image on the recording medium. The belt suction unit, disposed inside the endless belt loop, exerts suction on the endless belt to locally deform a given portion of the endless belt and separate the recording medium from the endless belt at the given portion as a separation position.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming part, a fixer including a heating member and a pressure member, a reverse transport part to forward a recording medium transported from the fixer to the image forming part, a toner image sensor to detect presence of a toner image on the recording medium, and a controller. When a glossy image formation mode is selected and no toner image is detected on the recording medium, the image forming part does not form a toner image on the recording medium, the fixer performs a first heating and pressing process and transports the recording medium to the reverse transport part, the reverse transport part transports the recording medium to the image forming part, the image forming part forms a toner image on the recording medium transported from the reverse transport part, and the fixer performs a second heating and pressing process and fixes the toner image thereon.

Abstract: A fixing device including a fixing unit that fixes a toner image on a recording material by application of heat and pressure, and a glossing unit that controls a gloss of the toner image fixed on the recording material. The glossing unit includes a heating roller, an endless belt stretched taut over multiple rollers including the heating roller, a pressing roller pressed against the heating roller with the endless belt therebetween to form a nip therebetween, and a separating member that separates the recording material from the endless belt downstream from the nip. The multiple rollers are positioned to maintain the recording material in contact with the endless belt for a predetermined distance downstream from the nip. The separating member is movable along the endless belt downstream from the nip, to control a length of contact between the recording material and the endless belt.

Abstract: A fixing device includes a fixing member, a heating member to heat the fixing member, a pressing member to press against the fixing member with a predetermined pressure, forming a nip where an image is fixed on a recording medium with heat and pressure, a heating controller to cause the heating member to heat the fixing member to a predetermined temperature set in advance and to preheat the fixing member while maintaining the temperature of the fixing member, a recording-medium data receiver to acquire recording-medium data before a fixing process is started, and a preheating-time adjuster to adjust a preheating time during which the heating member preheats the fixing member based on the data acquired by the recording-medium data receiver.

Abstract: The fixing unit satisfies following three conditions. That is, (1) 2.4×103×d/(TC×t)<T0, where d is a thickness of the unfixed toner layer in meters, TC is a thermal conductivity of toner in W/mK, and t is the fixing time in seconds; (2) a temperature Ttop of a topmost layer of the toner layer is not greater than the minimum temperature TOFF at which the hot offset of the surface of the first fixing member occurs when the fixing time is set to 1 seconds; and (3) a temperature Tbot of a bottommost layer of the toner layer that is in contact with the recording medium is not less than the lower limit temperature TMIN for fixing of the surface of the first fixing member when the fixing time is set to 1 second.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus, includes an image forming mechanism configured to form an image, and a fixing unit configured to fix a toner image formed on a recording medium. The fixing unit includes a fixing device having a first endless moving member configured to rotate, and a second endless moving member configured to rotate to form a nip area together with the first endless moving member to fix, at the nip area, a toner image disposed on the recording medium onto the recording medium with heat and pressure, the second endless moving member including a surface layer having a universal hardness HU and a maximum nip surface pressure P each within a predetermined range.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a fixing unit and a fixing process managing system. The fixing process managing system, including a mode switchover unit, controls a time mode and a temperature mode for heating a fixing member. In the time mode, the fixing unit is determined to be ready for a fixing process when a given time elapses after activation of the image forming apparatus. In the temperature mode, the fixing unit is determined to be ready for a fixing process when a temperature of the fixing member attains a given reference temperature after activation of the image forming apparatus. The mode switchover unit selects between the temperature mode and the time mode. The fixing process managing system selects the temperature mode instead of the time mode when a supply amount of electrical power to the fixing unit is determined to be below a required electrical power supply level.

Abstract: A first guide member and a second guide member guide a recording medium into a nip between a transfer member and a nip-forming member. The first guide member and the second guide member are arranged so as to form a substantial V-shape with tip of the V-shape being toward the nip. A distance between the first guide member and the second guide member at the tip being equal to or less than 5 millimeters.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming part, a fixer including a heating member and a pressure member, a reverse transport part to forward a recording medium transported from the fixer to the image forming part, a toner image sensor to detect presence of a toner image on the recording medium, and a controller. When a glossy image formation mode is selected and no toner image is detected on the recording medium, the image forming part does not form a toner image on the recording medium, the fixer performs a first heating and pressing process and transports the recording medium to the reverse transport part, the reverse transport part transports the recording medium to the image forming part, the image forming part forms a toner image on the recording medium transported from the reverse transport part, and the fixer performs a second heating and pressing process and fixes the toner image thereon.

Abstract: A fixing member heat bonds a toner on a recording material. The fixing member includes a releasing layer, a layer of elastic material, below the releasing layer, and a layer of adiabatic and hygroscopic material, below the layer of elastic material. The layer of elastic material includes a layer of electrically conducting material to pass electric currents, an adiabatic, elastic, and hydrophobic material, and a porous material to the release of the moisture absorbed by the layer of adiabatic and hygroscopic material.