Abstract: There is provided a toner including toner base particles and an external additive in which the external additive is prevented from being buried in the base particles. The toner can maintain a high transfer efficiency over an extended period of use. The toner includes: (1) toner base particles containing a cycloolefin copolymer and a polyethylene; or (2) toner base particles whose surfaces contain a resin having an elastic deformation rate of 70% or more and a melting temperature of 125.0° C. or less.

Abstract: There is provided a toner including toner base particles and an external additive in which the external additive is prevented from being buried in the base particles. The toner can maintain a high transfer efficiency over an extended period of use. The toner includes: (1) toner base particles containing a cycloolefin copolymer and a polyethylene; or (2) toner base particles whose surfaces contain a resin having an elastic deformation rate of 70% or more and a melting temperature of 125.0° C. or less.

Abstract: There is provided a toner including toner base particles and an external additive in which the external additive is prevented from being buried in the base particles. The toner can maintain a high transfer efficiency over an extended period of use. The toner includes: (1) toner base particles containing a cycloolefin copolymer and a polyethylene; or (2) toner base particles whose surfaces contain a resin having an elastic deformation rate of 70% or more and a melting temperature of 125.0° C. or less.

Abstract: There is provided a toner including toner base particles and an external additive in which the external additive is prevented from being buried in the base particles. The toner can maintain a high transfer efficiency over an extended period of use. The toner includes: (1) toner base particles containing a cycloolefin copolymer and a polyethylene; or (2) toner base particles whose surfaces contain a resin having an elastic deformation rate of 70% or more and a melting temperature of 125.0° C. or less.

Abstract: A developing device includes: a developing container for accommodating developer, a developer carrying member, and a plate-like elastic member. In a state in which the elastic member contacts the developer carrying member without being deformed, an angle formed between a flat reference surface passing through a surface of the elastic member which is continuous to a contact portion of the elastic member with the developer carrying member and which is downstream of the contact portion with respect to the movement direction and a tangent plane of the developer carrying member and a contact position between the elastic member and the developer carrying member is 10° or more and 45° or less, and the elastic member includes a first region including the contact portion and a second region which is provided continuously from the first region toward the supporting portion and which is lower in rigidity than the first region.

Abstract: A developing device includes: a developing container, a developer carrying member, and a plate-like elastic member. An angle formed between a reference surface passing through a surface of the elastic member continuous to a contact portion of the elastic member with the developer carrying member and downstream of the contact portion with respect to the movement direction of the developer carrying member and a tangent plane of the developer carrying member under no load at a contact position between the elastic member and the developer carrying member is 10° or more and 45° or less. The elastic member includes a first region including the contact portion and a second region provided continuously from the first region toward the supporting portion of the elastic member and lower in rigidity than the first region. The second region is provided downstream of the reference surface with respect to the movement direction.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus is configured to form a toner image by a toner image forming portion on an intermediate transfer belt, to transfer the toner image to a transfer and fixing belt, and to form a toner film by heating and pressurizing the toner image on the transfer and fixing belt. The transfer and fixing belt includes an elastic layer and when the toner film is pressurized to a recording medium in a body at a toner film transfer portion, the toner film is pressed to the recording medium while following surficial ruggedness of the recording medium. Because the toner image is formed by using toner particles containing a thermoplastic elastomer having crystallinity, the toner film formed of this toner image is fully resilient.

Abstract: An image heating apparatus includes: a rotatable member configured to heat a toner image on a recording material, wherein the rotatable member includes a fluorine-containing resin material layer containing a fluorine-containing resin material at a surface thereof; a rubbing member configured to rub the rotatable member in a rubbing position; and particles, provided in the rubbing position, harder than the fluorine-containing resin material of the fluorine-containing resin material layer.

Abstract: An image heating apparatus includes: a rotatable member configured to heat a toner image on a recording material, wherein the rotatable member includes a parting layer at a surface thereof; a heating portion configured to heat the rotatable member; a slidable member slidable on the parting layer, wherein the slidable member includes a surface layer having a surface roughness larger than a surface roughness of the parting layer; and a moving mechanism configured to move the slidable member relative to the rotatable member, which is in a rotating state, in a direction crossing with a rotational direction of the rotatable member so that a part of exfoliated matter of the parting layer and/or the surface layer is welded on the parting layer.

Abstract: An image heating apparatus includes: a rotatable member configured to form a nip for heating an image on a recording material, wherein the rotatable member including a fluorine-containing resin material layer at a surface thereof; a rubbing member configured to rub the surface of the rotatable member in a rubbing position; and a supplying mechanism configured to supply fluorine-containing resin material particles to the rubbing position.

Abstract: According to embodiments, a heating member or a sliding member arranged in contact with the surface of a fusing roller is moved in an intersecting direction with the rotational direction of the fusing roller in a contact state with the heating member or the sliding member so as to prevent a scratch from being generated on the surface of the fusing roller or to repair the scratch.

Abstract: A fixing apparatus includes a back-up member contacting an inner surface of a cylindrical belt; a roller having an elastic layer and contacting an outer surface of the belt, the roller being cooperative with the back-up member to form a fixing nip between the belt and the roller. A sheet carrying a toner image is nipped and fed through the fixing nip, during which the unfixed toner image is heat-fixed thereon by the fixing nip. The back-up member includes a portion contactable with the inner surface and having such a configuration that the belt forms a first curved surface convex toward the roller in an upstream region in the fixing nip with respect to a moving direction of the belt and that the belt forms a second curved surface convex toward the back-up member in a downstream region in the fixing nip with respect to the moving direction.

Abstract: An image forming portion of an image forming apparatus is configured to form a toner image on a recording medium such that a relationship of M???L/(30?3) is satisfied, where a volume average particle size of toner is L (?m), density of the toners is ? (g/cm3), and a maximum toner laid quantity per unit area of a single color toner image on a recording medium is M (mg/cm2). The toner image formed by the image forming portion is fixed on the recording medium by a fixing nip portion by being heated and applied a force in a direction of a plane of the recording medium.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit that forms an unfixed toner image on a recording material and a fixing unit, wherein, in a case where an image is formed by using the toners of the plurality of colors, when a specific gravity of the toners is ? (g/cm3) and a weight average particle diameter of the toners is L (?m), the image forming unit sets a maximum laid-on amount A (mg/cm2) of each color in the unfixed toner image on the recording material so as to satisfy the following condition: A<??L/30?3, and wherein the fixing unit fixes the unfixed toner image to the recording material so that a dot spread amount (?m) of the toner image satisfies the following condition: ?(??L3/90?3A)?Dot Spread Amount.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus is configured to form a toner image by a toner image forming portion on an intermediate transfer belt, to transfer the toner image to a transfer and fixing belt, and to form a toner film by heating and pressurizing the toner image on the transfer and fixing belt. The transfer and fixing belt includes an elastic layer and when the toner film is pressurized to a recording medium in a body at a toner film transfer portion, the toner film is pressed to the recording medium while following surficial ruggedness of the recording medium. Because the toner image is formed by using toner particles containing a thermoplastic elastomer having crystallinity, the toner film formed of this toner image is fully resilient.

Abstract: A fixing apparatus includes a back-up member contacting an inner surface of a cylindrical belt; a roller having an elastic layer and contacting an outer surface of the belt, the roller being cooperative with the back-up member to form a fixing nip between the belt and the roller. A sheet carrying a toner image is nipped and fed through the fixing nip, during which the unfixed toner image is heat-fixed thereon by the fixing nip. The back-up member includes a portion contactable with the inner surface and having such a configuration that the belt forms a first curved surface convex toward the roller in an upstream region in the fixing nip with respect to a moving direction of the belt and that the belt forms a second curved surface convex toward the back-up member in a downstream region in the fixing nip with respect to the moving direction.

Abstract: According to embodiments, a heating member or a sliding member arranged in contact with the surface of a fusing roller is moved in an intersecting direction with the rotational direction of the fusing roller in a contact state with the heating member or the sliding member so as to prevent a scratch from being generated on the surface of the fusing roller or to repair the scratch.

Abstract: When an unfixed toner image is formed on a recording material, a maximum toner amount per unit area satisfies A<(??L)/30?3, where a specific gravity of a toner is ? (g/cm3), a weight-average particle size is L (?m), and the toner amount per unit area of the unfixed toner image on the recording material is A (mg/cm2), in formation of the unfixed toner image with each color toner, and the unfixed toner image is fixed so that a region where colors of chromatic toners of respective colors in the above-described images are seen in an overlaid state is 84% or more.

Abstract: According to embodiments, a heating member or a sliding member arranged in contact with the surface of a fusing roller is moved in an intersecting direction with the rotational direction of the fusing roller in a contact state with the heating member or the sliding member so as to prevent a scratch from being generated on the surface of the fusing roller or to repair the scratch.

Abstract: An image forming portion of an image forming apparatus is configured to form a toner image on a recording medium such that a relationship of M???L/(30?3) is satisfied, where a volume average particle size of toner is L(?m), density of the toners is ? (g/cm3), and a maximum toner laid quantity per unit area of a single color toner image on a recording medium is M (mg/cm2). The toner image formed by the image forming portion is fixed on the recording medium by a fixing nip portion by being heated and applied a force in a direction of a plane of the recording medium.