Abstract: Provided is an image forming apparatus including a toner, and a fixing device configured to fix an image formed with the toner on a recording medium. The fixing device includes a fixing belt that is an endless belt, and a planar member configured to heat the fixing belt. An environmental fluctuation rate X is 45% or greater but 85% or less, and the environmental fluctuation rate X is represented by: Environmental fluctuation rate X=(Q1?Q2)/{(Q1+Q2)/2} where Q1 is a quantity of electric charge of the toner in an environment having a temperature of 10 degrees Celsius and relative humidity of 15%, Q2 is a quantity of electric charge of the toner in an environment having a temperature of 27 degrees Celsius and relative humidity of 80%, and a unit for Q1 and Q2 is ?C/g.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes a developing device accommodating toner, the toner containing: a binder resin; and a coloring agent; and a fixing device configured to fix a toner image formed with the toner on a recording medium, the fixing device comprising: a tubular belt member; a heating member configured to heat the tubular belt member directly or indirectly in contact with the tubular belt member; and a pressing member in contact with the tubular belt member, wherein the toner under a load of 2 kg has a flow index Tf of from 70 to 121 degrees C., a flow index Te of from 83 to 120 degrees C., and a softening index Tw of from 65 to 80 degrees C.

Abstract: To provide an active-energy-ray-curable composition including a resin, where a ratio S3/S30 of the active-energy-ray-curable composition is 0.3 or more but 0.6 or less in a 1H-NMR spectrum of the active-energy-ray-curable composition, the 1H-NMR spectrum is obtained when a concentration of the active-energy-ray-curable composition in deuterated chloroform as a solvent is 3% by mass, the S30 is an integrated value of all signals in the 1H-NMR spectrum, and the S3 is an integrated value of at least one broad signal in the 1H-NMR spectrum.

Abstract: A toner including base particles and external additives on the base particles, the toner satisfying Conditions 1 and 2 defined in the specification, when a number distribution D of particle diameters of powder particles B generated from one base particle A is calculated from a density a of the base particles A and a density b of the powder particles B, where the base particles A and the powder particles B are deposited on an adhesive area and mica respectively by feeding the toner into a vacuumed space from an inlet, and allowing the toner to crush against a surface of a substrate having the adhesive area composed of a carbon tape, and the mica disposed in a manner that the surface is orthogonal to a direction connecting between center of the vacuumed space and center of the inlet, Powder particles B: particles detached from the base particles.

Abstract: An active-energy-ray-curable composition, a cured material of the active-energy-ray-curable composition satisfying a critical load of 5.0 g or more but 25.0 g or less, the critical load being obtained by a continuous loading test method using a variable normal load friction and wear measurement device, the cured material having an average thickness of 10 ?m and being formed by coating the active-energy-ray-curable composition on a substrate and by irradiating and curing the active-energy-ray-curable composition with active energy rays having illuminance of 1.5 W/cm2 and an amount of irradiation of 200 mJ/cm2.

Abstract: A toner including base particles and external additives on the base particles, the toner satisfying Conditions 1 and 2 defined in the specification, when a number distribution D of particle diameters of powder particles B generated from one base particle A is calculated from a density a of the base particles A and a density b of the powder particles B, where the base particles A and the powder particles B are deposited on an adhesive area and mica respectively by feeding the toner into a vacuumed space from an inlet, and allowing the toner to crush against a surface of a substrate having the adhesive area composed of a carbon tape, and the mica disposed in a manner that the surface is orthogonal to a direction connecting between center of the vacuumed space and center of the inlet, Powder particles B: particles detached from the base particles.

Abstract: An active-energy-ray-curable composition, a cured material of the active-energy-ray-curable composition satisfying a critical load of 5.0 g or more but 25.0 g or less, the critical load being obtained by a continuous loading test method using a variable normal load friction and wear measurement device, the cured material having an average thickness of 10 ?m and being formed by coating the active-energy-ray-curable composition on a substrate and by irradiating and curing the active-energy-ray-curable composition with active energy rays having illuminance of 1.5 W/cm2 and an amount of irradiation of 200 mJ/cm2.

Abstract: A method for loading a replenishment developer into a developer accommodating container such that when the replenishment of the replenishment developer inside the loaded developer accommodating container is started, the developer composed of a toner and a carrier, or a toner is discharged from a developer discharge port of the developer accommodating container, wherein when a premix toner that is a replenishment developer composed of a replenishment toner and a replenishment carrier is loaded into a toner bottle serving as the developer accommodating container, the replenishment carrier is loaded and then the replenishment toner is loaded.

Abstract: A developing device capable of conveying discharged developer to the outside of the device well by preventing developer from firmly adhering within a discharge conveyance path, as well as an image forming apparatus and a process cartridge having this developing device.

Abstract: A developer supply system includes a container, a memory, and a positioning mechanism. The container has a deformable bag formed of flexible material to accommodate developer therein. The memory is attached to a given planar surface of the deformable bag to store information for communication to the image forming apparatus. The positioning mechanism holds the container therein while maintaining the given planar surface in position relative to the image forming apparatus when the deformable bag collapses as it discharges developer. An image forming apparatus employing such a developer supply system is also disclosed.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus including an image bearing member; a developing device forming a toner image; a toner supplying device including a toner container, a toner feeding passage, a pump, in which a first member is moved while rubbing a second member to feed a developer supplement including at least the toner, and a residual toner detector detecting the amount of the developer supplement remaining in the toner container. Even after the toner container achieves a near empty state, image forming operations are continued as long as a predetermined condition is satisfied while changing the pump's condition such that the pump is stopped, the ratio of the pump stopping period to the pump driving period is set to be greater than that before the near-empty detection, or the pump stopping period and the pump driving period are set to be longer than those before the near-empty detection.

Abstract: A developing device and image forming apparatus that can satisfy stability over time in relation to amount of developer carried, and prevent developer retention, deterioration of developer and developing sleeve adhesion, wherein the amount of developer carried per unit area on the developer carrier in the developing region is 30 mg/cm2 to 60 mg/cm2; the weight mean particle diameter of the toner is 4.5 ?m to 8.0 ?m; the ratio Dw/Dn of the toner weight mean particle diameter (Dw) and the number mean particle diameter (Dn) is 1.20 or less; an irregular roughness pattern having the maximum height Rz of the surface roughness of 20 to 40 ?m and the mean space Sm of the roughness of 100 to 200 ?m is formed on the surface of the developer carrier; and the relationship between the developing gap PG and the gap DG between the developer restricting member and the developer carrier is 1.0?(DG/PG)?3.0.

Abstract: A developer supply system includes a container, a memory, and a positioning mechanism. The container has a deformable bag formed of flexible material to accommodate developer therein. The memory is attached to a given planar surface of the deformable bag to store information for communication to the image forming apparatus. The positioning mechanism holds the container therein while maintaining the given planar surface in position relative to the image forming apparatus when the deformable bag collapses as it discharges developer. An image forming apparatus employing such a developer supply system is also disclosed.

Abstract: An electrophotographic photoreceptor, including: an electroconductive substrate; a first undercoat layer including no metal oxide, located overlying the electroconductive substrate; a second undercoat layer including a metal oxide and a binder resin, located overlying the first undercoat layer; and a photosensitive layer located overlying the second undercoat layer, wherein the metal oxide included in the second undercoat layer has a specific resistivity not less than 107 ?·cm and a block isocyanate compound.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus including an image bearing member; a developing device forming a toner image; a toner supplying device including a toner container, a toner feeding passage, a pump, in which a first member is moved while rubbing a second member to feed a developer supplement including at least the toner, and a residual toner detector detecting the amount of the developer supplement remaining in the toner container. Even after the toner container achieves a near empty state, image forming operations are continued as long as a predetermined condition is satisfied while changing the pump's condition such that the pump is stopped, the ratio of the pump stopping period to the pump driving period is set to be greater than that before the near-empty detection, or the pump stopping period and the pump driving period are set to be longer than those before the near-empty detection.

Abstract: A method for producing a low-cost developer container filled with developer, which is capable of stably preventing image density from being locally reduced even in the case where the entire replenishment developer is not dispersed uniformly, the developer container filled with developer, and a developer replenishing device and image forming apparatus that use this developer container filled with developer.

Abstract: A developing device capable of conveying discharged developer to the outside of the device well by preventing developer from firmly adhering within a discharge conveyance path, as well as an image forming apparatus and a process cartridge having this developing device.

Abstract: A method for loading a replenishment developer into a developer accommodating container such that when the replenishment of the replenishment developer inside the loaded developer accommodating container is started, the developer composed of a toner and a carrier, or a toner is discharged from a developer discharge port of the developer accommodating container, wherein when a premix toner that is a replenishment developer composed of a replenishment toner and a replenishment carrier is loaded into a toner bottle serving as the developer accommodating container, the replenishment carrier is loaded and then the replenishment toner is loaded.

Abstract: A developing device and image forming apparatus that can satisfy stability over time in relation to amount of developer carried, and prevent developer retention, deterioration of developer and developing sleeve adhesion, wherein the amount of developer carried per unit area on the developer carrier in the developing region is 30 [mg/cm2] to 60 [mg/cm2]; the weight mean particle diameter of the toner is 4.5 [?m] to 8.0 [?m]; the ratio [Dw/Dn] of the toner weight mean particle diameter (Dw) and the number mean particle diameter (Dn) is 1.20 or less; an irregular roughness pattern having the maximum height Rz of the surface roughness of 20 to 40 [?m] and the mean space Sm of the roughness of 100 to 200 [?m] is formed on the surface of the developer carrier; and the relationship between the developing gap PG and the gap DG between the developer restricting member and the developer carrier is 1.0?(DG/PG)3.0?.

Abstract: An electrophotographic photoreceptor, including: an electroconductive substrate; a first undercoat layer including no metal oxide, located overlying the electroconductive substrate; a second undercoat layer including a metal oxide and a binder resin, located overlying the first undercoat layer; and a photosensitive layer located overlying the second undercoat layer, wherein the metal oxide included in the second undercoat layer has a specific resistivity not less than 107 ?·cm and a block isocyanate compound.