Abstract: An organic EL device includes organic layers, an anode electrode, a cathode electrode, and an insulating layer covering a part of the anode electrode. The anode electrode is disposed above a bank layer and in an opening of the bank layer. The organic layers cover the anode electrode and a part of the insulating layer. The anode electrode includes a lower conductive layer, a reflective metal layer that reflects light coming from the organic layers, and a light-transmissive upper conductive layer layered in this order toward the cathode electrode. The upper conductive layer includes a first upper conductive layer connected to the organic layers and a second upper conductive layer covered with the insulating layer. The second upper conductive layer has a lower oxygen content than the first upper conductive layer. The second upper conductive layer has a higher resistivity than the first upper conductive layer.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image forming unit configured to form an image on a recording medium which is unwound from a state of being wound in a roll shape; and a control unit configured to change an image forming condition of the image forming unit such that image quality becomes uniform before and after an unwinding start position of the recording medium at the time of start of an image forming operation.

Abstract: An image forming system includes: a transfer unit configured to transfer a toner image onto a recording medium conveyed from a state in which the recording medium is wound into a roll; an external diameter information sensing unit configured to sense information about an external diameter of the recording medium wound into the roll; and a control unit configured to change a transfer condition in the transfer unit in accordance with the external diameter information sensed by the external diameter information sensing unit.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image forming unit configured to form an image on a recording medium which is unwound from a state of being wound in a roll shape; and a control unit configured to change an image forming condition of the image forming unit such that image quality becomes uniform before and after an unwinding start position of the recording medium at the time of start of an image forming operation.

Abstract: An image forming system includes: a transfer unit configured to transfer a toner image onto a recording medium conveyed from a state in which the recording medium is wound into a roll; an external diameter information sensing unit configured to sense information about an external diameter of the recording medium wound into the roll; and a control unit configured to change a transfer condition in the transfer unit in accordance with the external diameter information sensed by the external diameter information sensing unit.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image bearing member configured to be forwardly and reversely rotatable; a cleaning blade configured to make contact with the image bearing member and scrape toner remaining on the image bearing member; a toner retention section defined on an upstream side of the cleaning blade in a forward rotational direction of the image bearing member, the toner retention section being configured to retain toner scraped by the cleaning blade; a driving section configured to rotationally drive the image bearing member; and a control section configured to control the driving section to reversely rotate the image bearing member by a distance greater than a distance from a position where the image bearing member and the cleaning blade make contact with each other to an upper surface position of toner retained in the toner retention section, at a time when an image formation process is not performed.

Abstract: A cleaning device includes a semiconductive transfer member which carries charged toner; a first cleaner disposed in contact with the transfer member to electrostatically remove the toner on the transfer member; a second cleaner disposed downstream of the first cleaner along a moving direction of the transfer member to electrostatically remove the toner on the transfer member; and a voltage applicator which applies a bias voltage to the first cleaner, the bias voltage having an opposite polarity to a polarity of the toner. The bias voltage to be applied by the voltage applicator to the first cleaner is higher than a voltage which allows the first cleaner to remove maximum amount of the toner.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an image bearing member configured to be forwardly and reversely rotatable; a cleaning blade configured to make contact with the image bearing member and scrape toner remaining on the image bearing member; a toner retention section defined on an upstream side of the cleaning blade in a forward rotational direction of the image bearing member, the toner retention section being configured to retain toner scraped by the cleaning blade; a driving section configured to rotationally drive the image bearing member; and a control section configured to control the driving section to reversely rotate the image bearing member by a distance greater than a distance from a position where the image bearing member and the cleaning blade make contact with each other to an upper surface position of toner retained in the toner retention section, at a time when an image formation process is not performed.

Abstract: A toner image can properly be transferred onto the second side of a paper sheet without being influenced by the toner image on the first side. There are provided a detection unit 20 for detecting overlap of the toner images on the first side and the second side of the paper sheet based on image data, and a transfer output adjustment unit 22 which changes a transfer voltage output for the second side in an area with the overlap of the toner images depending on the toner adhering amount of the first side.

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus is provided with: an intermediate transfer belt that has a hard layer formed on a surface thereof and supports a toner image that has been primarily transferred on the hard layer from a latent-image supporting member; and a secondary transfer roller that is pressed onto the intermediate transfer belt supporting the toner image with an image-recording medium being interposed therebetween, wherein a toner is supplied to a non-image area 17 in the contact area 16 of the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 3 with the image-recording medium at a rate of 0.01 to 0.20 g/m2.

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus comprises an intermediate transfer member having a hard release layer on the surface that receives a primarily transferred toner image from a latent image-supporting member on the hard release layer and secondarily transfers the toner image to an image-receiving medium, wherein, when the difference ??sd between the dispersion-force component of surface free energy of the intermediate transfer member surface ?sd(itm) and the dispersion-force component of surface free energy of the latent image-supporting member surface ?sd(pc) is defined by the following Formula: ??sd=?sd(pc)??sd(itm), ??sd is 5 mN/m or less.

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus, including: a latent-image supporting member, and an intermediate transfer member that supports a toner image primarily-transferred thereon from the latent-image supporting member, secondarily-transfers the supported toner image onto an image receiving medium, and has a hard releasing layer on the surface thereof, and a ratio Rv (Vbt/Vpc) between a surface moving speed Vbt of the intermediate transfer member and a peripheral speed Vpc of the latent-image supporting member satisfies the following relational expression: ?5×10?6×Hu+1.0087?Rv??5×10?6×Hu+1.0167 wherein Hu is a universal hardness (N/mm2) of the surface of the intermediate transfer member, and is set to 220 N/mm2 or more.

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus that is provided with an intermediate transfer member that has a hard releasing layer formed on the surface thereof, supports a toner image primary-transferred onto the hard releasing layer from a latent-image supporting member, and secondary-transfers the supported toner image onto an image-receiving medium, and a cleaning blade that is arranged in contact with the intermediate transfer member, and removes residual toner from the hard releasing layer of the intermediate transfer member, wherein the cleaning blade has an impact resilience in the range from 20 to 50% at 20° C.

Abstract: An image-supporting member, having at least one thin film layer on an outer circumferential surface of the image-supporting member, wherein an uppermost surface thin film layer contains a thick film region and a thin film region, a predetermined image is formed by the thick film region and the thin film region, and a thickness d1 (nm) of the thick film region and a thickness d2 (nm) of the thin film region satisfy the following relational expressions (1) and (2); 50 nm?d1?d2?950 nm??(1) 20 nm?d2<d1?1000 nm??(2)

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus is provided with: an intermediate transfer belt that has a hard layer formed on a surface thereof and supports a toner image that has been primarily transferred on the hard layer from a latent-image supporting member; and a secondary transfer roller that is pressed onto the intermediate transfer belt supporting the toner image with an image-recording medium being interposed therebetween, wherein a toner is supplied to a non-image area 17 in the contact area 16 of the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 3 with the image-recording medium at a rate of 0.01 to 0.20 g/m2.

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus, equipped with an intermediate transfer member 3 having a surface layer that holds a toner image primary-transferred from a latent image-supporting member temporarily on the surface layer and allows secondary transfer of the toner image held thereon to an image receiving medium, wherein, when the moving distance of the intermediate transfer member surface from the secondary transfer region 15 to the first primary-transfer region 16 is designated as L (mm) and the moving speed of the intermediate transfer member as S (mm/second), the residual surface potential of the intermediate transfer member L/S seconds after application of the secondary transfer voltage is 1/20 or less of the first primary transfer voltage V1.

Abstract: A toner image can properly be transferred onto the second side of a paper sheet without being influenced by the toner image on the first side. There are provided a detection unit 20 for detecting overlap of the toner images on the first side and the second side of the paper sheet based on image data, and a transfer output adjustment unit 22 which changes a transfer voltage output for the second side in an area with the overlap of the toner images depending on the toner adhering amount of the first side.

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus, equipped with an intermediate transfer member 3 having a surface layer that holds a toner image primary-transferred from a latent image-supporting member temporarily on the surface layer and allows secondary transfer of the toner image held thereon to an image receiving medium, wherein, when the moving distance of the intermediate transfer member surface from the secondary transfer region 15 to the first primary-transfer region 16 is designated as L (mm) and the moving speed of the intermediate transfer member as S (mm/second), the residual surface potential of the intermediate transfer member L/S seconds after application of the secondary transfer voltage is 1/20 or less of the first primary transfer voltage V1.

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus, comprises: a latent-image supporting member, and an intermediate transfer member that supports a toner image primarily-transferred thereon from the latent-image supporting member, secondarily-transfers the supported toner image onto an image receiving medium, and has a hard releasing layer on the surface thereof, and a ratio Rv (Vbt/Vpc) between a surface moving speed Vbt of the intermediate transfer member and a peripheral speed Vpc of the latent-image supporting member satisfies the following relational expression: ?5×10?6×Hu+1.0087?Rv??5×10?6×Hu+1.0167 wherein Hu is a universal hardness (N/mm2) of the surface of the intermediate transfer member, and is set to 220 N/mm2 or more.

Abstract: An image-forming apparatus comprises, a latent-image supporting member, and an intermediate transfer member having a hard releasing layer formed on the surface of the intermediate transfer member that supports a toner image primarily transferred thereon from the latent-image supporting member, and secondarily transfers the supported toner image onto an image receiving medium, wherein a pressing force F, exerted at a contact portion between the intermediate transfer member and the latent-image supporting member, is set to 4.4 N/m or less.