Abstract: A process cartridge detachably mountable on the main body of an electrophotographic apparatus, integrally supports a photosensitive drum for bearing toner images, and an intermediate transferring belt having a contact part with the photosensitive drum. The moisture amount of the intermediate transferring belt at 23° C./50% RH is less than 1% by weight and the sum of the surface roughness Ra of the photosensitive drum and the surface roughness Ra of the intermediate transferring belt is less than 0.8 &mgr;m. The present invention also provides an electrophotographic apparatus having the process cartridge and an image forming method using the electrophotographic apparatus.

Abstract: A method for producing an endless belt for electrophotography by melt-extruding a thermoplastic resin having a diphenyl sulfone structure represented by the following Formula (1) from a circular die to produce the endless belt continuously 1

Abstract: An electrophotographic seamless belt containing a thermoplastic fluorine resin, which contains 3 to 40 parts by weight of a polyether-ester amide or polyether amide and 0.02 to 10 parts by weight of a fluorine-atom-containing surface-active agent or halogenated alkali metal salt, based on 100 parts by weight of the thermoplastic fluorine resin. Also disclosed is an electrophotographic apparatus having the electrophotographic seamless belt.

Abstract: A process cartridge detachably mountable to the electrophotographic apparatus main body, integrally including an electrophotographic photosensitive member to carry a toner image; an intermediate transfer belt having a contact part with the photosensitive member; primary transfer member to primarily transfer the toner image from the photosensitive member to the intermediate transfer belt; and electric charge member to give electric charges in polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner at the time of the primary transfer to the toner on the intermediate transfer belt to return the toner on the intermediate transfer belt to the photosensitive member at the contact part to clean the intermediate transfer belt, wherein the intermediate transfer belt has an average glossiness of 30 to 90; glossiness deviation within 10; average film thickness of 40 to 200 &mgr;m; and film thickness unevenness within ±20% relative to the average film thickness.

Abstract: A process cartridge integrally supports an electrophotographic photosensitive member, an intermediate transfer belt, primary transferer for transferring a toner image primarily from the member to the belt, a charge provider for providing the toner on the belt with electric charges having a polarity reverse to the polarity the toner has at the time of the primary transfer and returning the toner on the belt to the member at a contact zone to clean the belt, and an electrophotographic-photosensitive-member cleaner. The cartridge is dividable into an electrophotographic photosensitive member unit and an intermediate transfer belt unit and has a joining unit which joins the two units. The peripheral length and average thickness of the belt and the diameter of at least one of rollers over and around which the belt is placed satisfy specific conditions.

Abstract: In an electrophotographic endless belt having a beltlike substrate and a meandering-preventive member attached to the inner peripheral surface of the beltlike substrate via a pressure-sensitive adhesive double-coated tape; the pressure-sensitive adhesive double-coated tape being a pressure-sensitive adhesive double-coated tape having i) a reinforcing base material and ii) pressure-sensitive adhesive layers on both sides of the reinforcing base material; the reinforcing base material has a thickness of from 25 &mgr;m or more to 200 &mgr;m or less, the pressure-sensitive adhesive layers on both sides each have a thickness of 200 &mgr;m or less and at least one of the pressure-sensitive adhesive layers has a thickness of from more than 100 &mgr;m to 200 &mgr;m or less, and the meandering-preventive member has a hardness of from 15° or more to 70° or less.

Abstract: An intermediate transfer member suitable for full-color image formation by electrophotography is formed by an elastic base layer and a fibrous core member embedded with the base layer. The core member is formed of fibers which are disposed within the base layer at a spacing between adjacent fibers of 50-3000 &mgr;m. As a result, the intermediate transfer member is reinforced to exhibit improved superposed transfer performance free from color deviation while retaining good transfer performance.

Abstract: A transfer belt having a long service life and an image forming apparatus provided with the belt are provided. A serpentine motion preventing member (6b,) provided on at least one side portion of an inner circumferential surface of an endless belt body (6a, 61a) on which a toner image formed on an image bearing member is transferred on an outer circumference and retained by a retainer groove (R1) formed on a roller serpentine motion preventing member (6b, 61b) away from the belt body (6a, 61a). Accordingly, damage to the belt body (6a, 61a) is prevented.

Abstract: In an electrophotographic endless belt having a beltlike substrate, a meandering-preventive member and a position detection member, the meandering-preventive member is disposed on the inner-periphery side of one end portion of the beltlike substrate, the position detection member is disposed on the outer-periphery side of the other end portion of the beltlike substrate, and the meandering-preventive member and the position detection member are 200 mm to 250 mm away from each other in the width direction of the electrophotographic endless belt. The beltlike substrate contains a thermoplastic resin as a binder resin, and the beltlike substrate has a 25 &mgr;m×25 &mgr;m surface total current value of from 300 nA to 2,000 nA at the time of application of 100 V as measured by SPM.

Abstract: In an electrophotographic endless belt having a beltlike substrate, and having a meandering-preventive member for preventing the electrophotographic endless belt from meandering and a position detection member for detecting a prescribed position of the electrophotographic endless belt; the former being disposed on the inner-periphery side of one end portion of the beltlike substrate, and the latter being disposed on the outer-periphery side of the other end portion of the beltlike substrate. The meandering-preventive member and the position detection member are kept apart in a distance of from 200 mm to 250 mm in the width direction of the electrophotographic endless belt. A process cartridge and an electrophotographic apparatus employ such an electrophotographic endless belt as an intermediate transfer belt.

Abstract: A process cartridge is disclosed integrally supporting an electrophotographic photosensitive member, an intermediate transfer belt, a primary-transfer member for transferring a toner image primarily from the electrophotographic photosensitive member to the intermediate transfer belt and a charge-providing member for providing the toner on the intermediate transfer belt with electric charges having a polarity reverse to the polarity the toner has at the time of the primary transfer and returning the toner on the intermediate transfer belt to the electrophotographic photosensitive member at the contact zone to clean the intermediate transfer belt. The intermediate transfer belt has a modulus of elasticity of from 500 MPa to 4,000 MPa at elongation from 0.5% to 0.6% in the peripheral direction, a breaking extension of from 5% to 850% in the peripheral direction and a surface roughness Ra of 1 &mgr;m or less.

Abstract: In a transfer belt having a thickness from 45 to 300 &mgr;m having at least a resin layer, the resin layer contains a thermoplastic resin and a polyether-ester amide, and the thermoplastic resin and the polyether-ester amide are in a weight ratio of from 79:21 to 60:40. Also provided are a process for producing the transfer member and an image-forming apparatus having the transfer member.

Abstract: A process produces a belt-shaped member to be used in an image-forming apparatus is disclosed in which a toner image held on a latent-image-bearing member is electrostatically transferred under application of a voltage via the belt-shaped transfer member. The process includes the steps of melt-extruding a material containing a thermoplastic resin, from a circular die into a cylindrical film; forming the resultant cylindrical film by stretching in such a way that the cylindrical film comes to have a thickness smaller than the die gap of the circular die; and cutting the cylindrical film thus formed, into a seamless belt having a thickness of from 40 &mgr;m to 300 &mgr;m and a modulus in tension of 600 MPa or higher. The stretched cylindrical film is formed to have a thickness not larger than ⅓ of the die gap of the circular die. A belt-shaped transfer member may be produced by the above-described process.

Abstract: A process cartridge which is detachably mountable to a main body of an electrophotographic apparatus, including an electrophotographic photosensitive member to carry a toner image; an intermediate transfer belt having a contact part with the photosensitive member, and a primary transfer unit to primarily transfer the toner image at the contact part from the photosensitive member to the intermediate transfer belt, being integrally supported in one body. After the contact part is formed by the photosensitive member and the intermediate transfer belt being brought into contact with under a linear pressure of 0.5 N/cm and is left for 10 hours in an environment of 45° C.

Abstract: A process cartridge detachably mountable to the electrophotographic apparatus main body, integrally comprising an electrophotographic photosensitive member to carry a toner image; an intermediate transfer belt having a contact part with the photosensitive member; primary transfer means to primarily transfer the toner image from the photosensitive member to the intermediate transfer belt; and electric charge providing means to give electric charges in polarity opposite to the polarity of the toner at the time of the primary transfer to the toner on the intermediate transfer belt to return the toner on the intermediate transfer belt to the photosensitive member at the contact part to clean the intermediate transfer belt, wherein the intermediate transfer belt has an average glossiness of 30 to 90; glossiness deviation within 10; average film thickness of 40 to 200 &mgr;m; and film thickness unevenness within ±20% relative to the average film thickness.

Abstract: The present invention provides a process cartridge detachably mountable on the main body of an electrophotographic apparatus, which integrally supports a photosensitive drum for bearing toner images, and an intermediate transferring belt having a contact part with the photosensitive drum. The moisture amount of the intermediate transferring belt at 23° C./50% RH is less than 1% by weight and the sum of the surface roughness Ra of the photosensitive drum and the surface roughness Ra of the intermediate transferring belt is less than 0.8 &mgr;m. The present invention also provides an electrophotographic apparatus having the process cartridge and an image forming method using the electrophotographic apparatus.

Abstract: A process cartridge is disclosed integrally supporting an electrophotographic photosensitive member, an intermediate transfer belt, a primary-transfer means for transferring a toner image primarily from the electrophotographic photosensitive member to the intermediate transfer belt and a charge-providing means for providing the toner on the intermediate transfer belt with electric charges having a polarity reverse to the polarity the toner has at the time of the primary transfer and returning the toner on the intermediate transfer belt to the electrophotographic photosensitive member at the contact zone to clean the intermediate transfer belt. The intermediate transfer belt has a modulus of elasticity of from 500 MPa to 4,000 MPa at elongation from 0.5% to 0.6% in the peripheral direction, a breaking extension of from 5% to 850% in the peripheral direction and a surface roughness Ra of 1 &mgr;m or less.

Abstract: A process cartridge is disclosed integrally supporting an electrophotographic photosensitive member, an intermediate transfer belt, a primary-transfer means for transferring a toner image primarily from the electrophotographic photosensitive member to the intermediate transfer belt, a charge-providing means for providing the toner on the intermediate transfer belt with electric charges having a polarity reverse to the polarity the toner has at the time of the primary transfer and returning the toner on the intermediate transfer belt to the electrophotographic photosensitive member at the contact zone to clean the intermediate transfer belt, and an electrophotographic-photosensitive-member cleaning means. The process cartridge is dividable into an electrophotographic photosensitive member unit and an intermediate transfer belt unit and has a joining means which joins the two units.

Abstract: An endless belt for electrophotography is disclosed which is obtainable continuously by melt extrusion from a circular die.

Abstract: A full-color image forming apparatus for forming an image on a transfer material by transferring a toner image formed on an image bearing member onto the transfer material includes a belt-shaped transfer member for transferring a toner image from the image bearing member onto a transfer material, and a cleaning blade for cleaning the belt-shaped transfer member by being brought into contact therewith. Shape coefficients SF-1 and SF-2 of a toner for forming the toner image have values of 100≦SF-1≦125, and 100≦SF-2≦125, respectively. The belt-shaped transfer member has a seamless shape in which a seam is absent. An amount of abrasion of a surface of the belt-shaped transfer member is equal to or less than 10.0 mg. An angle of contact with respect to water of the belt-shaped transfer member is at least 60°. A slide resistance of a surface of the belt-shaped transfer member is equal to or less than 1 N.