Abstract: A sheet attachment detecting apparatus includes a rotary member which is rotatable for conveying a sheet and whose surface is electrically conductive, an electrically conductive member which can be abutted on and separated from the surface of the rotary member, and an attachment detector which applies a power to the rotary member and the electrically conductive member for detecting the attachment of the sheet around the rotary member.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a fixing apparatus that has fixing device for forming a fixing nip, recording material bearing an unfixed image being pinched and conveyed in the fixing nip and the unfixed image being fixed on the recording material. The recording material discharged from the fixing nip is curled downwardly, and a guide member guides the recording material discharged from the fixing nip. The guide member is slanted upwardly from an upstream side to a downstream side in the recording material conveying direction, and the guide member has a first guide portion and a second guide portion provided downstream in the recording material conveying direction of the first guide portion wherein a slant angle of the first guide portion is greater than a slant angle of the second guide portion.

Abstract: A fixing apparatus includes a fixing member and a heating unit. The fixing member forms a nip to convey a recording member which has an unfixed toner thereon. The toner on the recording medium is spherical. The heating unit is provided upstream of the nip in the moving direction of the recording medium, and does not come into contact with the recording medium. The fixing apparatus may include a control means for controlling the heat given from the heating unit to the recording medium.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus has a transfer medium detector contact member. The detector serves to detect the passage of a transfer medium by linear movement, swing movement, or like movement of the contact member in contact with a sheet of transfer medium separately fed. The contact member has a contact portion brought into contact with the transfer medium formed of a roller which is held rotatably and is adapted to rotated by the passage of the transfer medium.

Abstract: A recording apparatus often has a timing to shift to a standby status if there is no residual paper in the apparatus, for example, when a power source is turned on, when the apparatus is recovered from a sleep mode, when a door is closed, when the power source is reset, or the like. When the residual paper is detected in the apparatus at such a timing, the apparatus is controlled to a proper wait status in order to discharge the residual paper and waits for an instruction from the outside. In response to the paper discharging instruction from the outside, a discharging operation of the residual paper is executed.

Abstract: A double-side printing apparatus for printing on double surfaces of a recording medium is constructed to prevent both an adverse influence on an image forming unit from a fixing unit and an offset of a toner image on the recording medium. The double-side printing apparatus includes a first image forming unit for forming the toner image on one surface of the recording medium, a second image forming unit, provided downstream of the first image forming unit, for forming a toner image on the other surface of the recording medium, a first fixing unit for fixing the toner image on one surface of the recording medium by a light, a second fixing unit, provided downstream of the first fixing unit, for fixing the toner image on the other surface of the recording medium, and a preventing member, provided between the first fixing unit and the second image forming unit, for preventing the light from the first fixing unit from reaching a photo sensitive body of the second image forming unit.

Abstract: An image-fixing device for use in an electrophotographic process which includes an electrode (discharge member) on the exit side of a fuser mechanism is disclosed. This mechanism eliminates toner offset without requiring reformulation of the fuser or pressure rollers or restructuring of the fuser, and without compromising the release properties of those rollers. The preferred electrode has a saw-tooth configuration and is placed close to, but not contacting, the pressure roller and the back side of the printed page. A voltage, typically from about 200 to about 1,000 volts is applied to that electrode; the voltage has a polarity which is opposite the charge of the toner on the printed page.

Abstract: A copy sheet distortion-removing fusing apparatus is provided for preventing fused image deletions and poor fused copy sheet appearance. The copy sheet distortion-removing fusing apparatus includes a frame; a first pair of rotatable rollers mounted to the frame and forming a first nip for receiving and moving a copy sheet therethrough. The first pair of rotatable rollers includes a heated fuser roller, and a pressure roller forming the first nip against the fuser roller. The copy sheet distortion-removing fusing apparatus also includes a second pair of rotatable rollers forming a second nip for immediately receiving and moving therethrough a fused copy sheet coming from the first nip. Each roller of the second pair of rotatable rollers includes a hard surface layer.

Abstract: A sheet detecting device for contacting with a sheet being conveyed and detecting the sheet is provided with a first moving member urged and moved by the sheet being moved, N (N.gtoreq.

Abstract: An improved apparatus and method for reducing media wrinkling, especially in envelopes, caused by transport through a fusing nip are provided. To compensate for stress build up in the media as it travels through the fusing nip, the media is bent or "pre-stressed" in a direction opposite to the nip stress prior to the media entering the fusing nip. A media support surface is positioned upstream from the fusing nip to pre-stress the media by providing pre-nip bending to the media. The media is bent in a direction opposite to the curvature of the harder nip roller prior to the media entering the fusing nip. This pre-nip bending of the media substantially offsets the nip-stress imparted on the media by the fusing nip.

Abstract: A laser printer capable of printing on a strip of fan fold paper includes a photosensitized drum for generating thereon a toner image to be transferred to the surface of the paper strip. The drum is associated with tractor assemblies operable in synchronism with the speed of the drum so as to determine travel speed of the paper strip passing by the drum. The laser printer further includes a fixing unit having a pair of fixing rollers for pressing the paper strip therebetween and a roller drive mechanism to drive the fixing rollers so as to determine travel speed of the paper strip passing through the fixing unit. A tension unit is disposed between the drum and the fixing unit for applying a tension to and thereby taking up slack of such portion of the paper strip that runs between the drum and the fixing unit. The tension unit includes a tensioning plate supported for pivotal motion and a helical tension spring for urging the tensioning plate. A sensing mechanism senses displacement of the tensioning plate.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus which is able to form either single or double sided copies on a recording medium while achieving an excellent image quality in either a matted or glossy finish. The image forming apparatus includes a fixing portion in which a first roller includes a first temperature and hardness for forming a matted image, whereas a second roller includes a higher temperature and hardness for forming a glossy image. Alternatively, or in addition, to different hardness and temperatures, the recording medium can be conveyed at a first speed to form a matted image, and a slower speed to form a glossy image. The image forming apparatus further includes an inverse and re-fixing sub-mode, which utilizes an inverting and returning passage, for reducing the curl in a recording medium, and thus also reducing the instances in which clogging takes place. The inverting and returning passage has a length sufficient to accommodate a plurality of recording mediums.

Abstract: In an apparatus and method for producing simplex prints in a single pass duplex printer, two sheets are conveyed in coinciding relationship through a common path during a print cycle. While the sheets are simultaneously conveyed through the common path, a first toner image is formed on one side of one sheet and a second toner image is formed on an opposite side of the other sheet. The toner images are simultaneously fixed on both sheets by a separate fixing station.

Abstract: In an image forming apparatus provided with a first image carrying member; a belt-shaped second image carrying member onto which a toner image is transferred from the first image carrying member; a pair of rotatable fixing members forming a nip region for fixing the toner images transferred on the both sides of the sheet; a conveying device for guiding the sheet separated from an end of the belt-shaped second image carrying member to the pair of rotatable fixing members, when the sheet is nipped and conveyed through the nip region of the pair of rotatable fixing members, the belt-shaped second image carrying member and the pair of rotatable fixing members are arranged such that the sheet is conveyed so as to form a loop protruding from a line connecting the entrance of the nip region and the end of the belt-shaped second image carrying member.

Abstract: A fixing apparatus including a heat roller having a heat source therein; and first and second pressing rollers arranged to be pressed sequentially against the heat roller beginning with a more upstream pressing roller in a direction of rotation of the heat roller, wherein when the hardness of the heat roller is Hh, the hardness of the first pressing roller is Hp1 and the ratio of the hardness of the two rollers satisfies Hr1=Hh/Hp1, the heat roller and the first pressing roller are structured in such a manner that the following condition is satisfied: Hr1.gtoreq.1.5.

Abstract: A heat roller fixing device includes a heat roller, a press roller, and at least one curl correction mechanism. The curl correction mechanism is constituted by three discharge rollers that form an S-shaped nip portion. The curl correction mechanism is arranged on a recording medium discharge side of a fixing nip portion which is formed at a contact portion between the heat roller and the press roller.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus heats and presses a toner image retaining medium, with a toner image being formed thereon, and a sheet of print paper in face-contact with each other so that the toner image is transferred and simultaneously fixed onto the print paper, and rectifies the curling of the face-contact medium and paper during the heat-pressing process, thereby attaining a high print quality without creases on the paper which would otherwise emerge due to the heat-pressing process.

Abstract: Since the paper entry guide is disposed below and in close proximity to a fixing belt, the leading edge of recording paper can become wavy or curled when operated in a high temperature, high humidity environment or when printing on the reverse side of the paper in double-sided print mode, and this has lead to the problem that the leading edge of the recording paper after transfer is not properly inserted in the narrow spacing between the paper entry guide and the fixing belt, resulting in a recording paper jam. A fixing device comprises a fixing belt stretched around a heating roller with a heat source contained therein and a fixing roller, a pressing roller for pressing the fixing roller from below via the fixing belt, and a paper entry guide disposed below and in close proximity to the fixing belt and upstream of a nipping portion composed of the fixing belt and the pressing roller. The paper entry guide is pivotably supported on a fulcrum.

Abstract: A reproduction apparatus providing for selectable image quality and gloss. The reproduction apparatus as disclosed includes a dielectric member adapted to have latent images formed thereon. A development station for the reproduction apparatus includes a plurality of developer units respectively containing marking particles of different colors, at least one developer unit containing black marking particles and another developer unit containing clear marking particles, for selectively developing latent images on the dielectric member with marking particles from the developer units respectively. The developed marking particle images are transferred by a transfer station from said dielectric member to a receiver member.

Abstract: In a fixing apparatus for an electrophotographic apparatus which comprises a suction apparatus (14) for attracting a rear surface of recording material (6) which continues longitudinally and holds a toner image on a major surface thereof, a preheater (10) for preheating the recording material while adhering the recording material to the preheater by attracting force of the suction apparatus, and a pair of fixing rollers (11) formed by a heat roller and a pressure roller urged to each other, wherein the recording material is sandwiched and carried while being heated and pressurized by the heat roller and the pressure roller at a pressing portion therebetween thereby to fix the toner image on the major surface of the recording material, the fixing apparatus further comprises a recording material lifting apparatus (15) having a projection member (15a) movable relative to the surface of the preheater.

Abstract: An electrophotographic printer has an electro-thermally operating fixing station (23) with a heated fixing roller (86) and a feed roller (87) which can be pivoted on and away. With the aid of an unheated, pivoting paper guide saddle (93), the reel paper is guided around the fixing roller (86) at a predeterminable wrapping angle (U) for the purpose of preheating before the actual fixing. In order to fix the printed image on the reel paper (12) in an offset-free and smudge-free manner during the starting and stopping process, the movements of the elements of the fixing station (23) and the transport of the paper are coordinated in such a way that there is no relative movement between the fixing roller (86) and toner image on the reel paper (12) when the reel paper is placed against the fixing roller (86) and when the reel paper (12) is stripped off the fixing roller (86).

Abstract: An image forming apparatus is disclosed which comprisesa toner-image holding unit for holding a toner image,a recording medium,transfer-fixing means for bringing the recording medium into contact with the toner image on the toner-image holding unit and heating the toner image so as to transfer and fix the toner image onto the recording medium,toner-image cooling means for cooling the toner image transferred and fixed onto the recording medium so as to suppress the flowing of the toner image, andpeeling means for peeling the recording medium off the toner-image holding unit.

Abstract: An electrostatographic printer is provided in which a web of receiving material (12) is fed along a web path, at least one toner image is formed on at least a first face of the receiving material (12) as it is fed along the web path and the toner image is fixed onto the receiving material (12). A finishing element (66, 67) positioned downstream of the fixing station (16) contacts the first face of the receiving material (12) while the finishing element is at a temperature above the glass transition temperature T.sub.g of the toner to modify the finish of the toner image.

Abstract: In the fixing station, the recording substrate 4 is transported by friction between two rollers (1, 2). In order to tauten the recording substrate (4), it is braked by a braking device (3) upstream of the rollers (1, 2). A length equalizing element (5) equalizes any length differences occurring in the recording substrate (4). The rotational speed of the rollers (1, 2) is controlled as a function of the deflection of the length equalizing element (5). The deflection time (txy) between reaching a deflection point a and a deflection point b is registered and compared with a desired deflection time (tsp). The braking force of the braking device (3) is reduced if the desired deflection time (tsp) is exceeded.

Abstract: This invention concerns an image forming apparatus provided with a fixing device for fixing an image formed on a sheet. This apparatus comprises shutters for shielding opening parts formed in the fixing device for the passage of the sheet, a driver for switching the shutters between the opened state and the closed state, a sensor for detecting the presence or absence of the opened state of the shutters, and a CPU for setting the driver moving and controlling the opening or closing motion of the shutters. The CPU compares the signal to open or close the shutters and the signal from the sensor and prohibits the fixing device from producing a fixing motion when the sensor detects the closed state of the shutters in spite of the issuance of a signal to open the shutters.

Abstract: An apparatus and process for transporting a migration imaging member over a heat source with minimum stress when developing the migration imaging member. The imaging member is conveyed by pinch transport rollers on either side of the heat source, at least one of the pinch rollers being tapered so that the migration imaging member is only constrained along its two edges. The migration imaging member has the degrees of freedom, in its center, to deform under heat and to settle to its stress free state under the pinch. Also, the heat source does not have to be insulated from the transport rollers since the temperature at the transport rollers is less critical due to the minimized tension in the migration imaging member between the rollers.

Abstract: An electrographic printing or copying machine contains, by way of example, a preheating saddle (20,21) positioned upstream of a pair of fixing rollers in the recording substrate running direction and a braking element (10). The preheating saddle (20,21) and braking elements (10) form a gliding surface (23). Suction openings (18,19) in fluid communication with a vacuum-generating device ensure good contact between gliding surface (23) and recording substrate. With the aid of a valve (1), the vacuum can be matched to the operating parameters of the printing and copying machine, or to the parameters of the recording substrate.