Class / Patent application number | Description | Number of patent applications / Date published |
399400000 | To fixing (e.g., fuser) | 49 |
20080219733 | IMAGE FORMING DEVICE WITH INTERLOCKED MECHANISM - A toner image formed on a photosensitive drum | 09-11-2008 |
20080279600 | IMAGE FIXING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS HAVING THE SAME - An image fixing apparatus and an image forming apparatus having the same, the image forming apparatus including: a main body, in which a conveyance path for a printing medium is formed; a first unit arranged on the conveyance path, a second unit arranged on the conveyance path, downstream from the first unit, with respect to a transferring direction of the printing medium, and a distance adjusting unit to open the first unit, according to an opening of the second unit. | 11-13-2008 |
20080317532 | Image forming apparatus - An image forming apparatus includes a transfer device that transfers a toner image formed on an image bearer onto a transfer sheet and a fixing device that fixes the toner image onto the transfer sheet. The transfer device is freely movable between an operational position and a non-operational position and includes a contacting section that directly contacts the fixing device and determines a position of the transfer device. | 12-25-2008 |
20090003909 | RADIUS PROFILED VACUUM MEDIA HANDLING TRANSPORT - System and methods providing a plurality of fusers, and one or more radius profiled media handling transports for transporting media in a radius, in an image forming device. The system includes one or more of a plurality of fusers, and radius profiled media handling transport devices arranged in a fashion allowing for improved throughput of media while reducing operating costs. The plurality of fusers allows for the use of individual low capacity fusers that are equal to or less than the overal capacity of the image forming device. Media transport devices transport media on stretch belts across a radius of rollers with a means for providing an adhering force for stabilizing the media to the belt. The rollers are arranged along one side of the frame, along which the media is transported, and a frame may contain an air plenum so as to allow for the drawing of a vacuum through the rollers. The media transport device allows for optimizing a configuration of the image forming device. | 01-01-2009 |
20090003910 | Image Forming Apparatus - An image forming apparatus includes a medium guide. A toner image is formed on an image bearing body. A transfer section transfers the toner image onto a print medium. A fixing section fixes the toner image into a permanent image. A guide section is disposed along a transport path in which the print medium advances toward the fixing section. The guide section includes a first portion that extends substantially parallel to the transport path, and a second portion closer to the fixing section ( | 01-01-2009 |
20090047050 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image forming apparatus includes a housing, a photosensitive body mounted in the housing to form a visible image, a transfer unit mounted to an inner front portion of the housing to transfer the visible image of the photosensitive body onto a printing medium, a fusing unit mounted in a downstream side from the transfer unit in a printing medium feeding path to fuse the visible image to the printing medium, and a reverse unit mounted in a downstream side from the fusing unit in the printing medium feeding path to reverse the printing medium having passed through the fusing unit. Accordingly, a moving direction of the printed printing medium is reversed by the reverse unit so that the printing medium can be discharged while a printed surface of the printing medium is directed downward, thereby easily drawing out the printing medium without additionally arranging the printed pages in a correct order. | 02-19-2009 |
20090060615 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS, CONTROL METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THE IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS, AND COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM - A control method for controlling an image forming apparatus includes fixing recording material on a sheet; conveying, by a conveying unit, the sheet on which the recording material is fixed; and controlling the conveying unit such that the conveying unit reciprocates the sheet on a conveying path along which the sheet is conveyed. | 03-05-2009 |
20090116888 | THERMALLY UNIFORM PAPER PREHEAT TRANSPORT - A pre-heater system and adapted to be used on an electrostatic marking apparatus for improving gloss on media having marking thereon at a location in the apparatus prior to a conventional fuser roll assembly or station, the system including a primary heater adapted to blow pressurized hot air into a surface of an image receiving media in order to substantially dispense hot air throughout an entire paper or media surface; and a preheat media transport for transporting media from the location in the apparatus prior to the conventional fuser roll assembly or station through the primary heater, the preheat media transport includes means for maintaining the preheat media transport at a substantially uniform predefined temperature. | 05-07-2009 |
20090129839 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING METHOD - The image forming apparatus is provided with: a carrier that carries a toner image; a transporting unit that transports a sheet with using a transporting route; a transfer unit that transfers the toner image carried by the carrier to the sheet transported by the transporting unit; a fixing unit that fixes the toner image transferred by the transfer unit on the sheet; and an exit opening that is disposed so that a transfer position of the transfer unit is located between the exit opening and a fixation position of the fixing unit in a section including a transporting route over the entire length and that discharges the sheet on which the toner image is fixed by the fixing unit to an outside of the apparatus. | 05-21-2009 |
20090136278 | PAPER EDGE-BEVELING METHOD, AND AN IMAGE FORMING DEVICE INCLUDING THE SAME - Fuser roller edgewear is reduced by a prior beveling of the inboard edge, the outboard edge, or both, of paper sheets that are to be provided to the fuser. | 05-28-2009 |
20090148212 | FIXING DEVICE - An embodiment provides plural rollers that rotate by sliding contact with a sheet of paper on a fixing guide. The sheet of paper supporting a toner image is guided toward a nip position of a fixing roller along the rollers of the fixing guide. At guiding by the fixing guide, the sheet of paper is not contact with a guide plate. | 06-11-2009 |
20090162121 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image forming apparatus adjusts a size of the loop of the sheet between the fixing unit and the transfer unit, according to a signal from a loop detection unit provided in a sheet conveyance path between a transfer unit and a fixing unit and configured to detect a loop of a sheet. The loop detection unit includes a detecting lever that is provided protrudably and retractably from and into the sheet conveyance path and abuts against the sheet, and a loop detection sensor that is turned on or off by the detecting lever. If the sheet is to be conveyed only by the transfer unit, the detecting lever moves to a retracting position from the sheet conveyance path. | 06-25-2009 |
20090297242 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image forming apparatus includes an image transfer portion for transferring a toner image to a printing sheet. A fixing portion includes a fixing member and a pressure member pressed against the fixing member for fixing the toner image to the printing sheet. A guide is between the image transfer portion and the fixing portion for guiding the printing sheet carrying the toner image toward a nip between the fixing member and the pressure member. The guide includes a rigid first guide plate and a flexible second guide plate joined to the first guide plate at a downstream portion thereof along a sheet feeding direction. The second guide plate has a free downstream end that is closer to the fixing member than a tangent line drawn to pass through the nip between the fixing member and the pressure member. | 12-03-2009 |
20090304426 | IMAGE CONVEYANCE UNIT, INTERMEDIATE TRANSFER UNIT, ELECTROSTATIC TRANSFER UNIT, AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A belt cover is configured to approach an intermediate transfer belt when an intermediate transfer portion retracts from a photosensitive drum. This allows the space required for the retraction of the belt cover to be made smaller when the intermediate transfer portion retracts from the photosensitive drum. Therefore, a color printer body can be made more compact. | 12-10-2009 |
20090304427 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image forming apparatus includes: an image forming section for forming a toner image on a sheet; a fixing device for fixing the toner image on the sheet with heat; a reversal conveyance section which reverses a conveyance direction of the sheet which has passed through the fixing device; a conveyance member provided at the reversal conveyance section which is changed to be in either one of a conveyance state in which the conveyance member is in contact with an image supporting surface of the sheet, and to be in an evacuated state in which the conveyance member is separated from the image supporting surface of the sheet; and a switching mechanism for switching the conveyance member to be in one of the conveyance state and the evacuated state. | 12-10-2009 |
20090324311 | Medium transporting apparatus and image forming apparatus having the same - A medium transporting apparatus includes a first transport member and a movable guide member. The first transport member transports a medium in the medium transport direction. The movable guide member comes into contact with and guides the medium transported by the first transport member along a medium transport path. The movable guide member is also movable from a first position to a second position downstream of the first position in the medium transport direction. | 12-31-2009 |
20100061786 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR DETECTING THE TRAVEL DIRECTION OF MEDIA IN A MEDIA PATH IN AN IMAGE MARKING AND FUSING SYSTEM - An apparatus ( | 03-11-2010 |
20100098473 | SHEET CONVEYING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - In a sheet conveying apparatus according to the present invention, a guide unit is rotatably disposed in an apparatus body. The sheet conveying apparatus includes a conveying portion which is disposed in the guide unit in such a manner as to be movable relatively to a cover and conveys the sheet on a second conveyance path, and a positioning portion which is disposed in the cover and positions the conveying portion at the cover when the cover is closed with respect to the apparatus body. The guide unit is moved to a closure position during the operation for closing the cover, and thereafter, the positioning portion positions the conveying portion by the operation for closing the cover. | 04-22-2010 |
20100104340 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - In an image forming apparatus, the overall length of a heat generating resistor is set longer than the width of a recording paper, which is the greatest of widths of standard size recording papers that can be used on the image forming apparatus. An electrical resistance of an edge area of the heat generating resistor per unit length is set smaller than that of a center area of the heat generating resistor. The position of a boundary between the center area and the edge area is set so that the position of the side edge of the recording paper whose width is the greatest exists within the edge area and so that if the recording paper having the second greatest width is fed by a one edge-aligned paper feeding method, the position of the side edge of a recording paper whose width is the greatest of the widths of the standard size recording papers that can be used on the image forming apparatus except the width of the recording paper that is the greatest thereof is set at a position within the center area. | 04-29-2010 |
20100183351 | MEDIUM CONVEYING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A medium conveying apparatus includes: a medium conveying member that conveys a medium; a rotation start position detecting unit as defined herein; a driving start timing determining unit that determines whether a time reaches a driving start timing when rotation driving by the medium conveying member is started or not; and a medium conveying member controlling unit that controls the rotation driving of the medium conveying member, and that, in case the driving start timing determining unit determines that the time reaches the driving start timing and the rotation driving is started from one of the rotation start positions, the rotation driving is stopped at another one of the rotation start positions that is different from the rotation start position where the rotation driving is started, based on a result of the detection by the rotation start position detecting unit. | 07-22-2010 |
20100215420 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image apparatus includes: a first housing including an image forming unit for forming an image on a recording material; a second housing including a heating unit for heating the formed image; a conveying unit, provided across the first and second housings, that conveys the recording material to a side of the heating unit using a no-end belt; a conveying unit including a first fixed unit disposed on a side of the second housing and a second fixed unit disposed on a side of the first housing; a first fixing unit positioning the first fixed unit to the heating unit, and fixing the first fixed unit to restrict directions other than a rotating direction of the conveying unit around the first fixed unit; a second fixing unit rotating the conveying unit around the first fixed unit, and fixing the second fixed unit to the first housing. | 08-26-2010 |
20100221051 | Sheet feeding device and image forming apparatus incorporating same - A sheet feeding device includes a sheet feed cassette, a bottom plate and an end wall mechanism. When the number of recording media sheets decreases, the bottom plate hinged at a trailing edge thereof rises about the hinged end to keep the top sheet of the recording media sheets in contact with a sheet feed roller. The end wall mechanism includes a first urging member, a first pressing member, a support member, and a second pressing member, and aligns and presses the trailing edge of the recording medium. The first pressing member urged by the first urging member and supported by the support member presses the trailing edge of the recording medium. The second pressing member urged by the second urging member moves down due to the weight of the recording medium on the second pressing member and moves up when the number of the recording media sheets decreases. | 09-02-2010 |
20100247200 | RECORDING MEDIUM TRANSPORTING DIRECTION SWITCHING MECHANISM, FIXING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A recording-medium-transporting-direction-switching-mechanism including a transport-unit transporting the recording-medium in one/another directions; a guiding-unit rotatably supported and one-end-portion being provided to be capable of existing in a transport-path, the guiding-unit being rotated by a leading-end-portion of the recording-medium transported toward the transport-unit contacting the guiding-unit, and rotating in a reverse-direction after a trailing-end-portion of the recording-medium transported by the transport-unit in the one-direction passes therethrough, and guiding the recording-medium transported by the transport-unit in the other-direction after the trailing-end-portion of the recording-medium passes therethrough, the one-end-portion of the guiding-unit having substantially rectanglular-shape, and a direction in which the leading-end-portion of the recording-medium transported toward the transport-unit is directed intersecting at an acute angle with a surface of the guiding-unit against which the leading-end-portion of the recording-medium contacts; and a detecting-unit that detects a state where the recording-medium is passing through the guiding-unit by rotating integrally with the guiding-unit, is provided. | 09-30-2010 |
20100278574 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A before-toner-fixation conveying guide is provided between a transfer portion configured to transfer a toner image, which is formed by an image forming portion, onto a sheet and a fixing portion configured to fix the toner image, which is transferred on the sheet by the transfer portion, to the sheet. The before-toner-fixation conveying guide guides the sheet, on which the toner image is transferred, to the fixing portion. A plurality of consecutive chevron shapes are formed, along a direction orthogonal to a sheet conveying direction, in an end portion on a downstream side in the sheet conveying direction of the before-toner-fixation conveying guide. | 11-04-2010 |
20110044745 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING METHOD - An image forming apparatus includes a transfer belt onto which an image is transferred, a roller around which the transfer belt is wound, a transfer roller that sandwiches the transfer belt with the belt driving roller, a transfer medium transporting unit, a guide portion, and a fixing unit. The transfer roller is arranged to form a transfer nip with the roller, and transfers the image from the transfer belt to a transfer medium. The transfer medium transporting unit vertically upwardly sucks the transfer medium, and transports the transfer medium with the image facing vertically down. The guide portion vertically upwardly sucks the transfer medium transported by the transfer medium transporting unit. The fixing unit has a heating roller and a pressing roller to form a fixing nip, and fixes the image guided by the guide at the fixing nip. | 02-24-2011 |
20110064501 | SHEET-MEMBER TRANSPORT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A sheet-member transport device includes an endless belt that is an endless band member formed by arranging fibers substantially in the form of a mesh, a surface at an outer periphery side of the endless belt being treated with surface processing so that the surface at the outer periphery side has a higher friction coefficient than a friction coefficient of a surface at an inner periphery side of the endless belt; and at least two rotary members, the endless belt being wound around the rotary members, the rotary members being rotated to move the endless belt around the two rotary members. | 03-17-2011 |
20110081182 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image forming apparatus according to the present invention comprises a cylindrical photosensitive body, a transfer unit, a fixing unit and a paper guide. The photosensitive body carries an image on it. The transfer unit includes a transfer roller in compressive contact with the photosensitive body. The fixing unit includes a heating roller and a pressing roller. The paper guide is positioned between the transfer and fixing units. The photosensitive body and the transfer roller are so arranged that the nip tangent between this body and this roller inclines toward the paper guide away from a line connecting the nip between this body and this roller and the nip between the heating and pressing rollers. The paper guide has a recess formed nearer the nip between the is photosensitive body and the transfer roller than the midpoint on the line connecting the two nips. | 04-07-2011 |
20110103860 | ELECTROSTATOGRAPHIC APPARATUS HAVING IMPROVED TRANSPORT MEMBER - The present invention is an electrostatographic reproduction apparatus which includes a primary imaging member for producing an electrostatic latent image, a development station for applying toner particles to said latent image which forms a developed toner image, and a transfer station for transferring said developed toner image from the primary imaging member to a receiver. A fuser assembly is included for fixing the developed toner image to the receiver, to form a fused toner image on the receiver. An endless transport member is provided for transporting the receiver to or from the fuser assembly, the transport member having a substrate bearing an oil-absorbing porous layer that would tribocharge positively upon contact with negatively charged toner particles, and a porous overcoat outermost layer that does not tribocharge positively upon contact with negatively charged toner particles. | 05-05-2011 |
20110103861 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - In an image forming apparatus that separates a thin recording material by pushing up a transfer belt, if a position where a thick recording material separates from the transfer belt is far from a leading end of a recording-material guide, conveyability of the separated thick recording material after separation becomes stable. A stretching member is provided downstream of a push-up means and upstream of the recording-material guide in a recording-material conveying direction, and the stretching member separates a thick recording material from the transfer belt. | 05-05-2011 |
20110103862 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS AND GUIDE THEREFOR CAPABLE OF REDUCING TONER SCATTERED ON RECORDING MEDIUM - An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, a transferor, a fixing unit, and a guide. The image carrier carries a toner image. The transferor opposes the image carrier to form a transfer nip and transfers the toner image on the image carrier onto a recording medium at the transfer nip. The fixing unit fixes the toner image on the recording medium. The guide guides the recording medium bearing the toner image from the transferor toward the fixing unit and includes a surface portion directly contacting the recording medium. The surface portion includes a material for charging the recording medium to have a polarity opposite to the polarity of a toner forming the toner image. | 05-05-2011 |
20110158726 | PICKUP ROLLER AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS HAVING THE SAME - A pickup roller includes a supporting layer and a pickup layer, which includes a base surrounding the outer perimeter of the supporting layer and a plurality of particles which are distributed throughout the base and have a different hardness than a hardness of the base. | 06-30-2011 |
20110211887 | SHEET CONVEYING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A cleaning brush is not made slidably contact suctioning endless belts which pass inlets, and the cleaning brush is made slidably contact non-suctioning endless belts which do not pass the inlets. Consequently, it is possible to bring out paper dust and transfer remaining toner which adhere to the suctioning endless belts in attracting areas in which the inlet holes are formed, to the exterior of the apparatus by means of sheets to be conveyed. By contrast with this, from non-suctioning endless belts, the cleaning brush can clean and remove paper dust and transfer remaining toner which adhere to the non-suctioning endless belts. | 09-01-2011 |
20110229236 | FIXING DEVICE, FIXING METHOD, IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS, AND IMAGE FORMING METHOD - A fixing device in an image forming apparatus includes a conveyance member to convey a recording medium at a fixing nip where an image carried on the recording medium is fixed onto it; a plurality of temperature detectors to detect temperature of the conveyance member, the detectors being disposed at both end portions of the conveyance member outside an area where a maximum-sided recording medium passes through; a guide member to guide the recording medium toward the fixing nip; and a guide plate displacing unit to displace a part of the guide member in a direction orthogonal to a conveyed surface of the recording medium to be conveyed at the fixing nip, based on temperature difference detected by the plurality of temperature detectors. | 09-22-2011 |
20110236101 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS WITH REDUCED HEIGHT - There is provided an image forming apparatus including a transferring unit, fixing unit, a first sheet conveying path section, a re-conveying unit and a charge-removing member. The transferring unit transfers developer onto a sheet. The fixing unit fixes the developer transferred to the sheet to form a visible image on the sheet. The first sheet conveying path section extends through the transfer unit and the fixing unit, the sheet being conveyed from the transfer unit to the fixing unit along the first sheet conveying path section. The re-conveying unit constitutes a second sheet conveying path section for re-conveying the sheet from the fixing unit to an inlet side of the transfer unit, the second sheet conveying path section being positioned below the first sheet conveying path section. The charge-removing member is disposed between the first sheet conveying path section and the second sheet conveying path section, the charge-removing member constituting a part of the second sheet conveying path section and removing charges from the sheet conveyed along the first sheet conveying path section. | 09-29-2011 |
20110280639 | CURVED PRE-FUSER TRANSPORT TO ENABLE LARGER SHEETS THROUGH A XEROGRAPHIC PRINT ENGINE - A media transport that will fit between a xerographic transfer station and a fuser station is provided by this invention. The purpose of this media transport is to increase the distance that media with an unfused image will travel from transfer to fusing stations thus permitting longer media to be used in the xerographic system without the risk of disturbing the unfused image. A vacuum is positioned internally of the transport that will provide a vacuum force to hold a media sheet to belts that are guided by the top surface of the media transport. The media transport has a configuration with an arced top surface where the arc length of the top surface exceeds the overall width of the transport. | 11-17-2011 |
20120020714 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR REDUCING FUSER NOISE IN A PRINTING APPARATUS - An apparatus and method that reduces fuser noise in a printing apparatus. The method can include generating a first image on a first media sheet traveling in a media path. The method can include generating a second image on a second media sheet traveling in the media path consecutive to and a first distance from the first media sheet. The method can include reducing the first distance between the first media sheet and the second media sheet to a second distance between the first media sheet and the second media sheet after generating the first image. The method can include fusing the second image to the second media sheet after reducing the first distance between the first media sheet and the second media sheet. | 01-26-2012 |
20120230746 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - The present invention provides an image forming apparatus in which a recording paper to which a toner has been transferred is guided by a guide member and transported to a nip region between two rotatable members that are pressed against each other, and the toner on the recording paper is fixed at the nip region. In this image forming apparatus, a conductive or semiconductive region and an insulating region that are to be brought into contact with the recording paper are sequentially arranged in a recording paper transport direction on a guide face of the guide member, the conductive or semiconductive region is grounded, and the insulating region includes an end portion of the guide member oriented in the recording paper transport direction. | 09-13-2012 |
20130004221 | GUIDE DEVICE WITH MECHANISM CAPABLE OF MINIMIZING DAMAGE TO TONER IMAGE BY WATER DROPLET AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCORPORATING SAME - A guide device for guiding a recording medium discharged from a fixing device includes a first conveyance wall plate and at least one rib assembly mounted on the first conveyance wall plate. The at least one rib assembly includes a plurality of primary ribs contacting the first conveyance wall plate, each having a first thickness in a recording medium conveyance direction; and a plurality of secondary ribs mounted on selected ones of the plurality of primary ribs. Each secondary rib includes a bottom contacting the primary rib and having a second thickness in the recording medium conveyance direction that is smaller than the first thickness of the primary rib; and a top contacting the recording medium and having a third thickness in the recording medium conveyance direction that is smaller than the second thickness of the bottom of the secondary rib. | 01-03-2013 |
20130004222 | MEDIA GUIDE MECHANISM, FIXING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCORPORATING SAME - A mechanism for guiding a recording medium into a nip formed between a first rotary member subjected to heating, and a second rotary member pressed against the first rotary member includes a guide member and a biasing member. The guide member is disposed upstream from the nip to guide the recording medium therealong. The biasing member is connected to the guide member to mechanically bias the guide member. The guide member is subjected to a constant biasing force from the biasing member and to a pressure force from the recording medium. The pressure force is opposite the biasing force and variable with a stiffness of the recording medium being guided. The guide member is movable to different operational positions depending on the biasing and pressure forces acting thereon. | 01-03-2013 |
20130084118 | DEVELOPMENT DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A development device includes a development part configured to develop a developer image on a surface of an electrostatic latent image carrier based on an image signal, a transfer part configured to transfer the developer image to a medium; and a guide part configured to regulate a contact of the medium, on which the developer image has been transferred and been exited, to a housing of the development part, and to guide the medium to a carrying path. | 04-04-2013 |
20130164065 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image forming apparatus includes a transfer unit, a fixing unit, a conveyance belt, a suction unit, and a control unit. The transfer unit transfers a toner image to a sheet. The fixing unit conveys the sheet and to fix the toner image transferred by the transfer unit on the sheet. The conveyance belt provided between the transfer unit and the fixing unit conveys the sheet. The suction unit suctions the sheet to the conveyance belt. The control unit controls to suction the sheet to the conveyance belt, and controls to stop suction or weaken a suction force in response to performing conveyance control for changing a conveyance speed of the fixing unit so that a loop amount of the sheet between the transfer unit and the fixing unit is maintained in a constant range after the leading edge of the sheet reaches the fixing unit. | 06-27-2013 |
20130177341 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS AND GUIDE THEREFOR CAPABLE OF REDUCING TONER SCATTERED ON RECORDING MEDIUM - An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, a transferor, a fixing unit, and a guide. The image carrier carries a toner image. The transferor opposes the image carrier to form a transfer nip and transfers the toner image on the image carrier onto a recording medium at the transfer nip. The fixing unit fixes the toner image on the recording medium. The guide guides the recording medium bearing the toner image from the transferor toward the fixing unit and includes a surface portion directly contacting the recording medium. The surface portion includes a material for charging the recording medium to have a polarity opposite to the polarity of a toner forming the toner image. | 07-11-2013 |
20130223908 | PAPER FEED APPARATUS, IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS, AND PAPER FEED METHOD - A paper feed apparatus includes a paper housing unit configured to house paper at a first position, a bottom plate provided in the paper housing unit and configured to retain the paper, a moving unit configured to move the bottom plate between the first position and a second position, a paper feed roller configured to feed the paper retained by the bottom plate at the second position, and a paper feed control unit configured to cause the moving unit to move the bottom plate to the second position when a paper feed preparation request for requesting paper feed preparation has been input. | 08-29-2013 |
20130243508 | Image Forming Apparatus - An image forming apparatus, including: an electrophotographic image forming unit which forms an image on a recording medium; a fixing unit which thermally fixes the image; an insulating chute disposed between the image forming unit and the fixing unit, including: a guide face and a back face, and configured to guide the image-formed recording medium to the fixing unit; and a planar metal member disposed on the back face and expanding to a first end edge portion as an edge portion of one of end portions of the chute nearer to the fixing unit. The metal member includes a second end edge portion that is an edge portion of one of end portions of the metal member nearer to the fixing unit. The second end edge portion has an acute angle in cross section as viewed in a widthwise direction of the recording medium. | 09-19-2013 |
20140079459 | FIXING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - A fixing device includes a pair of fixing members that contact each other and that rotate or circulate, and that heat and press a sheet that is transported with a toner image being carried thereby and that is interposed between the fixing members, to fix the toner image to the sheet; and a guide member that guides to a fixing area the sheet that is transported towards the fixing members. The guide member includes a metallic member and resin members. The metallic member has a guide surface that faces the sheet that is transported towards the guide member. The resin members are disposed at the guide surface so as to be spaced apart from each other in a widthwise direction. The resin members protrude from the guide surface and are struck by a front edge of the sheet in the transport direction of the sheet. | 03-20-2014 |
20140133894 | SHEET CONVEYING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS HAVING SAME - A sheet conveying device includes upstream side rollers; discharge rollers located downstream from the upstream side rollers in the feeding direction of sheets, to discharge sheets to a discharge tray; a reflective optical detector located between the discharging rollers and the upstream side rollers, to emit light and to receive light reflected off of the sheets; and a recognizing unit to detect, based on output of the detector, whether or not a sheet is present at a detection region of the detector. When a sheet is fed over a conveying path inclined with respect to a detection face of the detector, the discharge rollers feed the sheet in a bent state between the upstream side rollers and the discharge rollers, so that the sheet is close to the detector or the sheet is close to being perpendicular to an optical axis of the detector. | 05-15-2014 |
20140234001 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image forming apparatus includes: a transfer portion for transferring an image onto a sheet at a transfer nip; a fixing portion for fixing the image on the sheet at a fixing nip; a sheet feeding guide, provided between the transfer portion and the fixing portion, having a sheet guide surface; a sheet detecting portion provided between the transfer portion and the fixing portion; and a controller for controlling a sheet feeding speed of at least one of the transfer portion and the fixing portion depending on an output of the sheet detecting portion so that a feeding attitude of the sheet sandwiched at both of the transfer nip and the fixing nip is maintained in a predetermined feeding attitude. The sheet guide surface of the sheet feeding guide has a most recessed region in a region between the transfer portion and the sheet detecting portion. | 08-21-2014 |
20160026135 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS - An image forming apparatus has a developing unit, a fixing unit, a receiving unit, a paper setting unit, and a control unit. The fixing unit conveys paper on which a visible image is formed by the developing unit between a heating roller and a pressurizing roller to fix the visible image to the paper. The receiving unit receives a demand for smoothing-out of wrinkles of the paper. The paper setting unit sets paper to be subjected to smoothing-out of wrinkles. When the receiving unit receives the demand for smoothing-out of wrinkles, the control unit performs control so that the developing unit is not operated and the paper to be subjected to smoothing-out of wrinkles set in the paper setting unit is conveyed to the fixing unit. | 01-28-2016 |
20160252865 | IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS | 09-01-2016 |