Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Natsuki Watanabe

Takahiro Imada

Hiroshi Yoshinaga

Naoki Iwaya

Takuya Seshita

Daisuke Inoue

Yoshiharu Takahashi

Hitoshi Fujiwara

Hiroshi Kajiyama

Yutaka Naitoh

A fixing device includes a fixing rotator, a pressure rotator, a belt holder, a pressure gear, a thermal equalizer, a nip formation pad, and a support. The thermal equalizer includes a first face facing a fixing nip between the fixing rotator and the pressure rotator, and second and third faces bending and extending from upstream end and downstream end, respectively, of the first face in a direction of rotation of the fixing rotator. An upstream boundary portion between the first face and the second face and a downstream boundary portion between the first face and the third face each include, at least in a longitudinal end portion of the thermal equalizer proximate to the pressure gear, an inclined portion inclined to narrow the first face toward a longitudinal end of the thermal equalizer and having an angle of inclination not greater than 3&#xb0;.

Fixing device having thermal equalizer and image forming apparatus incorporating same

A fixing device includes a heater including a first sealing portion and a second sealing portion disposed at a first lateral end and a second lateral end of a tube in a longitudinal direction of a fixing rotator, respectively. The first sealing portion includes a first inboard end distanced from a first lateral end of a heat generating portion with a first distance in the longitudinal direction of the fixing rotator. The second sealing portion includes a second inboard end distanced from a second lateral end of the heat generating portion with a second distance in the longitudinal direction of the fixing rotator. The second distance is smaller than the first distance. A driving force transmitter transmits a driving force to the fixing rotator or an opposed rotator and is disposed in a first lateral end side of the fixing device where the first sealing portion is disposed.

Fixing device and image forming apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a pressing device, an apparatus body, an opening body, and a vibration insulator. The pressing device housed in the apparatus body is configured to press a pressing body to a pressing target body. The opening body is configured to open and close to the apparatus body. The opening body presses a pressing target portion of the apparatus body, at a first pressing portion to cancel a pressing state of the pressing device by opening of the opening body and at a second pressing portion to enter the pressing state of the pressing device by closing of the opening body. The vibration insulator is provided on at least one of the pressing target portion and the second pressing portion, at a contact portion at which the pressing target portion contacts the second pressing portion when the first pressing portion cancels the pressing state.

Image forming apparatus incorporating pressing device

A fixing device includes a rotatable pressing roller, a fixing rotator to rotate in contact with the pressing roller, a nip formation pad, and a slide sheet disposed between the nip formation pad and the fixing rotator. The slide sheet includes a base material layer made of a woven fabric of spun yarn. In the base material layer, a distance between adjacent spun yarns is equal to or less than 0.4 times a width of the spun yarn in a cross-section of the slide sheet in a direction of slide movement of the fixing rotator, and, in a cross-section of the slide sheet in a longitudinal direction of the slide sheet and a direction perpendicular to the slide movement of the fixing rotator, a thickness of the spun yarn is equal to or greater than 0.2 times a width of the spun yarn.

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Kanagawa, Japan

Natsuki Watanabe