Brother Kogyo Kabushiki-kaisha

Noboru Suzuki

Kei Ishida

Yoshihiro Miyauchi

Takuji Matsuno

Tomohiro Kondo

Yasushi Fujiwara

Shougo Sato

Hirotaka Mori

Hiroshi Nakano

Kaoru Suzuki

Seiji Hiramatsu

Atsushi Ozawa

Hisashi Tsukawaki

Kenji Takeuchi

Kotaro Haruta

Tatsuya Koyama

Masahito Kajita

Masaki Yasuda

Kentaro Sawano

Etsuko Fujiwara

A fixing device has: a nip member; a tubular belt looped around the nip member and including a metal tube, the metal tube having an outer peripheral surface; and a roller having a shaft and an elastic portion covering the shaft, the roller defining an axial direction, the elastic portion and the nip member being configured to nip a predetermined portion of the tubular belt. The outer peripheral surface of the metal tube has an end region in the axial direction, and a rough region between the end regions. The rough region has a surface roughness greater than a surface roughness of the end region. And the end region and the rough region provide a boundary region, therebetween which is positioned outward of the predetermined region in the axial direction.

Fixing device capable of restraining frictional wearing of nip member and roller

An image forming apparatus is provided. The image forming apparatus includes a chassis having a first opening on a first side, photosensitive members, an intermediate transfer belt arranged to have a surface thereof facing the photosensitive members, primary-transfer members, a secondary-transfer roller, a first feed roller, a cleaner device, a waste toner container, which is removably installed in the chassis through the first opening and settled in a position opposite from the photosensitive members across the intermediate transfer belt, a connector, a first feeding path extending in a range between the first feed roller and the secondary-transfer roller, and a second feeding path being formed in clearance between the intermediate transfer belt and the waste toner container to convey a recording sheet being inserted through a sheet inlet and merging into the first feeding path in the vicinity of the first feed roller.

Image forming apparatus

A fixing device for thermally fixing a developer image transferred onto a recording sheet, includes: a flexible fusing member which is flexibly deformable; a heating element; a nip member disposed in such a manner as to contact with a surface of the flexible fusing member and to allow the flexible fusing member to slide along the nip member; a reflecting plate configured to reflect radiant heat from the heating element in a direction toward the nip member; a backup member configured to nip the flexible fusing member with the nip member to thereby form a nip portion for the recording sheet between the flexible fusing member and the backup member; and a stay configured to support both end portions of the nip member. The reflecting plate has at least one flange portion, and the flange portion is held and supported between the nip member and the stay.

Fixing device

A fixing device includes an endless belt, a nip member elongated in a longitudinal direction and having a first surface contactable to an inner peripheral surface of the endless belt and a second surface opposite to the first surface, a backup member configured to nip the endless belt with the nip member and form a nip portion between the backup member and the endless belt, a heater disposed inside the endless belt and elongated in the longitudinal direction, a reflection member disposed between the nip member and the heater and configured to reflect radiation heat from the heater, and a heat sensitive element configured to detect a temperature, the heat sensitive element being disposed between the reflection member and the nip member and facing the second surface of the nip member.

A fixing device includes a tubular fusing film, a heater, a nip member, a backup member, a backup member, first supporting member, and a second supporting member. The heater may be disposed inside the tubular shape of the fusing film. The nip member may be disposed so as to be in sliding contact with the inner surface of the fusing film and heated by the heater. The backup member may form a nip portion between the backup member and the fusing film with the fusing film between the backup member and the nip member. The first supporting member may be configured to integrally support the heater and the nip member. The second supporting member may be configured to movably support the first supporting member so that the nip member moves relative to the backup member.

A fixing device, including a heat roller, a temperature detector member to detect temperature of the heat roller, a supporting member to support the temperature detector member, and a fixer frame to support the heat roller and the supporting member, is provided. The supporting member includes a supporting part to support the temperature detector member, a first part, a second part which is less rigid than the first part, and an attaching part to be attached to an attachable surface of the fixer frame. The attaching part is arranged on one end of the supporting member along the axial direction. The supporting part is arranged in an intermediate position along the axial direction in the supporting member. The first part and the second part are arranged in positions between the attaching part and the supporting part along the axial direction in the supporting member.

Fixing device and image forming apparatus with deformation resistant supporting structure for supporting thermistor

A fixing device includes a heating element disposed inside a flexible fusing member, a nip member disposed to contact with a surface of the flexible fusing member and to allow the flexible fusing member to slide along the nip member, a reflecting plate for reflecting radiant heat from the heating element toward the nip member, and a backup member for nipping the flexible fusing member with the nip member. The reflecting plate includes a central reflecting portion extending along a longitudinal direction of the heating element at least in a region corresponding to along a heat generating portion of the heating element, and end reflecting portions stationarily provided on both ends of the central reflecting portion. The end reflecting portions are disposed in positions longitudinally outward of the heat generating portion and each has a reflecting surface tilted with respect to the longitudinal direction of the heating element.

Fixing device including reflecting plate with tilted ends

There is provided a fixing device for thermally fixing a developing agent image to a sheet. The fixing device includes a tubular flexible member, a heater, a nip member, a reflection plate, a backup member, a stay and a temperature sensor. The flexible member has an inner peripheral surface defining an internal space. The heater is disposed in the internal space and is configured to generate a radiant heat. The nip member is disposed in the internal space, the inner peripheral surface being in sliding contact with the nip member. The reflection plate is configured to reflect the radiant heat from the heater toward the nip member, the reflection plate having an outer profile. The backup member is configured to provide a nip region in cooperation with the nip member for nipping the flexible member between the backup member and the nip member. The stay covers the reflection plate and supports the nip member, the stay having a profile in conformance with the outer profile of the reflection plate, and the stay being formed with one of a through-hole and a notch. The temperature sensor is disposed in the internal space and extends through the one of the through-hole and the notch.

Fixing device provided with temperature sensor

A fixing device includes: an endless belt; a heater; a nip plate; a backup member, a reflective plate, a stay and a heat insulating member, wherein the heat insulating member includes: an upstream support face, which supports the nip plate; and a downstream support face, which is disposed separated downstream in the conveyance direction from the upstream support face and supports the nip plate, and wherein a gap in the conveyance direction between the upstream support face and the downstream support face at a central portion in the longitudinal direction of the heat insulating member is smaller than a gap in the conveyance direction between the upstream support face and the downstream support face at an end portion in the longitudinal direction of the heat insulating member.

A fixing device configured to heat-fix a developer image on a recording sheet, the fixing device includes: a flexible cylindrical member; a nip member configured to slidingly contact an inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical member; a heating member that is arranged at an inside of the cylindrical member and is configured to heat the nip member; a stay configured to support the nip member with surrounding the heating member; a backup member configured to interpose the cylindrical member between the nip member and the backup member; a cover member that is arranged at the inside of the cylindrical member and is configured to cover the stay from an opposite side to the heating member; and a first support member configured to support the cover member and form a gap between the stay and the cover member.

An image forming apparatus includes a fixing unit, discharge unit, first and second guides, and top cover. The discharge unit is disposed obliquely above a heating member of the fixing unit. The first guide extends from a position above the heating member toward the discharge unit and has an upstream portion in a conveying direction of an image-fixed sheet. The second guide is disposed above the heating member and faces the upstream portion. The second guide defines an upper portion of the conveying path. A part of the second guide faces the upstream portion in the first position, and exposes the upstream portion in the second position. The top cover is movable between an open position where the second guide is exposed and a closed position where the second guide is covered. The first guide has a guide surface sloping downward in the conveying direction.

Image forming apparatus and fixing apparatus

An image forming apparatus includes a discharge unit, fixing unit, movable guide, cover, and retaining part. The discharge unit discharges a sheet out of a main body. The fixing unit thermally fixes developer image deposited on the sheet to provide an image-fixed sheet. The movable guide is movable between a first position and second position. The movable guide guides one surface of the sheet in the first position. The movable guide exposes a conveying path in the second position. The cover is movable between an open position where the movable guide is exposed and a closed position where the movable guide is covered. The movable guide is in the first position while the cover moves from the closed position to the open position. The retaining part is configured to retain the movable guide in the second position after the movable guide moves from the first position to the second position.

Growing community of inventors

Komaki, Japan

Noboru Suzuki