A non-impact printing device (301) comprising: a coating material (237) being curable and comprising a resin; the coating material comprising an amorphous resin portion in an amount of at least 30 w-% based on the overall amount of resin and comprising with respect to the entire amount of coating material less than 0.5 w-% of flow additive; a printing unit, in particular an electrophotographic printing unit, being configured for printing the coating material (237) so as to form a coating layer, wherein the coating layer forms at least part of a layer package comprising at least one layer; the non-impact printing device being configured for providing the layer package so as to define a surface structure with the layer package; wherein the surface structure is defined by a thickness variation of the layer package; wherein the thickness variation is in a range between 1 m and 1000 m, in particular in a range between 1 and 300 m, and is in particular more than 1 m, in particular more than 5 m, in particular more than 10 m and in particular more than 20 m.

Coating material (237) for generating a coating layer by non-impact printing wherein the coating layer represents an image and wherein a resolution of the image is at least 100 DPI, the coating material comprising a curable resin; wherein the coating material (237) exhibits a minimum viscosity when being heated from room temperature with a heating rate of 5 Kelvin per minute up to a temperature where curing of the coating material occurs, wherein the minimum viscosity is in a range between 3 Pascal seconds to 20000 Pascal seconds, in particular in a range between 50 Pascal seconds and 10000 Pascal seconds and further in particular in a range between 250 Pascal seconds and 7000 Pascal seconds; and wherein a pill flow length is below 350 mm at a potential curing temperature which may be used to cure the coating material.

A magnetic carrier comprising a magnetic carrier core and a resin coating layer formed on the surface of the magnetic carrier core, wherein the resin coating layer includes a polymer having a structure represented by the following formula (1), and a content ratio of the structure represented by the formula (1) is from 5% by mass to 95% by mass based on a resin component of the resin coating layer, ##STR00001##
wherein, R.sup.1 is H or CH.sub.3, and X is a structure represented by the following formula (2):
(C.sub.mH.sub.2m)R.sup.2(C.sub.nH.sub.2n)OH(2)
wherein, R.sup.2 is a hydrocarbon group being a cyclic structure having 4 to 8 carbon atoms, and m and n are integers of 0 to 4.

A carrier includes carrier particles. The carrier particles include first carrier particles and second carrier particles. The first carrier particles each include a first carrier core and a first coat layer covering a surface of the first carrier core. The second carrier particles each include a second carrier core and a second coat layer covering a surface of the second carrier core. The first coat layers contain no fatty acid metal salt. The second coat layer contains a coat layer binder resin and a fatty acid metal salt. The second coat layers contain the fatty acid metal salt in a proportion of from 85 mass % to 95 mass % relative to a total mass of the second coat layers. The second carrier particles are contained in a proportion of from 7 mass % to 15 mass % relative to a total mass of the first carrier particles and the second carrier particles.

A magnetic carrier includes a magnetic carrier particle including a magnetic carrier core particle having an amino group on a surface thereof and a resin covering layer disposed on the surface of the magnetic carrier core particle, in which the resin covering layer contains a vinyl-based copolymer and a trialkoxyalkylsilane.

A cleaning device has: a cleaning frame; a cleaning member which, after transfer through contact with an image bearing member, removes a developer remaining on the image bearing member; and a sheet member having flexibility and coming into contact with the image bearing member at an upstream side of a contact position between the cleaning member and the image bearing member in the rotation direction of the image bearing member. An external additive is an inorganic salt having a charging polarity on the positive side with respect to the developer, and work functions (S), (A), (T) of the sheet member, the external additive and the developer satisfy 0|(A)(S)|<0.57; and (A)<(T).

A magnetic carrier including a magnetic carrier particle having a magnetic carrier core and a resin coating layer formed on a surface of the magnetic carrier core, wherein the resin coating layer includes a resin component including a resin A and a resin B, the resin A is a copolymer of monomers including (a) a (meth)acrylic acid ester monomer having an alicyclic hydrocarbon group and (b) a specific macromonomer, the resin B is a copolymer of monomers including (c) a styrene-based monomer and (d) a specific (meth)acrylic acid ester monomer, and based on the resin components of the resin coating layer, the amount of the resin A is from 20% by mass to 99% by mass, and the amount of the resin B is from 1% by mass to 80% by mass.

Naphthol AS-pigments of formula (I), wherein R1 represents methyl or C3-C8-alkyl; R2 represents hydrogen or C1-C4-alkyl; Y represents C1-C4-alkyl or C1-C4-alkoxy; and Z represents hydrogen, phenyl, naphthyl, or substituted phenyl or substituted naphthyl, wherein the number of substituents can be 1, 2, 3 or 4 and are selected from the group consisting of halogen, nitro, cyano, C1-C4-alkoxycarbonyl, carbamoyl, C1-C4-alkylcarbamoyl, di(C1-C4)-alkylcarbamoyl, phenylcarbamoyl, sulfamoyl, phenylsulfannoyl, C1-C4-alkylsulfamoyl, di(C1-C4)-alkylsulfamoyl, C1-C4-acylamino, C1-C4-alkyl and C1-C4-alkoxy.

An image forming apparatus includes: a first image forming unit that forms a clear toner image with a clear toner; a second image forming unit that forms a color toner image with a color toner; a transfer unit that transfers at least one of the clear toner image and the color toner image onto a medium; and a controller that controls formation of the clear toner image and the color toner image. When the medium is a heat transfer medium and the color toner image is formed on the heat transfer medium, the controller performs control so that the clear toner image is formed on a region where the color toner image is formed and a weight per unit area of the color toner is less than 0.29 mg/cm.sup.2, and a weight per unit area of the clear toner image is 0.15 to 0.55 mg/cm.sup.2.

A cleaning device has: a cleaning frame; a cleaning member which, after transfer through contact with an image bearing member, removes a developer remaining on the image bearing member; and a sheet member having flexibility and coming into contact with the image bearing member at an upstream side of a contact position between the cleaning member and the image bearing member in the rotation direction of the image bearing member. The external additive is an inorganic salt having a charging polarity on the positive side with respect to the developer, and work functions (S), (A), (T) of the recovery member, the external additive and the developer satisfy 0|(A)(S)|<0.57; and (A)<(T).