A method of operating an electrophotographic printer (100) to control the optical density of a printed image is described. The method comprises providing a printing substance on a transfer member (104); emitting a pulse of heat to heat the printing substance on the transfer member to increase flowability of the printing substance on the transfer member; and transferring, from the transfer member to a substrate (108), the printing substance heated by the pulse of heat so as to provide the printed image on the substrate.

An image forming apparatus capable of stabilizing a feeding behavior of a transfer material while suppressing disturbance of a toner image due to electric discharge is provided.

An image forming apparatus 100 has a constitution in which in a period from after a leading end of a transfer material P with respect to a feeding direction moves in a predetermined distance from a transfer portion N2 toward a fixing portion until a trailing end of the transfer material P with respect to the feeding direction passes through the transfer portion N2, a controller 50 causes a voltage source E3 to apply, to a discharging member 5, a voltage which his larger on an identical polarity side to a charge polarity of toner on an image bearing member 1 than a potential of the discharging member 5 in a period from after the leading end of the transfer material P with respect to the feeding direction passes through the transfer portion N2 until the leading end of the transfer material P moves in the predetermined distance.

A separating claw unit includes: a separating claw provided beside and against a surface of an image carrier on which a toner image to be transferred to a recording paper sheet in a nip area between the image carrier and a transfer section is to be formed, the separating claw being configured to separate the recording paper sheet having passed through the nip area off the surface of the image carrier in a direction away from the surface of the image carrier; and a cushion guide provided next to the separating claw to extend beyond the separating claw in the direction away from the surface of the image carrier, held elastically and displaceably away from the surface of the image carrier, and configured to come into contact with the recording paper sheet to guide the recording paper sheet downstream in a direction of conveyance of the recording paper sheet.

An image forming apparatus includes: a photosensitive drum for bearing a developer; a charging roller that comes into contact with the photosensitive drum at a different velocity and that charges the photosensitive drum; a transfer roller that transfers a developer image on the photosensitive drum to a recording material; a developing sleeve that supplies a developer to the photosensitive drum and that recovers a developer on the photosensitive drum after transfer; detecting device for detecting information relating to injection charging; and a controller that, based on the information, controls an amount of a fogging developer, wherein the controller controls the amount of the fogging developer during image formation according to information detected by the detecting device while suppressing the amount of the developer recovered in the developing sleeve.

An image forming apparatus provided with a transfer device includes a separator, a post-transfer-residual-quantity acquirer, and a controller. The transfer device transfers an image formed on an image carrier to a transfer medium. The separator is arranged at downstream side from a transfer device in a conveying direction, is provided with a separation claw which contacts with the image carrier and separates the transfer medium from the image carrier, and performs contact/separate operation of the separation claw with/from the image carrier. The post-transfer-residual-quantity acquirer acquires post-transfer residual quantity in a region determined on a basis of a position of the separation claw in an axial direction of the image carrier. The controller controls the contact/separate operation of the separation claw with/from the image carrier on a basis of the post-transfer residual quantity acquired by the post-transfer-residual-quantity acquirer.

An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member, an intermediary transfer belt, a primary transfer roller provided so that a contact region between the roller and the belt and a contact region between the image bearing member and the belt are in a non-overlapping state with each other with respect to a movement direction of the belt, a primary transfer voltage source, a current detecting portion, an executing portion configured to acquire information on a discharge start voltage on the basis of a detection result of the detecting portion in a period other than a period of primary transfer by applying the voltage to the roller and a setting portion configured to set, on the basis of an execution result of the executing portion, a primary transfer voltage applied to the roller by the primary transfer voltage source in the period of the primary transfer.

An image forming apparatus includes a discharging device that discharges a sheet to which a toner image is transferred. The discharging device is disposed on a side opposite to a transfer surface of the sheet to which the toner image is transferred downstream from a nip portion between an intermediate transfer belt and an external secondary transfer roller in a sheet conveyance direction. The discharging device includes a grounded first discharging plate, and a grounded second discharging plate which is disposed downstream from the first discharging plate in the sheet conveyance direction at an angle different from an angle of the first discharging plate.

An image forming apparatus includes a transfer unit, a container, and a calculator. The transfer unit transfers to at least one recording medium at least one toner image formed in accordance with image data without margins set along edges of the at least one recording medium. The container contains toner collected from the transfer unit. The calculator calculates an amount of the toner of parts of the at least one toner image outside the edges of the at least one recording medium. A time period during which the container is able to be used is calculated in accordance with an accumulated amount of the toner calculated by the calculator.

A method of operating an electrophotographic printer (100) to control the optical density of a printed image is described. The method comprises providing a printing substance on a transfer member (104); emitting a pulse of heat to heat the printing substance on the transfer member to increase flowability of the printing substance on the transfer member; and transferring, from the transfer member to a substrate (108), the printing substance heated by the pulse of heat so as to provide the printed image on the substrate.

An image forming apparatus includes: an attachment table to which an object is attached; a transfer unit that transfers an image onto the object; and a transport unit that transports the attachment table along a transport path that has a transport start position on one side relative to the transfer unit and has a transport end position on a same side as the transport start position relative to the transfer unit, the transport path extending beyond the transfer unit and the attachment table being transported so as to turn back at a position beyond the transfer unit.