A transporting member includes: a first transporting section that has flexibility and that has a first shaft and a blade existing helically on a surface of the first shaft and transporting a transport object; a second transporting section having a second shaft that extends from a first end of the first shaft and that has higher rigidity than the first shaft, and also having a coil that exists helically on a surface of the second shaft, is movable toward and away from the surface of the second shaft, and transports the transport object; and a drive section that is attached to an end of the second shaft opposite the first shaft or to a third shaft having higher rigidity than the first shaft by being connected to the end and that is driven by receiving a rotational force.

An image forming apparatus includes a photoconductor, a bearing body, an abutting portion, a support frame, an exposure device, and an urging body. The photoconductor includes a shaft portion at an end portion. The bearing body is configured to receive the shaft portion. The abutting portion is coupled to the bearing body. The support frame is configured to support the abutting portion and the bearing body. The exposure device faces the photoconductor, abuts on the abutting portion, and includes a light source exposing the photoconductor to light. The urging body is configured to press the exposure device toward the support frame, urge the abutting portion toward the bearing body and the shaft portion, and urge the bearing body toward the support frame.

An image forming apparatus is used, including a rotary member, on which a developer image by a developer is formed, a collection unit for collecting the developer by a blade member from a surface of the rotary member, and a control unit for controlling an image forming operation on the surface of the rotary member and a supply operation for supplying the developer to a contact portion between the rotary member and the blade member, wherein, assuming that the supply operation for supplying the developer to inside of a printable area is a first supply operation and the supply operation for supplying the developer to outside the printable area is a second supply operation, the control unit controls such that the first supply operation and the second supply operation are performed at different timing.

A drum cartridge includes: a photosensitive drum rotatable about a drum axis extending in an axis direction; a drum cleaner including a cleaning member cleaning a circumferential surface of the photosensitive drum, and a cleaning housing accommodating transfer residual toner removed from the circumferential surface of the photosensitive drum by the cleaning member; a first drum side plate supporting a first end portion of the photosensitive drum; a second drum side plate located distant from the first drum side plate in the axis direction and supporting a second end portion of the photosensitive drum; a pipe located between the first drum side plate and the second drum side plate in the axis direction and extending in the axis direction; and a conveyor device conveying the transfer residual toner from the cleaning housing to the pipe.

An image forming apparatus includes a rotatable photosensitive member, a charging member, a developing device, a blade, a detecting portion, and a controller. The controller causes the photosensitive member to rotate through one full circumference or more on the following conditions during a predetermined operation: (i) a voltage which is a discharge start voltage or more is applied to the charging member, and (ii) an operation condition of the developing device is a first condition on which an amount of fog toner deposited from the developer carrying member on the photosensitive member is smaller than an amount of the fog toner on a second condition which is an operation condition of the developing device during a sheet interval before the image formation during the continuous image formation is interrupted.

A control unit of an image forming apparatus calculates an actual linear pressure of a cleaning blade by taking into account, with respect to an initial linear pressure of the cleaning blade measured in advance, a linear pressure reduction based on cumulative rotation time of an image carrier, a linear pressure reduction based on cumulative non-rotation time of the image carrier, and a linear pressure reduction based on an external temperature detected by a temperature detection unit, and the control unit outputs information for urging replacement of the cleaning blade to an output unit when a linear pressure difference between the actual linear pressure of the cleaning blade and a lower-limit linear pressure of the cleaning blade calculated in advance from an abrasion amount of the cleaning blade with respect to the cumulative number of rotations of the image carrier reaches a predetermined threshold value.

The electrophotographic apparatus and process cartridge comprising an electrophotographic photosensitive member, a cleaning blade, and developing unit containing a toner, wherein the cleaning blade comprising a support member and an elastic member whose portion is abutting a surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member; the elastic member has an elastic modulus of 15 to 470 MPa with coefficient of variation for the elastic modulus being not more than 7.0%, and the absolute value of a difference between Martens hardness values is not more than 0.30 N/mm.sup.2 as measured under prescribed conditions; the toner contains a toner particle and an external additive whose a number-average primary particle diameter is from 5 to 25 nm, when X1 is a coverage ratio of the toner particle by the external additive and X2 is a theoretical coverage ratio, X1 is 50 to 85 area %, and X1/X2≥−0.0042×X1+0.60 is satisfied.

An image forming apparatus includes a rotatable photosensitive member, an image forming portion, a cleaning device, and a controller. The cleaning device includes a blade, a rotatable brush, and an applying portion. The controller controls the applying portion so as to apply a bias to the brush so that a potential of the brush has a polarity opposite to a normal charge polarity of toner. When a tensile strength of the brush is A (cn/dtex), a thickness of the brush is B (denier), a bristle density of the brush is C (kF/inch.sup.2), a length of the brush is D (mm), and an elastic deformation rate of the surface of the photosensitive member is E (%), the following relationships are satisfied: 48(%)≤E≤60(%), and 400≤{A×B.sup.2×C/D.sup.2}≤20408.

A process cartridge including: an electrophotographic photosensitive member having a drum shape; a developing unit for developing an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member with toner; and a cleaning blade for removing the toner on the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member, the cleaning blade being in contact with the electrophotographic photosensitive member, wherein the electrophotographic photosensitive member comprises wrinkles on the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member, and wherein the toner has a fluidity torque E of 320 mJ or more.

An image forming apparatus includes an image bearing member, a toner image forming portion, a transfer member, a cleaning member, and a controller configured to carry out a process for notifying information on a lifetime of the image bearing member on the basis of information on contact pressure of the cleaning member to the image bearing member.