An image forming apparatus includes a rotatable cylindrical component to be cleaned, and a bar brush having a base substrate and bristles. The base substrate of the bar brush is located at a fixed position relative to the component to be cleaned. The bristles extend from the base substrate to contact the component to be cleaned. The bristles have free ends that form a tip end surface of the bar brush. The tip end surface has a curved shape that conforms with a surface of the component, when the bristles are not in contact with the surface to be cleaned.

A cleaning member includes a first cleaning part formed of a porous material and a second cleaning part formed of a porous material. The first cleaning part includes first projections each having a size that enables the first projections to pass between projecting portions of an object to be cleaned having surface irregularities and to reach the bottom of recessed portions of the object to be cleaned. The second cleaning part includes second projections larger than the first projections. The cleaning member cleans the object to be cleaned by coming into contact with the object to be cleaned.

A cleaning apparatus includes: a brush that contacts a transfer member and cleans and removes toner existing on the transfer member; a constant current type voltage applier that applies voltage to the brush; and a hardware processor that determines whether a condition that voltage exceeds a predetermined threshold is satisfied at a nip formed by the brush and the transfer member contacting each other, and controls the voltage by changing bias current of the voltage applier, wherein the transfer member has a sheet contact area contacting a sheet on the transfer member and an inter-sheet area other than the sheet contact area on the transfer member, and in a case where the hardware processor determines that the condition is satisfied, the hardware processor controls the voltage so as not to exceed the predetermined threshold by changing the bias current when the sheet contact area passes through the nip.

An image forming apparatus includes a main frame, a plurality of process cartridges, a cartridge-supporting body, a belt, a waste toner cartridge, a contact-separation mechanism, and a collective conveying unit. Each process cartridge includes a photosensitive drum and a drum cleaning unit collecting waste toner on the drum. The cartridge-supporting body is movable between an internal position inside the frame and an external position outside the frame. The belt confronts the process cartridges in the internal position. The waste toner cartridge accommodates the waste toner collected from the drums. The contact-separation mechanism moves the cartridge-supporting body between a contact position where the drums are in contact with the belt and a separated position where the drums are out of contact with the belt. The collective conveying unit aggregates waste toner collected from drums and conveys collectively the aggregated waste toner to the waste toner cartridge.

An intermediate transfer belt (image bearing member) includes a base material layer and a surface layer disposed on the base material layer and including an inorganic oxide containing an organic component. A ten-point average roughness of the surface layer is 69% or more of a wavelength of incident light emitted from a sensor for detecting an amount of toner adhering to the image bearing member and less than 20% of an average particle size of the toner.

An image forming apparatus includes a main frame, a plurality of process cartridges, a cartridge-supporting body, a belt, a waste toner cartridge, a contact-separation mechanism, and a collective conveying unit. Each process cartridge includes a photosensitive drum and a drum cleaning unit collecting waste toner on the drum. The cartridge-supporting body is movable between an internal position inside the frame and an external position outside the frame. The belt confronts the process cartridges in the internal position. The waste toner cartridge accommodates the waste toner collected from the drums. The contact-separation mechanism moves the cartridge-supporting body between a contact position where the drums are in contact with the belt and a separated position where the drums are out of contact with the belt. The collective conveying unit aggregates waste toner collected from drums and conveys collectively the aggregated waste toner to the waste toner cartridge.

A cleaning member includes a first cleaning part formed of a porous material and a second cleaning part formed of a porous material. The first cleaning part includes first projections each having a size that enables the first projections to pass between projecting portions of an object to be cleaned having surface irregularities and to reach the bottom of recessed portions of the object to be cleaned. The second cleaning part includes second projections larger than the first projections. The cleaning member cleans the object to be cleaned by coming into contact with the object to be cleaned.

An image forming apparatus includes a main frame, a plurality of process cartridges, a cartridge-supporting body, a belt, a waste toner cartridge, a contact-separation mechanism, and a collective conveying unit. Each process cartridge includes a photosensitive drum and a drum cleaning unit collecting waste toner on the drum. The cartridge-supporting body is movable between an internal position inside the frame and an external position outside the frame. The belt confronts the process cartridges in the internal position. The waste toner cartridge accommodates the waste toner collected from the drums. The contact-separation mechanism moves the cartridge-supporting body between a contact position where the drums are in contact with the belt and a separated position where the drums are out of contact with the belt. The collective conveying unit aggregates waste toner collected from drums and conveys collectively the aggregated waste toner to the waste toner cartridge.

An image forming device includes a communication device, an image forming unit, a transfer unit, a transmitting unit, and a processor. The communication device communicates includes a wireless tag. The image forming unit forms a developer image on a surface of a photoreceptor. The transfer unit transfers the developer image to a medium provided with the wireless tag communicating with the communication device. The transmitting unit transmits the medium to the transfer unit. The processor controls an operation of the transmitting unit so as to transmit the medium at a first timing when communication with the wireless tag by the communication device is normally executed and controls the operation of the transmitting unit so as to transmit the medium at a second timing different from the first timing when the communication with the wireless tag by the communication device is not normally ended.

A cleaning apparatus includes: a brush that contacts a transfer member and cleans and removes toner existing on the transfer member; a constant current type voltage applier that applies voltage to the brush; and a hardware processor that determines whether a condition that voltage exceeds a predetermined threshold is satisfied at a nip formed by the brush and the transfer member contacting each other, and controls the voltage by changing bias current of the voltage applier, wherein the transfer member has a sheet contact area contacting a sheet on the transfer member and an inter-sheet area other than the sheet contact area on the transfer member, and in a case where the hardware processor determines that the condition is satisfied, the hardware processor controls the voltage so as not to exceed the predetermined threshold by changing the bias current when the sheet contact area passes through the nip.