Disclosed is an image forming apparatus, including: a transfer portion configured to convey a sheet and to transfer a toner image to the sheet; a fixing portion configured to convey the sheet at a fixing conveying velocity and to fix the toner image; and a control portion configured to control the fixing portion such that the fixing conveying velocity is changed to a first velocity or to a second velocity which is lower than the first velocity, wherein the control portion can set a plurality of velocity bands each of which is a combination of the first velocity and the second velocity, the control portion can perform a changing of the velocity band a several times based on the state of the loop of the sheet while the transfer portion and the fixing portion are conveying the sheet.

The joint mechanism includes an engagement pin; a first coupling having a pair of projections with engagement recessed portions formed respectively, the engagement recessed portions with which both end portions of the engagement pin are freely engaged or disengaged; a second coupling including a circumferential wall having an opening portion and a pair of projecting pieces; and a biasing member. The pair of projecting pieces are arranged in the engagement recessed portions so as to be opposed, on an upstream side in a rotation direction, to opening defining surfaces of the pair of projections, with the second coupling attached to the first coupling. Both end portions of the engagement pins are engaged with the engagement recessed portions so as to be each sandwiched between each of the pair of projecting pieces being applied a biasing force of the biasing member and each opening defining surface of the pair of projections.

Printing devices include a media supply storing print media, a luminescent belt positioned adjacent the media supply in a location to move sheets of the print media from the media supply, a print engine positioned adjacent the luminescent belt in a location to receive the sheets from the luminescent belt, an optical sensor positioned adjacent the belt in a location to receive belt-emitted light from the luminescent belt, and a processor electrically connected to the optical sensor. The processor receives the image from the optical sensor and identifies locations of the sheets on the belt based on where the sheets block the belt-emitted light from the luminescent belt.

A paper feed roller of the present invention comprises a roller body 2 integrally formed of elastic material in a cylindrical shape in which a plurality of protruding lines 6 are disposed on a peripheral surface 5 at even intervals, wherein the roller body 2 is formed so that crest portions 6a and trough portions 6b are continuously provided in a circumferential direction, an opening angle is equal to or more than 2 and is equal to or less than 8, a radial height h of the protruding line is equal to or more than 0.051 mm and is equal to or less than 0.1 mm, and a curvature radius r1 at a shoulder is equal to or more than 0.55 mm.

An image forming system includes: a first image forming apparatus that is disposed at an upstream side in a feeding direction of a belt-like continuous recording medium; and a second image forming apparatus that is disposed at a downstream side in the feeding direction of the recording medium, wherein each of the first image forming apparatus and the second image forming apparatus includes: a recording head that forms images on the recording medium by ejecting droplets from ejection outlets of the recording head; a closing member that serves to close the ejection outlets; and a controller that monitors head drive data for driving of the recording head, and closes the ejection outlets with the closing member in case a droplets non-ejection state is beyond a predetermined first allowable condition during printing.

An image forming apparatus includes a first sensor to detect at least one of a position of an image on a sheet or a length of the sheet; a first conveyor upstream or downstream of the first sensor in a conveyance direction; a fixing device; and circuitry. The first conveyor includes: a rubber belt; a driving roller within the rubber belt to rotate the rubber belt; a driven roller outside the rubber belt and driven by the rubber belt to convey the sheet in the conveyance direction; and a second sensor to measure a rotational speed of the driven roller. The fixing device is upstream of the first conveyor in the conveyance direction. The fixing device fixes toner onto the sheet. The circuitry is configured to control the first conveyor to convey the sheet at a target linear speed based on the rotational speed measured by the second sensor.

To provide a rotating shaft with which flexibility of forming a bend is increased, and the strength is increased while reducing the amount of material. A V-shaped rotating shaft formed by bending sheet metal. An angle formed on an inner side of a bent portion is less than 90.

An image forming apparatus includes: an image formation part that forms an image on a paper sheet; a conveyor that includes a plurality of conveying members and conveys the paper sheet; a hardware processor that acquires information on a smudge on a paper sheet on which an image has been formed by the image formation part, and identifies, from the plurality of conveying members, one or more dirty conveying member(s) that may have caused the smudge based on at least one of the information on the smudge, information on the conveying members, and information on a job for image formation executed by the image formation part.

An image forming apparatus includes: a manual feed tray that is provided at an opening in a sidewall of an apparatus body of the image forming apparatus and opens or closes the opening by an opening/closing operation; a guide portion that supports movement of the manual feed tray based on the opening/closing operation between a first position where the manual feed tray is upright along the sidewall to close the opening and a second position where the manual feed tray inclines toward outside of the apparatus body to open the opening, and guides the manual feed tray in the second position from the opening to within the apparatus body to retract the manual feed tray within the apparatus body; a sheet feed mechanism that feeds a sheet on the retracted manual feed tray; and an image forming device that forms an image on the sheet fed from the manual feed.

A sheet conveyance device includes a rotary shaft, a conveyance roller, a driving source, and a gear. The gear rotates integrally with the rotary shaft and transmits a driving force from the driving source to the conveyance roller. The gear includes a tooth portion engaging with another gear, a wall surface forming a hole into which the rotary shaft is inserted, a deformable portion, and a pressing part. The deformable portion has a cantilever shape at least partially provided in an area provided with the tooth portion in a gear rotation axis direction. The pressing part protrudes from the wall surface toward the rotation center of the gear, and is elastically deformed by being pressed by the rotary shaft. The pressing part presses the rotary shaft toward the wall surface on a side opposite to the deformable portion in a state where the gear is attached to the rotary shaft.