An image forming apparatus includes an intermediate transfer member that contacts an image bearing member to form a primary transfer portion, contacts a secondary transfer member to form a secondary transfer portion, and contacts a charging member that can receive a voltage from a charging power source, to form a charging portion. A toner image borne on the image bearing member is primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer member and secondarily transferred to a transfer material. If toner remains on the intermediate transfer member, the charging member electrically charges the remaining toner. If driving of the intermediate transfer member causes toner to drop onto the intermediate transfer member from the charging member, The timing at which to start image formation is controlled to prevent the dropped toner from moving to a transfer material conveyed to the secondary transfer portion.

An intermediate transfer belt includes a surface layer with a solid lubricant added therein on an outer peripheral surface side in abutment with a photosensitive drum and a cleaning blade in a thickness direction. Further, the surface layer includes a plurality of grooves formed along a movement direction of the intermediate transfer belt in a width direction of the intermediate transfer belt. The intermediate transfer belt including the grooves satisfies J(1/K)L(Q/.sub.P)/((Q/.sub.P)+(100/.sub.A))<240.

A powder-amount detection device includes a first electrode, a second electrode, a third electrode and a voltage detector with the second electrode adjacent to the first electrode on the powder container and have a smaller surface area than a surface area of the first electrode. The third electrode is on a side opposite to the second electrode with the powder container interposed between the third electrode and each of the first electrode and the second electrode. The voltage detector detects voltages of the first electrode and the second electrode by detecting charging and discharging behaviors of the first electrode and the second electrode when a voltage is applied between the third electrode and each of the first electrode and the second electrode for a short time, and detects the amount of powder in the powder container based on the voltages of the first electrode and the second electrode.

An image forming apparatus member includes a surface layer containing a Si-atom containing polymer as a major component. The dispersive component of the surface free energy of the surface layer is 25 mN/m or less, the dipole component of the surface free energy of the surface layer is 5 mN/m or less, and the hydrogen bonding component of the surface free energy of the surface layer is 5 mN/m or less.

An image forming apparatus includes an endless belt, an inner roller, an upstream roller, a pressing member, and a guiding member. In a cross-section perpendicular to a rotational axis of the inner roller, a downstream free end of the guiding member is disposed downstream of a pressing portion normal line Lc with respect to a feeding direction of the sheet, where L is a reference line which is a common tangent of the inner roller and the upstream roller in a contact portion relative to the belt, Ld is a pressing portion tangent line, parallel with the reference line, of the belt in a region where the pressing member contacts the belt, and Lc is the pressing portion normal line passing through a contact point between the belt and the pressing portion tangent line Ld and perpendicular to the reference line L.

An image forming apparatus has a plurality of image forming portions, an intermediate transfer belt having an elastic layer, a plurality of primary transfer members, a contact-separation mechanism, a secondary transfer member, a driving device, a voltage applying device, and a control portion. The contact-separation mechanism is switchable between an all-color pressure state where the primary transfer members are all in pressed contact with the image carrying members via the intermediate transfer belt and an all-color apart state where the primary transfer members are all away from the intermediate transfer belt. At first power-on, the control portion starts driving the image carrying members and the intermediate transfer belt in the all-color apart state, then transits to the all-color pressure state, and then ejects toner from the developing device to the image carrying members to reduce the surface friction coefficient on the image carrying members and the intermediate transfer belt.

A transport device includes a first belt member movably stretched, a second belt member, a first roller, a second roller, a third roller, a fourth roller, a fifth roller, and a sixth roller. The second belt member is in contact with the first belt member to form a contact portion in cooperation with the first belt member. The second belt member is movably stretched. The first roller stretches the first belt member and is capable of adjusting a tilt in a longitudinal direction of the first roller. The second roller stretches the second belt member and is capable of adjusting a tilt in a longitudinal direction of the second roller. The third roller stretches the first belt member and is located adjacent to the first roller and upstream of the first roller in a movement direction of the first belt member. The fourth roller stretches the first belt member and is located adjacent to the first roller and downstream of the first roller in the movement direction of the first belt member. The fifth roller stretches the second belt member and is located adjacent to the second roller and upstream of the second roller in a movement direction of the second belt member. The sixth roller stretches the second belt member and is located adjacent to the second roller and downstream of the second roller in the movement direction of the second belt member. The third roller, the fourth roller, the fifth roller, and the sixth roller each have a uniform diameter in a longitudinal direction of the roller, and are disposed at positions other than the contact portion.

A method for manufacturing an intermediate transfer belt having at least a base layer and a surface layer formed in contact with a surface of the base layer, includes: irradiating a surface of the base layer with a laser such that Rz (in accordance with JIS-B0601-2001) is 0.2 m or more and equal to or less than a half of a film thickness of a surface layer to be formed; and forming a surface layer on the surface of the base layer irradiated with the laser.

A transfer unit that transfers a developing agent image formed with a developing agent, includes a belt; and a rotational body that stretches the belt. The rotational body includes a shaft body, and a surface layer provided on an outer side of the shaft body in radial directions. Surface roughness of an outer peripheral surface of the surface layer is greater than a volume mean particle diameter of the developing agent.

A recording medium transport and transfer belt includes at least a base material layer and a surface layer, in which a ratio (?s.sub.500/?v.sub.500) between surface resistivity ?s.sub.500 and volume resistivity ?v.sub.500 at an applied voltage of 500 V is 1.0 or more, and a difference (?s.sub.100??s.sub.500) between surface resistivity ?s.sub.100 at an applied voltage of 100 V and surface resistivity ?s.sub.500 at an applied voltage of 500 V is 0.3 or less.