An image forming apparatus includes an image forming part to form an image on a medium and a photo-finishing part to thermally transfer a coating film covering the image onto the medium.

A method for producing a printed material includes providing pressure-induced phase transition particles on a recording medium having an arithmetic average roughness Ra of 0.07 μm or more and 3.80 μm or less to form a pressure-induced phase transition particle layer having a coverage C within a range of 30% to 90%; bonding the pressure-induced phase transition particles onto the recording medium; and folding the recording medium having the pressure-induced phase transition particles bonded thereon and pressure-bonding the folded recording medium, or pressure-bonding the recording medium having the pressure-induced phase transition particles bonded thereon and another recording medium placed on top of each other. The pressure-induced phase transition particles have at least two glass transition temperatures, and the difference between the lowest glass transition temperature and the highest glass transition temperature among the glass transition temperatures exhibited by the pressure-induced phase transition particles is 30° C. or more.

An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier; a transfer unit that transfers an image carried by the image carrier to a continuous medium; a fixing device including a first fixing member that contacts the continuous medium and heats the image transferred to the continuous medium and a second fixing member that is disposed so as to face the first fixing member with the continuous medium therebetween and presses the image, the fixing device fixing the image transferred to the continuous medium, the fixing device being configured so that the first fixing member and the second fixing member are capable of contacting or separating from each other; and a separation member that contacts the continuous medium and separates the continuous medium from the first fixing member when the first fixing member and the second fixing member separate from each other.

An image forming method for forming an image on a base material by using powder includes: attaching a protective material to a surface of the base material on which the image is to be formed; forming an attachment layer on at least one of the base material and the protective material attached to the base material; attaching the powder to the attachment layer after attaching the protective material; and removing excess powder attached to the protective material from the protective material without attaching to the attachment layer.

Apparatus and methods are provided for measuring the dryness of primer on a substrate in an inline priming system. In implementations, the apparatus comprises a plurality of measurement electrodes spaced laterally to extend across and contact a primed surface of a substrate following application of a primer to the substrate as it is fed through the inline priming system. A resistance measurement unit is provided as part of the dryness measuring apparatus to, in use, measure the surface resistance of the primed substrate between different measurement electrodes across the primed surface of a substrate. A controller is provided in the dryness measurement apparatus, the controller arranged to, in use: receive the measured surface resistance value and to generate, based on the measured surface resistance values, a dryness profile indicative of the dryness of the primer at locations across the substrate in the direction of the spacing of the electrodes.

A coating layer application device (200) for applying a coating layer, which is located on a transfer element, to a substrate, the coating layer (206) being formed from a coating material, in particular a thermosetting coating material, the coating layer (206) being curable and comprising an amorphous material, the coating layer application device comprising: a heating device (214, 220) being configured so as to (i) maintain the temperature of the coating layer (206) within a temperature range before removal of N the transfer element (204) from the coating layer (206), wherein within the temperature range the uncured coating material is in its supercooled liquid state; and/or (ii) partially cure the coating layer (206) during a contact of the coating layer (206) and the substrate (210) and before removal of the transfer element (204) from the coating layer, in particular by increasing the temperature of the coating layer (206) to a temperature at or above a curing temperature of the coating layer (206).

Disclosed is a layer transfer device for transferring a transfer layer onto a toner image formed on a sheet, in which a replacement of a film cartridge is easy for a user. The layer transfer device includes a housing, a film cartridge, and a holder. The film cartridge includes a supply reel including a supply shaft on which a multilayer film including a supported layer including a transfer layer, and a supporting layer supporting the supported layer is wound, and a take-up reel including a take-up shaft on which to take up the multilayer film. The holder supports the film cartridge, and is installable into and removable from the housing while supporting the film cartridge.

An image forming system includes an image forming unit, a varnish applying unit, a control unit that executes an operation in an image forming mode in which a toner image is formed on a recording material and a varnish image is formed on the recording material on which the toner image is formed, and an input unit that permits input of a line width adjusting value of either one of a line width of a portion of the varnish image overlapping with an image portion and a line width of a portion of the varnish image overlapping with a non-image portion, wherein the varnish image is formed so as to extend over an image portion where the toner image is formed on the recording material and a non-image portion where the toner image is not formed on the recording material.

An image forming system includes an image forming apparatus, a varnish application apparatus, and a controller. When the image forming apparatus is in a standby state and preheating of varnish in a tank by a heater is completed, if an image forming job of forming a toner image on a first recording material and applying varnish thereto by a varnish coater is received, the controller controls a guide member to guide the first recording material to a first conveyance path. When the image forming apparatus is in a standby state and preheating of varnish in the tank by the heater is not completed, if an image forming job of forming a toner image on a second recording material and not applying varnish thereto by the varnish coater is received, the controller controls the guide member to guide the second recording material to a second conveyance path.

An image forming system includes an image forming unit, a varnish, a receiving unit, and a control unit. The image forming unit executes image forming processing to form an image on a plurality of types of recording media including a first type recording medium having a coated layer and a second type recording medium that is without a coated layer. The varnish application unit executes varnish application processing to apply varnish to a recording medium on which the image is formed by the image forming unit. The receiving unit receives an instruction for selecting a recording medium and to receive an instruction for the varnish application processing. The control unit performs control to prevent the receiving unit from receiving an instruction to execute the varnish application processing on the second type recording medium.