Fixing device and image forming apparatus incorporating same
US8655211B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 1, 2011 |
| Grant date | Feb 18, 2014 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 22, 2032 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG03G2215/2035
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A fixing device includes a fixing belt; a pressing rotary body disposed outside a loop formed by the fixing belt; a nip formation pad disposed inside the loop formed by the fixing belt and pressed against the pressing rotary body via the fixing belt to form a fixing nip between the pressing rotary body and the fixing belt through which a recording medium bearing a toner image is conveyed. The nip formation pad includes a protrusion disposed downstream from the fixing nip in a conveyance direction of the recording medium and protruding toward the pressing rotary body without contacting the pressing rotary body. The fixing device further includes a pressing rotary body mover to contact and move the pressing rotary body bidirectionally in the conveyance direction of the recording medium to move the fixing nip toward and away from the protrusion.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.