JP2005173154A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technology which allows recording sheets existing in devices placed upstream of a postprocessing device, to be removed without damaging the devices in the case of the occurrence of a recording sheet carrying defect in the postprocessing device in an image forming apparatus having the postprocessing device for postprocessing of recording sheets having images formed thereon. <P>SOLUTION: Rotational driving of a second carrying roll 72 is stopped in response to detecting the occurrence of a recording sheet carrying defect in the downstream side of the second carrying roll 82 by a third sensor 86. In the case that the existence of a recording sheet partially entering a second fixing device 101 is detected by a first sensor 48 at the time of detecting the occurrence of the carrying defect, carrying of following recording sheets to the postprocessing device 103 is stopped after it is detected by the first sensor 48 that the whole of the recording sheet has entered the second fixing device 101. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a post-processing device that performs post-processing on a recording sheet on which an image is formed.

  In an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic color copying machine or a color printer, various techniques for obtaining an image having a high gloss and a wide color gamut have been proposed (for example, Patent Document 1). In the technique described in Patent Document 1, a transparent resin layer is provided on the surface of a recording sheet substrate, and after the toner image is transferred to the surface of the resin layer, the toner image is embedded in the resin layer by heating and pressing. Accordingly, the surface of the recording sheet is uniformly smoothed regardless of the presence or absence of a toner image, and an image with high glossiness is obtained.

JP-A-5-216322

Incidentally, as an example of a technique for embedding a toner image in a resin layer, there is a method using a belt-type fixing device. In this belt-type fixing device, as shown in FIG. 2, a recording sheet having a toner image transferred and fixed on the surface thereof is in pressure contact with the heating roll 40 and the heating roll 40 via a fixing belt 47. Is inserted so that the surface on which the toner image is formed is in contact with the fixing belt 47 and passes through the pressure contact portion between the heating roll 40 and the pressure roll 42. It is melted by heating and embedded in the resin layer. By using this belt type fixing device, it is possible to obtain an image with high glossiness having uniform light reflection.
However, the image forming apparatus using the belt-type fixing device described above has the following problems.

For example, as shown in FIG. 2, in an image forming apparatus in which a post-processing device such as a cutting device is provided downstream of the belt-type fixing device in the recording sheet conveyance direction, a recording sheet conveyance failure (jam) occurs in the post-processing device. May occur. At this time, if the recording sheet conveyance on the upstream side of the post-processing device is stopped, the recording sheet remains in contact with the fixing belt of the belt-type fixing device. This fixing belt is made of, for example, a thermosetting polyimide endless film coated with a silicone rubber layer. The surface of the fixing belt has a high smoothness and is easily scratched. Yes. Therefore, when removing the recording sheet remaining on the fixing belt, the surface of the fixing belt may be damaged. If the belt-type fixing device is used in a state where the surface of the fixing belt is damaged, the fixing belt is transferred to the surface of the resin layer of the recording sheet, and the image quality is deteriorated.
The present invention has been made under the above-described background, and in an image forming apparatus having a post-processing apparatus that performs post-processing on a recording sheet on which an image has been formed, a recording sheet conveyance failure has occurred in the post-processing apparatus. At the same time, it is an object of the present invention to provide a technique capable of removing a recording sheet existing inside the apparatus provided on the upstream side of the post-processing apparatus without damaging the apparatus.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention provides a pre-conveying unit that conveys a recording sheet to a processing apparatus that discharges the recording sheet after processing the conveyed recording sheet, and the recording sheet enters the processing apparatus. An entry detecting means for detecting, a first conveying roll formed of a pair of rolls that are rotationally driven to form a press contact portion, and the recording sheet discharged from the processing apparatus is inserted into the press contact portion and conveyed; and the press contact portion And a second transporting roll that transports the recording sheet that has been transported by the first transporting roll through the press contact portion, and is transported by the second transporting roll. A post-processing device having a post-conveying unit that conveys the recording sheet, a conveyance defect detecting unit that detects occurrence of a conveyance failure of the recording sheet in the post-conveying unit, and conveyance in the post-conveying unit Means for stopping rotation of the second transport roll when the occurrence of good is detected by the transport failure detection means; and when the occurrence of transport failure in the rear transport means is detected by the transport failure detection means. When the entry detecting means detects that there is a recording sheet partially entering the processing apparatus, the entry detecting means indicates that all of the recording sheets have entered the processing apparatus. And a means for stopping the conveyance of the succeeding recording sheet to the processing apparatus by the pre-conveyance means after being detected by the image forming apparatus.

  According to this image forming apparatus, the rotation of the second transport roll can be stopped when the occurrence of transport failure in the post-transport device is detected by the transport failure detection device. Then, when the entry detecting unit detects that there is a recording sheet partially entering the processing apparatus at the time when the occurrence of the conveyance failure in the post-conveying unit is detected by the conveyance defect detecting unit, After the entry detection unit detects that all of the recording sheets have entered the processing apparatus, the conveyance of the subsequent recording sheet to the processing apparatus by the preceding conveyance unit is stopped. As a result, all the recording sheets partially or wholly entering the processing apparatus at the time when a conveyance failure occurs in the post-conveying means are discharged from the processing apparatus, and the first conveyance roll and the second conveyance roll. Stay in the space between.

  In an image forming apparatus having a post-processing device that performs post-processing on a recording sheet on which an image is formed, when a recording sheet conveyance failure occurs in the post-processing device, there is no recording sheet in the post-processing device. The recording sheet existing inside the apparatus provided on the upstream side of the post-processing apparatus can be removed without damaging the apparatus.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
<Configuration of image forming apparatus>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image forming apparatus 100 includes a control unit including a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like (not shown), and the CPU executes a computer program stored in the ROM. Thus, each part of the image forming apparatus 100 is controlled.
The image forming apparatus 100 is connected to a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as “PC”), a document reading device 102, and the like (not shown), and color image data sent from the PC or the document reading device 102 is input. The In the image forming apparatus 100, the input color image data is subjected to shading correction, positional deviation correction, lightness / color space conversion, gamma correction, frame removal, color / color / color correction by image processing means (not shown) as necessary. Image processing such as moving editing is performed, and gradation data of four colors (8 bits for each color) of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) is generated.

Inside the image forming apparatus 100, image forming engines 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1K capable of forming toner images of each color of YMCK are provided. Since the basic configuration of each image forming engine is common, the image forming engine 1Y will be described here.
The image forming engine 1Y includes a charging device 3Y, an exposure device 4Y, a developing device 5Y, and the like around a photosensitive drum 2Y as an image carrier on which an electrostatic latent image is formed.
The charging device 3Y is a device that charges the surface of the photosensitive drum 2Y that is rotationally driven to a predetermined potential.

  The exposure device 4Y is a ROS (Raster Output Scanner) that irradiates the photosensitive drum 2Y charged to a predetermined potential by the charging device 3Y with an exposure beam based on image data. The exposure device 4Y emits laser light from a semiconductor laser (not shown) based on gradation data, and irradiates the surface of the photosensitive drum 2Y by deflecting and scanning the laser light. On the surface of the photosensitive drum 2Y, the potential of the portion irradiated with the laser light is reduced to a predetermined level due to the photoconductivity of the photosensitive drum 2Y. As described above, when the surface potential of the photosensitive drum 2Y changes, an electrostatic latent image based on the image data is formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 2Y.

The developing device 5Y is a device that visualizes the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 2Y. The developing device 5Y obtains a toner image by reversing and developing the electrostatic latent image with toner (charged color material) charged to the same polarity as the charged polarity of the photosensitive drum 2Y.
The above is the details of the image forming engine 1Y. The other image forming engines 1M, 1C, and 1K have the same configuration except that the toner corresponds to each color. The image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment has a so-called tandem engine type configuration in which these four image forming engines are arranged in series. Hereinafter, when it is not necessary to distinguish the image forming engines 1Y, 1M, 1C, and 1K, they are simply referred to as the image forming engine 1. Similarly, for other components, the Y, M, C, and K notations are omitted when it is not necessary to distinguish between Y, M, C, and K.

  An intermediate transfer belt 9 is provided above the image forming engine 1 so that the photosensitive drum 2 and a part thereof are in contact with each other. The intermediate transfer belt 9 is an endless belt, and is wound around the drive roll 131 and the backup roll 132 driven by the drive roll 131 so as to maintain a constant tension. The photosensitive drum 2 is rotationally driven in the same direction with each surface being in contact with the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 9. The intermediate transfer belt 9 is circulated and driven at the same moving speed in the same moving direction as the surface of each photosensitive drum 2 by a driving unit (not shown) that drives the driving roll 131. Primary transfer rolls 6Y, 6M, 6C, and 6K are respectively provided at the contact positions of the intermediate transfer belt 9 and the photosensitive drums 2Y, 2M, 2C, and 2K so as to sandwich the intermediate transfer belt 9. The toner image on the surface of each photosensitive drum 2 is brought into pressure contact with the intermediate transfer belt 9 by the primary transfer roll 6 and is multiplex-transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 9.

The secondary transfer roll 12 faces the backup roll 132 with the intermediate transfer belt 9 interposed therebetween. The recording sheet 18 held in the paper feed cassette 17 is sent to a position where the secondary transfer roll 12 and the backup roll 132 face each other at a predetermined timing by a feed roll 17a, a transport roll 19 and a registration roll 20, and a toner image of each color. Passes between the secondary transfer roll 12 and the backup roll 132 together with the intermediate transfer belt 9 on which multiple transfer is performed. The recording sheet 18 includes a recording sheet base 18a made of paper or a plastic thin plate, and a transparent thermoplastic resin layer 18b provided on the surface of the recording sheet base 18a. The recording sheet 18 is pressed against the intermediate transfer belt 9 by the secondary transfer roll 12, and the toner image is transferred to the recording sheet 18 by this pressing force and electrostatic attraction force.
The recording sheet 18 onto which the toner image has been transferred in this manner is sent to the first fixing device 15, and the first fixing device 15 performs a fixing process including heating and pressing.

<Configuration of Second Fixing Device>
By the way, in the present embodiment, the second fixing device (belt type fixing device) 101 performs the fixing process again on the recording sheet 18 on which the full-color toner image T is transferred and fixed. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the second fixing device 101. The second fixing device 101 includes a heating roll 40, a pressure roll 42, a roll 44, and a roll 45, and the fixing belt 47 that is an endless belt maintains a constant tension by the heating roll 40, the roll 44, and the roll 45. It is wound like so.
From the second fixing device 101, a first sensor (entrance detecting means) 48 that detects that the recording sheet 18 has entered the second fixing device 101 is located at the most upstream portion in the recording sheet conveyance direction of the second fixing device 101. A second sensor 49 for detecting that the recording sheet 18 has been discharged is provided.

  The image forming apparatus 100 includes an introduction port 24 for introducing the recording sheet 18 discharged from the first fixing device 15 into the second fixing device 101. A recording sheet is provided upstream of the introduction port 24. A switching gate 16 is provided for switching the 18 conveyance paths. When the post-processing is not performed on the recording sheet 18 discharged from the first fixing device 15, the conveyance path is switched to the direction of the discharge roll 22 by the switching gate 16, and the recording sheet 18 is moved to the first position by the discharge roll 22. Are discharged to the discharge tray 25. Further, when post-processing is performed on the recording sheet 18 discharged from the first fixing device 15, the conveyance path is switched to the direction of the conveyance roll 24 by the switching gate 16, and the recording sheet 18 is moved to the first position by the conveyance roll 24. 2 is conveyed to the fixing device 101. The recording sheet 18 conveyed to the second fixing device 101 is subjected to high gloss processing by the second fixing device 101 and then conveyed to the post-processing device 103 by the conveying roll 26.

For example, the heating roll 40 is formed by coating the surface of a metal core 40a made of steel with a release layer 40b made of a PFA tube or the like. Inside the heating roll 40, a halogen lamp 41 is provided as a heat source, and the halogen lamp 41 heats from the inside so that the surface temperature of the heating roll 40 becomes a predetermined temperature.
For example, the pressure roll 42 covers the surface of a metal core 42a made of steel with an elastic layer 42b made of silicone rubber or the like, and the release layer made of a PFA tube or the like having a thickness on the surface of the elastic layer 42b. The one formed by covering 42c and having a predetermined outer diameter is used. Inside the pressure roll 42, a halogen lamp 41 is provided as a heat source, and the halogen lamp 41 is heated from the inside so that the surface temperature of the heating roll 40 becomes a predetermined temperature.

The heating roll 40 and the pressure roll 42 are configured to be in pressure contact with each other by a pressure unit (not shown) via the fixing belt 47.
Further, the heating roll 40 is rotationally driven by a driving means (not shown), whereby the fixing belt 47 is circulated and driven at a predetermined moving speed. As the fixing belt 47, for example, a thermosetting polyimide endless film coated with a silicone rubber layer is used. In terms of power consumption, a thin belt is desirable.

A heat sink 46 for forcibly cooling the fixing belt 47 is disposed between the heating roll 40 and the roll 44 on the inner surface side of the fixing belt 47, and the recording sheet 18 is cooled by the heat sink 46. Configured to do. The fixing belt 47 is cooled near the roll 44 to a temperature equal to or lower than the melting temperature of the resin layer 18 b of the recording sheet 18 and the color toner T.
In the second fixing device 101, as shown in FIG. 4, the recording sheet 18 having the toner image T transferred and fixed on the surface of the resin layer 18b is transferred to the heating roll 40 and the heating roll 40 via a fixing belt 47. The toner image T is inserted into a pressure contact portion with the pressure roll 42 in pressure contact with the fixing belt 47. Then, while passing through the pressure contact portion between the heating roll 40 and the pressure roll 42, the toner image T is heated and melted and embedded in the resin layer 18b. At that time, the resin layer 18 b is also heated and softened, and is in close contact with the surface of the fixing belt 47.

In the pressure contact portion 72 between the heating roll 40 and the pressure roll 42, the recording sheet 18 on which the toner image T is heated and melted and fixed to the resin layer 18 b has the resin layer 18 b on the surface closely attached to the surface of the fixing belt 47. In this state, it is conveyed together with the fixing belt 47. Meanwhile, the fixing belt 47 is forcibly cooled by the heat sink 46, and the toner image T and the resin layer 18b are cooled and solidified. At this time, since the recording sheet 18 itself has a certain degree of rigidity (has a waist), when the recording sheet 18 reaches the position of the roll 44, the recording sheet 18 does not follow the fixing belt 47 but peels from the fixing belt 47.
By using the second fixing device 101 described above, the toner image formed on the surface of the resin layer 18b is embedded in the resin layer 18b, and the surface of the resin layer 18b is smoothed. Thereby, irregular reflection of light due to the unevenness of the toner image is eliminated, and the glossiness is improved.

<Configuration of post-processing apparatus>
Next, the configuration of the post-processing device 103 will be described. The post-processing device 103 is, for example, a cutting device that takes in the recording sheet 18 processed by the second fixing device 101 and cuts out a blank portion of the recording sheet 18. The post-processing device 103 is composed of four sets of transport rolls. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the second transport roll 82. As shown in the figure, the second transport roll 82 includes two upper and lower shafts 82a, a roll 82b provided on each of the shafts 82a, and a round blade 82c. The upper and lower rolls 82b are pressed against each other, It is rotationally driven in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 5 by a driving means (not shown). As a result, the recording sheet 18 sandwiched between the two pairs of rolls 82b is conveyed, and the blank portion of the recording sheet 18 is cut off by the two pairs of round blades 82c. Further, the post-processing apparatus 103 includes a third sensor (conveyance defect detection unit) 86 for detecting a recording sheet conveyance defect (jam) in the post-processing apparatus 103.

  FIG. 6 is a plan view of the post-processing device 103. The first transport roll 81 and the third transport roll 83 are configured by removing the 82c round blade from the second transport roll 82. The third transport roll can be switched between a contact state and a non-contact state by a roll retracting means (not shown). The fourth transport roll 84 has the same configuration as the second transport roll 82. The first transport roll 81 and the second transport roll 82 can be independently driven / stopped. In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, a guide for sending the recording sheet sent out from the first transport roll 81 to the press contact portion of the second transport roll 82 is provided between the first transport roll 81 and the second transport roll 82. 85 is provided. Further, an openable / closable cover is provided in the vicinity of the post-processing device 103 (not shown) of the image forming apparatus 100. By opening the cover, the recording sheet 18 left in the post-processing device 103 is provided. Can be taken out.

Here, it goes without saying that the interval L1 between the first conveyance roll 81 and the second conveyance roll 82 needs to be shorter than the length L2 of the side along the conveyance direction of the recording sheet 18. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, when the leading end portion and the trailing end portion of the recording sheet 18 are stopped by the press contact portion of the second transport roll 82 and the press contact portion of the first transport roll 81, the recording sheet 18 is It is desirable that the distance be such that a loop can be formed on the guide 85.
The recording sheet 18 sent from the second fixing device 101 is introduced into the post-processing device 103 by the first conveyance roll 81, and blank portions on both sides along the conveyance direction are cut off by the round blade 82 c of the second conveyance roll 82. . Then, the recording sheet 18 is sandwiched between the third conveyance roll 83 and moved in the direction of the fourth conveyance roll 84 by switching the third conveyance roll pair in the non-contact state to the contact state. The fourth transport roll 84 cuts off the remaining two margins of the recording sheet 18 and discharges the recording sheet 18 to a discharge tray (not shown).
In addition, the “rear transport unit” described in the claims refers to a transport unit formed by the second transport roll, the third transport roll, and the fourth transport roll.

<Operation>
Next, the operation of the image forming apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a process performed by the image forming apparatus 100 when a recording sheet conveyance failure occurs in the post-processing apparatus 103. Here, the recording sheet conveyance failure means that the conveyance of the recording sheet 18 is hindered by, for example, chips generated when the recording sheet 18 is cut in the post-processing apparatus 103 being entangled in a movable part inside the post-processing apparatus 103. Pointing.
First, the third sensor 86 detects that a recording sheet conveyance failure has occurred inside the post-processing device 103, and sends a signal indicating the recording sheet conveyance failure to the CPU (step S01). Then, the CPU immediately stops driving the second transport roll 82 (step S02). As a result, the recording sheet 18 that has entered the post-processing apparatus 103 after the occurrence of recording sheet conveyance failure is in contact with the pressure contact portion of the second conveyance roll 82 as shown in FIG. Stopped.
Next, the CPU uses the first sensor 48 to determine whether or not there is a recording sheet 18 that straddles the second fixing device 101 and the upstream conveyance path (previous conveyance means) (step S03). If the determination is affirmative (step S03: YES), the CPU repeats this determination at regular time intervals. If the determination is negative (step S03: NO), the CPU proceeds to step S04. The conveyance of the recording sheet 18 in the conveyance path on the upstream side of the second fixing device 101 is stopped.

Next, the CPU uses the second sensor 49 to determine whether or not the recording sheet 18 whose entry to the second fixing device 101 has been detected by the first sensor 48 is discharged from the second fixing device 101 (step). S05). Specifically, the CPU counts the number of recording sheets 18 whose passage has been detected by the first sensor 48 and the second sensor 49, and the recording sheet 18 whose passage has been detected by the first sensor 48 in step S03. It is determined whether or not the second sensor 49 has detected the passage of the same number of recording sheets 18. If the determination is negative (step S05: NO), this determination is repeated at regular time intervals. If the determination is affirmative (step S05: YES), the CPU proceeds to step S06, and the second The driving of the fixing device 101 and the first transport roll 81 is stopped.
As described above, all of the recording sheets 18 that are partially or wholly present in the second fixing device 101 when the recording sheet conveyance failure occurs are discharged from the second fixing device 101 and shown in FIG. As described above, a loop is formed between the first transport roll 81 and the second transport roll 82 to stay. The staying recording sheet 18 can be taken out by opening an openable / closable cover of the housing of the image forming apparatus 100.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when a recording sheet conveyance failure occurs in the post-processing device provided on the downstream side of the belt-type fixing device, the recording that has existed in the belt-type fixing device. The sheet is discharged to the post-processing device. As a result, the recording sheet can be removed without damaging the fixing belt of the belt-type fixing device. Further, since the recording sheet discharged from the belt-type fixing device forms a loop in the post-processing device and stays therein, it can be easily taken out.

<Modification>
The present invention is not limited to the form described above, and can be implemented in various forms. For example, the embodiment described above can be modified as follows.
The present invention may be applied to an image forming apparatus that is not provided with a belt-type fixing device. This makes it possible to remove the recording sheet without damaging the apparatus provided on the upstream side of the post-processing apparatus when the recording sheet is poorly conveyed in the post-processing apparatus.
The post-processing device may be another type of device. For example, a post-processing device that punches holes in a recording sheet, a post-processing device that stacks a plurality of recording sheets, and performs stapling processing may be used.
In the post-processing apparatus, the distance between the first transport roll and the second transport roll and the distance between the third plate increasing roll and the fourth transport roll may be adjustable. In this way, recording sheets of different sizes can be used.
In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to a tandem engine type image forming apparatus has been described. However, the present invention may be applied to a multi-cycle type image forming apparatus or a monochrome image forming apparatus. . Further, an image forming apparatus of a type that directly transfers a toner image to a recording sheet without using an intermediate transfer belt may be used.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus 100. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a second fixing device 101. FIG. It is a figure which shows the recording sheet 18 which formed the loop and stopped. It is a figure which shows a mode that the toner image T is embedded in the resin layer 18b. 5 is a perspective view of a second transport roll 82. FIG. 4 is a plan view of the post-processing device 103. FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating how the recording sheet is conveyed. 3 is a diagram illustrating a flow of processing performed by the image forming apparatus 100. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Image forming apparatus, 101 ... 2nd fixing device, 40 ... Heating roll, 42 ... Pressure roll, 44 ... Roll, 45 ... Roll, 46 ... Heat sink, 47 ... Fixing belt, 72 ... Pressure contact part,
18 ... recording sheet, 18a ... recording sheet substrate, 18b ... resin layer, T ... toner image,
103: Post-processing device, 81: First transport roll, 82: Second transport roll, 83: Third transport roll, 84: Fourth transport roll 85 ... Guide, 48 ... First sensor, 49 ... Second sensor, 86 ... Third sensor.

Claims (3)

A pre-conveying means for conveying the recording sheet to a processing apparatus that discharges the processed recording sheet after processing the recording sheet;
Entry detecting means for detecting the entry of the recording sheet into the processing device;
A first conveying roll that is formed of a pair of rolls that are rotationally driven to form a press contact portion, and that transports the recording sheet discharged from the processing apparatus through the press contact portion, and is rotationally driven to form a press contact portion. And a second transport roll that transports the recording sheet that has been transported by the first transport roll through the press contact portion, and transports the recording sheet that has been transported by the second transport roll. A post-processing apparatus having a post-conveying means;
A conveyance failure detection unit for detecting the occurrence of a conveyance failure of the recording sheet in the post-conveying unit;
Means for stopping the rotational drive of the second transport roll when the occurrence of a transport failure in the post transport means is detected by the transport failure detection means;
When the entry detecting unit detects that there is a recording sheet partially entering the processing apparatus at the time when the occurrence of a conveyance failure in the post-conveying unit is detected by the conveyance defect detecting unit. Comprises a means for stopping conveyance of the subsequent recording sheet to the processing apparatus by the front conveying means after the entry detecting means detects that all of the recording sheets have entered the processing apparatus. An image forming apparatus. The processor is
A heating roll having a heat source; one or a plurality of rolls; a fixing belt that is stretched and circulated by the heating roll; and a pressure roll that is in pressure contact with the heating roll via the fixing belt. And
A recording sheet having a resin layer made of a thermoplastic resin and having a toner image formed on the surface of the resin layer, and contacting the surface on which the toner image is formed with the fixing belt, the heating roll and the pressure roll The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus fixes the toner image by passing through a pressure contact portion. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the post-processing apparatus is a cutting apparatus that cuts a recording sheet into a predetermined size.

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