JP2009204909A - Fixing device and image forming apparatus equipped with it - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fixing device for fixing liquid developer images on a transfer material by preventing occurrence of fixing strength irregularity and gloss irregularity, and to provide an image forming device provided with it. <P>SOLUTION: The fixing device includes: a first fixing roller for thermally fixing the transfer material transferring the liquid developer images with a transfer means; a contact roller contacted on the transfer material fixed with the first fixing roller; a second fixing roller for thermally fixing the transfer material passing the contact roller; and a collection liquid transmission member contacted on the contact roller and the second fixing roller. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fixing device that heats and fixes a liquid developer image transferred onto a transfer material, and an image forming apparatus including the same.

As a fixing device for thermally fixing the liquid developer image transferred onto the transfer material, in order from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transfer material transport direction, the preheating unit as the solvent deposition unit and the carrier as the carrier removal unit There has been proposed a fixing device including a removing unit and a heat fixing unit as a heat fixing unit.
JP 2003-167456 A

  In the prior art, the carrier deposited on the surface layer by preheating does not form a uniform film but deposits in a granular form. If an attempt is made to remove the carrier that has precipitated in a granular form at the carrier removing section, there is a possibility that toner solids may adhere to the carrier removing device at a portion where the carrier is not precipitated. Further, if the carrier is removed in the state where the carrier is deposited in a granular form, the surface layer of the toner image is not uniform, and uneven fixing strength or uneven gloss may occur after passing through the heat fixing unit. If the carrier is removed excessively, the releasing effect (offset preventing effect on the fixing roller) by the carrier at the time of the main fixing is lost, and the toner solid matter adheres to the main fixing device, resulting in an image defect.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and a fixing device that fixes a liquid developer image on a transfer material while preventing occurrence of uneven fixing strength and uneven gloss, and an image forming apparatus having the same The purpose is to provide.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the fixing device of the present invention includes a first fixing roller that thermally fixes a transfer material on which a liquid developer image has been transferred by a transfer unit, and the first fixing roller that is fixed by the first fixing roller. A contact roller that contacts the transfer material, a second fixing roller that thermally fixes the transfer material that has passed through the contact roller, and a recovered liquid transmission member that contacts the contact roller and the second fixing roller. It is characterized by having. The granular carrier is collected by the contact roller existing between the first fixing roller and the second fixing roller. The recovered carrier is transferred to the second fixing roller by a recovery liquid transmission member that contacts the contact roller and the second fixing roller. Therefore, a carrier film having no unevenness is formed on the second fixing roller, and this carrier film is transferred again onto the transfer material by the second fixing roller portion. As a result, uniform fixing properties can be obtained and at the same time, offset to the fixing roller can be prevented.

  In the fixing device of the present invention, the recovered liquid transmission member is a roller. The entire fixing device can be made compact.

  The fixing device of the present invention is an endless belt in which the recovered liquid transmission member is wound around a plurality of rollers. Increased layout flexibility. By using a belt, the contact nip between the intermediate roller and the carrier transmission member or between the carrier transmission member and the second fixing roller can be increased, and the carrier transmission performance is improved.

  In the fixing device of the present invention, a plate-like member whose flat portion abuts on the recovered liquid transmission member is disposed. The carrier film made uniform by the nip between the contact roller and the collected liquid transmission member can be made more uniform, and the unevenness of the fixing property is reduced.

  In the fixing device of the present invention, a plate-like member with a flat surface contacting the contact roller is disposed. The carrier on the contact roller recovered in a granular form can be made uniform, and a more uniform carrier film can be formed by the uniforming effect by the nip between the contact roller downstream and the recovered liquid transmission member. As a result, the unevenness of the fixing property is reduced.

  The fixing device according to the present invention has a relationship of θ1> θ2, where θ1 is a contact angle of the recovered liquid transmission member with respect to the liquid developer, and θ2 is a contact angle of the second fixing roller with respect to the liquid developer. Is. The transfer efficiency of the carrier from the recovered liquid transmitting member to the second fixing roller is increased. As a result, the carrier film of the second fixing roller becomes more uniform, and at the same time, the amount of carrier of the second fixing roller increases, leading to offset prevention.

  In addition, the image forming apparatus of the present invention includes a latent image carrier that is rotatably provided and on which an electrostatic latent image is formed, and that the electrostatic latent image is developed with a liquid developer on the latent image carrier. A developing device for forming a liquid developer image, a primary transfer device for transferring the liquid developer image on the latent image carrier to an intermediate transfer belt, and transferring the liquid developer image on the intermediate transfer belt to a transfer material A secondary transfer device, a first fixing device and a second fixing device for melting a liquid developer image formed on the transfer material, and a contact roller disposed between the first and second fixing devices; And a recovery liquid transmission member that contacts the contact roller and the fixing roller of the second fixing device. A uniform carrier film is formed on the second fixing roller, and this carrier film is transferred to the transfer material again by the second fixing roller portion, so that more uniform fixing properties can be obtained and at the same time offset to the fixing roller can be obtained. It is possible to provide a prevented image forming apparatus.

  In the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the secondary transfer device is disposed corresponding to each of the pair of backup rollers that are disposed at a predetermined distance apart and around which the intermediate transfer belt is wound. And a transfer roller, and a transfer material support belt wound around the transfer roller. When the secondary transfer portion has a wide nip, the transfer efficiency of the toner image onto the recording paper increases, but the carrier in the toner image tends to be uneven. Therefore, by adopting the fixing device of the present invention in an image forming apparatus having a secondary transfer portion having a wide nip, it is possible to improve carrier unevenness and prevent unevenness in fixing properties and offset to the second fixing roller. it can.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically and partially showing an example of an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus of this example includes a photoreceptor 200Y, which is a latent image carrier of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) arranged in tandem. 200M, 200C, 200K. In each of the photoconductors 200Y, 200M, 200C, and 200K, 200Y represents a yellow photoconductor, 200M represents a magenta photoconductor, 2C00 represents a cyan photoconductor, and 200K represents a black photoconductor. Similarly, the members of the respective colors are represented by adding Y, M, C, and K of the respective colors to the reference numerals of the members. Each of the photoconductors 200Y, 200M, 200C, and 200K includes a photoconductor drum in the example shown in FIG. Since the configuration of the image forming station is the same, the yellow image forming station will be described below.

  The photosensitive member 200Y is rotated clockwise as indicated by an arrow a in FIG. Around the photoreceptor 200Y, a charging member 300Y, an exposure device 400Y, a developing device 180Y, a photoreceptor squeeze device 360Y, a primary transfer device 390Y, and a charge removal device 800Y are arranged in this order from the upstream side in the rotation direction. .

  The image forming apparatus also includes an endless intermediate transfer belt 100 that is an intermediate transfer medium. The intermediate transfer belt 100 is stretched around a driving roller 162 and a driven roller 492 to which a driving force of a motor (not shown) is transmitted, and is provided to be able to rotate counterclockwise as indicated by an arrow b in FIG. Further, the driving roller 162 and the driven roller 492 are arranged apart from each other along the tandem arrangement direction of the respective photosensitive members 200 (Y, M, C, K). Further, the intermediate transfer belt 100 is applied with a predetermined tension to the driven roller 492 so that the slack is removed. The intermediate transfer belt 100 has a base material layer (eg, thickness) made of a polyimide resin that has excellent bending durability and little elongation due to belt tension, and has excellent heat resistance even when there is a heating process in the coating process for coating the elastic layer. 100 μm), urethane rubber (hardness JIS-A 30 °), etc., consisting of three layers, an elastic layer covering the surface of the base material layer, and a coat layer (eg, thickness 10 μm) made of a fluororesin, and the belt width is 324 mm The volume resistance value of the belt is about log 10 Ωcm (resistance value of all layers).

  An intermediate transfer belt squeeze device 110Y is disposed in the vicinity of the primary transfer device 390Y downstream of the primary transfer device 390Y in the rotation direction of the intermediate transfer belt 100. Further, a secondary transfer device 160 is provided on the belt driving roller 162 side of the intermediate transfer belt 100, and an intermediate transfer belt cleaning device 490 is provided on the driven roller 492 side of the intermediate transfer belt 100.

  Although not shown in the drawing, the image forming apparatus of this example is similar to a conventional general image forming apparatus that performs secondary transfer, such as a transfer material such as paper on the upstream side in the transfer material conveyance direction from the secondary transfer apparatus 160. And a pair of registration rollers for conveying and transferring the transfer material from the transfer material storage device to the secondary transfer device 160. In addition, the image forming apparatus includes a fixing device 500 and a paper discharge tray on the downstream side in the transfer material conveyance direction from the secondary transfer device 160.

  The charging member 300Y is applied with a bias having the same polarity as the charging polarity of the liquid developer from a power supply device (not shown). The charging member 300Y charges the photoconductor 200Y. The exposure device 400Y forms an electrostatic latent image on the charged photosensitive member 200Y by irradiating laser light from, for example, a laser scanning optical system.

  The developing device 180Y includes a developer supply unit, a developing roller 184Y, and a toner charging corona charger 186Y.

  The developer supply unit includes a developer container that stores a liquid developer including toner particles and a nonvolatile liquid carrier, an agitation roller 182Y, an anilox roller 183Y, and a developer regulating blade 185Y.

  In the liquid developer housed in the developer container, as the toner, for example, particles having an average particle diameter of 1 μm in which a colorant such as a known pigment is dispersed in a known thermoplastic resin used for the toner are used. be able to. In the case of a high-viscosity and high-concentration liquid developer as the liquid carrier, any insulating oil that does not release toner charge, such as silicone oil or mineral oil, may be used.

  The stirring roller 182Y is a roller that uniformly stirs the liquid developer in the developer container and supplies it to the anilox roller 183Y. The anilox roller 183Y is a roller having a cylindrical member and a spiral groove formed finely and uniformly on the surface. For example, the groove pitch is set to about 170 μm and the groove depth is set to about 30 μm. Of course, the dimension of the groove is not limited to these values. The anilox roller 183Y is configured to rotate counterclockwise as indicated by an arrow in FIG. 1 in the same direction as the developing roller 184Y. The anilox roller 183Y can be rotated together with the developing roller 184Y. That is, the rotation direction of the anilox roller 183Y is not limited and is arbitrary.

  The developer regulating blade 185Y is provided in contact with the surface of the anilox roller 183Y. The developer regulating blade 185Y is composed of a rubber portion made of urethane rubber or the like that comes into contact with the surface of the anilox roller 183Y, and a metal plate or the like that supports the rubber portion. The developer regulating blade 185Y scrapes and removes the liquid developer adhering to the surface other than the groove portion of the anilox roller 183Y with a rubber portion. Therefore, the anilox roller 183Y supplies only the liquid developer adhering in the groove to the developing roller 184Y.

  The developing roller 184Y includes, for example, an elastic body such as conductive urethane rubber, a resin layer, and a rubber layer on an outer peripheral portion of a metal shaft such as iron. The developing roller 184Y is in contact with the photosensitive member 200Y and is rotated counterclockwise as indicated by an arrow in FIG.

  The toner charging corona charger 186Y has a function of applying positive voltage to promote positive charging of solid toner particles and pressing the solid toner particles onto the developing roller 184Y.

  The photoconductor squeeze device 360Y is installed on the downstream side in the rotation direction of the photoconductor 200Y from the contact portion (nip portion) between the photoconductor 200Y and the developing roller 184Y. The photoreceptor squeeze device 360Y removes the liquid carrier on the photoreceptor 200Y.

  The primary transfer device 390Y includes a primary transfer backup roller for bringing the intermediate transfer belt 100 into contact with the photoreceptor 200Y. The backup roller is applied with, for example, about −200 V having a polarity opposite to the charging polarity of the toner particles, and primarily transfers the yellow toner image (liquid developer image) on the photoreceptor 200 </ b> Y onto the intermediate transfer belt 100.

  The static eliminator 800Y irradiates light in the direction of the arrow to remove the residual charge on the photoreceptor 200Y.

  The intermediate transfer belt squeeze device 110Y is configured such that a backup roller 111Y is in contact with the intermediate transfer belt squeeze roller 112Y via the intermediate transfer belt 100, and the intermediate transfer belt squeeze roller 112Y is biased with the same polarity as the solid toner. The solid content toner is applied and pressed against the intermediate transfer belt 100. The carrier attached to the intermediate transfer belt squeeze roller 112Y is scraped off by a blade (not shown), and the carrier is collected.

  Primary transfer is sequentially performed for each of Y, M, C, and K colors, and a full-color liquid developer image is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 100.

  A transfer material is fed from a paper feed cassette (not shown), enters the secondary transfer device 160 in the direction of arrow c, and a full-color liquid developer image is transferred from the intermediate transfer belt 100 to the transfer material.

  In order to clean the intermediate transfer belt 100 after the secondary transfer, an intermediate transfer belt cleaning device 490 is disposed on the driven roller 492 side.

  The full-color liquid developer image on the transfer material discharged in the direction of arrow d passes through the fixing device 500 and is fixed and discharged in the direction of arrow f.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically and partially showing another embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention. In this embodiment, since only the configuration of the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1 and the secondary transfer device 160 is different, only the configuration of the secondary transfer device 160 having a different configuration will be described.

  The intermediate transfer belt 100 is wound around a driving roller 162 and a driven roller 164. The secondary transfer device 160 includes an endless transfer wound around a first secondary transfer roller 161 (-1.2 kV applied), a second secondary transfer roller 163 (-1.2 kV applied), and a tension roller 165. A material support belt 166 is provided. The first secondary transfer roller 161 abuts on the driving roller 162 (ground) via the intermediate transfer belt 100 and the transfer material support melt 166, and the second secondary transfer roller 163 includes the intermediate transfer belt 100 and the transfer material support belt. It contacts the driven roller 164 (grounding) via 166 to form a wide nip.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the fixing device 500 of the present invention. The fixing device 500 includes a first fixing roller 501 disposed on the upstream side in the transport direction of the transfer material 2 onto which the liquid developer image 1 has been transferred, and a first fixing unit including a first pressure roller 511. And a second fixing unit including a second fixing roller 521 and a second pressure roller 531 arranged on the downstream side thereof.

  A contact roller 541 that contacts the liquid developer image 1 fixed by the first fixing roller 501 and a counter roller 551 of the contact roller 541 are disposed between the first fixing unit and the second fixing unit. A roller-shaped recovery liquid transmission member 542 that contacts both the contact roller 541 and the second fixing roller 521 is disposed.

  A first fixing roller 501 (outer diameter Φ15 to 70 mm, total length 300 to 350 mm) is formed on a first fixing roller core metal 504 (made of metal, 0.5 to 2 mm thick) and a first fixing roller elastic layer 503 (silicone rubber or fluorine). Rubber, 0.5 to 2 mm thick), the first fixing roller surface layer 502 (PFA, 30 to 50 μm thick) is coated, and the first fixing roller heating source 505 (halogen lamp) is arranged in the first fixing roller cored bar 504. Is done.

  The first pressure roller 511 (outer diameter Φ15 to 70 mm, total length 300 to 350 mm) is formed on the first pressure roller core metal 514 (metal, 0.5 to 3 mm thickness) and the first pressure roller elastic layer 513 (silicone). The first pressure roller surface layer 512 (PFA, 30-50 um thickness) is coated, and the first pressure roller heating source 515 (halogen) is coated in the first pressure roller cored bar 514. Lamp). The first fixing roller heating source 505 and the first pressure roller heating source 515 are heated and controlled so that the roller surface has a uniform temperature. The width of the nip formed by the first fixing roller 501 and the first pressure roller 511 is about 7 to 12 mm.

  The second fixing roller 521 (outer diameter Φ15 to 70 mm, total length 300 to 350 mm) is formed on the second fixing roller core metal 524 (metal, 0.5 to 2 mm thickness) and the second fixing roller elastic layer 523 (silicone rubber or fluorine). Rubber, 0.5 to 2 mm thick), the second fixing roller surface layer 522 (PFA, 30 to 50 μm thick) is coated, and the second fixing roller heating source 525 (halogen lamp) is arranged in the second fixing roller core metal 524. Is done.

  The second pressure roller 531 (outer diameter Φ15 to 70 mm, total length 300 to 350 mm) is formed on the second pressure roller core metal 534 (aluminum, 0.5 to 3 mm thickness) and the second pressure roller elastic layer 513 (silicone rubber). And a fluororubber, 1-7 mm thick), a second pressure roller surface layer 532 (PFA, 30-50 um thick), and a second pressure roller heating source 535 (halogen lamp) in the second pressure roller mandrel 534. ) Is placed. The second fixing roller heating source 525 and the second pressure roller heating source 535 are controlled to be heated so that the roller surface has a uniform temperature.

  The contact roller 541 (outer diameter Φ10 to 35 mm, total length 300 to 350 mm) is formed with an elastic layer made of silicone rubber or fluororubber on the outer periphery of a solid or about 0.5 to 2 mm pipe. The opposing roller 551 (outer diameter Φ10-35 mm, total length 300-350 mm) is formed with an elastic layer made of silicone rubber or fluororubber on the outer periphery of a solid or 0.5-2 mm pipe, and further on the outer periphery of the release roller PFA may be coated as a layer.

  The roller-shaped recovered liquid transmission member 542 is formed with an elastic layer having a thickness of about 0.5 to 2 mm on the outer periphery of a solid metal core having an outer diameter of about 15 to 30 mm.

  The granular carrier is collected by the contact roller 541 that exists between the first fixing roller 501 and the second fixing roller 521. The recovered carrier is transferred to the second fixing roller 521 by a roller-shaped recovery liquid transmission member 542 that contacts the contact roller 541 and the second fixing roller 521. Therefore, a carrier film having no unevenness is formed on the second fixing roller 521, and this carrier film is transferred to the transfer material 2 again by the second fixing roller 521. As a result, uniform fixing properties can be obtained and at the same time, offset to the fixing roller can be prevented.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the contact roller 541 contacts the transfer material below the transfer material 2 in the direction of gravity.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the recovered liquid transmission member 542 is a belt. An elastic layer having a thickness of about 100 to 300 μm is provided on a resin film having a belt outer diameter of about 30 to 60 mm and a thickness of about 40 μm or a metal belt having a thickness of about 200 μm. By using the recovery liquid transmission member 542 as a belt, the degree of freedom in layout increases. By using a belt, the contact nip between the intermediate roller and the carrier transmission member or between the carrier transmission member and the second fixing roller can be increased, and the carrier transmission performance is improved.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the flat surface portion of the plate-like member 543 is in contact (belly contact) with the recovered liquid transmission member 542. The plate-like member 543 is formed of an elastic body such as fluoro rubber or urethane rubber having a thickness of 1 to 3 mm or a metal plate such as stainless steel or phosphor bronze having a thickness of 0.1 to 0.5 mm. The nip formed by the plate-like member 542 and the contact roller 541 has a width of about 0.4 to 2 mm. The plate-like member 542 is supported only at the fulcrum in order to follow the eccentricity of the contact roller 541. The carrier film made uniform by the nip between the contact roller 541 and the recovered liquid transmission member 542 can be made more uniform, and the non-uniformity of the fixing property is reduced.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the flat portion of the plate-like member 543 comes into contact (belly contact) with the contact roller 541. The plate-like member 543 is formed of an elastic body such as fluoro rubber or urethane rubber having a thickness of 1 to 3 mm or a metal plate such as stainless steel or phosphor bronze having a thickness of 0.1 to 0.5 mm. The nip formed by the plate-like member 542 and the contact roller 541 has a width of about 0.4 to 2 mm. The plate-like member 542 is supported only at the fulcrum in order to follow the eccentricity of the contact roller 541. The carrier on the contact roller 541 recovered in a granular form can be made uniform, and a more uniform carrier film can be formed by the uniforming effect by the nip between the contact roller 541 and the recovered liquid transmission member 542 downstream of the carrier. . As a result, the unevenness of the fixing property is reduced.

  The surface layers of the contact roller 541, the collected liquid transmission member 542, and the second fixing roller 521 will be compared. Since each member holds the carrier on the surface layer and transmits it to the next member, it is desirable that the upstream side of the carrier movement path has higher oil repellency (a larger contact angle with respect to the carrier) than the downstream side. Table 1 below shows contact angles between the carrier oil and various surface layer materials. The smaller the contact angle, the lower the oil repellency.

(Table 1)
┌───────────┬───────┐
│ Surface material │ Contact angle (degree) │
├───────────┼───────┤
│ PFA │ 50 │
├───────────┼───────┤
│ Fluoro rubber │ 25 │
├───────────┼───────┤
│ Silicone rubber │ 29 │
└───────────┴───────┘

  As shown in Table 2 below, it can be seen that the larger the contact angle of the upstream member of the carrier movement path, the more the fixing unevenness is improved.

(Table 2)
┌─────────┬─────────┬─────────┬──────┐
│ Contact roller surface layer │ Collected liquid transmission member surface layer │ Second fixing roller surface layer Fixation unevenness situation │
├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────┤
│ PFA │ Silicone rubber │ Fluoro rubber │ ○ │
├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────┤
│ PFA │ Fluoro rubber │ Fluoro rubber │ △ │
├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────┤
│ PFA │ Fluoro rubber │ Silicone rubber │ △ │
├─────────┼─────────┼─────────┼──────┤
│ Fluoro rubber │ Silicone rubber │ PFA │ × │
└─────────┴─────────┴─────────┴──────┘

  The secondary transfer device 160 includes first and second secondary transfer rollers 161 and 163 around which a transfer material support belt 166 is wound, a driving roller 162 around which the intermediate transfer belt 100 is wound, a driven roller 164, and an intermediate transfer belt. 100 and the transfer material support belt 166 are brought into contact with each other. The nip of the secondary transfer portion is about 10 to 20 mm. At this time, the transfer efficiency to the transfer material is improved, but the carrier oil is easily trapped in the toner layer. It becomes easy to eject in granular form. Therefore, by using the fixing device of the present invention, it is possible to reduce non-uniformity of fixability and offset to the second fixing roller 521 due to the carrier deposited in granular form.

It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  10: image forming apparatus, 200 (Y, M, C, K): photoconductor, 400 (Y, M, C, K): exposure apparatus, 300 (Y, M, C, K): charging member, 180 ( Y, M, C, K): developing device, 100: intermediate transfer belt, 160: secondary transfer device, 500: fixing device

Claims (8)

A first fixing roller for thermally fixing the transfer material onto which the liquid developer image has been transferred by the transfer means;
A contact roller that contacts the transfer material fixed by the first fixing roller;
A second fixing roller for thermally fixing the transfer material that has passed through the contact roller;
A recovered liquid transmission member that contacts the contact roller and the second fixing roller;
A fixing device. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the recovery liquid transmission member is a roller. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the recovery liquid transmission member is an endless belt wound around a plurality of rollers. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein a plate-like member with a flat surface abutting on the recovered liquid transmission member is disposed. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein a plate-like member whose flat portion abuts on the abutting roller is disposed. When the contact angle of the recovered liquid transmission member with respect to the liquid developer is θ1, and the contact angle of the second fixing roller with respect to the liquid developer is θ2,
θ1> θ2
The fixing device according to claim 1, having the relationship: A latent image carrier that is rotatably provided and on which an electrostatic latent image is formed;
A developing device for developing the electrostatic latent image with a liquid developer to form a liquid developer image on the latent image carrier;
A primary transfer device for transferring the liquid developer image on the latent image carrier to an intermediate transfer belt;
A secondary transfer device for transferring the liquid developer image on the intermediate transfer belt to a transfer material;
A first fixing device and a second fixing device for melting a liquid developer image formed on the transfer material;
A contact roller disposed between the first and second fixing devices;
A recovered liquid transmission member that contacts the contact roller and the fixing roller of the second fixing device;
An image forming apparatus comprising: The secondary transfer device includes a pair of backup rollers disposed at a predetermined distance and wound around the intermediate transfer belt, a transfer roller disposed corresponding to the pair of backup rollers, and a transfer roller. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising a transfer material support belt wound around the image forming apparatus.

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