JP3155761B2 - Image forming device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electrophotographic image forming apparatus such as a laser beam printer, a copying machine, and a plain paper facsimile apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus which reduces running costs.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an image forming apparatus employing an electrophotographic system has high image quality, high speed, and high reliability.
It is frequently used for A equipment. Such an image forming apparatus includes:
A high-volume paper feeding device, a large-volume paper discharging device, a sorter, and the like have been added to achieve higher functionality. For this reason, the apparatus tends to be large, and the transport path tends to be long.

A conventional image forming apparatus of this type is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-57-35872, JP-A-61-292162,
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-40176 discloses a technique disclosed in FIG.
Is shown as In FIG. 1, a paper feed cassette 11 is set in a printer main body 10 as an image forming apparatus, and transfer paper 13 is fed by a paper feed roller 12 from one of the paper feed cassettes 11 in the direction of arrow A. The transfer paper 13 is detected by a registration sensor 14 and conveyed to a drum-shaped photoconductor 16 at a timing by a pair of registration rollers 15.

The photoreceptor 16 is driven to rotate clockwise, and the surface thereof is uniformly charged by a charging charger 17 at that time. Next, laser light is emitted from an optical writing unit (laser optical system) 18, and an electrostatic latent image is written on the photoconductor 16. This electrostatic latent image is visualized by toner when passing through the developing device 19. The visualized toner image is transferred by the transfer charger 20 to the transfer paper 13 conveyed to the photoconductor 16.

Next, the transfer paper 13 is separated from the separation charger 21.
And is conveyed to the fixing device 23 by the conveyance belt 22. In the fixing device 23, the toner image on the transfer paper 13 is fixed. The transfer paper 13 exiting the fixing device 23 passes through a front of a paper discharge sensor 24 and is, for example, a paper discharge tray in an arrow B direction.
Discharged to 25. The path from the paper feed cassette 11 to the paper discharge tray 25 indicated by arrows A and B is the transport path of the transfer paper 13 by the transport unit.

On the other hand, the photoreceptor 16 after the transfer of the toner image has the residual toner removed by the cleaner 26, and the surface potential is removed by the charge removing LED 27 to erase the electrostatic latent image. Thus, the image forming unit is configured around the photoconductor 16. In FIG. 8, reference numeral 28 denotes a power supply unit, 29 denotes a main motor for driving the entire apparatus, and 30 denotes an engine board on which a CPU is mounted.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing the control system of FIG. As shown, each electric component, for example, the main motor 2
9, a paper feed clutch 31 for connecting and disconnecting the paper feed roller 12, a resist clutch 32 for connecting and disconnecting the pair of registration rollers 15, a static elimination LED 27, a charging charger 17, a transfer charger 20, a separation charger 21, etc. Sensor
14. The one-chip CPU 33 controls each driver, for example, a motor driver 34, a high-voltage power supply driver 35, and the like, based on the detection timing of the paper discharge sensor 24 and the like. Writing of an image in the optical writing unit 18 is as follows.
The optical writing controller 36 creates an image signal at the timing instructed by the CPU 33, and the optical writing driver 37 blinks the laser diode 38 in response to the image signal to execute the operation.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the drive system of FIG. As shown in the figure, the transfer paper feed unit 39, the photoconductor 16, the developing device 19 and the cleaner 26 which are in contact with the photoconductor 16 by one main motor 29 via a belt, a chain, a gear, a clutch, etc. The fixing device 23, devices on the transport path, and the like are driven.

[0009]

However, such a conventional image forming apparatus is configured to be entirely driven by a main motor 29 which is a single drive source, and therefore, the image forming process is not performed during a long period of time. During the period during which the transfer paper is simply conveyed before and after, the photoconductor 16 and the device in contact with the photoconductor 16, for example, the developing device 19, etc., were unnecessarily driven. FIG. 11 shows a conventional image forming apparatus as described above.
5 is a timing chart when performing a cycle image forming process. As shown in the figure, the execution time of the image forming process in the image forming unit is 5.5 seconds, while the main motor 29 is rotating for 9.5 seconds before and after including the process execution time. For this reason, the photosensitive member 16 has a total of 9.5 seconds including an unnecessary 4 seconds regardless of the presence or absence of image formation,
It is driven to rotate. Here, the life of components in the image forming unit such as the photoconductor 16 is mainly determined by the driving time of the photoconductor 16. Therefore, there is a disadvantage that the life of the components is wasted by unnecessary driving time.

That is, the life of the photoconductor 16 and the developing unit 19, the cleaner 26, etc., which are in contact with the photoconductor 16, are much shorter than the life of the image forming apparatus itself. However, due to the above-described inconvenience, the replacement interval is shortened, and the running cost is increased. In particular, the shortening of the component life due to the unnecessary driving time as described above becomes remarkable when the cut sheet is intermittently conveyed as transfer paper, and depending on the user's method of use, the image forming unit such as the photoconductor 16 may be used. The life of the parts has been much shorter than the target life, and the interval between parts replacement has been shortened.

Further, a small amount of developer (toner) is consumed from the developing device 19 which is in contact with the photoconductor 16 by driving the photoconductor such as a gap between papers or idling at the time of warming up. The greater the distance, the greater the consumption of developer. For this reason, there has been a problem that the untransferred developer is directly collected by the cleaner 26, and the collected developer becomes unnecessarily large.

In view of the above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a second motor for driving at least the photosensitive member and the developing roller of the developing device is provided, and the second motor is stopped or decelerated except during a period necessary for the image forming process. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus in which the actual driving time of the photoconductor is reduced and the consumption of the developer is reduced. Further, according to a second aspect of the present invention, the actual driving time of the photoconductor is reduced by stopping or decelerating the second motor when the transfer / separation step of the image forming process is completed, and the consumption amount of the developer is reduced. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus that reduces the image quality.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, an image forming apparatus which utilizes a driving force of a second motor by driving a paper feeding unit of a transfer sheet in a transport unit using a pre-processing period of image formation. It is intended to provide a forming apparatus. It is still another object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus in which a fixing device is driven by using a post-processing period of image formation to effectively use a driving force of a second motor. .

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a second motor for driving a developing roller of a developing device is provided, and the second motor is stopped or decelerated when the developing step of the image forming process is completed. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that reduces the consumption of the developer. According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a second motor for driving the photosensitive member is provided, and the second motor is stopped or decelerated at the time when the transfer separation step of the image forming process is completed, so that the photosensitive member is driven. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus in which the actual driving time is shortened and the consumption of the developer is reduced.

[0015]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
In order to achieve the above object, a photoconductor that is driven to rotate,
And a developing device for applying a developer to the photoconductor by a developing roller that contacts the photoconductor while rotating.
An image forming unit for writing and erasing an electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor in accordance with an image forming process of a cycle, and a conveyance for conveying a transfer paper over a period before and after including an execution period of the process while corresponding to the image forming process And a main motor for driving the conveying unit and the image forming unit, a second motor for driving at least a photoconductor and a developing roller of the image forming unit, and a second motor for driving the developing roller. And a motor control unit that stops or decelerates during a period other than the period necessary for the image forming process.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, the motor control unit stops or decelerates the second motor when the transfer separation step in the execution period of the image forming process is completed. It is characterized by the following. According to a third aspect of the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, a second motor drives a paper feed unit of a transfer paper in a transport unit, and a period from the start of the paper feed operation is set to a second time. It is included in the driving period of the motor.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, a fixing device arranged on a conveyance path of a conveyance section is driven by a second motor, and a period until completion of fixing is set to a second time. In the driving period of the motor. According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, a photoconductor which is driven to rotate and a front end while rotating are provided.
An image forming unit for writing and erasing an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive member in accordance with a one-cycle image forming process; and a developing device for applying a developer to the photosensitive member by a developing roller in contact with the photosensitive member. And a main motor for driving the image forming unit, a second motor for driving the developing roller, and a second motor for driving the second motor when the developing step of the image forming process is completed. And a motor control unit that stops or decelerates the motor.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, a photoconductor which is driven to rotate and a photoconductor which rotates are provided.
A developing device for applying a developer to the photosensitive member by a developing roller contacting the photosensitive member, and writing and erasing an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive member according to a one-cycle image forming process. And a main motor for driving the image forming unit, a second motor for driving the photoreceptor, and a transfer / separation step of the image forming process are completed by the second motor. And a motor control unit that stops or decelerates at the point of time.

[0019]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a second motor for driving at least the photosensitive member and the developing roller of the developing device is provided, and the second motor is operated for a period other than a period required for the image forming process. Stop or slow down. Also,
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the second motor is stopped or decelerated when the transfer separation step of the image forming process is completed.

According to the third aspect of the present invention having the above-described structure, the transfer paper feed unit in the transport unit is driven by utilizing the pre-processing period of image formation. Further, in the invention according to claim 4 having the above configuration, the fixing device is driven by utilizing a post-processing period of image formation. Also,
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, a second motor for driving the developing roller of the developing device is provided, and the second motor is stopped or decelerated when the developing step of the image forming process is completed.

Further, in the invention according to claim 6 having the above configuration, a second motor for driving the photosensitive member is provided,
The second motor is stopped or decelerated when the transfer / separation step of the image forming process is completed.

[0022]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below based on embodiments.
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a drive system of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, the same components as those in the above-described example are denoted by the same reference numerals, and a specific description thereof will be omitted.

First, the configuration will be described. In FIG. 1, the photosensitive member 16 and the developing roller 19a and the cleaner 26 of the developing device 19 which are in contact with the photosensitive member 16 are driven by a second motor 40. On the other hand, the transfer of the transfer paper is performed by the conventional main motor 29. In this embodiment, since the main motor 29 and the second motor 40 are provided, the photoconductor 16
Further, the developing roller 19a can be driven independently of the transport unit. The second motor 40 is stopped or decelerated by a motor control unit (not shown) except during a period necessary for the image forming process. This motor control unit is provided, for example, in the one-chip CPU 33 shown in FIG.

Next, the operation will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a timing chart when a one-cycle image forming process is performed in the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. As shown, in the present embodiment, the second motor 40 is driven for 5.5 seconds required for the image forming process, and is stopped during other periods. For this reason, the drive time of the image forming unit such as the photoconductor 16, the developing roller 19a, and the cleaner 26 is shortened, and the wear of the photoconductor 16 and a device in contact with the photoconductor 16 can be reduced. The replacement cycle of parts can be extended. In addition, the consumption of the developer is reduced by shortening the driving time. Therefore, the running cost is low and the frequency of downtime is low, so that the reliability can be improved. Further, since the consumption of the developer is minimized regardless of the print mode, the disposal cycle of the collected developer for cleaning can be extended. It should be noted that the actual driving time of the image forming unit can be reduced by decelerating the second motor 40, and the same effect can be obtained.

In the image formation, the charging charger 17 disposed on the outer periphery of the photosensitive member 16 and the optical writing unit 1
8, developing unit 19, transfer charger 20, separation charger 21,
The cleaner 26 and the static elimination LED 27 operate in sequence according to the rotation of the photoconductor 16. Therefore, before and after the toner image is transferred onto the transfer paper, there are a pre-processing period and a post-processing period for image formation. These periods also correspond to wasteful consumption periods of the photoconductor 16, the developing device 19, and the cleaner 26. Therefore, the image forming apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention uses the motor control unit so as to stop or decelerate the second motor 40 when the transfer separation step within the execution period of the image forming process ends. Control. According to this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the driving time of the second motor 40 can be set to 4.5 seconds, and the consumption of parts can be further reduced. However, in this case, the static elimination LED 27 is turned on simultaneously with the start of driving of the second motor 40. Further, it is effective to make the distance from the charging charger 17 to the charge removing LED 27 as short as possible. For this purpose, it is effective to reduce the diameter of the photoconductor 16.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the image forming section and the transport section can be driven independently, so that the transport speed is set higher for transporting the transfer paper by the transport section except during the transfer operation. , The transfer paper on which the transfer has been completed can be discharged in a short time. FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a drive system of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, the same components as those in the above-described example are denoted by the same reference numerals, and a specific description thereof will be omitted.

First, the configuration will be described. This embodiment is different from the above-described embodiment in that the second motor 40 drives the sheet feeding unit 39 including the registration roller pair 15 together with the image forming unit. In this embodiment, the main motor
The paper feed unit 39 and the image forming section can be driven independently of the transport operation by 29. As described above, the second motor 40 is stopped or decelerated by the motor control unit during periods other than those required for the image forming process and the sheet feeding operation. Further, when the paper feed roller 12 of the paper feed unit 39 can be driven by another motor, only the registration roller pair 15 may be simply driven by the second motor 40.

Next, the operation will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a timing chart when an image forming process of one cycle is performed in the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. As shown, in the present embodiment, the second motor 40 is driven for 6.5 seconds from the start of the sheet feeding operation to the end of the image forming process, and is stopped during other periods. For this reason, by driving the paper feed unit 39 of the transfer paper in the transport unit using the pre-processing period of image formation, the driving force of the second motor is effectively used, and the photosensitive member 16, the developing roller 19a, While shortening the driving time of the image forming unit such as the cleaner 26, the wear of the photoconductor 16 and the device in contact with the photoconductor 16 can be reduced, and the replacement cycle of these components can be extended. In addition, the consumption of the developer is reduced by shortening the driving time. Therefore, the running cost is low and the frequency of downtime is low, so that the reliability can be improved.
Also, by reducing the speed of the second motor 40, the actual driving time of the image forming unit can be reduced, and the same effect can be obtained.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a drive system of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Note that, in the present embodiment, for the same configuration as the above-described example,
The same reference numerals are given and the detailed description is omitted. First,
The configuration will be described. This embodiment is different from the above-described embodiment in that the second motor 40 and the fixing unit are used together with the image forming unit.
The point that drives 23. In this embodiment, it is possible to drive the fixing device 23 independently of the transport operation by the main motor 29. As described above, the second motor 40 is stopped or decelerated by the motor control unit during periods other than those required for the image forming process and the fixing operation. When a device that needs to be driven by a motor is disposed in a section from the image forming unit to the fixing device 23, for example, when the transport belt 22 illustrated in FIG.
The transport belt 22 may also be driven by the motor 40.

Next, the operation will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a timing chart when a one-cycle image forming process is performed in the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. As shown, in the present embodiment, the second motor 40 is driven only for 7 seconds from the image forming process to the completion of fixing, and is stopped during the other periods. For this reason, by driving the fixing device 23 and the conveyance belt 22 using the post-processing period of image formation, the driving force of the second motor is effectively used, and the photosensitive member 16, the developing roller 19a, the cleaner 26, and the like are used. While reducing the drive time of the image forming unit
It is possible to reduce wear of the device 16 and the device that is in contact with the photoconductor 16, and it is possible to extend the replacement cycle of these components. In addition, the consumption of the developer is reduced by shortening the driving time. Therefore, the running cost is low and the frequency of downtime is low, so that the reliability can be improved. Also, by reducing the speed of the second motor 40, the actual driving time of the image forming unit can be reduced, and the same effect can be obtained. Claim 3
The image forming apparatus according to the inventions described in (4) and (4) may be constituted. In this case, the driving time is 8 seconds.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Note that, in the present embodiment, for the same configuration as the above-described example,
The same reference numerals are given and the detailed description is omitted. First,
The configuration will be described. In FIG. 7 showing an embodiment according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the photosensitive member 16 is driven by a main motor 29 for driving the entire apparatus, and a developing roller 19a of a developing unit 19 is provided.
Is driven by a second motor 40. Main motor 29
The second motor 40 is controlled by a motor control unit 33a, and the second motor 40 is stopped or decelerated when the developing step of the image forming process is completed.

Next, the operation will be described. At the time of writing the electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor 16, the developing roller 19a normally rotates to perform development. When the development is completed, the developing roller 19a is stopped or decelerated. Thereafter, the toner image on the photoreceptor 16 is transferred to a transfer sheet, fixed, and discharged. That is, the developing roller
19a is driven from the writing of the electrostatic latent image on the photoreceptor 16 to the end of development, and is stopped or decelerated in other periods.
Even when the developing roller 19a is stopped or decelerated, the photosensitive member 1
6 rotates normally.

As described above, in this embodiment, the developing device
A second motor 40 for driving the 19 developing rollers 19a is provided,
By stopping or decelerating the second motor 40 when the developing step of the image forming process is completed, the consumption amount of the developer (toner) can be reduced. Further, the consumption of the developer can be reduced by controlling the rotation of the photoconductor 16. That is, claim 6
The described invention replaces the motor of FIG.
The developing roller 19a of the developing device 19 is driven by 29, and the photoconductor 16 is driven by the second motor 40. The main motor 29 and the second motor 40 are controlled by a motor control unit 33a, and the second motor 40 is stopped or decelerated when the transfer separation step of the image forming process ends.

Next, the operation will be described. At the time of writing the electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor 16, the photoconductor 16 normally rotates. When the transfer separation is completed, the photoconductor 16 is stopped or decelerated. That is, the photoconductor 16 is driven from the writing of the electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor 16 to the end of the transfer separation, and is stopped or decelerated in other periods. The developing roller 19a normally rotates even during the stop or deceleration period of the photoconductor 16.

As described above, in this embodiment, the photosensitive member
A second motor 40 for driving the second motor 16;
By stopping or decelerating 40 when the transfer / separation step of the image forming process is completed, the actual driving time of the photoconductor can be shortened and the consumption of the developer (toner) can be reduced.

[0036]

As described above, according to the image forming apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention, at least the second motor for driving the photosensitive member and the developing roller of the developing device is provided. Is stopped or decelerated during periods other than the period required for the image forming process, so that the actual driving time of the photoconductor can be shortened and the consumption of the developer can be reduced.
For this reason, it is possible to reduce the wear of the photoconductor and the device in contact with the photoconductor, and it is possible to extend the replacement cycle of these components. In addition, the consumption of the developer is reduced by shortening the driving time. Therefore, the running cost is low and the frequency of downtime is low, so that the reliability can be improved.

According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the second motor is stopped or decelerated when the transfer / separation step of the image forming process is completed, so that the actual driving time of the photosensitive member is reduced. And the consumption of the developer can be reduced. Further, according to the image forming apparatus of the third aspect, the driving force of the second motor is reduced by driving the paper feed unit of the transfer paper in the transport unit using the pre-processing period of image formation. It can be used effectively.

According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the driving force of the second motor is effectively used by driving the fixing device using the post-processing period of image formation. Can be. According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the second motor for driving the developing roller of the developing device is provided, and the second motor is stopped when the developing step of the image forming process is completed. Alternatively, by reducing the speed, the consumption of the developer can be reduced.

According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, a second motor for driving the photosensitive member is provided.
By stopping or decelerating the second motor when the transfer / separation step of the image forming process is completed, the actual driving time of the photoconductor can be reduced, and the consumption of the developer can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a drive system of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a timing chart when a one-cycle image forming process is performed in the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing a drive system of the image forming apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention described in claim 3;

FIG. 4 is a timing chart when a one-cycle image forming process is performed in the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing a drive system of the image forming apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention described in claim 4;

6 is a timing chart when a one-cycle image forming process is performed in the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram showing an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a configuration diagram illustrating an example of a conventional image forming apparatus.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing a control system of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a configuration diagram showing the drive system of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is a timing chart when a one-cycle image forming process is performed in a conventional image forming apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 16 photoreceptor, 19 developing unit, 19a developing roller, 20 transfer charger, 21 separation charger, 23 fixing unit, 29 main motor, 33 1-chip CPU, 33a motor control unit, 39 paper feed unit, 40 second motor.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Shigeru Yamazaki 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Ricoh Company, Limited (56) References JP-A-2-178676 (JP, A) JP-A-Hei 3-261963 (JP, A) JP-A-2-103566 (JP, A) JP-A-1-108576 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 21/00 370 G03G 15/00 550

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A photoreceptor which is driven to rotate and which is rotated while
An image forming unit for writing and erasing an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive member in accordance with a one-cycle image forming process; and a developing device for applying a developer to the photosensitive member by a developing roller in contact with the photosensitive member. An image forming apparatus, comprising: a conveying unit that conveys a transfer sheet over a period before and after including an execution period of the image forming process while corresponding to the image forming process; and a main motor that drives the conveying unit and the image forming unit. , A second motor that drives at least the photosensitive member and the developing roller of the image forming unit, and a motor control unit that stops or decelerates the second motor during a period other than a period necessary for the image forming process. An image forming apparatus comprising: 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the motor control unit stops or decelerates the second motor when the transfer separation step within the execution period of the image forming process is completed. 3. The driving period of the second motor includes driving a paper feeding unit of the transfer sheet in the transport unit by the second motor and starting a paper feeding operation. 2. The image forming apparatus according to 1. 4. A driving period of the second motor, wherein the second motor drives a fixing device disposed on the conveyance path of the conveyance section, and a period until completion of the fixing is included in a driving period of the second motor.
Or the image forming apparatus according to 3. 5. A photoreceptor which is driven to rotate and which is rotated while
An image forming unit for writing and erasing an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive member in accordance with a one-cycle image forming process; and a developing device for applying a developer to the photosensitive member by a developing roller in contact with the photosensitive member. And a main motor for driving the image forming unit, a second motor for driving the developing roller, and a second motor for driving the second motor when the developing step of the image forming process is completed. An image forming apparatus, comprising: a motor control unit that stops or decelerates the motor. 6. A photoreceptor which is driven to rotate and which is rotated while
An image forming unit for writing and erasing an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive member in accordance with a one-cycle image forming process; and a developing device for applying a developer to the photosensitive member by a developing roller in contact with the photosensitive member. And a main motor for driving the image forming unit, a second motor for driving the photoconductor, and a transfer separation step of the second motor for the image forming process are completed. An image forming apparatus comprising: a motor control unit that stops or decelerates at a point in time.