JP5009817B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly, to an image forming apparatus including a recording head that discharges droplets and a maintenance and recovery unit thereof.

  As an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a facsimile machine, a copying apparatus, a plotter, and a complex machine of these, for example, an ink jet recording apparatus is known as an image forming apparatus of a liquid discharge recording method using a recording head for discharging ink droplets. . This liquid discharge recording type image forming apparatus ejects ink droplets from a recording head onto a conveyed paper to form an image (recording, printing, printing, and printing are also used synonymously). Serial type image forming device that forms an image by ejecting droplets while the recording head moves in the main scanning direction, and a line type that forms images by ejecting droplets without the recording head moving There is a line type image forming apparatus using a head.

  In the present application, “image forming apparatus” means an apparatus for forming an image by landing ink on a medium such as paper, thread, fiber, fabric, leather, metal, plastic, glass, wood, ceramics, etc. "Image formation" is not only the application of images with meanings such as characters and figures to the medium, but also the addition of images with no meaning such as patterns to the medium (simply applying droplets to the medium) Also means landing). The “ink” is not limited to the ink, but is used as a general term for all liquids that can perform image formation, such as a recording liquid, a fixing processing liquid, and a liquid. The term “paper” is not limited to paper, but includes the above-described OHP sheet, cloth, and the like, and means that ink droplets adhere to the recording medium, recording medium, recording paper, recording It is used as a general term for what includes what is called paper.

  An image forming apparatus that includes such a liquid ejecting apparatus to form an image includes a maintenance / recovery mechanism that maintains and recovers the performance of the recording head that ejects ink droplets. This head maintenance / recovery mechanism (device) sucks and discharges the ink that has been thickened from the nozzle, and a moisturizing cap member for covering the nozzle surface (surface on which the nozzle is formed) of the recording head with high sealing performance. A suction cap connected to suction means such as a suction pump (also used as a moisturizing cap), and a wiper member (wiper, wiper blade) for wiping and removing ink adhering to the nozzle surface ), A wiper cleaner (wiper cleaning member) for cleaning the wiper member, and an empty discharge receiver for discharging empty droplets that do not contribute to image formation.

  By the way, in a line type image forming apparatus having a line type recording head having a nozzle row in which nozzles for discharging droplets are arranged over almost the entire width of the paper, the maintenance / recovery mechanism for maintaining and recovering the recording head is also equivalent to the length of the nozzle row. Since a length of minutes is required, there is a demand for downsizing and simplification of the maintenance and recovery mechanism.

As a conventional line-type image forming apparatus, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses that a plurality of line-type heads and maintenance / recovery mechanisms (maintenance mechanisms, cleaning mechanisms) are alternately arranged along the sheet conveyance direction. A configuration for relatively moving horizontally and vertically is described.
JP 2004-268477 A

Further, Patent Document 2 provides a rotation center in the direction substantially perpendicular to the nozzle row outside the nozzle row, and one end of the print head is moved up and down with respect to the sheet conveyance surface around the rotation center. However, it is described that it is supported so as to be able to rotate and move substantially in parallel, and maintenance and recovery are performed by a maintenance and recovery mechanism disposed beside the conveyance surface.
JP 2000-301710 A

  However, in the configuration in which the recording head or the maintenance mechanism is moved during the maintenance / recovery operation as described in Patent Document 1, when the recording head or the maintenance / recovery mechanism is moved in parallel, the image forming apparatus main body secures a movement space. There is a problem that the mechanism becomes complicated when the size is increased or the harness, the ink supply tube, or the like is moved.

  Further, as described in Patent Document 2, in the configuration in which the recording head is rotated and moved in the center of rotation orthogonal to the nozzle row while being moved up and down in parallel with the sheet conveying surface, the sheet is rotated when the recording head is rotated. Although it is possible to avoid interference with the conveyor belt that forms the conveyor surface, the recording head moves up and down, so when a configuration that generates a negative pressure with a hydraulic head difference with respect to the recording head, the hydraulic head difference changes, There is a problem in that the meniscus of the nozzles of the recording head is destroyed and discharge failure occurs.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and does not increase the size of the apparatus main body, does not complicate the configuration of the maintenance and recovery mechanism and the image forming unit, and discharge failure due to meniscus destruction of the recording head. The purpose is to enable maintenance and recovery without causing problems.

In order to solve the above problems, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention provides:
A plurality of recording heads for discharging droplets;
A conveying belt that conveys a sheet facing the recording head;
A plurality of maintenance / recovery means arranged beside the conveying belt along the sheet conveying direction and performing maintenance / recovery corresponding to each of the recording heads,
The recording head is rotatably supported between a position facing the conveying belt and a position facing the maintenance / recovery means,
Means for lowering a portion of the conveyor belt facing the recording head when the recording head is rotated ;
All the maintenance / recovery means are arranged in the same direction with respect to the supporting shaft of the rotation operation of the corresponding recording head,
The means for lowering the portion of the transport belt facing the recording head lowers the transport belt on the side where the maintenance and recovery means is disposed, and faces the recording head, rather than the side where the support shaft is disposed. The conveyor belt surface to be inclined is configured to be inclined .

According to the present invention, without increasing the size of the instrumentation Okimoto body, without complicating the configuration of the maintenance unit and the image forming unit, moreover, it can perform maintenance and recovery without causing ejection failure due to the meniscus breakage of the recording head It becomes like this.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. First, an example of an image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram for explaining the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus, FIG. 2 is a plan explanatory view of the apparatus, FIG. 3 is a main plane explanatory view of a maintenance recovery state, and FIG. It is.

  This image forming apparatus is a line type image forming apparatus, and includes an apparatus main body 1, a paper feed tray 2 on which paper P is stacked and fed, a paper discharge tray 3 on which printed paper P is discharged and stacked, and paper P A recording unit 5c, 5m, 5k, which discharges droplets of each color to be printed by discharging droplets onto the paper P conveyed by the conveying unit 4. 5y (referred to as “recording head” 5 when not distinguishing colors. The same applies to other members) and maintenance that performs the recovery of the recording heads 5c, 5m, 5k, and 5y after the end of printing or at a required timing. Recovery means (mechanisms) 6c, 6m, 6k, 6y, an ink tank 7 for supplying ink of each color to each recording head 5, and the like are provided.

  The apparatus main body 1 includes front and rear side plates and stays (not shown), and the sheets P stacked on the sheet feed tray 2 are fed one by one to the transport unit 4 by the separation roller 21 and the sheet feed roller 22. Is done.

  The transport unit 4 includes a drive roller 41 disposed on the upstream side in the paper transport direction, a driven roller 42 disposed on the downstream side in the paper transport direction, and an endless transport belt that is wound around these rollers 41, 42. 43. A plurality of holes (not shown) are formed on the surface of the conveyor belt 43, and a suction fan (not shown) that sucks the paper P is disposed below the conveyor belt 43. Further, conveyance guide rollers 44 and 45 are held by guides (not shown) on the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42, respectively, and are in contact with the conveyance belt 43 by their own weight.

  When the driving roller 41 is rotated by a motor (not shown), the conveying belt 43 rotates and the sheet P is sucked onto the conveying belt 43 by a suction fan and is conveyed by the rotating movement of the conveying belt 43. The driven roller 42 and the conveyance guide rollers 44 and 45 are rotated by following the conveyance belt 43.

  A recording head 5 for ejecting droplets to be printed on the paper P is disposed above the transport unit 4 so as to be rotatable in the horizontal direction. Here, the recording head 5m for ejecting magenta (M) droplets, the recording head 5c for ejecting cyan (C) droplets, and the recording for ejecting black (K) droplets from the upstream side in the paper conveyance direction. A head 5k and a recording head 5y that discharges yellow (Y) droplets are arranged.

  Each recording head 5 is a line type head having a plurality of (here, 10) heads 51 for ejecting droplets arranged in a staggered manner on the head holding member 50 and having nozzle rows corresponding to the paper width. It is.

  The head holding member 50 of each recording head 5 is supported by a support shaft 52 arranged outside the transport belt 43, and the support shaft 52 is rotationally driven by a drive motor (not shown), whereby the recording head 5 is 2, between the position facing the conveyor belt 43 (home position) as shown in FIG. 2 and the position facing the maintenance / recovery mechanism 6 (maintenance recovery position) as shown by the solid line in FIG. It is arranged so that it can swing substantially in parallel.

  Here, the recording heads 5k and 5y on the downstream side in the paper transport direction are rotated in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 3, and the recording heads 5m and 5c are rotated in the direction of arrow B in FIG. Then, maintenance / recovery mechanisms 6k and 6y for maintaining and recovering the recording heads 5k and 5y are arranged on one side of the conveyance belt 43 in the direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction, and orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction of the conveyance belt 43. Maintenance / recovery mechanisms 6m and 6c for maintaining and recovering the recording heads 5m and 5c are disposed on the other side of the recording head. The maintenance / recovery mechanism 6 includes a cap member 60 for capping the nozzle surface (surface on which the nozzle is formed) of each head 51 of the recording head 5, a wiper member (not shown) for cleaning the nozzle surface, and a suction member (not shown) for sucking inside the cap member 60 It has a suction pump.

  In this case, the maintenance / recovery mechanism 6k that performs at least the maintenance / recovery of the black recording head 5k is arranged on the side closer to the conveyor belt 43. As a result, when performing the maintenance and recovery operation of the black recording head 5k which is normally used, it is only necessary to rotate the recording heads 5k and 5y on the downstream side in the paper conveyance direction, and the black recording head 5k is maintained. The time required for the recovery operation can be shortened. In other words, when the black recording head 5k is disposed at the position of the recording head 5c or 5m, first, the two recording heads on the downstream side in the paper transport direction are rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow A, and then the black recording head 5k is rotated. After that, the maintenance recovery operation is performed, and then the black recording head 5k is returned to the home position, and then the two recording heads on the downstream side in the paper transport direction are returned to the home position, so that the time required for the maintenance recovery operation is reached. Will be longer.

Next, means for lowering the conveying belt 43 during the maintenance and recovery in the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 is an explanatory side view showing the state of the transport unit during image formation, and FIG. 6 is an explanatory side view showing the state of the transport unit during maintenance recovery.
As described above, the conveyance belt 43 is arranged around the drive roller 41 and the driven roller 42. The driven roller 42 is biased in a direction away from the driving roller 41 by a spring or the like (not shown) to apply a predetermined tension to the transport belt 43.

  Then, on the downstream side of the driven roller 42 in the sheet conveying direction, a pressure that contacts the conveying belt 43 from above and presses the conveying belt 43 on the side facing the recording head 5 between the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42 downward. A roller (used to include a roller) 46 is provided. The pressing roller 46 is rotatably held at the tip end portion of a support arm 47 that is pivotally supported by a support shaft 48 at the other end portion. It is arranged so as to be able to swing between a pressing position that abuts on and lowers the conveying belt 43 shown in FIG.

  With this configuration, the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y are in the home position shown in FIG. 2 and the pressing roller 46 is in FIG. The conveying belt 43 is maintained in a horizontal state between the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42 with respect to the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y. Accordingly, it is possible to form an image by ejecting droplets from the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y onto the paper P that is transported by the transport belt 43.

  On the other hand, when the operation of maintaining and recovering the recording head 5 is performed, first, the pressing roller 46 is rotated in the arrow D direction to the pressed position as shown in FIG. At this time, the driven roller 42 moves in the direction of the arrow E against the urging force according to the amount by which the conveyor belt 43 is pushed down. As a result, the portion of the conveying belt 43 on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction is lowered from the driving roller 41, and the portion of the conveying belt 43 facing the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, 5y is lowered, and the recording head 5m. The gap between 5c, 5k, 5y and the conveyor belt 43 is widened.

  Thereafter, the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y are rotated in the directions indicated by arrows A and B as shown in FIG. 3 and moved to the maintenance and recovery positions facing the maintenance and recovery mechanisms 6m, 6c, 6k, and 6y, and maintained. Maintenance and recovery operations are performed by the recovery mechanisms 6m, 6c, 6k, and 6y.

  Here, when the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y move to the maintenance / recovery positions facing the maintenance / recovery mechanisms 6m, 6c, 6k, and 6y outside the conveying belt, the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y and the conveying belt are used. Since the gap between the recording heads 5 and 43 is widened, there is no possibility that the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y interfere with the conveying belt 43. Since the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y rotate only in the horizontal direction and do not move up and down, the meniscus of the nozzle of each head 51 of the recording head 5 is prevented from being destroyed.

  As described above, the recording head is rotatably supported between the position facing the conveyance belt and the position facing the maintenance / recovery means, and when the recording head is rotated, the portion of the conveyance belt facing the recording head By providing a means for lowering the recording head, the main body of the apparatus is not increased in size, the structure of the maintenance / recovery mechanism and the image forming unit are not complicated, and maintenance / recovery is performed without causing ejection failure due to meniscus destruction of the recording head. Can be done.

  In addition, a configuration in which a pressing roller is provided so as to be swingable between a push-down position that abuts and pushes down against the conveyor belt and a retracted position that is separated from the conveyor belt, thereby resisting the tension biasing force of the driven roller. Only the movement to be performed is sufficient, and it is not necessary to displace the driven roller and the driving roller, and the configuration for lowering the conveying belt is simplified.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 is an explanatory side view showing the state of the transport unit during image formation, and FIG. 8 is an explanatory side view showing the state of the transport unit during maintenance recovery.
First, with respect to the relationship between the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42 and the conveying belt 43, the driving roller 41 so that the portion of the conveying belt 43 on the recording head 5 side is substantially horizontal (parallel to the nozzle surface of the recording head 5). And a driven roller 42 are arranged.

  Then, in the region of the conveyance belt 43 facing the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y, two auxiliary members constituting a lowering unit that supports the conveyance belt 43 from the inside on the upstream side and the downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction of the recording head 5 The rollers 141 and 142 are disposed so as to be movable up and down between a raised position shown in FIG. 7 and a lowered position shown in FIG.

  Here, in the raised position shown in FIG. 7, these two auxiliary rollers 141 and 142 are positions where the conveying belt 43 is closer to the recording head 5 side than the line S connecting the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42, that is, the conveying belt. 43 is raised to the recording head 5 side, and the flatness of the conveying belt 43 is maintained in the region of the conveying belt 43 facing the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y.

  Further, in the lowered position shown in FIG. 8, these two auxiliary rollers 141 and 142 are lowered to a position that is the same as the line S connecting the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42 or farther from the recording head 5 side. . At this time, since the driven roller 42 moves in the direction indicated by the arrow G by the urging force, the conveying belt 43 is lowered to the position shown in FIG. 8, resulting in a gap between the recording head 5 and the conveying belt 43. The gap widens.

  Accordingly, the two auxiliary rollers 141 and 142 are set to the raised position shown in FIG. 7 during image formation, and the two auxiliary rollers 141 and 142 are lowered in the direction of arrow F shown in FIG. After being set to the position, the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y are rotated from the home position to the maintenance and recovery position, thereby preventing interference with the conveyance belt 43 when the recording head is rotated. Thereby, the same effect as the first embodiment can be obtained.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 9 is an explanatory side view showing the state of the transport unit during image formation, and FIG. 10 is an explanatory side view showing the state of the transport unit during maintenance recovery.
First, in the relationship between the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42 and the conveying belt 43, the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42 are arranged so that the conveying belt 43 is inclined from the upstream side to the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction. . That is, the driving roller 41 is disposed at a position higher than the driven roller 42.

  Then, the first auxiliary roller 143 that supports the conveyance belt 43 from the inside on the downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction of the recording head 5, and the conveyance belt 43 on the side that does not face the recording head 5 between the driving roller 41 and the driven roller 42. A second auxiliary roller 144 that supports the second auxiliary roller 144 is disposed. These first and second auxiliary rollers 143 and 144 are integrally arranged with the driving roller 41 as a fulcrum so as to be rotatable between a raised position shown in FIG. 9 and a lowered position shown in FIG.

  Here, when the first auxiliary roller 143 is in the raised position shown in FIG. 9, the conveyance belt 43 is parallel to the nozzle surface of the recording head 5 between the driving roller 41 and the first auxiliary roller 143. Held in. When the first auxiliary roller 143 is in the lowered position shown in FIG. 10, the conveying belt 43 is inclined obliquely downward from the driving roller 41 toward the driven roller 42, and the recording head 5, the conveying belt 43, The gap between them widens.

  Therefore, the first and second auxiliary rollers 143 and 144 are set to the raised positions shown in FIG. 9 during image formation, and the first and second auxiliary rollers 143 and 144 are moved to the arrows shown in FIG. After the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5k, and 5y are rotated from the home position to the maintenance and recovery position after rotating in the indicated H direction to the lowered position, interference with the transport belt 43 during the rotation of the recording head is prevented. Can be prevented. Thereby, the same effect as the first embodiment can be obtained.

  In this case, the first auxiliary roller 143 that supports the side of the conveying belt 43 that faces the recording head 5 is lowered, so that the second auxiliary roller 144 that supports the side of the conveying belt 43 that does not face the recording head 5 is also used. Since it descends, the tension of the conveyor belt 43 does not change, so the driven roller 42 does not move substantially.

  In combination with the second embodiment, two auxiliary rollers are arranged on the recording head side, and auxiliary rollers are also arranged on the side opposite to the recording head side. It can also be set as the structure rotated (displaced) by.

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 is an explanatory side view showing the state of the transport unit during image formation, and FIG. 12 is an explanatory side view showing the state of the transport unit during maintenance recovery.
Here, the driven roller 43 around which the conveyor belt 43 is wound is disposed so as to be rotatable between the raised position shown in FIG. 11 and the lowered position shown in FIG. 12, and the entire conveyor unit 4 uses the drive roller 41 as a fulcrum. It can be rotated between an ascending position and a descending position. By rotating the driven roller 42 side, it is not necessary to rotate a drive system such as a motor, and the configuration becomes simple compared to the case of rotating the drive roller 41 side.

  Accordingly, when the image is formed, the raised position shown in FIG. 11 is set. When the maintenance and recovery operation is performed, the transport unit 4 is rotated in the arrow J direction shown in FIG. By rotating 5k and 5y from the home position to the maintenance recovery position, it is possible to prevent interference with the conveyance belt 43 when the recording head is rotated. Thereby, the same effect as the first embodiment can be obtained.

Next, a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 13 is an explanatory plan view of the main part of the transport unit portion.
Here, the color recording heads 5m, 5c, and 5y are arranged on the upstream side in the paper conveyance direction, and the black recording head 5k is arranged on the most downstream side. The maintenance / recovery mechanisms 6m, 6c, 6y for the recording heads 5m, 5c, 5y are arranged on one side of the conveyance belt 43, and the maintenance / recovery mechanism 6k for the recording head 5k is on the other side of the conveyance belt 43. Is arranged.

  As a result, the black recording head 5k can be independently rotated to perform the maintenance recovery operation without rotating the color recording heads 5m, 5c, and 5y, and the black recording head 5k can be maintained and recovered. The operation time can be shortened.

Next, a sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 14 is an explanatory plan view of the main part of the transport unit portion.
Here, one recording head 5a in which the color head arrays 51m, 51c and 51y are arranged in one head holding member 50a is arranged on the upstream side in the sheet conveying direction, and the black recording head 5k is arranged on the most downstream side. ing. The maintenance / recovery mechanisms 6m, 6c, 6y for the head arrays 51m, 51c, 51y of the recording head 5a are arranged on one side of the conveyance belt 43, and the maintenance / recovery mechanism 6k for the recording head 5k is arranged on the conveyance belt 43. It is arranged on the other side.

  Even with this configuration, the black recording head 5k can be independently rotated to perform the maintenance recovery operation without rotating the color recording head 5a, and the black recording head 5k can be maintained. The recovery operation time can be shortened.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a plane explanatory view of the device. It is a principal part top explanatory view of a maintenance recovery state similarly. It is a schematic side surface explanatory drawing similarly. FIG. 6 is an explanatory side view illustrating a state of the transport unit during image formation of the apparatus. It is side explanatory drawing which similarly shows the state of the conveyance unit at the time of a maintenance recovery. FIG. 10 is an explanatory side view illustrating a state of a transport unit during image formation according to a second embodiment of the present invention. It is side explanatory drawing which similarly shows the state of the conveyance unit at the time of a maintenance recovery. FIG. 10 is an explanatory side view illustrating a state of a transport unit during image formation according to a third embodiment of the present invention. It is side explanatory drawing which similarly shows the state of the conveyance unit at the time of a maintenance recovery. It is side surface explanatory drawing which shows the state of the conveyance unit at the time of image formation in 4th Embodiment of this invention. It is side explanatory drawing which similarly shows the state of the conveyance unit at the time of a maintenance recovery. It is principal part plane explanatory drawing of the conveyance unit part in 5th Embodiment of this invention. It is principal part plane explanatory drawing of the conveyance unit part in 6th Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Apparatus main body 4 ... Conveyance unit 5m, 5c, 5k, 5y ... Recording head 6m, 6c, 6k, 6y ... Maintenance recovery mechanism 41 ... Drive roller 42 ... Follower roller 43 ... Conveyor belt 46 ... Pressure roller (roller)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 50 ... Head holding member 51 ... Head 52 ... Support shaft 141, 142 ... Holding roller 143 ... 1st auxiliary roller 144 ... 2nd auxiliary roller

Claims (7)

A plurality of recording heads for discharging droplets;
A conveying belt that conveys a sheet facing the recording head;
A plurality of maintenance / recovery means arranged beside the conveying belt along the sheet conveying direction and performing maintenance / recovery corresponding to each of the recording heads,
The recording head is rotatably supported between a position facing the conveying belt and a position facing the maintenance / recovery means,
Means for lowering a portion of the conveyor belt facing the recording head when the recording head is rotated ;
All the maintenance / recovery means are arranged in the same direction with respect to the supporting shaft of the rotation operation of the corresponding recording head,
The means for lowering the portion of the transport belt facing the recording head lowers the transport belt on the side where the maintenance and recovery means is disposed, and faces the recording head, rather than the side where the support shaft is disposed. An image forming apparatus characterized in that a conveying belt surface to be inclined is inclined .   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a pressing roller disposed so as to be able to swing between a pressing position that is pressed against the conveying belt and pressed down and a retracted position that is separated from the conveying belt. An image forming apparatus.   2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the conveying belt is looped around at least a driving roller and a driven roller, and a roller on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction is arranged to be movable up and down. Forming equipment.   2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the conveyance belt is looped around at least a driving roller and a driven roller, and is disposed on a downstream side in a sheet conveyance direction in a region facing the recording head. A first auxiliary roller that is supported from the inside; and a second auxiliary roller that supports the conveying belt from the inside on the side that does not face the head unit between the driving roller and the driven roller, and the first auxiliary roller and the first auxiliary roller 2. An image forming apparatus, wherein two auxiliary rollers are integrally disposed so as to be rotatable about the driving roller as a fulcrum. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that a plurality of recording heads and a plurality of sustain recovery means, at least one maintaining and recovering means on opposite sides of said conveying means are arranged An image forming apparatus.   6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus includes a plurality of recording heads and a plurality of maintenance / recovery units, and corresponds to a head unit that discharges black liquid droplets among the plurality of maintenance / recovery units. An image forming apparatus, wherein the maintenance / recovery means is disposed at a position close to the conveying means. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, and the color recording head unit for ejecting droplets of a plurality of colors, and the black recording head for ejecting droplets of black, the respective recording head units And a maintenance recovery means corresponding to the color recording head unit and a maintenance recovery means corresponding to the black recording head are respectively arranged on different sides of the conveying means. An image forming apparatus.

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