JP7147332B2 - Fixing device and image forming device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a fixing device and an image forming apparatus having the fixing device.

2. Description of the Related Art In general, as a fixing device used in an image forming apparatus, one having an endless cylindrical fixing member (fixing belt) and a pressure member is known. In such a fixing device, a nip portion is formed by the fixing member and the pressure member, and the toner is fixed onto the recording paper by applying pressure and heat to the nip portion.

As such a fixing device, there has been proposed a device in which a lubricant is applied to the inner surface of the fixing belt so that the fixing belt can easily slide against a member disposed inside (for example, see Patent Document 2). 1). In the fixing device disclosed in Patent Document 1, grooves are formed on the outer peripheral surface of an absorbing member supporting member arranged inside the fixing belt, and lubricant is fixed by arranging the lubricant absorbing member in the grooves. It suppresses leakage from the end of the belt.

However, in the fixing device described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-200013, when the lubricant flows toward the widthwise end of the fixing belt, even if leakage can be suppressed, the lubricant is absorbed by the lubricant absorbing member. Therefore, the total amount of lubricant adhering to the fixing belt may decrease. In order to prevent the lubricant from flowing toward the edges in the width direction, a method of guiding the lubricant toward the central portion in the width direction during rotation of the fixing belt is conceivable. However, in such a configuration, there is a possibility that the lubricant will be insufficient at the ends in the width direction, and the sliding resistance will increase when the fixing belt slides on other members at the ends in the width direction. There is

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a fixing device and an image forming apparatus capable of maintaining a low sliding resistance when a fixing member rotates.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 1 comprises a pressure member, an endless cylindrical fixing member provided opposite to the pressure member, a heat source for heating the fixing member, and the above-mentioned fixing member. a nip forming unit that forms a nip portion by being arranged on the opposite side of the pressure member with the fixing member interposed therebetween, wherein the nip forming unit is woven with warps and wefts. and has a woven member that contacts the inner surface of the fixing member on the nip forming means side and supplies lubricant to the inner surface, the woven member having a central region including a central portion in the width direction and a and lubricant holding areas arranged on both sides in the width direction with respect to the central area, and in the central area, the warp yarns are directed toward the central portion as they go from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotational direction. The weft yarns are convexly curved toward the upstream side in the rotational direction, and in the lubricant holding area, the warp yarns extend toward the downstream side in the rotational direction from the upstream side to the lubricating agent. The wefts extend toward the central portion in the width direction of the lubricant holding area , the wefts are convexly curved toward the upstream side in the rotation direction, and the apex of the convex shape extends in the width direction of the lubricant holding area. The curvature of the weft increases toward the width direction end side in the lubricant holding area, and the weft has a larger curvature in the lubricant holding area than in the central area. is large .

According to the fixing device of the present invention, in the lubricant holding area, the warp yarns extend toward the center portion in the width direction from the upstream side in the rotational direction toward the downstream side, so that the lubricant is guided by the warp yarns. The lubricant moves toward the central portion in the width direction of the lubricant holding area. Therefore, the lubricant is retained within the lubricant retention area. Since the woven fabric member has such lubricant holding areas on both sides in the width direction, shortage of the lubricant is unlikely to occur on both sides in the width direction of the inner surface of the fixing member, and sliding resistance when the fixing member rotates is reduced. can be kept low.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a fixing device according to an embodiment of the invention; FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view showing how a fixing member is held by a holding member in the fixing device; 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an outline of an image forming apparatus provided with the fixing device; FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main part of the fixing device; FIG. 4 is a plan view schematically showing a fabric member of the fixing device; FIG.

[Fixing device]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. A fixing device 1 of the present embodiment is provided in an image forming apparatus (see FIG. 3) 100, and includes a fixing member 2, a heat source 3, a pressure member 4, and a nip forming means 5. .

The fixing member 2 is, for example, a metal belt such as nickel or SUS, or a belt made of a resin material such as polyimide in an endless cylindrical shape, or may be a film. The surface layer of the belt has a release layer such as a PFA or PTFE layer, and has release properties so that toner does not adhere. An elastic layer formed of a silicone rubber layer or the like may be provided between the base material of the belt and the PFA or PTFE layer. In the absence of the silicone rubber layer, the heat capacity is reduced and the fixability is improved. Gloss unevenness (yuzu skin image) tends to remain. In order to improve this, it is preferable to provide the silicone rubber layer with a thickness of 100 μm or more. Deformation of the silicone rubber layer absorbs minute irregularities and improves the yuzu skin image.

A support member (stay) 6 for supporting the nip forming means 5 is provided inside the fixing member 2 to prevent bending of the nip forming means 5 which receives pressure from the pressure member 4, thereby forming a uniform nip in the axial direction. Width can be obtained.

Further, the fixing device 1 is provided with a reflecting member 7 between the heat source 3 and the support member 6 to suppress wasteful energy consumption due to the support member 6 being heated by radiant heat from the heat source 3 or the like. there is Here, instead of providing the reflecting member 7, the surface of the supporting member 6 may be thermally insulated or mirror-finished to obtain the same effect.

The heating source 3 may be the illustrated halogen heater, but may also be an IH, a resistance heating element, a carbon heater, or the like. The heat source 3 directly heats the fixing member 2 from the inner peripheral side. If the heat source 3 is a halogen heater, the fixing device 1 may have a light blocking plate. The light blocking plate blocks the light emitted by the halogen heater so that the fixing member 2 is heated within a range corresponding to the size of the recording paper. The light-shielding plate has light-passing portions corresponding to various recording paper sizes, and for example, by rotating, an appropriate light-passing portion is positioned between the heat source 3 and the fixing member 2. .

The pressure member 4 is provided with an elastic rubber layer 4B on the outer side of a metal core 4A, and a release layer (PFA or PTFE layer) (not shown) is provided on the surface of the elastic rubber layer 4B in order to obtain release properties. ing. The pressing member 4 rotates when a driving force is transmitted through gears from a driving source such as a motor provided in the image forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. The pressure member 4 is pressed against the fixing member 2 by a spring or the like, and has a predetermined nip width due to the elastic rubber layer 4B being crushed and deformed.

The pressure roller may be a hollow roller and may have a heating source such as a halogen heater. The elastic rubber layer may be made of solid rubber, but if there is no heater inside the pressure roller, sponge rubber may be used. It is more preferable to use sponge rubber, since the heat insulation is improved and the heat of the fixing sleeve is less likely to be lost.

The nip forming means 5 is arranged inside the fixing member 2 , that is, arranged on the opposite side of the pressure member 4 with the fixing member 2 interposed therebetween. Thereby, a nip portion N is formed by the fixing member 2 and the pressure member 4 which are arranged to face each other. The recording paper having the toner image transferred thereon passes through the nip portion N and is heated and pressurized to fix the toner image on the recording paper.

Although the shape of the nip portion N is flat in FIG. 1, it may be concave or other shapes. (When the shape of the nip portion is concave, the discharge direction of the leading edge of the recording paper is closer to the pressure roller, which improves separability and suppresses the occurrence of jams.)

The surface of the nip forming means 5 is provided with a fabric member 8 impregnated with a lubricant. The fabric member 8 is provided so as to come into contact with the inner surface (the surface on the nip forming means 5 side) 21 of the fixing member 2, and constitutes a contact portion 8A. The fabric member 8 also supplies lubricant to the inner surface 21 of the fusing member 2 and functions as a supply means. Examples of lubricants include silicone oil and grease. Details of the fabric member 8 will be described later.

The fixing member 2 rotates together with the rotation of the pressure member 4 . In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the pressure member 4 is rotated by the driving source, and the driving force is transmitted to the belt at the nip portion N, thereby rotating the fixing member 2 . The fixing member 2 is nipped in the nip portion N and rotated, and is guided by the holding members inserted into both ends of the portion other than the nip portion N and travels.

The fixing device 1 further includes a pair of holding members 9A and 9B as shown in FIG. The holding members 9</b>A and 9</b>B have a plate-like base portion 91 and a holding protrusion 92 projecting from the base portion 91 . The holding protrusion 92 is formed, for example, in a cylindrical shape, is arranged inside the fixing member 2 , and comes into sliding contact with the inner surface 21 . The pair of holding members 9A and 9B guides the rotation of the fixing member 2 while holding the fixing member 2 at both ends in the width direction by inserting the holding protrusions 92 into both ends in the width direction (axial direction) of the fixing member 2 .

With the above configuration, it is possible to realize a fixing device that is inexpensive and warms up quickly.

[Image forming apparatus]
Next, the configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 using the configuration described above will be described with reference to FIG.

The image forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 3 is a color printer using a tandem system in which image forming units for forming a plurality of color images are arranged side by side along the stretching direction of the belt. The present invention is not limited to this method, and can be applied not only to printers but also to copying machines, facsimile machines, and the like.

In FIG. 3, the image forming apparatus 100 includes photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, and 20M as image carriers capable of forming images corresponding to colors separated into yellow, cyan, magenta, and black. A tandem structure in which 20Bk is arranged side by side is adopted.

In the image forming apparatus 100 configured as shown in FIG. 3, the visible images formed on the respective photoreceptor drums 20Y, 20C, 20M and 20Bk face the respective photoreceptor drums 20Y, 20C, 20M and 20Bk in the direction of the arrow A1. A primary transfer process is performed on an intermediate transfer member (hereinafter referred to as a transfer belt) 11 using an endless belt that can be moved to superimpose each image. After that, a secondary transfer process is performed on the recording paper S, such as a recording sheet, so that the images are collectively transferred.

Around the photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M and 20Bk, image forming means are arranged for image forming processing according to the rotation of the photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M and 20Bk. Here, when the photosensitive drum 20Bk for forming a black image is described as an object, a charging device 30Bk for performing an image forming process along the rotation direction of the photosensitive drum 20Bk, a developing device 40Bk, a primary transfer roller 12Bk, A cleaning device 50Bk is arranged. An optical writing device 60 is used for writing after charging.

In the superimposed transfer onto the transfer belt 11, the visible images formed on the respective photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk are superimposed and transferred to the same position on the transfer belt 11 while the transfer belt 11 moves in the A1 direction. be done. That is, voltage is applied by the primary transfer rollers 12Y, 12C, 12M, and 12Bk arranged facing the respective photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk with the transfer belt 11 interposed therebetween. The timing is shifted toward

The photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk are arranged in this order from the upstream side in the A1 direction. Photoreceptor drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk are provided in image stations for forming yellow, cyan, magenta, and black images, respectively.

The image forming apparatus 100 includes four image stations that perform image forming processing for each color, and is arranged above the photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk so as to face each other. , 12C, 12M, and 12Bk; a secondary transfer roller 14, which is a transfer roller as a transfer member that is arranged to face the transfer belt 11 and follows and rotates with the transfer belt 11; An intermediate transfer belt cleaning device 13 is disposed facing the transfer belt 11 to clean the transfer belt 11, and an optical writing device serving as an optical writing device is disposed facing the lower portion of these four image stations. a device 60;

The optical writing device 60 is equipped with a semiconductor laser as a light source, a coupling lens, an f.theta. The optical writing device 60 supplies writing light Lb corresponding to each color to each of the photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk (in FIG. 3, for the sake of convenience, only the black image image station is labeled). However, other image stations are substantially similar) to form electrostatic latent images on the photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk.

The image forming apparatus 100 includes a sheet feeding device 70 as a sheet feeding cassette on which the recording sheet S conveyed between the photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk and the transfer belt 11 is stacked; The recording paper S conveyed from the feeding device 70 is transferred to the transfer section between each of the photosensitive drums 20Y, 20C, 20M, and 20Bk and the transfer belt 11 at a predetermined timing that matches the formation timing of the toner image by the image station. and a sensor (not shown) for detecting that the leading edge of the recording paper S has reached the registration roller pair 810 .

The image forming apparatus 100 includes a fixing device 1 as roller fixing means for fixing the toner image onto the recording paper S to which the toner image has been transferred, and a body of the image forming device 100 for fixing the fixed recording paper S. a paper ejection roller 820 for ejecting to the outside, a paper ejection tray 83 disposed on the upper part of the main body of the image forming apparatus 100 for stacking the recording paper S ejected to the outside of the main body of the image forming apparatus 100 by the paper ejection roller 820; Toner bottles 9Y, 9C, 9M, and 9Bk filled with yellow, cyan, magenta, and black toners are provided below the discharge tray 83 .

The transfer belt unit 10 includes the transfer belt 11, primary transfer rollers 12Y, 12C, 12M, and 12Bk, as well as a driving roller 15 and a driven roller 16 around which the transfer belt 11 is wound.

The driven roller 16 also functions as a tension biasing means for the transfer belt 11, and for this reason, the driven roller 16 is provided with biasing means using a spring or the like. The transfer belt unit 10, the primary transfer rollers 12Y, 12C, 12M, 12Bk, the secondary transfer roller 14, and the cleaning device 13 constitute the transfer device 10A.

The sheet feeding device 70 is arranged in the lower part of the main body of the image forming apparatus 100 and has a feeding roller 84 as a feeding roller that contacts the upper surface of the uppermost recording sheet S. As shown in FIG. By rotating the feeding roller 84 in the counterclockwise direction, the uppermost recording sheet S is fed toward the registration roller pair 810 .

Although not shown in detail, the cleaning device 13 provided in the transfer device 10A has a cleaning brush and a cleaning blade arranged to face and contact the transfer belt 11 . The transfer belt 11 is cleaned by scraping and removing foreign matter such as residual toner on the transfer belt 11 with a cleaning brush and a cleaning blade.

The cleaning device 13 has discharge means (not shown) for carrying out and discarding residual toner removed from the transfer belt 11 .

The image forming apparatus 100 further includes an operation panel (not shown) for operating the entire apparatus, and control means (not shown) for controlling the entire apparatus.

When the number of sheets passed, the operation time, the number of revolutions of the fixing member 2, and the like exceed a predetermined value, the control means causes the operation panel to display that maintenance of the fixing member 2 is required (maintenance display). It functions as display means. That is, the control means causes the operation panel to display the necessity of maintenance at predetermined operation intervals. When the maintenance is performed, the control means stops the maintenance display and restarts counting the number of sheets passed, the operation time, the number of revolutions of the fixing member 2, and the like.

[Textile member]
Next, details of the fabric member 8 in the fixing device 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 shows the inner surface 21 of the fixing member 2, and although the fabric member 8 and the holding projections 92 of the holding member 9 are not actually visible, for the convenience of explanation, the fabric member 8 and the holding projections are shown on the inner surface 21. As shown in FIG. Part 9 is shown superimposed. The fabric member 8 is a single continuous sheet-like member and has a plurality of warp threads 81 and a plurality of weft threads 82 .

The fabric member 8 has a central region A1 including a widthwise central portion, and lubricant holding regions A2 and A3 arranged on both widthwise sides of the central region A1.

In the central region A1, the warp yarns 81 extend toward the central portion in the width direction of the entire woven fabric member 8 from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotational direction. That is, the warp yarns 81 of the central region A1 are inclined with respect to the rotation direction except for the warp yarns arranged in the center in the width direction. In the central region A1, the weft yarn 82 is convexly curved toward the upstream side in the rotational direction, and the apex of the convex shape is located at the central portion of the entire fabric member 8 in the width direction.

In the central region A1, the warp may extend along the rotation direction and the weft may extend along the width direction.

In the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3, the warp yarns 81 extend toward the center of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3 in the width direction from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotational direction. In the illustrated example, three warp yarns 81A to 81C are arranged in each of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3. is tilted with respect to

In the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3, the weft yarn 82 is convexly curved toward the upstream side in the rotation direction, and the apex of the convex shape is located in the center of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3 in the width direction. ing. That is, the central warp yarns 81B are arranged so as to pass through the apexes of the weft yarns 82 . In the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3, the curvature of the weft yarn 82 increases toward the widthwise end portions of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3. Also, the weft yarn 82 has a larger curvature in the lubricant retaining areas A2 and A3 than in the central area A1.

The widthwise dimensions of the lubricant retaining areas A2 and A3 are substantially equal to each other, and these dimensions are defined as L1. The dimension in the width direction of the area (contact area) where the inner surface 21 of the fixing member 2 and the holding protrusion 92 contact is defined as L2. The dimension L1 and the dimension L2 are substantially equal.

When the fixing member 2 rotates and passes through the nip portion N due to the fabric member 8 contacting the inner surface 21 of the fixing member 2 as described above, the lubricant adhering to the inner surface 21 of the fixing member 2 is removed from the warp threads 81 . move along the direction of extension of That is, the warp threads 81 guide the lubricant.

In the central region A1, the warp yarns 81 extend toward the center of the entire fabric member 8 in the width direction from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotational direction. Guided toward the center in the width direction.

In the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3, the warp yarns 81 extend toward the center of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3 in the width direction from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotational direction. The lubricant is guided toward the center in the width direction of each of the lubricant retaining areas A2 and A3. That is, the lubricant present in the regions corresponding to the lubricant holding regions A2 and A3 of the inner surface 21 on the upstream side (before passage of the fabric member 8) is also present on the downstream side (after passage of the fabric member 8). Stay in the realm. That is, the lubricant is prevented from leaking out from the end portions of the fixing member 2 and from moving to a region of the inner surface 21 corresponding to the central region A1.

The fabric member 8 may have weft threads 82 of different colors. For example, of the three wefts 82 shown in FIG. 5, the central one in the rotational direction may be red and the other two may be black. Also, all three wefts 82 may be of different colors. In this way, if the fabric member 8 has a plurality of wefts 82 of different colors, it is easy to recognize the shape of the wefts 82 and to measure the amount of curvature of the wefts 82 .

According to this embodiment, the following effects are obtained. That is, in the lubricant retaining areas A2 and A3 of the woven fabric member 8, the warp yarns 81 are guided by the warp yarns 81 as they extend from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotational direction toward the central portion in the width direction. The lubricating agent moves toward the widthwise central portion of the lubricating agent holding areas A2 and A3. Therefore, the lubricant is retained within the lubricant retention areas A2 and A3. Since the woven fabric member 8 has such lubricant holding areas A2 and A3 on both sides in the width direction, it is difficult for the lubricant to become insufficient on both sides in the width direction of the inner surface 21 of the fixing member 2. Sliding resistance during rotation can be kept low.

Also, the fabric member 8 may be attached with a slight inclination with respect to its original position due to manufacturing errors or the like. For example, the warp yarns 81B at the widthwise central portions of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3 may be inclined with respect to the rotation direction. In such a case, although the position where the lubricant gathers is slightly displaced from the center of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3 in the width direction, leakage of the lubricant from the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3 is suppressed.

In addition, since the dimension L1 in the width direction of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3 is substantially equal to the dimension L2 in the width direction of the contact area between the inner surface 21 of the fixing member 2 and the holding projection 92, the lubricant is not absorbed in the contact area. Insufficiency is unlikely to occur, and the sliding resistance between the inner surface 21 and the holding protrusion 92 can be kept low.

Further, since the weft yarns 82 of the fabric member 8 are convexly curved toward the upstream side in the rotational direction in the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3, the degree of this curvature is measured and the inclination angle θ of the warp yarns 81 is measured. can be managed. Furthermore, since the weft yarns 82 have a greater curvature toward the end portions in the width direction of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3, the warp yarns 81 are more likely to be inclined with respect to the rotation direction.

Further, since the woven fabric member 8 is a single continuous sheet-like member, it is possible to prevent the lubricant from leaking through the gaps between the sheets.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but includes other configurations and the like that can achieve the object of the present invention, and the following modifications and the like are also included in the present invention.

For example, in the above embodiment, the widthwise dimension L1 of the lubricant retaining areas A2 and A3 is substantially equal to the widthwise dimension L2 of the contact area between the inner surface 21 of the fixing member 2 and the retaining projection 92. , the widthwise dimension of the lubricant holding area may be greater than the widthwise dimension of the contact area. Also in such a configuration, as in the above-described embodiment, the shortage of lubricant is unlikely to occur in the contact area, and the sliding resistance between the inner surface of the fixing member and the holding projection can be kept low.

Further, for example, when unevenness of the lubricant is unlikely to occur on the center side in the width direction of the lubricant holding area and shortage of the lubricant is unlikely to occur in the contact area, the dimension in the width direction of the lubricant holding area is the same as that of the contact area. It may be smaller than the dimension in the width direction.

In the above-described embodiment, the curvature of the weft 82 increases toward the end portions in the width direction of the lubricant holding areas A2 and A3. It suffices that it is curved so as to have an appropriate inclination angle, and the curvature may be appropriately set.

In the above-described embodiment, the fabric member 8 is one continuous sheet-like member. , may constitute a fabric member.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the fabric member 8 functions as a supply means for supplying the lubricant to the inner surface 21 of the fixing member 2, but the supply means may be provided separately from the fabric member. .

In addition, although the best configuration, method, etc. for carrying out the present invention have been disclosed in the above description, the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, although the present invention has been particularly illustrated and described primarily with respect to certain embodiments, it is possible to apply the invention to such embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Various modifications can be made by the trader.

Therefore, the descriptions limited to the shapes, materials, etc. disclosed above are provided as examples to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The description by the name of the member that removes some or all of the limitations on the shape, material, etc. is included in the present invention.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 fixing device 2 fixing member 21 inner surface 3 heat source 4 pressure member 5 nip forming means 8 fabric member 81, 81A to 81C warp yarn 82 weft yarn 9A, 9B holding member 92 holding projections A2, A3 lubricant holding area 100 image forming apparatus

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-26603

Claims (4)

A pressing member, an endless cylindrical fixing member provided opposite to the pressing member, a heat source for heating the fixing member, and arranged on the opposite side of the pressing member with the fixing member interposed therebetween. and a nip forming means for forming a nip portion by:
the nip forming means includes a woven member formed by weaving warp and weft yarns, and is in contact with the inner surface of the fixing member on the nip forming means side and supplies a lubricant to the inner surface;
The woven fabric member has a central region including a widthwise central portion, and lubricant holding regions arranged on both sides in the widthwise direction of the central region ,
In the central region, the warp yarns extend toward the central portion from the upstream side in the rotational direction toward the downstream side, and the weft yarns are convexly curved toward the upstream side in the rotational direction. ,
In the lubricant holding area, the warp yarns extend toward the center portion in the width direction of the lubricant holding area from the upstream side to the downstream side in the rotational direction, and the weft yarns extend in the rotational direction. curved convexly toward the upstream side, the apex of the convex shape being located in the central portion in the width direction of the lubricant holding area,
The curvature of the wefts increases toward the width direction end portions in the lubricant holding area, and the curvature of the wefts increases in the lubricant holding area than in the central area. fixing device. further comprising a pair of holding members that hold the fixing member at both ends in the width direction and guide rotation of the fixing member;
The holding member has a holding projection arranged inside the fixing member,
The lubricant holding areas are formed at both ends of the fabric member in the width direction, and the width direction dimension of the lubricant holding area is equal to or larger than the width direction dimension of the contact area between the inner surface and the holding projection. The fixing device according to claim 1, characterized by: 3. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the fabric member is a single continuous sheet-like member. An image forming apparatus comprising the fixing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 .

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