Image forming apparatus
AssigneeBrother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsAyaka Mori, Masaki Ochiai
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier, a transfer roller, a heating rotator, a pressure rotator, a chute, a motor, a rotator, and a link. The image carrier carries a toner image. The transfer roller transfers the toner image carried on the image carrier onto a sheet. The chute is movable between a first chute position at which the chute guides the sheet toward a fixing position, and a second chute position. The rotator receives a driving force from the motor and rotates. The link is movable in a first direction, in conjunction with rotation of the rotator, between a first position at which the link locates the chute at the first chute position, and a second position at which the link locates the chute at the second chute position.
Claims21
An image forming apparatus, comprising:
- an image carrier configured to carry a toner image;
- a transfer roller configured to transfer the toner image carried on the image carrier onto a sheet at a transfer position at which the transfer roller nips the sheet in combination with the image carrier;
- a heating rotator configured to heat the sheet and located downstream of the transfer roller in a conveyance direction in which the sheet is conveyed;
- a pressure rotator configured to apply pressure to the sheet at a fixing position at which the pressure rotator nips the sheet in combination with the heating rotator;
- a chute located between the transfer position and the fixing position in the conveyance direction, and located on one side in a first direction with respect to the sheet being conveyed from the transfer position toward the fixing position, the first direction being a direction transverse to the conveyance direction, and the chute being movable between a first chute position at which the chute guides the sheet toward the fixing position and a second chute position located on the one side in the first direction relative to the first chute position;
- a motor;
- a rotator configured to receive a driving force from the motor and rotate;
- and
- a link movable in the first direction, in conjunction with rotation of the rotator, between a first position at which the link locates the chute at the first chute position, and a second position at which the link locates the chute at the second chute position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.