Developer apparatus, an image forming apparatus and an image forming method

An image forming apparatus, comprising:

• an image carrier that carries an electrostatic latent image;
• a toner carrier roller that is arranged opposed to the image carrier, rotates while carrying a toner layer of charged toner on a surface thereof, and is provided, on the surface thereof, with plural convex section rows, each of which has plural convex sections arranged in a row in a width direction parallel to a rotational axis of the toner carrier roller and which are arranged in a circumferential direction orthogonal to the width direction and parallel to a circumferential surface of the toner carrier roller, the convex sections being so constructed and arranged that top surfaces of the convex sections coincide with a part of a curved surface of a single cylinder having a shape corresponding to that of the toner carrier roller;
• and
• a restriction member that abuts on the surface of the toner carrier roller to restrict the toner layer carried on the surface of the toner carrier roller, includes an elastic abutting member which is made of an elastic material and has an edge part which extends in the width direction, the edge part being pressed into contact with the surface of the toner carrier roller, wherein
• a virtual surface which is obtained by extending the top surface of each convex section in the width direction and forms a part of the curved surface of the single cylinder is defied as a convex section extending surface of each convex section,
• the convex section extending surfaces overlap each other between the convex sections belonging to the same convex section row, whereas the convex section extending surfaces are spaced apart between the convex sections belonging to mutually different convex section rows, and
• a width in the circumferential direction of a restriction nip that is formed by contact of the elastic abutting member with the toner carrier roller is smaller than a spacing between two convex sections belonging to convex section rows adjacent in the circumferential direction.

An image forming method, comprising:

• preparing a toner carrier roller that rotates while carrying a toner layer of charged toner on a surface thereof, and is provided, on the surface thereof, with plural convex section rows, each of which has plural convex sections arranged in a row in a width direction parallel to a rotational axis of the toner carrier roller and which are arranged in a circumferential direction orthogonal to the width direction and parallel to a circumferential surface of the toner carrier roller, the convex sections being so constructed and arranged that top surfaces of the convex sections coincide with a part of a curved surface of a single cylinder having a shape corresponding to that of the toner carrier roller, a virtual surface which is obtained by extending the top surface of each convex section in the width direction and forms a part of the curved surface of the single cylinder being defined as a convex section extending surface of each convex section, the convex section extending surfaces overlapping each other between the convex sections belonging to the same convex section row, whereas the convex section extending surfaces are spaced apart between the convex sections belonging to mutually different convex section rows;
• preparing a restriction member that includes an elastic abutting member which is made of an elastic material and has an edge part which extends in the width direction;
• arranging the toner carrier roller opposed to an image carrier which carries an electrostatic latent image;
• and
• developing the electrostatic latent image carried by the image carrier with toner while restricting an amount of toner carried by the toner carrier roller by pressing the edge part into contact with the surface of the toner carrier roller, wherein a width in the circumferential direction of a restriction nip that is formed by contact of the elastic abutting member with the toner carrier roller is smaller than a spacing between two convex sections belonging to convex section rows adjacent in the circumferential direction.