Air discharging apparatus and image forming apparatus

An air discharging apparatus to discharge pressurized air, comprising:

• an air pump including a cylinder and a piston configured to reciprocate in the cylinder;
• an opening and closing member at an air discharge opening of the air pump and configured to open and close the air discharge opening;
• and
• a switching mechanism providing mechanical coupling between the piston and the opening and closing member, the mechanical coupling being configured to keep the opening and closing member in a closed state until the piston reaches a predetermined position in a compression stroke and switch the opening and closing member to an opened state when the piston reaches the predetermined position, wherein:
• the opening and closing member includes a sliding member arranged crossing the air discharge opening, a small volume part in the sliding member at a position crossing the air discharge opening, and the air discharge opening is opened and closed by moving the sliding member a predetermined distance, and
• the sliding member is slid by an end face cam.