Roller, image forming apparatus and manufacturing method of cylindrical shaft

An image forming apparatus comprising:

• a cylindrical shaft supported by a main assembly or a cartridge, wherein the cylindrical shaft includes, in at least one location on a circumference of the cylindrical shaft, a separation region where a pair of end portions of the cylindrical shaft are located such that the end portions oppose each other or are in contact with each other with respect to a circumferential direction relative to the circumference of the cylindrical shaft, and wherein the separation region extends in an axial direction of the cylindrical shaft;
• a rotatable cylindrical member mounted around an outer circumference of the cylindrical shaft, wherein the rotatable cylindrical member is rotatable about the cylindrical shaft while an inner peripheral surface of the rotatable cylindrical member is in contact with an outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical shaft with respect to the circumferential direction in a region of the cylindrical shaft other than the separation region;
• and
• an urging member for urging the cylindrical shaft,
• wherein the separation region is located such that it opposes the urging member with respect to the rotatable cylindrical member.

A manufacturing method of a cylindrical shaft that includes a roller provided in a main assembly of an image forming apparatus or in a cartridge detachably mountable to the main assembly, wherein the cylindrical shaft includes, in at least one location on a circumference of the cylindrical shaft, a separation region in which a pair of end portions of the cylindrical shaft are located such that the end portions oppose each other or are in contact with each other with respect to a circumferential direction of the cylindrical shaft, wherein the cylindrical shaft is supported in the main assembly or in the cartridge by a support, the support extending in an axial direction of the cylindrical shaft, wherein a rotatable cylindrical member is rotatably mounted around an outer circumference of the cylindrical shaft, and wherein the cylindrical shaft further includes an engaging portion engageable with a rotation preventing portion provided in the main assembly or the cartridge, the manufacturing method comprising:

• a bending step of bending a metal plate, including a frame portion, a flat plate portion and a connecting portion connecting the frame portion and the flat plate portion, into a cylindrical shape at the flat plate portion;
• and
• a cutting step of separating the flat plate portion, formed into the cylindrical shape, from the frame portion in order to form a part of the connecting portion as the engaging portion at an end portion of the flat plate portion formed in the cylindrical shape.