Patent ID: 9377735
Filing Date: 2016-06-28
CPC Classification: G03G

Claim Text:
1. A fixing apparatus that heats, at a nip portion, a recording material, bearing a toner image, while conveying the recording material to fix the toner image on the recording material, the fixing apparatus comprising: a roller; a heating unit configured to be in contact with the roller to form a heating portion with the roller, the heating unit including a film, and a heating portion forming member configured to be in contact with an inner surface of the film and form the heating portion with the roller via the film; and a pressing rotator configured to be in contact with the roller and form the nip portion with the roller, wherein a micro hardness of a surface of the roller is lower than a micro hardness of a surface of the film at the heating portion, wherein a difference between a maximum outer diameter difference, between the film and the roller, and a maximum outer diameter difference, between the pressing rotator and the roller, is 30 μm or more, and wherein in at least a partial region of the heating portion, a velocity difference is provided between the surface of the roller and the surface of the film.