Patent ID: 8471178
Filing Date: 2013-06-25
Classification: G03G

Abstract:
1. An image heating apparatus for heating an image formed on a recording medium, comprising: an endless film, a heater which contacts the inner face of said endless film, said heater being arranged in a direction whose longitudinal direction is parallel to a generatrix of said endless film; a back-up member that forms a nipping portion which pinches a recording medium together with said heater through said endless film, and conveys the recording medium, wherein said heater has a first heat-generation segment and a second heat-generation segment, which is provided downstream of said first heat-generation segment in a transport direction of the recording medium and is electrically connected to said first heat-generation segment in series, wherein each of said first heat-generation segment and said second heat-generation segment has a plurality of spaced apart heat generating parts therein in the longitudinal direction forming a gap between adjacent heat-generation parts, and the heat generating parts are electrically connected to each other in series; wherein each of the plurality of said heat generating parts has a first electro-conductive pattern which is provided along the longitudinal direction on a substrate, a second electro-conductive pattern which is provided along the longitudinal direction on said substrate and has a region that overlaps with said first electro-conductive pattern in the longitudinal direction, and a heat generating resistor which electrically connects the respective overlapping regions of said first electro-conductive pattern and said second electro-conductive pattern with each other and generates heat by a supplied electric power, and wherein the position of the gap between said adjacent heat generating parts in said first heat-generation segment is different from the position of the gap between said adjacent heat generating parts in said second heat-generation segment, in the longitudinal direction.