Patent ID: 7983610
Filing Date: 2011-07-19
Classification: G03G

Abstract:
1. An image formation apparatus, comprising: a feed roller for feeding a sheet; an image formation unit for forming an image on the sheet, the image formation unit including a secondary transfer roller for transferring a toner image onto the sheet; a fixing unit for fixing the image formed on the sheet; a sheet reversing unit for reversing the sheet; a double-side conveyance path through which the reversed sheet passes; and a control unit for controlling switching between an inter-leaf operation and a non-inter-leaf operation, the switching between the inter-leaf operation and the non-inter-leaf operation being determined by the control unit based on a sheet length, wherein the inter-leaf operation includes a first printing process of continuously forming an image on one side of a plurality of sheets fed by the feed roller until a processed sheet, amongst the plurality of sheets bearing the image on the one side, reaches the secondary transfer roller after having been reversed by the sheet reversing unit, and a second printing process of alternately forming an image on the other side of the processed sheet and on a side of another sheet fed by the feed roller, said another sheet not yet bearing an image, after the processed sheet of the plurality of sheets reaches the secondary transfer roller, and the non-inter-leaf operation includes continuous printing processes of forming an image on one side of a sheet fed by the feed roller, and forming an image on the other side of the sheet reversed by the reversing unit, a next image formed by the image formation unit after the image formed on the one side of the sheet being the image formed on the other side of the same sheet.