Patent ID: 7099615
Filing Date: 2006-08-29
Classification: G03G

Abstract:
1. An image forming apparatus comprising: an image carrier on which a latent image is formed; a developing section that develops the latent image formed on said image carrier with a developer; an intermediate transfer medium to which a developer image developed by said developing section is transferred; a transfer member that cooperates with said intermediate transfer medium to form a transfer nip and emits an electric field for transfer across said transfer nip through an image forming medium that is put in said transfer nip, thereby transferring the developer image transferred to said intermediate transfer medium to said image forming medium; a transport roller provided closer to a frame of said image forming apparatus than said transfer nip to transport said image forming medium to said transfer nip; and at least one guide member that guides the image forming medium as transported from said transport roller to said transfer nip so that said image forming medium reaches said transfer nip after it has been brought closer to said intermediate transfer medium than an imaginary straight line connecting said transport roller and said transfer nip, wherein said intermediate transfer medium is an annular transfer belt, which rotationally moves between said image carrier and said transfer member, wherein said guide member is a single plate-shaped member provided to extend slantingly from a neighborhood of said transport roller to a neighborhood of said transfer belt. wherein an end edge of said plate-shaped member that is closer to said transfer belt lies on a tangent line L