Patent ID: 8428504

Claim:
A medium clamping device comprising: a first circularly moving body that has a circumferential surface moving circularly and harder than a recording medium with a surface where an image is formed, and that has a longer length in a direction orthogonal to a circularly moving direction of the circumferential surface than a length in a first direction of the surface of the recording medium; a second circularly moving body that has a circumferential surface moving circularly and harder than the recording medium, and that has a longer length in a direction orthogonal to a circularly moving direction of the circumferential surface of the second circularly moving body than the length in the first direction of the surface of the recording medium, where the recording medium passes between and contacts the circumferential surface of the first circularly moving body and the circumferential surface of the second circularly moving body in a second direction crossing the first direction; a load applying section that clamps, by applying a load to at least one of the first circularly moving body and the second circularly moving body, the recording medium by the load by using the first circularly moving body and the second circularly moving body; a belt member that surrounds the circumferential surface of at least one of the first circularly moving body and the second circularly moving body, at a place outside an area touching the recording medium when the recording medium passes, and that is softer than the circumferential surface and is thinner than the recording medium; and a belt member protecting member that is aligned with the belt member in a direction of passing for the recording medium, that includes a portion closer to a path of passing for the recording medium than the belt member, and that protects the belt member from contacting the recording medium.