Patent ID: 8577269

Claim:
An image forming apparatus comprising: a fixing unit which has a heating roller and a pressurizing roller pressure contacting with the heating roller, and which fixes a toner image on a sheet onto the sheet at a nip portion between the heating roller and the pressurizing roller; a separation claw which is provided so as to contact with the heating roller, and which separates the sheet onto which the toner image has been fixed from the heating roller; a fixing unit moving portion which reciprocates the fixing unit in a width direction perpendicular to a sheet conveying direction; a separation claw moving portion which reciprocates the separation claw in the width direction; a displacing amount detecting portion for the fixing unit which detects a displacing amount from a reference position of the fixing unit in the width direction; a displacing amount detecting portion for the separation claw which detects a displacing amount from a reference position of the separation claw in the width direction; and a control unit which controls driving of the fixing unit moving portion and the separation claw moving portion based on information from the displacing amount detecting portion for the fixing unit and the displacing amount detecting portion for the separation claw so as to satisfy the following relationship, L>|X+Y | (| X|≦X 0 , |Y|≦Y 0) wherein a distance between an outside end of the separation claw in the width direction when the fixing unit and the separation claw are at the respective reference positions and a side end of the sheet conveyed at the reference positions in the width direction is L, wherein the displacing amount of the fixing unit detected by the displacing amount detecting portion for the fixing unit is X, wherein a maximum displacing amount of the fixing unit is X 0 , wherein the displacing amount of the separation claw detected by the displacing amount detecting portion for separation claw is Y, and wherein a maximum displacing amount of the separation claw is Y 0 .