Patent ID: 7904011

Claim:
A temperature control unit to maintain a temperature of a fixing liquid, comprising: a container, some or all of which is formed of a heat conservation member, configured to store the fixing liquid that dissolves or causes a toner to swell; a heater configured to heat the container through the heat conservation member thereof; a temperature sensor configured to detect a temperature of the fixing liquid in the container; a controller configured to regulate an amount of heat that is transferred from the heater to the heat conservation member of the container based on a detection result provided by the temperature sensor; a fixing liquid applicator configured to supply the fixing liquid in the container to a toner on a recording medium to fix the toner onto a recording medium, the fixing liquid applicator including an ultrasonic transducer configured to spray the fixing liquid in a droplet form and a fan configured to generate an air current to direct the sprayed fixing liquid onto the recording medium; and a charging device configured to charge the droplets of the fixing liquid so as to adhere the fixing liquid onto the toner, wherein the fixing liquid is a mist-type fixing liquid.