Patent ID: 7693441

Claim:
An image forming apparatus comprising: an image bearing member for bearing a toner image; a cleaning member configured to remove residual toner on said image bearing member; an intermediate transfer member onto which the toner image borne on the image bearing member is primarily transferred; a primary transfer member to which a primary transfer voltage is applied to primarily transfer the toner image borne on the image bearing member onto the intermediate transfer member at a primary transfer portion; a secondary transfer member which secondarily transfers the toner image borne on the intermediate transfer member onto a recording material at a secondary transfer portion; a toner removing device which removes residual toner on the intermediate transfer member; and selecting means for selecting a performing means to (i) perform a first mode or (ii) perform a second mode, wherein said first mode is operable to remove the residual toner on the intermediate transfer member by the toner removing device and to transfer the residual toner on the intermediate transfer member onto said image bearing member by applying a voltage of a reverse polarity to a polarity of a primary transfer voltage to the primary transfer member and remove the residual toner on said image bearing member by said cleaning member, and wherein said second mode is operable to remove the residual toner on the intermediate transfer member by the toner removing device without passing the residual toner on the intermediate transfer member through the primary transfer portion, in accordance with an amount per unit area of the residual toner on the intermediate transfer member when the intermediate transfer member is stopped before the toner image primarily transferred on the intermediate transfer member arrives at the secondary transfer portion.