Patent ID: 8886079

Claim:
An image forming apparatus comprising: an image carrier configured to carry an electrostatic latent image thereon; a developing device to render the electrostatic latent image visible with a developer including toner and carrier; a developer container to contain the developer collected from the developing device; a developer conveyance path through which the developer discharged from the developer container is conveyed to the developing device; a coolant conveyance path to convey a coolant, the coolant conveyance path being delimited by an exterior wall of the developer container and a first wall of the coolant conveyance path which surrounds the exterior wall of the developer container; and a cooling device to cool the developer contained in the developer container when the coolant is contacted to an external surface of the developer container, wherein the developer container and the first wall of the coolant conveyance path are made of different materials and a thermal conductivity of the developer container is higher than a thermal conductivity of the first wall of the coolant conveyance path, and wherein the material of the first wall of the coolant conveyance path deflects heat from heat-generating components other than the developing device in the image forming apparatus.