Patent ID: 7899380

Claim:
An image forming apparatus which forms an image on a sheet, comprising: (a) an image forming section structured to form a toner image on the sheet; (b) a fixing device comprising: (1) a fixing member, (2) a pressing member which is brought into pressure contact with the fixing member, and (3) a releasing section structured to bring the pressing member into pressure contact with the fixing member or release the pressing member from the fixing member, wherein the fixing device is structured to fix the toner image onto the sheet by applying heat and pressure at a nip portion between the fixing member and the pressing member; (c) a registration roller structured to feed the sheet to a transfer position downstream in a sheet conveyance direction; and (d) a controller structured to execute a normal fixing mode in which the toner image formed by the image forming section is fixed by the fixing device, and structured to execute a cleaning mode in which the controller conveys a blank sheet to the fixing device, removes toner that has been adhered to the fixing member to clean, and controls a conveyance of the blank sheet, wherein the controller is structured such that, when the normal fixing mode is executed, the controller controls the releasing section to bring the pressing member into pressure contact with the fixing member before a leading edge of a sheet on which the toner image has been formed reaches the nip portion, and when the cleaning mode is executed, the controller controls the releasing section to release the pressure contact of the pressing member before a leading edge of the blank sheet in the sheet conveyance direction reaches the nip portion, and to bring the pressing member into pressure contact with the fixing member after the leading edge of the blank sheet has passed through the nip portion.