Patent ID: 7865099

Claim:
An image forming apparatus, comprising: a photoreceptor element to form a latent image on it; a developing device to develop the latent image formed on the photoreceptor element by transferring toner residing on a developing agent bearing member onto the photoreceptor element under an alternate electric field formed in a gap between the developing agent bearing member and the photoreceptor element; a developing current detecting sensor to detect a developing current flowing through the gap between the developing agent bearing member and the photoreceptor element; and a control section that conducts consecutive operations of: creating a detecting-use image pattern for detecting a developing characteristic, by aligning a plurality of image patterns, which are different from each other in density; forming a latent image of the detecting-use image pattern onto the photoreceptor element; finding a developing electric current profile, which represents a transition of the developing electric current flowing during an operation of developing the detecting-use image pattern, from an outputted signal of the developing current detected by the developing current detecting sensor; and changing an image forming condition, based on the developing electric current profile found by the finding operation.