Patent ID: 7706732

Claim:
An image forming apparatus comprising: a toner image bearing member provided in an image forming section for forming a toner image containing toner of one or two or more colors, for carrying the toner image; an intermediate transfer section to which the toner image is primarily transferred from the toner image bearing member; a transfuse section to which the toner image is secondarily transferred from the intermediate transfer section and which thirdly transfers and fixes the transferred toner image to a recording medium; and a secondary transfer member disposed so as to press against the transfuse section through contact with the intermediate transfer section, wherein pressure at a first nip area as a pressure-contact area formed by the transfuse section and the secondary transfer member pressing against the transfuse section through contact with the intermediate transfer section is in a range of from 5.3 N/cm 2 to 20 N/cm 2 , and the transfuse section and the intermediate transfer section are configured to be driven at such speeds that a driving speed of the intermediate transfer section is higher than a driving speed of the transfuse section, wherein a ratio of the driving speed of the intermediate transfer section to the driving speed of the transfuse section is in a range of from 1.02 to 1.04.