Patent ID: 8690291

Claim:
An image forming apparatus comprising: a recording head with multiple nozzles on a surface of the recording head to discharge droplets, the surface with the nozzles facing in a direction that is approximately horizontal; a wiper to wipe the surface with the nozzles of the recording head from top to bottom; a guide member attached to the recording head at a lower end of the surface with the nozzles, to have contact with the wiper; and a cleaning member attached to a main body of the apparatus to clean the guide member, wherein the recording head has a nozzle cover configured to cover a fringe of the surface with the nozzles and outer surfaces of the recording head, and a part of the nozzle cover forms the guide member having a plate shape extending in a downward direction from the lower end of the surface with the nozzles, wherein a bottom part of the guide member has a pointed tip tapered downward so that the width of the guide member gradually decreases, and wherein the cleaning member is a member configured to wipe a surface of the guide member, and a wiping direction of the cleaning member is parallel to the surface of the recording head with the nozzles, the wiping direction of the cleaning member being a lateral direction perpendicular to a vertical direction.