(19)
(11) EP 0 785 487 A3

(12) EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION

(88) Date of publication A3:
25.03.1998 Bulletin 1998/13

(43) Date of publication A2:
23.07.1997 Bulletin 1997/30

(21) Application number: 97100465.0

(22) Date of filing: 14.01.1997
(51) International Patent Classification (IPC)6: G03G 15/20
(84) Designated Contracting States:
DE ES FR GB IT

(30) Priority: 17.01.1996 JP 5507/96
16.02.1996 JP 29128/96
04.03.1996 JP 46113/96
18.03.1996 JP 60698/96
09.12.1996 JP 328239/96
26.12.1996 JP 347323/96
26.12.1996 JP 347324/96
26.12.1996 JP 347325/96

(71) Applicant: Ricoh Company, Ltd
Ohta-ku Tokyo 143 (JP)

(72) Inventors:
  • Noguchi, Yukio
    Yokohama-Shi, Kanagawa-Ken (JP)
  • Shirasugi, Kouji
    Satte-Shi, Saitama-Ken (JP)

(74) Representative: Schwabe, Hans-Georg, Dipl.-Ing. 
Patentanwälte Schwabe, Sandmair, Marx Stuntzstrasse 16
81677 München
81677 München (DE)

   


(54) Fixing apparatus for an image forming apparatus


(57) A fixing apparatus has heaters (2, 3) to provide heat to fix a toner image on print paper. The heaters are intermittently activated to maintain the fixing apparatus at a substantially constant temperature. The heaters are activated by a predetermined voltage (Vf). Deactivation of the heaters (2, 3) is controlled by providing a low voltage immediately before the heaters are completely turned off so that a rate of change in a current flowing to the heaters is reduced. A timing of deactivation of each of the heaters may be controlled so that a start time of deactivation of the heaters (2, 3) differs from each other. The heaters (3) excluding at least one (2) of the heaters (2, 3) may be maintained to be deactivated when the fixing apparatus is in a predetermined operational state such as a waiting state or pre-heating state.






Search report