| 摘要 |
<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cooling device capable of satisfactorily suppressing a failure caused by the vapor condensation in an image forming apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: A cooling member 17 is provided close to a fixing device 9 which is one of the portions where temperature increases. The cooling member 17 has a flow passage inside and is communicated with a radiator 19, a tank 20, and a pump 21 through a conduit path 18. Cooling fluids circulate. A contact angle reducing material that reduces the contact angle between the surface of the cooling member 17 and water is applied to the surface of the cooling member 17. The condensation by vapor that arises from the paper 8 which has left a fixing device 9 does not drip locally in a concentrated manner on the surface of the cooling member 17, but is uniformed and becomes a thin film. Thereby, the occurrence of dripping by the condensation and the flow of dropping to adjacent portions can be prevented. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT |
