1. A fixing device comprising:
an endless belt rotatable in a given direction of rotation;
a heater disposed opposite and heating the endless belt;
a pressing rotary body rotatable while contacting the endless belt;
a nip formation pad disposed opposite an inner circumferential surface of the endless belt and pressing the endless belt against the pressing rotary body to form a fixing nip between the endless belt and the pressing rotary body, the fixing nip through which a recording medium is conveyed;
a friction reducer sandwiched between the endless belt and the nip formation pad, the friction reducer over which the endless belt slides,
the friction reducer including:
a body; and
at least one tab projecting from the body in a direction opposite a recording medium conveyance direction; and
a friction reducer fastener attached to the tab of the friction reducer and placed inside the nip formation pad to mount the friction reducer on the nip formation pad.
2. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the friction reducer fastener pinches the tab of the friction reducer.
3. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one tab of the friction reducer includes a plurality of tabs aligned in a longitudinal direction of the friction reducer.
4. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the nip formation pad includes at least one slot into which the at least one tab of the friction reducer and the friction reducer fastener are inserted.
5. The fixing device according to claim 4, wherein the tab of the friction reducer is wound around the friction reducer fastener and inserted into the slot of the nip formation pad.
6. The fixing device according to claim 5, wherein the nip formation pad further includes:
a nip formation face contacting the friction reducer to press the friction reducer against the endless belt; and
an opposed face opposite the nip formation face, the opposed face produced with the slot.
7. The fixing device according to claim 4, wherein the at least one tab of the friction reducer includes:
an outboard tab projecting from a lateral end of the body in a longitudinal direction of the friction reducer and pinched by the friction reducer fastener; and
an inboard tab disposed inboard from the outboard tab in the longitudinal direction of the friction reducer and pinched by the friction reducer fastener.
8. The fixing device according to claim 7, wherein the at least one slot of the nip formation pad includes:
an outboard slot, disposed at a lateral end of the nip formation pad in a longitudinal direction thereof, into which the outboard tab of the friction reducer and the friction reducer fastener pinching the outboard tab are inserted; and
an inboard slot, disposed inboard from the outboard slot in the longitudinal direction of the nip formation pad, into which the inboard tab of the friction reducer and the friction reducer fastener pinching the inboard tab are inserted.
9. The fixing device according to claim 8,
wherein the nip formation pad further includes a through-hole disposed upstream from the inboard slot in the recording medium conveyance direction, and
wherein the inboard tab of the friction reducer penetrates the through-hole of the nip formation pad.
10. The fixing device according to claim 7, wherein the friction reducer fastener pinches an upstream edge of each of the inboard tab and the outboard tab of the friction reducer in the recording medium conveyance direction.
11. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the friction reducer is porous.
12. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the friction reducer includes a low-friction sheet.
13. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the body of the friction reducer contacts the endless belt and the nip formation pad and a lubricant is applied to at least a part of the body of the friction reducer.
14. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the heater is disposed opposite the inner circumferential surface of the endless belt.
15. The fixing device according to claim 14, further comprising a thermal conductor disposed opposite the inner circumferential surface of the endless belt,
wherein the heater is disposed opposite an inner circumferential surface of the thermal conductor to heat the endless belt through the thermal conductor.
16. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the friction reducer fastener includes a clip.
17. The fixing device according to claim 16, wherein the clip includes:
a plurality of pawls to pinch the tab of the friction reducer; and
an abutment portion abutting an upstream edge of the tab in the recording medium conveyance direction.
18. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the pressing rotary body includes a pressing roller.
19. An image forming apparatus comprising the fixing device according to claim 1.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A metal alloy consisting essentially of:
from a trace to 90%, by weight, of cobalt;
from 10% to 50% by weight, of tungsten;
and the balance nickel and inevitable impurities.
2. The metal alloy of claim 1 consisting essentially of:
from 10% to 30%, by weight, of cobalt;
from 30% to 50% by weight, of tungsten;
and the balance nickel and inevitable impurities.
3. The metal alloy of claim 2 consisting essentially of:
from 16% to 22%, by weight, of cobalt;
from 35% to 40% by weight, of tungsten;
and the balance nickel and inevitable impurities.
4. The metal alloy of claim 2 further containing one or more of up to 50%, by weight, of molybdenum, iron and copper as a substitute for one or more of said cobalt and nickel.
5. The metal alloy of claim 2 further containing one or more of up to 10%, by weight, of platinum, gold, rhenium, tantalum, hafnium, mercury, iridium, osmium and tungsten as a substitute for said tungsten.
6. The metal alloy of claim 2 having a microstructure commensurate with having been cold worked and recrystallized.
7. The metal alloy of claim 6 being formed into a product selected from the group consisting of a fragmentation warhead, a warhead casing, ammunition, radiation shielding and weighting.
8. A shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner formed from a metal alloy consisting essentially of:
from a trace to 90%, by weight, of cobalt;
from 10% to 50% by weight, of tungsten;
and the balance nickel and inevitable impurities.
9. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 8 consisting essentially of:
from 10% to 30%, by weight, of cobalt;
from 30% to 50% by weight, of tungsten;
and the balance nickel and inevitable impurities.
10. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 9 consisting essentially of:
from 16% to 22%, by weight, of cobalt;
from 35% to 40% by weight, of tungsten;
and the balance nickel and inevitable impurities.
11. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 9 further containing one or more of up to 50%, by weight, of molybdenum, iron and copper as a substitute for one or more of said cobalt and nickel.
12. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 9 further containing one or more of up to 10%, by weight, of platinum, gold, rhenium, tantalum, hafnium, mercury, iridium, osmium and tungsten as a substitute for said tungsten.
13. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 9 having a microstructure commensurate with having been cold worked and recrysallized.
14. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 13 being formed into a generally conical shape.
15. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 14 being assembled into a warhead and having a detonatable explosive in contact with and exterior surface of said cone.
16. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 15 wherein said generally conical shape is effective to generate a penetrating jet on detonation of said detonatable explosive.
17. The shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner of claim 15 wherein said generally conical shape is effective to generate an explosively formed penetrator on detonation of said detonatable explosive.
18. A method for the manufacture of a shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner, comprising the steps of:
casting a billet of an alloy of from a trace to 90%, by weight, of cobalt, from 10% to 50% by weight, of tungsten and the balance nickel and inevitable impurities;
mechanically working the billet to form a said alloy to a desired shape; and
recrystalizing said alloy.
19. The method of claim 18 wherein said alloy is selected to contain from 10% to 30%, by weight, of cobalt, from 30% to 50%, by weight, of tungsten and the balance is nickel.
20. The method of claim 18 wherein said alloy is cast in a vacuum.
21. The method of claim 20 wherein said mechanically working step entails a reduction in thickness or cross-sectional area of from 10% to 40%.
22. The method of claim 21 wherein said recrystallizing step is at a temperature of between 800\xb0 C. and 1200\xb0 C. and conducted in an inert atmosphere.
23. A method for the manufacture of a shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner, comprising the steps of:
forming a molten mixture an alloy consisting essentially of from a trace to 90%, by weight, of cobalt, from 10% to 50% by weight, of tungsten and the balance nickel and inevitable impurities;
casting the alloy into a mold having a desired configuration of said shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator liner;
causing the cast material to solidify as a single crystal.
24. The method of claim 23 wherein said alloy is selected to contain from 10% to 30%, by weight, of cobalt, from 30% to 50%, by weight, of tungsten and the balance is nickel.
25. The method of claim 24 wherein said mechanically working step entails a reduction in thickness or cross-sectional area of from 10% to 40%.
26. The method of claim 25 wherein said recrystallizing step is at a temperature of between 800\xb0 C. and 1200\xb0 C. and conducted in an inert atmosphere.