A feed detection unit which detects a document which is fed is provided at a position between a pinching position at which a feed roller and a frictional force application portion pinch the document and an intersecting position at which a tangential line of the feed roller which is closer to a downstream side in a transport direction than the pinching position is perpendicular to a transport path in the transport direction, which is a different position from the feed roller in a width direction which intersects the transport direction.

An image reading apparatus for reading image information from a sheet includes a cover unit, a sheet feeding member, a conveying guide, and a reading unit including a transparent member and a reading portion. The cover unit is rotatable between a closed position where the cover unit forms a sheet conveying passage in cooperation with the conveying guide and an open position where the sheet conveying passage is open. In a state in which the cover unit is positioned in the closed position, the transparent member is exposed to an outside of the image reading apparatus by rotation of the conveying guide and the reading unit.

A rotating member control device that controls a first rotating member and a second rotating member to convey a sheet includes a processor configured to execute a program to implement processes of controlling the first rotating member and the second rotating member to come into contact or be separated from each other and acquiring a value that corresponds to or is proportional to a driving torque of a first driving unit that rotationally drives the first rotating member. The processor acquires the value upon separation when the first rotating member and the second rotating member are separated from each other and upon conveyance when the sheet is held between and conveyed by the first rotating member and the second rotating member. The processor further sets a rotational speed of the second rotating member such that the value acquired upon separation and the value acquired upon conveyance become equal.

A medium feeder includes a feed roller that feeds a medium loaded on a medium loading section; a transport roller disposed downstream relative to the feed roller; a first driving source that drives at least the feed roller; a second driving source that drives at least the transport roller; and a housing that houses the feed roller, the transport roller, the first driving source, and the second driving source, wherein the housing includes a lower unit that constitutes a lower part of the housing, and an upper unit openable relative to the lower unit, and the first driving source and the second driving source are disposed on both sides relative to a center part of the lower unit in a width direction perpendicular to a medium transportation direction.

A conveyance device that conveys paper through a conveyance path along a surface thereof includes: a conveyance guide that has a guide surface to be a wall surface on one side of the conveyance path, an opening being formed in the guide surface; a paper detection unit at least including a detection member, which is arranged in a space that communicates with the conveyance path through the opening, and configured to detect, with the detection member, a leading end of the paper that reaches the opening; and a movable body that brings the detection member into a retracted state, in which a main part thereof is covered from the space, after the leading end of the paper is detected.

Embodiments of systems and methods are disclosed herein to transfer a printed election sheet from a printer to a scanner, which is separate and distinct from the printer, without human intervention. More specifically, the present disclosure provides a retrofit automatic document feeder (ADF), which may be “retrofit” or adaptively coupled between a printer and a scanner for automatically transferring a printed election sheet output from the printer to the scanner, where it is scanned to generate a scanned image of the printed election sheet. Unlike conventional ADFs incorporated within printers, scanners and multi-function printers, the retrofit ADF disclosed herein is coupled to receive a printed election sheet output from an output port of the printer, advance the printed election sheet away from the output port of printer and automatically transfer the printed election sheet to an input port of the scanner.

A recording apparatus includes: a recording unit that performs recording on a medium; a medium discharging section that discharges the medium on which recording has been performed; a medium receiving section that receives the medium discharged by the medium discharging section; a face-down discharge path that guides, to the medium discharge section, the recorded medium with a recorded side thereof facing downward; a document movement path that is provided at an upper part of a housing constituting an outer casing of the recording apparatus and along which a document moves; and a reading unit provided in the document movement path to read the document. The medium receiving section also serves as a support tray that supports the document to be inserted into the document movement path or the document exiting from the document movement path.

A sheet aligning mechanism includes first and second conveyance mechanisms disposed on first and second sides of a sheet conveyance path, respectively. A nip is formed between the first and second conveyance mechanisms. The first conveyance mechanism includes a first roller, a second roller, and a first conveyance belt wound around the first and second rollers. The first and second rollers are configured to rotate in a first direction along a sheet conveying direction for sheet conveyance, and stop rotation or rotate in a second direction opposite to the first direction for sheet alignment. The first conveyance belt includes an extended region between the first and second rollers in an extending direction inclined with respect to the sheet conveying direction, such that a width of the sheet conveyance path becomes narrower towards the nip in the sheet conveying direction.

A medium feeding device includes: a medium mounting section onto which a medium to be fed is mounted; a feeding unit that feeds the medium mounted on the medium mounting section; and a supporting member that supports an end in a width direction of the medium mounted on the medium mounting section and that supports the medium at a higher position than the medium mounting section in a direction of loading of the medium, the width direction being a direction crossing a feed direction.

An image scanning apparatus includes a sheet loading unit, a pickup roller, a first conveying roller, a detecting unit, a first stepping motor, a second conveying roller, a second stepping motor, a scanning unit, and a control unit that starts driving of the second stepping motor after performing phase matching of the second stepping motor. The control unit starts driving of the first stepping motor without performing phase matching of the first stepping motor. When an instruction to start scanning is input, the control unit starts the phase matching of the second stepping motor. When the detecting unit detects the document, the control unit starts driving of the first stepping motor after completion of the phase matching of the second stepping motor. When the detecting unit detects no document, the control unit starts driving of the first stepping motor before completion of the phase matching of the second stepping motor.