An image forming apparatus includes feeding, conveying, and separating members, and detecting, image forming, and control units. The feeding member feeds a recording material placed on a tray. The separating member and the conveying member separate recording materials at a nip. The detecting unit detects that the recording materials have been fed to the nip. The image forming unit forms an image on fed recording material. The control unit switches between a first and second control. Under the first control, the feeding member starts feeding a recording material placed on the tray, and ends feeding before a recording material trailing end passes through the feeding member. Under the second control, the feeding member starts feeding a recording material placed on the tray, and ends feeding after a recording material trailing end passes through the feeding member when the detection unit detects that the recording materials are fed to the nip.

For a printing apparatus, a first conveyance speed for a first printing medium is determined according to first print data to be printed on the first printing medium and a second conveyance speed for a second printing medium is determined according to second print data to be printed on the second printing medium that follows the first printing medium along a conveying path. In a case where the second conveyance speed is equal to the first conveyance speed, a conveyance operation of the second printing medium is started before the first printing medium is discharged from the conveying path. In a case where the second conveyance speed is different from the first conveyance speed, the conveyance operation of the second printing medium is started after the first printing medium is discharged from the conveying path.

A transport mechanism for a peripheral device and an operating method including the same are provided. The transport mechanism includes a tray, at least a transport roller, a detector, a trigger component and a processor. The tray includes an opening extending through the tray. The transport roller is rotatably installed in the opening and protruded from the tray to transport a flexible object to move along a transport path. The detector near the tray has a detecting area. The trigger component is located in the opening and spaced apart from the flexible object on the transport path. The flexible object deviated from the transport path presses the trigger component to enter or leave the detecting area and triggers the detector to transmit an abnormal detecting signal. The processor receives the abnormal detecting signal to stop the transport roller.

A transport mechanism for a peripheral device and an operating method including the same are provided. The transport mechanism includes a tray, at least a transport roller, a detector, a trigger component and a processor. The tray includes an opening extending through the tray. The transport roller is rotatably installed in the opening and protruded from the tray to transport a flexible object to move along a transport path. The detector near the tray has a detecting area. The trigger component is located in the opening and spaced apart from the flexible object on the transport path. The flexible object deviated from the transport path presses the trigger component to enter or leave the detecting area and triggers the detector to transmit an abnormal detecting signal. The processor receives the abnormal detecting signal to stop the transport roller.

A medium conveying apparatus includes a first roller to convey a medium, a movement mechanism to move the first roller between a first position in contact with the medium and a second position spaced apart from the medium, a second roller located on a downstream side of the first roller in a medium conveying direction to convey the medium, and a processor to detect a skew of the conveyed medium, and control the movement mechanism to move the first roller to the second position, and correct the skew of the medium using the second roller when the skew of the medium is detected.

A medium feeding mechanism includes: a feeder that feeds a medium; a transport path that is coupled to the feeder; a transporter that transports the medium through the transport path; a transport drive that drives the transporter; an entry detection sensor that detects when the medium fed from the feeder has entered the transport path; a take-in transporter that takes in the medium transported by the transporter; and a transport controller that controls the feeder and the take-in transporter, wherein when the entry detection sensor detects entry of the medium at a time that falls within a first range set in advance, the controller controls the take-in transporter so as to take in the medium, and when the entry detection sensor detects entry of the medium at a time that falls within a second range following the first range.

A banknote handling device is provided with which it is possible to constantly demonstrate sufficient device processing performance, and which prevents collisions between a transportation direction switching means and a banknote even when the operation speed of the transportation direction switching means changes. Accordingly, a paper sheet handling device for handling a plurality of paper sheets and switching the transportation direction includes: a transportation path for transporting at least one paper sheet and a transportation direction switching means for switching the direction of transportation of the paper sheet; and a paper sheet handling control means for controlling, in accordance with the constantly-changing operation speed of the transportation direction switching means, at least one of the operation timing of the transportation direction switching means, the speed of transportation of a paper sheet, and the distance between a paper sheet and a preceding paper sheet.

A banknote handling device is provided with which it is possible to constantly demonstrate sufficient device processing performance, and which prevents collisions between a transportation direction switching means and a banknote even when the operation speed of the transportation direction switching means changes. Accordingly, a paper sheet handling device for handling a plurality of paper sheets and switching the transportation direction includes: a transportation path for transporting at least one paper sheet and a transportation direction switching means for switching the direction of transportation of the paper sheet; and a paper sheet handling control means for controlling, in accordance with the constantly-changing operation speed of the transportation direction switching means, at least one of the operation timing of the transportation direction switching means, the speed of transportation of a paper sheet, and the distance between a paper sheet and a preceding paper sheet.

A sheet feeding device includes a sheet feeding roller, a following roller, a rotational speed detection part, and a control part. The rotational speed detection part is configured to detect a rotational speed of the following roller. The control part is configured to accelerate a rotation of the sheet feeding roller and to adjust a sheet interval. The control part obtains a rotational rate of the following roller to the sheet feeding roller based on the rotational speed of the following roller, obtains an actual linear velocity of the sheet based on the rotational rate of the following roller and a theoretical linear velocity of the sheet after accelerating the rotation of the sheet feeding roller, and then adjusts the sheet interval based on the actual linear velocity of the sheet.

A technique that enables application of additional conveyance force to a print medium and conveyance of various sizes of print media without multi-feed is described. A conveyance device includes a feed unit, a first conveyance unit that conveys a print medium, and a second conveyance unit that conveys a print medium fed by the feed unit to the first conveyance unit, and is capable of correcting the skew of a print medium by causing the second conveyance unit to convey the print medium with its leading edge in abutment with the first conveyance unit. This conveyance device is configured to cause the feed unit to apply conveyance force to a print medium conveyed by the second conveyance unit, depending on the size of the print medium in the conveyance direction.