A medium feeder includes a medium mounter, a pair of edge guides, and a sheet number limiter. The medium mounter has a mounting surface on which a medium to be fed is placed. The pair of edge guides is provided at the medium mounter to guide side edges of the medium in a direction that intersects with a feeding direction in which the medium is fed. The sheet number limiter is provided at the pair of edge guides to limit the number of media mountable on the medium mounter. The sheet number limiter has an extension that extends in a feeding direction of the medium such that a distance between the extension and the mounting surface increases downstream.

An image reading apparatus includes a conveyance unit, a first reading unit, a first guide portion, a second reading unit, and a second guide portion. The second reading unit includes a rectangular transparent member, an optical reading unit, a housing, a first and a second contact portions, a first and a second pressing members, and a protruding portion. The first and the second contact portions are protruding from a facing surface of the housing. The protruding portion, when viewed from an upstream side in a conveyance direction of a recording material passing through a conveyance path between the second reading unit and the second guide portion, is disposed between the first contact portion and the second contact portion and protruding from the facing surface of the housing, a protruding amount of the protruding portion being smaller than protruding amounts of the first and the second contact portions.

An image reading apparatus includes a conveyance unit, a first reading unit, a first guide portion, a second reading unit, and a second guide portion. The second reading unit includes a rectangular transparent member, an optical reading unit, a housing, a first and a second contact portions, a first and a second pressing members, and a protruding portion. The first and the second contact portions are protruding from a facing surface of the housing. The protruding portion, when viewed from an upstream side in a conveyance direction of a recording material passing through a conveyance path between the second reading unit and the second guide portion, is disposed between the first contact portion and the second contact portion and protruding from the facing surface of the housing, a protruding amount of the protruding portion being smaller than protruding amounts of the first and the second contact portions.

An image recording apparatus for recording an image on a sheet includes a recording section which records the image on the sheet in a transport passage for transporting the sheet in a transport direction and multiple plates which are spaced apart from each other in a widthwise direction. These multiple plates include a first type of plate and a second type of plate. Plates of a first type of plate are configured to overlap a sheet when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction and the widthwise direction, while plates of the second type of plate do not.

An image recording apparatus for recording an image on a sheet includes a recording section which records the image on the sheet in a transport passage for transporting the sheet in a transport direction and multiple plates which are spaced apart from each other in a widthwise direction. These multiple plates include a first type of plate and a second type of plate. Plates of a first type of plate are configured to overlap a sheet when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction and the widthwise direction, while plates of the second type of plate do not.

An apparatus for moving veneer includes a leaf spring having at lower tip end thereof sharpened edges and configured to move a veneer sheet toward its preceding stationary veneer sheet. Further lowering the leaf spring with the tip end already stuck in the veneer sheet causes the leaf spring to be resiliently deformed, which creates a force due to restoring force of the leaf spring that acts on the veneer sheet to move toward the preceding veneer sheet thereby to reduce or eliminate a gap between the two veneer sheets. Additional leaf spring movable with the above leaf spring and configured to hold the preceding veneer sheet during the movement may be provided.

An apparatus for moving veneer includes a leaf spring having at lower tip end thereof sharpened edges and configured to move a veneer sheet toward its preceding stationary veneer sheet. Further lowering the leaf spring with the tip end already stuck in the veneer sheet causes the leaf spring to be resiliently deformed, which creates a force due to restoring force of the leaf spring that acts on the veneer sheet to move toward the preceding veneer sheet thereby to reduce or eliminate a gap between the two veneer sheets. Additional leaf spring movable with the above leaf spring and configured to hold the preceding veneer sheet during the movement may be provided.

A method for attaching a sheet member to a cylinder body includes: preliminarily fixing a first end portion of the sheet member to a first fixation portion of a cylinder body provided in an apparatus body and having a substantially circular cross section; wrapping the sheet member around the cylinder body by rotating the cylinder body; fixing the first end portion and a second end portion of the sheet member to the first fixation portion and a second fixation portion, respectively; and installing an installation member between the apparatus body and an inner surface of the sheet member before the wrapping of the sheet member around the cylinder body.

A method for attaching a sheet member to a cylinder body includes: preliminarily fixing a first end portion of the sheet member to a first fixation portion of a cylinder body provided in an apparatus body and having a substantially circular cross section; wrapping the sheet member around the cylinder body by rotating the cylinder body; fixing the first end portion and a second end portion of the sheet member to the first fixation portion and a second fixation portion, respectively; and installing an installation member between the apparatus body and an inner surface of the sheet member before the wrapping of the sheet member around the cylinder body.

A positioning device (38) for holding a flat flexible part, especially a sheet, on a positioning surface (46) is presented. It comprises a body (44) having a suction opening (50) for aspiring the part and a fluid port (52) being in fluid communication with the suction opening (50). Furthermore, an abutment protrusion (60) is provided on a connection surface (48) for abutting the positioning device (38) against a base part (28) to which it may be mounted. Also a sealing protrusion (64) is arranged on the connection surface (48) for compressing a gasket (42) being interposed between the positioning device (38) and the base part (28). A height (H.sub.a) of the abutment protrusion (60) is bigger than a height (H.sub.s) of the sealing protrusion (64). Additionally, a positioning assembly (24) is presented which comprises at least one such positioning device (38). Furthermore, a sheet material processing machine comprising at least one such positioning assembly (24) is introduced.