An image forming apparatus includes: a conveying unit configured to convey a sheet along a conveyance path group including at least a first conveyance path and a second conveyance path joining the first conveyance path; an image forming unit; and a path switcher, wherein: the path switcher includes: a guide unit configured to rotate about a guide supporting point and rotate between a first position and a second position; a protruding portion fixed to the guide unit; a drive lever having a first pressing surface and a second pressing surface; a first force applying unit; and a second force applying unit; the drive lever includes: a first lever; a second lever; a third force applying unit; and a restraining portion configured to set a moving end on the rotation of the second lever; and the restraining portion restricts the moving end of the second lever to a predetermined position.

Provided is a multi-banknote cassette with a movable stopper, which is capable of storing various kinds of banknotes at the same time. The multi-banknote cassette includes a movable stopper which is installed in a stack guide for guiding banknotes introduced into a cassette body of the banknote cassette toward a banknote stopper, and rotated to protrude from or retreat into a transfer path of the banknotes. When a banknote having a relatively small size among the banknotes inserted into the banknote cassette is introduced, the movable stopper is rotated to protrude from the stack guide and regulates the front end of the introduced banknote, and when a banknote having a relatively large size is introduced, the movable stopper is rotated to retreat into the stack guide, and a banknote stopper installed at the rear of the stack guide regulates the front end of the introduced bank.

A sheet stacking apparatus including a control portion is configured to execute: a first mode in which the control portion causes a bundle forming portion to form a bundle of sheets including a sheet supported by a first placement portion and a sheet placed on a second placement portion; and a second mode in which a downstream end portion of a bundle of sheets formed in the second mode is positioned upstream of a downstream end portion of a bundle of sheets to be formed in the first mode, and wherein the control portion sets a maximum number of sheets constituting a bundle of sheets which the control portion causes the bundle forming portion to form in the second mode to be smaller than a maximum number of sheets constituting a bundle of sheets which the control portion causes the bundle forming portion to form in the first mode.

A sheet stacking apparatus including a control portion is configured to execute: a first mode in which the control portion causes a bundle forming portion to form a bundle of sheets including a sheet supported by a first placement portion and a sheet placed on a second placement portion; and a second mode in which a downstream end portion of a bundle of sheets formed in the second mode is positioned upstream of a downstream end portion of a bundle of sheets to be formed in the first mode, and wherein the control portion sets a maximum number of sheets constituting a bundle of sheets which the control portion causes the bundle forming portion to form in the second mode to be smaller than a maximum number of sheets constituting a bundle of sheets which the control portion causes the bundle forming portion to form in the first mode.

A sheet conveying device has a body and a frame supporting it, and is insertable or extractable along a sheet stacking face formed in an in-body discharge space in an image forming apparatus and having an inclined face with an upward gradient toward the downstream side in the sheet discharge direction. On the face of the frame opposite the sheet stacking face, a plurality of first and second wheels rotatable in the insertion or extraction direction are provided downward of the center of the opposite face in the insertion direction. The first wheels are arranged downstream of the second wheels in the insertion direction, and protrude from the opposite face farther than the second wheels. The first wheels fit into a concave portion formed in the sheet stacking face by the inclined face and thereby enable the second wheels to make contact with the sheet stacking face.

A relay conveyance device detachably mounted on an image forming apparatus body is provided with a fixing member that holds a mounting state of the relay conveyance device to the image forming apparatus body. The fixing member is provided with a relay connector that relays the image forming apparatus body and the post-processing device. The post-processing device is electrically connected to the image forming apparatus body via the relay connector.

An image forming apparatus, having a housing with an opening, an image forming unit, a path to guide a recording medium toward the opening, a reversible roller disposed in the path, and an intermediate reversible roller disposed between the image forming unit and the reversible roller, is provided. A rotating direction of the reversible roller is switchable between a first rotating direction and a second rotating direction opposite from the first rotating direction. A circumferential speed of the reversible roller is switchable between a predetermined circumferential speed and none. A rotating direction of the intermediate reversible roller is switchable between a third rotating direction and a fourth rotating direction opposite from the third rotating direction. The circumferential speed of the reversible roller in the first rotating direction is reduced to be lower than the predetermined circumferential speed while the intermediate reversible roller is rotating in the third rotating direction.

A printer includes a guide frame, a deforming section, and a lever member. The guide frame includes a transport path. The deforming section includes a toothed roller, a supporting holder, and a torsion spring and deforms paper. The toothed roller comes into contact with the paper discharged from the transport path. The supporting holder is configured to pivot between a first position at which the toothed roller is located on the transport path and a second position at which the toothed roller is not located on the transport path. The torsion spring presses the supporting holder from the second position to the first position. The lever member is configured to switch between a regulating state in which pivoting of the supporting holder at the first position or the second position is regulated and a non-regulating state in which pivoting of the supporting holder is not regulated.

A sorting device is mounted, in an image forming apparatus, in a sheet discharge space open at its front and sheet-discharge-direction downstream side, insertably or extractably at the downstream side. The sorting device includes a base portion, a tray portion, and a flexible member. The base portion is mounted, with the tray portion, in the base portion. The base portion has, in its upstream part in sheet discharge direction, a base inclined portion inclined upward downstream. With the base portion mounted in the bottom portion, the base inclined portion faces, across a predetermined gap, a bottom inclined surface inclined upward downstream in discharge direction. The tray portion is supported on the base portion to be reciprocatable in sheet width direction orthogonal to discharge direction. The flexible member is fitted to the base inclined portion and fills the gap between the base inclined portion and the bottom inclined surface.

It is aimed to provide a conveying device for absorbent articles capable of precisely sorting an absorbent article between a main conveyance path and a branch path and a conveyance method using the same. A path switching means includes a belt conveying unit with a conveying belt arranged along an annular path and configured to circulate along the annular path to be able to convey an absorbent article and a path switching mechanism configured to switch a conveyance path specified by the conveying belt between a path along which the absorbent article is transferrable from an upstream conveying mechanism to a downstream conveying mechanism and a path along which the absorbent article is guided along a sampling path from the upstream conveying mechanism.