To stop a variety of sheets and prevent problems generated by colliding sheets, a front stopping device that receives sheets being delivered along a horizontal transport route on a hopper unit and stops the movement in the transport direction includes a plate-shaped buffering member that is brought into direct contact with the front part of a sheet; and supporting members that support the upper end and lower end of the buffering member. The buffering member is formed of a flexible material to absorb the kinetic energy of the sheet by being elastically deformed in a concave surface shape when receiving the front part of the sheet, and the buffering member is supported by being inclined upward or downward by the supporting members such that a restoring force of pushing back the front part of the sheet due to the restoration of the elastic deformation includes a vertical component.

Systems, devices and methods for receiving an item in a receptacle are disclosed. Features are disclosed for receiving and guiding an item in a receiving space of a receptacle so as to attenuate or remove the impact force of the item on the receptacle. Some embodiments of the disclosure include a bumper having an impact surface which absorbs most or all of the impact force of the item and thereby mitigates or removes the imposition of cyclic impact loads on the receptacle from repeated receipt of items. The bumper may be structurally and/or functionally de-coupled or otherwise physically separated from the receptacle such that an advantageous division of labor is created between absorbing the impact and receiving the item. This disclosure may be useful, for example, in modern industrial operations where a high volume of items are received daily, such as in mail sorting and handling operations.

An image forming apparatus includes an output unit to which a recording medium on which an image has been formed is output, the output unit including an output unit body, and an extension portion that is disposed on the output unit body so as to be extendable from the output unit body in an output direction of the recording medium, the extension portion including a handle portion that is recessed in a direction away from a back surface of the recording sheet so as allow a finger to be hooked in a direction in which the extension portion is extended in the output direction of the recording medium, the back surface being a surface that is in contact with the output unit body, and a protrusion that protrudes toward the back surface of the recording medium from the extension portion.

A sheet feeding apparatus includes a sheet receiving plate configured to receive a sheet and pivot in an up-down direction; a feed roller configured to pivot between a contact position where the feed roller contacts the sheet on the sheet receiving plate and a withdrawal position where the feed roller withdraws from the sheet; an urging member configured to urge the sheet receiving plate upward; an abutting portion configured to, when the sheet receiving plate pivots upward, abut the sheet and stop the sheet receiving plate; a moving member configured to, after the sheet abuts the abutting portion, move the sheet receiving plate to a sheet feed position; and a feed roller pivoting mechanism configured to, when the sheet receiving plate pivots upward, withdraw the feed roller to the withdrawal position and to, after the sheet contacts the abutting portion, move the feed roller to the sheet receiving plate.

A thickness measurement device for a sheet-type medium comprises: a fixing frame (1), used for installing and bearing the following parts and components; a reference shaft (2), having two ends installed on the fixing frame (1) through bearings, wherein a reference roller (21) is fixedly fitted on the reference shaft (2); a detection shaft (3), wherein at least one floating support frame (31) having one end capable of rotating freely around the detection shaft (3) is arranged on the detection shaft (3), and a detection roller (32) and a signal generator (33) are arranged on the floating support frame (31); an elastic pressing plate (4), for pressing against the floating support frame (31) to keep an approaching trend between the detection roller (32) and the reference roller (21), wherein the elastic pressing plate (4) is composed of at least two elastic sheets; a signal sensor (5); and a data processing unit. By means of the device, system damping is provided through friction between the elastic sheets, an output signal impact peak value instantly caused by the fact that a front end of the sheet-type medium crushes into a floating support frame bearing and a power shaft meshing point at a certain speed is reduced, and the adjustment time of oscillation of an output signal is shortened.

Systems, devices and methods for receiving an item in a receptacle are disclosed. Features are disclosed for receiving and guiding an item in a receiving space of a receptacle so as to attenuate or remove the impact force of the item on the receptacle. Some embodiments of the disclosure include a bumper having an impact surface which absorbs most or all of the impact force of the item and thereby mitigates or removes the imposition of cyclic impact loads on the receptacle from repeated receipt of items. The bumper may be structurally and/or functionally de-coupled or otherwise physically separated from the receptacle such that an advantageous division of labor is created between absorbing the impact and receiving the item. This disclosure may be useful, for example, in modern industrial operations where a high volume of items are received daily, such as in mail sorting and handling operations.

A drying device (120) includes a liftable and lowerable conveying unit (40) which conveys a sheet on which ink is ejected, along a conveyance path (34); a liftable and lowerable drying unit (50) which faces the conveyance path (34) and dries the ink by heat; a lifting and lowering mechanism (60) capable of lowering a lower unit, which is a unit provided below among the conveying unit (40) and the drying unit (50), by gravity acting on the lower unit and lifting an upper unit, which is a unit provided above among the conveying unit (40) and the drying unit (50), to open the conveyance path (34); and a restriction mechanism (70) which restricts a lowering of the lower unit.

A sheet processing apparatus includes a processing unit, a braking mechanism, and, a damper mechanism. The processing unit is movable to a drawn-out position and an accommodated position. The drawn-out position is a position where the processing unit is drawn out from the sheet processing apparatus. The accommodated position is a position where the processing unit is accommodated in the sheet processing apparatus. The braking mechanism acts to brake the processing unit in a case where the processing unit is inserted in a direction from the drawn-out position toward the accommodated position at a speed equal to or higher than a predetermined speed. The damper mechanism absorbs an impact on the braking mechanism in a case where the braking mechanism act, by applying a load to the processing unit moving in the direction from the drawn-out position toward the accommodated position.

A sheet feeding device includes a feeding roller pair, a first guide, a door including a second guide and rotatable between a first direction and a second direction opposite to the first direction through first to third positions, a damping mechanism, and an engaging portion including an elastic member. A first resisting force is set so that moment acting around a shaft by a self-weight of the door is larger than the first resisting force of the damping mechanism when the door is positioned between the second position and the third position. A resultant force of the first resisting force of the damping mechanism and a second resisting force of the elastic portion is set so that the moment acting around the shaft by the self-weight of the door is larger than the resultant force when the door is positioned between the second position and the third position.

A pipe stop and stored energy dampening apparatus comprising a main body, a plurality of rollers connected to the main body, a gear connected to a first roller of the plurality of rollers, a gear lever connected to the main body and adapted to engage with the gear, a gear handle connected to the gear lever, and a clamp connected to the main body. Methods related to dispensing pipe or conduit or hosing from a spool or other device on which a pipe or conduit is wound or otherwise stored, controlling stored energy of the pipe or conduit in preventing injuries, and eliminating wasted pipe or conduit.