A medium discharging apparatus includes a first tray in which a medium is received and placed, a second tray in which a medium discharged from the first tray is received, a discharging mechanism that discharges the medium from the first tray toward the second tray, and a first curl suppressing member that is located above a rear end region of the medium in the discharge direction and that moves so as to follow movement of the rear end region while maintaining an attitude of the medium until the medium placed on the first tray is discharged from the first tray to the second tray by the discharging mechanism and placed on the second tray.

A sheet stacking device includes: a sheet discharge unit; a sheet stacking unit; a pair of cursors; and a control unit. The cursors perform widthwise alignment processing in which the cursors contact lateral end surfaces of the sheet to perform widthwise alignment. The control unit, before a leading end of the sheet reaches a sheet stacking surface, executes sheet guiding processing in which the cursors are positioned at a sheet guiding position to contact a bottom surface of the sheet and guide the sheet toward the sheet discharge direction. The control unit, when the leading end of the sheet passes a predetermined position, positions the cursors at a retracted position that is further outward than the lateral end surfaces of the sheet are, and once a trailing end of the sheet passes through the sheet discharge unit and the sheet is placed on the tray, executes the widthwise alignment processing.

A sheet processing device is for binding sheets together. The sheet processing device includes binding units differing from each other in maximum sheet count, the maximum sheet count being a maximum number of sheets that can be bound at a time; a sheet tray configured to hold sheets until all to-be-bound sheets are placed therein, the number of the to-be-bound sheets being a largest one of the maximum sheet counts of the binding units or smaller; and a stacked-sheet-count limiting unit situated in a thickness direction of the sheets held in the sheet tray. The stacked-sheet-count limiting unit is configured to limit the number of sheets held in the sheet tray by varying a distance from a sheet support surface of the sheet tray on which the sheets are placed, depending on one of the binding units by which the sheets held in the sheet tray are to be bound.

In an image forming apparatus, a conveyance section forms a conveyance path and conveys a sheet in a conveyance direction. The conveyance section includes a conveyance roller for rotating around a roller shaft extending in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction, and a guide member. The guide member includes a first guide member for rotating around a first axial line to open/close with respect to a first partial region of the conveyance path, and a second guide member for rotating around a second axial line to open/close with respect to a second partial region different from the first partial region. The first axial line extends in a direction parallel to a longitudinal direction of the roller shaft. The second axial line extends in a direction intersecting with the longitudinal direction. The first guide member opens in conjunction with an opening action of the second guide member.

An image forming apparatus includes: a transport member that transports a medium; a storage that is disposed below the transport member in a gravitational direction, and that stores the medium which is delivered by the transport member and falls into the storage; a supporter that is provided in the storage, and that has an upper end disposed below the transport member in a gravitational direction, and that allows the medium to be stored with a front end of the medium in a discharge direction matching a lower end of the medium in a gravitational direction; and a guidance member that is disposed in the supporter with the medium interposed between the guidance member and the supporter, and that guides the medium which falls to the supporter.

A conveyance device includes a conveyance member, a guide, and a rotator. The conveyance member has a conveyance surface with a joint, the conveyance member to convey an object to be conveyed, with the object on the conveyance surface. The guide approaches the conveyance surface and guides the object from or to the conveyance member. The rotator contacts the conveyance surface. The guide displaces in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance surface, in conjunction with displacement of the rotator when the rotator contacts the joint.

A sheet folding device includes a sheet conveyance path, a first folding conveyance path, a first folding roller pair, a first folding guide, and a conveyance roller. The first folding roller pair is composed of a first roller and a second roller forming a first folding nip by being brought into pressure contact with an upstream side of the first roller. The first folding guide is movable between a folding position at which it approaches the first folding nip, guiding a to-be-folded part of a sheet to the first folding nip, and a retracted position at which it is away from the first folding nip. The conveyance roller forms, together with the second roller, a first assist roller pair that conveys the sheet along the sheet conveyance path. The first folding guide has a pivot fulcrum on a downstream side relative to the first folding nip in the conveyance direction.

An image forming apparatus includes a tray; a casing having a first outlet, a second outlet above the first outlet, a first path, and a second path; a stack lever; a drive source; and a controller. The second path communicates with the second outlet such that a sheet conveyed along the second path is partially discharged from the second outlet and is reversed along the second path. The first outlet communicates with the first path such that the sheet conveyed along the first path is discharged from the first outlet onto the tray. The stack lever is movable between a first position where the stack lever presses a sheet on the tray and a second position higher than the first position. The controller is configured to control the drive source such that, when the sheet is discharged from the second outlet, the stack lever is at the second position.

Please add the Abstract of the Disclosure, as set forth on the separate accompanying sheet. This Abstract of the Disclosure is essentially the same, in content, as the Abstract which is a part of the published PCT application, WO 2017/202762A1. No new matter is being presented by the addition of this Abstract of the Disclosure.

A feeding apparatus includes a feeding roller that comes in contact with one of stacked printing media and feeds the printing medium; a support member that supports the feeding roller; an inclined portion that is arranged downstream of the feeding roller in a feeding direction in which the printing medium is fed, the inclined portion being inclined with respect to the stacked printing media; and a restriction member that is arranged downstream of the feeding roller in the feeding direction, the restriction member being capable of coming in contact with the printing medium fed by the feeding roller. The restriction member is provided independently from the support member and is capable of moving between a first position and a second position, the first position being set adjacent to a downstream region of the inclined portion in the feeding direction, the second position being set between the first position and the feeding roller with respect to the feeding direction.