A detector includes a first member that makes contact with an upper surface of a paper sheet stored in a sheet feeding cassette, and a second member that supports the first member such that it is capable changing postures, while also movably supporting the first member in an up-and-down direction to coincide with the upper surface of a paper sheet stored in the sheet feeding cassette. The first member has a guide portion that makes contact with the sheet feeding cassette and/or a paper sheet stored in the sheet feeding cassette. The first member changes postures with respect to the second member as a result of the guide portion making contact with the sheet feeding cassette and/or a paper sheet stored in the sheet feeding cassette.

A sheet feeding device includes an upper sheet container, a lower sheet container, and a sheet detector. The lower sheet container disposed below the removable upper sheet container is configured to contain a sheet. The sheet detector is configured to detect the sheet in the lower sheet container and includes a sheet contact member disposed above the lower sheet container. The sheet contact member is contactable to the upper sheet container and the sheet in the lower sheet container. Either the upper sheet container or the sheet contact member has a sloped face inclined downward from downstream toward upstream in a container insertion direction, on at least one of a downstream side in the container insertion direction of a lower portion of the upper sheet container and an upstream side in the container insertion direction of an upper portion of the sheet contact member.

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.

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a conveyance apparatus whose detection unit of a printing medium is unlikely to be damaged. One embodiment of the present invention is a conveyance apparatus including: a first guide that is fixed to a main body; a second guide capable of moving to a position at which the second guide forms, together with the first guide, a conveyance path through which a printing medium is conveyed and a position at which the second guide opens the conveyance path; a first lever that is provided to the main body and which detects whether or not the printing medium exists in the conveyance path; and a second lever that shields light, wherein the first lever and the second lever can swing integrally or independently in accordance with the position of the second guide.

A printing apparatus can prevent a print medium from buckling during discharging. In a case in which the print conveyance speed determined by the print mode is higher than or equal to a specified speed, the print medium after printing is conveyed to a discharging tray at the print conveyance speed, and in a case in which the print conveyance speed determined by the print mode is lower than the specified speed, the print medium after printing is conveyed to the discharging tray at the specified speed increased from the print conveyance speed.

A sheet feeding apparatus includes a sheet stacking portion, a lift plate, an actuating segment, driving unit, a sheet feeding portion, a first detecting portion, a remaining amount detection portion. The remaining amount detection portion includes a detection piece, a link mechanism, a second detecting portion, a controller. The link mechanism couples together the driving shaft and the detection piece at a coupling position attained by pivoting the lift plate through a predetermined angle from a lower limit position in rotation direction, so as to let the driving shaft and the detection piece rotate together. The second detecting portion senses whether or not the detection piece is present. The controller determines the remaining quantity level of the stacked sheets according to whether or not the second detecting portion is detecting the detection piece being present.

An image forming apparatus includes a control unit and an attachment detection unit to detect attachment of a cassette having a stacking portion that may be lifted by a motor. The control unit drives the motor to start lifting the stacking portion when cassette attachment is detected and stops when the stacked uppermost sheet is detected at a sheet feed position, at which time the presence or absence of the stored sheet is determined based on a detection signal output by a sheet presence/absence detection unit. In a case where there is no change in the detection signal output from the sheet presence/absence detection unit when the attachment of the cassette is detected, the control unit determines that a failure of the sheet presence/absence detection flag occurred.

A sheet conveying apparatus includes a sheet conveying member; a guide portion configured to define a sheet conveying path; a pressing portion configured to press the sheet to curve the sheet as viewed in a sheet conveying direction in the sheet conveying path; and a moving portion movable by an edge of the sheet passing through the sheet conveying path and arranged so that at least a part of a movable range of the moving portion is overlapped with the pressing portion. The moving portion includes a first abutment portion configured to abut against the sheet passing through the sheet conveying path on one side in the width direction with respect to a conveyance center of the sheet conveying member and a second abutment portion configured to abut against the sheet passing through the sheet conveying path on the other side with respect to the conveyance center.

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a printing apparatus that is unlikely to damage a printing medium with a detection lever. One embodiment of the present invention is a printing apparatus including: a feeding unit configured to be placed a printing medium and to convey the printing medium in a conveyance direction; and a detection lever configured to rotate about a rotation axis for detecting a printing medium on the feeding unit, wherein in a width direction of a printing medium, which intersects with the conveyance direction, a first position of a contact between the detection lever and the printing medium and a second position of a center of the rotation axis are different.

A sheet sorting apparatus includes a first tray detachable from an apparatus main body, a second tray arranged below the first tray, a discharge unit to discharge a sheet to the first or second tray, a tray detecting unit to detect that the first tray is detached from the apparatus main body, a full stack detecting unit to detect a fully stacked condition of the first tray, and a control unit to control the discharge unit. In a case where the tray detecting unit detects that the first tray is detached from the apparatus main body, the control unit controls the discharge unit not to discharge a sheet to the second tray when a number of sheets discharged to the second tray reaches a threshold number of sheets, even though the full stack detecting unit does not detect the fully stacked condition.