According to one embodiment, a paper feeding mechanism includes a tray, a first roller, a second roller, a third roller, and a guide member. The tray supports a sheet. The first roller picks up the sheet from the tray. The second roller conveys the sheet picked up by the first roller. The third roller forms a nip that sandwiches the sheet between the second roller and the third roller. Relative positions of the third roller and the first and second rollers are set such that a convey reference surface of the sheet that is in contact with the first roller and the second roller and a flat surface of the nip are disposed on substantially the same flat surface. The guide member is between the nip and the first roller and intersects the convey reference surface.

A sheet feeding apparatus includes: a storage part that stores a sheet, and a feeding part that has a feeding roller for feeding the sheet. The storage part and the feeding part are configured to be integrally inserted/withdrawn into/from an apparatus enclosure. The feeding roller is moved from a feeding position to a retracting position before the storage part and the feeding part are withdrawn from the enclosure.

According to an embodiment, a paper feed device includes: a tray that has a support surface on which a sheet is placed and is capable of entering a first state and a second state. The first state is a state for placing the sheet on the support surface. The second state is a state for taking out the sheet from the support surface toward a downstream side in a conveying direction and for putting the sheet in an inclined posture heading upward on the downstream side in the conveying direction than an upstream side in the conveying direction.

A sheet feeding apparatus includes an apparatus body, an opening/closing member supported on the apparatus body, a sheet support supported on the opening/closing member, and a rotary feeding member provided on the apparatus body to feed the sheet supported on the sheet support in a feeding direction. A first engagement member is provided in the apparatus body, and a second engagement member is provided on a downstream end portion of the sheet support in the feeding direction and engages with the first engagement member in a vertical direction that intersects an axial direction of the rotary feeding member when the opening/closing member is positioned at the open position. The rotary feeding member is lowered toward the sheet supported on the sheet support in a case where the opening/closing member is positioned at the open position.

A medium supply device is provided that includes a single sheet paper accommodating unit at which media are stacked and placed, and a feeding roller configured to feed the media by rotating in contact with a top surface of the placed media. The feeding roller includes a contact portion configured to contact the single sheet paper and a non-contact portion configured to not contact the single sheet paper in a rotational direction, and a plurality of the contact portions and the non-contact portions are provided in a first direction that is an extending direction of a rotation axis of the feeding roller, and the contact portions adjacent to each other in the first direction are out of phase in the rotational direction.

A sheet feeding device includes a tray, a feeding member, a conveying member, a separation member, a transmission unit, and a biasing member. The separation member abuts the conveying member and separates a single sheet from sheets fed by the feeding member. The transmission unit includes first and second portions respectively having first and second transmission surfaces. Where the first and second transmission surfaces abut each other, the first portion drives the second portion that drives the feeding member. The biasing member biases either of the first and second portions so that the first and second transmission surfaces move away from each other. The conveying member is driven in a state where the separation member abuts the conveying member and the feeding member abuts the sheet stacked on the tray and is stopped. Thereafter, the first and second transmission surfaces abut each other, and the feeding member is driven.

A sheet feeding apparatus includes a sheet supporting portion, a feeding portion, a conveying portion configured to convey the sheet fed by the feeding portion, a separation member, a returning portion, the returning portion pushing the sheet back toward the sheet supporting portion by moving from a retracting position to a protruding position, and a pressing portion including a contact portion configured to contact the sheet. The pressing portion is configured to press the sheet from above via the contact portion such that the sheet is pushed toward the returning portion in a state where the returning portion is positioned at the protruding position and below the sheet.

An image forming apparatus includes an apparatus body including a side surface portion in which an opening is formed, a cartridge, an opening/closing member configured to be moved with respect to the apparatus body between a closed position and an opened position, a sheet stacking portion, a feed roller, and a lifting member configured to lift and lower the feed roller. In the state where the opening/closing member is positioned in the closed position, at least part of the lifting member is positioned an inside of a movement locus through which the cartridge passes in a case where the cartridge is attached to and detached from the apparatus body. In a state where the opening/closing member is positioned in the opened position, a whole of the lifting member is positioned an outside of the movement locus.

A sheet conveyer having a sheet tray, a tray-driving mechanism, a conveyance guide, a feed roller, a separator, a conveyer, a conveyer-driving mechanism, a controller, and a sheet sensor to detect sheets on the sheet tray, is provided. The conveyer-driving mechanism includes a transmission-active portion and a transmission-passive portion. A conveying velocity to convey the sheets by the conveyer is higher than a conveying velocity to convey the sheets by the feed roller and the separator. The transmission-active portion and the transmission-passive portion are rotatable about a transmission axis. The transmission-passive portion rotates passively by being pushed by the transmission-active portion. After the sheet sensor detects absence of the sheets, and before the transmission-passive portion starts rotating passively, the controller conducts a specific action to move the sheet tray downward by controlling the tray-driving mechanism.

A first conveying unit is allowed to be in contact with a print medium loaded on an uppermost portion of the one or more print media loaded on a print medium loading unit to convey the print medium from the uppermost portion. The first moving unit moves at least one of the one or more print media and the first conveying unit in each of directions in which the uppermost portion and the first conveying unit are close to each other and directions in which the uppermost portion and the first conveying unit are far away from each other.