The sheet feed device includes a sheet containing cassette with a sheet stacking plate therein, a sheet feed part enabled to feed a sheet within the sheet containing cassette set in a setting position, a first sensing mechanism, a lift mechanism, a drive mechanism, and a controller. The lift mechanism includes a cassette-side coupling member for transmitting driving force to the sheet stacking plate. The drive mechanism includes a main body-side coupling member coupled with the cassette-side coupling member. When the first sensing mechanism has sensed that no sheets are stacked on the sheet stacking plate, the controller makes the main body-side coupling member rotate reverse to move down the sheet stacking plate and, even after the sheet stacking plate lowers, makes the main body-side coupling member continue to be rotated reverse so as to move out the sheet containing cassette from the setting position.

An image forming apparatus includes a photosensitive drum, a light exposure device, a developing device, a fixing unit disposed opposite to the light exposure device relative to the developing device, a sheet supply tray disposed below the developing device, an ejection tray disposed above the developing device and having a sheet receiving surface inclined downward, relative to a horizontal direction, toward the charger, and a sheet conveying path through which a sheet is conveyed from the sheet supply tray to the ejection tray. A lowest end portion of the sheet receiving surface is disposed below an upper end of the charger in the vertical direction. The charger is disposed opposite to the developing device relative to the lowest end portion of the sheet receiving surface.

A paper sheet stacking mechanism 50 includes a stacking wheel 52, a roller 54 that is disposed outward from the stacking wheel 52 so as to be coaxially aligned with the stacking wheel 52 and that is rotatable about a shaft 53 at a greater angular velocity than that of the stacking wheel 52, and a transport unit that is configured to transport a paper sheet to the gap between two adjacent vanes 52b of the stacking wheel 52. The transport unit is located such that a discharge position is disposed outward from the outer periphery of the base 52a of the stacking wheel 52 and inward of the circular region defined by the tips of the vanes 52b of the stacking wheel 52 during the rotation of the stacking wheel 52, when viewed in the axial direction of the shaft 53 of the stacking wheel 52.

A sheet feeding apparatus includes a sheet storage portion, a sheet supporting member that is liftable, and a damper mechanism including a resistance member and a movable portion movable by abutting against a body of the apparatus. The damper mechanism resists, at least temporarily, relative movement of the movable portion and the sheet storage portion by applying resistive force produced by the resistance member to the movable portion in a case where the sheet storage portion is inserted to the body, and resists, at least temporarily, lowering movement of the sheet supporting member by applying resistive force produced by the resistance member to the sheet supporting portion in a case where the sheet storage portion with the sheet supporting member having been lifted by the lift portion is drawn out of the body.

In accordance with one embodiment, an image forming apparatus comprises a cassette for paper feed configured to contain a tray capable of stacking papers stored in a packaging member of which one end portion is opened, together with the packaging member; a paper feed section configured to contain a pickup roller which picks up the papers stored in the packaging member from the opened end portion of the packaging member; a regulating member configured to regulate that the packaging member is conveyed from the tray of the cassette; and a protrusion configured to be formed and protrude from the regulating member to cover the opened end portion of the packaging member.

A sheet conveying device includes: a sheet cassette including a first housing, a pressing plate, a raising plate, a first resilient member, and a second resilient member; a second housing; a sheet-cassette accommodating portion; a first electrode; a second electrode; a sheet conveyor; a driver; a first output device that outputs a first signal and a second signal; a second output device that outputs a rotation pulse signal; and a controller that receives the first signal, the second signal, and the rotation pulse signal. The controller counts pulses of the rotation pulse signal received from the second output device, determines the number of pulses of the rotation pulse signal, and determines an amount of upward movement of the pressing plate based on the number of pulses of the rotation pulse signal.

A sheet conveyance device includes first and second discharge portions to discharge sheets, first and second stacking portions on which sheets are to be stacked, and a control unit to control the second stacking portion to move between a first position and a second position. The first position is that a downstream side of the second stacking portion is positioned and inclined upwardly with respect to an upstream side of the second stacking portion in a sheet conveyance direction of the sheets discharged from the second discharge portion. The second position is that the downstream side of the second stacking portion is positioned on a lower side of the first position of the downstream side of the second stacking portion.

A sheet supplying apparatus includes a supplying roller, a supply tray, and a lifting/lowering member having a protrusion. The pressure plate includes a pressure plate body and a contact member supported by the pressure plate body so as to be movable between a first position and a second position. The contact member is pushed up and lowered with the pressure plate body while being in contact with the protrusion at the first position in a state in which the protrusion is placed below the pressure plate body. The contact member moves to the second position at which the contact member is escaped from the lifting/lowering member when the protrusion moves from a position higher than the pressure plate toward a position lower than the pressure plate. The contact member moves to the first position when the lifting/lowering member moves to the position lower than the pressure plate.

A sheet feeding device has a sheet feed tray, a metallic pressure plate configured to support the plurality of sheets, the sheet feed tray being rockable about a rocking fulcrum between a descending position and an ascending position, a sheet feed roller configured to convey sheets supported by the pressure plate in a sheet conveying direction one by one, and an elastic member made of metal and arranged on the sheet feed tray, the elastic member engaging with the pressure plate and being electrically connected to the pressure plate, the elastic member contacting metal arranged outside the sheet feed tray to ground the pressure plate. The pressure plate has an engaging part configured to engage with the elastic member, the engaging part displacing in a direction where a contact pressure with respect to the elastic member increases when the pressure plate displaced from the descending position to the ascending position.

An image reading apparatus includes a document support portion, a cover portion which is capable of opening and closing, a first surface of which forms an apparatus top surface, and a second surface of which forms a support surface which supports the document, and a base frame which forms the apparatus top surface, in which the document support portion is provided to be capable of rotational movement and is capable of switching between a first posture and a second posture, in which the first surface of the cover portion forms the apparatus top surface which runs along a horizontal direction together with a top surface of the base frame in the closed state, and in which, in the first posture, a portion of the document support portion is at a height position running along the second surface of the cover portion in the closed state.