The rotational pin and the lock pin are laterally provided in the right and left first brackets that are fixed to the right and left side surfaces of the sheet loading tray respectively, and furthermore, the right and left second brackets are fixed to the right and left of the one side surfaces of the casing. When the sheet loading tray reaches the sheet loading position, the lock pin is made to enter the sheet loading tray lock groove formed on the right and left second brackets to thereby lock and hold the sheet loading tray at the sheet loading tray storage position, along with an action of rotating the sheet loading tray about the rotational pin fitting into the sheet loading tray support groove formed on the right and left second brackets from the sheet loading position to the sheet loading tray storage position.

A main tray can be exposed from and stored in an image forming apparatus main body by being pivotably supported by the image forming apparatus main body, and when the main tray is exposed from the image forming apparatus main body, a sheet can be placed on the main tray and a sheet can be supplied from the main tray into the image forming apparatus main body. The main tray includes a sheet placing portion and a width alignment cursor. The width alignment cursor is disposed on the sheet placing portion to align the width of a sheet. The width alignment cursor moves in the width direction of the sheet in conjunction with the main tray being stored in the image forming apparatus main 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 conveying apparatus includes: receiving trays including (i) a lowest tray, (ii) a first receiving tray different from the lowest tray, and (iii) at least one second receiving tray including one second receiving tray disposed just below the first receiving tray; a conveying mechanism; and a supporter supporting the receiving trays. The conveying apparatus further includes a transmission mechanism configured to perform at least one of: transmission of upward movement of the first receiving tray from a receiving position to an upper position, to downward movement of the one second receiving tray from the receiving position to a lower position; and transmission of the downward movement of the one second receiving tray to the upward movement of the first receiving tray.

It is an object of the present invention to provide sheet supplying apparatus. The sheet supplying apparatus has a tray; a guide mechanism; a movement conversion mechanism; a rotary member; a cam and slider mechanism and a compression spring. The movement conversion mechanism converts an up and down motion of the tray to a rotational motion. The rotary member comprises a transmitted portion configured to receive a rotational motion converted from the up and down motion of the tray in cooperation with the movement conversion mechanism and a driven portion configured to receive a rotational driving force to lift the tray. The cam and slider mechanism converts the rotational motion of the rotary member to a linear motion of a linearly movable member. The compression spring elastically presses the linearly movable member of the cam and slider mechanism in the rotational axis direction to lift the tray.

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.

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.

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.

An image forming apparatus includes an apparatus main body, a sheet storage cassette, a sheet feed unit, a first detection sensor having a first detector for detecting the presence/absence of sheets stacked on a sheet stacking plate, a second detection sensor having a second detector for detecting the position of the top face of the sheets stacked on the sheet stacking plate, a cassette detection sensor, a driving device, and a controller. The sheet feed unit includes a first actuator for switching detection states of the first detection sensor and a second actuator for switching detection states of the second detection sensor. The controller determines the mounting state of the sheet feed unit based on the detection state of the first and second detection sensors.

A sheet material feeding device includes: a housing; a cassette configured to internally house a sheet material, and capable of being pulled out of the housing and housed into the housing; a rear-end regulating member provided inside the cassette and configured to regulate a position of an upstream end of the sheet material in a sheet material feeding direction; a rear-end displacing member supported by the rear-end regulating member and configured to swing along the sheet material feeding direction; a sliding member provided for the cassette, having an engagement part to be engaged with the rear-end displacing member, and configured to slide toward a downstream side in the sheet material feeding direction to displace the rear-end displacing member toward the downstream side in the sheet material feeding direction; and a first energizing member configured to energize the sliding member toward an upstream side in the sheet material feeding direction.