A sheet folding apparatus for folding sheets comprising a curved conveyance path along which the sheets are moved successively in first and second opposite directions, the curved conveyance path being such that the sheets cannot naturally register to reach a folding position by simple effect of gravity, wherein to register the sheets before to fold them transport rollers having loaded the sheets in the first direction moves back in the second opposite direction for compressing the sheets against an adjustable low stop member to generate an elastic deformation of the sheets sufficient to compensate friction in the curved conveyance path and automatically register the sheets.

A sheet folding apparatus for folding sheets comprising a curved conveyance path along which the sheets are moved successively in first and second opposite directions, the curved conveyance path being such that the sheets cannot naturally register to reach a folding position by simple effect of gravity, wherein to register the sheets before to fold them transport rollers having loaded the sheets in the first direction moves back in the second opposite direction for compressing the sheets against an adjustable low stop member to generate an elastic deformation of the sheets sufficient to compensate friction in the curved conveyance path and automatically register the sheets.

A sheet stacking device include a guide unit and a blower. The guide unit receives a downstream end of a sheet in a sheet conveyance direction and guides the sheet downstream in the sheet conveyance direction. The blower blows air toward the sheet guided by the guide unit. A region of the blower from which the air is blown is changeable in response to a size of the sheet.

A sheet storage apparatus and a printing apparatus include simplified mechanisms for supporting a sheet and for guiding the sheet. A sheet storage device that can store a sheet discharged from a discharge port of a printing apparatus includes multiple flappers provided below the discharge port and arranged in a width direction of the sheet, each flapper being rotatable between a first posture in which the sheet discharged from the discharge port is guided downward in a gravitational direction by using a first surface, and a second posture in which the sheet is supported by using a second surface being different from the first surface; and a connecting unit which connects the plurality of flappers to one another.

A sheet post-processing device is connected to a punch processing unit. The punch processing unit includes a skew detection unit and a punch unit. The skew detection unit detects a skew amount of a sheet. The punch unit forms punch holes at positions of the sheet according to the skew amount. The sheet post-processing device includes a processing tray, a paddle, a driver, and a control unit. The sheet of which the skew amount is detected by the skew detection unit is mounted on the processing tray. The paddle conveys the sheet on the processing tray by a paddle operation. The driver drives the paddle to perform the paddle operation. The control unit is configured to operate the driver to control a number of times the paddle operation is performed by the paddle based on the skew amount.

An image forming apparatus includes a feeding unit, a detection unit provided downstream of the feeding unit, a measurement unit that measures a measured time from the start of conveyance of a recording material to the detection of the recording material, and a determination unit that performs renewal determination for determining whether the feeding unit has been replaced with a new feeding unit. Thus, replacement of the feeding unit with a new feeding unit can automatically be detected.

An image forming apparatus includes a feeding unit, a detection unit provided downstream of the feeding unit, a measurement unit that measures a measured time from the start of conveyance of a recording material to the detection of the recording material, and a determination unit that performs renewal determination for determining whether the feeding unit has been replaced with a new feeding unit. Thus, replacement of the feeding unit with a new feeding unit can automatically be detected.

A magnetic ink reading device includes a housing having a slot through which a medium is inserted, a roller driven by a motor by which the medium is conveyed along a conveyance path, one or more sensors arranged along the conveyance path and configured to detect the medium at one or more respective positions, a magnetic head configured to read a magnetic pattern formed on the medium with magnetic ink, and a controller. The controller is configured to control the motor to convey the medium inserted through the slot, measure a length in a conveyance direction of the medium using outputs from the sensors, and control the magnetic head to read the magnetic pattern from the medium while controlling the motor to continuously convey the medium for a period corresponding to the measured length.

A magnetic ink reading device includes a housing having a slot through which a medium is inserted, a roller driven by a motor by which the medium is conveyed along a conveyance path, one or more sensors arranged along the conveyance path and configured to detect the medium at one or more respective positions, a magnetic head configured to read a magnetic pattern formed on the medium with magnetic ink, and a controller. The controller is configured to control the motor to convey the medium inserted through the slot, measure a length in a conveyance direction of the medium using outputs from the sensors, and control the magnetic head to read the magnetic pattern from the medium while controlling the motor to continuously convey the medium for a period corresponding to the measured length.

A printing apparatus includes a feeding roller configured to feed a printing sheet stacked on a stacking unit, a conveyance roller configured to convey the printing sheet fed by the feeding roller, a printing unit configured to print the printing sheet conveyed by the conveyance roller, a conveyance control unit configured to control conveyance of printing sheets so that the trailing edge of a preceding sheet as a printing sheet precedingly fed from the stacking unit and the leading edge of a succeeding sheet as a printing sheet succeedingly fed from the stacking unit overlap each other, and a determination unit configured to determine whether to convey the succeeding sheet to a position facing the printing unit while keeping an overlap state between the preceding sheet and the succeeding sheet.