| 摘要 |
<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet feed device which can perform stable continuous feed even if the rear end of a preceding sheet and the front end of a following sheet are overlapped and fed. <P>SOLUTION: The sheet feed device includes: a feed cassette 20; a pickup roller 21; a feed roller 24; a retard roller 25; and a contact and separation mechanism 6 which can bring the feed roller 24 into contact with the retard roller 25, and separate the feed roller from the retard roller. The pickup roller 21 feeds out the sheet stacked on the feed cassette 20 so that the rear end of the preceding sheet P1 and the front end of the following sheet P2 are overlapped. When an overlapped portion of the preceding sheet P1 and the following sheet P2 approaches a separation nip N, the contact and separation mechanism 6 separates the pickup roller 21 from the feed roller 24. When an overlapped portion passes a part between the pickup roller 21 and the feed roller 24, the contact and separation mechanism 6 makes the pickup roller 21 press-contact with the feed roller 24 to reform the separation nip N. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2013,JPO&INPIT |
