JPH06321369A - Automatic paper feeding device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To set a pressing force of a paper feeding roller against a sheet corresponding to a movement resistance of the sheet forced out from a sheet feeding table. CONSTITUTION:A holder 53 is supported rotatably around a drive shaft 52, and held at a position where the roller surface of a sheet feeder roller 51 is protruded slightly from a sheet feeding table 1 by the exciting force of a torsional spring 55. The sheet feeder roller 51 is made in contact pressingly with the drive shaft 52 by magnetic force, and a rotating force counterclockwise is transmitted from the drive shaft 52. The drive shaft 52 acts a moment corresponding to the rotating resistance of the sheet feeder roller 51, and the moment excites the sheet feeder roller 51 upward.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic paper feeder which is applied to a facsimile machine, a copying machine, a scanner or the like and which separates and feeds a sheet of paper such as an original sheet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 9 is a schematic configuration diagram of a facsimile machine equipped with an automatic paper feeder.

1 is a paper feed table on which the document D is placed, 2
Is a contact plate that abuts the upper surface of the original document D placed on the paper feeding table 1, 3 is a paper feeding roller that abuts the roller surface 3a on the lower surface of the original document D placed on the paper feeding table 1, and Separation and feeding rollers, 5 is a friction plate, 6 is a pair of conveying rollers, 7 is a line image sensor, 8 is a thermal head, and 21 is a control unit.

The automatic paper feeder comprises a paper feed table 1, a contact plate 2, a paper feed roller 3, a separation paper feed roller 4, a friction plate 5 and a drive mechanism (not shown). The original D is separated from the bundle of the originals D placed on it, and the originals D are conveyed one by one in the conveying direction.

The document D separated and fed by the automatic sheet feeder is fed by the pair of conveying rollers 6 to the contact glass 9 at a predetermined speed.
The image surface is illuminated by the light source 10 such as a fluorescent lamp while being conveyed over. The reflected light from the document D is imaged on the line image sensor 7 via the mirror 11 and the imaging optical system 12, converted into an image signal by the line image sensor 7, and output to the control unit 21. The control unit 21 converts the image signal into a line signal and transmits the line signal to an external device through the telephone line 22. In addition, the control unit 21 is a telephone line.
The line signal received from the external device through 22 is converted into an image signal, the image signal is output to the thermal head 8, and the thermal paper P wound into a roll is nipped by the thermal head 8 and the platen roller 13. Paper is fed to the specified print position. The thermal paper P is heated by the thermal head 8 to form an image corresponding to the image signal, the area where the image is formed is separated from the roll by the cutter 14, and the paper is ejected outside the apparatus by the paper ejection roller pair 15. To be paper.

FIG. 10 is a side sectional view showing an example of a main part of a conventional automatic sheet feeder, and FIG. 11 is a plan view of a clutch mechanism for controlling the pressure contact force of the sheet feeding roller shown in FIG.

The contact plate 2 has a support shaft 2a in the original cover 16.
Is axially supported by and is biased toward the paper feed roller 3 by a torsion spring 2b. The rotary shaft 3b of the paper feed roller 3 is pivotally supported by the bracket 17, and the rotational force in the A1 direction is transmitted by a drive mechanism (not shown) at the time of separating and feeding. Rotational force in the A2 direction is transmitted from the drive shaft 18 to the bracket 17 via the clutch mechanism shown in FIG. The drive shaft 18 connected to the drive mechanism is used for A2 when separating and feeding.
Rotate in the direction. Rings 18a and 18b are fixed to the drive shaft 18, and the ring 18a together with the bracket 17 drives the drive shaft 1
The clutch spring 19 fitted on 8 is compressed and clamped,
Further, the ring 18b holds the clutch plate 20 fitted on the drive shaft 18 together with the bracket 17 in a state of being pressed by the urging force of the clutch spring 19.

In the clutch mechanism described above, the drive shaft 18 is A2.
By rotating in the direction, the rotational force of the drive shaft 18 is transmitted to the bracket 17 to push the paper feed roller 3 upward, and the paper feed roller 3 is pressed against the document D with a pressure contact force corresponding to the compression amount of the clutch spring 19. In this state, the drive shaft 18 idles.

Further, a friction member 5a for applying a predetermined frictional force to the document D is attached to the surface of the friction plate 5 which faces the separating / feeding roller 4.

A document D inserted into the document cover 16 from the insertion port 16a is placed on the sheet feeding table 1 by rotating the contact plate 2 in the B direction against the biasing force of the torsion spring 2b. To be done. The contact plate 2 is pressed against the upper surface of the document D by the urging force of the torsion spring 2b. When the reading start signal is input, the control unit 21 drives the driving mechanism to start the separate feeding of the document D set on the feeding table 1. When the drive shaft 18 rotates in the A2 direction, the paper feed roller 3
Is pressed against the lower surface of the document D by the pressing force set by the clutch mechanism, and the roller surface 3a is slightly projected from the paper feed table 1. Further, as the paper feed roller 3 rotates in the A1 direction, one or a plurality of documents D are pushed out in the conveyance direction and inserted between the separation paper feed roller 4 and the friction plate 5.

The frictional force of the separating and feeding roller 4 on the original D is set to be larger than the frictional force of the friction member 5a on the original D, and the frictional force of the friction member 5a is larger than the frictional force between a plurality of originals D. It is set. As a result, when a plurality of documents D are pushed out by the paper feed roller 3, only the lowermost one document D is fed by the separation paper feed roller 4 to the transport roller pair 6, and by the paper feed roller 3. When one document D is pushed out, the document D is fed to the conveying roller pair 6.

When the control section 21 detects that the feeding of one original document D is completed by a sensor (not shown), the control section 21 stops the rotations of the sheet feeding roller 3 and the separation sheet feeding roller 4, and feeds the previous sheet. After the reading of the printed original D is completed, the next original D is separated and fed.

[0013]

As described above, since the pressure contact force of the paper feed roller 3 is set by the clutch mechanism, the paper feed roller 3 is pressed against the document D with a constant pressure contact force at the time of separating and feeding. The conveyance force for the paper feed roller 3 to push the document D out of the paper feed table 1 is defined by the frictional force between the paper feed roller 3 and the document D on which the paper feed roller 3 is in pressure contact. When the force is constant, it is almost constant. However, when the paper thickness or the paper quality of the document D changes, the movement resistance of the document D pushed out of the paper feed table 1 by the paper feed roller 3 also changes. Therefore, when the paper feed roller 3 pushes out the document D with a constant conveying force, the movement resistance is small,
In addition, the thin original D having a weak waist is bent to cause a jam in the conveyance path, or the original D having a large movement resistance.
When pushing out, the paper feed roller 3 may idle and cause a sequence error.

An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic paper feeding device in which the pressure contact force of the paper feeding roller with respect to the paper is set according to the movement resistance of the paper pushed out from the paper feeding table.

[0015]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the first means of the present invention is a sheet feeding table on which a sheet bundle is placed, and a sheet bundle placed on the sheet feeding table. The contact plate that contacts one surface of the lower surface, the paper feed roller that presses against the other surface of the upper and lower surfaces of the sheet bundle and rotates to push out one or more sheets of paper, and the sheet pushed by the paper feed roller In an automatic paper feeding device having a separating / conveying means for separating and conveying the sheets one by one, a pressure contact force adjusting means for setting the pressure contact force of the paper feeding roller with respect to the sheet bundle in correspondence with the movement resistance of the paper pushed out by the paper feeding roller. It is characterized by having.

Further, the second means is that the pressure contact force adjusting means transmits a rotational force to the paper feeding roller, and a rotation center of the paper feeding roller along a circular locus centering on the drive shaft. And a support member for movably supporting the.

Further, the third means brings the outer peripheral surface of the drive shaft into pressure contact with the roller surface of the paper feed roller, and transmits the rotational force to the paper feed roller at the position where the drive shaft comes into pressure contact with the roller surface. It is characterized by doing.

Further, the fourth means is provided with a restricting means for restricting the contact plate from moving in a direction away from the sheet bundle placed on the sheet feeding table at the time of separating and feeding the sheet bundle. It is characterized by that.

Further, the fifth means is provided with a moving means for moving the contact plate to a separating position where the contact plate is separated from the sheet feeding table during non-separated sheet feeding.

Further, the sixth means closes a conveyance path between the paper feed roller and the separation paper feed means, in which the paper moves in association with the movement of the contact plate to the separated position. In addition, there is provided stopper means for opening the transport path in conjunction with the movement of the contact plate to the position where the contact plate contacts the sheet bundle.

Further, a seventh means is that when the pressure contact force adjusting means applies a pulling force in the carrying direction to the paper pushed out by the paper feeding roller by the separating and carrying means.
The pressure contact force is set to a substantially minimum value.

[0022]

According to the above-mentioned first means, when the movement resistance of the sheet is relatively large by the pressure contact force adjusting means for setting the pressure contact force of the sheet feeding roller with respect to the sheet bundle in correspondence with the sheet movement resistance, When the pressure contact force of the paper feed roller with respect to the paper increases and the movement resistance of the paper is small, the pressure contact force of the paper feed roller with respect to the paper decreases.

Further, according to the second means, a drive shaft,
The pressing force adjusting means having a support member that movably supports the rotation center of the paper feed roller along a circular locus around the drive shaft is used to adjust the rotational force of the drive shaft according to the movement resistance of the paper. Is converted into a moment that presses the sheet feed roller against the sheet bundle.

Further, according to the third means, the roller surface is brought into pressure contact with the outer peripheral surface of the drive shaft, and the sheet feeding roller to which the rotational force is transmitted is provided without providing a member for transmitting the rotational force in the middle. The rotational force of the drive shaft is transmitted to the paper roller.

Further, according to the fourth means, the contact force of the sheet feeding roller against the sheet bundle is changed at the time of separating and feeding by the regulating means for restricting the movement of the contact plate in the separating direction at the time of separating and feeding. However, the contact plate is held at a fixed position.

Further, according to the fifth means, by the moving means for moving the contact plate to the separated position during non-separated sheet feeding,
The contact plate is held at a position separated from the sheet feeding table when the sheet bundle is placed on the sheet feeding table.

Further, according to the sixth means, the leading end of the paper placed on the paper feed table is positioned by the stopper means which opens or closes the conveying path in conjunction with the contact plate.

Further, according to the seventh means, when a tension force is applied to the sheet, when the separation sheet feeding means conveys the sheet by the pressure contact force adjusting means which sets the pressure contact force to a substantially minimum value. In addition, it is possible to prevent the paper feed roller from becoming a movement resistance of the paper.

[0029]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In addition, in FIG. 1 to FIG.
The members corresponding to the members described on the basis of FIG.

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of an essential part of one embodiment of the automatic paper feeder of the present invention, and FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 are stopper mechanism, contact plate and pressure contact force adjusting mechanism in this embodiment, respectively. 5 is a side sectional view of the pressure contact force adjusting mechanism shown in FIG.

Reference numeral 41 denotes a stopper arranged in the document cover 16, 42 denotes a support shaft which supports the stopper 41 and is axially supported in the document cover 16, 43 denotes a crank lever connected to the support shaft 42, and 44 denotes A spring biases the crank lever 43 in the C1 direction, and a solenoid 45 rotates the crank lever 43 in the C2 direction against the biasing force of the spring 44.

The control section 21 turns off the solenoid 45 at the time of non-separated sheet feeding in which the separation sheet feeding operation is not executed, starts the separation sheet feeding operation and completes the separation sheet feeding of all the originals D. The solenoid 45 is turned on. Solenoid 45
Is turned off, the spring 44 causes the crank lever 43 to rotate in the C1 direction, and the stopper 41 to move to the stopper 41.
The leading end is moved to the closed position where it abuts the paper feed table 1. At this time, the document D inserted through the insertion port 16a is brought into contact with and positioned by the stopper 41 on the paper feed table 1. Further, when the solenoid 45 is turned on, the solenoid 45 rotates the crank lever 43 in the C2 direction against the urging force of the spring 44, so that the leading end of the stopper 41 shown in the explanatory view of FIG. To an open position away from.

Reference numeral 46 denotes a contact plate which is pivotally supported in the document cover 16 and is biased in the K1 direction by a biasing member (not shown) such as a spring, and 47 is pivotally supported in the document cover 16. Further, the pawl member is biased in the E1 direction by a biasing member (not shown) such as a spring.

The abutting plate 46 is formed with an engaging portion 46a which engages with a fishing support portion 41a provided near the rear end portion of the stopper 41. The stopper 41 is configured as a moving means, and when the stopper 41 is moved to the closed position, the fishing support portion 41a lifts the engaging portion 46a to rotate the contact plate 46 in the K2 direction to move it to the separated position where it is separated from the sheet feeding table 1. To move. Also, the stopper
When 41 moves to the open position, the contact plate 46 moves to the contact position where it is elastically contacted with the document D shown in FIG. 7 by the urging force of the urging member. As a result, the contact plate 46 is held at the separated position during the non-separated sheet feeding, so that the document D can be placed on the sheet feeding table 1 without contacting the contact plate 46, or the document D is contacted by the contact plate 46. Even when it comes into contact with 46, the amount of movement of the contact plate 46 by the document D can be reduced, so that the document D can be smoothly placed on the sheet feeding table 1 with a small force, and the document D can be placed on the sheet feeding table 1. It is possible to prevent the document D from being bent when it is placed.

As shown in the side view of FIG. 6, a ratchet portion 46b is provided at one side end of the contact plate 46, and the ratchet portion 46b has a rotation direction (D1, A plurality of claws are formed along the (D2 direction). A striker portion 41b is formed at the rear end of the stopper 41, and when the stopper 41 moves to the closed position, the striker portion 41b comes into contact with the lever 47a of the pawl member 47 and the pawl member 47. The pawl 47b is rotated in the E2 direction against the urging force of the urging member and separated from the ratchet portion 46b. When the stopper 41 moves to the open position, the striker portion 41b is separated from the lever 47a, and the pawl member 47 rotates in the E1 direction by the urging force of the urging member so that the pawl 47b meshes with the pawl of the ratchet portion 46b. Move to the position you want. As a result, the contact plate 46 elastically contacts the document D in a state of being movable in the direction of the sheet feeding table 1 at the time of separating and feeding, but the movement in the direction of separating from the sheet feeding table 1 is restricted.

By restricting the movement of the contact plate 46 in the separating direction at the time of separating and feeding by the ratchet portion 46b and the pawl member 47 which are the regulating means, the pressure contact force of the sheet feeding roller 51 to the original D is changed. Even when it is done, the contact plate 46 is held at a fixed position and is not displaced, so that it is possible to prevent the document D on the sheet feeding table 1 from moving in the vertical direction at the time of sheet feeding, and stabilize the sheet feeding operation. be able to.

Reference numeral 51 is a paper feed roller, 52 is a drive shaft which rotates in the F direction at the time of separating and feeding by a drive mechanism (not shown), 53
Is a drive shaft via a bearing 54 rotatably fitted on the drive shaft 52.
A holder supported by 52 and 55 are torsion springs loosely fitted to the drive shaft 51.

As shown in FIG. 5, the paper feed roller 51 includes a cylindrical magnet portion 51a formed of a permanent magnet, a friction portion 51b formed of rubber and provided on the outer periphery of the magnet portion 51a, and both ends of the magnet portion 51a. A pair of shafts 5 each protruding from the surface
It is composed of 1c.

The holder 53, which is a supporting means, is attached to the drive shaft 52 via the bearing 54, and thus is supported so as to be rotatable about the drive shaft 52. A torsion spring 55 loosely fitted to the drive shaft 52 has one end fixed to the apparatus main body, and the paper feed roller 51 and the holder 53 near the other end.
The holder 53 is held at the position shown in FIG. 1 by exerting an urging force that balances the weight of the holder 53 on the holder 53.

Slits 53a are formed on both sides of the holder 53, and the shaft 51c of the sheet feeding roller 51 is inserted into the slit 53a, whereby the sheet feeding roller 51 is moved to the holder. It is held so as to be rotatable within 53 and capable of coming into contact with and separating from the drive shaft 52. The drive shaft 52 is made of magnetic metal such as iron, and the magnet portion 51a of the paper feed roller 51 is formed.
Applies a magnetic attractive force to the drive shaft 52. As a result, the paper feed roller 51 is made to rub due to the magnetic attraction.
51b is held in a state of being pressed against the drive shaft 53.

The drive shaft 52, the holder 53, and the bearing 54 described above
And a feed roller composed of a torsion spring 55
The pressure contact force adjusting mechanism 51 sets the pressure contact force of the paper feed roller 51 with respect to the document D in correspondence with the movement resistance of the document D at the time of separating and feeding.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view of the operation of the pressure contact force adjusting mechanism in this embodiment.

When the drive shaft 52 rotates in the F direction at the time of separating and feeding, the paper feeding roller 51 rotates in the G direction and pushes out one or more originals D in the H direction. The original D pushed out by the paper feed roller 51 is inserted between the separation paper feed roller 4 which is a separate paper feed means and the friction plate 5 and separated one by one from the lower one, and the separated original D Is further conveyed in the H direction by the separation paper feed roller 4.

The movement resistance f ₁ when the paper feed roller 51 pushes out the original D in the H direction varies depending on, for example, the thickness of the original D, the quality of the paper, the number of the pushed originals D, and the like. Here, if the radius of the drive shaft 52 is R ₁ and the radius of the paper feed roller 51 is R ₂ , then at the contact point P between the drive shaft 52 and the paper feed roller 51,
Moment T ₁ of the f ₁ × R ₁ occurs in torque and the opposite direction of the drive shaft 52. As a result, the drive shaft 52 causes f ₂ × (R ₁ + R ₂ ) which is a reaction force of the moment T _{1 to} the sheet feeding roller 51.
The moment T _{2 of} is applied and f ₂ is calculated by the following equation.

[0045]

## EQU1 ## f ₂ = f ₁ × R ₁ / (R ₁ + R ₂ ) The moment T ₂ increases the pressing force of the paper feed roller 51 against the document D. As a result, when the movement resistance f ₁ is relatively large, the pressure contact force of the paper feed roller 51 with respect to the document D increases, and when the movement resistance f ₂ is relatively small, the paper feed roller 51.
The pressure contact force of is reduced. Conveying force feeding roller 51 conveys the document D, when the torque of the drive shaft 52 is sufficiently large, because it is defined by the contact force is the normal force against the document D of the paper feed roller 51, a large transfer resistance f ₁ Increase if
It decreases when the movement resistance f ₂ is small. Furthermore, manuscript D
When the sheet is started to be conveyed by the separation sheet feeding roller 4, the sheet feeding roller 51 is simply rotated, so that the movement resistance f ₁ becomes substantially minimum. As a result, the paper feed roller 51
Even when the paper feed roller 51 is rotated at a linear velocity different from that of the document D, the pressure contact force of the document D with respect to the document D is set to a minimum.
Since the document D easily slides and moves on the paper feed roller 51,
It is possible to prevent the paper feed roller 51 from becoming a movement resistance of the document D.

Further, when the movement resistance f ₁ of the document D is significantly increased, the contact portion 53b formed on the upper surface of the holder 53 contacts the back surface of the sheet feeding table 1 to cause the document D on the sheet feeding roller 51.
It is possible to prevent the press-contact force against the sheet from exceeding a certain value, so that the apparatus and the document D can be prevented from being damaged by the press-contact force of the paper feed roller 51.

According to the automatic paper feeder of the present embodiment, the document D
Since the conveyance force of the paper feed roller 51 can be set to the optimum value in accordance with the movement resistance f ₁ of the document, the document D can be reliably pushed in the conveyance direction H and separated and fed. Also,
Since the paper feed roller 51 is pressed against the drive shaft 52 by a magnetic force and the rotational force is transmitted, the paper feed roller 51 is easily attached to and detached from the holder 53 without using a tool or the like.

[0048]

As described above, according to the first means of the present invention, when the movement resistance of the sheet is relatively large, the pressure contact force of the feed roller with respect to the sheet is increased and the movement resistance of the sheet is increased. When the value is small, the pressure contact force of the paper feed roller against the paper is reduced, so that the paper feed roller can be prevented from idling or applying excessive force to the paper. It can be pushed out in the transport direction and fed separately.

Further, according to the second means, a part of the rotational force of the drive shaft is converted into a moment for increasing the pressure contact force of the paper feed roller with respect to the paper, in accordance with the movement resistance of the paper. The pressure contact force of the paper feed roller with respect to the paper can be set according to the movement resistance of the paper.

Further, according to the third means, the transmission mechanism for rotating the sheet feeding roller by transmitting the rotational force of the drive shaft to the sheet feeding roller without providing a member for transmitting the rotational force in the middle. The paper feed roller can be easily attached to and detached from the transmission mechanism.

Further, according to the fourth means, even if the pressure contact force of the sheet feeding roller against the sheet changes during the separation sheet feeding, the contact plate is held at a constant position, so that the sheet is fed during the separation sheet feeding. Since it is possible to prevent the sheet bundle on the sheet table from moving in the thickness direction, it is possible to stabilize the separation sheet feeding operation.

Further, according to the fifth means, when the sheet bundle is placed on the sheet feed table, the contact plate is held at a position separated from the sheet feed table, so that the sheet bundle is brought into contact with the sheet contact plate. Can be placed on the paper feed table without touching the paper, or even when the bundle of paper comes into contact with the contact plate, the amount of movement of the contact plate can be reduced, so that the paper can be smoothly moved to the predetermined position on the paper supply table. Can be placed.

Further, according to the sixth means, the front end of the sheet bundle placed on the sheet feeding table is positioned, so that the sheet bundle can be reliably placed at the separation / feeding start position.

Further, according to the seventh means, it is possible to suppress the sheet feeding roller from becoming a movement resistance of the sheet while the sheet is being conveyed by the separating sheet feeding means. The load can be reduced and the separated sheets can be reliably transported.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a main part of an embodiment of an automatic paper feeder according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a stopper mechanism according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a contact plate in the present embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a pressure contact force adjusting mechanism in the present embodiment.

5 is a side sectional view of the pressure contact force adjusting mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a ratchet portion and a pawl portion in this embodiment.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a main part of the present exemplary embodiment at the time of separate sheet feeding.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of an operation of the press contact force adjusting mechanism in the present embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a schematic configuration diagram of a facsimile device including an automatic paper feeding device.

FIG. 10 is a side sectional view showing an example of a main part of a conventional automatic paper feeder.

11 is a plan view of a clutch mechanism for controlling the pressure contact force of the paper feed roller shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Paper feed table, 4 ... Separation paper feed roller, 5 ... Friction plate, 41 ... Stopper, 46 ... Abutment plate, 46b ... Ratchet part, 47 ... Pawl member, 51 ... Paper feed roller, 52 ... Drive shaft, 53 ... Holder, D ... Original.

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A sheet feeding table on which a sheet bundle is placed, an abutting plate that comes into contact with one of the upper and lower surfaces of the sheet bundle placed on the sheet feeding table, and the other surface of the upper and lower sides of the sheet bundle. An automatic paper feeding device comprising: a paper feeding roller that presses against and rotates to push out one or more sheets of paper; and a separation / conveying unit that separates and conveys the paper pushed out by the paper feeding roller one by one. An automatic paper feeding device comprising a pressure contact force adjusting means for setting a pressure contact force of a paper feed roller with respect to a sheet bundle in accordance with a movement resistance of the paper pushed out by the paper feed roller. 2. The pressure contact force adjusting means movably supports the rotation center of the paper feed roller along a drive shaft for transmitting a rotational force to the paper feed roller and a circular locus centering on the drive shaft. The automatic sheet feeder according to claim 1, further comprising a support member. 3. An outer peripheral surface of the drive shaft and a roller surface of the paper feed roller are brought into pressure contact with each other, and a rotational force is transmitted to the paper feed roller at a position where the drive shaft is brought into pressure contact with the roller surface. The automatic paper feeder according to claim 2. 4. A restricting means for restricting movement of the contact plate in a direction of separating from the sheet bundle placed on the sheet feeding table at the time of separating and feeding the sheet bundle. The automatic paper feeder according to claim 1, 2, or 3. 5. The automatic feeding apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a moving unit that moves the contact plate to a separation position where the contact plate is separated from the sheet feeding table during non-separated sheet feeding. Paper equipment. 6. A conveyance path between the sheet feed roller and the separation sheet feeding means, in which the sheet moves along with the movement of the contact plate to the separated position, is closed, and the contact plate is closed. 6. The automatic paper feeder according to claim 5, further comprising stopper means for opening the conveyance path in association with movement of the sheet to a position where the sheet comes into contact with the sheet bundle. 7. The pressure contact force adjusting means sets the pressure contact force to a substantially minimum value when a tensile force in the conveyance direction is applied to the paper pushed out by the paper feed roller by the separating and conveying means. Claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 characterized
Alternatively, the automatic paper feeder according to the item 6.