A sheet conveying apparatus, comprising:
- a supporter comprising a support surface configured to support a plurality of sheets;
- a supplier comprising a supply roller rotatable about a rotation axis, the supply roller comprising an outer circumferential surface partly exposed from the support surface and configured to supply one or more sheets supported by the support surface toward a downstream side in a conveying direction along a conveyance path by rotating in contact with the one or more sheets supported by the support surface in a direction for supplying the one or more sheets in the conveying direction;
- a separator disposed downstream of the supplier in the conveying direction and configured to separate, at a nip position thereof, one by one the one or more sheets supplied by the supplier and convey the separated sheet toward the downstream side in the conveying direction;
- a stopper disposed upstream of the nip position of the separator in the conveying direction and pivotable, about a first axis that is located opposite to the rotation axis of the supply roller relative to the support surface, between (i) a first position at which a distal end portion of the stopper extends to the support surface intersects the conveyance path and stops the plurality of sheets supported by the support surface, and (ii) a second position at which the distal end portion is separated from the support surface and is located more downstream in the conveying direction than at the first position, wherein the distal end portion has a downstream surface facing downstream in the conveying direction;
- a stopper cam disposed upstream of the nip position of the separator in the conveying direction, having a contact surface facing upstream in the conveying direction, and pivotable, about a second axis that is located opposite to the first axis relative to the support surface, between (a) a third position at which the contact surface of the stopper cam is in contact with the downstream surface of the distal end portion of the stopper located at the first position to restrict pivoting of the stopper toward the second position, and (b) a fourth position at which the contact surface of the stopper cam is spaced apart from the downstream surface of the distal end portion of the stopper to allow pivoting of the stopper from the first position toward the second position;
- and
- an inclined surface disposed upstream of the nip position of the separator in the conveying direction and pivotable, about a third axis that is located opposite to the rotation axis of the supply roller relative to the support surface, between an initial position and a pivoted position,
- wherein the second axis of the stopper cam is located upstream of the rotation axis of the supply roller in the conveying direction and farther from the support surface than the rotation axis of the supply roller,
- wherein when the stopper cam is located at the third position, the inclined surface is located at the initial position and out of contact with the plurality of sheets stopped by the stopper located at the first position, and
- wherein when the stopper cam pivots from the third position toward the fourth position, the inclined surface is pushed toward the pivoted position by the plurality of sheets released from the stopper.