Paper feeder for use in image forming apparatus

A paper feeder in which sheets of paper are separated and fed one after another from a stack of paper, the paper feeder, the paper feeder comprising:

• a plurality of paper-feed belts which are arranged at right angles to paper-feeding direction and driven in the paper-feeding direction, the paper-feed belts having air-passing capability;
• a vacuum paper sucker which sucks a sheet having come closest to the paper-feed belts and holds the sheet onto the paper-feed belts;
• and
• an elastic friction member which is located between the adjacent paper-feed belts and exerts frictional resistance on the sheet sucked onto the paper-feed belts by going into contact with the sheet from its side facing the stack of paper, the frictional resistance acting in a direction opposite to the paper-feeding direction.

A paper feeder comprising:

• a paper separator which lifts upper sheets of paper and separates the lifted uppermost sheet from the sheet immediately beneath it by blowing air against an upper-forward end of a stack of paper loaded in a paper bin;
• a vacuum paper carrier which holds the uppermost sheet by suction and carrying it;
• a first paper pusher which pushes down a rear central portion of the uppermost sheet at the top of the stack of paper loaded in the paper bin;
• and
• a second paper pusher which pushes down rear left and right portions of the uppermost sheet with a smaller force than the first paper pusher.

A paper feeder comprising:

• a lifting nozzle which lifts upper sheets of paper from a stack of paper loaded in a paper bin by blowing air against an upper-forward end of the stack of paper;
• and
• a vacuum paper carrier which holds the lifted uppermost sheet by suction and carrying it;
• wherein the lifting nozzle includes a narrow opening portion for blowing air toward a narrow area having the uppermost part of the stack of paper loaded in the paper bin and a wide opening portion for blowing air toward a wide area having the uppermost part of the stack of paper.