Image forming apparatus and method comprising refeeding unit with priority refeeding

An image forming apparatus comprising:

• a recording section for forming an image on a sheet;
• an intermediate tray which receives and contains sheets, each of the sheets having on a first side an image formed by the recording section;
• a pickup roller for feeding the sheets which are contained in the intermediate tray one by one;
• a containing section for transporting the sheets to the intermediate tray, the containing section being movable along the intermediate tray and having a rotary member which sends the sheets into the intermediate tray;
• and
• a flexible guiding member, one end of the guiding member being connected with the containing section and extending upstream with respect to a sheet transporting direction;
• and
• a member for providing a tension to the guiding member, the member being connected with the other end of the guiding member.

An image forming apparatus for forming an image on a sheet, the apparatus capable of use with a plurality of sheet sizes, comprising:

• a recording section for forming an image on a sheet;
• an intermediate tray for receiving and containing sheets, each of the sheets having on a first side an image formed by the recording section;
• a pickup roller for feeding the sheets which are contained in the intermediate tray one by one;
• a containing section for feeding the sheets to the intermediate tray, the containing section being stationary at a first position relative the intermediate tray to feed a first size of sheet and being movable along the intermediate tray to a second position relative the intermediate tray to feed a second size of sheet, said containing section further having a lower driving roller and an upper driven roller for sending the sheets into the intermediate tray;
• an upper guiding member for guiding an upper side of the sheet which is being transported from the containing section to the intermediate tray;
• and
• a holding member for holding the upper driven roller rotatable, the holding member being movable in a sheet transporting direction on the upper guiding member.

An image forming apparatus comprising:

• a recording section for forming an image on a sheet;
• an intermediate tray which receives and contains sheets, each of the sheets having on a first side an image formed by the recording section;
• a pick-up roller for feeding the sheets which are contained in the intermediate tray one by one;
• and
• a pair of rollers in which the rollers are separated a predetermined fixed distance from each other and which sends the sheets into the intermediate tray and is movable along the intermediate tray.

An image forming apparatus comprising:

• a recording section for forming an image on a sheet;
• an intermediate tray for receiving and piling/containing sheets, each of the sheets having on a first side an image formed by the recording section;
• a pick-up roller for feeding the sheets which are piled/contained in the intermediate tray from a most top sheet successively one by one;
• a controller for, after a specified number of sheets are piled/contained in the intermediate tray, controlling the pick-up roller to feed any sheet having an image formed on the first side thereof by said recording section immediately after the specified number of sheets prior to feeding the specified number of sheets piled/contained in the intermediate tray;
• and
• a pressing member which, immediately after the specified number of sheets are piled/contained in the intermediate tray, starts pressing a trailing portion of the specified number of sheets.

A sheet feeding method comprising the steps of:

• feeding a specified number of sheets at intervals of a first time period to an image recording section where an image is formed on a first side of each sheet and piling/containing the sheets in an intermediate tray successively;
• feeding one or more sheets after the specified number of sheets to the image recording section at intervals of a second time period which is a little longer than the first time period and feeding the sheets to the intermediate tray;
• refeeding the sheets fed at intervals of the second time period to the image recording section immediately after the specified number of sheets were piled/contained in the intermediate tray;
• and
• refeeding the sheets which are piled/contained in the intermediate tray to the image recording section successively after all of the sheets fed at intervals of the second time period were refed.

A sheet feeding method for feeding a plurality of sheets to an image recording section, said sheet feeding method comprising the steps of:

• feeding a plurality of sheets to the image recording section one by one to form an image on one side of the sheets;
• stacking some of the sheets transported from the image recording section in an intermediate tray;
• transporting other sheets transported from the image recording section to the image recording section;
• feeding said some of the sheets which are stacked in the intermediate tray to the image recording section successively after said other of the sheets were transported.