Apparatus and method for sheet transport control

An apparatus for sheet transport control comprising:

• a tab detector for detecting whether or not the sheet comprises a tab and, when a tab is detected, the location of the detected tab, and
• a controller including a plurality of control modes for sheet transport, said controller executing sheet transport according to a control mode corresponding to the presence or absence of the tab and the location of the tab detected by said tab detector.

An apparatus for sheet transport control comprising:

• an tab orientation input interface for accepting input regarding which side of the sheet has a tab, and
• a controller having a plurality of control modes for sheet transport, said controller executing sheet transport according to a control mode corresponding to the user input accepted in said tab orientation input interface.

A method for control of transport of a sheet along a transport path comprising the steps of:

• (a) obtaining information as to whether or not a tab lies on at least either one of the leading edge and the trailing edge of a sheet, and information regarding the location of any such tab present on either the leading edge or the trailing edge of the sheet in a direction perpendicular to the sheet transport direction;
• (B) detecting traverse timing that at least either one of the leading edge and the trailing edge of the transported sheet passes through a checkpoint through the use of a sheet traverse detector provided on the checkpoint established on the transport path;
• (C) determining operation timing of one or more control targets based on the traverse timing detected by the sheet traverse detector, wherein, by determining whether or not the tab traverses the checkpoint according to the obtained information about the presence or absence of the tab and a relationship between the tab location and the position of the checkpoint in a direction perpendicular to the sheet transport direction, said operation timing of the control targets is shifted depending on whether or not a tab is traversing the checkpoint.