Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus is provided including a sheet stacking portion constructed and arranged to receive a plurality of sheets of different sheet widths stacked in a sheet feeding direction in order of width so that the widest sheets are disposed at a lowermost position of the sheet stacking portion; a first pair of guides provided in the sheet stacking portion and being constructed and arranged to restrict a lateral position of the widest sheets along a predetermined path; at least one other pair of guides provided in the sheet stacking portion and being constructed and arranged to restrict a lateral position of sheets having a width narrower than a width of the widest sheets along a predetermined path and to contact an upper surface of a sheet of the widest sheets disposed immediately beneath the narrower sheets; and at least one feeder constructed and arranged to move successive sheets of the plurality of sheets from the stacking portion such that the widest sheets are first moved from the stacking por

Abstract: A sheet take-out apparatus which takes out sheets from a sheet stacker by frictional force produced by friction between sheets and a plurality of take-out rollers and separates sheets one by one by frictional force which is produced by friction between the upper face of the sheet and a plurality of friction rollers disposed to be opposite to the take-out rollers and has the opposite direction to that of the first mentioned friction force and the first mentioned friction force, the sheet take-out apparatus including a controller for rotating the take-out rollers with low torque until the rotation of the take-out rollers has become steady. In this apparatus, since the sheets are prevented from being taken out and fed to the gap between the take-out rollers, it is prevented that the leading edges of sheets are damaged or that sheet jamming occurs, whereby it is possible to take out sheets one by one and feed them to a sheet stacking section.