Patent ID: 8714543

Claim:
A sheet feeding apparatus comprising: a storing portion which has a sheet stacking portion to enable lifting and lowering; a feeding portion which feeds a sheet stacked on the sheet stacking portion; a lifting and lowering mechanism which lifts and lowers the sheet stacking portion; a pulse motor, provided on the lifting and lowering mechanism, which lifts the sheet stacking portion; an abutting portion which makes the sheet stacking portion lifted by the pulse motor abut thereon at a predetermined position and makes the sheet stacking portion lockable with respect to the storing portion; a one-way clutch which is provided between the pulse motor and the sheet stacking portion, is rotated freely in a lifting direction of the sheet stacking portion, and is locked in rotation in a lowering direction of the sheet stacking portion; and a controller which controls the pulse motor to be rotated to lift the sheet stacking portion in the lifting direction, and further controls the pulse motor to be rotated in the same direction even after the sheet stacking portion abuts on the abutting portion to cause the pulse motor to step out, and thereafter renders the pulse motor non-conductive, wherein the controller has a feeding mode in which the sheet stacking portion is lifted by the pulse motor to feed the sheet by the feeding portion and a lock mode in which the sheet stacking portion is lifted by the pulse motor with lower torque and faster rotation than in the feeding mode, and the pulse motor is step out in the lock mode.