Patent ID: 8636278

Claim:
A feeding device comprising: a storage unit in which sheets are loaded and stored; a feeding roller which rotates while contacting the uppermost sheet stored in the storage unit to move the uppermost sheet forward; a separation plate which is disposed forward in the movement direction of the uppermost sheet and, the separation plate is provided with an inclined surface that is inclined with respect to the movement direction; and a separation auxiliary member which is disposed along the inclined surface of the separation plate, the separation auxiliary member is disposed apart from the feeding roller, and the separation auxiliary member has a first resistance part and a second resistance part which has a lower friction coefficient than that of the first resistance part, wherein a friction coefficient of the first resistance part and the second resistance part are higher than that of the inclined surface, wherein the first resistance part and the second resistance part are arranged in the width direction of the sheet, and wherein the separation auxiliary member rotates from an initial position where the first resistance part projecting from the inclined surface to an embedded position where the first resistance part embedded in the inclined surface and the second resistance part comes in contact with the sheet according to a rigidity of the sheet when a front end of the sheet fed by the feeding roller contacts the separation auxiliary member.