Patent ID: 7918452

Claim:
A sheet width aligning device, comprising: a sheet size sensor for detecting a specified sheet size; a pair of width aligning members which respectively come into contact with widthwise ends of a sheet to regulate a widthwise position of the sheet; a first detector for detecting one widthwise end of the sheet; a second detector for detecting the other widthwise end of the sheet; a moving mechanism for moving the first and second detectors to such initial positions at outer sides of the sheet to define a sheet width wider by a specified length than the specified sheet size as detected by said sheet size sensor, the moving mechanism then moving the first and second detectors respectively from one end side and the other end side toward a center of the sheet in widthwise directions; a determining section for determining the positions of the width aligning members based on a detection timing, at which the first detector detected the one widthwise end, and a detection timing, at which the second detector detected the other widthwise end; and a driving mechanism for driving the width aligning members to move to the positions as determined by said determining section.