Patent ID: 8684346

Claim:
A sheet feeding apparatus comprising: a sheet accommodating portion including a tray that supports sheets thereon, wherein the sheet accommodating portion is configured to be lifted and lowered and to be drawn out; an air blowing portion provided downstream of the tray in a sheet feeding direction that blows air to downstream end portions of the sheets supported on the tray; a sheet feeding portion that conveys an uppermost sheet of the sheets, supported on the tray, to which air blows; a tail end regulating portion that comes into contact with upstream end portions of the sheets supported on the tray in the sheet feeding direction so as to regulate the positions of the sheets; a rising regulating portion positioned above the tray between the tail end regulating portion and the sheet feeding portion, and configured so as to be able to be lifted and lowered to regulate upward rising of the uppermost sheet; a lifting and lowering portion that lifts and lowers the rising regulating portion; and a controller that controls the lifting and lowering portion and moves the rising regulating portion to a predetermined regulating position higher than the height position of the uppermost sheet and lower than a feeding surface of the sheet feeding portion before the air blowing from the air blowing portion, wherein when the sheet accommodating portion is drawn out, the controller controls the lifting and lowering portion to move the rising regulating portion to a position where the rising regulating portion does not interfere with the sheet accommodating portion.