JP2007191280A - Bookbinding equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a bookbinding apparatus provided with folding strengthening means for reducing the swelling of a booklet caused by the return of folding of a saddle-stitched booklet.
An accumulator 17 that accumulates sheets supplied one by one from a sheet supply device up to a sheet bundle, a binding means 15 that binds the center of the sheet bundle, and a folding means (folding) A knife 18, a folding roller 14), a booklet pressing means (pressing member 5, pressing member driving means 4, receiving plate 8), and a control means 19. The control means 19 indicates the passage of the final paper supply signal or the final paper. When a signal is received, binding and folding are started, and the press against the previous booklet by the booklet pressing means is released and ejected. The time it takes is greatly utilized as pressing time, and the folding is strengthened.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  In the present invention, sheets supplied one by one from a paper supply device such as a copying machine are bundled one by one, bound, folded into two and bound into a booklet, and the booklet is further pressed to reduce folding. However, the present invention belongs to the technical field of a bookbinding apparatus that performs fore edge cutting for aligning the edge of booklets that are bound as required.

In a saddle-stitched booklet that is created by binding the center of the sheet bundle and folding it in half at the bound part, as the number of pages increases, the folds are spread and the entire booklet swells due to the force to restore.
If it swells like this, it will look bad and the handling of the goods will also worsen. Usually, the folding method of a bookbinding machine is performed by passing a folding roller that rotates in contact with two rollers, but since passing through the folding roller is instantaneous, a firm folding effect is obtained. I can't.

Therefore, in order to reinforce this crease, the crease has been reinforced again after saddle stitch folding.
One method is a method in which the booklet is pressed together with the creases and the folds are strengthened at the time of trimming the saddle-stitched booklet.
The saddle-stitched booklet has a triangular shape when the paper is folded inside due to the thickness of the paper. Is cut perpendicular to the paper surface to make the fore edge flat.

When performing this fore edge cutting, it is necessary to first press down so as not to swell the booklet, and to hold down the vicinity of the fore edge fairly firmly so as not to cause paper misalignment due to the pressure of the cutting blade.
At the time of such pressing, the folds of the booklet are also pressed together to strengthen the folds. This press is released when the small edge cutting is completed, and the booklet is discharged (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

If the edge cutting is not performed, only the crease is pressed. Also in this case, the pressing time is limited to the free time until the next booklet arrives.
However, it is desirable that the pressing time be as long as possible from the viewpoint of crease reinforcement.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-240296 ([0096] to [0100], FIGS. 9 and 12)

However, in the above-described prior art in which cutting is performed on the edge, when the booklet is conveyed to the cutting device and stopped by the stopper, the pressing plate is lowered to press the booklet, and the cutting blade is lowered to lower the edge. When the cutting is finished and the cutting blade is raised to a predetermined position, this is detected, the pressing is released, the conveying means is operated, and the booklet is discharged. Therefore, the folding was not sufficiently strengthened.
Further, even in the case where the edge cutting is not performed, the conventional saddle stitch folding bookbinding apparatus sequentially carries a bundle of sheets bundled one by one into the bookbinding machine, so that one bookbinding is performed. It took a short time to bind the next book.
Accordingly, the crease pressing after the bookbinding has been completed is fixed for a short time so as to press within the short time, so that the folding is not sufficiently strengthened.

In recent years, however, bookbinding machines are often connected to devices such as printers that eject printed sheets one by one in page order. In such a case, the sheets are received one by one in the storage unit of the bookbinding machine, and the bookbinding operation is started when the storage of one book is completed.
In such a bookbinding operation, the time required for bookbinding of one book becomes longer than in the case of carrying in every bundle for one booklet.
Therefore, if this long time can be fully utilized for booklet pressing, sufficient crease pressing is possible. However, in the conventional apparatus, the pressing operation is performed in accordance with the small edge cutting, or the bookbinding interval is short. Since the short time is fixedly set according to the above, there has been a problem that the long bookbinding interval in recent years cannot be fully utilized for booklet pressing.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is that, taking into account the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, since sheets are received and bound one by one from the sheet supply device, the long binding interval can be fully utilized as the pressing time for crease reinforcement. It is to provide a bookbinding apparatus.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention has the following means configurations.
The first configuration of the present invention includes an accumulation unit that accumulates sheets supplied one by one from a sheet supply device up to a bundle of sheets for one book;
Binding means for binding the center of the sheet bundle stored in the storage unit;
Folding means for folding the sheet bundle in half at the bound portion;
A booklet pressing means for pressing the fold portion so as to eliminate the bulge caused by the return of folding;
In a bookbinding apparatus having a control means for controlling the driving of the movable part of each means,
The booklet pressing means includes a receiving plate that receives one side of the booklet,
A pressing member that approaches the other side of the booklet and presses the crease across the booklet between the other side and the holding plate;
A pressing member driving means for pressing and retracting the pressing member;
Conveying means for moving the booklet;
A pressing position sensor that outputs a detection signal when the conveying means detects that the booklet has reached the pressing position;
When the control means receives the detection signal from the pressing position sensor, the control means stops the conveying means, causes the pressing member driving means to press the pressing member against the booklet, and maintains the pressing member. Upon receiving the final paper supply signal transmitted when the last paper is supplied, the operation of the binding means and the folding means is started, the pressing member driving means is made to retract the pressing member from the booklet, and the conveying means is It is a bookbinding apparatus characterized in that the booklet is controlled to be operated and discharged.

  In the second configuration of the present invention, in addition to the control of the control unit of the first configuration, a preset time is set without starting the press of the booklet and the final paper supply signal for the next one book has not arrived. The bookbinding apparatus is characterized in that, when the time has elapsed, the pressing member driving unit causes the pressing member to retract from the booklet, and the conveying unit is operated to control the booklet to be discharged.

In addition to the first configuration, the third configuration of the present invention has a paper detection sensor that detects the passage of paper on the upstream side of the storage unit,
When the control means receives the detection signal from the pressing position sensor, the control means stops the conveying means, causes the pressing member driving means to press the pressing member against the booklet, and maintains the pressing member. The paper supply signal and the paper detection signal from the paper detection sensor are collated, and when it is determined that the paper detection signal is due to the passage of the final sheet of the next paper bundle, the operation of the binding means and the folding means is started, and the pressing member The bookbinding apparatus is characterized in that the driving member is made to retract the pressing member from the booklet, and the conveying unit is operated to control the booklet to be discharged.

  In the fourth configuration of the present invention, in addition to the control of the control unit of the third configuration, it is determined that the sheet detection signal is due to the passage of the final sheet of the next sheet bundle after the booklet is pressed. The bookbinding process is characterized in that when a preset time has passed without causing the pressing member driving means to retract the pressing member from the booklet, the conveying means is operated to discharge the booklet. Device.

According to a fifth configuration of the present invention, in addition to the first configuration, an information reading unit that reads final paper information indicating that the final paper is printed on the final paper for one book on the upstream side of the accumulation unit. Have
When the control means receives the detection signal from the pressing position sensor, the control means stops the conveying means, causes the pressing member driving means to press the pressing member against the booklet, and keeps it from the information reading means. When the paper information is received, the operation of the binding means and the folding means is started, the pressing member driving means is made to retract the pressing member from the booklet, and the conveying means is operated to control the booklet to be discharged. This is a characteristic bookbinding apparatus.

  In the sixth configuration of the present invention, in addition to the control of the control unit of the fifth configuration, after the booklet pressing is started, the information is read in advance without receiving the final sheet information of the next sheet bundle from the information reading unit. In this case, the bookbinding apparatus is configured to control the pressing member driving means to retract the pressing member from the booklet and to operate the conveying means to discharge the booklet when the time has elapsed.

According to a seventh configuration of the present invention, in addition to any one of the first configuration to the sixth configuration, a fork cutting blade for cutting and aligning a fork of a booklet pressed by a booklet pressing means, Cutting blade driving means for driving the small edge cutting blade,
When the control means receives the detection signal from the pressing position sensor, in addition to the control of any one of the above items, the control means controls the cutting blade driving means to cut the small edge of the booklet whose small edge cutting blade is pressed. This is a bookbinding apparatus.

  In the first configuration of the present invention, when the control unit receives a signal from the pressing position sensor that the saddle stitch booklet has reached the pressing position, the pressing member is pressed against the booklet and the state is maintained. When a next paper supply signal for the next book is received from a paper supply device (for example, a printer that supplies the book one by one in page order), the pressing member that is currently pressed is retracted from the booklet, and the conveying means is operated. Since the booklet is discharged, the pressing is continued until the time before the next booklet is sent to the pressing means by the binding means and the folding means until the time taken by the binding means. Since it takes longer than the time required for the binding means and the folding means to accumulate the paper for the book, it will be pressed for the time obtained by subtracting the binding / folding time from the accumulation time. There is an advantage that it is possible to creasing can only lengthen the pressing time minutes became longer bookbinding time interval.

  In the second configuration, when the preset time has passed without the final paper supply signal coming, the press is released and the booklet is discharged, so that the paper supply from the paper supply device is finished. Even if it is stopped due to a failure, the booklet that is currently pressed is advantageous in that it is discharged after receiving a pressure for a set time.

  The third configuration is the same as that of the first configuration until the pressing operation is performed, and the press release is provided on the upstream side of the storage unit with the paper supply signal and the final paper supply signal from the paper supply device. The sheet detection signal from the received sheet detection sensor is collated, and when it is determined that the sheet detection signal is due to the passage of the last sheet of the next sheet bundle, the press is released and the booklet is discharged. In the first configuration, the signal is released / discharged by a signal closer to the arrival time of the next booklet to the booklet pressing means than when the paper is released / discharged by the final paper supply signal from the paper supply device. In addition, there is an advantage that the pressing time becomes longer by that amount, and it is not affected by the distance between the paper supply apparatus and the bookbinding apparatus and the conveyance speed between them, so that various systems with different distances and conveyance speeds are used. There is an advantage that can respond to Temu.

  In the fourth configuration, as in the second configuration, there is an advantage that the booklet that is currently pressed is discharged after receiving the pressing for the set time even if the next sheet of the final sheet does not arrive.

  In the fifth configuration, when the information reading means provided on the upstream side of the storage unit reads the final paper information, the pressing is released and the booklet is discharged, so that the same as in the case of the third configuration. In addition, the pressing time is longer than that in the case of the first configuration, and since it is not affected by the distance between the paper supply apparatus and the bookbinding apparatus and the conveyance speed therebetween, it can be applied to various systems having different distances and conveyance speeds. There is an advantage.

  As in the second configuration, the sixth configuration has an advantage that the booklet that is currently pressed without receiving the final sheet for the next one is subjected to pressing for a set time and discharged. .

  In the seventh configuration, since the first to sixth configurations are provided with means for cutting the fore edge when the pressing means presses the booklet, not only the crease is strengthened by pressing, but also the number of pages is large. There is an advantage that a booklet that needs to be trimmed can be bound.

  As the best mode of the present invention, a storage unit for accumulating sheets, a binding unit, and a folding unit are combined into one casing, a saddle stitch folding machine is used, and a pressing unit is combined into one casing to form a booklet pressing machine. Or the pressing means and the small edge cutting means are combined into a single casing to form a pressing edge cutting machine, and if necessary, the saddle stitch folding machine and the booklet pressing machine are connected or the saddle stitch folding machine and the pressure edge cutting machine are cut. It is the best configuration embodiment that allows selection of whether to connect machines.

  In addition, either the sheet detection sensor or the information reading unit provided upstream of the storage unit of the saddle stitch folding machine is configured to be selectively replaceable, and indicates that the final sheet supplied to the sheet supply apparatus is the final sheet. The best mode is to allow easy selection depending on whether information is printed or not.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
The printer 24 outside the configuration of the present invention discharges the printed sheets one by one in page order. When the final paper for one book is discharged, a final paper supply signal is output.
The paper discharged from the printer 24 is conveyed to the saddle stitch folding machine 12 which is the configuration of the bookbinding apparatus of the present invention. In the saddle stitch folding machine 12, the sheets fed one by one stop with the leading end abutting against the binding stopper 20 and are accumulated in the accumulation unit 17.
The position of the binding stopper 20 is such that the center of the accumulated sheet bundle 16 is below the binding needle driving position of the binding means 15 (stapler). When one sheet of final paper is supplied from the printer 24, a final paper supply signal is sent from the printer 24 to the control means 19. As a result, the control means 19 causes the binding means 15 to perform the binding operation, then retracts the binding stopper 20 downward, advances the sheet bundle 16 by the conveying means (not shown), and this time, the leading edge contacts the folding stopper 21. Stop in contact. The position of the folding stopper 21 is set to a position where the binding portion of the sheet bundle is just above the folding knife 18. When the binding portion comes on the folding knife 18, the folding knife 18 is pushed up, and the binding portion is pushed into the folding roller 14 composed of two rollers at the tip portion to be folded in half.

The saddle-stitched booklet 25 that has been folded in this way is sent to the pressing / knot cutting machine 1 through the conveyance path 13.
After the folding operation is finished, the binding stopper 20 is raised again, and the printer 24 starts to supply paper for the next booklet.
The saddle-stitched booklet 25 that has entered the press / edge cutting machine 1 is transported by the transport means 11, the folded portion comes into contact with the pressing position stopper 10, and stops on the receiving plate 8. The contact with the pressing position stopper 10 is detected by the pressing position sensor 9 provided immediately before the pressing position stopper 10, and the detection signal is sent to the control means 19.
Upon receiving the detection signal, the control means 19 sends a control signal to the pressing member driving means 4 to press the pressing member 5 against the saddle stitched booklet 25 on the receiving plate 8.

Subsequently, a control signal is also sent to the cutting blade driving means 3. First, the fore edge presser 2 is lowered, the portion near the forehead is pressed against the receiving portion integral with the lower blade 7, and the upper blade 6 is lowered to cut the forehead. To do. When cutting is completed, the upper blade 6 and the fore edge presser 2 are raised to the original position in this order.
In the conventional example, the pressing member 5 is also raised almost simultaneously with the fore edge presser 2, but in the present invention, the pressing member 5 continues to be pressed.
While these pressing and cutting operations are in progress, paper for the next booklet is supplied from the printer 24 to the saddle stitch folding machine 12, and accumulation in the accumulation unit 17 is in progress.
When the final paper of the booklet is supplied from the printer 24 and a final paper supply signal is sent, the control means 19 causes the saddle stitching folding machine 12 to perform the binding folding operation as described above and drives the pressing member. The means 4 is made to release the pressing member. The pressing position stopper 10 is also retracted, and the saddle-stitched booklet 25 that has been released from the pressing state is discharged by the conveying means 11.

  Note that there are press and fore edge cutters that link the upper blade and fore edge presser with the pressing member, but in that case, the upper blade and fore edge presser together with the pressing member until the final paper supply signal is sent. And the upper blade and the fore foot presser may be raised together with the release of the pressing member. In short, the pressing of the pressing member may be continued until the final paper supply signal is sent.

  As described above, the press for reinforcing the folding of the saddle-stitched booklet of the present invention continues until the printer sends out the final sheet of the next booklet. Or when the paper supply to the saddle stitch folding machine is performed in bundles of one book at a time, and there is no time for accumulation, and the pressing time is set to a short value according to the case where the saddle stitch folding cycle is short In comparison, the pressing time can be increased and folding can be strengthened.

Then, when the preset time has elapsed without starting the next paper supply signal for the next book to the control means 19 after starting the pressing on the booklet, the pressing member 5 is moved from the booklet to the pressing member driving means 4. In addition to being evacuated, the conveyance means 11 is operated to control the booklet to be discharged.
Thereby, even when the paper supply of the printer 24 is completed or when the supply is stopped due to a failure, the booklet that is already being pressed can be discharged.

However, even if this control function is not provided, the original purpose and effect of strengthening folding can be achieved.
Further, although the first embodiment includes the edge cutting means, it may not be provided when the edge cutting is not necessary. Even if there is no fore edge presser 2, the pressing member 5 can sufficiently strengthen the folding.

  As described above, when the preset time elapses, there is a case where it is not necessary to have the point of releasing and discharging and the cutting means in the same way in the second and third embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
1 differs from the configuration of FIG. 1 in that a paper detection sensor 22 is provided at an upstream position of the storage unit 17 of the saddle stitch folding machine 12, and a signal for each supplied paper from the printer 24 in addition to the final paper detection signal. The paper supply signal is received by the control means 19.
In the first embodiment, when the printer 24 issues a final paper supply signal, the pressing of the saddle stitching booklet is released, whereas in the second embodiment, the control means 19 sends a paper supply signal from the printer to the control means 19. Whether or not the paper detected by the paper detection sensor 22 is the last paper for one book by receiving the final paper supply signal, receiving the paper detection signal from the paper detection sensor 22, and comparing the two. When it is determined that the sheet is the last sheet (final sheet), the control unit 19 starts the binding folding operation and releases the pressing of the pressing member against the previous saddle stitch folding booklet 25.

As a result, the time point at which the pressing is released is delayed by the time from when the printer 24 issues the final paper supply signal to when the final paper actually reaches the paper detection sensor 22, as compared with the first embodiment. It will be.
This means that the pressing time for the previous saddle stitching booklet 25 is increased by the delay time, and the folding is further strengthened by that amount.
Further, according to this configuration, the pressing time is not affected by the length of the sheet conveyance time from the printer 24 to the saddle stitch folding machine 12.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the third exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
1 and 2, the control unit 19 receives neither a paper supply signal nor a final paper supply signal from the printer 24, and the paper detection sensor 22 of FIG. Instead, information reading means 23 is provided.
The information reading unit 23 is a unit that reads information indicating that the last sheet is printed on one final sheet.
Accordingly, when the final paper passes in front of the information reading means 23, the final paper information is sent to the control means 19. Then, the control unit 19 starts the binding folding operation and releases the pressing of the pressing member against the previous saddle stitching booklet 25.

  That is, in the second embodiment, the final paper is detected by the paper detection sensor 22 provided upstream of the storage unit 17 in that the press is released if the final paper passes through the information reading means 23 provided upstream of the storage unit 17. This is the same as releasing the press if it passes.

  Therefore, the pressing time for the saddle stitching booklet 25 is longer than that of the first embodiment by the time from when the printer 24 issues the final paper supply signal until the final paper actually reaches the information reading means 23. The point that the pressing time is not affected by the length of the sheet conveyance time from the printer 24 to the saddle stitch folding machine 12 is the same as in the second embodiment.

  In the first to third embodiments, the printer 24 is shown as an example of an apparatus that supplies sheets one by one to the saddle stitch folding machine 12, but the sheet supply apparatus is limited to a printer. The apparatus is based on an apparatus that repeatedly supplies sheets that require binding and folding one sheet at a time in the page order.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the 1st Example of this invention bookbinding processing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the structure of the 2nd Example of this invention bookbinding processing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the structure of the 3rd Example of this invention bookbinding processing apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pressing / small edge cutting machine 2 Small edge pressing 3 Cutting blade driving means 4 Pressing member driving means 5 Pressing member 6 Upper blade 7 Lower blade 8 Receiving plate 9 Pressing position sensor 10 Pressing position stopper 11 Conveying means 12 Saddle stitch folding machine 13 Conveying path DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 14 Folding roller 15 Binding means 16 Paper bundle 17 Accumulation part 18 Folding knife 19 Control means 20 Binding stopper 21 Folding stopper 22 Paper detection sensor 23 Information reading means 24 Printer 25 Saddle binding folding booklet

Claims (7)

A storage unit for storing sheets of paper supplied one by one from the paper supply device up to a bundle of one paper;
Binding means for binding the center of the sheet bundle stored in the storage unit;
Folding means for folding the sheet bundle in half at the bound portion;
A booklet pressing means for pressing the fold portion so as to eliminate the bulge caused by the return of folding;
In a bookbinding apparatus having a control means for controlling the driving of the movable part of each means,
The booklet pressing means includes a receiving plate that receives one side of the booklet,
A pressing member that approaches the other side of the booklet and presses the crease across the booklet between the other side and the holding plate;
A pressing member driving means for pressing and retracting the pressing member;
Conveying means for moving the booklet;
A pressing position sensor that outputs a detection signal when the conveying means detects that the booklet has reached the pressing position;
When the control means receives the detection signal from the pressing position sensor, the control means stops the conveying means, causes the pressing member driving means to press the pressing member against the booklet, and maintains the pressing member. Upon receiving the final paper supply signal transmitted when the last paper is supplied, the operation of the binding means and the folding means is started, the pressing member driving means is made to retract the pressing member from the booklet, and the conveying means is A bookbinding apparatus, wherein the booklet is controlled so as to be operated and discharged.   In addition to the control of the control means of claim 1, when the preset time has passed without starting the press of the booklet and the final paper supply signal for the next book has not arrived, A bookbinding apparatus characterized in that a member is retracted from a booklet, and control is performed such that the booklet is ejected by operating a conveying means. In addition to the configuration of claim 1, a paper detection sensor that detects the passage of paper is provided upstream of the storage unit,
When the control means receives the detection signal from the pressing position sensor, the control means stops the conveying means, causes the pressing member driving means to press the pressing member against the booklet, and maintains the pressing member. The paper supply signal and the paper detection signal from the paper detection sensor are collated, and when it is determined that the paper detection signal is due to the passage of the final sheet of the next paper bundle, the operation of the binding means and the folding means is started, and the pressing member A bookbinding apparatus characterized by controlling the drive member to retract the pressing member from the booklet and operating the conveying unit to discharge the booklet.   In addition to the control of the control means according to claim 3, when a preset time elapses without starting the press of the booklet and determining that the paper detection signal is due to the passage of the final paper of the next paper bundle In addition, the bookbinding apparatus is configured to control the pressing member driving unit to retract the pressing member from the booklet and to operate the conveying unit to discharge the booklet. In addition to the configuration of claim 1, information reading means for reading final paper information indicating that the final paper is printed on the final paper for one book is provided upstream of the accumulation unit,
When the control means receives the detection signal from the pressing position sensor, the control means stops the conveying means, causes the pressing member driving means to press the pressing member against the booklet, and keeps it from the information reading means. When the paper information is received, the operation of the binding means and the folding means is started, the pressing member driving means is made to retract the pressing member from the booklet, and the conveying means is operated to control the booklet to be discharged. A bookbinding processing apparatus.   In addition to the control of the control means according to claim 5, the pressing member is driven when a preset time has elapsed without receiving the final sheet information of the next sheet bundle from the information reading means after the booklet is pressed. A bookbinding apparatus characterized in that the pressing member is retracted from the booklet by the means, and the conveying means is operated to discharge the booklet. In addition to the configuration of any one of claims 1 to 6, a fork cutting blade that cuts and aligns the fore edge of the booklet pressed by the booklet pressing means, and a cutting blade driving means for driving the fork cutting blade. Have
When the control means receives the detection signal from the pressing position sensor, in addition to the control of any one of the above items, the control means controls the cutting blade driving means to cut the small edge of the booklet whose small edge cutting blade is pressed. Bookbinding processing equipment.

Images