JP2015178198A - Sheet processing apparatus, control program for sheet processing apparatus, and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet processing device for producing a sheet bundle in which a poor appearance caused by an adhesive portion being seen through is alleviated, when sheet binding processing is performed by using a developer, a control program of the sheet processing device and an image forming device including the sheet processing device.SOLUTION: A sheet processing device in an embodiment includes a conveyance unit, an adhesion unit and a control unit. The conveyance unit conveys a sheet in which a developer which becomes transparent by being heated to decolorization temperature is heated and fixed at a predetermined adhesion place at first temperature. The adhesion unit has a heating part for heating the adhesion place in a state where a plurality of pieces of sheets are overlapped and a pressure part for pressurizing the adhesion place, and performs adhesion processing on the plurality of sheets by remelting the developer fixed on the sheet by these heating part and the pressure part. The control unit controls surface temperature of the heating part at second temperature higher than the first temperature so as to heat the developer to the decolorization temperature in the adhesion processing.

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to a sheet processing apparatus that performs a binding process on a sheet with a developer, a control program for the sheet processing apparatus, and an image forming apparatus including the sheet processing apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, from the viewpoint of reuse, there is a sheet processing apparatus that uses a developer as an adhesive instead of stapling using a metal needle, and bonds sheets together with the developer. This sheet processing apparatus bonds sheets together by heating and pressurizing the developer formed on the bonded portion. However, when a binding process is performed using a developer, there is a problem that the bonded portion is transparent and the appearance of the produced sheet bundle is deteriorated.

JP 2004-209859 A

  The problem to be solved by the embodiments of the present invention is that a sheet processing apparatus for producing a sheet bundle that reduces a poor appearance due to the adhesive portion being transparent when a sheet is bound using a developer. And a control program for the sheet processing apparatus, and an image forming apparatus including the sheet processing apparatus.

  The sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment includes a conveyance unit, an adhesion unit, and a control unit. The conveyance unit conveys the sheet on which the developer that is made transparent by being heated to the decoloring temperature is heated and fixed at least at a predetermined adhesion position at the first temperature. The bonding unit includes a heating unit that heats the bonding site at a predetermined surface temperature in a state where a plurality of sheets conveyed by the conveyance unit are stacked, and a pressure unit that pressurizes the bonding site, and the heating unit An adhesion process is performed to adhere the plurality of sheets by remelting the developer fixed on the sheet by the section and the pressing section. The controller controls the surface temperature of the heating unit to a second temperature higher than the first temperature in order to heat the developer to the decoloring temperature in the bonding process.

1 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment. The figure which shows the pattern of the adhesion location which the image formation part of 1st Embodiment forms. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a control block diagram of hardware configurations of the image forming apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1 and the sheet processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 3. 3 is a perspective view of a processing tray in the sheet processing apparatus shown in FIG. Sectional drawing which shows an example of the adhesion part in 1st Embodiment. 6 is a control flowchart of an adhesion process performed by the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment. 5 is a control flowchart of adhesion processing performed by the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. 10 is a control flowchart of an adhesion process performed by the sheet processing apparatus according to the second embodiment.

Embodiments for carrying out the invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
(First embodiment)

  A first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The sheet processing apparatus according to the present embodiment is, for example, an adhesive that binds a plurality of sheets by melting a decolorable toner fixed at a predetermined adhesion portion of a sheet by a heating unit and re-fixing the same together with other stacked sheets. A part. When the bonding unit bonds the sheet, the control unit controls the surface temperature of the heating unit to a second temperature higher than the first temperature at which the erasable toner is fixed, thereby fixing the sheet to the bonding portion of the sheet. The toner is erased transparently.

  The decolorizable toner includes a binder resin, a color developing compound, a developer, and a decoloring agent. It has a binder resin, thermoplasticity and thermal softening properties. Examples of the color developing compound include leuco dyes. Examples of the developer include phenols. The decolorizer includes a substance that is compatible with the color developing compound when heated and does not have an affinity for the developer. The erasable toner develops color due to the interaction between the color developing compound and the developer, and is heated to a temperature higher than the erasing temperature by being heated at a second temperature higher than the first temperature at the time of fixing. As a result, the interaction between the color former and the developer is lost, and the color is erased. Hereinafter, this decolorizable toner is simply referred to as a developer.

  Note that the first temperature in the present embodiment is the surface temperature of the heating portion when the fixing process is performed on the sheet having the developer image formed on the surface thereof by the image forming apparatus, and is mainly determined by the developer used. Does not indicate a specific temperature. Similarly, the second temperature is the surface temperature of the heating unit when the image fixed on the sheet with the developer is decolored (transparent), and does not indicate a specific temperature as described above.

  FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus 100 according to the embodiment. The image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment is called, for example, a so-called MFP (Multi-Functional Peripheral), and includes an image reading unit 110 in an upper part of a housing. In addition, the image forming apparatus 100 includes an image forming unit 130 and a transfer unit along a sheet conveyance path that leads from a paper feeding unit 120 provided below the housing to a paper discharge unit 150 provided below the image reading unit 110. Part 135 and fixing part 140.

  The image reading unit 110 has a known configuration, and includes a carriage 112 including an exposure lamp and a reflection mirror, and a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) sensor 114. The carriage 112 moves along the document placing table, exposes an image on a copy document (for example, a sheet) placed on the placing table with an exposure lamp, and causes the reflected light to enter the CCD sensor 114. The CCD sensor 114 outputs incident light to the image forming unit 130 as an image signal. The image reading unit 110 may further include an ADF 116 (Auto Document Feeder). The ADF 116 conveys sheet-like documents one by one to a reading position on the document placing table, and discharges the documents when the reading process is completed.

  The sheet feeding unit 120 includes a sheet feeding cassette 122 that stores a plurality of sheets and a manual feeding unit 124. A plurality of paper feed cassettes 122 may be provided as shown in the figure. For example, the manual feed portion 124 is rotatably provided in the main body of the image forming apparatus 100, and is set by being rotated from the main body when used. The sheet feeding unit 120 takes out the sheets placed on the sheet feeding cassette 122 or the manual feeding unit 124 one by one and conveys the sheets to the image forming unit 130 via the conveyance path.

  The image forming unit 130 has a known configuration, and includes, for example, an image forming unit including a photosensitive drum, a developing unit, and the like. FIG. 1 shows an image forming unit 130 for color images, which includes four image forming units (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black) and corresponding developing units. The image forming unit 130 further includes a well-known transfer belt. An image obtained by reading the document with the image reading unit 110 by the image forming unit and the developing unit on the transfer belt, or a communication interface (communication I described later). / F) For example, a color transfer image (visible image) is formed by each developer based on the print data received from the unit 185 (see FIG. 4). This transfer image is moved to the transfer unit 135 by the rotational movement of the transfer belt. The transfer unit 135 has a pair of rollers at the transfer position, and transfers the transfer image on the transfer belt to the sheet at the transfer position with respect to the sheet conveyed from the paper supply unit 120.

  When the sheet processing apparatus 200 (see FIG. 3) installed at the subsequent stage of the image forming apparatus 100 performs a bonding process between sheets, the image forming unit 130 of the present embodiment is a main control unit 160 (see FIG. 4) described later. A transfer image made of a developer is formed on the transfer belt so as to form a predetermined pattern at a predetermined adhesion location on the transfer belt in accordance with a command from. This transfer image is transferred to the sheet by the transfer unit 135 as described above. The developer transferred to the sheet in this predetermined pattern becomes an adhesive that adheres the sheets to each other in the sheet processing apparatus 200. 2A to 2D are examples of patterns and adhesion locations formed on the sheet formed by the image forming unit 130. FIG. The predetermined pattern is, for example, a figure, a pattern, a character, or the like. The predetermined bonding location is, for example, a part of the four corners of the sheet (FIG. 2A), or a short side (FIG. 2B) or a part of the long side (FIGS. 2C and 2D). It is. Note that the predetermined pattern and bonding location may be changed as appropriate by an external device or the like connected via an operation unit 180 or a communication I / F unit 185 described later. The image forming unit 130 can adopt either a configuration for forming a color image or a configuration for forming only a monochrome image. In general, an image forming apparatus that forms a monochrome image does not use the above-described transfer belt, and has a configuration in which, for example, an image forming unit, a developing unit, and a transfer unit are arranged around a photosensitive drum. In this image forming apparatus, based on the electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum by the image forming unit, a monochrome transfer image composed of a developer is formed by the developing unit, and this transferred image is further formed on a sheet by the transfer unit. Transcribed.

  The fixing unit 140 has a known configuration, and includes, for example, a heating roller and a pressure roller. The fixing unit 140 fixes the transfer image on the sheet passing through the nip formed by these rollers by the heat from the heating roller and the pressure from the pressure roller. The main control unit 160 controls the surface temperature of the heating roller to the first temperature, so that the fixing unit 140 melts the developer formed on the sheet and melts the developer by applying pressure with the pressure roller. Fix the developer on the sheet.

  The paper discharge unit 150 aligns and places the sheets conveyed from the fixing unit 140. The sheet discharge unit 150 according to the present exemplary embodiment uses a connecting unit with the sheet processing apparatus 200 to convey the sheet on which the image is formed to the sheet processing apparatus 200.

  FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the sheet processing apparatus 200 according to the embodiment. The sheet processing apparatus 200 is installed, for example, at the subsequent stage of the image forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. Processing such as sorting is performed. The sheet processing apparatus 200 includes an inlet roller pair 210, a branch member 215, a first paper discharge roller pair 220, and a fixed tray 225 that are positioned along the conveyance direction of the sheet from the image forming apparatus 100. The sheet processing apparatus 200 further includes an exit roller pair 230, a processing tray 250, an adhesive portion 270, and a movable tray 280 that are located downstream in the sheet conveyance direction branched by the branching member 215.

  The inlet roller pair 210 receives a sheet on which an image has been formed by the image forming apparatus 100 located in the preceding stage, and conveys the sheet to the branching member 215. The sheet conveyed from the image forming apparatus 100 is naturally in a state where the image is once fixed. The branching member 215 transfers the sheet to the first discharge roller according to a command of the control unit 300 (see FIG. 4) based on the sheet processing input via the main control unit 160 (see FIG. 4) of the image forming apparatus 100. Transport to pair 220 or exit roller pair 230. The first paper discharge roller pair 220 discharges the sheet to the fixed tray 225. For example, the fixed tray 225 stacks sheets on which images are formed by a copy function. The exit roller pair 230 conveys the sheet to the processing tray 250.

  The processing tray 250 temporarily receives the sheet conveyed from the exit roller pair 230. The sheet received by the processing tray 250 is subjected to a sorting process and an adhesion process. The bonding process is performed by a developer formed on the sheet at a predetermined position, that is, for example, at any position and pattern in FIG. 2 in the image forming apparatus 100 by the bonding portion 270 provided upstream of the processing tray 250 in the sheet conveyance direction. Applied. The processed sheet is discharged to the movable tray 280.

  The movable tray 280 aligns and stacks the sheets discharged from the processing tray 250. The movable tray 280 according to the present embodiment moves up and down according to the sheet discharge operation from the processing tray 250 and the sheet stacking amount.

  The fixed tray 225, the processing tray 250, and the movable tray 280 are provided so as to be inclined upward toward the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction.

  FIG. 4 is a control block diagram of the hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1 and the sheet processing apparatus 200 shown in FIG. The image forming apparatus 100 of this embodiment includes a main control unit 160, an image reading unit 110, a paper feeding unit 120, an image forming unit 130, a transfer unit 135, a fixing unit 140, a transport unit 175, an operation unit 180, and a communication I / F. Part 185. Each unit is connected to each other via a bus 190.

  The main control unit 160 includes a processor 162 including a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), a memory 164, and a storage device 170. The memory 164 is, for example, a semiconductor memory 164 and includes a ROM 166 (Read Only Memory) that stores various control programs and a RAM 168 (Random Access Memory) that provides a temporary work area to the processor 162. The storage device 170 may be, for example, a hard disk drive, another magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, a semiconductor storage device such as a flash memory, or any combination thereof. The main control unit 160 comprehensively controls each unit of the image forming apparatus 100 based on various programs stored in the ROM 166 or the storage device 170.

  The conveyance unit 175 conveys the sheet conveyed from the paper feeding unit 120 to the paper discharge unit 150 via the transfer unit 135 and the fixing unit 140 along the conveyance path. The conveyance unit 175 includes a plurality of conveyance roller pairs including a driving roller and a driven roller, for example, in order to convey the sheet.

  The operation unit 180 includes various operation keys (not shown) and a display unit (not shown) including a touch panel type input unit. The operation keys include, for example, a numeric keypad, a reset key, a stop key, and a start key. The display unit displays, for example, printing conditions such as sheet size, number of copies, print density setting, and instruction items related to post-processing of the sheet such as adhesion, bonding location, folding, and bookbinding. The operation unit 180 according to the present embodiment receives input from the user from an operation key or a display unit.

  The communication I / F unit 185 is an interface that connects an external terminal such as the sheet processing apparatus 200, a client PC, or a print server to the main control unit 160 via a network. The communication I / F unit includes an appropriate wireless or wired interface such as IEEE 802.15, IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.3, IEEE 1284, such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), infrared connection, or optical connection. The communication I / F unit 185 may further include a USB connection unit or a parallel interface to which a USB standard connection terminal is connected. The main control unit 160 communicates with the control unit 300 of the sheet processing apparatus 200, the user terminal (client PC), the USB device, and other external devices via the communication I / F unit 185. The communication I / F unit 185 receives print data from a user terminal, for example.

  Since the image reading unit 110, the paper feeding unit 120, the image forming unit 130, the transfer unit 135, and the fixing unit 140 have already been described, description thereof will be omitted.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the sheet processing apparatus 200 will be described. The sheet processing apparatus 200 according to the present embodiment includes a processing tray 250, an adhesion unit 270, a control unit 300, and a conveyance unit 320.

  The control unit 300 includes a processor 302, a memory 304, and a storage device 310, similarly to the main control unit 160 of the image forming apparatus 100. The control unit 300 communicates with the main control unit 160 of the image forming apparatus 100. The control unit 300 controls each unit of the sheet processing apparatus 200 based on information received from the main control unit 160 (sheet post-processing input from the user, etc.) or various programs stored in the ROM 306 or the storage device 310. To control.

  The conveyance unit 320 conveys the sheet on which the image conveyed from the inlet roller pair 210 is fixed to the fixed tray 225 or the movable tray 280 along the conveyance path. The conveyance unit 320 includes a plurality of conveyance roller pairs including a driving roller and a driven roller, for example, in order to convey the sheet.

  Since the movable tray 280 has already been described, the description thereof is omitted. The processing tray 250 and the bonding part 270 will be described in detail later.

Hereinafter, the configuration and operation of the processing tray 250 will be described.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the processing tray 250 in the sheet processing apparatus 200 shown in FIG. The processing tray 250 includes a pair of horizontal alignment plates 252, a pair of vertical alignment rollers 254, and a pair of rear end stoppers 256 in order to align the sheets conveyed from the exit roller pair 230. The lateral alignment plates 252 are provided at both ends in the width direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction of the sheet support surface that receives the sheets of the processing tray 250. The lateral alignment plate 252 aligns the width direction of the sheet by reciprocating the same distance in the width direction by the driving mechanism. The vertical alignment roller 254 is provided at an interval at the center of the rear end of the processing tray 250 in the sheet discharge direction. The rear end stopper 256 is provided so as to protrude in the upstream direction from the rear end portion of the processing tray 250. The vertical alignment roller 254 cooperates with a later-described second paper discharge roller 258 to convey the sheet placed on the sheet support surface to the upstream side of the processing tray 250 and bring the sheet into contact with the trailing edge stopper 256. Perform vertical alignment of sheets.

  Further, the processing tray 250 includes a second paper discharge roller 258, an ejector 260, a bundle hook belt 262, and a bundle hook 264 for discharging sheets to the movable tray 280. The second paper discharge roller 258 is provided at the front end of the sheet support surface in the sheet discharge direction. The second paper discharge roller 258 of this embodiment has, for example, four drive rollers. The ejector 260 is provided so as to protrude in the upstream direction from the central portion on the rear end side of the processing tray 250. Two ejectors 260 of this embodiment are provided between the central vertical alignment rollers 254, and reciprocate in pairs along the sheet conveying direction by a driving mechanism. The ejector 260 delivers the sheet, which has been subjected to the bonding process by the bonding unit 270 provided upstream in the sheet conveyance direction, to the bundle claw 264. The bundle claw 264 is attached to the bundle claw belt 262. The bundle hook belt 262 is wound around a driving roller and a driven roller provided at the center of the processing tray 250. The bundle hook 264 moves along the sheet conveying direction with the movement of the bundle hook belt 262 due to the rotation of the driving roller. The bundle hook 264 discharges the sheet delivered from the ejector 260 together with the second discharge roller 258 from the processing tray 250 to the movable tray 280.

Hereinafter, the configuration and operation of the bonding portion 270 will be described.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of the bonding portion 270 in the sheet processing apparatus 200 illustrated in FIG. 3. FIG. 6A is a diagram before performing an adhesion process, which will be described later, by the adhesion part 270, and FIG. 6B is a diagram in which the adhesion process is performed. The adhesion unit 270 is conveyed to the processing tray 250 and adheres the aligned sheets. The bonding portion 270 includes a head 272 and a stand 274. The head 272 includes a heating unit that heats the conveyed sheet. The stand 274 supports the conveyed sheet. In addition, the head 272 and the stand 274 apply pressure to the sheet by pressing the sheet in cooperation (pressure unit). That is, pressure is applied to the plurality of sheets on the stand 274 by the head 272 and the stand 274, and heating is performed by the heating unit of the head 272 (adhesion process).

  The bonding portion 270 extends along the width direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction. That is, the bonding process is performed on the entire width direction of the rear end portion in the conveyance direction of the conveyed sheet. However, the form of the bonding portion 270 is not limited to this. For example, the bonding portion 270 provided in a size that can be bonded to a part of the sheet and movable in the width direction, and the bonding portion 270 are provided. The structure which has two or more may be sufficient.

  The bonding unit 270 performs bonding processing each time the second and subsequent sheets stacked on the first first sheet among the sheets constituting the sheet bundle are conveyed to the processing tray 250. For example, when producing a sheet bundle that constitutes one part with 10 sheets, the adhesive part 270 conveys the second sheet, the third sheet,..., The tenth sheet to the processing tray 250 except the first sheet. The above-described bonding process is performed at each timing.

  By this bonding process, the bonding unit 270 controls the surface temperature of the head, which is the heating unit, to the second temperature, thereby melting the developer once fixed at the bonding position of the sheet, so that a plurality of overlapping sheets are formed. By re-fixing the developer, the sheets are bonded together. The control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit to the second temperature in the bonding process performed by the bonding unit 270. With the above configuration, the developer fixed on the bonding portion of the sheet subjected to the bonding process is decolored (transparent), so that the appearance of the manufactured sheet bundle is not impaired.

  When the bonding unit 270 finishes the bonding process to the last sheet of the sheets constituting the sheet bundle, the control unit 300 controls the ejector 260, the bundle hook belt 262, and the paper discharge roller to perform the bonding process. The sheet bundle bound by the above is discharged to the movable tray 280.

  Note that the timing at which the bonding portion 270 performs the bonding process is not limited to each sheet as described above. For example, the bonding unit 270 may perform a bonding process every time three sheets are conveyed to the processing tray 250. In this case, when the last sheet among the sheets constituting the sheet bundle is conveyed to the processing tray 250, the adhesion process is performed even if the number of sheets conveyed after the latest adhesion process does not reach three. That is, for example, when a sheet bundle that forms one part with 10 sheets is produced, the bonding unit 270 is a timing at which the third, sixth, ninth, and tenth sheets are conveyed to the processing tray 250. Then, the above-described bonding process is performed.

  Hereinafter, the control flow of the bonding process will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the bonding process performed by the image forming apparatus 100.

  When the image forming apparatus 100 receives a print job from the operation unit 180 or the communication I / F unit 185 (ACT 101), the main control unit 160 determines whether the job includes an adhesion process (ACT 102). For example, when the user issues a print job print instruction from an external terminal such as a client PC connected to the operation unit 180 or the communication I / F unit via a network, the bonding process is performed on the print job. Added.

  When the received print job has no adhesion process (ACT 102, No), the main control unit 160 controls the image forming unit 130, the transfer unit 135, and the fixing unit 140 to the sheet by the well-known technique as described above. The image is printed (ACT 103). When printing is completed, the main control unit 160 controls the transport unit 175 to transport the printed sheet to the sheet processing apparatus 200 (ACT 104).

  On the other hand, when there is a bonding process (ACT 102, Yes), the main control unit 160 determines the bonding position of the sheet in the bonding process (ACT 105). The bonding location is designated by the user via the operation unit 180 or an external terminal, for example, and the bonding process is added to the print job.

  When the adhesion location is determined, the main control unit 160 controls the image forming unit 130 and the transfer unit 135 to transfer the desired image and the pattern (see FIG. 2) with the developer to the adhesion location to the sheet. Further, the fixing unit 140 is controlled to the first temperature, and the transferred developer pattern is fixed on the sheet and printed (ACT 106).

  When printing is completed, the main control unit 160 conveys the sheet from the image forming apparatus 100 to the sheet processing apparatus 200 (ACT 104).

  FIG. 8 is a control flowchart of the bonding process performed by the sheet processing apparatus 200. The flow described here is a method in which the bonding unit 270 performs the bonding process every time one sheet to be stacked on the first sheet conveyed to the processing tray 250 is conveyed.

  The control unit 300 of the sheet processing apparatus 200 receives processing information for the sheet conveyed from the image forming apparatus 100 from the main control unit 160 of the image forming apparatus 100 and determines whether or not the processing information includes an adhesion process. (ACT201). When the bonding process is not included in the processing information on the sheet (ACT 201, No), the control unit 300 performs a predetermined process on the sheet according to the processing information (ACT 202) using a known technique. When the process is completed, the control unit 300 discharges the sheet (ACT 203).

  On the other hand, when the processing information includes an adhesion process (ACT 201, Yes), the control unit 300 conveys the sheet received from the image forming apparatus 100 to the processing tray 250 (ACT 204). In this case, as described above, the pattern of the developer on the adhesion portion is fixed on the sheet together with the original image.

  The control unit 300 determines whether or not a plurality of sheets aligned on the processing tray 250 are stacked. (ACT 205) When it is determined that a plurality of sheets are not stacked (ACT 205, No), that is, when it is determined that only the first sheet is stacked, the control unit 300 conveys the next sheet to the processing tray 250. Wait until. On the other hand, when it is determined that a plurality of sheets are stacked (ACT 205, Yes), the control unit 300 performs the bonding process by the bonding unit 270 on the sheets stacked on the processing tray 250 (ACT 206). The bonding unit 270 performs a bonding process on the sheet on the processing tray 250 by the head 272 and the stand 274. Since this bonding process has already been described, the details will be omitted, but the developer pattern of the bonded portion once fixed is melted at a second temperature higher than the first temperature and re-fixed. Adhere the sheets together. As described above, when the first sheet is conveyed to the processing tray 250, the bonding unit 270 does not perform the bonding process on the sheet. When the adhering process is completed, if there is a next sheet, the control unit 300 conveys it to the processing tray 250 and performs the adhering process. In this way, the control unit 300 determines whether or not all the sheets constituting the sheet bundle to be produced have been conveyed to the processing tray 250 and the bonding process has been completed (ACT 206). Accordingly, when the processing is not completed (ACT 207, No), the control unit 300 performs the processes of ACT 204 and ACT 205 on the next conveyed sheet. On the other hand, when the bonding process is completed for all sheets (ACT 207, Yes), the control unit 300 discharges the sheet bundle for which the bonding process has been completed to the movable tray 280 (ACT 203).

  According to the above-described first embodiment, since the adhesion portion of the produced sheet bundle is erased, the appearance of the sheet bundle can be maintained.

In addition, the adhesion part of this embodiment is not restricted to the structure in which a head has a heating part. The stand and both the head and the stand may have a heating unit.
(Second Embodiment)

  Hereinafter, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The control unit 300 is different from the sheet processing apparatus 200 of the first embodiment in the sheet processing apparatus 200 of the present embodiment. In the bonding process that is repeatedly performed to produce the sheet bundle, the control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit in each bonding process. Note that the physical configuration of the sheet processing apparatus 200 of the present embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, and hence the following description will be given with the same numbering.

  In the control unit 300 according to the present embodiment, the control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit between the first temperature and the second temperature in response to each repeated bonding process. As a specific example, a case will be described in which an adhesive process is performed one by one, and a sheet bundle constituting one part is produced with ten sheets. When the bonding unit 270 performs the first bonding process for bonding the first sheet and the second sheet, the control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit to a third temperature that is equal to or higher than the first temperature and lower than the second temperature. To do. The third temperature is a variable temperature that increases stepwise according to the number of sheets to be bonded. The control unit 300 increases the surface temperature (third temperature) of the heating unit toward the second temperature every time the bonding unit 270 further bonds the third sheet, bonds the fourth sheet, and so on. When the unit 270 performs the final bonding process of bonding the tenth sheet to the sheet bundle to which the first to ninth sheets are bonded, the control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit to the second temperature. To do. That is, the control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit in the Nth bonding process to be equal to or higher than the surface temperature of the heating unit in the N-1th bonding process while the first bonding process to the last bonding process are performed. .

 When the control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit in this way, at the time when the bonding unit 270 performs the first bonding process, the developer that bonds the first and second sheets has the decoloring temperature. Since it is not heated up to, it will not fade. However, even when the third and subsequent sheets are bonded, heat from the heating unit is transmitted through the third and subsequent sheets to the sheets that have already been subjected to the bonding process. Therefore, when the final bonding process for bonding the last tenth sheet is completed, heat is accumulated in the developer for bonding the first and second sheets and is heated to the decoloring temperature. As a result, the developer can be decolored.

 On the other hand, for the last sheet, the control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit to the second temperature because the opportunity to be heated from the heating unit is only once when the sheet is bonded. It is necessary to decolorize the developer.

  FIG. 9 is a control flowchart of the bonding process performed by the sheet processing apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment. The flow described here is a method in which the bonding unit 270 performs the bonding process every time one sheet is conveyed to the processing tray 250, as in the first embodiment. The control flow of the image forming apparatus 100 is the same as the flowchart shown in FIG.

  The control unit 300 of the sheet processing apparatus 200 receives processing information for the sheet conveyed from the image forming apparatus 100 from the main control unit 160 of the image forming apparatus 100 and determines whether or not the processing information includes an adhesion process. (ACT301). When the adhesion processing is not included in the processing information on the sheet (ACT 301, No), the control unit 300 performs a predetermined processing on the sheet according to the processing information (ACT 302) by a known technique. When the process is finished, the control unit 300 discharges the sheet (ACT 303).

  On the other hand, when the processing information includes an adhesion process (ACT 301, Yes), the control unit 300 conveys the sheet received from the image forming apparatus 100 to the processing tray 250 (ACT 304).

  The control unit 300 determines whether or not a plurality of sheets aligned on the processing tray 250 are stacked. (ACT 305) When it is determined that a plurality of sheets are not stacked (ACT 305, No), that is, when it is determined that only the first sheet is stacked, the control unit 300 conveys the next sheet to the processing tray 250. Wait until. On the other hand, if it is determined that a plurality of sheets are stacked (ACT 305, Yes), the control unit 300 performs the bonding process performed by the bonding unit 270 on the sheets aligned on the processing tray 250. It is determined whether or not it is the last bonding process for creating a sheet (ACT 306). The controller 300 makes this determination based on processing information received from the image forming apparatus 100, for example. When it is not the last adhesion process (ACT306, No), the control part 300 controls the surface temperature of a heating part to 3rd temperature, and performs the adhesion process by the adhesion part 270 (ACT307). The control unit 300 repeats the above ACT304 to ACT307 until the bonding unit 270 performs the final bonding process. In this case, as described above, the third temperature is raised toward the second temperature for each bonding process. On the other hand, in the case of the final bonding process, the bonding unit 270 performs the bonding process after controlling the surface temperature of the heating unit to the second temperature (ACT 308). When this final bonding process is completed, the controller 300 discharges the sheet bundle to the movable tray 280 (ACT 303).

  According to the second embodiment described above, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained, and the total amount of heat applied to the sheet bundle can be reduced, so that damage to the sheet due to heat can be suppressed. is there.

  In the second embodiment, the control unit has disclosed control in which the surface temperature of the heating unit is increased stepwise from the third temperature to the second temperature. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In producing a sheet bundle of 1 part, the surface temperature of the heating part when performing the last bonding process is the second temperature, and the surface temperature of the heating part when performing the first bonding process is the third temperature. It suffices to increase the surface temperature of the heating part in the bonding process in the middle. That is, the third temperature may be a fixed value between the first temperature and the second temperature.

Further, as a modification of the above embodiment, the control unit may control the surface temperature of the heating unit to the second temperature or higher even when the bonding unit performs the first bonding process in addition to the last bonding process. . With this configuration, at least the developer that has been fixed to the adhesion points of the sheets corresponding to both ends of the produced sheet bundle is erased. Therefore, in the unlikely event, the developer fixed to the sheet positioned inside the sheet bundle is erased. Even if it does not reach the temperature and disappears, it will not stand out.
(Third embodiment)

  Hereinafter, a third embodiment will be described. The difference between the sheet processing apparatus 200 according to the present embodiment and the sheet processing apparatus 200 according to the first and second embodiments is that the sheet processing apparatus 200 includes a detection unit that detects the thickness of the sheet conveyed by the conveyance unit 320 and corresponds to the detection result. The control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit. Note that the physical configuration of the sheet processing apparatus 200 of the present embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, and hence the following description will be given with the same numbering.

  The sheet processing apparatus 200 according to the present embodiment includes a detection unit that detects the thickness of the conveyed sheet. The detection unit is, for example, a sensor provided at a predetermined position (not shown). Further, information regarding the thickness of the sheet may be included in the processing information received from the image forming apparatus 100. In this case, the control unit 300 that receives the processing information functions as a detection unit. The control unit 300 controls the surface temperature of the heating unit during the bonding process according to the detection result of the detection unit.

 Specific control of the control unit 300 will be described below. When the detected thickness of the sheet is greater than or equal to the threshold stored in the memory 304 or the storage device 310, the control unit 300 sets the surface temperature of the heating unit to be higher than the temperature when the thickness of the sheet is less than this threshold. High control.

 With the above configuration, even when the sheet is thick, sufficient heat can be transmitted to the developer fixed on the sheet, and the developer is decolored. Further, a plurality of threshold values may be provided, and the surface temperature of the heating unit may be controlled higher as the thickness of the sheet increases. From the above configuration, in addition to the above effects, the sheet is not heated more than necessary, so that damage to the sheet due to heat can be reduced.

 As a modification of the above configuration, when the thickness of the sheet is equal to or greater than the threshold value, the surface temperature of the heating unit in each bonding process is controlled to the second temperature as in the first embodiment, and the sheet is set to the threshold value. If it is thinner, the surface temperature of the heating unit may be controlled according to each bonding process as in the second embodiment described above. Even in this configuration, an appropriate amount of heat can be given to the sheet in accordance with the thickness of the sheet.

  In addition, the adhesion part of this embodiment is not restricted to the structure in which a head has a heating part similarly to 1st Embodiment. The stand and both the head and the stand may have a heating unit.

  According to at least one embodiment described above, the adhesion location of the produced sheet bundle is erased, so that the appearance of the sheet bundle can be maintained.

  In each of the above-described embodiments, the image forming apparatus and the sheet processing apparatus have been described as independent apparatuses, but the two may be integrated into an image forming apparatus.

  Note that the developer to be fixed may be either one side or both sides of the sheet, and it is only necessary that the developer is fixed to at least one of the bonding portions of the bonding surfaces where the two sheets to be bonded face each other. In addition, by fixing the developer on the adhesion surface of each of the two sheets facing each other, it is possible to increase the adhesion force when performing the adhesion treatment.

  Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, it has been described that an adhesive portion is provided instead of a stapler in a known sheet processing apparatus, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a sheet processing apparatus having an adhesive portion in addition to the stapler may be used. In this case, for example, either a stapling process or an adhesive process may be selectively processed according to processing information. In this way, it is possible to additionally configure each known process.

  In addition, in each of the above-described embodiments, the program that embodies the processes of FIGS. 7 to 9 is provided by being incorporated in advance in a storage medium (ROM or storage unit) included in each device, but is not limited thereto. Alternatively, the file may be recorded in a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, CD-R, or DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) in an installable or executable format. . Furthermore, the storage medium is not limited to a medium independent of a computer or an embedded system, but also includes a storage medium in which a program transmitted via a LAN, the Internet, or the like is downloaded and stored or temporarily stored.

  Further, the program executed in each device of each of the above embodiments may be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. You may comprise so that it may provide or distribute via a network.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Image forming apparatus 130 ... Image forming part 200 ... Sheet processing apparatus 270 ... Adhesion part 300 ... Control part 320 ... Conveyance part

Claims (9)

A transport unit that transports a sheet that is heated and fixed at a first temperature to at least a predetermined adhesion portion with a developer that becomes transparent by being heated to a decoloring temperature;
A heating unit that heats the adhesion point at a predetermined surface temperature in a state where a plurality of sheets conveyed by the conveyance unit are stacked; and a pressurization unit that pressurizes the adhesion point. An adhesive portion for applying an adhesive treatment for adhering the plurality of sheets by remelting the developer fixed on the sheet by the pressure portion;
A control unit for controlling the surface temperature of the heating unit to a second temperature higher than the first temperature in order to heat the developer to the decoloring temperature in the bonding process;
A sheet processing apparatus comprising:   2. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the developer is fixed on a surface of at least one of the plurality of sheets facing the other of the two sheets. The bonding part is to produce a sheet bundle by repeating the bonding process a plurality of times,
The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control unit controls a surface temperature of the heating unit in each bonding process.   The control unit controls the surface temperature of the heating unit to the second temperature when the bonding unit performs the last bonding process among the plurality of bonding processes, and the last bonding among the bonding processes. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein when the bonding unit performs a bonding process other than the processing, the surface temperature of the heating unit is controlled to a third temperature that is equal to or higher than the first temperature and lower than the second temperature.   The third temperature is variable, and in the control of the third temperature, the control unit sets the surface temperature of the heating unit in the N-th bonding process to the heating in the N-1th bonding process. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sheet processing apparatus is controlled to be equal to or higher than a surface temperature of the part.   The control unit controls the surface temperature of the heating unit to at least the second temperature when the bonding unit performs the first bonding process and the last bonding process in the bonding process, 4. The surface temperature of the heating unit is controlled to a third temperature that is equal to or higher than the first temperature and lower than the second temperature when the bonding portion performs bonding processing other than the first bonding processing and the last bonding processing. Sheet processing equipment. A detection unit that detects the thickness of the sheet conveyed by the conveyance unit;
The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control unit controls the surface temperature of the heating unit at a temperature between the first temperature and the second temperature according to a detection result by the detection unit. On the computer,
A function to determine whether the received processing information includes an instruction for bonding processing;
A function of judging that a plurality of sheets of a developer that is heated and fixed at a first temperature by being heated to a decoloring temperature are stacked;
A function of heating and pressurizing with a bonding section composed of a heating section and a pressing section in order to melt a predetermined bonding portion where the developer of the plurality of sheets is fixed, when there is an instruction for bonding processing;
A control program for a sheet processing apparatus that realizes a function of controlling the surface temperature of the heating unit to the second temperature in order to heat the developer to the decoloring temperature during the bonding process by the bonding unit. An image forming unit that prints a predetermined pattern with the developer on the adhesion portion of the sheet;
A sheet processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
An image forming apparatus comprising:

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