JP2009280330A - Book binding device and image forming system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a book binding device capable strengthening adhesion of the back of a booklet bound by gluing with an adhesion bond and to provide an image forming system equipped with the bookbinding device. <P>SOLUTION: The book binding device includes a notch forming section, which is equipped with a notch forming means forming notches on an end edge side of a conveyed paper and a position moving means moving the notch formation means in a paper width direction perpendicular to a paper conveyance direction, a paper bundle receiving section receiving a paper bundle comprising a plurality of papers formed with the notches, an application section applying the adhesion bond to the back, where the notches are formed, of the paper bundle received in the paper bundle receiving section and a control section controlling making of the booklet, wherein the control section automatically controls a bookbinding condition in making the booklet according to respective conditions of existence and nonexistence of the notches formed in the papers by the notch formation section, a pattern of the notches and a thickness of the booklet. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a bookbinding apparatus for producing a booklet by applying an adhesive to the back of a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of sheets and fixing a cover on the back of the sheet bundle, and an image forming system having the bookbinding apparatus.

  Recent electrophotographic image forming apparatuses have high-speed performance, multi-functions, network functions, etc., and their use as printing apparatuses is expanding by connecting large-capacity paper feeders and large-capacity stackers. . When the image forming apparatus is used as a printing apparatus, printing to bookbinding can be performed by a single apparatus by connecting a bookbinding apparatus that binds printed matter.

  As the bookbinding apparatus, there is disclosed a gluing bookbinding apparatus in which a sheet bundle storage unit, a glue (adhesive) application unit, a cover sheet supply unit, a cover folding unit, and the like are vertically arranged in a vertical direction to reduce the size (for example, Patent Documents). 1).

  The gluing bookbinding apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 applies an adhesive uniformly to a back part of a sheet bundle accommodated and held in a sheet bundle accommodation unit by an adhesive application roller. Since the adhesive is applied only to the back of the sheet bundle, the adhesive area is small and the strength of the glued bookbinding is insufficient. For this reason, when the produced booklet is opened, the adhesive part may be peeled off and the paper may fall off.

On the other hand, in a bookbinding apparatus that performs bookbinding processing by attaching a cover to the back of a sheet bundle, a notch is formed in the sheet conveyance path of the bookbinding apparatus on the edge side to which an adhesive is applied during the bookbinding process. A bookbinding apparatus provided with notch forming means for forming is disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 2).
JP 2004-209869 A JP 2007-62145 A

  In Patent Document 2, a notch is provided for each sheet of paper to improve the strength of the booklet after bookbinding. However, in the production of the booklet, the degree of drying of the adhesive applied to the sheet bundle differs depending on the presence or absence of the notch, the pattern of the notch, the thickness of the booklet, and the like. For this reason, it has been difficult to obtain sufficient strength after bookbinding under uniform bookbinding conditions. In Patent Document 2, the bookbinding conditions corresponding to the presence or absence of the notch, the pattern of the notch, the thickness of the booklet are not controlled, and it is difficult to obtain sufficient strength after bookbinding. .

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides a bookbinding apparatus that can reinforce the adhesion of the back of a booklet that has been glued and bound, and an image forming system including the bookbinding apparatus.

The above object is achieved by the following configuration.
1. In a bookbinding apparatus for producing a booklet by applying an adhesive to the back part of a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of sheets and attaching a cover to the back part of the sheet bundle, the sheet is cut to the edge side of the conveyed sheet. A notch forming portion comprising notch forming means for forming a notch, position moving means for moving a relative position of the paper and the notch in a paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction, and the notch A sheet bundle housing portion for housing a sheet bundle formed of a plurality of sheets formed, and an application portion for applying an adhesive to a back portion of the sheet bundle housed in the sheet bundle housing portion where the notch is formed; A control unit for controlling the production of the booklet, and the control unit according to each condition of the presence / absence of the notch formed in the paper in the notch forming unit, the pattern of the notch, and the booklet thickness. Automatically control the binding conditions at the time of production of the booklet. Bookbinding apparatus which is characterized in that.
2. The bookbinding condition is at least one of a holding time for pressing and holding the cover sheet on the sheet bundle, a distance between the cover sheet and the back of the sheet bundle at the time of pressing and holding, and an adhesive application amount. 2. The bookbinding apparatus according to 1.
3. 3. The bookbinding apparatus according to 2, wherein the application amount of the adhesive is set to be larger when the notch is present than when the notch is not present.
4). The distance between the cover sheet and the back of the sheet bundle at the time of pressing and holding is set shorter when the notch is present than when the notch is not present. Bookbinding equipment.
5. The bookbinding apparatus according to any one of 2 to 4, wherein the holding time is set longer when the notch is present than when the notch is not present.
6). 6. An image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet, and the bookbinding apparatus according to any one of 1 to 5 that receives a sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming apparatus and produces a booklet. A featured image forming system.

  As described above, the booklet under appropriate conditions is controlled by automatically changing and controlling the bookbinding conditions according to the presence or absence of the notch on the back of the sheet bundle, the pattern of the notch, and the thickness of the booklet. Fabrication is possible. As a result, the adhesive strength of the back portion of the sheet bundle is strengthened, and when the booklet produced by pasting the cover is opened, it is possible to prevent the cover and paper from being insufficiently bonded.

  Embodiments of a bookbinding apparatus of the present invention and an image forming system provided with the bookbinding apparatus will be described with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

  FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming system including an image forming apparatus A, a bookbinding apparatus B, a booklet storage apparatus C, and an automatic document feeder DF.

[Image forming apparatus A]
The image forming apparatus A includes an image forming unit in which a charging unit 2, an image exposing unit 3, a developing unit 4, a transfer charge eliminating unit 5, and a cleaning unit 6 are arranged around a rotating image carrier 1.

  The image forming unit uniformly charges the surface of the image carrier 1 by the charging unit 2, and then performs exposure scanning based on image data read from the document by the laser beam of the image exposure unit 3 to form a latent image. Then, the latent image is reversed and developed by the developing unit 4 to form a toner image on the surface of the image carrier 1.

  The paper S fed from the paper storage unit 7A is sent to the transfer position. After the toner image is transferred onto the sheet S by the transfer neutralization unit 5 at the transfer position, the charge on the surface of the sheet S is erased and separated from the image carrier 1 and is conveyed by the conveyance unit 7B, and subsequently by the fixing unit 8. It is heat-fixed and discharged from the paper discharge roller 7C.

  When image formation is performed on both sides of the sheet S, the sheet S heated and fixed by the fixing unit 8 is branched from the sheet discharge path by the conveyance path switching unit 7D, and is switched back and reversed by the reverse conveyance unit 7E. Thereafter, the sheet is conveyed again to the image forming unit, an image is formed on the back surface of the sheet S, and is discharged from the discharge roller 7C through the fixing unit 8 to the outside of the apparatus. The paper S discharged from the paper discharge roller 7C is sent to the bookbinding apparatus B.

  The toner remaining on the surface of the image carrier 1 after the image formation is removed by the cleaning unit 6 to prepare for the next image formation.

  An operation unit 9 including an input unit and a display unit is disposed on the upper part of the image forming apparatus A.

[Bookbinding device B]
As shown in FIG. 1, the bookbinding apparatus B according to the present invention includes a conveyance path 10, a paper discharge unit 20, a reversing unit 30, a sheet bundle storage unit 40, an adhesive application unit 50, a cover sheet supply unit 60, a cutting unit 70, A case binding apparatus having a booklet forming unit 80 and the like. Each of these units is arranged in a column in the vertical direction.

  Note that the bookbinding apparatus B of the present invention can be applied to a side-stitching bookbinding apparatus, a saddle stitching bookbinding apparatus, a sealing bookbinding apparatus, and the like in addition to the case binding apparatus.

  The main control unit 100 of the image forming apparatus A and the post-processing control unit 200 of the bookbinding apparatus B are connected by serial communication units 101 and 201.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the control of the present invention.

  The control unit of the present invention includes a main control unit 100 provided in the image forming apparatus A and a post-processing control unit 200 that is a control unit that controls the production of a booklet provided in the bookbinding apparatus B. Each part of the bookbinding apparatus B is controlled by the post-processing control unit 200 according to a command from the main control unit 100. The post-processing control unit 200 controls driving of each unit described later in order to produce a booklet. That is, the post-processing control unit 200 moves the motor M4 for driving the support member 41 that supports the sheet bundle, the motor M2 for driving the punch 302 of the notch forming unit 300, and the notch forming unit 300. The drive of the part 400, the motor M1 that drives the application roller 51, the booklet forming part 80, the cutting part 70, and the like is controlled.

  FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the bookbinding apparatus B according to the present invention.

<Conveying path 10>
The sheet S introduced into the conveyance path a of the conveyance path 10 of the bookbinding apparatus is nipped and conveyed by the conveyance rollers 11 and 12, and is branched to either the paper discharge unit 20 or the reversing unit 30 by the conveyance path switching unit Z1. The

  The conveyance path switching unit Z2 disposed on the upstream side of the conveyance roller 11 in the sheet conveyance direction branches the sheet S discharged from the image forming apparatus A to either the conveyance path a or the conveyance path b. The sheet S conveyed to the conveyance path b is nipped by the conveyance roller 14 and sent to the booklet forming unit 80.

<Discharge unit 20>
When paper discharge to the paper discharge unit 20 is set, the conveyance path switching unit Z1 blocks the conveyance path c to the sheet bundle storage unit 40 and opens the conveyance path d to the paper discharge unit 20.

  The sheet S passing through the conveyance path d to the sheet discharge unit 20 is nipped by the conveyance roller 21 and conveyed upward, and is discharged and stored on the fixed sheet discharge tray 23 at the top of the apparatus by the sheet discharge roller 22. In the present embodiment, a maximum of about 300 sheets can be stacked on the fixed sheet discharge tray 23 by directly receiving the sheets S discharged from the image forming apparatus A.

<Notch formation part 300>
The sheet S branched to the conveyance path c by the conveyance path switching unit Z1 is nipped by the conveyance rollers 31 and 32 and conveyed to the notch forming unit 300. The notch forming unit 300 is disposed between the transport roller 31 and the transport roller 32.

  FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the notch forming portion 300.

  The notch forming unit 300 includes a die 301 fixed in the paper conveyance path, a punch 302 that moves up and down to fit into the die 301, a drive unit that raises and lowers the punch 302, and a paper in a paper width direction orthogonal to the paper conveyance direction. The moving part 400 (refer FIG. 14) which is a position moving means to move the relative position of S and a notch, and the waste storage box 303 etc. which store the paper waste notched are provided. The moving unit 400 moves the notch forming unit 300 from the back side of the bookbinding apparatus B to the front side and vice versa.

  The outer peripheral surface of the punch 302 facing the die 301 is fitted to the inner surface of the guide member 304 so as to be movable up and down. The drive unit for raising and lowering the punch 302 includes a motor M2, a small gear 305 connected to the motor M2, a large gear 306 meshing with the small gear 305, a crank 307 that is locked to one end of the large gear 306, and can swing and rotate. A drive transmission member such as a connecting member 308 that connects the upper portion of the punch 302 is provided.

  By driving the motor M2, the punch 302 is driven up and down through the small gear 305, the large gear 306, the crank 307, and the connecting member 308.

  A notch portion is formed at the rear end portion of the sheet S by the lowering drive of the punch 302 and the fitting of the die 301.

  FIG. 11 is a plan view of the sheet S on which the notch is formed.

  As the shape of the cutout portion, a semicircular shape, a V shape, a U shape, or the like shown in the figure is used. For example, the two notches Va shown in FIG. 11A have a hole diameter of 6 mm and a hole interval of 80 mm. The three notches Vb shown in FIG. 11B have a hole diameter of 6 mm and a hole interval of 108 mm.

  When notch processing is not set in the operation unit 9 of the image forming apparatus A, the paper discharged from the image forming apparatus A passes through the notch forming unit 300 without being processed.

  When the punching process for punching the notch Va or Vb is set in the operation unit 9, the rear end portion of the sheet S that is nipped and conveyed by the conveyance roller 31 and the conveyance roller 32 is detected by the sensor PS. After the passage of the trailing edge is detected, a predetermined number of pulses are counted to stop the driving of a paper transport motor (not shown), and the progress of the paper S is stopped. At this sheet stop position, two or three notches Va or Vb are formed in the vicinity of the edge of the trailing edge of the sheet S (see FIGS. 11A and 11B).

  FIG. 12 is a front view of the notch forming portion 300, which is an example provided with two sets of perforated portions having a punch 302 and a die 301. Note that the number of sets of the punch 302 and the die 301 is not limited to this. Further, in the present embodiment, one notch Va is formed by one set of punch 302 and die 301, but a plurality of notch blades are formed on one set of punch 302 and die 301, A plurality of notches Va may be formed by one set of punch 302 and die 301.

  FIG. 13 is a side view showing another embodiment of a drive unit that drives the punch 302 of the notch forming unit 300. The example shown in FIG. 2 uses the drive unit shown in FIG. In addition, about the code | symbol used in these figures, the same number as FIG. 10 is attached | subjected to the part which has the same function as FIG.

  The leading edge of the paper S introduced into the bookbinding apparatus B passes through the transport roller 31, the notch forming position of the notch forming unit 300 and the transport roller 32, and stops at a predetermined position. That is, as described above, after the sensor PS arranged on the upstream side of the conveyance roller 31 detects the passage of the trailing edge of the sheet S, for example, a pulse counter PS2 counts a predetermined pulse, and a sheet conveyance motor (not shown). Is stopped, and the progress of the paper S is stopped. At this sheet stop position, a notch Va is formed at the edge of the trailing edge of the sheet S.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 13, the notch forming unit 300 rotates the small gear 305 and the large gear 306 by rotating the motor M <b> 2 and rotates the rotating shaft 309 to which the large gear 306 is fixed. A gear 310 fixed to the rotation shaft 309 rotates the gear 311. A one-way clutch 312 is built in the gear 310. A crank 307 that is locked to the eccentric part of the gear 311 and can be rotated is driven to drive the punch 302 up and down via a connecting member 308.

  FIG. 14 is a front view of the notch forming unit 300 and the moving unit 400 that moves the notch forming unit 300 toward the back side and the front side of the bookbinding apparatus B.

  When the motor M3 is driven, the rack gear 404 moves in the Z direction via a gear train composed of gears 401, 402, and 403. A pair of notch forming portions 300 having a punch 302 and a die 301 are engaged with the rack gear 404. As the rack gear 404 moves, the notch forming portion 300 moves in the arrow Z direction.

  FIG. 15 is a plan view of a sheet bundle Sa in which a plurality of sheets S (S1 to S14) in which two cutout portions Va are formed are stacked.

  The notch forming part 300 is moved to a predetermined position on the left side of the figure by the moving part 400, and two cuts are formed on the first sheet S1 by two sets of punching parts having the punch 302 and the die 301 of the notch forming part 300. A notch Va is formed. In the example of the two-hole drilling portion, the hole diameter is 6 mm and the hole interval is 80 mm.

  Next, the notch forming part 300 is moved by a predetermined distance Δ to the right in the figure by the moving part 400, and two notches Va are formed on the second sheet S2 by the two sets of punching parts of the notch forming part 300. Is drilled. In this example, the predetermined distance Δ is set to 0.5 mm, for example, such that the holes are partially overlapped.

  Thereafter, similarly, a notch Va in which the punching position is shifted by a predetermined distance Δ is formed in a plurality of sheets S (S3 to S14).

  Here, after the two cutout portions Va are formed on the left side of the sheet S1 as described above, the cutout forming portion 300 is moved to the right side of the drawing, and the two cutout portions Va are placed at predetermined positions on the right side of the drawing. By drilling, four notches Va can be provided. The number of notches Va, the drilling position, the drilling order, etc. are not limited to the above.

  Further, as another embodiment of the position moving means for moving the relative position between the paper S and the cutout, in FIG. 10, the paper feed roller 32 on the downstream side of the paper feed direction of the cutout forming unit 300 is a paper perpendicular to the paper feed direction. You may provide the shift conveyance part 32A (not shown) which has the drive part shifted to the width direction. In this case, the shift transport unit 32A shifts the gripped paper S together with the transport roller 32 by a predetermined distance in the paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction.

  FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing the control of the example of the embodiment provided with the shift conveyance unit 32A.

  This embodiment includes a shift conveyance unit 32A that shifts the conveyance roller 32 in the paper width direction instead of the moving unit 400 of FIG. 2, and a control unit that controls the shift conveyance unit 32A in the post-processing control unit 200. .

  The notch forming section 300 forms and transports two notches Va on the first sheet S1, transports the second sheet S2, and holds it together with the transport roller 32 by the shift transport section 32A. After the shifted sheet S2 is shifted by a predetermined distance Δ in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction, two notches Va are formed on the second sheet S2 by the notch forming unit 300.

  Furthermore, as another embodiment, in FIG. 10, a regulating member (not shown) that is aligned in the paper width direction is disposed in the vicinity of the notch forming portion 300, and the regulating member is released in a state in which the paper nipping by the transport roller 32 is released. Thus, after the sheet S is shifted by a predetermined distance Δ in the sheet width direction, the two notches Va can be formed on the second sheet S2 by the notch forming unit 300.

  In this way, cutout portions Va having different positions are sequentially formed on a plurality of subsequent sheets S, which are conveyed to a reversing unit 30 and a sheet bundle storage unit 40 described later to form a sheet bundle Sa.

  FIG. 17 is a perspective view, a front view, and a partially enlarged view showing a sheet bundle Sa having a notch.

  FIG. 17A is a perspective view showing a sheet bundle Sa on which sheets S having four notches Va formed thereon, FIG. 17B is a front view of the back of the sheet bundle Sa, and FIG. ) Is a partially enlarged view of the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa.

  On the back of the sheet bundle Sa, four cutouts Va between the stacked sheets are diagonally arranged as shown. Then, four cutouts Va are arranged at substantially equal intervals on the back of the sheet bundle Sa to form an adhesive entry surface.

<Inversion unit 30>
The sheet S that has been subjected to the notch processing in the notch forming unit 300 is sandwiched between the transport rollers 32, 33, and 34 and is stored in a predetermined position of the reversing unit 30. The reversing unit 30 includes an inclined sheet placement table 35, a swingable sheet rear end positioning member 36, an alignment member 37 that aligns the sheet S in the sheet width direction, a conveyance roller 38, and the like.

<Paper Bundle Storage Unit 40>
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the sheet stacking unit of the sheet bundle storage unit 40 is installed in an inclined state.

  The sheet bundle housing portion 40 includes a support member 41, a receiving plate 42, a lateral alignment member 44, a pressing member 45, and the like.

  The paper S placed on the paper placement table 35 of the reversing unit 30 is sandwiched between the transport rollers 38 and discharged from the opening opened by the swing of the positioning member 36 for positioning the rear end of the paper, and obliquely downward. Be transported. The sheets S are sequentially stored and stacked in the sheet bundle storage unit 40.

  The sheet bundle storage unit 40 includes a support member 41 having an inclined stacking surface and a swingable receiving plate 42, and the sheet S descending from the reversing unit 30 slides down on the stacking surface of the tilted support member 41. The leading edge of the sheet S is stopped by contacting the receiving plate 42, and the sheet S is supported in an inclined state.

  The vertical alignment member 43 presses the rear end portion of the paper S in accordance with the size of the paper S placed on the stacking surface of the support member 41 to bring the front end portion of the paper S into contact with the receiving plate 42. Vertical alignment for aligning the leading edges of the sheets S is performed.

  The sheets S sequentially discharged from the image forming apparatus A are switched back and conveyed in the reversing unit 30, accumulated in the sheet bundle storage unit 40, subjected to vertical alignment and horizontal alignment described later, and are formed of a plurality of sheets S. A bundle Sa is formed.

  The size of the paper S and the number of sheets of the paper bundle Sa, which are the booklet setting conditions, are set in the operation unit 9 of the image forming apparatus A shown in FIG. Alternatively, it is set by an external device such as a personal computer connected to the image forming apparatus A.

  The lateral alignment member 44 presses the side edge of the sheet S conveyed from the reversing unit 30 and accommodated in the sheet bundle accommodating unit 40 when the online system that automatically performs from image formation to bookbinding is activated. Perform horizontal alignment in the width direction.

  When an offline system that performs bookbinding processing alone is activated, the energization of the lateral alignment member 44 is released, and the width direction of the sheet bundle accommodated from the outside in the sheet bundle accommodating portion 40 is changed to the manual operation of the lateral alignment member 44. Match by operation.

  The pressing member 45 presses and sandwiches the thickness direction of the sheet bundle Sa accumulated in the sheet bundle accommodating portion 40. When the set number of sheets S is stored in the sheet bundle storage unit 40, the pressing member 45 is actuated by a driving unit (not shown), and the sheet bundle Sa is held by the holding unit composed of the support member 41 and the pressing member 45. And hold.

  FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the sheet stacking unit 40 in which the sheet stacking unit is installed in an upright state.

  The support member 41 and the pressing member 45 holding the sheet bundle Sa are rotated about the shaft 46 of the sheet bundle accommodating unit 40 by the motor M4 and the driving unit 47, so that the sheet bundle Sa is changed from the inclined state to the upright state. To do. In this state, the application unit 50 is retracted downward, and the lower surface of the sheet bundle Sa is separated from the application roller 51 of the application unit 50.

  Further, in a state where the support member 41 and the pressing member 45 hold the sheet bundle Sa, the receiving plate 42 is rotated from the broken line position shown in the figure to the solid line position and retracted by a driving unit (not shown).

<Application part 50>
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the sheet bundle storage unit 40, the coating unit 50, the cover sheet supply unit 60, the cutting unit 70, and the booklet forming unit 80.

  The application unit 50 includes an application roller 51, a drive unit 52 that rotationally drives the application roller 51, a container 53 that contains an adhesive N such as glue, and an initial stage on the back side of the bookbinding apparatus B that supports the container 53. A moving body 54 that can move from the position to the adhesive application position on the front side, a moving section 55 that reciprocates the moving body 54, a heating section 56 that heats the adhesive N accommodated in the container 53, and the like. is doing.

<Applying adhesive to the paper bundle>
The moving body 54 of the application unit 50 is moved by the drive unit 47 in a direction parallel to the longitudinal direction of the lower surface of the sheet bundle Sa held in an upright state by the holding unit composed of the support member 41 and the pressing member 45.

  The moving body 54 starts to move from the initial position on the back side of the bookbinding apparatus B, is moved along the moving unit 55, stops at a predetermined position on the front side of the bookbinding apparatus B, and then reversely drives to return to the initial position. To do.

  FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the application unit 50 and the clamping unit.

  The application roller 51 immersed in the adhesive container 53 containing the adhesive N is rotated by the motor M1 and the drive unit 52. The adhesive application roller 51 applies the adhesive N from the back surface side R in the longitudinal direction of the bottom surface of the sheet bundle Sa held in the upright state toward the front surface side F by the forward movement or reciprocation of the moving body 54.

  The adhesive N applied to the outer peripheral surface of the rotating application roller 51 is regulated by the regulating member 57 so that the layer thickness of the adhesive N is made uniform. The application amount of the adhesive material N can be adjusted by changing the number of rotations of the application roller 51 and the gap between the application roller 51 and the back surface of the sheet bundle Sa.

  As described above, at the back of the sheet bundle Sa, the four notches Va between the stacked sheets are diagonally arranged as shown in FIG. Then, four cutouts Va are arranged at substantially equal intervals on the back of the sheet bundle Sa to form an adhesive entry surface.

  In this state, the adhesive N is applied to the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa having the four notches Va by the application unit 50 shown in FIG. The adhesive N is applied to the back and enters the four notches Va to form an adhesive surface.

  In order to ensure that the adhesive N enters the cutout portion Va, when the cutout is formed in the sheet bundle Sa, the application amount of the adhesive N is set larger than when the cutout is not formed. Is preferred.

  In this way, the adhesive strength of the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa is strengthened by adhering the adhesive into the four notches Va formed on the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa, and the cover sheet K is attached. When the booklet Sb is opened, it is possible to prevent the sheet S with insufficient adhesion from dropping out and causing page missing.

  FIG. 18A is a front view of the sheet bundle Sa without movement of the cutout portion Va and a front view of the sheet bundle Sa with movement of the cutout portion Va.

  When the notch Va is not shifted for each sheet, the notch Va formed on the back of the sheet bundle Sa is orthogonal to the adhesive application direction, and the adhesive N is applied to the notch Va. When applying, a large amount of adhesive N is required temporarily, making it difficult for the adhesive N to reach the depth of the notch Va, and the adhesive strength at the back of the sheet bundle Sa is partially reduced.

  When the cutout portion Va is shifted for each sheet, the cutout portion Va is inclined with respect to the adhesive application direction, the adhesive application amount is made uniform, and the adhesive application unevenness is reduced. The adhesive N enters the back of the notch Va. As a result, the strength of the back portion of the booklet Sb is improved.

  FIG. 18B is a front view of the sheet bundle Sa showing the change in the shift amount of the notch Va. The upper diagram shows a sheet bundle Sa with a small shift amount, and the lower diagram shows a sheet bundle Sa with a large shift amount.

  By changing the shift amount of the notch Va with respect to the production conditions of the booklet Sb, it is possible to select to some extent whether to increase the tensile strength of the paper S or increase the bending strength of the back of the paper bundle Sa. it can. For example, it is better for the coated paper to increase the tensile strength of the paper S, and when the booklet Sb is thick, it is better to increase the bending strength of the back. The shift amount (predetermined distance Δ shown in FIG. 15) for shifting the notch Va for each sheet is appropriately set depending on the thickness of the sheet bundle Sa, the sheet type, and the like.

  For example, in the case of plain paper, the shift amount may be reduced regardless of the thickness of the sheet bundle Sa. In the case of color print paper, it is preferable that the amount of shift is slightly larger than that of plain paper. In the case of coated paper, it is preferable to increase the shift amount as shown in the lower diagram of FIG.

  FIG. 18C shows an example in which the notch Va is formed on 300 sheets of paper by returning the position of the punch 301 to the home position for every 50 sheets of paper S, for example.

  By forming the cutout portion Va in this way, a cutout portion Va having a high density is formed on the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa, and the adhesive strength of the back portion is enhanced.

<Cover Supply Unit 60>
As shown in FIG. 6, the cover sheet K, which is a cover sheet accommodated in the cover sheet stacking section 61 of the cover sheet supply section 60, is separated and fed by the sheet feeding section 62, and is sandwiched between the transport rollers 63, 64, 65. Then, it is conveyed to the booklet forming unit 80.

<Cutting part 70>
A cutting unit 70, which is integrally configured on the right side of a booklet forming unit 80, which will be described later, above the cover sheet supply unit 60 has a length in the conveyance direction of the cover sheet K by a rotary cutter including a rotary blade 71 and a fixed blade 72. Cut to a predetermined length.

  The predetermined length is a length obtained by adding the length of the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa to the length of two sheets in the traveling direction of the sheet S. For example, in the case of the case binding process in which the cover K is pasted on the back of the sheet bundle Sa made of A4 size paper S, the maximum number of the sheet bundle Sa is 300 sheets and the thickness is about 30 mm. The predetermined length is set to 450 mm, which is twice the short side length of 210 mm of A4 size paper and the thickness of the sheet bundle Sa is added to about 30 mm, and the end portion of the cover sheet K is cut. A wide size of 450 mm or more is used for the total length of the cover K before cutting.

  Even when each booklet S of A5 size, B5 size, and 8.5 × 11 inches (1 inch is 25.4 mm) is case-bound to produce a booklet Sb, the short side length of the paper and the bundle of paper The predetermined length is set depending on the thickness.

  When the sheet size, the number of sheets, and the sheet thickness are selected or detected in the operation unit 9 or the external device of the image forming apparatus A, the control unit sets a predetermined cutting length of the cover sheet K. The length of the cover sheet K before cutting is determined in advance corresponding to the maximum number of sheets, and is accommodated in the cover sheet stacking unit 61 of the cover sheet supply unit 60.

<Booklet formation unit 80>
The booklet forming unit 80 receives and transports the cover sheet K supplied from the cover sheet supply unit 60, and presses the transport rollers 81 and 82 for stopping at a predetermined position and the cover sheet K against the adhesive application surface of the sheet bundle Sa. It includes a member 83, a movable casing 84 that supports the conveying rollers 81 and 82, and the pressure member 83, an alignment section 85, an elevating section 86 that enables the movable casing 84 to move vertically and vertically.

  The booklet forming unit 80 and the booklet discharge belt 88 are integrally moved up and down by the lifting unit 86.

  When the booklet forming unit 80 stops at the lowered position and introduces the cover K, the aligning unit 85 moves from the initial position according to the size of the cover K and presses both sides in the width direction of the cover K before the cutting process. Perform width alignment. The cover K whose width is aligned and the curvature is corrected is switched back in the direction opposite to the introduction direction, conveyed to the cutting unit 70, and cut at a predetermined position.

  In addition, before the booklet forming 80 is bonded to the cut back cover K at the lowered position and pasted to the back of the sheet bundle Sa, the aligning section 85 moves again from the initial position so that both sides in the width direction of the cover K are moved. The width is aligned by pressing, and the cover K is stopped at a predetermined position. Thereafter, the aligning portion 85 returns to the initial position so as not to hinder the joining of the cover sheet K and the sheet bundle Sa, and then the booklet forming portion 80 is raised. When rising, the cover K is supported at a predetermined position.

  Therefore, the aligning unit 85 installed in the elevating booklet forming unit 80 positions the cover K in the cover width direction before and after the cutting of the cover K by the cutting unit 70, thereby improving the cover cutting accuracy and the sheet bundle Sa. Improvement in alignment accuracy with the cover sheet K and simplification of the structure are achieved.

  The elevating unit 86 moves the movable casing 84 to the upper position by rotating the left and right belts. At the raised position, the center portion of the cover sheet K placed on the pressure member 83 is pressed and adhered to the application surface of the adhesive N of the sheet bundle Sa. Due to the pressure contact, part of the applied adhesive N wraps around the side edges of the front and back surfaces of the sheet bundle Sa. After the application of the adhesive to the sheet bundle Sa is completed, the application unit 50 moves backward and retracts.

<Cover folding>
On the upper part of the booklet forming portion 80, a cover folding portion is provided. The cover folding part has a pair of symmetrical molding members 87A and 87B. The molding members 87A and 87B can contact and separate in the thickness direction of the sheet bundle Sa. The molding members 87A and 87B bend the front cover K along the side edges of the adhesive application surface of the sheet bundle Sa, and overlap and sandwich the front cover and the back cover on the front and back surfaces of the sheet bundle Sa.

  After the cover K folding process is finished, the booklet forming unit 80 is lowered by a predetermined amount by the descending drive of the elevating unit 86, and then stops and stops. Thereafter, when the clamping by the clamping unit is released, the booklet Sb is dropped, and the back of the lower surface of the booklet Sb is placed in contact with the upper surface of the booklet discharge belt 88 and discharged.

  8A and 8B are cross-sectional views of the booklet forming unit 80 and the sheet bundle Sa showing the folding process of the cover sheet K. FIG. 8A shows the start of cover cover folding, FIG. FIG. 8C shows the time when the cover folding is completed, and FIG. 8D shows the time when the cover bending is released.

  FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a production process of a booklet Sb using a sheet bundle Sa and a cover K. FIG. FIG. 9A is a perspective view of the cover sheet K and the sheet bundle Sa in a state before the cover sticking process, FIG. 9B is a perspective view of the sheet bundle Sa to which the cover sheet K is attached, and FIG. It is a perspective view of the booklet Sb produced by folding the cover K around the bundle Sa.

  When the center portion of the cover sheet K placed on the pressure member 83 is pressed and adhered to the application surface of the adhesive N of the sheet bundle Sa, the adhesive N is pushed into the sheet bundle Sa side with the cover sheet K. In this case, the adhesive N can surely enter the notch Va. Therefore, the distance g (see FIG. 8A) between the cover K and the back of the sheet bundle Sa is shorter when the cutout is formed in the sheet bundle Sa than when the cutout is not formed. It is preferable to do.

  After the cover sheet K is bonded to the sheet bundle Sa to which the adhesive N is applied, the molding members 87A and 87B are driven by a driving unit (not shown) in the raised state of the booklet forming unit 80 shown in FIG. The cover sheet K is sandwiched between the molding members 87A and 87B and is deformed from the side edge portion of the application surface of the adhesive N of the sheet bundle Sa (see FIG. 8B).

  Thereafter, the molding members 87A and 87B move in the horizontal direction toward the application surface side of the adhesive N of the sheet bundle Sa, and shape the cover sheet K by pressing and holding it on both side surfaces of the sheet bundle Sa for a predetermined time. The booklet Sb is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the booklet Sb is released when the pressing member 45 is released and dropped, and is placed on the upper surface of the discharge belt 88 and discharged toward the booklet discharge port 89. It is discharged to the booklet storage device C.

  At this time, if the applied adhesive N is not sufficiently cured by cooling, the back of the booklet Sb may be damaged when the booklet Sb is discharged. Therefore, when a notch is formed and the application amount of the adhesive N is increased, the holding time for pressing and clamping the cover sheet K on both sides of the sheet bundle Sa is set longer, and the adhesive N is allowed to cure. It is desirable to discharge the booklet Sb.

  The discharged booklet Sb is placed on the transportable belt 91 that can be moved up and down of the booklet storage device C, and is sequentially discharged by the rotation of the transport belt 91, and is stacked and stored on the paper discharge tray 92.

  Here, when binding the sheet bundle Sa, if the bookbinding conditions at the time of booklet creation are uniformly controlled, depending on each condition of the presence or absence of the notch, the pattern of the notch, and the thickness of the booklet, Problems such as insufficient penetration of the adhesive into the notch and poor drying of the adhesive occur.

  For this reason, the post-processing control unit 200 of the bookbinding apparatus B automatically controls the bookbinding conditions in accordance with the presence / absence of a notch, the notch pattern, and the booklet thickness. The post-processing control unit 200 presses and holds the cover sheet K on both side surfaces of the sheet bundle Sa, and the distance g between the cover sheet K and the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa during the pressing and holding, which is the bookbinding condition. 8 (a)), at least one of the application amounts of the adhesive N is controlled.

  The bookbinding conditions are set in advance according to each condition of the presence / absence of a notch, the pattern of the notch, and the booklet thickness by experiments or the like, and are stored in the post-processing control unit 200 in a format such as a bookbinding condition table.

  It is preferable that the holding time for pressing and clamping be set longer when the notch Va is present than when the notch Va is absent. As a result, the adhesive that has entered the notch Va can be sufficiently dried, and the adhesive strength between the cover K and the sheet bundle Sa can be increased.

  The distance g between the cover sheet K and the back of the sheet bundle Sa at the time of pressing and clamping may be set to be shorter when the notch is formed in the sheet bundle Sa than when the notch is not formed. preferable. As a result, the adhesive N can surely enter the notch Va, and the adhesive strength of the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa can be strengthened.

  In order to ensure that the adhesive N enters the cutout portion Va, when the cutout is formed in the sheet bundle Sa, the application amount of the adhesive N is set larger than when the cutout is not formed. Is preferred. As a result, the adhesive N can sufficiently enter the cutout portion Va, the adhesive strength of the back portion of the sheet bundle Sa is strengthened, and when the booklet Sb produced by attaching the cover K is opened, the adhesive is adhered. It is possible to prevent the shortage of sheets S from dropping and missing pages.

  Table 1 shows an example of controlling the holding time, the distance g, and the application amount of the adhesive N. In the example of Table 1, the paper is plain paper, the notch has the shape shown in FIG. 17, and the hole diameter of the notch Va is 6 mm. The notch pattern A has a predetermined distance Δ of 3 mm, and the notch pattern B has a predetermined distance Δ of 2 mm. The application amount of the adhesive is shown as a magnification of 1 and 0 when the notch is not cut.

  The bookbinding apparatus B according to the present invention is configured as an independent apparatus, and the sheet S discharged from another image forming apparatus main body or the sheet S supplied by a sheet feeding device connected to the bookbinding apparatus B is shown in FIG. It is also possible to produce case binding by performing an adhesive application process and a cover sticking process after being accommodated in the sheet bundle accommodating section 40 shown.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus including an image forming apparatus main body, a bookbinding apparatus, and a booklet storage apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the control of this invention. It is sectional drawing of the bookbinding apparatus which concerns on this invention. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state where a sheet stacking unit of the sheet bundle storage unit is installed in an inclined state. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a state where a paper stacking unit of the paper bundle housing unit is installed in an upright state. It is sectional drawing of a sheet | seat bundle accommodating part, an application part, a cover supply part, a cutting part, and a booklet formation part. It is a perspective view of an application part and a clamping part. It is sectional drawing of a booklet formation part and a paper bundle which show the folding process of a cover. It is a perspective view which shows the preparation process of the booklet by a paper bundle and a cover. It is sectional drawing of a notch formation part. It is a top view of the paper in which the notch part was formed. It is a front view of a notch formation part. It is a side view which shows other embodiment of the drive part which drives the punch of a notch formation part. It is a front view of a moving part. It is a top view of the sheet | seat bundle | stacking which accumulated the several sheet | seat in which the notch part was formed. It is a block diagram which shows control of other embodiment. FIG. 6 is a perspective view, a front view, and a partially enlarged view showing a sheet bundle having a notch. It is a front view of the sheet bundle which has a notch part.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 50 Application | coating part 51 Application | coating roller 70 Cutting part 80 Booklet formation part 100 Main control part 200 Post-processing control part 300 Notch formation part 301 Die 302 Punch 309 Rotating shaft 32A Shift conveyance part 400 Moving part A Image forming apparatus B Bookbinding apparatus K Cover M1, M2, M3, M4 Motor N Adhesive PS Sensor S Paper Sa Paper bundle Va, Vb Notch Δ Predetermined distance g Distance between cover and back of paper bundle

Claims (6)

In a bookbinding apparatus that applies an adhesive to the back of a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of sheets, and attaches a cover to the back of the sheet bundle to produce a booklet,
Notch forming means for forming a notch on the edge side of the conveyed paper, and position moving means for moving the relative position of the paper and the notch in the paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction. A notch forming part,
A sheet bundle housing portion that houses a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of sheets in which the notches are formed;
An application unit that applies an adhesive to a back portion of the sheet bundle housed in the sheet bundle housing unit in which a notch is formed;
A control unit for controlling the production of the booklet,
The control unit automatically controls the bookbinding conditions at the time of producing the booklet according to the notches formed on the paper by the notch forming unit, the notch pattern, and the booklet thickness. A bookbinding apparatus characterized by that. The bookbinding condition is at least one of a holding time for pressing and holding the cover sheet on the sheet bundle, a distance between the cover sheet and the back of the sheet bundle at the time of pressing and holding, and an adhesive application amount. The bookbinding apparatus according to claim 1. 3. The bookbinding apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the application amount of the adhesive is set to be larger when the notch is present than when the notch is not present. 4. The distance between the cover sheet and the back of the sheet bundle at the time of pressing and holding is set to be shorter when the notch is present than when the notch is not present. The bookbinding apparatus described in 1. 5. The bookbinding apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the holding time is set to be longer when the notch is present than when the notch is not present. An image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet, and a bookbinding apparatus according to claim 1 that receives a sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming apparatus and produces a booklet. An image forming system.

Images