JP3255056B2 - Distributed processing booklet creation system - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a distributed processing type booklet producing system suitable for producing a booklet in which color and black and white are mixed in the field of on-demand printing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a field called on-demand printing has attracted attention as a field related to digital copying machines, printers, and printing. Regarding this on-demand printing, for example, a print magazine 199
6 (Vol. 79) 10 pp. 68-69, entitled “The Importance of On-Demand Printing” (subtitle—On-demand Show in the United States, Visiting a Company—), authored in April 1996.
On was held in New York from March 23 to 25
Demand Digital Printing
& Publishing Show, and an article that reports on a visit to a US press manufacturer and printing company.

According to the article of this printing magazine, digital technology that enables printing with very short delivery time and consolidation of business forms has revolutionized the conventional printing industry, and is capable of printing black and white single-color small copies and wide-area services. It is pointed out that the emphasis is shifting to such things. Also, CAP, the sponsor of Show
Venture's President, Charles A Pesko, describes six important points about on-demand printing: That is, 1) the shift from printing that requires skill to the electronics service industry that does not require it, and 2) the short run that is more cost-effective than the conventional printing in terms of on-demand economics. 3) Merits beyond economics in on-demand, a) Short delivery time → convenience service
To business, b) Ease of content change → For example, high-tech related documents, system change manuals, etc. c) Significant reduction of customer print inventory → Digital inventory, customer inventory instead of inventory Manage your data,
When customers need it, print and provide the required amount, d) Customize → business using print database for individual companies using variable information printing, e) Significantly due to being able to complete data binding and bookbinding in-line 4) increase in the share of on-demand printing in the future,
5) Printed matter vs. process, on-demand printing does not mean printed matter, but means process-digital processing. Digitally connecting with customers, managing customer's data files becomes an important task. Data can be printed over the network, and can be printed at the location closest to the customer's desired destination. Dramatically shorten delivery time, reduce delivery costs, and easily change data.
These are the six points of transforming the printing industry into an industry that pursues the quality of service.

[0004] Of these six points, descriptions relating to "3) Advantages over economics in on-demand" and "5) Printed matter versus process" are particularly important when technically speaking on-demand printing. is there. In other words, on-demand printing not only can significantly shorten the delivery time of printed materials, but also can easily respond to demand in small quantities, and can be easily changed in content, such as documents such as high-tech manuals, It is suitable for creating booklets such as manuals for system changes, further reducing the customer's print inventory, significantly reducing man-hours by enabling in-line data entry to bookbinding, and digital lines between customers. It is also characterized in that the delivery time can be significantly reduced, the delivery cost can be reduced, the data can be easily changed, and the like, based on the ease of data transfer and the like due to the connection through the network.

Under these circumstances, documents such as the high-tech manuals and manuals for system changes, catalogs and manuals for new products, and items to be distributed in offices, etc., are all black and white pages. Booklet, a booklet consisting entirely of color pages, or a booklet consisting of pages in which black-and-white pages and color pages are mixed. When preparing a large number of documents such as high-tech related manuals and manuals for system changes, or booklets such as handouts delivered at offices, usually request a printing company based on manuscripts such as catalogs and manuals. It is common to do.

However, when a small amount of the above-mentioned catalogs, manuals for the apparatus, and booklets such as handouts to be delivered in the office are to be produced, the cost is not only increased by requesting the printing company to perform the printing process. Since it takes a certain number of days to complete, there is an inconvenience that a short delivery time cannot be met.

[0007] Therefore, catalogs and equipment manuals,
Alternatively, when a small amount of a booklet such as a handout to be delivered in an office is created, on-demand printing is employed as described above.

[0008] In connection with such on-demand printing technology, image recording devices such as digital copiers and printers have been widely used in recent years. It is improving to a near level. In addition, due to the recent rapid spread of personal computers for offices and individuals, a plurality of personal computers and the like provided with a print server via a local area network (LAN) in a company or a communication line such as a digital line. A network has been constructed by being connected to image recording devices such as digital copiers and printers, and it has become possible to freely record necessary image information at any time.

Meanwhile, as a technique relating to such a networked image recording system, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No.
Various publications have been already proposed, such as those disclosed in JP-A-815831, JP-A-6-75724, JP-A-6-290008, JP-A-7-44339 and JP-A-7-152506. .

The technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 3-815831 relates to parallel processing using a network, and distributes one job to a plurality of information processing devices.
It is configured to obtain the whole image information by reconstructing.

Further, the print control apparatus according to the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-75724 is connected to a communication network,
A printing control device for controlling a printing machine on a network, comprising: storage means for receiving and storing print data; reading means for reading an amount of print data processed by each printing machine on the network; Storage means for storing the printing processing capacity of the printing press; and determining one printing press based on the print data amount of each printing press read by the reading means and the printing processing capacity stored in the storage means. Means, and means for sending the print data stored in the storage means to the printing press determined by the determination means.

Further, the network system disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-290008 discloses a print server which has a printer and outputs data received from the outside to the printer, and a client which prepares print data and sends it to the print server. In the network system connected to the main print server, a main print server for centrally managing the operation status of the print server is provided, and when printing data prepared by the client, a print request is made from the client to the main print server. When receiving the print request, evaluate the availability of the print server connected to the network at that time,
Based on the evaluation, select the optimal print server,
A print request is sent to the print server, and print data from the client is sent to the print server.

Still further, the image processing system according to the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-44339 includes a storage unit, a control unit that reads stored data from the storage unit, applies the read data to the printer, and controls the printer. An image processing system comprising: a communication unit that communicates with an apparatus connected to a communication network, wherein the communication unit communicates with another image processing system of the same type connected in the network, and the storage unit stores the storage unit in any other storage unit. Is configured to be freely transferable without passing through another buffer memory.

Further, the image forming apparatus according to the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 7-152506 has a host communication unit for communicating with a host device, a storage unit for storing data received via the host communication unit, and another image forming apparatus. A data communication unit for performing data communication with the forming apparatus, an image forming unit for forming an image on a storage medium based on the data stored in the storage unit, and detecting the presence or absence of a recording medium fed to the image forming unit Detecting means for controlling the data communication means to transfer the data stored in the storage means to the other image forming means based on the detection result of the detecting means. is there.

A post-processing device used in combination with these networked image recording systems to create only a small amount of catalogs, manuals for the devices, or booklets to be distributed in the office, etc. The printed matter subjected to distributed processing etc. by the device is subjected to so-called collating processing to align the pages in order of each page,
A collation saddle stitching device that binds and binds as needed is used.

As the collating saddle stitching apparatus, for example,
Collating saddle stitching system manufactured by Horizon Co., Ltd. is already manufactured
It has been commercialized and has been widely used. This collation
As shown in FIG. 21, the saddle stitching system 200
The recording paper 201 printed as many as the number of copies
Has a plurality of bins 202 set therein. These duplicates
Bins 202 contain the first page of recording paper 201
The first bin 202 to do ₁And recording paper 2 on the second page
Second bin 202 containing 01_TwoAnd so on
At least two bins according to the number of pages of the booklet to be created
02. And the above-mentioned collating saddle stitching system 2
00 is a recording sheet of each page stored in each bin 202
The recording paper 201 is conveyed one sheet at a time,
After performing collation processing in the order of the pages, the two-head wire binding
Wire binding at two places by machine 203 simultaneously, if necessary
Center fold and trimming machine 204
It is configured to do so.

[0017]

However, the prior art described above has the following problems. That is, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei.
-75724, JP-A-6-290008,
JP-A-7-44339 and JP-A-7-15250
In the case of the network image recording technology disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 6-64, etc., recording devices connected to the network are intended for monochrome recording devices having basically the same function. However, in recent years, the colorization of image information of booklets such as catalogs and product manuals on the market or image information of booklets such as handouts distributed in offices and the like has been rapidly progressing. Many booklets such as manuals include pages of black-and-white photographic images and color images.

However, in the case of the network image recording technology disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 3-815831 or Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 6-75724, the recording devices connected to the network are basically the same. Since the present invention is intended for a black-and-white recording apparatus having a function, in the case of a booklet including an image of a color page, all image recording is performed by a color recording apparatus connected to a network. Therefore, according to the above-described conventional network image recording technology, when creating a booklet such as a catalog or product manual, even if only some pages are in color and most of the pages are black and white pages, All pages must be printed on a single recording device, which not only greatly increases the cost of creating a booklet, but the recording speed of a color recording device is extremely slow compared to a monochrome recording device. Therefore, there is a problem that it takes a long time to create a booklet, and the characteristics of on-demand printing cannot be fully utilized. Also, by performing parallel processing using a plurality of recording devices for each page, the time required for recording all pages can be reduced. And it takes a long time to create a booklet.

In the case of a post-processing apparatus such as a collation saddle stitching system used in combination with these network image recording techniques, basically, bins 102 are required in a number corresponding to the number of pages of a booklet to be created. Therefore, there is a problem that the post-processing device itself becomes large. further,
In the case of a post-processing device such as the above-mentioned collation saddle stitching system, when performing collation and saddle stitching processing, the number of required copies of the booklet should be slightly larger than in case of a jam such as a paper jam. Each page is printed in advance, and even if a jam such as a paper jam occurs, it is possible to avoid running out of recording paper for each page. There was a problem. Further, in the case of a post-processing apparatus such as the above-mentioned collating saddle stitching system, as described above, the apparatus itself becomes large, and thus it is not suitable to create a small number of booklets such as catalogs and product manuals. However, there has been a problem that it is not possible to meet the demands of users who need a small number of booklets at any time.

Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a compact system capable of producing a required number of booklets with a small number of bins. Therefore, it is possible to reduce unnecessary recording paper other than the necessary number of copies as much as possible,
In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a distributed processing type booklet creation system which can create a booklet in which black and white and color pages are mixed, at low cost and in a short time.

[0021]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a server for distributing and processing one job input from a client by a plurality of recording devices, and a server for executing the job based on a command from the server. A distributed processing-type booklet creation system including a plurality of printing apparatuses that perform printing on a print sheet of a job, and a post-processing apparatus that creates a booklet using the print sheets output from the plurality of print apparatuses, The post-processing device includes a plurality of sheet feeding units on which recording sheets output from the plurality of recording devices are set for each recording device, and an operation of the plurality of sheet feeding units based on information from the server. And a control means for performing the control.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet creating system according to the first aspect, the server includes a page constituting a part of one job and a part of the job. And a recording page monitoring control unit for instructing each of the recording apparatuses to perform recording with a header sheet indicating the following. Child creation system.

Further, according to a third aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the first aspect, the post-processing device is configured to output the recording sheets output from the plurality of recording devices for each recording device. And a display unit for displaying which paper feeding unit should be set.

[0024] Still further, the invention described in claim 4 is:
The distributed processing booklet creation system according to claim 2,
The post-processing device includes a reading unit that reads the header sheet, and the control unit controls the sheet feeding unit while also considering information read by the reading unit.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the fourth aspect, the post-processing device feeds the recording sheet based on the information read by the reading means. It is configured to include a judging means for judging the suitability of the set to the means, and a warning display means for displaying a warning when it is inappropriate.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the first aspect, the control means is provided from the server for controlling the operation of the plurality of paper feeding means. Information is obtained by communication means.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the sixth aspect, when the shortage occurs due to a paper jam or the like, the shortage is determined. It is configured to communicate with the server.

According to the invention described in claim 8, in the distributed processing type booklet creating system according to claim 1, the plurality of recording devices include a color recording device and a monochrome recording device. Things. In addition, this invention,
As described in claim 8 above, it is particularly effective when the plurality of recording devices are configured to include a color recording device and a monochrome recording device. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The same can be applied to the case where a plurality of recording devices consist only of a black-and-white recording device, that is, a case where a booklet of a black-and-white document is processed by being distributed to the plurality of black-and-white recording devices. Of course you can.

[0029]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a server for distributing one job input from a client by a plurality of recording devices, and recording the job on a recording sheet based on a command from the server. And a post-processing device that creates a booklet by using recording sheets output from the plurality of recording devices, wherein the post-processing device includes: A plurality of sheet feeding means on which recording sheets output from the plurality of printing apparatuses are set for each printing apparatus; and a control means for controlling the operation of the plurality of sheet feeding means based on information from the server. With this configuration, it is possible to perform the recording operation on the recording sheet in a short time by the distributed processing of one job, and to control the subsequent processing automatically without any trouble. Since the arm can reduce the overall time to create the booklet.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet creating system according to the first aspect, the server includes a page constituting a part of one job and a part of the job. Recording page monitoring control means for instructing each of the recording apparatuses to perform recording with a header sheet indicating that a recording sheet recorded by each recording apparatus and a recording sheet recorded by each recording apparatus Since the header sheet indicating the portion is completed as a set, it is helpful in setting the header sheet in the post-processing device, and erroneous collation can be reliably prevented.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet creating system according to the first aspect, the post-processing device includes a recording sheet output from the plurality of recording devices for each recording device. It is configured to have a display means for displaying which paper feeding means should be set in the printer, so if it is set according to the display, it is possible to create a booklet with the correct page order, and also ensure that the wrong collating process Can be prevented.

Still further, the invention described in claim 4 is as follows.
The distributed processing booklet creation system according to claim 2,
The post-processing device includes a reading unit that reads the header sheet, and the control unit is configured to control the sheet feeding unit while also considering information read by the reading unit. In this case, a booklet with the correct page order can be automatically recognized and a finger can be created in the correct page order, and incorrect collation processing can be reliably prevented.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the fourth aspect, the post-processing device feeds a recording sheet based on information read by the reading means. The apparatus is provided with a judgment means for judging the suitability of the setting to the means and a warning display means for displaying a warning when the setting is inappropriate, so that when a recording sheet of a different job is set, a warning that the setting is incorrect is displayed. Therefore, creation of an illegal booklet can be prevented.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the first aspect, the control means is provided by the server for controlling the operation of the plurality of paper feeding means. Since the information is obtained by the communication means, the operability can be greatly improved.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the sixth aspect, when the shortage occurs due to a paper jam or the like, the shortage is determined. Since it is configured to communicate with the server, useless recording sheets can be reduced as much as possible.

According to the invention described in claim 8, in the distributed processing type booklet creation system according to claim 1, the plurality of recording devices include a color recording device and a monochrome recording device. Therefore, even a booklet in which monochrome and color pages are mixed can be created at low cost and in a short time.

[0037]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below based on an embodiment shown in the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the present invention.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a client for creating a desired booklet manuscript such as a product manual or a catalog, or a distribution in an office. The client 1 is, for example, an office computer or a personal computer. And a color or black-and-white image scanner connected to these personal computers and the like.

Reference numeral 2 denotes 1 input from the client 1
This illustrates a booklet server that performs one job in a distributed manner by a plurality of recording apparatuses. The booklet server 2 includes, for example, a personal computer or the like, like the client 1. The booklet server 2 also has a function as a recording page monitoring control unit that instructs each of the recording apparatuses to record a page constituting a part of one job and a header sheet indicating which part of the job. ing.

Reference numeral 3 denotes a black-and-white printer as a recording device. As the black-and-white printer 3, for example, a large-sized printer capable of performing black-and-white image recording at a high speed is used as described later. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it goes without saying that a small printer may be used.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a color printer as a recording device.
For example, as described later in detail, a recording sheet is held on a transfer drum, and yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (B) are placed on the recording sheet held on the transfer drum. A) is used in which a color image is recorded by transferring the four color toner images in a state of being superimposed on each other. However, the color printer 4 is not limited to this, and may be yellow (Y),
A magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (B) image forming units are arranged in parallel, and a toner image formed by these four color image forming units is transferred to a recording sheet conveyed thereunder. Needless to say, a color printer 3 of another system may be used, such as one that records a color image by sequentially performing multiple transfer on the top.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a collating machine as a post-processing device for performing collating processing for aligning recording sheets in order of each page in order to create a booklet using the recording sheets output from the plurality of recording apparatuses. The collating machine 5 has a function of communicating the shortage to the booklet server 2 when a shortage occurs due to a paper jam or the like, as will be described in detail later.

The client 1, booklet server 2, black-and-white printer 3, color printer 4, and collating machine 5 are connected to a local area network (LAN) in the company.
And a communication line 6 such as the Internet or a digital line such as the Internet, and are connected to each other via a connection cable of the device, so that transmission and reception of image data and control signals are possible. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 7 denotes a special printer that uses special paper or cannot output a series of originals in page order and outputs the same page by a predetermined number of copies. .

FIG. 2 is an external perspective view showing a digital copier as a monochrome printer 3 applied to an embodiment of the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the present invention.

The digital copying machine 3 performs not only normal copying but also double-sided copying and single-sided multiplex copying, as well as electronically performing an operation of copying a plurality of documents in an arbitrary number of copies. It has an RDH function and a function of copying a large number of originals on both sides of a recording sheet in a state where pages are divided into two pages on each side.

The digital copying machine 3 has an image communication function as a facsimile in addition to a copying function, and a printer as a printer for outputting image information sent from the client 1 composed of the above-described host computer or personal computer. Has a function.

The digital copying machine 3 roughly divides an image of a document into an electric signal, converts the image into an electric signal, performs basic processing such as staggered correction on the converted image information, and outputs the image information. Terminal
(Hereinafter referred to as IIT) 8 and an Imag for storing image information sent from the IIT 8 and performing secondary processing as necessary, and then recording and outputting the image.
e Output Terminal (hereinafter, referred to as IOT) 9, a Controller (hereinafter, referred to as CONT) 10 for controlling the operation of the IIT 8 and IOT 9, and a print server which opens a job from the network 6 and creates an image. .

The CONT 10 has a User Interface (hereinafter referred to as a UI) 11 for the operator to specify a copying operation and the like. The UI 11 has a keyboard 12 and a mouse 13 for the operator to specify the copying operation. Alternatively, a keyboard 12 and a mouse 13 for designating a designated operation by the operator, or a display 14 for displaying the contents of the copying operation designated by the operator are provided.

In this embodiment, the IIT8
Automatic Document F that automatically conveys a document onto the platen of IIT8
and an ADF (hereinafter referred to as ADF) 15.
The ADF 15 is a Dua that can automatically transport the original 16 over the platen of the IIT 8 by turning over the original.
l Automatic Document Feed
er (hereinafter referred to as DADF).

The ADF 15 has an IDF as shown in FIG.
It is incorporated in a cover unit that covers the platen of the IT main body so that it can be opened and closed. As shown in FIG. 3, the ADF 15 includes a document feed tray 17 for storing a large number of documents 16, a feed belt 18 for feeding out the documents 16 stored in the document feed tray 17 one by one, A transport roll 21 that transports the original 16 sent out by the feed belt 18 to a platen 20 via a paper chute 19, and a transport that transports the original 16 transported by the transport roll 21 to an original set position on the platen 20. When the image reading of the document 16 placed on the platen 20 is completed, the belt 22, a discharge transport roller 23 for discharging the document 16 sent out by the transport belt 22, and a document containing the discharged document 16 And a receiving tray 24.

The ADF 15 has a document size detecting means (not shown) for detecting the size of the document.
As shown in FIG. 3, this document size detecting means
It is composed of a plurality of reflection-type optical sensors (not shown) disposed on ten document feed trays 17. The optical sensor is arranged at a position where a document 16 of the maximum size passes, and detects the size of the document 16 based on the presence or absence of reflected light from the document 16 when the document 16 is set on the document feed tray 17. Things. Then, by inputting an output signal from the optical sensor to a CPU described later, the CPU determines the size of the document 16.

The document 16 conveyed by the ADF 15 onto the platen 20 of the IIT main body is read by the scanner 25 of the IIT 2 as shown in FIG.
The scanner 25 includes a light source 26 that illuminates the original 15 placed on the platen 20, a reflector 27 that reflects light emitted from the light source 26 toward the original 1, and a reflected light from the original 16. Mirrors 29, 30, 31 for guiding the light to an image sensor array 28 composed of a CCD or the like.
And a lens 32 for imaging the image light guided by these mirrors 29, 30, 31 on the image sensor array 28. As shown in FIG. 3, the light source 26, the mirrors 29, 30, 31 or the image sensor array 25 are integrally incorporated as a scanner 25, and the scanner 25 is driven by a driving mechanism (not shown). It can reciprocate downward along the sub-scanning direction. And scanner 2
Numeral 5 is configured to read the image of the document 16 placed on the platen 20 by the image sensor array 28 while moving below the platen 20 in the sub-scanning direction.

The image information of the original 16 read by the image sensor array 28 of the scanner 25 is sent to a processor 33 and subjected to basic processing such as stagger correction as shown in FIG. Is output to.

The image information sent to the IOT 9 is
The image storage device receives processing such as compression and storage. Then, the image information read from the image storage device is
As shown in FIG. 3, the ROS unit 34 converts the optical signal into an optical signal, and scans and exposes the photosensitive belt 35 on the photosensitive belt 35.

As shown in FIG. 3, the ROS unit 34 includes a single semiconductor laser 36 and a beam from the semiconductor laser 36 reflected by a reflecting surface during the rotation operation so as to cover the photosensitive member over a predetermined scanning range. Belt 35
And a polygon mirror 37 leading upward.

The ROS unit 34 scans a laser beam Bm emitted from a semiconductor laser 36 oscillating in accordance with image information along the axial direction of the photoreceptor belt 35 by a polygon mirror 37 to thereby provide a photoreceptor belt. An image corresponding to the image information is scanned and exposed on 35.

The photosensitive belt 35 is connected to a primary charger 38.
After being uniformly charged to a predetermined potential in advance, the image is scanned and exposed by the ROS unit 34 as described above, and an electrostatic latent image is formed on the surface.

This electrostatic latent image is developed by a developing device 39 for developing with a black toner, and becomes a toner image.
Thereafter, the toner image formed on the photosensitive belt 35 is
Paper feed cassettes 40 and 41 arranged in the IOT body
Recording sheet 42 of a predetermined size supplied from any of
The photosensitive belt 35 is charged by the charging of the transfer charger 43.
Transcribed from The recording sheet 42 onto which the toner image has been transferred is charged by the separation charger 44 so that the photosensitive belt 3
After the separation from the recording sheet 42, the toner image is fixed to the recording sheet 42.

Further, the photoreceptor belt 3 after the transfer process is completed
The surface of 5 is cleaned by a cleaner 46 to remove residual toner, paper dust, and the like, and is also charged by a static eliminator 47 to erase residual charges, thus preparing for the next image recording step.

The recording sheet 42 on which the toner image is fixed as described above is discharged onto the discharge tray 48 as it is in a normal copying mode.

On the other hand, in modes such as double-sided copying and single-sided multiplex copying, the recording sheet 42 on which the toner image is fixed is
The transport path 49 and the sheet reversing mechanism 50 are not discharged as they are.
, The sheet is transported again to the transfer section as it is or after turning over, and a predetermined toner image is transferred and fixed. After the transfer and fixing of such a predetermined image are repeated, the recording paper 42 is discharged onto the discharge tray 48 for the first time.

FIG. 6 shows a color printer 4 applied to an embodiment of the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the present invention.
1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a digital color copying machine of a multiple transfer system as an example.

The digital color copying machine 4 is roughly divided into an image input terminal, which reads an image of a document, converts the image into an electric signal, performs predetermined image processing on the image information converted into the electric signal, and outputs the processed image information.
(Hereinafter referred to as IIT) 51 and Im for storing image information sent from the IIT 51, performing secondary processing as necessary, recording an image, and outputting the image.
age Output Terminal (hereinafter referred to as IO
T) 52 and a Controller (hereinafter referred to as CONT) 53 for controlling the operations of the IIT 51 and the IOT 52. In addition, the above IIT51
Is an Automatic Document that automatically conveys the original onto the platen of the IIT51.
A feeder (hereinafter, referred to as ADF) 54 is provided. The ADF 54 is capable of automatically transporting the original 16 over the platen of the IIT 8 by turning over the original.
ualAutomatic Document Fee
Of course, it may be der (hereinafter, referred to as DADF).

As shown in FIG. 7, an IIT 51 for reading an image of a document 56 is arranged at the upper end of the digital color copying machine main body 55. The IIT 51 is provided on the platen glass 57 with A serving as a platen cover.
Document 56 placed in a state pressed by DF 54
Is illuminated by the light source 58, and the reflected light image of the original 56 is reflected by the first scanning mirror 59 and the second scanning mirrors 60 and 61.
Then, the CCD sensor 63 is scanned and exposed through the imaging lens 62, and the CCD sensor 63 reads the color material reflected light image of the original 56 at a predetermined dot density (for example, 16 dots / mm). .

The color material reflected light image of the original 56 read by the IIT 51 is, for example, red (R), green (G),
IPS64 (Image Processing S) is used as original reflectance data for three colors of blue (B) (8 bits each).
system), and in the IPS 64, the original 56
Shading correction, positional deviation correction, brightness / color space conversion, gamma correction, frame erasing, color /
Predetermined image processing such as moving editing is performed.

The image data subjected to the predetermined image processing by the IPS 64 as described above includes black (K), yellow (Y), magenta (M), and cyan (C) (each 8 bits).
Is converted to original color material gradation data of four colors ROS65
(Raster Output Scanner), and the ROS 65 performs image exposure using laser light in accordance with the original color material gradation data.

As shown in FIG. 3, the ROS 65 modulates the semiconductor laser 66 according to the original color material gradation data, and emits a laser beam LB from the semiconductor laser 66 according to the gradation data. The laser beam LB emitted from the semiconductor laser 66 is deflected and scanned by a rotary polygon mirror 67, and is scanned and exposed on a photosensitive drum 70 as an image carrier via a reflection mirror 68.

The photosensitive drum 70 to which the laser beam LB is scanned and exposed by the ROS 65 is driven to rotate at a predetermined speed along a direction indicated by an arrow by a driving means (not shown). The surface of the photosensitive drum 70
After being charged to a predetermined potential by the charging corotron 71 in advance, an electrostatic latent image is formed by scanning and exposing a laser beam LB in accordance with document color material gradation data. The electrostatic latent images formed on the photoreceptor drum 70 include four color developing units 72K, 72Y, 72M, 72C of black (K), yellow (Y), magenta (M), and cyan (C).
Are sequentially developed by a rotary developing device 72 provided with a toner image, and a toner image of a predetermined color is obtained.

The toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 70 is sequentially transferred onto a recording sheet 74 held on a transfer drum 73 disposed adjacent to the photosensitive drum 70 by charging of a transfer corotron 75. Transcribed. As shown in FIG. 3, the recording sheet 74 includes a plurality of paper feed cassettes 76, 77, and 7 arranged at a lower portion in the copying machine main body 55.
The recording sheet 74 is fed from a feed roller 8 to a surface of a transfer drum 73 by a plurality of conveying rollers 80 and registration rollers 81. The recording sheet 74 is provided with a transfer corotron 7 also serving as a charger for electrostatic attraction.
Due to the electrification of 5, the toner is electrostatically attracted to the surface of the transfer drum 73 and is held on the surface of the transfer drum 73. In addition,
The digital color copying machine 4 includes a recording sheet 74 on which an image is recorded on one side via a sheet reversing path (not shown).
Is turned upside down and transported onto the transfer drum 73 again, thereby enabling color double-sided recording.

The recording sheet 74 onto which the toner image of a predetermined number of colors has been transferred from the photosensitive drum 70 is separated from the surface of the transfer drum 73 by the discharge of the separation corotron 82, and then conveyed to the fixing device 83. Then, the toner image is fixed on the recording sheet 74 by the heat and pressure by the fixing device 83, and is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 84, thereby completing the color image copying process.

In FIG. 7, reference numeral 85 denotes a charge removing corotron pair for removing charge from the transfer drum 73.

FIG. 8 shows a collating machine 5 used in an embodiment of the distributed processing type booklet producing system according to the present invention.

In FIG. 8, reference numeral 90 denotes a main body of the collating machine. On one side of the main body 90 of the collating machine, only the black and white pages are distributed by the black and white printer 3 so that the image is displayed as one image. Recording sheet 4 recorded page by page
2 is placed on a black and white paper feed tray 91, and the color printer 4 distributes only color pages, and a color sheet on which a recording sheet 74 on which color images are recorded one by one in page order is placed. Paper tray 92 and a special printer 4 that handles the special colors and special recording paper, etc.
Thus, for example, only a special color page is distributed, and a plurality of special processing paper feed trays 93 on which recording sheets on which a required number of color images are recorded for each page are placed are arranged. ing. As shown in FIG. 10, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, the recording sheet 42 placed on the black-and-white paper feed tray 91 has a booklet 94 in which pages 1 to 30 are black and white pages B1 and 31 pages. Pages 40 to 40 are color pages C1 and 41
From page 70 to page 70 are black and white pages B2, 71
Assuming that pages from page 100 to page 100 are color pages C2, recording sheets 42 of monochrome pages from page 1 to page 30 are placed on the black-and-white paper feed tray 91.
And a recording sheet 42 of black and white pages from page 41 to page 70, which are stacked thereunder, in a required number of copies. At this time, the first page of the first copy is placed on the black-and-white paper feed tray 91 so as to be at the top. Further, on the color paper feed tray 92, the required number of copies of the recording sheets 74 of the color pages of pages 31 to 40 and the recording pages 74 of the color pages of pages 41 to 70 are stacked. Is placed. Further, on each of the plurality of paper feed trays 93 for the special processing, recording sheets of a special page are different from the above, and the required number of T1 page recording sheets on one paper feed tray 93 is different. The required number of copies are placed on each page.

The black and white paper feed tray 91, the color paper feed tray 92, and the special processing paper feed tray 93 all have the same structure. Paper feed tray 9
As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, paper feed rolls 94, 95, 96 for feeding the recording sheets 42, 74 placed on the tray are provided at the upper ends of 1, 92, 93. The paper trays 91, 92,
The bottom plates 97, 98, 99 of the recording paper 93 are fed by the urging means such as a spring (not shown) so that the recording sheets 42, 74, etc.
95 and 96 are pressed.

Note that a jam tray 100 on which a recording sheet on which an image has been recorded again in the event of a paper jam is placed below the paper tray 93 for the special processing. The jam tray 100 is also configured in the same manner as the black-and-white paper feed tray 91 and the color paper feed tray 92, and the image is again recorded on the jam tray 100. The recording sheet 101 is pressed by the urging means such as a spring (not shown).
2. The recording sheet 101 placed on
Is pressed.

The recording sheet 4 fed from the black / white paper feed tray 91 and the color paper feed tray 92, the special processing paper feed tray 93, and the jam tray 100.
2, 74, etc., as shown in FIG.
105, 106, 107 and transport belts 108, 109
Then, the sheet is conveyed to the inside of the collating machine main body 90, and after the conveyance direction is changed in the horizontal direction along the conveyance path 110, the front and back are reversed by the sheet reversing mechanism 111 as necessary.

FIG. 11 shows a sheet reversing mechanism of the above collating machine.

In FIG. 11, reference numeral 111 denotes a sheet reversing mechanism provided inside the collating machine main body 90, and inside the collating machine main body 90, transport paths 110 and 1 are provided.
Numeral 12 is formed linearly in the horizontal direction, and a drawing-in passage 113 extending downward in the vertical direction is branched between these transport paths 110 and 112. These transport paths 110 and 11
A switching member 114 for switching the transport direction of the recording sheets 42, 74, etc., is provided at a branch portion where the drawing passage 2 and the drawing-in passage 113 branch, and a lower end of the switching member 114 is made of a synthetic resin such as a mylar sheet. A shield plate 115 made of a film protrudes downward. This shield plate 1
Reference numeral 15 indicates that the switching member 114 is disposed so as to be at the position shown in the drawing in a normal state. A forward / reverse rotation roll 116 and a pinch roll 117 for transporting the recording sheets 42 and 74 and the like are arranged at the upper end of the drawing passage 113 so as to be able to press against each other. This pinch roll 117 is
The pressure contact state with the forward / reverse rotation roll 116 can be released by the solenoid 119 via the link 118.
In FIG. 11, reference numeral 120 denotes a fulcrum of the link 118,
Reference numeral 1 denotes an operating rod of the solenoid 119, respectively.

The paper reversing mechanism 111 configured as described above
Then, the reversing operation of the recording sheet is performed as follows.

The recording sheets 42, 74 and the like conveyed inside the collating machine body 90 are conveyed along a conveyance path 110 as shown in FIG. Then, the recording sheet 4
As shown in FIG. 11, 2, 74 and the like are transported by the switching member 114 disposed in the transport path 110 to the drawing path 113 with the transport direction switched. The recording sheets 42, 74, etc., once guided into the draw-in passage 113 by the forward / reverse rotation roll 116, have their upper ends located above the lower end of the shield plate 115 of the switching member 114. This time, when the paper is conveyed to the conveyance path 112 by the reversing roll 116, the front and back are reversed.

Further, the recording sheets 42, 74, etc., which are turned upside down as necessary inside the collating machine body 90,
As shown in FIG. 9, the sheet is conveyed to the exit along the conveyance path 112. At the end of the collating machine body 90 opposite to the side where the paper feed tray 91 and the like are disposed, a sheet discharging means 122 for discharging the recording sheets 42 and 74 subjected to the collating process.
Is arranged. The recording sheets 42, 74, etc., which have been subjected to the collating process from the exit of the collating machine body 90 and are discharged, are transported along the transport path 123, and the transport direction is switched by the switching member 124. The sheet is conveyed upward by the belt 125 and discharged onto the discharge tray 126 after the collation processing has been performed. As shown in FIG. 12, the recording sheets 42, 74 and the like conveyed upward by the conveyance belt 125 are conveyed along the conveyance belt 125 by conveyance rolls 127, and a plurality of recording sheets are arranged beside the conveyance belt 125. The sheet is separated from the transport belt 125 by the separation claw 128 positioned at the predetermined height and collated on the discharge tray 126 by the discharge roll 129 and discharged.

Further, below the discharge tray 126,
A purge tray 130 is provided for forcibly discharging the jammed recording sheets 42, 74, etc., when a jam such as a paper jam occurs during the collating process of the recording sheets 42, 74, etc. in the collating machine body 90. ing. This purge tray 13
On the sheet No. 0, the recording sheet 4 jammed by the collator body 90 is placed.
2, 74 and the like are switched in the transport direction by the switching member 124, and are forcibly ejected via the transport path 131.

In FIG. 9, reference numerals 132 and 133 denote sheet detection sensors for detecting the recording sheets 42 and 74 discharged through the transport path 123 and the transport path 130, respectively.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a control circuit of a distributed processing type booklet producing system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, reference numeral 140 denotes a CPU for controlling the operation of the booklet server 2; 141, a memory for storing a program for controlling the operation of the booklet server 2; 142, a hard disk for temporarily storing image information; 143, a booklet server Display for displaying the operation status and the like 2
Indicates keyboards for the user operating the booklet server 2 to input necessary items and the like. These CPU 140, memory 141, and hard disk 1
The display 42, the display 143, and the keyboard 144 are connected to the network 6 via the network interface 145.

Reference numeral 146 denotes a CPU for controlling the operation of the monochrome printer 3; 147, a memory for storing a program for controlling the operation of the monochrome printer 3; 148, a hard disk for temporarily storing image information;
The I / O interface for driving the image recording means of the black and white printer 3 based on the signal output from 46 is shown. The CPU 146, the memory 147, and the hard disk 148 are connected to the network 6 via the network interface 150.

Further, 151 is a CPU for controlling the operation of the color printer 4, 152 is a memory for storing a program for controlling the operation of the color printer 4, etc., 153 is a hard disk for temporarily storing image information, and 154 is a CP.
The I / O interface for driving the image recording means of the color printer 4 based on the signal output from U151 is shown. These CPUs 151,
The memory 152 and the hard disk 153 are connected to the network 6 via the network interface 155.

Further, reference numeral 156 denotes a CPU for controlling the operation of the collator 5; 157, a memory for storing a program for controlling the operation of the collator 5; 158, a hard disk for temporarily storing image information; The I / O interface for driving the sheet conveying means of the collating machine 5 based on the signal output from the CPU 156 is shown. The CPU 156, the memory 157, and the hard disk 158 are connected to the network interface 160.
Is connected to the network 6 via the.

In the above configuration, the distributed processing type booklet creation system according to this embodiment has the following configuration.
This is a compact system that can create the required number of booklets with a small number of bins, and minimizes unnecessary recording paper other than the required number of sheets.Especially for booklets that mix black and white and color pages Even if there is, it can be made at low cost and in a short time.

That is, in the distributed processing type booklet creation system, as shown in FIG.
The original of each page of the booklet to be created is created by a personal computer or a color scanner connected thereto. As the booklet 94 to be created, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, pages 1 to 30 are monochrome pages B1, pages 31 to 40 are color pages C1, and pages 41 to 70.
The page is black and white page B2, from page 71 to 10
In some cases, monochrome pages and color pages are mixed, such as a page C2 up to page 0.

Next, 1 to n by the client 1
(For example, n = 100) a booklet 94 composed of pages
When one job for creating only a copy is instructed to the booklet server 2 via the network 6, the booklet server 2
In order to identify the jobs specified by the client 1 from each other, a job number E is assigned to the job, and the content of the job with the job number E is analyzed.
1 to 30 black and white pages B1 and 4
A partial job (1 _{B to} n _B ) × m consisting of monochrome pages B2 from page 1 to page 70, color pages C1 from page 31 to page 40, and color pages from page 71 to page 100 C2 and a partial job (1 _{C to} n _C ) × m. At this time, the booklet server 2 determines whether each page of one job of the job number E constituting the booklet 94 is a monochrome page or a color page by, for example, as shown in FIG. A monochrome or color image attached to the image data of each page as to whether or not the image data of each expanded page contains all the image data corresponding to black and white image data or whether it includes the image data corresponding to color image data This is performed by an identification code for identifying data. The determination of whether the page is a black-and-white page or a color page can be made by directly scanning the image data of each page developed in the bitmap depending on whether or not the image data includes the color image data, or by another method. It may be configured to do so.

[0093] Then, the booklet server 2 reads the black and white pages.
Job (1) consisting of pages B1 and B2_B~ N_B) ×
m and a partial job consisting of color pages C1 and C2
(1 _C~ N_C) × m and one of the job numbers E
Jobs in black and white and color connected over a network
To a plurality of printers 3 and 4 and execute distributed processing
You. Note that in the illustrated embodiment, the
Printers, black and white and color printers 3 and 4 each
However, only black and white and color printers are connected.
If the job number E is
First, the partial job of the black and white page and the partial job of the color page
Minute jobs and multiple black and white printers
And execute it in a distributed manner on multiple color printers.
Of course, it may be formed. These multiple black and white printers and
Processing for distributing one job to multiple color printers
Method is empty, as is clear from the prior art, etc.
Assigned preferentially to the printer or run out of recording sheets
Automatically assigns it to another printer
To perform distributed processing in accordance with predetermined priorities, etc.
The law is adopted.

In the above example, as shown in FIG. 10, one job of the job number E for creating the booklet 94 is a partial job (1 _{B to} n _B ) consisting of black and white pages B1 and B2.
× m and a partial job (1 _{C to} n _C ) × m composed of color pages C1 and C2. Printers connected to the network for executing this job are monochrome and color printers 3 and 4. Is a single unit, so that a partial job (1 _{B to} n _B ) × m composed of black and white pages B 1 and B 2
As divided job D1 but the printer 3 black and white sub-job consisting of color pages C1 and C2 (1 _C ~n _C)
Xm is allocated to the color printer 4 as the divided job D2.

Then, as shown in FIG. 13, the booklet server 2 issues a command to print only m copies of image data corresponding to partial jobs (1 _{B to} n _B ) consisting of monochrome pages B1 and B2. The signal is transmitted to the monochrome printer 3 via the network 6, and the monochrome pages B1 and B2 are transmitted.
The image data corresponding to the partial job (1 _{B to} n _B ) is temporarily stored in the hard disk 148 of the monochrome printer 3. Further, the book server 2, the image data corresponding to the job (1 _C ~n _C) consisting of pages C1 and C2 of the color to print only m portion, a color printer 4 the command signal via the network 6 And a job (1 _C) composed of color pages C 1 and _{C 2}
To n _C ) is a color printer 4
Is temporarily stored on the hard disk 154 of the storage device.

As described above, when the booklet server 2 instructs the monochrome printer 3 and the color printer 4 to perform one job of the job number E in a distributed manner,
The black-and-white printer 3 and the color printer 4 execute a black-and-white page B1 designated by the booklet server 2 to perform distributed processing.
And a sub-job (1 _B ~n _B) × m divided job D1 of consisting of B2, and a divided job D2 sub-jobs (1 _C ~n _C) × m consisting of color pages C1 and C2, each independently Execute. And the above black and white printer 3
Now, as shown in FIG. 15, black and white pages B1 and B2
Run the partial job (1 _B ~n _B) × m consisting of a pair of recording sheet 42 corresponding to the pages B1 and B2 of the black and white, those recorded m section only of each set, the output tray It is discharged while loaded on Similarly, in the color printer 4, the color pages C1 and C2
Run the partial job (1 _C ~n _C) × m consisting of a pair of recording sheet 74 that corresponds to the page C1 and page C2 color, a recording of the m unit only one part, on the discharge tray It is discharged while loaded on

At this time, the booklet server 2 stores the divided jobs D1 to Dn, which are a part of one job of the job number E.
A record for instructing the monochrome printer 3 and the color printer 4 to record a page constituting (where n is the number of divisions of one job) and a header sheet indicating which part of one job of the job number E. It is configured to include page monitoring control means. As a header sheet 161 indicating which part of the job of the job number E is included in the divided jobs D1 to Dn which are a part of one job of the job number E, for example, as shown in FIG. A job number E of one job, a division number F indicating the number of divisions of the one job, and a division number indicating the number of the job divided into the division number F of the job number E A bar code 162 indicating print information such as jobs D1 to Dn, a job name 163, a requester's name 164, a record 165 from what page to how many pages of one job, or a matter indicating the number of print copies 166 are described. Is used. The above header sheet 1
In addition to the job name 163 and the requester's name 164, the job number E of one job, which is the same item as the item displayed by the bar code 162, and the 1
The number of divisions F indicating how many jobs have been divided, and characters indicating print information such as divided jobs D1 to Dn indicating the number of the job divided into the number of divisions F of job number E Of course, it may be described. further,
In the header sheet 161, the recording sheets output by the printer are stored in any of the sheet feeding trays 91, 92, 9 of the collating machine 5.
Character information indicating whether it should be placed on 3 etc. is also described,
It is desirable that the operator can visually set the printed matter on the predetermined paper feed trays 91, 92, 93 of the collating machine 5 without error. Here, the job number E of one job, the division number F, and the 1 of the job number E
For example, as shown in FIG. 17, a predetermined number of digits are assigned to each job number E and the number of divisions F as the bar code 162 indicating print information of the divided jobs D1 to Dn indicating which part of one job. A specific code or the like indicating the job number E or the number of divisions F is used for each digit.

Next, as described above, the recording sheet 42 on which the image is recorded by the monochrome printer 3 and the color printer 4,
As shown in FIG. 9 and FIG.
The user sets them on a sheet feeding tray 91 for the collating machine 5161 and a sheet feeding tray 92 for color. The operation of setting the jobs of these recording sheets 42 and 74 on the black and white paper feed tray 91 and the color paper feed tray 92 of the collating machine 5 is automatically performed using a transport belt or the like. You may be comprised so that it may perform.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 9, the collating machine 5 uses the monochrome printer 3 and the color printer 4 as shown in FIG.
1 so that the divided jobs, such as the recording sheets 42 and 74 on which the images are recorded, are set on the predetermined black and white paper feed tray 91 and the color paper feed tray 92 without fail.
As shown in FIG. 6, the barcode 162 recorded on the header sheet 161 of each job is stored in the black and white paper feed tray 91.
And barcode readers 170, 171, and 172 disposed on the color paper supply tray 92 and the like.
It is determined whether or not the recording sheets on which the respective pages of the divided job instructed to be distributed from the booklet server 2 are recorded are set in predetermined sheet feed trays 91 and 92 in the order of the correct number of pages. Alternatively, it is possible to detect which part of one job of job number E has been set in the paper feed trays 91 and 92 on the basis of this information, and based on the detection result, the paper feeding operation for collation processing is automatically performed. May be controlled. Further, in the above embodiment, one black-and-white printer and one color printer are provided, and one job of job number E is divided into two corresponding to two printers for performing distributed processing. of the divided divided job Dl to Dn, and outputs the sub-job (1 _B ~n _B) × divided job D1 of m consisting of pages B1 and B2 of the monochrome black and white printer 3, the color of the page C
The case in which the color printer 4 outputs the divided job D2 of the partial job (1 _{C to} n _C ) × m composed of 1 and C2 has been described. However, it is not limited to this,
A plurality of divided jobs D1 to D1 are provided in correspondence with a plurality of printers each including at least one of a black-and-white printer and a color printer and performing a distributed processing of one job of job number E.
n, and the plurality of divided jobs D1 to Dn may be distributed and output by different black and white printers or color printers. In such a case, the booklet server 2 divides one job of the job number E into a number of jobs, and among the divided jobs D1 to Dn, a plurality of partial jobs is printed by a black-and-white printer, a color printer, and which printer. It is configured such that the output is grasped by the job number E and the divided jobs D1 to Dn.

Then, this collating machine 5 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 7, in the above-described example, the recording sheet 42 on which the black and white pages B1 from page 1 to page 30 are recorded is printed on the black and white paper feed tray 91 so as to create the booklet 94.
And one by one from the black and white page to the discharge tray 126 so that the pages are aligned by the sheet reversing mechanism 111 as needed. Next, after the job of the black and white page B1 from page 1 to page 30 from the black and white paper feed tray 91 is discharged onto the discharge tray 126, the collating machine 5 next outputs the page 31 to 40. The recording sheet 74 on which the color pages C1 up to the page are recorded is conveyed one by one from the color paper supply tray 92 to the inside of the collating machine main body 90, and the page is reversed by the paper reversing mechanism 111 as necessary. The black and white ones on the output tray 126
The sheets are sequentially discharged while being stacked on pages 30 to 30. Thereafter, in the collating machine 5, similarly, the recording sheet 42 on which black and white pages B2 from page 41 to page 70 are recorded, and the recording sheet 74 on which color pages C3 from page 71 to page 100 are recorded. Are sequentially discharged in a state of being stacked on the discharge tray 126, and the collation processing of the recording sheets constituting one copy of the booklet 94 is performed. If there are a plurality of color printers, it is better to instruct recording to the same printer as the previous one from the standpoint of color reproduction.

Further, in the collating machine 5, the collating process is similarly sequentially performed for a predetermined number m of copies, and
6 are sequentially discharged in a state where the booklets 94 of each section are stacked.

If a jam such as a paper jam occurs during the execution of the collating process of a predetermined job by the collating machine 5, as shown in FIG. Is forcibly discharged onto the purge tray 130, and the booklet server 2 receiving the instruction from the collating machine 5
Outputs a recording instruction to the black-and-white or color printers 3 and 4 in order to record only the recording sheet of the page which has become insufficient due to the jam. Then, the recording sheet on which the missing pages are recorded by the black and white or color printers 3 and 4 is set on a paper feed tray for jam provided outside the collating machine main body 90.

The shortage of the recording sheets 42 and the like set in the paper feed tray 100 for the jam are first collated by the collating machine 5 based on an instruction from the booklet server 2, and the pages of the jammed page are processed. After the recording sheets are collated, the recording sheets of the regular pages are transferred to the black and white paper feed tray 9.
Sheets are conveyed one by one from the one or color paper feed tray 92 to the inside of the collating machine main body 90, and the collating process is executed to the end.

Thus, finally, the collating machine body 9
The booklet 94 including the black and white page B1, the color page C1, the black and white page B2, and the color page C is discharged onto the discharge tray 126 of No. 0 in a state where m is stacked, and should be created. The collation processing of the booklet 94 ends.

After that, the recording sheets forming the booklets 94 of the respective sections subjected to the collating process by the collating machine 5 are subjected to a binding process, a binding process for attaching a cover, and the like. The creation work ends.

As described above, in the above-described embodiment, the booklet server 2 for distributing and processing one job input from the client 1 by the plurality of printers 3 and 4, and based on the instruction from the booklet server 2, A distributed processing type including a plurality of printers 3 and 4 for recording a job on a recording sheet 42 and the like, and a collating machine 5 for creating a booklet using the recording sheets output from the plurality of printers 3 and 4. In the booklet creating system, the collating machine 5 includes a plurality of paper feed trays 91, 92 on which recording sheets output from the plurality of printers 3, 4 are set for each of the printers 3, 4.
93 and control means for controlling the operation of the plurality of paper feed trays 91, 92, 93 based on the information from the booklet server 2. Since the recording operation on the document 42 can be performed in a short time and the control of the subsequent processing is automatically performed without any trouble, the entire time for preparing the booklet 94 can be reduced.

Further, in the above embodiment, the server 2 records the pages constituting a part of one job and the header sheet 161 indicating which page of the job, by the printers 3 and 4. , The recording page monitoring control means for instructing each printer 3,
4 and a header sheet 16 indicating which page of one job the recorded recording sheet is.
1 are completed as a set, which is helpful when setting the collating machine 5, and erroneous collating processing can be reliably prevented.

Further, in the above embodiment, the collating machine 5 reads the header sheet 161 by the reading means 1.
70, etc., and the control means is configured to control the paper feeding means while also taking into account the information read by the reading means 170, so that even if it is set arbitrarily, it is automatically recognized, A booklet with the correct page order can be created, and incorrect collation processing can be reliably prevented.

Further, in the above embodiment, the collating machine 5
May be provided with a determination unit for determining whether or not the recording sheet is set on the paper feed trays 91, 92 and 93 based on the information read by the reading unit 170, and a warning display unit for displaying a warning when the setting is inappropriate. Therefore, when a recording sheet of a different job is set, a warning that the setting is incorrect is displayed, so that creation of an incorrect booklet can be prevented.

In the above embodiment, the control means obtains information from the server 2 for controlling the operation of the plurality of paper feed trays 91, 92, 93 by communication means. Therefore, operability can be greatly improved.

Further, in the above embodiment, the collating machine 5
However, when a shortage occurs due to a paper jam or the like, the shortage is communicated to the server, so that useless recording sheets can be reduced as much as possible.

Further, in the above embodiment, since the plurality of printers 3 and 4 are configured to include the color recording device and the black-and-white recording device, particularly, the booklet is a mixture of black-and-white and color pages. However, it can be produced at low cost and in a short time.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 20 shows Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The same parts as those of the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and described. The post-processing device is configured to include a display unit 190 for displaying which sheet feeding unit should set the recording sheets output from the plurality of recording devices for each recording device. Therefore, in this embodiment, if the booklet is set in accordance with the display of the display means 190, a booklet with the correct page order can be created, and erroneous collation processing can be reliably prevented. Other configurations and operations are the same as those of the above-described embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

[0114]

According to the present invention, there is provided a compact system capable of producing a required number of booklets with a small number of bins corresponding to the number of recording apparatuses to be dispersedly processed. A distributed processing type that can minimize useless recording papers other than the required number of copies as much as possible, and can produce a booklet in which black and white and color pages are mixed at a low cost and in a short time. A booklet creation system can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a distributed processing booklet creation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external perspective view showing a black-and-white printer applied to an embodiment of a distributed processing booklet producing system according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram illustrating an image forming unit of the monochrome printer.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram illustrating an image reading unit of a monochrome printer.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a processing circuit for processing image data read by an image reading unit of a monochrome printer.

FIG. 6 is an external view showing a color printer applied to an embodiment of a distributed processing booklet producing system according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram illustrating a color printer.

FIG. 8 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a collating machine applied to an embodiment of a distributed processing booklet producing system according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram showing a collating machine applied to an embodiment of a distributed processing booklet producing system according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a booklet created by an embodiment of the distributed processing booklet creation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram showing a sheet reversing unit of the collating machine.

FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram showing a sheet discharge unit of the collating machine.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of a control unit showing one embodiment of a distributed processing booklet creation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing each page of a booklet created by an embodiment of the distributed processing type booklet creation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of one embodiment of the distributed processing booklet creation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a recording sheet output by a printer.

FIG. 17 is a table showing a display of a header sheet output by the printer.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of one embodiment of the distributed processing booklet creation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a method of detecting a header sheet.

FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a method for detecting a header sheet.

FIG. 21 is an external perspective view showing a booklet producing apparatus used in a conventional distributed processing type booklet producing system.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 client, 2 booklet servers, 3 monochrome printers, 4 color printers, 5 collating machines, 6 communication lines.

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI G03G 21/00 370 G03G 21/00 370 386 386

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] 1. A server that distributes one job input from a client by a plurality of recording devices, a plurality of recording devices that record the job on a recording sheet based on a command from the server, and a plurality of recording devices. And a post-processing device for generating a booklet using the recording sheets output from the plurality of recording devices, wherein the post-processing device is configured to control the recording output from the plurality of recording devices. A distributed processing method comprising: a plurality of sheet feeding units on which sheets are set for each recording apparatus; and a control unit for controlling the operations of the plurality of sheet feeding units based on information from the server. Type booklet creation system. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the server includes a recording page monitoring control unit that instructs each of the recording apparatuses to record a page constituting a part of one job and a header sheet indicating which part of the job. The distributed processing type booklet creation system according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the post-processing device includes a display unit that displays a sheet feeding unit to which the recording sheets output from the plurality of recording devices are to be set for each recording device. Item 3. The distributed processing type booklet creation system according to Item 1. 4. The post-processing device includes a reading unit that reads the header sheet, and the control unit controls the sheet feeding unit while also considering information read by the reading unit. The distributed processing type booklet creation system according to claim 2. 5. A post-processing device comprising: a determination unit configured to determine whether a recording sheet is set in a sheet feeding unit based on information read by the reading unit; and a warning display unit configured to display a warning when the setting is inappropriate. The distributed processing type booklet creation system according to claim 4, comprising: 6. The distributed processing booklet creation system according to claim 1, wherein said control means obtains information from said server for controlling the operation of said plurality of paper feeding means by a communication means. . 7. The distributed processing type booklet creation system according to claim 6, wherein the post-processing device communicates the shortage to the server when the shortage occurs due to a paper jam or the like. 8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of printing apparatuses include a color printing apparatus and a black and white printing apparatus.