GB2175251A - Book binding machine - Google Patents

Abstract

A book binding machine which binds books 12 in discrete stages at three consecutive binding stations. As a book arrives at a first station a length of adhesive tape is fed over the end so as to leave a free end 44 overlapping the book. A heated primary iron, mounted on a reciprocating beam 48 common to all three stations, descends onto the end of the book so as to adhere the tape 44 thereto. The book is then passed to the second station (Figure 4A). A second primary iron 42 descends onto the book to clamp it and a heated secondary iron 57 moves downwards past the primary iron 42 so as to fold the severed end of the tape 44 over the edge of the book. Secondary iron 57 is mounted on the beam 48 by means of a resilient strap 58 which biases it laterally towards the primary iron 42. A camming surface 60 on iron 57 allows it to exert pressure on the spine of the book as it descends. At the third station (Figure 4B) a heated tertiary iron 62 moves horizontally under the end of the book folding the remaining overlapping portion of the tape 44 thereunder. The tertiary iron has a chamfered portion 76 which engages a sloping edge 77 on the frame so as to provide vertical support for the book. A third primary iron 43, suspended from the beam 48, presses on the folded tape. A vertical wall portion 74 on the tertiary iron 62 simultaneously presses the tape 44 onto the spine of the book at its bottom edge. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Binding machine This invention relates to machines for binding stacks of paper into books. It has particular application in the making of soft cover books or pads. A particular use of the invention is in the manufacture of cheque books from stacks of cheques, for example those assembled by machines of the kind disclosed in our British Patent Specifications Nos.

2147569A and 2147570A.

Starting with a supply of formed stacks of sheets (pages) machines embodying the invention in common with prior machines perform the function of securing a binding tape around and along an edge of each stack. Some preliminary securement of the sheets in the stack is common, for example by one or more staples. The tape adheres to marginal outer edge portions of the upper and lowermost sheets (over exposed parts of the staple or staples when used), and the edges themselves of the intermediate sheets. The binding operation is accomplished in three discrete stages. In the first a length of adhesive coated tape is located over a marginal edge portion of the uppermost sheet, and a primary iron applied thereover with pressure to adhere the tape thereto.The adhesive is normally heat activated and for this reason the iron may be maintained at a suitable temperature to provide the necessary heat. In the second stage, the secondary iron (heated as required) folds and secures the tape to the sheet edges in the stack. A primary iron is normally also used in the second stage to both hold the stack in place and serve as a guide for the secondary iron as it engages the edge of the stack. The same primary iron can be used in both the first and second stages. In the third stage, a tertiary iron (again heated as required) makes a second fold and secures the remaining tape length to the underside of the bottom-most sheet.

One of the difficulties encountered with machines of this type is that of forming sufficiently small radius folds in the tape during the binding stages so that the portion of the tape secured to the edges of the sheets lies flat in contact with the edges across the entire thickness of the stack. The present invention is directed to providing a solution to this problem.Accordingly the invention provides a binding machine for binding in a common vertical plane the edges of sheets in a stack in an operation in which a tape is wrapped around the side of the stack arranged in said common plane and adhered thereto, said operation comprising a first cycle wherein an edge portion of the tape is adhered to the top surface of the stack by means of a vertically displaceable pressure member whereby the remaining portions of the tape overhang said side of the stack, a second cycle in which a vertically displaceable member presenting a first linear edge to the side wipes it in a downward movement from above the tape, said first linear edge being defined by vertical and substantially orthogonal faces of the member, said tape being thereby adhered to the side of the stack with a portion overlapping the bottom surface of the stack, and a third cycle in which a horizontally displaceable member presents to said side firstly a second linear edge defined by a horizontal face disposed in a plane containing the bottom surface of the stack and a downwardly depending face and secondly a vertical face upstanding from said horizontal face, said horizontally displaceable member moving from a position spaced from said side ot the stack so as to wipe the underside thereof and bring the vertical face into contact with the said side of the stack, said overlapping portion of the tape thereby being adhered to the underside of the stack, and wherein the member wiping the side of the stack in the second cycle is mounted with a restricted lateral freedom of movement in a direction towards the stack, being biased in said direction by resilient means, whereby it applies pressure on the said side, the pressure being controlled by camming means so that as the member wipes the side of the stack a progressively increased pressure is applied thereto by the vertical face of the member.

In the preferred embodiment formed stacks are delivered sequentially to the binding machine and in the machine they are carried in stepped fashion to and between the three binding stations. In the preferred machine, each station employs a primary iron, but each iron is specifically adapted to the respective station. Thus, the first station primary iron is heated (if required); the second station primary iron is formed with a roller which co-operates with a chamfered or inclined surface on a secondary iron to guide the secondary iron on an inclined downward path against the stack edge; and the third station primary iron is adapted to apply pressure on the top of the stack as the tertiary iron slides underneath the bottom surface of the stack.

The three primary irons may all be spring mounted on a common beam which is lowered cyclically for the simultaneous completion of all three binding stages in a continuous process. Operation of the respective steps will normally be coupled to a common drive, typically through a cyclically operated clutch synchronised with the passage of the stacks through the stages. For example, engagement of the clutch rotates a shaft through one revolution. A crank drives the beam through a single stroke (i.e. down and up), and primary irons resiliently mounted thereon are urged against stacks located in the binding stages. A lost motion connection to the beam drives the secondary iron through its binding stroke; and a cam coupled to the shaft pivots a lever to drive the tertiary iron through its binding stroke.

The length of tape provided at the first stage is normally cut from a supply roll in the first stage.

The leading edge is fed across the edge of the stack and over the uppermost sheet the requisite distance by means of a drive roll either before or when a stack arrives. The drive roll is coupled to a stepping motor to which is fed, from a central control console, a sequence of drive pulses corresponding in number to the thickness of the stack.

As the primary iron is lowered to engage the tape and stack, a knife coupled thereto cuts the tape at the appropriate distance from its leading edge. The knife may be mounted for lateral movement to vary this distance in accordance with the thickness of the stack. Normally the thickness of a stack (number of sheets) is set for mass production and adjustment under such circumstances is not frequently necessary.

The seriatim passage of stacks to and through the binding stages is preferably accomplished in machines according to the invention by a stepped drive. A typical such drive comprises one or more oscillating rods bearing pivotal fingers which upon forward motion extend through slots in a track to engage and propel stacks along the track. Upon rearward motion the fingers pivot below the track to pass under stacks on the track. Sensors may be included to detect a stuck finger which will of course disrupt the process. In their passage, the stacks may additionally be forced under a control strip coupled to a trip switch. Thus, if for some reason a stack is distorted to an extent that forces the strip to be lifted, the switch is tripped to trigger an alarm signal, or stop the machine as appropriate.

As noted above, it is common to make some preliminary securement of the stack prior to binding, typically using staples. In the embodiment of the invention described herein Bostitch staplers are used. Each stack is passed to the stapler or staplers prior to binding. Using the finger conveyor system just referred to, the fingers urge each stack against resilient and retractable stops to ensure proper alignment of the sheets in the stack. The staple is secured, the stops retracted, and the stack carried forward to the next stage. Once stapled, further alignment of the sheets is not normally needed prior to application of the binding tape.

Any reasonable number of staples may be applied in one or more preliminary stages. We prefer to fix two staples in separate stages. The Bostitch stapler cuts and shapes staples from a supply wire just prior to application. This facility enables the length of a staple to be chosen to suit the thickness of a stack at the preliminary stage. In the preferred machines this adjustment is possible by passing a stack of the appropriate thickness between two arms. The adjustment is made until the spacing between the arms substantially matches the stack thickness and the setting then locked. The stapler may also be modified in machines according to the invention to monitor malfuntion thereof. In this as pect of the invention the anvil against which the legs of the staple are deformed is eletrically iso lated from the main frame of the machine.An electric circuit is formed which is completed through the staple and anvil when the two make contact.

The completion of the circuit triggers the next step in the process. If there is no staple wire or a staple fails to reach the anvil for some reason, the proc ess is interrupted.

In preparing a stack of sheets for binding, the machine makes provision for the addition of sup plementary sheets at the top andlor bottom of the stack. A simple feeder can be operated to deliver a first such sheet and means provided to invert the stack for delivery of a second such sheet thereafter. In this way front and back sheets may be included in the bound stack. The inverter preferably comprises a wheel with radial slots into which a stack is fed. The wheel is rotated through 180 in each step of the process, and the thus inverted stack taken off the wheel by the conveyor mechanism. The wheel may comprise a plurality of discs between which finger conveyors as described above may pass.

Optic sensors are preferably employed to register the presence or absence of a stack at any stage in the process. In the absence of a stack, the process is interrupted for checking. At the feed or feeders for supplementary sheets a sensor can additionally monitor the passage of the supplementary sheet to ensure that the stack transmitted to the next stage has the requisite composition.

A machine embodying the various aspects of the invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings. It will be appreciated that the various features described may be used beneficially without necessarily being in combination with the others. In the drawings; Figure 1 and 2 are schematic plan and elevation views of a machine embodying the invention; Figure 3 is a schematic fragmentary view of the track and the binding unit shown in Figures 1 and 2; Figure 4 shows the binding unit in sectional elevation; Figure 4A and 4B are sectional views of the binding unit respectively in the planes AA, BB indicated in Figure 4; Figure 5, 5A, 6, 6A and 7, 7A illustrate the binding operations in the respective stations 1, 2 and 3; Figure 8 is a schematic perspective view of the tape feed mechanism; and Figure 9 is a schematic perspective view of the operating mechanism for the irons.

The machine shown in Figures 1 to 3 comprises a track 2 defined by plates 4 mounted on a fixed frame. Slots 6 between the plates 4 allow passage of rods 8 which reciprocate to the left and right as shown. The rods 8 carry pivotal fingers 10 (Figure 2) which in a forward stroke advance a stack 12 one step through the machine. In the rearward stroke (to the right as shown) the fingers 10 retract to pass under a stack 12 advanced by the previous fingers.

At the delivery end of the track a supplementary feeder 14 is mounted. An optic sensor (not shown) detects the presence of a new stack, and triggers the feeder to deliver a supplementary sheet thereto. This delivery is also monitored by an optic sensor (not shown). A one step advance of the rods 8 carries the stack to enter radial slots in a plurality of discs 16. During the subsequent retraction of the rods the discs rotate through 180 returning the inverted stack to the track. A further one step advance carries the stack to the first sta pler 18, although a second supplementary feeder can be interposed here to deliver another supple mentary sheet to the stack if additional front and rear sheets are required.In the machine shown, each stack is subjected to two stapling steps, the rods/fingers carrying the stack from the first (18) to the second (20) stapler in the next advancing step.

Alignment of the sheet in the stack is assured at the first stapler 18 by the stack being advanced by the fingers 10 against resilient and retractable stops (not shown) which retract and extend in synchronization with the advance of stacks 12 along the track 2. The operation of the staplers is not described in detail; those referred to herein are proprietary products, and are adapted for use in the machine described only for adjustment and for monitoring of any malfunction as described above.

From the staplers 18,20 the stacks are carried to the binding unit generally indicated at 22. Three binding stages are carried out here, and these are described in more detail below. The bound stacks are discharged at the left (as shown) end of the track 2.

In addition to the alignment of sheets in each stack at the first stapler 18, lateral alignment is maintained by movable guides 24 and 26 on one side of the track 2 and a fixed guide 28 on the other. Movement of the guides 24 and 26 enables the machine to accommodate differently sized stacks. Adjustment of the guides is enabled by releasable lock nuts 29. Mounted on the guide 24 is a switch 30 linked to a rod 32 whence arms 34 extend to a control strip 36 under which the stacks are forced to pass on the track from the inverter discs 16. Undue displacement of the control strip 36, indicating some distortion of the stack, trips the switch 30 and interrupts the process.

Binding unit 22 has three operating positions (or stations 1,2 and 3) the locations of which correspond with the three primary irons 41, 42, 43. Tape 44, to be ironed onto the stacks (or books) is supplied to station 1 from a roll of tape 45 positioned behind the unit 22. A knife 46 severs the length of tape required for each binding operation. These parts are seen in greater detail in Figure 8, to which reference is made hereinafter.

Referring particularly to Figures 4, 4A, 4B and 9, primary irons 41, 42 and 43 respectively in stations 1, 2 and 3, are suspended on pairs of rods 47 which slide in respective bores in a single beam 48 common to all three stations. Rods 47 are captive in the beam and each is biased downward by a respective compression spring 49. Beam 48 is supported from a hanger 50 which is slidable up and down and is coupled to a pin 51 eccentrically mounted in the face of a rotatable plate 52 by a connecting rod 53. Plate 52 is mounted on a journailed intermittently driven shaft 54 coupled to a wrap spring clutch 55. A heater 56 is contained within a bore in primary iron 41.

As best seen in Figure 4A, station 2 has a secondary iron 57 mounted from the beam 48 in addition to the primary iron 42, being attached to a resilient strap 58 which supports it in the vertical direction and which presses it laterally onto a roller 59 which is mounted on the primary iron 42 along the rear top edge thereof. An inclined surface 60, or chamfer, on the top portion of the secondary iron co-operates with roller 59 on iron 42 when the secondary iron is displaced downwards vertically with respect to iron 42, thereby permitting the secondary iron to be displaced laterally towards the primary iron by virtue of the force exerted by the strap 58. A bore in secondary iron 57 contains a heater 61.

As best seen in Figure 4B, in station 3, in addition to an unheated primary iron 43 a tertiary iron 62 containing a heater 63 is mounted on a carriage 64 which is slidably mounted on a pair of horizontal rods 65 arranged so as to permit the iron 62 to slide under the edge of the stack (or book) when the carriage is pushed by a lever 66 against the bias of a return spring 67. Lever 66 is pivoted on a rod 68 and has a roller 69 mounted on its top end which engages a cam 70 mounted on a rotating shaft 71 coupled to the wrap spring clutch 55. The latter is driven from a motor 72. Tertiary iron 62 has a horizontal top surface 73 disposed in the plane of the underside of the stack 12, an upstanding vertical wall 74 set back from its leading end 75 and a chamfered under surface 76 of complementary inclination to the upper surface 77 of the adjacent portion of the frame 78.

Referring to Figure 8, the tape 44 is drawn from a tape roll 45 through the members of a gate 80 by a pinch roll 81 driven by a stepping motor 82. A control console 83 supplies a preset number of drive pulses to the stepping motor 82 each time a stack (or book) is delivered to station 1 and is detected by the photo cell 84. The motor 82 is actuated by the pulses to feed sufficient tape through the gate 80 for the binding of the stack, this portion of tape being severed from the supply roll by the knife 46 associated with the gate 80. Knife 46 is connected to the beam 48 and is acutated thereby.

The positions of the gate 80 and the knife 46 are made adjustable in the direction of the stack so as to provide for changes in the length of the tape to suit stacks of different thicknesses. The number of drive pulses required is set by means of the manual control 85. Tape 44 is coated with a heat activated adhesive.

Operation of the aforementioned machine is now described with reference to Figures 5, 5A, 6, 6A, 7 and 7A which show the progression of cheque books 12 as they are passed along the track through the binding stations 1, 2 and 3 and with reference to Figures 8 and 9. During the following sequence of operations drive motor 72 will be running continuously.

When a book arrives under a first optical sensor 84 at station 1 (Figure 5) a signal is sent to the control console 83 which provides drive pulses to the tape drive stepping motor 82 to rotate the tape feed pinch roll 81. At this point the motor will rotate a set number of steps corresponding to the drive pulses to accommodate the thickness of book to be taped. These steps will have been previously put into the logic of the motor drive system.

At the same time as the tape drive motor 82 is given its signal to start, a solenoid comprising part of the wrap spring clutch 55 is activated allowing the clutch to rotate one revolution, thus bringing the beam 48 with all the primary irons 41, 42 and 43 up and down in a one-operation cycle. The drive to this clutch is obtained from the main motor 72 which is aforesaid is continually running.

When this happens the guillotine knife 46 which is driven up and down by the reciprocating beam 48 cuts off the protruding tape. As seen in Figure 5A, the timing is such that the primary iron at No. 1 station is already holding the tape to the book whilst the cutting is taking place. After the cutting is complete the iron 41 releases the book, leaving the tape stuck to it as a consequence of it being heated by the iron.

The book is then released and passed along the track by the fingers 10 to ironing station No. 2 (Figure 6) where it is sensed by a second sensor 86.

The sensor again sends a signal to the solenoid operating the wrap spring clutch 55 thereby causing the reciprocating beam to move down and up (see Figures 6 and 6A). When this happens, the heated secondary iron 57 moves down level with the respective primary iron 42 until the latter arrives at the book surface; the spring on this iron will start to compress and the secondary iron will start to pass by the primary iron, folding the protruding tape 44 over the back of the book. The roller between irons keeps both irons apart, but as secondary iron 57 passes the primary iron 42 the taper on the secondary iron will allow it to move in towards the primary iron as a consequence of the spring pressure from the resilient strap 58, thereby pressing the tape against the spine of the book.

The cycle is then completed by the reciprocating beam 48 returning to the top of its stroke.

At the third and final station (station 3) shown in Figures 7 and 7A the book is sensed by a third sensor 87, which causes the wrap spring clutch 55 to be activated and the reciprocating beam 48 to recommence its cycle. At the same time the carriage 64 carrying the heated tertiary iron 62 is pushed towards the spine of the book by the lever 66. At this station the primary iron 43 is timed to arrive on the surface of the book as the tertiary heated iron 62 is positioned underneath. As the heated tertiary iron moves forward towards the spine of the book it pushes the remaining unstuck tape 44 underneath, holding it in position whilst it is squeezed and heated to stick it to the book.At the end of its stroke the upstanding vertical face 74 of the the iron 62 engages the spine of the book so as to ensure that the tape at the bottom edge of the spine is firmly stuck to the edge of the book.

Simultaneously the chamfered leading end 76 of the tertiary iron engages the complementary sloping portion 77 of the frame 78 so as to provide a firm support for the iron in the vertical direction. At the end of the cycle the beam 48 and the carriage 64 retreat to their starting positions, the clutch 55 is disengaged and the now fully bound book is discharged from station 3 onto an exit conveyor (not shown). Of course as the aforementioned book passes through the said stations a sequence of other books will follow behind, the next entering station 1 as the one before it enters station 2 and so on.

The aforesaid sensors and others coupled to the control console 83 continuously monitor the process to provide immediate detection of any malfunctioning, this being necessary in view of the fact that the passage of the cheque book through all three stations is completed in about 5 seconds or less.

Claims (10)

1. A binding machine for binding in a common vertical plane the edges of sheets in a stack in an operation in which a tape is wrapped around the side of the stack arranged in said common plane and adhered thereto, said operation comprising a first cycle wherein an edge portion of the tape is adhered to the top surface of the stack by means of a vertically displaceable pressure member whereby the remaining protions of the tape overhang said side of the stack, a second cycle in which a vertically displaceable member presenting a first linear edge to the side wipes it in a downward movement from above the tape, said first linear edge being defined by vertical and substantially orthogonal faces of the member, said tape being thereby adhered to the side of the stack with a portion overlapping the bottom surface of the stack, and a third cycle in which a horizontally displaceable member presents to said side firstly a second linear edge defined by a horizontal face disposed in a place containing the bottom surface of the stack and a downwardly depending face and secondly a vertical face upstanding from said horizontal face, said horizontally dispiaceable member moving from a position spaced from said side of the stack so as to wipe the underside thereof and bring the vertical face into contact with the said side of the stack, said overlapping portion of the tape thereby being adhered to the underside of the stack, and wherein the member wiping the side of the stack in the second cycle is mounted with a restricted lateral freedom of movement in a directin towards the stack, being biased in said direction by resilient means, whereby it applies pressure on the said side, the pressure being controlled by camming means so that as the member wipes the side of the stack a progressively increased pressure is applied thereto by the vertical face of the member.

2. A binding machine according to Claim 1 wherein said displaceable members operating on the stack incorporate heating means for melting or curing an adhesive used to adhere the tape to the stack.

3. A binding machine according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 adapted to bind a succession of stacks of sheets continuously supplied thereto in which each cycle of the operation is performed at a separate respective station so that as the second cycle of operation occurs in the second station a first cycle of operation is performed on a second stack of sheets in the first station and as the third cycle of operation occurs in the third station a second cycle of operation is performed on the second stack of sheets in the second station and a first cycle of operation is performed on a third stack of sheets in the first station, and so on.

4. A binding machine according to Claim 3 wherein each station is equipped with a vertically displaceable member arranged to contact the top of the stack adjacent the said side and apply pressure thereon, each member being slidably mounted from a vertically reciprocating beam common to all three stations, and being biased downward by resilient means.

5. A binding machine according to Claim 4 wherein the member which in the said second cycle of operation wipes the side of the stack is mounted on said reciprocating beam and has an inclined face co-operating with the said vertically displaceable member so that as the latter contacts the top of the stack, the member wiping the side of the stack moves vertically relative to it and the inclined face allows pressure to be progressively applied to the side.

6. A binding machine according to Claim 4 or any claim appendant thereto wherein in said third cycle of operation the horizontally displaceable member moves so as to commence wiping the under surface of the stack before pressure is applied to the top of the stack by the vertically displaceable member engaging the top of the stack.

7. A binding machine according to Claim 6 in which the horizontally displaceable member has.an inclined surface on its underside which at the end of its travel engages a complementarily inclined fixed surface whereby upward pressure is exerted on the underside of the stack.

8. A binding machine according to any preceding claim wherein the tape is dispenses from a tape roll by means of a rotatable drive means coupled to a rotatable stepping motor, said stepping motor having control means for imparting to the stepping motor a selectable number of drive pulses whereby the amount of tape dispensed corresponds with the thickness of the stack of sheets to be bound.

9. A binding machine acccording to Claim 8 wherein a guillotine arranged so as to sever the tape after it has been dispensed is mounted so as to be adjustable in position in relation to the said common vertical plane.

10. A binding machine substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.