JP2007119078A - Sheet treatment device and image forming device provided with this - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce waste power consumption in the treatment waiting state of a user. <P>SOLUTION: The sheet treatment device B is provided with a paste heater 25d for heating and melting paste; a paste coating roller 25b for coating a plurality of sheets fed from a device body of the image forming device for feeding the sheet with the paste melted by the paste heater 25d; and a heating/control part for heating/controlling the paste heater 25d. The heating/control part stops paste-heating action by the paste heater after a predetermined time when the sheet cannot be fed from the device body. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet processing apparatus for performing a gluing process on a plurality of sheets, and in particular, when the sheet is not fed, the power to the glue heater that melts and heats the glue is cut off to reduce the power consumption of the glue heater. The present invention relates to a sheet processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus including the sheet processing apparatus.

  Some image forming apparatuses such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile machine are provided with a glue binding apparatus as a sheet processing apparatus that glues one side of a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of image-formed sheets. This glue binding apparatus selectively performs glue binding processing (see Patent Document 1). The glue binding apparatus includes a glue heater that melts the glue.

JP 2003-292230 A

  By the way, the conventional glue binding apparatus causes troubles such as paper jam in the image forming apparatus, out of toner, ink out, paper out, paper jam in the processing apparatus, etc. Even in the processing state (hereinafter simply referred to as “processing waiting state”), the glue heater was kept on. Therefore, the conventional glue binding apparatus consumes wasteful power.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet processing apparatus that reduces wasteful power consumption when waiting for processing by a user.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus provided with this sheet processing apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention has a glue heating means for heating and melting glue, and a plurality of sheets fed from the sheet feeding means for feeding the sheet, and is melted by the glue heating means. A glue applying means for applying glue; and a heating control means for controlling the heating of the glue heating means. When the sheet supply means cannot feed the sheet, the glue by the glue heating means after a predetermined time has elapsed. The heating operation is interrupted.

  In the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention, the predetermined time is a time required for the sheet sent from the sheet supply unit to reach the glue application unit before the time when the sheet cannot be sent from the sheet supply unit. Is a longer time.

  In the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention, the predetermined time can be set from the outside.

  The sheet processing apparatus of the present invention includes a transmission unit that transmits to the heating control unit that the sheet supply unit cannot send the sheet.

  In order to achieve the above object, an image forming apparatus of the present invention comprises an apparatus main body having an image forming means for forming an image on a sheet, and a sheet processing apparatus for applying glue to the sheet supplied from the apparatus main body. The sheet processing apparatus is any one of the above-described sheet processing apparatuses, and the sheet supply unit is the apparatus main body.

  In the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention, when the sheet supply unit becomes unable to send a sheet due to, for example, occurrence of a jammed sheet or out of sheet (out of sheets), a predetermined time from that point. Since the glue heating operation by the glue heating means is interrupted later, the power consumption of the glue heating means can be reduced.

  In the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention, the predetermined time is set to a time longer than the time required for the sheet delivered from the sheet supply unit to reach the glue application unit before the time when the sheet cannot be fed from the sheet supply unit. Since it is set, it is possible to reliably paste the sheet before the time when the sheet cannot be fed.

  When the predetermined time can be set from the outside, the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention can set the optimal predetermined time according to the length of the sheet, thereby reducing the power consumption of the glue heating means. Can do.

  Since the image forming apparatus of the present invention includes the image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet and the sheet processing apparatus described above, the running cost of the image forming apparatus can be reduced.

  A sheet processing apparatus including a gluing device according to an embodiment of the present invention and a copier as an example of an image forming apparatus including the sheet processing apparatus in an apparatus main body will be described with reference to the drawings. Examples of the image forming apparatus include a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, and a complex machine of these, and the image forming apparatus is not limited to the copying machine. Further, the sheet processing apparatus is not provided only in the copying machine. You may provide in a printer, a facsimile, a multifunction machine, etc.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a copier that is an example of an image forming apparatus that includes a sheet processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in an apparatus main body. For example, the apparatus main body A1 which is a sheet supply means includes a cover insertion apparatus C which inserts a cover, for example, a sheet supply means and an intermediate processing apparatus, and a reversing apparatus which reverses the sheet, for example, a sheet supply means and an intermediate processing apparatus D, and a sheet processing apparatus B having a function of cutting a sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming unit 3 after aligning, gluing and binding. These are controlled by the control units 61, 62, 63 and 64, respectively. The four control units do not have to be separate from each other. Any one of the four may be combined. Or the control part may be put together into one. Further, the apparatus main body 1 and the three apparatuses C, D, and B may be incorporated in a common frame. Further, the cover sheet insertion device C and the reversing device D are not necessarily required.

  The apparatus main body A1 optically reads a document automatically fed from the document feeding apparatus 1 mounted on the upper portion of the main body by the scanner unit 2, and uses the information as a digital signal to, for example, the image forming unit 3 as an image forming unit. It is transmitted and recorded on a sheet such as plain paper or an OHP sheet. A plurality of sheet cassettes 4 storing sheets of various sizes are provided in the lower part of the apparatus main body A1 so as to be freely drawn out (only one is shown in the figure, and the others are omitted). The sheet conveyed from the sheet cassette 4 by the conveyance roller 5 is sent to the image forming unit 3. An image is recorded on the sheet by an electrophotographic method.

  Here, when forming an image on a sheet, the apparatus main body A1 first irradiates the photosensitive drum 3b with laser light from the light irradiation unit 3a based on information read by the scanner unit 2 to form a latent image. The latent image is then developed with toner and transferred to the sheet as a toner image. Thereafter, the apparatus main body A1 conveys the sheet on which the toner image has been transferred to the fixing unit 6 and heats and pressurizes the sheet to permanently fix the toner image on the sheet.

  When the single-sided recording mode is set in the apparatus main body A1, the sheet that has passed through the fixing unit 6 is passed through the cover sheet insertion device C and the reversing device D and is sent to the sheet processing device B. When the double-sided recording mode is set, the sheet on which an image is formed on one side passes through the fixing unit 6, is temporarily switched back, is turned upside down, and is then conveyed to the retransmission path 7. The Thereafter, the sheet is conveyed again to the image forming unit 3 and an image is formed on the back surface. Thereafter, the sheet is fed into the sheet processing apparatus B.

  Here, for switching the path in the sheet processing apparatus B, before the sheet is sent to the sheet processing apparatus B, a signal such as a sheet size is sent from the apparatus main body A1 to the sheet processing apparatus B in advance. The exchange of signals is performed between the control units 61 and 64. The sheet can be fed not only from the sheet cassette 4 but also from the multi-tray 8.

  In FIG. 1, the cover sheet insertion device C includes a sheet tray 501. When a user sets a cover sheet on the sheet tray 501 by the user, the cover sheet inserting device C feeds the sheet into the apparatus by the sheet feeding roller 502 and conveys the sheet to the sheet processing apparatus B by the conveying roller 504. Also, the cover sheet insertion device C switches the guide flapper 503 to convey the sheet discharged from the copying machine A to the sheet processing device B, or convey the sheet set on the sheet tray 501 to the reversing device D. Can be done.

  In FIG. 1, the reversing device D includes reversing flappers 601 and 602 and a reversing roller 603. The reversing device D is configured to invert the sheet discharged from the copying machine A or the cover sheet insertion device C. Further, the reversing flappers 601 and 602 can convey the sheet discharged from the copying machine A or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C to the sheet processing apparatus B by the conveying roller 604 without reversing.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the sheet processing apparatus B includes a conveyance alignment unit E for aligning sheets, a trimmer unit F for cutting a sheet bundle, and the like. The sheet processing apparatus B can select a glue binding by the conveyance alignment unit E and a cutting mode by the trimmer unit F in addition to the normal discharge mode. Then, the sheet P conveyed to the sheet processing apparatus B from the apparatus main body A1 via the reversing apparatus D is conveyed by the conveyance roller pairs 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d and discharged to the stack tray 11 in the normal mode. On the other hand, in the glue binding mode, after glue binding, the paper is discharged to the stacking tray G.

  In the bookbinding mode, the sheet P discharged from the apparatus main body A1 is fed to the bookbinding intermediate paper path 14 by the guidance of the first flapper 12 and the second flapper 13. The first flapper 12 switches between the non-sort path 15 and the bookbinding path 16a. The second flapper 13 switches between the bookbinding middle paper path 14 and the cover paper path 16.

  The alignment vertical path 35 is configured to sequentially store the sheets P in an upright state when aligning the sheets P fed to the bookbinding intermediate paper path 14. As shown in FIG. 3, the alignment vertical path 35 includes a rear end stopper 20 as an alignment member provided at the bottom of the alignment vertical path 35 and an alignment vertical path provided on one surface of the alignment vertical path 35. The sheet P discharged to 35 is returned to the trailing edge stopper side, and a return roller 19 that presses the trailing edge of the sheet P against the trailing edge stopper 20 and the center of the sheet P in the direction (width direction) orthogonal to the conveying direction. An alignment plate 21 that performs sheet width alignment by pushing in the sheet center direction and an alignment vertical path plate 36 are provided.

  Here, the alignment vertical path plate 36 is provided on the side of the alignment vertical path 35 facing the return roller 19, holds the sheet discharged to the alignment vertical path 35 in an upright state, and returns the discharge roller to the discharge sheet. The contact pressure of 19 is kept substantially constant. Next, the sheet P discharged to the alignment vertical path 35 in this way is returned by the return roller 19 to a position where the rear end abuts against the rear end stopper 20 as shown in FIG. At the same time, the alignment plate 21 pushes in the sheet center direction to perform alignment in the width direction.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining such a vertical path alignment operation. The vertical path matching operation will be described below with reference to this flowchart and FIGS. First, the control unit 64 determines whether or not it is in the bookbinding mode (S100). In the case of the bookbinding mode (YES in S100), the first flapper 12 is switched (S101). If not in the bookbinding mode (NO in S100), the sheet P is conveyed to the non-sort path 15 (S102).

  Next, for example, the control unit 64 serving as a heating control unit determines whether or not the sheet P discharged from the apparatus main body A1 is a cover sheet (S103). In the case of a cover sheet (YES in S103), the control unit 64 switches the second flapper 13 (S120), moves to a cover path flow described later, and when it is not a cover sheet (NO in S103), the glue flow described below is completed. Is determined (S104). When the gluing flow is completed (YES in S104), the control unit 64 moves the alignment plate 21 to the standby position (S105), and then determines whether or not the number of stacked alignment paths is the reference number. Judgment is made (S107). If the gluing flow is not completed (NO in S104), the control unit 64 proceeds to a buffer flow described later.

  Next, when the stacking number of the alignment vertical path 35 is the reference number (YES in S107), the control unit 64 moves the alignment vertical path plate 36 (S108). Thereafter, when a rear end detection sensor (not shown) is turned off (YES in S109), the return roller 19 is pressed against the sheet P for a certain time (S110).

  Next, the return roller 19 rotates for a predetermined time while being pressed against the sheet P (S111). Thereafter, the alignment plate 21 performs a sheet alignment operation (S112). This alignment operation is performed until the last sheet (last sheet) of the job is reached. When the alignment operation is performed up to the last sheet (YES in S113), the sheet P moves to a gluing flow described later.

  By the way, after this, the sheet processing apparatus B sequentially pulls back the sheets P conveyed to the alignment vertical path 35 by the return roller 19 and stacks them in the alignment vertical path 35 until a predetermined target number of sheets are bundled. In the process of stacking and aligning the sheets P on the alignment vertical path 35 for the first bookbinding, and then performing operations such as gluing, a bundle of sheets P continues to exist in the alignment vertical path 35. Therefore, the succeeding sheet P for creating the second book cannot be conveyed from the apparatus main body A1 to the alignment vertical path 35. Accordingly, the subsequent sheet P for bookbinding creation of the second book stops the conveyance of the sheet P until the work of pasting the first book is completed and the sheet bundle P1 is discharged from the alignment vertical path 35. Become. As a result, the productivity of the image forming apparatus decreases.

  Therefore, the sheet processing apparatus B according to the present embodiment finishes the work such as gluing of the first sheet bundle and discharges the second book from the apparatus main body A1 until it is discharged from the alignment vertical path 35. For example, an alignment buffer plate 50 (see FIG. 3), which is a storage means for temporarily waiting for the succeeding sheet P that is carried in for preparation, is provided at a location close to the alignment vertical path 35.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the alignment buffer plate 50 includes a receiving table 50a that serves as a receiving portion for the sheet P, an alignment surface 50b that performs alignment in the width direction of the sheet P, and an upper side from the receiving table 50a. A separation wall 50c that extends and separates the succeeding sheet P received by the cradle 50a and the sheet bundle P1 accommodated in the alignment vertical path 35 is provided, and the sheet width direction (left-right direction in FIG. 4B) ). In FIG. 4, the rack 52 is attached to the alignment buffer plate 50. By transmitting the rotation of the motor M to the rack 52 via the idler gear 57 and the gear 58, the alignment buffer plate 50 moves in the sheet width direction.

  Further, the control unit 64 (see FIG. 1) detects the protrusion 59a provided at one end of the rack 52 by the photosensor 59 shown in FIG. To control. The alignment buffer plate 50 is retracted to the outside of the sheet P as shown in FIG. 5B except when the sheet P is temporarily retracted. There will be no hindrance to the transport.

  Next, the operation of the matching buffer plate 50 will be described. During normal alignment, the alignment buffer plate 50 is moved to a position where the cradle 50a is completely retracted in the sheet width direction as shown in FIG. Yes. Thereby, the alignment buffer plate 50 is retracted. The alignment buffer plate 50 moves from the retracted position in the width direction of the sheet P at the timing when the sheet P is discharged to the alignment vertical path 35 and the trailing edge of the sheet comes into contact with the trailing edge stopper 20. Thereby, the width direction of the sheet P discharged to the alignment vertical path 35 is aligned. After this alignment, the alignment buffer plate 50 is returned to the retracted position again. This operation is performed for each sheet.

  On the other hand, at the time of buffering, that is, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4B, there is a stacked sheet bundle P 1 in the alignment vertical path 35, and the sheet bundle P 1 is still discharged from the alignment vertical path 35. First, the receiving base 50a receives the sheet P in order to buffer the sheet P conveyed continuously from the apparatus main body A1, and the alignment surface 50b is a position retracted from the sheet P. Move to.

  Next, the alignment buffer plate 50 moves in the width direction of the sheet P at the timing when the rear end (lower end) of the sheet P comes into contact with the cradle 50a. By the movement of the buffer plate 50, the sheet P is width-aligned by the alignment surface 50b. After this width alignment, the state in which the sheet P is received by the cradle 50a of the alignment buffer plate 50 is held, and the alignment surface 50b is returned to the position retracted from the sheet P. This operation is performed for each sheet. Even if the alignment buffer plate 50 moves in this way, the separation wall 50c is in a position where the succeeding sheet P and the sheet bundle P1 stored in the alignment vertical path 35 can be separated. Prevents mixing.

  Next, the sheet bundle P that has already been aligned and still exists in the alignment vertical path 35 is discharged from the alignment vertical path 35. Then, the pressure contact solenoid 53 (see FIG. 3) operates. The return roller 19 is brought into pressure contact with the sheet P by the operation of the pressure contact solenoid 53. As a result, the buffered sheet P is held between the return rollers 19 and 19b. Next, the alignment buffer plate 50 moves to a position retracted from the sheet P as shown in FIG. When the return roller 19 is rotated after moving the alignment buffer plate 50 in this way, the rear end (lower end) of the buffered sheet P is supported by the rear end stopper 20. Thereafter, the rotation of the return roller 19 is stopped and the operation of the pressure contact solenoid 53 is stopped, so that the return roller 19 is separated from the sheet P. The above operations are repeated until the target number of bookbinding copies is completed.

  As described above, the alignment buffer plate 50 has a function of storing a predetermined number of sheets in the alignment vertical path 35 and then sequentially storing subsequent sheets and waiting, so that the predetermined number of sheets stored in the alignment vertical path 35 is stored. After the sheet is conveyed, the sheet waiting on the alignment buffer plate 50 can be stored in the alignment vertical path 35. Accordingly, the sheet processing apparatus B can receive the sheets P continuously discharged from the image forming main body A1 even during sheet processing such as stapling, and can prevent a decrease in productivity.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart (buffer flow) for explaining the buffer operation by the matching buffer plate 50. Hereinafter, the buffer operation by the matching buffer plate 50 will be described in detail using this flowchart. First, the alignment plate 21 and the alignment buffer plate 50 that have been moved to positions that do not interfere with the conveyance of the sheet P move to the buffer position (S601). Next, the trailing edge detection sensor discharges the sheet bundle P1 from the alignment vertical path 35 and detects (OFF) this discharge (YES in S602). Then, after a predetermined time, the pressure contact solenoid 53 is operated, whereby the return roller 19 is brought into pressure contact with the sheet P (S603). As a result, the buffered sheet P is held between the return rollers 19 and 19b.

  Next, the return roller 19 rotates (S604). Thereafter, the alignment plate 21 moves from the buffer position to the alignment position and performs an alignment operation. If the sheet P is not the final sheet (NO in S606), the process proceeds to the above-described vertical path alignment flow (FIG. 11). This operation is sequentially repeated, and when the conveyed sheet P becomes the final sheet (YES in S606), the alignment buffer plate 50 is lowered to the position of the rear end stopper 20 (S607). Thereafter, the aligning plate 21 and the aligning buffer plate 50 move to the aligning retreat position, and then rise (S608).

  Next, cover conveyance will be described. A sheet P2 (hereinafter referred to as “cover sheet”) P2 that is a cover discharged from the apparatus main body A1 or the cover insertion apparatus C is a cover path 16 by the action of the first flapper 12 (see FIG. 2) and the second flapper 13. And stops at the specified position. Here, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, the pasting unit 25 includes a collar 25a, glue application means such as glue roller 25b, glue 25c, glue heating means such as glue heater 25d, shaft 25e, and collar driving device. 25f.

  The flange 25a is movable in the width direction along the shaft 25e beyond the sheet width. And two retreat positions are owned outside the sheet width. The scissors 25a are moved between the two retreat positions by a scissors driving device 25f. Further, as the collar 25 a moves from the first retracted position to the second retracted position, the collar 25 a pushes a part of the link 26 engaged with the rear end stopper 20. As a result, the rear end stopper 20 moves in the direction of retracting from the lower end (rear end) of the sheet bundle P1 in FIG. The glue roller 25b is attached to the collar 25a, and is configured to rotate in synchronization with the movement of the collar 25a.

  The glue heater 25d is attached to the outside of the collar 25a. At the start of the bookbinding mode, the glue heater 25d heats the basket 25a. The glue 25c in the collar 25a is melted by heating the collar 25a. When the glue 25c reaches the specified temperature, the glue heater 25d is turned off. When the glue 25c falls by a certain temperature, the glue heater 25d is turned on again and heats the glue 25c until the specified temperature is reached. The heating of the basket 25a by the glue heater 25d is performed after the bookbinding mode is started, so that waste of power consumption is reduced.

  And the glue roller 25b rotates because the collar 25a moves with the collar drive apparatus 25f. Thereby, the melted glue 25c reaches the entire outer peripheral surface of the glue roller 25b. The sheet bundle P1 stacked in the alignment vertical path 35 is held by the gripper 41 (see FIG. 7), and the collar 25a moves from the first retracted position to the second retracted position. Then, the rear end stopper 20 is retracted from the lower part of the sheet bundle P1, and the glue 25c is applied to the lower end surface of the sheet bundle P1 by the glue unit 25.

  When waiting for processing in the image forming apparatus, the glue heater 25d controls the control units 61, 62, 63 of each apparatus (apparatus main body A1, cover sheet insertion apparatus C, reversing apparatus D, transport alignment unit E, trimmer unit F, etc.). , 64 is turned off immediately or after a certain time according to the status of each device. Thereby, useless power consumption is suppressed. The time until the glue heater 25d is turned off can be set.

  The sheet processing apparatus B has the following operations and effects by making it possible to set the time from the waiting state to the glue heater 25d being turned off. If it is determined from the control signal from each device that the waiting state for processing is short, if a setting is made so that the glue heater 25d is turned off after a certain period of time, the electric power required to reheat the glue 25c is wasted. Can be reduced. Also, if it is determined from the control signal from each device that the process waiting state is a long time, if the glue heater 25d is immediately turned off, heating of the glue 25c in the process waiting state is stopped. , Wasteful power consumption can be reduced.

[Control of glue heater]
Control of the glue heater by the control unit 64 will be described with reference to the configuration diagrams of FIGS. 1 to 10 and the flowchart of FIG. The following description of the saddle heater control device will be given as an example when a jam occurs in the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C. If a jam such as a paper jam occurs in the apparatus during processing (YES in S701), the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C transmits a jam signal to another post-processing apparatus to report it. The sheet processing apparatus B receives a jam signal from the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C via a communication means such as a communication apparatus (YES in S702), and when the stop time of the glue heater 25d is not set ( (NO in S703), heating of the glue heater is immediately stopped (S705), and the glue melting operation is interrupted. Here, the time from when a jam is detected until the glue heater stops can be set by the user. Therefore, the stop timing of the glue heater heating can be set arbitrarily. When the stop time of the glue heater has been set (YES in S703), the heating of the glue heater 25d is stopped after the set predetermined time has elapsed (NO in S704 and YES) (S705).

  Next, the control method of the glue heater 25d when the operation interruption due to the absence of paper occurs in the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C is as follows. When an operation interruption occurs due to a paper out for feeding in the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C, the sheet processing apparatus B uses a sheet detection sensor to indicate that the paper carry-in interval from the host apparatus has exceeded a predetermined time. By detecting, it recognizes that there is no paper. While the processing is being executed in the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C (S701), even if the jam signal is not received (NO in S702), if the paper carry-in interval exceeds the predetermined time (YES in S706) ), It is considered that the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C is out of paper. If the glue heater stop time is set (YES in S703), heating of the glue heater is stopped after the set stop time has elapsed (YES in S704) (S705). When the stop time of the glue heater is not set (NO in S703), heating of the glue heater is immediately stopped (S705), and the glue melting operation is interrupted.

  In the control of the glue heater 25d, there has been described a case where a jam occurs in the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C, and an operation interruption occurs due to a paper out of paper supply in the apparatus main body A1 or the cover sheet insertion apparatus C. The control of the glue heater 25d can be applied to all processing waiting states in the image forming apparatus. In all the processing waiting states, it is possible to set the time from the processing waiting state until the glue heater 25d is turned off. Accordingly, the control of the glue heater 25d can reduce the waste of power required for reheating the glue in all of the processing waiting states, and eliminates unnecessary heating in the processing waiting state, thereby reducing wasteful power consumption. Can be reduced.

  The predetermined time is stored in the control unit 64 so that the storage can be changed. In addition, if the user can set the predetermined time, it is possible to set the optimal time for the sheet length, eliminate unnecessary heating in the waiting state, and reduce unnecessary power consumption. be able to. The predetermined time is preferably longer than the time required for the sheet delivered from the apparatus main body to reach the glue heater before the sheet cannot be fed from the apparatus main body.

[Bookbinding process]
Next, the bookbinding process will be described. As shown in FIG. 7A, the shutter path 27 is located downstream of the cover path 16 (see FIG. 2). When the cover sheet P2 is conveyed, the shutter path 27 is closed by the shutter 27A. At the time of the bookbinding process, as shown in FIG. 7B, the shutter rack 29 is driven by the shutter motor 28, and the shutter 27A is moved by the spring 30 that engages the shutter 27A and the shutter rack 29. The shutter path 27 is opened by the movement of the shutter 27A. After opening the shutter path 27, the shutter 27A comes into contact with a stopper (not shown) and stops.

  Next, the cam 32 is rotated via the belt 31 by driving the shutter motor 28 as shown in FIG. By the rotation of the cam 32, the crease table 34 slides through the guide shaft 33. The cover sheet P2 is creased for a certain period of time by the slide of the crease table 34. Thereby, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 is completed. Further, as shown in FIG. 7D, the crease table 34 is retracted by rotating the cam 32. Thereafter, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 is pushed downstream by the push rollers 39 and conveyed to the bundle curvature path 40 (see FIG. 2). The transported bookbinding bundle P3 is transported to the transport stage 301 (see FIG. 8) through the bundle curvature path 40.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart (gluing flow) for explaining such a gluing operation. This will be described with reference to FIG. When performing glue binding, the gripper 41 is pressed against the sheet bundle P1 (S301). As a result, the sheet bundle P1 is held by the gripper 41. Thereafter, the shutter path 27 is opened by the movement of the shutter 27A (S302). Next, the gripper 41 moves a certain amount downward. As a result, the glued sheet bundle P1 is pressed against the cover sheet P2 on the creasing table 34. Next, the cover sheet P <b> 2 is pressed against the creasing table 34 for a predetermined time by sliding the creasing table 34. The cover sheet P2 is creased by the pressure contact of the crease table 34. Thereafter, the crease table 34 is moved in a direction to release the pressure contact of the cover sheet P2, and the shutter 27A is moved to open the shutter path 27 (S304), thereby completing the bookbinding sheet bundle P3.

  Next, the gripper 41 is moved downward by a certain amount. Thereby, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 is transferred to the trimmer unit F (cutter) (S305). Thereafter, the driven roller 314 of the conveyance stage 301 shown in FIG. 8 is in pressure contact with the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 (S306). Thereafter, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 is released from being held by the gripper 41 (S307). Then, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 moves to a rotation flow described later.

[Transport stage]
The transport stage 301 transports the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 to the cutter unit, and after the cut, discharges it to the paper discharge tray. Here, the transport stage 301 transports the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 into the trimmer unit F. Next, the transfer stage 301 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  8 and 9, the bundle conveyance unit 302 is provided on the conveyance stage 301. The bundle transport unit 302 is configured to rotate around a rotating shaft 325 by winding a wire 305 fixed to a lifting gear 304 driven by a lifting motor 303. Normally, the bundle conveying unit 302 stops the lifting motor 303 at a position where the sensor 302 detects the protruding portion 302a, and stands by at the position shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 bound in the bookbinding process is conveyed by a bundle conveying roller pair 307. The first and second conveyor belts 309 and 310 are driven by the conveyor belt motor 322 and the conveyor belt motor 323 at the timing when the leading edge of the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 is detected by the sensor 308, and rotate in the arrow direction shown in FIG. To do. The elevating motor 303 reverses at the timing when the rear end of the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 conveyed into the conveyance path 311 of the bundle conveyance unit 302 by the bundle conveyance roller pair 307 passes through the sensor 308. As a result, the bundle transport unit 302 moves to the position shown in FIG. Thereafter, the driving of the elevating motor 303, the conveyance belt motor 322, and the conveyance belt motor 323 is stopped when the sensor 312 detects the protrusion 302a of the bundle conveyance unit 302. As a result, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 waits in a state of being sandwiched between the conveyance belt 310 and the driven roller 314 at the tip of the weight 313.

  Next, the sheet bundle P3 is cut by the trimmer unit F. Here, when cutting is started in this way, the abutting plate 318 moves to the home position and stands by. When cutting is completed, the first and second conveyor belts 309 and 310 rotate in the counterclockwise direction. As a result, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 sandwiched between the driven rollers 314 is conveyed to the stacking tray G (see FIG. 2). At the same time, the butting plate 318 is moved in the direction of the arrow. Thereby, the abutting plate 318 operates so as to push out the rear end portion of the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 being conveyed. Accordingly, the bookbinding sheet bundle P3 is reliably discharged to the stacking tray G.

  In the above-described embodiment, the system in which the copying machine A, the cover insertion device C, the reversing device D, and the sheet processing device B having the glue binding function are combined has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. . As shown in FIG. 15, the saddle heater may be controlled by a system of a copying machine A and a sheet processing apparatus B having a glue binding function. In this case, when a trouble such as a paper jam in the copying machine A, out of paper or toner occurs, and the user is waiting for processing, the glue heater of the sheet processing apparatus B can be turned off.

  Further, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. As shown in FIG. 16, the eaves heater is controlled by sheet supply means including a sheet tray 701, a paper feed roller 702, and a conveyance roller 704, for example, sheet insertion The present invention can also be applied to a system of the apparatus H and a sheet processing apparatus B having a glue binding function. In this case, a trouble such as paper jam in the sheet insertion device H or out of paper occurs, and the glue heater of the sheet processing device B can be turned off when the user is waiting for processing.

1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of, for example, a copying machine as an image forming apparatus including a sheet processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged view illustrating a configuration of an alignment vertical path provided in the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. 2. It is the figure which showed the alignment vertical path | pass part in FIG. (A) is a front view. (B) is a side view. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a sheet standby operation by a buffer plate provided in the alignment vertical path in FIG. (A) is a front view. (B) is a side view of (a). It is the figure which expanded and showed partially the structure of the gluing unit provided in the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the operation of a gluing device (adhering a cover to a glued sheet bundle) provided in the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. 2. (A) is a figure of the state where the shutter path is closed by the shutter. (B) is the figure which the shutter moved. (C) is the figure which completed the bookbinding sheet bundle. (D) is a diagram for conveying a sheet bundle to a bundle curvature path. It is the figure which expanded and showed the rotation stage provided in the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. It is a top view of FIG. FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the sheet bundle conveyance operation of the rotation stage in FIG. 8. (A) is a figure which conveys a sheet bundle to a cutting position. (B) is a diagram for discharging a sheet bundle. 6 is a flowchart for explaining a vertical path alignment operation of the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining a buffer operation of the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining a gluing operation of the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining glue heating control of the sheet processing apparatus in FIG. 2. 1 is a side view illustrating an example of an image forming apparatus including a sheet processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side view illustrating an example of an image forming apparatus including a sheet processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

A copier (image forming apparatus A1 main body (sheet supply means)
B Sheet processing device C Cover sheet insertion device (sheet supply means, sheet supply means)
D reversing device (sheet intermediate processing device, sheet supply means)
E Transport alignment unit F Trimmer unit 25 Gluing unit 25a 桶 25b Glue roller (glue application means)
25c glue 25d glue heater (glue heating means)
25e shaft 25f rod drive device 25e shaft 50 buffer plate 64 control unit (heating control means)

Claims (6)

Glue heating means for heating and melting the glue;
Glue applying means for applying glue melted by the glue heating means to a plurality of sheets supplied from a sheet supplying means for supplying sheets;
Heating control means for controlling the heating of the glue heating means,
The sheet processing apparatus, wherein when the sheet supply unit cannot feed the sheet, the glue heating operation by the glue heating unit is interrupted after a predetermined time.   The predetermined time is longer than the time required for the sheet delivered from the sheet supply means to reach the glue application means before the time when the sheet cannot be sent from the sheet supply means. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:   The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined time can be set from outside.   3. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a transmission unit configured to transmit to the heating control unit that the sheet supply unit cannot transmit the sheet. An apparatus main body having image forming means for forming an image on a sheet;
A sheet processing apparatus for applying glue to the sheet supplied from the apparatus main body,
5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet processing apparatus is the sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, and the sheet supply unit is the apparatus main body. A sheet intermediate processing apparatus for performing processing on the sheet supplied from the apparatus main body between the apparatus main body and the sheet processing apparatus, wherein the sheet supply means is the apparatus main body and the sheet intermediate processing apparatus; The image forming apparatus according to claim 5.

Images