JP2008030408A - Bookbinding apparatus and image forming system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable to surely stick a sheet bundle set into a bundle shape and simultaneously to perform binding processing in a short time when the sheet bundle set into the bundle shape is coated with a hot-melt type adhesive to bind it with a cover sheet. <P>SOLUTION: A cover binding means, which coats the end face of the back part of the sheet bundle with the hot-melt type adhesive and binds the sheet bundle and the cover sheet, is constituted of a back butting plate member for butting the end face to be coated with a paste of the sheet bundle on the back part of the cover sheet to join them, and a back folding press member for back-folding the back part of the cover sheet, and a cooling means is provided at least on one of the back folding press member and the back butting plate member. In this cooling means, the back butting plate member is constituted of a metal material rich in thermal conductivity, and open air either in the apparatus or out of the apparatus is blasted by a ventilation fan. In this case, a vent hole is formed in a sheathing casing, and open air is blasted from this vent hole to the back butting plate member by the ventilation fan. The cooling means is constituted of a cooling medium means such as a Peltier element, cooling water and a cooling oil so as to bring it into contact with the back butting plate member. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a bookbinding apparatus that aligns sheets formed with an image forming apparatus or the like in a bundle shape, and applies an adhesive to the back end face of the sheet bundle and binds it to a cover sheet, with a hot-melt adhesive. The present invention relates to an improvement in a back folding mechanism that quickly cools and solidifies after binding a cover sheet.

  2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a bookbinding apparatus that aligns sheets formed with an image forming apparatus or the like and binds them with a cover sheet is connected to a paper discharge port of the image forming apparatus and automatically executes from image formation to cover binding. Alternatively, it is widely used as a bookbinding apparatus that supplies a bundle of sheets arranged in a bundle form to a sheet feeding port and binds a cover sheet to the sheet bundle.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, such a bookbinding apparatus widely employs a method in which an adhesive is applied to the back end face of a bundle of sheets, and a cover sheet is joined to the back of the sheet bundle to perform back folding press molding. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses that sheets formed with an image forming apparatus are aligned on a stacking tray, the sheet bundle is transported to a glue application position, an adhesive is applied to the end surface, and then downstream of the glue application position. The sheet bundle coated with this adhesive is joined to the cover sheet in an inverted T shape at the cover binding position prepared on the side, and the booklet-like sheet bundle is unloaded at this position. Various adhesives are known for use in such a cover binding process, but hot melt adhesives are frequently used.

This heat-meltable adhesive has the property of solidifying at room temperature and liquefying at a predetermined high temperature, so its handling is easy in the distribution storage process, and when applied to a sheet bundle, it is liquid and easily penetrates between paper sheets. In addition, after bonding the cover sheet, it is characterized by solidifying and bonding at room temperature. However, it also has a characteristic that it takes time to solidify and bond after joining the cover sheets.
JP 2005-3058222 A

  When binding with a hot-melt adhesive as described above, the adhesive liquefied at high temperature is applied to the sheet bundle, and the cover sheet is bound to the sheet bundle and solidified with the adhesive to bond. The cooling time until the agent solidifies becomes a problem. For example, when this adhesive is solidified steeply, even if a part of the adhesive is solidified, wrinkles may occur when the cover sheet is folded back, or the ridgeline of the back cover may be bent, resulting in poor finished quality. On the contrary, if the adhesive solidifies slowly, a positional deviation may occur between the cover sheet and the sheet bundle in the process of carrying out the sheet bundle after the back folding process, which may cause a binding failure. In particular, when the periphery of the sheet bundle after the cover binding is cut and aligned, a large positional deviation is likely to occur at the time of cutting, and an adhesive adheres to the cutting blade and causes a deterioration in shearing force.

  Therefore, it is conceivable to leave the adhesive sheet in a state where the cover sheet is bound to the sheet bundle until the adhesive is completely solidified, but there is a problem that the processing time becomes long and the processing efficiency is inferior. In particular, the time until the adhesive is solidified (leaving time) varies depending on the thickness of the sheet bundle, the amount of adhesive applied, and the environmental temperature, which is a great obstacle to efficiently automating a series of operations.

  In this way, the time for which the adhesive is left in the process of continuously performing the bookbinding process is, for example, when the sheet is directly supplied from the image forming apparatus, and the sheet is already heated. In a state where the sheets are accumulated in a bundle, it takes a long time to cool the adhesive. When the sheet is supplied from an inserter device or the like, the sheet is not heated, so the adhesive is relatively short. It becomes here to cool, and it is almost impossible to make the time for naturally cooling the adhesive constant. For this reason, conventionally, a system configuration in which the sheet bundle is taken out for the next process after the expected time for the adhesive to solidify the cover-bound sheet bundle under the worst conditions is forced, and its productivity becomes a problem. Yes.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a bookbinding capable of binding in a short time at the same time as applying a heat-melting adhesive to a bundle of sheets in a bundle and binding them securely to the cover sheet. The main problem is to provide an apparatus with a simple structure at low cost. Furthermore, the present invention provides a bookbinding apparatus that reliably binds sheets supplied from various devices such as an image forming apparatus and does not cause deterioration in bookbinding quality when post-processing this sheet bundle in a subsequent process. An object is to provide an image forming system provided with this.

  The present invention adopts the following configuration in order to solve the above problems. First, the present invention is characterized in that a cover binding means for applying a hot-melt adhesive to the back end face of a sheet bundle and binding the sheet bundle and the cover sheet is configured as follows. This cover binding means is composed of a back plate member for abutting and bonding the glue application end face of the sheet bundle to the back of the cover sheet and a back folding press member for folding the back of the cover sheet back. The back folding press member and the back plate member are provided with cooling means on at least one of them. As a result, the adhesive applied to the back of the bound sheet bundle is cooled and solidified within a predetermined time by the cooling means and is securely bonded.

  The cooling means includes, for example, a back plate member made of a metal material rich in heat conductivity, and a blower fan that blows air inside or outside the device to the back plate member. In this case, it is preferable that a vent hole is formed in the exterior casing, and outside air is blown from the vent hole to the back plate member by a blower fan. Further, the cooling means may be constituted by a refrigerant means such as a Peltier element, cooling water, cooling oil or the like so as to contact the back plate member.

  The sheet bundle bound as described above is carried out to the sheet bundle conveyance path. At this time, by arranging a cutting means for cutting and aligning the periphery of the sheet bundle downstream of the cover binding position, the periphery of the sheet bundle bound with the cover is aligned except for the back portion, and a booklet-like bookbinding process is possible.

  Next, an image forming system according to the present invention includes an image forming apparatus that sequentially forms images on sheets, and a bookbinding apparatus that performs bookbinding processing by aligning sheets conveyed from the image forming apparatus into a bundle. The image forming apparatus includes a sheet feeding stacker unit that supplies sheets, an image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet from the sheet feeding stacker unit, and a sheet discharging unit that carries out the sheet from the image forming unit. To do. The bookbinding apparatus has the above-described configuration. In this case, it is also possible to provide an inserter device between the image forming apparatus and the bookbinding apparatus and selectively supply sheets to the bookbinding apparatus from the image forming apparatus and the inserter apparatus.

  In the present invention, a heat-melting adhesive is applied to the back end face of the sheet bundle, and a cover binding means for binding the sheet bundle and the cover sheet is abutted against the back face of the cover sheet with the adhesive application end face of the sheet bundle being joined. The back plate member and the back folding press member that folds the back part of the cover sheet back, and the cooling means is provided on at least one of the back plate member and the back folding press member. The effect of. The heat-meltable adhesive liquefied at high temperature, when applied to the back end face of the sheet bundle, has a viscosity suitable for adhesion and easily penetrates between the leaves of the sheet, and enables reliable adhesion. Since the back plate member or the back fold press member is cooled when it is joined and is folded back, it solidifies and adheres securely in a relatively short time.

  Therefore, when applying the adhesive, the temperature is set at a relatively high temperature and easily penetrates between the leaves of the sheet bundle, and when binding the cover, it is possible to cool and solidify in a relatively short time, resulting in a good finished quality. Bookbinding processing is possible. In particular, even when the sheet is supplied from an image forming apparatus or from an inserter apparatus, the temperature of the adhesive can be controlled to be substantially constant regardless of the temperature of the sheet and the environmental temperature. Bookbinding processing can be executed continuously in a short time.

  Further, cool the cooling means by blowing the outside air on the back side of the backing plate member that abuts the back of the sheet bundle and joins the cover sheet, or forced by a cooling means such as Peltier element, cooling water, cooling oil, etc. When it is cooled down, the curing of the adhesive is accelerated, and the adhesive can be solidified and securely bonded to the sheet bundle within the operation time for binding the cover sheet, and the binding process can be speeded up dramatically. . Further, if the cooling means is arranged on the back side of the back plate member, the structure can be simple and compact.

  The present invention will be described in detail below based on the preferred embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of an image forming system provided with a bookbinding apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a detailed explanatory view of a bookbinding apparatus B, and FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing the structure of a glue storage container.

"Configuration of image forming system"
The image forming system shown in FIG. 1 includes an image forming apparatus (a copying machine shown in the figure) A, a bookbinding apparatus (bookbinding section) B connected to a paper discharge port 19 of the image forming apparatus A, and a bookbinding apparatus B. And a post-processing apparatus (post-processing unit) C disposed downstream of the sheet, and a sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming apparatus A is automatically bound by the bookbinding apparatus B or automatically by the post-processing apparatus C. Constitutes a post-processing system. The bookbinding apparatus B incorporates the adhesive application device according to the present invention as a unit.

  First, the image forming apparatus A shown in FIG. 1 will be described. The image forming apparatus A includes an image forming unit 3 provided in the casing 2, an image reading device (scanner unit) 7 mounted on the upper part of the casing 2, and a document. It comprises a supply device (ADF unit) 5. An image forming unit 3 is provided in the casing 2 and forms an image on a sheet such as plain paper or an OHP sheet supplied from the paper supply unit 9. The image forming unit 3 forms an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 8 by the light irradiating unit 13, attaches toner with a developing unit, and transfers the toner onto a sheet supplied from the paper feeding unit 9. This transfer sheet is fixed by the fixing device 6 and carried out from the paper discharge port 19. In the case of double-sided printing in which images are formed on the front and back sides of a sheet, the sheet printed on one side is turned upside down by the switchback path 17 and then sent again to the photosensitive drum 8 from the circulation path 18 to be printed on the back side and discharged. Unload from 19 In addition, 12 shown in the figure is a manual sheet feeding port, for example, for supplying a thick sheet such as a cover sheet and a special sheet such as a coating sheet.

  An image reading device (scanner unit) 7 is disposed on the casing 2. The image reading device 7 scans a document placed on the platen with a photoelectric conversion element and transfers image data to the data storage unit 14 of the image forming unit 3. Further, the image reading device 7 is provided with a document supply device (ADF unit) 5 for automatically feeding a document to the platen. The document feeder 5 separates the documents set on the sheet feeding tray one by one and automatically feeds them to the platen. Such an image forming apparatus A is widely used and known in various structures. However, the image forming apparatus A is not limited to the electrostatic printing system shown in the figure, and a system such as screen printing or ink jet printing can be employed.

"Configuration of bookbinding equipment"
A bookbinding device B is attached to the paper discharge port 19 of the image forming apparatus A. As shown in FIG. 1, the bookbinding apparatus B includes a “stacking portion B1” that stacks and aligns sheets in a bundle, an “adhesive application portion B2” that applies an adhesive to the sheet bundle, and a sheet bundle. It is composed of a “cover binding portion B3” for binding the cover sheets, a “trimming cutting portion B4” for cutting the periphery of the binding sheet, and a “storage stack portion B5” for storing the sheet bundle.

  Then, after receiving the image-formed sheet from the sheet carry-in path T1 connected to the paper discharge port 19 of the image forming apparatus A, a series of sheets are stacked and aligned in the stacking unit B1, and then this is applied in the adhesive application unit B2. Gluing is performed on one side edge (back part) of the bundle-like sheet, and the booklet-like sheet is formed by binding together with the cover sheet at the cover binding portion B3. Thereafter, the trimming part B4 cuts and finishes the peripheral edge of the booklet sheet, and stores the booklet sheet in the storage stack part B5 so that a series of bookbinding processes are performed.

  The bookbinding apparatus B includes a sheet carry-in path T1 that is continuous with the paper discharge port 19 of the image forming apparatus A, an intermediate paper transport path T2 that is continuous with the carry-in path T1, and a cover sheet transport path T3. The sheets from A are sorted and conveyed. A sheet bundle conveyance path (hereinafter referred to as “bookbinding path”) T4 is provided downstream of the intermediate paper conveyance path T2 via the stacking unit B1, and this bookbinding path T4 intersects with the cover sheet conveyance path T3 (the one shown in the figure). (Orthogonal).

  The stacking unit B1 will be described. The stacking unit B1 is composed of a stacking tray 42 that is disposed with a vertical step formed at the sheet discharge port 40 of the intermediate paper transport path T2. The illustrated stacking tray 42 is disposed on the downstream side of the sheet discharge port 40 so as to stack and store sheets from the sheet discharge port 40 in a substantially horizontal posture. The stacking tray 42 is provided with a carry-in guide, a carry-in roller that can be rotated forward and backward, and a rear end regulating member. The sheet from the paper discharge port 40 is guided onto the tray by the carry-in guide and carried by the carry-in roller. It is configured. Further, the rear end regulation guide has an abutment regulation surface that abuts the rear end of the sheet to regulate the position, and in particular, the illustrated one regulates the positioning of the end face on which the adhesive is applied to the stacked sheet bundle in a subsequent process. And the sheet is aligned with the abutment regulation surface by the reverse rotation of the carry-in roller.

  Although not shown in the drawing, the stacking tray 42 is provided with alignment means for aligning the side edges of the sheets, and aligns the sheet width direction by restricting the width of the sheet loaded from the sheet discharge port 40 in the conveyance orthogonal direction. This aligning means is provided with, for example, a pair of aligning members that engage with the left and right side edges of the sheet above the tray, and when aligning the sheets with the center reference, the left and right aligning members are the same toward the sheet center (reference line). It is configured to reciprocate by an amount. Further, when the sheets are aligned on the one side reference, one alignment member is fixed at the reference position, and the opposite alignment member is reciprocated.

  The stacking tray 42 configured as described above is attached to the apparatus frame so as to be movable up and down in the direction of arrow a in FIG. 1, and moves between an upper stacking position P1 and a lower unloading position P2. This is because the stacking tray 42 is moved from the stacking position P1 to the unloading position P2 at a distance from the stacking position P1, and is transferred to the sheet bundle transporting means (grip transporting means described later) 55 for unloading the sheet bundle at the unloading position P2. It is. By arranging in this way, the apparatus can be configured compactly, and the sheet bundle aligned on the tray can be taken over by the grip conveying means 55 in an orderly manner. A bookbinding path T4 is provided downstream from the stacking tray 42, and a grip conveying means 55 is provided in the bookbinding path T4.

  The illustrated sheet bundle conveying means 55 is composed of grip conveying means, and deflects the sheet bundle accumulated on the accumulation tray 42 from a substantially horizontal posture to a vertical posture (direction c as viewed in FIG. 1), and bonds the bookbinding path T4. It is conveyed to the agent application position P3 (hereinafter referred to as the glue application position). For this reason, the grip conveying means 55 is composed of a pair of gripper members that grip the front and back of the sheet bundle, and a unit frame (not shown) that carries the gripper members and rotates approximately 90 degrees. The unit frame is supported by the apparatus frame so as to be rotatable in the direction of the arrow c in FIG. 1, and is configured to turn approximately 90 degrees by a turning motor (not shown).

  The unit frame configured as described above includes main grippers 55a and 55b and sub grippers 56a and 56b as shown in FIG. The main grippers 55a and 55b are constituted by long plate-like members so as to grip the paste application end surface (back portion; hereinafter the same) of the sheet bundle over the entire length, and the sub grippers 56a and 56b are the main grippers at the center of the sheet bundle. The shafts 55a and 55b are pivotally supported by a rotating shaft 55c. The main grippers 55a and 55b and the sub grippers 56a and 56b are configured to be pressed and separated by a grip motor (not shown). Thus, the sheet bundle is composed of the main grippers 55a and 55b and the sub grippers 56a and 56b. When the sheet bundle is conveyed from the stacking tray 42 to the downstream glue application position P3 by the both grippers, the lower edge of the sheet bundle is formed. This is to correct the skew.

  The lower edge (glue application end surface) of the sheet bundle is abutted against a path guide plate (not shown) of the cover sheet conveyance path T3 with the main gripper released, and the posture is corrected following the guide plate to correct the main gripper 55a. , 55b. For this skew correction, the sub grippers 56a and 56b are pivotally supported by the main grippers 55a and 55b so as to be able to swing in the sheet width direction, and the path guide plate 57 is used as a reference for the sheet bundle posture for applying glue (a glue applying roller described later). In parallel with the moving direction of The path guide plate 57 is retracted from the bookbinding path T4 after skew correction.

  Although not shown, the grip conveying means 55 is provided with a bundle thickness detecting means for detecting the thickness of the sheet bundle. This detection means is disposed on the movable member of the main grippers 55a and 55b or the sub grippers 56a and 56b, and detects the distance that the gripper moves from the release position (home position) to the nip position where the gripper contacts the surface of the sheet bundle. To detect the bundle thickness. The thickness information of the sheet bundle detected in this way is used for controlling the subsequent operation, for example, adjusting the amount of subsequent glue application according to the thickness of the sheet bundle.

  Next, the configuration of the adhesive application part B2 will be described. In the adhesive application part B2, glue application means is arranged at the glue application position P3 of the bookbinding path T4, and this glue application means is referred to as an adhesive container (hereinafter referred to as an adhesive container). ), And a coating roll incorporated in the container, and a container moving means for moving the glue container along the glue application end face of the sheet bundle for the coating operation. As shown in FIG. 3B, the glue container 66 is composed of a container body 66a for storing hot melt glue and an application roll 67. The container 66 is filled with a solid adhesive, and the adhesive is heated and melted. Then, it is applied to the sheet bundle by the application roll 67. For example, a heater (heating means) 66b such as an electric heater is built in the container body 66, and the adhesive in the container is melted into a liquid. 66c in the figure is a temperature sensor for controlling the heating means.

  When the temperature Ta in the apparatus changes as shown in FIG. 8, the temperature sensor 66c increases the temperature of the adhesive and exhibits the characteristics of the a curve shown in the figure. The curing time of the adhesive at this time becomes the curve b in the figure. The heating means 66b is controlled by setting this range as an appropriate temperature control range. If the adhesive temperature rises beyond this appropriate temperature adjustment range, the adhesive applied to the sheet bundle may drop or protrude from the back fold of the cover sheet. When it is lowered, the sheet bundle is not securely attached, resulting in a missing page.

  The coating roll 67 is made of impregnating heat-resistant rubber, and is rotatably supported on the container body 66a by a rotating shaft 67a. A roll rotation motor MR is connected to the rotation shaft 67a. The glue container 66 configured in this manner is fitted and supported by a guide rail 68 provided on the apparatus frame, and the guide rail 68 is moved along the glue application end surface S1 of the sheet bundle held by the grip conveying means 55 described above. Are arranged in parallel. As shown in FIG. 10, the glue container 66 incorporating the application roll 67 is supported so as to reciprocate along the glue application end surface S1 of the sheet bundle, and is fixed to the timing belt 69 stretched along the guide rail. Has been. A shift motor MS is connected to the timing belt 69. Accordingly, the guide rail 68, the timing belt 69, and the shift motor MS constitute a “container moving means”.

  The glue container 66 includes an application area L1 for applying glue to the glue application end surface S1 of the sheet bundle, and a retreat area L2 that can be moved to a retreat position (home position Hp shown in the figure) spaced apart from this area. It is configured. Then, the shift motor MS reciprocates between the home position Hp, the standby position Wp, and the return position Rp. In the home position Hp, the glue container 66 is positioned when the apparatus is activated, and in the standby position Wp, the glue container 66 is positioned when the glue is applied to the subsequent sheet bundle when the glue is continuously applied. For this reason, the standby position Wp is preferably laid out in the vicinity of the paste application region L1. Similarly, the return position Rp is preferably arranged in the vicinity of the paste application region L1.

  When the glue container 66 moves from the standby position Wp to the return position Rp, glue may be applied to the glue application end surface S1 of the sheet bundle by the application roll 67, but the illustrated one is applied in the forward path and the return path of the glue container 66. I try to cloth. That is, in the forward path (movement from Wp to Rp), the coating roll 67 presses and separates the end surface S1 of the sheet bundle, and in the backward path (movement from Rp to Wp), the coating roll 67 applies glue to the glue application end surface S1. To do. At this time, the gap between the roll surface and the paste application end surface S1 is adjusted so that the coating amount is large when the sheet bundle is thick and small when the sheet bundle is thin. The glue application amount is adjusted by the sheet conveyance amount of the grip conveyance means 55.

Next, the configuration of the cover binding portion B3 will be described. In the bookbinding path T4, a cover binding position P4 is provided on the downstream side of the glue application position P3, and the cover sheet conveying path T3 is arranged in a direction orthogonal to the bookbinding path T4 at the cover binding position P4. A cover binding means 30 is disposed at the cover binding position P4 located at the path intersection, and the sheet bundle from the bookbinding path T4 and the cover sheet from the cover sheet transport path T3 are joined in an inverted T shape, and the back part thereof. To form a spine. The cover sheet conveyance path T3 is connected to the sheet carry-in path T1, and the path switching piece 27 receives a cover sheet on which an image has been formed from the paper discharge port 19 of the image forming apparatus A. The conveyance is set at the position P4. Although not shown, it is also possible to arrange the inserter device so as to be connected to the carry-in path T1, and to supply a cover sheet from the inserter device.
In this case, the inserter device includes, for example, a tray unit for placing a cover sheet above the carry-in route T1, and a paper feed route for guiding the cover sheet from the tray unit to the carry-in route T1. The tray means is provided with a separating means for separating and feeding the cover sheets one by one. As a result, a cover sheet that cannot be supplied from the image forming apparatus A can be supplied to the cover sheet conveyance path T3.

The illustrated cover binding means 30 includes a back plate member 59 and a back folding press member 58. The back plate member 59 is formed of a plate-like member that is substantially orthogonal to the bookbinding path T4 at the cover binding position P4. The back plate member 59 is supported movably between an operating position in the path and a retracted position (chain line in FIG. 2) outside the path with respect to the bookbinding path T4, and is connected to an opening / closing motor (not shown). The reason why the back plate member 59 is configured to be able to move forward and backward with respect to the bookbinding path T4 is to carry out the sheet bundle after the back folding process to the downstream side of the path through the cover binding position P4.
The back plate member 59 is configured to back up and support the cover sheet when the sheet bundle from the bookbinding path T4 and the cover sheet from the cover sheet conveyance path T3 are joined to each other. Consists of rich materials. The back folding press member 58 is arranged on the upstream side of the back plate member 59 and is composed of a pair of left and right plate members across the cover sheet conveyance path T3, and folds the cover sheet backed up and supported by the back plate member 59. Match.

  For this reason, the right back folding press member 58b and the left back folding press member 58a are supported by the apparatus frame so as to approach and separate symmetrically about the joining reference (Y reference shown in FIG. 4) of the bookbinding path T4. The back folding press members 58a and 58b are provided with a press motor Mp (not shown) for approaching and separating them. The back folding press member 32 is controlled so that at least one standby position (starting position) is adjusted according to the thickness of the sheet bundle, and the left and right operation strokes are balanced. In the illustrated one, the standby position (indicated by Wp in FIG. 4) of the right back folding press member 58b is adjusted based on information from the bundle thickness detecting means.

  The operation of the cover binding means 30 in the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 (a) shows a state in which an adhesive is applied to the back folded end surface of the sheet bundle, and FIG. 4 (b) shows the sheet bundle and cover sheet. (C) shows the back folding operation | movement by the back folding press member 58, respectively.

  In the state shown in FIG. 6A, the sheet bundle coated with the adhesive by the coating roll 67 is transported to the cover binding position P4 by the grip transport means 55. At this time, the cover sheet is already fed and set from the cover sheet transport path T3 to the cover binding position P4, the back folding press members 58a and 58b are in the retracted position, and the back plate member 59 is in the operating position. Yes. Therefore, when the sheet bundle is fed out by the grip conveying means 55 in the state shown in FIG. 5B, the sheet bundle is joined to the cover sheet in an inverted T shape. At this time, the cover sheet is backed up and supported by the back plate member 59. Yes. Next, when the back folding press member 58 is moved from the standby position to the operating position in the state shown in FIG. 5C, the left and right back folding press members 58a and 58b press-mold the back portion of the cover sheet. In this process, the adhesive applied to the sheet bundle is solidified to bind the cover sheet and the sheet bundle.

  Therefore, the present invention provides the following cooling means on at least one of the back plate member 59 and the back folding press member 58 to promote the curing of the adhesive after the back folding.

  First, the cured state of the adhesive shown in FIG. 9 will be described. After the adhesive in the glue container 66 whose temperature is controlled as described above is applied to the sheet bundle, it is cured with the characteristics shown in FIG. Adhere the cover sheet. First, the adhesive gradually decreases from the proper adhesion temperature Th1 controlled in the container (140 ° C. in the experimental apparatus) to the temperature Th2. This temperature decrease is mainly determined by the environmental temperature in the apparatus, and gradually decreases in a parabolic manner (natural cooling). When the sheet bundle comes into contact with the back plate member 59, the adhesive temperature slightly decreases to Th3, and then gradually decreases to reach the set temperature Th4. The cooling time at this time is Ti2 (33 seconds in the experimental apparatus).

  The set temperature (60 ° C. in the experimental apparatus) is set to a temperature at which the subsequent bookbinding process can be performed. This set temperature is set so that there is no loss of shape such as displacement of the cover sheet and the sheet bundle in the subsequent operation, for example, the operation of carrying out the sheet bundle, and when the sheet bundle is cut in the subsequent operation, the shape is not lost during cutting. It is preferable to set by experiment. As is apparent from this characteristic, it takes time Ti2 for the adhesive to cure and adhere after the cover binding process. When the internal temperature of the apparatus is high, the sheet fed from the image forming apparatus A is hot. In this case, when the sheet bundle is thick, more time is required, and there is a problem that the curing time of the adhesive is not fixed depending on these conditions. Although the above temperature values are the temperature values in the experimental apparatus, it goes without saying that the temperature values differ depending on the adhesive and the apparatus configuration.

Therefore, in the present invention, as shown in FIG. 9, the adhesive temperature is rapidly decreased from the Th2 to be controlled to the set temperature Th4, and further, the cooling time Ti1 at this time is controlled so as not to be influenced by the above conditions. It is a feature. For this reason, the back plate member 59 is made of a material having a high thermal conductivity such as metal and has a large heat capacity. Then, the following cooling means is disposed on the back plate member 59.
(1) A cooling fan for sending cooling air to the back plate member 59 is provided.
(2) The back plate member 59 is provided with a refrigerant element that causes heat conduction electrically or a refrigerant means such as cooling with liquid.
(3) Outside air outside the apparatus is introduced into the back plate member 59 and cooled.
Each of the above configurations will be described below.

  In the configuration (1), a fan box 35 is provided on a back plate member 59 as shown in FIG. 7A, and a blower fan and its drive motor are built in the box. As a result, the heat of the adhesive is transmitted to the thermally conductive plate member, and the plate member is dissipated by the air flow blown from the back side. For example, when the adhesive temperature is as high as 140 ° C., the cooling effect of the adhesive can be sufficiently obtained even if the air in the apparatus is blown by a fan.

  In the configuration (2), the refrigerant means 36 is provided on the back side of the back plate member 59 as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the refrigerant means 36 includes a Peltier element plate 36a disposed in contact with the plate member 59, a heat sink 36b formed on the Peltier element plate 36a, and a cooling fan 36c for blowing air to the heat sink 36b. To do. Although not shown, the Peltier element plate 36a is equipped with a lead wire for supplying current, and the cooling fan 36c is equipped with a drive motor.

  As a result, the adhesive temperature is transmitted to the back plate member 59, and the heat of the plate member is transmitted to the outside (downward in FIG. 5) by supplying current to the Peltier element plate 36a, and the cooling fan 36c is transferred to the outside. Cooling air is blown from. The cooling means 36 for forcibly cooling the back plate member 59 may be cooled with a liquid such as cooling water or cooling oil. In this case, a structure may be adopted in which the cooling liquid cooled by a cooling fan or the like is circulated to the back side of the plate member for cooling.

  As shown in FIG. 7C, the configuration of (3) above is such that an air flow path is formed between the back side of the back plate member 59 and the outer casing of the apparatus to draw outside air from the back surface of the back plate member 59. Supply to the side. As shown in FIG. 6, a vent hole 21 is provided in the outer casing 20, and a blower fan 25 is disposed in a blower passage between the vent hole 21 and the back plate member 59. Accordingly, the back plate member 59 can be cooled more effectively than in the case of (1) described above.

  With the cooling means configured as described above, the adhesive curing characteristics shown in FIG. 9 rapidly decrease from Th2 and reach the set temperature Th4. According to the experiment of the apparatus adopting the configuration (2), the cooling time Th1 was shortened to about 1 / 2.5 (40%) compared to Th2 in the case of natural cooling. Further, by forcibly cooling the back plate member 59 in this way, even if the “sheet bundle thickness”, “adhesive application amount”, “sheet temperature”, and “apparatus environment temperature” are different, the cooling time is reduced. It can be set to a substantially constant time. This is because there is a large temperature difference for cooling a relatively high temperature (for example, 140 ° C.) adhesive to a set temperature (for example, 60 ° C.) and a large heat capacity such as an air flow or a refrigerant flow of the cooling means.

  Next, the configuration of the trimming cutting part B4 will be described. As described above, the sheet bundle that is bound together with the cover sheet in a booklet form is sent to the folding roll 60 on the downstream side by the grip conveying means 55. At this time, the back plate 59 and the back folding plates 58a and 58b are respectively retracted to the retracted positions. In the bookbinding path T4, a cutting position P5 is provided on the downstream side of the cover binding position P4, and a cutting means 61 is disposed. The cutting unit 61 includes a rotary table 62, a cutting edge press unit 63, and a cutting blade 64, which are sequentially arranged on the downstream side of the bookbinding path T4. The rotary table 62 grips the sheet bundle sent from the folding roll 60 and deflects the direction, and simultaneously conveys the lower end edge of the sheet bundle so as to form a cutting margin set in advance at the cutting position P5. . Therefore, the rotary table 62 is provided with a turning motor and a lifting motor.

  The cutting position P5 includes a cutting blade 64 and a cutter motor Mc that drives the cutting blade 64, and cuts a sheet bundle by a predetermined amount. The illustrated cutting blade 64 is constituted by a flat blade cutter, and is supported by the apparatus frame so as to be movable between a standby posture retracted from the bookbinding path T4 and the cutting posture shown in FIG. 2, and is reciprocated by a cutter motor Mc. The sheet bundle is cut by the above.

  Next, the storage stack portion B5 will be described. On the downstream side of the cutting blade 64, a stacker 65 for storing the sheet bundle and a waste disposal tray 75 are disposed. The cut sheet bundle is stored in a box-shaped stacker 65 by a paper discharge roller 76. In addition, a waste disposal tray 75 is provided adjacent to the stacker 65, and stores paper scraps cut by the upstream cutting blade 64. Reference numeral 100 denotes a sweeper member that swings so as to guide paper scraps from the cutting blade 64 to a waste disposal tray, and includes a drive motor (not shown).

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming system including a bookbinding apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a main part of a bookbinding apparatus in the system of FIG. 1. FIGS. 3A and 3B are explanatory diagrams of a main part configuration in the apparatus of FIG. 2, in which FIG. 3A is a configuration of a sheet bundle conveying unit, and FIG. 2 shows a cover binding operation in the apparatus of FIG. 2, (a) is an explanatory view of a glue application operation, (b) is a state explanatory view for joining a sheet bundle and a cover sheet, and (c) is an explanatory view of a back fold molding state. Explanatory drawing which shows the one aspect | mode of a cooling means. Explanatory drawing which shows the aspect of a cooling means different from FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the aspect of a cooling means, (a) shows an aspect different from FIG.5 and FIG.6, (b) is the aspect of FIG. 5, (c) is the whole explanatory drawing of the aspect of FIG. The experimental data which show the characteristic of the adhesive temperature at the time of controlling the adhesive temperature in the apparatus of FIG. FIG. 3 is an experimental data showing curing characteristics after applying an adhesive in the apparatus of FIG. Explanatory drawing of the movement mechanism of the glue container in the apparatus of FIG.3 (b).

Explanation of symbols

B1 Stacking part B2 Adhesive application part B3 Cover binding part B4 Trimming cutting part B5 Storage stack part P1 Stacking position P2 Unloading position P3 Adhesive application position (glue application position)
T1 Sheet carry-in route T2 Middle paper carrying route T3 Cover sheet carrying route T4 Bookbinding route 20 Exterior casing 21 Ventilation hole 25 Blower fan (cooling means)
30 Cover binding means 35 Fan box (cooling means)
36 Refrigerant means (cooling means)
36a Peltier element plate 36b Heat sink 36b
36c Cooling fan 42 Accumulation tray 55 Grip transport means 55a, 55b Main grippers 56a, 56b Sub gripper 58 Back folding press member 58a Left back folding press member 58b Right back folding press member 59 Back plate member 61 Cutting means 66 Glue container 66a Container body 66b Heating heater (heating means)
66c Temperature sensor 67 Application roll 70 Suction means

Claims (9)

A sheet bundle conveying path having a glue application position and a cover binding position, and having a sheet bundle conveying means;
Glue application means for applying an adhesive to the sheet bundle disposed at the glue application position and conveyed and set by the sheet bundle conveyance means;
A cover sheet transport path that crosses the sheet bundle transport path and feeds a cover sheet to the cover binding position;
A cover binding means arranged at the cover binding position to bind the sheet bundle and the cover sheet,
The cover binding means is composed of a back plate member for abutting and joining the glue application end surface of the sheet bundle to the back portion of the cover sheet, and a back folding press member for folding back the back portion of the cover sheet,
The bookbinding apparatus, wherein at least one of the back folding press member and the back plate member is provided with a cooling means. The back folding press member and the back plate member carry out back folding of the sheet bundle and the cover sheet, and then carry out the back folded sheet bundle downstream of the sheet bundle conveying path after a predetermined cooling time. Configured as
The bookbinding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cooling means is disposed on the back plate member. The back plate member is made of a metal material rich in thermal conductivity,
The bookbinding apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cooling means is configured by a blower fan that blows air to the back plate member. 3. The bookbinding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cooling unit includes a refrigerant unit such as a Peltier element, cooling water, and cooling oil disposed so as to contact the back plate member. The said cooling means is comprised by the ventilation port formed in the exterior casing, and the ventilation fan which ventilates external air from this ventilation port to the said back plate member, The Claim 1 or 2 characterized by the above-mentioned. Bookbinding equipment. The sheet bundle conveyance path is provided with a cutting position on the downstream side of the cover binding position, and the cutting position is provided with cutting means for cutting the periphery of the back folded sheet bundle. Item 6. The bookbinding apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 5. Sheet stacking means for stacking sequentially fed sheets in a bundle;
A sheet bundle conveying means for carrying out the sheet bundle on the sheet stacking means;
A bookbinding path that is continuous with the sheet stacking means and has a glue application position and a cover binding position;
Glue application means arranged at the glue application position of the bookbinding path and applying an adhesive to the end face of the sheet bundle;
A cover sheet conveyance path that crosses the bookbinding processing path and feeds a cover sheet to the cover binding position;
A cover binding means arranged at the cover binding position to bind the sheet bundle and the cover sheet;
Cutting means disposed on the downstream side of the cover binding position of the bookbinding path and cutting the periphery of the back-folded sheet bundle;
The cover binding means is composed of a back plate member for abutting and joining the glue application end surface of the sheet bundle to the back portion of the cover sheet, and a back folding press member for folding back the back portion of the cover sheet,
The bookbinding apparatus, wherein the back folding press member is provided with cooling means such as a Peltier element, a heat sink, and a blower fan. An image forming system comprising: an image forming apparatus that sequentially forms images on sheets; and a bookbinding apparatus that performs bookbinding processing by aligning sheets conveyed from the image forming apparatus into a bundle.
The image forming apparatus includes:
A paper feed stacker means for feeding sheets;
Image forming means for forming an image on a sheet from the paper feed stacker means;
A sheet discharge means for carrying out the sheet from the image forming means,
An image forming system comprising the bookbinding apparatus having the configuration according to any one of claims 1 to 7. An inserter device is provided between the image forming apparatus and the bookbinding apparatus,
This inserter device
Tray means for placing sheets;
A sheet feeding path for feeding sheets from the tray means to the cover sheet conveying path;
The image forming system according to claim 8, further comprising:

Images