JP2009292036A - Bookbinding apparatus and image formation system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a bookbinding apparatus which does not lessen the top-and-bottom appearance of a booklet, can aim at the improvement in external appearance grace and at the same time can maintain the strength of a booklet after bookbinding in a bookbinding apparatus where a paper bundles constituted with a plurality of paper sheets with the notch formed are adhesive applied on the back portion and a booklet is made with a cover pasted onto the back portion of the paper bundle. <P>SOLUTION: The bookbinding apparatus performs notch forming with a notch forming means which forms notches on the edge of the paper sheets transferred, a position movement means which moves the relative position of the paper sheets and the notch forming means in the direction of paper sheet width that intersects perpendicularly with a paper feed direction and with a control means which controls the notch formation. the control means controls the notch forming means so that the notch forming may be not executed when the notch forming means is positioned at the side of the paper sheets parallel to the paper transferring direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

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

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

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

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

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

  In Patent Document 2, a notch is provided for each sheet by a notch forming unit to improve the strength of a booklet after bookbinding.

  The notches are conveyed by forming a plurality of notches on the first sheet by the notch forming means. Next, after the second sheet is conveyed, the relative position between the sheet and the notch forming unit is moved by a predetermined distance in the direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction (hereinafter also referred to as a shift), and then the cut is performed. A plurality of notches are formed on the second sheet by the notch forming means. In this way, notches are sequentially formed on a plurality of subsequent sheets, and a plurality of notches between the stacked sheets form oblique grooves on the back of the sheet bundle in which the plurality of sheets are stacked. Arranged.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a state in which notches shifted for each sheet are formed as described above and stacked to form a booklet. FIG. 14A is a back portion of a sheet bundle, and FIG. Indicates the side (top / bottom) of a stack of paper.

  As shown in FIG. 14, a plurality of notches between the stacked sheets are arranged as diagonal grooves on the back of the sheet bundle in which a plurality of sheets with cutouts Va are stacked. At this time, if the cutout Va is formed up to the side surface of the sheet, the cutout Va can be seen on the top of the booklet as shown in FIG. However, in Patent Document 2, the formation of a notch on the side surface of the sheet is not controlled, and the notch Va is visible on the top of the booklet, deteriorating the appearance of the booklet and reducing the appearance.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and is a bookbinding apparatus that can improve the appearance quality without deteriorating the appearance of the booklet top and can maintain the strength of the booklet after bookbinding. The purpose is to provide.

The above object is achieved by the following configuration.
1. In a bookbinding apparatus for producing a booklet by applying an adhesive to the back part of a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of sheets and attaching a cover to the back part of the sheet bundle, the sheet is cut to the edge side of the conveyed sheet. A notch forming device comprising: a notch forming means for forming a notch; and a position moving means for moving a relative position between the paper and the notch forming means in a paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction; Control means for controlling the notch forming device, and the control means, when the notch forming means is positioned on the side surface of the paper parallel to the paper transport direction by the position moving means. A bookbinding apparatus that performs control to stop the formation of the notch by the notch forming means.
2. When the side notch selection unit selects to form the notch on the side surface, the control unit forms the notch so as to form the notch on the side surface based on the selection information. 2. The bookbinding apparatus according to 1, wherein the means is controlled.
3. The notch forming device includes second notch forming means for forming a notch on the side surface, and the control means is configured to select the presence / absence of notch formation on the side surface based on selection information selected. The bookbinding apparatus according to 1 or 2, wherein the second notch forming means is controlled.
4). 4. An image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet, and the bookbinding apparatus according to any one of 1 to 3 that receives a sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming apparatus and produces a booklet. A featured image forming system.

  As described above, it is possible to produce a booklet having a good appearance and having no cutout marks on the top and bottom of the booklet. Further, a booklet having a higher strength by providing notches up to the side surface can be produced according to the user's selection.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

[Bookbinding device B]
As shown in FIG. 1, the bookbinding apparatus B according to the present invention includes a conveyance path 10, a paper discharge unit 20, a reversing unit 30, a sheet bundle storage unit 40, an adhesive application unit 50, a cover sheet supply unit 60, a cutting unit 70, This is a case binding apparatus having a booklet forming unit 80, a notch forming apparatus 300, and the like.

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

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

  The control unit of the present invention includes a main control unit 100 provided in the image forming apparatus A and a post-processing control unit 200 that is a control unit that controls the production of a booklet provided in the bookbinding apparatus B, and includes a serial communication unit. 101 and 201 are connected. Each part of the bookbinding apparatus B is controlled by the post-processing control unit 200 according to a command from the main control unit 100. The post-processing control unit 200 controls driving of each unit described later in order to produce a booklet.

  That is, the post-processing control unit 200 has a motor M4 for driving the support member 41 that supports the sheet bundle, a motor M2 for driving the punch 302 of the notch forming unit 300A, and the relative relationship between the sheet S and the notch forming unit 300A. The moving unit 400 that is a position moving unit that moves the position, the motor M1 that drives the application roller 51, the booklet forming unit 80, the cutting unit 70, and the like are controlled.

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

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

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

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

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

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

  The notch forming apparatus 300 includes a notch forming unit 300A that is a notch forming unit, and a moving unit 400 (a position moving unit that moves a relative position between the paper S and the notch in a paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction. 11), and a waste storage box 303 for storing cut-out paper waste.

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

  The notch forming unit 300A includes a die 301 provided in the sheet conveyance path, a punch 302 that moves up and down and fits into the die 301, and a drive unit that moves the punch 302 up and down.

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

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

  A notch portion is formed at the rear end portion of the sheet S by the lowering drive of the punch 302 and the fitting of the die 301. The driving for raising and lowering the punch 302 is not limited to the above mechanism, and a generally known reciprocating mechanism can be used.

  FIG. 11 is a front view showing the moving unit 400 that moves the relative positions of the paper S and the notch in the paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction. In the example illustrated in FIG. 11, the moving unit 400 moves the relative position between the sheet S and the notch by moving the notch forming unit 300 </ b> A from the back side of the bookbinding apparatus B to the front side and vice versa. .

  When the motor M3 of the moving part 400 is driven, the feed screw 404 rotates through a gear train composed of gears 401, 402, and 403. An engagement member (not shown) provided in the notch forming portion 300A is engaged with the feed screw 404, and the notch forming portion 300A moves in the arrow Z direction as the feed screw 404 rotates. For the feed screw 404 and the engaging member, a generally known linear motion mechanism such as a ball screw can be used. Further, a generally known linear motion mechanism using a rack and pinion, a wire or the like can be used.

  FIG. 11 is an example provided with two sets of notch forming portions 300 </ b> A each having one punch 302 and one die 301. Note that the number of sets of the notch forming portions 300A is not limited to this. In the example shown in FIG. 11, one set of punch 302 and die 301 forms one notch, but a plurality of notches are formed on one set of punch 302 and die 301. A plurality of notches may be formed by a pair of punch 302 and die 301.

  The sheet S discharged from the image forming apparatus A is not set in the notch processing in the operation unit 9 of the image forming apparatus A, for example, when a booklet that is discharged and stacked on the discharge unit 20 is not prepared. It passes through the notch forming portion 300A without being processed.

  When the punching process for punching the notch is set in the operation unit 9, the leading edge of the sheet S introduced into the bookbinding apparatus B corresponds to the notch forming position of the transport roller 31 and the notch forming unit 300 </ b> A and It passes through the transport roller 32 and stops at a predetermined position. That is, after the sensor PS disposed on the upstream side of the conveyance roller 31 detects the trailing edge of the sheet S that is nipped and conveyed between the conveyance roller 31 and the conveyance roller 32, for example, a predetermined pulse is counted by the pulse counter PS2. Then, the driving of the paper transport motor (not shown) is stopped, and the progress of the paper S is stopped. At this sheet stop position, a notch Va is formed at the edge of the trailing edge of the sheet S.

  FIG. 12 is a plan view illustrating an example of a sheet bundle Sa in which a plurality of sheets S (S1 to S14) in which the notch Va is formed are stacked. As the shape of the notch, a semicircular shape, a V shape, a U shape, or the like shown in the figure is used.

  The notch forming part 300A is moved to a predetermined position on the left side of the figure by the moving part 400, and two sets of notch forming parts 300A having the punch 302 and the die 301 of the notch forming part 300A are formed on the first sheet S1. A number of notches Va are formed. In the example shown in FIG. 12, the hole diameter is 6 mm.

  Next, the notch forming part 300A is moved by a predetermined distance (hereinafter also referred to as a moving amount) Δ to the right in the figure by the moving part 400, and two sets of punching parts of the notch forming part 300A are formed on the second sheet S2. As a result, two notches Va are formed. In this example, the predetermined distance Δ is set to 0.5 mm, for example, so that the hole diameters partially overlap each other.

  In the same manner, a notch Va in which the punching position is shifted by a predetermined distance Δ is formed in a plurality of sheets S (S3 to S14). The predetermined distance Δ is appropriately set based on specifications such as bookbinding trial manufacture and conventional bookbinding conditions depending on the paper type, the number of sheets, the thickness of the booklet, and the like.

  Here, as described above, after the two cutout portions Va are formed on the left side of the sheet S1 in the drawing, the cutout forming portion 300A is moved to the right side of the drawing, and two cutout portions Va (not shown) are moved to predetermined positions on the right side of the drawing. ) Can be made into four notches Va. In addition, the number of notches Va, a drilling position, a drilling order, etc. are not limited to the above.

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

  FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing the control of the example of the embodiment provided with the shift conveyance unit 32A.

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

  A notch Va is formed on the first sheet S1 and conveyed by the notch forming unit 300A, and then the second sheet S2 is conveyed, and the sheet S2 gripped together with the conveying roller 32 by the shift conveying unit 32A. Are shifted by a predetermined distance Δ in the direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction, and then two notches Va are formed on the second sheet S2 by the notch forming portion 300A.

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

  In the example shown in FIG. 12, when the sheets S are stacked to form a sheet bundle Sa, the notches Va are arranged like diagonal grooves on the back of the sheet bundle Sa.

  In the example shown in FIG. 12, the cutout portion Va is punched while shifting in one direction (right direction in the figure). However, after the cutout portion Va is shifted in one direction and the predetermined number of sheets S are punched, It is preferable that the notched portion Va is folded in the reverse direction (left direction in the figure) in the succeeding paper S and is punched while shifting.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example in which the notch Va is folded back in the left-right direction in the drawing, and the notch Va is formed on the sheet S while shifting to form a sheet bundle Sa, and 19 notches Va are provided. 14A shows the back, FIG. 14B shows the top and bottom, and FIG. 14C shows the surface. As shown in the figure, the grooves of the sheet bundle Sa formed by the notches Va are arranged in a waveform.

  FIG. 15 is a partially enlarged view schematically showing the notch Va shown in FIG. The notch Va is formed while being shifted by a predetermined distance Δ. The amplitude amount y represents the total distance of the predetermined distance Δ until the cutout portion Va formed while being shifted by the predetermined distance Δ in one direction is turned back in the reverse direction.

  As described above, when the notch Va is formed to the side of the sheet when the notch Va is formed, the notch Va can be seen on the top of the booklet as shown in FIG. The appearance of the booklet was damaged and the appearance was reduced. Here, the side surface of the paper S becomes the top of the booklet.

  On the other hand, the bookbinding apparatus B according to the present invention controls the punching of the notch Va by the notch forming part 300A when the notch forming part 300A is positioned on the side surface of the sheet S.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of the arrangement of various sizes of sheets S and notches Va used in the present embodiment, and shows the positions at which the notches Va are formed in the first sheet S. FIG. The notch pitch is 15 mm. In the figure, CL is a center line indicating the center in the transport direction of the paper S, and the numerical values swayed to the left and right in the figure indicate the distance (mm) from CL. The sheet S is conveyed in the direction of arrow PH. FIG. 17 is a notch dimension of the notch Va shown in FIG.

  In the present embodiment, the notch Va is formed using the notch forming device 300 shown in FIGS. The two sets of notch forming portions 300 </ b> A are arranged so that the drilling pitch is 30 mm, for example, and move simultaneously by the rotation of the feed screw 404.

  Hereinafter, the case of the A4 paper S shown in FIG. 16 will be described as an example.

  For the first sheet S, the notch forming portion 300A is first positioned at the perforated positions 150 and 120 on the left side of the drawing.

  The post-processing control unit 200 adjusts the notch specifications and controls so that the notch Va is not formed on the side surface. The notch specifications include the position of the first notch, the notch movement amount Δ (predetermined distance Δ), the notch amplitude y, and the distance S1 from the side surface of the sheet S to the notch Va (see FIG. 18). ).

  In the above-described control, the post-processing control unit 200 performs control so that the cutouts at the left and right positions 150 on the side surface of the paper S are not formed. Next, the notch specification is adjusted for the notch 135 located inside the sheet S. If the cutout portion Va is formed on each sheet S while shifting the cutout portion Va with the preset cutout specification, the adjustment is not performed and the adjustment is not performed. Adjustment of the notch part Va located is not performed.

  On the other hand, when the notch Va is applied to the paper side surface, the notch specification is adjusted to a specification such that the notch Va is not applied to the paper side surface. Further, the same specification is made for the cutout portion Va located at another position. Thereby, the groove shape of the sheet bundle Sa formed by the cutout portion Va of the sheet S is determined.

  Here, as the movement amount Δ is smaller, the groove width S2 (see FIG. 15) becomes wider. The wider the groove width S2 and the smaller the amplitude amount y, the more concentrated the adhesive is in the groove in the step of applying adhesive (glue) to the back of the sheet bundle Sa described later. The concentration of the adhesive causes a mark of the adhesive to float on the back when it is made into a booklet, which impairs the appearance.

  For this reason, when adjusting the notch specification, it is preferable to set the maximum width of the groove width S2, that is, the minimum movement amount Δ and the minimum amplitude amount y of the notch Va and include them in the adjustment conditions.

  Based on the adjusted notch specification, the post-processing control unit 200 controls the movement of the notch forming part 300A and the punching in the notch forming part 300A, and forms the notch Va.

  First, among the notch forming portions 300A located at positions 150 and 120 on the left in the figure, the notch forming portion 300A located at the position 120 is driven to form the notch Va at the position 120. Next, the notch forming part 300A is moved to the positions 135 and 105 on the left side of the figure to form the notch Va. Next, the notch forming portion 300A is moved to the positions 90 and 60 on the left side to form the notch Va. In this manner, the notches Va are sequentially formed at predetermined positions on the left and right sides of the first sheet S.

  When the second sheet S is conveyed to a predetermined location, the notch forming unit 300A moves to the position moved by the movement amount Δ from the positions 150 and 120 on the left in the figure, and starts forming the notch Va. In this way, the notch Va is formed in the same manner as the first sheet S at a position moved by the movement amount Δ from the position where the notch Va of the previous sheet S is formed. Note that the notch Va is not formed at the position moved by the movement amount Δ with reference to the left 150 in the figure.

  In this way, the notch Va is formed in each sheet S with the predetermined movement amount Δ and amplitude amount y based on the notch specification.

  FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example of the sheet bundle Sa in which the notch Va is formed by controlling the formation of the notch Va so that the side surface of the sheet is not notched.

  As described above, when the booklet is produced, the appearance quality of the booklet is not deteriorated, the appearance quality can be improved, and the strength of the booklet after bookbinding can be maintained.

  Here, the strength of the booklet, particularly the strength near the top of the booklet, increases as the notch Va is as close as possible to the side of the sheet.

  For this reason, the notched portion Va is intentionally formed to the side surface of the paper, and the side surface (top / bottom) may be cut about several mm after the booklet is created. The formation of the cutout portion Va on the side surface of the sheet is performed by releasing the stop of the formation of the cutout portion Va on the side surface of the sheet by the operation unit 9 of the image forming apparatus A having the side cutout selecting unit. It is done by selecting that. The post-processing control unit 200 performs control to form the notch Va on the side surface of the paper S based on the selection information. In the case of the above-described A4 paper S, a notch Va is also formed at a position corresponding to 150 in FIG.

  In the above example, when the formation of the notch Va on the side of the sheet is selected, the notch forming unit 300A also cuts out the side of the sheet, but a notch forming means dedicated to the notch on the side of the sheet is provided. Is preferred.

  FIG. 19 shows an example in which the notch forming device 300 is provided with a second notch forming unit 300B which is a second notch forming unit dedicated to the side surface of the paper S. The second notch forming part 300B is configured similarly to the notch forming part 300A shown in FIGS. The second notch forming part 300B is indicated by the left and right arrows in FIG. 16 between the notch forming part 300A and the conveyance roller 32 and in the vicinity of each side surface of the paper S to be used. It arrange | positions at the position (arrow position) of 75,105,135,150.

  In the present embodiment, the second notch forming portions 300B are arranged one by one on the left and right sides of the CL, and are moved and arranged at any of the arrow positions by the moving unit 400 according to the selected paper S. The When the formation of the notch Va on the side surface of the sheet is selected, the notch Va is formed on almost the side surface of the sheet S at the position of the arrow.

  In the formation of the cutout portion Va on the side surface, the second cutout forming portion 300B is moved to a position where the cutout portion Va is not hooked on the side surface, the cutout portion Va is formed in the vicinity of the side surface, and a groove is formed. You can also. FIG. 20 shows an example in which a straight groove is formed in the second notch forming portion 300B and a corrugated groove is formed in the notch forming portion 300A. The position and the number of the linear grooves and the corrugated grooves are not limited to this, and are appropriately set depending on the paper type, booklet thickness, bookbinding purpose, and the like. The linear groove improves the opening strength of the booklet.

  As described above, by providing the second notch forming portion 300B dedicated to the side surface of the paper S separately from the notch forming portion 300A, the control of the notch on the side surface of the paper S is separated from the notch forming portion 300A. Therefore, the control of the notch position, the groove shape pattern, and the like can be easily changed.

  Furthermore, it becomes possible to change the notch shape of the notch forming part 300A and the second notch forming part 300B. For example, the notch diameter of the second notch forming part 300B is made smaller than the notch diameter of the notch forming part 300A. Thus, by reducing the notch diameter, the groove can be narrowed in the case of a linear groove shape, and the concentration of the adhesive in the groove can be reduced as described above. This reduces the amount of adhesive marks on the back when the booklet is made, which is preferable for the appearance of the booklet.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  When the center portion of the cover sheet K placed on the pressure member 83 is pressed and adhered to the application surface of the adhesive N of the sheet bundle Sa, the adhesive N is pushed into the sheet bundle Sa side with the cover sheet K. In this case, the adhesive N can surely enter the notch Va.

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

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

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

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

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus including an image forming apparatus main body, a bookbinding apparatus, and a booklet storage apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the control of this invention. It is sectional drawing of the bookbinding apparatus which concerns on this invention. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state where a sheet stacking unit of the sheet bundle storage unit is installed in an inclined state. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a state where a paper stacking unit of the paper bundle housing unit is installed in an upright state. It is sectional drawing of a sheet | seat bundle accommodating part, an application part, a cover supply part, a cutting part, and a booklet formation part. It is a perspective view of an application part and a clamping part. It is sectional drawing of a booklet formation part and a paper bundle which show the folding process of a cover. It is a perspective view which shows the preparation process of the booklet by a paper bundle and a cover. It is sectional drawing of a notch formation part. It is a front view of a moving part. It is a top view of the sheet | seat bundle | stacking which accumulated the several sheet | seat in which the notch part was formed. It is a block diagram which shows control of other embodiment. It is a figure of the sheet bundle which formed the notch shifted for every sheet, and was laminated. It is the elements on larger scale which expressed the notch part typically. It is a figure which shows the example of arrangement | positioning of the paper of various sizes, and a notch part. It is a figure which shows an example of the notch dimension of a notch part. It is a figure which shows the example which formed the notch part so that a notch may not be applied to the paper side surface. It is a figure which shows the example which provided the 2nd notch formation part only for the paper side surface. It is a figure which shows the example which formed the linear groove | channel in the 2nd notch formation part, and formed the waveform groove | channel in the notch formation part.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 50 Application | coating part 51 Application | coating roller 70 Cutting part 80 Booklet formation part 100 Main control part 200 Post-processing control part 300 Notch formation apparatus 300A Notch formation part 300B 2nd notch formation part 301 Die 302 Punch 309 Rotating shaft 32A Shift conveyance part 400 Moving part A Image forming apparatus B Bookbinding apparatus K Cover M1, M2, M3, M4 Motor N Adhesive PS Sensor S Paper Sa Paper bundle Va Notch Δ Predetermined distance

Claims (4)

In a bookbinding apparatus that applies an adhesive to the back of a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of sheets, and attaches a cover to the back of the sheet bundle to produce a booklet,
Notch forming means for forming a notch on the edge side of the conveyed paper, and position moving means for moving the relative position between the paper and the notch forming means in the paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction A notch forming device comprising:
Control means for controlling the notch forming device,
The control means performs control to stop the formation of the notch by the notch forming means when the notch forming means is positioned on the side surface of the paper parallel to the paper transport direction by the position moving means. Bookbinding apparatus characterized by the above. When it is selected by the side cutout selecting means that the cutout is formed on the side face, the control means forms the cutout on the side face based on the selection information. The bookbinding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the means is controlled. The notch forming device includes second notch forming means for forming a notch on the side surface, and the control means is configured to select the presence / absence of notch formation on the side surface based on selection information selected. The bookbinding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second notch forming unit is controlled. An image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet, and a bookbinding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 that receives a sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming apparatus and produces a booklet. An image forming system.

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