JP2012006152A - Post-processing device for performing bookbinding processing by ring binder and image forming system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent failure in bookbinding processing caused by mistake in sheet selection by a user.SOLUTION: A post-processing device has a storage part for storing ring information used in a ring bookbinding part, a hole information obtaining part for obtaining hole information of the sheet. The post-processing device compares the hole information obtained from the hole information obtaining part with the ring information obtained from the storage part to determine whether bookbinding processing can be performed.

Description

  The present invention relates to a post-processing apparatus that binds punched sheets and performs a bookbinding process using a ring binder, and an image forming system including the post-processing apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art A bookbinding apparatus that binds a plurality of sheets on which images have been formed by a copier, a printer, or the like, and performs bookbinding processing on the bundle, and an image forming system including the bookbinding apparatus are known.

  The bookbinding process includes a bookbinding process using staples and a bookbinding process using an adhesive. As another bookbinding process, there is a ring bookbinding process. In this method, a punched sheet is bundled and aligned, and a bookbinding process is performed by passing a metal coil through a hole in the aligned sheet bundle or by passing a ring of a ring binder. Patent Document 1 discloses an image forming system including such a ring bookbinding apparatus.

  The image forming system disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a punch device. When a sheet that has not been punched in advance is used, the bookbinding process is performed after the punch hole is opened by the punch device. In addition, the image forming system can use a sheet having punched holes by a prior punching process, and when the punching process is performed again on such a sheet, the hole is displaced and becomes larger. Such troubles occur. In order to avoid this problem, a sensor for detecting a punch hole is provided, and control is performed to prohibit punch hole punching processing when bookbinding is performed using paper in which punch holes have been previously punched by detection of the sensor. .

  In the image forming system disclosed in Patent Document 2, a detection unit that detects an abnormality of the ring binder is provided in the ring bookbinding apparatus, and the detection unit detects an abnormality in the ring binder that is erroneously loaded or out of consumption. The control to prohibit is performed.

JP 2009-256070 A JP 2009-255505 A

  When the bookbinding process is performed by the ring bookbinding apparatus, the hole of the sheet must be adapted to the position and size of the ring of the ring binder. If paper that does not fit is used, the paper will be damaged due to the failure of the bookbinding process, and the entire paper bundle will be wasted. Arise.

  The image forming system disclosed in Patent Document 2 detects an abnormality of a ring binder, and determines whether or not the state of the ring binder is abnormal in comparison with the previous state. It does not judge the suitability of.

  Further, the image forming system disclosed in Patent Document 1 determines the presence or absence of punch holes in a sheet, and does not detect the position or size of each of a plurality of holes.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to prevent a bookbinding process from failing due to a mistake in selecting a sheet by a user.

  The above object is achieved by the invention described below.

1. An image forming unit for forming an image on the punched paper;
A ring binding unit that includes a stack unit that bundles sheets formed by the image forming unit, a ring binding unit that attaches a ring binder including a plurality of rings to the sheets bundled in the stack unit, and a bookbinding process;
A storage unit for storing ring information used in the ring binding unit;
A hole information acquisition unit for acquiring paper hole information;
A determination unit that compares the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit with the ring information acquired from the storage unit, and determines whether the bookbinding process is executable;
An image forming system comprising:

2. The ring information is the number of rings, the position of the ring, the cross-sectional shape of the ring,
2. The image forming system according to 1, wherein the hole information includes a number of holes, a position of the hole, and a shape of the hole.

3. The hole information acquisition unit is an operation unit for a user to input hole information,
3. The image forming system according to 1 or 2, wherein paper hole information is acquired by an input to the operation unit.

4). The hole information acquisition unit is a scanner for reading paper,
3. The image forming system according to 1 or 2 above, wherein paper hole information is acquired from image data obtained by reading the paper.

5). The storage unit stores related data in which the identification code printed on the paper package and the paper hole information are associated with each other.
The hole information acquisition unit is a scanner for reading the identification code or an operation unit for a user to input the identification code,
3. The image forming system according to 1 or 2, wherein paper hole information is acquired based on the related data based on the acquired identification code.

6). It has a punch part that punches paper.
When the determination unit determines that the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit and the ring information acquired from the storage unit are not suitable as a result of comparison, the determination unit is made to correspond to the ring information. Perform punching on the paper in the punch section,
6. The image forming system according to any one of 1 to 5, wherein a bookbinding process is performed by the ring bookbinding unit on a sheet punched by the punching unit.

7). As a result of comparing the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit and the ring information acquired from the storage unit, the determination unit determines that the hole information is not compatible, and the hole information is a hole. If not,
Perform punching processing on the paper in the punch portion so as to correspond to the ring information,
7. The image forming system as described in 6 above, wherein the ring bookbinding unit performs bookbinding on the paper punched by the punch unit.

8). A ring binding unit including a stack unit for binding image-formed sheets, a ring binding unit for attaching a ring binder including a plurality of rings to the sheets bundled in the stack unit, and a bookbinding process;
A storage unit for storing ring information used in the ring binding unit;
A hole information acquisition unit for acquiring paper hole information;
A determination unit that compares the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit with the ring information acquired from the storage unit, and determines whether the bookbinding process is executable;
A post-processing apparatus comprising:

9. The ring information is the number of rings, the position of the ring, the cross-sectional shape of the ring,
9. The post-processing apparatus according to 8, wherein the hole information includes the number of holes, the position of the holes, and the shape of the holes.

10. The hole information acquisition unit is an operation unit for a user to input ring information,
10. The post-processing device according to 8 or 9, wherein paper hole information is acquired by input to the operation unit.

11. The hole information acquisition unit is a scanner for reading paper,
10. The post-processing apparatus according to 8 or 9, wherein paper hole information is acquired from image data obtained by reading the paper.

12 The storage unit stores related data in which the identification code printed on the paper package and the paper hole information are associated with each other.
The hole information acquisition unit is a scanner for reading the identification code or an operation unit for a user to input the identification code,
10. The post-processing apparatus according to 8 or 9, wherein paper hole information is acquired based on the related data based on the acquired identification code.

13. It has a punch part that punches paper.
When the determination unit determines that the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit and the ring information acquired from the storage unit are not suitable as a result of comparison, the determination unit is made to correspond to the ring information. Perform punching on the paper in the punch section,
13. The post-processing apparatus according to any one of 8 to 12, wherein a bookbinding process is performed by the ring bookbinding unit on a sheet punched by the punching unit.

14 As a result of comparing the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit and the ring information acquired from the storage unit, the determination unit determines that the hole information is not compatible, and the hole information is a hole. If not,
Perform punching processing on the paper in the punch portion so as to correspond to the ring information,
14. The post-processing apparatus according to 13, wherein the ring bookbinding unit performs bookbinding on the paper punched by the punch unit.

  According to the present invention, prior to the bookbinding process, by comparing the hole information of the paper to be bound and the ring information of the ring binder to determine whether or not the bookbinding process is possible, it is possible to avoid a paper selection mistake by the user. It is possible to prevent the accompanying bookbinding process from failing.

1 is a schematic diagram of an image forming system. It is a principal part expanded sectional view of 2nd post-processing apparatus FS2. It is an example of the sheet S used in the post-processing device FS2. It is an example of a booklet that has been bound by a ring binder. It is a control block diagram of an image forming system. It is a figure explaining the control flow which control part B10 of post-processing apparatus FS2 performs. It is an example of a setting screen displayed on the operation display unit 9. 6 is an example of a setting screen accompanying a reading operation of the scanner 7 displayed on the operation display unit 9. It is an example of the input screen of the identification code displayed on the operation display part. It is a figure explaining the control flow of the image forming system which concerns on a modification.

  Although the present invention will be described based on an embodiment, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment.

[Image forming system]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an image forming system including an image forming apparatus A and post-processing apparatuses FS1, FS2, and FS3. Various post-processing can be performed on the paper on which the image is formed by the image forming apparatus A by the subsequent post-processing apparatuses FS1, FS2, and FS3. The post-processing device FS2 includes a ring bookbinding unit 210 that performs a bookbinding process using a ring binder, and a punch unit 240 that performs a punching process. Note that the image forming system shown in the figure is an example, and as another embodiment, a configuration in which the post-processing devices FS1 and FS3 are not connected, or a configuration in which a plurality of post-processing devices FS2 are connected may be used.

[Image forming apparatus A]
The illustrated image forming apparatus A includes a scanner 7, an image forming unit 4, paper feeding / conveying units 5 a and 5 b, a fixing device 8, an automatic document feeder ADF, and an operation display unit 9.

  The image forming unit 4 forms an image on a sheet by, for example, an electrophotographic method. The image forming unit 4 includes a photosensitive drum, a charging unit, a developing unit, a transfer unit, a cleaning unit, and the like, and forms a monochrome or full color image.

  The sheet feeding / conveying units 5 a and 5 b are provided with a sheet feeding tray for stacking a plurality of sheets, and convey the sheets one by one to the image forming unit 4.

  The operation display unit 9 includes a touch panel in which a touch screen is arranged on a display unit constituted by a liquid crystal panel. Various operation screens can be displayed on the operation display unit 9, and post-processing types described later, types of paper stored in a paper feed cassette, ring binder ring information, and paper hole information can be input.

  The document placed on the document table of the automatic document feeder ADF is scanned on one or both sides of the document by the optical system of the scanner 7, and the photoelectrically converted analog signal is converted into analog processing, A / D conversion, After processing such as shading correction and image compression processing, the image is sent to the storage unit A11 (see FIG. 5) or the image forming unit 4.

  A toner image is formed on the paper by the image forming unit 4 on the paper fed by the paper feeding / conveying unit 5a or 5b. The sheet carrying the toner image is fixed by the fixing device 8 and sent to the subsequent post-processing device FS2 or the like. Although not shown in FIG. 1, when an image is formed on both sides of a sheet, the sheet having a toner image formed on one side is transported downward on the downstream side of the fixing device 8 and the sheet is turned upside down. Then, the sheet is returned to the image forming unit 4 through the double-sided conveyance path to form an image on the back surface.

[Large capacity feeder LT]
The large-capacity sheet feeder LT includes sheet-feeding and conveying sections 5c, 5d, and 5e each having a large-capacity sheet feed tray, and continuously feeds a large amount of sheets from these sheet feed trays. A can be conveyed to A.

[Post-processing device FS1]
The first post-processing device FS1 is an inserter for inserting a cover sheet or insert paper, and has three insertion paper trays 51a, 51b, 51c. By stacking cover sheets, insert sheets, etc. that have been processed in advance by other apparatuses on the insertion sheet trays 51a, 51b, 51c, these sheets can be conveyed to the subsequent post-processing apparatuses FS1, FS2. It is.

[Post-processing device FS3]
Before describing the second post-processing device FS2, the third post-processing device FS3 will be described first. The post-processing device FS3 includes a side stitching unit 370, a punching processing unit 340, a folding unit 350, and a saddle stitching unit 380.

  In the flat stitching unit 370, sheets conveyed from the upstream side of the image forming apparatus A or the like are stacked to form a sheet bundle, and a predetermined position close to the end of the sheet bundle by the flat stitching unit 370 with respect to the sheet bundle. Then, the staple is stapled and the flat stitching process is performed. The sheet bundle that has undergone the flat binding process in the flat binding unit 380 is discharged to the discharge tray 301.

  The saddle stitching unit 380 performs saddle stitching processing. Similarly, the saddle stitching unit 380 stacks the sheets conveyed from the upstream side to form a sheet bundle, and performs the saddle stitching process by placing a binding needle at a substantially central portion in the conveyance direction of the sheet bundle. Then, the bound sheet bundle is subjected to a middle folding process in which a folded portion 350 on the downstream side is folded at the center portion where the staple is hit. The sheet bundle that has been subjected to the saddle stitching by the saddle stitching unit 380 and the folding unit 350 is discharged to the paper discharge tray 302.

[Post-processing device FS2]
FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of the second post-processing device FS2. The post-processing device FS2 functions as a ring bookbinding device, and performs bookbinding processing by attaching a ring binder having a plurality of rings to paper that has been punched or paper that has been punched.

  Here, an example of a sheet used in the post-processing apparatus FS2 and a booklet created by ring binding processing is shown. FIG. 3 is an example of the sheet S used in the post-processing device FS2. FIG. 3A shows an example of a sheet having a large number of holes h, and the hole shape is rectangular and 11 holes. FIG. 3B is an example of a sheet corresponding to FIG. 3A, and is an example of 9 holes. FIG. 3C shows an example in which the hole shape is 9 and the hole shape is a perfect circle. FIG. 3D is an example in which the hole shape is a perfect circle with two holes. FIG. 3E shows an example of a sheet having no holes. In the case of a sheet having no holes, a ring binder can be attached by performing a punching process in a punching section described later. The number of holes is not limited to the example shown in FIG. 3, and standardized 4 holes ("888"), 26 holes (B5 size horizontal size), and 30 holes (A4 size horizontal size) are supported. You may use with a ring binder.

  FIG. 4 is an example of a booklet that has been bound by a ring binder. FIG. 4A is an overall view of the booklet, and a sheet bundle obtained by bundling a plurality of sheets S having a rectangular hole as shown in FIG. 3A is bound by a ring binder rb. FIG. 4B is a partially enlarged schematic view thereof. The ring binder rb has a plurality of rings 91, and each of the plurality of rings 91 is connected by a spine portion 92. The ring 91 shown in the figure is an example of a ring having a circular cross section. The cross-sectional shape of the ring is not limited to a circle and may be a rectangle.

  The ring 91 can be opened and closed on the opposite side of the portion connected to the spine portion 92, and can be bent into three parts (see FIG. 2: ring binders rb1, rb2). A booklet as shown in FIG. 4 is created by closing the ring 91 through the corresponding hole h of the paper S in the opened state. Here, terms relating to the shape of the ring binder will be described.

  In the present application, the “ring diameter” refers to the inner diameter of the ring 91 in a closed state and affects the upper limit thickness of the booklet according to the inner diameter. The “ring cross-sectional shape” refers to a ring 91 such as a perfect circle or a rectangle. The “ring cross-sectional size” means the outer diameter of the ring 91 when the cross-sectional shape of the ring 91 is a perfect circle, and the vertical and horizontal lengths when the ring 91 is rectangular. The vertical length is the length in the direction in which the spine portion 92 extends, and the horizontal length is the length in the direction perpendicular to the length. The ring cross-sectional size is a concept included in the ring cross-sectional shape. The “ring hole position” refers to the center coordinates of each hole with the corner of the paper to be used (one corner in contact with the side close to the hole being punched) as the coordinate origin. At this time, the positional relationship between the two is calculated by matching the center position of the side close to the hole of the sheet and the center position of the ring binder rb in the extending direction of the spine portion 92 to calculate the “ring hole position”.

  Returning to the description of FIG. In the figure, the paper transported from the upstream apparatus can be switched between transport paths by switching gates G1 and G2. When the post-processing is not performed, the sheet is discharged to the discharge tray 201 by transporting the sheet to the upper transport path by the switching gate G1. Further, when the transported paper is post-processed downstream without being post-processed by the post-processing device FS2, the paper is transported straight to the downstream post-processing device FS3 by the switching gates G1 and G2. Can be made. When the bookbinding process is performed by the ring binder rb in the post-processing device FS2, the sheet is conveyed to the lower conveyance path by the switching gate G2. Further, the post-processing device FS2 is also provided with an insertion paper tray 52a, and the loaded insert paper can be conveyed to each conveyance path.

[Punch part 240]
When the punching process is performed, the sheet conveyed downward by the switching gate G2 is conveyed to the guide member 249 as shown in FIG. The conveyed paper is switched back by its own weight so that the rear end with respect to the advancing direction is at the head, slides and falls on the inclined surface of the guide member 249, contacts the lower stopper 245 and stops. Note that a plurality of sheets can be stacked on the guide member 249.

  The width alignment members 243 are disposed on both sides of the guide member 249 in the sheet width direction (direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction), and are used for one sheet or a plurality of sheets placed on the inclined surface of the guide member 249. Alignment in the width direction and alignment in the width direction are performed by tapping both ends with the width alignment member 243.

  A plurality of punches 242 are disposed in the vicinity of the stopper 245. The punching process is performed on the paper by moving all or a part of the punches 242 toward the paper placed on the guide member 249. The number of sheets that can be punched at a time can be changed as appropriate, and can be selected according to the amount of paper sheets and the number of punch holes.

  The perforated sheet or sheets are conveyed to the lower ring binding unit 210 by the conveying roller 248.

  When a paper that has been punched in advance is used, punching is not necessary. When such a sheet is used, the sheet on which an image is formed on the upstream side is conveyed to the post-processing device FS2 in such a direction that the hole position is located on the downstream side in the conveyance direction. Then, the paper is transported to the lower ring binding unit 210 by switching back so that the hole position is at the head (downward) on the inclined surface of the guide member 249.

[Ring bookbinding section 210]
The ring binding portion 210 is provided with a stack portion composed of a guide member 219, a width alignment member 213, and a stopper 215. Sheets that have been punched in the stack section or a plurality of sheets punched by the punch section 240 are placed to form a sheet bundle. The stopper 215 also serves as a clamp mechanism, and holds the sheet bundle such that the hole portion of the sheet bundle protrudes downward.

  Each of the supply units 211a, 211b, and 211c (hereinafter collectively referred to as “supply unit 211”, the same applies to the ring binder rb) can store ring binders having different specifications. FIG. 2 shows a state in which a plurality of ring binders rb1 are stored in the supply unit 211a, and a plurality of ring binders rb2 having a larger ring diameter are stored in the supply unit 211b. Further, when the supply unit 211c is provided, the ring binder rb3 having a specification different from that of the ring binders rb1 and rb2 can be stored in the supply unit 211c, and a ring binder having the same specification as any of the ring binders can be stored.

  Each of the ring binders rb stored in the supply unit 211 is supplied to the ring binder unit 212 one by one. The ring binder unit 212 rotates about the lower axis, moves the ring binder rb below the stopper 215, passes each ring 91 of the moved ring binder rb through the hole h of the sheet bundle, and then moves the ring 91. The bookbinding process is performed by closing.

  The booklet that has been bound is transported to the discharge tray 202 on the downstream side by transport belts 250a and 250b having claw portions.

[Control block]
FIG. 5 is a control block diagram of the image forming system. In the figure, the periphery of the part necessary for the description of the operation of the present embodiment is mainly described, and other parts known as the image forming system are omitted. Further, in the following drawings, in order to avoid duplication of explanation, common portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and replaced with explanation.

  The image forming apparatus A includes a control unit A10, an image forming unit 4, a scanner 7, an operation display unit 9, a storage unit A11, an interface A14, and a communication unit A12.

  The control unit A10 includes a CPU, a ROM that stores data including programs and various tables, and a RAM that is used as a work area for expanding and executing the programs. The control unit A10 executes various controls of the image forming apparatus A. A13 is an interface (I / F) as communication means for performing communication via a network such as a LAN.

  The scanner 7 reads the document based on the print job setting input to the operation display unit 9 and generates image data. The generated image data is processed by the control unit A10 as described above and stored in the storage unit A11 or output to the image forming unit 4. Here, the print job settings include the size of the paper to be used, the paper feed tray, the number of printed sheets, the double-sided / single-sided mode, the type of post-processing, the presence / absence of insert paper, and the like. The type of post-processing includes the number of sheets on which a booklet is formed and the type of ring binder rb to be used in the case of bookbinding processing using a ring binder.

  The operation display unit 9 includes an “operation unit” configured by a touch panel in which a touch screen is arranged on a display unit configured by a liquid crystal panel. Various operation screens can be displayed by the operation display unit 9. Alternatively, a print job including image data may be received from the network via the interface 110A, and the print job may be stored in the storage unit A11. In the example shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 1, an example in which the operation display unit 9 is provided in the image forming apparatus A is shown. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and an operation display unit having the same function is provided in the post-processing device FS2. This may function as a hole information acquisition unit.

  A communication unit 104A is connected to at least the post-processing device FS2, and transmits / receives various data to / from the post-processing device FS2.

  The post-processing device FS2 includes a control unit B10, a storage unit B11, a communication unit B12, a punch unit 240, and a ring binding unit 210. The control unit B10 has the same configuration as the control unit A10, and executes various controls of the post-processing device FS2 according to a program. The communication unit B12 is connected to the image forming apparatus A and transmits / receives various data to / from the image forming apparatus A.

  In the present application, the control unit B10 functions as a “determination unit”. The operation display unit 9 functions as a “hole information acquisition unit” when the user inputs paper hole information. Here, the hole information of the sheet includes the number of holes, the position of the holes, and the shape of the holes. The hole shape includes information on the hole type (geometric shape) and the hole size.

  The storage unit B11 stores ring information of the ring binder rb stored in the supply unit 211. The ring information includes the number of rings, ring diameter, ring cross-sectional shape, and ring hole position. The ring cross-sectional shape includes information on the type (geometric shape) of the ring cross-section and the size of the cross-section.

  Tables 1 to 3 are examples of ring information of the ring binder rb. Tables 1, 2, and 3 are examples of the number of rings being 9, 6, and 2, respectively. The unit of numerical values other than the number is mm. The ring position indicates the center coordinates of each ring, where X is a paper transport direction (FD) and Y is a coordinate in a direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction (CD). The origin (0, 0) is one corner (for example, the back side of the apparatus main body in FIG. 1) on the front end side in the sheet conveyance direction.

[Control flow]
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a control flow performed by the control unit B10 of the post-processing device FS2 according to the embodiment. In step S11, ring information is acquired. As shown in FIG. 1, if there are a plurality of types of ring binder rb, the ring binder rb to be used is selected based on the setting of the print job to be printed, and the ring information of the selected ring binder rb is acquired.

  In step S12, paper hole information is acquired. The hole information acquisition unit acquires the hole information of the paper. As an example of the hole information acquisition unit, three embodiments will be described based on FIGS. 7 to 9.

[First example of hole information acquisition unit]
FIG. 7 is an example of a setting screen displayed on the operation display unit 9. In the example shown in FIG. 7, the operation display unit 9 as the operation unit functions as a hole information acquisition unit. When the user inputs the paper hole information to the operation display unit 9, the control unit B10 side acquires the hole information.

  In the setting screen shown in FIG. 7, a hole type (geometric shape), a hole size, the number of holes, and a hole position are input as hole information of the paper that has been punched in advance. A numerical value or the like can be selected by depressing a selection button on the right side of each input field. In the figure, the paper feed tray 1 and the paper size stored in the paper feed tray 1 are displayed, but this is the one set on the other setting screen.

  In the same figure, the center coordinates of the holes are input as the hole positions, and correspond to the ring position coordinates shown in Tables 1 to 3. Coordinates in the paper transport direction (FD) are input in the horizontal direction, and coordinates in the direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction (CD) in the unit mm, and the origin (0, 0) is one corner (for example, in FIG. It is the device main body back side). Although the number of holes is nine, only the center coordinates of the two ends of the uppermost hole closest to the origin and the farthest lowermost hole are input for ease of input. This is based on the premise that all the holes are arranged at the same pitch. In the control unit B10, the positions of the uppermost hole (first) and the lowermost hole (9th) are between them (2nd to 8th). The hole position is calculated.

  When the user depresses the OK button at the lower right, various setting information displayed in the input field is sent to the control unit B10 and confirmed.

[Second Example of Hole Information Acquisition Unit]
The second example is an example in which the scanner 7 is used as a hole information acquisition unit. The perforated paper to be read is set on the original glass of the scanner 7. Then, reading is performed with the automatic document feeder ADF opened without closing the upper part. Since reflected light cannot be obtained at the hole position, the density value is read high. By performing image processing such as contrast adjustment, binarization processing, edge extraction, and the like on the obtained image data, it is possible to detect the outline of the hole punched in the paper and the edge of the paper. As a result, the hole information can be obtained, so that the user can save input.

  FIG. 8 is an example of a setting screen accompanying the reading operation of the scanner 7 displayed on the operation display unit 9. In the figure, reading is performed by setting a sheet on the original glass and depressing the start button. Hole information obtained from the read image data is displayed in each column of the setting screen shown in FIG. If the user confirms the value and presses the OK button if there is no problem, various setting information displayed in the input field is sent to the control unit B10 and the process is terminated.

[Third example of hole information acquisition unit]
The third example is an example in which the operation display unit 9 is used as a hole information acquisition unit. In this example, an identification code printed on a paper package is used. The identification code and the paper hole information are associated and stored as related data in the storage unit B11, and the control unit B10 acquires the identification code corresponding to the paper stored in the paper tray to be used. Paper hole information can be obtained based on the identification code and related data.

  FIG. 9 is an example of an identification code input screen displayed on the operation display unit 9 as an operation unit. In the example shown in the figure, the user reads the identification code printed on the paper package and inputs the identification code into the code field using the numeric keypad. By depressing the OK button after inputting the identification code, the paper hole information associated with the identification code displayed in the input field is sent to the control unit B10 and the process ends.

  In the example shown in the figure, the example in which the user inputs the identification code number has been described. However, the identification code is printed as a one-dimensional or two-dimensional barcode, and the barcode is displayed on a barcode scanner (not shown). Alternatively, scanning may be performed by the scanner 7 of the image forming apparatus A. When the user inputs the identification code to the operation display unit 9, the input effort can be saved.

  Returning to the description of the control flow in FIG. In step S12, paper hole information is acquired by any of the means described above. In step S13, the ring information acquired in step S11 is compared with the paper hole information acquired in step S12, and it is determined whether or not the paper hole is suitable.

  “Applicable” means that the bookbinding process can be performed on the paper to be used by the ring binder rb of the ring bookbinding unit 210, and the hole information is the ring information as exemplified in Tables 1 to 3. This includes not only the case where it matches the design center value but also the case where it falls within the allowable range. If all the items of the hole information are within the allowable range of the ring information, it is determined that the paper hole is suitable and the bookbinding process can be executed (step S13: Yes), and the paper is fed in steps S14 to S16. A sheet bundle is printed on the paper stored in the tray by the image forming apparatus A based on the image data of the print job, and a set number of sheets of the print job are stacked on the stack part of the ring binding unit 210. Form. Then, a booklet is formed by binding the sheet bundle with the ring binder rb.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S13 that the paper hole is incompatible with the ring binder rb (step S13: No), the print job is canceled. In step S17, the operation display unit 9 displays a warning message indicating that the operation is to be stopped, and the process ends.

  According to this embodiment, prior to the bookbinding process, by comparing the hole information of the paper to be bound with the ring information of the ring binder to determine whether or not the bookbinding process is possible, the user can make a mistake in selecting the paper. It is possible to prevent the accompanying bookbinding process from failing.

[Control flow in modification]
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a control flow of the image forming system according to the modification. In the control flow shown in the figure, the control other than steps S21 and S22 is the same as that in FIG.

  In the image forming system according to the modified example, when the hole information of the paper does not match the ring information of the ring binder (step S13: No), it is determined whether or not the paper can be punched in step S21. This is because when a hole is further drilled in the vicinity of a hole in a punched paper, the hole that has already been opened and the hole to be newly opened are connected to make the hole larger than necessary, or adjacent holes There is a possibility that the strength of the paper cannot be maintained because it is too close. In order to avoid such a problem, for example, when the paper to be used is a paper “without a hole” as shown in FIG. 3E, it is determined that the punching process is possible (step S21: Yes).

  If it is determined that the punching process is possible, the printing process is performed on the sheet in step S14 and the sheet is conveyed to the punching unit 240 of the post-processing device FS2. In the subsequent step S22, the punching unit 240 performs the punching process on the sheet. Thereafter, a booklet is formed by performing the same processing as in FIG.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the punching process is not possible (step S21: No), the print job is stopped, and the fact that it is stopped in step S17 is displayed on the operation display unit 9 as a warning display and the process ends.

  According to the present embodiment, by comparing the hole information of the paper to be bound with the ring information of the ring binder to determine whether or not the bookbinding processing is possible, the bookbinding processing according to the user's selection error of the paper is performed. It is possible to prevent the failure, and when it is determined that the punching process is possible based on the hole information of the sheet to be bound, the bookbinding process can be executed by performing the punching process.

  In addition, it is good also as a control flow which abbreviate | omits the process of step S21 in FIG. In this case, it is possible to perform a bookbinding process using a ring binder regardless of the paper to be used.

A Image forming apparatus FS1, FS2, FS3 Post-processing apparatus rb, rb1, rb2 Ring binder 91 Ring 92 Backbone part 4 Image forming part 5a, 5b, 5c Paper feeding / conveying part 7 Scanner 8 Fixing apparatus 9 Operation display part 210 Bookbinding part 211a , 211b, 211c supply unit 212 ring binder unit 240 punch unit 242 punch A10 control unit A11 storage unit A12 communication unit A14 interface B10 control unit B11 storage unit B12 communication unit

Claims (14)

An image forming unit for forming an image on the punched paper;
A ring binding unit that includes a stack unit that bundles sheets formed by the image forming unit, a ring binding unit that attaches a ring binder including a plurality of rings to the sheets bundled in the stack unit, and a bookbinding process;
A storage unit for storing ring information used in the ring binding unit;
A hole information acquisition unit for acquiring paper hole information;
A determination unit that compares the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit with the ring information acquired from the storage unit, and determines whether the bookbinding process is executable;
An image forming system comprising: The ring information is the number of rings, the position of the ring, the cross-sectional shape of the ring,
The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the hole information includes a number of holes, a position of the hole, and a shape of the hole. The hole information acquisition unit is an operation unit for a user to input hole information,
The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein paper hole information is acquired by input to the operation unit. The hole information acquisition unit is a scanner for reading paper,
The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the hole information of the paper is acquired from image data obtained by reading the paper. The storage unit stores related data in which the identification code printed on the paper package and the paper hole information are associated with each other.
The hole information acquisition unit is a scanner for reading the identification code or an operation unit for a user to input the identification code,
The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein paper hole information is acquired based on the related data based on the acquired identification code. It has a punch part that punches paper.
When the determination unit determines that the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit and the ring information acquired from the storage unit are not suitable as a result of comparison, the determination unit is made to correspond to the ring information. Perform punching on the paper in the punch section,
The image forming system according to claim 1, wherein the ring bookbinding unit performs bookbinding processing on the paper punched by the punch unit. As a result of comparing the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit and the ring information acquired from the storage unit, the determination unit determines that the hole information is not compatible, and the hole information is a hole. If not,
Perform punching processing on the paper in the punch portion so as to correspond to the ring information,
The image forming system according to claim 6, wherein the ring bookbinding unit performs bookbinding processing on the paper punched by the punch unit. A ring binding unit including a stack unit for binding image-formed sheets, a ring binding unit for attaching a ring binder including a plurality of rings to the sheets bundled in the stack unit, and a bookbinding process;
A storage unit for storing ring information used in the ring binding unit;
A hole information acquisition unit for acquiring paper hole information;
A determination unit that compares the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit with the ring information acquired from the storage unit, and determines whether the bookbinding process is executable;
A post-processing apparatus comprising: The ring information is the number of rings, the position of the ring, the cross-sectional shape of the ring,
The post-processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the hole information includes a number of holes, a position of the hole, and a shape of the hole. The hole information acquisition unit is an operation unit for a user to input ring information,
10. The post-processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein paper hole information is acquired by input to the operation unit. The hole information acquisition unit is a scanner for reading paper,
10. The post-processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein hole information of the paper is acquired from image data obtained by reading the paper. The storage unit stores related data in which the identification code printed on the paper package and the paper hole information are associated with each other.
The hole information acquisition unit is a scanner for reading the identification code or an operation unit for a user to input the identification code,
10. The post-processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein paper hole information is acquired based on the related data based on the acquired identification code. It has a punch part that punches paper.
When the determination unit determines that the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit and the ring information acquired from the storage unit are not suitable as a result of comparison, the determination unit is made to correspond to the ring information. Perform punching on the paper in the punch section,
The post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 12, wherein a bookbinding process is performed by the ring bookbinding unit on the paper punched by the punching unit. As a result of comparing the hole information acquired from the hole information acquisition unit and the ring information acquired from the storage unit, the determination unit determines that the hole information is not compatible, and the hole information is a hole. If not,
Perform punching processing on the paper in the punch portion so as to correspond to the ring information,
The post-processing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the ring bookbinding unit performs bookbinding processing on the paper punched by the punch unit.

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