JP2012091376A - Sealed letter preparation device and envelope paper - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow a sealed letter to be sealed with a pressure bonding roller which is smaller than a conventional one in a sealed letter preparation device that seals by folding an enveloped paper with a pressure-sensitive adhesive together with its contents.SOLUTION: The pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 is provided on both edges in the width direction of the envelope paper 100, and a remoistening glue 107 is provided inside both edges. Water is added to the remoistening glue upon forming an envelope 50 by folding the envelope paper wrapping the contents, the entire surface of the envelope is bonded with the remoistening glue by applying a pressure with low-pressure rollers, and the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 is bonded by applying the pressure to only both edges of the envelope 50 with top-and-bottom-grouped left-and-right pairs of pressure rollers 80 and 80 further narrower in width. Since a high pressure required to bond the pressure-sensitive adhesive is required only for both edges of the envelope, the pressure rollers 80 may be small.

Description

  The present invention provides an envelope creation apparatus capable of performing a work for enclosing and sealing contents in an envelope by performing printing on the envelope sheet and the contents sheet and folding the envelope sheet, It is related with the envelope paper (paper which folds and becomes an envelope) suitable for such an apparatus.

Patent Document 1 below discloses an invention relating to a method of creating a sealed letter by folding it in three. Envelope sheets substantially similar to the sealed form used in the present invention are shown in FIGS. As shown in FIG. 18, the envelope paper 300 is formed by connecting three paper pieces of an upper paper piece 301, an intermediate paper piece 302, and a lower paper piece 303 with perforations. The address is written on the surface of the upper paper piece 301, and the contents are written on the surfaces of the middle paper piece 302 and the lower paper piece 303. On the surface of the middle piece of paper 302 and a lower paper 303, along the outer shape of two pieces of paper with the exception of perforations, the pressure sensitive adhesive 305 is formed in a strip-shaped pattern in substantially U-shape. There is no pressure-sensitive adhesive on the surface of the upper paper strip 301 that eventually becomes the outer surface. In addition, a printing pattern is formed on the back side of the upper paper piece 301, the middle paper piece 302, and the lower paper piece 303, or a print pattern for preventing the content from being seen through. A pressure-sensitive adhesive 305 is formed in a belt-like pattern on the back surface of the upper paper piece 301 and the middle paper piece 302 along the outer edges excluding the perforations and part of the sides. There is no pressure-sensitive adhesive on the back surface of the lower paper piece 301 which finally becomes the outer back surface.

  When the envelope paper 300 is formed into an envelope shape after the address name and contents are printed, the surface of the middle paper edge 302 and the surface of the lower paper edge 303 are combined as shown in FIG. Each pressure sensitive adhesive 305 is brought into contact with each other. Further, as shown in FIG. 19, the pressure sensitive adhesives 305 on both paper sides are brought into contact with each other with the back side of the upper paper side 301 and the back side of the middle paper side 302 aligned. In this state, the envelope paper 300 is in the shape of a tri-fold envelope, but the pressure sensitive adhesive 305 has not yet been bonded.

  Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 4 of Patent Document 1, the envelope is sandwiched between a pair of rollers having an axial dimension larger than the width of the envelope in the width direction, and conveyed while applying a strong pressure to the entire surface of the envelope. In FIG. 4 of Patent Document 1, pressure is applied to the entire surface of the envelope by two pairs of rollers longer than the width of the envelope. As a result, the pressure-sensitive adhesive in contact between the paper edges facing each other becomes sticky, and a sealed envelope, that is, a sealed letter is created.

  In the technology described above, a pressure sensitive adhesive that requires pressure is used to bond each piece of envelope paper in order to fold envelope paper to create a sealed letter. In addition, as an adhesive means, there is a method of applying an adhesive such as hot melt immediately before folding the envelope paper.

Japanese Patent No. 2521498

  When an adhesive such as hot melt is used as an adhesive means when folding envelope paper to create a sealed letter, the coating apparatus is complicated and expensive, and heating means are also required. Therefore, the installation location is greatly restricted, and maintenance work is also required.

  In the sealed letter making apparatus using the pressure sensitive adhesive described with reference to Patent Document 1 and FIG. 18 and FIG. 19, only the pressure is applied to the bonded portion, so maintenance is unnecessary. Since it is simpler than an apparatus using an adhesive such as hot melt, it can be a relatively small apparatus.

  However, in the envelope making apparatus using the pressure sensitive adhesive, the pressure applied to the bonded portion of the envelope is as large as about 1 ton / square centimeter, and in the above example, the bonded portion exists on the three to four sides of the rectangular envelope, A roller longer than the width of the envelope is necessary so that pressure can be applied to the entire envelope having a predetermined area (see FIG. 4 of Patent Document 1). If such a pressure roller is provided, the mechanical structure of the entire apparatus has to be robust, resulting in an expensive apparatus, and therefore has not become widespread as an office installation device.

  The present invention has been made in view of the problems as described above, and in a sealed letter preparation device that performs printing on envelope paper and contents, and encloses and seals the contents inside the folded envelope paper, compared with the conventional one. An object of the present invention is to enable sealing using a pressure-sensitive adhesive with a simple configuration using a small pressure roller.

  The inventor of the present invention has obtained the above-mentioned problems and studied various means for solving the problems, and also considered using an adhesive other than the pressure-sensitive adhesive. At present, the only cheaper adhesive than pressure-sensitive adhesives is the re-wet glue level such as Arabic glue, but in the case of re-moist glue, it is necessary to add water to exert the adhesive strength. is there. However, since the material forming the envelope is paper, if water is included, the rigidity is lowered and deformed significantly due to swelling. For this reason, adhesion using rewetting glue such as Arabic glue can be used for simple two-ply bonding, but three-ply or four-ply forms such as envelope creation performed by folding the envelope paper aimed by the present invention In the adhesion of overlap, swelling is doubled and there is a high risk of causing problems such as a significant decrease in rigidity and tearing. In addition, since the deformation of the paper remains after drying, it is considered impossible to use rewetting glue such as Arabic glue on a portion where a plurality of folded envelope papers are stacked and bonded together.

Therefore, the sealed letter making apparatus described in claim 1 is:
A printing unit that prints envelope sheets and contents as envelopes for each envelope to be created, a first conveyance path that conveys the envelope sheet printed by the printing unit, and the printing unit printed by the printing unit A second conveyance path for conveying the contents, and the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path are arranged at a position where the contents are merged, and the envelope paper is folded and sealed so as to enclose the contents. In a sealed letter creating apparatus comprising a sealed sealed part for creating a sealed letter by
The sealing section is provided with pressure-bonding means that applies pressure to both edges in the width direction of the envelope intersecting with the conveying direction to perform sealing.

The sealed letter creating apparatus according to claim 2 is the sealed letter creating apparatus according to claim 1,
The encapsulating sealed portion is provided with an adhesive means for adhering the envelope paper inside both edges in the width direction of the envelope.

The sealed letter creating apparatus according to claim 3 is the sealed letter creating apparatus according to claim 2,
The crimping means is
The envelope sheets are provided at both edges in the width direction and each of the edges of the envelope has a width smaller than the application width of the pressure-sensitive adhesive facing each other, and is enclosed in the envelope. Further, the present invention is characterized in that it has a pair of pressure-bonding rollers arranged at an interval larger than the dimension in the width direction of the contents and smaller than the dimension in the width direction of the envelope.

The sealed letter creating apparatus according to claim 4 is the sealed letter creating apparatus according to claim 2 or 3,
The bonding means includes
A means for adding water to the re-wet paste provided on the inner side of the both edges in the width direction of the envelope paper;
In the encapsulating sealed portion, the envelope paper is bonded to the re-wet paste by bending the envelope paper after the water is added to the re-wet paste by the water adding means.

The sealed letter creating apparatus according to claim 5 is the sealed letter creating apparatus according to claim 4 ,
In the encapsulated sealing portion, after the water is added to the re-humidified glue by the water adding means, the envelope paper is bonded by the re-humidified glue by folding the envelope paper, and then the width direction of the envelope by the pair of pressure rollers It is characterized in that sealing is performed by applying pressure to both edges of each.

The envelope paper according to claim 6 is:
In an envelope paper applied to a sealed letter making apparatus comprising an encapsulated sealing part that creates a sealed letter by folding and sealing the envelope paper so as to contain the contents,
Pressure sensitive adhesives that are provided on both edges in the width direction, do not face when stacked in the same direction, and face each other at both edges of the envelope when formed into an envelope by folding,
Other adhesive provided inside the both edges in the width direction,
It is characterized by having.

The envelope paper according to claim 7 is:
In an envelope paper applied to a sealed letter making apparatus comprising an encapsulated sealing part that creates a sealed letter by folding and sealing the envelope paper so as to contain the contents,
A pressure sensitive adhesive provided only on one side at both edges in the width direction;
Notches provided on both edges of the surface that will be inside when folded,
Other adhesive provided inside the both edges in the width direction,
It is characterized by having.

  According to the envelope creation apparatus of the present invention, a common printing unit that prints on envelope sheets and contents prints and discharges envelope sheets and contents alternately for each envelope to be created. And the sealed envelope part provided in the position which conveys the printed envelope paper by a 1st exclusive conveyance path, conveys the printed content by a 2nd exclusive conveyance path, and both conveyance paths merge Thus, the envelope paper and the contents can be combined without mistake, and the envelope paper can be folded and sealed so as to enclose the contents, thereby creating a sealed letter.

  According to the sealed letter making apparatus described in claim 1, when creating a sealed letter by folding the envelope paper provided with the pressure sensitive adhesive only on both edges in the width direction, In the process, it is not necessary to apply pressure to the entire surface of the envelope, and the crimping means applies pressure only to both edges in the width direction of the envelope that intersect the conveying direction, so that both edges in the width direction of the envelope paper are applied. A certain pressure-sensitive adhesive can be pressed to exert an adhesive force and sealed.

  According to the sealed letter making apparatus described in claim 2, in the sealed letter making apparatus according to claim 1, in the sealed sealing part, the inner part of both sides in the width direction of the envelope has a pressure smaller than that of the crimping means. Envelope paper can be bonded with adhesive means that is only necessary.

  According to the envelope creation apparatus described in claim 3, in the envelope creation apparatus according to claim 2, the envelope paper provided with pressure-sensitive adhesive on both edges in the width direction is folded, and the pressure-sensitive adhesive is on both edges. When sealing envelopes facing each other at a section, a pair of pressure rollers are used as the pressure-bonding means, and the contents in the envelope are transferred to the envelope by pressurizing and conveying both edges of the envelope. Without being bonded, it is possible to reliably press and bond only the pressure sensitive adhesive of the envelope paper to seal the envelope.

  According to the envelope creation apparatus described in claim 4, in the envelope creation apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, when the envelope paper provided with rewet adhesive is provided on the inner side of both edges in the width direction and sealed. In the case of using water adding means as the adhering means, water is applied to the re-humidified glue to exert adhesive force, and then the envelope paper is folded to securely bond the envelope paper with the re-humidified glue and seal the envelope it can.

  According to the envelope creating apparatus described in claim 5, in the envelope creating apparatus according to claim 3 or 4, the encapsulated sealing part is hydrated by adding water to the rewet paste by the hydrating means and then folding the envelope paper. After the envelope paper is adhered with glue, sealing can be performed by applying pressure to both edges in the width direction of the envelope with a pair of pressure rollers.

  According to the envelope paper described in claim 6, when the two sheets are overlapped with each other in the width direction in the same direction, they do not face each other, and when they are formed into an envelope by folding, the two edges of the envelope A pressure-sensitive adhesive is provided in a pattern that faces each other, and a pattern of another adhesive different from the pressure-sensitive adhesive provided at both ends is provided inside both edges in the width direction. The sealing device according to any one of Items 1 to 5, can be sealed using a pressure sensitive adhesive with a simple configuration using a pressure roller smaller than the conventional one.

  According to the envelope paper described in claim 7, since the pressure-sensitive adhesive is provided only on one side of both edges in the width direction, the pressure-sensitive adhesive does not face when stacked in the same direction. There is no gluing. When the envelope is formed by folding, the pressure-sensitive adhesives directly face each other at both edges of the envelope, or the pressure-sensitive adhesive provided on both edges of one outer surface is folded. The pressure-sensitive adhesive provided on both edges of the other outer surface is faced through notches provided on both edges of the inner surface. Further, another adhesive different from the pressure-sensitive adhesive is provided on the inner side of the both edges in the width direction. Therefore, for example, by the sealed letter creating apparatus according to claims 1 to 5, sealing using a pressure sensitive adhesive can be performed with a simple configuration using a pressure roller smaller than the conventional one.

It is a figure of the surface of the envelope paper which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure of the back surface of the envelope paper which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the folding process (1) of the envelope paper which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the folding process (2) of the envelope paper which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a typical perspective view which shows a part of structure of the enclosure sealing part in the sealed letter preparation apparatus of 1st Embodiment, and its effect | action. It is typical sectional drawing which showed the flow of the envelope in the structure of the sealed letter preparation apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment, and the apparatus with the arrow. It is the typical sectional view which showed the structure of the sealed letter preparation device concerning a 1st embodiment, and the flow of the contents in the device with the arrow. It is typical sectional drawing which showed the structure of the sealed letter preparation apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment, the sealing operation | work in the same apparatus, and the discharge process of the envelope after sealing. It is a typical front view which shows the structure of the enclosure sealing part in the sealed letter preparation apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a typical front view which shows the watering process to the re-wet paste in the sealing part of the sealed letter preparation apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a typical front view which shows the adhesion process by the re-wet paste in the sealing part of the sealed letter preparation apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a typical perspective view which shows especially the positioning mechanism of an envelope in the enclosure sealing part of the sealed letter preparation apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a typical perspective view which shows the effect | action of the positioning mechanism of an envelope in the enclosure sealing part of the sealed letter preparation apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure of the surface of the envelope paper which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure of the back surface of the envelope paper which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the folding process (1) of the envelope paper which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the folding process (2) of the envelope paper which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure and folding process (1) of the conventional envelope paper. It is a figure which shows the structure and folding process (2) of the conventional envelope paper.

1. 1st Embodiment (FIGS. 1-13)
(1) About sealed paper used in this sealed letter making device (Figs. 1-5)
FIG. 1 is a view showing the front surface (the side on which the address is printed) of the envelope paper 100 used in this embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a view showing the back surface. The envelope paper 100 is a rectangular paper in which three paper pieces of a first paper piece 101, a second paper piece 102, and a third paper piece 103 are connected by a crease.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the surface of the first paper piece 101 corresponds to the front of the envelope, and the address is printed. Further, the first paper piece 101 is formed with a band-like opening tape 104 along the width direction with perforations, and two openings 105 are provided at one end thereof. When opening the sealed envelope, a finger is put on the opening tape 104 from the opening 105 and peeled off along the perforation. The surface of the second paper piece 102 corresponds to the back of the envelope, and the name and address of the sender is printed. On the surface of the third paper piece 103, pressure-sensitive adhesives 106 are provided in two strips at predetermined intervals along both edges in the width direction. Further, on the surface of the third paper piece 103, re-wetting paste 107 is provided at two locations in a band-like pattern along the width direction on the inner side of both edge portions adjacent to the crease with the second paper piece 102.

Pressure sensitive adhesives are a type of adhesive that exerts adhesive force by bringing pressure sensitive adhesives provided on paper into close contact with each other and applying a predetermined pressure. Rubber-based adhesive materials are known. The re-wet paste is, for example, arabic paste, and it has no adhesive strength when it is applied to the paper and dried. However, when wetted with water, the adhesive strength is generated. In this state, the required pressure can be applied to other paper. Both sheets are glued together. The pressure when adhering with rewet glue is effective even if it is considerably lower than the pressure required for pressure sensitive adhesives . Since contact Chakukyodo is considerably higher than at least the paper both, never a problem due to the strength of the adhesion also occurs through the use of two types of adhesive in one envelope. In place of the re-wetting paste, an adhesive that normally does not have an adhesive force but generates an adhesive force by some operation other than pressurization in the pressure-sensitive adhesive may be used. For example, an adhesive that generates an adhesive force by heat, light including ultraviolet rays, or other physical means, or another pressure-sensitive adhesive that exerts an adhesive force at a pressure lower than the pressure in the pressure-sensitive adhesive may be used.

  As described above, re-wet glue requires water to exert adhesive strength, and the material that forms the envelope is paper. Will occur significantly. Further, since the deformation of the paper remains after drying, the appearance of the completed envelope becomes unsightly. Therefore, the deformation is reduced by dividing a small size into a necessary adhesion range and installing a plurality of them.

  As shown in FIG. 2, information such as a sentence, a figure, and a photograph, which are the contents of a sealed letter, can be printed on each surface of the first to third paper pieces 102 to 103 as needed. On each back surface of the first to third paper pieces 101 to 103, pressure-sensitive adhesives 106 are provided in two strips at predetermined intervals along both edges in the width direction. The contents 40 are placed on the back surface of the second paper piece 102. The width W of the contents 40 is smaller than the interval between the pressure-sensitive adhesives 106 printed on both edges of the envelope sheet 100. The arrangement pattern of these pressure-sensitive adhesives 106 is considered so that when each paper piece is folded and assembled into an envelope shape, the pressure-sensitive adhesives 106 of the corresponding paper pieces come to the same position and come into contact with each other. Yes. However, when a large number of envelope sheets 100 are stacked in the same vertical relationship, for example, with the front side facing up, the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 on the front surface and the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 on the back surface do not face each other and do not contact each other. It is like that. If the pressure-sensitive adhesives 106 are brought into contact with each other for a long period of time, there may be a problem that the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 may naturally adhere depending on environmental conditions such as high temperature and high humidity without being pressurized. According to the paper 100, it is possible to prevent such a problem from occurring.

A processing procedure such as folding in the case where the envelope paper 100 is formed into an envelope shape after the address name and contents are printed will be described.
As shown in FIG. 3, in a state where the content 40 is placed on the back surface of the second paper edge 102, the both paper edges 102 are aligned with the back surface of the third paper piece 103 with respect to the second paper edge 102 and the content 40. , 103 are brought into contact with each other. Further, in FIG. 4, after water is applied to the re-wet paste 107 by means not shown, the back side of the first paper side 101 and the front side of the third paper side 103 are put together, and the back side of the re-wet paste 107 and the first paper piece 101 And the pressure sensitive adhesives 106 on both paper sides 101 and 103 are brought into contact with each other. In this state, the envelope paper 100 becomes a three-fold envelope shape, but the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 has not yet been bonded.

Thereafter, the entire surface of the envelope 50 is nipped and conveyed by a roller (not shown) having a length equal to or larger than the width of the envelope, and the re-wet paste 107 of the third paper piece 103 and the first paper piece 101 are bonded. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 at both edges in the width direction of the envelope 50 is adhered by the pressure roller 80. The pressure roller 80 is provided as a pair of upper and lower, and two pairs of right and left are provided, and both edges in the width direction of the envelope 50 in which the contents 40 are enclosed, that is, the direction intersecting the transport direction are sandwiched from above and below. Thus, sealing can be performed by exerting pressure to exert the adhesive force of the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106. As a result, the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 in contact between the paper edges facing each other is made sticky, and an envelope 50 in which the contents are sealed is realized.
In addition, the sealing operation | work of the envelope paper 100 demonstrated above is automatically performed by the sealed letter preparation apparatus 1 of 1st Embodiment demonstrated below.

(2) About the mechanism of the sealed letter creation device (FIGS. 6 to 9)
The sealed letter preparation apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment performs processing for each sealed letter to be prepared. That is, necessary printing is performed in an appropriate order on the envelope paper 100 and the contents 40 which are sheet-like paper using the common printing unit 2. Then, the envelope paper 100 and the contents 40 after printing are fed into the encapsulated sealing unit 3 and are each conveyed along a separate conveyance path, and the envelope paper 100 is folded so as to be in the form of the envelope 50. At the same time, the contents 40 are folded as necessary. Then, the two are finally joined by the sealing means, and the contents 40 are sealed and sealed in the envelope 50, and are arranged and discharged as a completed sealed letter on the upper part of the apparatus.

  First, the sealed letter preparation apparatus 1 includes a printing unit 2 that prints and discharges a sheet to be an envelope 50 and contents 40. The printing unit 2 includes a plurality of types of printed bodies (sheet-like sheets 30 and envelope sheets 100 that become the contents 40) that can be stored in the inside or the side surface of the casing 4 that stores each unit of the apparatus. A sheet feeding table P (P1 to P4) is provided. In this example, the envelope paper 100 is stored in the paper feed tray P1 attached to the side surface of the housing 4, and the sheet-like paper that becomes the contents 40 in the paper feed trays P <b> 2 to P <b> 4 provided inside the housing 4. 30 is stored.

  The sheets and the like that have come out of the sheet feed table P are sent from the introduction path to the loop-shaped conveyance path 5 and conveyed, and an image is printed by printing means arranged at a predetermined interval downward along the lower half of the conveyance path. It is formed. In this example, four inkjet devices C, K, M, and Y that discharge inks of cyan, black, magenta, and yellow, respectively, are arranged as printing means.

  The loop-shaped transport path 5 is provided with a first discharge path 6 that branches out of the loop in a substantially horizontal direction on the downstream side of the printing unit. Further, a second discharge path 7 for branching the sheet out of the loop is provided in the upper half of the loop-shaped transport path 5 in a branched manner. Furthermore, a switchback path 8 is branched between the second discharge path 7 and the introduction path from the sheet feed table P. The switchback path 8 is means for reversing the upper and lower sides of the paper in the transport path 5 by receiving the paper transported through the transport path 5 and returning it to the transport path 5. If this switchback path 8 is used and the upper and lower surfaces of the paper are reversed and passed through the transport path 5 twice, color double-sided printing that forms color images on the upper and lower surfaces of the paper with the inkjet devices C, K, M, and Y Can be performed.

  Next, the envelope paper 100 sent from the first discharge path 6 of the printing unit 2 and the paper 30 to be the contents 40 are received and processed at the adjacent part of the printing unit 2, and the contents are transferred to the envelope paper 100. An encapsulating sealing unit 3 for enclosing and sealing 40 is provided.

  That is, the first discharge path 6 of the printing unit 2 extends horizontally, protrudes to the outside, and is introduced into the housing 9 of the adjacent sealing unit 3. In the housing 9, the second conveyance path 20 branches obliquely downward from the discharge path 6, and the further downstream is one path 11 of the first conveyance path 10 and extends obliquely downward. Has been.

  One path 11 of the first transport path 10 is disposed substantially parallel to one path 21 of the second transport path 20. One path 11 of the first transport path 10 is a guide path that transports the envelope sheet 100 to the folding means, and as described above, one path 21 of the second transport path 20 folds the sheet of the contents 40. The first and second transport paths 10 and 20 are switched by a switching flap (not shown) provided at a branch point of the second transport path 20.

  At the end of one path 11 of the first transport path 10, a first folding means is provided to fold the envelope paper 100 to produce the form of the envelope 50. The first folding means is provided with a rotatable main folding roller A ', a sheet conveying roller D' and a first folding roller B 'that rotate in contact therewith. Since these rollers are made of rubber and are for folding the paper, the applied pressure is small and the axial length thereof is larger than the width of the envelope paper 100.

  From the main folding roller A ′ and the first folding roller B ′ of the first folding means of the first conveying path 10, the other path 13 of the first conveying path 10 is curved in a convex shape upward. However, it extends in the horizontal direction. The end of the other path 13 of the first transport path 10 that transports the envelope paper 100 is led to an enclosing sealing means described in detail later.

  Next, a second transport path 20 for transporting the paper printed by the printing unit 2 is provided inside the housing 9 of the encapsulating and sealing unit 3. The second transport path 20 is below the first transport path 10, and has one path 21 for feeding the paper fed in the horizontal direction from the first discharge path 6 of the printing unit 2 obliquely downward. is doing.

  In the middle of the path 21, a sheet transport roller 22 and an aligning unit 23 that is an openable and closable gate are provided. The transported sheet is fastened to the aligning unit 23 that closes the path 21, and the sheet is routed. 21 can be accumulated and stored. A folding means for folding the paper is provided at the end of the path 21. This folding means is provided with a rotatable central main folding roller A, and further, a first folding roller B, a second folding roller C, and one sheet conveying roller D can rotate to the main folding roller A, respectively. Touching. Since these rollers are made of rubber and are for folding the paper, the applied pressure is small, and the axial length thereof is larger than the width of the envelope paper 100. Further, although not shown, an abutting member against which the leading edge of the conveyed paper abuts is provided at the front position in the conveying direction by the main folding roller A and the conveying roller D. The abutting paper is bent to be main folded. A sheet bending portion is guided between the roller A and the folding roller B so that the sheet can be folded. Similarly, there is also an abutting member at the front position in the conveying direction by the main folding roller A and the folding roller B, and the sheet that has struck is bent to guide the bent portion of the sheet between the main folding roller A and the folding roller C. The paper can be folded. Therefore, according to these folding means, the sheet can be folded twice or more.

  Inside the housing 9 of the encapsulating and sealing unit 3, the second transport path 20 includes the other path 26 that continuously transports the sheet 30 folded by the folding means obliquely upward substantially orthogonal to the path 21. Have. The other path 26 is at a position below the other path 13 of the first transport path 10 for feeding the envelope paper 100 obliquely downward, and the path 13 of the first transport path 10 in the sealing means. Have joined.

  Next, the enclosing sealing means at the junction of the first transport path 10 and the second transport path 20 will be described. This enclosing sealing means is a second folding means that further folds the envelope paper 100 as necessary, and the contents 40 are further folded after aligning the contents 40 with the folded envelope paper 100. It is also a sealing means for wrapping the object 40 in the envelope, and further includes a sealing means for sealing the envelope.

  First, the enclosing and sealing means includes a rotatable main folding roller A ″ as a second folding means, a sheet conveying roller D ″ rotating in contact therewith, and first and second folding rollers B ″ and C ″. Is provided. Since these rollers are rubber and are for folding the paper, the applied pressure is small and the axial length thereof is larger than the width of the envelope paper 100. The envelope paper 100 is folded by the main folding roller A ′ and the first folding roller B ′ that are the first folding means as described above as necessary, and then further the main folding roller A ″ that is the second folding means. Where further folding of the pre-encapsulation stage is performed as necessary.

  However, although details will be described later, in the present embodiment, the envelope paper 100 is folded in three and the contents 40 are enclosed inside, so the envelope paper 100 is composed of a main folding roller A ′ that is a first folding means and a first folding roller. After being diffracted once by the roller B ′ or the like, it passes between the main folding roller A ″ as the second folding means and the sheet conveying roller D ″, and further between the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller B ″. In the vicinity of the passage between them, the user waits for the alignment of the contents 40 thereafter. And after aligning with the content 40 sent through the 2nd conveyance path | route 20, the second folding is further performed between the main folding roller A "and the 2nd folding roller C", and content 40 Encapsulation in the envelope 50 is performed.

  However, in the present embodiment, the standby path 46 extends downward from between the main folding roller A ″ and the sheet conveying roller D ″. For this reason, it is also possible to create an envelope in a different envelope paper from this embodiment or in a different process from this embodiment. For example, after the envelope sheet is diffracted once by the main folding roller A ′ and the first folding roller B ′ as the first folding unit, the main folding roller A ″ and the sheet conveying roller D ″ as the second folding unit , And enter the standby path 46 as it is to wait. After that, the contents sent through the second conveyance path 20 are aligned with the waiting envelope paper, and the both are sandwiched between the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller B ″ and folded. However, it is also possible to enclose the contents in the envelope by conveying it.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, a slightly inclined path 31 is disposed between the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller C ″ of the enclosing sealing means. Yes. In the vicinity of the rear end of this path 31, there is a water adding means 60 as an adhering means for adhering the envelope paper 100 into the envelope 50 by applying water to the rewet glue 107 of the envelope paper 100 to exert adhesive force. Is provided.

  The water adding means 60 is a device for adding water to the rewet paste 107 provided on the inner side of both edges in the width direction of the envelope paper 100, and includes a water tank 61 disposed below the path 31, A water absorbing portion 62 made of a felt material or the like immersed in water, a swing arm 63 disposed above the path 31, and a rotating cam 64 that drives the swing arm 63 are provided.

  The envelope paper 100 diffracted once by the first folding roller A ′, the first folding roller B ′ and the like is between the main folding roller A ″ and the paper conveying roller D ″. Is passed, and it stands by in the vicinity of passing between the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller B ″. Thereafter, the contents 40 sent along the other path 26 of the second transport path 20 are aligned with the envelope paper 100 on standby.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the aligned envelope paper 100 and contents 40 are further conveyed forward by the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller B ″. Here, in the envelope paper 100, the surface of the third paper piece 103 is facing downward, and the rewet paste 107 on the surface of the third paper piece 103 is in a state of facing the water absorbing portion 62 of the water adding means 60. This is close to the state before the first paper piece 101 is folded in the direction of the arrow in FIG. Here, the rotating cam 64 is actuated to swing the swing arm 63, and the re-wet paste 107 is pressed against the water absorbing portion 62 and is added with water.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the envelope paper 100 is fed forward by the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller C ″. As a result, the first paper piece 101 is folded and overlapped with the surface of the third paper piece 103 and adhered to the re-wet paste 107.

  Next, as shown in FIGS. 6 to 8 and 9, a path 47 inclined obliquely upward and forward is disposed between the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller C ″ of the sealing means. ing. This path 47 is substantially parallel to one path 11 of the first transport path 10 and one path 21 of the second transport path 20.

  In the middle of the path 47, as already described with reference to FIG. 5, there is provided a pressure roller 80 as a pressure bonding means constituting a part of the sealing means. The pressure roller 80 is a means for applying a certain amount of pressure to the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 of the envelope paper 100, and is therefore made of a highly rigid metal. This pressure roller 80 is provided as a pair of upper and lower left and right, and two pairs of right and left are provided. Both edges in the width direction of the envelope 50 in which the contents 40 are enclosed are sandwiched from above and below to apply pressure, and pressure sensitive adhesive 106 can be sealed.

  As shown in FIG. 9, each pressure roller 80 is attached to the tip of a support arm 82 that can swing around a fulcrum 81. A biasing means 83 is attached to the rear end of the support arm 82, and the pair of press rollers 80 are configured to contact each other with a predetermined pressure. Therefore, if the envelope 50 is introduced between the pair of pressure rollers 80 and 80 and the pressure roller 80 is driven in the feed direction, the envelope 50 is conveyed forward while receiving a predetermined pressure only at both edges. . Note that the pressure applied to the envelope paper 100 by the pressure roller 80 by the urging unit 83 can be, for example, about 700 N / cm, depending on the type of the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106.

  Here, the width of the pressure roller 80 is smaller than the application width of the pressure-sensitive adhesive provided at both edges in the width direction of the envelope paper 100. Further, the distance between the two pairs of right and left pressure rollers 80, 80 is larger than the width of the contents 40 enclosed in the envelope 50 and smaller than the width of the envelope 50. Therefore, in the sealing process by the pressure roller 80, only the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 at both edges in the width direction of the envelope 50 can be reliably pressed with an area corresponding to the width of the pressure roller 80 and bonded with a predetermined adhesive force. In addition, at that time, the content 40 is not pressed by the pressure roller 80, so that the content 40 is not bonded together with the envelope. For example, when forming a normal size envelope, the width of the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 provided on both edges of the envelope paper 100 is set to about 5 mm in consideration of the displacement of the pressure roller 80. The width of the pressure roller 80 can be set to about 3 mm in consideration of reliable adhesion of the envelope paper 100.

  As described above, the pressure roller 80 is narrow, and it is necessary to press the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 only on both edges of the assembled envelope with the pressure roller 80. The alignment in the width direction needs to be performed accurately.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12, an alignment roller 65 is provided between the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller C ″ and the pressure roller 80 in the enclosing sealing portion of the present embodiment. The axial length of the alignment roller 65 is larger than the width of the envelope paper 100, and the position can be adjusted by moving in the axial direction while holding the envelope paper 100. Further, an edge sensor 66 is provided slightly upstream of the alignment roller 65 to catch the edge of the envelope paper 100 sandwiched between the alignment rollers 65 and correct the position of the alignment roller 65. In addition, the position information of the envelope paper 100 can be acquired.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12 or 13, if the edge sensor 66 catches the edge of the envelope 50 conveyed to the alignment roller 65 and moves the alignment roller 65 based on the position information, the pressure roller 80, the position of the envelope 50 in the width direction can be adjusted optimally. As a result, only the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 at both edges of the assembled envelope 50 can be reliably pressed by the pressure roller 80.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the sealed letter preparation apparatus 1 of this embodiment includes a control unit 90 for controlling the mechanisms of the printing unit 2 and the encapsulating sealing unit 3 described above. In the illustrated example, the control unit 90 is disposed in the printing unit 2, but may be disposed in the enclosing sealing unit 3, or may be disposed separately from the printing unit 2 and the enclosing sealing unit 3. May be.

(3) Operation of the sealed letter creating apparatus (FIGS. 6 to 8, FIGS. 10 to 13)
Next, in the envelope preparation apparatus 1 of the present embodiment described above, a name or the like is printed on the envelope paper 100, and further, the necessary contents 40 are printed and folded, and the envelope paper 100 is folded and formed. The entire procedure for enclosing and sealing the contents 40 in the envelope 50 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in the printing unit 2, the envelope paper 100 is sent out from the paper feed tray P1. In the present embodiment, the envelope paper 100 may be on any of the paper feed trays P1 to P4 of the printing unit 2. The envelope paper 100 is printed on both sides by the inkjet devices C, K, M, and Y while making one round of the loop-shaped conveyance path 5. It is also possible to select single-sided printing instead of double-sided printing. In general, an address or the like is printed on the outer surface of the envelope 50, and on the inner surface of the envelope 50, some information to be sent to the destination is necessary as well as the printed content of the sealed contents 40. Printed. Information printed on the inner surface of the envelope 50 can be read by the recipient opening the envelope 50.

  The envelope paper 100 is sent from one path 11 of the first transport path 10 to the folding means by switching a switching flap (not shown). The envelope paper 100 is fed forward by the main folding roller A ′ and the paper conveying roller D ′, and abuts against an abutting member (not shown) to bend. The main folding roller A ′ and the first folding roller B ′ are bent from the bent portions. The sheet is further sandwiched and conveyed, and a crease is formed at a part of the leading end in the sheet passing direction. The partially folded unfinished envelope passes between the main folding roller A ″ and the sheet conveying roller D ″ of the sealing means, and further passes between the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller B ″. And then waits for the contents 40 to be aligned.

  As shown in FIG. 7, following the envelope paper 100, a required paper 30 as the contents 40 is sent from one of the paper feed trays P2 to P4 to the loop-shaped transport path 5 with a predetermined fixed interval. Both sides of the paper 30 are printed by the inkjet devices C, K, M, and Y during one round of the conveyance path. It is also possible to select single-sided printing instead of double-sided printing. The sheet 30 of the contents 40 is sent to one path 21 of the second transport path 20 by switching a switching flap (not shown). The sheets 30 are stored in the aligning portion 23 in one path 21 of the second carrying path 20 until the required number of sheets is collected, and when the required number of sheets is aligned, the aligning portion 23 is opened to the folding means (main folding roller A or the like). It is sent. The sheet 30 folded in a desired state by a plurality of foldings performed by the folding unit is sent to the enclosing sealing part (main folding roller A ″ or the like) via the other path 26 of the second transport path 20. In the present embodiment, the content 40 is folded in three. The content 40 is sent first by the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller B ″, and is an envelope waiting in the vicinity of these rollers. Aligned with the paper 100.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller C ″ of the encapsulating sealing part perform an operation of folding the envelope paper 100 so that the content 40 is wrapped inside with the envelope paper 100 facing outside. An enclosing process for wrapping the paper 30 is performed.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the aligned envelope paper 100 and contents 40 are further conveyed forward by the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller B ″. Here, the rotating cam 64 of the water adding means 60 is actuated to swing the swing arm 63, and the re-wet paste 107 of the envelope paper 100 is pressed against the water absorbing portion 62 to add water.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the envelope paper 100 is fed forward by the main folding roller A ″ and the second folding roller C ″, and the first paper piece 101 is folded and adhered to the surface of the third paper piece 103 with rewetting glue 107. Thus, the envelope 50 is formed and enters the alignment roller 65.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the alignment roller 65 sandwiching the envelope 50 adjusts the axial position based on the position of the envelope 50 grasped by the edge sensor 66 shown in FIG. The envelope 50 is moved so that the agent 106 comes to a position overlapping the pressure roller 80. Then, both edges of the envelope 50 are pasted together by passing through the pressure roller 80, and the envelope 50 is sealed.

  According to the present embodiment, in the process of folding the envelope paper 100 aligned with the contents 40 into the envelope 50, the paper pieces are first bonded with the re-wetting paste 107, and then the envelope 50 is positioned accurately in the width direction. Then, the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 is reliably pressed by the narrow pressure roller 80. Therefore, the pressure-sensitive adhesive 106 can be reliably bonded with a sufficient and necessary width for bonding by the pressure roller 80 that is narrow and capable of producing a high pressure with a small force.

  Then, the sealed letter completed after the sealing and sealing is completed is discharged to a discharge tray 48 provided on the upper surface of the housing 9, and is sequentially stacked to wait for removal.

(4) Other structural examples of sealed paper (FIGS. 14 to 17)
FIG. 14 is a diagram showing the front surface (the side on which the address is printed) of the envelope paper 200 used in the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the back surface. The envelope paper 200 is a rectangular paper in which three paper pieces of a first paper piece 201, a second paper piece 202, and a third paper piece 203 are connected by a crease.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the surface of the first paper piece 201 corresponds to the back of the envelope, and the name / address of the sender is printed. The first paper piece 201 is formed with two perforations 204 extending from the long side parallel to the fold line to both edges in the width direction. When opening the sealed envelope, the central portion of the first paper piece 201 may be peeled off along the perforation 204. The surface of the second paper piece 202 corresponds to the front of the envelope, and the address is printed. On the surface of the third paper piece 203, re-wetting paste 307 is provided at two locations in a band-like pattern along the width direction inside both edges close to the crease with the second paper piece 202. A notch 205 is provided in a portion close to the second paper piece 202 in both edge portions of the third paper piece 203.

  As shown in FIG. 15, information such as a sentence, a figure, and a photograph, which are the contents of a sealed letter, can be printed on each back surface of the first to third paper pieces 201 to 203 as necessary. Further, the contents 40 are placed on the back surface of the second paper piece 202. The width of the contents 40 is smaller than the interval between the pressure-sensitive adhesives 306 printed on both edges of the envelope piece 200. A pressure-sensitive adhesive 306 is provided in a strip shape in a predetermined pattern on each back surface of the first to third paper pieces 201 to 203 along both edges in the width direction. The arrangement pattern of these pressure-sensitive adhesives 306 is considered so that when each paper piece is folded and assembled into an envelope shape, the pressure-sensitive adhesives 306 of the corresponding paper pieces come to the same position and come into contact with each other. Yes. However, when a large number of envelope sheets 200 are stacked on the same surface, for example, with the front side facing up, the pressure-sensitive adhesive 306 on the back side does not face because there is no pressure-sensitive adhesive on the front side. It is supposed not to. For this reason, similarly to the envelope paper 200 shown in FIG. 1 and the like, there is no problem that the stacked envelope paper 200 is stuck.

A processing procedure such as folding in the case where the envelope paper 200 is formed into an envelope shape after the address name and contents are printed will be described.
As shown in FIG. 16, with the contents 40 placed on the back surface of the second paper piece 202, the two paper sides 202, 203 are aligned with the back surface of the third paper piece 203 with respect to the second paper piece 202 and the content 40. Each pressure sensitive adhesive 306, 306 is brought into contact with each other. At this time, a part of the pressure-sensitive adhesive 306 of the second paper piece 202 is exposed from the notch 205 of the third paper piece 203.

  In FIG. 17, after water is added to the re-wet paste 307 by means not shown, the re-wet paste 307 and the back surface of the first paper piece 201 are brought into contact with the back surface of the first paper piece 201 and the front surface of the third paper piece 203. At the same time, the pressure-sensitive adhesives 206 on both paper sides 201 and 203 are brought into contact with each other. At this time, a part of the pressure sensitive adhesive 306 of the second paper piece 202 exposed from the notch 205 of the third paper piece 203 is in contact with a part of the pressure sensitive adhesive 206 on the back surface of the first paper piece 306. . In this state, the envelope paper 200 is in the shape of a tri-fold envelope, but neither the re-wetting paste 207 nor the pressure-sensitive adhesive 306 has been adhered yet.

Thereafter, as in the case of the envelope paper 100 shown in FIG. 1 and the like, the entire surface of the envelope is sandwiched and conveyed by a roller (not shown) having a length longer than the width of the envelope, and the re-wetting paste 307 of the third paper piece 203 is transferred. And the first paper piece 201 are bonded. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the pressure-sensitive adhesive 206 is adhered by the pressure roller 80. As a result, the pressure-sensitive adhesive 306 in contact between the paper edges facing each other is tacky, and an envelope form in which the contents are sealed is realized.
In addition, the sealing operation of the envelope paper 200 described above can be automatically executed by the above-described sealed letter preparation apparatus 1 of the first embodiment.

2. Modification of Embodiment The sealed letter making apparatus 1 of each embodiment described above includes the printing unit 2, but the printing unit 2 may be an existing image forming apparatus. That is, a normal image forming apparatus already installed in a business office or the like can be used as the printing unit 2 of the present invention, and the sealed sealing unit 3 of the present invention can be formed by connecting the sealed sealing unit 3 thereto. Therefore, the envelope sheets 100 and 200 and the contents 40 can be printed using a single existing image forming apparatus, and the installation cost of the automatic envelope preparation apparatus can be reduced.

  In addition, the sheet 30 of the contents 40 is not necessarily folded, and may be sealed in the envelope as it is without being folded depending on the relationship with the size of the envelope. In each embodiment, a sheet-like sheet is used as the envelope sheets 100 and 200 and the sheet 40 of the contents 40. However, for example, a roll-shaped sheet is used and cut into a necessary length each time it is used. You may make it supply.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Seal preparation apparatus 2 ... Printing part 3 ... Encapsulation sealing part 10 ... 1st conveyance path 11 ... One path | route of 1st conveyance path | route 13 ... The other path | route of 1st conveyance path | route 20 ... 2nd conveyance path | route DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 21 ... One path | route of 2nd conveyance path 26 ... Other path | route of 2nd conveyance path | route 30 ... Paper 40 ... Contents 50 ... Envelope 60 ... Hydrolysis means 80 as adhesion means 80 ... Pressure-bonding roller 80 as pressure-bonding means
90 ... Control means 100, 200 ... Envelope paper 106, 206 ... Pressure sensitive adhesive 107, 207 ... Rewetting glue A, A '... Main folding roller B. B '... first folding roller C ... second folding roller D, D' ... paper conveying roller A "... main folding roller B" ... first folding roller C "... second folding roller D" ... paper conveying roller

Claims (7)

A printing unit that prints envelope sheets and contents as envelopes for each envelope to be created, a first conveyance path that conveys the envelope sheet printed by the printing unit, and the printing unit printed by the printing unit A second conveyance path for conveying the contents, and the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path are arranged at a position where the contents are merged, and the envelope paper is folded and sealed so as to enclose the contents. In a sealed letter creating apparatus comprising a sealed sealed part for creating a sealed letter by
A sealed letter producing apparatus, wherein the sealed sealing part is provided with a pressure-bonding means for applying pressure to both edges in the width direction of the envelope intersecting with the conveying direction. 2. The envelope creating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the encapsulating sealed portion is provided with an adhesive means for adhering the envelope paper inside both edges in the width direction of the envelope. The crimping means is
The envelope sheets are provided at both edges in the width direction and each of the edges of the envelope has a width smaller than the application width of the pressure-sensitive adhesive facing each other, and is enclosed in the envelope. 3. The sealed letter according to claim 2, further comprising a pair of pressure rollers arranged at an interval larger than the dimension in the width direction of the contents and smaller than the dimension in the width direction of the envelope. Creation device. The bonding means includes
A means for adding water to the re-wet paste provided on the inner side of the both edges in the width direction of the envelope paper;
4. The envelope creation according to claim 2, wherein the envelope paper is bonded with the rewet glue by bending the envelope paper after the hydration means hydrates the rewet glue with the hydrating means. 5. apparatus. In the encapsulated sealing portion, after the water is added to the re-humidified glue by the water adding means, the envelope paper is bonded by the re-humidified glue by folding the envelope paper, and then the width direction of the envelope by the pair of pressure rollers 5. The sealed letter producing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sealing is performed by applying pressure to both edges of each of the two. In an envelope paper applied to a sealed letter making apparatus comprising an encapsulated sealing part that creates a sealed letter by folding and sealing the envelope paper so as to contain the contents,
Pressure sensitive adhesives that are provided on both edges in the width direction, do not face when stacked in the same direction, and face each other at both edges of the envelope when formed into an envelope by folding,
Other adhesive provided inside the both edges in the width direction,
An envelope paper characterized by comprising: In an envelope paper applied to a sealed letter making apparatus comprising an encapsulated sealing part that creates a sealed letter by folding and sealing the envelope paper so as to contain the contents,
A pressure sensitive adhesive provided only on one side at both edges in the width direction;
Notches provided on both edges of the surface that will be inside when folded,
Other adhesive provided inside the both edges in the width direction,
An envelope paper characterized by comprising:

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