WO2001068379A2 - Binding element stacking structure - Google Patents
Binding element stacking structure Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- WO2001068379A2 WO2001068379A2 PCT/US2001/006362 US0106362W WO0168379A2 WO 2001068379 A2 WO2001068379 A2 WO 2001068379A2 US 0106362 W US0106362 W US 0106362W WO 0168379 A2 WO0168379 A2 WO 0168379A2
- Authority
- WO
- WIPO (PCT)
- Prior art keywords
- binding
- elements
- stacking
- binding elements
- pin
- Prior art date
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B42—BOOKBINDING; ALBUMS; FILES; SPECIAL PRINTED MATTER
- B42F—SHEETS TEMPORARILY ATTACHED TOGETHER; FILING APPLIANCES; FILE CARDS; INDEXING
- B42F13/00—Filing appliances with means for engaging perforations or slots
- B42F13/16—Filing appliances with means for engaging perforations or slots with claws or rings
- B42F13/165—Filing appliances with means for engaging perforations or slots with claws or rings with flexible or resilient claws or rings
Definitions
- the present invention relates to binding elements for holding a plurality of perforated sheets or the like, and more specifically the invention pertains to structure for facilitating stacking or otherwise nesting of binding elements.
- binding elements have been utilized to bind a stack of perforated sheets or the like.
- binding elements which are of a wire comb or hanger-type design are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Patent 2,112,389 to Trussell and U.S. Patents 4,832,370 and 4,873,858 to Jones, while machines for assembling such binders are disclosed in U.S. Patent 4,031,585 to Adams, U.S. Patent 4,398,856 to Archer et al., U.S. Patent 4,525,117 to Jones, U.S. Patent 4,934,890 to Flatt, and U.S. Patent 5,370,489 to Bagroky.
- Other binding devices are disclosed, for example, in the following references: U.S.
- Patents 2,089,881 and 2,363,848 to Ernmer U.S. Patent 2,435,848 to Schade
- U.S. Patent 2,466,451 to Liebman U.S. Patent 4,607,970 to Heusenkveld
- U.S. Patent 4,904,103 to Im U.S. Patent 5,028,159 to Amrich et al.
- Binding elements typically include a spine from which a plurality of fingers extend which may be assembled through perforations in a stack of sheets. This spine may be linear, with or without a longitudinally extending hinge. Alternately, the spine may be formed by sequential bending of a wire, as with wire comb or hanger type binding elements.
- binding devices which include elongated spines and fingers
- the binding devices commonly become entangled when stored in a group. Detangling the binding elements in order to assemble the element to a stack of sheets or lay the element into a binding machine can be a tedious and potentially time consuming process. Further, this tendency to become entangled may complicate or prevent the use of such binding devices in automated binding processes or machines wherein an automated feed is desirable.
- Another object of the invention is to provide a stacking structure which does not interfere with the use or final appearance of a binding element.
- a related object is to provide stacking structure which may be severed from the binding element during an automated binding process. .
- An additional object of the invention is to provide stacking structure which may be economically and efficiently manufactured.
- a further object is to provide stacking structure which may be unitarily molded with the binding element using conventional molding techniques.
- an elongated binding element having severable stacking pins or alignment pins disposed at opposite ends thereof.
- the alignment pins are preferably unitarily formed at opposite ends of the spine.
- the alignment pins may be alternately disposed on the binding element, or more than two pins may be provided per binding element.
- the alignment pins are positioned and preferably include a nesting structure such that adjacently disposed binding element may be maintained in a stable position, e.g., in a horizontal position.
- the binding pins may have a cone shape or include mating protrusions and indentations. While the pins and binding elements are preferably formed of a polymeric material, stacking pins may likewise be utilized with binders formed of metallic materials.
- the stackable pins are preferably severed from the binding element.
- severing of the pins may be accomplished by means of a separate procedure or coincident with another movement of the binding machine during the binding process.
- the pins may be severed as a machine element moves to exert force on the stack of sheets.
- the binding element with stackable pins may be economically and efficiently manufactured as pins may be unitarily formed with the binding element as part of a single molding process as is known in the art.
- FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a binding element with stackable pins according to teachings of the present invention.
- FIG. 2 is a plan view of a binding element of FIG. 1.
- FIG. 3 is an end view of the binding element of FIG. 1 wherein the stackable pin is shown in cross-section as taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1.
- FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of two stacked binding elements taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 2.
- FIG. 5 is an plan view of an alternate embodiment of the invention.
- FIG. 6 is an end view of the binding element of FIG. 5 wherein the stackable pin is shown in cross-section as taken along line 6-6 in FIG. 5.
- FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of two stacked binding elements taken along line 7-7 in FIG. 5.
- FIG. 8 is a plan view of a third embodiment of the invention.
- FIG. 9 is a side view of a fourth embodiment of the binding element constructed in accordance with teachings of the invention.
- FIG. 10 is an end cross-sectional view taken along line 10-10 in FIG. 9.
- FIG. 11 is a plan view of two binding elements of FIG. 9 wherein the stackable pins are shown in cross-section taken along line 11-11 in FIG. 9.
- FIG. 1 a binding element 20 which includes a spine 22 and a plurality of fingers 24 which protrude from either side of the spine 22.
- the spine 22 may further include a living hinge 26 or the like which facilitates the bending of the fingers 24 toward one another.
- the fingers 24 may be inserted through perforations in a stack of sheets (not shown) to bind the sheets together.
- the living hinge 26 is in the form of a longitudinally extending line of reduced thickness along the spine.
- the binder 20 is provided with stacking protrusions or pins 30 by which a plurality of binders 20 may be nested, or stacked, to prevent the binders from becoming tangled.
- stacking pins 30 facilitate the use of such binding elements in automated processing.
- a plurality of elements 20 so stacked may be readily handled and fed through automated binding machines (not shown) such that they may be used for high volume binding.
- the stacking pin 30 may be then be sheared off the element either during the handling process, during the closing process, or after binding.
- the stacking pins 30 may be of any appropriate design.
- the stacking pins 30 shown in FIGS. 1-4 have a generally conical shape with a broad lower end 32 and a narrow upper end 34.
- the narrow upper end 34 further includes an upper surface 35 from which an upwardly extending nipple 36 protrudes.
- the stacking pins 30 preferably include an internal cavity 38. As may be seen in FIG. 4, the narrow upper end 34 and nipple 36 are received within the cavity 38 to nest the stacking pins 30 and fix the relative positions of the associated binding elements 20.
- the internal cavity 38 may include a surface or flange 40 which receives the upper surface 35 of the stacking pin.
- the nipple 36 helps to guide the upper end 34 of the stacker into position within the cavity 38.
- the nipple 36, cavity 38 and flange 40 are not required, so long as the pins 30 of adjacent binding elements 20 abut each other to maintain the spatial relationship.
- the stacking pins 30 may be coupled directly to the binding element 20, or they may be coupled by means of an arm 39, as shown in FIGS. 2-4.
- the arm 39 is preferably of a smaller cross-section than the spine 22, for example, so that it may be easily severed from the binding element 20.
- the stacking pin may be of an alternate configuration.
- the stacking pin 30 of FIGS. 1-4 may have a smooth sided simple conical configuration such that the upper surface of the stacking pin and the nipple are one in the same and wherein the point or nipple of the cone is received within an internal cavity.
- stacking pin 130 may have a configuration such as is shown in FIGS. 5-7, for example. (It will be noted that in this and subsequent embodiments, similar identification numbers are utilized with a different number prefix, i.e., lxx is used for this embodiment, 2xx for the next, etc.)
- stacking pin 130 is an elongated cylinder having a lower end 132 and an upper end 134.
- the upper end 134 includes a surface 135 from which a nipple 136 extends. When nested, the upper surface 135 of the pin seats against lower surface 140, while the upper surface 142 of the nipple 136 seats against the base surface 144 of the cavity 138.
- the pins 130 would appropriately nest regardless of which surfaces engage, i.e., the pins 130 would likewise appropriately nest if only surface 142 engaged 144 or if only surface 135 engaged surface 140, rather than both. In this configuration, the stacking pin 130 have a circular configuration.
- the stacking pin 230 may alternately include a square configuration, such as is illustrated in FIG. 8. It will be appreciated that the cross-sectional side elevation views of the stacking pin 230 will be substantially similar to the cross-sections shown in FIGS. 6 and 7.
- stacking pin 30 has been illustrated as extending perpendicular to a plane containing the binder element 20 and as facilitating a vertical stack of binding elements 20, it will be appreciated that the stacking pins 330 may be utilized to stack binding elements 320 in a horizontal configuration, such as is shown in FIGS. 9-11.
- the stacking pins 330 extend substantially parallel to or in the same plane as a plane containing the binding element 320. In this way, the binding elements 320 are disposed side-by-side when positioned by the stacking pins 330.
- the stacking pins 330 are illustrated as having generally the same configuration as is illustrated in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 5-7, however, the stacking pin 330 is slightly more elongated, running substantially the width of the binding elements 20, as illustrated in FIG. 11.
- the stacking pin 330 themselves, however, nest in an identical manner to that disclosed and explained with regard to FIGS. 5-7.
- stacking pins may likewise be utilized with other sheet binding element structures, such as those illustrated in, for example, U.S. Patent 4,369,013 to Andugaard et al., U.S. Patent 4,607,970 to Heusenkveld, U.S. Patent 4,873,858 to Jones, U.S. Patent 4,900,211 to Vercillo, U.S. Patent 4,904,103 to Im, and U.S. Patent 5,028,159 to Amrich et al., each of which is incorporated by reference herein.
- the binding elements include fingers in the form of nails and mating female strips having openings for receiving the nails.
- the nipple and cavity arrangement is not required as long as the stacking pins of adjacent binding elements abut one another to maintain the desired spatial relationship.
- the stacking pins preferably protrude from the opposite ends of an elongated spine 22, it will be appreciated that the stacking pins may be alternately positioned along the binder, for example, along the fingers, so long as they do not interfere with the automated processes and so long as they may be severed to provide a final polished product.
- a binding element may include less or greater than two stacking pins and may be formed of a polymeric material or a metallic material, provided these same requirements are met.
Abstract
Description
Claims
Priority Applications (3)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
EP01914557A EP1261494A2 (en) | 2000-03-10 | 2001-02-28 | Binding element stacking structure |
CA002399805A CA2399805A1 (en) | 2000-03-10 | 2001-02-28 | Binding element stacking structure |
AU2001239930A AU2001239930A1 (en) | 2000-03-10 | 2001-02-28 | Binding element stacking structure |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US18837200P | 2000-03-10 | 2000-03-10 | |
US60/188,372 | 2000-03-10 |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
WO2001068379A2 true WO2001068379A2 (en) | 2001-09-20 |
WO2001068379A3 WO2001068379A3 (en) | 2002-02-14 |
Family
ID=22692854
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/US2001/006362 WO2001068379A2 (en) | 2000-03-10 | 2001-02-28 | Binding element stacking structure |
Country Status (4)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP1261494A2 (en) |
AU (1) | AU2001239930A1 (en) |
CA (1) | CA2399805A1 (en) |
WO (1) | WO2001068379A2 (en) |
Cited By (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US7503740B2 (en) | 2004-05-21 | 2009-03-17 | Esselte | Punching and binding system and elements thereof |
US7837405B2 (en) | 2004-04-16 | 2010-11-23 | General Binding Corporation | Disposable clip for coupling binding elements and combination of binding elements with disposable coupling clip |
US9862221B2 (en) | 2011-07-18 | 2018-01-09 | ACCO Brands Corporation | Binding system for retaining bound components |
Citations (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3761983A (en) * | 1972-03-17 | 1973-10-02 | Gen Binding Corp | Binding apparatus |
WO1999014059A1 (en) * | 1997-09-17 | 1999-03-25 | Ibico Trading Gmbh | Binding element |
-
2001
- 2001-02-28 AU AU2001239930A patent/AU2001239930A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2001-02-28 WO PCT/US2001/006362 patent/WO2001068379A2/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 2001-02-28 EP EP01914557A patent/EP1261494A2/en not_active Withdrawn
- 2001-02-28 CA CA002399805A patent/CA2399805A1/en not_active Abandoned
Patent Citations (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3761983A (en) * | 1972-03-17 | 1973-10-02 | Gen Binding Corp | Binding apparatus |
WO1999014059A1 (en) * | 1997-09-17 | 1999-03-25 | Ibico Trading Gmbh | Binding element |
Cited By (4)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US7837405B2 (en) | 2004-04-16 | 2010-11-23 | General Binding Corporation | Disposable clip for coupling binding elements and combination of binding elements with disposable coupling clip |
US7503740B2 (en) | 2004-05-21 | 2009-03-17 | Esselte | Punching and binding system and elements thereof |
US9862221B2 (en) | 2011-07-18 | 2018-01-09 | ACCO Brands Corporation | Binding system for retaining bound components |
US10569590B2 (en) | 2011-07-18 | 2020-02-25 | ACCO Brands Corporation | Binding system for retaining bound components |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
WO2001068379A3 (en) | 2002-02-14 |
CA2399805A1 (en) | 2001-09-20 |
EP1261494A2 (en) | 2002-12-04 |
AU2001239930A1 (en) | 2001-09-24 |
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