WO2011004245A1

WO2011004245A1 - Method for binding a bundle of leaves and preformed cover applied thereby

Info

Publication number: WO2011004245A1
Application number: PCT/IB2010/001664
Authority: WO
Inventors: Guido Peleman
Original assignee: Unibind Limited
Priority date: 2009-07-07
Filing date: 2010-07-06
Publication date: 2011-01-13
Also published as: BE1018813A3

Abstract

Method for binding a bundle of leaves, starting from a preformed cover, whereby the cover is formed of a U-shaped back with standing legs or of a strip out of which such a back can be formed, and of pre-coated end leaves which are fixed to the latter, whereby the back comprises a strip of glue along the free edges of the legs and whereby the bundle, possibly after the back has been formed, is bound by introducing the bundle with an edge in the back and by pasting this edge by pushing the legs towards one another so as to guarantee a contact between the strip of glue and the edge.

Description

Method for binding a bundle of leaves and preformed cover applied thereby.

The present invention concerns a method for binding a bundle of leaves and a preformed cover applied thereby.

In particular, the invention aims to obtain a book or binding file with a hard cover starting from a bundle of leaves which forms what is called the book-block and a preformed cover or what is called a hard case.

Different book binding methods are already known.

All the known methods for producing such books mainly consist of three successive steps, namely printing the leaves, binding the bundle of leaves so as to form a book- block and finally fixing the book-block in the preformed cover or hard case.

In order to fix the book-block in the cover, use can be made of a liquid glue which is provided on the outside of the first and last leaf of the book-block, after which the book-block provided with glue is applied in the preformed cover.

Thus, the first and last leaf of the bundle are glued on the inside of the cover, and said leaves cover the inside of the cover at least partly. If need be, an end leaf can be previously provided round the bundle, or the bundle can be previously provided with two end leaves, such that these end leaves can be glued on the inside of the cover.

A disadvantage of this method is that pasting the book- block with liquid glue in the preformed cover is laborious.

For, if liquid glue is used, the quality and sturdiness of the obtained book will strongly depend on the thickness and density of the applied glue.

If too little glue has been provided, the leaves will not adhere well on the inside of the cover, and the bundle may come off the cover after a while, especially after the bound bundle has been repeatedly opened and flattened, since the bundle pulls on the inner coating when being opened.

A disadvantage related thereto is that any pasting of the book-block in the cover depends somewhat on the accuracy and experience of the operator, and that it is difficult to bind the book-block in a conventional manner such that the first and last leaf which are glued as an inner coating onto the cover are situated exactly in the middle of the file.

Thus, an edge is formed round the inner coating, due to the fact that the dimensions of the inner coating are smaller than the dimensions of the end leaves, whose width is not constant, resulting in a less aesthetic appearance. Another disadvantage of the use of liquid glue is that this glue evaporates quickly, such that the receptacle of the glue must always be closed in case of repeated applications .

Another possibility is to apply a self-adhesive glue, either on the inside of the preformed cover, or on the outside of the book-block, in other words on the outer leaves of the book-block.

This method is disadvantageous as well in that a precise positioning of the book-block in relation to the inner coating of the cover is not possible.

Another disadvantage is that, with this method as well, when opening and leafing through the book, the inner coating is loaded.

A disadvantage of all the above-described methods is that the thus obtained book does not look professional.

Another disadvantage of the known methods is that, irrespective of the type of glue that is used, a book is always obtained which, when the cover is laid open, shows a gap between the first leaf of the book-block and the inner coating of the preformed cover, which is annoying and does not look professional.

Moreover, with the known methods, the back is bound on a supple case with its bound edge, whereby the supple case is meant to bend along as soon as the book is opened, since the book will not stay open otherwise.

As a result, with the known methods, apart from the gap which is visible between the inside of the cover and the first leaf of the book-block, a gap is always visible between the bottom of the back and the book-block as well as long as the book is left open.

Naturally, this gap does not look aesthetical but, as indicated, it is essential.

The present invention aims to remedy one or several of the above-mentioned and/or other disadvantages by providing a method whereby a preformed cover is taken as a basis, whereby the cover is mainly formed of a U-shaped back with standing legs or of a strip out of which such a back can be formed and of end leaves fixed to the latter and which have been provided with a coating beforehand, whereby the U- shaped back is provided with a strip of glue at least along the free edges of the standing legs, and whereby the bundle, possibly after the back has been formed, is bound by introducing the bundle with an edge to be bound in the U-shaped back and then gluing this edge in the back by pushing the legs of the U-shaped back towards one another so as to guarantee a contact between the strip of glue and the edge to be bound, in such a way that the gap between the bundle and the inside of the cover is filled.

An advantage is that the preformed cover can be previously provided with an inner coating, and that this inner coating can also be applied under better controlled circumstances then, such that the inner coating is always positioned centrally in relation to the inside of the file and in relation to the bundle of bound leaves.

Another advantage is that the bundle is not glued together with the inner coating of the preformed cover, such that when the book is opened, no free space is observed between the first leaf and the inner coating.

An additional advantage is that, when the book is opened, no space is observed between the bottom of the back of the cover and the book-block, and the book can remain open although no distance is created between the back and the book-block when the book is opened.

Also, another advantage related thereto is that the obtained book looks much more aesthetical and more professional .

Another important advantage is that the book-block is pasted much more solidly in the cover, since the bundle is pressed in the back and glued together with the latter, such that when opening the book and leafing through it, not the inner coating but the rigid back will be loaded, which can be made to endure this by means of an appropriate material selection.

Another advantage is that the book-block is pasted in a much less expensive way than with the known methods, making this gluing method also appropriate for non-professional applications, i.e. the private field.

An additional advantage is that the selection of the preformed cover depends less on the thickness of the bundle to be bound, since the back of the cover is compressed, such that the bundle is firmly pressed in the back.

According to a practical variant of the method according to the invention, one can start with a series of preformed covers having a restricted number of sizes as far as width of the opening of the back is concerned, and a preformed cover is selected from the above-mentioned series to bind a bundle of leaves, whereby the above-mentioned width is somewhat larger than and most approximate to the thickness of the bundle.

Indeed, the application of the method according to the invention offers the possibility, starting from a restricted number of preformed covers with different thicknesses, to firmly bind book-blocks having random thicknesses.

An advantage is that this method is very profitable, since a restricted number of cover sizes will suffice, as opposed to with the known book binding methods whereby the cover has to be made to measure to the book-block.

The strip of glue and/or the layer of glue is preferably made of a heat-sensitive type of glue, and the binding back is made of a heat-conducting material. The present invention also concerns the preformed cover to be applied in the above-described method, whereby the cover is mainly formed of a U-shaped back with standing legs or of a strip which can be shaped into such a back, and end leaves which are fixed to the latter, whereby the end leaves have been previously provided with a coating, and whereby the U-shaped back is provided with a strip of glue at least along the free edges of the standing legs.

The use of the preformed cover also leads to the above- described advantages.

According to the most practical variant of the invention, said preformed cover is made as a semi-finished product, whereby, after a bundle of leaves or book-block has been applied and fixed, a finished book or finished binding file is obtained.

In order to better explain the characteristics of the invention, the following preferred embodiments of a preformed cover and a binding method according to the invention are described by way of example only without being limitative in any way, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: figure 1 schematically represents a preformed cover according to the invention, seen in perspective;

figures 2 to 4 represent steps of the method according to the invention; and, figure 5 represents a variant of a preformed cover according to the invention.

Figure 1 schematically represents a preformed cover 1 according to the invention which is mainly formed of a U- shaped back 2 with a bottom 3 and two standing legs 4.

The back 2 and the legs 4 enclose a space 5 in which the bundle of leaves to be bound or the book-block 6 can be provided.

The U-shaped back 2 can be made of a hard and/or heat- conducting material, but this is not strictly necessary according to the invention.

In a practical embodiment, the back can be made of a metal for example.

Onto this U-shaped back 2 are fixed two end leaves 7, a front end leaf 8 and a back end leaf 9 respectively, which together with the back 2 form the preformed cover 1.

In the given embodiment, these end leaves 7 are hinge- mounted to the back 2 by means of an inner and outer coating 10-11 provided round the end leaves 7 and round the back 2, and which forms a sort of film hinge 12 at the transition between both.

This preformed cover 1 is a semi-finished product which, under ideal circumstances, has been produced beforehand, making it possible to apply the inner coating 10 precisely centred on the inside of the end leaves 7, as a result of which, as the inner coating 10 usually has smaller dimensions than the end leaves 7, an edge 13 with a nice even width is formed round the inner coating 10.

According to the invention, it is not excluded for the end leaves 7 to be provided in the shape of one single continuous end leaf on the outer perimeter of the U-shaped back 2.

These end leaves 7 can be made of paper, cardboard or the like, or another somewhat rigid material.

At least on the sides 14 of the standing legs 4 directed towards one another, the U-shaped back 2 is provided with a strip of glue 16 at the free edges 15.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, this strip of glue 16 can be provided in the form of a strip of heat-sensitive hotmelt.

Said hotmelt can be composed in any way whatsoever, but the use of a polymer compound offers the advantage that only a little amount of heat is needed to make the glue melt.

Naturally, the strip of glue 16 must not necessarily be provided as a continuous layer over the entire edge 15 of the back 2, but it may also be applied in the form of several small strips. For, by heating the hotmelt, the glue will start to run and spread over the edge 15 of the back 2 to be fixed. According to another practical embodiment, the strip of glue 16 can be provided on the free edges 15 of the back 2 in the form of a self-adhesive strip of glue, whereby this strip of glue 16 is preferably covered by a strip of cover foil, not represented in the drawings.

Naturally, it is not excluded for the preformed cover 1 to contain one or several other types of glue as well.

Thus, a layer of glue 17 may be provided on the inside of the U-shaped back 2, either at the legs 4, or at the bottom 3 of the back 2, or on both, as is represented in figure 5.

In a practical embodiment of the invention, the layer of glue 17 and the strip of glue 16 can be made of one and the same type of glue and, when seen as a section, form a continuous strip of glue extending over the legs 4 and/or over the bottom 3 of the back 2, such that a binding is obtained between the back 2 and the bundle 6 at the bottom 3 and/or the standing legs 4.

In this embodiment, the strip of glue 16 and the layer of glue 17 preferably have the same thickness.

In another embodiment of the invention, not represented in the drawings, the strip of glue 16 may be somewhat thinner on the free edges than the layer of glue 17, such that when the bundle 6 is applied, the outer leaves of the bundle 6 cannot get caught on the strip of glue 16. To the expert it is clear that the edge of the strip of glue 16 may have a conical shape at the edge 15 of the standing leg 4, such that a guide is formed for the bundle 6 to be bound, avoiding that the outer leaves of the bundle 6 get caught on the outer edges and consequently might be insufficiently bound.

The method for binding a bundle 6 is very simple and as follows, and it is schematically represented in figures 2 to 4.

Naturally, a bundle 6 of leaves to be bound and a preformed cover 1 are taken as a basis, which is selected for example from a series of covers 1 with a restricted number of Standard sizes as far as the opening 5 of the back 2 is concerned.

A cover 1 is thereby selected whose width A of the opening

5 is somewhat bigger than the thickness B of the book-block

6 or bundle of leaves to be bound and whose width A is as approximate as possible to said thickness B.

The bundle 6, either or not previously bound, can be pushed in the U-shaped back 2 with an edge 18.

If the strip of glue 16 is a heat-sensitive strip of glue, the back 2 will be subsequently heated by means of a heating unit 19, such that the strip of glue 16 melts.

According to the invention, while the glue is in its liquid phase, the standing legs 4 of the back 2 are pushed towards one another so as to guarantee a contact between the strip of glue 16 and the edge 18 to be bound, such that the gap 20 between the bundle 6 and the inside of the cover 1 is filled.

In this manner is avoided that a less aesthetical gap 20 is created between the bundle 6 and the inside of the cover 1, although a professionally made preformed cover 1 is taken as a basis on which the inner coating 10 is perfectly centred, which has not been possible with the conventional methods up to now.

The legs 4 are preferably compressed, as is schematically illustrated by the arrows F in figure 3, while the strip of glue 16 is being heated.

Finally, the cover 1 is left to cool down again, such that the heat-sensitive strip of glue 16 congeals again.

In an embodiment whereby the strip of glue 16 is a self- adhesive strip of glue, the cover foil will be removed from the strip of glue 16 before the bundle 6 is put into place.

Next, the bundle 6 to be bound can be provided and the standing legs 4 of the back 2 are pushed towards one another, such that the inside 14 of the legs 4 adheres to the outside of the bundle 6 or the book-block thanks to the self-adhesive layer of glue 16.

If the bottom 3 of the U-shaped bind back 2 has been provided with a layer of glue 17, the bundle 6 to be bound will be preferably pressed against the bottom 3 of the U- shaped back 2, such that the bundle 6 is not only solidly fixed in the preformed cover 1 along the free edges 15 of the back 2 but also along the standing walls 14 and on the bottom 3 of the back 2.

It is clear that the method can be applied with a pre-bound bundle as well as with a bundle that is applied in the form of loose leaves.

It is clear that the U-shaped bind back must not be necessarily connected to the inner coating over the entire surface.

It is also possible, according to a variant of the invention, to produce the back in the shape of a strip which may be U-shaped.

The present invention is by no means restricted to the embodiments described by way of example and represented in the accompanying drawings; on the contrary, such a method can be made according to several variants while still remaining within the scope of the invention.

Claims

Claims .

1.- Method for binding a bundle of leaves (6), whereby a preformed cover (1) is taken as a basis, characterised in that the cover (1) is mainly formed of a U-shaped back (2) with standing legs (4) or of a strip out of which such a back (2) can be formed and of end leaves (7) which are connected to the latter and which have been previously provided with a coating (10-11) , whereby the U-shaped back (2) is provided with a strip of glue (17) at least along the free edges (15) of the standing legs (4) and whereby the bundle (6), possibly after the back (2) has been formed, is bound by applying the bundle (6) with an edge (18) to be bound in the U-shaped back (2) and by subsequently gluing this edge in the back (2) by pushing the legs (4) of the U-shaped back (2) towards one another so as to guarantee a contact between the strip of glue (16) and the edge (18) to be bound, such that the gap (20) between the bundle (6) and the inside of the cover (1) is filled.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterised in that the strip of glue (16) is formed of a heat-sensitive glue and in that the back (2) is made of a heat-conducting material.

3. Method according to claim 2, characterised in that when binding, the back (2) is heated and the legs (4) are pressed together while the heated glue of the strip of glue

(16) is still liquid.

4.- Method according to claim 1, characterised in that the strip of glue (16) is a self-adhesive strip of glue on which has been fixed a cover foil.

5.- Method according to claim 4, characterised in that the method additionally comprises the step of removing the cover foil before the bundle (6) is applied in the back (2).

6.- Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the back (2) is at least partially provided with a layer of glue (17) on the inside of the legs (4) and/or on the bottom (3), and in that when binding, the above-mentioned edge of the bundle to be bound is applied in or against said layer of glue (17) .

7,- Method according to claim 6, characterised in that the layer of glue (17) is formed of a heat-sensitive hotmelt or a self-adhesive glue.

8.- Method according to claim 6 or 7, characterised in that the strip of glue (16) and the layer of glue (17) are made of one and the same type of glue and, seen as a cross section, form a continuous whole which extends over the legs (4) and/or over the bottom (3) of the back (2) .

9.- Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the bundle of leaves (6) has either or not been previously bound.

10.- Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that in order to apply the method, a series of preformed covers (1) with a restricted number of sizes as far as width (A) of the opening (5) of the back (2) is concerned are taken as a basis, and in that, in order to bind a bundle of leaves (6), a preformed cover (1) is selected from the above-mentioned series whose above- mentioned width (R) is somewhat larger than and is most approximate to the thickness (B) of the bundle (6) .

11.- Preformed cover (1) to be applied in a method according to any one of the preceding claims, whereby the cover (1) is mainly formed of a U-shaped back (2) with standing legs (4) or of a strip which can be shaped into such a back (2) and end leaves (7) which are fixed to the latter, and whereby the end leaves (7) have been previously provided with a coating, characterised in that the U-shaped back (2) is provided with a strip of glue (16) at least along the free edges of the standing legs (4) .

12.- Preformed cover (1) according to claim 10, characterised in that the back (2) is made of a hard material.

13.- Preformed cover (1) according to claim 11 or 12, characterised in that the cover (1) is made in the shape of a semi-finished product.

14.- Preformed cover (1) according to any one of claims 11 to 13, characterised in that the cover (1) is provided with an additional layer of glue (17) at least on part of the inside of the back (2) .

15.- Preformed cover (1) according to any one of claims 11 to 14, characterised in that the strip of glue (16) and the layer of glue (17) are made of one and the same type of glue and, seen as a section, form a continuous layer which extends over the legs (4) and/or over the bottom (3) of the back (2) .

16.- Preformed cover (1) according to any one of claims 11 to 15, characterised in that if the layer of glue (17) and/or the strip of glue (16) are made of a heat-sensitive glue, the back (2) will be made of a heat-conducting material .