Book binding system

Details Book binding system Book binding system

1998-07-14

2001-03-27

Ellis, Christopher P. (Department: 3651)

Sheet-material associating

Associating or disassociating

With control indicia

C412S011000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06206358

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention generally relates to a book binding apparatus which is adapted to apply covers to paper blocks.
In the printing machines (copying machines) known to the art, copies of a book are produced by printing based on a block of required number of sheets per page. The sheet blocks corresponding to respective pages of the book are subject to a collator for forming collated blocks of printed sheets. The collated sheet blocks are transported to a book binding machine or a book sewing machine so as to be bound in a suitable manner. It is general practice in the art to employ the book binding machine for binding a collated paper block of a great thickness by gluing and the book sewing machine for sewing a collated sheet block of a relatively small thickness. Such book binding machines and book sewing machines will hereinafter be collectively referred to as ‘book binding apparatus’.
More recently, there has been developed a printing machine adapted to sequentially print on a one-sheet-per-page basis and discharge copies in the order of pages. Such a printing machine permits discharged sheets to be gathered in collated blocks which may be readily bound. In this connection, studies have been made to accomplish continuous processing steps from printing to binding by coupling the printing machine to the book binding apparatus.
FIG. 7
is a schematic perspective view showing an exemplary arrangement in which a printing machine is coupled to a book binding apparatus adapted to bind books by gluing. Referring to the figure, a book binding apparatus
20
includes a binding start station
30
, a milling station
40
, a gluing station
50
and a covering station
60
. A printing machine
1
a
feeds a collated block of printed sheets
2
to a collated block gathering station
2
a
whereas a printing machine
1
b
feeds a printed cover sheet
3
to a cover sheet gathering station
3
a
, the cover sheet
3
having about double the size of the collated block.
The collated block
2
is transported to the binding start station
30
via transport means, such as a conveyor belt or the like. When the book binding process is started, the collated block
2
is placed on a level plate
33
on its spine, as held between clampers
31
and
32
, a lateral movement of which clampers is regulated in quantity according to a thickness of the collated block
2
. In this state, the collated block is fed to the milling station
40
for the subsequent steps (as to the subsequent steps, illustrations of the clampers
31
,
32
are omitted in the figure).
The milling station
40
includes a milling machine
41
and width-adjustment plates
42
and
43
. The milling station
40
is adjusted in a quantity of lateral movement of the width-adjustment plates
42
and
43
according to the thickness of the collated block
2
so that the collated block
2
is aligned flush against a top surface of the milling machine
41
as allowed to pass thereover. Thus, a pre-processing is carried out for allowing a glue to be uniformly applied to the spine of the block. Subsequently, the collated block
2
with its spine aligned flush is fed to the gluing station
50
. The gluing station
50
includes a gluing device
54
arranged such that a glue tank
51
contains therein a glue
5
with an application roller
53
immersed therein. The collated block
2
is subject to a gluing process so as to be applied with the glue to its spine. The glue in the glue tank
51
is heated to a suitable temperature for facilitating the application of the glue to the spine of the collated block
2
.
Subsequent to the gluing process, the collated block
2
is fed to the covering station
60
. In the covering station
60
, the printed cover sheet
3
is already delivered onto nipper plates (squeezing plates)
61
,
62
and a base plate
63
from the cover sheet gathering station
3
a
via a suitable transport means such as a conveyor belt or the like. The collated block
2
through the gluing process is fed to the cover sheet on the nipper plates
61
,
62
and the base plate
63
so as to be bonded thereto on its spine. Then, the nipper plates
61
,
62
are laterally moved by a predetermined quantity and pressed against lateral end portions of the spine of the collated block
2
from opposite sides (hereinafter referred to as ‘nipping’) thereby folding the cover sheet and holding the block between the folded cover sheet. Thus, the cover sheet is bonded to the collated block. The quantity of lateral movement of the nipper plates is defined with consideration given to thicknesses of the collated block
2
and the cover sheet.
The clampers
31
,
32
of the binding start station
30
, the width-adjustment plates
42
,
43
of the milling station
40
and the nipper plates
61
,
62
of the covering station
60
each constitute a laterally movable member adapted for lateral movement based on the thickness of the collated block. The laterally movable member is driven by way of suitable drive means. A clamping width and a milling width are set to predetermined values through regulation of the quantity of movement of the laterally movable members. A nipping width is set to a predetermined value with the thickness of the cover sheet taken into consideration.
FIG. 8
is a schematic perspective view showing an arrangement of a book binding apparatus for performing the sewing process by using a stitching head. Referring to the figure, the book binding apparatus
80
includes a binding start station
81
, a sewing station
82
, a folding station
83
, a pressing station
84
, and a product gathering station
85
. A collated block
2
through the printing machine is fed to the binding start station
81
. On the other hand, a cover sheet
3
through the printing machine and of the same size with the collated block is transported along a direction of the arrow R in the figure to the binding start station and laid over the collated block
2
.
Subsequently, the collated block
2
with the cover sheet
3
laid thereover is fed to the sewing station
82
, where an unillustrated stitcher is registered to place so as to apply stitching heads
82
a
,
82
b
along a direction of the arrow P to the collated block
2
with the cover sheet
3
at predetermined positions, such as a center line thereof, thus accomplishing the sewing process. Thereafter, the collated block thus bound is fed to the folding station
83
. A gap T between folding rollers
83
a
,
83
b
of the folding station
83
is already adjusted based on the thickness of the collated block
2
.
A crimp is produced in the collated block
2
with the cover sheet
3
by passing through the gap between the folding rollers
83
a
,
83
b
while pressing an unillustrated fold knife against the stitched line. Although the arrangement is not illustrated in detail, both the binding process for sewing the collated block by means of the aforesaid stitcher and the folding process by means of the fold knife and the folding rollers in cooperation are techniques already known to the art.
The collated block through the sewing process is fed to the pressing station
84
. In this station, a press plate
84
a
is lowered along a direction of the arrow Q to press a free end portion of the collated block
2
, the free end portion being in opposed relation to the stitched end portion thereof. Thus, the collated block is formed into shape. The collated block
2
thus shaped is delivered to the product gathering station
85
. In some cases, three or more stitching positions of the stitching heads may be provided on the collated block depending upon the size or thickness of the block. Additionally, the collated block
2
may be bound with the stitching head at a corner portion thereof.
The book binding apparatus of
FIG. 7
, which is adapted to bind the collated block by gluing, includes a plurality of laterally movable members and drive means for laterally moving these movable members, respectively. The book binding apparatus of
FIG. 8
, which is adapted to bind the collated block with the stitch

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