Sheet bundle binding processing apparatus and image forming system having the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9409740-B2
Application number	US-201414330630-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 14, 2014
Priority date	Jul 18, 2013
Publication date	Aug 9, 2016
Grant date	Aug 9, 2016

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a sheet bundle binding processing apparatus capable of providing relatively strong bonding when a plurality of sheets are bound by corrugation-shaped pressurizing faces with nip-pressure deformation and causing less frictional damage on a sheet face when a sheet bundle is introduced to and discharged from the binding unit. The present invention comprises a sheet bundle binding processing apparatus including a processing tray which includes a sheet placement face on which sheets are stacked, a press binding device which bonds mutually overlapped sheets stacked on the processing tray with pressure-bonding deformation, a taking-off device which applies a taking-off force to sheets bound by the press binding device along the sheet placement face for taking off the sheets from the press binding device, and a sheet bundle discharging device by which the sheets taken off from the press binding device by the taking-off device is discharged from the processing tray.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sheet bundle binding processing apparatus, comprising:
a stack portion on which sheets are stacked;
a press binding device which binds sheets stacked on the stack portion by deforming the sheets;
a first taking-off device which applies a taking-off force to sheets bound by the press binding device for taking off the sheets from the press binding device; and
a second taking-off device which applies a taking-off force to an edge of sheets bound by the press binding device for taking off the sheets from the press binding device,
wherein a position where the first taking-off device applies a taking-off force to sheets is different from a position where the second taking-off device applies a taking-off force to the sheets.

2. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a sheet regulating device which positions sheets at a predetermined position on the stack portion; and
a sheet conveying device which introduces sheets toward the sheet regulating device on the stack portion;
wherein after the sheet regulating device positions sheets to the predetermined position, the press binding device binds the sheets.

3. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a sheet discharging device which discharges sheets, taken-off from the press binding device by the second taking-off device, on the stack portion in a discharging direction,
wherein the second taking-off device offsets sheets bound by the press binding device from a binding position of the press binding device by a predetermined amount in a direction intersecting with the discharging direction before a discharging operation of the sheets is performed by the sheet discharging device.

4. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a pair of aligning members which aligns sheets stacked on the stack portion,
wherein the second taking-off device is structured with the aligning member.

5. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 4 , further comprising:
a controller,
wherein the controller causes the aligning member close to the press binding device to stop at a position being engaged with end edges of sheets when the binding process is performed by the press binding device, to retract to a retracting position being apart by a predetermined distance toward an outside of the stack portion, to move to a binding position of the press binding device thereafter, and to move to a position detecting position being apart to the outside of the stack portion after taking off the sheets from a pressurizing face of the press binding device.

6. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the press binding device includes a pressurizing face formed so as to bind sheets by forming a plurality of linear scars on the sheets as being inclined by a predetermined angle, and
the second taking-off device pushes the sheets in a direction along a length direction of the linear scars.

7. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 6 ,
wherein the plurality of linear scars are formed in a direction being inclined from a sheet corner side by 90 degrees or less, and
the second taking-off device applies a conveyance force in a direction which has a component in a direction being approximately the same as the length direction of the linear scars formed at the sheets.

8. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a controller,
wherein the controller causes the second taking-off device to move from a first position to a second position to move sheets bound by the press binding device, the first position being a position distanced from the sheets and a second position being a position contacting the sheets.

9. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 8 ,
wherein the first position of the second taking-off device is set based on a rising time of a drive motor for moving from the first position to the second position.

10. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a stapling device which binds sheets stacked on the stack portion; and
a controller,
wherein the controller causes the press binding device or the stapling device as designated to bind sheets stacked on the stack portion.

11. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 10 , further comprising:
a sheet discharging device discharging sheets, taken-off from the press binding device by the second taking-off device, on the stack portion in a discharging direction,
wherein the press binding device is arranged at a downstream side in the discharging direction from the stapling device, and
sheets are positioned at a binding position of the press binding device as being moved to the downstream side by the sheet discharging device.

12. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
an aligning member which aligns sheets stacked on the stack portion;
a controller; and
a sheet discharging path which discharges sheets having different sizes in center reference to the stack portion,
wherein the controller causes the aligning member to operate so that sheets discharged onto the stack portion in center reference are aligned with reference to a side edge of the sheets close to a binding position of the press binding device, and,
the controller subsequently performs controlling so that the sheets aligned in reference is offset to the binding position of the press binding device, the binding process is performed on the sheets, and then, the sheets are offset toward the sheet center by a predetermined amount.

13. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 12 ,
wherein the controller sets the predetermined amount for the sheets to be offset toward the center reference to be beyond an alignment position of the sheets aligned by the aligning member on the stack portion.

14. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 10 , further comprising:
an aligning member which aligns sheets stacked on the stack portion;
wherein the controller causes sheets to be aligned by the aligning member at a side being the same as a side edge as a binding position of the stapling device when a binding process is performed on sheets with the press binding device.

15. An image forming system, comprising:
an image forming unit which forms an image on a sheet; and
a sheet bundle binding processing unit in which sheets fed from the image forming unit are collated and stacked and a binding process is performed thereon,
wherein the sheet bundle binding processing unit is the sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 .

16. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the first taking-off device is configured to be a member different from the second taking-off device.

17. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the first taking-off device applies a force to sheets bound by the press binding device in a direction different from the second taking-off device.

18. The sheet bundle binding processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the stack portion includes a sheet placement face on which sheets are stacked, and the second taking-off device applies force to sheets bound by the press binding device in a direction along the sheet placement face.

Assignees

• Kubo Mamoru
• Nishizawa Seiji
• Canon Finetech Inc
• Nisca Corp

Inventors

• Kubo Mamoru
• Nishizawa Seiji

Classifications

• B42C1/12 Primary

  Machines for both collating or gathering and permanently attaching together the sheets or signatures · CPC title

• B31F5/02

  by crimping or slotting {or perforating} · CPC title

• B65H31/34

  Apparatus for squaring-up piled articles · CPC title

• B65H2404/1114

  Paddle wheel · CPC title

• G03G2215/00827

  Stapler · CPC title