Additional material attaching device and binding system with the device

Abstract

An attachment device for supplementary materials and a binding system incorporating the device are characterized in that: at the entrance of the cutting station 4, a first cutter 9 is provided to cut a continuous sheet-like supplementary material Q with a roll-out length corresponding to the thickness of the book piece B along the transverse roll-out direction (arrow X); downstream of the first cutter, a delivery mechanism 10 is provided to deliver the cut supplementary material from the first cutter to the roll-out direction of the continuous sheet-like supplementary material; and on the delivery path of the delivery mechanism, a second cutter 11 is provided to cut the cut supplementary material delivered along the delivery path along the roll-out direction. The blade position of the second cutter can be adjusted in the transverse roll-out direction according to the vertical length of the book piece.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an attachment device for attaching paste-coated spines of book sheets that are supplied from outside the binding machine and attached to the attachment position inside the binding machine, and a binding system incorporating the device. Background Technology

[0002] A type of wireless perfect binding machine with a cold-weave fabric supply device is known in the prior art (for example, see Patent Document 1). This wireless perfect binding machine includes a clamping device that holds the book signatures in an upright position and is movable along a specified path; a series of processing units (milling unit, glue application unit, and cover application unit) arranged along the path and performing wireless perfect binding processing; and a book signature supply unit that supplies the book signatures to the clamping device at a book signature supply position closer to the upstream side than the series of processing units along the path.

[0003] The upper cover unit has a top pressure plate and a pair of clamping plates disposed above the top pressure plate. The cover supply unit has a cover holder for placing covers and a cover delivery mechanism on the top pressure plate and the pair of clamping plates for delivering covers from the cover holder to the upper cover unit.

[0004] When the binding process begins, the cover is delivered from the cover holder to the top pressure plate and a pair of clamping plates of the upper cover unit via a cover delivery mechanism. Then, the book signature held by the clamping device reaches a predetermined position above the top pressure plate and the pair of clamping plates. When stopped, the top pressure plate and the pair of clamping plates rise to the clamping position, and the cover is pressed against the spine of the book signature by the top pressure plate. Then, the pair of clamping plates clamp the sides of the spine of the book signature, thereby pressing the cover against the sides of the spine of the book signature, and pasting the cover onto the book signature to complete the binding.

[0005] Thus, paperback binding can be achieved using this binding machine. On the other hand, when using this binding machine to bind fine books (forming fine book sheets), a cover supply unit will no longer be used, but a cold gauze cloth supply device will be used instead.

[0006] The cold gauze mounting supply device includes a cold gauze forming unit that forms a strip of cold gauze mounting according to the shape of the book block; and a delivery unit that delivers the strip of cold gauze mounting from the cold gauze forming unit to the top cover unit of the binding machine, while passing over these clamping plates.

[0007] The cold yarn mounting unit includes a continuous sheet of cold yarn mounting roll; a drive unit that rotates the roll and feeds the continuous sheet of cold yarn mounting fabric to a platform; and first and second cutters that cut the continuous sheet of cold yarn mounting fabric delivered by the drive unit in the length and width directions.

[0008] The first cutter can move along the width of the continuous sheet of cold gauze backing cloth and cut the cold gauze backing cloth along the length according to the thickness of the book. In addition, the second cutter cuts the cold gauze backing cloth cut by the first cutter and positioned on the mounting table along the width according to the length of the book in the vertical direction.

[0009] The delivery unit has an adsorption clamp for adsorbing the strip of cold-weave fabric on the mounting platform and a track extending from the mounting platform to the upper cover unit. The track extends from above the mounting platform above the top pressure plate and a pair of clamping plates of the upper cover unit and clamps the book copy on the clamping device. The adsorption clamp is movably mounted relative to the track along the track.

[0010] When creating a fine book copy on this binding machine, a strip of cold yarn fabric corresponding to the size of the book copy is first formed on the cold yarn fabric forming unit of the cold yarn fabric supply device. Then, the strip of cold yarn fabric is provided to a pair of clamping plates of the top cover unit of the perfect binding machine via the delivery unit of the cold yarn fabric supply device, while passing over these clamping plates.

[0011] Then, at the book signature supply position of the wireless perfect binding machine, the book signature is provided to the clamping device. The clamping device holding the book signature passes through the milling unit and the glue application unit, and stops at a predetermined position above the top pressure plate and a pair of clamping plates of the top cover unit.

[0012] Then, the top pressure plate and a pair of clamping plates rise, and the strip of cold-weather gauze is pressed onto the spine of the book by the top pressure plate. Then, the pair of clamping plates clamp the two sides of the spine of the book, thereby pressing the strip of cold-weather gauze onto the two sides of the spine of the book and pasting the strip of cold-weather gauze onto the spine of the book.

[0013] In this way, a wireless perfect binding machine equipped with the cold gauze mounting cloth supply device can form a strip of cold gauze mounting cloth corresponding to the size of the book block. Since it can be pasted onto the spine of the book block, it can quickly handle the situation of binding multiple book blocks of different sizes into a fine edition.

[0014] According to the aforementioned structure, when forming a strip of cold gauze from a continuous sheet of cold gauze, the continuous sheet of cold gauze is first cut along the length of the cold gauze according to the thickness of the book, and then cut along the width of the cold gauze according to the vertical length of the book.

[0015] Existing technical documents

[0016] Patent documents

[0017] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2014-198394 Summary of the Invention

[0018] The problem that the invention aims to solve

[0019] However, in general, the vertical length of a book copybook is greater than its thickness. Therefore, if the continuous sheet of cold gauze is cut in the manner described above, too much waste will be generated, resulting in unnecessary waste of materials (cold gauze) and increased production costs.

[0020] Furthermore, according to the aforementioned structure, a first cutter with a rolling blade is positioned on the upstream side, and a second cutter with a straight blade is positioned on the downstream side. During the continuous rolling of the sheet-like cold gauze backing cloth to a predetermined length (the length corresponding to the spine of the book), the first cutter makes the cut. Then, the rolling action of the cold gauze backing cloth is paused, and the second cutter makes the cut.

[0021] Incidentally, when changing the size of the book copy, the length of the continuous sheet of cold gauze mounting cloth needs to be changed to correspond to the change in the vertical length of the book copy, and the position of the rolling blade of the first cutter needs to be changed to correspond to the change in the thickness of the book copy.

[0022] However, in this case, since the first cutter completes the cutting during the rolling out of the continuous sheet of cold-rolled yarn fabric, changing the position of the first cutter's blade during device operation will cut the rolled-out cold-rolled yarn fabric during the position change, resulting in unnecessary waste. Therefore, the rolling out of the continuous sheet of cold-rolled yarn fabric must be stopped before the position change of the first cutter's rotating blade is completed.

[0023] Based on the aforementioned structure, there is a problem: every time the size of the booklet is changed, the cold gauze mounting cloth supply device needs to be stopped and the position of the first cutting blade's rolling edge needs to be set. Only after the position setting is completed can the cold gauze mounting cloth supply device be restarted, resulting in low production efficiency.

[0024] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide an auxiliary material application device that can control the unnecessary waste of materials and can supply and paste auxiliary materials such as cold yarn backing fabric, as well as a binding system with the device.

[0025] Furthermore, another object of the present invention is to provide an attachment device that can change the size of the bookplate without stopping the attachment device, and can supply and attach attachments such as cold gauze and binding system with the device.

[0026] Methods for solving problems

[0027] To address the aforementioned issues, according to one aspect of the present invention, an appendix application device is provided, which is connected to a binding machine and supplies and applies appendixes from outside the binding machine to the glued spine of a book signature at an appendix application position within the binding machine. The device includes a roll-receiving unit rotatable about an axis to receive a roll of continuous sheet-like appendixes; an unwinding unit that rolls the continuous sheet-like appendixes from the roll-receiving unit to a cutting station; and a cutting unit disposed at the cutting station that cuts the continuous sheet-like appendixes rolled out by the unwinding unit according to the size of the book signature, forming a strip-shaped appendix. The cutting unit has a first cutter that cuts the continuous sheet-like appendixes rolled out by the unwinding unit along a transverse roll-out direction, with a length corresponding only to the thickness of the book signature; and a second cutter that cuts the appendixes cut by the first cutter along the roll-out direction according to the vertical length of the book signature.

[0028] According to one aspect of the present invention, the attachment device includes a control unit that controls the unwinding unit to intermittently roll out the continuous sheet-like attachment with a length corresponding only to the thickness of the bookplate.

[0029] In an auxiliary material application device according to one aspect of the present invention, the control unit synchronously controls the first cutter in conjunction with the intermittently operating unwinding unit.

[0030] In an auxiliary material application device according to one aspect of the present invention, the control unit controls the position of the second cutter so that it corresponds to the length of the booklet in the vertical direction.

[0031] According to one aspect of the present invention, the appendix applicator includes an appendix delivery and pasting unit that, when connected to the binding machine, delivers the strip-shaped appendix to the appendix pasting position within the binding machine and pastes it onto the spine of the bookplate resting at the appendix pasting position.

[0032] According to one aspect of the present invention, in an appendage applicator, a first cutter has a straight cutting edge extending transversely through a continuous sheet-like appendage path and movable vertically above the path; a cutting edge support plate disposed opposite to the straight cutting edge below the path; and a straight cutting edge drive mechanism for moving the straight cutting edge between a standby position where the straight cutting edge is separated from the cutting edge support plate by a certain distance and a cutting position where the straight cutting edge is engaged with the cutting edge support plate. The second cutter has at least one sliding guide extending transversely through the delivery path of the delivery mechanism; a blade holder slidably mounted on the at least one sliding guide; a blade holder drive mechanism for slidingly moving the blade holder; a pair of rolling cutting edges rotatably mounted on the blade holder about axes extending transversely through the delivery path, respectively, in a state of clamping the delivery path and being vertically opposed; and a rotation drive mechanism coupled to the axis of at least one of the pair of rolling cutting edges.

[0033] In an appendage applicator according to one aspect of the invention, the cutting unit further includes a stop that extends across the delivery path downstream of the second cutter extending the delivery path and blocks the strip-shaped appendage by abutting against the front end of the strip-shaped appendage delivered on the delivery path.

[0034] According to one aspect of the present invention, the book piece resting at the attachment position is in an upright position. The attachment delivery and attachment unit has a gripper capable of supporting the lower part of the strip-shaped attachment and simultaneously clamping the strip-shaped attachment; a first gripper drive mechanism for moving the gripper between a retracted position inside the housing and an advanced position outside the housing; a second gripper drive mechanism for moving the gripper between the advanced position and an elevated position above the advanced position; and a delivery unit for delivering the strip-shaped attachment from the cutting station to the gripper located in the retracted position. When connected to the binding machine, the advanced position of the gripper is located directly below the spine of the book piece resting at the attachment position inside the binding machine, and in the elevated position, the gripper presses the strip-shaped attachment against the spine of the book piece.

[0035] According to one aspect of the present invention, a binding system includes an additional material applicator as described in any of the preceding claims and a binding machine connected to the additional material applicator.

[0036] The effects of the invention

[0037] An attachment device for adding supplementary materials and a binding system incorporating the device are characterized in that: at the entrance of the cutting station, a first cutter is provided to cut a continuous sheet-like supplementary material with a roll-out length corresponding to the thickness of the book signature along the roll-out direction; downstream of the first cutter, a delivery mechanism is provided to deliver the cut supplementary material from the first cutter to the roll-out direction of the continuous sheet-like supplementary material; and along the delivery path of the delivery mechanism, a second cutter is provided to cut the cut supplementary material delivered along the delivery path along the roll-out direction. The blade position of the second cutter can be adjusted in the direction along the roll-out direction according to the vertical length of the book signature.

[0038] In this way, the continuous sheet-like supplementary material is cut according to the thickness of the bookplate in the rolling direction (the width direction of the continuous sheet-like supplementary material). Then, the cut supplementary material is cut in the rolling direction according to the vertical length of the bookplate, which can minimize waste and thus suppress unnecessary waste of material (supplementary material).

[0039] Furthermore, during the operation of the device, the first cutter and the unwinding unit intermittently roll out continuous sheet-like additional materials, and the additional materials cut by the first cutter are cut by the second cutter during the delivery of the additional materials from the first cutter by the delivery mechanism.

[0040] Furthermore, during device operation, if the size of the booklet is changed, the size information of the newly changed booklet will be synchronously sent from the device's control unit to the delivery mechanism, the first and second cutters, and the amount of continuous sheet-like auxiliary material rolled out by the unwinding unit will be changed according to the information, and then the position of the blade of the second cutter will be changed.

[0041] In this case, the action of changing the position of the blade of the second cutter is carried out during the time from the start of the unwinding unit to the arrival of the additional material cut by the first cutter at the second cutter, which can realize the change of the booklet size without stopping the machine. Attached Figure Description

[0042] Figure 1 A schematic side view of the internal structure of a binding system according to an embodiment of the present invention, which is an attachment device for attaching supplementary materials, is shown.

[0043] Figure 2A yes Figure 1 A schematic side view of the structure of the cutting unit of the device.

[0044] Figure 2B It is viewed from the downstream direction of delivery. Figure 2A The second cutter is attached to the view.

[0045] Figure 3 yes Figure 1A plan view of the gripper device of the device and the first and second gripper device drive mechanisms.

[0046] Figure 4A It shows Figure 3 The gripper device, and the first and second gripper device drive mechanisms, are such that the gripper device is in the retracted position along... Figure 3 A cross-sectional view of the YY line.

[0047] Figure 4B It is relative to Figure 4A A cross-sectional view of the gripper in the forward position.

[0048] Figure 5A It shows Figure 3 The gripper device, and the first and second gripper device drive mechanisms, are such that the gripper device 12 is in the rising position along... Figure 3 A cross-sectional view of the YY line.

[0049] Figure 5B It is relative to Figure 5A A cross-sectional view of the gripper device in the rising position with the clamping part released.

[0050] Figure 6 yes Figure 1 The front view of the delivery unit of the device. Detailed Implementation

[0051] The structure of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings and according to preferred embodiments. Figure 1 This is a schematic side view of the internal structure of an attachment device for supplying and attaching attachments to the spine of a booklet, according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0052] Figure 1 A binding system with a binding machine M and an auxiliary material attaching device 1 is shown, wherein the auxiliary material attaching device 1 is connected to the binding machine M. Furthermore, for clarity, Figure 1 Only the adsorption head of the delivery unit is shown in the figure, representing the delivery unit (its structure will be described in detail later).

[0053] The auxiliary material application device 1 includes a roll receiving unit 3 within its housing 52, which can rotatably accommodate a roll 2 of continuous sheet-shaped auxiliary material Q; and an unwinding unit 5, which rolls the continuous sheet-shaped auxiliary material Q from the roll receiving unit 3 to the cutting station 4. The control unit 50 controls the operation of the unwinding unit 5.

[0054] Here, the so-called "additional materials" refer to the sheet-like materials that are pasted onto the spine of the book during the finishing process, such as gauze and paper.

[0055] The unwinding unit 5 consists of a pair of unwinding rollers 5a and 5b, each rotatable about a horizontal axis. Furthermore, guide rollers 6a and 6b and 6c, each rotatable about a horizontal axis, are arranged between the pair of unwinding rollers 5a and 5b and the roll receiving unit 3. A driving force can also be applied to the pair of guide rollers 6b and 6c to apply a reverse torque in the opposite direction to the feed direction of the pair of unwinding rollers 5a and 5b. This allows tension to be applied to the auxiliary material Q. When the auxiliary material Q is unwound, the pair of guide rollers 6b and 6c, while applying the reverse torque, convey it along the delivery direction using friction with the auxiliary material Q. However, when the unwinding of the auxiliary material Q is stopped, the reverse torque of the pair of guide rollers 6b and 6c is also stopped.

[0056] Furthermore, the continuous sheet-like auxiliary material Q, unwound from roll 2, is guided between a portion of the circumferential surface of guide roller 6a and a pair of guide rollers 6b and 6c, and then between a pair of unwinding rollers 5a and 5b. Then, according to the instructions of control unit 50, each time the pair of unwinding rollers 5a and 5b are rotated, the continuous sheet-like auxiliary material Q of a specified length is wound out from roll 2 to cutting station 4. Cutting station 4 is located inside housing 52.

[0057] In addition, a curl corrector 7 is provided between a pair of guide rollers 6b, 6c and a pair of unwinding rollers 5a, 5b to correct the curling of the continuous sheet-like auxiliary material Q.

[0058] The additional material application device 1 also includes a cutting unit 8, which is disposed on the cutting station 4, and cuts the continuous sheet-shaped additional material Q rolled out by the unwinding unit 5 according to the size of the booklet B, and forms a strip-shaped additional material S.

[0059] Figure 2A This is a schematic side view of the structure of the cutting unit. Figure 2B It is viewed from the downstream direction of delivery. Figure 2A A view near the second cutter.

[0060] like Figure 2A and Figure 2B As shown, the cutting unit 8 has a first cutter 9 disposed at the entrance of the cutting station 4, which cuts the continuous sheet-shaped supplementary material Q, which is the length of the unwinding unit 5 and corresponds only to the thickness of the booklet B, along the direction transverse to the roll-out direction (indicated by arrow X); a delivery mechanism 10 that delivers the cut supplementary material R from the first cutter 9 in the roll-out direction (arrow X); and a second cutter 11 disposed on the delivery path of the delivery mechanism 10, which cuts the cut supplementary material R delivered on the delivery path along the roll-out direction (arrow X). The control unit 5 controls the operation of the first cutter 9, the delivery mechanism 10, and the second cutter 11.

[0061] The first cutting blade 9 has a straight cutting edge 9a that extends horizontally across the winding path above the winding path of the continuous sheet-like auxiliary material Q and is movable in the vertical direction; a cutting edge support plate 9b disposed opposite to the straight cutting edge 9a below the winding path; and a straight cutting edge drive mechanism 9c that moves the straight cutting edge 9a between a standby position separated from the cutting edge support plate 9b by a certain distance and a cutting position engaged with the cutting edge support plate 9b.

[0062] The delivery mechanism 10 includes an upstream conveyor belt 12 located upstream in the roll-out direction (arrow X) and a downstream conveyor belt 13 located downstream of the upstream conveyor belt 12. The upstream conveyor belt 12 consists of a pair of horizontal guide rollers 12a and 12b arranged at a certain distance in the roll-out direction (arrow X) and extending transversely in the roll-out direction (arrow X), a drive roller 12c arranged below the pair of guide rollers 12a and 12b and extending parallel to the pair of guide rollers 12a and 12b, an endless transmission belt 12d suspended on the pair of guide rollers 12a and 12b and the drive roller 12c, and a rotation drive mechanism (not shown) for rotating the drive roller 12c.

[0063] The downstream conveyor belt 13 has a fixed conveyor belt 14 and a movable conveyor belt 15 that are arranged at a certain distance from each other in the direction of retraction (arrow X) and extend along the direction of retraction (arrow X).

[0064] The fixed conveyor belt 14 has a U-shaped conveyor belt frame 14a extending along the roll-out direction (arrow X); a drive shaft 16 with a regular hexagonal cross-section, which extends through and rotatable about an axis, with the upstream portion of a pair of sidewalls of the conveyor belt frame 14a extending along the roll-out direction (arrow X); a drive roller 14b with a regular hexagonal through hole corresponding to the cross-section of the drive shaft 16 formed along the central axis and embedded in the drive shaft 16 in a state disposed between a pair of sidewalls of the conveyor belt frame 14a; a shaft 14c fixed between a pair of sidewalls of the conveyor belt frame 14a and parallel to the drive shaft 16 on the downstream side of the drive shaft 16; a guide roller 14d mounted on the shaft 14c; and an endless transmission belt 14e suspended between the drive roller 14b and the guide roller 14d.

[0065] The fixed conveyor belt 14 is fixed to the frame of the auxiliary material application device 1 on the conveyor belt frame 14a. Therefore, the fixed conveyor belt 14 will not slide along the drive shaft 16 like the movable conveyor belt 15.

[0066] The movable conveyor belt 15 has a U-shaped conveyor belt frame 15a extending in the roll-out direction (arrow X), and the drive shaft 16 passes through the upstream portion of a pair of sidewalls of the conveyor belt frame 15a.

[0067] That is, the drive shaft 16 becomes a shared drive shaft for both the fixed conveyor belt 14 and the movable conveyor belt 15.

[0068] The movable conveyor belt 15 also has a regular hexagonal through hole formed along the central axis corresponding to the cross section of the drive shaft 16, and a drive roller 15b embedded in the drive shaft 16 in a state disposed between a pair of side walls of the conveyor belt frame 15a; a shaft 15c fixed between a pair of side walls of the conveyor belt frame 15a and parallel to the drive shaft 16 on the downstream side of the drive shaft 16; a guide roller 15d mounted on the shaft 15c; and an endless drive belt 15e suspended between the drive roller 15b and the guide roller 15d.

[0069] The movable conveyor belt 15 is mounted on the conveyor frame 15a onto the blade holder of the second cutter (described later) and is able to slide along the drive shaft 16 together with the blade holder.

[0070] The downstream conveyor belt 13 also has a drive mechanism 17 that rotates the drive shaft 16.

[0071] The drive mechanism 17 has a pulley 17a fixed to one end of the fixed conveyor belt on the drive shaft 16; a motor 17b disposed below the pulley 17a and carrying a drive shaft parallel to the drive shaft 16; a pulley 17c fixed to the drive shaft of the motor 17b; and an endless drive belt 17d suspended between the pulley 17a and the pulley 17c.

[0072] The conveying surface of the upstream conveyor belt 12 and the plane of the conveying surfaces of the fixed and movable conveyor belts 14 and 15 of the downstream conveyor belt 13 together form the delivery path of the delivery mechanism 10.

[0073] like Figure 1 As shown, the cutting unit 8 also has a stop 29 that extends across and across the delivery path downstream of the delivery path of the delivery mechanism 10 (downstream conveyor belt 13) and blocks the strip-shaped supplementary material S by abutting the front end of the strip-shaped supplementary material S delivered on the delivery path.

[0074] As shown in Figure 2(B), the second cutter 11 has two sliding guides 18a and 18b that clamp the delivery path of the delivery mechanism 10 (downstream conveyor belt 13) and are arranged vertically, traversing the delivery path and extending parallel to each other; a cutter holder 19 that spans the two sliding guides 18a and 18b and extends vertically, and is slidably mounted on the sliding guides 18a and 18b; and a cutter holder drive mechanism 20 that slides the cutter holder 19.

[0075] A rectangular cross-section rolling cutting edge receiving space extending vertically is formed on the inner side of the tool holder 19. Between a pair of sidewalls of the tool holder 19 that define the rolling cutting edge receiving space, a sleeve 21 extending in the direction traversing the delivery path is rotatably mounted via a bearing (not shown) about an axis. The sleeve 21 has a regular hexagonal through hole corresponding to the cross-section of the drive shaft 16 of the downstream conveyor belt 13 extending along the central axis. The drive shaft 16 of the downstream conveyor belt 13 passes through the through hole of the sleeve 21 and extends therethrough.

[0076] The second cutter 11 also has a pair of rotating blades 22a and 22b disposed between a pair of side walls of the cutter holder 19, clamping the delivery path and arranged vertically opposite each other. Each rotating blade 22a and 22b is concentrically fixed on the pair of feed rollers 23a and 23b and 24a and 24b while being clamped between them.

[0077] The assembly of the rotating blade 22a and the pair of feed rollers 23a, 23b has mounting holes with a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the sleeve 21 extending along the central axis, the sleeve 21 being inserted between a pair of sidewalls and rotatably mounted on the sleeve 21 with this integral assembly.

[0078] Furthermore, above the sleeve 21 on the tool holder 19, a shaft 25 extending parallel to the sleeve 21 is fixed between a pair of sidewalls. Between the pair of sidewalls, with a pair of feed rollers 24a, 24b opposite to another pair of feed rollers 23a, 23b, and the rolling cutting edge 22b engaged with the other rolling cutting edges 22a, the assembly of the rolling cutting edge 22b and the pair of feed rollers 24a, 24b is mounted concentrically with respect to the shaft 23 and rotatably about the shaft 25 via bearings (not shown).

[0079] As shown in Figure 2(B), a movable conveyor belt 15 (conveyor belt frame 15a) of the downstream conveyor belt 13 is fixed and supported on one of the two side walls of the tool holder 19.

[0080] The tool post drive mechanism 20 has a ball screw 26 that extends parallel to the upper sliding guide rail 18a and is rotatably configured about an axis in a fixed position; a ball screw nut 27 provided on the tool post 19 and fitted with the ball screw 26; and a ball screw drive mechanism 28 that rotates the ball screw 26.

[0081] The ball screw drive mechanism 28 has a pulley 28a fixed to one end of the fixed conveyor belt 14 of the ball screw 26; a motor 28b disposed below the pulley 28a and having a drive shaft parallel to the ball screw 26; a pulley 28c fixed to the drive shaft of the motor 28b; and an endless drive belt 28d suspended between the pulleys 28a and 28c.

[0082] Thus, by rotating the drive shaft 16 via the drive mechanism 17 (motor 17b), the downstream conveyor belt 13 (fixed and movable conveyor belts 14, 15) rotates, and simultaneously, the pair of rolling blades 22a, 22b of the second cutter 11 also rotates. Furthermore, by rotating the ball screw 26 of the cutter holder drive mechanism 20 in both directions via the ball screw drive mechanism 28 (motor 28b), the cutter holder 19 (the pair of rolling blades 22a, 22b) and the movable conveyor belt of the downstream conveyor belt 13 can move in a direction traversing the roll-out direction (arrow X).

[0083] The additional material application device 1 also has a gripper device 30 that can support the lower part of the strip-shaped additional material S and simultaneously clamp the strip-shaped additional material S; the gripper device 30 is in a retracted position inside the housing 52 (see reference). Figure 1 The control unit 50 controls the operation of the first gripper drive mechanism 31 and the second gripper drive mechanism 32. The first gripper drive mechanism 31 moves between the forward position (see Figure 4(B)) and the exterior of the housing 52. The second gripper drive mechanism 32 moves the gripper 30 between the forward position and the rising position above the forward position (see Figure 5(A)).

[0084] Furthermore, the gripper device 30, the first and second gripper device drive mechanisms 31 and 32, and the cutting unit 8 are arranged in two layers, with the cutting unit 8 positioned above. When the gripper device 30 is in the retracted position, it is located inside the housing 52; when in the forward position, it extends outside the housing 52. The main part of the first gripper device drive mechanism 31 is located inside the housing 52; when in the forward position, its front part protrudes outside the housing 52. The second gripper device drive mechanism 32 is located near the outside of the housing 52. Therefore, as... Figure 1 As shown, when the attachment device 1 is connected relative to the binding machine M, the second gripper drive mechanism 32 is located inside the binding machine M. However, the second gripper drive mechanism 32 may also be located inside the housing 52.

[0085] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 The top view shows the gripper device 30 of the additional material application device, and the first and second gripper device drive mechanisms 31 and 32. Furthermore, Figures 4 and 5 illustrate... Figure 3 The action of the gripper device 30 and the first and second gripper device drive mechanisms 31 and 32, along Figure 3 A cross-sectional view of the YY line.

[0086] The gripper device 30 includes a gripping part 30g for clamping a strip-shaped auxiliary material S. The distance between the gripping part 30g and the mounting surface of the gripper device 30 on which the strip-shaped auxiliary material S is mounted can be increased or decreased. By clamping the auxiliary material S between the mounting surfaces, the auxiliary material S can be temporarily fixed. The control unit 50 controls the operation of the gripping part 30g.

[0087] Reference Figures 3 to 5B The first gripper drive mechanism 31 has at least one (two in this embodiment) sliding guide rail 33 extending downward from the inside of the housing 52; a slider 34 mounted on the sliding guide rail 33; a flat arm 35 extending parallel to the sliding guide rail 33, mounted on the slider 34 and swaying about the rear end edge 35b as a pivot, with the gripper device 30 mounted at the front end 35a; and a slider drive mechanism 36 that moves the slider 34 between a retracted position where the gripper device 30 is in a retracted position and a protruding position where the gripper device 30 is in a forward position.

[0088] The mounting arm 35 of the slider 34 has a pair of through holes spaced apart on both sides along the front-rear direction. Specifically, this is achieved by a pair of flanged pins 37a and 37b fixed to the slider, a compression spring 38a positioned between the flange of the front flanged pin 37a and the arm 35, and a compression spring 38b positioned between the flange of the rear flanged pin 37b and the arm 35. The front compression spring 38a has a lower elastic coefficient than the rear compression spring 38b.

[0089] The slider drive mechanism 36 has a ball screw 39 extending parallel to the sliding guide rail 33 and configured to rotate about an axis in a fixed position; a ball screw nut 40 provided on the slider 34 and fitted with the ball screw 39; and a ball screw drive mechanism 41 that rotates the ball screw 39 about an axis.

[0090] The ball screw drive mechanism 41 consists of a pulley 41a fixed to the rear end of the ball screw 37, a motor 41b located below the pulley 41a with its drive shaft parallel to the ball screw 39, a pulley 41c fixed to the drive shaft of the motor 41b, and an endless transmission belt 41d suspended between the pulleys 41a and 41c.

[0091] Then, the ball screw 39 is rotated in both directions by the ball screw drive mechanism 41 (motor 41b), and the slider 34 will slide along the sliding guide rail 33.

[0092] The second gripper drive mechanism 32 is composed of an arm drive mechanism 42, which enables the arm 35 to swing between a horizontal position and an inclined position that tilts downward from the horizontal position (extending parallel to the sliding guide rail 33) around the rear end edge 35b (support shaft) of the arm 35.

[0093] The arm drive mechanism 42 consists of a cylinder 43 that is positioned further forward than the protruding position of the slider 34 and below the arm 35, and extends in the vertical direction. A horizontal support shaft 43b is installed at the front end of the piston rod 43a of the cylinder 43 and extends in the direction of traversing the delivery path. Rollers 43c that can rotate freely around the support shaft 43b are installed at both ends of the support shaft 43b.

[0094] Then, the piston rod 43a of cylinder 43 reciprocates between a first position where the roller 43c is retracted below the inclined position of arm 35 and a second position where the roller 43c protrudes upward from the inclined position of arm 35.

[0095] Thus, the piston rod 43a of cylinder 43 is always in the first position. When the slider 34 occupies the protruding position, the piston rod 43a moves from the first position to the second position, thereby causing the arm 35 to swing from the tilted position to the horizontal position. Then, the piston rod 43a returns from the second position to the first position, thereby causing the arm 35 to swing from the horizontal position to the tilted position.

[0096] The additional material application device 1 also has a delivery unit 44 that delivers the strip-shaped additional material S from the cutting station 4 (the stop position downstream of the delivery path of the delivery mechanism 10) to the gripper device 30 in the retracted position. The control unit 50 controls the operation of the delivery unit 44.

[0097] Figure 6 This is the main view of the delivery unit (alongside) Figure 1 (See the diagram where the arrow points in the X direction).

[0098] like Figure 6 As shown, the delivery unit 44 has an adsorption head 45 capable of adsorbing strip-shaped auxiliary material S and an adsorption head drive mechanism 46 that moves the adsorption head 45 between the cutting station 4 (the stop position of the strip-shaped auxiliary material S) and the retracted position of the gripper device 30.

[0099] The adsorption head 45 has multiple adsorption cups 45a and a negative pressure generating part 45b that generates adsorption force in each adsorption cup 45a.

[0100] The adsorption head drive mechanism 46 has a first sliding guide rail 46a extending horizontally along the sliding guide rail 33 of the first gripper device drive mechanism 31; a first slider 46b mounted on the first sliding guide rail 46a; a first ball screw 46c extending parallel to the first sliding guide rail 46a and configured to rotate about an axis at a fixed position; a first ball screw nut 46d mounted on the first slider 46b and engaging with the first ball screw 46c; and a first rotation drive mechanism 46e that rotates the first ball screw 46c.

[0101] The adsorption head drive mechanism 46 also includes a second sliding guide rail 46f mounted on the first slider 46b and extending in the vertical direction; a second slider 46g mounted on the second sliding guide rail 46f; a second ball screw 46h mounted on the first slider 46b and extending parallel to the second sliding guide rail 46f, which can rotate about an axis in a fixed position; a second ball screw nut 46i mounted on the second slider 46g and engaging with the second ball screw 46h; and a second rotation drive mechanism 46j mounted on the first slider 46b to rotate the second ball screw 46h.

[0102] The adsorption head drive mechanism 46 also includes a third sliding guide rail 46k mounted on the second slider 46g, extending horizontally and perpendicular to the first sliding guide rail 46a; a third slider 46m mounted on the third sliding guide rail 46k; a motor 46n mounted on the second slider 46g, with its drive shaft (not shown) extending parallel to the first sliding guide rail 46a; a pulley 46p mounted on the second slider 46g, rotatable about an axis parallel to the drive shaft of the motor 46n; and an endless transmission belt 46q suspended between the pulley (not shown) and the pulley 46p mounted on the drive shaft of the motor 46n, fixing the third slider 46m.

[0103] Then, the adsorption head 45 is installed on the third slider 46m with multiple adsorption cups 45a facing downwards, arranged in a straight line along the third sliding guide rail 46k.

[0104] Thus, the first ball screw 46c is rotated in both directions by the first rotation drive mechanism 46e, and the suction head 45 moves toward or away from the cutting station 4 (the stop position of the strip-shaped auxiliary material S) or the gripper device 30 in the retracted position. In addition, the second ball screw 46h is rotated in both directions by the second rotation drive mechanism 46j, and the suction head 45 rises and falls. Furthermore, the endless transmission belt 46q is rotated in both directions by the motor 46n, and the suction head 45 moves along the length direction of the strip-shaped auxiliary material S.

[0105] The control unit 50 may consist of, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), RAM (Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), and a computer-readable storage medium. Furthermore, a series of processes for implementing various functions, for example, are stored in the storage medium as programs. The CPU reads the program into RAM and performs information processing and arithmetic to achieve the various functions. Alternatively, the program may be pre-installed in ROM or other storage media, provided in a state stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or distributed via wired or wireless communication units. Computer-readable storage media include magnetic disks, magneto-optical disks, CD-ROMs, DVD-ROMs, semiconductor memories, etc.

[0106] Next, the operation of the additional material application device 1 will be described.

[0107] Refer to again Figure 1 The attachment device 1 is positioned with the gripper 30 in the forward position directly below the spine of the attachment point P in the binding machine M, and is connected to the binding machine M in a configuration where the gripper 30 presses the strip-shaped attachment S against the spine of the attachment point B in the upward position.

[0108] In addition, the position of the stop 29 of the cutting unit 8 is pre-adjusted so that the strip-shaped auxiliary material S stopped by the stop 29 is configured to be approximately parallel to the spine of the book piece B which is stopped at the auxiliary material pasting position P of the binding machine M.

[0109] In addition, in this embodiment, the binding machine M is composed of a wireless perfect binding mechanism, and the attachment position P of the additional material is composed of the upper cover position of the wireless perfect binding machine (the position directly above the top pressure plate f1 of the upper cover unit F and a pair of clamping plates f2 and f3), and the clamping device K that clamps the book block B in an upright state is stopped at this position.

[0110] Before the auxiliary material application device 1 is operated, the size (length and thickness in the vertical direction) of the booklet B is input into the control unit 50 of the auxiliary material application device 1 through the control panel (not shown), and the auxiliary material application device 1 is initially set according to the input value, and then the operation of the auxiliary material application device 1 begins.

[0111] Then, the unwinding unit 5 winds out a continuous sheet-like auxiliary material Q, the length of which corresponds only to the thickness of the booklet B, to the cutting station 4 (on the conveyor surface of the upstream conveyor belt 12), and stops there. Next, the straight blade 9a of the first cutter 9 descends from the standby position to the cutting position, and then rises from the cutting position back to the standby position. Thus, the continuous sheet-like auxiliary material Q is cut in its width direction.

[0112] After the cut auxiliary material R is delivered from the first cutter 9 to the second cutter 11 and the downstream conveyor belt 13 via the upstream conveyor belt 12, it is simultaneously guided through the downstream conveyor belt 13 into the space between the feed rollers 23a, 24a; 23b, 24b, which are vertically opposite to the second cutter 11, and a pair of vertically opposite rotating blades 22a, 22b. Thus, the auxiliary material R cut by the first cutter 9 is cut into a long strip-shaped auxiliary material S with a length corresponding to the vertical direction of the booklet B.

[0113] The strip-shaped additional material S is delivered to the downstream side of the second cutter 11 and stops at the stop 29 in the delivery path.

[0114] Then, the strip-shaped additional material S is delivered from the cutting station 4 (the downstream end of the delivery path of the delivery mechanism 10) via the suction head 45 (delivery unit) to the gripper device 30 located in the retracted position, and delivered to the gripper device 30 (see reference). Figure 4A ).

[0115] Next, with arm 35 maintained in the tilted position, slider 34 slides toward binding machine M, and gripper device 30 occupies the forward position while holding the strip-shaped attachment material S. At this time, the strip-shaped attachment material S (gripper device 30) is located directly below the glued ridge of the book piece B, which is stopped at the attachment material pasting position P.

[0116] Next, arm 35 swings from the tilted position to the horizontal position, thereby moving gripper device 30 from the forward position to the upward position (see reference). Figure 5A In this way, the strip-shaped attachment S is attached to the spine of the booklet B. Then, after the gripper device 30 releases the strip-shaped attachment S (see...). Figure 5B Arm 35 swings from a horizontal position to an inclined position to complete the pasting of additional materials.

[0117] Then, slider 34 moves toward attachment device 1, gripper 30 occupies the retracted position, and the next strip of attachment material S is delivered to gripper 30 by suction head 45 (see reference). Figure 4A ).

[0118] According to this embodiment, an attachment device for additional materials is provided, characterized in that: at the entrance of the cutting station 4, a first cutter 9 is arranged to cut a continuous sheet-like additional material Q with a roll-out length corresponding to the thickness of the book piece along the roll-out direction (arrow X); downstream of the first cutter 9, a delivery mechanism 10 is arranged to deliver the cut additional material R from the first cutter 9 to the roll-out direction (arrow X) of the continuous sheet-like additional material; on the delivery path of the delivery mechanism 10, a second cutter 11 is arranged to cut the cut additional material R delivered on the delivery path along the roll-out direction (arrow X). The positions of the rotating blades 22a and 22b of the second cutter 11 can be adjusted in the direction along the roll-out direction (arrow X) according to the vertical length of the book piece B.

[0119] In this way, the continuous sheet-like additional material Q is cut according to the thickness of the book piece B in the direction (arrow X) across the roll-out direction (width direction) of the continuous sheet-like additional material Q. Then, the cut additional material R is cut according to the vertical length of the book piece B in the roll-out direction (arrow X). This can minimize waste and thus suppress unnecessary waste of materials (additional materials).

[0120] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, during the operation of the additional material application device 1, the first cutter 9 and the unwinding unit 5 intermittently roll out continuous sheet-shaped additional material Q, and the additional material R cut by the first cutter 9 is cut by the second cutter 11 during the period when the additional material R is delivered from the first cutter 9 by the delivery mechanism 10.

[0121] Furthermore, during the operation of the additional material application device 1, if the size of the booklet B is changed, the size information of the newly changed booklet B will be synchronously sent from the control unit 50 of the additional material application device 1 to the delivery mechanism 10, the first and second cutters 9 and 11, and the amount of continuous sheet-shaped additional material Q rolled out by the unwinding unit 5 will be changed according to the information. Then, the position of the rolling blades 22a and 22b of the second cutter 11 will be changed in the direction (arrow X) across the rolling direction of the continuous sheet-shaped additional material Q.

[0122] In this case, the action of changing the position of the rolling blades 22a and 22b of the second cutter 11 is carried out during the time from the start of the unwinding unit 5 to the arrival of the auxiliary material R cut by the first cutter 9 at the second cutter 11, thereby changing the size of the booklet B while the auxiliary material application device 1 is continuously operating.

[0123] The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but they do not constitute a limitation on the structure of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, various modifications and alterations can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Claims

1. An additional material attaching device which is attached to a bookbinding machine and which supplies and attaches an additional material from the outside of the bookbinding machine to a paste applied spine of a book block stopped at an additional material attaching position in the bookbinding machine; the device comprising: a roll housing unit which houses a roll of a continuous sheet of additional material; a roll out unit which rolls out the continuous sheet of additional material from the roll housing unit to a cutting station; a cutting unit which is arranged at the cutting station and which cuts the continuous sheet of additional material rolled out by the roll out unit according to the size of the book block and forms a band of additional material; an additional material delivery and attaching unit which, in a state of being attached to the bookbinding machine, delivers the band of additional material to the additional material attaching position in the bookbinding machine and attaches it to the spine of the book block stopped at the additional material attaching position; the cutting unit having: a first cutter which cuts the continuous sheet of additional material rolled out by the roll out unit in a direction transverse to the roll out direction to a length corresponding only to the thickness of the book block; a delivery mechanism which delivers the cut additional material from the first cutter in the roll out direction; and a second cutter which is arranged on a delivery path of the delivery mechanism and which cuts the additional material delivered on the delivery path by the first cutter in the roll out direction according to the length in the up and down direction of the book block. with a control unit, the control unit controls the roll out unit so that the continuous sheet of additional material can be intermittently rolled out to a length corresponding only to the thickness of the book block. the control unit controls the first cutter in synchronization with the roll out unit which operates intermittently. the control unit controls the position of the second cutter so that it corresponds to the length in the up and down direction of the book block. the first cutter has: a straight blade which extends in a direction transverse to the roll out path of the continuous sheet of additional material above the roll out path and which is movable in the up and down direction; a blade support plate which is arranged opposite to the straight blade below the roll out path; and a straight blade drive mechanism which moves the straight blade between a standby position in which the straight blade is separated from the blade support plate by a certain distance and a cutting position in which the straight blade engages with the blade support plate. the second cutter has: at least one slide rail which extends in a direction transverse to the delivery path of the delivery mechanism; a blade holder which is slidably mounted on the at least one slide rail; a blade holder drive mechanism which moves the blade holder in a sliding manner; a pair of rolling blades which are rotatably mounted on the blade holder in a state of being sandwiched in the delivery path and being opposite to each other in the up and down direction about axes which extend in a direction transverse to the delivery path; and a rotation drive mechanism which is combined with the axes of at least one of the pair of rolling blades. the cutting unit further has a stopper which extends in a direction transverse to the delivery path of the second cutter on the downstream side of the second cutter and which stops the band of additional material by abutting against the leading end of the band of additional material delivered on the delivery path. the book block stopped at the additional material attaching position is in a standing state, ​ ​ 2. The applicator of claim 1, wherein ​ ​ 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the additional material is a label. ​ 4. The applicator of claim 2 or 3, wherein the applicator is configured to apply the additional material to the substrate in a pattern. ​ 5. The additional material application device as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ 6. The applicator of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein ​ 7. The applicator of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein ​ The additional material delivery and sticking unit has: a gripper device capable of supporting the band-shaped additional material from below and capable of simultaneously clamping the band-shaped additional material; a first gripper device driving mechanism that moves the gripper device between a retracted position inside a housing and an advanced position outside the housing; a second gripper device driving mechanism that moves the gripper device between the advanced position and a raised position above the advanced position; and a delivery unit that delivers the band-shaped additional material from the cutting station to the gripper device in the retracted position; wherein, in a state connected to the binding machine, the advanced position of the gripper device is located directly below the spine of the signature stopping at the additional material sticking position inside the binding machine, and the gripper device, in the raised position, press contacts the band-shaped additional material to the spine of the signature.

8. A binding system including the additional material sticking device of any one of claims 1 to 7 and a binding machine connected to the additional material sticking device. ​

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