Medium treatment apparatus and image formation system

Abstract

To provide a medium treatment apparatus, in medium treatment with liquid application, which uniformizes a liquid amount in each medium after the liquid application in accordance with a liquid amount in the medium before the liquid application.SOLUTION: A medium treatment apparatus comprises: a liquid amount detection unit for detecting the amount of a liquid in each medium before liquid application; a medium dry unit for drying the medium: and a control unit for controlling the operation of the medium dry unit for adjusting a liquid content as an amount of the liquid in the medium after the liquid application to the medium in accordance with the amount of the liquid detected by the liquid amount detection unit. The control unit controls the operation of the medium dry unit so that the liquid content of each medium configuring a stack of the media bound by binding treatment in a binding apparatus is made uniform.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a media processing device and an image forming system. [Background technology]

[0002] Media processing devices are known that perform predetermined processes on sheet-like media. One known predetermined process is pressure binding, which binds a stack of media by applying pressure and deforming a portion of the stack. Image forming systems are also known that link an image forming device that forms images on the media forming the stack with the media processing device to form a stack of media with images formed on them. Some image forming devices are also known that include a media processing device with the above-described functions built into the body of the image forming device.

[0003] In order to provide stable binding quality in pressure binding, a configuration has been disclosed in which the amount of liquid applied to the medium is controlled in accordance with the conditions of the image formation process and the environmental conditions, in order to improve the pressure binding force (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1 has the problem that the amount of liquid contained in each medium constituting the medium bundle differs before liquid is applied, resulting in variations in the amount of liquid in each medium after liquid is applied.

[0005] The present invention aims to provide a media processing device that, in media processing involving liquid application, aims to equalize the amount of liquid contained in a medium after liquid application, depending on the amount of liquid contained in the medium before liquid application. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, one aspect of the present invention relates to a media processing device that supplies media to which liquid has been applied to a binding device that binds a bundle of media formed by bundling multiple media to which liquid has been applied, and is equipped with a liquid amount detection unit that detects the amount of liquid contained in the media before the liquid is applied, a media drying unit that dries the media, and a control unit that controls the operation of the media drying unit to adjust the amount of liquid contained in the media after the liquid has been applied to the media in accordance with the amount of liquid detected by the liquid amount detection unit, and is characterized in that the control unit controls the operation of the media drying unit so that the amount of liquid contained in each medium that makes up the bundle of media to be bound by the binding process in the binding device is uniform. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, in medium processing involving the application of liquid, the amount of liquid in the medium after the application of liquid can be made uniform according to the amount of liquid in the medium before the application of liquid. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an image forming system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the internal structure of the post-processing device. [Figure 3] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the edge binding processing section as viewed from the upstream side in the conveyance direction. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the edge binding processing section as viewed from the liquid applying means side in the main scanning direction. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram illustrating a control configuration of the image forming system 1. [Figure 6] 1 is a diagram showing a first example of an image forming system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an outline of the liquid sensor according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a detection range of the liquid sensor according to the first embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram of a control process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an estimation range of the amount of contained liquid according to the first embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a determination condition table according to the first embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram of a control process according to the second embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a determination condition table according to the second embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the image forming system 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a modification of the third embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram of a control process according to the third embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a determination condition table according to the third embodiment. [Figure 18] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a fourth embodiment of the image forming system 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19] FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram of a control process according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 20] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a fifth embodiment of the image forming system 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 21] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a medium drying unit according to the fifth embodiment. [Figure 22] FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram of a control process according to the fifth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] [Embodiment of Image Forming System 1] An image forming system 1 according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of the image forming system 1. The image forming system 1 has functions such as forming an image on paper P, which is a type of sheet-like medium, and performing post-processing on the paper P on which the image has been formed, as a process after the image has been formed. As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming system 1 as a media processing device according to the present invention is configured to link an image forming device 2 with a post-processing device 3 as a media processing device that performs predetermined processing on the paper P processed in the image forming device 2.

[0010] In this embodiment, the image forming system 1 uses a description that assumes that the medium to be processed is a sheet of "paper," but the medium to be processed is not limited to paper. For example, the medium may be any medium, regardless of material or specifications, as long as it is a medium on which an image can be formed using a conventionally known image forming process and is a medium that can be subjected to folding and binding processes.

[0011] The image forming device 2 forms an image on a sheet P and discharges the sheet P with the image formed thereon to the post-processing device 3. The image forming device 2 includes a storage tray 211 for storing sheets P, a conveying section 212 for picking up the sheets P stored in the storage tray 211 and conveying them to the image forming section 213, and the image forming section 213 for forming an image on the sheets P conveyed by the conveying section 212.

[0012] The image forming unit 213 may be of an inkjet type that forms an image using ink, or may be of an electrophotographic type that forms an image using toner.

[0013] The image forming apparatus 2 also includes a control unit 100a that controls various operations of the conveying unit 212 and the image forming unit 213. The configuration of the image forming apparatus 2 is already well known, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0014] In the embodiment described below, an electrophotographic image forming method is exemplified as the image forming method in the image forming unit 213. Also, a transfer device that transfers an image from the intermediate transfer belt to the paper P is provided, and the amount of liquid contained in the paper P is detected after transfer by the transfer device.

[0015] Paper is a widely known example of a sheet-like medium. Therefore, in this specification, when describing a sheet-like medium to be processed, the term "paper P" will be used. When describing a sheet bundle, the term "paper bundle Pb" will be used as an example, which is a bundle of multiple sheets of paper as a medium.

[0016] [Embodiment of post-processing device 3] 2 is a diagram showing the internal structure of the post-processing device 3. The post-processing device 3 has a function of performing predetermined post-processing on the sheets P on which images have been formed by the image forming device 2. One type of post-processing according to this embodiment is a binding process as a "pressure binding process" in which a stack (sheet stack) of multiple sheets P on which images have been formed is bound without using staples. Another type of post-processing according to this embodiment is a binding process as a "staple binding process" in which a stack (sheet stack) of multiple sheets P on which images have been formed is bound using staples.

[0017] Hereinafter, a stack of sheets P will be referred to as a "sheet stack Pb" as a medium stack. In this embodiment, the liquid application process performed when performing pressure binding processing will be mainly described. However, the liquid application process performed in connection with staple binding processing is similar. Furthermore, when the term "binding processing" is used in the following description, it means both the "pressure binding processing" and the "staple binding processing" and is not limited to the method of binding (whether using staples or pressure deformation).

[0018] In addition, the "pressure binding process" according to this embodiment, more specifically, is a process of applying pressure to a binding position corresponding to a part of the sheets P forming the medium bundle, deforming (pressure-deforming) the binding position, and binding, and is a process called "pressure binding." Note that the binding processes that can be performed by the post-processing device 3 include an end binding process that binds the end of the sheet bundle Pb, and a saddle binding process that binds the center of the sheet bundle Pb.

[0019] The post-processing device 3 includes conveyance roller pairs 10-19 (conveyance section) and a switching claw 20. The conveyance roller pairs 10-19 convey the paper P supplied from the image forming device 2 inside the post-processing device 3. More specifically, the conveyance roller pairs 10-13 convey the paper P along a first conveyance path Ph1. Furthermore, the conveyance roller pairs 14-15 convey the paper P along a second conveyance path Ph2. Furthermore, the conveyance roller pairs 16-19 convey the paper P along a third conveyance path Ph3. Furthermore, a punch hole punching means 132 that punches the paper P conveyed by the conveyance roller pairs 10 and 11 is disposed between the conveyance roller pairs 10 and 11.

[0020] The first transport path Ph1 is a path that leads from the supply port of the paper P from the image forming device 2 to the discharge tray 21. The second transport path Ph2 is a path that branches off from the first transport path Ph1 between the pairs of transport rollers 11 and 14 in the transport direction, and leads to the discharge tray 26 through the internal tray 22. The third transport path Ph3 is a path that branches off from the first transport path Ph1 between the pairs of transport rollers 11 and 14 in the transport direction, and leads to the discharge tray 30.

[0021] The switching claw 20 is disposed at a branching position of the first transport path Ph1 and the second transport path Ph2. The switching claw 20 is configured to be switchable between a first position where the sheet P is discharged to the discharge tray 21 via the first transport path Ph1, and a second position where the sheet P transported along the first transport path Ph1 is guided to the second transport path Ph2. Furthermore, when the rear end of the sheet P that has entered the second transport path Ph2 passes the pair of transport rollers 11, the pair of transport rollers 14 is rotated in the reverse direction, thereby guiding the sheet P to the third transport path Ph3. The post-processing device 3 also includes multiple sensors that detect the position of the sheet P on each of the transport paths Ph1, Ph2, and Ph3. The multiple sensors are indicated by solid triangles (▲) in FIG. 2.

[0022] The post-processing device 3 includes a discharge tray 21. The discharge tray 21 holds the paper sheets P discharged through the first conveying path Ph1. Of the paper sheets P supplied from the image forming device 2, the paper sheets P that are not to be bound are discharged to the discharge tray 21.

[0023] The post-processing device 3 also includes an internal tray 22 as a loading tray, an end fence 23, side fences 24L and 24R, an edge-stitching processing unit 25, a staple binding processing unit 55, and a discharge tray 26. The internal tray 22, the end fence 23, the side fences 24L and 24R, the edge-stitching processing unit 25, and the staple binding processing unit 55 perform edge-stitching processing on a sheet bundle Pb made up of a plurality of sheets P transported from the second transport path Ph2 to the internal tray 22. The sheet bundle Pb that has been edge-stitched is discharged to the discharge tray 26 from among the sheets P supplied from the image forming device 2.

[0024] The "edge binding process" referred to here includes "parallel binding process" in which binding process is performed along one side of the paper stack Pb that is parallel to the main scanning direction, "diagonal binding process" in which binding process is performed at a corner of the paper stack Pb, and "vertical binding process" in which binding process is performed along one side of the paper stack Pb that is parallel to the transport direction.

[0025] Hereinafter, the direction from the conveying roller pair 15 toward the end fence 23 is defined as the "conveying direction" of the paper P. In other words, the "conveying direction" in this specification corresponds to the direction in which the paper P discharged from the image forming device 2 is moved toward the discharge tray 26 by the conveying roller pair 10, etc., and then moved toward the end fence 23 by the conveying roller pair 15. In addition, the direction perpendicular to the thickness direction and the conveying direction of the paper P is defined as the "main scanning direction (width direction of the paper P)."

[0026] The multiple sheets of paper P transported in order via the second transport path Ph2 are temporarily placed on the internal tray 22, which serves as a loading tray. The end fence 23 aligns the position of the sheets of paper P or the sheet bundle Pb placed on the internal tray 22 in the transport direction. The side fences 24L, 24R align the position of the sheets of paper P or the sheet bundle Pb placed on the internal tray 22 in the main scanning direction. The edge stitching processing unit 25 and the staple binding processing unit 55 bind the edges of the sheet bundle Pb aligned by the end fence 23 and the side fences 24L, 24R. Then, the transport roller pair 15 discharges the sheet bundle Pb that has been edge-stitched onto the discharge tray 26.

[0027] [Detailed explanation of the edge binding processing unit 25] Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of the edge binding processing unit 25, which performs the liquid application process and the pressure binding process shown in Fig. 2, as seen from the upstream side in the conveying direction. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of the edge binding processing unit 25 as seen from the liquid application means 31 side in the main scanning direction. As shown in Fig. 3, the edge binding processing unit 25, which corresponds to the binding device, includes a liquid application means 31 that performs the liquid application process and a pressure bonding means 32, which is an example of a post-processing means, that performs the pressure binding process. The liquid application means 31 and the pressure bonding means 32 are arranged adjacent to each other in the main scanning direction, downstream of the internal tray 22 in the conveying direction.

[0028] The liquid application means 31 applies liquid stored in the first liquid storage tank 43, which serves as a liquid storage section, to the paper P or paper stack Pb placed on the internal tray 22. Hereinafter, the application of liquid by the liquid application means 31 to the paper P or paper stack Pb, and the operation of the liquid application means 31 when applying the liquid, will be referred to as "liquid application." Furthermore, the liquid application operation of the liquid application means 31 that involves control processing will be referred to as "liquid application processing."

[0029] More specifically, the liquid stored in the first liquid storage tank 43 as the liquid used for "liquid application" is primarily composed of a liquid compound of hydrogen and oxygen, represented by the chemical formula HO. As long as it is in a liquid state, its temperature does not matter, and it may be so-called warm water or hot water. Furthermore, it is not limited to pure water, and it may of course be purified water, or may contain ionized salts. The metal ion content does not matter, and the hardness may range from so-called soft water to ultra-hard water.

[0030] In addition to the main ingredient, additives may be added. It may contain residual chlorine, which is used in tap water, and it is also desirable to add colorants, penetrants, pH adjusters, preservatives such as phenoxyethanol, and drying inhibitors such as glycerin. Furthermore, inks used in inkjet printers and water-based pens also contain water, so these may also be used as "liquid application."

[0031] The liquids are not limited to those specifically mentioned here, and any "water" in the broad sense, such as hypochlorous acid water or an ethanol solution diluted for disinfection, will also work, but if the only purpose is to enhance the binding strength after binding, tap water, which is easy to obtain and manage, can be used. Also, using a liquid whose main component is water, such as the examples above, can improve the binding strength of the paper stack Pb more than using a liquid whose main component is not water.

[0032] 3 and 4, the liquid applicator 31 is configured to be movable in the main scanning direction together with the pressing device 32 by transmitting the driving force of the edge stitching processing unit movement motor 50. The liquid applicator 31 includes a lower pressure plate 33 as a platform for placing the paper sheet P or the paper stack Pb, an upper pressure plate 34, a liquid applicator movement mechanism 35, and a liquid applicator mechanism 36. The components of the liquid applicator 31 (the lower pressure plate 33, the upper pressure plate 34, the liquid applicator movement mechanism 35, the liquid applicator mechanism 36, and the liquid applicator movement motor 37) are held by a liquid applicator frame 31a and a base member 48.

[0033] Furthermore, a liquid applicator frame 31a that holds the components of the liquid applicator 31 has a liquid applicator rotation shaft 562 equipped with a drive transmission gear 562a fixed to its bottom surface. The liquid applicator rotation shaft 562 and drive transmission gear 562a are rotatably held in forward and reverse directions on a base member 48 on which the liquid applicator frame 31a is provided. The drive transmission gear 562a is meshed with an output gear 563a of a liquid applicator rotation motor 563. The liquid applicator 31 is configured to be rotatable in forward and reverse directions on the base member 48 about the liquid applicator rotation shaft 562 as the driving force of the liquid applicator rotation motor 563 is transmitted to the liquid applicator rotation shaft 562 via the output gear 563a and the drive transmission gear 562a.

[0034] The lower pressure plate 33 and the upper pressure plate 34 are disposed downstream in the conveying direction from the internal tray 22. The paper P or paper stack Pb placed on the internal tray 22 is also placed on the lower pressure plate 33. The lower pressure plate 33 is provided on a lower pressure plate holder 331. The upper pressure plate 34 is configured to be movable in the thickness direction of the paper P or paper stack Pb at a position facing the paper P or paper stack Pb placed on the internal tray 22.

[0035] That is, the lower pressure plate 33 and the upper pressure plate 34 are arranged opposite to each other in the thickness direction (hereinafter simply referred to as the "thickness direction") of the paper P or the paper stack Pb placed on the internal tray 22, sandwiching the paper P or the paper stack Pb therebetween. Furthermore, the upper pressure plate 34 is formed with a through-hole 34a penetrating through in the thickness direction at a position facing a liquid applying member 44 (one end of a liquid supplying member 45 (liquid absorbing) described later, which corresponds to the tip portion) held via a joint 46 attached to the base plate 40.

[0036] The liquid applicator moving mechanism 35 moves the upper pressure plate 34, the base plate 40, the joint 46, and the liquid applicator 44 in the thickness direction of the paper sheet P or the paper stack Pb. The liquid applicator moving mechanism 35 according to this embodiment moves the upper pressure plate 34, the base plate 40, the joint 46, and the liquid applicator 44 in an interlocking manner using a single liquid applicator moving motor 37. The liquid applicator moving mechanism 35 includes, for example, the liquid applicator moving motor 37, a trapezoidal screw 38, a nut 39, the base plate 40, columnar members 41 a, 41 b, and coil springs 42 a, 42 b.

[0037] The liquid applicator movement motor 37 generates a driving force that moves the upper pressure plate 34, the base plate 40, the joint 46, and the liquid applicator member 44. The trapezoidal screw 38 extends in the thickness direction of the paper sheet P or the stack of paper sheets Pb, and is supported by the liquid applicator frame 31a so as to be rotatable in both forward and reverse directions. The trapezoidal screw 38 is connected to the output shaft of the liquid applicator movement motor 37 via a pulley, a belt, or the like. The nut 39 is threadedly engaged with the trapezoidal screw 38. The driving force of the liquid applicator movement motor 37 is transmitted to rotate the trapezoidal screw 38 in both forward and reverse directions, causing the nut 39 to move back and forth on the trapezoidal screw 38.

[0038] The base plate 40 is disposed at a position spaced apart from the upper pressure plate 34. The base plate 40 holds the liquid supplying member 44 with the tip of the liquid supplying member 44 protruding from the base plate 40 toward the upper pressure plate 34. The base plate 40 is connected to a trapezoidal screw 38 via a nut 39, and is configured to be able to move back and forth along the trapezoidal screw 38 as the trapezoidal screw 38 rotates forward and backward. The vertical position of the base plate 40 is detected by a movement sensor 40a (see FIG. 8).

[0039] The pillar-shaped members 41a, 41b protrude from the base plate 40 toward the upper pressure plate 34 around the tip portion of the liquid application member 44. The pillar-shaped members 41a, 41b are configured to be movable in the thickness direction relative to the base plate 40. The pillar-shaped members 41a, 41b hold the upper pressure plate 34 at their tip portions on the lower pressure plate 33 side. The tip portions of the pillar-shaped members 41a, 41b opposite the lower pressure plate 33 are provided with stoppers to prevent the pillar-shaped members 41a, 41b from coming off the base plate 40.

[0040] The coil springs 42a and 42b are fitted onto the columnar members 41a and 41b between the base plate 40 and the upper pressure plate 34. The coil springs 42a and 42b bias the upper pressure plate 34 and the columnar members 41a and 41b toward the lower pressure plate 33 with respect to the base plate 40.

[0041] The liquid application mechanism 36 applies liquid to the paper sheet P or paper sheet bundle Pb placed on the internal tray 22. More specifically, the liquid application mechanism 36 applies liquid to at least one sheet P constituting the paper sheet bundle Pb by bringing a liquid application member 44 into contact with the paper sheet P or the paper sheet bundle Pb. The liquid application mechanism 36 includes a liquid application member 44, a liquid supply member 45, a first liquid storage tank 43, and a joint 46.

[0042] The first liquid storage tank 43 stores liquid to be supplied to the paper sheet P or the paper stack Pb. The liquid stored in the first liquid storage tank 43 is detected by a liquid level sensor 43a (liquid detection means).

[0043] The liquid applying member 44 applies the liquid stored in the first liquid storage tank 43 to the paper sheet P or the paper stack Pb. The liquid applying member 44 is held by the base plate 40 with its tip facing the upper pressure plate 34. The liquid applying member 44 is made of a material with high liquid absorption, such as an open-cell foam that can hold liquid. The liquid applying member 44 can be made of any material as long as it has the ability to absorb and retain liquid and collapses in response to the pressure applied when in contact with the paper sheet P. For example, it may be a foam such as a sponge, or a fiber that can absorb liquid by capillary action.

[0044] Liquid supply member 45 (liquid absorbing) is a long member having a base end which is an immersion portion 452 immersed in the liquid stored in first liquid storage tank 43 and a tip end which is connected to liquid applying member 44. Liquid supply member 45 is made of, for example, a material with high water absorption, similar to liquid applying member 44. This allows the liquid absorbed from immersion portion 452 of liquid supply member 45 to be supplied to liquid applying member 44 by capillary action. In other words, the liquid stored in first liquid storage tank 43 is sucked up from immersion portion 452 of liquid supply member 45, and the sucked up liquid is supplied through liquid supply member 45 to liquid applying member 44 which is connected to the tip end.

[0045] As described above, the liquid sucked up from the immersion portion 452 of the liquid supply member 45 is supplied to the liquid application member 44 through the liquid supply member 45, and the liquid application is performed when the liquid application member 44 comes into contact with the uppermost surface of the paper sheet P or the paper stack Pb. Therefore, the liquid application member 44 is supported on the base plate 40 with its tip pointing downward.

[0046] Although the above description has been given of the case where the liquid supply member 45 and the liquid application member 44 are separate bodies, the liquid supply member 45 and the liquid application member 44 can also be integrally formed from a material with high liquid absorption. In other words, the liquid application member 44 can be configured to be part of the liquid supply member 45. In this case, it becomes possible to more smoothly supply the liquid from the liquid supply member 45 to the liquid application member 44 by capillary action, and costs can be reduced.

[0047] The protective member 45a is a long cylinder (for example, a tube) that is fitted onto the liquid supply member 45. This prevents the liquid absorbed by the liquid supply member 45 from leaking or evaporating. The liquid supply member 45 and the protective member 45a are made of a flexible material. The joint 46 holds the liquid supply member 44 and a part of the liquid application member position adjustment means 52 (described later), and is provided so as to be movable only in the transport direction relative to the base plate 40. This allows the liquid application member 44 to protrude from the base plate 40 toward the upper pressure plate 34, and maintains a state in which the tip of the liquid application member 451 faces the upper pressure plate 34, even when the liquid application member moving mechanism 35 moves the liquid application member 44 in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction and the main scanning direction.

[0048] In the liquid application process, the amount of movement (pressure) of the liquid application member 44 relative to the sheet P or sheet bundle Pb can be controlled by controlling the drive amount of the liquid application unit movement motor 37. By controlling the amount of movement of the liquid application member 44 relative to the sheet P or sheet bundle Pb, the size of the area (contact area) in which the liquid application member 44 comes into contact with the sheet P or sheet bundle Pb and the length of time of contact (contact time) can be adjusted, and this makes it possible to adjust the amount of liquid applied to the sheet P or sheet bundle Pb in the liquid application process and the spread of the liquid.

[0049] 3 and 4, a liquid applicator position adjustment unit 52 is provided to adjust the liquid applicator position by the liquid applicator 44 during the liquid applicator process. The liquid applicator position adjustment unit 52 includes a liquid applicator position adjustment motor 52a, a pinion gear 52b driven by the liquid applicator position adjustment motor 52a, and a rack 52c meshing with the pinion gear 52b. The liquid applicator position adjustment motor 52a and the pinion gear 52b are provided to the joint 46 as described above. Meanwhile, the rack 52c is fixed to the base plate 40. Therefore, by controlling the drive amount of the liquid applicator position adjustment motor 52a, the position (liquid applicator position) at which the liquid applicator 44 contacts the paper P or the paper stack Pb can be adjusted. That is, the liquid applicator 44 and the joint 46 that holds it are configured to be movable in the conveyance direction by driving the liquid applicator position adjustment motor 52a. The liquid applicator 44 is also configured to be movable in the main scanning direction by driving the edge binding unit movement motor 50. This allows the liquid application member 44 to appropriately apply liquid to the liquid application position (corresponding to the binding position) of the paper P that constitutes the paper stack Pb to be bound, depending on the binding position of the paper stack Pb to be bound by the pressing means 32.

[0050] The post-processing device 3 includes a control unit 100b that controls the various operations of the components described above. The control unit 100b cooperates with the control unit 100a to control the operation of predetermined post-processing (such as binding and punching) based on information related to the sheets P notified by the control unit 100a (such as size information related to the size of the sheets P and post-processing instruction information that specifies the type of post-processing for the sheets P).

[0051] [Main gist of the present invention] Here, we will briefly explain the main gist of the media processing device according to the present invention. When a request is made to perform pressure binding involving the application of liquid, the present invention measures the amount of liquid contained in paper P, which is a sheet-like medium to be pressure bound and serves as the medium after image transfer in image forming unit 213, and controls a drying operation to dry paper P according to the measured amount of liquid. Then, the drying process aims to equalize the amount of liquid (hereinafter referred to as "liquid content") between sheets P that form paper bundle Pb after liquid application.

[0052] That is, the variation in the amount of liquid contained in each of the sheets P that form the sheet bundle Pb is suppressed, and the amount of liquid contained in each of the sheets P that form the sheet bundle Pb to which liquid has been applied is controlled to be uniform. This makes it possible to make the amount of liquid contained in each of the sheets P that form the sheet bundle Pb (especially the amount of liquid contained at the binding position) uniform, even if the amount of liquid applied to each sheet P remains constant.

[0053] By adjusting the amount of liquid contained in the paper P after image formation but before liquid application before the liquid is applied, the amount of liquid contained in each paper P after liquid application is made uniform, and then the paper is pressurized, deformed, and pressure-bound, thereby solving the problem of unstable binding quality due to variations in the amount of liquid contained in each sheet of paper P.

[0054] In the present invention, in order to adjust the amount of liquid contained in the paper P before liquid is applied, a process of drying the paper P is performed as a process for adjusting the amount of liquid contained in the paper P after image formation. A main feature of the media processing device according to the present invention is that the drying process of the paper P before liquid is applied is controlled according to the amount of liquid contained in the paper P after image formation.

[0055] [Control configuration of image forming system 1] Next, the control configuration of the image forming system 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 5. As already explained, the image forming system 1 is composed of the image forming apparatus 2 and the post-processing apparatus 3. Note that the present invention is also applicable to a configuration in which the image forming apparatus 2 includes the post-processing apparatus 3.

[0056] In FIG. 5, the control configuration of the image forming apparatus 2 is composed of an image formation control unit 200 as a controller and an image formation processing unit 201 as an engine. The image formation control unit 200 is composed of an image formation control management unit 210. The image formation processing unit 201 is composed of a medium processing control management unit 220, a contained liquid amount detection unit 230, and a medium drying control unit 240. The contained liquid amount detection unit 230 and the medium drying control unit 240 correspond to control blocks having the main features of this embodiment. The post-processing device 3 is composed of a post-processing control unit 310. The functions realized by each control block are described below.

[0057] The image formation control management unit 210 manages image formation processing requests from users and notifies the medium processing control management unit 220 of the image formation processing requests.

[0058] In response to an image formation processing request notified by the image formation control management unit 210, the media processing control management unit 220 carries out the paper P from the storage tray 211, performs the image formation processing, and controls the paper P to be discharged from the image forming device 2 to a subsequent device (such as the post-processing device 3).

[0059] The liquid content detection unit 230 uses the liquid amount sensor 231 to measure the liquid content L, which is the amount of liquid contained in the paper P after the image formation process but before liquid is applied, and notifies the medium drying control unit 240 of the measurement result.

[0060] The medium drying control unit 240 receives notification of the liquid content L from the liquid content detection unit 230, and determines whether to perform drying control and performs drying control according to the liquid content L so that the ``post-application content'' after liquid is applied to the paper P is a uniform amount for each paper P.

[0061] The post-processing control unit 310 controls the application of liquid to the paper P conveyed from the image forming apparatus 2 and the application of pressure binding to the paper P.

[0062] [First Example] Next, a first example of a media processing device according to the present invention will be described. As shown in Figure 6, an image forming system 1a according to this example includes a component corresponding to a post-processing device 3 within the body of an image forming device 2 that constitutes the image forming system 1 already described.

[0063] The image forming apparatus 2 of this embodiment is equipped with a liquid quantity sensor 231 constituting a liquid quantity detection unit and a paper dry fan 241 constituting a medium drying unit along the discharge conveying path 311 that discharges the paper P after image formation to the post-processing device 3.

[0064] In the image forming apparatus 2, the paper sheet P picked up from the storage tray 211 is conveyed by the conveying section 212 to the transfer section 2131 of the image forming section 213, and the image formed in the image forming section 213 is transferred onto the paper sheet P in the transfer section 2131.

[0065] When the paper P is discharged to the post-processing device 3 in the discharge transport path 311 downstream of the transfer unit 2131 (meaning downstream in the transport direction of the paper P), the liquid amount sensor 231 located downstream of the transfer unit 2131 measures the amount of liquid L contained in the paper P after transfer. Furthermore, under the control of the control unit described above, a drying process is performed in which air is blown by the paper dry fan 241 as an air blowing means in accordance with the amount of liquid L contained. The paper P is subjected to the process of measuring the content and the drying process according to the measurement result, and then discharged to the post-processing device 3.

[0066] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an overview of the liquid amount sensor 231. In FIG. 7, the thick black arrow indicates the transport direction of the paper P. The liquid amount sensor 231 is an array sensor. The liquid amount sensor 231 has multiple sensor units arranged in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the paper P. The arrangement direction of the multiple sensor units of the liquid amount sensor 231 corresponds to the width direction of the paper P to be measured. Furthermore, the width direction of the paper P corresponds to the so-called "main scanning direction."

[0067] 8 illustrates a liquid amount measurement range RL in which the liquid amount sensor 231 measures the amount of liquid contained in the paper P. As shown in FIG. 8, the liquid amount measurement range RL in which the amount of liquid contained is measured is on the rear end side in the transport direction of the paper P. Note that a position a predetermined length away from the leading end side in the transport direction of the paper P toward the rear end is set as the measurement start position Rp, and the liquid amount measurement range RL is from this measurement start position Rp to the rear end of the paper P. This is because, in the liquid application process performed in a later stage, the position where the liquid is applied is on the rear end side in the transport direction of the paper P, and the same is true for the position where pressure binding is performed.

[0068] [Processing flow according to the first embodiment] Next, an example of the flow of processing executed in the image forming system 1a will be described with reference to FIG.

[0069] First, a user requests the execution of an image forming process including a pressure binding process involving the application of liquid (S901). This processing request is assumed to be made, for example, by a user performing a predetermined request operation using an information processing device communicably connected to the image forming system 1. In addition, if the image forming system 1 has a copy function, the processing request in step S901 may be assumed to be a case in which a process including pressure binding involving the application of liquid is performed when a user requests a copy process.

[0070] Upon receiving the processing request from the user, the image formation control management unit 210 notifies the medium processing control management unit 220 of the image formation processing request from the user (S902).

[0071] Upon receiving an image forming processing request from the image forming control management unit 210, the media processing control management unit 220 picks up paper P from the storage tray 211 and transports it to the image forming unit 213, and performs image formation and image transfer processing onto the paper P (S903).

[0072] After the image transfer process, when the leading edge of the paper P in the transport direction reaches the liquid amount sensor 231, the media processing control management unit 220 requests the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 to detect the contained liquid amount L. Along with the request to detect the contained liquid amount L, the media processing control management unit 220 notifies the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 of the binding position information included in the request to execute the image formation process (S904).

[0073] Upon receiving the request to detect the contained liquid amount L, the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 measures the contained liquid amount L in the liquid amount measurement range RL of the paper P using the liquid amount sensor 231 (S905). The liquid amount measurement range RL as the detection range for the contained liquid amount L in step S905 is as described with reference to FIG. 8, and is a certain range near the rear end of the paper P in the transport direction.

[0074] Next, the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 extracts only the necessary range of liquid amount from the detection result of the contained liquid amount L according to the binding position information, and sets it as the liquid amount to be adjusted Lb (S906). The liquid amount to be adjusted Lb set in step S906 is the liquid amount used to control the drying process for equalizing the amount of liquid contained in each sheet of paper P after liquid application.

[0075] An example of the extraction range of the adjustment target liquid amount Lb will now be described with reference to FIG. 10. FIG. 10 illustrates an example of the correlation between the binding position Bp and the extraction target area Re from which the adjustment target liquid amount Lb is extracted. As shown in FIG. 10(a), the binding position Bp may contact one corner near the trailing end of the paper P in the transport direction. Also, as shown in FIG. 10(b), the binding position Bp may contact multiple points along the edge of the trailing end of the paper P in the transport direction. Both are determined by the binding method.

[0076] The position included in the region where the liquid amount sensor 231 detects the liquid amount L of the paper P and where the binding process is performed in the subsequent stage (binding position Bp) is indicated in the binding information. Also, the binding position Bp corresponds to the position of liquid application. The liquid amount detection unit 230 shall preliminarily hold information (liquid amount pattern information) indicating a liquid amount extraction pattern corresponding to the binding pattern indicated in the content (binding information) of the binding process. Therefore, the extraction target region Re is set according to the binding information notified from the medium processing control management unit 220 to the liquid amount detection unit 230, and based on the extraction target region Re, the adjustment target liquid amount Lb is extracted from the detection result of the liquid amount detection unit 230 and set as the adjustment target liquid amount Lb used for the subsequent process.

[0077] Return to FIG. 9. The liquid amount detection unit 230 notifies the set adjustment target liquid amount Lb to the medium drying control unit 240 (S907).

[0078] The medium drying control unit 240 that has received the adjustment target liquid amount Lb determines whether the adjustment target liquid amount Lb exceeds the fan operation threshold value L0 for determining the necessity of operating the paper drying fan 241 (S908). Note that the fan operation threshold value L0 is a parameter preliminarily held in the medium drying control unit 240.

[0079] FIG. 11 illustrates the determination conditions for determining the necessity of operating the paper drying fan 241. As shown in FIG. 11, in the first determination condition table T1 that defines the determination conditions, the determination conditions for determining the liquid amount L and the necessity of operating the paper drying fan 241 are associated with each other. The first determination condition table T1 may be a set value preliminarily held in the medium drying control unit 240, or may be a storage area where the user arbitrarily sets the determination conditions via the operation panel 110 and stores them.

[0080] When the adjustment target liquid amount Lb of the paper P satisfies "L0 ≤ Lb" in comparison with the predetermined fan operation threshold value L0, it is determined that the operation of the paper drying fan 241 is "required". Also, when "Lb < L0", it is determined that the operation of the paper drying fan 241 is "not required".

[0081] The fan operation threshold L0 can be set arbitrarily depending on the environmental conditions (temperature and humidity) in which the image forming apparatus 2 is installed and the type of paper P (basis weight, paper size, etc.).

[0082] Returning to Fig. 9, the medium drying control unit 240 operates the paper drying fan 241 based on the determination in step S908 (S909).

[0083] After determining whether the paper dry fan 241 needs to operate and controlling the operation of the paper dry fan 241, the media processing control management unit 220 notifies the media drying control unit 240 that the trailing end of the paper P in the transport direction has passed the position of the paper dry fan 241 (S910).

[0084] Upon receiving the notification from the media processing control management unit 220, the media drying control unit 240 stops the operation of the paper drying fan 241 (S911).

[0085] The media processing control management unit 220 notifies the post-processing control unit 310 that the paper P has been discharged to the post-processing device 3 (S912).

[0086] The post-processing control unit 310 applies a certain amount of liquid to the sheets P, and performs pressure binding processing when a predetermined number of sheets P have been stacked (S913).

[0087] According to the embodiment described above, when pressure binding involving the application of liquid is performed, the amount of liquid contained in the paper P after image transfer is estimated and controlled so that the amount of liquid contained in the paper P due to the application of liquid is uniform, so that the amount of liquid does not vary with other media due to the application of liquid in the subsequent stage. This increases the binding strength and improves the binding quality so that the bound state is maintained continuously.

[0088] [Second Example] Next, a second embodiment of a media processing device according to the present invention will be described. The difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is that not only is it possible to set whether the paper dry fan 241 is operational, but also the operating strength of the paper dry fan 241. As with the first embodiment, this embodiment also includes an image forming system 1a that includes a component corresponding to the post-processing device 3 within the body of the image forming device 2 that constitutes the image forming system 1 already described.

[0089] [Processing flow according to the second embodiment] Next, a second example of processing executed in an image forming system 1a as an embodiment of a media processing device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

[0090] In the following description, as thresholds related to the control of the paper dry fan 241, in addition to the fan operation threshold L0, a first fan intensity threshold L1 and a second fan intensity threshold L2 are used.

[0091] The processing from step S1201 to step S1207 according to the second embodiment is similar to step S901 to step S907 according to the first embodiment, so detailed explanation will be omitted and only step S1208 and onwards will be explained.

[0092] The medium drying control unit 240, which has received the adjustment target liquid amount Lb, determines whether the adjustment target liquid amount Lb exceeds the fan operation threshold value L0 (first fan intensity threshold value L1 and second fan intensity threshold value L2) for determining whether the paper drying fan 241 needs to operate (S1208). The fan operation threshold value L0 referenced in step S1208 is assumed to be stored in advance in the medium drying control unit 240 as table data exemplified in FIG.

[0093] FIG. 13 illustrates the determination conditions for determining the necessity of operating the paper drying fan 241 and the operation mode. As shown in FIG. 13, in the second determination condition table T2 that defines the determination conditions, the determination conditions for determining the contained liquid amount L are associated with and held together with the necessity of operating the paper drying fan 241 and the intensity during operation. The second determination condition table T2 may be a set value pre-held in the medium drying control unit 240, or may be a storage area where the user arbitrarily sets the determination conditions via the operation panel 110 and stores them.

[0094] When the adjustment target liquid amount Lb of the paper P is "Lb < L1" in comparison with the first fan strength threshold value L1 and the second fan strength threshold value L2 as a predetermined fan operation threshold value L0, it is determined that the operation of the paper drying fan 241 is "No". Also, when "L1 ≦ Lb < L2", it is determined that the operation of the paper drying fan 241 is "required", and the intensity is determined to be "weak". Further, when "L2 ≦ Lb", it is determined that the operation of the paper drying fan 241 is "required", and the intensity is determined to be "strong". By adjusting the intensity of the paper drying fan 241 according to the amount of liquid contained in the paper P, the accuracy of equalizing the contained liquid amount during the binding process can be improved. Note that the first fan strength threshold value L1 and the second fan strength threshold value L2 can be arbitrarily set according to the environment in which the image forming system 1 is installed, the type of the paper P, and the like.

[0095] Return to FIG. 12. In step S1208, when it is determined that "L1 ≦ Lb < L2", the paper drying fan 241 is operated in the weak mode (1209). Also, in S1208, when it is determined that "L2 ≦ Lb", the paper drying fan 241 is operated in the "strong" mode (S1210).

[0096] Steps S1211 to S1214, which are the processes after controlling the operation of the paper drying fan 241 in step S1209 or step 1210, are the same as steps S910 to S913 in the first embodiment, so detailed description is omitted.

[0097] [Third Embodiment] Next, a third embodiment of the media processing device according to the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, as in the image forming system 1 shown in Fig. 14 and the image forming system 1b shown in Fig. 15, the image forming unit 213 and the edge binding unit 25 of the post-processing device 3 are physically separated from each other, and the degree of separation is greater than in the first embodiment.

[0098] Due to differences in the target demographic of the results of the image forming process, the number of types of paper P varies, the size and temperature of the image forming unit 213 differ, and the distance required to transport the paper P from the image forming unit 213 to the end binding processing unit 25 installed in the post-processing device 3 differs depending on the system.

[0099] That is, in the image forming system 1b according to the third embodiment, the adjustment target liquid amount Lb, which is set from the contained liquid amount L measured after image transfer, is likely to fluctuate during transport to the edge binding processing unit 25, which can be a factor that hinders improvement in binding quality. Therefore, in the third embodiment, when determining whether the paper dry fan 241 needs to operate based on the adjustment target liquid amount Lb, a parameter that takes into account the transport distance Lc of the paper P is applied to the adjustment target liquid amount Lb, and then a determination is made as to whether the paper dry fan 241 needs to operate.

[0100] In the following explanation, in addition to the first fan intensity threshold L1 and the second fan intensity threshold L2, the thresholds for controlling the paper dry fan 241 are the transport distance Cx from the liquid volume sensor 231 to the binding processing position, the liquid volume Lb to be adjusted derived from the measurement of the liquid volume sensor 231, and the estimated liquid volume Le, which takes into account the fluctuation in the liquid volume contained in the paper P while it is transported to the end binding processing section 25.

[0101] [Processing flow according to the third embodiment] Next, another example of the flow of processing executed in image forming system 1 as an embodiment of the media processing device according to the present invention will be described with reference to Figure 16. The processing from step S1601 to step S1603 is the same as step S901 to step S903 in the first embodiment, so detailed explanation will be omitted and only step S1604 and onwards will be described.

[0102] After the image transfer process in step S1603, when the leading edge of the paper P in the transport direction reaches the liquid amount sensor 231, the media processing control management unit 220 requests the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 to detect the contained liquid amount L. Along with the request to detect the contained liquid amount L, the media processing control management unit 220 notifies the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 of the binding position information included in the execution request for the image forming process and the transport distance Cx from the liquid amount sensor 231 to the edge binding processing unit 25 (S1604).

[0103] Upon receiving the request to detect the amount of liquid contained L in step S1604, the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 uses the liquid amount sensor 231 to measure the amount of liquid contained L in a predetermined area of ​​the paper P (S1605). The detection range for the amount of liquid contained L in step S1605 is a certain range near the rear end of the paper P in the transport direction, as described in the first embodiment.

[0104] Next, the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 extracts only the necessary range of liquid amounts from the detection results of the contained liquid amount L according to the binding position information, and sets this as the adjustment target liquid amount Lb (S1606). Then, an additional liquid amount Lp is identified that defines the amount of liquid that should be taken into account depending on the conveying distance Cx for the adjustment target liquid amount Lb, and the identified additional liquid amount Lp is added to the adjustment target liquid amount Lb to calculate the "adjustment target estimated liquid amount Lbm." The calculated adjustment target estimated liquid amount Lbm is then set. In this embodiment, the adjustment target estimated liquid amount Lbm corresponds to the liquid amount used to control the drying process to equalize the amount of liquid contained in each sheet of paper P after liquid application.

[0105] The contained liquid amount detection unit 230 stores the conveying distance Cx in each possible configuration and the added liquid amount Lp corresponding to the conveying distance Cx as a third determination condition table T3. An example of this third determination condition table T3 is shown in FIG.

[0106] In FIG. 17, the additional liquid amount Lp, which specifies the amount of liquid that varies depending on the conveying distance Cx and is included in the third determination condition table T3, is an estimated value of the amount of liquid that is thought to absorb moisture during conveyance to the edge binding processing unit 25, which involves applying liquid. The additional liquid amount Lp can be adjusted depending on the installation environment of the image forming system 1, etc. The additional liquid amount Lp may be defined as an actual measurement value corresponding to each temperature and conveying distance Cx, or it may be defined by a mathematical formula derived using the conveying distance Cx, environmental conditions, and type of paper P as variables, rather than a fixed value. The additional liquid amount Lp can also be a negative value. An example of a negative value would be when the image forming system 1 is in a low-humidity environment and the paper is dehumidified during conveyance.

[0107] Returning to Figure 16, the liquid content detection unit 230 notifies the medium drying control unit 240 of the adjustment-target estimated liquid amount Lbm set in step S1606 (S1607). The processing of steps S1608 to S1614 is the same as the processing of steps S1209 to S1214, except that the comparison with the fan operation threshold L0 is performed using the adjustment-target liquid amount Lb or the adjustment-target estimated liquid amount Lbm in S1208 described in the second embodiment, and therefore detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0108] [Fourth Example] Next, an image forming system 1d will be described as a fourth embodiment of a media processing device according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 18, this embodiment has a configuration similar to that of the image forming system 1 already described using FIG. 6. Note that the same reference numerals are used for similar components. Therefore, the only difference is that a paper dry heater 242 is provided as heating means instead of a paper dry fan 241.

[0109] [Processing flow according to the fourth embodiment] Next, a fourth example of processing executed in image forming system 1 as an embodiment of a media processing device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

[0110] The difference from the first embodiment already described lies in that, instead of controlling the paper drying fan 241, the paper drying heater 242 is controlled. Therefore, the description of overlapping parts will be simplified, and the differences will be described in detail.

[0111] The processing from step S1901 to step S1907 is the same as the processing from step S901 to step S907, so the description is omitted.

[0112] Using the adjustment target liquid volume Lb notified by the contained liquid volume detection unit 230 to the medium drying control unit 240 in step S1907, the medium drying control unit 240 determines whether the adjustment target liquid volume Lb exceeds the heater operation threshold value Lh0 (the first heater intensity threshold value Lh1 and the second heater intensity threshold value Lh2) for determining the necessity of operating the paper drying heater 242 (S1908).

[0113] When the adjustment target liquid volume Lb of the paper P is "Lb < Lh1" in the comparison with the first heater intensity threshold value Lh1 and the second heater intensity threshold value Lh2 as the predetermined fan operation threshold value L0, it is determined that the operation of the paper drying heater 242 is "no". Also, when "Lh1 ≤ Lb < Lh2", it is determined that the operation of the paper drying heater 242 is "required", and the intensity is determined to be "weak". Also, when "Lh2 ≤ Lb", it is determined that the operation of the paper drying heater 242 is "required", and the intensity is determined to be "strong".

[0114] By adjusting the intensity of the paper drying heater 242 according to the amount of liquid contained in the paper P, the accuracy of equalizing the contained liquid volume during the binding process can be improved. Note that the first heater intensity threshold value Lh1 and the second heater intensity threshold value Lh2 can be arbitrarily set according to the environment where the image forming system 1 is installed, the type of the paper P, and the like.

[0115] Note that the heater operation threshold value Lh0 can be arbitrarily set according to the environmental conditions (temperature and humidity) where the image forming apparatus 2 is installed, the type of the paper P (basis weight, paper size, etc.).

[0116] [Fifth Embodiment] Next, we will explain an image forming system 1e as a fifth embodiment of a media processing device according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 20, this embodiment has a configuration similar to that of the image forming system 1a described using FIG. 6 and the image forming system 1d described using FIG. 18. Note that the same reference numerals are used for similar components. The difference between these embodiments and this embodiment is that it has a paper drying unit 243 instead of the paper drying fan 241 and paper drying heater 242.

[0117] Here, we will explain the paper drying unit 243. Figure 21 is a configuration diagram that shows the outline of the structure of the paper drying unit 243. As shown in Figure 21, the paper drying unit 243 includes a paper drying fan 241 and a paper drying heater 242.

[0118] The amount of operation is controlled by a medium drying control unit 240 that adjusts the amount of liquid contained in the paper P. In the paper drying unit 243, a paper drying fan 241 is disposed closer to the paper P, and a paper drying heater 242 is disposed at a position stacked on the paper drying fan 241.

[0119] For example, if the installation environment of the image forming system 1 is hot and humid, the air sent to the paper P by the paper drying fan 241 will contain a lot of moisture. Therefore, when the paper drying fan 241 is driven, the paper P will not dry, but will instead absorb moisture. This makes it difficult to achieve the intended effect of providing the medium drying process.

[0120] Therefore, if the image forming system 1e according to this embodiment is used in a high-temperature and high-humidity environment, the medium drying control for adjusting the amount of liquid contained in the paper P can be performed more effectively.

[0121] [Processing flow according to the fifth embodiment] Next, a fifth example of processing executed in image forming system 1e as an embodiment of a media processing device according to the present invention will be described with reference to Figure 22. The difference from the first example already described is that this example controls paper drying unit 243 instead of paper drying fan 241, so we will simplify the explanation of overlapping parts and provide a detailed explanation of the differences.

[0122] The processing from step S2201 to step S2203 is the same as the processing from step S901 to step S903, so the explanation will be omitted and only step S2204 and thereafter will be explained.

[0123] After the image transfer process in step S2203, when the leading edge of the paper P in the transport direction reaches the liquid amount sensor 231, the media processing control management unit 220 requests the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 to detect the contained liquid amount L. Along with the request to detect the contained liquid amount L, the media processing control management unit 220 notifies the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 of the binding position information included in the execution request for the image formation process and the usage environmental humidity H of the image forming system 1e (S2204).

[0124] The operating environment humidity H is detected by a humidity sensor installed near the paper drying unit 243 .

[0125] Upon receiving the request to detect the amount of liquid contained L in step S2204, the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 uses the liquid amount sensor 231 to measure the amount of liquid contained L in a predetermined area of ​​the paper P (S2205). The detection range for the amount of liquid contained L in step S2205 is a certain range near the rear end of the paper P in the transport direction, as described in the first embodiment.

[0126] Next, the contained liquid amount detection unit 230 extracts only the liquid amount within the necessary range from the detection result of the contained liquid amount L according to the binding position information, and sets it as the liquid amount to be adjusted Lb (S2206).

[0127] The liquid amount detector 230 notifies the medium drying control unit 240 of the estimated liquid amount Lbm to be adjusted set in step S2206 and the usage environment humidity H notified in step 2204 (S2207).

[0128] The medium drying control unit 240 that has received the liquid amount Lb to be adjusted and the usage environment humidity H determines whether the liquid amount Lb to be adjusted exceeds the fan operation threshold value L0 for determining whether the paper drying fan 241 needs to operate (S908). Note that the fan operation threshold value L0 is a parameter pre-held by the medium drying control unit 240 and is the same as that described in the first embodiment (see FIG. 11).

[0129] Therefore, when the liquid amount Lb to be adjusted of the paper P satisfies "L0 ≤ Lb" in comparison with the predetermined fan operation threshold value L0, it is determined that the operation of the paper drying fan 241 is "required". Also, when "Lb < L0", it is determined that the operation of the paper drying fan 241 is "not".

[0130] Further, the medium drying control unit 240 that has received the liquid amount Lb to be adjusted and the usage environment humidity H also determines whether the usage environment humidity H exceeds the fan operation humidity threshold value H0 for determining whether the paper drying heater 242 needs to operate (S2208). Note that the fan operation humidity threshold value H0 is a parameter pre-held by the medium drying control unit 240.

[0131] The medium drying control unit 240 operates the paper drying fan 241 based on the determination in step S2208 (S2209). Also, the medium drying control unit 240 operates the paper drying heater 242 based on the determination in step S2208 (S2210).

[0132] After determining whether the paper drying fan 241 needs to operate and controlling the operation of the paper drying heater 242, the medium processing control management unit 220 notifies the medium drying control unit 240 whether the trailing end in the conveyance direction of the paper P has passed the position of the paper drying unit 243 (S2211).

[0133] Upon receiving the notification from the media processing control management unit 220, the media drying control unit 240 stops the operation of the paper drying fan 241 (S2212) and also stops the operation of the paper drying heater 242 (S2213).

[0134] The media processing control management unit 220 notifies the post-processing control unit 310 that the paper P has been discharged to the post-processing device 3 (S2213).

[0135] The post-processing control section 310 applies a certain amount of water application and binding processing to the sheet bundle Pb (S2214).

[0136] According to the above-described embodiments, when pressure binding involving the application of liquid is performed, a drying process is performed based on the results of estimating the amount of liquid contained in the paper P after image transfer so that the amount of liquid applied later does not vary from other media. This adjusts the amount of liquid contained in the paper P due to the application of liquid so that it is uniform. As a result, the state of the paper P that forms the paper bundle Pb after the application of liquid is uniform, allowing for stable binding processing and improved binding quality.

[0137] As already explained, the control method by the control unit 100b described above is realized by cooperation between the hardware resources of a computer and a program as computer software. That is, the control method is a method executed by a computer by causing an arithmetic unit, a storage unit, an input unit, an output unit, and a control unit to operate in cooperation based on the program. The program may also be written to a storage unit or a storage medium, etc., and distributed, or distributed via a telecommunications line, etc.

[0138] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but various modifications are possible without departing from the technical gist thereof, and all technical matters included in the technical concept described in the claims are covered by the present invention. The above-described embodiments are preferred examples, but a person skilled in the art can realize various modifications from the disclosed content. Such modifications are also included in the technical scope described in the claims.

[0139] For example, aspects of the present invention are as follows. <1> A medium processing device that supplies a medium to which a liquid has been applied to a binding device that binds a bundle of media, the medium having a liquid applied to a portion of the medium, a liquid amount detection unit that detects the amount of liquid contained in the medium before the liquid is applied; a medium drying unit that dries the medium; a control unit that controls the operation of the medium drying unit to adjust the amount of liquid contained in the medium after the liquid has been applied to the medium, in accordance with the amount of liquid detected by the liquid amount detection unit; and Equipped with The control unit The operation of the medium drying unit is controlled so that the amount of liquid contained in each medium constituting the medium bundle to be bound by the binding process in the binding device is uniform. The media processing device is characterized by the above. <2> The medium drying unit includes a blower that blows air onto the medium, The control unit operates the blower when the amount of the liquid exceeds a predetermined threshold. The aforementioned <1> 2 is a media processing device according to the first embodiment. <3> The air blowing means is capable of varying the strength of the air blowing, the control unit varies the intensity of the air blowing depending on the degree to which the amount of the liquid exceeds the threshold. The aforementioned <2> 2 is a media processing device according to the first embodiment. <4> the control unit controls the operation of the medium drying unit in accordance with a transport distance of the medium from when the liquid amount detection unit detects the amount of the liquid to a position where the binding process is performed. The aforementioned <1> and above <3> 1 is a media processing device according to any one of the preceding claims. <5> The medium drying unit includes a heating means for applying heat to the medium, The control unit is configured to operate the heating means when the amount of the liquid exceeds a predetermined threshold. The aforementioned <1> and above <4> 1 is a media processing device according to any one of the preceding claims. <6> The medium drying unit includes a blower that blows air onto the medium and a heater that applies heat to the medium, the control unit operates the air blower or the heating means depending on the degree to which the amount of the liquid exceeds a predetermined threshold. The aforementioned <1> and above <4> 1 is a media processing device according to any one of the preceding claims. <7> the binding process is a pressure binding process in which a part of a medium bundle including at least one of the media to which the liquid has been applied is pressurized and deformed to bind the part; The amount of liquid contained is the amount of liquid contained in the portion subjected to pressure deformation. The aforementioned <1> and above <6> 1 is a media processing device according to any one of the preceding claims. <8> an image forming device that forms an image on a medium; a plurality of media on which images have been formed by the image forming apparatus, the plurality of media being subjected to a predetermined process; <1> and above <3> a media processing device according to any one of The image forming system is characterized by comprising: [Explanation of symbols]

[0140] 1: Image forming system 2: Image forming device 3: Post-processing device 25: Binding processing section 200: Image formation control unit 201: Image forming processing section 210: Image formation control management unit 211: Storage tray 212: Transport unit 213: Image forming unit 220: Media processing control management unit 230: Liquid content detection unit 231: Liquid volume sensor 240: Media drying control unit 241: Paper drying fan 242: Paper dry heater 243: Paper dry unit 310: Post-processing control unit 311: Discharge conveying path 2131: Transcription unit [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0141] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-111840

Claims

1. A medium processing device that supplies a medium to which a liquid has been applied to a binding device that binds a bundle of media, the medium having a liquid applied to a portion of the medium, a liquid amount detection unit that detects the amount of liquid contained in the medium before the liquid is applied; a medium drying unit that dries the medium; a control unit that controls the operation of the medium drying unit to adjust the amount of liquid contained in the medium after the liquid has been applied to the medium, in accordance with the amount of liquid detected by the liquid amount detection unit; and Equipped with The control unit The operation of the medium drying unit is controlled so that the amount of liquid contained in each medium constituting the medium bundle to be bound by the binding process in the binding device is uniform. A media processing device characterized by:

2. The medium drying unit includes a blower that blows air onto the medium, The control unit operates the blower when the amount of the liquid exceeds a predetermined threshold. The media processing device of claim 1 .

3. The air blowing means is capable of varying the strength of the air blowing, the control unit varies the intensity of the air blowing depending on the degree to which the amount of the liquid exceeds the threshold. The media processing device of claim 2 .

4. the control unit controls the operation of the medium drying unit in accordance with a transport distance of the medium from when the liquid amount detection unit detects the amount of the liquid to a position where the binding process is performed. The media processing device according to claim 1 .

5. The medium drying unit includes a heating means for applying heat to the medium, The control unit activates the heating means when the amount of the liquid exceeds a predetermined threshold. The media processing device of claim 1 .

6. The medium drying unit includes a blower that blows air onto the medium and a heater that applies heat to the medium, the control unit operates the air blower or the heating means depending on the degree to which the amount of the liquid exceeds a predetermined threshold. The media processing device of claim 1 .

7. the binding process is a pressure binding process in which a part of a medium bundle including at least one of the media to which the liquid has been applied is pressurized and deformed to bind the part; The amount of liquid contained is the amount of liquid contained in the portion subjected to pressure deformation. The media processing device of claim 1 .

8. an image forming device that forms an image on a medium; a media processing device according to claim 1 , which performs predetermined processing on the plurality of media on which images have been formed by the image forming device; An image forming system comprising:

Images