Additional member attaching device and bookbinding system equipped with the same

Abstract

To provide an additional member pasting device that supplies and pastes additional members and can reduce wasteful consumption of material.SOLUTION: The additional member pasting device includes: a first cutter 9 that is provided at the entry of a cutting station 4 and cuts a continuous sheet-like additional member Q unwound in length corresponding to the thickness of a book body B in a direction that crosses the unwinding direction (Arrow X); a transport mechanism 10 that is provided on the downstream side of the first cutter and transports the additional member cut by the first cutter in the unwinding direction of the continuous sheet-like additional member; and a second cutter 11 that is provided in the middle of the transport path of the transport mechanism and cuts the cut additional member being transported on the transport path in the unwinding direction, allowing the position of the blade of the second cutter to be adjusted in the direction that crosses the unwinding direction according to the length of the book body in the vertical direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an additional material application device that supplies and applies additional material from outside the machine to the glue-applied spine of an upright body stopped at an additional material application position within a bookbinding machine, and a bookbinding system equipped with the same. [Background technology]

[0002] A perfect binder having a cheesecloth supplying device is known in the prior art (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This perfect binding machine is equipped with a clamper that can clamp the book body in an upright position and move along a predetermined path, a series of processing units (a milling unit, a gluing unit and a cover attachment unit) that are arranged along the path and perform the perfect binding process, and a book body supply unit that supplies the book body to the clamper at a book body supply position upstream of the series of processing units on the path.

[0003] The cover attaching unit has a pressure plate and a pair of nip plates provided on the upper surface of the pressure plate. The cover supply unit has a cover placement shelf on which covers are placed, and a cover transport mechanism that transports the cover from the cover placement shelf onto a pressure plate and a pair of nip plates of the cover attachment unit.

[0004] When the bookbinding process is started, the cover is transported by the cover transport mechanism from the cover placement shelf onto the pressure plate and the pair of nip plates of the cover attaching unit. When the book body held by the clamper reaches a predetermined position above the pressure plate and the pair of nip plates and stops, the pressure plate and the pair of nip plates rise to the nip position, the cover is pressed against the spine of the book body by the pressure plate, and then the pair of nip plates clamp both sides of the spine of the book body, thereby pressing the cover against both sides of the spine of the book body and attaching the cover to the book body, completing the bound book.

[0005] Thus, this bookbinding machine can perform paperback binding. On the other hand, when the bookbinding machine is used for hardcover bookbinding (forming the body of a hardcover book), the cover supply unit is not used, and instead, a cheesecloth supply device is used.

[0006] The cheesecloth supplying device includes a cheesecloth forming unit for forming strip-shaped cheesecloth in accordance with the shape of the book body, and a transport unit for transporting the strip-shaped cheesecloth from the cheesecloth forming unit to a cover attachment unit of a bookbinding machine and supplying it onto a pair of nip plates of the cover attachment unit in a state of straddling the nip plates.

[0007] The cheesecloth forming unit includes a roll of continuous sheet-like cheesecloth, a drive unit that rotates the roll to send the continuous sheet-like cheesecloth onto a loading table, and first and second cutters that cut the continuous sheet-like cheesecloth sent out by the drive unit in the length and width directions.

[0008] The first cutter is movable in the width direction of the continuous sheet of cheesecloth and cuts the cheesecloth lengthwise according to the thickness of the book body, while the second cutter cuts the cheesecloth cut by the first cutter and positioned on the table widthwise according to the length of the book body.

[0009] The transport unit has a suction tool that suctions the strip-shaped cheesecloth on the mounting table, and a rail that extends from the mounting table to the cover attachment unit. The rail extends from above the mounting table to above the book body that is clamped between the pressure plate of the cover attachment unit and the clamper that is stopped above the pair of nip plates, and the suction tool is attached to the rail so as to be movable along the rail.

[0010] When the body of a hardcover book is formed in this bookbinding machine, a strip of cheesecloth corresponding to the size of the body is first formed in the cheesecloth forming unit of the cheesecloth supplying device.Then, the transport unit of the cheesecloth supplying device supplies the strip of cheesecloth across a pair of nip plates of the cover attaching unit of the perfect binding machine.

[0011] Then, at the book body supply position of the perfect binding machine, the book body is supplied to a clamper, and the clamper holding the book body passes through a milling unit and a gluing unit, reaches a predetermined position above the pressure plate and a pair of nip plates of the cover attachment unit, and stops.

[0012] Then, the pressure plate and the pair of nip plates rise, the strip of cheesecloth is pressed against the spine of the book by the pressure plate, and then the pair of nip plates clamp both sides of the spine of the book, thereby pressing the strip of cheesecloth against both sides of the spine of the book and attaching the strip of cheesecloth to the spine of the book.

[0013] Thus, with a perfect binding machine equipped with this cheesecloth supplying device, it is possible to form strips of cheesecloth according to the size of the book body and attach them to the spine of the book body, so that it can quickly respond to the case binding of multiple book bodies of different sizes.

[0014] According to this configuration, when strips of cheesecloth are formed from a continuous sheet of cheesecloth, the continuous sheet of cheesecloth is first cut in the length direction of the cheesecloth according to the thickness of the main body, and then cut in the width direction of the cheesecloth according to the vertical length of the main body. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0015] [Patent Document 1] JP 2014-198394 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0016] However, since the length of the main body is generally greater than its thickness in the vertical direction, cutting a continuous sheet of cheesecloth in the manner described above generates a large amount of scraps, resulting in the problem of increased production costs due to the waste of material (cheesecloth).

[0017] Furthermore, according to this configuration, a first cutter equipped with a roll blade is positioned upstream and a second cutter equipped with a straight blade is positioned downstream, and cutting is performed by the first cutter while a predetermined length of continuous sheet-like cheesecloth (a length that matches the length of the spine of the book) is being unwound, and then the unwinding operation of the cheesecloth is temporarily stopped and cutting is performed by the second cutter.

[0018] When the size of the main body is changed, the unwinding length of the continuous sheet of cheesecloth is changed in response to the change in the vertical length of the main body, and the position of the roll blade of the first cutter is changed in the width direction of the continuous sheet of cheesecloth in response to the change in the thickness of the main body.

[0019] However, in this case, since the first cutter cuts the continuous sheet of cheesecloth while it is being unwound, if the position of the blade of the first cutter is changed while the device is in operation, the unwound cheesecloth during this position change will be cut in vain. Therefore, it is necessary to stop unwinding the continuous sheet of cheesecloth until the change in the position of the roll blade of the first cutter is complete.

[0020] In other words, with this configuration, each time the size of the main body was changed, the operation of the cheesecloth supplying device was stopped, the position of the roll blade of the first cutter was set, and after the position setting was completed, the operation of the cheesecloth supplying device was started again, resulting in a problem of reduced productivity.

[0021] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an additional material attachment device that supplies and attaches additional materials such as cheesecloth, and a bookbinding system equipped with the same, which can reduce waste of materials. Another object of the present invention is to provide an additional component application device that supplies and applies additional components such as cheesecloth, and that allows the size of the book body to be changed without stopping the operation of the additional component application device, and a bookbinding system equipped with the same. [Means for solving the problem]

[0022] In order to solve the above problems, an additional member attachment device according to one aspect of the present invention is connected to a bookbinding machine, and supplies and attaches an additional member from outside the bookbinding machine to a glue-applied spine of a book body stopped at an additional member attachment position in the bookbinding machine. The additional member attachment device includes a roll accommodation unit that accommodates a roll of continuous sheet-like additional member so as to be rotatable about an axis, and a cutting station that conveys the continuous sheet-like additional member from the roll accommodation unit to a cutting station. In the unwinding direction a cutting station provided with an unwinding unit for unwinding the sheet; In the unwinding direction a cutting unit for cutting the unwound continuous sheet-like additional member in accordance with the size of the body to form a strip-like additional member, and the cutting unit cuts the continuous sheet-like additional member by the unwound unit to a length corresponding to the thickness of the body. The above a first cutter for cutting in a direction transverse to the unwinding direction; and a cutting section for cutting the additional member cut by the first cutter in the unwinding direction according to the length of the body in the top-bottom direction. Direction along and a second cutter for cutting into

[0023] The additional member affixing device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a control unit that controls the unwinding unit so as to intermittently unwind the continuous sheet-like additional member by a length corresponding to the thickness of the body.

[0024] In the additional member affixing device according to one aspect of the present invention, the control unit controls the first cutter in synchronization with the unwinding unit, which operates intermittently.

[0025] In the additional member affixing device according to one aspect of the present invention, the control unit controls the position of the second cutter so as to correspond to the length of the body in the top-bottom direction.

[0026] An additional component affixing device according to one aspect of the present invention includes an additional component transport and attachment unit which, while connected to the bookbinding machine, transports the rectangular additional component to the additional component affixing position within the bookbinding machine and affixes it to the spine of the book body stopped at the additional component affixing position.

[0027] In an additional member attachment device according to one embodiment of the present invention, the first cutter has a straight blade that extends across the unwinding path of a continuous sheet-like additional member above the unwinding path and can move in an up-down direction, a blade receiving plate that is arranged below the unwinding path facing the straight blade, and a straight blade drive mechanism that moves the straight blade between a standby position where the straight blade is a predetermined distance away from the blade receiving plate and a cutting position where the straight blade engages with the blade receiving plate, and the second cutter has at least one slide guide that extends across the transport path of the transport mechanism, a blade holder slidably attached to the at least one slide guide, a holder drive mechanism that slides the blade holder, a pair of roll blades that are vertically opposed to each other across the transport path and are each rotatably attached around an axis that extends across the transport path, and a rotation drive mechanism that is coupled to the axis of at least one of the pair of roll blades.

[0028] In one embodiment of the additional member application device of the present invention, the cutting unit further has a stopper extending across the transport path downstream of the second cutter and abutting the tip of the strip-shaped additional member being transported on the transport path, thereby stopping the strip-shaped additional member.

[0029] In one embodiment of the additional member affixing device of the present invention, the body stopped at the additional member affixing position is in an upright position, and the additional member transport and affixing unit has a gripper that can grasp the rectangular additional member while supporting the underside of the rectangular additional member, a first gripper drive mechanism that moves the gripper between a retracted position inside the device and an advanced position outside the device, a second gripper drive mechanism that moves the gripper between the advanced position and a raised position above the advanced position, and a transfer unit that delivers the rectangular additional member from the cutting station to the gripper in the retracted position, and when connected to the bookbinding machine, the advanced position of the gripper is directly below the spine of the body stopped at the additional member affixing position inside the bookbinding machine, and the gripper presses the rectangular additional member against the spine of the body at the elevated position.

[0030] A bookbinding system according to one aspect of the present invention includes any one of the additional member affixing devices described above, and a bookbinding machine to which the additional member affixing device is connected. Effect of the Invention

[0031] A first cutter is located at the entrance of the cutting station, and cuts the continuous sheet-like additional material unwound to a length corresponding to the thickness of the body, in a direction transverse to the unwinding direction. A transport mechanism is located downstream of the first cutter, and transports the cut additional material from the first cutter in the unwinding direction of the continuous sheet-like additional material. A second cutter is located midway along the transport path of the transport mechanism, and cuts the cut additional material transported on the transport path in the unwinding direction. The position of the blade of the second cutter can be adjusted in a direction transverse to the unwinding direction depending on the top-to-bottom length of the body.

[0032] In this way, the continuous sheet-like additional member is cut in a direction transverse to the unwinding direction of the continuous sheet-like additional member (the width direction of the continuous sheet-like additional member) according to the thickness of the main body, and then the cut additional member is cut in the unwinding direction according to the vertical length of the main body, thereby minimizing the amount of cutting waste and thereby suppressing wasteful consumption of material (additional member).

[0033] Furthermore, while the device is in operation, the first cutter performs an intermittent cutting operation in synchronization with the intermittent unwinding operation of the continuous sheet-like additional material by the unwinding unit, and the second cutter cuts the additional material cut by the first cutter while the additional material is being transported away from the first cutter by the conveying mechanism.

[0034] When the size of the book body is changed while the device is operating, information on the new book body size is sent simultaneously from the device's control unit to the conveying mechanism and the first and second cutters, and based on this information, the amount of continuous sheet-like additional material unwound by the unwinding unit is changed, and the position of the blade of the second cutter is changed.

[0035] In this case, the position of the blade of the second cutter is changed within the time from when the unwinding unit starts unwinding to when the additional material cut by the first cutter reaches the second cutter, so that the size of the body can be changed without stopping the operation of the device. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0036] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a side view showing a bookbinding system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a schematic diagram showing an internal configuration of an additional member attaching device. [Figure 2A] 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a cutting unit of the device shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 2B] 2B is a view of the vicinity of the second cutter in FIG. 2A as viewed from the downstream side in the conveying direction. [Diagram 3] 2 is a plan view of the gripper and first and second gripper drive mechanisms of the apparatus of FIG. 1; FIG. [Figure 4A] 4 is a cross-sectional view of the gripper and first and second gripper drive mechanisms of FIG. 3 with the gripper in a retracted position, taken along line YY of FIG. 3. [Figure 4B] 4B is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 4A with the gripper in an advanced position. [Figure 5A] 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the gripper and first and second gripper drive mechanisms of FIG. 3 with the gripper in a raised position, taken along line YY of FIG. 3. [Figure 5B] 5B is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the gripper has been raised to a raised position and the gripping portion has been released, as compared to FIG. 5A. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a front view of a delivery unit of the device of FIG. 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0037] Hereinafter, the configuration of the present invention will be described based on a preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view showing a schematic internal configuration of an additional member attachment device according to one embodiment of the present invention, which supplies and attaches an additional member to the spine of a book body.

[0038] 1 shows a bookbinding system including a bookbinding machine M and an additional member affixing device 1, and the additional member affixing device 1 is connected to the bookbinding machine M. For clarity, FIG. 1 depicts only a suction head of a delivery unit (the configuration of which will be described in detail later) as a representative of the delivery unit.

[0039] The additional member attachment device 1 includes a roll storage unit 3 that stores a roll 2 of a continuous sheet-like additional member Q rotatably about a horizontal axis within a housing 52, and an unwinding unit 5 that unwinds the continuous sheet-like additional member Q from the roll storage unit 3 to a cutting station 4. The operation of the unwinding unit 5 is controlled by a control unit 50.

[0040] Here, the term "additional material" refers to a sheet-like material that is attached to the spine of the book body during the casebinding process, and examples of this include cheesecloth and paper.

[0041] The unwinding unit 5 comprises a pair of unwinding rollers 5a, 5b which can each be driven to rotate about a horizontal axis. In addition, a guide roller 6a and a pair of guide rollers 6b, 6c are disposed between the pair of unwinding rollers 5a, 5b and the roll storage unit 3, and each of them is rotatable around a horizontal axis. The pair of guide rollers 6b, 6c may be provided with a driving force so that a reverse torque is applied in the direction opposite to the feed direction of the pair of unwinding rollers 5a, 5b. This allows tension to be applied to the additional member Q. When the additional member Q is being unwound, the pair of guide rollers 6b, 6c rotate in the conveying direction due to friction with the additional member Q while applying a reverse torque. However, when the unwinding of the additional member Q is stopped, the reverse torque of the pair of guide rollers 6b, 6c is also stopped.

[0042] The continuous sheet-like additional material Q unwound from the roll 2 passes over a part of the circumferential surface of the guide roller 6a and between the pair of guide rollers 6b, 6c, and is introduced between the pair of unwinding rollers 5a, 5b. Each time the pair of unwinding rollers 5a, 5b are driven to rotate by a command from the control unit 50, a predetermined length of the continuous sheet-like additional material Q is unwound from the roll 2 to the cutting station 4. The cutting station 4 is provided within the housing 52.

[0043] Further, a curl remover 7 for correcting curls in the continuous sheet-like additional member Q is disposed between the pair of guide rollers 6b, 6c and the pair of unwinding rollers 5a, 5b.

[0044] The additional member attachment device 1 also includes a cutting unit 8 disposed in a cutting station 4, which cuts the continuous sheet-like additional member Q unwound by the unwinding unit 5 according to the size of the body B to form a strip-like additional member S.

[0045] FIG. 2A is a perspective view that shows a schematic configuration of the cutting unit, and FIG. 2B is a view of the vicinity of a second cutter in FIG. 2A as seen from the downstream side in the conveying direction.

[0046] 2A and 2B, the cutting unit 8 is arranged at the entrance of the cutting station 4 and has a first cutter 9 for cutting the continuous sheet-like additional material Q unwound by the unwinding unit 5 in a direction crossing the unwinding direction (indicated by arrow X) to a length corresponding to the thickness of the body B, a transport mechanism 10 for carrying the cut additional material R from the first cutter 9 in the unwinding direction (arrow X), and a second cutter 11 for cutting the cut additional material R transported on the transport path in the unwinding direction (arrow X). The operations of the first cutter 9, the transport mechanism 10, and the second cutter 11 are controlled by a control unit 50.

[0047] The first cutter 9 has a straight blade 9a that extends across the unwinding path above the unwinding path of the continuous sheet-like additional material Q and can move in the vertical direction, a blade receiving plate 9b that is arranged opposite the straight blade 9a below the unwinding path, and a straight blade drive mechanism 9c that moves the straight blade 9a between a standby position a predetermined distance away from the blade receiving plate 9b and a cutting position where it engages with the blade receiving plate 9b.

[0048] The transport mechanism 10 includes an upstream conveyor belt 12 located upstream in the unwinding direction (arrow X) and a downstream conveyor belt 13 located downstream of the upstream conveyor belt 12. The upstream conveyor belt 12 is composed of a pair of horizontal idle rollers 12a, 12b arranged at a distance from each other in the unwinding direction (arrow X) and each extending transversely to the unwinding direction (arrow X), a drive roller 12c arranged below the pair of idle rollers 12a, 12b and extending parallel to the pair of idle rollers 12a, 12b, an endless belt 12d stretched across the pair of idle rollers 12a, 12b and the drive roller 12c, and a rotation drive mechanism (not shown) that rotates the drive roller 12c.

[0049] The downstream conveyor belt 13 has a fixed conveyor belt 14 and a movable conveyor belt 15 that are spaced apart from each other in a direction transverse to the unwinding direction (arrow X) and each extend in the unwinding direction (arrow X).

[0050] The fixed-side conveyor belt 14 includes a conveyor frame 14a having a U-shaped cross section extending in the unwinding direction (arrow X), a drive shaft 16 having a regular hexagonal cross section that extends through the upstream parts of a pair of side walls of the conveyor frame 14a in a direction crosswise to the unwinding direction (arrow X) and can rotate around its axis, a drive roller 14b having a regular hexagonal through hole formed along the central axis corresponding to the cross section of the drive shaft 16 and fitted onto the drive shaft 16 while being disposed between the pair of side walls of the conveyor frame 14a, a shaft 14c parallel to the drive shaft 16 and fixed between the pair of side walls of the conveyor frame 14a on the downstream side of the drive shaft 16, an idle roller 14d attached to the shaft 14c, and an endless belt 14e stretched between the drive roller 14b and the idle roller 14d.

[0051] The fixed conveyor belt 14 is fixed to the frame of the additional member attaching device 1 at a conveyor frame 14a. Therefore, the fixed conveyor belt 14 does not slide along the drive shaft 16 like the movable conveyor belt 15.

[0052] The movable conveyor belt 15 has a conveyor frame 15a having a U-shaped cross section extending in the unwinding direction (arrow X), and a drive shaft 16 passes through the upstream portions of a pair of side walls of the conveyor frame 15a. In other words, the drive shaft 16 is a common drive shaft for the fixed conveyor belt 14 and the movable conveyor belt 15 .

[0053] The movable conveyor belt 15 further has a regular hexagonal through hole formed along the central axis corresponding to the cross section of the drive shaft 16, a drive roller 15b fitted onto the drive shaft 16 while being positioned between a pair of side walls of the conveyor frame 15a, a shaft 15c parallel to the drive shaft 16 and fixed between the pair of side walls of the conveyor frame 15a on the downstream side of the drive shaft 16, an idle roller 15d attached to the shaft 15c, and an endless belt 15e stretched between the drive roller 15b and the idle roller 15d.

[0054] The movable conveyor belt 15 is attached to a blade holder (described later) of a second cutter at a conveyor frame 15a so as to be able to slide along the drive shaft 16 together with the blade holder.

[0055] The downstream conveyor belt 13 further includes a drive mechanism 17 for rotating the drive shaft 16 . The drive mechanism 17 includes a pulley 17a fixed to the end of the drive shaft 16 on the fixed conveyor belt side, a motor 17b having a drive shaft parallel to the drive shaft 16 and arranged below the pulley 17a, a pulley 17c fixed to the drive shaft of the motor 17b, and an endless belt 17d stretched between the pulley 17a and the pulley 17c.

[0056] The conveying path of the conveying mechanism 10 is formed by the conveying surface of the upstream conveyor belt 12 and a plane including the conveying surfaces of the fixed and movable conveyor belts 14, 15 of the downstream conveyor belt 13.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 1, the cutting unit 8 also has a stopper 29 that extends across the conveying path at the downstream end of the conveying path of the conveying mechanism 10 (downstream conveyor belt 13) and stops the strip-shaped additional material S by abutting the tip of the strip-shaped additional material S being conveyed on the conveying path.

[0058] As shown in FIG. 2B, the second cutter 11 is arranged above and below the conveying path of the conveying mechanism 10 (downstream conveyor belt 13), and has two slide guides 18a, 18b extending parallel to each other across the conveying path, a blade holder 19 extending vertically across the two slide guides 18a, 18b and slidably attached to the slide guides 18a, 18b, and a holder drive mechanism 20 that slides the blade holder 19.

[0059] A roll blade storage space having a rectangular cross section extending vertically is formed inside the blade holder 19, and a sleeve 21 extending across the conveying path is attached between a pair of side walls of the blade holder 19 so as to be freely rotatable about an axis via a bearing (not shown). The sleeve 21 has a regular hexagonal insertion hole that corresponds to the cross section of the drive shaft 16 of the downstream conveyor belt 13 extending along the central axis, and the drive shaft 16 of the downstream conveyor belt 13 extends through the insertion hole of the sleeve 21.

[0060] The second cutter 11 is also disposed between a pair of side walls of the blade holder 19, and has a pair of roll blades 22a, 22b disposed opposite each other above and below with the conveying path between them. The roll blades 22a, 22b are sandwiched between a pair of feed rollers 23a, 23b; 24a, 24b and fixed concentrically to the pair of feed rollers 23a, 23b; 24a, 24b.

[0061] The assembly of the roll blade 22a and the pair of feed rollers 23a, 23b has a mounting hole of a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the sleeve 21 extending along the central axis, and is fitted into the sleeve 21 between a pair of side walls and is attached to the sleeve 21 so as to be rotatable integrally therewith.

[0062] Above the sleeve 21 of the blade holder 19, a shaft 25 extending parallel to the sleeve 21 is fixed between a pair of side walls. The assembly of the roll blade 22b and a pair of feed rollers 24a, 24b is mounted concentrically with and freely rotatable around the shaft 25 via bearings (not shown) between a pair of side walls, with the pair of feed rollers 24a, 24b facing the other pair of feed rollers 23a, 23b and the roll blade 22b engaging with the other roll blade 22a.

[0063] As shown in FIG. 2(B), the movable conveyor belt 15 (conveyor frame 15a) of the downstream conveyor belt 13 is fixed and supported on one of a pair of side walls of the blade holder 19.

[0064] The holder drive mechanism 20 has a ball screw 26 that extends parallel to the upper slide guide 18a and is arranged so that it can rotate around an axis at a fixed position, a ball screw nut 27 that is provided on the blade holder 19 and engaged with the ball screw 26, and a ball screw drive mechanism 28 that rotates the ball screw 26.

[0065] The ball screw drive mechanism 28 has a pulley 28a fixed to the end of the ball screw 26 on the fixed conveyor belt 14 side, a motor 28b arranged 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 belt 28d stretched between the pulley 28a and the pulley 28c.

[0066] In this manner, the drive shaft 16 is rotated by the drive mechanism 17 (motor 17b), which rotates the downstream conveyor belt 13 (fixed and movable conveyor belts 14, 15) and simultaneously rotates the pair of roll blades 22a, 22b of the second cutter 11. In addition, the ball screw 26 of the holder drive mechanism 20 is rotated forward and backward by the ball screw drive mechanism 28 (motor 28b), which moves the blade holder 19 (pair of roll blades 22a, 22b) and the movable conveyor belt 15 of the downstream conveyor belt 13 in a direction crossing the unwinding direction (arrow X).

[0067] The additional member affixing device 1 also includes a gripper 30 capable of gripping the rectangular additional member S while supporting the lower surface of the rectangular additional member S, a first gripper drive mechanism 31 for moving the gripper 30 between a retreated position inside the housing 52 (see Figs. 1 and 4(A)) and an advanced position outside the housing 52 (see Fig. 4(B)), and a second gripper drive mechanism 32 for moving the gripper 30 between the advanced position and a raised position above the advanced position (see Fig. 5(A)). The operations of the first gripper drive mechanism 31 and the second gripper drive mechanism 32 are controlled by a control unit 50.

[0068] The gripper 30, the first and second gripper drive mechanisms 31, 32, and the cutting unit 8 are arranged in two layers, one above the other, with the cutting unit 8 at the top. The gripper 30 is located inside the housing 52 when in the retracted position, and is advanced outside the housing 52 when in the forward position. The main portion of the first gripper drive mechanism 31 is disposed inside the housing 52, and the tip side of the first gripper drive mechanism 31 protrudes outside the housing 52 when in the forward position. The second gripper driving mechanism 32 is provided near the outside of the housing 52. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 1, when the additional member affixing device 1 is connected to the bookbinding machine M, the second gripper driving mechanism 32 is located inside the bookbinding machine M. However, the second gripper driving mechanism 32 may be provided inside the housing 52.

[0069] Fig. 3 is a plan view of the gripper 30 and the first and second gripper drive mechanisms 31 and 32 of the additional member affixing device of Fig. 1. Also, Fig. 4 and Fig. 5 are cross-sectional views taken along line YY in Fig. 3, which explain the operation of the gripper 30 and the first and second gripper drive mechanisms 31 and 32 of Fig. 3.

[0070] The gripper 30 includes a gripping portion 30g that grips a rectangular additional member S. The gripping portion 30g is movable toward and away from a placement surface of the gripper 30 on which the rectangular additional member S is placed, and temporarily fixes the additional member S by clamping it between the placement surface and the gripping portion 30g. The operation of the gripping portion 30g is controlled by the control portion 50.

[0071] 3 to 5B, the first gripper drive mechanism 31 has at least one slide guide 33 (two in this embodiment) extending at an angle downward from the inside to the outside of the housing 52, a slider 34 attached to the slide guide 33, a flat arm 35 extending parallel to the slide guide 33 and attached to the upper surface of the slider 34, capable of swinging about a rear end edge 35b as a pivot, and having a gripper 30 attached to a tip end 35a, and a slider drive mechanism 36 that moves the slider 34 between a retracted position where the gripper 30 is located in a retreated position and an extended position where the gripper 30 is located in an advanced position.

[0072] The arm 35 is attached to the slider 34 by pairs of flanged pins 37a, 37b that are inserted into pairs of through holes spaced apart in the front-to-rear direction on both sides of the arm 35 and fixed to the slider, a compression spring 38a that is arranged between the flange of the front flanged pin 37a of each pair of flanged pins 37a, 37b and the arm 35, and a compression spring 38b that is arranged between the flange of the rear flanged pin 37b of each pair of flanged pins 37a, 37b and the arm 35, the front compression spring 38a having a smaller elastic coefficient than the rear compression spring 38b.

[0073] The slider drive mechanism 36 includes a ball screw 39 that extends parallel to the slide guide 33 and is arranged rotatably around an axis at a fixed position, a ball screw nut 40 that is provided on the slider 34 and engages with the ball screw 39, and a ball screw drive mechanism 41 that rotates the ball screw 39.

[0074] The ball screw drive mechanism 41 consists of a pulley 41a fixed to the rear end of the ball screw 39, a motor 41b arranged below the pulley 41a so that its drive shaft is parallel to the ball screw 39, a pulley 41c fixed to the drive shaft of the motor 41b, and an endless belt 41d stretched between the pulley 41a and the pulley 41c.

[0075] The ball screw 39 is rotated forward and backward by the ball screw drive mechanism 41 (motor 41b), whereby the slider 34 slides along the slide guide 33.

[0076] The second gripper drive mechanism 32 consists of an arm drive mechanism 42 that swings the arm 35 around the rear end edge 35b (support axis) of the arm 35 between a horizontal position and an inclined position inclined downward from the horizontal position (extending parallel to the slide guide 33).

[0077] The arm drive mechanism 42 is positioned forward of the protruding position of the slider 34 and below the arm 35, and consists of an air cylinder 43 extending in the vertical direction, with a horizontal support shaft 43b attached to the tip of the piston rod 43a of the air cylinder 43 and extending in a direction crossing the conveying path, and rollers 43c are attached to both ends of the support shaft 43b so as to be freely rotatable around the support shaft 43b.

[0078] The piston rod 43a of the air cylinder 43 reciprocates between a first position where the roller 43c is retracted downward from the inclined position of the arm 35 and a second position where the roller 43c protrudes upward from the inclined position of the arm 35.

[0079] The piston rod 43a of the air cylinder 43 is normally in the first position, but when the slider 34 is in the extended position, the piston rod 43a moves from the first position to the second position, whereby the arm 35 swings from the inclined position to the horizontal position. Then, the piston rod 43a returns from the second position to the first position, whereby the arm 35 swings from the horizontal position to the inclined position.

[0080] The additional member affixing device 1 further includes a delivery unit 44 that delivers the rectangular additional member S from the cutting station 4 (a stop position at the downstream end of the conveying path of the conveying mechanism 10) to the gripper 30 located at the retreated position. The operation of the delivery unit 44 is controlled by the control unit 50.

[0081] FIG. 6 is a front view of the delivery unit (as viewed in the direction of the arrow X in FIG. 1). As shown in FIG. 6, the delivery unit 44 has a suction head 45 capable of adsorbing the strip-shaped additional material S, and a suction head drive mechanism 46 that moves the suction head 45 between the cutting station 4 (the stopping position of the strip-shaped additional material S) and the gripper 30 in the retracted position.

[0082] The suction head 45 has a plurality of suction cups 45a and a negative pressure generating section 45b that generates a suction force in each of the suction cups 45a.

[0083] The suction head drive mechanism 46 has a first slide guide 46a extending horizontally and along the slide guide 33 of the first gripper drive mechanism 31, a first slider 46b attached to the first slide guide 46a, a first ball screw 46c extending parallel to the first slide guide 46a and arranged rotatably around an axis at a fixed position, a first ball screw nut 46d attached to the first slider 46b and engaged with the first ball screw 46c, and a first rotation drive mechanism 46e that rotates the first ball screw 46c.

[0084] The suction head drive mechanism 46 also has a second slide guide 46f attached to the first slider 46b and extending in the vertical direction, a second slider 46g attached to the second slide guide 46f, a second ball screw 46h attached to the first slider 46b and extending parallel to the second slide guide 46f and capable of rotatable around an axis at a fixed position, a second ball screw nut 46i attached to the second slider 46g and engaged with the second ball screw 46h, and a second rotation drive mechanism 46j attached to the first slider 46b and rotating the second ball screw 46h.

[0085] The suction head drive mechanism 46 further includes a third slide guide 46k attached to the second slider 46g and extending horizontally and perpendicular to the first slide guide 46a, a third slider 46m attached to the third slide guide 46k, a motor 46n attached to the second slider 46g and having a drive shaft (not shown) extending parallel to the first slide guide 46a, a pulley 46p attached to the second slider 46g and capable of rotatable around an axis parallel to the drive shaft of the motor 46n, and an endless belt 46q stretched between a pulley (not shown) attached to the drive shaft of the motor 46n and the pulley 46p, and to which the third slider 46m is fixed.

[0086] The suction head 45 is attached to the third slider 46m with the multiple suction cups 45a facing downward and aligned in a straight line along the third slide guide 46k.

[0087] In this way, the first ball screw 46c is rotated forward and backward by the first rotation drive mechanism 46e, thereby moving the suction head 45 toward or away from the cutting station 4 (the stopping position of the strip-shaped additional member S) or the gripper 30 in the retracted position; the second ball screw 46h is rotated forward and backward by the second rotation drive mechanism 46j, thereby raising and lowering the suction head 45; and the endless belt 46q is rotated forward and backward by the motor 46n, thereby moving the suction head 45 in the longitudinal direction of the strip-shaped additional member S.

[0088] The control unit 50 is composed of, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a random access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), and a computer-readable storage medium. A series of processes for realizing various functions is stored in a storage medium or the like in the form of a program, for example, and the CPU reads the program into the RAM or the like and executes information processing and arithmetic processing to realize various functions. The program may be installed in a ROM or other storage medium in advance, may be provided in a state stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or may be distributed via a wired or wireless communication means. The computer-readable storage medium may be a magnetic disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a semiconductor memory, or the like.

[0089] Next, the operation of the additional member affixing device 1 will be described. Referring again to FIG. 1, the additional member affixing device 1 is connected to the bookbinding machine M in such an arrangement that the forward position of the gripper 30 is directly below the spine of the book body B stopped at the additional member affixing position P in the bookbinding machine M, and the gripper 30 is in the raised position to press the strip-shaped additional member S against the spine of the book body B.

[0090] In addition, the position of the stopper 29 of the cutting unit 8 is adjusted in advance so that the strip-shaped additional material S stopped by the stopper 29 is positioned approximately parallel to the spine of the book body B stopped at the additional material attachment position P of the bookbinding machine M.

[0091] In this embodiment, the binding machine M is a perfect binding machine, and the additional material attachment position P is the cover attachment position of the perfect binding machine (the position directly above the pressure plate f1 and the pair of nip plates f2, f3 of the cover attachment unit F), and the clamper K, which holds the main body B in an upright position, stops at this position.

[0092] Prior to operating the additional component affixing device 1, the size of the main body B (length in the vertical and horizontal directions and thickness) is input to the control unit 50 of the additional component affixing device 1 via a control panel (not shown), and the initial settings of the additional component affixing device 1 are made based on the input values, after which operation of the additional component affixing device 1 is started.

[0093] Then, the unwinding unit 5 pulls out the continuous sheet-like additional material Q by a length corresponding to the thickness of the body B to the cutting station 4 (on the conveying surface of the upstream conveyor belt 12) and stops. Next, the straight blade 9a of the first cutter 9 descends from the standby position to the cutting position, and then ascends from the cutting position to the standby position. This causes the continuous sheet-like additional material Q to be cut in its width direction.

[0094] The cut additional member R is transported by the upstream conveyor belt 12 from the first cutter 9 to the second cutter 11 and the downstream conveyor belt 13, and is then transported by the downstream conveyor belt 13 and introduced between the upper and lower opposing feed rollers 23a, 24a; 23b, 24b of the second cutter 11, and between the pair of upper and lower opposing roll blades 22a, 22b. As a result, the additional member R cut by the first cutter 9 is cut to a length corresponding to the vertical length of the body B, and a rectangular additional member S is formed.

[0095] The rectangular additional member S is further transported downstream of the second cutter 11, and comes into contact with a stopper 29 to be stopped on the transport path.

[0096] Thereafter, the rectangular additional material S is transported by the suction head 45 (transfer unit) from the cutting station 4 (the downstream end of the transport path of the transport mechanism 10) to the gripper 30 in the retreated position, and is delivered to the gripper 30 (see FIG. 4(A)).

[0097] Next, with the arm 35 maintained in the inclined position, the slider 34 slides toward the bookbinding machine M, and the gripper 30 assumes the forward position while gripping the rectangular additional member S (see FIG. 4(B)). At this time, the rectangular additional member S (gripper 30) is directly below the glued spine of the book body B stopped at the additional member attachment position P.

[0098] Next, the arm 35 swings from the inclined position to the horizontal position, and thus the gripper 30 moves from the forward position to the raised position (see FIG. 5A), whereby the rectangular additional member S is attached to the spine of the book body B. Then, after the gripper 30 releases its grip on the rectangular additional member S (see FIG. 5B), the arm 35 swings from the horizontal position to the inclined position, completing the attachment of the additional member. Thereafter, the slider 34 moves toward the additional member affixing device 1, the gripper 30 takes the retreated position, and the next rectangular additional member S is handed over to the gripper 30 by the suction head 45 (see FIG. 4A).

[0099] According to this embodiment, a first cutter 9 is disposed at the entrance of the cutting station 4 for cutting the continuous sheet-like additional material Q, which has been unwound to a length corresponding to the thickness of the body B, in a direction transverse to the unwinding direction (arrow X), and downstream of the first cutter 9 is disposed a transport mechanism 10 for transporting the cut additional material R from the first cutter 9 in the unwinding direction (arrow X) of the continuous sheet-like additional material, and a second cutter 11 is disposed midway along the transport path of the transport mechanism 10 for cutting the cut additional material R transported on the transport path in the unwinding direction (arrow X), and the positions of the roll blades 22a, 22b of the second cutter 11 can be adjusted in a direction transverse to the unwinding direction (arrow X) depending on the top-to-bottom length of the body B.

[0100] In this way, the continuous sheet-like additional material Q is cut in a direction (width direction of the continuous sheet-like additional material Q) transverse to the unwinding direction (arrow X) of the continuous sheet-like additional material Q according to the thickness of the main body B, and then the cut additional material R is cut in the unwinding direction (arrow X) according to the vertical length of the main body B, thereby minimizing the amount of cutting waste and thereby suppressing wasteful consumption of material (additional material).

[0101] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, during operation of the additional member attachment device 1, the first cutter 9 performs an intermittent cutting operation in synchronization with the intermittent unwinding operation of the continuous sheet-like additional member Q by the unwinding unit 5, and the second cutter 11 cuts the additional member R cut by the first cutter 9 while the additional member R is being transported away from the first cutter 9 by the conveying mechanism 10.

[0102] When the size of the main body B is changed while the additional material affixing device 1 is operating, information on the new size of the main body B is simultaneously sent from the control unit 50 of the additional material affixing device 1 to the conveying mechanism 10 and the first and second cutters 9, 11, and based on this information, the amount of continuous sheet-like additional material Q unwound by the unwinding unit 5 is changed, and the positions of the roll blades 22a, 22b of the second cutter 11 are changed in a direction crossing the unwinding direction (arrow X) of the continuous sheet-like additional material Q.

[0103] In this case, by changing the positions of the roll blades 22a, 22b of the second cutter 11 from the start of unwinding by the unwinding unit 5 to the time when the additional material R cut by the first cutter 9 reaches the second cutter 11, the size of the body B can be changed without stopping the operation of the additional material affixing device 1.

[0104] Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the configuration of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and it goes without saying that a person skilled in the art can devise various modifications within the scope of the configuration described in the appended claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0105] 1. Additional material attachment device 2 rolls 3 Roll Storage Unit 4 Cutting Station 5 Unwinding unit 5a, 5b Unwinding roller 6a~6c Guide rollers 7 Curl Remover 8 Cutting unit 9 First Cutter 9a straight blade 9b Blade receiving plate 9c Straight blade drive mechanism 10. Conveyor mechanism 11 Second Cutter 12 Upstream conveyor belt 12a, 12b Idle Roller 12c Drive roller 12d endless belt 13 Downstream conveyor belt 14 Fixed conveyor belt 14a Conveyor frame 14b Drive roller 14c axis 14d Idol Lola 14e Endless Belt 15 Movable conveyor belt 15a Conveyor Frame 15b Drive roller 15c axis 15d Idol Roller 15e Endless Belt 16 Drive shaft 17 Drive mechanism 17a Pulley 17b Motor 17c pulley 17d Endless Belt 18a, 18b Slide guide 19 Blade holder 20 Holder drive mechanism 21 Sleeve 22a, 22b Roll blade 23a, 23b Feed roller 24a, 24b Feed roller 25 Axis 26 Ball screw 27 Ball screw nut 28 Ball screw drive mechanism 28a Pulley 28b Motor 28c pulley 28d Endless Belt 29 Stopper 30 Gripper 30g grip part 31 First gripper drive mechanism 32 Second gripper drive mechanism 33 Slide Guide 34 Slider 35 Arm 35a Tip 35b Rear edge 36 Slider drive mechanism 37a, 37b Flanged pin 38a, 38b Compression spring 39 Ball screw 40 Ball screw nut 41 Ball screw drive mechanism 41a Pulley 41b Motor 41c pulley 41d Endless Belt 42 Arm drive mechanism 43 Air Cylinder 43a Piston rod 43b Support shaft 43c Lola 44 Delivery Unit 45 Suction head 45a Suction cup 45b Negative pressure generating section 46 Suction head drive mechanism 46a 1st Slide Guide 46b First slider 46c First ball screw 46d First ball screw nut 46e First rotation drive mechanism 46f Second Slide Guide 46g Second slider 46h Second ball screw 46i 2nd ball screw nut 46j Second rotary drive mechanism 46k 3rd Slide Guide 46m 3rd Slider 46n motor 46p Pulley 46q Endless Belt 50 Control section 52 Case B body F Cover attachment unit f1 Pressure plate f2, f3 nip plate K Clamper M Bookbinding machine P Additional parts attachment position Q Continuous sheet-like additional material R Cut-off additional parts S Strip-shaped additional member U Frame

Claims

1. An additional member attaching device is connected to a bookbinding machine, and supplies an additional member from outside the bookbinding machine to a glue-applied spine of a book body stopped at an additional member attaching position in the bookbinding machine, and attaches the additional member to the spine, a roll storage unit that stores a roll of a continuous sheet-like additional member so as to be rotatable around an axis; an unwinding unit that unwinds the continuous sheet-like additional member from the roll storage unit in an unwinding direction to a cutting station; a cutting unit disposed in the cutting station, cutting the continuous sheet-like additional member unwound in the unwinding direction by the unwinding unit according to a size of the body to form a strip-like additional member; Equipped with The cutting unit includes: a first cutter for cutting the continuous sheet-like additional member in a direction transverse to the unwinding direction by the unwinding unit to a length corresponding to a thickness of the body; a second cutter that cuts the additional member cut by the first cutter in a direction along the unwinding direction according to the length of the body in the top-bottom direction; An additional member attaching device having an

2. 2. The additional member affixing device according to claim 1, further comprising a control unit for controlling the unwinding unit so as to intermittently unwind the continuous sheet-like additional member by a length corresponding to a thickness of the body.

3. The additional member affixing device according to claim 2 , wherein the control unit controls the first cutter in synchronization with the unwinding unit, which operates intermittently.

4. 4. The additional member affixing device according to claim 2, wherein the control unit controls the position of the second cutter so as to correspond to the length of the body in the top-bottom direction.

5. 5. An additional member affixing device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an additional member transport and attachment unit which, while connected to the bookbinding machine, transports the rectangular additional member to the additional member affixing position within the bookbinding machine and affixes it to the spine of the book body stopped at the additional member affixing position.

6. a conveying mechanism that conveys the additional member cut by the first cutter in an unwinding direction, The first cutter includes: a straight blade extending across the unwinding path above the unwinding path of the continuous sheet-like additional member and movable in the vertical direction; a blade receiving plate disposed below the unwinding path and facing the straight blade; a linear blade drive mechanism for moving the linear blade between a standby position where the linear blade is spaced a predetermined distance from the blade receiving plate and a cutting position where the linear blade engages with the blade receiving plate, The second cutter includes: At least one slide guide extending across the conveying path of the conveying mechanism; a blade holder slidably mounted on the at least one slide guide; a holder drive mechanism for sliding the blade holder; a pair of roll blades attached to the blade holder in a vertically opposed state across the conveying path and rotatable about axes extending across the conveying path; 6. The additional member affixing device according to claim 1, further comprising: a rotation drive mechanism coupled to the shaft of at least one of the pair of roll blades.

7. The additional member application device according to claim 6, wherein the cutting unit has a stopper extending across the transport path downstream of the second cutter of the transport path and abutting against a tip of the strip-shaped additional member transported on the transport path, thereby stopping the strip-shaped additional member.

8. The body stopped at the additional member attachment position is in an upright state, a gripper capable of gripping the strip-shaped additional member while supporting a lower surface of the strip-shaped additional member; a first gripper drive mechanism for moving the gripper between a retracted position within a housing and an advanced position outside the housing; a second gripper drive mechanism for moving the gripper between the advanced position and a raised position above the advanced position; a transfer unit for transferring the strip-shaped additional member from the cutting station to the gripper located at the retreated position, 8. An additional member affixing device as described in any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein, when connected to the bookbinding machine, the forward position of the gripper is directly below the spine of the book body stopped at the additional member affixing position within the bookbinding machine, and the gripper presses the rectangular additional member against the spine of the book body in the raised position.

9. An additional member attaching device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, a bookbinding machine to which the additional member attaching device is connected; A bookbinding system comprising:

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