SHEET PROCESSING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING SYSTEM

• US 20130154176A1
• Filed: 12/12/2012
• Published: 06/20/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies Incorporated (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies Incorporated (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Inventors: OSHIMA, Keisuke
• Granted Patent: US 8,894,056 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 270/37
• CPC Class Codes: B42C 1/12 Machines for both collating or gathering and permanently attaching together the sheets or signatures
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2220/01 indicating an entity as a function of which control, adjustment or change is performed, i.e. input
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2220/02 indicating an entity which is controlled, adjusted or changed by a control process, i.e. output
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2220/11 indicating that the input or output entities exclusively relate to machine elements
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2301/322 Riding over one elongated or saddle-like member
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2301/33222 90°
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2301/4213 of a limited number of articles, e.g. buffering, forming bundles
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2301/4421 by abutting edge
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2301/45 Folding, unfolding
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2404/725 retractable
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2404/73 Means for sliding the handled material on a surface, e.g. pushers
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2408/12 stapler arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2511/11 Length
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2511/20 Location in space
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2701/1313 trailing edge
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2701/13212 Fold, spine portion of folded article
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2701/18271 of folded sheet material
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2701/1829 Bound, bundled or stapled stacks or packages
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2701/18292 Stapled sets of sheets
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2801/27 Devices located downstream of office-type machines
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 29/60 : diverting the stream into alternative paths B65H29/62 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 31/3045 : on the outermost articles of the pile for clamping the pile
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 37/04 : for securing together articles or webs, e.g. by adhesive, stitching or stapling adhering replacement to expiring web during change of web roll B65H19/18
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 37/06 : for folding
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 39/00 : Associating, collating, or gathering articles or webs combinations of piling and depiling operations, of interest apart from the single operation of piling or depiling B65H83/00; machines for both collating or gathering and permanently attaching together sheets or signatures B42C1/00
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 39/10 : Associating articles from a single source, to form, e.g. a writing-pad laminating B32B37/00, B32B38/00
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 45/30 : Folding in combination with creasing, smoothing or application of adhesive folding or adhesive application in article or web delivering B65H37/00
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/6544 : Details about the binding means or procedure
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/00831 : Stitcher

Abstract

Sheets center-folded by a center-folder are placed on a main saddle. A buffer saddle is provided separately from the main saddle, on an opposite side of the center-folder across the main saddle. The pile of sheets saddle-stitched on the main saddle is placed on the buffer saddle. When viewed from above, the buffer saddle is movable in a direction separating from the main saddle that is a reverse direction to the center-folder, and in a direction orthogonal to the direction separating from the main saddle. A sheet processing device is arranged in the orthogonal direction where the buffer saddle is movable.

Claims

1. A sheet processing device comprising:

a first saddle on which sheets center-folded by a center-folder are to be placed;

a second saddle that is provided separately from the first saddle on an opposite side of the center-folder across the first saddle, allows a pile of sheets saddle-stitched on the first saddle to be placed thereon, and is movable in a direction separating from the first saddle that is a reverse direction to the center-folder and in a direction orthogonal to the direction separating from the first saddle, viewed from above; and

a post processor that is arranged in the orthogonal direction where the second saddle is movable, and performs a post-processing on the pile of sheets.

2. The sheet processing device according to claim 1, wherein

while a folding direction of the center-folded pile of sheets is fixed, the pile of sheets are moved from the center-folder through the first saddle and the second saddle to the post processor.

3. The sheet processing device according to claim 1, wherein

when the second saddle feeds the pile of sheets to the post processor with the pile of sheets placed on the second saddle,

the second saddle moves in the direction separating from the first saddle, and thereafter moves in the direction orthogonal to the direction separating from the first saddle, and

when the second saddle delivers the pile of sheets to the post processor and thereafter returns to a receiving position for receiving the pile of sheets from the first saddle,

the second saddle moves linearly from a delivering position to the post processor, to the receiving position from the first saddle.

4. The sheet processing device according to claim 1, wherein

the post processor includes a cutter that trims an edge portion of the pile of sheets.

5. The sheet processing device according to claim 1, wherein.

a sheet loader that loads the pile of sheets post-processed by the post processor is arranged above the second saddle.

6. An image forming system comprising:

an image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet; and

the sheet processing device according to claim 1 that receives the sheet on which the image is formed by the image forming unit.