JP3678355B2 - Printed material processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a printed material processing apparatus that performs post-processing such as stapling and clip attachment.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In many cases, a print processing apparatus for post-processing such as stapling is attached to a paper discharge position of an image forming apparatus such as a conventional copying machine, printer, or facsimile. In addition, a technique that can mutually perform stapling and clip mounting has been proposed, as in a post-processing apparatus described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-48777.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, when preparing a report, if there are multiple texts, drawings, and attachments, each of the text, drawings and attachments is stapled, and these are combined into a single report. There are things to do. FIG. 7 shows an example of printing from a printer. When preparing 5 copies of a report with several pages of text, several sheets of drawings, and several pages of attachments, the user creates a report using an application on a personal computer. Prepare the attached materials on the Internet, print each one, and create five copies of this as one report. As a general procedure, as shown in FIG. 7A, a word processor is used to create a sentence, print five copies, and perform a stapling process. Subsequently, five copies of the CAD drawing are printed, and the stapling process is also performed. Similarly, five copies of the attached material are printed from the Internet, and the stapling process is performed. On the paper discharge tray of the printer, five copies of text, five copies of drawings, and five copies of attached material are stacked. The user sorts this manually and attaches a clip with one sentence, one drawing, and one attached document to create five copies of the report. In addition, as shown in FIG. 7B, an application such as DTP can print a report consisting of sentences, drawings, and attached materials at one time. The stapling process can only give instructions to the extent that five copies of this booklet are completed. If the clip can be attached, five copies of the booklet with the clip attached can be made instead of the staple.
[0004]
In addition, there are cases where the same operation is performed with a copying machine. An example of this case is shown in FIG. The manuscript is a report of several pages of text, several sheets of drawings, and several pages of attached materials. When five copies are made, these manuscripts are read as one series of manuscripts as shown in FIG. When the output and stapling process is performed, the printed matter is subjected to one stapling process for text, drawings, and attached materials, and five copies of this booklet are completed. If the clip can be attached, five copies of the booklet with the clip attached can be made instead of the staple. Also, as shown in FIG. 8B, when text, drawings, and attached materials are read separately and group output and stapling processing is performed, five copies of stapling processing, five copies of drawings, and five copies of attached materials are discharged. The paper is loaded on the tray, and the user manually sorts them and attaches clips to each of the sentences, drawings, and attachments to create five copies of the report.
[0005]
As described above, according to the above-described prior art, the stapling process can be performed only in the stapling process, and the clip mounting can be performed only in the clip mounting. Therefore, a report that is not stapled in a document unit is output, or a large amount of stapled printed matter is manually processed. And attached a clip to this as one report. In any case, you don't want to do such annoying manual work.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above-described object, the first invention of the present application is a print processing apparatus that performs post-processing such as stapling and clip mounting on paper discharged from an image forming apparatus, and outputs the staple processing and clip mounting. When performing post-processing such as, an intermediate stack unit that holds a plurality of sheets ejected from the image forming apparatus, a staple processing unit that performs a stapling process on a bundle of sheets held in the intermediate stack unit, Clip attaching means for attaching a clip to the sheet bundle held in the stack section, a retraction stack section for temporarily retreating the sheet bundle held in the intermediate stack, and the retraction stack for sequentially stapling the sheet bundle The sheet bundle that has been stapled and returned to the intermediate stack part, and is used after the staple processing of the multiple parts. Using a print processing apparatus characterized by a control means for mounting the clip to the bundle.
[0007]
    According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printed matter processing apparatus that performs post-processing such as stapling or clip attachment on a sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus, and discharges the sheet that is not subjected to post-processing to the first discharge sheet. A first discharge tray that discharges from the mouth, an intermediate stack unit that holds a plurality of sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus when performing post-processing such as stapling or clip attachment, and the intermediate stack unit. Staple processing means for stapling the paper bundle held in the stack, clip mounting means for clipping the paper bundle held in the stack section, and the paper bundle held in the intermediate stack section. A sheet bundle conveying means for discharging the sheet from the second sheet discharge port; a retraction stack unit for temporarily retracting the sheet bundle held in the intermediate stack unit from the second sheet discharge port; A second discharge tray for discharging the post-processed sheet bundle using the clock unit, and the retracted state to discharge the sheet bundle is discharged from the second discharge outlet to the retracted stack portion,Inside  A stack of sheets post-processed in the inter-stack sectionA paper discharge switching means for switching a post-processing paper discharge state of paper discharged from the second paper discharge port to the second paper discharge tray, and a retraction sheet for returning the sheet bundle in the retraction stack section to the intermediate stack section again When an instruction to attach a bundle returning unit and a plurality of stapled paper bundles to be bound into one booklet is given, the sheet discharge switching unit is in a retracted state, and the image forming apparatus Staple processing is performed on the sheets delivered and stacked from the stack, and the staple-processed sheet bundle is sequentially retracted to the retracting stack section, and then the plurality of staple-processed sheet bundles are again stored in the intermediate stack section. The paper discharge switching means is put into a post-processing paper discharge state, and a booklet in which the plurality of stapled paper bundles are clipped and bound is put. Using a print processing apparatus characterized by a control means for discharging the serial second discharge tray.
[0008]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is used the printed matter processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, wherein the stapling position of the stapling processing means is different from the clip mounting position of the clip mounting means. .
[0009]
[Action]
According to the first and second aspects of the present invention, when a report composed of a plurality of documents is created in accordance with an instruction from a copying machine or a personal computer, the documents are first printed sequentially and then stapled in the intermediate stack unit. Evacuate. This operation is performed for each document, and when all of the documents are completed, a plurality of paper bundles that have been evacuated together are returned to the intermediate stack portion, and clips are attached and ejected. By repeating the above operation as many times as necessary, a booklet in which a plurality of paper bundles each stapled in document units are bound by clips can be made as many times as necessary. With this function, it is possible to create a report in which texts, drawings, attached materials, etc., which have been stapled in different document units, are bound with one clip without any user's hand.
[0010]
In the third aspect of the present invention, since the staple binding position and the clip attachment position are different from each other, the clip attachment is not performed at the position where the thickness of the sheet bundle is increased after the stapling process. Can be equipped with a clip. Furthermore, the staple does not become a resistance and the clip cannot be attached.
[0011]
【Example】
A printed matter processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus employing the present invention will be described with reference to the schematic diagram of FIG. The printed material processing apparatus 1 performs post-processing on sheets sequentially discharged from the image forming apparatus 2, and includes a printed material processing apparatus control unit 102, a pair of conveying rollers 103 (1031 to 1033), a branching unit 104, a first unit. A discharge port 105, a second discharge port 106, a first discharge tray 107, a second discharge tray 108, a retracting stack unit 109, an intermediate stack unit 110, a sheet bundle conveying unit 111, a post-processing unit 112, The tray lifting / lowering means 113, the retracted sheet bundle returning means 114, and the like are included.
[0012]
The printed material processing apparatus control unit 102 controls each of the above components, and is connected to the image forming apparatus 2 via the cable 23.
[0013]
The conveyance rollers 103 (1031 to 1033) convey sheets sequentially delivered from the image forming apparatus 2. The branching unit 104 sorts the paper transported here. In normal printing, the branching unit 104 is in a solid line state in the drawing, and the paper is fed from the first paper discharge port 105 to the first paper discharge tray 107. To discharge. In the state of the broken line in the figure, the sheet is conveyed to the lower intermediate stack unit. The second paper discharge tray 108 is a tray from which a post-processed sheet bundle is discharged.
[0014]
The evacuation stack unit 109 is a characteristic part of the present case, and evacuates a plurality of stapled sheet bundles. Further, since a plurality of paper bundles that need to be clip-attached later, a mechanism for adjusting the paper bundle and a mechanism for holding the paper bundle are provided, although not shown. The retracting stack unit 109 is provided with retracted sheet bundle returning means 114. The retracting stack part 109 is tilted by the rotation of the hinge part 1141, and the sheet bundle returning blade 1142 is pushed rightward by pushing the sheet stack returning blade 1142. Is returned to the intermediate stack unit 110.
[0015]
The sheet bundle conveying unit 111 is a belt having two rollers and a belt is loaded on the belt surface. The sheet bundle is obliquely stacked on the belt surface, and the lower end of the sheet bundle is received by a lower sheet bundle stopper 1111. The state shown in the figure is a state in which sheets are stacked, and this sheet bundle conveying means 111 rotates counterclockwise to remove the sheet bundle from the second sheet discharge port 106 to the second sheet discharge tray 108 or the retraction stack. It discharges to the part 109. Although not shown, the sheets stacked on the intermediate stack unit 110 are also provided with a mechanism for aligning the edges. The second paper discharge port 106 is provided with a mechanism (not shown) for shifting the bundle of discharged paper in the lateral direction of the transport direction.
[0016]
The post-processing unit 112 is a unit that performs post-processing such as stapling or clip mounting on the bundle of sheets stacked on the intermediate stack unit 110. Move the front and back in the figure and stop at the set position to perform stapling and clip attachment.
[0017]
The tray lifting / lowering means 113 is for moving the second paper discharge tray 108 and the retracting stack portion 109 to a position where they are applied to the second paper discharge port 106. Since there is a mechanism that moves up and down according to the loading amount of the second paper discharge tray 108 from the past, it is almost conventional.
[0018]
The image forming apparatus 2 includes a print processing apparatus I / F 22 connected to the print processing apparatus control unit 2 via a cable 23, a paper feed cassette 241 on which a plurality of sheets of various sizes are stacked, a vertical conveyance path 242, It consists of a registration roller pair 243, an electrophotographic image forming device 244, a fixing device 245, a discharge roller 146, a DF I / F 25, and a DF 27 that automatically feeds a document connected to this via a cable 26. ing.
[0019]
When normal printing is performed using the image forming apparatus 2 and the printed material processing apparatus 1, the sheet fed from the sheet feeding cassette 241 passes through the vertical conveyance path 242 and once adjusts the leading edge by the registration roller pair 243 and temporarily. The toner image is stopped and conveyed again in accordance with the timing of the toner image formed by the image forming device 244. The toner image is transferred by the image forming device 244, and then heated and sandwiched by the fixing device 245, thereby the toner. The image is fixed on the paper, conveyed by the discharge roller pair 246, and delivered to the printed material processing apparatus. When the printed matter processing apparatus 1 receives the paper, the branching unit 104 is in a state indicated by a broken line in the drawing, and is conveyed to the pair of conveying rollers 103 (1031 to 1033), and from the first discharge port 105, The paper is discharged to one paper discharge tray 107.
[0020]
In order to effectively use the present invention, it is necessary to devise the image forming apparatus and the printer driver. FIG. 2 is a block diagram including the image forming apparatus 2 described above and a personal computer that transmits print data thereto.
[0021]
The image forming apparatus 2 is a composite apparatus having printer, copy, and facsimile functions. The CPU 201, ROM 202, RAM 203, printer controller 204, operation display unit 205, scanner device 206, image processing unit 207, bitmap memory 208, print job. The storage unit 209, the CODEC 210, the image memory 211, the modem 212, the NCU 213, the bus 214, the printed material processing I / F 22, the printer unit 24, the DF I / F 25, the network I / F 28, and the like.
[0022]
Specifically, the CPU 201 controls each component of the image forming apparatus 2 and is connected to a ROM 202 storing various programs, and a RAM 203 storing user choice data, setting data, total count data, various font data, and the like. .
[0023]
The printer controller 204 analyzes print commands and job information transmitted from a connected personal computer and generates image data. In the present invention, in addition to the print command execution means, the controller analyzes header information and analyzes header information analysis means for judging whether to print as it is or to store it in the job storage means 209. A footer information analysis unit for determining whether or not to print a job stored in the storage unit 209, and a job corresponding to the job stored in the print job storage unit 209 is designated based on the analysis result of the footer information analysis unit. All print execution means for giving an instruction to print the number of copies.
[0024]
The operation display unit 205 includes an LDC display unit, a numeric keypad, a start key, and the like. Since it is an operation display section of the composite apparatus, the functions of copy, printer, and facsimile can be switched. Others include an online / offline switch button, a paper cassette selection key, and the like.
[0025]
The scanner device 206 applies light to a document fed by the DF 27 one by one with a halogen lamp, reads the reflected light with a CCD sensor, converts this analog signal into a digital signal by A / D conversion, and an image processing unit 207. Image processing is performed, and the image data is expanded in the subsequent bit map memory 208.
[0026]
In addition to the image data from the scanner device 206, the bitmap memory 208 analyzes the print command transferred from a personal computer connected via a network or the like by the printer controller 204 and generates the other party's facsimile. Is a means for decompressing the image data sent from the public line, the NCU 213, and the modem 212 by the CODEC 210 as necessary, and developing and holding the image data as a full bit map.
[0027]
The print job storage unit 209 is a memory for temporarily storing job data transmitted from a personal computer, and is preferably provided with a hard disk so that many jobs can be stored. However, the free capacity of the image memory 211 may be used.
[0028]
The CODEC 210 is for decoding image data included in the print data, which is encoded.
[0029]
The image memory 211 encodes and stores the image data read by the scanner device 206 by the CODEC 210 during memory copy or facsimile memory transmission.
[0030]
The modem 212 converts an analog signal transmitted from the public line into a digital signal, and conversely converts the digital signal into an analog signal and transmits the analog signal over the public line.
[0031]
The NCU 213 performs connection to the public line, switching between facsimile and telephone, transmission of an on-hook signal to the line, ring detection, and the like.
[0032]
The bus 214 is a bus for exchanging data and signals of each configuration described above. Each has a bus for image data and a bus for control signals, which are omitted here.
[0033]
The printed material processing apparatus I / F 22 is an interface for connecting the image processing apparatus 2 to the printed material processing apparatus 1 described with reference to FIG. As described with reference to FIG. 1, the printer unit 24 is also related to printing by the image forming apparatus 2 adopting the electrophotographic system. The D / F I / F 26 is an interface for controlling the DF 27 by connecting to the DF 27 placed on the image forming apparatus 2 via the cable 26. The network I / F 28 is an interface that connects the image forming apparatus 2 to the network. Here, it is connected via a network cable 4 to a personal computer 3 and other connected devices not shown.
[0034]
The personal computer 3 includes a CPU 31, a ROM 32, a RAM 33, a monitor 34, an operation unit 35, a hard disk 36, a network I / F 37, a bus 38, and the like. In particular, the hard disk 36 includes a plurality of word processors, CAD, the Internet, and other applications 361. , Print data generation means, header information generation means for generating header information such as temporary storage information and ID information, and footer information including all print information necessary for printing out using the printed matter processing apparatus 1 of the present invention. A printer driver 362 is used as a footer information generating means for generating.
[0035]
A description will be given of a case where a plurality of documents created by the application of the personal computer 3 are printed out in the staple & clip mode using the printer function of the image forming apparatus 2 with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. FIG. 3 shows a processing procedure on the personal computer 3 side. First, the setting of the printer driver 362 is set to a staple and clip mode for using the print processing apparatus of this case (S101). This mode is a mode for stapling in document units and binding a plurality of stapled paper bundles by attaching clips. Next, the user of the personal computer creates a document using an application 361 such as word processing software, CAD software, or the Internet, or selects a home page (S102), and prints instructions from each print menu (S103). In the case of the final document, the number of copies is input. The selection of whether or not the document is the final document may be selected and input at the same timing as instructing printing from the print menu of the application 362. The print data is generated based on the application data and the print menu data described above, and the temporary storage information to be stored in the print job storage unit 209 of the image forming apparatus 2 and the ID for identifying the sending personal computer Header information including information and date / time information as required is generated (S104). Next, it is determined whether or not this is the final document (S105). If it is not the final document, the header information and the print data are transmitted to the image forming apparatus 2 (S106), and the process returns to S102 again. If the document is the final document in S105, all print information for printing the job stored in the print job storage unit 209 of the image forming apparatus 2 is created (S107), and a plurality of copies are instructed in S103. If so, the information on the number of copies is created as footer information, the header information, the print data, and the footer information are transmitted to the image forming apparatus 2 (S108), and the process ends.
[0036]
FIG. 4 shows a processing procedure on the image forming apparatus 2 side. First, it is determined whether or not print data is received from the personal computer 3 (S201), and it is determined whether or not header information is included in the received data (S202). If it is not included, the job is executed as it is based on the print data (S203), and the process ends. If the header information is included in S202, according to the temporary storage information of the header information, the print data of this document is stored in the print job storage unit 209 together with the ID information and the date / time information as the transmitted data ( S204). Next, it is determined whether or not footer information is included (S205). If it is not included, the processing is terminated as it is. If it is included, n = number of copies is set from the number of copies included in the footer information (S207). ) Subsequently, the document print data stored in the print job storage unit 209 is sequentially selected from the print data stored together with the ID number for identifying the personal computer that has transmitted the footer information and printed. Then, stapling is performed for each document, and the sheets are sequentially discharged to the save stack unit 109 (S208). When a sheet bundle of documents corresponding to one copy is discharged to the discharge stack, the sheet stack of this discharge stack is returned to the intermediate stack section 110, and a clip is attached to the stack in the second discharge tray 109. The paper is discharged (S209). Since one copy is completed, n = n-1 is set (S210), and until the required number of copies is reached (S211), the operations of S208 to S210 are repeated, and n = 0 is set. And the process ends. The paper handling of the printed material processing apparatus 1 by printing in the staple & clip mode will be described in detail later.
[0037]
In this embodiment, in S204 described above, the transmitted data is stored as it is in the print job storage unit 209. However, if the data expanded in the bitmap memory 208 is compressed and stored, there is a print instruction. Printing time may be shortened. Further, here, the job of the print job storage unit 209 is printed based on the footer information of the final document. However, if the final document is forgotten, the print data of the final document may be transmitted. In this case, the process may be started from S205 by an instruction from the personal computer 3 or an instruction from the menu of the operation display unit 205 of the image forming apparatus 2.
[0038]
A description will be given with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 5 when a plurality of types of original documents are read by the DF and copied in the staple & clip mode using the copy function of the image forming apparatus 2. First, the image forming apparatus is set to the staple & clip mode (S301), the first series of originals is set (S302), and the start key of the operation display unit is pressed (S303). The originals are sequentially read to create image data in units of pages, and the series of originals are associated and stored in the image memory 211 (S304). Such an operation is the same as a conventional memory copy. When the first series of originals has been read and stored, the operation display unit displays that the next original is set or printing is started (S305), and it is determined whether there is a next series of originals (S305). S306) If there is no next original, the process returns to S302 to read and store the next series of originals. If there is no next series of originals, the user inputs the number of copies and then presses the start key. (S307) The corresponding series of original files stored in the image memory 211 are sequentially printed, stapled in units of copies of the series of originals, and sequentially saved in the save stack unit 109 (S309). When a bundle of original sheets corresponding to one set is discharged to the discharge stack, the stack of sheets in the discharge stack is returned to the intermediate stack section 110, and a clip is attached to the second stack. The sheet is discharged to 109 (S310). Since one copy is completed, n = n-1 is set (S311), and until the required number of copies is reached (S312), the operations of S309 to S311 are repeated, and n = 0 is set. Then, the process ends. Similarly, the paper handling of the printed material processing apparatus 1 by copying in the staple & clip mode will be described in detail later.
[0039]
The above-mentioned copy was set in a series of manuscript units and was read by pressing the start button each time. However, if a special separator sheet is provided as a slip sheet and recognized as a series of manuscript unit separators, The same result can be obtained by setting all the originals at one time. Further, if a plurality of trays for setting DF originals are provided, the originals set in each tray can be processed as a series of originals.
[0040]
6 (A) to (K) in FIG. 6 for paper handling when preparing five copies of a report consisting of three types of documents, a document, a drawing, and an attached document in the staple & clip mode of the printed material processing apparatus 1 of the present case. It explains using. In the case of the printer function, printing is performed by a word processor software on a personal computer, CAD, and an Internet application, and an instruction is given to print five copies when an attached material is printed on the Internet. In the case of the copy function, a report consisting of three types of documents prepared in advance, text, drawings, and attached materials, is copied. First, a series of text manuscripts are set and read in the DF, followed by a series of drawing manuscripts. Is set and read. Finally, a series of attached document originals is set and read on the DF, and a 5-copy instruction is issued.
[0041]
First, FIG. 6A shows that the first document is being printed in the case of the printer function. The paper on which the text delivered from the image forming apparatus 2 is printed is changed in direction by the branching unit 104 and sequentially stacked on the intermediate stack unit 110. In the case of the copy function, sheets on which the first series of text documents are copied are stacked. Along with this operation, the second paper discharge tray 108 and the retraction stack unit 109 rise, and the retraction stack unit 109 comes to the position of the second paper discharge port 106. When this is finished, as shown in FIG. 6B, the post-processing unit 112 staples the sheet bundle of sentences in the intermediate stack unit 110, and then, as shown in FIG. The stapled text bundle stacked on the stack section 110 is discharged to the retreat stack section 109 by the rotational movement of the sheet bundle transport means 111. Next, as shown in FIG. 6D, in the case of the printer function, the next drawing is printed, and in the case of the copy function, the next series of drawing originals is copied and stacked on the intermediate stack unit 110. To go. At this time, the upper surface of the second paper discharge tray 108 and the paper stack of the text bound by the previous staple loaded on the retraction stack unit 109 as the retraction stack unit 109 loaded with the paper bundle is lowered. It comes to the position of the paper discharge port 106. When the sheet bundle of the next drawing is stacked on the intermediate stack unit 110, the post-processing means 112 performs stapling processing as shown in FIG. 6E, and subsequently, as shown in FIG. 6F. The stapled drawing sheet bundle loaded on the intermediate stack unit 110 is discharged onto the previous sentence sheet bundle in the retracting stack unit 109 by the rotational movement of the sheet bundle conveying unit 111. The sheet bundle of the next attachment is loaded on the sheet bundle of the drawing of the evacuation stack in the same procedure. Thus, a stack of sheets, each bound with text, drawings, and attached materials, is stacked on the evacuation stack unit 109 from below. Next, as shown in FIG. 6G, the retracting stack unit 109 starts to move to the discharge position of the second discharge port 106, and subsequently, as shown in FIG. 109 is tilted in a direction to return the three paper bundles bound by the staples of the text, drawings, and attached materials to the intermediate stack portion 110, and the paper bundle return blade 1142 pushes the rear end, so that the three paper bundles are The sheet is again delivered to the sheet bundle conveying means 111, and the sheet bundle conveying means 111 returns to a predetermined position by rotating in the clockwise direction. Thereafter, as shown in (I) of FIG. 6, the post-processing unit 112 attaches one clip to the three sheet bundles to form a booklet of one report. At this time, as in the third aspect of the present invention, the staple binding position and the clip mounting position are different. Here, the second discharge tray 108 and the retracting stack portion 109 on which the sheet bundle is stacked are lowered while the clip mounting post-processing is performed, and the second discharge tray 108 is moved to the second discharge port 106. At this position, as shown in FIG. 6J, the booklet of this report is discharged to the second paper discharge tray 108, and one of the required five copies of the report is completed. Next, as shown in FIG. In the case of the printer function, printing of the first document of the second copy is executed, and the sheets are sequentially stacked on the intermediate stack unit 110. In the case of the copy function, the first series of text documents of the second copy is copied. The stacked paper is loaded. Along with this operation, the second paper discharge tray 108 and the retraction stack unit 109 rise, and the retraction stack unit 109 comes to the position of the second paper discharge port 106. Thereafter, the same procedure of (B) to (K) is repeated, and when five copies of the report are discharged to the second discharge tray 108, the processing is ended.
[0042]
In the above-described embodiment, there is no limit on the thickness of the paper that can be stapled or clip-attached. However, when the paper thickness is provided, the number of staples that can be stapled is the paper that is stapled when a print command is issued by an application in the printer function. Since the number of bundles is known, it should be limited by the printer driver. In the copy function, the number of sheets can be counted when reading a series of documents. Similarly, it is only necessary to count the number of clip attachments in the same manner, and to enable printing in the staple & clip mode only when the number of clips is not more than the limit number. Furthermore, although each staple is possible, if the number of clips to be attached exceeds the limit, it is desired that the procedures (H) to (J) in FIG.
[0043]
【The invention's effect】
According to the first and second aspects of the present invention, when creating a report composed of a plurality of documents according to instructions from a copying machine or a personal computer, first, one document is sequentially printed, and this is subjected to a stapling process in an intermediate stack unit. Then evacuate. This operation is performed for each document, and when all of the documents are completed, a plurality of paper bundles that have been evacuated together are returned to the intermediate stack portion, and clips are attached and ejected. By repeating the above operation as many times as necessary, a booklet in which a plurality of paper bundles each stapled in document units are bound by clips can be made as many times as necessary. With this function, it is possible to create a report in which texts, drawings, attached materials, etc., which have been stapled in different document units, are bound with one clip without any user's hand.
[0044]
According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the staple binding position and the clip attachment position are different from each other, the clip attachment is not performed at the position where the thickness of the sheet bundle is increased by the stapling process. The clip at the position can be attached. Furthermore, the staple does not become a resistance and the clip cannot be attached.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an image forming apparatus and a printed material processing apparatus employing the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a printing system employing the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart of processing in a personal computer when printing in the staple & clip mode is performed in the printing system employing the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart of processing in the image forming apparatus when printing in the staple & clip mode is performed in the printing system employing the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart of processing in the image forming apparatus when copying in the staple & clip mode in the image forming apparatus and the printed material processing apparatus adopting the present invention.
FIG. 6 is an outline of the movement of the printed material processing apparatus when processing is performed in the staple and clip mode in the image forming apparatus and printed material processing apparatus employing the present invention.
FIG. 7 is an outline of a procedure when stapling and clip mounting are performed in order to create a report using a printer function of a conventional image forming apparatus and printed material processing apparatus.
FIG. 8 is an outline of a procedure when stapling and clip attachment are performed in order to copy a report using a copy function of an image forming apparatus and a printed material processing apparatus according to the prior art.
[Explanation of symbols]
1: Printed material processing device
102; Printed material processing apparatus control unit
103; Pair of conveying rollers (1031 to 1033)
104; Branch means
105; First discharge port
106; second discharge port
107; first discharge tray
108; second discharge tray
109; evacuation stack part
110: Intermediate stack part
111; Sheet bundle conveying means
112; post-processing means
113; Tray lifting means
114; Retracting sheet bundle returning means
2: Image forming apparatus
4; Network cable

Claims (3)

In a printed material processing device that performs post-processing such as stapling or clip attachment on paper ejected from an image forming device,
An intermediate stack unit that holds a plurality of sheets ejected from the image forming apparatus during post-processing such as stapling and clip attachment, and a stapling process that performs stapling on a bundle of sheets held in the intermediate stack unit Means, clip attaching means for attaching a clip to the sheet bundle held in the intermediate stack section, a retracting stack section for temporarily retracting the sheet bundle held in the intermediate stack, and stapled paper Control means for sequentially retracting the bundle to the retracting stack unit, returning the plurality of stapled sheet bundles to the intermediate stack unit, and mounting a clip on the plurality of stapled sheet bundles. Printed material processing equipment characterized by In a print processing device that performs post-processing such as stapling and clip attachment on paper ejected from an image forming device,
A first paper discharge tray that discharges paper that is not to be post-processed from the first paper discharge port, and a plurality of sheets that are discharged from the image forming apparatus when post-processing such as stapling or clip attachment is performed. An intermediate stack unit that holds sheets, a staple processing unit that performs a stapling process on a paper bundle held in the intermediate stack unit, a clip mounting unit that mounts a clip on a paper bundle held in the stack unit, and the intermediate unit A sheet bundle conveying means for discharging a sheet bundle held in the stack section from the second sheet discharge port, and a sheet bundle held in the intermediate stack section from the second sheet discharge opening temporarily. A retraction stack unit that retreats, a second discharge tray that discharges a sheet bundle post-processed by the intermediate stack unit, and a sheet stack discharged from the second discharge port. a retracted state for discharging the parts, the in A paper discharge switching means for switching and post paper discharge state for discharging the second discharge tray post-processed sheet bundle on the stack portion from said second sheet discharge port, the paper in front Symbol evacuation stacker A retracted sheet bundle returning means for returning the bundle to the intermediate stack section; and an instruction to attach a clip for binding a plurality of stapled sheet bundles to form one booklet, In the retracted state, the sheets delivered and stacked from the image forming apparatus are sequentially stapled, and the stapled sheet bundle is sequentially retracted to the retracting stack unit, and then the plurality of sheets are again stored. The stapled sheet bundle is returned to the intermediate stack section and attached with a clip, and the sheet discharge switching means is set to a post-process sheet discharge state, and the plurality of stapled sheet bundles are set. Printed material processing apparatus characterized by a control means for discharging the booklet binding to rip attached to the second sheet discharge tray.     The printed material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stapling position of the stapling processing unit and the clip mounting position of the clip mounting unit are different from each other.

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