JP7636792B2 - Sorting jig for bound documents - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to a sorting tool for the number of copies of bound documents.

Generally, at seminars and lectures, many copies of bound documents, such as materials made of multiple sheets of paper bound together with staples or booklets made of multiple sheets of paper bound together, are prepared and distributed to participants.

When preparing this bound document, first, a large number of copies (e.g., several hundred copies) of the bound document are created by binding together multiple sheets of paper, and then the large number of copies are sorted into a predetermined number of copies (e.g., 10 copies each), and the bound document is often handled in this sorted state (e.g., in bundles of 10 copies each).

Here, the task of sorting bound documents into the required number of copies is typically performed by a person repeatedly counting and stacking the bound documents one copy at a time until the required number of copies is reached, and this task is typically performed simultaneously by multiple people (a so-called human wave tactic).

However, the task of counting the number of copies of bound documents one by one is monotonous for the worker, and the burden of not making mistakes is great, making it easy to make mistakes. Therefore, as an alternative method, a method can be considered in which the weight or height of each bound document is first measured, and then the weight or height of a specified number of bound documents is converted to obtain a reference weight or height, and then the number of bound documents is adjusted so that the measured value when the weight or height of multiple copies of bound documents is actually measured becomes the reference weight or height. However, even with this method, it is necessary to convert the weight or height of the bound documents, memorize the reference weight or height obtained by the conversion so as not to forget it during the work, and measure the weight or height of multiple copies of bound documents, which is not something that everyone can do, and is cumbersome and may lead to mistakes.

On the other hand, as in Patent Document 1, if a copying machine with a finisher function (a function that separates printed documents into copies and discharges them, stapling each copy) is used, it is possible to eliminate the need to sort copies for stapled documents, but introducing such a multifunction machine requires considerable cost.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 9-194123

The problem that this invention aims to solve is to provide a jig for sorting bound documents into a specified number of copies that anyone can easily, accurately, and quickly perform.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a jig for sorting the number of copies of bound documents having the following configuration.
A base member is installed on a workbench on which a plurality of bound documents, each of which is made up of a plurality of sheets of paper, are placed in a vertically stacked state;
A support column extending upward from the base member;
a horizontal bar supported by the support so as to be movable in the vertical direction and extending horizontally from the support;
A height fixing mechanism capable of fixing the horizontal bar to the support at any height position.
A tool for sorting the number of copies of bound documents.

In this way, the horizontal bar is fixed to the support at a height position corresponding to the height of the bound documents when a predetermined number of copies are stacked on the top surface of the work table, and the bound documents are stacked on the top surface of the work table to a position higher than the bottom end of the horizontal bar to form a stack of bound documents, which can then be pushed by hand toward the horizontal bar, and the bound documents that make up the stack of bound documents that are at a height equal to or higher than the bottom end of the horizontal bar are received by the horizontal bar, and the bound documents that are lower than that are passed under the horizontal bar, allowing the bound documents to be sorted into the predetermined number of copies. In other words, once the horizontal bar is fixed to the support at a predetermined height position, anyone can easily, accurately, and quickly sort the bound documents into the predetermined number of copies without having to count the number of copies.

The horizontal bar has a vertical front surface for receiving the bound document and a horizontal bottom surface;
It is preferable to adopt a configuration in which the front surface and the lower end surface form a corner portion that meets at a right angle without being chamfered.

In this way, when bound documents are received by the horizontal bar, bound documents that are at the same height as the bottom end of the horizontal bar are prevented from slipping under the horizontal bar, making it possible to stably sort the number of copies of bound documents.

In other words, generally, tools that are handled by humans are often chamfered (such as R-chamfering, which connects two perpendicular planes with a surface that has an arcuate cross section, or C-chamfering, which connects two perpendicular planes with a 45-degree inclined surface) to prevent injuries, but if a chamfer is applied between the front and bottom faces of the horizontal bar, when bound documents are received by the horizontal bar, there is a risk that the bound documents at the same height as the bottom end of the horizontal bar will slip under the horizontal bar along the chamfer. Therefore, if a corner is formed where the front and bottom faces of the horizontal bar intersect at a right angle instead of chamfering between them, bound documents at the same height as the bottom end of the horizontal bar will be prevented from slipping under the horizontal bar, and the number of bound documents can be sorted stably.

The horizontal bar has a column connecting portion connected to the column, a horizontal extension portion extending horizontally from the column connecting portion, and a document receiving portion provided at a tip of the horizontal extension portion,
It is preferable that the horizontal extension portion is formed so as to connect between the support column connecting portion and the document receiving portion, not at the same height as the lower end of the document receiving portion, but at a position higher than that.

In this way, when sorting copies of stapled documents, the increased height of the stapled parts of the bound documents is prevented from hitting the horizontal extension of the horizontal bar, and it is possible to prevent discrepancies in the number of copies due to the thickness of the staples.

It is preferable that the base member has a clamp mechanism that removably fixes the base member to the workbench.

In this way, the base member can be firmly fixed to the workbench, so that the sorting jig can be reliably prevented from moving when the bound documents are received by the horizontal bar.

When using the jig for sorting the number of copies of bound documents of this invention, a horizontal bar is fixed to a support at a height position corresponding to the height of the bound documents when a predetermined number of copies are stacked on the top surface of a work table, and the bound documents are stacked on the top surface of the work table to a position higher than the bottom end of the horizontal bar to form a stack of bound documents, which is then pushed by hand toward the horizontal bar, and the bound documents that make up the stack of bound documents that are at a height equal to or higher than the bottom end of the horizontal bar are received by the horizontal bar, and the bound documents that are lower than that are passed under the horizontal bar, thereby sorting the bound documents into a predetermined number of copies. In other words, once the horizontal bar is fixed to the support at a predetermined height position, anyone can easily, accurately, and quickly sort the bound documents into a predetermined number of copies without having to count the number of copies.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a jig for sorting the number of copies of bound documents according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of the sorting jig of FIG. 1 as seen from the rear side. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the sorting jig of FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of the lower end of the document receiving portion of the sorting jig of FIG. A perspective view showing bound documents stacked vertically. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of the document receiving portion of the sorting jig shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which, of the bound documents shown in FIG. 6, bound documents at a height equal to or higher than the lower end surface of the document receiving portion of the horizontal bar are received by the horizontal bar, and a predetermined number of bound documents below the bound documents have passed under the horizontal bar; FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the sorting tool and bound documents shown in FIG. 7 as a whole;

Figure 1 shows a sorting jig 1 for sorting the number of copies of bound documents according to an embodiment of the present invention. This sorting jig 1 has a base member 2, a support post 3 extending upward from the base member 2, a horizontal bar 4 extending horizontally from the support post 3, and a height fixing mechanism 5 that can fix the horizontal bar 4 to the support post 3 at any height position.

As shown in FIG. 2, the base member 2 has a clamp mechanism 7 that detachably fixes the base member 2 to the workbench 6. The clamp mechanism 7 is a C-clamp that has a pair of upper and lower opposing pieces 8, 9 that face each other with the workbench 6 in between, a connecting portion 10 that connects the opposing pieces 8, 9 to each other outside the workbench 6, and a clamp screw 12 inserted into a screw hole 11 that passes vertically through the lower opposing piece 9. Instead of a C-clamp, the clamp mechanism 7 can also be a magnetic clamp that magnetically attracts and fixes the base member 2 to the top surface of the workbench 6.

As shown in FIG. 3, the support 3 is a columnar member with a constant cross-sectional shape along the vertical direction. The figure shows a support 3 with a round cross-section, but it is also possible to use a support 3 with a triangular or rectangular cross-section.

As shown in FIG. 2, the horizontal bar 4 is supported by the support 3 so that it can move up and down. The lower end of the support 3 is fixed to the base member 2. The horizontal bar 4 has a support connecting portion 13 that is connected to the support 3, a horizontal extension portion 14 that extends horizontally from the support connecting portion 13, and a document receiving portion 15 provided at the tip of the horizontal extension portion 14. The support connecting portion 13 has a through hole 16 that penetrates in the up and down direction, and the inner circumference of the through hole 16 fits slidably into the outer circumference of the support 3.

The document receiving section 15 is a plate piece that extends downward from the tip of the horizontal extension section 14. The horizontal extension section 14 is formed so as to connect the support column connection section 13 and the document receiving section 15, not at the same height as the lower end of the document receiving section 15, but at a higher position.

The height fixing mechanism 5 is a set screw attached to the support column connection part 13. This set screw has a threaded shaft 18 that is screwed into a threaded hole 17 formed horizontally in the support column connection part 13, and a handle 19 fixed to one end of the threaded shaft 18. The height fixing mechanism 5 can fix the horizontal bar 4 to the support column 3 by operating the handle 19 to press the tip of the threaded shaft 18 against the outer periphery of the support column 3.

As shown in FIG. 4, the document receiving section 15 has a vertical front surface 21 that receives bound documents 20, and a horizontal bottom surface 22. The front surface 21 and bottom surface 22 form a corner that intersects at a right angle without being chamfered. Both the front surface 21 and bottom surface 22 are flat surfaces.

An example of using the above-mentioned sorting jig 1 to sort a large number of bound documents 20 into a predetermined number of copies (for example, 10 copies) will be described. The bound documents 20 can be documents in which multiple sheets of documents are bound together with staples 23 (see FIG. 5), or booklets bound together with multiple sheets of documents (the figure shows bound documents 20 in which the edges of the documents are bound together with staples 23).

First, as shown in FIG. 2, the base member 2 is fixed to the workbench 6. Next, a predetermined number of bound documents 20 (for example, 10 copies) are stacked and placed on the upper surface of the workbench 6, and the horizontal bar 4 is fixed to the support 3 at a height position corresponding to the height H of the predetermined number of bound documents 20 (specifically, a position where the lower end surface 22 of the document receiving portion 15 of the horizontal bar 4 is above the upper surface of the predetermined number of bound documents 20 by less than the height corresponding to the thickness of one copy of the bound documents 20). Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the bound documents 20 are stacked on the upper surface of the workbench 6 to a position higher than the lower end surface 22 of the document receiving portion 15 of the horizontal bar 4 to form a stack of bound documents 20, and the stack of bound documents 20 is pushed by hand along the upper surface of the workbench 6 toward the horizontal bar 4. As a result, as shown in Figures 7 and 8, of the bound documents 20 that make up the stack of bound documents 20, those that are at a height equal to or higher than the lower end surface 22 of the document receiving portion 15 of the horizontal bar 4 are received by the horizontal bar 4, and only a predetermined number of bound documents 20 (e.g., 10 copies) below that pass under the horizontal bar 4.

When using this sorting tool 1, as shown in Figures 7 and 8, a stack of bound documents 20 formed by stacking the bound documents 20 to a position higher than the bottom end of the horizontal bar 4 can be pushed toward the horizontal bar 4 by hand, and the bound documents 20 that make up the stack of bound documents 20 that are at a height equal to or higher than the bottom end of the horizontal bar 4 can be received by the horizontal bar 4, and the bound documents 20 that are lower than that can be passed under the horizontal bar 4, thereby sorting the bound documents 20 into a predetermined number of copies. In other words, once the horizontal bar 4 is fixed to the support 3 at a predetermined height, anyone can easily, accurately, and quickly sort the bound documents 20 into a predetermined number of copies without having to count the number of copies of the bound documents 20.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the front surface 21 and the bottom surface 22 of the document receiving portion 15 of the horizontal bar 4 of the sorting jig 1 form a corner that intersects at a right angle without being chamfered. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, when the bound document 20 is received by the horizontal bar 4, the bound document 20 at the same height as the bottom surface 22 of the document receiving portion 15 of the horizontal bar 4 is prevented from slipping under the horizontal bar 4, making it possible to stably sort the number of copies of the bound document 20.

In other words, generally, tools that are handled by humans are often chamfered (such as R-chamfering, which connects two perpendicular planes with a surface that has a circular cross section, or C-chamfering, which connects two perpendicular planes with a 45-degree inclined surface) to prevent injuries, but if chamfering is performed between the front surface 21 and the bottom end surface 22 of the horizontal bar 4 shown in FIG. 4, when the bound document 20 is received by the horizontal bar 4, the bound document 20 at the same height as the bottom end of the horizontal bar 4 may slip under the horizontal bar 4 along the chamfer. In contrast, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the front surface 21 and the bottom end surface 22 of the horizontal bar 4 are not chamfered between them, and a corner is formed where the front surface 21 and the bottom end surface 22 of the horizontal bar 4 intersect at a right angle, so that the bound document 20 at the same height as the bottom end surface 22 of the document receiving portion 15 of the horizontal bar 4 is prevented from slipping under the horizontal bar 4, and the number of copies of the bound document 20 can be sorted stably.

As shown in FIG. 2, the sorting jig 1 has a horizontal extension 14 that does not pass at the same height as the bottom end surface 22 of the document receiving portion 15, but passes at a higher position to connect the support connecting portion 13 and the document receiving portion 15. Therefore, when sorting the number of copies of bound documents 20 bound with staples 23 as shown in FIG. 5, the part of the bound documents 20 that has been made taller by the staples 23 (the right part in the figure) is prevented from hitting the horizontal extension 14 of the horizontal bar 4 as shown in FIG. 2, and it is possible to prevent discrepancies in the number of copies due to the thickness of the staples 23.

In addition, this sorting jig 1 has a clamp mechanism 7 that removably fixes the base member 2 to the workbench 6, so that the base member 2 can be firmly fixed to the workbench 6, and it is possible to reliably prevent the sorting jig 1 from moving when the bound documents 20 are received by the horizontal bar 4.

In addition, this sorting jig 1 does not require a power source and is inexpensive to manufacture. In addition, once the position of the horizontal bar 4 is fixed, there is no need to hold the sorting jig 1 in one's hand, and bound documents 20 can be sorted using both hands, improving work efficiency.

In the above embodiment, an example was described in which one support pillar 3 extends upward from the base member 2 and supports the horizontal bar 4 with that single support pillar 3, but it is also possible to provide two support pillars 3 extending upward in parallel from a single base member 2 and support the horizontal bar 4 with those two support pillars 3. In this way, it is possible to reliably prevent the horizontal bar 4 from rotating around the support pillar 3 when the bound document 20 is received by the horizontal bar 4.

In addition, in the above embodiment, a cantilever configuration was described as an example in which one end of the horizontal bar 4 is supported by one support pillar 3 extending upward from a single base member 2. However, it is also possible to adopt a double-support configuration (a gate-shaped configuration) in which two base members 2 are arranged horizontally at a distance from each other and supports 3 extending upward from each base member 2, with both ends of the horizontal bar 4 being supported by the supports 3.

1 Sorting jig for number of bound documents 2 Base member 3 Support 4 Horizontal bar 5 Height fixing mechanism 6 Work table 7 Clamp mechanism 13 Support connection part 14 Horizontal extension part 15 Document receiving part 20 Bound documents 21 Front surface 22 Bottom end surface

Claims (4)

A base member (2) is installed on a workbench (6) on which a plurality of bound documents (20) each made up of a plurality of sheets of paper are stacked vertically and placed;
A support (3) extending upward from the base member (2);
A horizontal bar (4) supported by the support (3) so as to be movable in the vertical direction and extending horizontally from the support (3);
a height fixing mechanism (5) capable of fixing the horizontal bar (4) to the support (3) at any height position;
The stack of bound documents (20) formed by stacking the bound documents (20) on the upper surface of the workbench (6) to a position higher than the lower end of the horizontal bar (4) is pushed toward the horizontal bar (4) by hand, and among the bound documents (20) constituting the stack of bound documents (20), those that are at a height equal to or higher than the lower end of the horizontal bar (4) are received by the horizontal bar (4), and the bound documents (20) lower than that are passed under the horizontal bar (4), thereby sorting the bound documents (20) into a predetermined number of copies;
A tool for sorting the number of copies of bound documents. The horizontal bar (4) has a vertical front surface (21) for receiving the bound document (20) and a horizontal lower end surface (22);
The front surface (21) and the lower end surface (22) form a right-angled corner without being chamfered.
A sorting jig for sorting the number of copies of the bound document according to claim 1. The horizontal bar (4) has a pillar connecting portion (13) connected to the pillar (3), a horizontal extension portion (14) extending horizontally from the pillar connecting portion (13), and a document receiving portion (15) provided at the tip of the horizontal extension portion (14),
The horizontal extension portion (14) is formed so as to connect between the support column connection portion (13) and the document receiving portion (15) without passing through the same height as the lower end of the document receiving portion (15) but through a position higher than the lower end of the document receiving portion (15).
A device for sorting the number of copies of the bound document according to claim 1 or 2. The base member (2) has a clamp mechanism (7) for removably fixing the base member (2) to the workbench (6).
A device for sorting the number of copies of the bound document according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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