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EP-4245557-B1 - SHEET BINDING APPARATUS, STITCHER, CONTROL DEVICE FOR STITCHER, AND CONTROL METHOD FOR STITCHER

EP4245557B1EP 4245557 B1EP4245557 B1EP 4245557B1EP-4245557-B1

Inventors

  • MOCHIZUKI, JUN
  • MANH BUI, Ha

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20230313

Claims (14)

  1. A control method for a stitcher (10), wherein the stitcher comprises a stitcher head (15) configured to perform a reciprocating movement and a wire feed unit (12) configured to feed a wire to the stitcher head (15) and perform wire stitching on a paper bundle arranged at a wire stitching position in each cycle of the reciprocating movement of the stitcher head, the control method performed by a control device (50) and characterised by comprising: determining in each cycle of the stitcher head (15) whether or not thickness information on a paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in a next cycle is acquired; and when it is determined that the thickness information on the paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in the next cycle is not acquired, controlling the wire feed unit (12) not to supply a wire in the current cycle.
  2. The control method for the stitcher according to claim 1, wherein when next job information is not acquired before execution of a cycle in which wire stitching is performed on the last paper bundle for a running job, the control device (50) determines that the thickness information on the paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in the next cycle is not acquired.
  3. The control method for the stitcher according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control device (50) causes the stitcher head (15) to perform blank driving when an operation of the stitcher (10) is started.
  4. The control method for the stitcher according to claim 3, wherein before causing the stitcher head (15) to perform blank driving, the control device (50) acquires thickness information on a paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching first after a start of the operation, and wherein in a cycle in which the blank driving is performed, the control device (50) controls the wire feed unit (12) to supply a wire having a length in accordance with the acquired thickness of the paper bundle.
  5. A stitcher (10) comprising a control device (50), a stitcher head (15) configured to perform a reciprocating movement and a wire feed unit (12) configured to feed a wire to the stitcher head (15), the stitcher (10) being suitable for performing wire stitching on a paper bundle arranged at a wire stitching position in each cycle of the reciprocating movement of the stitcher head (15), the control device (50) comprising: a determining unit (62) configured to determine in each cycle of the stitcher head (15) whether or not thickness information on a paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in a next cycle is acquired; and a wire feed control unit (63) configured to, when it is determined that the thickness information on the paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in the next cycle is not acquired, control the wire feed unit not to supply a wire in the current cycle.
  6. The stitcher according to claim 5, wherein the determination unit (62) is suitable for determining that the thickness information on the paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in the next cycle is not acquired, when next job information is not acquired before execution of a cycle in which wire stitching is performed on the last paper bundle for a running job.
  7. The stitcher according to claim 5 or 6 further comprising a head control unit (61) configured to cause the stitcher head (15) to perform blank driving when an operation of the stitcher (10) is started.
  8. The stitcher according to claim 7, wherein the determination unit (62) is suitable for determining whether or not thickness information on a paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching first after a start of the operation is acquired, before causing the stitcher head to perform blank driving, wherein the head control unit (61) is suitable for performing the blank driving when it is determined that the thickness information on the paper bundle is acquired, and wherein the wire feed control unit (63) is suitable for controlling the wire feed unit to supply a wire having a length in accordance with the acquired thickness of the paper bundle in a cycle in which the blank driving is performed, when it is determined that the thickness information on the paper bundle is acquired.
  9. A program comprising instructions to cause the stitcher (10) according to any one of claims 5 to 8 to execute the steps of the method of any of claims 1 to 4.
  10. A sheet binding apparatus comprising the stitcher (10) according to any one of claims 5 to 8.
  11. Use of a control device (50) for controlling a stitcher (10), wherein the stitcher comprises a stitcher head (15) configured to perform a reciprocating movement and a wire feed unit (12) configured to feed a wire to the stitcher head (15) and perform wire stitching on a paper bundle arranged at a wire stitching position in each cycle of the reciprocating movement of the stitcher head (15), and wherein the control device (50) comprises a determination unit (62) which determines in each cycle of the stitcher head (15) whether or not thickness information on a paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in a next cycle is acquired; and wherein the control device (50) comprises a wire feed control unit (63) which, when it is determined that the thickness information on the paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in the next cycle is not acquired, controls the wire feed unit (12) not to supply a wire in the current cycle.
  12. Use of a control device according to claim 11, wherein the determination unit (62) is suitable for determining that the thickness information on the paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in the next cycle is not acquired, when next job information is not acquired before execution of a cycle in which wire stitching is performed on the last paper bundle for a running job.
  13. Use of a control device according to claim 11 or 12, further comprising a head control unit (61) configured to cause the stitcher head (15) to perform blank driving when an operation of the stitcher (10) is started.
  14. Use of a control device according to claim 13, wherein the determination unit (62) is suitable for determining whether or not thickness information on a paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching first after a start of the operation is acquired, before causing the stitcher head to perform blank driving, wherein the head control unit (61) is suitable for performing the blank driving when it is determined that the thickness information on the paper bundle is acquired, and wherein the wire feed control unit (63) is suitable for controlling the wire feed unit to supply a wire having a length in accordance with the acquired thickness of the paper bundle in a cycle in which the blank driving is performed, when it is determined that the thickness information on the paper bundle is acquired.

Description

BACKGROUND 1. TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a control method for a stitcher, a stitcher, a program comprising instructions, a sheet binding apparatus and use of a control device for controlling a stitcher. 2. DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART Conventionally, stitchers that stitches transported paper bundles with wires are known. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-193089 discloses a stitcher including a stitcher head configured to reciprocate, a drive mechanism configured to drive the stitcher head, a feed roller unit linked in operation to the stitcher head to feed a wire, and a cutter unit linked in operation to the stitcher head to cut the wire. In the stitcher disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-193089, an operation to drive a wire prepared in the previous cycle into a paper bundle (hereafter, referred to as "first paper bundle") and an operation to prepare a wire to be driven into a paper bundle (hereafter, referred to as "second paper bundle") for wire stitching in the next cycle are performed in parallel during one cycle of a vertical movement of the stitcher head. The operation to prepare a wire consists mainly of feeding, cutting, and setting of a wire. In such an operation, the vertical stroke positions of the stitcher head are determined in accordance with the thickness of the first paper bundle into which a wire is driven in the current one cycle. Since the vertical stroke and wire feeding of the stitcher head are linked in operation to each other, however, the length of the wire prepared in the current cycle (that is, the length of a wire driven into the second paper bundle in the next cycle) is also set to the length in accordance with the thickness of the first paper bundle. Thus, when the first paper bundle and the second paper bundle differ in thickness, a wire having a length in accordance with the thickness of the first paper bundle will be driven into the second paper bundle, and this may lead to a defective book. Accordingly, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-193089, determination is automatically made as to whether or not a paper bundle that has been subjected to wire stitching is a non-defective product, and a paper bundle determined as a defective product is removed. In recent years, a stitcher that can supply a wire having any length without linkage to a vertical stroke of a stitcher head has been proposed (for example, see German Patent Application Laid-Open No. 102017202571). According to the stitcher disclosed in German Patent Application Laid-Open No. 102017202571, it is possible to prepare a wire having a length in accordance with a thickness of a paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching and thus suppress a defective product from occurring. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-193089 and German Patent Application Laid-Open No. 102017202571 (which discloses the preamble of claim 1) are examples of the related arts. BRIEF SUMMARY In the saddle binder disclosed in German Patent Application Laid-Open No. 102017202571 described above, when jobs are continuously provided, it is always possible to prepare a wire that matches a length of a paper bundle to be subjected to wire stitching in the next cycle. When information on the next job is not received at the time the current job ends, however, the thickness of a paper bundle subjected to the next wire stitching is not known. Thus, conventionally, the operation of a stitcher is suspended in a state where a wire in accordance with the length of the last paper bundle for a job that has been executed is prepared. Thus, at start of a new job, it is conventionally required to perform test wire driving, that is, drive a wire of an unsuitable length prepared in the previous job into a paper bundle prepared for the test wire driving and prepare a new wire having a suitable length in accordance with the thickness of a paper bundle for a new job. However, such test wire driving wastes both a paper bundle and a wire and thus leads to waste of resources, and this is not preferable in terms of the environmental load and cost. The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances and intends to provide a sheet binding apparatus, a stitcher, a control device for a stitcher, and a control method for a stitcher that can eliminate waste of resources and achieve cost reduction and improved productivity. The first aspect of the present invention is a control method for a stitcher that includes a stitcher head configured to perform a reciprocating movement and a wire feed unit configured to feed a wire to the stitcher head and performs wire stitching on a paper bundle arranged at a wire stitching position in each cycle of the reciprocating movement of the stitcher head. The control method for the stitcher performed by a control device includes: determining in each cycle of the stitcher head whether or not thickness information on a paper bundle to be subjected to wir