Paper stack binding and folding device

Claim 1

In a paper stack binding and folding device comprising a paper stack feed table inclined so as to dispose the upper edge rearwardly of the lower edge of said table and having a paper abutment ruler at said lower edge, said table further having a horizontal slit in the center of the table; a paper stack feed mechanism mounted on said table and having a paper stack feed pawl adapted to extend above said table and retract below the table through said slit for feeding paper stacks in a feed direction toward a leading end of said feed table; a stapling mechanism positioned at the leading end of said table and including stapler guns to eject staples to a paper stack and a cauking member for cauking free ends of said staples ejected from said stapler guns; a binding position control stop means positioned adjacent and downstream of said stapling mechanism in the feed direction of said paper stack for holding said paper stack fed from said feed table in a predetermined binding position; a paper stack folding mechanism positioned downstream of said stop means in the feed direction of said paper stack and having a pair of parallel and spaced folding rolls to define a gap located below the plane of said feed table therebetween and a paper stack folding piece positioned above said gap to push said bound paper stack into said gap to thereby fold the bound paper stack; and a paper stack folding position control stop means positioned downstream of said paper stack folding mechanism in the feed direction of said paper stack for holding said bound paper stack in a predetermined folding position, characterized by said paper stack feed table inclines at an angle over 60° with respect to the horizon, a paper stack folding position control table disposed in substantially the same inclined plane as said paper stack feed table, said paper stack binding and folding position control stop means are disposed in succession on said paper stack folding position control table, said stapling mechanism is positioned at and extends from the leading end of said feed table and said pair of folding rolls are positioned between and inclined at the same angle as the feed and folding position control table, whereby said paper stack is bound when the paper stack is positioned over the folding rolls and held in position by said binding position control stop means and after the binding operation the bound paper stack is pushed into said gap between the folding rolls to be folded while being held in position by said folding position control stop means.