STAPLE REMOVAL EQUIPMENT

Abstract

Staple removal equipment is provided. The staple removal equipment has a detecting unit which detects a position of a staple stapling a paper bundle, a striking portion which strikes the staple, and a removing unit which removes the staple from the paper bundle.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation application of International Patent Application No. PCT/JP2010/000484, filed on Jan. 28, 2010, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The invention relates to an equipment to remove a staple.

BACKGROUND

Staple removal equipment which removes a staple stapling a paper bundle from the paper bundle is known. For example, in staple removal equipment which is disclosed in a patent document (U.S. Pat. No. 4,171,121), the whole surface of a paper bundle including a staple is pressed by a roller so that the staple is compressively deformed so as to be crushed.

With the compressively deformed staple, a portion of the paper bundle stapled by the staple is punched to open a hole so that the staple loses a holding force for holding the paper bundle.

Subsequently, the staple which loses the holding force for holding the paper bundle is collected from the paper bundle.

In the staple removal equipment disclosed in the patent document, the whole area of the paper bundle is pressed by the roller so that the staple is compressively deformed regardless of the position of the staple stapled in the paper bundle.

For this reason, a force for compressively deforming the staple needs to be applied to the whole area of the paper bundle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an office paper reusing printer which adopts staple removal equipment according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the staple removal equipment.

FIG. 3 is an ideal graph illustrating changes of a force generated by striking and a static force with time.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the staple removal equipment.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a conveying unit and a detecting unit.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a pair of detecting rollers.

FIG. 7 is a diagram of the detecting unit seen from an orthogonal direction.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a striking portion seen from a conveying direction.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of the striking portion seen from the orthogonal direction.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are image diagrams illustrating a process in which a staple punches a paper bundle.

FIGS. 11A to 11C are diagrams of a removing unit seen from the orthogonal direction.

FIG. 12 is a diagram of a striking portion of a second embodiment seen from the orthogonal direction.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a water droplet supplying portion in a third embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating staple removal equipment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

According to one embodiment, staple removal equipment is provided. The equipment includes a detecting unit which detects a position of a staple stapling a paper bundle, a striking portion which strikes the staple, and a removing unit which removes the staple from the paper bundle.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In the specification and respective drawings, the same reference numerals will be given to the same components as those described with regard to a described drawing, and detailed description of the components will be appropriately omitted.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an office paper reusing printer 1000 which adopts staple removal equipment 1 according to a first embodiment. The office paper reusing printer 1000 illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a printer body 1002, an ink erasing device 1001, and staple removal equipment 1. In the office paper reusing printer 1000, a paper printed by an ink which is erasable by heating is heated by the ink erasing device 1001 so that the ink is erased. Accordingly, the paper from which the ink is erased is conveyed to a paper stacker 1002a inside the printer body 1002, and is provided again for printing.

The staple removal equipment 1 removes a staple from plural sheets of printed paper (a paper bundle) stapled by the staple automatically, and conveys the paper bundle to the ink erasing device 1001. The paper bundle is set on the paper stacker 900 while the paper bundle is kept in a state that the bundle is stapled by the staple. When the conveying is started, the staple removal equipment 1 detects a position of the staple. The staple which is present at the detected position is struck by a striking member so that the staple is compressively deformed so as to be crushed. Accordingly, the paper bundle is punched. The staple which loses a holding force for the paper bundle is removed from the paper bundle. The paper bundle from which the staple is removed is conveyed in the form of a single sheet or plural sheets to the ink erasing device 1001.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the staple removal equipment 1. The staple removal equipment 1 is provided with a conveying unit 110, a detecting unit 10, a striking portion 20, and a removing unit 30, from a side of a conveying start position of a paper bundle 101.

The paper bundle 101 is conveyed to the ink erasing device 1001 by the conveying unit 110. In the conveying process, the detecting unit 10, the striking portion 20, and the removing unit 30 are sequentially provided from the side of the conveying start position.

The conveying unit 110 conveys the paper bundle 101 to the detecting unit 10. The detecting unit 10 detects a position of the staple 100 of the paper bundle 101 in a conveying direction and a position of the staple 100 in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction (hereinafter, referred to as the orthogonal direction). The striking portion 20 strikes the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101 which is detected by the detecting unit 10 so that the staple 100 is compressively deformed so as to be crushed. The portion of the paper bundle 101 which is stapled by the staple 100 is punched so that the holding force of the staple 100 for the paper bundle 101 is lost. The removing unit 30 bends the paper bundle 101 so that the staple 100 protrudes from the paper bundle 101. The removing unit 30 hooks the protruded staple 100 using a removing member, and removes the staple 100 from the paper bundle 101. The paper bundle 101 from which the staple 100 is removed is conveyed to the ink erasing device 1001.

The embodiment has a feature that the striking portion 20 of the staple removal equipment 1 deforms the staple 100 compressively by striking using impact force. This is because the staple 100 can be compressively deformed efficiently utilizing a smaller energy by using the impact force, compared with the case where a staple removal equipment as disclosed in the patent document is compressively deforming a staple by applying a static force using a roller.

FIG. 3 is an ideal graph illustrating changes of a force generated by striking and a static force with time. The horizontal axis indicates a time t, and the vertical axis indicates a force f. Fs indicates the change of the static force with time, and Fd indicates the change of the force generated by striking with time. The static force means a force having a magnitude which does not change with time. f0 is a force which is minimally necessary for compressively deforming and crushing a staple.

For example, in the case where the static force generated by the roller is applied to the staple as in the staple removal equipment disclosed in the patent document, the change of the force with time becomes Fs. In the staple removal equipment disclosed in the patent document, a constant force f1 which exceeds f0 is continuously applied, from a time 0 at which a paper bundle starts to pass by the roller to a time t3 at which the paper bundle completely passes by the roller. For this reason, the accumulated force necessary for compressively deforming the staple becomes Is as expressed by the following expression, and hence an associated energy Es is needed.

I_s=∫₀^t3F_sdt=f₁×t₃

Is corresponds to the area of a longitudinally-lined portion of FIG. 3.

The change of the force which is applied to the staple 100 by the staple removal equipment 1 of the embodiment with time becomes Fd. The striking portion 20 of the staple removal equipment 1 applies the force Fd in which the maximum force becomes f2 exceeding f0 to the staple 100 by striking, from a time t1 to a time t2. For this reason, the accumulated force necessary for compressively deforming the staple 100 becomes Id as expressed by the following expression, and hence an associated energy Ed is needed.

I_d=∫_t1^t2F_ddt

Id corresponds to the area of an obliquely-lined portion of FIG. 3.

As obvious from FIG. 3, Id is a value which is smaller than Is. For this reason, Ed may be a value which is smaller than Es. The staple removal equipment 1 according to the embodiment which deforms the staple 100 compressively by striking using an impact force can compressively deform the staple 100 efficiently by a smaller energy, compared with a case where a static force is applied to a staple using a roller or the like so as to deform the staple compressively.

Hereinafter, the staple removal equipment 1 will be described in detail.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the staple removal equipment 1. A control portion 15 controls the conveying unit 110, the detecting unit 10, and the striking portion 20. A pulse generator 501 outputs a pulse signal to the control portion 15 every predetermined time period. The control portion 15 is equipped with a counter circuit. The counter circuit counts the pulse signal output from the pulse generator 501.

The conveying unit 110 includes a conveying roller 110a, an auxiliary roller 110b, a stepping motor 156 which rotates the conveying roller 110a, and a motor driving portion 155. The control portion 15 outputs a control signal to the motor driving portion 155 so that the stepping motor 156 which will be described later is driven so as to be synchronized with the pulse signal.

The detecting unit 10 includes a sensor 159 which detects a leading end of the paper bundle 101 existing in the conveying direction, a pair of detecting rollers 50 which detects the position of the staple 100 of the paper bundle 101, and a measuring portion 55. The measuring portion 55 measures a change in voltage by applying a voltage to the pair of detecting rollers 50. The control portion 15 estimates the position of the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101.

The striking portion 20 includes a striking unit 201 which includes a striking block 21, a gear driving portion 213c for moving the striking block 21 through a gear 213b, a rotating claw 202, and an actuator 204 for rotating the rotating claw 202, a unit driving portion 29 which moves the striking unit 201 in an orthogonal direction, and a sensor 160 which detects the leading end of the paper bundle 101 existing in the conveying direction.

The control portion 15 outputs a control signal to the unit driving portion 29 so as to move the striking portion in the orthogonal direction. The control portion 15 outputs a control signal to the actuator 204 so as to rotate the rotating claw 202 to open the striking block 21. The control portion 15 outputs a control signal to the gear driving portion 213c so as to drive the gear driving portion 213c to move the striking block 21.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the conveying unit 110 and the detecting unit 10. In the embodiment, the conveying unit 110 includes the conveying roller 110a and the auxiliary roller 110b so as to sandwich the paper bundle 101. The conveying roller 110a receives a driving force generated by the stepping motor 156 to rotate, and conveys the paper bundle 101. The auxiliary roller 110b is provided to apply a constant pressure to the paper bundle 101 so that the paper bundle 101 does not slide on the conveying roller 110a, and assists conveying of the paper bundle 101 by the conveying roller 110a.

The detecting unit 10 includes the sensor 159 which detects the leading end of the paper bundle 101 existing in the conveying direction, and the pair of detecting rollers 50 which detects the position of the staple 100 of the paper bundle 101, in an order from a side of conveying the paper bundle 101. The position of the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101 in the conveying direction is detected by the sensor 159 and the pair of detecting rollers 50. The position of the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101 in the orthogonal direction is detected by the pair of detecting rollers 50.

Detection of the position of the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101 in the orthogonal direction will be described.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of the pair of detecting rollers 50. The pair of detecting rollers 50 includes a first conductive roller 51 and a second conductive roller 52. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the first conductive roller 51 has a structure in which an insulating roller 512 is fitted into a rotatably-supported shaft 511. Plural partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e as conductors are fitted to the outer periphery of the insulating roller 512. Furthermore, insulating layers 513 are provided between the respective partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e, and allows the respective partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e to keep in a non-contacting state electrically with each other.

The second conductive roller 52 has a structure in which a conductive roller 522 is fitted into a rotatably-supported shaft 521. The shaft 521 and the roller 522 may be integrated with each other. A belt 157 illustrated in FIG. 5 is suspended between the second conductive roller 52 and the conveying roller 110a so as to transmit a driving force generated by the stepping motor 156. The second conductive roller 52 is electrically grounded by an earth line 523 or the like.

In the first conductive roller 51, each of the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e is equipped with the measuring portion 55, which measures the voltage by applying a voltage to the surfaces of the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e. In the embodiment, the measuring portion 55 includes measuring elements 55a to 55e. For example, the measuring element 55a allows a leading end of a conductive wire to contact the surface of the partial conductive roller 51a through an electric brush or the like, by interposing a resistor R, from a power supply Vcc. Then, the value of the voltage which is applied to the resistor R is measured.

The conveyed paper bundle 101 passes between the first conductive roller 51 and the second conductive roller 52. When a paper portion of the paper bundle 101 is present between the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e and the second conductive roller 52, a non-contact state is kept electrically.

When the staple 100 of the paper bundle 101 passes between the first conductive roller 51 and the second conductive roller 52, a current from the power supply Vcc leaks to the staple 100, the second conductive roller 52 and the earth line 523 through any one of the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e. It is possible to determine through which one of the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e the current passes from the power supply Vcc, by detecting a change in voltage value of the measuring elements 55a to 55e using the measuring portion 55. The measuring portion 50 outputs voltage values of the measuring elements 55a to 55e as measurement signals continuously to the control portion 15. The control portion 15 estimates the positions directly below the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e which change the values of the measuring element 55a to 55e, as the position of the staple 100.

In order to detect the position of the staple 100 using one partial conductive roller, it is desirable that the length of each of the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e in the direction of the rotary axis be longer than a needle shoulder width of the staple 100. It is desirable that the width of the insulating layers 513 in the direction of the rotary axis be shorter than a needle shoulder width of the staple 100 in order to prevent an erroneous detection when the staple 100 passes directly below the insulating layer 513.

The staple 100 may be stapled at a position crossing an insulating layer. In this case, since the measuring elements 55a to 55e detect that a current flows to adjacent two of the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e, the detecting unit 10 may determine the position of the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101 in the orthogonal direction even when the staple 100 is stapled at the position crossing over the insulating layer.

In the embodiment, the respective numbers of the partial conductive rollers 51a to 51e and the measuring elements 55a to 55e are five, but the invention is not limited thereto. For example, when the partial conductive rollers and the measuring portions are provided as many as the number more than five, the detecting unit 10 can detect the position of the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101 in the orthogonal direction with higher precision.

Detection of the position of the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101 in the conveying direction will be described. FIG. 7 is a diagram of the detecting unit 10 seen from the orthogonal direction. The sensor 159 detects the leading end of the paper bundle 101 which is conveyed from the conveying unit 110. For example, the sensor 159 may be an optical sensor. In this case, the sensor 159 includes a light source 159a and a light receiving sensor 159b. The light source 159a and the light receiving sensor 159b are provided so as to sandwich a conveying path of the paper bundle 101.

Before the paper bundle 101 passes by the sensor 159, the light receiving sensor 159b receives light from the light source 159a. During a time period in which the paper bundle 101 passes by the sensor 159, the light receiving sensor 159b does not receive light from the light source 159a. The sensor 159 outputs a first detection signal to the control portion 15 using a time point at which the light receiving sensor 159b changes to a state not receiving light from the light source 159a from the state receiving light, as a trigger. When the first detection signal is input, the control portion 15 starts to count the number of pulse signals output from the pulse generator 501.

When the staple 100 reaches the pair of detecting rollers 50 and the voltage values of the measuring elements 55a to 55e change, the control portion 15 stores the count number that is the number of the pulse signals until a time point at which the voltage values change after the number of the pulse signals is started to be counted. The control portion 15 stores the count number of the pulse signals output from the pulse generator 501 until a change in voltage is detected by the measuring portion 55 after the leading end of the paper bundle 101 is detected by the sensor 159. The count value is used in the striking portion 20.

Since the stepping motor 156 is driven so as to be synchronized with the count number using the pulse generator 501, the control portion 15 can correlate the conveying distance of the paper bundle 101 with the count number by storing the count number. Accordingly, the detecting unit 10 can detect the position of the staple 100 on the paper bundle 101 in the conveying direction.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of the striking portion 20 seen from the conveying direction. The striking portion 20 includes the striking unit 201 which contains the striking block 21 for striking the staple 100, and a striking base 22 which is provided at a position interposing the paper bundle 101 between the striking base and the striking block 21. The striking portion is provided so as to be movable in the orthogonal direction. For example, a guide shaft 28 may pass through the striking portion in the orthogonal direction, and the striking unit is moved in the orthogonal direction by the unit driving portion 29 provided in the striking portion. Accordingly, the striking portion can move to the position of the staple 100 detected by the detecting unit 10 and existing in the orthogonal direction. It is desirable that one staple be struck by the striking portion 20 once.

A striking method using the striking block 21 will be described. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the striking block 21 of the embodiment has a columnar shape, and includes a surface 21a which strikes the staple 100, and a surface 21b to which a spring 25 is attached. The spring 25 is attached to the surface 21b opposite to the surface 21a which strikes the staple 100. The spring 25 is attached to a fixed plate 30a provided in the striking portion. With this configuration, the striking block 21 pops out in the striking direction of FIG. 8 so as to strike the staple 100, with release of an elastic energy which is accumulated in the spring 25.

In order to assist striking by the striking block 21, in the embodiment, assisting shafts 24a, 24b are provided in the fixed plate 30a. The assisting shafts 24a, 24b are provided so that their axial direction is parallel to the striking direction. The striking block 21 is provided with shaft holders 23a, 23b along the orthogonal direction. The assisting shafts 24a, 24b penetrate through the shaft holders. Accordingly, the striking direction of the striking block 21 can be straightened.

The fixed plate 30 is equipped with a ratchet mechanism 27 which holds and releases the compressed spring 25. The ratchet mechanism 27 includes the rotating claw 202, a pressing spring 203, and the actuator 204. The rotating claw 202 rotates about the rotary shaft 205 which is provided at an end portion of the fixed plate 30. The rotating claw 202 is provided at a position where the striking block 21 can be maintained by hooking the shaft holder 23b using the claw.

The rotating claw 202 is pressed in a rotating direction (pressing direction) in the clockwise direction of FIG. 8 by the pressing spring 203. When the spring 25 is compressed by a compressing mechanism 213 which will be described later and the striking block 21 moves in a compressing direction of the spring 25, the shaft holder 23b allows the rotating claw 202 to rotate in the direction (counter-clockwise direction of FIG. 8) opposite to the pressing direction of the pressing spring 203. When the shaft holder 23b moves over the claw of the rotating claw 202, the rotating claw 202 is pressed and rotated by the pressing spring 203 again, and is caught by the shaft holder 23b so as to hold the striking block 21. The claw of the rotating claw 202 and the shaft holder 23b carries out a function of a ratchet.

The actuator 204 is provided at a position where expansion and contraction of the pressing spring 203 can be controlled. For example, the actuator 204 is provided on the fixed plate 30. In a state where the striking block 21 is held by the rotating claw 202, the actuator 204 guides the pressing spring 203 in a direction opposite to the pressing direction. With this, the striking block 21 is released from the rotating claw 202, and strikes the staple 100 by an elastic energy of the spring 25.

The spring compressing mechanism 213 will be described. FIG. 9 is a diagram of the striking portion 20 seen from the orthogonal direction. The spring compressing mechanism 213 includes a rack 213a, the gear 213b, and the gear driving portion 213c. The rack 213a is provided on a side surface of the striking block 21. The gear 213b is provided so as to mesh with the rack 213a. The gear 213b compresses the spring 25 by moving the striking block 21 in the compressing direction of the spring 25 using the gear driving portion 213c provided in the striking portion.

The gear 213b includes a meshing portion with a tooth and a non-meshing portion without a tooth. The meshing portion and the non-meshing portion are provided so that the meshing portion moves to the non-meshing portion when the striking block 21 reaches a position where the striking block 21 can be held by the ratchet mechanism 27. Accordingly, the rack 213a and the gear 213b are prevented from being meshed with each other during striking of the striking block 21.

The control portion 15 moves the striking portion to an orthogonal direction position of the staple 100 estimated by the detecting unit 10.

Control of striking timing of the striking block 21 will be described. In FIG. 9, when the paper bundle 101 is conveyed from the detecting unit 10, the sensor 160 detects a leading end of the paper bundle 101. The sensor 160 may be the same optical sensor as that of the sensor 159. The distance from the sensor 160 to the striking block 21 in the conveying direction is equal to the distance from the sensor 159 to the pair of detecting rollers 50 in the conveying direction of the detecting unit 10.

When the leading end of the paper bundle 101 is detected, the sensor 160 outputs a second detection signal to the control portion 15. When the second detection signal is input, the control portion 15 starts to count the number of pulse signals output from the pulse generator 501. The control portion 15 outputs a control signal to the actuator 204 so as to release the striking block 21 from the rotating claw 202 at a time point at which the number of the pulse signals reaches the same number as the count number stored in the detecting unit 10.

Accordingly, the striking portion 20 can strike the staple 100 which is present at the position detected by the detecting unit 10.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are image diagrams illustrating a process in which the staple 100 punches the paper bundle 101. FIG. 10A illustrates a state of the staple 100 before striking. FIG. 10B illustrates a state of the staple 100 after striking. When the staple 100 is struck by the striking block 21, the staple 100 is compressively deformed so as to punch the paper bundle 100. Accordingly, the staple 100 loses a holding force for the paper bundle 101, and hence becomes a state where the staple can be removed by the removing unit 30.

Other elastic members may be used instead of the spring 25.

FIGS. 11 to 11C are diagrams of the removing unit 30 seen from the orthogonal direction. FIG. 11A illustrates a state of the staple 100 before removal. FIG. 11B illustrates a state of the staple 100 during removal. FIG. 11C illustrates a state of the staple 100 collected after removal.

The removing unit 30 includes an auxiliary roller 31 which curves the paper bundle 101, a blade 32 which rotates about the rotary shaft 34 serving as a rotation center so as to remove the staple 100 from the paper bundle 101, a pair of guide rollers 33 which guides the conveying of the paper bundle 101 and conveys the paper bundle 101 to the ink erasing device 1001, and a collecting mechanism 35 which collects the removed staple 100. It is desirable that the length of the blade 32 in the orthogonal direction be equal to or longer than the length of the paper bundle in the orthogonal direction so that the staple 100 may be removed regardless of the stapled position of the staple 100 in the paper bundle 101.

Furthermore, when the length of the blade 32 in the orthogonal direction is shorter than the length of the paper bundle in the orthogonal direction, a mechanism may be provided so as to move the removing unit including the blade 32 and the rotary shaft 34 in the orthogonal direction, and may move the removing unit to a position where the staple 100 needs to be removed based on staple position information from the staple detecting unit 10.

The paper bundle 101 which is conveyed from the striking portion 20 enters into a lower portion of the blade 32 after passing through the auxiliary roller 31, and passes between the pair of guide rollers 33 in a bent state. The paper bundle 101 passes through the lower portion of the blade 32, and the blade 32 rotates to a position where the leading end contacts the paper bundle 101. The blade 32 is driven by a blade driving portion (not shown). The blade driving portion is equipped with a detecting sensor (not shown) which detects the leading end of the paper bundle 101, and is desirably configured to rotate the blade 32 at a time point at which the leading end of the paper bundle 101 is detected.

Since the paper bundle 101 is bent, a part of the staple 100 protrudes from the paper bundle 101. The staple 100 which partially protrudes from the paper bundle 101 is pulled by the blade 32 so that the staple is removed from the paper bundle 101.

The removed staple 100 is collected by the collecting mechanism 35. The collecting mechanism 35 may be, for example, a permanent magnet. In this case, the staple 100 removed using the blade 32 is collected by being adsorbed to the permanent magnet. For this reason, the permanent magnet is provided at a position where the removed staple 100 can be adsorbed by the blade 32.

As described above, according to the embodiment, it is possible to provide staple removal equipment capable of removing the staple efficiently.

According to the staple removal equipment disclosed in the patent document, the whole surface of the paper bundle may be wrinkled by the roller when the posture of the paper is not maintained with high precision during conveying the paper or a deformation such as a curl occurs in the paper in order to press the whole surface of the paper bundle using the roller with a high pressure. In this case, a defect may occur in the paper bundle after the staple is removed, and the paper can not be appropriately reused. However, in the staple removal equipment 1 according to the embodiment, since only the staple 100 and a portion of the paper bundle 100 peripheral to the staple are struck, the staple 100 can be removed from the paper bundle 100 without producing any wrinkle in the paper bundle 100. For this reason, in the embodiment, it is possible to provide staple removal equipment which is suitable for reuse of the paper bundle 101.

A blower (not shown) may be provided between the removing unit 30 and the ink erasing device 1001. The blower blows an air stream with a predetermined pressure or more to a side portion of the paper bundle 101 from which the staple 100 is removed. Accordingly, the paper bundle 101 which is conveyed to the ink erasing device 1001 can be separated one sheet by one sheet, and the paper can be appropriately printed again by the printer body 1002.

A staple removal equipment 2 according to a second embodiment is different from that of the first embodiment in that a staple 100 is struck by a striking block 21 provided in a striking portion 20 of the staple removal equipment 1, and subsequently the staple 100 is vibrated.

FIG. 12 is a diagram of the striking portion 20 of the second embodiment seen from the orthogonal direction. In the striking portion 20 of the embodiment, the striking block 21 strikes the staple 100, and then the striking block 21 is vibrated by a spring compressing mechanism 213 while the striking block 21 contacts a paper bundle 101.

Specifically, the striking block 21 strikes the staple 100, and a gear driving portion 213c rotates a gear 213b until a meshing portion of the gear 213b meshes with a rack 213a. In a state where the gear 213b meshes with the rack 213a, the gear driving portion 213c rotates the gear 213b in a reciprocating manner so that the striking block 21 is vibrated.

In this way, the staple 100 which is compressively deformed by the striking block 21 and punches the paper bundle 101 is vibrated. Accordingly, the punched hole of the paper bundle 101 can be broadened and the staple 100 can be more easily removed by a removing unit 30.

A staple removal equipment 3 according to a third embodiment can punch a paper bundle 101 easily during striking a staple 100 using a striking portion 20, by dropping a water droplet to a position of the staple 100 in the paper bundle 101.

The water is absorbed to the staple portion of the paper bundle 101 which is stapled by the staple 100. This swells fibers of the paper so that the paper bundle 101 is easily punched by the compressive deformation of the staple 100.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a water droplet supply portion 300 of the third embodiment. The water droplet supply portion 300 is provided between a detecting unit 10 and the striking portion 20. The water droplet supply portion 300 includes a tank 701 which stores water, a pump 702 which supplies water, a nozzle 703 which drops a water droplet 704 to the paper bundle 101, and a sensor 161 which detects a leading end of the paper bundle 101.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating the staple removal equipment 3. A conveying unit 110, the detecting unit 10, the striking portion 20, and a removing unit 30 are the same as those of the first embodiment.

The pump 702 is controlled by a control portion 15. The sensor 161 may be the same optical sensor as that of a sensor 159. It is assumed that the distance from the sensor 161 to the nozzle 703 in the conveying direction is equal to the distance from the sensor 159 to a pair of detecting rollers 50 in the conveying direction of the detecting unit 10. Accordingly, the water droplet 704 may be dropped to the staple 100 by using a count value which is stored in the control portion 15 in the detecting unit 10.

When a leading end of a paper bundle 101 is detected, the sensor 161 outputs a third detection signal to the control portion 15. When the third detection signal is input, the control portion 15 starts to count the number of pulse signals output from a counter (pulse generator) 501. The control portion 15 outputs a control signal to the pump 702 at a time point at which the number of the pulse signals reaches the same number as the count number stored in the detecting unit 10 described above, so as to drop the water droplet 704.

Accordingly, the paper bundle 101 can be easily punched during striking of the staple 100 by the striking portion 20.

Claims

1. Staple removal equipment comprising:

a detector to detect a position of a staple stapling a paper bundle;

a striking portion to strike the staple; and

a removing unit to remove the staple from the paper bundle.

2. The equipment according to claim 1,

wherein the removing unit includes an auxiliary roller to curve the paper bundle, a blade to rotate about a rotary shaft serving as a rotation center so as to remove the staple from the paper bundle, a pair of guide rollers to guide conveying of the paper bundle and to convey the paper bundle to an ink erasing device, and a collecting mechanism to collect the removed staple.

3. The equipment according to claim 2, wherein the striking portion includes a striking block to strike the staple using an elastic member to be released from a compressed state so as to accelerate the striking block to strike the staple, a striking base to be provided at a position facing the surface of the striking block striking the staple and a sensor to detect an leading end of the paper bundle, and

wherein the striking block strikes the staple in response to detection of the leading end of the paper bundle by the sensor.

4. The equipment according to claim 3,

wherein the striking portion moves to a position detected by the detecting unit and strikes the staple.

5. The equipment according to claim 4,

wherein the striking block is a tool steel and the elastic member is a spring.