Patent ID: 8366092

Claim:
Apparatus for producing a booklet including an outer sheet and an inner sheet nested together, each sheet having a respective thickness, the outer sheet having a length in a specific direction, and a fold axis of the outer sheet being defined in the center of the outer sheet in the specific direction, the apparatus comprising: a) a processor adapted to automatically: i) receive an indication of a spine shape of the booklet; ii) calculate a cut length in the specific direction of the inner sheet using the respective thicknesses of the outer and inner sheets and the received indication of the spine shape, so that when the sheets are folded and the inner sheet is nested into the outer sheet, the edges of the inner sheet will not protrude beyond the edges of the outer sheet, whereby the cut length is less than the length of the outer sheet; and iii) calculate a ramp angle using the respective thicknesses of the outer and inner sheets; b) a cutting device for receiving the inner sheet and cutting it to the calculated cut length in the specific direction, so that a fold axis of the inner sheet is defined in the center of the inner sheet in the specific direction; c) a stacking unit responsive to the processor and having a sheet support, and an adjustable ramp set at the processor-calculated ramp angle to the sheet support, for receiving the outer sheet and the cut inner sheet and holding them adjacent to each other, so that the fold axis of the inner sheet and the fold axis of the outer sheet are disposed along the same normal to the sheet support; and d) a fastening unit for fastening the fold axis of the outer sheet and the fold axis of the inner sheet.