Patent ID: 7845890

Claim:
A bookbinding device comprising: collecting means for collecting sheets with images printed thereon, into a sheet bundle; a bookbinding path having sheet bundle conveying means and along which the sheet bundle from the collecting means is sequentially subjected to a bookbinding process; adhesive applying means located at an adhesive application position on the bookbinding path for applying an adhesive to an end surface of the sheet bundle; a cover sheet feeding path on which, at a cover binding position located downstream of the adhesive application position, a cover sheet is fed from a direction crossing the bookbinding path; cover binding means located at the cover binding position for binding the sheet bundle to the cover sheet; cover binding control means for controlling the cover binding means; and conveying roller means for carrying the sheet bundle out from the cover binding position, wherein the cover binding means comprises: a back folding press member located at the cover binding position for back-folding the cover sheet; and a back rest plate member located downstream of the back folding press member for backing up the cover sheet; wherein the cover binding control means controls: the back folding press member so that the back folding press member executes a back folding process forming a predetermined gap between the back rest plate member and a back of the sheet bundle; the sheet bundle to abut against the back rest plate member to thereby cool the adhesive after the back folding process; and retracting the back rest plate member from the bookbinding path to outside the path after an adhesive cooling time elapses, wherein the sheet bundle conveying means comprises grip conveying means for gripping and conveying the sheet bundle, and the cover binding control means performs control such that the back folding press member back-folds the cover sheet with a back folding end of the sheet bundle gripped by the grip conveying means, and after the back folding process, the sheet bundle is fed to the conveying roller means with a centrally back end of the sheet bundle gripped by the grip conveying means, and after the back folding process, the cover binding control means releases the grip conveying means and abuts the back of the sheet bundle against the back rest plate member.