A sheet processing apparatus includes a processing tray to place the sheet, a load tray provided on a downstream side of the processing tray in a transport direction, neat alignment plates provided outside a main body housing to shift in a width direction orthogonal to the transport direction and to align opposite sides of the sheet, a sheet support surface provided in a different position adjacent to the processing tray to support a sheet inserted from a manual feed opening, a binding processing apparatus to perform binding processing on sheets placed on the sheet support surface, a regulation surface to regulate a side edge of the sheet located at a side of the load tray, and a width-direction drive mechanism to shift the neat alignment plates between an alignment position aligning a sheet on the load tray in the width direction and a retract position different from the alignment position.

A sheet processing apparatus includes a processing tray to place the sheet, a load tray provided on a downstream side of the processing tray in a transport direction, neat alignment plates provided outside a main body housing to shift in a width direction orthogonal to the transport direction and to align opposite sides of the sheet, a sheet support surface provided in a different position adjacent to the processing tray to support a sheet inserted from a manual feed opening, a binding processing apparatus to perform binding processing on sheets placed on the sheet support surface, a regulation surface to regulate a side edge of the sheet located at a side of the load tray, and a width-direction drive mechanism to shift the neat alignment plates between an alignment position aligning a sheet on the load tray in the width direction and a retract position different from the alignment position.

A sheet binding device includes a sheet shifting unit, a tape cutter, and a tape attachment unit. The sheet shifting unit has a guide and is configured to stack multiple sheets on the guide with edge portions that are shifted from each other to form a sheet bundle. The tape cutter cuts tape with a target length that is varied in accordance with a thickness of the sheet bundle. The tape attachment unit is configured to attach the cut tape having the target length to an edge portion of the sheet bundle.

A sheet processing apparatus includes alignment plates, which are provided outside a main body housing of a sheet processing apparatus, shift in an alignment direction orthogonal to a transport direction of a sheet loaded on a load tray to load sheets discharged from a discharge opening, and align opposite sides of the sheet, and a sheet support surface provided in a different position adjacent to a processing tray in the alignment direction to support sheets inserted from a manual feed opening provided outside the main body housing. A binding apparatus shifts to the processing tray or the sheet support surface, and binds sheets placed on the processing tray or the sheet support surface. Neat alignment plates are positioned not to block the manual feed opening during the binding processing on manually fed sheets on the sheet support surface.

A method for applying at least one enclosing element to a flat product composition wherein the enclosing element is subsequently applied around a selected edge of the product composition in a perpendicular manner with respect to said edge so as to rest against the product composition. A reliable operation that is independent of the type of enclosing element is achieved in that the selected edge of the product composition is moved forward along a transporting path, the enclosing element is held ready at a specified point of the transporting path so as to intersect the transporting path, the selected edge of the product composition is moved past the specified point, and at the same time the selected edge drives the enclosing element that is held ready.

Provided are neat alignment plates which are provided outside a main body housing of a sheet processing apparatus, shift in an alignment direction orthogonal to a transport direction of a sheet loaded on a load tray to load sheets discharged from a discharge opening, and which align opposite sides of the sheet, and a sheet support surface provided in a different position adjacent to a processing tray in the alignment direction to support sheets inserted from a manual feed opening provided outside the main body housing, a binding apparatus for performing binding processing on sheets placed on the processing tray shifts to the processing tray and the sheet support surface, and is provided to be able to perform the binding processing on sheets placed on the processing tray or the sheet support surface, and the neat alignment plates are positioned in positions for not blocking the manual feed opening during the binding processing on manually fed sheets on the sheet support surface.

A sheet binding device includes a sheet shifting unit, a tape cutter, and a tape attachment unit. The sheet shifting unit has a guide and is configured to stack multiple sheets on the guide with edge portions that are shifted from each other to form a sheet bundle. The tape cutter cuts tape with a target length that is varied in accordance with a thickness of the sheet bundle. The tape attachment unit is configured to attach the cut tape having the target length to an edge portion of the sheet bundle.

A sheet binding device includes a sheet shifting unit, a tape cutter, and a tape attachment unit. The sheet shifting unit has a guide and is configured to stack multiple sheets on the guide with edge portions that are shifted from each other to form a sheet bundle. The tape cutter cuts tape with a target length that is varied in accordance with a thickness of the sheet bundle. The tape attachment unit is configured to attach the cut tape having the target length to an edge portion of the sheet bundle.

A method for applying portions of a backlining material to a back of a book block includes transporting the book block in a conveying direction in a book production line. The back of the book block is provided with an adhesive, wherein the book block is initially provided with the adhesive over an entire back length of the book block in a single application process. Then, the portions of the backlining material are applied in succession to the back of the book block, wherein at least a first portion of the backlining material is applied by a first conveying device and subsequently at least a second portion of the backlining material is applied by a second conveying device to the back of the book block such that at least one of the portions overlaps another one of the portions.

In accordance with an embodiment, a sheet post processing apparatus comprises a processing tray, a gluing section and a control section. Sheets are placed one by one in the processing tray. The gluing section enables glue to be adhered to the glue binding margin part of the sheets already placed in the processing tray. The control section includes a glue supply mode for supplying glue parts in such a manner that a glue part, which is different from a waiting glue part waiting for a next gluing when the previous glue binding is ended, is supplied to a glue adhering section of a first sheet for gluing with a second sheet through the gluing section.