EP0628429B1 - Method and means for binding the sheets of a printed product with several sheets - Google Patents

Abstract

For binding the sheets of a printed product (14) consisting of several sheets, such as magazines, brochures and the like, the sheets are glued together at some points by introducing an adhesive into passages formed in said sheets. In this case, the adhesive applied on the outside of driving-in and boring needles (20) is transferred onto the sheets over the entire length of the passages at the same time as the passages are formed by means of said needles (20) and/or when the needles (20) are retracted. <IMAGE>

Description

The present invention relates to a method for connecting the sheets of a multi-sheet printed product, such as magazines, brochures and the like, in which the sheets are glued to one another by introducing an adhesive into passages formed therein, and a device for carrying out this method, as in Preamble of claim 13 specified.

A method or a device of this type is disclosed in EP-A-0390734.

In this known method, as in the present method, the aim is to keep the sheets of magazines, brochures, paperbacks and the like. to glue them to each other in the fold area instead of holding them together with staples. The advantages of the known wire or staple stitching are to be retained, such as the possibility of being able to open the product completely without any appreciable loss of the area which can be used for printing, adjacent to the fold edge, that is to say there is an edge along which the Leaves are inseparable, avoided. Such an edge is created, for example, in the adhesive process according to DE-A-2126495, which is also part of the prior art, where holes are first made in the edge region of the sheet and then filled with a hardening adhesive, so that a kind of riveted connection between the individual sheets with enlarged head and foot ends.

In the prior art according to EP-A-0390734, which is also from the present applicant, the punctual adhesive connection takes place at a number of adhesive locations which are arranged along a line which later form the fold line of the respective product. The binder injection in this known prior art takes place either after a pre-perforation of the paper layers and the binder application by means of hollow needles or cannulated needles or by direct dropping of drops into the paper layers.

In one embodiment, which is shown in FIG. 3 of EP-A-0390734, depending on the nature of the paper layers, the perforation and the injection of the binder can be carried out in the same operation. This is possible if the injection of the binder can be carried out directly at the perforation by hollow needles or cannulated needles. Although this method is justified in practice, there are sometimes problems that you would rather avoid.

One problem is that the hollow needles at the hollow working tip can be blocked by small pieces of paper that are expelled from the paper when the hollow needles are pushed through. The hollow needles can also be relatively easily clogged with adhesive residues, since the central passage must be relatively long in relation to its cross section. There is also the risk that glue squeezed out of the hollow needles will not penetrate sufficiently into the individual paper sheets during the further movement of the hollow needles, ie they will not wet them sufficiently, so that the adhesive connection for a wide range of different paper thicknesses and qualities or varieties cannot always be guaranteed. The higher the speed of work, the more critical the problem becomes. The hollow needles are also exposed to a relatively large amount of wear, if one takes into account the large number of perforations to be carried out at high working speeds.

Finally, the use of hollow needles causes the holes thus formed to be relatively large, especially when the risk of constipation and wear is to be reduced, and this is undesirable since the puncture points in the finished magazine should remain inconspicuous.

The object of the present invention is to propose a method or a device of the type mentioned at the outset which, although working with needles or the like as a piercing tool, nevertheless ensures a secure adhesive connection between the individual sheets without problems of clogging, namely at high working speed with an increase in tool life, ie with reduced susceptibility to wear, and with relatively small dimensions of the passages produced.

To achieve this object, the measures according to the characterizing part of claim 1 and claim 13 are proposed.

Characterized in that the adhesive is on the outside of the penetration tool, it is introduced by the driving in or pulling out movement of this tool in close contact with the inner surface of the simultaneously formed passages in one operation, so that a complete and uniform cross-linking of the stacked sheets is achieved with adhesive. Since the penetration tool is pointed at its front end, the passages are generated by lateral displacement of the paper material of the sheets, so that punched-out paper particles no longer arise and therefore cannot lead to blockages. The tapered ends of the tools also lead to reduced wear on the tools, which thereby last longer. Since the adhesive is present on the outside of the tools, it also serves as a kind of lubricant, so that wear is also reduced for this reason. It is also possible to make the passages or perforations smaller than is possible with hollow needles, i.e. the adhesive connection remains absolutely inconspicuous. Finally, since the displaced paper material tends to recede after the tools are removed, the diameter of the passages also becomes smaller than the outside diameter of the penetration tools.

In the method according to the invention, too, as in the prior art according to EP-A-0390734, the gluing can take place in a sheet stack which is then supplemented by the cover sheet and the middle sheet and only then is completely folded up. In this way, no perforations or the like are present or visible in the cover sheet and in the middle sheet and the adhesive previously introduced is sufficient, in particular because of the the squeezing effect associated with the folds in order to also glue the cover sheet and the middle sheet with the pierced sheets in the fold.

The fact that the penetration and the introduction of the adhesive takes place in one and the same back and forth movement of the penetration tool with respect to the stack of sheets, the working time is kept short, so that the throughput achievable with the invention can be kept high.

The way in which the sheets are glued together makes it possible to cut off part of the sheets without the printed product falling apart.

The adhesive is preferably transferred to the sheets during a screwing-in or screw-out movement of a needle-shaped penetration tool. Although a pure linear movement of the tool could be sufficient to create the passages or the perforation, in a preferred embodiment a rotary movement of the tools is deliberately used at least when driving in or pulling out the latter. As a result, the adhesive is stripped off the tools and brought into intimate contact with the sheet of paper around the passageways, so that a high-quality bond is created. The passages are therefore preferably generated with rotatable driving or drilling needles.

To further improve the transfer of the adhesive, this transfer takes place through a thread-like design of the driving or drilling needles.

One can proceed here in such a way that the drive-in or pull-out speed and the rotational speed of the drive-in or drilling needles are selected to match the thread pitch, the thread shape of the needles producing a corresponding thread-like deformation of the paper material, with a comparable smooth cylindrical surface Diameter increased surface area, which is conducive to the quality of the adhesive connection.

However, there is also the possibility of choosing the speed of driving in or pulling out and the speed of rotation of the driving or drilling needles independently of the thread pitch, that is to say not adapted to this, on the one hand creating a certain wiping action between the needles and paper and on the other hand a certain Congestion effect, which pushes the adhesive even deeper into the paper material. This training also leads to higher quality adhesive connections.

There is also the option of selecting the driving speed different from the pulling speed. It is possible, for example, to carry out the movement which is mainly responsible for the adhesive transfer somewhat more slowly and to carry out the other phase of the movement somewhat more quickly, so that, for comparable cycle times, higher quality connections can also be produced here.

It is also possible to vary the speed of rotation while driving in and / or pulling out the tools. This allows you to try to achieve certain fine adjustments and a targeted distribution of the adhesive, for example in such a way that there is more adhesive in the area of the upper and lower sheets of the stack, which is useful for a subsequent connection of the cover sheet or the middle sheet.

While in a preferred embodiment the adhesive is applied to the driving or drilling needles immediately before driving in, there is also the possibility of applying the adhesive to the driving or drilling needles only after they have penetrated the stack of sheets.

Further preferred embodiments of the method can be found in the further dependent claims. Preferred configurations of the device and special shapes of the individual tools can also be found in the dependent device claims.

Fig.1

eine perspektivische Darstellung eines Vorganges zur Verbindung der aufeinandergelegten Bogen einer Zeitschrift im Bereich der Falzlinie,

Fig.2A bis 2D

Schnittzeichnungen der Schnittebene II-II der Fig. 1, bei denen verschiedene Stadien der Herstellung einer Verbindungsstelle zwischen den Bogen dargestellt werden,

Fig.3A bis 3D

Schnittzeichnungen ähnlich den Schnittzeichnungen der Fig. 2A bis 2D, jedoch von einer abgewandelten Ausführungsform,

Fig.4A bis 4D

Seitenansichten von vier verschiedenen Ausführungsformen der Eintreibnadel,

Fig.5

eine Detailzeichnung einer Eintreibnadel bei der Herstellung einer Klebeverbindung zwischen mehreren aufeinandergelegten Bogen,

Fig.6

eine schematische Darstellung der Klebeverbindung zwischen mehreren aufeinandergelegten Bogen nach dem Herausziehen der Eintreibnadel, und

Fig.7A, B, C, D, E und F

Skizzen von verschiedenen Ausführungsvarianten für die Durchführung der Klebeverbindung zwischen mehreren aufeinandergelegten Bogen.

The invention is explained below with reference to the drawing with reference to exemplary embodiments. The drawing shows:

Fig. 1

1 shows a perspective illustration of a process for connecting the stacked sheets of a magazine in the region of the folding line,

Fig. 2A to 2D

Sectional drawings of section plane II-II of FIG. 1, in which different stages of the production of a connection point between the arches are shown,

Fig. 3A to 3D

Sectional drawings similar to the sectional drawings of FIGS. 2A to 2D, but of a modified embodiment,

Fig.4A to 4D

Side views of four different embodiments of the driving needle,

Fig. 5

1 shows a detailed drawing of a drive-in needle during the production of an adhesive connection between a plurality of sheets placed on top of one another

Fig. 6

is a schematic representation of the adhesive bond between several superimposed sheets after pulling out the driving pin, and

Fig. 7A, B, C, D, E and F

Sketches of different design variants for the implementation of the adhesive connection between several superimposed sheets.

1 shows an elongated support or transport element 10 with a support edge 12 and several superimposed, pre-folded sheets of paper 14, which are placed over the support element 10 such that they rest on the edge 12 with their fold line 16. Above the support or transport element 10 there is a supporting beam 18 which carries a plurality of penetration tools in the form of driving needles 20 arranged at a mutual distance D.

The driving needles 20 are rotatably arranged and can be rotated in both directions of rotation, as indicated by the double arrows 22. The rotary drive is in practice arranged within the support beam 18, which is designed as a hollow beam. The supporting beam 18 can be moved downwards in accordance with the double arrow 24 in order to press the drive-in needles 20 through the sheets placed one on top of the other and can then be lifted up again in order to pull the drive-in needles out of the paper sheets.

As indicated by arrow 26, the transport element 10 can move past the carrying beam 18 and can stop in the position shown in FIG. 1 for driving in and pulling out the driving needles. As an alternative to this, the support beam 18 can also be moved in the direction of the arrow 26 at the same speed as the transport member 10 and, for example, then be reset again in order to drive the drive-in needles 20 on a further transport beam 10 by a subsequent sheet stack 14.

It is also possible to gradually move the individual sheet stacks in the direction of arrow 28 along the support element 10, so that with each step a new sheet stack, as shown in FIG. 1, is aligned below the support beam 18 and by the drive-in needles 20 by lowering the support beam 18 and subsequent lifting of the support beam 18 can be edited. It should be noted that the number of driving needles 20 is not limited to four, but the number of driving needles can be chosen at will.

The exact driving-in process is explained in more detail below with reference to FIGS. 2A to D, these sectional drawings showing on the one hand the design of the support or transport element 10 and on the other hand two further components, namely a pressing device 30, which functions as a product pressing means and centering means and can be designed as a longitudinal bar according to the supporting beam 18, and an adhesive feed device 32, which can be moved back and forth in accordance with the double arrow 34.

As can be seen from FIG. 2A, there is a bore 36 with a diameter which is slightly larger than the diameter of the respective drive-in needle 20 and which merges into a larger bore 38 in the area of the support edge 12 of the support element 10 immediately below each needle 20. The longitudinal axis of the needle 20 is aligned with the longitudinal axis 40 of the bore 36 and the bore 38 coaxial therewith.

In the stage according to FIG. 2A, the holding bar 18 is moved downwards according to the arrow 24, and the adhesive feed device 32 is in its left end position, in which the adhesive is dispensed in a metered amount from a nozzle 42 onto the driving needle rotating according to the arrow 22 20 is abandoned. A sufficient length of the drive-in needle 20 is coated with adhesive so that when the drive-in needle 20 is pushed through the sheet stack 14, the adhesive is transferred to the individual sheets of the stack in a sufficient amount. After the adhesive has been dispensed onto the drive-in needle 20, the adhesive supply device 32 is removed to the right from the area of the bar 18, so that it assumes the other end position according to FIG. 2B. The pressing device 30 is pressed against the edge 12 of the support or transport element 10 on the sheet stack 14. The support beam 18 is then moved downwards according to the arrow 24, while the driving needle is rotated at the same time 20 in the direction of arrow 22, so that the driving needle 20 penetrates through the sheet stack and is partially received in the bores 36 and 38. Then the direction of rotation of the drive-in needle 20 is reversed, as shown in FIG. 2C, and the support beam 18 is raised, so that the drive-in needle 20 is pulled out of the sheet stack 14. During this process, the pressing device 30 remains at the bottom and continues to exert pressure on the sheet stack, so that the sheets lying on top are not torn by retracting the needle 20.

After the needles have been completely pulled out, the adhesive feed device 32 is then moved from the right waiting position in FIGS. 2B and 2C to the left into the position in FIG. 2D, as a result of which the starting position in FIG. 2A is reached again. A subsequent support element 10 with a new sheet stack 14 is then brought into alignment with the support beam 18 or a next sheet stack 14 is moved along the support element 10 until this next stack is aligned with the support beam 18. The work cycle can then be repeated.

With this embodiment according to FIGS. 1 and 2, the adhesive with the needles 20 is introduced from the same side from which the needles 20 are driven. The needles 20 are designed or the needles 20 are withdrawn in such a way that when the needles 20 are withdrawn they do not convey the adhesive to any appreciable extent from the passages produced by the driving-in process. On the one hand, this is due to the shape of the surface of the driving needles, and on the other hand, through the combined rotary and linear displacement options Driving in and pulling out the driving needles ensured, as will be explained in more detail below with reference to FIGS. 4, 5, 6 and 7.

Another embodiment variant is to first form the passages by driving in the driving needles 20, and then to apply the adhesive to the needles 20 and, when the needles 20 are withdrawn, to transfer them to the paper sheets through the previously created through openings. In this case, the adhesive is supplied on the inside of the folded edge 16, as shown in FIGS. 3A to D.

In these figures, another form of the base 10 is initially provided for supporting the sheet stack 14. In this case, the base 10 has a flat support surface 44, on the underside of which a channel or individual chambers 46 are provided, which serve as a reservoir for adhesive 48 and to which a supply hose 50 is connected. Below each needle 20 there is also a bore 36, which makes it possible to drive the needle 20 according to FIG. 3B through the sheet stack 14 and the bore 36 into the amount of adhesive 48, so that the lower end of the drive-in needle 20 is coated with adhesive is transferred to the individual sheets of the sheet stack 14 during the pull-out movement.

The design of the support beam 18 and the pressing device 30 in this example corresponds to the design of the same components in the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 and 2, only with the difference that in practice the design of the pressing device 30 to the flat position of the Sheet stack 14 is adjusted. In FIG. 3, however, for the sake of simplicity, the pressing device 30 is shown in exactly the same way as in FIG. 2. Basically, chambers or channels filled with adhesive in accordance with FIGS. 3A to D could also be provided within the support element 10 of the embodiments in accordance with FIGS. 1 and 2 will.

3B, the supporting beam 18 is withdrawn, via the intermediate position of FIG. 3C into the end position of FIG. 3D, the pressing device 30, as previously, only after the complete Removing the drive-in needle 20 from the sheet stack 14 is withdrawn into the position according to FIG. 3D. Here, too, the press beam 30 serves, on the one hand, to center the drive-in needles, on the other hand to compress the sheet stack 14 and to prevent the overlying sheets from being torn when the drive-in needles 20 are removed. It can be seen from FIG. 3D that a small passage 52 remains after removal of the driving-in needle 20, as also in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2.

Arrows 22 of FIGS. 3A and 3C indicate that the driving-in needles 20 are rotated clockwise when driving in and counterclockwise when pulled out. It would be quite conceivable, for example, not to provide any rotation of the driving needles 20 during the driving-in movement of FIG. to set the rotational speed to zero.

In contrast to the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the driving needles 20 could be arranged in the support element 10 instead of in the supporting beam 18. This would mean that the driving-in movement would take place from the bottom up, or from the inside of the sheet stack 14 to the outside thereof. The adhesive can be supplied either as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 on the outer side or as shown in FIG. 3 on the inner side of the sheet stack 14.

4A to D now show different designs of the driving needles 20, all of which can also have a drilling function and in some embodiments are therefore also designed as drilling needles.

The drive-in needle 20 of FIG. 4A is provided with a thread-like grooving 21, it being possible for the individual threads of the thread to be undercut somewhat in order to form larger pockets for holding the adhesive. This type of needle design is shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 2A to D and FIGS. 3A to D. Due to the rotation of the drive-in needle 20 in a clockwise direction during the drive-in movement, corresponding to FIG. 2A, the thread-like design leads to the needles 20 themselves being pulled in, so to speak, through the sheet stack 14 in the manner of a thread cutter. The adhesive located in the grooves is stripped off due to the relative sliding between the surface of the needles 20 and the walls of the passages thus formed in the sheet stack, and is pressed or massaged in between the individual sheets and this pushing in of the adhesive is also reduced the removal of the needles with rotation in the opposite direction, according to FIG. 2C, continued.

In the embodiment of Figs. 3A-D, the adhesive is applied to the sheets of paper in the same manner only by removing the needles when rotating counterclockwise as shown in Fig. 3C, i.e. the adhesive or glue is stripped from the grooves and passages of the needles 20 in the passages in the sheet stack 14. In this embodiment, as in the other embodiments, the front end 54 of the needles is pointed, so that the paper here is displaced more laterally away from the needle 20 than is drilled out. This has the advantage that after the needles 20 have been removed, the paper, provided with adhesive, at least partially moves back again, so that the passages ultimately turn out to be smaller than the outer diameter of the needles 20.

4B, the needles 20 are provided with a type of helical screw thread 21a, similar to a drill, ie with a larger pitch. This type of tool is also suitable for use in the method according to FIGS. 2 and 3. This also applies to the embodiment according to FIG. 4C, where the needles 20 have a direct screw thread 21b, and where the tip 54 is not only pointed is tapered, as in all other embodiments, but is also designed in the manner of a chipboard screw in order to expand the passage in the sheet stack 14 to the core diameter of the screw without producing large amounts of drilling dust. This embodiment is shown on a larger scale in FIG. 5, specifically when used in an embodiment corresponding to FIG. 3. It can be seen that here the material outflow, ie the flow of adhesive from the screw onto the bore of the sheet stack 14, is ideal is. It arises from drifting through the needle 20 no material dust and the sheet material is displaced without pronounced machining.

4D, the needles 20 are provided with a type of self-tapping screw thread 21c. This embodiment can also be used in the method according to FIG. 2 or FIG. 3.

All variants have the option of changing the rotational speeds and the feed, i.e. to select the driving speed or the pulling-out speed of the needles 20 adapted to the thread pitch, as a result of which the corresponding thread shape is generated in the sheet stack 14 and the stripping effect is great when the adhesive is transferred to the sheet stack 14. But there would also be the possibility to change the feed rate, i.e. to choose the drive-in speed or the pull-out speed differently, so that no clean thread is cut in the sheet stack 14, in which case the resulting slippage and a certain jamming effect lead to a favorable transfer of the adhesive to the sheet stack. This can result in a type of drilling dust which, when mixed with the adhesive after removal of the driving needles 20, leads to a high-quality connection between the individual sheets of the sheet stack 14.

Fig. 6, in which the finished adhesive connection is shown, shows how the small passage 52 that remains after the removal of the driving needles 20 is reduced in diameter compared to the diameter of the bore 36 in the support beam 10, the diameter of which is only slightly larger than that The diameter of the needles 20 is. You can also see that the Adhesive is not only present as a thin film along the inner wall of the passage 52, but that there is an adhesive zone 55 with a certain radial depth. The material laterally displaced when the needles 20 are driven in has been pushed back into the passage 52, ie the originally larger passage has become smaller.

7A to F subsequently show further embodiments of driving needles that can be used. According to FIG. 7A, the driving-in needle 20 has in cross section the shape of an isosceles triangle with longitudinal grooves 60 receiving adhesive in the respective side surfaces 62 of the triangle. 7B, the driving-in needle 20 has a circular cross section with three sector-shaped longitudinal grooves 60, a core region 64 of the needle 20 being retained.

FIG. 7C shows how the sheet stack 14 is pierced with the aid of the needle 20 of FIG. 7B and the drive-in needle is received in a corresponding receiving chamber 66 of the base 10. According to FIG. 7D, this receiving chamber 66 is only replaced by a depression receiving the tip 54 of the driving needle. The arrangement can be such that after the paper sheets have been pierced, the needle holder or a displaceable sleeve 68 of the needle holder 18 is pressed further down and thereby presses a controlled amount of adhesive into the sheet stack.

According to FIG. 7E, the driving-in needle 20 has a knife-like cross-section with a flat oval shape and is also provided here with longitudinal grooves or grooves 60 which serve to hold the adhesive. The fact that the adhesive in These grooves or grooves 60 is provided, it is not so easily stripped from the tool during the linear drive-in movement of the drive-in needle 20 (which takes place here without superimposed rotary movement), but the displaced paper material penetrates into the grooves 60 and there is an approximately uniform distribution of the Adhesive to the individual sheets of the sheet stack 14.

Finally, FIG. 7F shows how the holder 18 or the displaceable sleeve 68 of the holder 18 can simultaneously perform the function as a pressing device 30 in order not to tear the paper sheets when the driving-in needle 20 is removed.

The adhesive connection described takes place, as already mentioned, along a line which, as can be seen from FIG. 1, corresponds to the fold line 16 in the case of pre-folded sheets, or along the line in the case of non-pre-folded sheets, the finished end product, e.g. can be a magazine, brochure or booklet that is later folded.

A wide variety of commercially available adhesives are suitable as adhesives, e.g. Cold glue. Adhesives can also be used which, after being introduced into the passages 52, still require post-treatment, e.g. a heat treatment.

Claims (26)

1. Method for binding the sheets of a multiple-sheet printed product, such as magazines, brochures and the like, in which the sheets are glued with each other in a punctiform manner through the introduction of an adhesive into passages formed therein, characterised in that the adhesive is introduced from the exterior in depressions on the outer side of a penetrating tool and the adhesive, situated on the outer side of the penetrating tool, simultaneously with the formation of the passages by means of the penetrating tool and/or with the removal of the penetrating tool, is transferred onto the sheets over the entire length of the passages.
2. Method according to Claim 1, characterised in that the transfer of the adhesive onto the sheets takes place with an inward or outward rotational movement of the penetrating tool.
3. Method according to Claim 2, characterised in that the passages are produced with rotatable driving-in or boring needles representing the penetrating tool, in which the driving-in or boring needles are arranged either in at least one row on a common supporting beam or in a support for the sheets.
4. Method according to Claim 3, characterised in that to receive and transfer the adhesive, the driving-in or boring needles are provided with thread-like grooves forming the depressions.
5. Method according to Claim 4, characterised in that the driving-in or extraction speed and the rotational speed of the driving-in or boring needles are selected so as to be adapted to the thread pitch.
6. Method according to Claim 4, characterised in that the driving-in or extraction speed and the rotational speed of the driving-in or boring needles are selected so as not to be adapted to the thread pitch.
7. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the driving-in speed is selected so as to be deviating from the extraction speed, and/or that the rotational speed on driving in of the driving-in or boring needles is selected to be different from the rotational speed on extraction thereof, in which one of these speeds can also be zero, and/or that the rotational speed is varied during the driving in or during the extraction.
8. Method according to one of Claims 3 to 7, characterised in that the sheets during the gluing process are carried by a support which has depressions or openings, arranged corresponding to the spacings of the driving-in or boring needles, to receive the points of these needles.
9. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the adhesive is applied immediately before the driving in of the driving-in or boring needles from the exterior onto the latter.
10. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the adhesive is applied from the exterior onto the driving-in or boring needles after the penetration of the sheets and before the extraction movement.
11. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the sheets, lying one on top of the other, are glued with each other in a punctiform manner along a line, which coincides with the fold edge of the finished product.
12. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that an adhesive is used which after the introduction into the passages is subjected to a subsequent treatment, e.g. a heat treatment.
13. Apparatus for binding the sheets of a multiple-sheet printed product, such as magazines, brochures and the like, in which in the sheets (14), supported on a base (10), passages (52) are formed by means of penetrating tools (20), into which adhesive is introduced, in particular for carrying out the method according to one or more of Claims 1 to 12, characterised in that the penetrating tool has several driving-in or boring needles (20) in each case having a closed point (54), which needles (20) are provided on their outer sides with depressions, such as grooves or channels (21, 60) for example, receiving the adhesive and transferring it to the wails of the passages (52), and that an adhesive supply device (32, 46) is provided for the application of adhesive from the exterior to the outer side of the driving-in or boring needles (20) before the penetration of the boring- or driving-in needles (20) into the sheets and/or before the removal of the boring- or driving-in needles (20) out of the sheets.
14. Apparatus according to Claim 13, characterised by a rotary drive for the driving-in or boring needles (20), in which the rotary drive is preferably reversible.
15. Apparatus according to Claim 13 or 14, characterised in that a device is provided for advancing or withdrawing the driving-in or boring needles (20) and also a pressing device (30) is provided, which presses onto the stack of sheets (14) on the driving in or extraction of the driving-in or boring needles (20).
16. Apparatus according to one of Claims 13 to 15, characterised in that the base (10) has depressions or openings (36) arranged corresponding to the spacings of the driving-in or boring needles (20).
17. Apparatus according to one of Claims 13 to 16, characterised in that the adhesive supply device (32) is situated immediately above the sheets (14) in the driving-in region of the driving-in or boring needles (20) or is movable into this driving-in region, in which the adhesive supply device (32) preferably has a number of adhesive outlet nozzles (42) corresponding to the number of driving-in or boring needles (20), and if necessary is movable in the direction of and away from the driving-in or boring needles (20).
18. Apparatus according to Claim 17, characterised in that a synchronising device is provided, which synchronises the to and fro movement of the adhesive supply device (32) with the driving-in movement of the driving-in or boring needles (20), in which the adhesive supply device (32) is arranged immediately before the driving in of the driving-in or boring needles (20) into the stack of sheets (14) adjacent to the driving-in or boring needles.
19. Apparatus according to one of Claims 13 to 16, characterised in that the adhesive supply device (46) is arranged underneath the sheets (14) lying one on top of the other, and preferably comprises at least one hollow chamber (46) or several hollow chambers in or beneath the base (10) supporting the sheets.
20. Apparatus according to one of Claims 13-19, characterised in that the depressions on the outer side of the driving-in or boring needles (20) are formed by thread-like grooves (21).
21. Apparatus according to Claim 20, characterised in that the thread form of the driving-in or boring needles (20) is either an undercut thread form (21) forming the depressions receiving adhesive, or a twisting screw thread form (21a), or a direct screw thread form (21b), or a tapping screw thread form (21c), in which the driving-in or boring needles (20) are preferably constructed as a self-tapping threaded screw.
22. Apparatus according to one of Claims 13 to 21, characterised in that the needles are constructed as boring needles (20) and have a pointed end (54) laterally displacing the sheet material.
23. Apparatus according to Claim 13, characterised in that the needles, constructed as driving-in needles (20), either have in cross-section approximately the form of a preferably isosceles triangle, in which the longitudinal grooves (60) forming depressions receiving the adhesive are constructed in the respective side faces (62), or are constructed so as to be approximately circular in cross-section, with several sector-like longitudinal grooves (60), which serve as depressions receiving the adhesive, or have a preferably blade-like, flat oval form, elongated in cross-section, in which longitudinal grooves (60) forming depressions receiving the adhesive are arranged distributed on the outer periphery.
24. Apparatus according to one of Claims 13-23, characterised in that each driving-in or boring needle is guided in a respective guide, and that an adhesive supply passage is constructed in the guide, which only opens into the end region of the guide, facing the point of the respective needle, in the depressions, receiving adhesive, constructed in the needle.
25. Apparatus according to one of Claims 13-24, characterised in that the driving-in or boring needles (20) are arranged in at least one row on a common supporting beam (18), which is preferably movable towards the base (10), or are arranged in the base (10).
26. Apparatus according to one of Claims 13-25, characterised in that the base (10) is movable and preferably rotates about an axis which runs parallel to its longitudinal axis, and that the driving-in or boring needles (20) are arranged so as to be movable with the base (10).

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