EP0613049B1 - Appareil pour le traitement d'un matériau sous forme de feuille - Google Patents

Appareil pour le traitement d'un matériau sous forme de feuille Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0613049B1
EP0613049B1 EP19940200313 EP94200313A EP0613049B1 EP 0613049 B1 EP0613049 B1 EP 0613049B1 EP 19940200313 EP19940200313 EP 19940200313 EP 94200313 A EP94200313 A EP 94200313A EP 0613049 B1 EP0613049 B1 EP 0613049B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
rack
tank
liquid
pipe
pump
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
EP19940200313
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German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP0613049A1 (fr
Inventor
Dirk C/O Agfa-Gevaert N.V. De Ruijter
Werner C/O Agfa-Gevaert N.V. Van De Wynckel
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Agfa Gevaert NV
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Agfa Gevaert NV
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Agfa Gevaert NV filed Critical Agfa Gevaert NV
Priority to EP19940200313 priority Critical patent/EP0613049B1/fr
Publication of EP0613049A1 publication Critical patent/EP0613049A1/fr
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0613049B1 publication Critical patent/EP0613049B1/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G03—PHOTOGRAPHY; CINEMATOGRAPHY; ANALOGOUS TECHNIQUES USING WAVES OTHER THAN OPTICAL WAVES; ELECTROGRAPHY; HOLOGRAPHY
    • G03D—APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING EXPOSED PHOTOGRAPHIC MATERIALS; ACCESSORIES THEREFOR
    • G03D3/00—Liquid processing apparatus involving immersion; Washing apparatus involving immersion
    • G03D3/08—Liquid processing apparatus involving immersion; Washing apparatus involving immersion having progressive mechanical movement of exposed material
    • G03D3/13—Liquid processing apparatus involving immersion; Washing apparatus involving immersion having progressive mechanical movement of exposed material for long films or prints in the shape of strips, e.g. fed by roller assembly
    • G03D3/132—Liquid processing apparatus involving immersion; Washing apparatus involving immersion having progressive mechanical movement of exposed material for long films or prints in the shape of strips, e.g. fed by roller assembly fed by roller assembly
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G03—PHOTOGRAPHY; CINEMATOGRAPHY; ANALOGOUS TECHNIQUES USING WAVES OTHER THAN OPTICAL WAVES; ELECTROGRAPHY; HOLOGRAPHY
    • G03D—APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING EXPOSED PHOTOGRAPHIC MATERIALS; ACCESSORIES THEREFOR
    • G03D3/00—Liquid processing apparatus involving immersion; Washing apparatus involving immersion
    • G03D3/02—Details of liquid circulation
    • G03D3/06—Liquid supply; Liquid circulation outside tanks

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an apparatus for the processing of sheet material, in particular film or other photo-chemical material.
  • the sheet material is brought into contact with aqueous processing liquids, and rinsing water in a processing machine.
  • reaction between the sheet material and the processing liquid takes place in a thin reaction zone or layer of the liquid close to the surface of the sheet material.
  • active chemicals in the reaction zone become used up and this zone becomes saturated with reaction products. It is necessary for fresh active chemicals to diffuse into this zone from the bulk of the liquid and for the reaction products to diffuse away.
  • circulation of the processing liquid is often employed.
  • a processing machine there is an open-topped tank divided into a number of compartments, in each of which is located a removable rack.
  • Each rack has opposite side plates carrying at least one pair of guide rollers to define a transport path for the sheet material.
  • a number of liquid inlet openings are provided in one side plate, and a number of liquid outlet openings are provided in the opposite side plate.
  • the side plates of the rack are spaced from the sides of the tank to form there-between a liquid inlet well on one side and a liquid outlet well on the other.
  • a pump feeds processing liquid to the liquid inlet well and withdraws processing liquid from the outlet well. Processing liquid circulates through the rack under pressure of the small liquid head in the inlet well.
  • Processing machines may adopt so-called rinsing chambers in which liquid spray devices are provided to direct processing liquid directly onto the sheet material from above and below, but such machines are complicated and costly to manufacture.
  • Patent US-A-5 168 296 discloses an apparatus wherein each processing tank includes a plurality of serially arranged compartments through which the photosensitive material is fed.
  • the processing fluid is circulated parallel to the photosensitive sheet over the complete section of the compartment by a pump, while a rectifier is used to avoid too much turbulence.
  • Disadvantages of this apparatus are that a high flow-rate pump is required, which is expensive, and that the rectifier is a complicated, and thus expensive, part.
  • the invention enables the construction of processing machines which provide good circulation without the use of high flow-rate pumps and without the use of rinsing chambers.
  • the racks can still be of small design.
  • the use of an external pump is preferred, although a pump located in the tank is also possible.
  • the pump may have a capacity of from 1 to 5 l/min.
  • the total cross-sectional area of the outlet openings is at least as large as that of the inlet openings, thereby to reduce the risk of overflowing.
  • the inlet openings may be relatively wide, to limit back pressure and reduce the possibility of turbulence being generated as the processing liquid passes through the inlet openings.
  • the output side of the pump is in liquid communication with releasable connection means and the rack includes pipe-work leading from the liquid inlet opening to the releasable connection means.
  • the releasable connection means may be comprised by an upwardly facing connection port in the tank in liquid communication with the output side of the pump and a downwardly directed pipe end of the rack pipe-work, engageable in the upwardly facing connection port.
  • the rack pipe-work leading to the liquid inlet opening includes at least one elbow.
  • the transport path may be further defined by one or more guide plates and/or by at least a second pair of guide rollers.
  • the transport path may be defined by an entry pair of guide rollers, an exit pair of guide rollers and at least one intermediate pair of guide rollers.
  • Guide plates may be located between each pair of guide rollers and liquid inlet openings in the side plate are preferably positioned adjacent these guide plates to direct liquid over the upper surface of the sheet material as it passes over the guide plates.
  • the pipework is located outside the tank and includes one or more open-ended tank-based pipes which pass through the wall of the tank, opening into the inlet well.
  • the side wall of the rack carries horizontally disposed open-ended rack-based pipes extending from the inlet apertures into the inlet well towards the side of the tank, opening in close proximity to the open ends of the tank-based pipes.
  • Processing liquid fed by the pump passes from the tank-based pipes into the rack-based pipes and thence to the inlet apertures and into the rack.
  • the connection between the pipes is not liquid-tight, the close proximity thereof is sufficient to ensure that the liquid pressure generated by the pump is substantially used to generate the required circulation of processing liquid through the rack. This arrangement enables the rack to be simply lifted out of the tank, for cleaning purposes, without the need to make any disconnections.
  • an apparatus for the processing of sheet material comprises an open-topped tank 10 divided into a number of compartments 11a, 11b etc by cross walls 13 extending between the side walls 21 of the tank 10.
  • each compartment 11 there is located one of a number of identical removable racks 12a, 12b etc., only rack 12c in compartment 11c being shown in Figure 1 for the sake of clarity.
  • Each compartment has a width of about 80 cm, a length of about 13 cm and a depth of about 7 cm.
  • Each compartment 11 therefore has a liquid capacity of about 8 litres excluding the rack.
  • Each rack 12 is formed with opposite side plates 14a, 14b which are spaced from the sides of the respective compartment 11 so as two form on each side a well, designated as an inlet well 17a and an outlet well 17b, each having a capacity of about 0.7 litres.
  • a sheet material transport path 15 is defined by an entry pair of guide rollers 16a, 16b, an exit pair of guide rollers 18a, 18b, and an intermediate pair of guide rollers 20a, 20b.
  • the guide rollers have a width of 72 cm, are supported between the side plates 14a, 14b and are arranged with their axes parallel, at right angles to the transport path 15.
  • the transport path is further defined by two curved guide plates 22a, 22b.
  • the rack 12 includes pipe-work 32 leading from the liquid inlet openings to a downwardly directed pipe end 36.
  • the pipe-work 32 leads from the downwardly directed pipe end 36 to the two liquid inlet openings via a T-junction 38 which splits the liquid flow into two paths, an elbow 40 having an angle of about 90° being provided in each path.
  • processing liquid fills the tank compartment 11 to a level 27 at or above the uppermost of the guide rollers 16, 18, 20, filling not only the rack 12 but also the inlet and outlet wells 17a, 17b.
  • the output side 30 of a pump 28 located below the tank 10 is in liquid communication with an upwardly facing connection port 34 in the tank 10 to form a releasable connection between the rack pipe-work 32 and the pump 28.
  • the pump 28 has a capacity of 5 l/min and feeds processing liquid at a pressure of 100 cm water via the liquid inlet openings 24a, 24b into the rack 12. Processing liquid leaves the rack 12 through the outlet openings 26a, 26b into the outlet well 17b thereby enabling the processing liquid to circulate through the rack 12.
  • the liquid inlet openings 24a, 24b and the liquid outlet openings 26a, 26b are so positioned to provide a circulating flow of the processing liquid closely adjacent the surface of the sheet material across the transport path in a direction parallel to the guide rollers 16, 18, 20 as indicated by the line 25 in Figure 3.
  • the pump 28 withdraws processing liquid from the outlet well 17b by way of a flexible pipe 44.
  • connection port 34 is formed by a plastics material bush 35 inserted in an aperture 37 formed in the base 23 of the tank 10.
  • the bush has an upwardly directed bevelled face 39 on which the lower end 36 of the pipework 32 rests.
  • the bush 35 is extended in a downwards direction into a sleeve 41 onto which a flexible pipe 43 is fitted and secured by means not shown.
  • the connection between the lower end 36 of the pipework 32 and the upwardly directed face 39 of the bush 35 need not be absolutely liquid-tight. Any processing liquid leaking at this connection passes into the inlet well 17a, which already contains processing liquid at the same level as in the rack 12 and the outlet well 17b.
  • a worm drive 19 is located in the tank 10, driven by means not shown, and carries worms 191, 192 which, when the rack is in position, engage with worm gears 511 and 512 respectively, carried on the axles of the rollers 16b, 18b on the outside of the side wall 14b.
  • the worm gears 511, 512 mesh with gear wheels 513, 514 which are carried on the axles of the rollers 16a, 16b.
  • An intermediate gear wheel 515 also carried on the outside of the side wall 14b, transfers the drive to the guide rollers 20a, 20b via meshing gear wheels 516, 517.
  • Operation of the worm drive 19 thereby causes rotation of the rollers 16, 18, 20 to drive the sheet through the processing liquid in the rack.
  • the drive means cause the sheet material to be transported through the rack 12 at a linear speed of 30 to 120 cm/min, giving a residence time within the processing liquid of about 40 to 6 seconds.
  • Guide means are provided to guide the sheet material from one rack to the next, thereby causing the sheet material to be dipped successively in the processing liquids of all the racks.
  • the compartments 11a, 11b etc will usually be provided with different processing liquids, such as in sequence, a developing liquid, a fixing liquid and one or more rinsing liquids.
  • the height of the cross walls 13 is such as to limit overflow of processing liquid from one compartment to the next.
  • Each side plate 14a, 14b is provided with a handle 42a, 42b, which permit the user to remove the rack 12 from the tank 10 in a convenient manner for cleaning purposes.
  • the pipework 32 is located outside the tank 10, and is in fluid-tight connection with the flexible pipe 43 from the pump 28.
  • the pipework includes open-ended pipes 53 which pass through the wall of the tank 10, opening into the inlet well 17a.
  • the side wall 14a of the rack 12 carries horizontally disposed open-ended pipes 55 extending from the inlet apertures 24 towards the side of the tank 10. The arrangement is such that, when the rack 12 is in position in the tank 10 the open ends of the pipes 53 and 55 are in close proximity to each other. Processing liquid fed by the pump 28 passes from the pipes 53 into the pipes 55 and thence to the inlet apertures 24 and into the rack 12.
  • connection between the pipes 53 and 55 is not liquid-tight, the close proximity thereof is sufficient to ensure that the liquid pressure generated by the pump 28 is substantially used to generate the required circulation of processing liquid through the rack.
  • This arrangement enables the rack 12 to be simply lifted out of the tank 10, for cleaning purposes, without the need to make any disconnections.

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  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Cleaning By Liquid Or Steam (AREA)
  • Photographic Processing Devices Using Wet Methods (AREA)

Claims (8)

  1. Appareil de traitement de matériaux en feuilles, comportant une cuve (10) et au moins un rack (bâti) amovible (12) situé dans ladite cuve (10), chaque rack (12) possédant des plaques latérales opposées (14a, 14b), des moyens délimitant une trajectoire de transport (15) pour le matériau en feuilles comprenant au moins une paire de cylindres de guidage (16, 18, 20) supportée par lesdites plaques latérales, un orifice d'introduction de liquide (24a, 24b) dans une plaque latérale (14a), un orifice d'évacuation de liquide (26a, 26b) dans la plaque latérale opposée(14b), et une pompe (28) servant à acheminer du liquide de traitement vers et à partir de la cuve (10) afin de faire circuler le liquide de traitement dans le rack (12), le côté du refoulement (30) de la pompe (28) communiquant par liquide avec l'orifice d'introduction de liquide (24a, 24b) pour alimenter le rack (12) en liquide de traitement sous la pression de la pompe (28), caractérisé en ce que les orifices d'introduction de liquide et d'évacuation de liquide (24a, 24b, 26a, 26b) sont placés seuls au voisinage de ladite trajectoire de transport (15) de sorte qu'un courant circulant du liquide de traitement soit prévu tout près de la surface du matériau en feuilles en travers de ladite trajectoire de transport (15) dans une direction parallèle aux cylindres de guidage (16, 18, 20).
  2. Appareil selon la revendication 2, caractérisé en ce que la trajectoire de transport (15) est en outre délimitée par une ou plusieurs plaques de guidage (14a, 14b).
  3. Appareil selon la revendication 1 or 2, caractérisé en ce que la trajectoire de transport (15) est en outre délimitée par au moins une deuxième paire de cylindres de guidage (16, 18, 20).
  4. Appareil selon la revendication 3, caractérisé en ce que la trajectoire de transport (15) est délimitée par une paire d'entrée de cylindres de guidage (16a, 16b), une paire de sortie de cylindres de guidage (18a, 18b) et au moins une paire intermédiaire de cylindres de guidage (20a, 20b).
  5. Appareil selon l'une quelconque des revendications précédentes, caractérisé en ce que le côté du refoulement (30) de la pompe (28) communique par liquide avec un moyen de raccordement apte au desserrage (34, 36) et en ce que le rack (12) comprend une tuyauterie (32) menant de l'orifice d'introduction de liquide (24a, 24b) jusqu'au moyen de raccordement apte au desserrage (34, 36).
  6. Appareil selon l'une quelconque des revendications précédentes, caractérisé en ce que le moyen de raccordement apte au desserrage (34, 36) est constitué par un orifice de raccordement (34) orienté vers le haut dans la cuve (10) communiquant par liquide avec le côté du refoulement (30) de la pompe (28) et un bout de tuyau (36) de la tuyauterie du rack (32) orienté vers le bas, pouvant s'engager dans l'orifice de raccordement (34) orienté vers le haut.
  7. Appareil selon la revendication 6, caractérisé en ce que la tuyauterie du rack (32) mène du bout de tuyau (36) orienté vers le bas jusqu'à au moins un orifice d'introduction de liquide (24a, 24b) prévu dans la même plaque latérale (14a).
  8. Appareil selon la revendication 5, caractérisé en ce que la tuyauterie (32) se situe à l'extérieur de la cuve (10) et comprend au moins un tuyau (53) aux extrémités ouvertes s'appuyant sur la cuve et traversant la paroi de la cuve (10), et en ce que la paroi latérale (14a) du rack (12) supporte au moins un tuyau (55) aux extrémités ouvertes, posé horizontalement, s'appuyant sur le rack, s'étendant à partir de l'orifice d'introduction (24) vers le côté latéral de la cuve (10), de telle façon que, lorsque le rack (12) a été mis en place dans la cuve (10), les extrémités ouvertes du tuyau (53) s'appuyant sur la cuve et du tuyau (55) s'appuyant sur le rack soient tout près l'une de l'autre, de sorte que le liquide de traitement amené par la pompe (28) coule sous la pression du tuyau (53) s'appuyant sur la cuve dans le tuyau (55) s'appuyant sur le rack et de là dans l'orifice d'introduction (24) et dans le rack (12).
EP19940200313 1993-02-23 1994-02-04 Appareil pour le traitement d'un matériau sous forme de feuille Expired - Lifetime EP0613049B1 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
EP19940200313 EP0613049B1 (fr) 1993-02-23 1994-02-04 Appareil pour le traitement d'un matériau sous forme de feuille

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
EP93200502 1993-02-23
EP93200502 1993-02-23
EP19940200313 EP0613049B1 (fr) 1993-02-23 1994-02-04 Appareil pour le traitement d'un matériau sous forme de feuille

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0613049A1 EP0613049A1 (fr) 1994-08-31
EP0613049B1 true EP0613049B1 (fr) 2000-05-03

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Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP19940200313 Expired - Lifetime EP0613049B1 (fr) 1993-02-23 1994-02-04 Appareil pour le traitement d'un matériau sous forme de feuille

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Families Citing this family (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP0779546A1 (fr) * 1995-12-11 1997-06-18 Agfa-Gevaert N.V. Appareil de traitement pour matériaux photographiques en feuille
EP1014190A1 (fr) * 1998-12-22 2000-06-28 GID GmbH Récipient pour appareils de développement

Family Cites Families (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JPS5552059A (en) * 1978-10-12 1980-04-16 Fuji Photo Film Co Ltd Method and apparatus for processing of photosensitive material for printing and engraving
US4324479A (en) * 1979-11-01 1982-04-13 Sachs Emanuel M Film processing method and apparatus
US4736222A (en) * 1987-06-22 1988-04-05 Eastman Kodak Company Liquid distribution box
EP0327674A3 (fr) * 1988-02-12 1990-09-05 ING. HERMANN KÜMMERL, LABORGERÄTEBAU, Inh. Ing. Klaus Kümmerl Machine de développement photographique
US5168296A (en) * 1988-04-20 1992-12-01 Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd. Method and apparatus for processing photosensitive material

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EP0613049A1 (fr) 1994-08-31

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