JP2000221612A - Sensitive material processor and cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sensitive material processor equipped with a record medium on which information can be written and capable of loading a cartridge in which sensitive material is housed. SOLUTION: This sensitive material processor equipped with an IC card Ic on which the information can be written and capable of loading cartridges C1 and C2 which the sensitive material P is housed is provided with a read and write part 51 for reading information recorded on the IC card Ic and an exposure part performing the exposure processing of the sensitive material P on the basis of the information read by the read and write part 51. Therefore, even when the residual amount of the material P in the cartridges C1 and C2 is changed in accordance with exposure processing, more appropriate processing is performed by the exposure part according to the information read by the read and write part 51 by properly writing the information on the IC card Ic in accordance with the change of the residual amount of the material P.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus for processing photosensitive material, and more particularly to an apparatus for processing photosensitive material in order to produce a color proof in the printing field.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the printing field, before full-scale printing, test printing (proof printing) is sometimes performed to determine whether or not the print finish is normal. Generally, such test printing is performed by superimposing a sheet-shaped photosensitive material on a transparent film on which a negative image corresponding to a printed image is formed, and irradiating exposure light with uniform intensity from the film side, This is performed by a photosensitive material processing apparatus that exposes the photosensitive material and further develops the same to form a permanent image. The sheet-shaped photosensitive material is
It is usually stored in a light-shielding cartridge in the form of a roll.

Incidentally, such photosensitive materials have different chemical characteristics such as sensitivity to exposure light depending on the kind thereof, and therefore, the intensity and time of exposure light appropriate for a specific photosensitive material are appropriate. In some cases, different types of photosensitive materials are inappropriate. However, it may be relatively difficult to visually determine whether or not the photosensitive materials are of different types, and there is a risk that different types of photosensitive materials may be erroneously processed by the photosensitive material processing apparatus. In such a case, since the image formation becomes inappropriate, the operator first notices that the photosensitive material is different after the development, and it is necessary to perform the processing again. However, since photosensitive materials are relatively expensive, some measures are required to prevent such reprocessing.

[0004] On the other hand, in the prior art, a bar code including information such as the type of the photosensitive material is provided outside the cartridge containing the photosensitive material. The photosensitive material processing unit reads the bar code of the cartridge to determine the type of photosensitive material stored in the cartridge, and issues an alarm if the type of photosensitive material does not match the set exposure conditions etc. In this case, the operator is prompted to replace the photosensitive material.

[0005]

However, when a barcode-printed paper or the like is pasted on a cartridge, the barcode may be peeled off for some reason and then pasted on a cartridge containing a different type of photosensitive material. There is. In such a case, even if the type of photosensitive material stored in the cartridge is different, as long as the information of the barcode of the cartridge conforms,
The photosensitive material processing apparatus cannot detect that the photosensitive material is of a different type, performs exposure under the set exposure condition, and as a result, an inappropriate image is formed.

On the other hand, it is conceivable that the photosensitive material in the cartridge is partially used and then removed, for example, to process photosensitive materials of different sizes. In such a case, the remaining amount of the photosensitive material in the cartridge used halfway can be useful information for executing processing of the photosensitive material when the cartridge is next loaded. However, in the recording of information using a barcode as in the prior art, only predetermined information can be recorded, and therefore, for example, the remaining amount of the photosensitive material cannot be recorded. Therefore, in such a case, the worker records the remaining amount of the photosensitive material in the cartridge by writing down a memo or the like, and when reloading the cartridge, checks the remaining amount of the photosensitive material while watching the memo writing. I do things like input to the material processing equipment. However, such an input mode is troublesome, and an input error of the remaining amount may occur.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described problems of the related art, and has as its object to provide a photosensitive material processing apparatus which includes a recording medium on which information can be written and in which a cartridge for storing photosensitive material can be loaded.

[0008]

Means and actions for solving the above problems will be described below.

(1) A photosensitive material processing apparatus having a recording medium on which information can be written and in which a cartridge containing a photosensitive material can be loaded, wherein a reading means for reading information recorded on the recording medium of the cartridge; According to the photosensitive material processing apparatus having processing means for processing the photosensitive material based on the information read by the reading means, the photosensitive material (for example, the remaining amount) in the cartridge changes according to the processing. Even if the information is appropriately written on the recording medium of the cartridge, the processing unit can perform more appropriate processing based on the information read by the reading unit.

(2) According to the photosensitive material processing apparatus further having a recording means for writing information recorded on the recording medium in accordance with the processing of the photosensitive material, the photosensitive material in the cartridge (for example, Changes),
Information can be appropriately written accordingly.

(3) According to the photosensitive material processing apparatus in which the information written by the recording means is the length of the photosensitive material stored in the cartridge, for example, after the photosensitive material is used halfway, the remaining amount is reduced. The recording means can record on the recording medium, so that when the cartridge is loaded again, the processing means performs more appropriate processing based on the remaining amount of the photosensitive material read by the reading means. be able to. (4) The recording medium records information on the type of photosensitive material contained in the cartridge, and the processing unit determines that the type of the photosensitive material is different based on the information read by the reading unit. According to the photosensitive material processing apparatus having the warning unit that issues an alarm when it is determined, the warning prompts the operator to replace the cartridge with a cartridge containing an appropriate photosensitive material, thereby removing the inappropriate photosensitive material. Erroneous processing is prevented.

(5) The recording medium records information on the type of photosensitive material contained in the cartridge, and the processing means reads the type of photosensitive material based on the information read by the reading means. According to the photosensitive material processing apparatus having the stop means for stopping the transfer of the photosensitive material when it is determined that the photosensitive material is different, the stop of the transfer prompts the operator to replace the photosensitive material with a cartridge containing an appropriate photosensitive material. This prevents erroneous processing of inappropriate photosensitive material.

(6) According to the cartridge loaded in the photosensitive material processing apparatus, even if the photosensitive material (for example, the remaining amount) in the cartridge changes in accordance with the processing, the recording medium of the cartridge is correspondingly changed. By appropriately writing information, the processing unit can perform more appropriate processing based on the information read by the reading unit.

(7) According to the cartridge in which the recording medium is irremovably mounted, there is no danger that the recording medium will be replaced between cartridges, thereby preventing the reading means from reading erroneous information. I have.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to embodiments. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view in the transport direction of a photosensitive material processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a photosensitive material processing apparatus 1 includes a photosensitive material supply unit 10;
It comprises an exposure section 20 and a development section 30.

In the supply section 10, spaces for loading two cartridges C1 and C2 are arranged side by side. The operator can load the cartridges C1 and C2 in which the elongated photosensitive material P in a roll shape is stored in the space. Although the cartridges C1 and C2 contain the same type of photosensitive material, the sizes thereof may be different.

The photosensitive material P pulled out from the upper cartridge C1 is transferred to an upper conveying device 11 composed of rollers.
And is conveyed to the cutter 13 via the. On the other hand, the photosensitive material P pulled out from the lower cartridge C2 is transported to the cutter 13 via the lower transport device 12 composed of rollers.
Below the cutter 13, a sucker-type transport device 14 is provided, which transports the photosensitive material P to the exposure unit 20 while adsorbing the leading end of the photosensitive material P by a suction cup (not shown). Photosensitive material P
Is pulled out from the cutter 13 by a predetermined length,
The rotary cutter 13 operates to cut the photosensitive material P.

The cut photosensitive material P is placed on an exposure stage 21 of an exposure section 20 which is a processing means. The exposure stage 21 is movable up and down. When the exposure stage 21 moves to a lower position, the exposure stage 21 allows the transport of the photosensitive material P from the supply unit 10 and the transport of the photosensitive material to the developing unit 30. Has become. On the other hand, the exposure stage 21
When the photosensitive material P is moved upward,
The light source unit 22 is in close contact with the lower surface of the light source unit 22 via an original film (not shown).

The light source unit 22 includes a scanning light source and a color filter (both not shown), and an original film can be attached to the lower surface. When the light source scans, uniform light is emitted from the lower surface. It is designed to be irradiated. The photosensitive material P is exposed to the uniform light corresponding to the image of the original film. still,
The scanning speed and intensity of the light source are adjusted in advance according to the characteristics of the photosensitive material P. The light source unit 22 can be freely opened by a hinge (not shown). When the light source unit 22 is opened, the original picture film attached to the lower surface thereof can be replaced by an operator. On the other hand, when the light source unit 22 is closed, the exposure unit 30 is shielded from the outside, and
External light is prevented from reaching the photosensitive material P inside.

The photosensitive material P which has been exposed in the exposure section 20 is supplied to the developing section 30 by the transport device 23. The developing unit 30 includes a developing unit 31 that is provided along a transport system path of the photosensitive material P and performs a color developing process.
A fixing processing unit 32 for performing bleaching / fixing processing, a stabilizing processing unit 33 for performing stabilizing processing, a drying unit 34 for drying the photosensitive material P, and a replenishing tank 35 for replenishing the developing solution and the like. ing. The photosensitive material P on which the developing process is completed in the developing unit 30 and the permanent image is formed is conveyed to the take-out unit 40.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a cartridge loading section of the photosensitive material processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. Cartridge C1 (C2) containing rolled photosensitive material P
Has an opening Co at the upper edge thereof, through which the end of the photosensitive material P can be taken out. The cartridge C1 (C2) has an IC card Ic as a recording medium irremovably attached to the upper right side in FIG. As the IC card Ic, for example, a card in which a microcomputer is mounted on a plastic card is known, and information can be arbitrarily stored. When loaded into the photosensitive material processing apparatus 1,
A reading / writing unit 51 serving as a reading unit and a recording unit is disposed so as to face the IC card Ic of the cartridge C1 (C2). The read / write unit 51 can read information recorded on the IC card Ic in a non-contact manner, and can rewrite at least a part of the information in a non-contact manner or write new information. It has become. It should be noted that another recording medium such as a magnetic card can be used as the recording medium.

The control system 50 includes a read / write unit 51
A CPU 52 for receiving information read by the
And an interface 56 for transmitting a control signal from the CPU 52 to a drive motor 57 of the drive roller 11a. The transport device 11 includes a driving roller 11a and a driven roller 11b driven by the driving roller 11a. A rotary encoder 58 is attached to a detection roller (not shown) that is provided downstream of the transport device 11 and rolls in accordance with the transport of the photosensitive material. The rotary encoder 58 detects the rotation speed of the detection roller,
The corresponding electric signal can be transmitted to the CPU 52. Note that the CPU 52 can cause the monitor display 54 to display a warning. Operation panel 5
From 5, information necessary for operating the photosensitive material processing apparatus 1 can be input.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the cartridge C1 (C2)
The photosensitive material processing apparatus 1 is loaded with the cartridge C1.
The photosensitive material P stored in (C2) is drawn out through the opening Co, and is conveyed to the exposure unit 20 side by the driving roller 11a and the driven roller 11b of the conveying device 11.

Here, the reading / writing section 51 can read information recorded on the IC card Ic of the loaded cartridge C1 (C2). IC card I
c includes the cartridge C1 (C
Information such as the size, type, sensitivity, winding length, manufacturing date, lot number and manufacturer control number of the photosensitive material P stored in 2) is recorded. If such information is encoded (encrypted) and stored, falsification of the information can be prevented.

The CPU 52 includes a read / write unit 51
If it is determined that the photosensitive material P is of a type that meets the exposure conditions currently set in the photosensitive material processing apparatus 1 based on the information read by the
7, the photosensitive material P can be transported to the exposure unit 20. On the other hand, based on the information read by the reading / writing section 51, the CPU 52
Is determined to be of a type that does not meet the exposure conditions currently set in the photosensitive material processing apparatus 1,
A stop signal is output via the interface 56, whereby the driving of the motor 57 is stopped, and the conveyance of the photosensitive material P can be stopped. In parallel with that, the CPU
52 can cause the monitor display 54 to display a warning such as "The photosensitive material is different". Thus, the worker can continue the processing operation by replacing the photosensitive material with a suitable one.

On the other hand, when the transport device 11 is driven, the rotary encoder 58 outputs a signal corresponding to the rotation to the CPU 52, so that the diameter of the detection roller (not shown) is determined in advance in the ROM 5.
If stored in 3, the length of the photosensitive material P transported by the transport device 11 can be known based on the stored diameter of the detection roller and the detected number of rotations. Therefore,
The photosensitive material P stored in the cartridge C1 (C2) is obtained by dividing the value obtained by multiplying the number of rotations of the detection roller by the circumference from the original winding length recorded on the IC card Ic.
Can be obtained. This remaining amount is stored in the CPU 52
As a result, the remaining amount of the photosensitive material P can be displayed on the monitor display 54, and can be recorded on the IC card Ic by the reading / writing unit 51.

When the cartridge C1 (C2) in which the photosensitive material P has been used halfway is removed, the remaining amount of the photosensitive material P at the time of removal is recorded on the IC card Ic. Therefore, when the cartridge C1 (C2) using the photosensitive material P halfway is reloaded, the reading / writing unit 51 can read the remaining amount of the photosensitive material P recorded on the IC card Ic, and the CPU 52 The remaining amount can be displayed on the monitor display 54 to notify the worker of the accurate remaining amount.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, information necessary for processing, such as the remaining amount of the photosensitive material P, is read out.
Since writing can be performed on the IC card Ic by the writing unit 51, the operator does not need to check the remaining amount each time, and the processing can be automated. Further, since the IC card Ic is irremovably provided in the cartridge C1 (C2), it is not possible to replace the IC card Ic with another cartridge, thereby erroneously processing a different type of photosensitive material P. Such a problem can be prevented as much as possible. Further, since the manufacturing date, lot number, and the like can be recorded on the IC card Ic, this is advantageous for the management of the photosensitive material manufacturer.

It is to be noted that, for example, an IC card is
It is more preferable to bury the IC card in the side wall of 1 (C2) because the IC card itself cannot be observed from the outside and the IC card cannot be substantially removed.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the exemplary embodiments, the present invention should not be construed as being limited to the above-described exemplary embodiments. is there. For example, in this embodiment,
When the reading / writing unit 51 reads information that a different photosensitive material is stored in the loaded cartridge, the transport of the photosensitive material is stopped and an alarm is issued. Instead, exposure conditions (irradiation amount and irradiation time) suitable for the different photosensitive materials may be set in the exposure unit.

[0031]

According to the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention, by appropriately writing information on the recording medium of the cartridge, the processing means can perform more appropriate processing.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view in the transport direction of a photosensitive material processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a cartridge loading unit of the photosensitive material processing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 photosensitive material processing device 10 supply unit 11, 12 transport device 11 a drive roller 11 b driven roller 13 cutter 20 exposure unit 21 exposure stage 22 light source unit 30 developing unit 40 take-out unit 50 control system 51 read / write unit 52 CPU 53 ROM 54 monitor Display 55 Operation panel 56 Interface 57 Motor 58 Rotary encoder C1, C2 Photosensitive material storage cartridge Ic IC card P Photosensitive material

Claims (7)

[Claims] A recording medium on which information can be written;
A photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of loading a cartridge containing a photosensitive material, a reading unit for reading information recorded on the recording medium of the cartridge, and a processing of the photosensitive material based on the information read by the reading unit. A photosensitive material processing apparatus, comprising: 2. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a recording unit that writes information recorded on the recording medium in accordance with processing of the photosensitive material. 3. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information written by the recording unit is a length of the photosensitive material stored in the cartridge. 4. The recording medium records information on the type of photosensitive material stored in the cartridge, and the processing unit determines the type of the photosensitive material based on the information read by the reading unit. 4. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a warning unit that issues a warning when it is determined that the two are different. 5. The recording medium records information on the type of photosensitive material contained in the cartridge, and the processing unit determines the type of the photosensitive material based on the information read by the reading unit. 5. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a stop unit that stops transport of the photosensitive material when it is determined that the photosensitive material is different. 6. A cartridge mounted in the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1. 7. The cartridge according to claim 6, wherein the recording medium is irremovably attached to the cartridge.