JP2001106376A - Conveying roller and photosensitive material processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a photosensitive material from being given a jerk or the like to quality deterioration, to stabilize a feed speed of the photosensitive material, to impart a uniform conveying force in a width direction and to enhance a feed accuracy. SOLUTION: A pair of conveying roller for clamping and conveying a photosensitive material 52 is constituted by a projection roller 28 provided with a plurality of projections 34 on an outer periphery surface and a flat roller 54. When the photosensitive material 52 is clamped by the projection roller 28 and the flat roller 54, a crushed quantity of the projection 34 is set such that the projection positioned at which the projection 34 does not clamp the photosensitive material 52 is contacted with the flat roller 54. Thus, a uniform nip force is generated in a width direction and a conveying force becomes uniform by setting the crushed quantity of the projection 34. A rubbing of the photosensitive material becomes weak by conveying the photosensitive material 52 by the projection 34 and a quality of an edge portion of the photosensitive material 52 is ensured.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a transport roller for nipping and transporting a photosensitive material, and a photosensitive material processing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a photosensitive material processing apparatus for transporting a photosensitive material in the form of a sheet while developing the photosensitive material, the photosensitive material is transported while being bent up and down. It is set narrow, and the number of transport rollers inevitably increases. For this reason, the number of times the conveying roller pair squeezes the photosensitive material increases, and as a result, the quality of the edge portion of the photosensitive material tends to deteriorate. Further, this tendency becomes worse as the nip pressure of the transport roller pair is increased, but if the nip pressure is reduced, the transport force is reduced, so that it cannot be extremely reduced.

Further, as shown in FIG. 18, when the photosensitive material 52 is transported by only one side of the transport roller pair 50 (in the case of single row transport), the flat roller 54 rises and tilts by the thickness of the photosensitive material 52. For this reason, the conveying force becomes unbalanced in the width direction of the photosensitive material 52, and the photosensitive material 52 is sent to the skew.

In order to cope with the above-mentioned inconveniences, a pair of conveying rollers is constituted by a flat roller and an escaping roller, and the contact with the photosensitive material is changed from surface contact to point contact, so that the influence of ironing on the photosensitive material is reduced. There is something.

However, as shown in FIGS. 19 to 21, a conventional type warp roller 56 mass-produces a long tube-like warp tube 58 by injection molding using a thermoplastic elastomer, and converts this tube 58 into a cylindrical tube. It was manufactured by press-fitting into the core body 60.

For this reason, as shown in FIG.
(The mold 62 can be released in the arrow direction)
The height of the warp 64 having a spherical surface could not be made too high. For example, if the height of the warp 64 is high, the warp 64 of the portion A is broken at the time of mold release. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 23, the warp 64 extends from the bottom of the valley between the wart 64 to the top of the wart 64. Assuming that the height is h and the radius SR of the spherical surface of the wart, the limit was SR / h = 1.5.

In addition, due to the mold structure, the warp cannot be increased in the circumferential direction of the tube 58 (for example, the number of the rollers is limited to seven in the circumferential direction with a φ20 transport roller).

[0008] As a result, the wart shape is inevitably large and hard to collapse. If the wart 64 is hard to be crushed, the influence of the unevenness of the height h of the wart 64 (in the case of a long tubular tube, the outer diameter differs at each gate portion) is remarkable, and the warp of the core body 60 and the like. It is easy to be affected, and it is difficult to obtain a uniform conveying force at each part of the roller in the axial direction. For this reason, very strict management including component accuracy is required.

If the shape of the wart 64 is large, FIG.
As shown in (1), in many cases, only one wart row arranged in the axial direction of the roller contacts the opposing photosensitive material 52. For this reason, at the position of the vertex 64A of the warp 64 and the position of the valley bottom surface 64B between the vertex 64A, the substantial contact outer diameter of the warp roller 56 changes.

As described above, if the substantial outer contact diameter of the warp roller 56 constantly fluctuates during rotation, the warp roller 56 pulsates, causing the photosensitive material 52 to be pinched and conveyed to flap and the behavior to be unstable. Therefore, when mounted on a photosensitive material processing apparatus, as shown in the graph of FIG. 24, the linear speed (feeding speed of the photosensitive material) and the conveying force are not stable, and the edge portion of the photosensitive material becomes sharp, The gaps between them are narrowed or overlapped.

Further, as shown in FIG. 25, when the wart 64 is large and SR / h = 1.5, the amount of collapse of the wart is small.
In addition, when the unevenness of the heights of the individual warts 64 cannot be absorbed, and the photosensitive material 52 is sandwiched, the wart 64 in a portion where the photosensitive material 52 is not provided does not contact the flat roller 54 facing the light-sensitive material 52, or the warp 64 does not contact the photosensitive material 52. The photosensitive material may be skewed due to the unbalanced conveyance force due to the contact with the photosensitive material.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is intended to prevent the quality of a photosensitive material from deteriorating due to rubbing or the like, to stabilize the feeding speed of the photosensitive material, and to reduce the width of the photosensitive material. It is an object of the present invention to provide a uniform conveying force to the sheet and improve the feeding accuracy.

[0013]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a transport roller pair for nipping and transporting a photosensitive material is constituted by a transport roller having a plurality of protrusions on an outer peripheral surface and a flat roller.

When the photosensitive material is sandwiched between the transport roller and the flat roller, the amount of collapse of the projection is set such that the projection at a position where the photosensitive material is not sandwiched contacts the flat roller.

By setting the amount of crushing of the projections as described above, variations in the heights of the individual projections are simultaneously absorbed, and a uniform nip force is generated in the width direction, so that the conveying force becomes uniform, and the single-row conveyance is performed. Even in such a case, the photosensitive material is not sent to the skew due to the lifting of the transport roller. Also,
It is possible to absorb and reduce the influence of the bending of the conveying roller pair (the bending due to its own weight with the shaft portions at both ends as fulcrums).

Further, by transporting the photosensitive material by the projections, the scorching of the photosensitive material is weakened, and the quality of the edge portion of the photosensitive material is guaranteed.

[0017] In the invention according to claim 2, projections, is a spherical surface of radius R _1, the height from the valley bottom between the projections to the top of the sphere is the h, R ₁ /h=1.3~ It is characterized by a relationship of 0.6.

As described above, by setting the ratio of the radius: R ₁ and the height: h of the substantially hemispherical (sometimes elliptical) projections,
The amount of crushing of each projection increases, and even with a relatively small nip force, the contact area is large, and a large conveying force can be obtained.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, at least two rows of the projection array arranged in the circumferential direction and the projection array adjacent to the projection array in the longitudinal direction are in contact with the photosensitive material.

In the above configuration, the apex of the projection always comes into contact with the photosensitive material, so that the outer diameter of the transport roller does not fluctuate during rotation. For this reason, the photosensitive material to be nipped and transported does not flutter and the behavior is stable, so that the transport force and the transport speed are stabilized over the entire width of the photosensitive material.

That is, the frequency of contact of the apex portion of the projection with the photosensitive material increases, and the fluctuation of the substantial contact outer diameter of the transport roller during rotation is minimized, and the pulsation is minimized. For this reason,
Since the photosensitive material to be pinched and transported does not flutter and the behavior is stable, the transport force and the transport speed are stabilized over the entire width of the photosensitive material.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the protrusion has a radius R
It is _one of the spherical surface, when the distance from the vertex of the spherical to the axis of the roller is a R _2, arrangement angle in the circumferential direction of the projection θ is,
(R ₂ -R ₁₎ there is a × (1-cosθ / 2) / R 2 ≦ 10 ^-2.

This is because when it is considered that the substantial outer diameter of the transport roller changes at the top of the projection and at the bottom of the projection, that is, when the transport speed changes due to the outer diameter variation, In order to suppress the speed fluctuation rate to be within the range of 1%, the arrangement angle of the circumferential projection may be set to θ. The number of projections in the circumferential direction is also defined by the arrangement angle θ.

When the transport roller is mounted on a photosensitive material processing apparatus, the feeding speed and the transport force of the photosensitive material are stabilized, the distance between the front and rear of the photosensitive material is not narrowed or varied, and the photosensitive material is overlapped. Nor.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the protrusion is formed on the outer peripheral surface of a short cylindrical tube formed of silicone rubber having a hardness of about 50 °. Since this tube is a short cylinder and can be so-called forcibly released and released from the mold, it is hardly restricted by a mold structure, and a desired number of protrusions and a desired shape can be formed.
The rubber strength standard is based on JIS-A test method JI.
SK6301.

In the invention according to claim 6, a plurality of tubes are externally provided on the core body to constitute the transport roller. As a result, the phases of the projections of the tubes adjacent to each other in the axial direction are shifted, and as a result, the projection arrangement becomes random, and the arrangement of the projections in the circumferential direction becomes random. For this reason, a change in the substantial outer diameter due to the rotation of the transport roller can be canceled.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, the conveying path of the photosensitive material is constituted by the conveying roller according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, and a flat roller paired with the conveying roller.

[0028]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a photosensitive material processing apparatus provided with a transport roller according to the present embodiment (hereinafter referred to as an "evolution roller") will be described with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, as shown in FIG.
A printer unit 14 for exposing the photosensitive material 52 extracted from the magazine 12 to an image, a processor unit 18 for developing the photosensitive material 52 sent from the printer unit 14,
A drying section 20 for drying the photosensitive material 52 developed by the processor section 18 is provided.

The processor section 18 is provided with a developing tank 22, a bleach-fix tank 24, and four washing tanks 26.
Then, the photosensitive material 5 is formed by the roller pair of the flat roller 54 and the warp roller 28 immersed in each processing tank.
A transport path for transporting the sheet 2 while bending it vertically is configured.

In the present embodiment, the warp roller 28 is disposed at the entrance of the straight portion and the lower turn portion from the bleach-fixing tank 24 to the most downstream washing tank 26. However, the developing tank 22 has the lower turn portion. At the entrance of Ivorola 2
8 is not arranged.

This is because the developing roller 22
This is because if the photosensitive material 52 is hardened in step 8, processing unevenness may occur.

Next, the warp roller will be described.

As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4, a plurality of short tubular tubes 32 are externally mounted on a cylindrical core 30. Thereby, the phase of the warp 34 between the tubes 32 adjacent in the axial direction is shifted, and as a result,
The arrangement of the warts 34 is random, and the circumferential arrangement of the warts 34 is also random.

Therefore, even in the case of multi-row conveyance (for example, when three photosensitive materials are flown in the width direction in parallel), it is possible to cancel the substantial change in the outer diameter due to the rotation of the warp roller 28 in each part.

Also, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. _Two(Apex of wart 34
Is 20 mm, and the spherical radius of the wart is R
₁= 1.0 mm, warp valley bottom surface 34B to warp vertex 3
Height h = 1.0 mm up to 4A, number of warts 34 in circumferential direction
Are 12 pieces. Also, as shown in the development of FIG.
Thus, the warts adjacent in the warp row in the circumferential direction (arrow B direction) are long.
In the hand direction (arrow C direction),
It is shifted by one wart each time.

Thus, at least two rows of the warp row arranged in the longitudinal direction of the warp roller 28 and the warp row adjacent thereto are in contact with at least the flat roller 54. That is, as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 7A, when one warp 34 on the front side is on the contact point with the flat roller 54, the two warts 34 (adjacent warps) in the back wrap. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7B, one warp 34 on the front side is a flat roller 54.
When it is displaced from the point of contact with
(Adjacent warps) are in contact with the photosensitive material 52 so as to wrap.

Therefore, the warp 34 always comes into contact with the photosensitive material 52, so that the outer diameter of the warp roller 28 does not greatly fluctuate during rotation. 5 to 7.
Does not express the collapse of the wart in order to clearly show the positional relationship of the wart. Therefore, the design is such that the wart is not in contact with the photosensitive material.

The table shown in FIG. 9 is obtained by experimentally determining the permissible value of the speed fluctuation rate at two levels of the conveying speed: 20 mm / sec and 27 mm / sec.

The judgment result is that after the photosensitive material has been transported for 180 seconds (180 seconds is the transport time in the processor section from development to completion of washing), the distance between the front and back of the photosensitive material is 0 m.
m, or x for overlapping, x for others with gaps, deviation σ with small variation in gaps
Are indicated by ◎ when the number n of warts is increased, and when the number n of warts is not increased, but the clogging and variation in the front-rear interval is large is indicated by Δ. As can be determined from this, the feeding speed of the photosensitive material is stabilized by increasing the number of warps. Also, R ₁ /h=1.3-
In the range of 0.6, all are ◎ (however, R ₁ / h
= 1.3 and 27 mm / sec is good), indicating that the feeding speed of the photosensitive material is stable.

As described above, the radius of the hemispherical warp 34 is R
₁ and height: the ratio of h by setting the range of R ₁ /H=1.3～0.6, collapse of the individual warts is increased, the contact may be relatively small nipping force area , A large conveying force can be obtained, and the photosensitive material 52 to be conveyed does not flutter and the behavior is stable.

In this embodiment, the number of the warts 34 is one.
The number is two, but this is derived from the target speed fluctuation rate of the warp roller 28.

[0043] That is, as shown in the table of FIG. 10, R ₂
= 10 mm, h = 1.0 mm, and when the speed fluctuation rate caused by the fluctuation of the substantial outer diameter of the warp roller 28 is 0.77%, the arrangement angle θ of the warp 34 adjacent in the circumferential direction is (R ₂ −
From the equation of R ₁ ) × (1−cos θ / 2) / R ₂ = 0.0077, θ = 15.00 °. Therefore, 360 ° / 1
5.00 ° = 24, and the number of warts arranged in the circumferential direction is halved, ie, twelve.

Also, (R ₂ −R ₁ ) × (1−cos θ /
2) The formula of / R ₂ = speed fluctuation rate is derived from the following idea.

Speed fluctuation rate (%) = (Vmax-Vmi)
n) / Vmax × 100, and the conveying speed V of the photosensitive material
Since max and Vmin are determined by the substantial outer diameter of the warp roller, Vmax = 2πRmax, Vmin = 2π
Rmin.

Therefore, the speed fluctuation rate (%) = (Rmax−
Rmin) / Rmax × 100. Here, as shown in FIG. 7, Rmax = R ₂ , Rmin = (R ₂ −R ₁ )
· Cos [theta] / from 2 + R ₁ become possible, (R ₂ -R ₁₎ ×
(1−cos θ / 2) / R ₂ = speed fluctuation rate (%).

That is, in the warp roller of R ₁ /h=1.0 of the present embodiment, the arrangement angle θ of the warp 34 is set to 12.00 ° to 1
By setting the angle to 8.00 °, the speed fluctuation rate is set to 0.49 to 1.0.
It can be suppressed to 11.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
8 and the flat roller 54 sandwich the photosensitive material 52, when viewed from the conveying direction of the photosensitive material 52, the photosensitive material 5
The warp 34 sandwiching 2 is greatly crushed, and the wart 34 at a position where the photosensitive material 52 is not present is also in contact with the flat roller 54.

By setting the amount of collapse of the warp 34 in this manner, a uniform nip force is generated in the width direction, and the transport force becomes uniform. As shown in FIG. No lifting occurs in the pair 48 and the photosensitive material 52
Is not sent to the skew. In addition, it is possible to absorb and reduce the influence of the bending of the conveying roller pair 48 (the bending with the shaft portions at both ends as fulcrums). Further, by transporting the photosensitive material 52 by the warp 34, the scorching of the photosensitive material 52 is weakened, and the quality of the edge portion of the photosensitive material 52 is guaranteed.

As shown in the table of FIG.
In the horizontal direction: X is X1 at the position where there is no photosensitive material.
= 0.1 mm, X2 = 0.9 m at the position of the photosensitive material
m, 0.9 mm at a certain position of the photosensitive material, and 1.0 mm at a certain position of the photosensitive material. The graph indicated by the broken line is a conventional type warp roller having seven warps.

On the other hand, as shown in the tables of FIG. 14 and FIG. 15, the vertical crush amount Y of the warp 34 is Y1 = -0.2 mm at a position where no photosensitive material is present, and Y2 at a position where photosensitive material is present. = 0, 0 at a certain position of the photosensitive material, and 0 at a certain position of the photosensitive material. Here, 0 indicates that the wart is in contact with the photosensitive material, and -0.2 mm indicates that warps adjacent in the circumferential direction overlap and are crushed.

The graph of FIG. 17 shows the relationship between R ₁ / h and the amount of crushing in the horizontal and vertical directions. As can be determined from this graph, R ₁ / h = 1.
In the range of 3 to 0.6, the wart is crushed and the contact area with the photosensitive material is increased.

Next, a method for manufacturing the warp roller will be described.

As shown in FIG. 16, a circular hole 44 corresponding to the shape and number of warts is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical cavity block 40. An outer mold 42 for forming the cavity of the tube 32 is disposed outside the cavity block 40 so that the mold can be released to the left and right.

Silicon rubber (hardness: 50 °) is injected into the cavity from a gate (not shown). Then, after the outer mold 42 is released from side to side, the cavity block 40 is released.
Is forcibly removed. At this time, the warp 34 of the tube 32
Is inside, but the tube 32 has a short cylindrical shape, so that the warp 34 appears on the outer peripheral surface when the tube 32 is turned upside down.

As described above, when the tube 32 is a short cylinder and has a hardness of 5
Since it is molded with 0 ° silicone rubber, it is possible to release the mold without force. For this reason, the mold structure is less likely to be restricted, and a desired number of protrusions and a desired shape can be formed.

[0057]

Since the present invention has the above-described structure, it is possible to prevent the deterioration of the quality of the photosensitive material due to rubbing, stabilize the feeding speed of the photosensitive material, apply a uniform conveying force in the width direction, and improve the feeding accuracy. Can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a photosensitive material processing apparatus provided with a warp roller according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a tube constituting the roll.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a warp roller.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a process of assembling the warp roller.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a state in which a photosensitive material is sandwiched between a warp roller and a flat roller.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a state in which a photosensitive material is sandwiched between a warp roller and a flat roller.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged side view showing a state in which a photosensitive material is sandwiched between a warp roller and a flat roller.

FIG. 8 is a graph showing a change in the linear velocity of the photosensitive material fed by the warp roller and the flat roller.

FIG. 9 is an experimental result showing a relationship between R ₁ and h of the roll.

FIG. 10 is an experimental result showing the relationship between R ₁ , R ₂ , and θ of the warp roller and the speed fluctuation rate.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing the amount of warp collapse in the horizontal direction.

FIG. 12A is a front view showing a state in which a photosensitive material is sandwiched between an uneven roller and a flat roller, and FIG. 12B is a plan view showing a state in which the photosensitive material is sandwiched between an uneven roller and a flat roller.

FIG. 13 is a graph showing the amount of warp collapse in the horizontal direction.

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing the amount of warp in the vertical direction.

FIG. 15 is a graph showing the amount of warp in the vertical direction.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing a manufacturing process of a tube constituting the roll.

17A is a graph showing the relationship between R ₁ / h and the amount of warp in the horizontal direction, and FIG. 17B is a graph showing the relationship between R ₁ / h and the amount of warp in the vertical direction. is there.

18A is a front view illustrating a state where a photosensitive material is sandwiched between a pair of flat rollers, and FIG. 18B is a plan view illustrating a state where the photosensitive material is sandwiched between a pair of flat rollers.

FIG. 19 is a development view of a tube constituting a conventional warp roller.

FIG. 20 is a configuration diagram of a conventional warp roller.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view illustrating a process of assembling a conventional warp roller.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory view showing a manufacturing process of a tube constituting a conventional warp roller.

FIG. 23 is a side view showing a state in which a photosensitive material is sandwiched between a conventional warp roller and a flat roller.

FIG. 24 is a graph showing a change in linear velocity of a photosensitive material fed by a conventional warp roller and flat roller.

FIG. 25 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a lateral crush amount of a conventional wart.

[Description of Signs] 10 Photosensitive material processing device 28 Wart roller (conveying roller) 30 Core body 32 Tube 34 Wart (projection)

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Tsuyoshi Tanabe 798 Address, Miyadai, Kaisei-cho, Ashigara-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture F-Term (in reference) 2H098 AA02 AA03 AA05 CA03 CA10 3F049 CA02 DA12 LA01 LB03 LB08

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A transport roller having a plurality of projections on an outer peripheral surface thereof for pinching and transporting a photosensitive material in pairs with a flat roller, wherein the projection at a position where the photosensitive material is not sandwiched when the photosensitive material is sandwiched. A transport roller, wherein a protrusion is crushed so as to contact the flat roller. 2. The projection has a spherical surface having a radius of R ₁ , a height from a valley bottom between the projections to a vertex of the spherical surface is h, and R
The conveying roller according to claim _1, wherein _{1 /} h is 1.3 to 0.6. 3. The conveying roller according to claim 1, wherein at least two rows of the circumferentially arranged projection row and the projection row adjacent thereto in the longitudinal direction contact the photosensitive material. . 4. When the projection is a spherical surface having a radius R ₁ and the distance from the apex of the spherical surface to the axis of the roller is R ₂ , the circumferential arrangement angle θ of the projection is defined by the following relationship. The conveyance roller according to claim 3, wherein the conveyance roller is provided. _{(R 2 -R 1) × (} 1-cosθ / 2) / R 2 ≦ 10 ^-2 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion is formed on an outer peripheral surface of a short cylindrical tube formed of silicone rubber having a hardness of about 50 °. Transport rollers. 6. The transport roller according to claim 5, wherein a plurality of the tubes are provided on a core body. 7. A photosensitive material processing apparatus, wherein a photosensitive material transport path is constituted by the transport roller according to claim 1 and a flat roller paired with the transport roller.