JP2002341462A - Image holding medium carrying mechanism and photographic processing device equipped therewith - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To supply an image holding medium in a state where inclination and meandering are always hardly caused to an image processing mechanism for forming or reading an image, and to improve the throughput of an entire device. SOLUTION: This photographic processing device is provided with a carrying member 26 capable of moving while abutting on the trailing edge of photographic paper 2 supplied to an exposure part 14 performing the exposure processing of the image, and a pair of width regulating guides 28 extended substantially parallel with the moving direction of the member 26 respectively. By moving the member 26 abutting on the trailing edge of the photographic paper 2 in the carrying direction of the photographic paper 2, the photographic paper 2 is carried between a pair of width regulating guides 28. Thus, the inclination of the photographic paper 2 is corrected in a photographic paper carrying mechanism 13 and also the inclination and the meandering are not caused.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an image holding medium conveying mechanism for conveying an image holding medium supplied to an image processing mechanism for forming or reading an image.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a photographic processing apparatus, for example, a long photographic paper wound in a roll shape is cut into a predetermined length and then conveyed to an exposure unit by a conveyance mechanism, and is exposed to the photographic paper in the exposure unit. Processing is generally performed. The photographic paper on which the exposure processing has been performed is discharged as a photographic print after processing such as development is performed. Here, as the transport mechanism, one that transports the printing paper by sandwiching it with a plurality of pairs of pressure rollers and drive rollers,
There is a type in which the printing paper is transported by sandwiching the printing paper between a pair of pressure bonding belts and a driving belt, and a type in which the upper end portion of the printing paper is transported by sandwiching the clip-shaped member.

[0003] The photographic paper is supplied to the above-described transport mechanism in a state where the photographic paper is inclined (that is, the extension direction of the widthwise end of the photographic paper is not parallel to the transport direction). May be. In addition, the force applied to the photographic paper from the transport mechanism becomes uneven with respect to the center in the width direction of the photographic paper, so that the photographic paper is tilted inside the transport mechanism and / or perpendicular to the transport direction from the original position. In a different direction (so-called meandering state). In such a case, the photographic paper is conveyed to the exposure unit in an inclined state and / or a meandering state, and an image formed in the exposure unit is tilted or shifted with respect to the photographic paper, and the photographic print is formed. Not only deteriorates the quality of the image, but also loses its commercial value in some cases, necessitating another printing process, and the processing capability of the photo processing apparatus is greatly reduced.

[0004]

Therefore, if the photographic paper is inclined or meandering in the transport mechanism, it is considered that the skew and meandering of the photographic paper should be corrected beforehand and then supplied to the exposure unit. However, in the transport mechanism that transports the upper end of the photographic paper with the clip-shaped member, if the photographic paper is already inclined when sandwiched, it is very difficult to correct the inclination due to the structure of the transport mechanism. is there. In addition, in a transport mechanism that sandwiches and transports photographic paper between a pressure roller and a drive roller or a pressure belt and a drive belt, if the inclination and meandering of the photographic paper are to be corrected, the inclination amount and meandering amount of the photographic paper are detected. The manufacturing cost rises as much as the additional sensor must be added, and additional time is required for detecting the amount of tilt and meandering and for correcting it. It becomes impossible to prevent a decrease in the processing capacity of the apparatus.

[0005] A similar problem occurs in an image forming apparatus such as an ink jet printer and an image reading apparatus such as a flatbed scanner in addition to a photographic processing apparatus.

It is an object of the present invention to supply an image holding medium to an image processing mechanism for forming or reading an image with almost no inclination and meandering, thereby increasing the processing capability of the entire apparatus. An object of the present invention is to provide an image holding medium transport mechanism that can be improved.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, an image holding medium transport mechanism according to the first aspect of the present invention is provided with an end portion of an image holding medium supplied to an image processing mechanism for forming or reading an image. It is characterized by comprising a transport member that can move while being in contact with it, and a pair of position regulating members that extend substantially parallel to the moving direction of the transport member.

According to the first aspect, if the distance between the pair of position regulating members is adjusted in advance to substantially the same width as the width of the image holding medium, even if the image holding medium in an inclined state is supplied, the conveyance is performed. Sometimes, the inclination of the image holding medium is corrected between the pair of position regulating members, and the image holding medium is not tilted. Further, the image holding medium is hardly inclined or meandering.
Therefore, it is possible to supply the image holding medium to the image processing mechanism for forming or reading an image with almost no inclination and meandering. Therefore,
The quality of the image formed on the image holding medium or the image read from the image holding medium is improved, and it is almost unnecessary to perform image formation or image reading again. Can be improved.

Further, the conveying distance of the image holding medium can be increased only by lengthening the pair of position regulating members, and it is not necessary to add a separate conveying mechanism (such as a conveying roller pair). Therefore, the manufacturing cost of the image holding medium transport mechanism can be reduced.

When forming or reading an image in the image processing mechanism, the image holding medium may be transported only by the transport mechanism provided in the image processing mechanism. In this case, assuming that the image holding medium is supplied from the conveyance mechanism having the pressure roller and the driving roller to the conveyance mechanism provided in the image processing mechanism, the conveyance speed is reduced by an impact when the image holding medium is repelled from between the rollers. It temporarily grows larger and the quality of the formed or read image is degraded. To prevent this, it is necessary to release the pressure bonding of the pressure roller after handing the image holding medium. However, in order to prevent the image holding medium from being conveyed in a state where the image holding medium is crimped, the image holding medium conveying mechanism according to the first aspect releases the pressure holding after handing the image holding medium to the image processing mechanism side and control for operating the mechanism. Do not need.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image holding medium conveying mechanism, wherein the conveying member is disposed such that a contact surface with the image holding medium is substantially perpendicular to an extending direction of the pair of position regulating members. It is characterized by having.

According to the second aspect, the conveying member is arranged such that the contact surface of the conveying member for conveying the image holding medium with the image holding medium is substantially perpendicular to the extension direction of the pair of position regulating members. Therefore, the image holding medium can be more reliably supplied to the image processing mechanism in a state where there is almost no inclination and meandering.

Further, the image holding medium transport mechanism according to a third aspect is characterized in that the distance between the pair of position regulating members is variable. According to the third aspect, the distance between the pair of position regulating members can be adjusted according to the width of the image holding medium. Thus, the image holding medium can be supplied to the image processing mechanism with almost no inclination and meandering regardless of its width.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, each of the pair of position regulating members has a shape capable of holding the image holding medium between the pair of position regulating members. I have. According to the fourth aspect, since the image holding medium is held between the pair of position regulating members, the position in the width direction of the image holding medium is no longer regulated by the position regulating members, so that the image holding medium can be prevented from meandering. It can be suppressed reliably.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image holding medium conveying mechanism, the cross-sectional shape of the pair of position regulating members in a plane perpendicular to the conveying direction of each image holding medium is U-shaped. Features. According to claim 5,
Since the image holding medium is surely regulated by the position regulating member, meandering of the image holding medium can be suppressed very effectively.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the image holding medium transport mechanism, wherein the first roller, the second roller, and the first roller and the second roller are wound around the first roller, the second roller, and the first roller.
An annular belt on which one or a plurality of the conveying members is fixed. According to the sixth aspect, the transport member can be stably driven by the two rollers and the annular belt wound around the two rollers, and the reliability of the image holding medium transport mechanism can be improved. In particular, when a plurality of transport members are fixedly provided on the annular belt, the processing capacity of the entire apparatus can be improved according to the number of transport members.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a photographic processing apparatus provided with the image holding medium transport mechanism according to any one of the first to sixth aspects. According to the seventh aspect, since the photographic paper as the image holding medium can be supplied to the exposure unit that performs the image exposure processing as the image processing mechanism without tilting and meandering,
Deterioration of the quality of the image formed in the exposure unit can be suppressed, and a high-quality print can be output. Further, since there is almost no need to perform reprinting, it is possible to improve the processing capacity.

[0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a partial schematic configuration of a photographic processing apparatus provided with a photographic paper transport mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, a schematic configuration of a photographic processing apparatus having a photographic paper transport mechanism according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The photographic processing apparatus 1 includes a printer unit 5, a processor unit 6, and a finishing unit 7. In the printer unit 5, the photographic paper 2, which is a photosensitive material, is exposed in the exposure unit 14.
Is subjected to an image line exposure process based on digital image data. In the processor unit 6, the photographic paper 2 sequentially passes through liquid tanks in which different liquid materials are stored.
Are subjected to processing such as development, bleach-fix and stabilization. In the finishing processing unit 7, the photographic paper 2 processed by the processor unit 6 is subjected to a drying process, and the dried photographic paper 2 is further dried.
Are sorted for each order.

As shown in FIG. 1, the printer section 5 is provided with two photographic paper magazines 11a and 11b which house the wound long photographic paper 2. A sensor (not shown) for detecting the type of the set photographic paper magazines 11a and 11b is provided around the mounting portions of the photographic paper magazines 11a and 11b. This sensor is
A predetermined number of photointerrupters (not shown) in which a light emitting element and a light receiving element face each other at a predetermined position are arranged at a predetermined pitch. Each of the photographic paper magazines 11a and 11b is provided with a light-shielding member (not shown) as an identification marker at a position corresponding to each photo-interrupter constituting a sensor when set in the magazine mounting portion. Therefore, the photographic paper magazines 11a, 11
With b set, the light-blocking member is inserted between the light-emitting element and the light-receiving element of each photo-interrupter constituting the sensor, and each photo-interrupter can read information on the type of the photographic paper 2 and the like. Also, the sensor
It is connected to the controller 20 by a signal output line. Therefore, the controller 20 can take in information on the type of the photographic paper 2 read through these signal output lines.

The photographic paper 2 drawn from each of the photographic paper magazines 11a and 11b is guided to a photographic paper supply device 12. A cutter (not shown) is provided in the photographic paper supply device 12.
After the photographic paper 2 is cut to a predetermined length in its width direction (a direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the photographic paper 2),
It is supplied to the photographic paper transport mechanism 13. Photographic paper transport mechanism 13
The photographic paper 2 supplied to the exposure unit 14 is supplied to the exposure unit 14 by a transport member 26 (see FIG. 2) provided in the photographic paper transport mechanism 13.
Transported to The details of the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 will be described later.

The exposure unit 14 performs an exposure process on the photographic paper 2 as a photosensitive material based on digital image data, and guides light from an exposure light source unit (not shown) through an optical fiber. PLZT print head 15
have. In the PLZT print head 15, an optical shutter made of a PLZT crystal whose birefringence changes in accordance with an applied voltage serves as a light emitting dot in the width direction of the photographic paper 2, that is, in the direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the photographic paper 2 (the paper surface in FIG. 1). (Vertical direction). Also, P
At a position facing the LZT print head 15, two pairs of transport rollers (not shown) for transporting the photographic paper 2 are provided.
Are arranged symmetrically with respect to the exposure position. for that reason,
By controlling the transport timing of the photographic paper 2 by the pair of transport rollers and the opening / closing timing of the optical shutter of the PLZT print head 15 based on a digital image signal relating to a latent image to be formed on the photographic paper 2, the photosensitive of the photographic paper 2 is controlled. The emulsion surface can be line-exposed to form a latent image of a desired image.

The photographic paper 2 which has been exposed by the exposure unit 14 and has a latent image formed on the surface of the photosensitive emulsion is then subjected to two transport units 1
6 and 17 are sequentially supplied and pass through them. The printing paper 2 discharged from the transport unit 17 is supplied to the sorting unit 18. The sorting unit 18 sorts the photographic paper 2 that has been conveyed in one line so far into two or more lines and supplies the photographic paper 2 to the processor unit 6 in a state of being conveyed in parallel.

Next, the detailed structure of the photographic paper transport mechanism according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the structure of the photographic paper transport mechanism shown in FIG. Here, FIG. 2A is a schematic side view of the photographic paper transport mechanism 13, and FIG. 2B is a schematic sectional view. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional shape of the width regulating guide.

As shown in FIG. 2 (a), the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 is provided in a housing 40 with a pair of photographic paper 2 spaced apart from each other in a transport direction of the photographic paper 2 (in this case, a vertical direction). It has a pair of conveying rollers 21 and 22 and an annular belt 25.

The transport roller pair 21 includes two drive rollers 4
1a and a shaft 41b supporting the driving roller 41a
And two pressure rollers 42a arranged opposite to each drive roller 41a, and a shaft 42b supporting the pressure rollers 42a. Here, as shown in FIG. 2B, the drive roller 41a and the pressure roller 42a are fixed at positions symmetric with respect to the axial center positions of the shafts 41b and 42b, respectively. FIG. 2 (b)
Shows only the pressure roller 42a and the shaft 42b.

Similarly, the transport roller pair 22 includes two drive rollers 43a, a shaft 43b for supporting the drive rollers 43a, two pressure rollers 44a disposed opposite to the drive rollers 43a, and a pressure roller 44a. And a shaft 44b for supporting the shaft 44a. Here, the two drive rollers 43a and the two pressure rollers 44a correspond to those shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), the shafts 43b and 44b are arranged symmetrically with respect to the axial center position. Note that FIG.
(B) shows only the pressure roller 44a and the shaft 44b. Here, each width of the drive roller 41a and the pressure roller 42a is larger than each width of the drive roller 43a and the pressure roller 44a.

The shafts 41b and 43b are connected to the transport motor 30 by a belt 31. The pressure rollers 42a, 44a are
43a. Therefore,
By controlling the transport motor 30 by the controller 20 (see FIG. 1) connected to the photographic paper transport mechanism 13, the photographic paper 2 can be transported by being sandwiched between the transport roller pairs 21 and 22.

Here, the pressing roller 44a is connected to the driving roller 4
The crimping mechanism 34 for crimping to 3a will be described.
The crimping mechanism 34 includes a connecting member 35, a supporting member 36, and a coil spring 37. One end of a connecting member 35 is connected to a supporting member 36 fixed inside the housing 40 so as to be rotatable around a fulcrum 36a. The other end of the connecting member 35 is connected to the pressure roller 44a. A coil spring 37 is disposed between the support member 36 and the connecting member 35. The coil spring 37 attaches the connecting member 35 in a direction in which the pressure roller 44a approaches (presses) the drive roller 43a. I'm going. In addition, a pressure bonding mechanism (not shown) similar to the pressure bonding mechanism 34 is provided for the pressure bonding roller 42a.

On the other hand, the annular belt 25 is wound around a belt driving roller 23a and a belt driven roller 24a. Here, as shown in FIG. 2B, the belt driving roller 23a and the belt driven roller 24a are disposed at axially central positions of the shafts 23b and 24b, respectively. Further, the belt driving roller 23 is connected to the transport motor 32 by a belt 33. Therefore, by controlling the transport motor 32 by the controller 20 (see FIG. 1) connected to the photographic paper transport mechanism 13,
The annular belt 25 can be rotated. In addition, the annular belt 25 moves along the back plate 27 arranged along the transport path of the printing paper 2.

At the center of the outer surface of the annular belt 25 in the width direction and at a position diagonally separated from each other, two substantially rectangular parallelepiped transport members 26 are fixedly provided. Therefore, when the annular belt 25 is rotated, the two transport members 26 also move with the rotation. A substantially V-shaped concave portion is formed on the side surface of the conveying member 26 on the front side with respect to the rotation direction of the annular belt 25 (the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 2).
The rear end portion abuts on the bottom side of the concave portion of the conveying member 26.

The photographic paper transport mechanism 13 includes the photographic paper 2
A pair of width regulating guides 28 extending substantially parallel to the moving direction of the conveying member 26 are arranged so as to regulate the position in the width direction. Further, the bottom side of the concave portion of the transport member 26 is disposed so as to be substantially perpendicular to the extension direction of the pair of width regulating guides 28.
The distance between the pair of width regulating guides 28 can be arbitrarily changed, and can be adjusted according to the width of the printing paper 2.

Here, the pair of width regulating guides 28 are connected to guide moving devices (not shown) for moving the respective distances in directions opposite to each other so as to increase or decrease the distance. The guide moving device is connected to the controller 20. The controller 20 moves the guide in accordance with the width of the photographic paper 2 to be used, based on information about the type of the photographic paper 2 read by the sensors arranged around the mounting portions of the photographic paper magazines 11a and 11b. By controlling the apparatus, the distance between the pair of width regulating guides 28 can be automatically adjusted.

The sectional shape of the pair of width regulating guides 28 in a plane perpendicular to the direction in which the photographic paper 2 is transported is U-shaped, as shown in FIG. Therefore, the photographic paper 2 can be held between the pair of width regulating guides 28, that is, the photographic paper 2 hardly comes off from between the pair of width regulating guides 28 and the position in the width direction is hardly regulated.

The ends 28a of the pair of width regulating guides 28 on the side where the photographic paper 2 is supplied are widened toward the outside (in the direction in which the pair of width regulating guides 28 are separated from each other). Accordingly, when the photographic paper 2 is fed into the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 in a meandering state, the photographic paper 2 can be transported between the pair of width regulating guides 28 while correcting the meandering of the photographic paper 2.

Next, the operation of the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 according to this embodiment will be described.

In the photographic paper supply device 12, the photographic paper 2 cut to a predetermined length in the width direction of the photographic paper 2 (perpendicular to the transport direction) is supplied into the photographic paper transport mechanism 13.
Here, if the photographic paper 2 is fed into the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 in a meandering state, the end 2 of the pair of width regulating guides 28
Since the width of 8a is widened, the meandering of the printing paper 2 is corrected. The photographic paper 2 supplied into the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 is pressed against the transport roller pair 21 while the leading end of the photographic paper 2 is pressed against the transport roller pair 22, that is,
The printing paper 2 is transported to a position where the leading end of the printing paper 2 enters between the driving roller 43 and the pressure roller 44. Then, photographic paper 2
Is pressed onto the pair of transport rollers 22 and is transported until the rear end of the photographic paper 2 passes through the pair of transport rollers 22 (there is no more pressure on the pair of transport rollers 22).

At this time, the annular belt 2 rotating around the belt driving roller 23 and the belt driven roller 24
One of the two transport members 26 fixed to the outer surface of the photographic paper 5 comes into contact with the rear end of the printing paper 2. Thereafter, the conveying member 2
6 transports the photographic paper 2 in the transport direction (upward in the figure) while contacting the rear end of the photographic paper 2. Here, when the photographic paper 2 is fed into the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 in a tilted state, the photographic paper 2 is transported between the pair of width regulating guides 28, and the inclination thereof is gradually corrected and tilted. Not in a state. Further, the photographic paper in which the bottom side of the concave portion of the conveying member 26 disposed so as to be substantially perpendicular to the extension direction of the pair of width regulation guides 28 is cut substantially perpendicular to the extension direction of the pair of width regulation guides 28. Since the sheet 2 is brought into contact with the rear end and transported, the inclination of the printing paper 2 is more reliably corrected. In this way, the photographic paper 2 is supplied to the exposure unit 14 where the photographic paper 2 is subjected to the exposure processing in a state where there is almost no inclination and meandering.

Further, the rear end of the next photographic paper 2 continuously supplied into the photographic paper transport mechanism 13
, The other transport member 26 fixed on the outer surface of the annular belt 25 comes into contact with the rear end of the photographic paper 2. The photographic paper 2 is supplied to the exposure unit 14 in a state where the photographic paper 2 is hardly tilted or meandered by being conveyed in the conveying direction while the conveying member 26 is in contact with the rear end of the photographic paper 2. Thus, the two transport members 26 fixed to the outer surface of the annular belt 25
Move alternately to the position corresponding to the pair of transport rollers 22 at regular time intervals, whereby the photographic paper 2 can be continuously supplied to the exposure unit 14.

As described above, according to the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 of the present embodiment, the interval between the pair of width regulating guides 28 is previously adjusted to be substantially the same as the width of the photographic paper 2, so that the paper is inclined. Even if the photographic paper 2 in a state of being fed is supplied, the inclination of the photographic paper 2 during conveyance is reduced
And the printing paper 2 is not tilted. In addition, the photographic paper 2 conveyed by the photographic paper conveyance mechanism 13 is substantially unlikely to be in a meandering state. Accordingly, the photographic paper 2 can be supplied to the exposure unit 14 that performs the image exposure processing with almost no inclination and meandering. Further, the photographic paper in which the bottom side of the concave portion of the conveying member 26 disposed so as to be substantially perpendicular to the extension direction of the pair of width regulation guides 28 is cut substantially perpendicular to the extension direction of the pair of width regulation guides 28. Since the sheet 2 is conveyed in contact with the rear end of the sheet 2, the inclination of the printing paper 2 is more reliably corrected. Therefore, the quality of the image formed on the printing paper 2 is improved, and a high-quality photographic print can be output. Further, there is almost no need to perform the exposure processing again, and the processing capability of the entire photographic processing apparatus 1 incorporating the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 can be improved.

Further, only by lengthening the pair of width regulating guides 28, the conveying distance of the photographic paper 2 can be lengthened, and it is not necessary to add a separate conveying mechanism (such as a conveying roller pair). Therefore, the manufacturing cost of the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 can be reduced. In addition, the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 does not require a mechanism for releasing the pressure bonding after supplying the photographic paper 2 to the exposure unit 14 and a control for operating the photographic paper 2 because the photographic paper 2 is not transported in a pressed state.

Since the distance between the pair of width regulating guides 28 is variable, it can be adjusted in accordance with the width of the photographic paper 2. Accordingly, the photographic paper 2 having any width can be supplied to the exposure unit 14 in a state where the photographic paper 2 is hardly tilted or meandered.

Further, the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 of the present embodiment
Since the cross-sectional shape of the pair of width regulating guides 28 in a plane perpendicular to the transport direction of the photographic paper 2 is U-shaped, the position of the photographic paper 2 in the width direction is determined by the pair of width regulating guides. It is almost impossible to be regulated by 28. Therefore, meandering of the printing paper 2 can be suppressed very effectively.

Further, the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 of the present embodiment
Since the photographic paper 2 is transported by the two transport members 26 fixed on the outer surface of the annular belt 25, the transport member 26 can be driven stably, and the reliability of the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 can be improved. Can be improved. In particular, since two conveying members are fixed to the annular belt 25, the processing capacity of the entire photographic processing apparatus 1 can be improved.

As described above, a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment.
Various design changes can be made. For example, in the above-described embodiment, a substantially V-shaped concave portion is formed, and a substantially rectangular parallelepiped conveying member arranged so that the bottom side of the concave portion is substantially perpendicular to the extension direction of the pair of width regulating guides 28. Although the case where 26 is used has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and the shape and arrangement of the conveying member may be arbitrarily changed as long as the conveying member is movable while abutting the end of the photographic paper 2. Can be. Further, the transport member 26 is not limited to the one that moves with the rotation of the annular belt 25 to which the transport member 26 is fixed, and the mechanism for moving the transport member 26 includes:
Any configuration may be used.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the two transfer members 26 are fixed to the annular belt 25 has been described. The number can be changed arbitrarily. Here, it is more preferable to fix a plurality of transport members because the processing capacity of the exposure unit 14 can be improved. When a plurality of transport members are fixedly mounted, they need to be arranged at appropriate intervals in consideration of the length of the photographic paper 2 to be cut.

In the above-described embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the pair of width regulating guides 28 in a plane perpendicular to the direction in which the photographic paper 2 is transported is U-shaped. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any shape may be used as long as the photographic paper 2 can be held between the pair of width regulating guides 28.

In the above-described embodiment, the photographic paper 2 is transported in the vertical direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the photographic paper 2 may be transported in the horizontal direction. It may be transported in such a direction.

In the above-described embodiment, the photographic paper transport mechanism 13 provided in the photographic processing apparatus has been described. However, the image holding medium transport mechanism of the present invention is not limited to the photographic processing apparatus, but may be an image processing apparatus. The present invention can be applied to any device that forms or reads an image on an image holding medium conveyed to the mechanism (for example, an inkjet printer, a flatbed scanner, or the like).

[0050]

As described above, according to the first aspect, if the distance between the pair of position regulating members is previously adjusted to be substantially the same as the width of the image holding medium, even if the image holding medium is inclined. Is supplied, the inclination of the image holding medium is corrected between the pair of position regulating members at the time of conveyance, and the image holding medium is not inclined. In addition, the image holding medium is practically almost never in a meandering state. Therefore, it is possible to supply the image holding medium to the image processing mechanism for forming or reading an image with almost no inclination and meandering. Therefore, the quality of the image formed on the image holding medium or the image read from the image holding medium is improved, and it is almost unnecessary to perform image formation or image reading again. It is possible to improve the processing capacity of the entire apparatus. Further, only by lengthening the pair of position regulating members, the conveying distance of the image holding medium can be increased, and there is no need to add a separate conveying mechanism (such as a pair of conveying rollers). Therefore, the manufacturing cost of the image holding medium transport mechanism can be reduced. Further, since the image holding medium is not conveyed in a pressed state, there is no need for a mechanism for releasing the pressure holding after handing the image holding medium to the image processing mechanism side and a control for operating the mechanism.

According to the second aspect, the conveying member is arranged such that the contact surface of the conveying member for conveying the image holding medium with the image holding medium is substantially perpendicular to the extension direction of the pair of position regulating members. Therefore, the image holding medium can be more reliably supplied to the image processing mechanism in a state where there is almost no inclination and meandering.

According to the third aspect, the distance between the pair of position regulating members can be adjusted according to the width of the image holding medium. Thus, the image holding medium can be supplied to the image processing mechanism with almost no inclination and meandering regardless of its width.

According to the fourth aspect, since the image holding medium is held between the pair of position regulating members, the position of the image holding medium in the width direction is not regulated by the position regulating members, so that the image holding medium meanders. Can be more reliably suppressed. According to the fifth aspect, since the image holding medium is reliably regulated by the position regulating member, meandering of the image holding medium can be suppressed very effectively.

According to the sixth aspect, the conveying member can be driven stably by the two rollers and the annular belt wound around the roller, and the reliability of the image holding medium conveying mechanism can be improved. . In particular, when a plurality of transport members are fixedly provided on the annular belt, the processing capacity of the entire apparatus can be improved according to the number of transport members.

According to the seventh aspect, the photographic paper as the image holding medium can be supplied to the exposure unit for performing image exposure processing as an image processing mechanism without tilting and meandering. Can be suppressed from deteriorating, and a high-quality print can be output. Further, since there is almost no need to perform reprinting, it is possible to improve the processing capacity.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a photographic processing apparatus including a photographic paper transport mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the structure of a photographic paper transport mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a cross-sectional shape of a width regulating guide.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 photographic processing apparatus 2 photographic paper (image holding medium) 5 printer section 6 processor section 7 finishing processing section 11 photographic paper magazine 12 photographic paper supply apparatus 13 photographic paper transport mechanism (image holding medium transport mechanism) 14 exposure section (image processing mechanism) 15 PLZT print head 20 Controller 23a Belt drive roller (first roller) 24a Belt driven roller (second roller) 25 Annular belt 26 Transport member 28 Width regulating guide (position regulating member)

Claims (7)

[Claims] A transport member movable in contact with an end of an image holding medium supplied to an image processing mechanism for forming or reading an image; and a transport member substantially parallel to a moving direction of the transport member. And a pair of position regulating members extending to the image holding medium transport mechanism. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the conveying member is disposed such that a contact surface with the image holding medium is substantially perpendicular to an extension direction of the pair of position regulating members.
3. The image holding medium transport mechanism according to claim 1. 3. The image holding medium transport mechanism according to claim 1, wherein a distance between the pair of position regulating members is variable. 4. Each of the pair of position regulating members includes:
The image holding medium transport mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the image holding medium has a shape capable of holding the image holding medium between the pair of position regulating members. 5. The cross-sectional shape of the pair of position regulating members in a plane perpendicular to the direction in which the image holding medium is transported is U-shaped. 2. The image holding medium transport mechanism according to claim 1. 6. A first roller, a second roller, and an annular belt wound around the first roller and the second roller and having one or a plurality of the transport members fixed thereto. The image holding medium transport mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising: 7. A photographic processing apparatus provided with the image holding medium transport mechanism according to claim 1.