JP3983742B2 - Photosensitive material processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a light-sensitive material processing apparatus. Specifically, the present invention relates to a processing apparatus that applies a processing liquid using a slot die.

  Photosensitive materials such as films, photographic papers, and printing plates are processed with a processing solution such as a developer, a fixing solution, a stabilizing solution, and washing water after an image is recorded. As a processing apparatus for a photosensitive material that performs such processing, the photosensitive material is transported into a processing tank in which a processing liquid is stored by a transporting means constituted by a plurality of pairs of transporting rollers, and the photosensitive material is immersed in the processing liquid. An immersion type processing apparatus that performs processing by doing so is known.

  In such an immersion type processing apparatus, the processing solution deteriorates due to processing fatigue associated with the processing of the photosensitive material or fatigue with time due to carbon dioxide or oxygen in the atmosphere. The deterioration of the processing solution is restored. For this reason, the components of the treatment liquid at the start of the treatment are different from the components of the treatment liquid when the treatment is continued thereafter, and it is impossible to perform a strictly uniform treatment. In addition, such an immersion type processing apparatus has a problem that the amount of processing liquid used and the amount of waste liquid are large, the running cost is high, and the maintainability of the apparatus is poor.

  As a photosensitive material processing apparatus for solving such problems, for example, JP-A-62-237455, JP-A-6-8956, JP-A-6-27677, JP-A-2001-174970. As described in JP-A-2001-312036, instead of immersing the photosensitive material in the processing solution, a processing solution necessary for processing the photosensitive material is applied to the photosensitive surface of the photosensitive material. 2. Description of the Related Art A coating type processing apparatus that performs the above-described process is known.

  In particular, the processing apparatus using the slot die disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-174970 has an advantage that it can be applied stably and uniformly even with a small amount of processing liquid, and there is substantially no waste liquid. However, some photosensitive materials require uniform development processing from the end, and in particular, processing unevenness at the extreme tip (for example, within 1 cm of the tip) may be a problem. This phenomenon was particularly likely to occur when the coating amount was reduced.

  In order to solve this problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-312036 discloses a planar member (hereinafter referred to as a photosensitive material) having a coating width or larger at a position facing and separating from the tip of the slit using a slot die comprising at least a slit and a manifold. A processing apparatus is disclosed in which a flat support member is provided and a film of a processing solution is formed between the slit tip and the member before the photosensitive material reaches the slit (Patent Document 1). With this processing apparatus, uneven coating and uneven processing at the coating start portion at the front end of the photosensitive material were eliminated.

  However, among the processing liquids that perform the development processing, there is a problem that the components of the processing liquid are fixed and crystallized between the front end portion of the slit and the opposing photosensitive material support member during the period when the development processing is not performed. In particular, in the case of a processing apparatus using the photosensitive material planar support member in which the portion facing the tip of the slit is a flat surface, a relatively large amount of processing liquid after the photosensitive material processing tends to remain because of the flat surface. The remaining treatment liquid is changed to a fixed crystal by drying. When the photosensitive material is developed in such a state, the fixed crystal substance adheres to the surface of the photosensitive material between the slit tip and the photosensitive material flat support member, causing development failure and scratches. In some cases, the third and third plates were adversely affected. For this reason, it is necessary to periodically wipe the photosensitive material flat support member or to pour a large amount of cleaning liquid, resulting in a decrease in maintainability of the apparatus and an increase in the amount of waste liquid.

  In such a case, a large cleaning effect can be obtained by changing the photosensitive material planar support member to a support roll and cleaning it while rotating, for example. However, when performing development processing, the surface facing the slit tip is not flat when the photosensitive material support member is simply changed to a support roll, so that the processing solution remains between the support roll facing the slit tip. As described above, there is a problem that the coating of the extreme tip portion at the start of the coating of the photosensitive material and the both ends in the coating width direction become non-uniform, resulting in uneven processing.

As another problem, when a metal such as aluminum is used for the support member of the photosensitive material, there is a problem that the photosensitive material is scratched by rubbing the photosensitive material with a photosensitive material support roll facing the tip of the slit. For this reason, it is preferable to use a resin for the photosensitive material support roll. However, in order to process a photosensitive material having a large size, it is necessary to increase the length of the photosensitive material support member in the coating width direction. There was a problem. The gap between the leading end of the slit and the photosensitive material support roll facing the leading end of the slit must be kept constant in the width direction, which is the most important factor for uniformly applying the processing solution to the photosensitive material in the width direction.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-312036 (first to third pages, FIG. 1)

  An object of the present invention is to further improve a processing apparatus using a slot die, and to completely prevent the processing liquid from being fixed and crystallized in the processing liquid coating section with a small amount of cleaning liquid, and to process the front end of the photosensitive material. The present invention also provides a processing apparatus for a photosensitive material that stably coats a processing solution. Another object of the present invention is to provide a photosensitive material processing apparatus using a photosensitive material support roll that keeps the gap between the leading end of the slit and the photosensitive material supporting roll facing the leading end of the slit constant in the width direction and is low in cost. Is to provide.

The above object of the present invention has been achieved by the following invention.
(1) Conveying means for conveying a photosensitive material, a slot die for applying a processing liquid to the photosensitive material conveyed by the conveying means, a processing liquid storage tank, and a processing liquid in the processing liquid storage tank for the slot A processing solution supply means for supplying to the die, a photosensitive material support roll disposed at a position facing and spaced apart from the tip of the slot die, a photosensitive material detection means, and the photosensitive material support roll at least as a photosensitive material. And a driving means for rotating in the direction opposite to the conveying direction of the photosensitive material processing apparatus.
(2) A rotation control means for controlling the rotation of the photosensitive material support roll is provided, and the photosensitive material is received before the photosensitive material is conveyed to the position of the slot die in response to a signal from the photosensitive material detection means. The support roll is rotated in the direction opposite to the photosensitive material conveyance direction, and when the photosensitive material reaches the position of the slot die, the rotation of the photosensitive material support roll is stopped or rotated in the same direction as the photosensitive material conveyance direction. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to (1), wherein the photosensitive material processing apparatus is controlled.
(3) A processing liquid supply control means for controlling supply and stop of the processing liquid of the processing liquid supply means is provided, and before the photosensitive material is conveyed to the position of the slot die in response to a signal from the photosensitive material detection means. 3. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to (1) or (2), wherein the processing liquid supply means is controlled to start supplying the processing liquid to the slot die.
(4) The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to (1), wherein a peripheral speed of the photosensitive material support roll is set slower than a conveying speed of the photosensitive material.
(5) The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to (1), further including a cleaning liquid supply unit configured to supply a cleaning liquid to the photosensitive material support roll.
(6) The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to (5), wherein cleaning liquid diffusion means for diffusing the cleaning liquid supplied to the photosensitive material support roll is disposed in contact with the photosensitive material support roll.
(7) The slot die has at least a manifold and a slit, and the length relationship in the photosensitive material transport direction of the front end flat portions sandwiching the slit at the end of the slot die satisfies the following conditions: The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to (1).
(conditions)
Length of upstream flat tip portion (L1)> Length of downstream flat tip portion (L2)
(8) The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to (1), wherein a photosensitive roll supporting roll made of a metal roll and a cylindrical fluororesin wound around the metal roll is used.

  According to the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention, the fixed crystallization of the processing liquid in the processing liquid application section can be completely prevented with a small amount of cleaning liquid, and stable processing liquid application can be performed from the processing front end of the photosensitive material.

  Hereinafter, the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a photosensitive material processing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. First, the structure of the slot die 2 will be described. Reference numeral 6 denotes a processing liquid supply port connected to the manifold 4. The manifold 4 is for extending the inflowing processing solution in the width direction, and is provided across the width direction of the slot die 2. After the processing liquid is once filled in the width direction in the manifold 4 and then supplied to the slit portion 5, the outflow flow rate from the slit portion 5 can be made uniform in the width direction. The treatment liquid supply port 6 may be normally provided at one center in the width direction of the slot die 2, but may be provided at a plurality of locations in the width direction of the slot die 2. The cross-sectional shape of the manifold 4 is circular in this aspect, but is not limited to this and may be any shape. Further, the cross-sectional area of the manifold 4 does not have to be constant in the width direction of the slot die 2. For example, in order to further improve the flow rate uniformity in the width direction of the outflowing processing liquid, the cross-sectional area is gradually decreased toward the end. May be.

  Although not shown in FIG. 1 for convenience, both ends of the manifold 4 of the slot die 2 in the coating width direction and the same ends of the slit portion 5 are plugged so that the processing liquid does not flow out. In this case, the stopper is applied so that the length of the slit portion 5 in the width direction is the same as or slightly larger than the coating width of the photosensitive material to be processed.

  The material of the slot die 2 is not particularly limited as long as the corrosion resistance and mechanical accuracy with respect to the processing liquid can be satisfied. For example, stainless steel is preferable. In addition, chrome-plated general plastics and plastics can be used. In addition, when manufacturing with a metal, in order to exclude the stress distortion at the time of machining, you may anneal beforehand.

  In the figure, reference numeral 10 denotes a processing liquid storage tank for storing the processing liquid 7. The processing liquid supply means for supplying the processing liquid 7 in the processing liquid storage tank 10 to the slot die 2 is constituted by a pump 8, a valve 9 and a pipe 11. The pipe 11 connects the storage tank 10 and the processing liquid supply port 6 of the slot die 2, and a pump 8 for feeding the processing liquid and a valve 9 for stopping the feeding of the processing liquid 7 are arranged therebetween. .

  P is a photosensitive material, which is conveyed from the left to the right (arrow PX) in the figure by a photosensitive material conveying roll pair 19 which is one of the photosensitive material conveying means. Reference numeral 13 denotes detection means for detecting the photosensitive material P being conveyed, and a contact type or non-contact type detector is used.

  Reference numeral 16 denotes a processing liquid supply control means for controlling supply and stop of the processing liquid of the processing liquid supply means. The processing liquid supply control means 16 detects the leading end of the photosensitive material P being conveyed by the detection means 13, thereby driving the pump 8 and opening the valve 9 to supply the processing liquid 7 to the slot die 2. . Similarly, by detecting the end portion of the photosensitive material P by the detecting means 13, the pump 8 is stopped and the valve 9 is closed after a preset time has elapsed. By performing such control, a certain amount of processing solution can be uniformly applied to the photosensitive material P being conveyed.

  In the case of controlling the coating amount on the photosensitive material P with high accuracy, a flow meter (not shown) is arranged in the path of the processing liquid piping, and the pump 8 and the valve 9 are fed back based on the flow meter signal. A configuration to control can be taken.

  The supply flow rate of the processing liquid to the slot die 2 can be determined by multiplying the desired wet coating amount of the processing liquid, the photosensitive material coating width, and the photosensitive material conveyance speed, respectively.

  The photosensitive material support roll 1, which is a feature of the present invention, is disposed at a position facing and separating from the tip of the slot die 2. The photosensitive material support roll 1 includes at least a driving means 18 such as a motor for rotating the photosensitive material support roll 1 in a direction opposite to the conveying direction of the photosensitive material P, and a rotation control means 17 for controlling the rotation of the photosensitive material support roll 1. Provide.

  The photosensitive material support roll 1 is set to be equal to or larger than the application width of the slot die 2 in the coating width direction, and is arranged so that the center axis of the photosensitive material support roll 1 is on the vertically extending line of the slit portion 5. The diameter of the photosensitive material support roll 1 is preferably 20 mm or more, more preferably 30 mm or more, and the upper limit is about 50 mm. The surface material is not particularly limited as long as it has corrosion resistance to the treatment liquid and high straightness, and for example, stainless steel, plastics, fluorine-based resin, and the like can be used.

  However, as described above, the surface of the photosensitive material support roll 1 that faces the tip of the slot die 2 is not flat, so that the processing liquid does not easily accumulate between the support roll 1 that faces the tip of the slot die 2. . Another problem is that the photosensitive material is damaged particularly when a metal plate such as aluminum is used for the support of the photosensitive material. In such a case, the surface material of the photosensitive material support roll 1 is preferably a resin having a high surface tension, and more preferably a fluororesin. By doing so, the pool of the liquid formed between the front end portion of the slot die 2 and the photosensitive material support roll 1 is increased, the developer is prevented from flowing down immediately, and the photosensitive material is further damaged. Can be prevented.

  The distance H between the photosensitive material support roll 1 and the tip of the slit portion 5 (tip of the slot die 2) is preferably within 3 mm, more preferably within 2 mm, even more preferably within 1.5 mm, and particularly preferably 1. Within 0.0 mm. The lower limit of the distance H is a distance at which the photosensitive surface of the photosensitive material P does not contact the tip portion of the slit portion 5 (tip portion of the slot die 2).

  In the processing apparatus of the present invention, since the distance H between the photosensitive material support roll 1 and the tip of the slit portion 5 can always be stabilized and manufactured at low cost, the photosensitive material support roll 1 is a metal roll and a tube wound around the surface thereof. It is preferable to use a photosensitive material support roll made of a fluorinated resin. FIG. 8 is a view showing components of the photosensitive material support roll 1. The photosensitive material support roll 1 includes a metal roll 80 serving as a core, and a cylindrical fluororesin 81 that covers the surface of the metal roll 80. The material of the metal roll 80 is preferably stainless steel for the purpose of corrosion resistance to the treatment liquid and maintaining high linear accuracy. Moreover, since the cylindrical fluororesin 81 can be manufactured easily and accurately, it is preferable to use a type that shrinks with heat that can cover the entire surface of the metal roll. As the fluororesin 81, for example, PTFE, FEP, PFA, or ETFE can be used. The thickness of the fluororesin 81 is preferably about 0.1 mm to 1.0 mm. Thus, by combining the metal roll 80 and the cylindrical fluororesin 81, the photosensitive material support roll 1 can be easily manufactured while maintaining the linear accuracy.

  The coating amount of the treatment liquid in the present invention is preferably 100 ml or less per square meter. If the coating amount is reduced in this way, uniform processing of the front end portion of the photosensitive material becomes difficult. In particular, when the photosensitive material support member is a roll, the processing liquid is less likely to stay between the photosensitive material support roll 1 facing the slit tip. In order to solve this problem, in the present invention, before the photosensitive material P reaches the tip of the slot die 2, the signal detected by the detection means 13 is sent to the processing liquid supply control means 16 and the rotation control means 17. By feeding the processing liquid 7 in advance from the front end of the slot die 2 by the processing liquid supply means, the driving means 18 moves the photosensitive material support roll 1 in the direction opposite to the conveying direction of the photosensitive material P (arrow PX). Control to rotate in the direction.

  By performing the control as described above, the processing liquid 7 that has flowed uniformly from the tip of the slot die 2 in the coating width direction forms a slight liquid film between the tip of the slot die 2 and the photosensitive material support roll 1. Form. By rotating the photosensitive material support roll 1 in the direction opposite to the photosensitive material conveyance direction, the processing solution actively flows upstream in the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material support roll 1. When the photosensitive material is processed in such a state, when the photosensitive material processing front end comes into contact with the photosensitive material support roll 1, more processing solution can be supplied to the photosensitive material front end. When the leading end portion of the photosensitive material reaches the leading end portion of the slot die 2, the processing solution 7 is continuously applied. In addition, before the photosensitive material reaches the tip end of the slot die 2, the flow rate at which the processing solution 7 flows out from the tip end portion of the slot die 2 in advance is larger than the flow rate when the processing solution 7 is applied to the photosensitive material P. It may be.

  The start timing of the outflow of the processing solution 7 from the front end of the slot die 2 and the start timing of driving of the photosensitive material support roll 1 are not necessarily the same. The photosensitive material support roll 1 needs to be rotated in the direction opposite to the conveying direction of the photosensitive material until the photosensitive material P reaches the position of the slot die 2. The photosensitive material support roll 1 may be stopped when it reaches. Considering the occurrence of scratches on the back surface of the photosensitive material, when the photosensitive material P reaches the slot die 2, the driving means 18 is set so that the photosensitive material support roll 1 is rotated at the same speed as the conveying direction of the photosensitive material P. It is preferable to control.

  The peripheral speed when the photosensitive material support roll 1 is rotated in the direction opposite to the conveying direction is greatly related to the formation of a liquid film (amount of processing liquid collected) between the tip of the slot die 2 and the photosensitive material support roll 1. Therefore, the driving means 18 is set so as to be at least slower than the conveyance speed of the photosensitive material. Generally, when the conveyance speed of the photosensitive material P is 10 mm / second to 40 mm / second, the peripheral speed of the photosensitive material support roll 1 is 5 mm / second to 30 mm / second, preferably 5 mm / second to 20 mm / second. To do.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the plane length in the conveyance direction at the tip of the slot die 2 is divided into a plane in the conveyance direction and a plane in the conveyance direction on the basis of the slit 5, and the length L2 of the plane portion on the downstream side is divided. By further increasing the length L1 of the upstream plane portion, it is possible to further bring about a great effect on the uniform application of the front end portion of the photosensitive material. By making the upstream plane length L1 longer than the downstream plane length L2, the processing liquid flowing out from the tip of the slot die 2 spreads to a wider plane, and as a result, a large liquid film upstream from the slit 5 (A large amount of processing liquid remains) is formed. The length L2 of the downstream plane portion is about 1 mm to 3 mm, and the upstream plane length L1 is suitably about 3 mm to 8 mm.

  As a method of making the length L1 of the upstream plane portion longer than the downstream plane portion length L2 in the photosensitive material transport direction of the tip plane portions on both sides of the slit 5 at the tip portion of the slot die 2, As shown in FIG. 2, it is preferable to process the front end flat portion of the slot die 2 to have different lengths (thicknesses).

  Next, cleaning liquid supply means for supplying a cleaning liquid to the photosensitive material support roll is provided, and cleaning liquid diffusion means for diffusing the cleaning liquid supplied to the photosensitive material support roll is disposed in contact with the photosensitive material support roll. The photosensitive material processing apparatus will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the photosensitive material support roll 1 and the slot die 2 are composed of a storage tank 13 for storing a cleaning liquid 12 for cleaning the tip, a pump 14 for feeding the cleaning liquid 12 and a pipe 15. A cleaning liquid supply means is provided, and a cleaning liquid diffusion member 3 of a cleaning liquid diffusion means having a length equivalent to that of the photosensitive material support roll 1 is disposed in contact with the photosensitive material support roll 1 in parallel with the photosensitive material support roll 1. . The cleaning liquid diffusing member 3 serving as the cleaning liquid diffusing means is preferably a roll, and a roll is used in this embodiment.

  The cleaning liquid diffusing member 3 is disposed so as to be located at the same level as or slightly above the central axis in the horizontal direction of the photosensitive material support roll 1, and may be provided either upstream or downstream in the transport direction of the photosensitive material support roll 1. The diameter of the cleaning liquid diffusion member 3 made of a roll is about 5 mm to 30 mm at a ratio of 0.2 to 0.8 with respect to the photosensitive material support roll 1. The surface material made of the roll is not particularly limited as long as it has corrosion resistance against the treatment liquid and high roundness, and for example, stainless steel, plastics, fluorine resin, and the like can be used. The cleaning liquid diffusing member 3 made of a roll is preferably in contact with the photosensitive material support roll 1 in the entire coating width direction, and may be rotated or fixed.

  The cleaning liquid 12 is preferably supplied to the upper part of the portion where the photosensitive material support roll 1 and the cleaning liquid diffusion member 3 are in contact with each other. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the pipe 15 is branched into two via a pump 14 for sending the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid storage tank 13 filled with the cleaning liquid 12. The branched pipes 15 are arranged on both sides of the coating width L3 of the slot die 2, and nozzles 21 and 22 are provided at the respective cleaning liquid supply ports. By doing so, it is possible to effectively spread the cleaning liquid 12 throughout the coating width direction while forming a pool of less cleaning liquid 12 in the upper contact portion between the photosensitive material support roll 1 and the cleaning liquid diffusion member 3. The supply of the cleaning liquid 12 is not particularly limited as long as it is a method that is performed on the upper part of the portion where the photosensitive material support roll 1 and the cleaning liquid diffusion member 3 are in contact with each other, and the cleaning liquid flows out uniformly in the coating width direction. You may use the shower pipe etc. which gave the work so that it may make.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, the cleaning liquid diffusing member 3 composed of a roll is used as the cleaning liquid diffusing means, but the cleaning liquid diffusing member 3 is limited to a roll as long as it is a means for spreading the cleaning liquid 12 over the entire coating width direction as described above. is not. For example, a plate-like member having a length equivalent to that of the photosensitive material support roll 1 may be brought into contact with the photosensitive material support roll 1 over the entire coating width direction.

  It is preferable to clean the processing liquid application part (the photosensitive material support roll 1 and the tip of the slot die 2) during normal processing or when the processing is stopped. While the processing is not performed or when the processing is stopped, the processing liquid remains on the coating portion of the photosensitive material support roll 1 facing the tip portion of the slot die 2 and is easily crystallized by contact with air. Depending on the degree of crystal growth, cleaning with the processing liquid itself supplied from the tip of the slot die 2 becomes difficult. Therefore, according to the present invention, the cleaning liquid 12 is periodically supplied from the nozzles 21 and 22 using the pump 14 and the pipe 15 which are the cleaning liquid supply means while the process is not performed or when the process is stopped. Further, it is preferable to rotate the photosensitive material support roll 1 at the same time as the supply of the cleaning liquid 12, and as a result, the cleaning liquid 12 is applied to the tip of the slot die 2 and the entire periphery of the photosensitive material support roll 1 to crystallize the processing liquid. Great effect is obtained by prevention.

  The period when the above processing is not performed or when the processing is stopped is the time when the photosensitive material is processed until the next processing of the photosensitive material. The timing at which the cleaning liquid 12 flows out from the nozzles 21 and 22 is not particularly limited, but at a rate of once every 30 minutes to 3 hours in the period from the last processing of the photosensitive material to the next processing. It is preferable to let it flow out. For example, it is possible to memorize the last processing time of the photosensitive material based on the signal of the detection means for detecting the photosensitive material and measure the time until the cleaning liquid 12 is supplied. Further, the outflow amount at one time is preferably 3 ml to 60 ml, and can be appropriately determined according to environmental conditions and coating width.

  The timing at which the photosensitive material support roll 1 is driven at the time of cleaning is preferably at the same time as the start of the supply of the cleaning liquid 12, and the peripheral speed of the photosensitive material support roll 1 at the time of cleaning is about 10 mm / second to 40 mm / second. The driving time from the start of driving of the photosensitive material support roll 1 to the stop of driving is about 30 seconds to 3 minutes.

  Although the washing | cleaning liquid 12 used for this invention is not specifically limited, The thing which added a small amount of surfactant and the organic solvent to tap water, the neutralization liquid used after a developing solution, and washing water can be used. Moreover, in order to obtain a larger cleaning effect, the temperature of the cleaning liquid 12 may be adjusted.

  In the processing apparatus of the present invention, it is preferable to use a slot die that is low in cost and manufactured simply as the slot die 2. Hereinafter, a simply manufactured slot die will be described. FIG. 4 is a side view in which the slot die is disassembled into its constituent members. It has the flat plate 41 by which the groove | channel 44 for forming a manifold was cut out, and the flat plates 42 and 43 which pinch | interpose and fix this flat plate 41 from both sides. A film F for forming a slit is interposed between the flat plate 41 and one of the flat plates 42 and 43 (between the flat plates 41 and 43 in the drawing). The liquid supply port 45 may be provided on either the flat plate 42 or 43, but is preferably provided on the flat plate on which the slit is not formed. The supply port 45 supplies the processing liquid to the groove 44. Two or more supply ports 45 may be provided.

  As shown in FIG. 4, it is preferable that the lengths of the lower ends of the flat plates 41 and 43 forming the slits are the same, and the other flat plate 42 is shorter than them. The lower end length of the film F is preferably the same as that of the flat plates 41 and 43, but it is allowed to be slightly longer or slightly shorter.

  The film F inserted between the flat plates 41 and 43 is for forming a slit continuous with the manifold between the flat plates 41 and 43, and a film having the same thickness as the slit thickness designed in advance is used. . The material of the film is preferably a plastic film such as polyethylene terephthalate or polyvinyl chloride, and the thickness is generally about 50 to 300 μm. The film F will not be specifically limited if it is a shape which forms a slit in the lower part of a slot die. For example, as shown in FIG. 5a, it is possible to use a film F having a shape in which only the lower end portion is opened and both side end portions 51a and 51b and the upper end portion 52 are sealed, and the shape is preferably as shown in FIG. 5b. The film F in FIG. 5b closes both side ends 51a and 51b and the upper end 52 by opening only the lower end as in FIG. 5a, and further has a plurality of flaps 53a to 53d integrally on the upper end 52. . The flap has a length interposed (positioned) inside the slit.

  FIG. 6 shows a plan view when the film F shown in FIG. A groove 44 forming a manifold is cut out on the flat plate 41, and both end portions 51a and 51b and an upper end portion 52 of the film F are overlapped so as not to cover the groove 44 (however, in the present invention, It is also possible to cover part of the groove 44 to the extent that the function of the manifold is not hindered). Although not shown, a slit 60 indicated by oblique lines is formed by further overlapping a flat plate 43 thereon. The slit 60 is connected to the manifold (groove 44), and the liquid supplied to the manifold and distributed in the width direction passes through the slit 60 and becomes a uniform flow rate in the width direction and is applied to the photosensitive material or the like. Is done. What is important here is to keep the thickness of the slit 60 uniform in the width direction, and the flaps 53 a to 53 d of the film F perform this function. That is, by inserting this flap into the slit 60 and fixing the flat plates 41 and 43 with bolts or screws, a slit having a uniform thickness in the width direction can be easily formed. Reference numeral 50 in FIGS. 5 and 6 is a hole for fixing with a bolt or a screw.

  The simple slot die used in the present invention forms a slit by a very simple combination of interposing the film F between the flat plates 41 and 43, but the coating width (the length in the width direction of the slot die) is long. As a result, the thickness of the slits sways in the coating width direction. This shake can be eliminated by simple means of interposing (positioning) the flaps provided integrally with the film F in the slit at an appropriate interval. The shape of the flap for ensuring a uniform flow in the slit will be described below.

  The number of flaps described above is appropriately selected depending on the coating width, but even if it is one, the effect is sufficiently obtained. Preferably, it is good to provide at intervals of 3 to 20 cm. More preferably, it is provided at intervals of 3 to 10 cm. The width of the flap is preferably about 5 to 20 mm, and is preferably large enough to insert a bolt or screw for fixing, and should not be made larger than necessary. The shape of the flap is preferably a shape with a thin tip. For example, a triangle, a mountain shape, a semicircle, and the like. This flap partially interrupts the flow of liquid from the manifold to the slit, but it is necessary to generate a uniform flow in the width direction at the tip of the slit (portion where the liquid flows out). From this meaning, the shape and number of flaps and the position of the tip are selected. Among other things, the shape of the flap and the position of the tip are important. As described above, the shape is preferably tapered, and the position of the flap tip must be inside (above) the slit tip. The distance between the flap tip and the slit tip varies depending on the shape of the flap tip, but is preferably 1 mm or more, and more preferably 2 mm or more.

  As shown in FIG. 5b, it is preferable to assemble the flap 53 integrally with the film F in order to assemble the slot die. However, the film F and the flap 53 are separated and the flap 53 is made independent and interposed in the slit. You may let them. The tip shape of the flap 53 and the position of the tip in this case are the same as described above. In any case, the film F and the flap 53 have the same thickness.

  The material of the flat plate 41, the flat plate 42, and the flat plate 43 can be plastic resin such as acrylic, polycarbonate, vinyl chloride, or stainless steel, but stainless steel is preferably used. The thickness of the flat plate 41 affects the size of the manifold 44 by the cut-out groove. In the present invention, the cross-sectional area (cross section orthogonal to the width direction) of the manifold 44 is preferably in the range of 10 to 100 square millimeters, particularly preferably 10 to 80 square millimeters, and more preferably 10 to 50 square millimeters. Accordingly, the thickness of the flat plate 41 is suitably about 1 mm to 8 mm. Moreover, although the slit is formed by the flat plate 41 and the flat plate 43, the surface on which the slit is formed needs to be polished smoothly. The flat plates 41 and 43 are made of stainless steel (2B) cold-rolled and mechanically polished NO. 4 is preferably used. The thickness of the flat plate 43 is 1 mm to 8 mm. The flat plate 42 is made of relatively thick stainless steel in order to suppress bending and the like when the flat plates 41 and 43 are made of thin stainless steel. The thickness of the flat plate 42 is suitably about 5 to 15 mm.

  The size of the groove 44 cut out in the flat plate 41 for forming the manifold is as described above for the cross-sectional area, and the length in the vertical direction (direction in which the liquid falls) varies depending on the thickness of the flat plate 41. However, the length of the groove 44 in the vertical direction is suitably about 5 to 20 mm. Further, the length in the width direction of the groove 44 is appropriately set depending on the application width, but it is preferable that the length is approximately equal to or slightly longer than the application width. Usually, the coating width and the length in the width direction of the slit 60 are designed to be approximately the same, but the width in the width direction of the groove 44 described above is long enough to uniformly spread the liquid falling through the slit 60 in the width direction. If so, it may be shorter than the coating width.

  The cross-sectional area of the manifold (groove 44) may not be constant along the width direction of the slot die. For example, in order to further improve the flow rate uniformity in the width direction of the outflowing processing liquid, the cross-sectional area is gradually reduced toward the end. You may let them.

  In the case of using the slot die 2 that is simply manufactured as described above in the processing apparatus of the present invention, the front end flat portions on both sides of the slit film F at the front end portion of the slot die 2 in the photosensitive material transport direction. As a method of making the length L1 of the upstream plane portion longer than the downstream plane portion length L2, for example, as shown in FIG. 7A, the slit film F may be sandwiched between flat plates 41 and 43 having different thicknesses. Good. Further, as shown in FIG. 7B, the upstream plane portion such as a film or resin is extended over the entire coating width direction so that the length of the upstream plane portion of the tip end portion of the slot die 2 is increased. The member 70 may be attached only to the tip of the flat plate 43 on the upstream side of the slot die 2.

  The present inventors include a conveying means for conveying a photosensitive material, a slot die for applying a processing liquid to the photosensitive material conveyed by the conveying means, a processing liquid storage tank, and a processing liquid in the processing liquid storage tank. A processing solution supply means for supplying the slot die to the slot die, a photosensitive material support roll disposed at a position facing and spaced from the tip of the slot die, a photosensitive material detection means, and the photosensitive material support roll. The photosensitive material processing apparatus having at least a driving means for rotating in the direction opposite to the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material causes uneven coating of the extreme tip of the photosensitive material and both ends in the coating width direction, resulting in uneven processing. I found out that it was possible to eliminate the conventional concern that it was likely to occur. Further, a photosensitive material processing apparatus in which cleaning liquid supply means for supplying a cleaning liquid to the photosensitive material support roll and cleaning liquid diffusion means for diffusing the cleaning liquid to the photosensitive material support roll are arranged in contact with the photosensitive material support roll, It has been found that a large amount of processing solution remains on the photosensitive material supporting roll and the tip of the slot die, and the conventional problem of easy crystallization can be solved.

Processing device sectional view showing an example of the present invention Slot die sectional view showing an example of the present invention The front view of the photosensitive material support roll and slot die which show an example of this invention The side view of the disassembly of the slot die showing an example of the present invention Plan view of film F Plan view when film F is superimposed on flat plate 41 Side view of a slot die showing an example of the present invention The perspective view which shows the structure of the photosensitive material support roll

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Photosensitive material support roll 2 Slot die 3 Cleaning liquid diffusion member 5 Slit 12 Cleaning liquid

Claims (1)

Conveying means for conveying the photosensitive material, a slot die for applying the processing liquid to the photosensitive material conveyed by the conveying means, a processing liquid storage tank, and supplying the processing liquid in the processing liquid storage tank to the slot die Processing solution supply means, photosensitive material support roll disposed at a position facing and spaced from the tip of the slot die, photosensitive material detection means, and at least the photosensitive material support roll in the photosensitive material transport direction And a driving means for rotating in the opposite direction to the photosensitive material processing apparatus.

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