JP4960893B2 - Photosensitive material processing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a photosensitive material processing method for processing a photosensitive material.

  Photosensitive materials such as film, photographic paper, and printing plate are processed with a processing solution such as a developing solution, a fixing solution, a stabilizing solution, and washing water after an image is recorded by means such as exposure. As a processing apparatus for a photosensitive material that performs such processing, the photosensitive material is transported into a processing tank in which 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. There is known an immersion type processing apparatus that performs processing.

  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 gas or oxygen in the atmosphere. The deterioration of the processing solution is restored. For this reason, the component of the treatment liquid at the start of the treatment is different from the component of the treatment liquid when the treatment is continued thereafter, and it is impossible to perform a strictly uniform treatment. Further, such an immersion type processing apparatus has a problem that the amount of waste liquid of the processing liquid is large and the maintainability of the apparatus is poor.

  As a photosensitive material processing device for solving these problems, instead of immersing the photosensitive material in the processing solution, a processing solution is applied to the photosensitive surface of the photosensitive material in an amount necessary for processing the photosensitive material. There is also known a coating type processing apparatus for performing the above. For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-237455 (Patent Document 1), as a processing apparatus of such a coating method, a groove is formed on the surface from a processing liquid supply nozzle having a plurality of processing liquid discharge ports. The processing liquid is discharged to a roller whose surface has been roughened by the process (hereinafter referred to as “application roller”), and the application roller is rotated in contact with the photosensitive material, thereby allowing the application roller to pass through the application roller. A photosensitive material processing apparatus for applying a processing solution to a material is disclosed.

  In such a coating type photosensitive material processing apparatus, when a sufficient amount of processing liquid reservoir is not formed between the coating roller and the backup roller before the processing liquid is applied to the photosensitive material. In particular, processing unevenness due to a shortage of processing liquid occurs at the front end of the photosensitive material.

  In particular, when a lithographic printing plate using the silver complex diffusion transfer method (DTR method), which has a fast development progress, is used as the photosensitive material, the above-mentioned problem is not only particularly noticeable, but also specific to the lithographic printing plate. There arises a problem that printing performance, which is a problem, is deteriorated, in particular, printing durability is lowered.

  As described in Japanese Patent No. 3421513 (Patent Document 2), a method for preventing the processing unevenness of the photosensitive material by forming a reservoir of a sufficient amount of processing solution is described above. A method has been proposed in which the amount of processing solution supplied to the coating roller until reaching the liquid reservoir is larger than the set amount of supply to the coating roller when the processing solution is applied to the photosensitive material. The supply amount change at the time of processing is such that the processing liquid circulation amount until the leading end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir is larger than the processing liquid circulation amount when the photosensitive material passes through the liquid reservoir, When the front end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir, the processing is performed by returning to a predetermined processing solution circulation amount.

  However, as shown in the perspective view showing the relationship between the discharge port and the opening shown in FIG. 5 as an example of the prior art, the width direction dimension of the photosensitive material F exceeds the Kikushiri, specifically the width direction. When the dimension is about 500 mm or more, the amount of the processing liquid supplied to the coating roller 85 until the leading end of the photosensitive material F reaches the liquid reservoir is set to the coating roller 85 when the processing liquid is applied to the photosensitive material F. In the case where the processing liquid supply amount is set to be larger than the processing liquid supply amount and the processing liquid supply amount to the application roller 85 is returned to the set supply amount and supplied immediately thereafter, the application roller 85 is located at the center in the width direction of the photosensitive material F. The liquid reservoir P is generated in the foreground. Before the rear end portion of the photosensitive material F passes through the application roller 85, the liquid pool portion P hangs down from the rear end portion to the upper surface of the guide 91 before the application roller 85, and the guide 91 before the application roller 85 becomes dirty. . Then, with the passage of time, the dirt C is dried and fixedly crystallized, and when the next processing is performed, the tip of the photosensitive material F scoops up the dirt C, that is, the crystals, and thereafter the processing liquid is applied by the application roller 85. This causes a problem that the quality of development processing is deteriorated. As a result, uneven processing occurs in the photosensitive material F after the development processing. When the photosensitive material F is a printing plate, there is a problem that the printing durability is partially and streaked when printing is performed.

On the other hand, in the method of developing a photosensitive material using an aluminum support that has been anodized by a slot die coating method, as a method of eliminating a partial developability difference and more uniformly processing the entire photosensitive material region, As described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-107739 (Patent Document 3), there is a processing method for increasing the application amount of the developer at least 80 mm from the front end of the photosensitive material to 1.1 times the set application amount. Proposed. Similarly, as a method for eliminating the partial difference in developability, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-126491 (Patent Document 4), the application amount of the developer after 300 mm from the front end of the photosensitive material is set as the set application amount. In contrast, a processing method for reducing the frequency to 0.8 times or less has been proposed. Further, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-234437 (Patent Document 5), a processing apparatus in which a pair of squeezing rollers after a coating unit that pre-meters and applies a processing solution to a photosensitive material has a unit that removes excess processing solution. However, the means for removing the excess liquid cannot prevent the formation of crystals, causing uneven processing of the photosensitive material, making it difficult to use it stably for a long time.
JP-A-62-237455 Japanese Patent No. 3421513 JP 2003-107739 A JP 2006-126491 A JP 2005-234437 A

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a photosensitive material processing method which can be used stably for a long period of time without any coating defects in a coating type photosensitive material processing method. In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a photosensitive material processing method capable of stably processing a photosensitive material having a width equal to or greater than Kikushiki without causing coating defects.

The above object of the present invention has been achieved by the following photosensitive material processing method.
1. A coating roller disposed on the photosensitive surface side of the photosensitive material and having a roughened surface, a backup roller disposed on the opposite side of the photosensitive surface of the photosensitive material and in contact with the coating roller, and a processing liquid on the coating roller A photosensitive material processing apparatus having at least a processing liquid supply unit for supplying the photosensitive material, and applying the processing liquid to the photosensitive material by passing the photosensitive material through a liquid reservoir formed between the coating roller and the backup roller. In the material processing method, the processing liquid supply amount when the leading end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir is the set supply amount, and the processing liquid supply amount until the leading end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir is the set supply amount. A method for processing a photosensitive material, comprising: supplying a larger amount, and continuously reducing the supply amount of processing liquid as the photosensitive material is conveyed after the leading end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir.

  The photosensitive material processing method of the present invention enables stable developability for a long period of time without application defects. In particular, it is possible to stably develop a photosensitive material having a width equal to or greater than the four-way width without causing coating defects.

  The light-sensitive material processing method of the present invention includes a lithographic printing plate using a silver complex diffusion transfer method (DTR method) described later, JP-A-07-20629, JP-A-2000-089452, and JP-A-2001-272778. Development of a known silver halide photosensitive material such as a lithographic printing plate having a polymerizable photosensitive layer, a black and white photographic paper having at least one photosensitive silver halide emulsion layer, and a color photographic paper Suitable for processing. A lithographic printing plate using the silver complex diffusion transfer method (DTR method), particularly a lithographic printing plate having a physical development nucleus layer on a silver halide emulsion layer is disclosed in, for example, US Pat. No. 3,728,114. US Pat. No. 4,134,769, US Pat. No. 4,160,670, US Pat. No. 4,336,321, US Pat. No. 4,501,811, US It is described in Japanese Patent No. 4,510,228 and US Pat. No. 4,621,041. The exposed silver halide undergoes chemical development by DTR development to form black silver to form a hydrophilic non-image area, while unexposed silver halide crystals are formed by a silver salt complexing agent in the developer. It becomes a silver complex and diffuses to the physical development nucleus layer on the surface, and physical development is caused by the presence of the nucleus to form an image area mainly composed of ink-accepting physical development silver. A lithographic printing plate using such a silver complex diffusion transfer method (DTR method) is a silver complex particularly in the initial stage of development as compared with a lithographic printing plate having a polymerizable photosensitive layer and a photosensitive material such as black and white photographic paper. The problem of the present invention is remarkably exhibited because it has a characteristic that uneven development tends to occur due to unevenness in the supply amount of the developer because the development proceeds quickly and development progresses quickly.

  An example in which the light-sensitive material processing method of the present invention is applied to development processing of a lithographic printing plate using a silver complex diffusion transfer method (DTR method) will be described below, and embodiments according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a plate making apparatus used in the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a developer application mechanism of the development processing apparatus used in the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the discharge port and the opening in the developer application mechanism of the development processing apparatus used in the present invention.

  The photosensitive material processing method of the present invention will be described. In FIG. 1, the leading end portion of the lithographic printing plate M on which an image is recorded by the exposure device 7 enters the photosensitive material processing device 9 through the introduction guide 10 and is conveyed by a pair of introduction rollers 11 and 12, which will be described later. The developer application mechanism 5 applies an amount of developer necessary for developing the planographic printing plate M. The lithographic printing plate M coated with the developer necessary for the developing process is developed on the photosensitive surface while being transported through the space developing unit from the developer applying mechanism 5 to the pair of squeezing rollers 15 and 16. Is done. The developer applied to the lithographic printing plate M and subjected to the development process is removed by the pair of squeezing rollers 15 and 16. Subsequently, a stable liquid having guide rollers 19 and 22 for conveying the planographic printing plate M and a pair of squeezing rollers 20 and 21 was stored along the pair of introduction rollers 17 and 18 and the conveyance guide 24 in the stabilization tank. In the stabilization tank 23, the lithographic printing plate M is subjected to an immersion treatment with a stabilizing solution. Then, the lithographic printing plate M that has been subjected to the stabilization process is conveyed to the drying unit 3, dried by a drying mechanism 6 that has a fan 25 and a heater 26 and blows hot air onto the lithographic printing plate M to be discharged. The

  Next, the developer application mechanism 5 will be described with reference to FIG. The developer application mechanism 5 is connected via a pipe 54 to which a developer tank 48 for storing the developer and a pump 51 are connected. A recovery tray 40 is installed below the developer application mechanism 5. The developer in the developer tank 48 is pumped to the developer application mechanism 5 by the pump 51 through the pipe 54 and supplied onto the planographic printing plate M. Then, the developer that has not been applied to the lithographic printing plate M is dropped onto the collection tray 40. Since this developer can be reused, it is collected in the developer tank 48 via a collection tube 44 provided at the lower end of the collection tray 40. A panel heater 50 is incorporated in the developer tank 48 and is configured to maintain the developer circulating in the developer circulation path including the developer tank 48 and the developer application mechanism 5 at a predetermined temperature. ing.

  As the pump 51 for pumping the developer from the developer tank 48 to the developer application mechanism 5 via the pipe 54, for example, the pulse width of the pulse voltage applied to the drive motor is changed or the rotation speed of the drive motor is changed. The discharge amount variable type pump that can change the discharge amount of the developer by changing the above is used. As such a pump, for example, a peristaltic pump, a bellows pump, a diaphragm pump, an oscillating pump, or the like can be used.

  On the other hand, a collection tray 41 is installed below the pair of squeezing rollers 15 and 16. The fatigue developer removed from the planographic printing plate M by the pair of squeezing rollers 15 and 16 is dropped onto the collection tray 41. Further, since this developer cannot be reused, it is discharged to the drainage tank 55 via the recovery pipe 45 provided at the lower end of the recovery tray 41.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the developer application mechanism 5 is provided with a processing solution supply unit 111 (a developer supply pipe 102 having a plurality of discharge ports 101 formed below and a lower end of the developer supply pipe 102. A developer receiving portion 104 having a plurality of openings 103 formed thereon, and a developer having flowed from the opening 103 of the developer receiving portion 104 in contact with the planographic printing plate M and having a roughened surface to be rotated. A diffusing film 106 for guiding to the roller 105, and a backflow prevention film 107a in contact with the coating roller 105 whose surface is roughened), and a lithographic printing plate M having a plurality of grooves on its surface, A coating roller 105 having a roughened surface rotating in contact with it and a backup roller 108 in contact with the coating roller 105 having a roughened surface. The backflow prevention film 107a may be provided with a brush 107b for cleaning the application roller 105. The arrows shown on the planographic printing plate M in FIG. 2 indicate the transport direction. The arrows shown on the application roller 105 and the backup roller 108 indicate the rotation direction of each roller.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the developer supply pipe 102 has a plurality of discharge ports 101 for diffusing the developer supplied from a pipe 54 (not shown in FIG. 3) in the width direction. The developer flowing down from the discharge port 101 shown in FIG. 3 is once received at the lower end of the developer receiving portion 104 and then diffused in the width direction and in the width direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the planographic printing plate M. It flows down toward the diffusion film 106 from the plurality of openings 103 formed. The developer flowing down from the diffusion film 106 is temporarily stored in the contact portion between the coating roller 105 and the diffusion film 106 and diffused in the width direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the planographic printing plate M.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the developer moves in the direction of the contact portion between the application roller 105 and the backup roller 108 through the opening of the groove of the application roller 105 as the application roller 105 rotates. A liquid reservoir 109 is formed there. When the lithographic printing plate M passes through the liquid reservoir 109, the developer adheres to the photosensitive surface of the lithographic printing plate M. At this time, since the photosensitive surface of the lithographic printing plate M is pressed against the surface of the coating roller 105 by the backup roller 108, the developer applied to the photosensitive surface of the lithographic printing plate M is opened by the groove of the coating roller 105. Part is weighed to a certain amount and applied to the lithographic printing plate M. Therefore, a certain amount of developer necessary for development is always applied to the photosensitive surface of the planographic printing plate M that has passed through the contact portion between the backup roller 108 and the application roller 105.

  When the photosensitive material is not developed, the developer supplied from the developer tank 48 shown in FIG. 1 to the developer supply pipe 102 of the developer supply mechanism 5 shown in FIG. 2 sequentially flows down the developer receiving portion 104, the diffusion film 106, the application roller 105, and the backup roller 108 shown in FIG. 2, and drops them onto the collection tray 40 in FIG. The developer is circulated and supplied by being collected in the developer tank 48 via a collection pipe 44 provided at the lower end of the collection tray 40. Therefore, in the present invention, the supply amount of the treatment liquid to the application roller is performed by adjusting the circulation supply amount by the pump 51. At this time, the developer is heated to a predetermined temperature by the heater 50.

  In the light-sensitive material processing method of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2, the amount of the developer supplied to the coating roller 105 until the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir 109 is changed. The method of returning to the set supply amount when the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir 109 by increasing the developer supply amount when passing through the inside of the lithographic printing plate M is that the developing solution at the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M is insufficient. This is effective for preventing the processing unevenness caused by the problem. However, in such a method, as described above, an excessive liquid storage portion P of the processing liquid is generated at the center portion in the width direction of the photosensitive material F shown in FIG.

  As a result of intensive studies, the present inventors have determined that the processing liquid supply amount when the leading end of the planographic printing plate M shown in FIG. 2 reaches the liquid reservoir 109 is the set supply amount, and the leading end of the planographic printing plate M The amount of processing liquid supplied until the liquid reaches the liquid reservoir 109 is larger than the set supply amount when the lithographic printing plate M passes through the liquid reservoir, and the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M is the liquid reservoir 109. In this case, the set supply amount is continuously decreased as the photosensitive material is conveyed, so that the excessive liquid reservoir portion P of the developer that occurs in front of the application roller at the center in the width direction of the planographic printing plate We found out that the occurrence can be resolved. The set supply amount of the present invention is an optimum supply amount necessary for uniformly processing the photosensitive layer of the photosensitive material. In the development processing of the lithographic printing plate M using the silver complex diffusion transfer method, This is the optimum supply amount necessary for uniformly developing the silver halide of the planographic printing plate M.

  Specifically, in a photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing a lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm, when the processing speed is set to 15 mm / sec, generally, the set supply amount capable of uniformly developing the lithographic printing plate M is , Often in the range of 60-80 ml / min. At this time, the developer supply amount until the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir 109 is preferably 180 to 350 ml / min, more preferably 200 to 330 ml, which is three times or more the set supply amount. / Min. A method of continuously reducing the developer supply amount after the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir 109 to an amount smaller than the set supply amount is the pulse voltage pulse applied to the drive motor of the pump 51. It is preferable to change the circulating supply amount of the developer by changing the width, and the pulse width that is the cycle of the start and stop times of the drive motor is set to 0.05 to 0. It is preferable that the developer supply amount is decreased by 1.1 to 1.7 ml per pulse by increasing 15 seconds. The expression “continuous” includes that the supply amount is decreased stepwise for each pulse, and means that the developer supply amount is decreased by at least three or more steps. In addition, the developer supply amount can be changed continuously by changing the rotational speed of the drive motor. The decrease in the developer supply amount is preferably started at a position of 25 mm from the front end of the planographic printing plate. It is preferable to reduce the developing solution supply amount continuously and the reduction amount by about 10 to 25 ml / min from the set supply amount to a position of about 150 mm from the tip. It is desirable to set the lower limit of the developer supply amount to 30 ml / min. When the time for increasing the pulse width is increased, the lower limit value is 30 ml / min before the rear end of the lithographic printing plate, and thereafter, the lower limit value is supplied in a certain amount. If it is less than this lower limit value, uneven processing due to insufficient developer at the rear end of the planographic printing plate may occur. Further, in the method of reducing the set supply amount in two or less steps, it is not possible to eliminate the occurrence of the excessive liquid reservoir portion P of the developer that occurs in front of the application roller at the center portion in the width direction of the planographic printing plate. Further, processing unevenness occurs in the lithographic printing plate M after the development processing.

  Further, in a photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing a lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm, when the processing speed is set to 18 mm / sec, generally, a set supply amount capable of uniformly developing the lithographic printing plate M is 72 to 96 ml / min. Often in the range. At this time, the developer supply amount until the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir 109 is preferably set to 2200 to 350 ml / min, more preferably 230 to 340 ml, which is three times or more the set supply amount. / Min. A method of continuously reducing the developer supply amount after the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir 109 to an amount smaller than the set supply amount is the pulse voltage pulse applied to the drive motor of the pump 51. It is preferable to change the circulating supply amount of the developer by changing the width, and the pulse width that is the cycle of the start and stop times of the drive motor is set to 0.05 to 0. It is preferable that the developer supply amount is decreased by 1.1 to 1.7 ml per pulse by increasing 15 seconds. In addition, the developer supply amount can be changed continuously by changing the rotational speed of the drive motor. The decrease in the developer supply amount is preferably started at a position of 25 mm from the front end of the planographic printing plate. As for the region where the developer supply amount is continuously reduced and the reduction amount, the set supply amount is preferably reduced by about 15 to 35 ml / min from the tip to a position of about 180 mm. The lower limit value of the developer supply amount is desirably set to 36 ml / min. When the time for increasing the pulse width is increased, the lower limit value is 36 ml / min before the rear end of the lithographic printing plate, and thereafter, the lower limit value is supplied in a certain amount. If it is less than this lower limit value, uneven processing due to insufficient developer at the rear end of the planographic printing plate may occur.

  Next, the developing solution supply operation will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the developer supply operation.

An example of the operation for developing the planographic printing plate M will be described with reference to FIG.
(Step S1) When the planographic printing plate M is loaded into the exposure apparatus 7 of FIG. 1, a sensor (not shown) senses this and an exposure start signal is sent to a control computer (not shown) to start exposure of the planographic printing plate M. Is done. If no exposure start signal is received at this time, an error N in FIG. 4 is displayed.
(Step S2) When exposure is started, the pump 51 is driven to apply the developer from the developer tank 48 to a larger amount of developer than the set supply amount when the leading edge of the planographic printing plate M passes the liquid reservoir 109. The developer is supplied to the developer supply pipe 102 of the mechanism 5 through a pipe 54 to drive the rotation of the application roller 105 and the backup roller 108. As a result, the heated and temperature-controlled developer circulates, and the developer supply pipe 102, the developer receiver 104, the diffusion film 106, the coating roller 105, the backup roller 108, the recovery tray 40, and the developer. The entire developer circulation path including the tank 48 is heated. Further, since the developer more than the set supply amount circulates, the liquid reservoir 109 having a size necessary for the development process is formed between the coating roller 105 and the backup roller 108 that continue to rotate. .

(Step S3) Predetermined exposure to the lithographic printing plate M is completed, and the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M in FIG. 1 enters the photosensitive material processing device 9 through the introduction guide 10, and a pair of introduction rollers 11, 12 To reach. Whether or not it has arrived at this time is determined by whether or not a sensor (not shown) is attached to the introduction guide 10. If not reached, an error N in FIG. 4 is displayed.
(Step S4) When the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the pair of introduction rollers 11 and 12 of the developing unit, the driving of the pump 51 is stopped.
(Step S5) Time T1 has elapsed since the pump 51 was stopped. During the time T1 when the pump 51 is stopped, the developer flowing down from the opening 103 of the developer receiving portion 104 in FIG. 2 is caused to flow between the application roller 105 and the diffusion film 106 by stopping the pump 51. This is a time for temporarily storing in the abutting portion and promoting diffusion in the width direction of the application roller 105 perpendicular to the transport direction of the planographic printing plate M, and is immediately held in the width direction even when the pump 51 is stopped. The liquid reservoir 109 does not disappear. This time T1 is preferably 0 to 10 seconds, more preferably 2 to 5 seconds, and further preferably set to about 3 seconds.
(Step S6) After the time T1 has elapsed, the pump 51 is driven, the developer supply amount becomes the set supply amount, and after the leading end of the planographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir 109, the transport of the planographic printing plate M is performed. The developer supply pipe 102, the developer receiver 104, the diffusion film 106, the coating roller 105, the backup roller 108, the recovery tray 40, and the developer tank 48 are continuously reduced while the developer supply amount is continuously reduced. The developer that circulates in the developer circulation path is supplied to the development processing of the planographic printing plate M. This T1 time is managed by the timer of the control program, and if the pump 51 is not driven after the T1 time has elapsed, an error N in step 5 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed.

  When the time T1 elapses, the leading end of the planographic printing plate M shown in FIG. 2 reaches the developer reservoir 109 formed between the application roller 105 and the backup roller 108 in the developer application mechanism 5, Thereafter, the development amount of the lithographic printing plate M is performed while the supply amount of the developer is continuously decreased from the set supply amount as the lithographic printing plate M is conveyed. When the development of the planographic printing plate M is performed while reducing the developer supply amount in this way, the liquid reservoir 109 in the width direction of the contact portion between the application roller 105 and the backup roller 108 is flattened in the width direction, As shown in FIG. 5, an excessive liquid pool portion P at the center in the width direction of the contact portion between the application roller 85 and the backup roller 88 is not generated. Further, since a liquid reservoir 109 having a size necessary for the development processing is formed between the application roller 105 and the backup roller 108 shown in FIG. 2, the developer is insufficient at the leading edge of the planographic printing plate M. Processing unevenness does not occur.

(Step S7) Thereafter, the rear end of the planographic printing plate M passes through the developer application mechanism 5.
(Step S8) If the rear end of the lithographic printing plate M passes through the developer application mechanism 5, the pump 51 is stopped to stop the circulation of the developer, and the application roller 105 and the backup roller 108 are also rotated. The developer supply process is terminated. At this time, the passage of the developer coating mechanism 5 at the rear end of the planographic printing plate M is managed by a timer of a control program. If the planographic printing plate M is detected by a sensor (not shown) even after a predetermined time has elapsed, an error N shown in FIG. 4 is displayed. At this point, if the exposure to the next planographic printing plate M has already been started, the developer supply operation is continued.

  Further, in all of the above-described embodiments, the case where the lithographic printing plate M using the silver complex diffusion transfer method (DTR method) is used as the photosensitive material has been described. However, the present invention includes other various photosensitive materials. The present invention can also be applied to a photosensitive material processing apparatus to be used.

  Hereinafter, an example in which the present invention is applied to a lithographic printing plate using a silver complex diffusion transfer method (DTR method) will be described. The present invention is not limited to this embodiment.

The lithographic printing plate M is provided with a matted layer containing silica particles having an average particle size of 5 μm on one side on a polyester film support subjected to a subbing treatment with gelatin according to the example of JP-A-9-304944, An antihalation undercoat layer (adjusted to pH 4) containing 20% by mass of silica powder having an average particle size of 3.5 μm with respect to photographic gelatin, and silica having an average particle size of 3.5 μm A high-sensitivity silver chloride emulsion layer (adjusted to pH 4) containing 5% by mass of powder relative to photographic gelatin was provided on the film support in this order. The coating amount of the matting layer was applied so that gelatin was 5.0 g / m ^2, and the undercoat layer was applied so that gelatin was 3.5 g / m ² . Emulsion layer gelatin 0.8 g / m ^2, the amount of silver halide in terms of silver nitrate was coated so as to be 1.0 g / m ^2. The undercoat layer and the emulsion layer contain 5.0 mg of formalin as a hardener with respect to 1 g of gelatin. After drying and heating at 40 ° C. for 10 days, the plate No. 2 in Example 2 of JP-A-54-103104 was formed on the emulsion layer. A lithographic printing plate M was prepared by applying and drying the core coating solution according to the description in 31. The following developers and stabilizers were used.

Developer 15g potassium hydroxide
Sodium hydroxide 10g
Sodium sulfite 35g
N- (aminoethyl) ethanolamine 10 g
2-mercapto-5-n-heptyloxadiazole 0.2 g
Quaternary salt polymer 6g
Add water to 1 liter. The liquid pH is 13.4.

Stabilizing liquid monopotassium phosphate 36g
Sodium sulfite 2g
EDTA-Na 6.25g
Add water to 1 liter.

Processing method 1 (Invention 1)
In the photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. 1 using the above processing solution according to the present invention, the lithographic printing plate M having a width of 754 mm and a length of 680 mm is processed 25 m ² per day. Then, an untreated day was provided at a rate of one day with respect to two treatment days, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for three months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 15 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The supply amount of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is 70 ml / min, and the supply amount after the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir is the pulse width increase time of the pump drive motor is 1 pulse. The developer supply amount was decreased by 1.6 ml per pulse by increasing 0.02 seconds every time. The graph of FIG. 6 shows changes in the amount of developer supplied to the liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the front end to the rear end of the planographic printing plate at this time. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C. The set supply amount, which is the optimum supply amount of the developer required for uniformly developing the lithographic printing plate M under the processing conditions of processing method 1, was 70 ml / min.

Processing method 2 (present invention 2)
In the photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. 1 using the above processing solution according to the present invention, the lithographic printing plate M having a width of 754 mm and a length of 680 mm is processed 25 m ² per day. Then, an untreated day was provided at a rate of one day with respect to two treatment days, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for three months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 15 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The supply amount of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is 70 ml / min, and the supply amount after the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir is the pulse width increase time of the pump drive motor is 1 pulse. The developer supply amount was decreased by 1.6 ml per pulse by increasing 0.05 seconds every time. The graph of FIG. 6 shows changes in the amount of developer supplied to the liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the front end to the rear end of the planographic printing plate at this time. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C. The set supply amount, which is the optimum supply amount of the developer necessary for uniformly developing the lithographic printing plate M under the processing conditions of processing method 2, was 70 ml / min.

Processing method 3 (present invention 3)
In the photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. 1 using the above processing solution according to the present invention, the lithographic printing plate M having a width of 754 mm and a length of 680 mm is processed 25 m ² per day. Then, an untreated day was provided at a rate of one day with respect to two treatment days, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for three months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 15 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The supply amount of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is 70 ml / min, and the supply amount after the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir is the pulse width increase time of the pump drive motor is 1 pulse. The developer supply amount was decreased by 1.6 ml per pulse by increasing 0.15 seconds every time. The lower limit of the developer supply amount was 30 ml / min. The graph of FIG. 6 shows changes in the amount of developer supplied to the liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the front end to the rear end of the planographic printing plate at this time. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C. Incidentally, the set supply amount, which is the optimum supply amount of the developer necessary for uniformly developing the planographic printing plate M under the processing conditions of the processing method 3, was 70 ml / min.

Processing method 4 (present invention 4)
In the photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. 1 using the above processing solution according to the present invention, the lithographic printing plate M having a width of 754 mm and a length of 680 mm is processed 25 m ² per day. Then, an untreated day was provided at a rate of one day with respect to two treatment days, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for three months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 15 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The supply amount of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is 70 ml / min, and the supply amount after the leading end of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir is the pulse width increase time of the pump drive motor is 1 pulse. The developer supply amount was decreased by 1.6 ml every pulse by increasing 0.3 seconds every time. The lower limit of the developer supply amount was 30 ml / min. The graph of FIG. 6 shows changes in the amount of developer supplied to the liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the front end to the rear end of the planographic printing plate at this time. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C. The set supply amount, which is the optimum supply amount of the developer required for uniformly developing the lithographic printing plate M under the processing conditions of processing method 4, was 70 ml / min.

Processing method 5 (present invention 5)
In the photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. 1 using the above-described processing solution according to the present invention, the lithographic printing plate M having a width of 510 mm and a length of 400 mm is processed 25 m ² per day. Then, an untreated day was provided at a rate of one day with respect to two treatment days, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for three months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 18 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The supply amount of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is 84 ml / min, and the supply amount after the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir is equal to one pulse width increase time of the pump drive motor. The developer supply amount was decreased by 1.6 ml per pulse by increasing 0.02 seconds every time. FIG. 7 is a graph showing the change in the amount of developer supplied to the liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the front end to the rear end of the lithographic printing plate. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C. The set supply amount, which is the optimum supply amount of the developer necessary for uniformly developing the planographic printing plate M under the processing conditions of the processing method 5, was 84 ml / min.

Processing method 6 (Invention 6)
In the photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. 1 using the above-described processing solution according to the present invention, the lithographic printing plate M having a width of 510 mm and a length of 400 mm is processed 25 m ² per day. Then, an untreated day was provided at a rate of one day with respect to two treatment days, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for three months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 18 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The supply amount of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is 84 ml / min, and the supply amount after the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir is equal to one pulse width increase time of the pump drive motor. The developer supply amount was decreased by 1.6 ml per pulse by increasing 0.05 seconds every time. FIG. 7 is a graph showing the change in the amount of developer supplied to the liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the front end to the rear end of the lithographic printing plate. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C. The set supply amount, which is the optimum supply amount of the developer necessary for uniformly developing the planographic printing plate M under the processing conditions of processing method 6, was 84 ml / min.

Processing method 7 (present invention 7)
In the photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. 1 using the above-described processing solution according to the present invention, the lithographic printing plate M having a width of 510 mm and a length of 400 mm is processed 25 m ² per day. Then, an untreated day was provided at a rate of one day with respect to two treatment days, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for three months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 18 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The supply amount of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is 84 ml / min, and the supply amount after the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir is equal to one pulse width increase time of the pump drive motor. The developer supply amount was decreased by 1.6 ml per pulse by increasing 0.15 seconds every time. The lower limit of the developer supply amount was 36 ml / min. FIG. 7 is a graph showing the change in the amount of developer supplied to the liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the front end to the rear end of the lithographic printing plate. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C. The set supply amount, which is the optimum supply amount of the developer required for uniformly developing the lithographic printing plate M under the processing conditions of the processing method 7, was 84 ml / min.

Processing method 8 (present invention 8)
In the photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. 1 using the above-described processing solution according to the present invention, the lithographic printing plate M having a width of 510 mm and a length of 400 mm is processed 25 m ² per day. Then, an untreated day was provided at a rate of one day with respect to two treatment days, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for three months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 18 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The supply amount of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is 84 ml / min, and the supply amount after the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reaches the liquid reservoir is equal to one pulse width increase time of the pump drive motor. The developer supply amount was decreased by 1.6 ml every pulse by increasing 0.3 seconds every time. The lower limit of the developer supply amount was 36 ml / min. FIG. 7 is a graph showing the change in the amount of developer supplied to the liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the front end to the rear end of the lithographic printing plate. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C. The set supply amount, which is the optimum supply amount of the developer necessary for uniformly developing the planographic printing plate M under the processing conditions of the processing method 8, was 84 ml / min.

Treatment method 9 (Comparative Example 1)
As Comparative Example 1, a lithographic printing plate having a width of 754 mm and a length of 680 mm was used in a photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. M was treated for 25 m ² per day, an untreated day was provided at a rate of 1 day for 2 days of the treated day, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for 3 months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 15 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The developing process was performed with the setting of the developer supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time set to 70 ml / min and the developer supply amount supplied from the leading edge to the trailing edge of the lithographic printing plate M being constant at 70 ml / min. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C.

Processing method 10 (Comparative Example 2)
As Comparative Example 2, a lithographic printing plate having a width of 754 mm and a length of 680 mm in a photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of developing the lithographic printing plate M having a maximum width of 754 mm shown in FIG. M was treated for 25 m ² per day, an untreated day was provided at a rate of 1 day for 2 days of the treated day, and this was treated for a total throughput of 1500 m ² for 3 months. The transport speed of the lithographic printing plate M was 15 mm / sec, the amount of developer supplied until the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir was 300 ml / min, and the leading edge of the lithographic printing plate M reached the liquid reservoir. The developing solution supplied to the photosensitive surface at the time is set to 70 ml / min, the developing solution supply amount to be supplied after 20 mm from the front end of the lithographic printing plate M is changed to 50 ml / min, and thereafter the developing process is made constant. Went. The temperature of the developer is 30 ° C., and the temperature of the stabilizer is 25 ° C.

In the processing methods 1 to 10 as described above, the presence or absence of liquid accumulation, processing unevenness, and printability were evaluated using the planographic printing plate M that was developed after 1500 m ² processing for 3 months. The liquid reservoir was visually confirmed during the treatment. The unevenness of the processing was visually confirmed on the printing plate after 1500 m ² treatment. The printability is 1,500 m ² after the printing plate is installed in the Heidelberg TOK offset printing machine, the etching solution is applied to the plate surface, the ink is Dai Nippon Ink Chemical's New Champion ink H, and the dampening solution is DTR lithographic printing. Printing was performed using a dampening liquid, and the printing performance (printing durability) of a 100 μm fine line image was evaluated.
Liquid pool ○: No occurrence
Δ: Slightly generated
×: Liquid pool generated Uneven processing ◎: No unevenness
○: Almost no unevenness
Δ: Partially uneven
×: Unevenness Printability (press life) ◎: 20,000 sheets or more
○: 15,000 to less than 20,000 sheets
Δ ○: 10,000 to less than 15,000 sheets
Δ: Less than 5,000 to 10,000 sheets
X: Less than 5,000 The above results are shown in Table 1.

  According to Table 1, the processing solution supply amount until the leading end of the photosensitive material of the present invention reaches the liquid reservoir is larger than the set supply amount, and after the leading end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir, the photosensitive solution is supplied. The processing method of continuously reducing the set supply amount as the material is conveyed clearly achieves the object of the present invention.

  The development processing method of the present invention can be applied to a coating development type photosensitive material processing apparatus such as a negative lithographic printing plate and a silver halide photosensitive material in addition to the silver complex diffusion transfer method (DTR method).

1 is a schematic view of a plate making apparatus provided with a photosensitive material processing apparatus showing an example of the present invention. It is a schematic diagram showing a developer application mechanism of a development processing apparatus provided with a photosensitive material processing apparatus showing an example of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the relationship between the discharge outlet which shows an example of this invention, and an opening part. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a developer supply operation according to an example of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the relationship between the discharge outlet and opening which show an example of the past. 6 is a graph showing the relationship between changes in the amount of developer supplied to a liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the leading edge to the trailing edge of a lithographic printing plate. 6 is a graph showing the relationship between changes in the amount of developer supplied to a liquid reservoir with respect to the time required for processing from the leading edge to the trailing edge of a lithographic printing plate.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Developing part 2 Stable part 3 Drying part 5 Developer application mechanism 6 Drying mechanism 7 Exposure apparatus 9 Photosensitive material processing apparatus 10 Introduction guide 11 Introduction roller 15 Diaphragm roller 23 Stabilization tank 40 Collection tray 48 Developer tank 49 Flushing water tank 55 Drainage Liquid tank 100 Mounting plate 81, 101 Discharge port 102 Developer supply pipe 83, 103 Opening 104 Developer receiving part 105 Application roller 106 Diffusion film 108 Backup roller 111 Processing liquid supply part F, M Planographic printing plate P Liquid reservoir part

Claims (1)

  A coating roller disposed on the photosensitive surface side of the photosensitive material and having a roughened surface, a backup roller disposed on the opposite side of the photosensitive surface of the photosensitive material and in contact with the coating roller, and a processing liquid on the coating roller A photosensitive material processing apparatus having at least a processing liquid supply unit for supplying the photosensitive material, and applying the processing liquid to the photosensitive material by passing the photosensitive material through a liquid reservoir formed between the coating roller and the backup roller. In the material processing method, the processing liquid supply amount when the leading end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir is the set supply amount, and the processing liquid supply amount until the leading end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir is the set supply amount. A method for processing a photosensitive material, comprising: supplying a larger amount, and continuously reducing the supply amount of processing liquid as the photosensitive material is conveyed after the leading end of the photosensitive material reaches the liquid reservoir.

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