JPH02230144A - Photosensitive material processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain the photosensitive material processing device which can improve sensitivity in a short processing time by providing an ultrasonic wave oscillator half way in the path for the passage of a photosensitive material in the processing device which has a slit long-sized processing space in transverse section. CONSTITUTION:A housing 3 is in a box shape and serves as a thermostatic chamber, and hot water 30 of about 30 to 50 deg.C is circulated through a feed water port 31 and a discharge port 32 to heat Q after processing in the slit long-sized processing space 6 between the internal surface of an external tank wall material 4 and the external surface of an internal tank wall surface 5 through the external tank wall material 4. The photosensitive material S which is lowered in the processing space 6 is wound around the outer peripheral surface of a lower feed roller 9, inverted, and elevated, so that processing such as development is carried out in the processing space 6. The ultrasonic wave oscillator is provided halfway in the pass where the photosensitive material S passes at the part facing the U-shaped processing space 6, e.g. a position shown by an arrow X, Y or Z and the processing is carried out while an ultrasonic wave is supplied to improve the sensitivity of the photosensitive material S.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Industrial Application Fields The present invention is applicable to, for example, silver-salt photocopiers and automatic processors, and is particularly applicable to photosensitive material processing devices that have a slit-shaped cross section. The present invention relates to a photosensitive material processing apparatus that wet-processes photosensitive materials in space.

BACKGROUND ART A technique is known in which a photosensitive material is developed using a slit-type processing tank having a long processing space with a slit-like cross section (hereinafter referred to as slit development) (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-89).
No. 052, JP-A-63-131138). In this slit development, the area of the open part of the processing space, that is, the part that comes into contact with the atmosphere, is small, so there is no risk of evaporation or deterioration of the processing solution.
Since there is little oxidation) and the volume of the processing space is small, the amount of running processing liquid can be small, which is advantageous in terms of design and miniaturization.

Furthermore, in the method of replenishing the processing solution, the replenisher is stored in a closed space, so there is almost no deterioration, and therefore processing can be performed with a high proportion of fresh replenisher (new solution replacement rate). It also has the advantage of providing stable photographic performance.

However, this slit development has a problem in that sufficient sensitivity of the photosensitive material cannot be obtained within a predetermined processing time. Although the cause of this is not certain, it is presumed to be as follows.

When the width of the slit-shaped processing space (slit width T) is relatively wide, it is difficult to circulate the processing liquid, and when the slit width is relatively narrow, turbulent flow occurs and a certain amount of agitation occurs. However, this is thought to be because the normal processing liquid replenishment method does not provide sufficient stirring, resulting in non-uniformity between the mother liquid and the replenisher.

Therefore, in order to improve the sensitivity, it is necessary to extend the processing time, which is an obstacle to achieving the goal of increasing the processing speed required for silver halide photocopiers and automatic processors. It has become.

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> An object of the present invention is to provide a photosensitive material processing apparatus that eliminates the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art and is capable of improving sensitivity in a shorter processing time in slit development of photosensitive materials. It is about providing.

Means for Solving the Problems> These objects are achieved by the present invention as described below. That is, the present invention is a photosensitive material processing apparatus that processes a photosensitive material by supplying a processing liquid to a long processing space having a slit-like cross section, and in the middle of the path through which the photosensitive material passes. This is a photosensitive material processing apparatus characterized by being equipped with an ultrasonic oscillator.

Further, it is preferable that the ultrasonic oscillator is an ultrasonic motor.

Further, it is preferable that the ultrasonic oscillator is installed at least near the processing liquid supply section.

Preferably, the photosensitive material processing apparatus is configured such that the ultrasonic oscillator is operated only when processing the photosensitive material.

<Function> According to Yokosei's photosensitive material processing apparatus, by applying ultrasonic waves to the processing liquid and the photosensitive material using an ultrasonic oscillator installed in the middle of the path through which the photosensitive material passes,
These vibrate slightly and raise the temperature, and their synergistic effect improves the sensitivity of the photosensitive material.

Further, when ultrasonic waves are applied near the processing liquid supply section, the diffusion or reaction of the developing agent is promoted in the initial stage of processing, particularly in the early stage of development, so that the sensitivity is significantly improved.

<Embodiments> Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention shown in the accompanying drawings will be described in detail.

FIG. 1 is a sectional front view showing a configuration example of a photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the photosensitive material processing apparatus IA includes a housing 3, an outer tank wall material 4 installed in the housing 3, and an inner tank wall material 5 installed inside the housing 3. It has tank 2.

The housing 3 has a box shape and serves as a constant temperature bath. That is, the housing 3 is filled with hot water 30, and the processing liquid Q is supplied through the outer tank wall material 4.
For example, it is heated to about 30 to 38°C. The temperature of this hot water 30 is usually about 30 to 50°C, and is set to be equal to or slightly higher than the temperature of the intended treatment liquid.

Note that in order to keep the temperature of the hot water 30 in the housing 3 constant, hot water is circulated. That is, a water supply port 31 and a drain port 32 for hot water 30 are formed at the bottom of the housing 3, and hot water heated by a heater (not shown) is supplied into the housing 3 from the water supply port 3l, and the supply amount is adjusted. Almost the same amount of hot water is discharged from the drain port 32.

The housing 3 may be made of a material with heat insulating properties such as hard vinyl chloride or polysulfone, or the inner and/or outer walls of the housing 3 may be made of asbestos,
It is preferable to use a heat insulating material such as felt, aluminum foil, or glass wool. An outer tank wall material 4 is fixedly or removably attached to the upper part of the housing 3.

The outer tank wall material 4 has a U-shape whose bottom part is curved into an arc, and its lowermost end is spaced apart from the bottom part of the housing 3 by a considerable distance. As a result, the outer tank wall material 4
This allows hot water to flow between the left and right sides of Figure 1.

Note that a partition wall may be provided between the lowermost end of the outer tank wall material 4 and the bottom of the housing 3 to create a temperature difference between the hot water on the left side and the right side of the outer tank wall material 4 in FIG. For example, if processing tank 2 is a developing tank, the left side in Figure 1 (the first half of development)
By setting the hot water on the right side (second half of development) to a temperature about 0.5 to 2° C. higher than the hot water on the right side (second half of development), it is possible to improve the development characteristics, and in particular, to slightly improve the sensitivity.

The outer tank wall material 4 is preferably made of a material that has excellent thermal conductivity and has chemical resistance to the processing liquid Q (e.g., stainless steel, copper or copper alloy,
Examples include metals such as Hastelloy and titanium.

An inner tank wall material 5 is preferably removably inserted into the center of the outer tank wall material 4 . This results in
Between the inner surface of the outer tank wall material 4 and the outer surface of the inner tank wall material 5, an elongated processing space 6 having a slit-like cross section, that is, a narrow elongated processing space 6 is formed.

The slit width T of the processing space 6 can be defined in relation to the thickness of the photosensitive material S, and is usually preferably about 2 to 30 times the thickness of the photosensitive material S.

For example, if the photosensitive material S has a width of 35 IIlm. W 0.2+
In the case of am negative film, T is 0.5~6ma+
It is better to set it as a degree. Although it is preferable to keep T constant throughout the processing space 6, it is also possible to gradually increase or decrease T toward the downstream side in the transport direction of the photosensitive material S in order to adjust the processing speed. Incidentally, the lower end of the inner tank wall material 5 is formed with an arcuate groove 50 corresponding to the outer peripheral surface of a feed roller, which will be described later. Moreover, a handle 51 used for attaching and detaching the inner tank wall material 5 is attached to the upper part of the inner tank wall material 5. For example, during maintenance such as cleaning of the processing tank 2, the inner tank wall material 5 is removed by holding the handle 5I.

In addition, considering the heat retention of the processing liquid Q, the inner tank wall material 5 may be made of a material having heat insulating properties such as vinyl chloride, polysulfone, polyethylene, foamed polyethylene, or foamed polyurethane, or may be made of asbestos, felt, etc. It is preferable to bond a heat insulating material such as glass wool, aluminum foil, etc. However, the portion where the ultrasonic oscillator described later is installed is preferably made of a material that has good ultrasonic wave propagation properties.

A feed roller 9 for conveying the photosensitive material S is installed on the inner side of the bottom of the outer tank wall material 4 so as to span in the front-rear direction in FIG.

The photosensitive material S that has descended through the processing space 6 wraps around the outer circumferential surface of the feed roller 9, reverses itself, and ascends. In addition,
At the bottom of the feed roller 9, a processing space 6 is formed between the outer peripheral surface of the roller 9 and the arcuate wall surface of the bottom of the outer tank wall material 4. In addition, on the photosensitive material entrance and exit sides of the processing tank 2,
Crossover rollers IO and 1l are installed respectively. The crossover roller IO is for introducing the photosensitive material S from the previous process into the processing space 6, and the crossover roller 11 is for sending the photosensitive material S that has also come out of the processing space 6 to the next process. be.

Note that the feed roller 9. The cross rollers 10 and 11 may be either freely rotating rollers or driven rotating rollers.

The processing space 6 is filled with processing liquid Q up to a liquid level L, and when processing the photosensitive material S, fresh processing liquid (hereinafter referred to as replenisher) is supplied. This replenisher is preferably supplied from the entrance side of the photosensitive material S of the processing space 6.

That is, a liquid supply port 7 for discharging a replenisher is installed on the inlet side of the photosensitive material S in the upper part of the processing space 6, while a liquid drain port 8 for discharging the processing liquid Q due to overflow is installed on the outlet side of the photosensitive material S. The replenisher is installed at the liquid level L above the space 6, and the replenisher supplied from the liquid supply port 7 flows in the U-shaped processing space 6 in the same direction as the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material S (parallel flow). ,
Almost the same amount of degraded processing liquid as the replenishment amount is discharged from the drain port 8.

In this way, the parallel flow of the processing solution (particularly the developer) has the advantage that the sensitivity of the photosensitive material S is improved.

The supply amount of the replenisher varies depending on conditions such as the type and size of the photosensitive material S to be developed, the volume of the processing space 6, and the composition of the processing solution. For example, in the case of color negative film, it is usually 135 It is recommended that the size be approximately 45m1 per 1m. In the photosensitive material processing apparatus IA of the present invention, an ultrasonic oscillator is installed in the middle of the path through which the photosensitive material S passes, that is, in a portion facing the U-shaped elongated processing space 6.

The ultrasonic oscillator may be installed at any position along the passage of the photosensitive material S, for example, at the position indicated by the white arrows X, Y, or Z in FIG. Also, the ultrasonic oscillator is 2ll! It may be installed in more than one place.

In addition, in FIG. 1, the structure of the ultrasonic oscillator itself is not shown, but only its installation position is shown.

As shown in the experimental example below, point the ultrasonic oscillator with the arrow
, that is, near the processing liquid supply side (liquid supply port 7), the effect of improving sensitivity will be more pronounced. It is preferable to provide it near there.

Any known type and configuration of the ultrasonic oscillator can be used, and the ultrasonic oscillator is installed so that the cone of the vibrator contacts the inner surface 52 of the inner tank wall material 5.

Furthermore, the ultrasonic oscillator can be used in a wide range of frequencies, and one in the range of about 50 kHz to 100 Hz is particularly suitable.

In addition, even if the output of the ultrasonic oscillator is relatively small (for example, IOW to 100 kW), a sufficient effect can be obtained.

By performing processing while applying ultrasonic waves using such an ultrasonic oscillator, the sensitivity of the photosensitive material S is improved. Although the principle behind this is not clear, it is thought that it is because the diffusion or reaction of the developing agent is promoted during development. Note that installation of such an ultrasonic oscillator is possible because the processing space 6 is slit-shaped.

In other words, when an ultrasonic oscillator is installed in a conventional box-shaped processing tank or dish-shaped processing tank, the volume of the processing space is large;
The output of the ultrasonic oscillator must be increased, which causes the disadvantage that the temperature of the processing liquid rises and the sensitivity becomes unstable. On the other hand, in a slit-shaped processing space, the amount of processing liquid per unit length of the photosensitive material passage path is small, and the flow of processing liquid within the processing space is not active. Even if the temperature rise of the processing liquid is limited to a local level, stable sensitivity can be obtained without causing the above-mentioned disadvantages.

Such a processing tank 2 can be used as, for example, a developing tank, a bleaching tank, a fixing tank, a bleaching/fixing tank, a cleaning tank, a stabilizing tank, and an inversion tank.

Therefore, the processing liquid Q to be used is determined depending on the purpose of the processing tank 2. Specific examples of the treatment liquid include the following.

Color developers generally consist of an alkaline aqueous solution containing a color developing agent.

The color developing agent is a primary aromatic amine developer, such as phenylenediamines (e.g., 4-amino-N,N-diethylaniline, 3-methyl-4-amino-N,N-diethylaniline, 4-amino-N-ethyl-N- β-hydroxyethylaniline, 3-methyl-4-amino-N-ethyl-N-β-hydroxyethylaniline, 3-methyl-
4-amino-N-ethyl-N-β-methanesulfonamidoethylaniline, 4-amino-3-methyl-N-ethyl-N-β-methoxyedylaniline, etc.) can be used.

The color developing solution may also contain a pH buffer, a development inhibitor, an antifoggant, and the like.

In addition, if necessary, water softeners, preservatives, organic solvents, development accelerators, dye-forming couplers, competitive couplers, fogging agents, auxiliary developers, viscosity-imparting agents, polycarboxylic acid chelating agents, and antioxidants are added. , an alkaline agent, a solubilizing agent, a surfactant, an antifoaming agent, etc.

As a black and white developer, developing agents such as dihydroxybenzenes (e.g. hydroquinone), 3-virazolidones (e.g. 1-phenyl-3-virazolidone), and aminophenols (e.g. N-methyl-p-aminophenol) may be used alone or in combination. It can be used as

As a fixing solution, compounds that have a fixing effect on silver halide (fixing agents) include ammonium thiosulfate, sodium thiosulfate (Hybo), ammonium halide,
Examples include those containing thiourea, thioether, etc.

Examples of the bleaching solution include those containing iron salts of polycarboxylic acids, red blood salts, bromate compounds, cobalt hexamine, and the like as bleaching agents.

Among these, potassium ferricyanide, iron ethylenediaminetetraacetate (ITI>sodium) and iron(III) ammonium ethylenediaminetetraacetate are particularly useful.Also, the bleaching/fixing solution should contain both the bleaching agent and the fixing agent mentioned above. You can also do it.

In addition to the fixing agent, the fixing solution (bleach/fixing solution) can usually contain fixing aids such as preservatives such as sodium sulfite, acid agents, buffers, and hardening agents.

In addition, the bleaching solution (bleaching/fixing solution) includes U.S. Patent No. 3,0
No. 42,520, No. 3,241,966, Special Publication No. 4
In addition to the bleaching accelerators described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 5-8506 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 45-8636, and the thiol compounds described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 53-65732, various additives can also be added.

As the washing water, water (tap water, distilled water, ion-exchanged water, etc.) or this water can contain additives as necessary.

These additives include, for example, chelating agents such as inorganic phosphoric acid, aminobolycarboxylic acid, and organic phosphoric acid, fungicides that prevent the growth of various bacteria and algae, fungicides, magnesium salts,
Examples include hardening agents such as aluminum salts, surfactants for preventing drying load and unevenness, and the like. Or L. E.
West. ”Water Quality CrLt
epia" Photo. Sci. and Eng., vol.
．． 9 No. 6 P344-359 (1965) and the like can also be used.

As the stabilizing liquid, a processing liquid that stabilizes the dye image is used. For example, a solution having a buffering capacity of pH 3 to 6, a solution containing an aldehyde (for example, formalin), etc. can be used. Optical brighteners, chelating agents, bactericidal agents, fungicides, hardeners, surfactants, and the like can be used in the stabilizing liquid as necessary.

FIG. 2 is a sectional front view showing another example of the structure of the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention. Note that explanations of the same items as in the configuration example shown in FIG. 1 will be omitted. The photosensitive material processing apparatus IB shown in FIG. 2 has different types of processing sections in a single processing tank 12.

The outer tank wall material l4 attached to the upper part of the box-shaped housing 13 is made up of four U-shaped wall materials whose bottoms are curved in an arc shape and connected in the horizontal direction in the figure.

On the other hand, inside the outer tank wall material 14, an inner tank wall material 15 having a shape corresponding to the outer tank wall material 4 (<C-shaped) is inserted and installed.

As a result, a continuous or intermittent long processing space 16 having a slit-like cross section is formed between the outer tank wall material 14 and the inner tank wall material 15.

The processing tank l2 includes, in order from the left side in FIG. 2, a developing section 14A,
A bleaching/fixing section 14B and a washing section 14G are formed, and in the processing space 16 of each section, the above-mentioned developer P1, bleaching/fixing solution P2, and washing water W are kept at liquid level L.
filled up to.

Further, between the housing 13 and the outer tank wall material l4, there is a developer P I. In order to warm the bleaching/fixing solution P and the washing water W, the same warm water 30 as described above is filled.
Then, hot water is supplied and discharged through a water supply port 131 and a drain port 132 formed in the housing 13.
0, that is, the temperature of each processing liquid is kept constant.

Developing section 14A, bleaching/fixing section 14B, and cleaning section 14C
At the boundaries between the inner bottom part of the outer tank wall material l4 and the upper part of the processing tank (the top of the outer tank wall material l4), there are feed rollers 17a, 17b, similar to those described above, respectively.
f7c, 17d. l7e, 17f and 1. 7g is installed. Furthermore, crossover rollers 18 and 19 similar to those described above are installed on the photosensitive material inlet side and outlet side above the processing tank 2, respectively.

In the developing section 14A and the bleaching/fixing section 14B, the flow of the replenisher is a parallel flow, and in the cleaning section 14c, the flow of the replenisher (washing water) is a counter flow (flow in the opposite direction to the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material S). It is preferable that

This is because it is possible to improve the sensitivity and the cleaning effect. Therefore, on the photosensitive material entrance side of the processing space 16 in the developing section 14A and the bleaching/fixing section 14B, and on the photosensitive material exit side of the two U-shaped processing spaces 16 in the cleaning section 14C,
Liquid supply ports 20a, 20b, 20c and 20d are installed respectively, and on the opposite side thereof, a liquid drain port 21a is installed respectively.
, 2lb, 21c and 21d are installed. The drain port 21d and the liquid supply port 20c are in communication with each other through a pipe 22, and the cleaning water discharged from the drain port 21d due to overflow passes through the pipe 22 and enters the processing space 16 from the liquid supply port 20c. Supplied.

Further, air vent holes 23 are provided at the upper portions of the feed rollers 17b, 17d, and 17f to communicate the processing space 16 with the outside.
a, 23b and 23c are formed.

An ultrasonic oscillator similar to that described above is installed along the passage of the photosensitive material S. The installation positions and number of ultrasonic oscillators are the same as described above, for example, arrows X, -X. ,Y
l~Y-. Positions Zl to Z3 are possible, but developing section 1
4A, the bleaching/fixing section 14B, and the cleaning section 14c, an ultrasonic oscillator is installed at least on the processing liquid supply side, that is, in the X. ．． X. , Z. It is preferable to provide it near Z4.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view showing another example of the structure of the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention. Photosensitive material processing apparatus I shown in the figure
C operates the ultrasonic oscillator 24 in the photosensitive material processing apparatus IA shown in FIG. 1 depending on whether the photosensitive material is being processed or not.
A control means 25 is provided to control the stoppage. The configuration of this control means 25 will be explained below.

A sensor 26 capable of detecting the presence of the photosensitive material S is installed near the crossover roller IO on the side where the photosensitive material enters, and the sensor 26 is connected to a control section 27 composed of, for example, a microcombination unit. It is connected to the. Further, this control section 27 is connected to a power source 28 of the ultrasonic oscillator 24. Note that the sensor 26 may be any type of sensor such as a touch sensor or a light sensor.

When the leading edge of the photosensitive material S passes through the sensor 26, the sensor 26 detects the presence of the photosensitive material S, and the detection signal is input to the control section 27. Based on this input signal, the control unit 27 outputs a command signal to turn on each power source 28. This activates the ultrasonic oscillator 24. The control unit 27 has a built-in timer, and the power supply 28
A certain period of time from when it is turned on (hereinafter referred to as operation time)
After the elapsed time, a command signal to turn off the power supply 28 is output. The operating time is the time until the processing of the photosensitive material S is completed, for example, the time until the rear end of the photosensitive material S leaves the processing space 6, or a slightly longer time, and the length of the photosensitive material S and the conveyance speed are determined. , for example, by setting the longest one in advance, taking into account various conditions such as the length of the conveyance path, or
Alternatively, it can be set manually or automatically each time depending on the conditions. here,
In the latter case, the control unit 27 may be configured to store a table of operating times corresponding to the various conditions and select the optimum value.

Note that the timing for turning off the power source 28 is not limited to the above-mentioned timer; for example, a sensor similar to that described above (in the figure (not shown), the sensor detects the completion of passage of the photosensitive material S through the processing space 6, and based on this detection signal, the control unit 27 outputs a command signal to turn off the power supply 28, It may be configured to execute this.

By providing such a control means 25, the ultrasonic oscillator 24 is operated only when processing the photosensitive material S, so there is no unnecessary temperature rise of the processing liquid during non-processing, and it is possible to save energy consumption. .

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, even if the control means 25 and the like are not provided and the ultrasonic oscillator is operated at all times, the amount of liquid to be processed in the slit-shaped processing space is small as described above. Since the temperature of the processing liquid is small and its flow is small, the temperature rise of the entire processing liquid is slight and does not adversely affect the processing properties of the photosensitive material S.

In addition, in the present invention, the configuration of the control means is not limited to one that detects the presence of the photosensitive material S described above, but also mechanically or electrically detects the rotation of the crossover rollers 10 and 11, and performs the same control as described above. The power supply 28 is turned on and off by the section 27.
It may also be configured to perform FF control.

Furthermore, the activation and stopping of the ultrasonic oscillator 24 is not limited to the automatic control as in the above two examples, and the power source 28 may be turned on when starting processing the photosensitive material S and turned off when the processing is finished. It may also be by manual control.

FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are partially enlarged sectional front views showing the configuration when an ultrasonic motor is used as an ultrasonic oscillator.

As shown in FIG. 4, opposing grooves 43 and 53 are formed in predetermined positions of the outer tank wall material 4 (or 14) and the inner tank wall material 5 (or 15), respectively. , 53, an ultrasonic motor 29A is inserted therein.

This ultrasonic motor 29A has a cylindrical piezoelectric element 291 in the center, and free rollers 292 on the circumferential surfaces of both ends of the piezoelectric element 291.
are pressed into contact with each other, and these are arranged in pairs on the left and right so that the circumferential surfaces of the free rollers 292 are in contact with each other.

According to this ultrasonic motor 29A, bending vibrations are excited in two directions perpendicular to the piezoelectric element by applying an alternating current voltage to the divided electrodes (not shown) installed on the piezoelectric element 291, and the driving voltage of these vibrations is By shifting the phase by 90 degrees, vibrations that draw an elliptical locus are generated at both ends of the piezoelectric element 291, and along with this, the free roller 292 pressed against that part
rotate in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 4 due to frictional force with the circumferential surface of the piezoelectric element. The photosensitive material S is supported between a pair of rotating free rollers 292 and conveyed.

Further, at the same time, ultrasonic vibrations can be applied to the processing liquid and the photosensitive material S through the circumferential surface of the free roller 292 or the like.

FIG. 5 shows an ultrasonic motor having a different construction from that described above. The ultrasonic generator 29B shown in the figure is a linear ultrasonic motor, and is made of, for example, a metal diaphragm 2.
93, an excitation end piezoelectric element 294 and a central piezoelectric element 295 fixed to the back surface of the diaphragm 293, and a free roller 29 that comes into contact with the surface 293a of the diaphragm 293.
It consists of 6.

The diaphragm 293 penetrates the inner tank wall material 5 (or 15) and protrudes into the processing space 6 (or 16), and the surface 2
93a is located at about half the slit width of the processing space.

Further, end piezoelectric elements 294 are fixed to both ends in the longitudinal direction of the back surface of the diaphragm 293, and a center piezoelectric element 295 is fixed to the vicinity of the central part in the longitudinal direction.

On the other hand, at a predetermined position on the outer tank wall material 4 (or 14),
A groove 44 is formed, and a free roller 296 is inserted and installed in this groove 44 so as to be freely rotatable.

According to this ultrasonic motor 29B, the end piezoelectric element 294
and the frequency of the AC voltage applied to the central piezoelectric element to match the natural frequency of the diaphragm 293, and the phase of the AC voltage applied to the end piezoelectric elements 294 and the central piezoelectric element 295. By shifting the angle by 90 degrees, a point on the surface 293a of the diaphragm 293 vibrates in an elliptical locus. In this state, the photosensitive material S is pressed against the surface 293a of the diaphragm 293 that vibrates elliptically due to the pressing force of the free roller 296, and is conveyed in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 5 due to the frictional force between the photosensitive material S and the surface 293a. Ru. Furthermore, ultrasonic vibrations can be applied to the processing liquid and the photosensitive material S through the surface 293a of the diaphragm 293.

Such ultrasonic mokes 29A and 29B are themselves small in size and have both the function of transporting the photosensitive material and the function of applying ultrasonic waves, thus contributing to the miniaturization of the photosensitive material processing apparatus. It goes without saying that the structure of the ultrasonic motor is not limited to that shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

In addition, the configuration of the processing tank where the ultrasonic motor is installed is as follows:
Those shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, discussed above, or others are possible.

The installation position of the ultrasonic motor relative to the processing tank is also the same as above, but since the ultrasonic motor is responsible for transporting the photosensitive material, if no other transport means are installed, the ultrasonic motor should be Preferably, they are arranged at approximately equal intervals along the longitudinal direction of the space 6 (or 16).

Further, such an ultrasonic motor can also be provided with a control means such as the control means 25 shown in FIG. 3, whereby the same operation and effect can be obtained.

The type of photosensitive material S processed by the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include color negative film, color reversal film, color photographic paper, color body film, color reversal photographic paper, and photosensitive material for plate making. , X-ray photographic materials, black-and-white negative films, black-and-white photographic papers, and microphotosensitive materials.

Further, the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention is, for example, an automatic developing machine, a wet type color copying machine (AP-5000), etc. It can be applied to video printer processors, color paper processing machines for plate inspection, etc.

Although the configuration of the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention has been described above with reference to several configuration examples, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to these examples and that various modifications and applications are possible. ) Not even.

Experimental example Experimental examples of the present invention will be explained below.

■． Using a photosensitive material processing apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 2, multilayer color photographic paper (using AgC:j emulsion) as a photosensitive material was processed according to the processing recipe shown below.

In addition, in the developing section of this apparatus, an ultrasonic oscillator (manufactured by Kuchikku Co., Ltd., output 45W (60Hz), oscillation frequency 17Kl) is installed at each position of X, Y1 and Zl in FIG.
{z) was installed, and each oscillator could be activated by manual operation.

Note that the slit width T of the processing space in this device is 2a.
+m, and the conveyance path lengths in the developing section, bleaching/fixing section, and washing section are 200, 200, and 400 c, respectively.
It was set as m.

[Processing Recipe J Processing using CP-40 manufactured by Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd. Average temperature of the processing solution = 35°C The ultrasonic oscillator operated and the processing time were set as shown in Table 1 below. The values shown in the same table were obtained as the sensitivity (GL) of the green sensitive layer.

As shown in Table 1 above, inventive examples 1 to 4 have high sensitivity, especially in inventive examples 1 and 4 in which the ultrasonic oscillator at position has improved. Therefore, as in Example 5 of the present invention, even if the processing time was shortened (by about 80%), sensitivity equivalent to that of the comparative example was obtained.

Note that x2 to x4, y. When an ultrasonic oscillator was installed at the positions of ~Y4 and Zi~Z4 and similar experiments were conducted, similar results were obtained.

II. Next, an ultrasonic oscillator similar to that described above was installed at the bottom of the dish-shaped developing tank of a photosensitive material processing apparatus in which the above-mentioned invention example 1 and the conventional dish-shaped processing tank (vat) were installed side by side, and it was activated. Regarding Comparative Example 2, the same photosensitive material as above was treated with CP-40 manufactured by Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd., and the sensitivity (GL) was
and the minimum concentration D1, (GL) were investigated. The results are shown in Table 2.

The amount of processing liquid in the processing space in the developing section of Inventive Example 1 was 600 cm'', and the amount of processing liquid in the developing tank of Comparative Example 2 was 600 cm''.
0 00 cm".

Table 2 As shown in Table 2 above, in Comparative Example 2, the processing liquid temperature gradually increases, which increases the sensitivity and minimum concentration D wal
n changes and becomes unstable. On the other hand, in Example 1 of the present invention, there is almost no increase in the temperature of the processing solution, and the sensitivity and minimum density are stable.
By installing an ultrasonic oscillator in the middle of the slit-shaped path through which the photosensitive material passes, the sensitivity of the photosensitive material can be improved. As a result, it is possible to obtain the same level of sensitivity as conventional methods in a shorter processing time, making it possible to speed up the processing. It is possible to minimize the temperature rise of the processing liquid, obtain more stable sensitivity, and reduce energy consumption.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are respectively sectional front views showing the outline of a configuration example of a photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a partially sectional front view schematically showing a configuration example of a photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention having a control means. FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are partially enlarged sectional front views showing the configuration when an ultrasonic motor is used as an ultrasonic oscillator. Explanation of symbols l...Photosensitive material processing device 2...Processing tank 3...Housing 30...Hot water 31...Water supply port 32...Drain port 4...Outer tank wall material 43.44 ...Groove 5...Inner wall material 50, 53...Groove 51...Handle 52...Inner surface 6...Processing space 7...Liquid supply port 8...Drain port 9... - Feed rollers 10, 11...Crossover roller 12...Processing tank 13...Housing 131...Water supply port 132...Drain port 14...Outer tank wall material 14A...Developing section 14B Bleaching/fixing section 14C... Washing section l5... Inner tank wall material 6... Processing spaces 7a to 17f... Feed rollers 8, 19... Crossover rollers Oa to 20d... Liquid supply ports 18 to 21d...Drain port 2...Pipes 38 to 23c...Air vent hole 4...Ultrasonic oscillator 5...Control means 6...Sensor 7...Control unit 8... Power supply 9A, 29B... Ultrasonic motor 91... Piezoelectric element 92... Free roller 93... Vibration plate 93a... Surface 94... End piezoelectric element 95... Center Part piezoelectric element 96...Free roller Q...Processing solution P,...Developer solution P2...Bleaching/fixing solution W...Washing water S...Photosensitive material X, Xr to Xa . Y. Y+~Y,, Z. Z+~Zm...Ultrasonic oscillator installation position FIG. 3 FIG. 4 FI6.5

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) A photosensitive material processing device that processes a photosensitive material by supplying a processing solution to a long processing space with a slit-like cross section, and an ultrasonic oscillator is installed in the middle of the path through which the photosensitive material passes. A photosensitive material processing device characterized by being equipped with.