JPH02259756A - Photosensitive material processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obviate the deposition of the crystallized material of a processing soln. on a delivery roller and to prevent the contamination of a driving mechanism, etc., by cleaning by transferring cleaning water on the delivery roller to clean the roller. CONSTITUTION:The exposed photosensitive material is successively transported to plural processing tanks through the delivery rollers 80 and developed. The upper roller 80b of the roller 80 is rotated in linkage with the lower roller 80a to transport the photosensitive material between both rollers. The roller 80a is dipped in the cleaning water stored in a cleaning water tank 82, the cleaning water is transferred to the roller 80b from the roller 80a, and both rollers are cleaned. When the processing soln. depositing on the roller 80 is washed away, the contamination of the driving mechanism, etc., due to the splashing of the cleaning water and deposited processing soln. toward the outside is prevented by this constitution.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Application in the tL Industry] This invention is applied to a photosensitive material processing apparatus, and more specifically, to a transfer roller that conveys an exposed photosensitive material from one processing tank to the next processing tank. The present invention relates to a photosensitive material processing apparatus that can automatically clean a photosensitive material.

[Prior Art] Generally, a photosensitive material processing apparatus is equipped with a plurality of processing tanks for developing exposed photosensitive materials. A1! In addition to submerged rollers for transporting the photosensitive material in the processing liquid, the cassette is provided with transfer rollers for passing the photosensitive material between processing tanks outside the liquid.

Since the processing liquid carried by the wet photosensitive material through the 36 physical liquid adheres to this transfer roller outside the liquid, after the development process is completed, a liquid pool is formed at the nipping part due to surface tension. This liquid oxidizes and becomes crystallized while the apparatus is not operating. Therefore, there is a problem in that the crystals are transferred to the photosensitive material as stains when the material is passed through the photosensitive material next time.

For this reason, for example, JP-A-82-273538 and JP-A-82-273538
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2137252, there is a device that cleans the roller by spraying it with cleaning water.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In this way, when washing water is sprayed onto the crossing rollers for cleaning, the processing liquid and cleaning water adhering to the crossing rollers are mixed and scattered, which can damage the photosensitive material. It adheres and causes uneven processing.

In addition, if this mixed liquid of the processing liquid and cleaning water that scatters adheres to the drive mechanism near the transfer roller, it will oxidize and become crystallized, which may damage the drive mechanism or cause a load on the conveyor. This causes an increase in torque.

Therefore, maintenance and cleaning of the drive mechanism is required. Further, there is a problem in that it is necessary to provide a special partition or other means to prevent the mixed liquid of the processing liquid and the cleaning water from scattering toward the drive mechanism, etc.

This invention solves the above-mentioned problem, and cleans the processing liquid adhering to the transfer roller so that no crystals of the processing liquid remain, and also cleans the drive mechanism etc. by cleaning the transfer roller. The object of the present invention is to provide a photosensitive material processing apparatus that does not become dirty.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the invention according to claim 1 provides a plurality of processing tanks for developing image-exposed photosensitive materials, and this) A3! In a photosensitive material processing apparatus equipped with a transition roller that conveys the photosensitive material from one processing tank to the next processing tank,
The present invention is characterized in that a cleaning means for cleaning the transition roller by supplying cleaning water by transfer is provided.

Further, in the invention as set forth in claim 2, a plurality of conveyance rollers that sandwich and convey the photosensitive material are arranged in parallel in the conveyance direction, and cleaning water is supplied to the conveyance rollers by transfer from a cleaning water tank, and the The cleaning water tank is characterized in that cleaning water is supplied from the outlet side in the conveyance direction, sent to the inlet side in the conveyance direction, and then discharged.

[Function] Claim! In the invention described, the cleaning means transfers cleaning water to the transition roller to wash the processing liquid adhering to the transition roller so that no crystals of the treatment liquid remain.
It is possible to obtain photographic images free of stain transfer, black streaks, unevenness, etc.

Further, since the cleaning water is transferred to the transfer roller for cleaning, there is no scattering during this cleaning, preventing the drive mechanism etc. from getting dirty, and cleaning can be performed with a simple structure.

Furthermore, in the invention as set forth in claim 2, a plurality of conveying rollers are arranged in parallel in the conveying direction, and cleaning is performed by supplying cleaning water to the conveying rollers by transfer from a cleaning water tank. Washing water is supplied to this washing water tank from the exit side in the transport direction, and this washing water is sent to the input side in the transport direction and then discharged, so cleaning with clean washing water starts from the transition rollers on the exit side in the transport direction. be done.

Therefore, the transfer roller on the exit side in the conveying direction is in a state free of dirt, and it is possible to prevent dirt from adhering to the photosensitive material.

[Example] Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described in detail based on the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the photosensitive material processing equipment, Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the transition section, and Figure 3 is a perspective view of the washing water tank at the transition section.
FIG. 4 is a cleaning water supply timing chart.

In the figure, reference numeral A is a photosensitive material loading section for carrying in the exposed photosensitive material, B is a processing section for processing the carried in photosensitive material, C is a squeeze section for squeezing the processed photosensitive material, and D is a processing section for squeezing the processed photosensitive material. A drying section E is used to dry the photosensitive material, and a photosensitive material unloading section is used to take out the processed photosensitive material.

Photosensitive material loading section A Photographed photosensitive materials F are inserted one by one through the insertion slot 20 provided at the upper position of the main body 1 of the apparatus.

This insertion opening 20 is provided with an insertion detection sensor 21, which detects the insertion of the photosensitive material and inputs it to the control section. This drives the transport system of the main body 1 of the apparatus and also drives the drying section to raise the drying temperature. Further, the insertion of the photosensitive material 114F is detected and the insertion interval is set according to the processing time.

This photosensitive material loading section A is provided with a photosensitive material width detecting means (not shown), which detects the width of the photosensitive material and outputs the information to the control section.The control section uses this information to determine the photosensitive material width. The area of the material is calculated and used as a reference for replenishing the processing solution.

Processing Section B The processing section B is equipped with processing tanks such as a developer tank 30, a fixing tank 31, a washing tank 32, etc., and transport racks 33, 34, 35, and 38 each having a group of feed rollers are removably provided. It can be removed when cleaning the processing tank or transport rack. These transport racks 33 to 36
Turn portions 33a each change the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material.
36a, and the conveyance direction is changed from the bottom to the top at the bottom of the processing tank.

Between the developing tank 30 and the fixing tank 31, the fixing tank 31 and the washing tank 3
A transition part 3f, 38 is provided between the developer tank 30 and the developer tank 30.
The photosensitive material transported by the transport racks 33 and 34 is sent from the developing solution to the transfer section 37, and the developer is squeezed by a group of rollers in the transfer section 3 and sent to the fixing tank 31. In the fixing tank 31, the photosensitive material is transported by a transport rack 35 and sent from the fixing solution to a transition section 38, where the fixing solution is squeezed and sent to the washing tank 32, and the processing solution is transferred to the subsequent processing tank. is prevented from being brought in.

The transition portions 37, 38 are similarly constructed as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

A plurality of pairs of transition rollers 80 are arranged in parallel in the conveyance direction, and these are composed of a pair of upper and lower rollers 80a and 8ob. A gear 81 provided on the lower roller 130a is connected to a drive mechanism (not shown), and this drive mechanism rotates the lower roller 80a, and this rotation causes the upper roller 80b to rotate in conjunction with the rotation, and between the upper and lower rollers 80m and 80b. The photosensitive material is sandwiched between the two and conveyed.

The lower roller 80a of the conveyance roller 80 is immersed in cleaning water stored in the cleaning water tank 82, and the cleaning water flows into the lower roller 8.
It is transferred from 0a to the upper roller 80b and supplied to clean the upper and lower rollers 80m and 80b.

In this way, the transition roller 80 is cleaned by the cleaning means that supplies and cleans the transition roller 80 by transferring cleaning water, so when cleaning the processing liquid adhering to the transition roller 80, the cleaning water and the adhering processing liquid are removed from the outside. The crossing roller 80
can be cleaned.

The cleaning water tank 82 is divided by a partition wall 82a into a conveying direction outlet part 82b and a conveying direction inlet part 82c, and the cleaning water supplied from the supply vibrator 83 to the conveying direction outlet part 82b flows into the partition 182a. It overflows from the formed circulation port 82d and is sent to the conveyance direction outlet side part 80c. Bulkhead 82m
A discharge port 82e is provided at a position lower than the circulation port 82d, and the cleaning water supplied to the conveyance direction outlet side 82c overflows from this discharge port 82a and is discharged to the outside. In this way, the cleaning water that accumulates in the conveyance direction inlet side part 82b is made to be less contaminated than the cleaning water that accumulates in the conveyance direction outlet side part 132c, and the crossing roller 80 of the conveyance direction outlet side part 82c is cleaned with cleaner cleaning water. After cleaning, the photosensitive material is conveyed to the next process in a state where there is no uneven transfer of stains.

The supply of cleaning water to the cleaning water tank 82 is shown in the timing chart of FIG.

At the same time as the operation switch of the device is input, cleaning water replenishment starts to supply a specified amount of cleaning water, the photosensitive materials are sequentially inserted, and during this process, cleaning water is supplied to the cleaning water tank at a predetermined timing. .

In addition, even in a standby state where the operation switch of the apparatus is input but no photosensitive material is inserted, cleaning water is replenished at a predetermined timing, and the transfer roller 80 is cleaned even in the standby state. There is.

In this embodiment, the cleaning water is automatically replenished after a predetermined period of time has passed, but a liquid level sensor is provided in the cleaning water tank 82 to detect the level of the cleaning water and replenish it. It's okay.

Further, in this embodiment, the lower roller 80 of the transition roller 8o
The lower roller 8 is immersed in water in the cleaning water tank 82.
Instead of immersing 0a in water, another transfer roller may be provided, and this may be immersed in water to transfer and supply to the lower roller 80a, and further to transfer and supply from the lower roller 80a to the upper roller 80b.

Squeeze section C Squeeze section C squeezes the photosensitive material F by its roller group 40.
Squeeze or absorb the washing water and send it to the drying section.

In the drying section, the photosensitive material F is sent by a group of feed rollers 50, and in the front part of the drying section, there is an infrared drying section D1 where infrared rays from an infrared heater 51 are applied to dry the material, and moisture is removed from a slit nozzle 52. It consists of a warm air drying section D2 in which unsaturated heated air is blown onto the photosensitive material F to dry it.

In the infrared drying section D1, in the former part where the blackened area has more moisture than the white area, infrared rays are mainly applied to the photosensitive material to dry the blackened area at a faster drying speed than the white area. ,
Then, when the residual moisture in the blackened area and the white area become almost the same, in the latter hot air drying section D2, the blackened area and the white area are dried at almost the same speed, and the deteriorated area and the white area are dried. The water content in the two parts is reduced to almost zero at the same time, and the blackened parts and white areas are dried sufficiently to avoid any permanent damage such as hardening of the gelatin tank.

The moisture evaporated in the drying section is discharged to the outside via the exhaust duct 60 together with the exhaust from the exhaust duct 61 of the processing section B by driving the exhaust fan 82.

Photosensitive material unloading section E A photosensitive material unloading section E is provided on the side opposite to the photosensitive material loading section A of the apparatus main body 1, and the processed photosensitive material F that has been developed and dried is stored in the basket 70. It is discharged.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, in the invention according to claim 1, the cleaning means supplies cleaning water to the transition roller by transfer and cleans the processing liquid adhering to the transition roller, so that the treatment liquid is not applied to the transition roller. No liquid crystals remain, and it is possible to obtain photographic images free of stain transfer, black streaks, unevenness, etc.

Further, since the cleaning water is transferred to the transfer roller for cleaning, there is no scattering during this cleaning, preventing the drive mechanism etc. from getting dirty, and cleaning can be performed with a simple structure.

Furthermore, in the invention according to claim 2, a plurality of conveyance rollers are arranged in parallel in the conveyance direction, and cleaning is performed by supplying cleaning water to the conveyance rollers by transfer from a cleaning water tank, and furthermore, the conveyance rollers are provided on an outlet side in the conveyance direction. Washing water is supplied from the rollers, and this washing water is sent to the inlet side in the conveying direction and discharged, so that the crossing rollers on the outlet side in the conveying direction are cleaned with clean cleaning water. Therefore, the transfer rollers on the exit side in the conveyance direction are in a state where there is no dirt, and it is possible to prevent dirt from adhering to the photosensitive material.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of the photosensitive material processing apparatus, Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the transition section, and Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the washing water tank of the transition section.
Figure J4 is a cleaning water supply timing chart. In the figure, reference numeral B designates a processing section, 30 a developing tank, 37 and 38 a transition section, 80 a transition roller, 80m a lower roller, aob an upper roller, 81 a gear, and 82 a wash water tank.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A photosensitive material processing apparatus that is provided with a plurality of processing tanks for developing image-exposed photosensitive material, and equipped with a transition roller that conveys the photosensitive material from one of the processing tanks to the next processing tank. A photosensitive material processing apparatus characterized in that the transfer roller is provided with a cleaning means for supplying cleaning water by transfer to clean it. 2. A plurality of conveyance rollers that sandwich and convey the photosensitive material are arranged in parallel in the conveyance direction, and cleaning water is supplied to the conveyance rollers by transfer from a cleaning water tank, and water is supplied to the cleaning water tank in the conveyance direction. Claim 1 characterized in that cleaning water is supplied from the side, sent to the inlet side in the conveying direction, and discharged.
The photosensitive material processing apparatus described above.