JPH025050A - Solvent application device for image forming - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To always give a fixed quantity of solvent for forming an image to a recording material being in a sheet state by providing a heater which heats one or both of a set of squeezing rollers to a desired temperature. CONSTITUTION:A water applying part 17 consists of a water tank 174 which houses water, a set of guide plates 172a and 172b provided up and down which guide the photosensitive material A into the water, a set of rollers 56f which carry the photosensitive material A along the guide plates 172a and 172b, a set of squeezing rollers 176a and 176b which squeeze excessive water from the photosensitive material A swollen by applying the water and the heater 189 which heats the upper squeezing roller 176a. Then, when the upper squeezing roller 176a is heated, the excessive water impregnated in the photosensitive material A is squeezed by a set of squeezing rollers 176a and 176b. Thus, the quantity of the water impregnated in the photosensitive material A and the temperature thereof are appropriately controlled and transferring is accelerated. Besides, coloring is also enhanced.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an image-forming solvent coating device (hereinafter referred to as a coating device) for coating a sheet-shaped recording material with an image-forming solvent, and particularly relates to an image-forming solvent coating device (hereinafter referred to as a coating device) for coating a sheet-shaped recording material with an image-forming solvent. Application to an image recording device that records a color image on a recording material is suitable.

[Conventional technology]

Heat-developable photosensitive materials are well known as image-recording materials, and information on heat-developable photosensitive materials and their processes can be found, for example, in Basic Non-Silver Salt Photography Edition of Photographic Engineering (published by Corona Publishing, 1982), Volume 2.
p. 42, p. 255, p. 40 of Video Information (published in April 1978), Neblett's 5tlandbook of Photography
Photography and Reprograp
hy) 7th edition (7Ed) Van Nostrand Reinbold Company (Van No5t, rand
Reinhold company) pages 32 and 33
It is written on the page.

Furthermore, many methods have been proposed for obtaining color images by heat development.

This involves the release of image-wise mobile dyes upon heating;
A method of transferring this mobile dye to a dye fixing material (image receiving material) having a mordant using a solvent such as water, a method of transferring it to a dye fixing material using a high boiling point organic solvent, a method of transferring this mobile dye to a dye fixing material using a solvent such as water, and a method of transferring this mobile dye to a dye fixing material using a hydrophilic heat solvent built into the dye fixing material. By the method of transfer to a dye-fixing material, the mobile dye is heat diffusible or made by sublimation;
A method of transferring to a dye-receiving material such as a support has been proposed. (U.S. Patent Nos. 4,463,079 and 4474)
．． No. 867, No. 4,507,380, JP-A-58-
No. 149046, No. 58-1.49047, No. 59-
No. 152440, No. 59-174445, No. 59-1
No. 65054, No. 59180548, No. 59-168
No. 439, No. 51-174832, No. 59-1748
No. 33, No. 59-174834, No. 59-1.748
No. 35, etc.) As a device for carrying out this type of image forming method, for example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 51-75247, an exposure hand is used in an exposure section to apply color onto a heat-developable photosensitive material. After the image has been exposed, an image forming solvent such as water is applied to the heat-developable photosensitive material using a roller, and this is sent to the heat-developing section, where the image-receiving material is brought into close contact with the heat-developable photosensitive material after heat development and transferred to the transfer section. An image recording apparatus has been proposed in which the image is transferred to an image receiving material in a transfer section.

Other coating devices for coating the image forming solvent include:
For example, a heat-developable photosensitive material is conveyed while being immersed in an image-forming solvent contained in a water tank, the photosensitive material is held between a pair of squeeze rollers, and the excess image-forming solvent is removed from the swollen heat-sensitive material. A scraping structure is conceivable.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the coating device, the temperature of the image forming solvent has a large effect on the amount of swelling of the photosensitive material.

The immersion in the image forming solvent is for promoting image transfer and good color development, and if the amount of swelling changes as described above, unevenness will occur in the image transfer speed and color development.

Therefore, a heater is installed in the water tank to control the image-forming solvent to the desired temperature, but if the amount of image-forming solvent is large, it takes a long time to reach the desired temperature. .

Furthermore, depending on the ambient temperature of the squeeze roller, there is a possibility that the amount of swelling of the photosensitive material changes from the solvent level to the time it reaches the squeeze roller.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to provide an image-forming solvent coating device that can always apply a constant amount of image-forming solvent to a sheet-like recording material.

[Means and effects for solving the problems] The object of the present invention is to transport a sheet-like recording material while immersing it in an image forming solvent in a water tank, and to collect the swollen sheet-like recording material between a pair of squeeze rollers. An image forming solvent applicator for scraping off excess image forming solvent by sandwiching a material, the image forming apparatus comprising a heater for heating one or both of the pair of squeeze rollers to a desired temperature. Accomplished by solvent applicator.

That is, by configuring as described above, the temperature of the pair of squeeze rollers can be set to a desired temperature regardless of the temperature of the image forming solvent or the ambient temperature of the coating device. The amount of impregnation after scraping from the photosensitive material can be made uniform.

Further, the image forming solvent includes, for example, water;
This water includes not only so-called pure water but also water in the widely customary sense. Furthermore, pure water, methanol, DMF,
A mixed solvent with a bottom boiling solvent such as acetone or diisobutyl ketone may be used. Furthermore, a solution containing an image forming accelerator, an antifoggant, a development stopper, a hydrophilic heat solvent, etc. may also be used.

[Embodiment]

Next, preferred embodiments of the coating device according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the description of the embodiments, in order to facilitate understanding of the invention, the structure and operation of the entire image recording apparatus to which the coating device is applied will be explained, and then the main parts will be explained.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an image recording apparatus equipped with a coating device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In addition, in this embodiment,
As a sheet I-shaped recording material, a heat development process is required;
A case is shown in which a type of photosensitive material is used in which an image is transferred and formed on an image-receiving material having an image-receiving layer in the presence of an image-forming medium such as water.

Inside the housing 12 constituting the image recording device, there is a photosensitive material storage section 13 that stores the photosensitive material A, an image reading section 15 that reads image information carried on the document S, and a latent image formed on the photosensitive material A. an exposure section 16, a water application section 17 that applies water to the photosensitive material A, an overlapping section 19 that overlaps the image receiving paper C, a heat development transfer section 21 that performs heat treatment on the photosensitive material A and the image receiving paper C, From photosensitive material A to receiver paper C
A peeling section 23 is provided for peeling off the material. A transparent document support glass 14 on which the document S is placed is arranged on the upper surface of the housing 12.
The image reading section 15 is arranged below.

That is, the image reading section 15 includes an assembly 30 of the light source 18, the mirror 20a, and the imaging lens/filter unit 1- which integrally scans the entire surface of the original support glass 14, and furthermore, the light source 18 scans the entire surface of the document supporting glass 14 at 1/2 of the scanning distance. mirrors 20b, 20c and fixed mirrors 20d, 20e, which move in the same direction by
20f, which are surrounded by a partition wall 22,
Optically isolated from other parts.

However, in this case, an exposure opening 34 for the exposure section 16 of the photosensitive material A is defined in the partition wall 22 at a portion through which the optical axis 32 of the image reading section 15 reflected by the fixed mirror 20f passes. A shutter device 35 and a shutter control device 36 are arranged in the exposure opening 34 .

Further, a standard white plate 302 is provided near the original support glass plate 14 so as to be exposed to the light source 18 .

On the other hand, the photosensitive material supply section 13 is provided in the left side of the housing 12 and is held in a light-tight manner. This photosensitive material supply section 13 is loaded with a removable photosensitive material magazine 54 in which photosensitive material A is wound.

The photosensitive material supply section 13 includes a pair of rollers 56a and 56b that transports the photosensitive material A from the magazine 54 to the exposure section I6. In this case, a counter 58 for cutting the photosensitive material A into predetermined lengths is provided between the roller pair 56C156d. Further, the exposure table 60, which is moved between the pair of rollers 56c and 56d, faces the exposure opening 34 defined on the lower side of the partition wall 22 surrounding the image reading section 15.

In front of the exposure section 16 (hereinafter, "front" refers to the downstream side with respect to the traveling direction of the photosensitive material, etc.) is provided with a conveyance path consisting of a pair of rollers 56e and a guide plate.

The exposure section 1G subjects the photosensitive material A to imagewise exposure to form a latent image, and the photosensitive material A on which the latent image is formed is conveyed to the water application section 17 via the conveyance path.

The water application section 17 is for facilitating the transfer of the latent image formed on the photosensitive material A. The water application section 17 will be described later with reference to FIG. 2, etc., but it includes a roller pair 56f,
Squeeze roller pair 176, guide plate 172 and water tank 17
Consists of 4th class. Then, the water tank 174 is filled with water, which corresponds to the image forming solvent in the present invention, and the photosensitive material A is transported while being immersed in the water.

The photosensitive material A coated with water is squeezed by a pair of squeeze rollers 176.
It is conveyed to the overlapping section 19 by.

On the other hand, on the right side of the housing 12, a receiver paper supply section 41 that supplies the receiver paper C is provided.

The image receiving paper supply section 41 is loaded with a receiving paper magazine 43 that stores the rolled image receiving paper C.

The image receiving paper C in the magazine 43 is fed out by a pair of rollers 56h, and cut into a predetermined length by a cutter 44 arranged in front of the pair of rollers 56h.

The cut image-receiving paper C is removed by the roller pair 56i? jl is transported to the overlapping section 19.

In front of the overlapping part 19, the overlapping photosensitive materials A
A heating development transfer section 21 is provided which heats the image receiving paper C, develops the latent image on the photosensitive material A, and transfers the latent image onto the image receiving paper C.

The heat development transfer section 21 is surrounded by a heat insulating partition wall 62, and is wound around a hollow cylindrical heating tram 74 containing a halogen lamp 72 and the outer peripheral surface of this heating drum 74 at an angle of about 270°. and four heald supports 1
- An endless heald 84 supported by a rough 6.77.78.80, and heats the photosensitive material A and the receiver paper C in a superimposed state.

By this heating, the latent image on the photosensitive material A is developed and transferred onto the image receiving paper C to develop color.

A peeling section 23 is provided within the partition wall 62, and the peeling section 23 includes a first peeling claw 232 for peeling the photosensitive material A from the image receiving paper C, and a first peeling claw 232 for peeling the image receiving paper C from the heating drum 74. 2 peeling claws 234, and a pair of rollers 56 for discharging the image receiving paper C to the outside of the partition wall 62.

In front of one side of the heat development transfer section 21, there is a waste tray 118 for discarding the heated photosensitive material A peeled from the image receiving paper C by a peeling claw 232, and a pair of rollers for throwing the photosensitive material A into the waste tray 118. 56k is provided.

The waste tray 118 is provided below the heat development transfer section 21 . Further, in front of the other side of the heat development transfer section 21, there is a take-out tray 120 for storing the heated image receiving paper C, and a pair of rollers 561 and 56 for conveying the heated image-receiving paper C to the take-out tray 120.
The image receiving paper C on which the image has been transferred is led out to an external take-out tray 120.

Further, a color density detection unit 124 for detecting the color density of the image on the image receiving paper C is arranged between the pair of rollers 56m and 56n.

The color density detection unit 124 includes an illumination device 126 that illuminates the image surface of the image receiving paper C, and a color photo I sensor 128 that receives reflected light from the image receiving paper C due to this illumination.

The apparatus further includes a color density control unit 150 connected to the imaging lens/filter unit assembly pair 30 and the fumetosensor 128 and disposed at a suitable location within the housing 12.
, the color density control unit 150, and the photosensitive material supply section 1
3. Image reading section 15, drive system for the image reading section 15 (not shown), image receiving paper supply section 41, cutter 44.58
, the shunter control section 36, the water application section 17, the heat development transfer section 21, and the peeling section 23, and a system control section (not shown) for controlling the entire apparatus.

Next, each side of the water application section 17 will be explained with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.

First, a first example of the water application section 17 will be described with reference to FIG. Note that FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the water application section.

The water application section 17 includes a water tank 174 containing water and a pair of upper and lower guide plates 172a and 17 that guide the photosensitive material A into the water.
2b, a pair of rollers 56f that transports the photosensitive material A along the guide plates 172a and 172b, a pair of squeeze rollers 176a and 176b that scrape off excess water from the photosensitive material A that has been swollen by applying water, and an upper squeeze roller. roller 176a
A heater (hereinafter referred to as a heater) 180 that heats the
Consisting of

Next, the heater 18 heats the upper squeeze roller 176a.
0 will be explained.

In the first example, the heater 180 is the upper squeeze roller 17
6a, and heats the upper squeeze roller 176a to a desired temperature.

The heating temperature is independent of the temperature of the water used as the image forming solution, but is set to a temperature slightly higher than the environmental temperature of the coating device 17, for example, about 30°C.

When the upper squeeze roller 176a is heated in this manner, excess water impregnated in the photosensitive material A is scraped off by the pair of squeeze rollers 176a and 176b, and the upper squeeze roller 176a is heated to the above temperature.

As a result, the photosensitive material A contains a predetermined amount of impregnated water and is heated to a predetermined temperature before being transported to the next step.

Then, as described above, the image receiving papers C are conveyed in a superimposed state to the heat development transfer section 21, and the heat development transfer section 21
In this step, heat development and transfer to image receiving paper C are performed as described above.

At this time, since the amount of water impregnated into the photosensitive material A and the temperature are controlled as described above, not only the transfer is promoted but also the color development is good.

In the first example, the heater 180 is configured to heat the upper squeeze roller 176a, but the configuration is not limited to the above configuration as long as the technical idea of the present invention is followed.

For example, as shown in phantom lines in FIG.
The lower squeeze roller 176b may be heated by
Alternatively, both may be heated at the same time.

Furthermore, the type and installation position of the heater 180 are not limited to those described above.

For example, a halogen lamp 181 may be installed in the center of one or both of the pair of squeeze rollers 176a and 176b. In this case as well, the same effects as described above can be achieved.

Next, a second example will be explained with reference to FIG.

Note that the difference between the first example and the second example is that the heater 180
The reason is that the temperature control is performed in accordance with the temperature of the water.

That is, the temperature detection element 182 detects the temperature of water, and a temperature detection signal is transmitted to the temperature control circuit 183.

The temperature control circuit 183 compares the temperature detection signal with a reference voltage set in advance to obtain a desired temperature, and drives the heater 180 in accordance with the voltage difference between the two.

For example, during winter or early in the morning, the temperature of water tends to drop significantly, so even if photosensitive material A is impregnated with water,
Its temperature remains low. Therefore, the heat development transfer section 2
In step 1, development and transfer are performed before sufficient heating is possible,
In this case, good recording cannot be performed.

However, according to the above configuration, when the temperature of the water decreases, the energization time of the heater 180 is controlled to be large in accordance with the temperature, thereby increasing the temperature of the upper squeeze roller 176a. As a result, even if the water impregnating the photosensitive material A is at a low temperature, the water is heated to the desired temperature while the excess water is scraped off.

Therefore, as described above, even if the water temperature is low, good recording can be performed in the heat development transfer section 21.

On the other hand, during summer or when the image recording apparatus is used for a long period of time, the temperature inside the apparatus rises and the temperature of the water also rises.

In this case, the temperature control circuit 183 controls the energization time of the heater 180 to be short, and the heating of the upper squeeze roller 176a by the heater 180 is reduced. Therefore, the photosensitive material A and the water impregnated therein are not heated undesirably, and a predetermined image is recorded in the heat development transfer section 21.

Note that in this example as well, the heater 180 can be installed in the same manner as in the first example.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above and can be modified in various ways.

For example, instead of detecting the temperature of water, the temperature of the pair of squeeze rollers may be controlled by detecting the ambient temperature of the coating device.

Furthermore, the present invention may use the above-mentioned image receiving material as a sheet-like recording material.

[Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, one or both of a pair of squeeze rollers that scrape off excess image forming solvent from a sheet-like recording material containing an image forming solvent is heated to a predetermined temperature. With this structure, the temperature of the sheet-like recording material and the image-forming solvent impregnated into the recording material is controlled to a desired temperature, and a constant amount of the image-forming solvent is always applied to the sheet-like recording tA*. 4 can be given.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image recording apparatus equipped with a coating device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a first example of the coating device, and FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an example. Reference numeral 10 in the figure: image recording device; 12: housing;
13... Photosensitive material supply section, 14... Document support glass plate, 15... Image reading section, 17... Water application section,
18... Light source, 19... Overlapping part,
21... Heat development transfer section, 23... Peeling section, 30...
...Imaging lens/filter unit assembly, 32...
・Optical axis, 36... Shutter control device, 4
1... Receiving paper supply unit, 43... Receiving paper magazine, 4
4.58...Kantar-54...Sensitive material magazine, 56
a, 56b/c+-ra pair, 60... exposure table, 72... halogen lamp,
74... Heating drum, 76. 80... Heald support roller, 84... Endless heald, 118... Waste tray, 120... Take-out tray, 124... Color density detection unit, 126...・Lighting device, 128...Color photo 1
~Senry-1150...Color density control unit, 172a...Upper guide plate, 172b...Lower guide plate, 174...Water tank, 176...Squeeze roller, 177...Guide member, 180... ...Heater, 181...Halogen lamp as heater, 182.
...Temperature detection element, 183...Temperature control circuit, 2
32.234... Peeling nail, 302... White plate, A
...Photosensitive material, C...Receiver paper agent Patent attorney (8107) Kiyotaka Sasaki (and 3 others)

Claims (1)

[Claims] The image forming solvent coating device conveys a sheet-like recording material while immersing it in an image-forming solvent in a water tank, and scrapes off excess image-forming solvent by sandwiching the sheet-like recording material between a pair of squeeze rollers. and a heater for heating one or both of the pair of squeeze rollers to a desired temperature.