JPH04133063A - Coating device for photosensitive liquid - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the staining of a cylindrical base body with a photosensitive liquid by applying the photosensitive liquid on the base body when the base body passes along the inner peripheral surface of a container contg. the photosensitive liquid to be applied on the outer peripheral surface of the base body and absorbing the photosensitive liquid remaining in the container by an absorbent material after the end of the application. CONSTITUTION:The cylindrical base body 30 is gradually pushed up by a pushing up device 16 and is passed in the container 10 contg. the photosensitive liquid 20. The outer periphery of the base body 30 is coated at this time and the photosensitive liquid 20 after the application is dried to form a photosensitive film 21 upon passage of the container 10. In succession, sensors S1, S2 detect the end of the application when the base body 30 rises further and a spacer 15b arrives at the position of a blade 13. A control circuit 16d, then stops a motor 16c. The absorbent member provided on the outer peripheral surface of the spacer 15b absorbs the remaining photosensitive liquid 20. The photosensitive liquid 20 is prevented from remaining in the container 10 in this way. The outflow of the photosensitive liquid 20 to the outside of the container 10 is prohibited and the staining by the residual photosensitive liquid 20 is prevented even if the base body 30 is removed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a photosensitive liquid coating device that applies a photosensitive liquid to the substrate of a photoconductor used in copying machines and printers in order to form a photosensitive film on the photoconductor. .

[Prior Art] In a conventional photosensitive liquid coating device, a cylindrical substrate is immersed in a photosensitive liquid contained in a coating tank, and after the cylindrical substrate is immersed in the photosensitive liquid, the cylindrical substrate is pulled up. A dip coating method is used, which involves drying.

Other conventional photosensitive liquid applicators include a horizontally arranged ring-shaped container containing the photosensitive liquid, which passes through a cylindrical substrate from bottom to top along an axis on the inner circumferential surface of the container. A method is used in which a photoresist film is formed on the outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical substrate that has passed through a container.

In the other conventional photosensitive liquid coating devices mentioned above, a cylindrical base and spacers attached above and below the cylindrical base cooperate with each other to form a container without forming a wall on the inner peripheral surface side of the ring-shaped container. A ring-shaped blade provided on the inner circumferential side of the bottom of the container seals the cylindrical base and the container to form an airtight container, and the formed airtight container It is configured to contain a photosensitive liquid. According to this method, the upper spacer, which served as a wall on the inner circumferential surface of the ring-shaped container, moves to the outside of the container, and the cylindrical base disposed below the spacer moves toward the inner circumferential surface of the container. It can be used as a substitute for the wall.

Next, the operation of the other conventional photosensitive liquid coating apparatus mentioned above will be explained.

The push-up jig pushes up the upper and lower spacers, and the cylindrical base body is pushed up vertically in the axial direction by the pushed-up spacers and passes through the ring-shaped container.

As a result, when the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical substrate comes into direct contact with the photosensitive liquid in the container and the cylindrical substrate is gradually pushed upward,
A photosensitive liquid is sequentially applied to the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical substrate to form a photosensitive film on the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical substrate.

When the application of the photosensitive liquid to the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical substrate is completed, the lower spacer serves as a wall on the inner circumferential side of the container to prevent the photosensitive liquid from leaking out of the container.

Next, with the lower spacer fixed to the container, only the push-up jig is lowered, another spacer is attached as the lower spacer to the next cylindrical base, and the above steps are repeated.

The other conventional photosensitive liquid coating apparatuses mentioned above have a much smaller amount of photosensitive liquid, especially the amount of wasted photosensitive liquid, compared to the conventional photosensitive liquid coating apparatus using the dip coating method, so that the coating efficiency is improved. However, it is possible to reduce the cost by making the device more compact.

In addition, a device for cleaning the photosensitive liquid remaining in the container was developed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6
It is disclosed in the i-178062 publication.

"Problems to be Solved by the Invention" However, in the conventional photosensitive liquid coating apparatus using the above-mentioned dip coating method, the coating efficiency is poor due to the large amount of wasted photosensitive liquid, and the photoconductor coating apparatus becomes large. There are some problems.

In addition, in the other conventional photosensitive liquid coating devices mentioned above, the photosensitive liquid is stored in a horizontally provided ring-shaped container, so even after the photosensitive liquid coating is finished, the photosensitive liquid remains in the container. It is necessary to remove the photosensitive liquid and clean it, and there is a problem in that the residual liquid of the photosensitive liquid contaminates the photosensitive liquid coating device and the like at that time.

Furthermore, with the other conventional photosensitive liquid coating devices mentioned above, a large amount of solvent is required to remove and clean the container, and the solvent remains in the container, so it is difficult to store new photosensitive liquid in the container. Even if the coating is restarted, the concentration of the photosensitive liquid decreases, and there is a problem in that the spacer must be removed and the solvent must be recovered.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a photosensitive liquid coating device in which no photosensitive liquid remains in a container after coating a photosensitive member with a photosensitive liquid.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The above-mentioned object of the present invention is to coat the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical substrate by passing the cylindrical substrate along the inner circumferential surface of the ring-shaped container containing the photosensitive liquid to be coated. A photosensitive liquid coating device for applying a photosensitive liquid, the flexible blade being attached to the inner peripheral surface of a container and contacting the outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical base to seal between the cylindrical base and the container. , a spacer attached to one end of the cylindrical base and having an outer diameter that is approximately the same as the outer diameter of the cylindrical base, and an absorbent material wrapped around the outer circumferential surface of the spacer, and the absorbent material allows the container to be This is achieved by means of a photoreceptor coating device that is configured to absorb any remaining photoresist therein.

[Function] The flexible blade attached to the inner peripheral surface of the container is
When the cylindrical base passes through the inner peripheral surface of the container, the cylindrical base contacts the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base to seal the space between the cylindrical base and the container,
A spacer attached to one end of the cylindrical base and having an outer diameter that is approximately the same as the outer diameter of the cylindrical base follows the cylindrical base, passes through the inner peripheral surface of the container, and is wrapped around the outer peripheral surface of the spacer. The absorbent material absorbs the photosensitive liquid remaining in the container when the spacer follows the cylindrical substrate and passes through the inner peripheral surface of the container.

[Embodiment 1] Hereinafter, one embodiment of the photosensitive liquid coating apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a photosensitive liquid coating device in this embodiment.

The photosensitive liquid coating device shown in FIG. 1 includes a container IO1 liquid dish 11, a lid 12 having an opening +23 and a stirring hole 12b, a flexible ring-shaped blade 13, a stirrer 14, metal spacers +53, 15b, and It is constituted by a cylindrical base body 30.

As shown in FIG. 1, a container 10 having a splitter 11 and a lid 12 is formed into a ring shape, and is arranged horizontally so that the central axis of the container 10 is vertical.

The inner peripheral surface of the container 11) is configured so that the cylindrical base 30 can pass therethrough in the vertical direction.

At both ends of the cylindrical base 30, metal spacers 15a and 15b, whose outer peripheries are substantially the same as those of the cylindrical base 30, are attached, respectively.

FIG. 2 shows a side view of the spacer 15b of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, both the upper and lower ends of the spacer 15b can be fitted to both ends of the cylindrical base 30, and the outer peripheral surface of the spacer 15b is designed to absorb the photosensitive liquid 20 (see FIG. 1). An absorbent material 19 such as a sponge is wrapped around it.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the bottom of the splitter 11 has a cylindrical base 30 at its inner peripheral end to prevent the photosensitive liquid 20 inside from leaking.
A flexible ring-shaped blade 13 is attached to the side surfaces of the spacers 15a and 15b so as to be in contact with the spacers 15a and 15b.

The blade 13 is similarly fixed to the bottom surface of the splitter 11 by a ring-shaped holding plate 13a.

The ring-shaped branch 11 has no wall formed on its inner surface,
Instead, the inner peripheral end of the blade 13 comes into contact with the side surfaces of the cylindrical base 30 and the spacers 15a and 15b to form a sealed container, and the photosensitive liquid 20 is housed in the container 10.

An opening 12 a having a diameter larger than that of the cylindrical base 30 is formed in the center of the lid 12 . Stirring holes 12b for inserting two stirrers 14 inside are formed outside the opening 12a.

While applying the photosensitive liquid 20 to the cylindrical substrate 30,
The cylindrical base 30, the splitter 11, the lid 12, and the blade 13 constitute the closed container 10.

Moreover, before and after coating, the cylindrical base 30 does not constitute the closed container 10, and instead of the cylindrical base 30, spacers 15a are attached to both ends of the cylindrical base 30,
15b constitutes the closed container 10.

The blade 13 can be fixed in a predetermined position by the spacer chuck 17 when it comes into contact with the side surfaces of the spacers i5a, 15b.

The spacer chuck 17 has a cylindrical base 30 and a photosensitive liquid 2.
A sensor S2 is attached to detect that 0 is applied, that is, the end of the application.

A slit Ila is formed in the outer peripheral wall of the splitter 11. A photosensitive liquid 20 from the outside is inserted into the slit 11a.
The replenishment pipe llb is connected.

The container 10 has a frame 1 at the outer periphery of the bottom of the splitter 11.
A push-up device 16 for gradually pushing up the cylindrical base 30 is disposed below the spacer 15b.

The pushing up jig 16b of the pushing up device 16 is used to push up the spacer 1
5b, and can be moved up and down by a feed screw 16a.

A sensor S1 for detecting completion of coating is attached to the push-up jig 16b.

The feed gear 16a is rotated by a motor 16c via a gear portion 16e, and the motor 16c is controlled by a control circuit lad.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be explained.

In the initial state, the photosensitive liquid 20 is not contained in the container 10. Further, a spacer 15a without an absorbent material is attached to the upper end of the cylindrical base 30, and a spacer 15b (see FIG. 2) having an absorbent material 19 is attached to the lower end.

After the push-up device 16 is adjusted to the height of the spacer 15a at the top end or the blade 13, the spacer 15b at the bottom end is attached to the push-up device 16, and the photosensitive liquid 20
is supplied into the container 10 and the photosensitive liquid 2 is applied to the cylindrical substrate 30.
Application of 0 begins.

The photosensitive liquid 20 is supplied to the container 10 at a flow rate that minimizes the amount remaining after coating is completed, depending on the film formation rate.

As shown in FIG. 1, the cylindrical base 30 is gradually pushed up by the pushing up device 16 and passes through the container 10.

The photosensitive liquid 20 applied to the cylindrical substrate 30 dries as it passes through the container 1O, forming a photosensitive film 21 on the cylindrical substrate 30.

When the cylindrical base 30 rises further and the spacer 15b at the lower end reaches the position of the blade 13, the sensors S1 and S2 detect whether the coating is finished, and the control circuit! 6d is motor 1
Stop 6C.

When the motor 16c is stopped, the photosensitive liquid 20 remains in the container IC in order to uniformly form the photoresist film 21 on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical substrate 30. It is absorbed by the absorbing member 19 provided on the outer peripheral surface of the spacer 15b.

Note that in the stopped state where the motor 16c is stopped, the inner peripheral end of the flexible blade 13 is bent upward due to the movement of the spacer 15b, so the photosensitive liquid 20 remains in the recessed part. When it is lowered slightly, the inner circumferential end of the flexible blade 13 bends downward and the recess disappears.
The remaining photosensitive liquid 20 is completely absorbed by the absorbing material 19.

[Effects of the Invention] A photosensitive liquid coating device that applies a photosensitive liquid to the outer circumferential surface of a cylindrical substrate by passing the cylindrical substrate along the inner circumferential surface of a ring-shaped container containing the photosensitive liquid to be coated. , a flexible blade attached to the inner peripheral surface of the container and abutting against the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base to seal between the cylindrical base and the container; and a flexible blade attached to one end of the cylindrical base. It includes a spacer having an outer diameter that is approximately the same as the outer diameter of the cylindrical base, and an absorbent material wrapped around the outer peripheral surface of the spacer, and is configured to absorb the photosensitive liquid remaining in the container with the absorbent material. As a result, no photosensitive liquid remains in the container after the photosensitive liquid is applied to the cylindrical substrate, and as a result, even if the cylindrical substrate is removed from the container, the photosensitive liquid does not flow out of the container and no residual photosensitive liquid remains. Although it depends on the liquid, no contamination occurs.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of the photoreceptor coating apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view showing the spacer of FIG. 1. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Container, 11... Branch, 13... Blade, 15a, 15b... Spacer, 19... Absorbing material, 20... Photosensitive liquid, 21... Photosensitive film, 30...・Cylindrical base. Figure 1

Claims (1)

[Claims] A photosensitive liquid coating device that applies a photosensitive liquid to the outer circumferential surface of a cylindrical substrate by passing the cylindrical substrate along the inner circumferential surface of a ring-shaped container containing the photosensitive liquid to be coated, comprising:
a flexible blade attached to the inner peripheral surface of the container and abutting against the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base to seal between the cylindrical base and the container; and a flexible blade attached to one end of the cylindrical base. The spacer is attached and has an outer diameter substantially the same as the outer diameter of the cylindrical base, and an absorbent material is wound around the outer peripheral surface of the spacer, and the absorbent material allows the spacer to remain in the container. A photosensitive liquid coating device, characterized in that it is configured to absorb the photosensitive liquid.