JPH04362640A - Photosensitive material processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain the photosensitive material processing device which prevents the burn of a photosensitive material in a drying section where IR heaters are used. CONSTITUTION:A transporting path where transporting rollers 44 are disposed along a vertical direction and a film F is crimped and transported is formed in the drying section 20. These transporting rollers are narrowed in the spacings adjacent to each other and shielding plates 86 formed long along the transverse direction of the transporting path are disposed between the transporting rollers adjacent to each other. IR heaters 88 and reflection plates 89 are provided on the side of the transporting rollers opposite from the transporting path and the transporting rollers are heated by these IR heaters. The IR rays radiated from the IR heaters 88 are prevented from being radiated to the surfaces of the film F by the shielding plates 86 and the heat is efficiently transmitted to the film F. The film crimped and transported by the transporting rollers is this rapidly dried. Since the direct radiation of the radiation heat from the IR heaters 88 is hindered by the shielding plates 86, the burn of the film is prevented even if troubles, such as jamming, arise in the photosensitive material under the transportation in the drying section 20.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a photosensitive material processing apparatus that processes a photosensitive material in a processing liquid processing section and then dries it in a drying section, and particularly relates to a photosensitive material processing apparatus that dries the photosensitive material using an infrared heater provided in the drying section. It relates to a processing device.

0002

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION With advances in the field of electronics, rapid processing is also required in the field of silver halide photography. In particular, there is an increasing demand for rapid processing of photosensitive materials such as graphic arts photosensitive materials, photosensitive materials for scanners, and photosensitive materials for X-rays. The rapid processing referred to here means, for example, that the leading edge of the photosensitive material is inserted into a photosensitive material processing device such as an automatic processor, passes through a processing section and a drying section consisting of a developing tank, a fixing tank, a washing tank, etc. This refers to processing in which it takes 20 to 60 seconds until the leading edge of the photosensitive material is discharged from the drying section. Simply increasing the transport speed of the photosensitive material in order to shorten the processing time in the processing section and drying section causes various problems such as poor fixing and poor drying.

Regarding fixing defects, it is known to increase the concentration of thiosulfate in the fixing solution to increase the fixing speed. It is also known and widely used to include a hardening agent such as a water-soluble aluminum salt in the fixing solution in order to harden the film surface of the photosensitive material and improve drying properties. However, when a photosensitive material is processed with a fixing solution containing a hardening agent such as a water-soluble aluminum salt, the fixing speed is delayed due to the hardening effect. Therefore, in order to increase the fixing speed, when substantially no hardener is contained in the fixing solution, there is a problem that the swelling rate of the emulsion coated on the photosensitive material becomes large and the drying properties become poor. Fixing speed can be improved by reducing the water-soluble aluminum salt, etc., which is a hardening agent in the fixer, but this has a disadvantageous effect on shortening drying time, which is important in rapid processing. Few attempts have been made to process photosensitive materials using fixers that do not contain .

[0004] In order to achieve rapid processing, if a photosensitive material is processed with a fixing solution that does not substantially contain a hardening agent and then dried in a short time, the conventional hot air Drying methods for drying materials have reached a limit in shortening the drying time. For this reason, various photosensitive material processing apparatuses have been proposed in which an infrared heater or the like is disposed in a drying section, and the photosensitive material is heated by directly applying radiant heat emitted from the infrared heater to shorten the drying time. Adoption of this infrared heater is effective in shortening drying time.

[0005]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in a photosensitive material processing apparatus that directly heats and dries a photosensitive material using radiant heat from an infrared heater, when the photosensitive material is being transported by a roller disposed in a drying section, some If jamming occurs for some reason, there is a problem that the photosensitive material may receive direct radiant heat from the infrared heater, causing problems such as burnout.

[0006] In consideration of the above facts, the present invention aims to provide a photosensitive material processing apparatus that can quickly and appropriately dry photosensitive materials and that does not cause burnout of the photosensitive materials when troubles such as jamming occur. It is.

[0007]

[Means for Solving the Problems] A photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the present invention is a photosensitive material processing apparatus that processes a photosensitive material with a processing liquid and then dries it in a drying section. a roller that transports the photosensitive material and dries the photosensitive material by transmitting heat to the photosensitive material; an infrared heater that is provided on the opposite side of the roller to the conveying path of the photosensitive material and radiates heat to heat the roller; The apparatus is characterized in that it includes a blocking means provided between the adjacent rollers to block radiant heat radiated from the infrared heater to the photosensitive material.

[0008]

[Operation] In the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the present invention having the above structure, a roller for conveying the photosensitive material is provided in the drying section, and this roller is heated by radiant heat emitted from an infrared heater. When the photosensitive material is transported by rollers heated by this radiant heat and dried by heat conduction from the rollers, it can be dried by heat transfer of a fluid using hot air or by radiant heat using radiant heat from an infrared heater. In contrast, since heat can be applied effectively to the photosensitive material, the photosensitive material can be dried quickly.

[0009] In addition, when troubles such as jamming occur while the photosensitive material is being conveyed by a plurality of rollers in the drying section, it is necessary to prevent the photosensitive material from being overheated by receiving radiant heat directly from the infrared heater onto the surface of the photosensitive material. Since a shielding means such as a shielding plate is disposed between the plurality of rollers, it is possible to prevent the photosensitive material from directly receiving this radiant heat and causing burnout.

As described above, according to the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the present invention, rapid drying is possible, and a photosensitive material processed using a fixing solution that does not substantially contain a hardening agent can be appropriately dried. Of course, a light-sensitive material processed in a fixing solution containing a hardening agent can also be dried.

Next, the fixing agent and hardening agent that can be used in the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention will be explained.

For example, as the fixing agent, in addition to thiosulfates and thiocyanates, organic sulfur compounds known to be effective as fixing agents can be used.

Water-soluble aluminum salts can be used as hardeners in the fixing solution, and examples of water-soluble aluminum salts include aluminum sulfate, ammonium aluminum sulfate, potassium aluminum sulfate, and aluminum chloride.

Here, the above-mentioned treatment with a fixer containing substantially no hardener means that substantially no hardening occurs in the emulsion layer of the light-sensitive material immersed in the fixer, and is more Specifically, this means that the amount of water-soluble aluminum salt added to the fixing solution is preferably 0 to 0.01 mol/liter, more preferably 0 to 0.005 mol/liter. As a result, the processing time of the fixing process can be shortened, and the efficiency of water washing is increased, so that residual color of the photosensitive material after processing can be reduced. The pH of the fixer is preferably 5.3 or higher, more preferably 5.5 to 7.0.

The amount of sulfite in the fixing solution is preferably 0.05 to 1.0 mol/liter, more preferably 0.07 to 0.8 mol/liter.

In addition to the above-mentioned compounds, the fixing agent of the present invention can contain various additives such as acids, salts, chelating agents, surfactants, wetting agents, and fixing accelerators.

Examples of acids include inorganic acids such as sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, and boric acid, formic acid, propionic acid, oxalic acid,
Examples include organic acids such as phthalic acid.

Examples of the salts include lithium, potassium, sodium, and ammonium salts of these acids.

[0019] Examples of the chelating agent include anionic surfactants such as sulfates and sulfone compounds, nonionic surfactants such as polyethylene glycol type and ester type,
Examples include amphoteric surfactants described in JP-A-57-6840 (title of invention: photographic fixer).

Examples of wetting agents include alkanolamines and alkylene glycols.

As the fixing accelerator, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 1973-
No. 35754, JP-A-58-122535, JP-A No. 58-122535
Thiourea derivatives described in each publication of No. 122536, alcohols having a triple bond in the molecule, U.S. Patent No. 4,12
Examples include thioethers described in No. 6,459.

Among the above additives, acids and salts such as boric acid and aminopolycarboxylic acids are preferred because they have the effect of promoting the object of the present invention. More preferably boric acid (salt)
It is a fixing agent containing. The preferred amount of boric acid (salt) added is 0.5 to 20 g/liter. More preferably, the amount is sufficient to reach 4 to 5 g/liter.

The present invention can be applied to various photosensitive materials such as those for printing, X-ray, general negative, general reversal, general positive, and direct positive.

[0024]

Embodiments Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 shows an automatic developing machine 10 according to this embodiment. The automatic developing machine 10 is provided with a processing section 11 and a drying section 20 within a machine frame 12 . The processing section 11 has partition walls 13 along the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material (hereinafter referred to as "film F").
A developing tank 14 and a fixing tank 1 are processing tanks divided by
6 and a washing tank 18. In this example, the film F refers to a film having a width dimension of 20 mm to 2000 mm, preferably a width dimension of 35 mm.
~1310mm.

[0025] Furthermore, the automatic developing machine 10 is a dry-to-D
ry is 60 seconds or less, film F transport speed is 2200 mm
/min or more, the film F can be processed.

Film F insertion slot 15 of automatic developing machine 10
An insertion rack 17 for drawing the film F into the automatic developing machine 10 is arranged near. Further, an insertion detection sensor 80 is provided near the insertion opening 15 to detect the film F to be inserted. Insertion port 1 of automatic developing machine 10
An insertion table for manually inserting the film F or an auto feeder for automatically inserting the film F using a conveyance means can be attached to the portion 5.

A developer is stored in the developer tank 14. Inside the developing tank 14, a conveying rack 24 having a conveying roller 22 for conveying the film F by being driven by a drive means (not shown) is disposed in a state immersed in the developer. A fixing liquid is stored in the fixing tank 16 . This fixer may be substantially free of hardener. In the fixing tank 16, a transport rack 28 having a transport roller 26 for transporting the film F by being driven by a driving means (not shown) is disposed immersed in the fixing liquid. Washing water is stored in the washing tank 18. Further, in the washing tank 18, a transport rack 32 having a transport roller 30 for transporting the film F by being driven by a drive means (not shown) is disposed in a state immersed in the washing water.

Further, two heat exchangers 19 are arranged below these processing tanks. The developer solution in the developer tank 14 and the fixer solution in the fixer tank 16 are sent to these heat exchangers 19 by pumps (not shown), and after heat exchange is performed, they are sent back to the developer tank 14 and the fixer tank 16, respectively. . As a result, the liquid temperatures of the developer in the developer tank 14 and the fixer in the fixer tank 16 are maintained within a predetermined range. The developer exchange rate per minute is 20 to 250%, preferably 60 to 220%, and the membrane surface liquid flow rate is 20 to 25%.
0 m/min, preferably 30 to 190 m/min. The fixing solution exchange rate per minute is 20 to 250
%, preferably 70 to 210%, and the membrane surface liquid flow rate is 20 to 250 m/min, preferably 30 to 130 m/min.
It is min. However, the liquid exchange rate and the membrane surface liquid flow rate are expressed by the following formula.

[0029] Liquid exchange rate = pump flow rate (liter/mi
n) ÷ Processing tank capacity (liters) x 100 Film surface liquid flow rate = Pump flow rate (liters/min) ÷ Pump path area (mm2) Also, an exhaust fan 9 is installed below the developing tank 14.
8 are arranged. The exhaust fan 98 exhausts gas, water vapor, etc. generated within the processing section 11 to the outside of the automatic developing machine 10 .

Between developer tank 14 and fixer tank 16 and between fixer tank 1
6 and the washing tank 18, a crossover rack 34 is disposed above them. This crossover rack 34 includes a pair of nipping conveyance rollers 36 for conveying the film F from an upstream processing tank to a downstream processing tank in the transport direction of the film F, and a guide plate 38 for guiding the film F.
It is equipped with

Accordingly, the film F fed into the automatic developing machine 10 through the insertion port 15 is inserted into the developer tank 14 by the insertion rack 17, and is transported through the developer by the transport roller 22 to be developed. The developed film F is sent to the fixing tank 16 by the crossover rack 34, where it is transported through a fixing solution by the transport roller 26 and is subjected to the fixing process. The fixed film F is transferred to the crossover rack 34.
It is sent to the washing tank 18, where it is transported through washing water by transport rollers 30 and washed.

A rinsing tank 39 is provided above the partition wall 13 between the developer tank 14 and the fixing tank 16 and the partition wall 13 between the fixing tank 16 and the washing tank 18, respectively. Washing water is stored in the rinsing tank 39, and the lower roller of the pair of nipping and conveying rollers 36 is immersed in the washing water in the rinsing tank 39. Further, the cleaning water overflowing in the rinsing tank 39 is configured to be discharged to an overflow tank or the like. As a result, the chemical components attached to the film F and carried out from the previous process are diluted and passed through, thereby preventing uneven processing on the film F. In addition, since the pair of nipping and conveying rollers 36 are always wet,
This prevents the attachment and precipitation of crystals containing developing and fixing components, which have conventionally occurred on the surface of the pair of nipping and conveying rollers 36, and improves maintainability. Furthermore, the processing liquid that has adhered to the film F from the previous process and is taken out is washed off from the film F and is prevented from entering the next process, suppressing the deterioration of the processing liquid in the next process and replenishing the replenisher. The amount can be reduced. The cleaning water stored in the rinsing tank 39 provided between the developer tank 14 and the fixing tank 16 is preferably water or acetic acid water. The cleaning water stored in is preferably water.

Furthermore, a floating lid 37 is arranged at a height near the surface of each processing liquid in the developing tank 14, fixing tank 16, and washing tank 18 so as to cover the opening of each processing tank. . The replenishment amount of each processing liquid is adjusted so that the level of the processing liquid is within the thickness range of the floating lid 37 or at a position where it contacts the lower surface of the floating lid 37. Further, the floating lid 37 is provided with an opening 37A along the film F conveyance path. The opening 37A serves as a guide for the film F, and the film F passes through the opening 37A. This floating lid 37 is designed so that the aperture ratio of each processing tank is 0.01 cm<-1> or less. Note that the aperture ratio is determined by the following formula.

Opening ratio = A/Q (where A: opening area of opening 37A (cm2) Q: amount of processing liquid (cm3)) This reduces the contact area between each processing liquid and air, so oxidation etc. In addition, the amount of moisture evaporated per unit time is reduced. Therefore, the amount of replenishment liquid and water to be refilled into each processing tank can be reduced.

Further, a drain pipe (not shown) is provided at the bottom of each of the developing tank 14, the fixing tank 16, and the washing tank 18.
A drain valve 21 is attached to each of these drain pipes. Therefore, if necessary, these drain valves 21
By opening the developer tank 14, fixer tank 16, and washing tank 18, the developer, fixer, and washing water can be discharged.

Furthermore, between the washing tank 18 and the drying section 20,
A squeeze rack 40 is provided. This squeeze rack 40 includes a transport roller 42 that transports the film F transported from the washing tank 18 and to which washing water has adhered while squeezing it.
and a guide 43 for guiding the film F.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the drying section 2
In the drying chamber 20A, a conveyance roller 44 is provided along the vertical direction, and a conveyance path for the film F is formed. Furthermore, an infrared heater 88 that heats the conveyance roller 44 is provided on the side opposite to the conveyance path of the conveyance roller 44 .

The conveyance roller 44 is arranged along the width direction of the film F so as to be in close contact with the film F. Further, the distance between adjacent conveyance rollers 44 is close enough to allow air near the surface of the film F to be discharged from between the conveyance rollers 44 . These conveyor rollers 4
4 is rotated by the driving force of a drive means (not shown) and conveys the film F while holding it therebetween.

Furthermore, a shielding plate 86 is arranged between the mutually adjacent conveying rollers 44 to block radiant heat radiated directly toward the film F from the infrared heater 88. That is, the shielding plate 86 and the conveyance roller 44 prevent the film F from receiving direct radiant heat from the infrared heater 88 and being heated.

Two infrared heaters 88 are provided along each film F conveyance path. These infrared heaters 88 are installed with their longitudinal direction along the width direction of the conveyance path. On the opposite side of the infrared heater 88 from the conveyance roller 44, a reflection plate 89 whose cross section along a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the conveyance roller 44 is approximately arc-shaped is provided, and a reflection plate 89 is provided with a generally arc-shaped concave portion toward the infrared heater 88 side. It is set towards. Thereby, the infrared heater 88 efficiently heats the outer peripheral surface of the opposing conveyance roller 44. In this embodiment, eight pairs of conveyance rollers 44 are provided, and the upstream side from the middle part, that is, the upper half in the vertical direction, is mainly heated by the infrared heater 88 disposed at the upper part, and the lower half is heated by the infrared heater 88 disposed at the top. Each is heated mainly by an infrared heater 88 located at the bottom. Further, the operation of each infrared heater 88 is individually controlled by a control device (not shown). Infrared heater 88
When the heated conveyance roller 44 conveys the film F, it transfers heat to the film F and dries it.

On the other hand, near the most upstream conveying roller 44 and near the most downstream conveying roller 44, there are surface temperature sensors 84, 8 for detecting the surface temperature of each conveying roller 44.
5 is provided. Based on the information detected by the surface temperature sensors 84 and 85, the control device controls the operation of the infrared heater 88 so that the surface temperature of the conveying roller 44 becomes the optimum temperature for drying the film F. The installation positions and number of surface temperature sensors 84 and 85 for detecting the surface temperature of the conveyance roller 44 are not limited to those in this embodiment, as long as the positions and number allow the film F to optimally dry.

As shown in FIG. 1, a drying fan 45 and a chamber 46 are attached below the drying section 20. The drying fan 45 sucks air from outside the automatic developing machine 10 and sends it to the chamber 46 as drying air. The chamber 46 has a built-in heater (not shown).
The drying air sent by the drying fan 45 is heated,
It is supplied into the drying chamber 20A. This drying air is discharged toward the film F from discharge ports 87 provided alternately on both sides in the width direction of the conveyance path of the drying chamber 20A shown in FIGS. 3 and 5. In this embodiment, the drying air is heated by a heater (not shown) and supplied into the drying chamber 20A.
Dry air at room temperature may be supplied without using a heater.

The drying air is blown onto the film F held and transported by the transport rollers 44, and high humidity air is prevented from staying near the surface of the film F, thereby promoting drying.

Note that a plurality of fans are provided near the wall of the drying chamber 20A on the opposite side to the radiation direction of the infrared heater 88.
It may also be possible to prevent air from remaining in the drying chamber 20A. These fans may be configured with axial fans, crossflow fans, or the like. Note that the drying section 20 is provided with an exhaust duct (not shown) for discharging high-humidity air from within the drying chamber 20A, and a portion of the high-humidity air from within the drying chamber 20A is discharged to the outside of the automatic developing machine 10. It is supposed to be done. Next, outside air is taken in in place of the discharged high-humidity air, mixed with high-humidity air sucked from inside the drying chamber 20A by the fan 45, the humidity of the drying air is lowered, and the air is heated by a heater (not shown). Then again,
It is designed to be sent into the drying chamber 20A.

[0045] At the bottom of the drying chamber 20A, there is a conveyor roller 48.
and a guide 48A are provided. The conveyance roller 48 and the guide 48A are configured to convey the film F, which has been conveyed vertically downward by the conveyance roller 44, obliquely upward and discharge it from the drying section 20. Further, the automatic developing machine 10 is provided with a receiving box 49 so as to protrude from the outer wall of the automatic developing machine 10. The film F discharged from the drying section 20 is stored in this receiving box 49.

The control device is equipped with a sensor that detects the temperature and humidity outside the automatic developing machine 10, and based on this information controls the operation of the infrared heater 88, thereby controlling the temperature and humidity outside the machine. It may be possible to perform optimal drying according to the conditions.

Next, a structure for replenishing the developing tank 14 and the fixing tank 16 with the developing replenisher and the fixing replenisher will be explained.

The developer replenisher is previously filled into the cartridge 100 and sealed. As shown in FIG. 2, the inside of this cartridge 100 is divided into three chambers by a partition wall, the first chamber 102 is replenished with developer replenishment solution A, and the second chamber 104 is replenished with developer replenishment solution A. B is replenished, and the third chamber 106 is replenished with developer replenishment stock solution C. Further, the fixing replenishment stock solution is also filled in the cartridge 120 in advance and sealed. Here, three developer replenishment stock solutions and one fixer replenishment stock solution are used, but the number of each stock solution can be changed as appropriate, such as using two developer replenishment stock solutions and two fixer replenishment stock solutions.

The automatic developing machine 10 houses these cartridges 100 and 120, and the cartridge 10
A liquid supply section 130 is provided for supplying the developer replenishment stock solution and the fixing replenishment stock solution in the stock tanks 0 and 120 to a stock tank 50, which will be described later. The liquid supply section 130 is provided on the widthwise side of the film F being transported, that is, on the side of the automatic developing machine 10. In this embodiment, this is the front side of the paper in FIG. The liquid supply section 130 can be easily attached and detached by opening a part of the side outer wall of the automatic developing machine 10 (not shown). As shown in FIG. 2, the liquid supply section 130
is equipped with a cartridge receiver 134. At the bottom of the cartridge receiver 134, the cartridge 100,
120 injection ports 108, 110, 112, and 122 are arranged correspondingly to each other, and a drilling portion (not shown) is provided. As a result, the developer replenishment stock solutions A, B, and C and the fixing replenishment stock solution of the cartridges 100 and 120 inserted into the cartridge receiver 134 are supplied to the stock tank 50 via the piping 144, respectively.

[0050] Inside the automatic developing machine 10, there is a stock tank 5.
0 is placed. The stock tank 50 is divided into four tanks by partition walls. Among these, the first tank 50A,
The second tank 50B and the third tank 50C are for the developer replenishment stock solutions A, B, and C, respectively, and the fourth tank 50D is for the fixing replenishment stock solution. A liquid level sensor 52 is disposed in each of these tanks 50A to 50D, and these liquid level sensors 52 cause the first tank 5 of the stock tank 50 to
0A, second tank 50B, third tank 50C and fourth tank 5
The cartridge 100 is detected by detecting the liquid level in each tank of 0D.
, 120 and detects the remaining amount of each replenishment stock solution in the cartridge 1.
It is now possible to determine when to replace the 00 and 120.

In the above embodiment, the stock tank 50 is
Although four tanks are provided by partitioning with partition walls, separate stock tanks may be provided for each of the developer replenishment stock solutions A, B, and C and the fixing replenishment stock solution.

Inside the automatic developing machine 10, behind the squeeze rack 41 in FIG.
is installed. As shown in FIG. 2, this water tank 54 is also provided with a liquid level sensor 56. The liquid level sensor 56 detects the liquid level in the water supply tank 54, so that it is possible to determine when to supply tap water.

[0053] Also, in the automatic developing machine 10, a developing tank 14 is provided.
A first mixing tank 58 for adjusting the replenisher supplied to the
A second mixing tank 60 for adjusting the replenisher supplied to the fixing tank 16 is also provided.

Developer replenishment stock solutions A, B in the first tank 50A, second tank 50B, and third tank 50C of the stock tank 50,
C and the tap water in the water supply tank 54 are supplied to the first mixing tank 58. That is, the first tank 50A, the second tank 50B, and the third tank 50C have conduits 62A and 62, respectively.
One ends of B and 62C are communicated with each other, and the other ends thereof are communicated with the first mixing tank 58. These pipes 62A
, 62B, 62C, there is a bellows pump 64A in the middle part.
, 64B, and 64C are provided, respectively. Further, one end of the pipe line 66A is communicated with the water supply tank 54, and the pipe line 66A is connected to one end of the pipe line 66A.
The other end of 6A is communicated with a first mixing tank 58. A bellows pump 68A is disposed in the middle of the conduit 66A. Therefore, the bellows pumps 64A, 64B, 64
When C and the bellows pump 68A are operated, developer replenishment stock solutions A, B, and C in the first tank 50A, second tank 50B, and third tank 50C and tap water in the water supply tank 54 are supplied to the pipe line 62, respectively.
A, 62B, 62C and the pipe 66A are supplied to the first mixing tank 58, where the developer replenishment stock solutions A, B, and C are mixed and diluted with tap water to be supplied to the developer tank 14. Used as a replenisher.

Further, the fixing replenishment stock solution in the fourth tank 50D and the tap water in the water supply tank 54 are supplied to the second mixing tank 60. That is, in the fourth tank 50D, the pipe line 62
One end of the conduit 62D is communicated with the second mixing tank 60, and the other end of the conduit 62D is communicated with the second mixing tank 60. A bellows pump 64D is arranged in the middle of the pipe line 62D. Water tank 5
4 is connected to one end of a pipe 66B, and this pipe 6
The other end of 6B is communicated with the second mixing tank 60. A bellows pump 68B is disposed in the middle of the conduit 66B. Therefore, when the bellows pumps 64D and 68B are operated, the fixing replenishment stock solution in the fourth tank 50D and the tap water in the water supply tank 54 are supplied to the second mixing tank 60 through the pipes 62D and 66B, and the fixing replenishment stock solution is supplied to the second mixing tank 60 through the pipes 62D and 66B. The stock solution is diluted with tap water and used as a replenisher to be supplied to the fixing tank 16.

Note that both ends of a conduit 71 for circulating the developer are communicated with the developer tank 14, and a circulation pump 72 is provided in the middle of the conduit 71.

One end of a pipe 70 is connected to the first mixing tank 58, and the other end of the pipe 70 is connected to a pipe 71 upstream of the circulation pump 72. Therefore, the replenisher mixed in the first mixing tank 58 by the operation of the circulation pump 72 is supplied to the developer tank 14 while being mixed with the developer circulating in the pipe 71 via the pipe 70. ,
The developer tank 14 is replenished with developer.

Both ends of a pipe line 75 for circulating the fixer fluid are communicated with the fixing tank 16, and a circulation pump 76 is provided in the middle of the pipe line 75.

One end of a conduit 74 is communicated with the second mixing tank 60, and the other end of the conduit 74 is communicated with the conduit 75 upstream of the circulation pump 76. Therefore, by the operation of the circulation pump 76, the replenisher mixed in the second mixing tank 60 is supplied to the fixing tank 16 while being mixed with the fixing fluid circulated in the pipe 75 via the pipe 74, and is then supplied to the fixing tank 16 for fixing. The liquid is replenished.

The water supply tank 54 and the washing tank 18 are connected through a pipe (not shown), and the water supply tank 54 and the washing tank 18 are connected so that the water levels in the water tank 54 and the washing tank 18 are at the same level. It is located. The washing tank 18 is refilled with water via a pipe provided from a water faucet to the water supply tank 54 in response to the detection of the film F by an insertion detection sensor 80 provided near the film F insertion opening 15 of the automatic processor 10. This is done by opening and closing a solenoid valve 92 located in the middle of the valve 90.

As shown in FIG. 1, the automatic developing machine 10 is equipped with a pump 78 for cleaning the guide plate 38 and the pair of nipping and conveying rollers 36 provided on the aforementioned crossover rack 34. The cleaning pump 78 sprays tap water from the water tank 54 through a spray pipe (not shown) disposed on the upper end surface of the partition wall 13 to clean the guide plate 38 and pair of nipping and conveying rollers 36 provided on each crossover rack 34. It is supposed to be done. Note that this cleaning water contains an antibacterial agent in order to prevent the cleaning water outlet of the spray pipe (not shown) from being clogged with water algae. Further, the guide plate 38 and the pair of nipping and conveying rollers 36 provided on the crossover rack 34 are cleaned, for example, at the end of one day's operation of the automatic developing machine 10.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained. The film F inserted into the automatic developing machine 10 is sent to a developing tank 14, conveyed through a developer solution, and subjected to development processing. The developed film F is sent into a fixing tank 16, conveyed through a fixing solution, and subjected to a fixing process. The fixed film F is sent to a washing tank 18, conveyed through washing water, and washed.

The washed film F is conveyed to the squeeze rack 40 and conveyed within the squeeze rack 40 by the conveyance roller 42 without being squeezed.

The film F squeezed by the squeeze rack 40 is sent into the drying chamber 20A of the drying section 20. Inside the drying chamber 20A, the film F is conveyed while being held by the conveyance rollers 44. The conveying rollers 44 are heated by an infrared heater 88, and as these conveying rollers 44 sandwich the film F, the heat of the conveying rollers 44 is transmitted to the film F, and the film F is heated and dried. The film F is also dried by the drying air discharged from the discharge port 87, and the moisture evaporated from the surface of the film F is discharged from the vicinity of the conveying path, so that the film F is efficiently dried.

In this drying section 20, the film F is held between the transport rollers 44, and heat is transmitted by contacting the transport rollers 44, so that heat can be efficiently transmitted into the emulsion layer of the film F, and the film F can be dried quickly. Moreover, by the shielding plate 86,
Since the radiant heat of the infrared heater 88 is not directly radiated to the film F, the film F will not be burnt even if jamming occurs while the film F is being transported by the transport roller 44.

Furthermore, the infrared heater 88 is connected to the conveying roller 44.
Since the conveyance roller 44 is heated, the surface temperature of the conveyance roller 44 can be detected by the surface temperature sensors 84, 85, etc., and the infrared heater 88 can be operated according to this result, thereby enabling efficient operation. . In addition, in the drying section 20 of the automatic developing machine 10, in order to efficiently dry the film F by heating the conveying roller 44, the infrared ray The number of heaters 88 can be reduced, resulting in energy and cost savings.

In this embodiment, eight pairs of transport rollers 44 were provided to sandwich and transport the film F, but the transport rollers 44
may be arranged in a staggered manner. Further, the number of conveyance rollers 44 is not limited to this, and the number of conveyance rollers 44 is not limited to this.
Although it can be changed depending on the drying path length, conveyance speed, etc., it is preferable that the interval between the conveyance rollers 44 adjacent to each other along the conveyance path be narrow.

Furthermore, according to the detection information from the surface temperature sensors 84 and 85, the four infrared heaters 88 are individually controlled by a control device (not shown), and drying conditions such as drying temperature are controlled in the front and rear stages of the drying section 20. You can change it. Thereby, the finish of the film F can be further improved.

Next, replenishment of replenisher to each processing tank will be explained. The amount of developer decreases depending on the amount of film F processed, but the developer level is detected by a level sensor (not shown) provided in the developer tank 14, and the level of the developer decreases depending on the information.
4, the developer replenisher is replenished. This replenishment is performed by the bellows pumps 64A, 64B, 64C and the bellows pump 6.
The replenishment stock solution and water are supplied to the first mixing tank 58 by the operation of 8A, and further, these solutions are supplied to the circulation pipe 71 through the pipe 70 while being mixed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent unevenness of the developer from occurring in the developer tank 14 when replenishing the developer replenisher.

The amount of fixer decreases depending on the amount of film F processed, but the fixer level is detected by a level sensor (not shown) installed in the fixer tank 16, and fixer replenisher is added to the fixer tank 16 according to the information. will be replenished. In this replenishment, the replenishment stock solution and water are supplied to the second mixing tank 60 by the operation of the bellows pumps 64D and 68B, and these liquids are further mixed and supplied to the circulation conduit 75 through the conduit 74. . Therefore, when replenishing the fixing replenisher in the fixing tank 16, unevenness of the fixing solution is prevented from occurring.

By supplying the developer replenishment stock solutions A, B, and C and the fixing replenishment stock solution to the first mixing tank 58 and the second mixing tank 60, these solutions in the stock tanks 50A, 50B, 50C, and 50D are When the liquid level falls below a fixed amount, it is detected by the liquid level sensor 52 and the cartridges 100, 12
0 will be exchanged.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 4 shows a drying section 150 of an automatic processor according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. In Embodiment 2, the basic configuration is the same as in Embodiment 1. Components that are the same as those in Example 1 are given the same reference numerals and their explanations are omitted.

The drying section 150 includes a first drying chamber 152 in which the film F is dried while being held and conveyed by the conveying rollers 44 heated by the infrared heater 88, and a second drying chamber 154 in which the film F is dried by drying air. We are prepared.

In the second drying chamber 154, conveyance rollers 156 are arranged in a staggered manner along the vertical direction to form a conveyance path for the film F. These conveyance rollers 156 include
The driving force of a driving means (not shown) is transmitted to rotate the film F and transport the film F at a constant speed.

A pair of drying air blowing pipes 158 are arranged in the second drying chamber 154 with the film F conveying path interposed therebetween. A pair of protrusions 160 are formed on the drying air blowing pipe 158 in the vicinity of the conveyance roller 156, each protruding toward the conveyance path of the film F. The dry air blowing pipe 158 has a hollow main body and a protrusion 160, and an opening (not shown) is provided at the tip of the protrusion 160. These dry air blowing pipes 158 are
It is connected to the chamber 46 described above, and the drying air sent out from the chamber 46 is connected to the drying blowing pipe 1.
58 is also supplied. The drying air supplied to the drying air blowing pipe 158 is blown out from the opening at the tip of the protrusion 160 toward the surface of the film F being conveyed by the conveying roller 156. The film F dried by this drying air is conveyed diagonally upward by the conveyance roller 48 and the guide plate 48A, and is discharged from the second drying chamber 154 to the receiving box 49 of the automatic developing machine 10.

[0076] Also, inside the second drying chamber 154, a temperature sensor 162 and a humidity sensor 16 are installed to detect the indoor temperature and humidity.
3 may be arranged and connected to a control device (not shown). The humidity of the dry air sent from the chamber 46 to the dry air blowing pipe 158 is controlled by a control device (not shown) in accordance with information detected by a temperature sensor 162 and a humidity sensor 163. Heating by a heater (not shown) in the chamber 46 is controlled. Here, after being taken out from the second drying chamber 154 and partially mixed with outside air, the air is dehumidified by an appropriate dehumidifier and heated by a heater (not shown) in the chamber 46 . The heating by the heater may be performed in accordance with information detected by the temperature sensor 162 and the humidity sensor 163, and the drying air may be sent to the drying air blowing pipe 158 at a temperature and humidity appropriate for drying the film F.

In this drying section 150, a thermometer and a hygrometer (not shown) or a hygrometer (not shown) are provided outside the automatic developing machine 10 to monitor the temperature and humidity outside the machine, that is, the temperature and humidity or humidity in the working environment. The humidity is detected and the dry air blowing pipe 158 is activated according to the detected information.
By controlling the temperature and humidity of the drying air blown from the film, the finished quality of the film F, especially the dimensional stability, can be improved. The support, emulsion layer, and backing layer of film F expand and contract at different expansion and contraction rates depending on changes in water content. It is known that the emulsion layer and the backing layer lose their elasticity if the drying temperature and humidity are inappropriate. For this reason, simply drying film F may not return the emulsion layer and backing layer to the state they were in when exposed to light on the support.

The film F is brought to a semi-dry state in the first drying chamber 152 of the drying section 150, and the drying temperature is changed in accordance with the temperature and humidity of the working environment in the second drying chamber 154. The film F is discharged to the receiving box 49 with the water content being substantially the same as the water content of the film F during exposure. As a result, the film F can be quickly dried, and even if jamming occurs while the film F is being transported by the transport roller 44, the finished film F can have the same dimensions as when exposed.

In the first and second embodiments, the shielding plate 86 was provided as the blocking means, but an endless belt or the like may also be used. That is, the conveyance roller 44 of the drying section 20, 150
An endless belt may be wound around the film F, and the transport roller 44 may be driven so that the endless belt transports the film F while holding it therebetween. The endless belt may be used to prevent radiant heat from being directly radiated from the infrared heater 88 to the surface of the film F. In this case, the endless belt is made of heat-resistant and hygroscopic material, such as amide fiber, carbon fiber,
It is preferable to use Tyranno fiber, Nomex (registered trademark of DuPont), or the like.

[0080]

As explained above, the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the present invention heats the roller with an infrared heater, and when the heated roller conveys the photosensitive material, it transfers heat to the photosensitive material and dries it. Photosensitive materials can be quickly dried.

Furthermore, since the shielding means prevents the radiant heat from the infrared heater from being directly radiated onto the photosensitive material, even if problems such as jamming occur with the photosensitive material being transported through the drying section, the photosensitive material will not be burnt out. It is possible to obtain the excellent effect of being able to prevent this from happening.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an automatic developing machine according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing processing liquid replenishment of the automatic processor according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a drying section of the automatic processor according to Example 1.

[Fig. 4] Fig. 3 showing the drying section of the automatic developing machine according to Example 2.
It is a schematic sectional view similar to.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of essential parts of the drying section.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Automatic developing machine 14 Developing tank 16 Fixer tank 18 Washing tank 20, 150 Drying section 39 Rinse tank 44 Conveyance roller 88 Infrared heater 86 Shielding plate (blocking means) F Film (photosensitive material)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A photosensitive material processing apparatus that processes a photosensitive material with a processing liquid and then dries it in a drying section, the device being disposed in the drying section and conveying the photosensitive material and transmitting heat to the photosensitive material to dry the photosensitive material. an infrared heater provided on the opposite side of the roller from the conveyance path of the photosensitive material and radiating heat to heat the roller; and an infrared heater provided between the adjacent rollers to dry the photosensitive material. A photosensitive material processing apparatus comprising: a blocking means for blocking radiant heat radiated to the photosensitive material.