JPH06110170A - Photosensitive material processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the contamination of nip rolls by holding a small volume of washing water on roll surfaces. CONSTITUTION:The washing water from a washing water storage section 94 is supplied through an aperture 96 to the nip rolls 68, 68, 72, 73 and, therefore, the stains of the nip rolls are washed off by this washing water and are dropped into a treatment tank 42. Since a narrow water holding space S is provided around the nip rolls 72, 73, the washing water is always held and the effective washing is executed by a small volume of the washing water.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a photosensitive material processing apparatus provided with a processing tank filled with a photosensitive material processing liquid.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a photosensitive material such as a film or printing paper is imagewise exposed and then developed, these photosensitive materials are sequentially inserted into a plurality of processing tanks to perform a series of development processing.

In this photosensitive material processing apparatus, when the photosensitive material is inserted into or taken out from each processing tank, the photosensitive material is sandwiched and sent between a pair of transport rolls.

However, stains tend to adhere to the transfer rolls, and the processing liquid that adheres to the transfer rolls causes precipitation during drying, which makes cleaning the transfer rolls during maintenance extremely complicated.

For this reason, conventionally, there has been proposed a processing device having a structure for absorbing the processing liquid adhering to the surface of the transport roll or a structure for bleeding water on the roll surface (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-3167).
46, JP-A-1-319745). However, these processing devices require a special pump for sucking the photosensitive material adhering to the surface of the transfer roll, or a complicated mechanism such as a rotary joint for supplying water to the surface of the transfer roll. . Further, since the transport roll itself is made porous, it is difficult to obtain a transport force without adversely affecting the photosensitive material.

Further, a processing apparatus provided with a gutter-shaped cleaning water tank for cleaning the transport rolls has been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-58242).
3-18350, U.S. Pat. No. 5,045,874). However, in this processing apparatus as well, although the lower transfer roll of the pair of transfer rolls can be inserted into the cleaning water tank, the upper transfer roll cannot be cleaned, and the water after cleaning is guttered. A large amount of water is required for effective cleaning because the concentration of the treatment liquid in the trough-shaped water tank increases as it falls into the water tank. An apparatus for supplying cleaning water to the transport roll at the outlet of the processing tank has also been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-646).
No. 35), since the cleaning water is only sprayed temporarily to the transport roll, a large amount of cleaning water is required to immediately drop and drip from the roll surface and keep the roll clean.

[0007]

In view of the above facts, the present invention keeps a small amount of cleaning water on the roll surface to prevent the treatment liquid adhering to the roll from drying out and sticking to the roll surface. The object of the present invention is to obtain a light-sensitive material processing device capable of preventing the roll from being soiled.

[0008]

The invention according to claim 1 of the present application is a photosensitive material processing apparatus provided with a processing tank filled with a photosensitive material processing liquid, the photosensitive material processing apparatus being disposed above the processing tank. A cover, a carrier roll provided above the processing tank for carrying the photosensitive material, a water retention gap formed between the carrier roll and the cover over a predetermined circumferential length of the carrier roll, and this water retention Supply means for supplying liquid to the gap,
It is characterized by having.

The invention according to claim 2 of the present application is a photosensitive material processing apparatus comprising a processing tank filled with a photosensitive material processing liquid, and a carrying roll for carrying the photosensitive material is provided above the processing tank. A water-retaining gap that is formed in the vicinity of the peripheral surface of the transport roll, which is opposite to the peripheral surface in contact with the photosensitive material, and that communicates the inside and outside of the processing tank, and retains the liquid supplied to the water-retaining clearance. Then, the water retaining means is provided with a water retaining means for closing the water retaining gap with a liquid and shutting it off from the outside air.

The invention according to claim 3 of the present application is characterized in that the water retention gap is provided with a concavo-convex for holding the liquid in the water retention gap.

The invention according to claim 4 of the present application is characterized in that a porous body for holding the liquid in the water retaining gap is provided facing the water retaining gap.

The invention according to claim 5 of the present application is characterized in that the water retention gap is an interval at which the liquid can retain water between the transport roll and the cover by surface tension.

The invention of claim 6 according to the present application is characterized in that the water retention gap is provided with a projection strip having a triangular or arcuate longitudinal cross section.

[0014]

In the present invention, since a water retaining gap is provided facing the transport roll, a liquid such as cleaning water is retained in the water retaining gap by the action of surface tension or the like, so that the surface of the transport roll is always wet. This liquid reaches the entire circumference of the roll as the transport roll rotates, so that a small amount of liquid can prevent the stain from adhering to the transport roll and also remove the adhered stain. Deionized water can be applied to the washing water used in the present invention.

Particularly, it is preferable to supply the liquid to the water retaining gap in advance before the photosensitive material is sandwiched. Specifically, it is supplied at the same time when the main power source of the processing apparatus is turned on, or during a standby state (2 to 3 hours) during heating of the processing liquid for a predetermined time or continuously. Or
It is supplied for a certain period of time using a timer at the end of the day's work when the main power is off. It is preferable to rotate the roll when supplying the wash water. During the passage of the photosensitive material, the processing liquid adhering to the photosensitive material is wiped off by the transport roll and reaches the water retaining gap, so the supply of cleaning water may be stopped specially.

From the viewpoints of cleaning performance and surface tension maintenance, the water retention gap is 0.2 to 3 mm, and preferably 0.3 to 1 mm. The liquid to be supplied is soft water (10 ppm) excluding Ca ^++.
The following) is preferable, and for this purpose, those passed through an ion exchanger or a reverse osmosis membrane are preferable. In addition, if this cleaning water is supplied at the end of the development process of the day, in consideration of the fact that the cleaning water after cleaning is pushed out of the water retaining gap and falls into the processing tank, If the amount is adjusted to the amount of liquid evaporation, evaporation supplementation can also be used.

Since the water retaining gap is filled with the liquid, it is possible to suppress the evaporation of the treatment liquid from this portion to the atmosphere.

The water-retaining gap can be such that the liquid can retain water between the carrier roll and the cover by surface tension, and in the case of washing water, it is preferably 0.2 to 2 mm.

The water retaining gap may be provided with protrusions having a triangular or arcuate cross section in the longitudinal direction, and these protrusions have a width of 0.5 to 2 mm, a height of 1 to 3 mm, and a pitch of 2 to 10.
The distance from the roll is preferably 2 mm or less.

Further, it is rational to supply a treatment tank and a treatment liquid in the next step of the treatment tank for supplying the washing water as the washing water. The treatment liquids in the next step include a bleaching solution, a fixing solution and a bleaching solution. A fixing solution, washing water (washing water), a stabilizing solution and the like can be mentioned. Among them, washing water and stabilizing solution are suitable for this device. If necessary, the washing water and the stabilizing solution may contain a hard water softening agent (chelating agent), an anti-vibrating agent and the like. Further, the stabilizing solution may further contain an image stabilizer, a surfactant and the like. Also, isothiazolone compounds, siabendazoles, chlorine-based bactericides such as chlorinated sodium isocyanurate described in JP-A-57-8542, and other benzotriazoles, etc., Hiroshi Horiguchi, "Chemistry of Antibacterial and Antifungal Agents" (19
1986) Sankyo Publishing, Sanitary Technology Association, "Sterilization, sterilization, and antifungal technology of microorganisms" (1982) Industrial Technology Association, Japan Society for Antibacterial and Antifungal "Encyclopedia of Antifungal Agents" (1986) It is also possible to use the bactericide of. Formaldehyde is commonly used as a dye stabilizer, but in terms of working environment,
N-methylolazole, hexamethylenetetramine,
Formaldehyde bisulfite addition product, dimethylol urea,
Azolylmethylamine derivatives and the like are preferable. Above all,
N-methylolazoles such as N-methylol-1,2,4-triazole and N-methylolpyrazoleno, and
Azolylmethylamine and its derivatives such as 1,4-bis (1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl) piperazine are preferable because of high image stability. Further, it is preferable to use deionized water such as an ion exchange resin as the washing water in order to further reduce roll contamination. For example, the Ca ion concentration is 10 ppm or less, preferably 5 ppm
The following are preferred. For details, see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-2888.
The method of reducing calcium ion and magnesium ion described in No. 38 can be used very effectively.
Further, water after RO (reverse osmosis) treatment may be used.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows a printing paper printing and developing device 30 to which the present invention is applied. This photographic printing device 30
Then, the photographic printing paper P as a photosensitive material stored in a roll is drawn out to the printing section 32, the image of the negative film F is printed, and then sent to the color developing tank 38 via the paper reservoir section 36. Further, the photographic printing paper P drawn out from the color developing tank 38 is sequentially inserted into 42, 44, 45 and 46, dried in the drying section 48, cut by the cutter 52 and taken out.

Inside these processing tanks, a transfer rack 53 (see FIG. 3) for appropriately transferring the photographic printing paper P and giving a substantially U-shaped moving path in the processing tanks is arranged. Further, upper racks 54 are provided on the upper portions of these processing tanks, respectively, to receive the photographic paper P from the paper reservoir section 36 or from the previous processing tank, and to the next processing tank or the drying section 48.
The photographic printing paper P is sent to.

As the upper rack 54 to which the present invention is applied, the upper rack 54 between the bleach-fixing tank 42 and the rinsing tank 46 is suitable, but in the present embodiment, the upper rack 54 applied to the bleach-fixing tank 42. Will be described in relation to the transport rack 53. As shown in FIG. 3, in the transport rack 53, a pair of side plates 56 includes a center roll 57 and guide rolls 58 and 59 arranged in contact with both sides of the center roll 57 to form a set of nip rolls. It is provided. Further, the center roll 57 receives the driving force from a driving source (not shown), and the rotational force of the driving roll 62 is transmitted through the gears 63A and 63B. Further, these center roll 57, guide rolls 58, 59
Are connected to each other by a gear train 61 and are rotated at the same peripheral speed, so that the photographic printing paper P is conveyed downward (direction of arrow A) and upward (direction of arrow B). .

The upper rack 54 is a screw 64 with a rack side plate 5.
It has a lower case 66 fixed to 6. The lower case 66 is integrally formed of synthetic resin, and has an inlet nip roll 68, 69 and an outlet nip roll 72,
73 is pivotally supported. This shaft support structure has a lower case 66.
To the bracket 66A integrally projected from the bearing 74,
A notch 66B into which 75 is inserted is provided, and both ends of the inlet nipro rolls 68 and 69 and outlet nip rolls 72 and 73 are axially supported by these bearings 74 and 75, respectively. The spring ring 7 is provided between the bearings 74 and between the bearings 75.
6 are wound and are receiving the force of approaching each other.

These inlet nip rolls 68 and 69 hold the photographic printing paper P sent from the color developing tank 38, as shown in FIG.
Driven by the driving force so as to be inserted into the bleach-fixing tank 42 in the direction of arrow C, the exit nip rolls 72 and 73 feed the photographic paper P sent from the bleach-fixing tank 42 in the direction of arrow B to the rinse tank 44. And is sent out in the direction of arrow D. These inlet nip rolls 68, 69
When the photographic printing paper P nipped and conveyed by is passed vertically downward, it passes through the narrow guide opening 78 formed in the lower case 66, and the photographic printing paper P sent out from the bleach-fixing tank 42 in the direction of arrow A is formed in the lower case 66. It is adapted to be inserted into the outlet nip rolls 72, 73 after passing through the guide opening 79 formed. Further, a guide roll 82 pivotally supported by the lower case 66 is arranged between the inlet nip rolls 68, 69 and the guide opening 78, and for guiding the photographic paper P from the guide opening 79 to the outlet nip rolls 72, 73. The guide roll 83 that is driven to rotate is the lower case 66.
Is pivoted to.

The upper case 8 is provided on the lower case 66.
6 is mounted. The upper case 86 is integrally formed of synthetic resin similarly to the lower case 66, and the outer circumferences of the guide rolls 82 and 83 are ¼ of the lower surface of the upper case 86.
A concave portion 86A for receiving over the arc and a concave portion 86B for accommodating the inlet nip roll 69 and the outlet nip roll 73 over the outer circumference of about 2/3 thereof are formed. An opening 98A for guiding the photographic paper P to the inlet nip rolls 68, 69 and an opening 98B for guiding the photographic paper P from the outlets 72, 73 to the rinsing tank 44 are formed in the lid 98 mounted on the upper case 86. ing. These openings 98
The block 99 forming the lower surfaces of A and 98B can be removed from the upper case 86.

The lower case 66 has a recess 66 for accommodating the outer circumference of the inlet nip roll 68 and the outlet nip roll 72 over about 2/3 together with the block 99 of the upper case lid 98.
A concave portion 66D for accommodating the C and the guide rolls 82, 83 over about 1/4 thereof is formed. These recesses 66C form a guide member together with the recesses 86B of the upper case 86, and correspond to the surfaces of the inlet nip rolls 68 and 69, the outlet nip roll 72, and the bearing 73 on the side opposite to the side on which the printing paper P is sandwiched. A narrow water retention gap S is formed between these nip rolls. The water retention gap S is formed over the entire length of the nip roll, and the distance between each nip roll and the recess is preferably 3 mm or less for forming surface tension. In particular, the recess 66C is recessed upward to clean. It is preferable that water is easily stored.

A water retention gap S is also formed between the guide rolls 82 and 83 and the recess 66D which is a guide member. The water retention gap S has an upper end in FIG.
9. It is preferable to communicate with the lower end of the water retention gap S formed between the outlet nip roll 73 and the recess 86B.

As shown in FIG. 3, the upper case 86 has a box-like cleaning water receiving portion 88 formed at the ends of the inlet nip rolls 68 and 69 along the longitudinal direction, and a connecting pipe 90.
The pump 120 is connected via the
The cleaning water is supplied to the cleaning water receiving portion 88 by the operation of the control unit 20 under the control of the control unit 118. The storage portion 94 communicates with each other through a through hole 92 formed in the wall portion of the wash water receiving portion 88. The guide passages 96 and 97, which are through holes formed in the storage portion 94, correspond to the upper portions of the inlet nip roll 69, the outlet nip roll 73, and the guide rolls 82 and 83, as shown in FIG.
Is in communication with. Therefore, the water supplied to the wash water receiving portion 88 is supplied to the water retaining gap via the storage portion 94 and the guide path 96 and the outer peripheries of the inlet nip roll 69 and the outlet nip roll 73, and from this outer periphery to the outer periphery of the inlet nip roll 68 and the outlet nip roll 72. After being supplied to the outer circumferences of the guide rolls 82 and 83, they are dropped into the bleach-fixing tank 42 through the guide openings 78 and 79.

The cleaning water supply pipe 1 shown by an imaginary line in FIG. 4 is supplied to the block 99 so that the cleaning water can be directly supplied to the water retaining gaps of the inlet nip roll 68 and the outlet nip roll 72.
04 may be arranged and communicated with the water retention gap S.

An O-ring 106 is attached as a sealing material between the lower case 66 and the lid 98, and the color developing tank 38 is provided.
And the inclined portions 112A and 113A of the partition wall 113 that forms the boundary with the rinse tank 44.
To contact the lower case 66 and the partition wall 11 respectively.
The gap 122 formed between the first and second portions 113 and 113 is blocked from the outside air to form a closed space, and the treatment liquid is prevented from depositing in this portion.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. In the printing paper printing / developing device 30 shown in FIG. 1, the image of the negative film F is printed on the drawn printing paper P in the printing section 32, and then the feed speed is adjusted in the paper reservoir section 36, and then the color developing tank is formed. 38, a bleach-fixing tank 42 and rinsing tanks 44, 45, 46 are subjected to a series of development processing. After that, the photographic printing paper P is dried by the drying unit 48, cut by the cutter 52 for each image, and taken out.

In the upper rack 54 portion, as shown in FIG. 4, when the photographic paper P is sent from the color developing tank 38 to reach between the inlet nip rolls 68 and 69 in the direction of arrow C, the photographic paper P is formed.
Is sent downward and is inserted into the bleach-fixing tank 42 in the direction of arrow A. Bleach-fixing tank 42 by transport rack 53
The photographic printing paper P inserted therein is pulled out in the direction of arrow B, is fed in the direction of arrow D from between the exit nip rolls 72, 73 through the guide opening 79, and reaches the rinse tank 44.

As described above, the photographic printing paper P is placed on the upper rack 54.
Before reaching, the control means 118 has already driven the pump 120 to supply the cleaning water to the cleaning water receiving portion 88. Therefore, the cleaning water passes through the storage section 94 and the guide paths 96 and 97, and the water retention gap S
The photographic paper P and the nip rolls, which are pulled out from the bleach-fixing tank 42 by this, are washed by this washing water when passing between the outlet nip rolls 72 and 73, and are attached to the photographic paper P and carried out. The bleach-fixing solution is again dropped into the bleach-fixing tank 42. The cleaning water supplied to the inlet nip rolls 68, 69 seals the water retaining gap by surface tension even when the supply of the cleaning water is stopped.
Therefore, in addition to the cleaning function and the prevention of stains, the contact between the bleach-fixing tank 42 and the outside air is blocked, so that the processing liquid is not evaporated by this. The point is that the exit nip rolls 72, 7
The cleaning water supplied to the outer circumference of 3 also has a similar function. Since the crossover portions of the outlet nip rolls 72, 73 and other guides are always in a wet state, stains are not fixed and the adhered stains are not attached to the printing paper. Furthermore, since the crossover portion is maintained at a high humidity, there is no liquid deposition, there is little contamination in the device, and contamination due to liquid mixing does not occur. Further, the treatment liquid does not evaporate and does not concentrate. Since the rollers and the like are less contaminated, there is no need for frequent cleaning of each part. As a result, there is no need to frequently release the processing section, which also reduces the contamination of the processing liquid.

The photographic printing paper P that has been drawn out from the processing tanks in this way is washed with a small amount of washing water, and the carry-out of the processing liquid is minimized. It is possible to reduce the amount of processing solution replenishment due to the decrease in processing solution. The amount of washing water used can be 150 ml / day or less, and even 100 ml / day or less.
It can be reduced to 3 to 1/5. At the same time, the dirt attached to each nip roll is washed with the washing water, and the dirt does not stick.

The processing tanks between the rinse tanks 44 to 46 are
New wash water is supplied to the rinse tank 46, and the wash water overflowed from the rinse tank 46 is rinsed with the rinse tanks 45 and 4.
By sequentially feeding the cleaning paper 4 to the cleaning paper 4, the cleaning water can be supplied in the direction opposite to the conveying direction of the printing paper P, and an effective cleaning action can be performed with a small amount of cleaning water. As described above, effective cleaning can be performed by using the treatment liquid of the treatment tank of the next step of each treatment tank.

Further, for example, the cleaning water in the rinse tank 44 is supplied to the cleaning water receiving portion 88 of the upper rack 54 located above the bleach-fixing tank 42. This makes it possible to effectively use the wash water without the need to separately supply new wash water.

Next, FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, both ends of the water retaining gap S are closed by lips 132 so that the cleaning water can be easily retained in the water retaining gap S. The lip 132 is formed of a flexible and flexible synthetic resin such as rubber or Teflon (registered trademark), the base portion is attached to the lower case 66 or the upper case 86, and the tip end approaches or contacts the outer circumference of each roll.

Therefore, the water retaining function of this embodiment can maintain the water retaining function even when the water retaining gap is wider than that of the above embodiment.

Next, FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the ridge 1 as a water retaining means is provided in the recess.
A large number of 36 are formed along the longitudinal direction of the roll, and cleaning water can be stored around and between the ridges. These ridges 13
The width of 6 is preferably 0.5 to 2 mm, the height is 1 to 3 mm, and the pitch between the ridges is preferably 2 to 10 mm.

In the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 8, a groove 138 extending in the longitudinal direction along the circumferential direction of the roll is formed in the recess to facilitate water retention. These grooves 138 have a width of 0.3-2 mm,
The depth can be 1 to 3 mm and the pitch can be 2 to 10 mm.

In the present invention, various irregularities can be applied in addition to these ridges and grooves. Further, in the fifth embodiment of FIG. 9, the porous material 142 is embedded in the recess. As the porous material 142, a flexible material, for example, synthetic fiber, specifically, flocked cloth of nylon, polypropylene, PE, tetron, etc. can be applied, and this flocked fiber has a thread thickness of 10 to 100 μm and a length of 1 to 2 m.
m and a density of about ²⁰ to 200 lines / mm ² can be applied. In addition, a sponge made of silicone, NBR, urethane or the like having a thickness of about 0.5 to 1 mm can be applied. This porous material may be applied only to a part of the recess as in the second embodiment of FIG. In the present invention, the water retention gap suppresses evaporation even if the temperature of the treatment liquid is raised, and on the contrary, the relative humidity of the crossover portion is increased so that dirt is unlikely to adhere and rapid treatment becomes possible.

[0043]

Since the present invention has the above-mentioned structure, it has an excellent effect of preventing roll contamination with a small amount of treatment liquid such as washing water.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic vertical cross-sectional view showing a printing paper printing and developing apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an upper rack above a bleach-fixing tank to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of FIG.

4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG.

5 is a sectional view taken along line VV of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 4, showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 P Printing paper (photosensitive material) F Negative film (photosensitive material) S Water retention gap 66C Recessed portion 66D Recessed portion 68 Entrance nip roll 69 Entrance nip roll 72 Exit nip roll 73 Exit nip roll 1 86 Upper case (cover) 86A Recessed portion 86B Recessed portion 88 Wash water receiving portion 94 Storage part (supply means) 118 Control means 120 Pump (supply means) 132 Lip (water retention means) 136 Ridge (water retention means, unevenness) 138 Groove (water retention means, unevenness) 144 Porous material (porous body)

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A photosensitive material processing apparatus comprising a processing tank filled with a photosensitive material processing liquid, comprising: a cover arranged above the processing tank; and a photosensitive material provided above the processing tank to cover the photosensitive material. A transport roll for transporting, a water retention gap formed between the transport roll and the cover over a predetermined circumferential length of the transport roll, and a supply means for supplying a liquid to the water retention gap. Photosensitive material processing device. 2. A photosensitive material processing apparatus comprising a processing tank filled with a photosensitive material processing liquid, wherein a transfer roll for transferring the photosensitive material is provided on an upper part of the processing tank, the photosensitive material processing apparatus being in contact with the photosensitive material of the transfer roll. Including the peripheral surface on the opposite side to the peripheral surface, and a water retention gap formed near this peripheral surface that communicates with the inside and outside of the treatment tank, and the liquid supplied to this water retention gap is retained and this water retention gap is closed by the liquid. However, the light-sensitive material processing apparatus is characterized in that it has a water-retaining means for shutting off from the outside air. 3. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the water retaining gap is provided with an uneven surface for holding the liquid in the water retaining gap. 4. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a porous body that holds the liquid in the water retaining gap is provided facing the water retaining gap. 5. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the water retention gap is an interval at which the liquid can retain water between the transport roll and the cover by surface tension. 6. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the water retention gap is provided with a protrusion having a triangular cross section or a circular arc cross section.