JPH065379B2 - Image recorder - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application] The present invention is an image in which an image recorded on a photothermographic material is transferred to the image receiving material in the presence of an image forming solvent to obtain an image on the image receiving material. Recording device

[Conventional technology]

As an image recording apparatus for obtaining a color image using a photothermographic material, as shown in JP-A-59-75247, after exposing the image to the photothermographic material, it is sent to a heat developing section.
There is known one in which an image receiving sheet is brought into close contact with a light-sensitive material after heat development and an image is transferred to the image receiving sheet in a transfer step.

In order to improve the transfer efficiency of the light-sensitive material or the image-receiving paper before it is sent to the transfer portion, a transfer aid (image forming solvent) such as water is previously added.

Explaining in detail with reference to FIG. 4, in the image recording apparatus 10, the magazine 14 is mounted on the machine base 12 to accommodate the photothermographic material 16. Photosensitive material 16 in magazine 14
Is pulled out from the outer periphery thereof, cut into a predetermined length by the cutter 18, and then wound around the outer periphery of the exposure drum 20 (direction of arrow A in FIG. 4). An exposure head 22 corresponds to the outer periphery of the exposure drum 20, and the exposure drum 20 is reversed after the exposure so that the photosensitive material 16 is peeled off by the scraper 24 and sent to the development transfer unit 28 via the water application unit 34. Has become.

On the other hand, the image receiving paper 32 stored in the tray 30 is
Then, the photosensitive material 16 is superposed on the photosensitive material 16 and then heated by the heater in the developing and transferring section 28. As a result, the photosensitive material 16 is developed and the developed image is transferred to the image receiving paper 3
Transferred to 2.

After the transfer is completed, the photosensitive material 16 is accommodated in the waste tray 38 via the peeling section 36, and the image receiving paper 32 is sent to the take-out tray 42 via the drying section 40.

FIG. 3 is a detailed side sectional view of the water application section 34. As shown in FIG. 3, a pair of conveying rollers 44 and 46 for sandwiching the photosensitive material 16 to be conveyed are arranged in the water applying section 34, and a pair of conveying rollers 44 and 46 are arranged downstream of the conveying rollers 44 and 46. 48 and 50 are arranged so as to sandwich the photosensitive material 16.

These rollers are configured to send the photosensitive material 16 to the heat developing / transferring section 28 in the direction of arrow B under the driving force of a motor (not shown). Further, guide plates 51a and 51b are provided between these conveying rollers corresponding to both side ends of the conveyed photosensitive material 16, so that the photosensitive material 16 is moved from between the conveying rollers 44 and 46 to between the conveying rollers 48 and 50. It is supposed to guide you.

The photosensitive material 1 is provided between the carrying roller 46 and the carrying roller 50.
A coating roller 52 as a coating member corresponds to the center of the back surface (emulsion surface side) of 6. This coating roller 52
Has its rotation shaft supported by the machine base 12. A motor (both not shown) is connected to the rotary shaft via a shaft coupling, and the coating roller 52 is rotated in the direction of arrow C by the driving force of the motor.

The coating roller 52 is partially immersed in a main tank 72 filled with water 70 which is an image forming solvent, and the water 70 is taken out by the peripheral surface when the coating roller 52 rotates.

The water 70 taken out by the coating roller 52 is the photosensitive material 16
The bead 70A is formed between
In this state, when the photosensitive material 16 is conveyed, the photosensitive material 16
The coating film is formed on the back surface of the.

A supply pipe 74 for supplying the water 70 and a discharge pipe 76 for discharging the water 70 in the coating liquid tank 72 are attached to the coating liquid tank 72 filled with the water 70, and a pump is provided at an intermediate portion of the supply pipe 74. 81 is attached. Further, a replenishment tank 82 is installed at one end of the supply pipe 74. Therefore, by driving the pump 81, water can be supplied from the replenishment tank into the coating liquid tank 72 as needed.

Further, the coating liquid tank 72 is provided with a heater 73 for keeping the temperature of the water 70 at 35 ° C.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

However, when the water vapor that is warmed by the heater 73 and evaporated from the water 70 in the main tank 72 diffuses into the air above the coating liquid tank 70 to increase the humidity of the air and the environment in which the image recording apparatus is installed is low temperature. , Or when the humidity is high, dew is condensed on the guide plate 51A, and the water droplets are condensed.
6 dropped onto the back surface of the photosensitive member 6 and caused a defective conveyance of the photosensitive material and unevenness.

The present invention solves the above problems and provides an image recording apparatus that does not cause dew condensation or water drop drop regardless of changes in environmental temperature and humidity, and does not cause defective conveyance of a photosensitive material or an image receiving material and unevenness. It is in.

[Means for solving problems]

The above object of the present invention comprises a coating section for coating an image forming solvent on at least one of the photothermographic material and the image receiving material, and the image recorded on the photothermographic material is image-received in the presence of the image forming solvent. An image recording apparatus for obtaining an image on an image receiving material by transferring to a material, wherein a coating solution tank in which the coating section contains a coating solution, a coating roller rotating in the coating solution tank, and a top portion of the coating roller. A guide plate for guiding the heat-developable photosensitive material or the image receiving material so that the heat-developable photosensitive material or the image receiving material comes into contact with the guide roller, and the guide plate has a large number of holes through which air flows. And an image recording apparatus characterized by the above.

In the present invention, if a planar heater is attached to the guide plate, a more reliable effect can be obtained.

The image recording apparatus of the present invention is, for example, US Pat. No. 443.
No. 0415, No. 4843914, No. 450062.
6, No. 4503137, JP-A-59-15444.
5, JP-A-59-165054, JP-A-59-18
0548, JP-A-59-218443, JP-A-60
-120356, Japanese Patent Application No. 59-209563, Japanese Patent Application No. 60-79709, Japanese Patent Application No. 60-169585,
The photothermographic material (photothermographic element) and the image receiving material (dye fixing element) described in Japanese Patent Application No. 60-244873 can be used.

The image recording apparatus of the present invention comprises a heat developing section for thermally developing the exposed photothermographic material, and a transfer section for superimposing and heating the heat developed photosensitive material and the image receiving material to transfer an image to the image receiving material. May be separately provided, or the heat development section and the transfer section are provided at the same place, that is, the exposed heat development photosensitive material and the image receiving material are superposed and heated. It may be one provided with a thermal development / transfer section for simultaneously performing development and thermal transfer.

The image recording apparatus of the present invention may be one in which the image forming solvent is applied to the photosensitive material, one in which the image receiving material is applied, or one in which both are applied.

In the present invention, the image forming solvent is a solvent required for image formation, for example, water, a low boiling point organic solvent (alcohol, ketones, amides, etc.) or a surfactant in these solvents, Those including various additives such as a development accelerator and a development terminator are included.

In the present invention, the guide plate at the top of the coating liquid tank has a large number of holes through which air flows.
Explaining with reference to the drawing, (a) is a guide plate 51a
And (b) is a sectional view taken along the line AA of (a).

The guide plate 51a has, for example, large holes 54 and small holes 55 as a large number of holes through which high-temperature air rising from the coating liquid tank 72 flows.

Any shape and size of the hole may be used as long as the guide plate does not interfere with the function of guiding the photosensitive material. For example, a slit-like elliptical shape may be used.

About 3 to 10% of the guide plate is suitable as the aperture ratio of the holes. Referring to FIG. 2 in which the guide plate is provided with a planar heater in the present invention, the planar heater is attached to a place where no hole is formed in the guide plate, that is, an edge portion, a rib 53 portion or the like. It means dressing.
The planar heater refers to a thin and flexible heater that generates heat by sandwiching a heating element with an insulating material and applying electricity. The purpose of this heating temperature is to raise the temperature so that there is no problem even if the rib 53 comes into contact with the photosensitive material, and to raise the temperature at which other parts of the guide plate do not condense due to heat transfer.

[Action]

The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus for obtaining an image on an image receiving material by transferring the image recorded on the photothermographic material to the image receiving material in the presence of an image forming solvent, the upper part of a coating liquid tank requiring the solvent. Since the guide plate in 1 has a large number of holes through which the air flows, even if the humidity of the air increases due to the solvent that evaporates from the coating tank, the air flows through the large number of holes to increase the air humidity. Can be kept below saturation. (When there is no hole, the movement of air on the lower surface of the guide plate is slow, and the moisture evaporated from the coating tank below saturates the humidity of the air, resulting in dew condensation on the guide plate.) If the temperature of the guide plate is raised by installing a heater on the surface, even if the air on the lower surface becomes saturated, if the temperature of the surface of the guide plate is above that air temperature, the relative humidity of the air in contact with the guide plate will be Condensation does not occur because the relative humidity of the surface of the guide plate decreases to an unsaturated state. This method is commonly used. This prevents dew condensation on the guide plate even more reliably.

〔Example〕

When a guide plate with a 6% opening was used as shown in Fig. 1, the dew condensation that had been present until now did not dew, and therefore the drop of water drops disappeared so that uneven water application and exposure The occurrence of defective material transfer has been resolved.

〔The invention's effect〕

An image recording apparatus for obtaining an image on an image receiving material by transferring the image recorded on the photothermographic material of the invention to the image receiving material in the presence of an image forming solvent, the upper part of a coating liquid tank containing the solvent. Since the guide plate has a large number of holes through which air flows, dew condensation on the guide plate is prevented, and water droplets adhere to the back surface of the light-sensitive material or the image-receiving material, resulting in uneven water application on the surface of the light-sensitive material or the image-receiving material. The problems such as the occurrence of water droplets adhering to the back surface of the photosensitive material or the image receiving material caused by the contact of water droplets on the back surface of the photosensitive material, and the rusting of other machine parts due to the contact of water droplets have been solved.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 (a) is a plan view and FIG. 1 (b) is a sectional view taken along line AA of one embodiment of a guide plate of an image recording apparatus of the present invention. 2 (a) is a plan view, FIG. 2 (b) is a sectional view taken along line AA of another embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a water application section according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an image recording apparatus to which FIG. 3 is applied. 10 ... Image recording device 16 ... Photosensitive material, 18 ... Cutter 20 ... Exposure drum 28 ... Development transfer part, 32 ... Image receiving paper 34 ... Water application part, 38 ... Disposal tray 51a, 51b. Guide plate 52 ... Coating roller, 53 ... Rib 54 ... Large hole, 55 ... Small hole 56 ... Sheet heater, 70 ... Water 72 ... Coating liquid tank, 73 ... Heater

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A coating portion for coating an image forming solvent on at least one of a photothermographic material and an image receiving material, and an image recorded on the photothermographic material is transferred to the image receiving material in the presence of the image forming solvent. An image forming apparatus which obtains an image on an image receiving material by transferring, wherein a coating solution tank in which the coating section contains a coating solution, a coating roller rotating in the coating solution tank, and a heat roller at the top of the coating roller. A guide plate for guiding the heat-developable photosensitive material or the image receiving material is provided above the coating roller so that the developing photosensitive material or the image receiving material comes into contact, and the guide plate has a large number of holes through which air flows. Characteristic image recording device. 2. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide plate is provided with a planar heater.