JPH08220726A - Solvent applicator for image formation - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To realize both of resilience for obtaining a prescribed collapse quantity and surface characteristic to obtain sufficient durability. CONSTITUTION: A sponge 36 comes contact with a photosensitive material 16, is pressed by the material and is moved together with a tank 34, by which the water in the tank 34 is oozed out of the sponge 36 to flow and is applied. The sponge 36 is composed of a rigid first sponge 106 and rigid second sponge. The first sponge 106 is held together with the second sponge 108 in an adapter 64 and is curved in this holding state along the shape of the rear surface of the second sponge 108, by which the first sponge is held superposed on the second sponge 108. The front surface of the main part 60 of the second sponge 108 is brought into pressurized contact with a projecting part 80 and is communicated with a tank hole 44 in the state that a coating body cartridge is mounted on the bottom of a tank 34. The rear surface of the part of the first sponge 106 facing the main part 60 of the second sponge 108 is pressed to the photosensitive material 16 by contact therewith at the time of coating.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming solvent applying apparatus for applying an image forming solvent to an image recording material to obtain an image on the image recording material.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an image recording apparatus, a photosensitive material is exposed to light, a transfer aid (image forming solvent) such as water is applied to the exposed photosensitive material, and then applied. There is one in which an image receiving material is superposed on a photosensitive material and subjected to thermal development transfer to obtain an image on the image receiving material.

Here, the image forming solvent is applied in order to improve the heat development transfer efficiency, but conventionally, water as an image forming solvent is stored in a dish, and the water is exposed to light at room temperature. It was applied through the material.

On the other hand, the following coating device has been proposed. That is, the photosensitive material is placed on the stage and held in a horizontal plane, and the coating unit moves on the stage from one end to the other end. The application unit is configured by mounting a sponge on the bottom of a tank containing water,
The sponge is adapted to absorb and retain the water in the tank. When the coating unit moves while the sponge is in contact with the photosensitive material, the sponge is crushed and water seeps out from the sponge and flows out onto the photosensitive material to perform coating.

In order for a sponge to flow out a predetermined amount of water, it is necessary to obtain a predetermined crushed amount corresponding to it. On the other hand, the sponge is required to have sufficient durability to withstand abrasion and the like caused by being pressed against the photosensitive material and moving.

In view of the above circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming solvent coating apparatus which realizes both flexibility for obtaining a predetermined crushing amount and surface property for obtaining sufficient durability. To do.

[0007]

An image forming solvent coating apparatus according to the present invention according to claim 1 is a coating apparatus for coating an image recording material with an image forming solvent to obtain an image. A container for accommodating the image forming solvent and moving along the image recording material relative to the image recording material, and for forming an image in the container through a container hole formed in the container and attached to the container. A coating material capable of absorbing and holding a solvent, being pressed against the image recording material and moving together with the container body to cause the image forming solvent to flow out to the image recording material and apply it, wherein the coating material is the image recording material. And a soft second member that is interposed between the first member and the container hole.

[0008]

According to the above construction, the container body moves along the image recording material relative to the image recording material (the coating body does not move without moving the image recording material, or conversely, the coating body does not move). When the image recording material moves, the coating body comes into contact with the image recording material (photosensitive material or the like) and moves together with the container body, and the image forming solvent is coated on the image recording material.

The applicator body has a surface property having durability enough to withstand abrasion and the like caused by the first hard member coming into contact with the photosensitive material and being pressed and moved to the photosensitive material. The flexible first and second members correspond flexibly,
With a proper pressing force, it is possible to obtain a predetermined crushed amount that should flow out a predetermined amount of the image forming solvent.

That is, when the coated body is formed of a soft material, the surface is not durable and a scratch or the like occurs during coating. On the other hand, when the coated body is formed of a hard material, a predetermined amount of crushing is applied. However, the present invention does not have such a pressing force.

Regarding the first member and the second member, for example, the hardness of the second member is larger than that of the first member, and the friction coefficient of the first member is smaller than that of the second member.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the image forming solvent coating device according to the present invention is applied to an image recording device as shown in FIGS.
It will be explained based on.

As shown in FIG. 1, a stage 12 is provided in the center of the base 10. Stage 12 is
It is flat and arranged horizontally. A first roller 14 is provided below one end side (right end side in FIG. 1) of the stage 12, and a heat-developable photosensitive material (image recording material) 16 (hereinafter referred to as a photosensitive material) as a photosensitive material is provided on the first roller 14. The material 16) is wound up and accommodated in a roll. Photosensitive material 1
No. 6 is constituted by having a photosensitive silver halide, a binder, a dye donating substance, and a reducing agent on a support, and the first roller 1
In the state in which the photosensitive surface is pulled out from 4 onto the stage 12 and held horizontally on the stage 12, the photosensitive surface is made to face upward. A second roller 18 is provided below the stage 12 in the vicinity of the first roller 14. The second roller 18 is pulled out from the first roller 14 to the stage 1
The photosensitive material 16 is wound up by winding 2 from one end to the other end (the left end in FIG. 1). The photosensitive material 16 is drawn onto the stage 12 for each predetermined length.

A document table 20 is fitted on the upper surface 11 of the base above the stage 12 so as to face the stage 12. The document table 20 is formed of a transparent plate, and the document 2 is placed on the document table 20.
2 is placed and held.

Next, an exposure unit 24, a coating unit (coating device) 26, and a polymerization unit 28 are provided. Each of the units 24, 26, 28 is reciprocally movable integrally or individually between the original table 20 and the stage 12 along both end directions of the stage 12 (left and right directions in FIG. 1). Is driven by a driving means that omits. That is, each unit 24, 26, 28 maintains the order from the standby position (the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 1) arranged in order from the other end of the stage 12 to the outside of the stage 12, and one end of the stage 12 is maintained. After passing through the stage 12, it moves forward (moves in the direction of arrow A) to a stop position (position indicated by a chain double-dashed line in FIG. 4) that is sequentially arranged from the stop position to the standby position. It can be moved backward (moved in the direction opposite to arrow A).

The exposure unit 24 includes a light source 30, and the light from the light source 30 is applied to the original 22. The irradiation light is made linear along the direction parallel to the original 22 and at a right angle to the moving direction of the exposure unit 24 (the front-back direction of the paper surface of FIG. 1), and the reflected light is reflected by the original 22 and self-locks. The lens 32 exposes the photosensitive material 16 in a slit shape. The image of the original 22 is sequentially scanned and exposed on the photosensitive material 16 by advancing the exposure unit 24 from the standby position toward the stop position.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the coating unit 26 includes a tank (container body) 34 and a sponge (coating body) 36 mounted on the bottom of the tank. The tank 34 is
A long rectangle which is provided so as to be dropped into a recess 40 formed in the unit base 38 and which extends in the width direction (direction of arrow B) of the photosensitive material 16 in a direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the coating unit. It has a box shape. Water 4 in the tank 34
A transfer aid (image forming solvent) such as 2 is enclosed. The sponge 36 projects downward from an opening 41 formed in the bottom of the recess 40, and can absorb and hold the water 42 in the tank 34 through a tank hole 44 formed in the bottom of the tank 34. The water 42 becomes wet in the sponge 36. The tank 34 can be moved up and down, and although it is not shown, the tank 34 can be moved up and down by a driving means such as a solenoid, or a stepped guide for guiding the tank 34 up and down is provided along the moving path of the coating unit 26. It can also be possible.
As the tank 34 moves up and down, the sponge 36 also moves up and down, the sponge 36 is separated from the photosensitive material 16 in the raised position, and the sponge 36 is pressed against and brought into contact with the photosensitive material 16 in the lowered position. Water 42
Can flow out to the photosensitive material 16.

The water 42 is sequentially applied to the exposed photosensitive material 16 by advancing the coating unit 26 with the sponge 36 in contact with the photosensitive material 16.

The superposing unit 28 is provided with a magazine 46. In the magazine 46, the image receiving material 48 is cut into a predetermined length and stacked, and is housed in parallel with the stage 12. One surface of the image receiving material 48 is an image forming surface, and the image forming surface is coated with a dye fixing material having a mordant. When the image receiving material 48 is stored, the image forming surface faces upward. It An endless belt 50 is stretched around rollers 52 and 54 below the magazine 46. The roller 5 on the stage 12 side at the standby position of the stacking unit 28
A guide part 56 is provided on the outer circumference of the second part 2.

As the stacking unit 28 advances, the endless belt 50 runs on the stage 12 in response to the stacking unit 28 moving forward (runs clockwise in FIG. 1). As the endless belt 50 travels, the image receiving material 48 in the magazine 46 is pulled out from the magazine 46 by the guide portion 56. The image receiving material 48 is turned over so that the leading end of the image receiving material 48 comes into contact with the photosensitive material 16, and the image receiving material 48 is moved to the endless belt 50 and the photosensitive material 16 as the superposition unit 28 moves.
The image receiving material 48 is sequentially superposed with the swelled photosensitive material 16 coated with the water 32 so as to be sandwiched between the image receiving material 48 and the image receiving material 48.

The stage 12 is heated, and in the heated state, the above-mentioned exposure, coating and polymerization are carried out, and the heat development transfer is carried out in a state where the image receiving material 48 and the photosensitive material 16 are superposed. That is, the movable dye of the photosensitive material 16 is released, and at the same time, the dye is transferred to the dye fixing layer of the image receiving material 48, and an image is obtained on the image receiving material 48.

After the thermal development transfer, the photosensitive material 16 is pulled out by a predetermined length, and the image receiving material 48 is discharged from the other end of the stage 12 to the outside of the stage together with the photosensitive material 16, and the photosensitive material is discharged along with the discharge. It is separated from the sheet 22 and accumulated in the discharge tray 58.

Thereafter, each unit 24, 26, 28
With the superposition unit 28 at the head, the superposition unit can be retracted from the stop position to the standby position to prepare for the next exposure, coating and superposition.

Here, the coating unit 26 will be described in detail. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the sponge 36 is elongated over the longitudinal dimension of the tank 34, and is in the longitudinal direction (the width direction of the photosensitive material indicated by the arrow B, the front-back direction of the paper surface in FIG. 2).
When viewed from above, the main body portion 60 protruding downward in a semicircular shape,
The main body 60 has a shape integrally provided with a pair of engaging projections 62 that project to the left and right at the upper end. The sponge 36 is held by the adapter 64. The adapter 64 is provided with a pair of side pieces 66 along the longitudinal direction of the sponge 36. Engagement recesses 70 are formed on the opposite surfaces of the both side pieces 66, and the engagement projections 62 are engaged in the engagement recesses 70. Thus, the sponge 36 can be held between the side pieces 66. The sponge 36 held by the adapter 64 serves as an applicator cartridge.

The adapter 64 can be formed into a rectangular frame shape with a pair of side pieces 66 and a pair of end pieces facing the longitudinal end surface of the sponge 36. For example, as shown in FIG. The adapter 64 is formed so that a pair of side pieces 66 and one end piece 68 of the end pieces facing the longitudinal end surface of the sponge 36 have a U-shape, and the other end piece is opened. If so, the sponge 36 is inserted in the longitudinal direction from the open side between the side pieces 66, and the engagement recess 70 is formed.
The engaging projection 62 can be engaged therein. Sponge 3
After holding 6, the strengthening of the adapter is achieved by closing the other open end piece to make the adapter a frame without discontinuities. When the adapter is previously formed integrally with the frame having no discontinuity, the sponge 36 may be pushed into the frame in order to engage the engagement protrusion 62 with the engagement recess 70.

On the other hand, on the bottom of the tank 34 corresponding to the side pieces 66 of the adapter 64, both sides in the width direction of the tank 34 (directions on both sides of the coating movement direction) which are perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the tank 34.
In addition, the pair of engagement legs 7 are provided along the longitudinal dimension of the tank 34.
2, 102 hang down, the side piece 66 and the engaging legs 72, 102.
Between and, the side piece 66 is formed with an engaging projection 74 extending over this longitudinal dimension, and the engaging legs 72, 102 are formed with engaging recesses 76 extending over this longitudinal dimension. One engaging leg 72
While engaging the corresponding engaging projection 74 in the engaging recess 76 from the side of the adapter 64, the other engaging leg 10
For No. 2, the engaging projections 74 corresponding to the
4 formed on the lower end of the engaging leg 72 to form
04 is pressed from below to elastically bend the engaging legs 72 and 102 so as to widen the space between the engaging leg 72 and the claw 104 of the engaging leg 102 (mainly, the other engaging leg 102 is bent).
The applicator cartridge is mounted by engaging the corresponding engaging projection 74 in the engaging recess 76 of the other engaging leg 102. Conversely, to remove the coating cartridge from the tank 34, the coating cartridge is pushed down on the other engagement leg 102 side to disengage the engagement projection 74 from the engagement recess 76 on the other engagement leg 102, and then, The engagement protrusion 74 may be disengaged from the engagement recess 76 for one of the engagement legs 72.

A plurality of tank holes 44 are formed at intervals along the longitudinal direction of the tank 34, and each tank hole 44 is
The protrusions 80 are formed individually corresponding to the respective tank holes 44 so as to project downward from the bottom of the tank 34, or on a convex portion 80 formed commonly to the tank holes 44.

The sponge 36 is the first sponge (first
(Member) 106 and second sponge (second member) 108. The first sponge 106 is made of a hard material, and its free shape (the shape before being held by the adapter) is flat. The second sponge 108 is made of a soft material, and its free shape (the shape before being held by the adapter) is a shape that presents the main body portion 60 and the engaging projection 62. The first sponge 106 is held by the adapter 64 together with the second sponge 108, and in this holding state, the second sponge 10 is held.
8 is bent along the shape of the lower surface and is superposed on the second sponge 108. That is, the first sponge 1
Reference numeral 06 has a portion that is in contact with the lower surface of the main body portion 60 of the second sponge 108 and the lower surface of the engaging projection 62, respectively. The portion of the first sponge 106 that faces the engaging projection 62 of the second sponge 108 is the adapter 6 together with the engaging projection 62.
4 is engaged in the engagement recess 70.

In the installed state of the applicator cartridge, the second
The upper surface of the main body portion 60 of the sponge 108 is pressed against the convex portion 80, and at the time of application, the lower surface of the portion of the first sponge 106 facing the main body portion 60 of the second sponge 108 contacts and is pressed against the photosensitive material 16. .

According to the above construction, the sponge 36 comes into contact with the photosensitive material 16 and is pressed against it to move together with the tank 34, whereby the water in the tank 34 exudes from the sponge 36 and flows out and is applied.

The sponge 36 has a two-layer structure consisting of a hard (hard material) first sponge 106 and a soft (soft material) second sponge 108.
When the member comes into contact with the photosensitive material 16 and has sufficient durability to withstand abrasion and the like caused by being pressed and moved to the photosensitive material 16, the second sponge 1 is provided at the same time.
08 responds flexibly, and with a proper pressing force, a predetermined amount of water 4
It is possible to obtain a predetermined crush amount that 2 should flow out.

That is, when the coated body is formed of a soft material, the surface is not durable and a blur or the like occurs during coating. On the other hand, when the coated body is formed of a hard material, a predetermined amount of crushing is applied. Although a large pressing force is required to obtain the above, this is not the case in the present embodiment.

First and Second Sponge 106 For example, the first sponge 106 has a hardness of 15 ° (JI
SK 6301 C type hardness meter), the second sponge 108 may have a hardness of 1 to 2 ° (using the same hardness meter), and the friction coefficient μ is
The material of the first sponge 106 is made smaller than the material of the second sponge 106. This also applies to the second embodiment described below.

Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In this embodiment, the sponge 236 is attached to the bottom of the tank 34 without providing an adapter. Also, the engaging recess 7
The engaging legs 272 of the tank 34 forming 2 are both L
It is made into a character shape. First hard material that constitutes the sponge 236
Of the soft sponge 206 and the soft second sponge 238, the first sponge 206 has a flat shape (the shape before attachment to the tank 34) and the second sponge 208 has the free shape (shape to the tank 34). The shape before mounting) is a semicircular shape protruding downward when viewed from the longitudinal direction. First sponge 2
The second sponge 208 is held between the first sponge 206 and the bottom of the tank 34 by engaging the both side portions 262 of 06 into the engagement recesses 72 of the both engagement legs 272. The central portion of the first sponge 206 has the second sponge 20.
The portion is bent along the lower surface of 8 and is a portion facing and contacting the lower surface. The first sponge 206 is moved to the second position to engage the side portion 262 of the first sponge 208 into the engagement recess 72.
When the sponge 236 is inserted together with the sponge 236 in the longitudinal direction between the engaging legs 272, the sponge 236 is mounted, and conversely, the first sponge 206 is pulled out together with the second sponge 208 and the side portion of the first sponge 206 from the engaging recess 76. 26
When 2 is detached, the sponge 236 is removed. In the mounted state of the sponge 236, the upper surface of the second sponge 208 contacts the bottom surface of the tank 34, and the lower surface of the portion of the first sponge 206 facing the second sponge 208 contacts and is pressed against the photosensitive material 16 during application.

Incidentally, although FIG. 4 does not show the one corresponding to the convex portion 80 of the first embodiment, it is of course possible to provide it.

The other structure is the same as that of the first embodiment. Also in this embodiment, the sponge 236 is the first sponge 20.
6 and the second sponge 208, the first sponge 206 comes into contact with the photosensitive material 16 and has a surface property having sufficient durability to withstand abrasion and the like caused by being pressed and moved to the photosensitive material 16. At the same time, the second sponge 208 flexibly responds, and with a proper pressing force, it is possible to obtain a predetermined crushed amount by which a predetermined amount of water 42 should flow out.

Further, the side portion 262 of the first sponge 206 is engaged with the engaging recess 76 of the engaging leg 272 so that the sponge 23 is engaged.
6, the first sponge 206 is hard, so that the engagement of the side portion 262 with the engagement recess 76 is strengthened, which is preferable in terms of mounting and holding the sponge 236.

In the above-described embodiment, the coating is performed by moving the coating unit 26 without moving the photosensitive material 16. On the contrary, the photosensitive material 1 is moved without moving the coating unit 26.
6 may be moved.

In the above embodiment, coating is performed on the flat plate-shaped stage 12, and exposure, polymerization and heat development including coating are performed on the common stage 12.
However, the present invention is not limited to this. Further, for example, a tank is provided on the roller so as to face the roller, and the photosensitive material 16 is run between the sponge and the roller mounted on the bottom of the tank, and coating is performed accordingly. You may do it.

Further, the image forming solvent is not limited to water 42,
Other transfer aids may be used, and the application body for applying the image forming solvent is not limited to a sponge, and may be a puff, a synthetic foam having open cells, felt, or the like. It suffices that it absorbs and holds water and is pressed against the photosensitive material 16 to allow water to flow out.

Further, in the above embodiment, the water 42 is applied to the photosensitive material 16, but the invention is not limited to the photosensitive material 16 as long as an image can be obtained by applying an image forming solvent such as water. The image receiving material and other image recording materials are also applicable.

Further, the holding of the coating body composed of the first member and the second member on the adapter, and the mounting of the coating body cartridge in which the coating body is held by the adapter on the tank, or by mounting the adapter The mounting of the applicator directly to the tank without using it is not limited to the above embodiment, and various mounting means are possible. It is also possible that both the first member and the second member have a flat shape as a free shape so as to obtain a predetermined shape when being held by an adapter or directly attached to a tank without using an adapter. is there.

Further, the shape of the coated body is, in the above embodiment,
Although it has a semicircular shape when viewed from the width direction of the photosensitive material which is a direction perpendicular to the coating movement direction, it is not limited thereto, and
It is also possible to use a taper shape including a triangular shape or the like toward the light-sensitive material or a straight rectangular shape.

As the light-sensitive material, a so-called heat-developable light-sensitive material (a heat-developable light-sensitive material, in which a latent image obtained by imagewise exposure is subjected to heat development transfer to an image receiving material in the presence of an image forming solvent to obtain a visible image, The light-sensitive material 16) of the above embodiment can be mentioned.

This photothermographic material basically has a photosensitive silver halide, a reducing agent, a binder and a dye-donating compound (which may also serve as a reducing agent) on a support, and further needs According to the requirement, an organic metal salt oxidizing agent and the like can be contained.

The photothermographic material may give a negative image or a positive image upon exposure.
As a method of giving a positive image, a method of directly using a positive emulsion (a method using a nucleating agent and a light fog method) is used as a silver halide emulsion, and a positive diffusible dye image is emitted. Any method using a dye-donor compound can be adopted.

As the photothermographic material of the type which gives a positive image, those described in, for example, JP-A-6-161070 and JP-A-6-289555 can be used. Examples of the photothermographic material of JP-A-5-181246 and JP-A-6-181246
It is possible to use those described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 242546 or the like.

Further, as the image forming solvent in the present invention, there is, for example, water (the water 42 in the above-mentioned embodiment), and this water is not limited to so-called pure water, but is widely and generally used. Including water. Also, pure water, methanol, DM
A mixed solvent with a low boiling point solvent such as F, acetone or diisobutyl ketone may be used. Further, it may be a solution containing an image formation accelerator, an antifoggant, a development terminator, a hydrophilic thermal solvent and the like.

[0049]

As described above, according to the image forming solvent coating apparatus of the present invention, both flexibility for obtaining a predetermined crushing amount and surface property for obtaining sufficient durability are realized. It

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an image recording apparatus to which an image forming solvent coating apparatus according to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention is applied, as viewed along a coating moving direction.

FIG. 2 is an end view showing the image forming solvent coating device of the first embodiment in a vertical section along the coating moving direction.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the image forming solvent coating apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment before mounting the coating body.

FIG. 4 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 2 showing an image forming solvent coating apparatus according to a second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 16 Photosensitive Material (Image Recording Material) 26 Coating Unit (Coating Device) 34 Tank (Container) 42 Water (Solvent for Image Formation) 44 Tank Hole (Container Hole) 106, 206 First Sponge (Sponge (Coating Body)) 108 , 208 Second sponge (sponge (application body))

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A coating device for coating an image-forming solvent on an image-recording material to obtain an image on the image-recording material, wherein the image-forming solvent is contained and the image-forming solvent is provided along the image-recording material. And a container body attached to the container body, capable of absorbing and holding the image forming solvent in the container body through the container hole formed in the container body, and by being pressed against the image recording material and moving together with the container body. An application body for applying the image forming solvent to the image recording material by flowing it out, the application body comprising a hard first member in contact with the image recording material, and between the first member and the container hole. Intervening soft second
An image forming solvent coating device comprising: a member.