JPH09166858A - Photosensitive material processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a processor capable of rapidly replacing liquid near the surface of a photosensitive material. SOLUTION: A box-like processing rack 30 opening upward is formed of a pair of side plates 40 and a pair of nozzle plates 80. A carrying roller 34 and a reverse-carrying roller are arranged at prescribed intervals between the side plates 40, and a nozzle 86 is arranged between both rollers. On the top face 86A of the nozzle 86, a long slit like jetting port 88 is formed in a direction orthogonal to the carrying direction of a film 32. On the side plate 40, a clearance 90 is formed between a small-diameter roller 34B and a small-diameter roller 34B on the nozzle plate 8 side away from a guide groove. When processing liquid is jetted out from the jetting port 88 toward the emulsion surface of the film 32, the deteriorated liquid after reaction remaining near the emulsion surface is rapidly pushed out of the processing rack 30 through the clearances 90 formed on both sides of the nozzle 86, then, the liquid is rapidly replaced with fresh liquid.

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 for processing a photosensitive material with a processing liquid, and more particularly to a photosensitive material processing apparatus of a type in which both side edges of the photosensitive material are guided by conveyance guide grooves.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Among photosensitive material processing apparatuses such as a processor using a roller conveyance method, there has been proposed a photosensitive material processing apparatus of a type in which both side edges of a film are guided by conveying guide grooves. In this light-sensitive material processing apparatus, the processing liquid ejected from a nozzle is applied to the emulsion surface of the film conveyed in the processing tank.

[0003]

By the way, the closer the nozzle is to the film surface, the more active the liquid replacement on the film surface, and the faster the reaction.

However, if the upper surface of the nozzle has a wide planar shape, the volume between the nozzle surface and the film is small,
The space for escape of the processing liquid sprayed on the film is reduced, and it becomes impossible to secure a flow path for releasing the processing liquid.

As a method of escaping the processing liquid from the film transporting path, it is possible to use the perforation of the film. However, since the perforation is located in the transport guide groove, the sprayed processing liquid is applied to the back surface side of the film (nozzle). You cannot escape to the other side).

It is also possible to form an escape hole for the processing liquid at the bottom of the transfer guide groove, but since the transfer guide groove is thin, it is not possible to make an escape hole of a sufficient size.

In view of the above facts, an object of the present invention is to provide a light-sensitive material processing apparatus capable of quickly releasing the liquid sprayed on the light-sensitive material and quickly replacing the liquid near the surface of the light-sensitive material.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a photosensitive material processing apparatus for processing a photosensitive material with a processing liquid in a processing tank while transporting the photosensitive material, the photosensitive material processing apparatus being provided in the processing tank. A pair of supporting members facing each other at a predetermined interval, a conveying unit arranged between the pair of supporting members for conveying the photosensitive material, and provided so as to face the emulsion surface of the photosensitive material conveyed by the conveying unit. A nozzle provided at the tip with an ejection port projecting toward the emulsion surface and ejecting the processing liquid toward the emulsion surface; and a nozzle provided in the vicinity of the ejection port of the support member, inside and outside the support member. And a communication portion that communicates with the.

In the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1,
The photosensitive material is nipped by a conveying means such as a plurality of conveying rollers and conveyed in the processing liquid in the processing tank.

In the processing tank, the processing liquid is jetted from the jet port provided at the tip of the nozzle toward the emulsion surface of the photosensitive material. The jet flow is quickly released to the outside of the support member via the communication portion provided on the support member. As a result, the liquid near the surface of the light-sensitive material (emulsion surface) can be quickly replaced, the processing liquid is well agitated, and proper processing can be performed.

In order to reduce the flow resistance of the processing liquid, it is preferable that the communicating portion has as large an opening area as possible. If the opening area of the communication portion is small, a parallel flow that flows in the direction along which the photosensitive material is conveyed occurs, which interferes with the jets of other nozzles and reduces the stirring effect of the processing liquid.

Further, the shape of the communicating portion may be any shape as long as the processing liquid easily flows such as holes and notches.

Further, it is preferable to secure a flow path for the processing liquid at a predetermined interval between the nozzle and the communicating portion.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the first aspect, a substantially U-shaped photosensitive material conveying path is formed by the conveying means, and the nozzle is a wall surface of a processing tank. It is characterized by being provided on the side.

In the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the second aspect,
The light-sensitive material is conveyed with the emulsion surface facing the wall of the processing tank. As a result, the processing liquid ejected from the nozzle provided on the wall surface of the processing tank hits the emulsion surface of the photosensitive material,
The liquid near the emulsion surface can be quickly replaced. In a general photosensitive material processing apparatus, a photosensitive material is conveyed along a substantially U-shaped conveying path. In such a transport route,
Since a plurality of conveying rollers are arranged in a space sandwiched by a pair of linear conveying path portions of the U-shaped conveying path, it is difficult to arrange a large number of nozzles, and processing of piping connected to the nozzles is also difficult. Will also be difficult. On the other hand, in the present invention, since the nozzles are arranged on both wall surfaces (bottom surface in some cases) of the processing tank, a large number of nozzles can be arranged easily, and the processing of the pipe connected to the nozzles becomes easy.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the nozzle has an ejection port formed in an elongated shape in a direction intersecting with a conveying direction of the photosensitive material. It is characterized in that a plurality of them are formed at predetermined intervals along the carrying direction.

In the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 3,
Since the ejection port has an elongated shape in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material, the processing liquid can be ejected uniformly in the width direction of the photosensitive material, and uneven processing can be prevented.
It should be noted that if the spacing between the jets is too narrow, the jets may interfere with each other, so it is preferable to determine the spacing by considering the flow rate, the flow velocity, the distance to the photosensitive material, the positional relationship with the communicating portion, and the like. .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, the nozzle formed in a slender shape in a direction intersecting a conveying direction of the photosensitive material is provided. It is characterized in that a plurality of them are provided at predetermined intervals along the carrying direction, and a communication space that communicates with the communication section is provided between the nozzles.

In the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 4,
The processing liquid ejected from the ejection port can be made to flow to the communication section via the communication space. Since a large space is provided in the vicinity of the ejection port, the flow resistance is reduced, the flow rate can be increased, and the stirring effect of the processing liquid can be improved.

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[First Embodiment] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
It is explained according to.

FIG. 1 shows a processing unit 12 of an automatic developing device 10 to which this embodiment is applied. The processing unit 12 includes a box-shaped frame 14.

A plurality of standing walls 16 are provided from the bottom of the frame 14.
, A developing tank 18 as a processing tank, and a bleach-fixing tank 2
2. Washing tanks 24, 26, and 28 are formed, and processing liquids are stored in the respective processing tanks.

A film loading unit (not shown) is provided on the arrow L side of the processing unit 12.

Inside each processing tank of the processing section 12, a box-shaped processing rack 30 having an open top is arranged. The processing racks 30 are immersed in the processing liquid except for a part above.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the processing rack 3
Reference numeral 0 includes a pair of side plates 40 and a pair of nozzle plates 80 as support members, and as shown in FIG. 2, the side plates 40 and the nozzle plate 80 form a square pipe shape. In addition, the pair of side plates 40 and the pair of nozzle plates 80.
The lower parts of the are connected by a bottom plate 82 as shown in FIG.

Guide grooves 42 are formed on the inner surface of the side plate 40 for guiding both ends of the film 32 in the width direction.
Further, a transport roller 34 for transporting the film 32 in the treatment liquid, a reversing transport roller 36, and a transport roller 38 for squeezing the film 32 treated with the treatment liquid and sending it to an adjacent treatment tank are supported. .

The carrying roller 34 includes a large-diameter roller 34A,
The large-diameter roller 34A is composed of small-diameter rollers 34B arranged on both sides in the horizontal direction. As shown in FIG. 2, the large-diameter roller 34A is formed by integrating a relatively thick-walled cylindrical roller member 47 having a constant thickness in an intermediate portion of a shaft 46 having a constant diameter. Both ends of the shaft 46 are rotatably inserted into bearings 48 made of synthetic resin. The bearing 48 includes an insertion portion 50 and a pulley portion 5 having a constant diameter.
2, the insertion portion 50 is inserted into the round hole 54 of the side plate 40, and the pulley portion 52 is arranged on the outer surface side of the side plate 40. A large gear 58 is attached to the shaft 46 at a portion protruding from the bearing 48 on the arrow F direction side. The bearing 48 and the large gear 58 are prevented from coming off by an E ring 56.

On the other hand, the small-diameter roller 34B includes the shaft 60.
The roller member 62 is integrated with the intermediate portion of the.
The roller member 62 has a nip portion 62A formed on both sides with a predetermined width having a constant outer diameter, and a concave portion 62B whose inner side is depressed in an arcuate cross section. The small diameter roller 34B is
The concave portion 62B faces the image area of the film 32, and the nip portion 62A contacts the non-image area near the perforation. The small diameter roller 34B may be a so-called flat roller in which the roller member 62 has a constant diameter over the entire length as shown in FIG.

The insertion portion 50 of the bearing 48 supporting the small diameter roller 34B is inserted into the elongated hole 68 of the side plate 40. The long hole 68 has a large diameter roller 34A and a small diameter roller 34B.
It is formed to be long along the direction connecting with the shaft core of the bearing 48 (the direction of arrow L and the direction of arrow R in FIG. 2), and
0 is slidable within the elongated hole 68 by a predetermined amount.

The shaft 60 has a bearing 4 on the arrow F side.
A small gear 70 is attached to a portion protruding from 8. This small gear 70 is the large gear 58 of the large diameter roller 34A.
Are engaged. The bearing 48 and the small gear 70 are
The E-ring 56 prevents it from coming off.

The bearing 4 supporting the small diameter roller 34B
A ring-shaped spring 72 for pressing the small diameter roller 34B against the large diameter roller 34A with a predetermined force is hooked on the pulley portion 52 of No. 8.

As shown in FIG. 1, the reversing conveyance roller 36 is used.
Like the transport roller 34, the large-diameter roller 34A and the small-diameter roller 34B arranged on both sides of the large-diameter roller 34A in the horizontal direction are provided, and the pair of small-diameter rollers is provided below the large-diameter roller 34A. It is equipped with 36C. A small gear (not shown) that meshes with the large gear 58 of the large diameter roller 34A is also attached to the small diameter roller 36C. Although the small diameter roller 36C is not directly pressed against the large diameter roller 34A, the film 32 turns. When it is moved, it guides at the same speed without slipping with the film 32 to assist the conveyance.

The conveying roller 38 provided at the crossover portion above the liquid surface of the processing liquid is composed of a large diameter roller 34A, a small diameter roller 38B and a small diameter roller 36C.
The small diameter roller 38B has a constant diameter, and when the film 32 is nipped and conveyed between the large diameter roller 34A and the small diameter roller 38B, the processing liquid adhering to the surface of the film 32 is squeezed and collected in the tank. . The small diameter roller 36C
Has the same shape as the small-diameter roller 34B.

Each large gear 58 of the processing rack 30 is connected to a rotary drive source such as a motor via a gear, shaft, etc. (not shown) so as to rotate. When the large gear 58 is rotated, the small gear 70 is rotated and the large diameter roller 34A,
Small diameter roller 34B, small diameter roller 38B and small diameter roller 3
6C rotates.

As shown in FIG. 3, the nozzle plate 80 has a plate-shaped portion 84 whose inside is hollow.

As shown in FIG. 1, the inside of the bottom plate 82 connected to the plate-like portion 84 is also hollow, and the inside of the nozzle plate 80 and the inside of the bottom plate 82 communicate with each other. A pipe-shaped connecting portion 82A protruding downward is integrally formed on the bottom plate 82, and is inserted into the processing liquid discharge port 14A formed on the bottom portion of the frame 14. A circulation pump (not shown) is connected to the treatment liquid discharge port 14A, and the treatment liquid sucked from a treatment liquid suction port (not shown) formed on the side surface of the frame 14 is discharged.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a nozzle 86 is integrally formed inside the plate portion 84, and one nozzle 86 is provided between the small diameter roller 34B and the small diameter roller 34B. It is arranged.

The nozzle 86 has a rectangular box shape, and as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the top surface 86 facing the film 32.
A is parallel to the film 32.

On the top surface 86A of the nozzle 86, the film 3
The slit-shaped ejection ports 88, which are long in the direction orthogonal to the transport direction of 2, are provided at predetermined intervals along the transport direction of the film 32.
The processing liquid is jetted from the jet port 88 at right angles to the emulsion surface of the film 32.

A relief 90 is formed in the side plate 40 on the nozzle plate 80 side of the guide groove 42 and between the small diameter rollers 34B and 34B. The escape 90 of the present embodiment is a through hole that communicates the inside and the outside of the side plate 40 so that the processing liquid in the processing rack 30 can be quickly discharged to the outside of the side plate 40. The escape 90 is preferably formed as large as possible, and the escapes 90 on the left and right may be connected to each other while leaving the supporting portion of the transport roller.

The film 32 is conveyed while being curved in each processing tank and between adjacent processing tanks by the processing rack 30, and when it is discharged from the final washing tank 28, the film 32 is transferred to a drying unit (not shown) and heated. It is exposed to the wind and dried.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. When the exposed film 32 drawn out from the cartridge is fed into the processing section 12, the transport roller 34 of the processing rack 30 and the reversing transport roller 36 convey the film 32 while curving the film 32, and the film 32 is treated in order. Dip in and process. At this time, the film 32 is conveyed so that the emulsion surface faces the small diameter roller 34B.

In this embodiment, the film 32 in the processing liquid is used.
Is conveyed between the large diameter roller 34A and the small diameter roller 34B pressed by the large diameter roller 34A to obtain a conveying force.

The processing liquid is jetted from the jet port 88 of the nozzle 86 toward the emulsion surface of the film 32 to be conveyed.
As a result, the deteriorated liquid after the reaction that stagnates near the emulsion surface escapes 90 provided on both sides of the nozzle 86 by the jet flow.
Is quickly extruded to the outside of the processing rack 30, and replacement with new liquid easily occurs. Therefore, the film 32 is
It is always processed in the optimum condition.

Further, since the processing liquid in the processing rack 30 is quickly discharged from the processing rack 90 to the outside of the processing rack 30, the liquid level of the processing liquid in the processing rack 30 is stabilized, and the film 32 is formed.
Can be kept constant for a period of time in the processing solution. Further, the liquid level of the processing liquid in the processing rack 30 becomes higher than the liquid level of the processing tank, and the processing liquid in the processing rack 30 does not overflow and flow into another adjacent processing tank.

Further, a large relief 9 is provided on the side of the nozzle 86.
Since 0 is provided, the pressure loss when the jet flow escapes to the outside of the processing rack 30 is small (that is, the flow resistance of the liquid is small), the reduction of the circulation capacity can be prevented, and the circulation pump for circulating the processing liquid is small. It can also be converted.

Developing tank 18, bleach-fixing tank 22, washing tank 2
The film 32 that has passed through the tanks 4, 26, and 28 is then sent to the drying unit for drying processing, and is discharged to the outside of the automatic developing device 10.

The shape of the nozzle 86 is such that the tip side is narrowed as shown in FIG. 6 or the plate-shaped portion 8 is shown as shown in FIG.
You may make the 4 side narrow. This is preferable because a flow path can be secured between the nozzle 86 and the side plate 40, and the pressure loss when the processing liquid is discharged to the outside of the processing rack 30 can be further reduced.

Further, in this embodiment, the processing liquid is jetted from the slit-shaped jet port 88, but a plurality of small holes may be arranged in a straight line to jet the processing liquid. [Second Embodiment] Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The same components as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

In the nozzle plate 80 of this embodiment, three rollers are provided with a predetermined space between the transport rollers 34.
The individual nozzles 92 are arranged at equal intervals. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the nozzle 92 has an elongated shape in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the film 32, and one slit-shaped ejection port 88 is formed. Nozzle 9 of this embodiment
Also in No. 2, the processing liquid supplied to the inside of the nozzle plate 80 is adapted to be jetted at right angles to the emulsion surface of the film 32.

In this embodiment, the nozzle 92 and the nozzle 92 are
Since the communication space 94 that communicates with the escape 90 is provided between the nozzle 92 and the small diameter roller 34B,
The flow resistance when the processing liquid is discharged to the outside of the processing rack 30 can be further reduced as compared with the first embodiment.

In this embodiment, the three nozzles 92 are provided between the small diameter roller 34B and the small diameter roller 34B.
The number of nozzles 92 provided between the small diameter rollers 34B and the small diameter rollers 34B is not limited to this.

Further, the nozzle 92 may be shortened toward the plate portion 84 side as shown in FIG. 10 or may be shortened toward the tip end as shown in FIG.

Further, the nozzle 92 may be shorter than the width of the plate portion 84 as shown in FIG. However, in this case, it is preferable that the nozzles 92 are arranged in a zigzag pattern so that the ejected processing liquid hits the width direction of the film 32 as uniformly as possible.

Here, as shown in FIG. 12 and FIG.
The total length (L1 + L2 + ... + Ln) in the direction along the film transport direction projected on the side plate 40 (not shown in FIGS. 12 and 13) of each nozzle 92 is the small diameter roller 3.
It is preferable that it is smaller than 90% of the dimension L0 between 4B in order to allow the liquid to escape. Further, as shown in FIG.
The length L1 projected on the side plate 40 (not shown in FIG. 14) of No. 6 in the direction along the film transport direction is smaller than the small diameter roller 34.
It is preferable that it is smaller than the dimension L0 between B in order to allow the liquid to escape.

When the distance from the jet port 88 to the film 32 is set to be 8 mm or less, the nozzle 92 is formed in a convex shape in this manner in order to quickly release the liquid from the photosensitive material conveying path. , The plate portion 84 and the film 32
It is preferable to secure a sufficiently large flow path between the and.

As shown in the second embodiment, if the number of nozzles provided in one nozzle is reduced and the length of the nozzle along the film transport direction is shortened, the stirring effect of the processing liquid is enhanced. Very preferable. In particular, it is preferable that the length of the nozzle in the direction along the film transport direction is 10 mm or less because the stirring effect becomes large.

The shape of the ejection port 88 does not necessarily have to be a slit shape, and may be a round shape as shown in FIG. However, in this case, in order that the jetted processing liquid may hit the width direction of the film 32 as uniformly as possible,
It is preferable to provide a plurality of spaces at a narrow interval.

Further, if the processing liquid ejected from the ejection port 88 uniformly hits the width direction of the film 32, the ejection port 8
The longitudinal direction of 8 may be inclined with respect to the width direction of the film 32.

In the present embodiment, the example in which the present invention is applied to the film processor is shown, but it is needless to say that the present invention can be applied to other types of photosensitive material processing apparatuses.

The automatic developing device having the nozzle plate shown in the first embodiment (see FIG. 4 etc.) and the automatic developing device having the nozzle plate shown in the second embodiment (see FIG. 8 etc.) are provided. The prototypes were compared and the stirring in the developing process was compared. However, in the automatic developing device of the first embodiment provided with the flat nozzle, when the circulating amount of the processing liquid is 12 liters / minute, the gradation required for the film is obtained. However, in the automatic developing device of the second embodiment having the elongated nozzle, the same performance could be obtained with the circulating amount of the processing liquid of 9 liters / minute. From this,
In the automatic developing device provided with the elongated nozzle shown in the second embodiment, a small circulation pump can be used because the circulation amount is small, so that the device can be downsized, the cost can be reduced, and the power consumption can be reduced. it can.

[0062]

As described above, since the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the first aspect has the above-mentioned structure, the liquid sprayed on the photosensitive material is quickly released, and the liquid near the surface of the photosensitive material can be quickly replaced. It has an excellent effect that it can be performed. Further, the treatment liquid is well agitated, and proper treatment can be rapidly performed.

According to the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the second aspect,
A large number of nozzles can be easily arranged in the processing tank,
In addition, it becomes easy to process a pipe or the like connected to the nozzle.

In the photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 3,
It has an excellent effect of being able to prevent uneven processing.

The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to the fourth aspect has an excellent effect that the stirring effect of the processing liquid can be enhanced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a processing unit of an automatic developing device to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of a processing rack.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a nozzle plate.

FIG. 4 is a front view of a processing rack.

FIG. 5 is a horizontal sectional view of a processing rack.

FIG. 6 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of a processing rack according to another embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a nozzle plate according to another embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a front view of the processing rack according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a nozzle plate according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a nozzle plate according to another embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a nozzle plate according to another embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a front view of a nozzle plate for explaining the optimum arrangement of nozzles.

FIG. 13 is a front view of a nozzle plate for explaining the optimal arrangement of nozzles.

FIG. 14 is a front view of a nozzle plate for explaining the optimum arrangement of nozzles.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a nozzle plate according to another embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a horizontal sectional view of a processing rack according to another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Automatic Developing Device (Photosensitive Material Processing Device) 18 Developing Tank (Processing Tank) 22 Bleaching Fixing Tank (Processing Tank) 24 Water Washing Tank (Processing Tank) 26 Water Washing Tank (Processing Tank) 28 Water Washing Tank (Processing Tank) 32 Film (Photosensitive) Material 34 Transport roller 36 Reversing transport roller 40 Side plate (supporting member) 86 Nozzle 88 Jet outlet 90 Escape (communication part) 92 Nozzle 94 Communication space

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A photosensitive material processing device for processing a photosensitive material with a processing liquid in a processing tank while transporting the photosensitive material, comprising a pair of support members provided in the processing tank and facing each other at a predetermined interval. A conveying means disposed between the pair of supporting members for conveying the photosensitive material, and provided so as to face the emulsion surface of the photosensitive material conveyed by the conveying means, and projecting convexly toward the emulsion surface. A nozzle having a jet port at the tip for jetting the liquid toward the emulsion surface, and a communicating portion provided near the jet port of the support member and communicating the inside and the outside of the support member. Photosensitive material processing device. 2. The photosensitive material according to claim 1, wherein a substantially U-shaped photosensitive material transportation path is formed by the transportation means, and the nozzle is provided on the wall surface side of the processing tank. Processing equipment. 3. A plurality of ejection ports formed in the nozzle in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material are formed at a predetermined interval along the conveyance direction. The photosensitive material processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2. 4. A plurality of nozzles, which are elongated in a direction intersecting the transport direction of the photosensitive material, are provided at predetermined intervals along the transport direction, and the nozzles communicate with the communicating portion. 4. The photosensitive material processing device according to claim 1, wherein a communication space is provided.