JPH0957171A - Applicator for cylindrical base material and coating method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the variation in the thickness of a photosensitive film applied onto a cylindrical base material, to improve the application and drying properties of coating liquid applied onto the cylindrical base material, and to obtain a uniform dried film free from unevenness and defects. SOLUTION: An apparatus in which a group of cylindrical base materials which are piled with the cylinder shafts of the base materials made coincided vertically are installed on a fixed base 45, the peripheral surface of the group is made to penetrate inside an annular inside diameter part having the coating liquid discharge opening of an annular application means 20, and coating liquid is applied continuously on the peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material while the application means 20 being brought down vertically is equipped integrally with a drying means 30 composed of a drying adjuster 31 for adjusting the evaporation and drying of the coating liquid applied on the cylindrical base material and a drier 32 for drying the coating liquid forcibly.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vertical type annular coating apparatus and method for continuously coating a coating liquid on the outer peripheral surface of a plurality of cylindrical substrates, and more particularly to supplying, conveying, and transporting the cylindrical substrates. The present invention relates to a continuous coating device and method for positioning, coating, and then drying.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various methods such as spray coating, dip coating, blade coating, roll coating, etc. are used in connection with thin and uniform coating on the outer surface of a cylindrical substrate having a continuous surface formed endlessly. Methods are being considered. In particular, a thin and uniform coating such as an electrophotographic photosensitive drum is being studied to develop a coating apparatus having excellent productivity. However, the conventional coating apparatus and coating method for a cylindrical substrate having a continuous surface formed endlessly have disadvantages such as a failure to obtain a uniform coating film and poor productivity.

In the spray coating method, the solvent evaporates before the coating droplet ejected from the spray gun reaches the outer peripheral surface of the endlessly formed cylindrical substrate having a continuous surface. When the solid concentration increased, and the viscosity of the applied droplets increased accordingly, and the droplets reached the surface, the droplets did not spread sufficiently on the surface, or dried and solidified. Since the particles adhere to the surface, a product having good smoothness on the coated surface cannot be obtained. Also,
The arrival rate of droplets on the cylindrical substrate having the continuous surface is 100
%, There is a loss of the coating liquid, and there is partial non-uniformity, so it is very difficult to control the film thickness. Furthermore, since a polymer solution or the like may cause stringing, there are restrictions on the solvent and resin used.

In the blade coating method and the roll coating method, for example, a blade or a roll is arranged in the longitudinal direction of a cylindrical substrate, the cylindrical substrate is rotated to perform coating, and the cylindrical substrate is rotated once. , Blades or rolls are retracted. However, when the blade or the roll is retracted, there is a disadvantage that a portion of the coating film thickness is thicker than other portions due to the viscosity of the coating solution, and a uniform coating film cannot be obtained.

[0005] The dip coating method improves the above-mentioned problems of poor surface smoothness of the coating solution and uniformity of the coating film.

However, the control of the coating film thickness is governed by the properties of the coating liquid, such as viscosity, surface tension, density, temperature, etc., and the coating speed, and the adjustment of the physical properties of the coating liquid is very important. In addition, the coating speed is low, and a certain amount or more of liquid is required to fill the coating liquid tank. Further, when layers are formed, there is a disadvantage that the lower layer components are dissolved and the coating solution tank is easily contaminated.

[0007] Therefore, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 58-189061, a circular amount-regulated type coating apparatus (including a slide hopper type coating apparatus) has been developed. This slide hopper type coating apparatus surrounds the periphery of the cylindrical base material while continuously moving the cylindrical base material having a continuous peripheral surface formed endlessly in the longitudinal direction thereof, with respect to the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material. The coating apparatus is for applying a coating liquid. The coating apparatus further includes an annular coating liquid storage chamber, a supply port for supplying a coating liquid from outside to a part of the coating liquid storage chamber, and the coating liquid storage chamber. Having a coating liquid distribution slit that opens inward, and allows the coating liquid flowing out of this slit to flow down onto a coating liquid slide surface that is inclined obliquely downward,
A bead is formed at a small gap between the hopper application surface at the lower end of the application liquid slide surface and the cylindrical substrate, and the outer peripheral surface is applied as the cylindrical substrate moves. By using this slide hopper type coating apparatus, coating can be performed with a small amount of liquid, the coating liquid is not contaminated, and the coating with high productivity and easy control of the film thickness can be performed.

[0008]

However, the use of the slide hopper type coating apparatus still has various problems and is not yet satisfactory.

The present invention has been proposed in order to solve the various problems of the prior art, and its object is to (a) prevent bead breakage due to the coating liquid used.

(B) There are no coating defects such as coating unevenness and film thickness variation, and coating properties are improved.

(C) The gripping and conveying performance of the cylindrical base material is improved, and stable coating can be performed for a long period of time.

(D) The gripping and conveying performance of the cylindrical base material is stabilized, and the deformation and damage of the cylindrical base material are prevented.

(E) The productivity is improved by making the production process of supplying, transporting, positioning, coating, drying and unloading the cylindrical base material continuous and stable.

(F) By continuously and completely automating the above steps, foreign matter such as dust and dirt is prevented from entering, and a high quality product is obtained.

(G) A continuous coating device is achieved which does not affect the image formation on the completed photosensitive drum even if vibration is generated in the cylindrical substrate.

(H) Even if vibrations occur in the cylindrical base material, the vibrations are not concentrated at the same position but dispersed so that they are prevented from being superposed and becoming large vibrations.

An object of the present invention is to provide an excellent coating apparatus and coating method that achieve the effects described above.

[0018]

The above-mentioned object is to install a cylindrical base material group, which is obtained by stacking a plurality of cylindrical base materials with their cylinder axes vertically aligned, on a fixed base. The inner peripheral surface of the annular coating means is penetrated inward of the annular inner diameter portion having the coating solution discharge port, and while the annular coating means is vertically lowered, the coating solution is continuously applied on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material. In a coating device for a cylindrical base material to be applied selectively, a drying means comprising a drying controller for adjusting the evaporation and drying of the coating liquid applied on the cylindrical base material and a dryer for forcibly drying the coating liquid is provided. This is achieved by a coating device for a cylindrical substrate, which is provided integrally.

Further, the above object is to install a cylindrical base material group in which the cylindrical axes of a plurality of cylindrical base materials are vertically aligned with each other on a fixed base, and to form an annular outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material group. Penetrating inward of the annular inner diameter portion having the coating liquid discharge port of the coating means,
A method of coating a cylindrical base material, wherein the coating solution is continuously applied onto the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material while lowering the annular coating means in the vertical direction. The coating of a cylindrical base material, characterized by applying and drying by a coating means integrally provided with a drying means for adjusting the evaporation and drying of the coating solution and a dryer for forcedly drying the coating solution. Achieved by the method.

[0020]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a front view showing the overall construction of a cylindrical substrate coating apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the main parts of the cylindrical substrate coating apparatus.

A set of apparatus bodies 1 facing each other and standing upright
Ball screws 11A and 11B supported in the vertical direction are provided inside 0A and 10B, respectively. Each of the ball screws 11A and 11B is a drive motor 12 respectively.
A and 12B rotate forward and backward. Each ball screw 11
The elevating member 13, which is screwed into the A and 11B, moves up and down in a straight line by the forward and reverse rotations of the ball screws 11A and 11B. The elevating member 13 is integrally provided with an annular coating means 20 having an annular coating liquid discharge port in its inner diameter portion, and a drying means 30 provided above the annular coating means 20. The drying means 30 comprises a drying controller 31 for adjusting the evaporation and drying of the coating liquid applied on the cylindrical substrate 1 and a dryer (ring type suction dryer) 32 for forcedly drying the coating liquid. It is equipped with.

A positioning means (not shown) may be integrally fixed below the annular coating means 20. The positioning means is held by the elevating member 13.
The positioning means is a device that accurately holds the cylindrical base material 1 at a predetermined position, and is constituted by, for example, an air bearing or the like, and holds the cylindrical base material 1 in a non-contact manner.

A plurality of cylindrical substrates, for example, the lowermost cylindrical substrate 1G of the seven cylindrical substrates is vertically stacked on the lower spacer drum 41 so as not to have a step with each other in advance, and the uppermost substrate is formed. An upper spacer drum 42 is installed above the cylindrical substrate 1A. Lower spacer drum 4
The lower grip member 43 is gripped from the outside by a lower grip member 43 and is fixed at a predetermined position. The upper spacer drum 42 is grasped from the outside by an upper grasping member 44 and fixed at a predetermined position. Reference numeral 45 denotes a fixed base on which the lower spacer drum 41 is placed at a predetermined position. The fixed base 45 has a mechanism for sequentially pushing up the cylindrical base material group after coating and drying, and the uppermost cylindrical shape by a separating means (not shown). The base material 1A may be sequentially separated and carried out, and transferred to the storage chamber, the drying chamber, or the next step by the discharge robot.

The annular coating means 20 is a cylindrical substrate 1 (1A-
The coating liquid is uniformly applied onto the outer peripheral surface of 1G), and when the elevating member 13 descends at a predetermined speed, a coating film is sequentially formed on the cylindrical substrate 1 (1A to 1G).
At the same time, the coating film is dried by the drying adjuster 31 and the dryer 32 which are integrated with the annular coating means 20. During this period, the cylindrical base material group does not move, so that coating unevenness due to vibration does not occur.

The coating apparatus of the present invention has a construction in which the above-mentioned means are continuously arranged on the vertical center line ZZ, and fully automated production requiring no human labor is achieved with high accuracy.

The above annular coating means 20 and drying means 30
Details of will be described later.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing a coating apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the same reference numerals are given to the parts having the same functions as those in the first embodiment. Further, the points different from the above embodiment will be described. In the second embodiment, the drying controller 31 and the dryer (ring type suction dryer) are provided above the annular coating means 20 provided on the elevating member 13.
32 and a second dryer (ring type heating dryer) 33 are integrally provided with a drying means 30. An air bearing type positioning means 50 is also integrally provided under the annular coating means 20. These annular coating means 2
0, the drying means 30, and the positioning means 50 are united with the elevating member 13 and are vertically driven along the ball screws 11A and 11B.

A supply means 60 is provided below the apparatus main bodies 10A and 10B. The supply means 60 has a rotary table 62 on which a plurality of holding members 61 for mounting the cylindrical base material are arranged, and the rotary table 62 is controlled to rotate to directly below the vertical center line ZZ of the coating means 20. Driving means 63 for feeding the cylindrical base material, and the holding member 6
Of the plurality of cylindrical base materials held by 1, the cylindrical base material immediately below the vertical center line ZZ is configured to be sequentially pushed upward by a pushing-up means 64 and the like. The cylindrical handle is supplied to the holding member 61 on the rotary table 62 by a robot handle.

On the other hand, the separating and discharging means 70 is arranged at the uppermost part of the vertical center line ZZ of the apparatus main bodies 10A and 10B. The separating / discharging means 70 holds the inner diameter portions from the uppermost portions of the plurality of stacked cylindrical base materials which have been coated and dried and conveyed vertically upward, and separates them to take them out one by one to the outside of the apparatus main body. It is a device for discharging.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing the positioning means 50 and the annular coating means 20, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the annular coating means 20.

As shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of cylindrical base materials 1A and 1B (hereinafter, referred to as cylindrical base material 1) vertically stacked along the center line ZZ are continuously stacked and the periphery thereof is stacked. The slide hopper type annular coating means 20 is vertically driven to be lowered with respect to the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical substrate 1, and the coating liquid (photosensitive liquid) L is supplied by the hopper coating surface 21 which is a portion directly related to coating. Apply. The cylindrical substrate 1 may be a hollow drum, for example, an aluminum drum, a plastic drum, or a seamless belt type substrate. On the hopper coating surface 21, a narrow coating liquid distribution slit (abbreviated as slit) 23 having a coating liquid outlet 22 opening to the side of the cylindrical substrate 1 is formed in the horizontal direction. The slit 23 communicates with an annular coating liquid distribution chamber (coating liquid reservoir chamber) 24, and the annular coating liquid distribution chamber 2
4, the coating liquid L in the storage tank 2 is supplied by the pressure feed pump 3 via the supply pipe 4. On the other hand, below the coating liquid outlet 22 of the slit 23, a coating liquid slide formed so as to continuously incline downward and terminate at a dimension slightly larger than the outer diameter dimension of the cylindrical substrate 1. A surface (hereinafter referred to as a slide surface) 25 is formed. Further, the lip portion 2 extending downward from the end of the slide surface 25.
6 are formed. In the application by the annular application means 20, the cylindrical base material 1 is fixed and the annular application means 2 is applied.
When the coating liquid L is pushed out from the slit 23 and made to flow down along the slide surface 25 in the process of lowering 0, the coating liquid reaching the end of the slide surface 25 will move to the slide surface 25.
After forming a bead between the end of the cylindrical base material and the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material 1, it is applied to the surface of the cylindrical base material 1. Slide surface 2
Since the end of 5 and the cylindrical base material 1 are arranged with a certain gap, the cylindrical base material 1 is not damaged, and even when forming multiple layers having different properties, the already applied layer is Can be applied without damage.

On the other hand, at a position farthest from the coating liquid supply portion of the pressure feed pump 3, a part of the coating liquid distribution chamber 24 is
An air vent member 26 for removing bubbles in the coating liquid distribution chamber 24 is provided. When the coating liquid L in the storage tank 2 is supplied to the coating liquid distribution chamber 24 and supplied from the coating liquid distribution slit 23 to the coating liquid outlet 22, the opening / closing valve 27 is opened and the coating liquid distribution chamber 24 is opened by the air bleeding member 28. Exhaust the air inside.

Positioning means 50 for positioning the cylindrical substrate in the circumferential direction is fixed to the lower part of the annular coating means 20. A plurality of air supply ports 52 and a plurality of exhaust ports 53 are formed in the main body 51 of the positioning means 50 for the cylindrical substrate 1. The plurality of air supply ports 52 are connected to an air supply pump (not shown), and a fluid such as air is pressure-fed. A discharge port 54 penetrates through the one end of the air supply port 52 that faces the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical substrate 1. The discharge port 54 faces the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical substrate 1 with a predetermined gap. The gap is 20 μm to 3 mm, preferably 30 μm
~ 2 mm. If this gap is smaller than 20 μm, the cylindrical base material 1 is likely to be damaged by contacting the inner wall of the main body 51 with a slight swing of the cylindrical base material 1. Further, if the gap is larger than 3 mm, the positioning accuracy of the cylindrical substrate 1 is reduced. The discharge port 54 is a small diameter nozzle having a diameter of 0.01 to 1.0 mm, preferably 0.05 to 0.5 mm.

The inner peripheral surface of the lower part of the inner wall of the main body 51 is a tapered surface 55 that widens on the inlet side. The tapered surface 55 is, for example, a conical surface having an axial length of 50 mm and a one-sided inclination angle of 0.5 mm. This taper surface 5
By providing 5, the front end of the cylindrical base material 1 is prevented from coming into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the inner wall when the cylindrical base material 1 enters the inner wall of the main body 51.

The fluid pumped from the air supply pump is introduced into the main body 51 through the plurality of air supply ports 52 and discharged through the plurality of discharge ports 54, and the cylindrical substrate 1A (1
A uniform fluid film layer is formed on the outer peripheral surface of B). The discharged fluid is discharged to the outside of the apparatus through the plurality of exhaust ports 53.

The opening diameter of the discharge port 54 is 0.01-1.
mm, preferably 0.05-0.5 mm, for example 0.2
It is formed in a circular shape of about 0.5 mm. The opening diameter of the exhaust port 53 is 1.0 to 10 mm, preferably 2.0 to 8.0.
mm, for example, 3 to 5 mm.

The fluid supplied to the air supply port 53 is preferably air or an inert gas such as nitrogen gas. The fluid is preferably a clean gas of class 100 or more according to JIS.

As the annular coating device connected to the positioning means 50, a slide hopper type, an extrusion type,
Various devices such as a ring coater are used.

Above the annular coating means 20, there is provided a drying means 30 comprising a drying conditioner (drying hood) 31 and a drying machine (for example, a ring type suction dryer) 32 (Example 1). Further, in the second embodiment, a drying conditioner (drying hood) 31 and a drier (for example, a ring suction drier) 32
And a second dryer (ring-type heating dryer) 33 are provided. The second dryer 33 has a ring-shaped heater built therein and heats the coating liquid applied to the surface of the cylindrical substrate 1 to evaporate and dry it.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the annular coating means 20 and the drying hood 31 provided on the coating means 20. The dry hood 31 has an annular wall surface, and a large number of openings 31A are formed in the wall surface. The annular coating means 20 is lowered in the direction of the arrow, and the hopper coating surface (coating head) 21 of the coating means 20 coats the coating liquid to form the photosensitive layer 5. The photosensitive layer 5 formed on the cylindrical substrate 1 is gradually dried while passing through the drying hood 31. This drying is performed by letting the vapor of the solvent contained in the coating liquid out of the wall surface through the large number of openings 31A.
As described above, the photosensitive layer 5 formed by coating the coating liquid on the cylindrical substrate 1 by the coating means 20 is surrounded by the dry hood 31 immediately after coating,
Since the solvent is released only from the opening 31A, the drying speed of the photosensitive layer 5 immediately after coating is almost proportional to the opening area of the opening 31A.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing another embodiment of the drying hood and the annular coating means 20. The drying hood 34 is formed by extending the upper portion of the drying hood 31 shown in FIG. 6 to form a portion A and a portion B. A plurality of openings 34A are formed in the A portion, and a plurality of openings 34B are formed in the B portion. The dry hood 34 is applied to the annular coating means 20.
The solvent vapor concentration of the coating liquid L applied on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material 1 is controlled by being provided on the upper part of the. Therefore, by controlling the coating film drying speed, it is possible to make the coating film uniform. Further, by providing the drying hood 34 as described above, the concentration of the solvent vapor in the bead portion is increased, so that rapid drying is prevented and bead breakage can be prevented.

FIG. 8 shows a sectional view of the dryer 32 of the present invention. The dryer 32 includes a suction slit member 32, a suction chamber 322, and a suction slit member 3 having a suction nozzle 323.
A tubular member 325 is concentrically connected to the lower portion of 24 and a tubular member 326 is concentrically connected to the upper portion thereof.

A plurality of suction nozzles 323 are provided.
Suction chamber 32 that suctions from the inside and is uniform in the circumferential direction
2. Suction air uniformed in the circumferential direction by the circumferentially uniform suction slit 321 flows, and further, the suction slit member 324, each inner diameter surface of the upper and lower cylindrical members 326 and 325, and the coated cylindrical base. The turbulence of the air flow between the outer peripheral surface of the material 1 is suppressed very slightly in the buffer space 327,
An air flow of uniform suction air for drying shown in 328 is created.

The coated film is dried by transporting the coated cylindrical substrate 1 to the drying zone in the direction indicated by the arrow.

Next, as another embodiment of the drying means 30,
The forced exhaust dryer 36 shown in FIG. 9 will be described.
As described above, the annular coating means 20 is attached to the cylindrical substrates 1A and 1B.
Then, the coating liquid (photosensitive liquid) L is applied to form the photosensitive layer 5. The forced exhaust drier 36 sucks the solvent that evaporates from the photosensitive layer 5 immediately after coating and further dries,
It is provided directly above the annular coating means 20. 361
Is a suction duct formed in an annular shape, and the suction duct 361
A suction port 362 is formed further toward the photosensitive layer 5. An exhaust pipe 363 is connected to a part of the suction duct 361, and a solvent evaporating from the photosensitive layer 5 is sucked by an exhaust fan 364 provided in the exhaust pipe 363, forcibly discharged to the outside and dried. . Immediately after the photosensitive solution L is applied by the annular applying means 20 as described above, a large amount of the photosensitive solution L applied to the cylindrical substrates 1A and 1B flows down in order to exhaust the solvent vapor generated from the photosensitive solution L. Can be stopped. At that time, it is preferable that the exhaust air velocity by the exhaust fan 364 is 0.5 to 5 m / sec, and the suction port 362 is 300 mm or less from the position of the coating head 21. Then, the cylindrical substrates 1A and 1B are kept in a connected state until the solvent in the photosensitive liquid L is evaporated by 30% or more, and after separation, the photosensitive layer 5 is completely dried. By operating the forced exhaust dryer 36 as described above, even when a large number of cylindrical substrates 1 are connected and the photosensitive liquid L is applied, the solvent can be rapidly discharged from the vicinity of the photosensitive layer 5 and the photosensitive liquid L can be discharged.
It is also possible to forcibly control the flow-down of the coating film by the above method to prevent the above-mentioned thin film or liquid pool generated in the photosensitive layer 5. still,
The exhaust fan 364 may be provided at a plurality of locations in the suction duct 361.

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to specific examples, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

Example 1 As the conductive support (cylindrical base material) 1, a mirror-finished aluminum drum support having a diameter of 80 mm, a height of 355 mm, and 283 g was used. As the coating liquid L, the UCL-1 coating liquid composition described below was used, and the dry film thickness was 3.0.
It was applied to a thickness of μm.

UCL-1 coating liquid composition (4.0 W / V
% Polymer concentration) Copolymerized nylon resin (CM-8000, manufactured by Toray Industries, Inc.) Methanol / n-butanol = 10/1 (Vol ratio) The coating device is shown in FIG.

Seven cylindrical substrates (1A to 1G) are stacked in advance on the lower spacer drum 41 so that there is no step, and an upper spacer drum 42 is installed on the upper portion. The lower and upper spacer drums 41, 42 are gripped from the outside to fix the cylindrical substrate 1. The drying means 30 including the ring-type suction dryer 32 and the drying hood 31 and the coater form one set, and are applied and dried while descending downward from above. During this period, the drum does not move, so that uneven coating due to vibration does not occur.

In the first embodiment, the A-1 type (total length 100 mm, hole diameter 3.4 mm) dry hood 3 shown in FIG. 6 is used.
1 and B-1 type shown in FIG. 8 (total length 600 mm)
A ring suction dryer 32 was used. As a comparative example, application and drying were performed without using the drying means 30 including the drying adjuster 31 and the drier 32 of the present invention. The results are shown in Table 1.

[0052]

[Table 1]

As shown in Table 1, there was no coating film defect such as film thickness unevenness or liquid sagging, and a coated cylindrical substrate having good coatability was obtained.

Example 2 As the cylindrical substrate 1, an aluminum drum support having a diameter of 80 mm, a height of 355 mm, and 283 g, which was mirror-finished, was used. As the coating liquid L, coating liquid compositions UCL-1, CGL-2 and CTL-1 were prepared as described below, and each layer was dried by a slide hopper-type annular coating means 20 according to the coating apparatus shown in FIG. 0.8 μm,
Sequential multilayer coating of three layers and drying were performed so as to have a thickness of 2.1 μm and 23 μm. Reference numeral 60 represents a supply means. The cylindrical base material 1 is placed at the position of the cylindrical base material 1H on the rotary table 62 from the cylindrical base material storage chamber by a supply robot (not shown). The cylindrical substrate 1H reaches the position of 1G by the rotation of the rotary table 62. At this time, the pushing-up means 6
4 pushes up the cylindrical base material 1G from the lower side to the upper side, and is supplied to the position of the transport hand of the lower grip member 43. Preferably, when the pushing-up by the pushing-up means 64 is completed, the cushioning mechanism acts to eliminate the shock at the time of joining the upper and lower cylindrical substrates 1F and 1G. In this way, the cylindrical substrate 1G is carried to the cylindrical substrate 1F. In this way, as shown in FIG. 3, seven cylindrical substrates are stacked without any step.

The drying means 30 comprising the ring type heating / drying device 33, the ring type suction / drying device 32, and the drying hood 31 and the coater form one set, and are coated and dried while descending from above to below. It Reference numeral 20 is a coater, that is, a vertical annular coating means, and any type of coating is possible as long as cylindrical base materials such as slide hopper type extrusion type ring coater type spray coater type are stacked and relatively moved upward or downward. Although it does not matter, a slide hopper type coater is preferable because it is possible to obtain a highly reliable continuous stable coating, for example, JP-A-58-18.
9061. The cylindrical base material accurately positioned in this manner is applied by the vertical annular applying means 20.

The coated and dried cylindrical substrate is discharged by the separating and discharging means 70 located above. As the separating means 70, the one described in detail in JP-A-7-43917 is preferable. Another example is JP-A-61-120.
Nos. 662 and 61-120664 are also good. The separated cylindrical substrate is transferred to the main drying chamber, the storage chamber, or the next step by the discharge robot.

As a comparative example, coating and drying were carried out without using the dryer of the present invention and the drying controller. The drying hood and suction ring type dryer used are the same as in Example 1. Table 2 shows the results.

[0058]

[Table 2]

UCL-1 coating liquid composition (4.0 W / V% polymer concentration) Copolymer nylon resin (CM-8000 Toray Co.) Methanol / n-butanol = 10/1 (Vol ratio) CGL-2 coating liquid Composition Perylene pigment (CGM-2) 150 g Butyral resin (S-REC BX-L Sekisui Chemical Co., Ltd.) 75 g Methyl ethyl ketone 8 l The above coating liquid composition (solid content weight ratio CG for solid content)
(M-2: BX-L = fixed at 2: 1) dispersed using Sansamil for 20 hours.

CTL-1 coating liquid composition CTM-1 5 kg Polycarbonate (Z-200 manufactured by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co., Inc.) 5.6 kg 1,2-dichloroethane 28 l Solid content weight ratio CTM-1: Z-200 for solid content.
= 0.89: 1 fixed

[0061]

Embedded image

[0062]

Embedded image

As shown in Table 2, there were no coating defects such as coating unevenness, film thickness unevenness, color unevenness, liquid sag, and color flow, and a coating drum having good coatability was obtained.

The obtained photoreceptor No. 2-1 was actually photographed with a U-MIX 3035 copying machine manufactured by Konica Corporation, and image defects (black spots, black spots, etc.) caused by uneven shading, fog unevenness, dust, etc.
A good image was obtained without white spots, dust, streaks, etc. The image unevenness was not seriously evaluated for the comparative photoconductor.

[0065]

According to the continuous coating apparatus of the first aspect of the invention and the continuous coating method of the second aspect of the invention, the means for supplying, gripping, conveying, positioning, coating, drying and separating and discharging the cylindrical substrate are continuously connected. By arranging, it is also possible to continuously process each step of the above means, the coating film formed on the cylindrical substrate is uniform, coating unevenness and coating defects without coating defects Good, high gripping and conveying performance of cylindrical base material, long-term stable coating, reliable holding without deformation or damage of cylindrical base material, continuous stable production possible, productivity improved In addition, since continuous and completely automated processing has been achieved, high quality products can be obtained without the inclusion of foreign matter such as dust and dirt.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing the overall configuration of a coating apparatus as an embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main part of the coating device.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing another embodiment of the coating apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a positioning unit and a coating unit.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the application unit.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the application unit and a drying hood.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing another embodiment of the drying hood.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a ring suction dryer.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of a forced-exhaust dryer as another embodiment of the drying means.

[Explanation of symbols]

1, 1A to 1H Cylindrical substrate (cylindrical drum, conductive support) 5 Photosensitive layer 10A, 10B Device body 11A, 11B Ball screw 13 Elevating member 20 Annular coating means (coater) 30 Drying means 31, 34 Drying adjustment Dryer (drying hood) 32, 35 Dryer (ring-type suction dryer) 33 Second dryer (ring-type heating dryer) 36 Forced exhaust dryer 41 Lower spacer drum 42 Upper spacer drum 43 Lower gripping member 44 Upper grip Member 50 Positioning means 60 Supplying means 61 Holding member 62 Rotating table 64 Pushing up means 70 Separating and discharging means L Coating liquid (photosensitive liquid)

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A cylindrical base material group obtained by stacking a plurality of cylindrical base materials by aligning the cylinder axes of the plurality of cylindrical base materials in the vertical direction is set on a fixed base,
The outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material is penetrated inwardly of the annular inner diameter portion having the coating solution discharge port of the annular coating means, and the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material is lowered vertically in the annular coating means. A coating device for a cylindrical base material that continuously coats a coating liquid on the top, a drying controller that adjusts evaporation drying of the coating liquid coated on the cylindrical base material, and a dryer that forcibly dries the coating liquid. An apparatus for coating a cylindrical substrate, characterized in that a drying means consisting of (1) and (2) is integrally provided. 2. The apparatus for coating a cylindrical substrate according to claim 1, wherein the annular coating means is a slide hopper type coating apparatus. 3. The dryer according to claim 1, wherein the dryer is a ring suction dryer and a ring heating dryer.
A coating device for a cylindrical substrate as described. 4. A cylindrical base material group, which is obtained by stacking a plurality of cylindrical base materials by aligning the cylinder axes of the cylindrical base materials in the vertical direction, is set on a fixed base,
The outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material is penetrated inwardly of the annular inner diameter portion having the coating liquid discharge port of the annular coating means, and the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical base material is lowered vertically in the annular coating means. A method for coating a cylindrical base material, wherein a coating liquid is continuously applied onto the coating liquid, wherein a drying controller for adjusting evaporation and drying of the coating liquid applied on the cylindrical base material and forced drying of the coating liquid. A coating method for a cylindrical base material, which comprises coating and drying by a coating means integrally provided with a drying means.