JPH10260597A - Fixing device for wet system electrophotographic plate making device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fixing device for a wet system electrophotographic plate making device possible of producing at a low cost with a simple structure, reducing the maintenance, and preventing the soiling on a plate. SOLUTION: Prior to heat fixing of an electrophotographic photoreceptive material, by drying the electrophotographic photoreceptive material P by warm air blowing out from the warm air outlet 51, and then making the material traveling while fully butting on a heat carrier metallic blade 47a for heat-fixing. Though the heat carrier metallic blade 47a is heated to a specified temp. by a plate heater 47, since the electrophotographic photoreceptive material P is preliminarily dried, the excess liquid is prevented from being stuck on the heat carrier metallic blade 47a, and the soiling of the heat carrier metallic blade 47a and the transfer of soiling at the time of laminating electrophotograpic photoreceptive materials P can be prevented. Moreover, the need of isolating the fixing device 41 into an evaporating zone and the heating zone is eliminated, therefore simplification and miniaturization of the constitution of the wet system electrophotographic plate making device addopting this fixing device 41 can be realized.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wet electrophotographic plate making machine suitable for making an original plate for offset printing, for example, and more particularly to heating a wet-developed electrophotographic photosensitive material in a wet electrophotographic plate making machine. The present invention relates to a fixing device for fixing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. Sho 61-6862 discloses an example of a conventional wet electrophotographic plate making machine as a "plate making machine". Hereinafter, the outline of the "plate making machine" will be described. An original placed on a platen is irradiated with a light source, and reflected light is condensed into an electrophotographic photosensitive material (hereinafter referred to as a master paper). (Abbreviated as “abbreviated”), and the exposed master is wet-developed and then heat-fixed by a fixing device.

Various types of fixing devices have been proposed as described below. First, a first example of a conventional fixing device will be described with reference to FIG. 4. The fixing device 71 includes a plate-shaped plate heater 73 and a roller 75 a for bringing the master (not shown) into full contact with the plate heater 73. , 75b, an intake fan 77 for supplying fresh air, a roller pair 79a for conveying a master conveyed from the upstream side as shown by an arrow a into the fixing device 71, and a heat-fixed master. It is composed of a roller pair 79b for transporting to the next step.
4, the plate heater 73 covers the heater 81 with an insulating coating material 83 and attaches a metal plate 85 for a heat medium to an upper surface thereof with an adhesive 87.
The structure is integrated by bonding.

Next, the heat fixing operation of the master will be described. The master is wet-developed in a process preceding the fixing device 71, and is conveyed into the fixing device 71 by a pair of rollers 79a as shown by an arrow a. The master is pressed against the upper surface of the heat medium metal plate 85 by rollers 75a and 75b by soft touch, and is conveyed to the downstream side at high speed by the rotation of the rollers 79a and 79b. During this time, the entire surface of the master is in contact with the heat medium metal plate 85, so that the entire surface of the master is uniformly heated and heat-fixed. Then, the heat-fixed master is pulled out of the fixing device 71 by the action of the roller pair 79b, and is conveyed to the next step.

Next, a second example of a conventional fixing device will be described with reference to FIG. The fixing device 91 includes a master P by a pair of rollers 93a on the upstream side and a pair of rollers 93b on the downstream side.
Is heated and fixed by the radiant heat of the halogen lamps 95a and 95b while the nip is conveyed from the arrow a to the arrow b. The halogen lamps 95a and 95b are covered by the reflection plates 97a and 97b, and are designed so that radiant heat irradiates the master P efficiently.

[0006]

However, the fixing device 71 has the following problems. That is, the plate heater 75 has a configuration in which the heater 81 is covered with the insulating garment 83 and the heat medium metal plate 85 is adhered, and the master runs while contacting the heat medium metal plate 85.
Here, the master to be heated and fixed is wet because it is wet-developed. Therefore, when the heating and fixing are continuously repeated, the developing solution containing the toner adhered to the master is transferred to the heating medium metal plate 8.
5 and become dirty. If left unattended, dirt adheres to the back surface of the next master (the surface on the side of the support), and during accumulation, the dirt on the back surface is transferred to the surface of the lower master and the image becomes dirty. For this reason, frequent maintenance is required, and it cannot be used temporarily during maintenance, which is very inconvenient.

On the other hand, the fixing device 91 has a configuration in which an interval is set between the halogen lamps 95a and 95b and the master P, and the master P is heated by radiant heat generated from the halogen lamps 95a and 95b. Therefore, a plate heater is not required, and there is no problem associated with the plate heater. However, master P and halogen lamp 95
Since they are not in contact with a and 95b, the heating efficiency is poor. Moreover, since the master P is transported at a high speed,
In order to increase the heating efficiency, it is necessary to set a standard that can generate high heat. In this case, the halogen lamps 95a, 95
The surface of 5b is heated to a high temperature, and it is necessary to pay sufficient attention to ensuring safety, and it is necessary to take new measures.

Therefore, conventionally, an evaporation zone for evaporating the solvent contained in the developer has been provided between the fixing device and the wet developing section. However, in this configuration, since the evaporating zone and the fixing device are disposed separately from each other, if both are incorporated in one case, the plate making machine becomes large. A configuration in which the fixing device is mounted outside the case is also possible, but in this case, since the fixing device has a protruding portion outside the plate making machine, the entire plate making machine becomes large.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and has a simple structure and can reduce the production cost. Further, the present invention prevents the members constituting the heat fixing device and the electrophotographic photosensitive material from being stained. The present invention provides a wet electrophotographic plate making machine that can be used.

[0010]

The above objects of the present invention can be attained by the following means (1) and (2). (1) An electrophotographic photosensitive material is configured to sequentially perform an exposure process for exposing an image, a wet development process for developing a latent image formed by exposure, and a fixing process for fixing a developed image by heating. In the fixing device of the wet electrophotographic plate making machine, a metal plate for a heat medium for transporting the electrophotographic photosensitive material while contacting the support surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive material subjected to the wet development processing, and heating the metal plate for the heat medium A heat source, a hot air port for blowing the heat generated from the heat source to an upstream end of the heat medium metal plate to heat the electrophotographic photosensitive material prior to heating by the heat medium metal plate, and A fixing device for a wet electrophotographic plate making machine, comprising: blowing means for blowing generated heat to the hot air port. (2) A fixing device for a wet electrophotographic plate making machine according to (1), wherein a second heat source is provided separately from the heat source, and heat generated from the second heat source is sent to the hot air port. .

According to the wet electrophotographic plate making machine having the above structure,
Before the electrophotographic photosensitive material is heated and fixed by contacting the metal plate for a heat medium, the carrier solvent of the liquid toner is evaporated by the warm air blown out from the warm air port. Therefore, the excess liquid that has adhered to the electrophotographic photosensitive material does not adhere to the metal plate for a heat medium, and maintenance for maintaining the metal plate for a heat medium clean is reduced. In addition, even when the heat-fixed electrophotographic photosensitive materials are overlapped, for example, the stain on the upper electrophotographic photosensitive material does not adhere to the surface of the lower electrophotographic photosensitive material, and the stain on the electrophotographic photosensitive material is also prevented. Is prevented.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a first embodiment of a fixing device (hereinafter simply referred to as a fixing device) of a wet electrophotographic plate making machine according to the present invention will be described in detail. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional structure diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of a fixing device to which the present invention is applied, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional structure diagram illustrating the configuration of a wet electronic plate making machine having the fixing device. In the description of this embodiment, first, the overall configuration and operation of the wet electrophotographic plate making machine will be described, and then the configuration and operation of the fixing device will be described.

First, the configuration and the like of a wet electrophotographic plate making machine 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as a plate making machine) will be described with reference to FIG. The master P is held as a roll or a sheet in the preset section 3 shown at the upper right of FIG. When performing plate making, the master P is transported to the charging unit 9 by the feed rollers 5 and 7, and is uniformly charged by corona discharge in the charging unit 9. The charged master P is conveyed to the exposure unit 15 by the pickup roller 11 and the feed belt 13.

On the other hand, the plate making machine 1 is provided with a projection optical system 21 for exposing an image of a document to the master P conveyed to the exposure section 15. Projection optical system 21 is original 23
And a light source 25 for irradiating the original 23, and a reflecting mirror 27 for reflecting light reflected from the original 23 to the exposure unit 15. As the exposure apparatus, a laser exposure method can be employed in addition to the projection exposure method shown in FIG. When the master P is conveyed to the exposure unit 15, the projection optical system 21 operates in synchronization with the conveyance, and the image of the document 23 is image-exposed on the master P. Image exposed master P
Is transported to the liquid toner developing unit 31 by the roller 29.

The liquid toner developing section 31 has a liquid toner tank 33. Then, when the image-exposed master P is conveyed, the developing process is performed by the liquid toner supplied from the tank 33. The developed master P is transported to the fixing device 41 by the rollers 35 and 37. The fixing device 41 heats the master P to fix an image, and its configuration and the like will be described later in detail with reference to FIG. The heat-fixed master P is collected as a printing plate on the collecting section 39 by the roller 57.

Next, the configuration and operation of the fixing device 41 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. The fixing device 41
An intake fan 45 is provided on the upper portion of the case 43, and a plate heater 47 for heating the master P in the case 43, and a surface of a heat medium metal plate 47a formed on the upper surface of the plate heater 47 by soft touch. It is composed of press rollers 49a and 49b which are conveyed while being pressed against each other, a blower fan 53 which blows the residual heat of the plate heater 47 from the warm air port 51 toward the lower surface of the master P, and the like. An opening 55 is provided at one end of the case 43 so that air can be taken in as indicated by an arrow C. A roller pair 5 for transporting the heat-fixed master P to the stacking unit 39 is provided downstream of the fixing device 41.
7 are provided.

In the plate making machine 1, the exposure and the development on the master P are performed in the path described with reference to FIG. The developed master P is indicated by an arrow A in FIG.
When the sheet is conveyed to the fixing device 41 as shown by, heat fixing is performed as described below. That is, when the master P is nipped by the roller pair 37 and is conveyed into the case 43 as shown by the arrow A, the warm air port 51 is
, And then hang over a metal plate 47 a for a heat medium provided so as to protrude above the hot air port 51. At this time, in the master P, the carrier solvent of the liquid toner is removed by the warm air blown from the warm air port 51 on the lower side, that is, the drying is performed from the lower side. Then Master P
Is applied to the heat-transfer metal plate 47a from the tip, and is entirely pressed against the heat-transfer metal plate 47a by the roller 49a.

The heating medium metal plate 47a is a plate heater 4
7 and is heated to a predetermined temperature by a plate heater 47. For this reason, the master P travels downstream by the action of the rollers 49a and 49b while fully contacting the heat medium metal plate 47a heated to a predetermined temperature. During this traveling, Master P
The exposed and developed image is heated and fixed, and is discharged to the stacking unit 39 by the roller 57. When the master P is continued, the image is stacked on the stacking unit 39.

What should be noted here is the action of the hot air blown from the hot air port 51. That is, the carrier solvent of the liquid toner is removed in advance by the warm air just before the master P hangs on the heat medium metal plate 47a. Therefore, at the time when the master P hangs on the heat medium metal plate 47a, the excess liquid adhering to the master P is in an evaporating state and does not adhere to the heat medium metal plate 47a. As a result, even if the master P is continuously transported, in other words, even if the heat fixing is continued, the heat medium metal plate 47a is not stained.

It should be further noted that even when the masters P fixed by heating are stacked on the stacking unit 39, there is no possibility that dirt will adhere to the lower masters P. That is, even if the master P discharged after being heated and fixed is stacked,
The surplus liquid toner adhering to the upper master P does not adhere to the surface of the lower master P.
Is not dirty.

As described above, the fixing device 41 according to the present embodiment can prevent the heat medium metal plate 47a and the stacked masters P from being stained. The hot air for drying the lower surface of the master P may use the heat of the plate heater 47 provided to heat the metal plate 47a for the heat medium, so that the structure of the fixing device 41 is simplified, the cost is reduced, and Improve maintainability at once. Further, there is no need to provide a separate evaporation zone for the surplus liquid separately from the fixing device 41. As shown in FIG.
1 can be incorporated, so that the entire plate making machine 1 can be reduced in size.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment resides in that the warm air for drying the master P is obtained from an independent heat source. Members performing the same functions as those of the embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The fixing device 61 according to the second embodiment.
In the above, a tubular ventilation section 63 is provided below the plate heater 47, and a heater 65 as a heat source is installed inside the ventilation section 63. One opening 63 a of the ventilation part 63 is for taking in outside air as shown by an arrow C, and the suction is performed by the fan 67. Further, the other opening 63b of the ventilation section 63 functions as an exhaust port.

According to this configuration, the air sucked from the opening 63a is heated by the heater 65. The fan 67 draws air into the opening 63a, but blows air into the opening 63b. Therefore, the heated air is blown out from the opening 63b to the warm air port 51, and the surplus liquid of the master P can be evaporated by the warm air in the same manner as described above. Therefore, the fixing device 61 according to the second embodiment can also achieve the same effects as those of the first embodiment.

[0025]

As described above, the fixing device of a wet electrophotographic plate making machine according to the present invention has a hot air outlet blown out of a hot air port before heat-fixing a developed electrophotographic photosensitive material following exposure processing. The sheet is heated by wind, and then heated and fixed by contacting with a metal plate for a heat medium heated to a predetermined temperature for heating and fixing. Therefore, the excess liquid that has adhered to the electrophotographic photosensitive material does not adhere to the metal plate for a heat medium, and maintenance for keeping the metal plate for a heat medium clean is reduced. In addition, even if the heat-fixed electrophotographic photosensitive material is overlapped, for example, the stain on the upper electrophotographic photosensitive material does not adhere to the surface of the lower electrophotographic photosensitive material, thus preventing the electrophotographic photosensitive material from being stained. Quality can be improved. Further, drying and heat-fixing of the electrophotographic photosensitive material are continuously performed as the electrophotographic photosensitive material travels in the fixing device. Therefore, there is no need to separate the evaporating zone and the heating zone, and the simplification and downsizing of the configuration of a wet electrophotographic plate making machine to which the fixing device is applied can be achieved at the same time.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram illustrating a first embodiment of a fixing device of a wet electrophotographic plate making machine to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram illustrating a configuration of a wet electrophotographic plate making machine.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram illustrating a second embodiment of a fixing device.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram schematically showing a first example of a conventional fixing device.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram schematically showing a second example of a conventional fixing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 wet electrophotographic plate making machine 3 preset unit 9 charging unit 15 exposure unit 21 projection optical system 23 original document 25 light source 27 reflecting mirror 31 liquid toner developing unit 33 tank 39 stacking unit 41, 61 fixing device 43 case 45 intake fan 47 plate Heater 47a Metal plate for heat medium 51 Hot air outlet 53 Blower fan 55 Opening 63 Vent 63a, 63b Opening 65 Heater 67 Fan P Master

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An electrophotographic photosensitive material is sequentially subjected to an exposure process for exposing an image, a wet development process for developing a latent image formed by the exposure, and a fixing process for fixing the developed image by heating. In the fixing device of a wet electrophotographic plate making machine configured as described above, a metal plate for a heat medium that transports the electrophotographic photosensitive material while contacting a support surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive material subjected to the wet development processing; and a metal plate for the heat medium. A heat source that heats the electrophotographic photosensitive material prior to heating by the metal plate for a heat medium by blowing heat generated from the heat source to an upstream end of the metal plate for a heat medium; A fixing device for a wet electrophotographic plate making machine, comprising: a blowing means for blowing heat generated from a heat source to the hot air port. 2. A fixing device for a wet electrophotographic plate making machine according to claim 1, wherein a second heat source is provided separately from said heat source, and heat generated from said second heat source is sent to said hot air port. apparatus.