JPH11258762A - Automatic feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a carrying motor to be used when a belt-like photosensitive material is processed by using an automatic feeder for a sheet-like photosensitive material from being unnecessarily driven in a long time. SOLUTION: When the opening and closing cover of a loading part is opened, the feeding-out motor is started to be driven. When a roll film is detected by an insertion sensor, the feeding-out motor is driven till the roll film is not detected (step 320-332). On the contrary, when the roll film is not detected by the insertion sensor even prescribed time after the opening and closing cover is closed, the feeding-out motor is stopped (step 328-338 and 332).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention can feed a sheet of photosensitive material one by one to a photosensitive material processing apparatus.
In addition, the present invention relates to an auto feeder capable of extracting a belt-shaped photosensitive material from a magazine and feeding the photosensitive material to a photosensitive material processing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A photosensitive material processing apparatus (hereinafter, referred to as an "automatic developing apparatus") for processing a photosensitive material such as a film is provided with an auto feeder near a film insertion port, so that a film fed from the auto feeder can be processed. It can be processed continuously. In the photosensitive material processed by such an automatic developing device, there is a roll film wound in a roll shape in addition to a sheet-like film, and in general, an auto feeder for a sheet film and an auto feeder for a roll film are used. , The structure is different.

In recent years, there has been a demand for a so-called sheet film and roll film automatic feeder in which a roll film is processed by a sheet film auto feeder. By using this dual-purpose auto feeder,
When the sheet film is processed and when the roll film is processed, the operation of replacing the auto feeder is not required, and a smooth and quick operation can be performed.

[0004] Generally, an auto feeder used for processing a sheet film is configured such that a large number of sheet films are stacked and loaded on an internal tray. The sheet film is taken out one by one by the used sheet-feeding means, and the taken-out sheet film is sent out to the automatic developing device by a conveying means for rotating a pair of rollers by driving a motor.

In such an automatic feeder for a sheet film, the sheet feeding means and the conveying means in the automatic feeder are operated by closing the opening / closing lid. At this time, the presence or absence of the sheet film on the tray is confirmed by the sheet-by-sheet means, and when there is no sheet film on the tray, the operation of the sheet-and-sheet means and the conveying means is stopped, and the processing of the auto feeder is terminated.

On the other hand, when a roll film is processed by an automatic feeder for a sheet film, the leading end of the roll film is pulled out of the magazine when a magazine containing the roll film is loaded, and a conveying path different from the sheet film is used. To insert between the pair of rollers in the insertion opening of the automatic developing device. As a result, the insertion sensor adjacent to the pair of rollers is turned on, and the rotation of the transport roller of the automatic developing device including the pair of rollers is started, and the roll film is drawn out of the magazine by the pair of rollers to the automatic developing device. Sent in.

Further, in such an automatic feeder, when the entire amount of the roll film is pulled out of the magazine and the insertion sensor provided in the automatic developing device stops detecting the roll film, it is determined that the roll film is not left. Stop the motor of the transfer means.

As described above, in the automatic feeder, the sheet film and the roll film are fed to the automatic developing device through different transport paths.

[0009]

However, in order to reduce the size of the automatic feeder, if the roll film is transported by the transport means for transporting the sheet film, the motor of the transport means is required to transport the roll film. When the automatic developing device does not output a signal from the automatic developing device to the auto feeder to switch from a state in which the insertion sensor detects the roll film to a state in which the roll film is not detected, the motor of the conveying means of the auto feeder turns on the roll film. However, there is a problem that the driving is continued even though the sheet is not conveyed. That is, if the motor of the transport unit starts driving when the auto feeder is not loaded, the motor may continue to drive as it is.

In general, the longer the driving time of a motor, the higher the probability of occurrence of a failure or the like. If the motor is driven unnecessarily, the life of the motor is shortened. In addition, there is a problem that power consumption increases due to unnecessary driving of the motor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and when processing a belt-shaped photosensitive material, it is possible to reliably prevent a transport motor or the like from continuing to operate unnecessarily. It is an object of the present invention to propose an auto feeder that can extend the life of a car and save energy.

[0012]

The invention according to claim 1 is
An auto feeder mounted on a photosensitive material processing apparatus for processing a sheet-shaped photosensitive material or a strip-shaped photosensitive material, and for feeding the sheet-shaped photosensitive material or the belt-shaped photosensitive material loaded in the loading section to the photosensitive material processing apparatus, Conveying means for sending out the sheet-shaped photosensitive material or the strip-shaped photosensitive material loaded in the section by driving a motor, opening / closing detecting means for detecting opening / closing of an opening / closing lid of the loading section, and provided in the photosensitive material processing apparatus, A photosensitive material detecting means for detecting a sheet-shaped photosensitive material or a belt-shaped photosensitive material sent to a photosensitive material processing apparatus, and driving of the motor of the transport means by detecting that the open / close lid is opened by the open / close detecting means. Transport that starts and stops the motor of the transport unit based on the detection result of the belt-shaped photosensitive material by the photosensitive material detection unit Characterized in that it comprises a control means.

According to this invention, when processing the belt-shaped photosensitive material, when the open / close detecting means detects that the open / close lid is opened, the drive of the motor of the transport means is started. Further, when stopping the motor of the conveying means, it is performed based on the detection results of the open / close detecting means and the photosensitive material detecting means.
That is, when the photosensitive material detecting means does not detect the belt-shaped photosensitive material with the opening / closing lid closed, the motor of the conveying means is stopped.

Thus, it is possible to reliably prevent the motor of the conveying means from continuing to be driven in a state where the belt-shaped photosensitive material is not fed into the photosensitive material processing apparatus, and to prolong the life of the motor and save energy. be able to.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the photosensitive material detecting means is in a non-detection state of the belt-shaped photosensitive material for a predetermined time or more after detecting that the opening / closing lid is closed by the opening / closing detecting means. The transport control means stops the motor at times.

According to the present invention, the motor is stopped when the photosensitive material detecting means does not detect the belt-shaped photosensitive material within a predetermined time after the opening / closing detecting means detects that the opening / closing lid is closed. The time from when the opening / closing lid is closed by the open / close detection means to when the motor of the conveyance means is stopped is the speed at which the motor moves the belt-shaped photosensitive material and inserts the tip of the belt-shaped photosensitive material pulled out of the magazine to the photosensitive material processing device. And the length of the conveying path from the conveying means for feeding the photosensitive material to the photosensitive material detecting means of the photosensitive material processing apparatus.

Thus, it is possible to reliably prevent the motor of the conveying means from being stopped during the feeding of the belt-shaped photosensitive material to the photosensitive material processing apparatus.

[0018]

FIG. 1 shows a state in which an automatic feeder 10 according to the present embodiment is attached to an automatic developing device 12. FIG. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, as the automatic developing device 12, photosensitive materials such as a sheet film S and a roll film R inserted from a film insertion port 14 (hereinafter, referred to as “film F” when no distinction is made).
Is inserted and pulled in by a pair of insertion rollers 16 provided in the vicinity of the film insertion opening 14. Thereafter, the automatic developing device 12 may use a general configuration in which the drawn-in film F is conveyed while being subjected to a processing solution treatment with a developing solution, a fixing solution, washing water or the like, and a drying process to finish.

The automatic developing device 12 is provided with an insertion sensor 18 in the vicinity of the film insertion port 14, so that when the film F can be processed (ready state), the film insertion port 14 Film F inserted from
Is detected, the driving means of the automatic developing device 12 is operated, and the film F is drawn in by the insertion roller pair 16.

The automatic feeder 10 is mounted on the automatic developing device 12 with the delivery port 22 formed in the casing 20 facing the film insertion port 14 of the automatic developing device 12. The automatic feeder 10 includes an automatic developing device 1
When the power switch (not shown) 2 is turned on, power for operation is supplied. The auto feeder 10 also receives a signal (READY signal) indicating that the automatic developing device 12 is in a processable state and a film detection signal indicating that the insertion sensor 18 is detecting the film F. 12 is input.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the auto feeder 10 is provided with a transport section 24 adjacent to a delivery port 22 of a casing 20, and a sheet section 26 is provided above the transport section 24. Have been. Also, in the casing 20,
A loading section 28 protruding from the side opposite to the automatic developing device 12 is provided. The transport unit 24 and the single-wafer unit 26 are schematically illustrated in FIG. 3, and the transport unit 24 and the single-wafer unit 2 are illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4.
As shown in FIG. 2 where the illustration of the configuration of FIG. 6 is omitted,
The loading section 28 is provided with a tray 30 on which the sheet film S is placed. The casing 20 is provided with an opening / closing lid 32 above the tray 30. The casing 20 is opened above the tray 30 by rotating the opening / closing lid 32 upward about the hinge portion 34, and the sheet film S can be loaded onto the tray 30.
By closing the opening / closing lid 32, the inside is shielded from light. The casing 20 is provided with an open / close lid switch 196 that is turned on by turning the open / close lid 32 upward.

The tray 30 is inclined at a predetermined angle such that the side of the automatic developing device 12 is downward, and a front wall 36 is provided upright at the end of the automatic developing device 12 at the lowermost end. . Sheet film S placed on tray 30
When the front end of the automatic developing device 12 is abutted against the front wall 36, positioning is performed in the direction of delivery to the automatic developing device 12 (the direction of arrow A).

Further, on both sides in the direction (width direction of the film F, the direction of the front and back in FIG. 2) perpendicular to the direction of feeding the tray 30, side walls 38 and 40 (see FIG. 5 for the side wall 40) are paired. And a sheet film S placed on the tray 30
Is positioned in the width direction by being abutted against one of the side walls 38. FIG. 2 illustrates the side wall 38 on the back side of the drawing.

When the sheet film S on which the image has been printed is sent to the automatic developing device 12 by the auto feeder 10, the opening / closing lid 32 is opened in a dark room state, and the sheet film S is stacked and loaded on the tray 30.

As shown in FIG. 3, the auto feeder 1
The 0 transport section 24 is provided with a transport roller 42 and a delivery roller pair 44. The transport roller 42 is connected to the front wall 36.
And a delivery roller pair 44 is disposed between the delivery port 22 and the transport roller 42. Also, the delivery roller pair 44
A guide 46 is provided on the automatic developing device 12 side, and the guide 46 is connected to the casing 20 through the delivery port 22.
And is inserted into the film insertion opening 14 of the automatic developing device 12 (see FIGS. 2 and 4).

A pulley 48 is provided below the transport roller pair 44.
A, the pulley 48A and the transport roller 4
An endless drive belt 50 is wound between a pulley 48B provided on the second rotating shaft 42A and a pulley 48C provided on the rotating shaft 44A of one of the delivery roller pairs 44. The drive belt 50 is connected to a pulley 48A.
Is rotated by the drive of the delivery motor 52, so that the driving force of the delivery motor 52 is transmitted to the transport roller 42 and the delivery roller pair 44, and is driven to rotate in the delivery direction of the film F. I have.

As a result, the conveying roller 42 applies a conveying force to the film F contacting the upper side and sends the film F out.
Transport toward. The delivery roller pair 44 sandwiches the film F and sends it out toward the film insertion port 14 of the automatic developing device 12.

On the other hand, the sheet unit 26 is provided with a sheet mechanism 56 for lifting the leading end of the outermost sheet film S stacked on the tray 30 and moving the leading end of the sheet film S above the transport roller 42.

The single-wafer mechanism 56 includes pulleys 58A, 58B and pulleys 58A provided above and below the front wall 36.
An endless drive belt 60 is wound between the pulley 58B and the pulley 58C disposed below the transport roller 42. In addition, each of the pulleys 58A to 58C is coaxially arranged in a pair on both sides along the width direction of the film F.

The pulley 58C is connected to a drive shaft 62A of a lifting motor 62, and the driving belt 60 moves vertically between the pulleys 58A and 58B by driving of the lifting motor 62. In addition, pulley 58
By arranging C below the transport roller 42, the drive belt 60 moves along the line passing through the axis of the transport roller 42 between the pulley 58A and the pulley 58C.

Each of the drive belts 60 has a support plate 6
4 is attached. The support plates 64 are arranged in pairs on both sides in the width direction of the film F, and are each supported by the drive belt 60 via pins 64A. A suction cup support member 66 having a substantially U-shaped cross section is stretched between the support plates 64. Thus, when the mounting position of the pin 64A is moved by the driving of the drive belt 60, the suction cup support 66 moves together with the support plate 64.

In the casing 20, a guide plate 68 is disposed above the pulley 58A. The guide plate 68 is
A pair (only one is shown in FIG. 3) is opposed to each of the support plates 64, and is mounted by being supported by a pin 68A inserted at one end in the longitudinal direction, and the other end is suspended downward. .

A guide groove 70 is formed in the guide plate 68 along the longitudinal direction from the lower end. A guide roller 72 attached to the support plate 64 is inserted into the guide groove 70, and is movable in the guide groove 70. Further, the lower end of the guide plate 68 is urged in a direction opposite to the feeding direction by urging means (not shown), and the pin 64 </ b> A and the guide roller 72 are attached to the support plate 64 in the longitudinal direction of the support plate 64. Are staggered along.

Thus, when the support plate 64 is moved between the pulley 58A and the pulley 58B by the driving of the drive belt 60, the suction cup supporting member 66 is moved to the pulley 58A and the pulley 58B.
The lower surface is raised and lowered substantially in parallel with the surface of the tray 30. At this time, when the suction cup supporting member 66 rises to the vicinity of the pulley 58A, the guide roller 72 enters the guide groove 70. Therefore, when the pin 64A to which the support plate 64 is attached moves between the pulley 58A and the pulley 58C, the guide plate 68 rotates against the urging force of the urging means (not shown), and the suction cup support 66 Is adapted to move toward the axis of the transport roller 42 with the lower surface facing the transport roller 42.

A suction cup 74 and a backup roller 76 are attached to the suction cup support 66. Sucker 74
The suction surface is disposed on the lower surface of the suction cup supporting member 66 with the suction surface directed downward, and is attached separately from the lower surface of the suction cup supporting member 66 by the urging force of the urging means (not shown). The sheet film S is attracted by the supplied negative pressure.

The backup roller 76 is attached via a bracket 80 to a distal end of a shaft 78 that penetrates through the suction cup supporting member 66 and protrudes downward. The bracket 80 is urged in a direction away from the lower surface of the suction cup supporting member 66 by an urging force of an urging means (not shown). Normally, the backup roller 76 protrudes below the suction cup 74, but by moving the suction cup support member 66 downward, it comes into contact with the tray 30 or the surface of the sheet film S laminated on the tray 30,
It moves in a direction approaching the suction cup supporting member 66 against the urging force and retracts more than the suction cup 74.

The single-wafer mechanism 56 configured as described above is
The position where the support plate 64 has moved to the uppermost position, that is, the pin 64 </ b> A attached to the drive belt 60 is
The position above A is the standby position.

The auto feeder 10 is provided with a sheet film F
When the automatic developing device 12 is capable of processing the film F (sheet film S),
By opening 2, the delivery motor 52 starts rotating and driving, the sheet film S is stacked on the tray 30 and the opening / closing lid 32 is closed, so that the single-sheet mechanism 56 starts operating.

The operation of the single-wafer mechanism 56 drives the lifting / lowering motor 62 to move the suction cup supporting member 66 downward from the standby position. As a result, the backup roller 7 together with the suction cup 74
6 starts moving toward the outermost sheet film S stacked on the tray 30. At this time, a negative pressure is supplied to the suction cup 74 from a negative pressure source (not shown), and the suction cup 74 comes into contact with the sheet film S.
Is sucked by the suction cup 74.

When the suction cup 74 sucks the sheet film S, the sheet feeding mechanism 56 drives the drive belt 60 (elevation motor 62).
Is driven in reverse. As a result, the suction cup supporting member 66 moves upward, and the outermost sheet film S is lifted from the tray 30. Further, when the pin 64A moves around the pulley 58A and moves toward the pulley 58C, the backup roller 76 moves toward the transport roller 42 together with the suction cup 74 that is adsorbing the sheet film S, and the sheet film S The leading end in the delivery direction is arranged above the transport roller 42. At this time, since the backup roller 76 projects from the suction cup 74 by the urging force of the urging means, the sheet film S
The supply of the negative pressure to the suction cup 74 is released before the backup roller 76 comes into contact with the transport roller 42, so that the backup roller 76 and the transport roller 4 are held.
2 and is sent out to the sending roller pair 44.

When there is no sheet film S on the tray 30, the suction cup 74 of the single-wafer mechanism 56 (the suction cup supporting member 6).
6) is raised to the standby position to stop the operation. Also,
The sheet film S can be sent out by using a conventionally known configuration of an automatic feeder for a sheet film, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted in the present embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 2, the auto feeder 1
0, the tray 30 provided in the casing 20
Are the front plate 82 on the automatic developing device 12 side and the automatic developing device 12
And a rear plate 84 on the opposite side, so that the rear plate 84 can be removed. An opening 86A is formed in the bottom plate 86 of the casing 20 on the side of the loading section 28 at a position facing the rear plate 84 of the tray 30.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 4 and 7, a rectangular box-shaped receiving box 88 is attached to the casing 20 so as to cover the lower part of the opening 86A. The upper surface of the receiving box 88 is opened, so that a recess in which the magazine 90 containing the roll film R is loaded is formed as a magazine loading section 94 in the loading section 28.

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the auto feeder 10 mounts the guide unit 92 on the front plate 82 of the loading unit 28, removes the rear plate 84, and loads the magazine 90 with the guide unit 92. This is for processing the roll film R stored in the magazine 90. That is, the auto feeder 10 is used for both the sheet film S and the roll film R. Roll film R below
The auto feeder 10 when used as an application will be described. In FIG. 5, illustration of the transport unit 24 and the sheet unit 26 is omitted.

Auto feeder 1 applied to this embodiment
0 is such that two magazines 90 (for example, a magazine 90A containing a narrow roll film Ra and a magazine 90B containing a wide roll film Rb) can be loaded side by side in a magazine loading section 94 in a receiving box 88. Thus, two roll films R (Ra, Rb) can be simultaneously fed from the auto feeder 10 to the automatic developing device 12. In the auto feeder 10, the roll film Ra is loaded on the right side toward the film insertion port 14 of the automatic developing device 12 of the magazine loading section 94 (referred to as a right loading section 94A), and the roll film Rb is loaded on the left side ( Left loading section 94B).

FIG. 8 shows a guide unit 92 to be loaded on the front plate 82 of the loading section 28. In the guide unit 92, a guide frame 98 (guide frames 98A and 98B corresponding to the roll films Ra and Rb, respectively) is attached to a base plate 96 having a substantially rectangular flat plate shape (hereinafter referred to as a "guide frame 98"). ").

The guide frame 98 is formed by a long rectangular guide plate 99 serving as a substrate, and a pair of side plates 102 erected at both ends in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the guide plate. The longitudinal direction of the guide frame 98 is the guide direction of the roll film R, and the interval (inner dimension) between the pair of side plates 102 is adjusted to the width of the roll film R passing through the guide frame 98. A guide roller 104 is rotatably stretched between the pair of side plates 102,
The roll film R is inserted between the guide roller 104 and the substrate 99. Thus, by mounting the guide unit 92 at a predetermined position on the front plate 82, the roll film R drawn from the magazine 90 loaded in the magazine loading unit 94 can be guided straight toward the automatic developing device 12. It has become.

As shown in FIG. 7, the roll film R
Is a thin (eg, about 0.3 mm) reader 106 formed of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or the like.
Is attached to the tip with a splice tape 108 or the like. By inserting the leader 106 below the guide roller 104 of the guide frame 98, and sending it over the transport roller 42 and inserting it between the pair of rollers 44, the roll film R and the leader 106 are transferred to the automatic developing device 12
And is transported in the automatic developing device 12 by the leader of the reader 106.

As shown in FIG. 8, a plurality of legs 100 project from the lower surface of each guide frame 98.
These legs 100 are attached at positions determined according to the size (width dimension) of the roll film R. The base plate 96 has a circular hole 96 into which the leg 100 of the guide frame 98 enters.
A is formed, and the leg 100 is inserted into the circular hole 9 of the base plate 96.
6A, the guide frame 98 is positioned with respect to the base plate 96, and the guide frame 98 is inserted.
It is possible to prevent erroneous mounting in which A and the guide frame 98B are interchanged.

At both ends of the base plate 96 in the width direction, legs 1
10, 112 are mounted in pairs. The guide unit 92 attaches the lower surface of each of the legs 110 and 112 to the front plate 8.
2 and is placed on the front plate 82. As shown in FIG. 4, the legs 110 and 112 are connected to the tray 30 (the front plate 8).
The guide unit 92 is formed in a substantially triangular shape so as to match the inclination of 2), and is mounted such that the upper surface of the base plate 96 is directed substantially horizontally to the pair of transport rollers 44.

As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG.
In the lower end portions 0 and 112, extension portions 114 are formed extending in the sending direction. A pin 116 for positioning is protruded from the extension portion 114 of the legs 110 and 112 at the tip in the delivery direction, and the pin 1 is attached to the front wall 36 of the loading portion 28.
16, a pin hole 118 for positioning is formed. As shown in FIG. 8, one leg 110 has a protruding portion 120 having a rectangular section at the lower end.
A guide groove 124 is formed in the front plate 82 of the loading section 28 so that the protrusion 120 is fitted into the step 122 at the end on the side wall 40 side.

The guide unit 92 contacts the lower surface of the leg 112 with the upper surface of the front plate 82 of the tray 30 and
0 is inserted into the guide groove 124 and is moved in the delivery direction, so that the extension 114 is attached to the front wall 36.
The pin 116 enters the pin hole 118 and is positioned when the contact is made.

A pair of brackets 126 are erected on the base plate 96 of the guide unit 92, and a holding plate 130 is hung over the brackets 126 and is pivotally supported via pins 132. Further, a magnet 134 is attached to the base plate 96 between the guide frames 98. The holding plate 130 is held at a position where the steel plate 136 attached to the bracket 136 is in contact with the rib 128 of the bracket 126 by being attracted to the magnet 134, and is sent out by the guide roller 104 provided on the guide frame 98. It covers the opposite side of the direction.

A guide plate 140 is attached to the holding plate 130 so as to face the guide frame. One end of the guide plate 140 is connected to and attached to a rib 130A formed on the opposite side to the feeding direction of the holding plate 130, and the other end extends toward the guide roller 104 provided on the guide frame 98. Have been. The space between the surface (upper surface) of the substrate 99 and the surface (lower surface) of the guide plate 140 is widened on the side opposite to the direction in which the roll film R is sent out, and is gradually narrowed toward the guide roller 104.

Therefore, the reader 106 connected to the leading end of the roll film R is connected to the guide plate 140 and the substrate 99.
Between the guide roller 104 and the substrate 9 by the guide plate 140.
9 is securely guided in the gap on the slit.

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 and FIG.
A guide roller 142 is attached to the guide unit 92 on the delivery direction of the base plate 96 and on the end face opposite to the delivery direction. The guide roller 142 prevents the roll film R passing through the guide frame 98 from coming into contact with the edge of the base plate 96 so as to pass smoothly.

On the other hand, the base plate 96 of the guide unit 92
, A handle 144 is attached to an intermediate portion in the width direction. The handle 144 protrudes from the base plate 96 in the direction opposite to the sending direction, and
Can be loaded on the front plate 82 in a cantilevered state with the handle 144 held.

As shown in FIG. 4 to FIG. 7, the receiving plate 88 in which the magazine 90 is loaded is provided with the receiving plate 14.
6 is attached. As shown in detail in FIG. 7, the receiving plate 146 includes a base portion 148 facing the bottom plate 88A of the receiving box 88, and standing walls 150, 152 formed on the delivery direction side and the opposite side of the base portion 148 in the delivery direction. The cross section is substantially U-shaped.

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 8, the receiving box 8
8, a guide table 154 is attached to an intermediate portion along the width direction of the film F. This guide base 154
A guide groove 156 is engraved on the upper surface of. The guide groove 156 is formed along the delivery direction, and the delivery direction side is a deep groove portion 156A having a deep groove bottom.
The side opposite to the sending direction is a shallow groove portion 156B having a shallow groove bottom.

The handle 144 attached to the guide unit 92 has a projecting portion 144A extending downward at the end opposite to the feeding direction, and the guide unit 92 is mounted on the front plate 82. When attaching to the handle,
44 projecting portion 144A is inserted into the guide groove 156 in the shallow groove portion 15A.
6B toward the deep groove 156A,
By entering into A, the movement in the direction opposite to the sending direction is prevented, and is held at a predetermined position on the front plate 82.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 7, the magazine 90 has a substantially rectangular box-shaped frame 158 (a frame 158A for the roll film Ra and a frame 158B for the roll film Rb). A roll film R is accommodated.
The magazine 90 is loaded with the frame 158 inserted between the upright walls 150 and 152 of the receiving plate 146.

As shown in FIG. 7, the frame 158 has
A protrusion 160 is provided at a predetermined position on the surface on the side of the drawer from which the roll film R is drawn. The frame 158 has a pin 162 protruding at a predetermined position on the surface opposite to the drawer opening, and a leg 168 at a predetermined position on the bottom surface. The pin 162 and the leg 168 are connected to the frame 1
The position is determined in advance according to the size of the roll film R accommodated in 58.

On the other hand, rectangular cutouts 164 are formed in the standing wall 150 of the receiving plate 146 at predetermined positions corresponding to the right loading section 94A and the left loading section 94B.
Groove-shaped cuts 166A and 166B into which the pins 162 enter are formed at predetermined positions of the right loading portion 94A and the left loading portion 94B. Also, the base 148 of the receiving plate 146
A leg hole 170 corresponding to the leg portion 168 is formed at a predetermined position.

Thus, the magazine 9 is stored in the right loading section 94A.
0A is loaded, the pins 162 of the frame 158A enter the cuts 166A and the legs 168 are connected to the leg holes 1A.
70 and is maintained in a stable state.

On the other hand, the base 148 of the receiving plate 146 has a leg hole 174 and a projection 176 adjacent to the leg hole 170.
Are formed, and a notch 1 is formed in the upright wall 152.
66A, 166B, notches 166A, 166
Cuts 172A and 172B shallower than B are formed.

Here, for example, if the magazine 90B is incorrectly loaded in the right loading section 94A, the frame 15 of the magazine 90B
8B, the pin 162 enters the cutout 172A, the frame body 158B rises from the base 148, one of the legs 168 enters the leg hole 174, and the other of the legs 168 comes into contact with the projection 176 to form a frame. The body 158B tilts, and the frame 158B rattles on the receiving plate 146. Thus, it is possible to clearly determine that the magazine 90 containing the roll film R of the wrong size has been loaded.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 9, the auto feeder 10 is provided with a controller 180 for controlling the delivery of the film F. This controller 1
To 80, a controller 172 of the automatic developing device 12 is connected, and a film detection signal indicating whether or not the insertion sensor 18 detects the film F is input together with the READY signal.

Further, the controller 180 includes
6, a suction pump 184 for generating a negative pressure to be supplied to the suction cup 74 together with the lifting motor 62, a film suction detection sensor 186 for detecting whether the suction cup 74 is suctioning the film F (sheet film S), and a leak detection sensor 188. , A film surface detection sensor 190 for detecting the presence or absence of the film F on the tray 30, a top dead center detection sensor 192 for detecting the top dead center and bottom dead center of the suction cup 74, a bottom dead center detection sensor 194, and the like. (All are not shown in FIGS. 1 to 8). The controller 180 is connected to an opening / closing lid switch 196 for detecting the opening / closing of the opening / closing lid 32 together with the delivery motor 52 of the transport section 28.

Accordingly, in the sheet film processing mode for feeding the sheet film S, the controller 180 operates the sending motor 52 for detecting that the opening / closing lid 32 is opened, and places the sheet film S on the tray 30. When the opening / closing lid 32 is closed and the sheet feeding mechanism 56 is operated in accordance with the detection state of each sensor, the tray 3
0, the sheet film S is taken out from above and the automatic developing device 1
Send to 2.

The auto feeder 10 is provided with a shutter (not shown) for closing the outlet 22. The controller 180 has a shutter solenoid 198 for opening and closing the shutter, and detects the open / closed state of the shutter. A pressure fan 204 for preventing the outside air from entering through the outlet 22 when the shutter is opened, together with the shutter open detection sensor 200 and the shutter close detection sensor 202.
Is connected.

Thus, in the auto feeder 10, the opening and closing of the shutter and the operation of the pressurizing fan 204 are controlled in accordance with the drive of the delivery motor 52, and the air in the automatic developing device 12 flows from the delivery port 22 into the casing 20. Prevents intrusion.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 9, one of the legs 100 of the guide unit 92 has a magnet 206 embedded as a means to be detected on the surface on the side wall 40 side. Also, as shown in FIG.
A magnet switch (hereinafter, referred to as “proximity switch 208”) is attached to the side wall 40 as a guide detection unit. The magnet 206 is provided on the front plate 82 of the tray 30 for processing the roll film R.
2 is mounted so as to face the proximity switch 208 when positioned. The proximity switch 208 switches the contact point when the magnet 206 faces the proximity switch 208.

As shown in FIG. 9, the proximity switch 20
8 is connected to the controller 180. When the proximity switch 208 is turned on, the controller 180 causes the guide unit 9 to process the roll film R.
2 is set on the tray 30, and the mode is switched from the sheet film processing mode to the roll film processing mode. That is, the auto feeder 10 is normally in the processing mode of the sheet film S, but is automatically switched to the processing mode of the roll film R by the mounting of the guide unit 92.

The controller 180 switches the suction cup 74 to the tray 3 by switching to the roll film processing mode.
0 and return to the standby position separated from the transport roller 42 to stop the operation of the sheet-feeding mechanism 56. Also, the controller 180
In order to load the magazine 90 accommodating the roll film R, the open / close lid 32 is opened and the open / close lid switch 19 is opened.
When 6 is turned on, the delivery motor 52 is driven. Thereafter, in the roll film processing mode, the magazine 90 is loaded in the loading section 28 (magazine loading section 94), and the leading end (leader 106) of the roll film R drawn out of the magazine 90 is sent out and inserted into the roller pair 44. By
The roll film R is fed into the automatic developing device 12 while being pulled out of the magazine 90.

In the automatic developing device 12, the automatic feeder 1
The roll film R fed from 0 is inserted into the insertion sensor 18.
If a new film F (roll film R) is not detected within a predetermined time after the insertion sensor 18 enters the non-detection state of the roll film R, the processing of the roll film R is started. The processing of the film R ends.

When the drawing of the roll film R from the magazine 90 is completed and the rear end of the drawn roll film R passes through the insertion sensor 18, the insertion sensor 18 is turned off. When a signal indicating that the insertion sensor 18 has been turned off is input from the automatic developing device 12, the controller 180
The driving of the delivery motor 52 is stopped.

On the other hand, when the opening / closing lid 32 is opened in the roll film processing mode, the controller 180 drives the delivery motor 52 so that the roll film R can be delivered, but the opening / closing lid 32 is closed. Even if the signal indicating that the insertion sensor 18 has detected the roll film R is not input from the automatic developing device 12 within the predetermined time, the sending motor 52 is stopped.

Thus, when the opening / closing lid 32 is opened for work such as taking out the magazine 90 from which the roll film R has been pulled out from the loading section 28, even if a predetermined time has passed since the opening / closing lid 32 was closed, the insertion sensor is not used. 18 does not detect the roll film R, the roll film R
Is not sent to the automatic developing device 12, and the sending motor 52 is stopped. This prevents the sending motor 52 from continuing to be driven unnecessarily.

The operation of the present embodiment will be described below with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS.

When the power switch (not shown) of the automatic developing device 12 is turned on, the auto feeder 10 attached to the automatic developing device 12 is supplied with electric power and becomes operable.

FIG. 10 shows a mode switching routine of the auto feeder 10. This flowchart is executed so that the auto feeder 10 becomes operable. In the first step 300, the proximity switch 208 checks whether or not the guide unit 92 used for processing the roll film R is mounted.

When the guide unit 92 is not mounted, the sheet film S can be loaded on the tray 30, and when the guide unit 92 is mounted,
Unless the guide unit 92 is removed, the sheet film S cannot be loaded on the tray 30. For this reason, when the guide unit 92 is not mounted and the proximity switch 208 is off (negative determination in step 300), the process proceeds to step 302 and the processing mode is set to the sheet film processing mode. When the guide unit 92 is mounted and the proximity switch 208 is turned on (Yes in step 300), the process proceeds to step 304 to set the roll film processing mode.

After the operation mode of the auto feeder 10 has been set in this way, the process proceeds to step 306 to check whether the proximity switch 208 is on, and when the proximity switch 208 is off ( In step 306, the process proceeds to step 308 to check whether the processing mode is the sheet film processing mode.
If the mode is not the sheet film processing mode (No in step 308), the process proceeds to step 310 to switch to the sheet film processing mode. When the proximity switch 208 is ON (YES in step 306), the process proceeds to step 312 to check whether the mode is the roll film processing mode. In (No determination in step 312), the process proceeds to step 314 to switch to the roll film processing mode.

That is, in the auto feeder 10, the guide unit 92 is not mounted, and the proximity switch 20
While the switch 8 is off, the mode is always set to the sheet film processing mode. When the guide unit 92 is mounted and the proximity switch 208 is turned on, the mode is automatically switched to the roll film processing mode.

As described above, the auto feeder 10 eliminates the need to manually switch the operation mode when the guide unit 92 is mounted for removing the roll film R or when the guide unit 92 is removed. Has become. Therefore, it is possible to surely prevent the single sheet mechanism 56 from being damaged due to the start of the suction operation by the suction cup 74 when the guide unit 92 is mounted due to an operation mode switching error. And appropriate processing according to the loaded film F can be performed.

FIG. 11 shows the flow of the auto feeder 10 when the roll film processing mode is set. When the sheet film processing mode is set, a conventionally known method of controlling a sheet film auto feeder can be applied, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted in the present embodiment.

The flowchart shown in FIG.
This is executed by setting the roll film processing mode. That is, it is executed by mounting the guide unit 92 at an appropriate position.

In the first step 320, it is confirmed whether or not the automatic developing device 12 is in a READY state in which the film F can be processed. It is checked whether 196 has been turned on.

Here, the open / close lid 32 is opened and the open / close lid switch 196 is turned on, and if an affirmative determination is made in step 322, the flow shifts to step 324 to drive the sending motor 52. Thereafter, in step 326, it is confirmed whether or not the open / close lid 32 has been closed by determining whether or not the open / close lid switch 196 has been turned off.

The magazine 90 accommodating the roll film R is loaded into the magazine loading section 94, and the leading end of the roll film R pulled out of the magazine 90 is sent out, inserted into the roller pair 44, and the opening / closing lid 32 is closed. When the open / close lid switch 196 is turned off,
Then, it is checked whether the insertion sensor 18 of the automatic developing device 12 is turned on.

When the roll film R loaded in the auto feeder 10 is nipped by the delivery roller pair 44,
It is sent to the automatic developing device 12. In the automatic developing device 12, when the insertion sensor 18 detects the roll film R sent from the auto feeder 10, the processing of the roll film R is started while the roll film R is being pulled in. Further, the entire amount of the roll film R
Is pulled out, and the rear end of the roll film R passes through the insertion sensor 18, so that the insertion sensor 18 is turned off.

Whether the insertion sensor 18 detects the roll film R is input from the automatic developing device 12 to the auto feeder 10. When the insertion sensor 18 is turned on, an affirmative determination is made in step 328. Being
Move to step 330. In this step 330,
Insertion sensor 1 that detects roll film R and is on
Check whether 8 is off. When the rear end of the roll film R pulled out of the magazine 90 passes through the insertion sensor 18 and the insertion sensor 18 is turned off, an affirmative determination is made in step 330 and the process proceeds to step 332 to stop the sending motor 52 and The sending of the film R ends.

That is, as shown in FIG. 12B, in the auto feeder 10, when the open / close lid 32 is opened and the open / close lid switch 196 is turned on, the delivery motor 52 is driven. When the insertion sensor 18 is turned off, it is determined that the entire amount of the roll film R in the magazine 90 loaded in the magazine loading section 94 has been delivered, and the delivery motor 52 is stopped.

On the other hand, when the open / close lid 32 is opened and the roll film R is not loaded and the open / close lid 32 is closed,
Since the roll film R is not sent from the auto feeder 10 to the automatic developing device 12, the insertion sensor 18 of the automatic developing device 12 is in the off state.

As a result, in the flowchart shown in FIG. 11, since a signal indicating that the insertion sensor 18 has detected the roll film R is not input from the automatic developing device 12, a negative determination is made in step 328, and a negative determination is made in step 328.
Move to 4. In this step 334, the timer for measuring the elapsed time after closing the opening / closing lid 32 is reset / started.

Thereafter, in step 336, it is confirmed whether or not the insertion sensor 18 of the automatic developing device 12 has detected the roll film R. In step 338, after the opening / closing lid 32, which is being measured by a timer, is closed. It is checked whether the time t has reached a predetermined time Ts (for example, 1 min).

Here, when the roll film R is not loaded and the opening / closing lid 32 is closed, the insertion sensor 18 of the automatic developing device 12 does not detect the roll film R. A signal indicating that the insertion sensor 18 has detected the roll film R is not input from the automatic developing device 12. As a result, while a negative determination is made in step 336, an affirmative determination is made in step 338.

If an affirmative determination is made in step 338, the flow advances to step 332 to stop the sending motor 52.

That is, as shown in FIG. 12A, in the auto feeder 10, when the open / close lid 32 is opened and the open / close lid switch 196 is turned on, the delivery motor 52 is driven, but the open / close lid 32 is closed. If the insertion sensor 18 does not detect the roll film R after a predetermined time Ts has elapsed, the roll film R
Is determined not to be loaded, and the sending motor 52 is stopped.

As a result, it is possible to reliably prevent the delivery motor 52 from continuing to be driven unnecessarily, and to make the delivery motor 52 operate longer than necessary.
2 can reliably be prevented from occurring. Therefore, the film F can be reliably fed to the automatic developing device 12 over a long period by the auto feeder 10.

The above-described embodiment is an example of the present invention, and does not limit the configuration of the present invention.

For example, in the present embodiment, the magnet 206 and the proximity switch 208 are used as the guide detecting means, but the guide unit 92 is mounted at a predetermined position on the front plate 82 so that the guide unit 92 comes into contact. Alternatively, a limit switch that switches contacts may be used, or the guide unit 92 may be detected by a photoelectric sensor.

In this embodiment, the automatic developing device 1
2 detects whether or not the film F has been fed into the automatic developing device 12 by the insertion sensor 18 provided in
A sensor for detecting whether or not the film F has been fed may be provided inside the auto feeder 10.

Further, in the present embodiment, the delivery motor 52 and the delivery roller pair 44 and the like are provided in the auto feeder 10 as the transport means, but as the transport means, the film insertion port 14 of the automatic developing device 12 is provided. A pair of insertion rollers 16 provided in the vicinity may be used. That is, the leading end of the roll film R loaded in the auto feeder 10 is inserted between the insertion roller pair 16, and the roll film R is pulled out from the magazine 90 by the insertion roller 16 and is drawn into the automatic developing device 12. good.

As a result, there is no need for a transporting means such as the motor 52 to be sent into the auto feeder 10, so that the number of parts can be reduced and the structure can be simplified.

In the present embodiment, an automatic feeder for feeding the sheet film S and the roll film R to the automatic developing device 12 is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention is not limited to this case. For example, the present invention can be applied to an auto feeder for processing other photosensitive materials such as photographic paper.

[0107]

As described above, according to the present invention, the opening / closing detecting means for detecting the opening / closing of the opening / closing lid which is opened for loading the belt-shaped photosensitive material into the loading portion, and the photosensitive material detecting means of the photosensitive material processing apparatus are provided. By controlling the motor of the transfer means by using it, it is possible to prevent the motor from being driven unnecessarily for a long time without adding any special parts, and it is possible to prolong the life of the motor and save energy. Is obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a state in which an auto feeder according to the present embodiment is mounted on an automatic developing device.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of an auto feeder applied to the present embodiment when processing a sheet film.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a transport unit and a single-wafer unit of the auto feeder.

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of an auto feeder applied to the present embodiment when processing a roll film.

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a loading section of an auto feeder during roll film processing.

FIG. 6 is a plan view schematically showing a loading section and a transport section of an auto feeder during roll film processing.

FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing a magazine loading unit and a magazine of the auto feeder.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing a guide unit attached to a loading section during roll film processing.

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a configuration of a control unit of the auto feeder.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of switching of a processing mode in the auto feeder.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an example of control of a transport motor in a roll film processing mode.

12 (A) and 12 (B) are timing charts showing the outline of control of a delivery motor based on the result of detection of an opening / closing lid and an insertion sensor, and FIG. 12 (A) shows a state in which a roll film is not loaded. A case where only the opening / closing lid is opened / closed is shown, and (B) shows a case where a roll film is loaded.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 auto feeder 12 automatic developing device (photosensitive material processing device) 18 insertion sensor (detection sensor) 24 transport unit (transport unit) 26 sheet unit 28 loading unit 30 tray 32 opening / closing lid 42 transport roller (transport unit) 44 delivery roller Pair (transportation means) 52 Delivery motor (transportation motor) 82 Front plate 90 (90A, 90B) Magazine 92 Guide unit 94 (94A, 94B) Magazine loading section 180 Controller transport control means) 196 Open / close lid switch (Open / close detection means) F Film (photosensitive material) R Roll film (band-shaped photosensitive material) S Sheet film (sheet-shaped photosensitive material)

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An automatic feeder which is mounted on a photosensitive material processing apparatus for processing a sheet-shaped photosensitive material or a band-shaped photosensitive material, and sends out the sheet-shaped photosensitive material or the belt-shaped photosensitive material loaded in the loading section to the photosensitive material processing apparatus. Conveying means for sending out the sheet-shaped photosensitive material or the strip-shaped photosensitive material loaded in the loading section by driving a motor; opening / closing detecting means for detecting opening / closing of an opening / closing lid of the loading section; and the photosensitive material processing apparatus. A photosensitive material detecting means for detecting a sheet-shaped photosensitive material or a belt-shaped photosensitive material fed to the photosensitive material processing apparatus, and the transport means by detecting that the opening / closing lid is opened by the opening / closing detecting means. And the motor of the conveying means based on the detection result of the belt-shaped photosensitive material by the photosensitive material detecting means. Auto feeder, characterized in that it comprises a conveyance control means for stopping, the. 2. The transport control means when the photosensitive material detecting means is in a non-detection state of the belt-shaped photosensitive material for a predetermined time or more after detecting that the opening / closing lid is closed by the open / close detecting means. 2. The auto feeder according to claim 1, wherein the motor stops the motor.