JPS62270956A - Image recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To execute a full automation extending from an exposure of an image to obtaining an image in an image receiving layer, to make the whole device small in size, and to decrease the power consumption, by providing an exposing device, a heating developing device, and a pressure device, and placing the exposing device and the pressure device along a carrying path by the same carrying roller. CONSTITUTION:As for an exposing device 10, an illuminating chamber 8 is provided on the upper face of a housing 1, and in this chamber, plural pieces of exposing lamps 12 provided with a reflecting mirror 9 are placed, and an original 6 is illuminated. A heating developing device 26 is provided with upper and lower guide plates 68, 69 for guiding an exposed photosensitive materials S, a developing drum 70, an endless belt 75 which is guided by guide rollers 71-74 and pressed against the developing drum 70, a peeling plate for peeling off the heated and developed photosensitive material S from the developing drum 70, a guide plate 77 for leading the photosensitive materials S which is peeled off, to a pressure device 30, and a heater 78 which is placed in the inside of the developing drum 70. The heating developing device 26 presses the photosensitive material S against the developing drum 70 by the endless belt 75, heats it by the heater 78, and executes a development.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention 3. Detailed Description of the Invention [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus that records an image using a photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat-developable material.

More specifically, a light-sensitive and pressure-sensitive heat-developable material is used, which has a support coated with a substance that has photosensitivity and is developed by heating, and the resulting image is fixed by pressure. After imagewise exposure to the pressure-sensitive heat development material, heat development is performed,
The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus that obtains an image by applying pressure to fix the developed image on an image-receiving layer.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

As an example of an image recording material using microcapsules encapsulating a photosensitive composition, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 57-1798
A system is known in which a synthetic polymer resin wall capsule containing a vinyl compound, a photopolymerization initiator, and a colorant precursor is supported on a support, as disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 36. The image recording method using this system is to obtain a color image from a colorant precursor that imagewise hardens the microcapsules by exposure and ruptures and releases the unhardened microcapsules by applying pressure. The method is characterized in that high quality images can be obtained through simple dry processing.

However, this system has the drawback of significantly lower photosensitivity than systems using silver halide.

A new recording material that improves these drawbacks, has high photosensitivity, and is capable of obtaining high-quality images through simple dry processing has been proposed in Japanese Patent Application No. 1986-2001 filed by the present applicant.
It is disclosed in the specification of No. 117089. This recording material is a photosensitive and pressure-sensitive thermal development material, in which at least a photosensitive silver halide, a reducing agent, a polymerizable compound, and a color image forming substance are coated on a support, and at least the polymerizable compound and the color image forming substance are coated on a support. The color imaging material consists of a photosensitive composition encapsulated in identical microcapsules.

Regarding the image recording method of recording an image using this light-sensitive pressure-sensitive heat-developable material, the patent application No. 6 filed by the present applicant
0-121284. This image recording method first performs imagewise exposure on a photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat-developable material to form a latent image, and then develops it by heating.
The polymerizable compound in the area where the latent image is present is polymerized to produce a high molecular compound, thereby hardening the microcapsule. Next, the image-receiving material is stacked with an image-receiving material having an image-receiving layer to which the color image-forming substance can be transferred, and pressure is applied to rupture at least a portion of the microcapsules in areas where no latent image exists, thereby transferring the color image-forming substance to the image-receiving material. to obtain an image on an image-receiving material.

However, as an image recording device that uses the photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat-developable material, performs imagewise exposure to this heat-developable material, performs heat development, and automatically fixes the resulting image on the image-receiving layer by pressure. , nothing had been completed yet.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and provides an image recording device that uses a new photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material and can perform the process from exposing an image to obtaining an image on an image-receiving layer fully automatically. The purpose is to provide

The present invention further miniaturizes the entire apparatus by arranging the exposure device and the pressure device along the conveyance path by the same conveyance roll, and also isolates the heat developing device from other processing sections by a heat insulating wall or the like. An object of the present invention is to provide an image recording apparatus that can reduce the power consumption of a heat developing device.

[Means to solve the problem]

An image recording device that uses a photosensitive and pressure-sensitive heat-developable material that is photosensitive, develops by heating, and fixes the obtained image by applying pressure; An exposure device that forms an image, a heat development device that hardens and immobilizes a portion corresponding to the latent image formed on the recording material, and a pressure device that presses the developed heat development material to fix the image. The image recording apparatus is characterized in that the exposure device and the pressure device are arranged along a conveyance path by the same conveyance roll.

Note that the photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material of the present invention is obtained by transferring a color image-forming substance to an image-receiving material having an image-receiving layer, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 121284/1984 filed by the applicant mentioned above. It may also be of the type that obtains an image on an image-receiving material by using the image-receiving material. It is also possible to use a type in which an image is formed on a photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat developing material, that is, a type in which an image-receiving layer is provided on the light-sensitive pressure sensitive heat developing material itself.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described by taking as an example a case where a photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat developing material is used to form an image in an image receiving layer provided on an image receiving material. As shown in the figure, the image recording apparatus of the embodiment includes a document glass plate 2 mounted on the upper surface of a housing 1 so as to be slidable back and forth in the direction of an arrow 4. Glass plate 2 is original 6
Place it face down and move it back and forth.

The housing 1 includes a photosensitive material supply device 34, an exposure device 10 for imagewise exposure of a document, along the conveyance direction of a photosensitive pressure sensitive thermal development material (hereinafter referred to as "photosensitive material") S. A heat developing device 26, an image receiving paper supplying device 28 that supplies image receiving paper and superimposes it on the photosensitive material, and a pressure device 3 that performs transfer by applying pressure.
0, peeling device 120, and receiver paper take-out tray 40
and a photosensitive material waste tray 38. A transport drum 24 is provided within the housing 1, around which the above-described exposure device 10 and pressure device 30 are arranged.

The photosensitive material supply device 34 includes a photosensitive material cartridge 50 that is removably attached to the housing 1, a photosensitive material feeding roll pair 52, and a cutting unit 54. The photosensitive material S unwound from the photosensitive material roll 60 housed in the photosensitive material cartridge 50 passes through the narrow opening 62 of the photosensitive material cartridge 50 to the photosensitive material feeding roll pair 52, and is further cut into a predetermined size by the cutting unit 54. It is cut and sent onto the transport drum 24.

The exposure apparatus 10 includes an illumination chamber 8 on the top surface of the housing 1.
A plurality of exposure lamps 12 with reflecting mirrors 9 are arranged here to illuminate the original 6. The illumination chamber 8 is also provided with a lens array 14 for forming an original image on the photosensitive material S. Below the lens array 14, a shutter device 20 for optically blocking the illumination chamber 8 from the inside of the housing 1 and a shutter drive control device 22 for controlling the shutter device 20 are provided.

Nip rolls 66 and 67 are provided in front and behind the exposure position 64 on the transport drum 24 (here, front and rear refer to downstream and upstream sides in the transport direction of the photosensitive material S), These work together to convey the photosensitive material S to the drum 2.
4 and pass through the exposure position 64.

The heat developing device 26 includes upper and lower guide plates 68, 69 for guiding the exposed photosensitive material S, a developing drum 70, an endless belt 75 that is guided by guide rolls 71, 72, 73, and 74 and pressed against the developing drum 70, A peeling plate 76 for peeling the heat-developable photosensitive material S from the developing drum 70, a peeling plate 7
The developing drum 70 includes a guide plate 77 that guides the photosensitive material S peeled off by 6 to the pressurizing device 30, and a heater 78 disposed inside the developing drum 70. The heat developing device 26 presses the photosensitive material S against the developing drum 70 with an endless belt 75, while
Development is performed by heating with a heater 78.

The receiving paper supply device 28 includes a receiving paper tray 80 that accommodates the receiving paper C, a receiving paper feeding roll 82 disposed on the receiving paper tray 80, guide members 83, 84, and a pair of feed rolls 81.84 attached to the guide member 83. 85, receiving paper C
At a predetermined time, the receiver paper is placed over the photosensitive material S.
Supply C one by one. The width of the receiver paper C is the same as the photosensitive material S.
It is formed smaller than that of the photosensitive material S described later.
It makes it easy to peel off.

The pressure device 30 includes a transfer roll 86 that is pressed against the conveyance drum 24, a peeling plate 76 that peels off the overlapping photosensitive material S and the image receiving paper C that have been pressure-transferred from the conveyance drum 24, and guide rolls 87, 88, and 89. It has a pressure belt 90 and a guide plate 91 that are guided by and pressed against the transfer roll 86. A heater 92 is arranged inside the transfer roll 86, and due to this heating, the transfer roll 86 transfers approximately 150 kg/
In addition to efficiently performing pressure transfer using a pressure of cffl, the transferred image-receiving paper brought into pressure contact with the transfer roll 86 by the pressure belt 90 is thermally fixed.

The peeling device 120 includes a peeling roll 122 and a guide roll 1.
It consists of a peeling belt 128 guided by 24 and 126, and a guide plate 132. The peeling belt 128 has a feeling,
A portion of the optical material S that protrudes from the image receiving material C in the width direction is pressed against a peeling roll 122 to peel the photosensitive material S and the image receiving material C from each other.

The photosensitive material S peeled off by the peeling device 120 is guided by a guide plate 132 and placed into the photosensitive material waste tray 38 . On the other hand, an ultraviolet lamp 142 with a reflector 140 is disposed in front of the peeling device 120, and the image receiving paper C peeled off by the peeling device 120 is irradiated with ultraviolet light by the ultraviolet lamp 142 to be optically fixed, and then placed on the image receiving paper take-out tray 40. will be put into.

Inside the housing 1, a heat insulating wall 150 is further provided between the exposure device 10 and the heat developing device 26, which enhances the heat retention effect of the heat developing device 26 and prevents loss of thermal energy. Prevent the material S from exceeding the permissible temperature range for exposure.

The apparatus further includes a control device (not shown) connected to the document glass plate 2, the sensitive material feed roll 52, the exposure lamp 12, the shutter drive control device 22, the transport drum 24, and the receiving paper feed roll 82. , performs the following operations. That is, when a copy start button (not shown) is pressed, the photosensitive material S is fed out by the feeding roll 52,
After being cut into a predetermined size by the cutting unit 54, it is sent to the exposure position 64 on the conveyance drum 24.

After that, the exposure lamp 12 is turned on to illuminate the original 6, the shutter device 20, which had been closed until now, is opened, and the original image is focused on the exposure position 64 by the lens array 14, and the original 6 and the transport drum 24 are rotated. and move/rotate.
The photosensitive material S is imagewise exposed. The photosensitive material S after imagewise exposure is heated by a heater 78 and developed.

On the other hand, the image receiving paper feeding roll 82 operates in synchronization with the photosensitive material S being transported, and the image receiving paper C is superimposed on the photosensitive material S of the developing method. At this time, the image-receiving paper C is stacked so as to be centered in the width direction of the photosensitive material S, which is wider than the image-receiving paper C.

In the pressure device 30, the superimposed photosensitive material S and image receiving paper C are pressed by a pair of transfer rolls 86 to perform transfer. Subsequently, the peeling belt 128 pushes the edge of the photosensitive material S protruding from the image receiving paper C in the width direction toward the peeling roll 122, thereby peeling the image receiving paper C and the photosensitive material S, and converts the photosensitive material S into a photosensitive material. It is sent to the waste tray 38. Further, the image-receiving paper C peeled off by the peeling device 120 is irradiated with ultraviolet light by an ultraviolet lamp 142 to be optically fixed, and then sent to the image-receiving paper take-out tray 40 .

In the above embodiment, the photosensitive material S is supplied from a roll, and the image-receiving paper C, which has been previously cut into sheets, is fed together, but it is possible to supply these from either rolls or sheets. Of course.

Further, the illumination lamp 12 with a reflector in the above embodiment may be one that emits radiation including visible light, and specifically, a tungsten lamp, a mercury lamp, an iodine lamp, a halogen lamp, a xenon lamp, a laser beam, etc. , CRT
Light sources, plasma light sources, fluorescent tubes, light emitting diodes can be used as light sources. Further, it can also be configured by combining a micro-shutter array using an LCD (liquid crystal) or PLZT (lead titanium zirconate doped with lanthanum) and a linear light source or a flat light source.

In the above embodiment, the photosensitive material S is further exposed to light by forming an original image directly on the photosensitive material S by the fiber lens array 14. However, a spherical lens can also be used instead of the fiber lens array 14. In addition, the exposure of the photosensitive material S is controlled by a CRTS using an image electric signal.
FOT (Fiberoptic tube), L
CA (Liquid crystal array
), an electro-optical element array, a combination of a laser, a modulator, and a scanner, a combination of an LED and a scanner, etc. can also be used indirectly. In this case, it becomes possible to perform processing on the image signal for gradation correction, color correction, scaling, editing, etc. of the projected image.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, when scanning a document, both the document and the photosensitive material S are moved and the optical system is fixed, but a method in which either the document or the photosensitive material and the optical system are moved is also possible. .

In the above embodiments, an image recording apparatus is shown in which a photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat-developable material is used, which obtains an image by pressure-transferring the image to an image-receiving layer provided on the image-receiving material. When a heat-developable material is used, an image-receiving material supply device and a photosensitive material waste tray are omitted from the structure of the image recording apparatus.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the process from exposing an image to obtaining an image on an image-receiving layer can be carried out fully automatically using a novel photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material.

According to the present invention, the entire apparatus can be downsized by arranging the exposure device and the pressure device along the conveyance path by the same conveyance roll.

Furthermore, the heat loss of the heat developing device is reduced by isolating the heat developing device from other processing sections by a heat insulating means.
Furthermore, it is possible to prevent the photosensitive material from being heated beyond the permissible temperature range by the heat developing device during exposure.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The figure is a structural explanatory diagram of an embodiment of the present invention. 1...Housing 2...Original glass plate 12...Exposure lamp 20...Shutter device 24... Conveyance drum 26... Heat developing device 28... Receiving paper supply device 30... Pressure device 120...Peeling device S...Photosensitive material C... Image receiving paper

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) An image recording device that uses a photosensitive and pressure-sensitive heat-developable material that is photosensitive, develops by heating, and fixes the obtained image by applying pressure, the heat-developable material being imagewise exposed. an exposure device that forms a latent image by applying heat to the recording material, a heat developing device that hardens and immobilizes a portion corresponding to the latent image formed on the recording material, and a pressure that applies pressure to the developed heat development material to fix the image. 1. An image recording apparatus comprising: an image recording apparatus, wherein the exposure device and the pressure device are arranged along a conveyance path by the same conveyance roll. (2) The photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material has at least a photosensitive silver halide, a reducing agent, a polymerizable compound, and a color image-forming substance coated on a support, and at least the polymerizable compound and the color image-forming substance are coated on a support. The image recording device according to claim 1, wherein the two are encapsulated in the same microcapsule. (3) The image recording device according to claim (2), wherein the heat developing device cures the microcapsules by polymerizing the polymerizable compound in the portion corresponding to the latent image.