US1894092A - Print treating apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 10, 1933- J. s. GREENE ET AL PRINT TREATING APPARATUS Filed July 28, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 ZZeziATTORN Jan. 10, 1933. 5, GREENE ET AL 1394,092

PRINT TREATING APPARATUS Filed July 28, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTO S (75705. G7 65:42 l auZ 19:52 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Jan- 10, 19 3- J. s. GREENE ET AL PRINT TREATING APPARATUS Filed July 28 IN 05701 S, ZuLZJ H61? ATTORNEY Dim-- llltlldrlllffllflllllfl I1: IUI I IMWIIIIIIIIIII Jan. 10, 1933. 5, GREENE ET AL 1,894,092

PRINT TREATING APPARATUS Filed July 28, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTQRS (1 7701 5. Greene oak ZZcz'r ATTORNEY Jan. 10, 1933. J. s. GREENE ET AL PRINT TREATING APPARATUS Filed July 28, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 CR5 enc rock INVENT 051? 3 GE 9% o 0 flair ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 10, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE JOHN S. GREENE AND PAUL LANDROCK, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, .ASSIGNORS TO PHOTOSTAT CORPORATION, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, A CORPORATION OF RHODE ISLAND PRINT TREATING APPARATUS Application filed July 28,

drying a roll or long continuous strip of photographic material, which has been exposed, for example, on one form or another of a socalled commercial camera.

The problems arising in connection with moving a long unbroken strip of material through apparatus of this kind are more diflicult and complex than when the material being moved consists of relatively short severed pieces constituting individual prints. An object of the present invention is the provision of apparatus satisfactorily solving these problems and furnishing an efficient and simple machine for developing, fixing, Washing, and drying long strips or rolls of photographic material in a substantially automatic manner.

Another object of the invention is the provision of simple and effective means for initially threading the advancing end of the strip or roll of material through the print treating baths, preferably in a more or less sinuous path, which threading means is so designed that it will not interfere with subsequent portions of the same strip or roll of photographic material.

Still another object is the provision of simple and effective means for keeping the strip of material centered in proper lateral position it passes through the machine.

To these and other ends the invention resides in certain improvements and combinations of parts, all as will be hereinafter more fully described. the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification.

in the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a machine constructed in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section taken substantially centrally through the rear end of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a similar section through the front end of the machine:

Fig. 4 is a view of a pin bar for picking up 1932. Serial No. 625,408.

the advance end of the strip of photographic material and threading it through the machine, together with fragments of the chains which hold and drive the pin bar;

Fig. 5 is a perspective View of one end of the pin bar and an associated link member of one of the chains, slightly separated from each other and showing the manner in which they fit together;

Fig. 6 is a transverse section taken substantially on the line 66-0f Fig. 3;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary side elevation of a portion of the machine, looking at the opposite side from that shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is a view of part of the driving mechanism shown in Fig. 7, with the cover plate removed, and

Fig. 9 is a horizontal section through a part of the driving mechanism shown in Fig. 8.

The same reference numerals throughout the several views indicate the same arts.

Referring now to the drawings, which show a machine constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, there is provided a framework comprising vertical members or legs 10, lower horizontal members 11, and upper horizontal members or rails 12, the latter supporting a casing 13 from the bottom of which depend one or more receptacles for holding print treating baths. For example, there may be a receptacle 14 (Figs. 1 and 3) for containing a developing bath and, rearwardly of it, a larger receptacle 15 containing a number of compartments such as 16 for holding a washing bath of water, 17 for holding a fixing bath of hypo or the like, and 18, 19, 20, 21, and 22 for holding washing baths of water. Developing solution and fixing solution are supplied to the respective baths by any suitable spouts.

Water for the washing baths may be supplied, for example, through a hose 23 connected to a manifold 24 having inlet connections leading to the top of each of the compartments 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, and 22. Preferably fresh water is constantly supplied to the washing baths through t e inlet connections and water is constantly ischarged from each of these baths through discharge openings in the bottoms thereof, as plainly shown in Fig. 3, all leading ultimately to a discharge pipe 25, whence the liquid being discharged passes upwardly in a standpipe 26 having at its top an outlet 27 leading to any suitable waste connection, the outlet 27 being at an elevation near the tops of the various coinpartments so that the wash water is constantly maintained at a predetermined elevation near the tops of the tanks. Suitable cocks are provided in operative communication with each of the baths, as shown in Fig. 3, for draining their contents when desired, these cocks discharging into a trough 29.

The photographic material to be developed and fixed preferably passes through the baths in a sinuous path. T 0 this end, a series of transverse shafts 30 are provided, extending across the machine slightly above the tops of the bath receptacles, as indicated in Figs. 3 and 6. Each of these shafts has fixed thereto apair of sprockets 31 slightly inwardly of the lateral sides of the bath receptacles, as shown in Fig. 6, and also a guide roller 32 between the sprockets, the roller having a greater diameter adjacent its center than adacent its ends, as shown, in order that the strip of photographic material passing over the roller will tend to remain centered there- A series of lower shafts 35 are also provided as shown in Fig. 3, each of these shafts being carried by the lower end of a removable partition structure 36 placed in the baths, the upper end of each such partition structure being retained by any suitable means such as that indicated diagrammatically at 37 in Fig. 3. The shafts 35 carry rollers 38 freely rotatable on them. In all or some of the baths, such for example as in the fixing bath 17, intermediate or supplementary partition means 40 are placed between the adjacent partition structures 36, as shown, to keep the various portions of photographic material moving in opposite directions from coming int-o contact with each other.

Near the forward end of the machine. the casing 13 has an upward extension 45 within which is a cross beam or rail 46 carrying slidably thereon a pair of trunnion brackets 47 for rotatably supporting a roll 48 containing a long strip of exposed photographic material 49. One side of the upward extension 45 is provided with a door 50 covered by a hood 51 of fabric or the like, of ample dimensions so that the door may be partially opened and a persons arm may be inserted through the opening thus provided, while the hood excludes light from the casing.

By inserting ones arm in this manner. the forward or advance end of the strip 49 of photographic material from the roll 48 may be moved downwardly and inserted in suitable holding means such as the chute 55 shown in Figs. 3 and 6. If the strip of photographio material is materially narrower than the width of the chute, as is sometimes the case, then the chute may be provided with guiding means such as the partitions 56 which will hold the strip of photographic material laterally within predetermined contines, preferably centering it in the chute as shown in Fig. 6. The advance or bottom edge of the strip 49 comes to rest against an abutment 57 spaced slightly below the lower end of the chute itself, as shown in Figs. 3 and 6, to provide a space between the abutments and the chute through which a pickup device or pin bar may pass, as hereinafter described.

Suitable means is provided for picking up the forward or advance end of the strip of photographic material from the chute or holding means 55, and threading it through the print treating baths. In the present instance, this pick-up means preferably comprises what may be termed a pin-bar 60 best shown in Fig. 4, which bar extends transversely across the machine and is provided on its forward edge with impaling devices such as the pins 61 which pierce the photographic material 49 as the pin-bar moves forwardly through the space between the lower end of the chute 55 and the abutment 57. The pins pierce the photographic material slightly above the bottom edge thereof, as may be plainly seen from Fig. 3, so that the material becomes impaled upon and held by the pins and is advanced by further movement of the pin-bar, following whatever path of travel the pin-bar takes.

The pin-bar 60 is detachably secured to and supported and moved by a pair of suitable endless members such for example as the pair of chains 62 shown in Fig. 4 and indicated diagrammatically by dotted lines in Figs. 2 and 3. Each chain of the pair of chains is a continuous member capable of moving repeatedly through a closed circuit, and the chains run in substantially vertical planes spaced from each other transversely of the machine and slightly inside the sides of the machine, these being, in fact the vertical planes passing through the series of sprockets 31 on the shafts 30.

The chains travel in a generally downwardly and forwardly direction toward the bottom end of the chute 55, as indicated in Fig. 3, and pass through guides 63 at the bottom of the chute, thence running to and passing over the pair of sprockets 31 on the foremost one of the shafts 30, and partly around the sprockets and downwardly into the developing bath 14. Adjacent the bottom of the bath, the chains pass around the roller 38 on the foremost one of the shafts 35, and travel upwardly again and around the sprockets 31 on the second one of the shafts 30. thence traveling downwardly into the developing bath once more, around the second roller 38 on the second shaft 35, and up again to the sprockets 31 on the third shaft 30. The pin-bar 60, of course, is carried by the chains 62 through this same path of travel above de scribed, and pulls with it the forward or advance end of the strip of photographic material 49, thus threading this material around the respective rollers 32 on shafts 30 and rollers 38 on shafts 35 and making the photographic material assume substantially the same sinuous path of travel as that of the chains themselves.

After emerging for the last time from the developing bath 14, the chains and pinbar pass rearwardly and down into the washing bath 16, then up again, and rearwardly to the fixing bath 17, up and down preferably several times in the fixing bath 17 as plainly indicated in Fig. 3, and then successively through the respective washing baths 18, 19, 20, 21, and 22, all as plainly indicated in Fig. 3 so that the path of travel will be obvious without further detailed description.

After leaving the last washing bath 22, the chains and pin-bar pass upwardly, around a guide roller 65, the pin bar and its following photographic material being drawn between a pair of squeegee rollers 66 and 67 and preferably through a second pair of squeegee rollers 68 and 69. all as indicated in Fig. 3. The two pairs of squeegee rollers remove a substantial amount of water or other liquid from the photographic material as it is drawn between them, the liquid dropping from the squeegee rollers beng guided by the deflector plate 17 so as to flow into the rearmost washing bath 22. The rollers 65, 66, and 68 are driven by means of sprockets over which the chains 62 run, so as to assist in forwarding the photographic sheet material.

After leaving the squeegee rollers, the path of travel of the chains and pin-bar continues rearwardly and slightly upwardly as shown in Fig. 3 and in Fig. 2 which is a rearward continuation of Fig. 3, to a roller on a shaft (Fig. 2) then substantially vertically downwardly to a roller on a shaft 76, and thence substantially vertically upwardly to a roller on a shaft 77. At the point where the chains and pin-bar pass substantially vertically downwardly between the shafts 76 and 77, the photographic material is stripped from the pins 61 on the pin-bar 60 by any suitable stripping device indicated in general by the numeral 78, which stripping device may, for example, be constructed and operated substantially in the manner disclosed in United States Patent No. 1,832,278, issued November 17, 1931, for an invention of Arthur \V. Caps and Eli DuPree.

hen the end of the photographic material is stripped from the pin 61 by the stripping device, it falls upon a drier belt 79 and the photographic material has a further path of travel described below. Meanwhile, re

verting to the path of travel of the chains 62, after passing around the roller on the shaft 77 they run forwardly and slightly down wardly to a roller on a shaft 80 (Fig. 3). After the pin-bar 60 has passed around the shaft 77 and while it is moving'along the stretch of the chains between this shaft and the shaft 80, the movement of the chains is temporarily stopped and the pin-bar is re moved from the machine, the casing 13 having suitable doors 81 in its top which may be opened to provide convenient access to the parts for the purpose of such removal.

In order to make the pin-bar readily detachable, the ends of the pin-bar are provided with slots 82 as best shown in Fig. 5, extending longitudinally of the pin-bar. The ends of the pin-bar have a loose sliding fit with and may be inserted in the space between prongs 83 extending laterally from certain link members 84 forming part of the chains 62, as will be plainly apparent to anyone skilled in the art from an inspection of Fig. 5. The pin-bar and link member may be connected and disconnected from each other only by a movement laterally or transversely of the machine, which is a direction longitudinally with respect to the pin-bar. The stretch of the chains between the shafts 77 and 80 is sufficiently long so that the chains may be sufficiently deflected laterally away from each other at an intermediate point in this stretch, by the application of reasonable manual force thereto, to disconnect the pin bar from the chains or to connect it thereto. Unless the chains are purposely deflected laterally in this way, however, the pin-bar when once in place remains securely connected to them and cannot drop out accidentally.

Preferably a number of the links 84 with prongs 83 are provided at frequent intervals along the chains 62, so that when the pin-bar is to be reconnected to the chains, it will not be necessary to move the chains more than a short distance before a set of the necessary attaching prongs 83 will arrive at an accessible position. Of course links 84 with prongs 88 are provided on each of the chans 62, those on one chain being exactly opposite those on the other chain, so that the pin-bar when properly connected will extend straight across the machine from one chain to the other.

After passing the shaft 80, the chains continue forwardly and downwardly at a somewhat steepcr angle and around a roller on the shaft 85, thence up vertically to a roller on the shaft 86, thence upwardly and forwardly to a roller on the shaft 87, and downwardly and forwardly to the pick-up point at the bottom of the chute 55. A light guard or seal comprising parts 88 and 89, as plainly shown in Fig. 3, is so arranged that the chains and the pin-bar, if it is attached to the chains, may pass through the space between the parts 88 and 89, but so that light cannot pass through this space even when the doors 81 in the rear part of the casing are open. Thus the forward part of the casing, in front of the light guard 8889, constitutes a dark chamber enclosing the developing, fixing, and part of the washing baths, and the space immediately above them, so as to prevent any light from reaching the photographic material until after it has passed through the fixing bath and has thus been placed in a condition in which light will not spoil it.

The purpose of removing the pin-bar from the machine after the forward end of the photographic material has been stripped from it, is to prevent the pin-bar from continuing along the path of travel of the chains and again piercing the photographic material. Since the advance end of the strip of photographic material from the rear 48 has been threaded through the baths, and since other means is provided for moving the material through the baths once it has been threaded through them, as described below, there is no necessity for having the pin-bar pierce or engage the photographic material again until another length or strip of photographic material is to be threaded through the machine. Vhen a new roll of photographic material is placed in the machine to be developed, the pin-bar is replaced on the chains 62 and is used to thread the advance end of the new roll of material through the machine in the manner previously described, the pin-bar being removed again from the machine when this initial threading operation is completed and the movement of the strip of material through the baths being continued by other means as described below.

hen the pin-bar has been replaced on the chains as above mentioned for the purpose of picking up the end of a new strip of material and threading it through the machine, it is convenient to know when this pin-bar is about to reach the chute 55, and for this reason it is convenient to provide the machine with sfgnalling means such as the bell 90 having a clapper 91 actuated by a lever 92 in the path of travel of the pin-bar. This lever 92 is a slight distance in advance of the chute 55, as shown in Fig. 3, so that as the pin-bar approaches this chute it will ring the bell and thus ind cate to the operator that the forward end of the strip of photographic material must be placed in the chute if it has not already been thus placed, in order that if may be impaled by the approaching pin- As above stated, means other than the pinbar is provided for moving the strip of photographic material through the baths after the material has been initially threaded in its sinuous path through them. This means comprises means for driving certain of the shafts around which the photographic material passes. Preferably, all of the shafts 30 of the upper group of shafts are driven, so that all of the rollers 32 fixed to these shafts are driven and thus a driving movement is imparted at frequent intervals to the strip of photographic material passing around these rollers 32.

The driving means, best shown in Figs. 6 to 9 inclusive, preferably comprises, for example, an electric motor 95 mounted at a convenient point on the outside of the casing 13 and having suitable speed reduction gearing such as the worm 96 on the armature shaft of the motor, driving a wormwheel 97 provided with a small beveled pinion 98 meshing with a larger beveled pinion 99 on a shaft 100 extending longitudinally along the side of the main casing 13 within a supplementary casing 101 provided with a cover plate 102 shown in Figs. 6 and 7, but removed in Fig. 8.

Each of the shafts 30 of the upper series is preferably extended leftwardly as shown in Fig. 6 to a position within the casing 101 and is there provided with a spiral gear 103 meshin sh ft 100.

In this way, a substantial number and preferably each one of the upper shafts 30 is driven, all in unison so that motion at the with a suitable spiral gear 104 on the J proper speed is imparted to each roller 32. T3

Since the photographic material 49 has been threaded around these rollers by the use of the pin-bar 60, it follows that the motion of the rollers 32 will be imparted to the strip of photographic material, and these rollers come 3 at such frequent intervals in the path of travel of the photographic material that there is substantially no strain on the material between the rollers and therefore there is substantially no likelihood of breaking of the photographic material, even when in its wet and weakened condition. The driving of the shafts 30 also drives the sprockets 31 fixed to them and thus drives the chains 62 which run over the sprockets.

Reverting now to the further path of travel of the strip of photographic material, it has been stated above that when the advance end of the photographic material is stripped from the pin-bar 60 by the stripper 78, it falls upon the drier belt 79. This belt moves leftwardly when viewed as in Fig. 2, to and around a rotating drier drum heated in any suitable manner, for example by the electrical heating units 111 within the drum. A :1

second drier belt 112 passes around the drum inside the belt 79, so that the photographic material does not come in direct contact with the surface of the drum 110', but is carried around between the belts 79 and 112, as will be clearly apparent to those skilled in the art from an inspection of Fig. 2. The strip of photographic material becomes dried while passing around the drum and issues from between the two belts at the point 115, extending thence to and being wound up on a rewinding reel 116 mounted on brackets 117 and driven in any suitable manner such as by means of the spiral spring belt 118 (Fi l) driven from any suitable moving sha t of the drier.

The drier drum and the belts 79 and 112 which pass around it are driven at a speed equal to the speed of the strip of photographic material through the developing and fixing portion of the apparatus, by any suitable driving means such as the motor 120 (Fig. 2) which, through suitable reduction gearing, drives the chain indicated by the dotted line 121 which runs over and drives sprockets on the shafts of the various guide rollers of the belts. An ironing roller 122 is mounted on one arm of each of a pair of hell cranks 123 and is normally pressed against the bottom of the belt 69 by springs 124 connected to the other arms of the bell cranks, so as to press the belt 79 firmly against the belt 112 and the drum 110 and thus smooth or iron out the photographic material as it passes this point. In Fig. 2, the ironing roller is shown de pressed slightly to separate it from the belt 79, for the sake of clarity in the drawings.

In operation, a roll of photographic material preferably containing a strip of substantial length is exposed or printed in any desired manner, such for example, as by one or another form of commercial camera. The roll of material, instead of being severed at short intervals into individual prints as is sometimes done in some commercial cameras, is rewound after exposure on a roll, and this roll is then placed in the apparatus of the present invention, as shown at 48 in Figs. 3 and 6 of the drawings.

A pin-bar 60 is inserted in the machine by deflecting the chains 62 laterally away from each other and slipping the ends of the pinbar between the forked members 83-01: the chains. The operator reaches beneath the fabric hood 51, opens the door 50 in the portion 45 of the casing or dark chamber, and, without admitting light to the darkchamber,

rasps the advance end of the material 49 rom the exposed roll 48 and feeds it downwardly into the receiving chute 55 until the bottom edge of the strip comes into contact with the abutment 57.

The driving motor 95 being set into operation, the chains 62 will be driven through their continuous closed path of travel, thus advancing the pin-bar 60 with the pins 62 projecting from its forward edge. The pinbar will pass through the space between the bottom end of the shaft 55 and abutment 57, thus intersecting the photographic material 49 just above its lower end so that the pins pierce this material and impale the material on the pins. The photographic material is thus connected to the pin-bar and, upon continued motion of the pin-bar along the path of travel of'the chains, the photographic material is carried along with it, being unwound from the roll 48 and pulled through the chute 55, down into the developing bath 14, then through the washing bath l6, thence through the fixing bath 1?, and finally through the washing baths 18, 19, 2t), 21, and 22, all as explained in greater detail above. The advance end of the photographic material 18 threaded through the proper sinuous path because of its attachment to the pin-bar 60 which follows this path, and the following portions of the strip are assisted to move along this path by passing over the driven rollers 2-52 on the shafts 30, which are driven at the proper speed through driving mechanism shown particularly in Fig. 9 of the drawings.

After passing between the squeegee rolls 66, 67, (58, and (59, the pin-bar 60 finally arrives at a point between the shafts and 7 6, and at this point the stripping mechanism 78 acts to disengage or strip the photographic material from the pins 61, so that the forward end of the material falls onto the drier belt 79, which is moving leftwardly at the same rate 'at which the material is advancing, under the influence of the motor 120. The forward end of the photographic material is thus carried leftwardly for some distance until the pin-bar 60 has passed on around the shafts 76 and 77, and the driving motors 95 and 120 are then stopped temporarily to permit the removal of the pinbar 60.

By opening the doors 81 in the top of the casing, the chains 62 may be easily deflected laterally away from each other, permitting the ends of the pin-bar to he slipped out from between the forked members 83 which held them, and the pin-bar is removed from the machine so that continued movement of the chains will not carry it again into contact with the strip of material from the roll 48, no matter how long this strip may be. The motors 95 and 120 are then again started, so that the motion of the photographic material through the apparatus is resumed.

The driven rollers 32 at frequent intervals along the path of travel of the photographic material furnish the necessary driving force to carry the material through the baths without any substantial strain upon it.

The shape of these rollers, being of somewhat larger diameter at the center than at the ends, guides the strip of material effectively and keeps it centered on these rollers in proper position transversely of the apparatus.

When the driving motors are started as above described after removing the pin-bar from the machine. the advance end of the photographic material passes around the drier drum 110 between the belts 79 and 112, and. issuing at the point 115, is connected in any suitable manner to the rewinding reel 116 which is driven so as to rewind the developed, fixed, and dried photographic material on this reel as rapidly as it issues from the drier. The drier furnishes the necessary power to pull the photographic material from the last pair of squeegee rollers 68 and 69 to the drier, the rollers (55, and 66, and 68 being driven by the chains 62 to assist in carrying forward the photographic material as far as this point.

After the entire strip of material from the. roll 48 has wholly passed through the machine and has been wound up on the rewinding reel 116, the machine may be stopped, the pin-bar 60 may be reinserted and connected to the chains 62 and the apparatus is then ready for the insertion of another roll of exosed photographic material and the passing of the same through the various parts of the apparatus to develop, fix, wash and dry it.

\Vhile one embodiment of the invention has been disclosed, it is to be understood that the inventive idea may be carried out in a number of ways. This application is therefore not to be limited to the precise details described. but is intended to cover all variations andmoditications thereof falling Within the spiritof the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

\Ve claim:

1. Photographic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, mechanism for holding a comparatively long strip of photographic material, an endless member having a path of travel passing through said baths, and means attachable to and detachable from said endless member for holding the advance end of said strip of photographic material to thread it through said baths.

2. Photographic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, mechanism for holding a comparatively long strip of photographic material. an endless member having a path of travel passing through said baths, and means attachable to and detachable from said endless member for piercing and holding the advance end of said strip of photo graphic material to thread it through said baths.

3. Photographic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, mechanism for holding a comparatively long strip of photographic material, an endless member having a path of travel passing through said baths, means attachable to and detachable from said end less member for holding the advance end of said strip of photographic material to thread it through said baths, and other means for moving said strip through said baths after it has been threaded through them by said detachable holding means.

4. Photo-graphic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality oi: print treating baths, mechanism for l'iolding a comparatively long strip of photographic material, an endless member having a path of travel passing through said baths, means attachable to and detachable from said endless member for holding the advance end of said strip of photographic material to thread it through said baths, and other means for moving said strip through said baths out of contact with said endless member after said strip has been threaded through said baths by said detachable holding means.

5. Photographic print treating appa 'atus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, casing means forming a dark chamber for excluding light from said baths and the space innnediately above them, mechanism within said dark chamber for holding a roll of exposed photographic material, means for threading an advance end of material from said roll in a sinuous path through said baths, said threading means being at least in part detachable and removable t'rom the apparatus after said threading has been completed, and other means for moving the material from said roll continuously through said baths in a single continuous strip.

6. Photographic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, casing means forming a dark chamber for excluding light from said baths and the space immediately above them, mechanism within said dark chamber for holding a roll of exposed photographic material, a chute also within said dark chamber for receiving and holding the advance end of a strip of material from said roll, and means for picking up said advance end from said chute, pulling said strip through said chute, threading the advance end of the strip in a sinuous path through said baths, and moving the material from said roll through said baths in the form of a long continuous strip.

7. Photographic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, a heated drier drum, mechanism for holding a roll containing a comparatively long strip of exposed photographic material, means for moving said strip of material substantially continuously through said baths and around said drum, and means for revvinding said strip of material into a roll after it leaves said drum 8. Photographic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, a series of guide rollers associated with said baths, each of said rollers having a larger diameter adjacent its center than adjacent its ends, mechanism for holding a roll containing a comparatively long strip of exposed photographic material, a casing forming a dark chamber enclosing said baths and said roll holding mechanism, and means for driving said rollers to convey said photographic material around said rollers and through said baths in the form of a long strip.

9. Photographic print treating apparatus con'iprisin g means for holding a. plurality of print treating baths, mechanism for holding a comparatively long strip of photographic 10 material, an endless member having a path of travel passing through said baths, means attachable to and detachable from said endless member for holding the advance end of said strip of photographic material to thread it through said baths, a series of guide rollers around which said strip is threaded by said holding and threading means, certain of said rollers being of larger diameter adjacent their central portions than adjacent their ends so as to tend to keep said strip centered on said rollers after said strip has been threaded, and means for rotating certain of said rollers in unison to move the threaded strip oi": material through said baths.

1(). Photographic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, casing means forming a dark chamber enclosing said baths, said casing means having an upward extension at one point, mechanism within said upward extension t'or holding a roll of exposed photographic material, a chute within said dark chamber substantially beneath said roll, an

opening in said upward extension and a .o' fabric hood over said opening for excluding light therefrom, so that by reaching through said opening the advance end of a strip of material from said roll may be placed in said chute, and means for picking up said ad- Vance end from said chute and threading said strip in a sinuous path through said baths.

ll. Photographic print treating apparatus comprising means for holding a plurality of print treating baths, casing means forming a dark chamber enclosing said baths, said casing means having an upward extension at one point, mechanism Within said upward extension for holding a roll of exposed photographic material, a chute within said dark chamber substantially beneath said roll, an opening in said upward extension and a fabric hood over said opening for excluding light therefrom, so that by reaching through said opening the advance end of a strip of material from said roll may be placed in said chute, and means for picking up said advance end from said chute and threading said strip in a sinuous path through said baths, said picking up and threading means being (30 capable of being rendered ineffective when said threading has been completed.

JOHN S. GREENE. PAUL LANDROCK.

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