JP3392574B2 - Processing rack structure of photosensitive material processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a processing rack of a photosensitive material processing apparatus for transporting and processing a photosensitive material while immersing it in a processing solution along a predetermined transport path. Regarding the structure. 2. Description of the Related Art A silver halide photosensitive material such as an exposed photographic film is immersed in a processing solution such as a developing solution, a fixing solution, and washing water in a photosensitive material processing apparatus (automatic developing machine). Developed automatically. In such a photosensitive material processing apparatus, processing racks for transporting photosensitive material are arranged in respective processing tanks for storing respective processing solutions, and a substantially U-shaped transport path is driven by driving rollers provided in these processing racks. And immersed in a processing solution for processing. [0003] Such a processing rack comprises a plurality of rollers,
When the guides are arranged between the pair of side plates, the guides are assembled by adjusting the positional relationship between the guides, thereby preventing the photosensitive material from being damaged in the middle of the conveyance or the conveyance failure from occurring. In addition, the processing rack disposed in the processing tank requires regular cleaning because a sediment or the like adheres and becomes dirty during use. A processing solution such as a developing solution is evaporated or oxidized when it comes into contact with air, so that the processing performance is reduced with time and the finished quality of the photosensitive material is deteriorated. In order to suppress the deterioration of the processing performance, a large amount of replenisher may be replenished. However, in this method, a large amount of replenisher is required irrespective of the processing of the light-sensitive material. Since the amount of waste liquid increases, there are problems such as harm to the environment. For this reason, in a photosensitive material processing apparatus, a floating cover for covering the level of the processing solution stored in the processing tank is arranged together with the processing rack, and the level of the processing solution in the processing tank comes into contact with air. In some cases, the area to be processed is reduced so as to reduce the deterioration of the processing performance of the processing solution over time. However, when the processing rack is pulled out of the processing tank for maintenance of the processing rack such as cleaning, the floating lid becomes an obstacle. Also, after returning the processing rack to the processing tank, a floating lid must be attached. At this time, it is necessary to accurately position and attach the floating lid to the processing rack for transporting the photosensitive material, and maintenance work such as cleaning is complicated. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and has as its object to provide a processing rack structure of a photosensitive material processing apparatus capable of improving the assemblability and maintenance of the processing apparatus. According to the present invention, there is provided a processing tank for storing a processing solution for processing by immersing a photographic light-sensitive material, and comprising a plurality of rollers and guides. A processing rack structure of a photosensitive material processing apparatus that forms a transport path for guiding and transporting a photographic photosensitive material in a substantially U shape,
The processing rack structure includes a lower unit positioned below in the processing tank and an upper unit disposed on the lower unit, and the lower unit is configured to transfer a photosensitive material between a pair of side plates near a bottom in the processing tank. A plurality of rollers and guides forming a U-turned conveyance path are provided, and the upper unit has a pair of upper side plates disposed above each of the pair of side plates, and a lower surface when disposed in the processing tank. A plate member provided with a slit through which the photosensitive material can pass while being in contact with the solution and covering the liquid surface of the processing solution and facing the respective ends of the photosensitive material transport path of the lower unit. Characterized in that the upper unit frame is provided. The processing rack of the present invention comprises a lower unit and an upper unit disposed thereon, wherein the upper unit is
It is created by assembling parts such as rollers on an upper rack frame in which a plate member having a predetermined thickness is integrally formed between a pair of upper side plates. When the processing rack is placed in the processing bath, the lower surface of the plate-shaped member comes into contact with the processing liquid in the processing bath and serves as a floating lid that covers the surface of the processing liquid. Therefore, by arranging the processing rack in the processing tank, it is possible to suppress oxidation or the like caused by the processing liquid coming into contact with air. Further, when the processing rack is taken out of the processing tank for cleaning or the like, the plate member serving as the floating lid is also integrally removed, which makes the operation extremely easy. 1 to 3 show a processing rack 10 according to the present invention.
2 shows a part of the lower unit 12 and a part of the upper unit 14. The processing rack 10 is immersed in the processing liquid in a processing tank 11 (see FIG. 2) for storing each processing liquid in the photosensitive material processing apparatus, and the photosensitive material F sent from the upstream side is disposed in the processing liquid. After being guided and conveyed in a substantially U-shape and immersed in the processing liquid, it is sent to the downstream processing section. As shown in FIG. 2, this processing rack 1
Reference numeral 0 designates a pair of rollers 16, 18, 20, and 22, which are substantially provided by guides 24, 26 having a substantially arc-shaped surface disposed between the pair of rollers 18, 20 and between the pair of rollers 20, 22. It forms a U-shaped transport path. These roller pairs 18 to 22 are rotated by the driving force of a driving unit (not shown) to feed out the sandwiched photosensitive material F. The lower unit 12 of the processing rack 10
The lower rack frame 36 is formed integrally with the pair of side plates 28 and 30 by connecting the pair of side plates 28 and 30 by the support members 32 and 34 forming the guides 24 and 26.
The lower rack frame 36 is provided with these roller pairs 16, 18, and 20.
A component (not shown) for transmitting the driving force is attached to .about.28. The support members 32 and 34 are formed of a pair of side plates 28 and
30 are connected so as to maintain the parallel state, and also have a guide surface for guiding the front end of the photosensitive material F conveyed by the roller pairs 16, 18, 20 in a predetermined direction. Bearing holes 38.4 in which bearings (not shown) for supporting the roller pairs 16 to 20 are inserted into the pair of substantially trapezoidal side plates 28 and 30 of the lower rack frame 36, respectively.
0 is formed at a predetermined position. One bearing hole 40
Is a long hole extending in the direction of the other bearing 38, thereby supporting one roller of the roller pair so as to be able to approach and separate from the other roller, and between the bearings supporting the rollers of each roller pair. By interposing an urging means such as a tension coil spring, a clamping force for clamping the photosensitive material F between the rollers can be applied. As described above, in the lower unit 12, the bearing holes 38 and 40 for supporting the roller pairs 16 to 20 at predetermined positions.
And support members 32 and 34 having functions of guides 24 and 26
Are used, the components can be easily and accurately positioned at predetermined positions. A pair of side plates 28 of the lower rack frame 36
・ In each of the 30, at the upper end of the surface facing each other,
The steps 42 and 44 for engagement with the upper unit 14 are formed in a cut-out state. Also, one side plate 28
Is formed with a projecting portion 46 which is directed upward from the intermediate position of the step portion 42 along the inner surface of the side plate 28, and the other side plate 30 is formed with a step portion 44 having a further rectangular shape from the intermediate position. And a rectangular engaging hole 48 is formed at the tip. The lower rack frame 36 is integrally formed with such a structure. On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the upper unit 14 has a substantially flat lid member 50 serving as a plate member. The lid member 50 connects the processing rack 10 to the processing tank 1.
When it is disposed in the processing tank 1, it has a size that covers the liquid surface of the processing liquid inside the processing tank 11. The planar shape of the lid member 50 is desirably the shape of the surface of the processing liquid in the processing tank 11. A side plate 52 provided at one end of the lid member 50 and a side plate portion 56 provided with a small side plate 54 at the other end are integrally formed to constitute an upper rack frame 58. In the upper rack frame 58, the side plate 52 and the small side plate 54 are erected from both ends of the lid member 50 in parallel with each other,
A pair of ribs 60 for connecting the side plate 52 and the side plate portion 56 are formed upright from the upper surface of the lid member 50. The pair of ribs 60 are also connected to each other at a predetermined interval so that the upper rack frame 58 is not distorted. As shown in FIG. 2, the upper unit 14
In the upper rack frame 58, a bearing (not shown) supporting the roller pair 22 is provided at a predetermined position on each of the side plate 52 and the small side plate 54, as shown in FIG. The bearing holes 62 and 64 for mounting are formed. One of the bearing holes 64 is a long hole so that the rollers of the roller pair 22 can be relatively moved toward and away from each other, and a tension coil spring is provided between the bearings 62 and 64 supporting the respective rollers of the roller pair 22. The holding force can be applied by interposing an urging means (not shown). The distance between the side plates 52 and the small side plates 54 is substantially equal to the distance between the pair of side plates 28 and 30 of the lower rack frame 36 described above. Side plates 28 and 30 of rack frame 36
Protruding portions 66.6 opposed to step portions 42 and 44 formed in
8 are formed. On the outer surface of the side plate 52 (the back side of the paper surface in FIG. 2), a recess cut out from an intermediate position of the protrusion 66 and formed in the side plate 28 of the lower rack frame 36 enters. 70 are formed. Side plate 5
6, an engagement projection 72 projecting downward from an intermediate position of the projection 68 and having a rectangular tip projecting outward (in a direction opposite to the side plate 52), The rack frame 36 is formed so as to face an engagement hole 48 formed in the side plate 30. For this reason, the engaging projections 72 of the upper rack frame 58 are inserted into the engaging holes 48 of the lower rack frame 36, and the projections 66 of the upper rack frame 58 are inserted into the steps 42 and 44 of the lower rack frame 36. By accommodating 68 and accommodating the projecting portion 46 of the side plate 28 in the recess 70 of the side plate 52, the upper rack frame 58 can be accurately assembled to the lower rack frame 36.
After being housed in the protruding portion 46 and the concave portion 70 of the side plate 52,
By connecting these with screws (not shown), the lower rack frame 36 and the upper rack frame 58 can be integrally connected, whereby one processing rack 10 in which the lower unit 12 and the upper unit 14 are connected is assembled. As shown in FIG. 2, when the processing rack 10 is placed in a processing tank 11 of a photosensitive material processing apparatus that stores a processing solution for processing a photosensitive material,
Most of the peripheral edge of the lid member 50 is in contact with the inner wall of the processing tank 11 or opposed with a minute gap, and the lower surface of the lid member 50 of the upper rack frame 58 contacts the processing liquid in the processing tank 11. The lid member 50 covers the surface of the processing liquid. The photosensitive material processing apparatus maintains the amount of the processing liquid so that the level of the processing liquid stored in the processing tank 11 is within the range of the thickness of the lid member 50 of the processing rack 10. Like that. On the other hand, the lid member 5 of the upper rack frame 58
0 is a slit-shaped insertion opening 74 for passing the photosensitive material F sent toward the roller pair 16 of the lower unit 12.
At the same time, a slit-shaped outlet 7 through which the photosensitive material F sent out by the roller pair 20 toward the roller pair 22 passes.
6 are formed. As shown in FIG.
4 and the outlet 76 respectively feed the photosensitive material F to the roller pair 1
6 or a guide function for guiding toward the roller pair 22. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the roller pair 22 is provided on the upper surface of the lid member 50 around the outlet 76.
The recesses 78 and 80 for preventing interference with the rollers are formed along the axial direction of each roller of the roller pair 22. Also, the toner adheres to the photosensitive material F from the roller pair 22 and
It has a function of squeezing out the processing liquid taken out from the inside, and as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the processing liquid squeezed from the photosensitive material F by the roller pair 22 is provided in one of the concave portions 80. Through holes 82 for collecting in the inside 11 are provided at predetermined intervals. Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. In the processing rack 10, a lower rack frame 36 and an upper rack frame 58 are formed by integral molding, respectively. The lower rack frame 36 is used for mounting bearings for supporting rollers together with support members 32 and 34 on which guides 24 and 26 are formed. Bearing holes 38 and 40 are formed. The upper rack frame 58 is formed with bearing holes 62 and 64 in which bearings for supporting the roller pair 22 are mounted together with the lid member 50. The lid member 50 has an insertion port 74 and a feed port 76 having a guide function. Is formed. For this reason, the roller can be easily attached to an appropriate position with respect to the guide in order to accurately convey the photosensitive material F. Therefore, the lower rack frame 3
6. Attachment of the rollers and parts for transmitting the driving force to the rollers is extremely easy on each of the upper rack frames 58, so that the lower unit 12 and the upper unit 14 can be easily assembled. On the other hand, the lower unit 12 and the upper unit 1
After the engagement protrusion 72 formed on the upper rack frame 52 of the upper unit 14 is inserted into the engagement hole 48 provided on the lower rack frame 36 of the lower unit 12, the side plate 28 of the lower rack frame 36 is assembled. , 30 and the projecting portion 46 of the side plate 28, the projecting portions 66 and 68 formed on the side plate 52 and the small side plate 54 of the upper rack frame 58, and the recess 70 are fitted. These are lower rack frame 36, upper rack frame 5
8 are formed integrally with each other, so that when the processing rack 10 is assembled, the components assembled in the lower unit 12 and the upper unit 14 respectively have an appropriate positional relationship. The processing rack 10 assembled in this manner is placed in a processing tank 11 of a photosensitive material processing apparatus. When the processing rack 10 is disposed in the processing tank 11,
The lower surface of the lid member 50 of the processing rack 10 contacts the liquid surface of the processing liquid in the processing tank 11, and the liquid surface of the processing liquid in the processing tank 11 is covered by the lid member 50. That is, since the processing rack 10 is integrally formed with the upper rack frame 58 so as to have the function of a so-called floating lid, the processing rack 10 and the conventional processing rack can be floated simply by mounting the processing rack 10 in the processing tank 11. The lid can be brought into the same state as attached to the processing tank 11, and after inserting the conventional processing rack into the processing tank 11, it is necessary to accurately adjust the position of the floating lid with respect to this processing rack and attach it. Is gone. After the processing rack 10 is mounted on the processing tank 11, the area where the processing liquid in the processing tank 11 comes into contact with air is defined by the space between the inner wall surface of the processing tank 11 and the outer edge of the lid member 50. By forming the cover member 50 so as to almost eliminate the gap, the slit-shaped insertion port 74 and the delivery port 76 provided mainly for the passage of the photosensitive material F are formed, and the time-lapse occurs when the processing liquid comes into contact with air. The deterioration of the processing performance can be effectively reduced, and the photosensitive material processing apparatus using the processing rack 10 can finish the photosensitive material F with uniform quality. With the conventional processing rack and floating lid, it is extremely difficult to efficiently cover the liquid surface of the processing liquid because the floating lid and the processing rack interfere with each other to a considerable extent.
In the processing rack 10, this can be easily achieved. When the processing rack 10 is withdrawn for maintenance such as cleaning of the processing rack 10, the processing rack 10 may be integrally pulled out of the processing tank 11, whereby the opening of the processing tank 11 is opened. If the upper rack frame 58 is removed from the lower rack frame 36 of the processing rack 10 drawn out of the processing tank 11, the inside of the processing rack 10 can be easily opened, and the cleaning operation is extremely easy. The assembly of the processing rack 10 after the cleaning is performed by the lower rack frame 36 and the upper rack frame 58.
By doing so, it is possible to assemble the processing rack 10 in which each component has an appropriate positional relationship. As described above, in the processing rack 10 to which the present invention is applied, the processing tank 11 of the assembling and photosensitive material processing apparatus is used.
It is extremely easy to mount the camera on the camera and maintenance such as cleaning can be easily performed. The processing rack 10 applied to the present embodiment
Shows an example of the present invention, and does not limit the configuration of the present invention. An upper rack frame in which a plate-like plate-shaped member that comes into contact with the liquid level of the processing liquid is integrally formed with the upper side plate is provided in an upper unit of the processing rack located near the liquid level of the processing liquid when disposed in the processing tank 11. What is necessary is just to use, and what has an arbitrary structure can be applied to the lower unit arrange | positioned in the processing liquid. This eliminates the need to remove the floating lid from the processing tank when removing or attaching the processing rack to the processing tank, or to adjust the position of the processing rack and the floating lid, and to attach the processing rack. It becomes very easy. As described above, according to the present invention, since the plate-like member which functions as a floating lid in the processing tank is provided integrally with the upper rack frame, the processing rack can be transferred to the processing tank. Assembly and removal of the processing rack from the processing tank can be performed very easily, and an excellent effect of significantly improving the assemblability and maintainability of the photosensitive material processing apparatus can be obtained.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a rack frame of a processing rack to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a main part of the processing rack constituted by the rack frame shown in FIG. 1, taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an upper rack frame. [Description of Reference Numerals] 10 processing rack 11 processing tank 12 lower unit 14 upper unit 50 lid member (plate-like member) 52 side plate 54 small side plate 58 upper rack frame 74 insertion port 76 delivery port F photosensitive material

Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Kazuyuki Kagawa 1250 Takematsu, Minamiashigara-shi, Kanagawa Fuji Machinery Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-4-182646 (JP, A) JP-A-5-323554 (JP, A) JP-A-2-34851 (JP, A) JP-A-59-135467 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03D 3/00

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims 1] A photographic photosensitive material is disposed in a processing tank for storing a processing solution for immersing and processing a photographic photosensitive material, and the photographic photosensitive material is formed into a substantially U-shape by a plurality of rollers and guides. A processing rack structure of a photosensitive material processing apparatus that forms a transport path for guiding and transporting, wherein the processing rack structure includes a lower unit located in a lower part of a processing tank and an upper unit disposed on the lower unit. The lower unit includes a plurality of rollers and a guide that form a conveyance path that makes a U-turn of the photosensitive material between the pair of side plates near the bottom in the processing tank. The upper unit is provided above each of the pair of side plates. A pair of upper side plates arranged, and when arranged in the processing bath, the lower surface contacts the processing solution to cover the liquid surface of the processing solution and to face each end of the photosensitive material transport path of the lower unit. A rack structure for a photosensitive material processing apparatus, comprising: an upper unit frame integrally formed with a plate-shaped member provided with a slit through which the photosensitive material can pass.