JP4149398B2 - Photosensitive material processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a light-sensitive material processing apparatus. Specifically, the present invention relates to a processing apparatus that applies a processing liquid using a slot die.

  Photosensitive materials such as films, photographic papers, and printing plates are processed with a processing solution such as a developer, a fixing solution, a stabilizing solution, and washing water after an image is recorded. As a processing apparatus for a photosensitive material that performs such processing, the photosensitive material is transported into a processing tank in which a processing liquid is stored by a transporting means constituted by a plurality of pairs of transporting rollers, and the photosensitive material is immersed in the processing liquid. An immersion type processing apparatus that performs processing by doing so is known.

  In such an immersion type processing apparatus, the processing solution deteriorates due to processing fatigue associated with the processing of the photosensitive material or fatigue with time due to carbon dioxide or oxygen in the atmosphere. The deterioration of the processing solution is restored. For this reason, the components of the treatment liquid at the start of the treatment are different from the components of the treatment liquid when the treatment is continued thereafter, and it is impossible to perform a strictly uniform treatment. In addition, such an immersion type processing apparatus has a problem that the amount of processing liquid used and the amount of waste liquid are large, the running cost is high, and the maintainability of the apparatus is poor.

  As a photosensitive material processing apparatus for solving such problems, for example, JP-A-62-237455, JP-A-6-8956, JP-A-6-27677, JP-A-2001-174970. As described in JP-A-2001-312036, instead of immersing the photosensitive material in the processing solution, a processing solution necessary for processing the photosensitive material is applied to the photosensitive surface of the photosensitive material. 2. Description of the Related Art A coating type processing apparatus that performs the above-described process is known.

  In particular, the processing apparatus using the slot die disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-174970 has an advantage that it can be applied stably and uniformly even with a small amount of processing liquid, and there is substantially no waste liquid. However, some photosensitive materials require uniform development processing from the end, and in particular, processing unevenness at the extreme tip (for example, within 1 cm of the tip) may be a problem. This phenomenon was particularly likely to occur when the coating amount was reduced.

  In order to solve this problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-312036 discloses a planar member (hereinafter referred to as a photosensitive material) having a coating width or larger at a position facing and separating from the tip of the slit using a slot die comprising at least a slit and a manifold. A processing apparatus is disclosed in which a flat support member is provided and a film of a processing solution is formed between the slit tip and the member before the photosensitive material reaches the slit (Patent Document 1). With this processing apparatus, uneven coating and uneven processing at the coating start portion at the front end of the photosensitive material were eliminated.

However, when a metal plate made of aluminum or the like is used for the support of the photosensitive material, there is a problem that the photosensitive material is scratched when the photosensitive material is rubbed by the photosensitive material support member facing the tip of the slit. Therefore, it is preferable to use a resin as the photosensitive material support member. However, in order to process a large-sized photosensitive material, it is necessary to increase the length of the photosensitive material support member in the coating width direction. It was found that there was a problem in maintaining linearity. Therefore, the resin member and the metal member that reinforces it are combined vertically, and the distortion caused by the difference in thermal expansion due to changes in the environmental temperature of both is taken into account, and both are allowed to shift in the lateral direction while attracting them. The joining method using screws was used. However, since the bonding surface is not completely integrated in the bonding method, unlike the case where the adhesive is completely fixed, the resin member and the metal member combined up and down when the processing liquid flows downward from the resin member. The processing solution enters the joint surface of the substrate, gradually accumulates and dries, and becomes a crystalline material. By pushing up the resin member with the crystalline material, the linearity of the photosensitive material support member cannot be obtained. there were. The gap between the slit tip and the plane of the photosensitive material support member facing the slit tip must be kept constant in the width direction, which is the most important factor for applying the processing solution to the photosensitive material uniformly in the width direction. is there.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-312036 (first to third pages, FIG. 1)

  An object of the present invention is to further improve a processing apparatus using a slot die, and the gap between the slit tip and the plane of the photosensitive material supporting member facing the slit tip is always kept constant in the width direction. Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a photosensitive material processing apparatus that stably applies a processing solution over a long period of time.

An object of the present invention is to provide a photosensitive material support member having at least a slot die composed of a slit and a manifold, and a resin member in which a portion facing the tip end of the slit is a flat surface at a position facing and separating from the tip end of the slit. It has, in the photosensitive material processing apparatus for applying a treatment liquid falling from the slit to the photosensitive material, and a resin member which is photosensitive material supporting member opposing portion is made of flat the tip of the slit, the resin member are those of the metal member for reinforcing joined by screws, said the joint or gap between the resin member and the metal member, the photosensitive material supporting member was allowed disposed a hydrophobic material having at least fluidity or elasticity It was achieved by a photosensitive material processing apparatus characterized by

  By using the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention, the gap between the slit tip and the plane of the photosensitive material support member facing the slit tip is always kept constant in the width direction, so that processing solution can be stably applied over a long period of time. Yes.

  Hereinafter, the photosensitive material processing apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a photosensitive material processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the slot die and the photosensitive material support member.

  12 is a slot die. The material is not particularly limited as long as the corrosion resistance and mechanical accuracy with respect to the treatment liquid can be satisfied. For example, stainless steel is preferable. In addition, chrome-plated general plastics and plastics can be used. In addition, when manufacturing with a metal, in order to exclude the stress distortion at the time of machining, you may anneal beforehand.

  The structure of the slot die 12 will be described. A processing liquid supply port 13 is connected to the manifold 14. The manifold 14 is for extending the inflowing processing solution in the width direction, and is provided across the width direction of the slot die 12. After the processing liquid is once filled in the width direction with the manifold 14 and supplied to the slit portion 15, the outflow flow rate from the slit portion 15 can be made uniform in the width direction. The treatment liquid supply port 13 may normally be provided at one center in the width direction of the slot die 1, but may be provided at a plurality of locations in the width direction of the slot die 12. The cross-sectional shape of the manifold 14 is circular in this embodiment, but is not limited to this and may be any shape. Further, the cross-sectional area of the manifold 14 does not have to be constant in the width direction of the slot die 12. For example, in order to further improve the flow rate uniformity in the width direction of the outflowing processing liquid, the cross-sectional area is gradually decreased toward the end. May be.

  Although not shown in FIG. 1 for convenience, both ends of the manifold 14 of the slot die 12 in the coating width direction and the same ends of the slit portion 15 are plugged so that the processing liquid does not flow out. In this case, the stopper is applied so that the length of the slit portion 15 in the width direction is the same as or slightly larger than the coating width of the photosensitive material to be processed.

  P is a photosensitive material and is conveyed from the left to the right in the drawing by a driving device (not shown). The leading end of the photosensitive material P being conveyed is detected by a photosensitive material detector or the like, the pump 18 is driven by the signal, the valve 19 is opened, and the processing solution 17 is supplied to the slot die 12, and the end portion of the photosensitive material Is detected, the pump 18 is stopped, and the valve 19 is closed. By performing such control, a certain amount of processing solution can be uniformly applied to the photosensitive material P.

  When controlling the coating amount on the photosensitive material with high accuracy, a flow meter (not shown) is arranged in the path of the processing liquid piping, and the pump and valve are feedback controlled based on the signal of the flow meter. Can be taken.

  The supply flow rate of the processing liquid to the slot die 12 can be determined by multiplying the desired wet coating amount of the processing liquid, the photosensitive material coating width, and the photosensitive material conveyance speed, respectively.

  The photosensitive material supporting member 1 which is a feature of the present invention is set to be equal to or larger than the slit width of the slot die 12 in the coating width direction, and is provided at a position facing and spaced apart from the tip of the slit portion 15 of the slot die 12. The photosensitive material support member 1 is composed of a resin member A having a flat surface 3 at the top, a metal member B that reinforces the resin member A, and a sparse material C that is disposed at the junction or gap between the resin member A and the metal member B. Is done. The length L1 in the conveyance direction of the photosensitive material on the horizontal plane 3 is preferably 3 mm or more, more preferably 5 mm or more, and the upper limit is about 30 mm. Further, it is preferable to provide the inclined surface 4 on the upstream side in the conveyance direction so that the photosensitive material P can be easily conveyed.

  The distance H between the horizontal surface 3 of the photosensitive material supporting member 1 and the tip of the slit portion 15 (tip of the slot die 12) is preferably within 3 mm, more preferably within 2 mm, even more preferably within 1.5 mm. Preferably, it is within 1.0 mm. The lower limit of the distance H is a distance at which the photosensitive surface of the photosensitive material P does not contact the tip portion of the slit portion 15 (tip portion of the slot die 12).

  The material of the resin member A is not particularly limited as long as it is corrosion resistant to the processing solution and does not damage the photosensitive material. For example, vinyl chloride, polyethylene, nylon, polyacetal, fluorine, and the like can be used. As the metal member B, stainless steel is preferable, but chrome-plated general structural steel can also be used.

  The hydrophobic substance C is not particularly limited as long as it has at least fluidity or elasticity and is a hydrophobic substance. For example, a lubricant made by mixing a thickener with a lubricant, so-called grease can be used. . Examples of the grease used include Ca grease, Al grease, Li grease as soap-based grease, and urea grease, PTFE grease, silicone grease, etc. as non-soap-based grease. Further, as a material having elasticity even when cured, an acrylic, urethane, silicon, or polysulfide sealing agent may be used.

  The purpose of the hydrophobic substance C is to keep the processing liquid away, that is, not to hold the processing liquid, and it is possible to prevent the processing liquid from adhering to the hydrophobic substance C. Therefore, by arranging the hydrophobic substance C in the joint portion and gap between the resin member A and the metal member B of the photosensitive material support member 1, it is possible to completely prevent the processing solution from entering.

  Two different members used in the present invention, that is, the joining method of the resin member A and the metal member B, are simply caused to be distorted by a change in environmental temperature or the like due to a difference in thermal expansion coefficient between them, For example, it is preferable to use a method of fixing with screws via a compression spring.

  FIG. 3 is a side view showing an example of the bonding method of the resin member A and the metal member B of the photosensitive material supporting member 1 and the arrangement of the hydrophobic substance C, and Z in the drawing is a sectional view enlarging a part thereof. is there. As shown in FIG. 3, it is preferable to fix at least two places on the surface where the members A and B are joined. In FIG. 3, a dotted line portion shows a structure when the inside is seen through, and represents a screw 24 and screw holes 21 and 22.

  The thicknesses of the member A and the member B are not particularly limited, but at least the surface where accuracy of linearity is required and the surface where the members A and B are in contact are preferably flat, and the metal member B is at least required. It is preferable that the member is a linear accuracy member. The hydrophobic substance C is arranged so that the thickness thereof is as uniform as possible over the entire coating width direction of the photosensitive material support member 1.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the photosensitive material support member 1 of the present invention is fixed in the order of resin member A, hydrophobic substance C, metal member B and compression spring 23, and screws 24 are inserted into these holes and tightened. The members A and B are fixed by inserting. The screw hole 21 having the screw groove of the resin member A is provided with a screw hole 21 having a depth of at least 1/2 of the thickness of the resin member A so as not to penetrate. The screw hole 22 which does not have the screw groove of the metal member B is penetrated, and the screw hole 22 larger than the outer diameter of the screw 24 is provided. The diameter of the screw hole 22 is equal to or larger than the dimension obtained by adding the maximum difference due to different expansion / contraction of the members A and B to the outer diameter of the screw 24, and is determined by the relationship between the thermal expansion coefficient of the members A and B and the environmental temperature. be able to.

  The compression spring 23 is interposed between the metal member B and the screw 24 and is compressed by tightening the screw 24. Therefore, the outer diameter of the compression spring 23 needs to be larger than the inner diameter of the screw hole 22 of the metal member B and smaller than the outer diameter of the head of the screw 4, but even if this condition is not met, a washer or the like is sandwiched. A compression spring 23 can be interposed. The material of the compression spring 23 is preferably a metal such as stainless steel, and the wire diameter, outer diameter, length, and spring constant of the compression spring 23 can be selected by setting a necessary load depending on the member to be used. .

  The outer diameter of the screw 24 is determined by the thickness and material of the resin member A, and the length of the screw 24 is a length obtained by adding the length when the compression spring 23 is contracted by a necessary load to the length of each screw hole. Say it. The material of the screw 24 is preferably a metal such as stainless steel.

  The interval between the screws in FIG. 3 can be arbitrarily determined.

  As described above, since the compression spring 23 is used to fix the resin member A and the metal member B, the members A and B are not firmly fixed while being tightened with an appropriate force. It is possible to cope with a shift in the lateral joining surface 25 of the members A and B due to a difference in expansion and contraction. Further, the deviation in the lateral dimension of the members A and B due to the difference in expansion and contraction caused by the change in the environmental temperature is caused by the screw hole 22 (the gap between the screw 24 and the screw 24) of the metal member B that has been calculated and determined in advance. ) Can suppress the occurrence of distortion.

  Furthermore, by disposing the hydrophobic substance C on the joint surface 25 between the resin member A and the metal member B, when the processing liquid flows down from the resin member A below the slit, the resin member A and the metal member B are disposed. Thus, the treatment liquid that is about to enter the joint surface 25 can be prevented. In addition, since the hydrophobic substance C has fluidity or elasticity, it always stays at the joint between the resin member A and the metal member B without hindering the natural expansion and contraction of the members A and B caused by environmental changes. Therefore, the linearity of the photosensitive material support member 1 that is always stable can be obtained.

  As another aspect, as shown in FIG. 4, the hydrophobic substance C may be disposed at the joint between the resin member A and the metal member B. In this case, the treatment liquid is prevented from entering from the conveying direction of the photosensitive material by being arranged in the width directions 31 and 32 of the photosensitive material support member 1, and the coating width is arranged by being arranged in the thickness directions 33 and 34 of the metal member B. The treatment liquid can be prevented from entering from the direction.

  The present inventors are a processing apparatus for applying a processing solution falling from the slit to a photosensitive material using a slot die consisting of at least a slit and a manifold, at a position facing and separating from the tip of the slit, The photosensitive material support member has a photosensitive material support member longer than the slit width of the processing solution, and the photosensitive material support member is a resin member having a flat portion facing the tip of the slit, and a metal member for reinforcing the resin member And a treatment liquid dropped from the slit by disposing a hydrophobic material having at least fluidity or elasticity at the joint or gap between the resin member and the metal member. By having a structure that does not enter through the substrate, the processing solution enters the bonding surface of the two members constituting the photosensitive material support member 1 and crystals grow. It found that can solve the conventional pending points that can not be obtained the linearity of the light-sensitive material supporting member 1 by pushing up the resin member by Rukoto.

Processing device sectional view showing an example of the present invention The perspective view of the photosensitive material support member and slot die which show an example of this invention The front view which shows the joining method of the resin member A and the metal member B of this invention Front view (FIG. 4a) and side view (FIG. 4b) of the photosensitive material support member

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Photosensitive material support member 3 Horizontal surface 4 Inclined surface 25 Joint surface A Resin member B Metal member C Hydrophobic substance

Claims (1)

A slot die composed of at least a slit and a manifold, and a photosensitive material support member having a resin member having a flat portion facing the tip of the slit at a position facing and separating from the tip of the slit. in the photosensitive material processing apparatus for applying a treatment liquid falling on the photosensitive material, the photosensitive material supporting member, and the resin member opposing portion is a plane at the tip portion of the slit, the metal member for reinforcing the resin member Is a photosensitive material support member in which a hydrophobic substance having at least fluidity or elasticity is arranged in a joint portion or a gap between the resin member and the metal member. Photosensitive material processing equipment.

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