Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
i8933
APPARATlJS FOR TR. EATING PRINTING PLATES
` For the photomechanical preparation of printing forms, printing
plates are used which carry a light-sensitive .layer and which are expos-
ed through the original text or image to be reproduced. The exposed :,
printing plates are deve.loped with a liquid deve.loper and are then nor-
mally treated with at least one further liquid. This treatment may
include, for example, a comp.letion of deve.lopment, a rinsing process, a
: fixation, or a hydrophilization of the printin~ plates. For these treat-
~ ments, apparatuses have been designed in which the treatments with
:~; 10 liquids are semi or fu.l.ly automatically performed. In order to save space
and facilitate handling, such apparatuses are preferred in which the print-
ing plates take an upright position, i.e., for example, are suspènded by
one of their narrow edges, or in which they are positioned in a slightly
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~ inclined position. The present invention re.lates, however, also to such
:~1 apparatuses in which the printing p.lates are not in an upright position
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while being treated with the .liquids. The treating .liquid is applied to
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' the printing p.lates by such devices as spray nozzles, brushes, wipers,
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.~ or by a combinatlon thereof~ In a known printing plate processor of this
~.~ ; type, a container is arranged beneath the printing plate, in which the ~ ~;
; 20 11quid running off the treated printing plate is collected and which also - :`
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serves as a supp.ly tenk for the treating .liquid from whence the liquid is
1 conveyed to the treating devices by means of pumps and pipes.
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. It is the object of the present invention to facllitate cleaning of
- an apparatus of this type, so that it may even become unnecessary for
; the operator to be present during cleaning of the apparatus.
^~ In order to echieve this object, use is made of a known appara-
- ' tus for treating printing plates with liquids which contains at least one :
' treating station comprising a container.equipped with an outlet for ~:
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~5~33
accommodating the treating liquid, means for applying the
treating liquid to the printing plate to be treated, and a
pump for pumping the treating liquid from the container to
said means, the container al~o serving as a collecting vessel
for the liquid running off the printing plate during the
treatment.
According to the invention, there is provided in
an apparatus for treating printing plates with liquids com-
prising (a) at least one treating station for treating
printing plates exclusively with a liquid chemical including
at least one container means having an outlet for said liquid
chemical, (b) at least one means for applying said liquid
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chemical to a printing plate to be treated, and (c) at least
one pump means for pumping said liquid chemical from said
container means for applying treating liquid to a printing
plate, said container means also serving as a collecting
means for said liquid chemical running off of a printing -
plate during treatment, the improvement comprising (d) water
heater means having a hot water pipe connected between said -
heater means and said container means, (e) first valve ;
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-~ means in said hot water pipe, second valve means in said
outlet means, and (f) automatic control means operatively
;~ connected with said first valve means and with said heating
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means.
The apparatus according to the invention includes
~ an electric water heater with a hot water pipe from which
;S a supply pipe branches off to at least one of the containers,
the supply pipe or each of the supply pipes being provided ~-
~, with a valve controlled by an automatic control. The ap-
~' 30 paratus further includes a control unit which automatically
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opens and closes the valves and starts and stops the pumps
in accordance with a predetermined sequence.
The accompanying drawing is a diagrammatic rep-
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~ resentation of a printing plate processing apparatus accord-
,
ing to the invention. The apparatus is subdivided into a
treating section 13 and a cleaning section 8. The cleaning
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section 8 contains machine parts hitherto not contained in ;
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conventional printing plate processors, viz. an electric
water heater 2 and a manifold 5 into which the hot water pipe
4 of the electric water heater 2 opens, the stream of hot
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water being divided by the manifold 5 into as many individual
streams 6a, 6b, and 6c as there are treating stations 9a,
~; 9b, and 9c in the apparatus which are to be connected with a ~
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~ cleaning device according to the invention. It is a further
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~ characteristic feature of the present invention that, apart
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~i from interposed control units, the individual streams of
warm water are directly fed to the individual treating
stations, most advantageously to the containers lOa, lOb,
and lOc collecting the treating liquids which run off from ~;;
the printing plates 6 during treatment thereof. ;;~
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Cold water is fed to the electric water heater 2 through the
water supply pipe 1. This water is heated in the electric water heater
2 by means of an electrical heating elernent 3, for example. Preferably, I
the intensity and duration of the water heating process are controlled I :
by means of an automatic control unit 7. Further, it is advisab.le for
shut-off valves 15a, 15b, and 15c, for examp.le magnet-operated valves,
to. be inserted in the hot water pipes 6a, 6b and 6c .leading to the treat-
.` ing stations 9a, 9b, and 9c. These valves, which are controlied by the ~.
control unit 7, open and c.lose the supply of warm wa-ter to the different
. 10 treating stations in accordance with a predetermined sequence. , ~
: ~ The treating stations 9a, 9b, and 9c are known per se. In these : ~:
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stations, the printing plates are subjected to the action of treating liq- - ; `
.;~ uids which are contained in the open containers 10a, 10b, and 10c
~j arranged at the bottom of each treating station, and fed by means of the
:.:;' pumps 11a, 11b, and 11c and appropriate pipes from the containers to , ~ ;
the devices 12a, 12b, and 12c by means of which the treating liquids .~ .
are app.lied to the printing plates 6. Such devices may be spray nozzles,
., ~ as shown ln the drawing. Alternatively, any other device or installation
, ~ : suitable for this purpose may be used, for examp.le any of the above ~ :
,5" : 20 mentioned devices or combination of devices. In the bottoms of the con~
,'7 tainers 1 0a, 1 0b, and l Oc discharge pipes are provided which advantage~
. - ously empty into a common waste water pipe 14. Preferably, the valves
16a, 16b, and 16c of the discharge pipes are also controlled by an j . ~:
automatic control device. : ; .~:
. Almost every printing plate processor contalns a treating station
in which the printing p.lates 6 are rinsed with tap.water. Mormally, `.
, such treatlng stations need not be cleaned, as is Indicated in the draw- `
. ing by the treating station 9 with container 10, pump 11, device 12, and
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1058933
valve 16 which, apart from the fresh water supply pipe 17, has no con- i
~ nection with the cleaniny section 8.
.~ The cleaning section may be in the form of an attachment to a
printing plate processor of known type, as is shown in the drawing. In
this case, the necessary connections between the treating section 13
and the cleaning section 8, such as the fresh water supply pipe 17, the
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hot water supply pipes to the containers 10a, 10b, and 10c, and the
lead wires for the contro.l pulses from the contro.l unit 7 to the pumps
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: 11a, 11b, and 11c and to the valves 16a, 16b, and 16c, may be made
releasable, by the use oi unions. In most cases, however, rigid con-
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~.:. nections wLll be preferred. If desired, cleaning section 8 and treating
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3 - section 13 may be combined on one apparatus and form a single unit. - ':
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~ The printing p.late processors according to the invention can be . ~ -
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:: cleaned easily and thoroughly. In the embodiment of the invention in A ,
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which the temperature of the hot water and its supply and discharge are -~
automatica.l.ly controlled, on.ly very .little attention on the part of the
.. ~ . .operator is required during the cleaning of the apparatus.
.~: It will be obvious to those ski.lled in the art that many modifi- .
cations may be made within the scope of the present invention without ~:
~: . 20 departing from the spirit thereof, and the invention inc.ludes all such
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~-I modifications.
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