Radiation imagery chemistry: process – composition – or product th – Radiation sensitive product – Two or more radiation-sensitive layers containing other than...
Reexamination Certificate
2001-12-21
2004-02-03
Letscher, Geraldine (Department: 1752)
Radiation imagery chemistry: process, composition, or product th
Radiation sensitive product
Two or more radiation-sensitive layers containing other than...
C430S517000, C430S522000, C430S559000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06686137
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a silver halide photographic light-sensitive material, and more particularly to a silver halide photographic light-sensitive material having an improved white background.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Generally, a color print is obtained by exposing and processing a color paper, having a resin coat paper support and thereon a blue-light-sensitive silver halide emulsion, a green-light-sensitive silver halide emulsion, and a red-light-sensitive silver halide emulsion, which are combined with yellow, magenta, and cyan couplers, respectively. During processing steps, yellow stain occurs owing to couplers, ultraviolet-absorbing agents (sometimes hereinafter referred to as UV absorbers), and other additives in the photographic element, such as the light-sensitive material, resulting in yellow coloring of the white background.
To make the white background look as white as possible, a pigment is generally incorporated in the above-mentioned resin coat paper, to compete with yellow stain in tint. In the case of a paper support that is used for various products, each having different stain characteristics, however, there is the problem that the tint correction of a support suitable for one particular product is not suitable for other products. Further, these pigments for tint correction, which are generally incorporated together with a white pigment, such as titanium oxide, in a resin layer, are inevitably used in a large amount, owing to a hiding effect of the white pigment. To solve the problem, a method of incorporating an emulsion dispersion, of an oil-soluble dye, in a hydrophilic colloid layer coated on a support, is proposed. In this case, however, there is a problem that these dyes, which are generally inferior in fastness as compared to pigments, are discolored by heat or light, resulting in a change in color balance of the white background. Further, there is a method in which a pigment is dispersed by means of a ball mill and the like, and the resulting dispersion is incorporated in a hydrophilic colloid layer. However, this method requires much time and labor. Accordingly, there is need for a method that enables tint correction of the white background with steadiness and convenience.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a silver halide photographic light-sensitive material, which has, on a reflective support, at least one silver halide emulsion layer containing a cyan dye-forming coupler, at least one silver halide emulsion layer containing a magenta dye-forming coupler, at least one silver halide emulsion layer containing a yellow dye-forming coupler, and at least one light-insensitive layer,
wherein oil droplets containing a dispersion of at least one blue pigment are dispersed in at least one layer of said layers.
Other and further features and advantages of the invention will appear more fully from the following description.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, there is provided the following means:
(1) A silver halide photographic light-sensitive material, having, on a reflective support, at least one silver halide emulsion layer containing a cyan dye-forming coupler, at least one silver halide emulsion layer containing a magenta dye-forming coupler, at least one silver halide emulsion layer containing a yellow dye-forming coupler, and at least one light-insensitive layer,
wherein oil droplets containing a dispersion of at least one blue pigment are dispersed in at least one layer of said layers.
(2) The silver halide photographic light-sensitive material according to the item (1), wherein the blue pigment is at least one pigment selected from a group consisting of indanthrone pigments, indigo pigments, and triarylcarbonium pigments.
(3) The silver halide photographic light-sensitive material according to the item (2), wherein the blue pigment is an indanthrone pigment, and wherein at least one red pigment and/or at least one violet pigment, each of which is selected from a group consisting of azo pigments, quinacridone pigments, dioxazine pigments, and diketopyrrolopyrrole pigments, is dispersed in at least one layer of the layers.
(4) The silver halide photographic light-sensitive material according to the item (1), (2), or (3), wherein a resultant hue of an unexposed portion after development processing, which is defined by L*, a*, and b* stipulated in CIE LAB, satisfies the following relationship:
L*>88, −2<a*<2, and −2<b*<2.
The term “oil droplets” herein used refers to microscopic oil droplets in an oil-in-water (O/W)-type dispersion system.
The present invention is explained in detail below.
In the silver halide photographic light-sensitive material of the present invention, at least one blue pigment is dispersed in oil droplets which are dispersed in at least one layer of light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layers and light-insensitive layers, each of which are coated on a reflective support. In other words, at least one hydrophilic colloid layer coated on a reflective support is a layer containing an insoluble pigment. In the present invention, the blue pigment-containing layer may be a light-sensitive layer containing a silver halide emulsion, or it may be any of light-insensitive layers, such as interlayers positioned between silver halide emulsion layers, and ultraviolet-absorbing layers positioned above (as overlayers of) the silver halide emulsion layers. In order to regulate the characteristic curve, a coating flow rate of the silver halide emulsion layer is generally changed. Therefore, it is often preferred to incorporate a pigment in a light-insensitive layer so that tinting is kept constant.
Usually yellow stain is conquered by blue-tinting. Such tinting is generally performed by adding a pigment in an amount sufficient to compete with yellow stain so as to form a neutral color which looks like white by a human eye. Further, it is possible to correct the yellow stain over the wide range, by using two or more kinds of pigment with different amounts to be used from each other. Generally a blue pigment which changes a resulting hue to the cyan side, and a red or violet pigment which changes a resulting hue to the magenta side, are used in combination. Such combination use enables to control the tint over the wide range.
The pigment for use in the present invention is not particularly limited, so long as it is water-insoluble. Particularly preferably, the pigment has a strong affinity to an organic solvent and moreover it is easily dispersed in the organic solvent.
Generally, in order to effectively tint, the particle size of the pigment is preferably 0.01 &mgr;m to 5 &mgr;m, more preferably 0.01 &mgr;m to 3 &mgr;m.
In the present invention, the pigment is most preferably introduced as follows:
Similarly to the method in which a photographically useful substance such as an ordinary dye-forming coupler (also referred to as a coupler herein) is emulsified and dispersed, and the resulting dispersion is included in a light-sensitive material, the pigment for use in the present invention is added to a high boiling point organic solvent to form an uniform spontaneous dispersion liquid composed of fine-particles of the pigment. The resulting liquid is emulsified and dispersed together with a dispersing agent of a surface active agent, in a hydrophilic colloid (preferably an aqueous gelatin solution), by means of a known device such as ultrasonic, colloid mill, homogenizer, Manton-Gaulin, or high speed DISOLVER, so that a dispersion of the pigment can be obtained in the form of fine particles of the pigment.
The high boiling point organic solvent that can be used in the present invention is not particularly limited, and ordinary ones can be used. Examples of the solvent include those described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,322,027 and JP-A-7-152129 (“JP-A” means unexamined published Japanese patent application).
An auxiliary solvent may be used together with the high boiling point organic solvent. Examples of the auxiliary solvent include ace
Takahashi Osamu
Yabuki Yoshiharu
Fuji Photo Film Co. , Ltd.
Letscher Geraldine
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