Radiation imagery chemistry: process – composition – or product th – Plural exposure steps
Reexamination Certificate
2003-05-15
2004-06-08
Le, Hoa Van (Department: 1752)
Radiation imagery chemistry: process, composition, or product th
Plural exposure steps
C430S351000, C430S377000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06746833
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a color image forming method using silver halide color photographic materials and a digital image forming method by the use thereof.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Silver halide photographic light-sensitive materials (hereinafter, also denoted simply as photographic materials) are used as a recording material which is simple and low in cost but nonetheless capable of providing high quality images. These materials have greatly contributed to the advancement of industry and culture, and have become indispensable material.
Silver halide color photographic material such as color negative film, after exposure, is subjected to color development to form yellow (Y), magenta (M) and cyan (C) dye images along with formation of silver images, which is subsequently subjected to bleaching to bleach the silver images to silver halide. The thus formed silver halide becomes a soluble silver complex and is removed from the photographic material. The photographic material is further subjected to a stabilization treatment to wash out any residual fixing agent and to clean the photographic material.
In the universally employed processing for color negative film (e.g., Process C-41 or CNK-4), as described above, the photographic material is subjected to many processing steps, often resulting in problems such that the processing time becomes relatively lengthy and the processing apparatus becomes larger. There also arise problems such that water is needed to make processing solutions and its dissolution work is cumbersome, handling the relatively high pH solution is hazardous, it is troublesome to control exhausted processing solutions after processing, and disposal of processing effluents is not preferable for environmental protection.
The foregoing problems have are less of problem in large volume labs. Recently, on-site processing, so-called mini-lab has increased to enhance convenience of color film processing, for which a compact and rapidly accessible photographic processing system is desired, which can be handled even by a non-specialist or part-time workers and is simple, safe and friendly to the environment. Further thereto, to achieve further enhancement of convenience of color films, it is also desired to introduce a photographic processing system into a place such as convenience stores, where a photographic processing apparatus has not been provided and therefore, development of a compact and rapidly-accessible photographic processing system which functions in a simple and safe manner without discharging effluent but still is friendly to the environment is desired to replace conventional processing systems. Various attempts have been made in response to such a desire. For example, JP-A Nos. 9-325463 and 10-62938 (hereinafter, the term, JP-A refers to unexamined and published Japanese Patent Application) disclose a technique, in which a photographic material is superposed onto a processing element in the presence of water and the material is then heated to form images. Such a technique enables easy processing of a photographic material, but the photographic material used therein is a specific one which occludes a color developing agent and conventional color films are not applicable thereto.
Nowadays, in this so-called digitization age, it is common that image information is optically read out from photographed and processed film to form images, using an image sensor such as film scanner, the images are converted to electric signals and digitized, thereby, the image information can be stored as signals and subjected to computer processing to obtain dye images using a photo-copy or a hard copy. In such an imaging process is generally performed an image input by using a digital camera provided with a solid-state image sensor as well as conventional silver salt photographic films (such as color negative film). However, high quality images cannot be obtained by low-priced digital cameras which are relatively low in pixel density and narrow in dynamic range and which are rather expensive relative to a conventional lens-fitted film. The integrated usability of silver halide photographic material system is still high.
Various attempts have been made in response to such demand. For example, JP-A Nos. 9-325463 and 10-62938 (hereinafter, the term, JP-A refers to unexamined Japanese Patent Application Publication) disclose a technique, in which a photographic material is superposed onto a processing element in the presence of water and the material is then heated to form images. JP-A Nos. 11-184055 and 11-65054 disclose a technique, in which a developer solution containing a color developing agent is coated or sprayed onto a photographic material to form dye images. JP-A No. 2001-166449 discloses a method of processing photographic film packed in a thrust film cartridge using a developing apparatus having a washing mechanism and a donor web placed along the processing route to conduct coating of the processing solution. JP-A No. 1-161236 discloses an increase of the swelling speed of image receiving material of a diffusion transfer photographic material by a factor of 0.2 to 1.5 of photographic material photographic material; and JP-A 9-325463 discloses processing a developer incorporated photographic material by a processing member exhibiting a higher swelling degree for water than the photographic material. JP-A No. 2001-350240 discloses a photographic material comprising a silver halide emulsion layer having a pAg of 4.0 to 8.5, and containing tabular silver halide grains having an aspect ratio of 5 or more and accounting for at least 60% of the grain projected area; JP-A No. 2001-350236 discloses a processing method to achieve a high developed silver density; and JP-A 2002-31867 discloses a processing method, in which the number of development initiating points per silver halide grain is 3.0 or more at the time of completion of color development. As a result of detailed study of the foregoing disclosures by the inventors of this application, it was proved that although enhanced sensitivity was achieved, formed dye clouds were non-uniform in the course of rapid processing by the foregoing disclosed techniques, and sufficient performance was not achieved in graininess.
Further, in processed silver halide color photographic materials as described above, valuable resources such as silver are disposed or a part thereof is recovered after processing so that the reuse ratio thereof is still low. Considering further exhaustion of finite resources such as silver in future, there is desired a new method for reuse of resources.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing problems, the present invention was achieved. Thus, it is an object of the invention to provide a method for forming a color image with silver halide color photographic material exhibiting enhanced sensitivity, superior graininess and suitability for rapid access, an inexpensive digital image forming method by use thereof and a method for utilizing resources.
The foregoing object was accomplished by the following constitution:
A method of forming a color image comprising:
imagewise exposing a silver halide color photographic material comprising a support having thereon at least one silver halide light-sensitive layer containing a silver halide emulsion comprising silver halide grains and
subjecting the exposed photographic material to color development at a developing temperature of 43 to 180° C. to form a color image,
wherein the silver halide emulsion comprises tabular silver halide grains having an average aspect ratio of at least 8.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Photographic Material
Silver Halide
Silver halides used in this invention may be any halide composition, including silver bromide, silver iodobromide, silver chloride, silver chlorobromide silver iodochlorobromide, and silver iodochloride. In general, silver iodobromide, silver bromide and silver iodochlorobromide are preferably used to achieve high speed and silver chloride and silver chlorobromide are prefer
Hoshino Hiroyuki
Ii Hiromoto
Kokeguchi Noriyuki
Konica Corporation
Le Hoa Van
Muserlian Lucas and Mercanti
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