Radiation imagery chemistry: process – composition – or product th – Thermographic process – Heat applied after imaging
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-17
2002-12-03
Chea, Thorl (Department: 1752)
Radiation imagery chemistry: process, composition, or product th
Thermographic process
Heat applied after imaging
C430S383000, C430S405000, C430S510000, C430S513000, C430S516000, C430S517000, C430S543000, C430S566000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06489086
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material which enables rapid image formation. More specifically, the present invention relates to a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material which produces an image excellent in color separation and sharpness even by simple and rapid developing processing and has excellent storage stability as a product.
2. Description of the Related Art
Despite the advantage that a very fine image can be obtained, a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material is associated with the disadvantage that, since its development is conducted by using a processing solution having a complicated composition, the processing is subject to environmental restrictions and the control of the solution is complicated. In recent years, a dye transfer-type photosensitive material based on heat development, which dispenses with a developing solution and enables a high-quality image to be produced by using a small amount of water and heat, and an image forming apparatus using this type of photosensitive material have been developed and have become commercially available (such as “Pictrography” 2000, 3000 and 4000, and “Pictrostat” 100 and 200 manufactured by Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.). Further, silver salt diffusion transfer-type photosensitive materials based on heat development are described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) Nos. 62-283,332; 63-198,050 and others. These systems are intended to provide, by simple heat development, print images for visual appreciation. Although heat development systems similar to those described above have been limited to photosensitive materials for the above-mentioned prints, JP-A No. 9-146,247 discloses a method for preparing a recording material for photography by a heat development system. The term “recording material for photography” as used herein means a color negative for photography, an intermediate material for plate making, and the like.
Meanwhile, in silver salt photosensitive materials for use in photography requiring high-quality images, colloidal silver or filter dye has been normally used for the purpose of improvement of color separation and sharpness. In a case where a photosensitive material for heat development is used as a recording material for photography, colloidal silver or filter dye is also necessary.
However, it is difficult to incorporate colloidal silver into a photosensitive material for heat development in which bleaching and fixing treatments are conducted using a small amount of water and processing materials. Furthermore, since colloidal silver becomes the nuclei for fog formation, the colloidal silver needs to be separated from a silver halide emulsion layer. Because of this, the film thickness increases due to the formation of an intermediate layer and the like, thus undesirably diminishing the effect of improvement of sharpness to be brought about.
The filter dye employed in the prior art is a dye which is eluted into a processing solution or decolorized at the time of developing processing. The decolorization of such a filter dye, however, is insufficient when used in photosensitive materials for heat development in which only a small amount of water is used and no developing solution is used. As a result, the insufficiently decolorized filter dye undesirably remains as an unnecessary density component when image information is read from the photosensitive material after heat development.
Further, in the heat development system which is conducted by supplying a small amount of water to the photosensitive material, if a water-soluble dye is used, the dye is eluted into the small amount of water to thereby contaminate the water. This phenomenon causes a problem that the water cannot be used repeatedly. In order to solve this problem, JP-A No. 6-337,511 discloses an image forming method wherein the photosensitive material contains a water-insoluble organic pigment in a state of a dispersion of solid fine particles so that heat development is conducted in the presence of water. This method is still associated with a problem that the pigment may remain as an unnecessary density component.
In order to solve these problems, JP-A No. 8-101,487 discloses an image forming method wherein a dye in a state of a solid dispersion is used. This method is likely to present a problem that, since part of the dye becomes soluble and is transferred during the storage of the photosensitive material, the reactivity between the coupler and color development agent is reduced.
Furthermore, JP-A No. 9-146,247 discloses a system wherein a color forming substance, composed of a leuco dye and a color developer, is decolorized by an alkali at the time of developing processing. This system, though excellent in decolorizing property, requires use of a large amount of the color developer and alkali to be consumed accordingly and therefore often reduces the reactivity between the coupler and color development agent.
As dyes capable of solving the above-mentioned problems, JP-A Nos. 10-207,030 and 10-207,027 (corresponding to European Patent No. 0846982A2) disclose dyes which are decolorized by simple heat developing processing. However, there is no mention in these documents that the objectives of providing the photosensitive material with both decolorizing property in heat development and of preserving the improvement in color separation and sharpness when a photosensitive material incorporating a color developing agent and a coupler is stored (this preservation is hereinafter referred to as “storage stability before use” upon occasion)are effectively achieved by the incorporation of these dyes as a dispersion of solid fine particles into the photosensitive material.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is, accordingly, the object of the present invention to provide a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material incorporating a color developing agent and a coupler, characterized by excellent dye decolorizing property in a simple developing processing and absence of unnecessary remaining color components when image information is read and also by excellent color separation and sharpness even after a period of storage, and to provide an image forming method.
The above-mentioned object has been accomplished by the present invention described below.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material comprising a support having thereon a photosensitive layer containing photosensitive silver halide grains, a color developing agent, a coupler and a binder, and a non-photosensitive layer, wherein a dye is contained as a dispersion of solid fine particles in at least one of the layers, the dye being represented by general formula (I) as follows:
D−(X)
y
General formula (I)
wherein D represents a compound having a chromophore; X represents a dissociative proton or a group having a dissociative proton which is linked to D directly or via a divalent linking group; and y represents an integer of 1 to 7.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a silver halide color photographic photosensitive material, wherein the dye represented by the general formula (I) is a compound represented by a general formulae selected from the group consisting of (I-1) to (I-6):
A
1
=L
1
−(L
2
=L
3
)
m
−Q General formula (I-1)
A
1
=N−Q General formula (I-2)
A
1
=L
1
−(L
2
=L
3
)
n
−A
2
General formula (I-3)
B
1
=L
1
−(L
2
=L
3
)
p
−B
2
General formula (I-4)
A
1
=L
1
−(L
2
=L
2
)
q
−B
1
General formula (I-5)
B
2
−(L
2
=L
3
)
r
−Q General formula (I-6)
wherein A
1
and A
2
each represents an acidic nucleus; B
1
represents a basic nucleus; B
2
represents an onium form of a basic nucleus; Q represents
Kamosaki Tetsu
Kimura Keizo
Ogiyama Masashi
Birch & Stewart Kolasch & Birch, LLP
Chea Thorl
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