Eastman-Kodak Company

Alan G Eeles

Leslie J Pummell

Stephen J Kingdon

Alan D O'Neill

A processing rack for use in a processing apparatus. The rack for a given processing path length has an overall height reduction. The rack includes an inlet and an outlet, and switch for directing the material to be processed either directly to the outlet or around a processing path defined by a roller arrangement. The processing path so defined is folded to provide an acceptable path length but reducing the overall height of the processing rack.

Photographic processing apparatus

It is usual for photographic material to follow a set path along which the material is transported through various processing stages in photographic processing apparatus. The apparatus is arranged so that the material is transported therethrough in one direction only, passing from one processing stage to the next in a pre-arranged sequence. However, it may be desired to re-visit a processing stage positioned upstream of the processing stage from which the material has just exited. Described herein is apparatus in which material being processed can be directed from one processing stage to any other processing stage regardless of its positioning within the apparatus. Two processing tanks (10, 20) containing processing solution (18, 28) and processing racks (11, 21) submerged therein, are connected together by means of two tracks (30, 40). Each track (30, 40) transports the material in either a forward direction or a reverse direction as indicated by arrows 32 and 42 respectively. A plurality of track portions (310, 311, 312, 313, 314, 315, 316, 317) connect each processing rack (11, 21) with the two tracks (30, 40). A plurality of switches (102, 202, 300, 302, 400, 402) are provided for directing the material either from one of the tracks (30, 40) into respective ones of the processing racks (11, 21) or from one of the processing racks (11, 21) on to one of the tracks (30, 40).

Color photographic materials are disclosed having red-, green- and blue-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer units, which units contain faster and slower emulsion layers for each color sensitivity. In such materials it has been found that increased speed can be obtained by manufacturing the material so that, upon imagewise exposure, light strikes the relatively faster green- and red-sensitive layers before passing to the slower green- and red-sensitive layers, but after penetrating the blue-sensitive layer(s).

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Bellingdon, United Kingdom

Alan G Eeles