Fuji Photo Film Company, Limited

Sadami Yamada

Satoshi Arakawa

Yasuhiro Kawai

Kaoru Tamura

Terumi Matsuda

Ryoichi Yoshimura

Hiroshi Kushima

Kenji Tajima

Yasunori Ohta

Nobuyoshi Nakajima

Mutsuo Akao

Shuji Kuhara

Masaaki Ohtsuka

A cassette housing a sheet-shaped image recording medium therein and provided with an opening, through which the image recording medium is to be fed into and out of the cassette, at one end is set at a predetermined position in a cassette utilizing apparatus. The positions of two side ends of the cassette, which side ends are normal to the one end of the cassette provided with the opening, are adjusted by a pair of guide members. The other end portion of the cassette is exposed to the exterior from a cassette setting port of the cassette utilizing apparatus. At least either one of the pair of the guide members is constituted as a movable guide such that the distance between the guide members may be changed. A stationary light shielding member prevents external light from entering from the side of the other end portion of the cassette to the side of the one end of the cassette when the cassette is set. A movable light shielding member, which is capable of moving so as not to obstruct the movement of the movable guide, prevents external light from entering from the side outward from the movable guide to the side of the one end of the cassette.

Cassette setting device

A radiation image read-out apparatus comprises an automatic developing machine for carrying out a developing process on silver halide film, on which a radiation image has been recorded as a latent image, while the silver halide film is being passed through the automatic developing machine. A film digitizer is connected to the automatic developing machine such that it may directly receive the silver halide film having been fed out of the automatic developing machine. The film digitizer photoelectrically reads out the radiation image, which has been converted into a visible image during the developing process, from the silver halide film and thereby generates an image signal representing the radiation image. The radiation image read-out apparatus is free of the problems in that considerable time and labor are required to set the film manually in the film digitizer, and the film becomes stained with finger marks, dust, or the like.

Radiation image read-out apparatus

A film package has a flexible light-shielding bag with a stack of sheet films stored therein, the flexible light-shielding bag having at least opposite ends sealed in a direction in which the flexible light-shielding bag can be pulled out, said opposite ends being folded back on one surface and joined together by a seal. The film package is placed in a holder which can be inserted into and removed from a main body of a film loading device.

Film package and device for loading films

A sheet film package comprises a casing, a stack of sheet films stored in said casing, and a protective board disposed in said for protecting said sheet films. The protective board has a holder portion integrally joined to one side edge of an upper panel and/or a lower panel thereof for preventing the sheet films from being displaced in a direction transverse to the direction in which the sheet films wil be fed out. The sheet film package also includes a buffer sheet member disposed on the lower panel of the protective board for placing the sheet films on the buffer sheet member. The buffer sheet member has at least one opening such as a hole or a slit for leaking suction air in each of two symmetrical areas of the buffer sheet member, one of which will be contacted by a suction cup of a film delivery mechanism disposed in a device in which the sheet film package can be loaded. The buffer sheet member has a foamed sheet layer made of thermoplastic resin.

Sheet film package and buffer sheet member

A radiation image erase unit for erasing a residual image from a stimulable phosphor sheet with erasure light is disposed in the vicinity of an image read-out unit which converts light emitted from the stimulable phosphor sheet upon stimulation thereof into an electric signal. The radiation image erase unit comprises a box-shaped casing having a slot for passage of the stimulable phosphor sheet therethrough into the casing, and erasure light sources disposed in the casing for emitting the erasure light. A pair of rollers is mounted on the casing adjacent to the slot for introducing the stimulable phosphor sheet into the casing. The casing has reflective inner surfaces for reflecting the erasure light effectively, and a heat radiator for discharging out heat generated by the erasure light sources as they are energized.

Radiation image erase unit for use with stimulable phosphor sheet

An irradiation image erase unit for erasing a residual image from a stimulate phosphor sheet with erasure light is disposed in the vicinity of an image read-out unit which converts light emitted from the stimulable phosphor sheet upon stimulation thereof into an electric signal. The irradiation image erase unit comprises a box-shaped casing having a slot for passage of the stimulable phosphor sheet therethrough into the casing, and erasure light sources disposed in the casing for emitting the erasure light. A pair of rollers is mounted on the casing adjacent to the slot for introducing the stimulable phosphor sheet into the casing. The rollers or a cover enclosing the rollers serves to prevent the erasure light from leaking out of the casing toward the image read-out unit.

Irradiation image erase unit for use with stimulable phosphor sheet

A radiation image erase unit for erasing a residual image from a stimulable phosphor sheet with erasure light is disposed in the vicinity of an image read-out unit which converts light emitted from the stimulable phosphor sheet upon stimulation thereof into an electric signal. The irradiation image erase unit comprises a box-shaped casing having a slot for passage of the stimulable phosphor sheet therethrough into the casing, and erasure light sources disposed in the casing for emitting the erasure light. A pair of rollers is mounted on the casing adjacent to the slot for introducing the stimulable phosphor sheet into the casing. The rollers or a cover enclosing the rollers serves to prevent the erasure light from leaking out of the casing toward the image read-out unit.

A radiation image erase unit for erasing a remaining radiation image from a stimulable phosphor sheet includes a box-shaped casing housing erase light sources therein and having a slot for passage therethrough of the stimulable phosphor sheet into and out of the casing, and feeders mounted on the casing for delivering the stimulable phosphor sheet into the casing, positioning the stimulable phosphor sheet in a prescribed position in the casing, and delivering the stimulable phosphor sheet from the prescribed position out of the casing. A guide member having as small an area as possible for contact with the stimulable phosphor sheet is disposed in the casing. The casing has a wall spaced from the guide member and extending in confronting relation to the erase light source. When the stimulable phosphor sheet is discharged out of the casing, the wall is exposed directly to light emitted from the erase light sources which remain energized during operation of the radiation image erase unit. In operation, the stimulable phosphor sheet is sufficiently exposed to the erasure light from the erase light sources in the casing to get a remaining radiation image erased therefrom. The stimulable phosphor sheet is not adversely affected by heat radiation from the wall of the casing to guard against heat-induced damage. Therefore, radiation images can be recorded on the stimulable phosphor sheet recyclically for a long period of time.

Radiation image erase unit for use with stimulable pyhosphor sheet

A flexible bag-like container holding contents is placed on a setting table. The setting table is provided with an extracting gear and is movable with respect to a housing between a bag placing position and an extracting position. The housing is provided with an extracting gear which is adapted to be engaged with the extracting gear of the setting table when the setting table is moved to the extracting position. Said flexible bag-like container is placed on the setting table when the table is in the bag placing position, and the setting table is moved to the extracting position with the bag thereon so that a portion of the bag near one end thereof is pinched between the extracting gears. A portion of the bag near the other end is severed in response to the movement of the setting table to the extracting position, and then the extracting gears are rotated to move the bag away from the contents.

Extracting device for extracting contents from bag-like container

A film package containing a stack of notched films in a light-tight envelope is held vertically in a light-tight loading chamber by a clamp member engaging with the notches of the films. The lower end of the envelope is cut, and the envelope is moved vertically relative to the films until the films are projected from the lower end of the envelope while the films are clamped by the clamp member. The clamp member is then disengaged from the notches of the films, and the films are allowed to move down into a receiving chamber positioned under the loading chamber. Then, a shutter is closed between the receiving chamber and the loading chamber to shield the films in the receiving chamber from light.

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Sadami Yamada