Photographic copier

Claim 1

IN A PROCESSING AND IMAGE-TRANSFER APPARATUS FOR DEVELOPING THE LATENT IMAGES OF A MATRIX AND TRANSFERRING THE DEVELOPED IMAGE FROM THE MATRIX ONTO AN IMAGERECEIVING SHEET, THE COMBINATION COMPRISING: A PROCESSING FLUID CONTAINER HAVING AN OPENING THROUGH WHICH AN EXPOSED MATRIX HAVING SENSITIZED AND UNSENSITIZED PORTIONS MAY BE INSERTED FOR DEVELOPMENT AND WITHDRAWN THEREFROM; SUPPORT MEANS ON SAID CONTAINER ADJACENT SAID OPENING FOR SUPPORTING A PORTION OF SAID MATRIX; ACTUATING MEANS PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO THE APPARATUS INCLUDING A PRESSURE ROLLER AND A SQUEEGEE AND MOVABLE BETWEEN A NORMAL OPERATIVE POSITION IN WHICH SAID PRESSURE ROLLER AND SQUEEGEE PRESS SAID MATRIX AGAINST SAID SUPPORT MEANS, SAID PRESSURE ROLLER COOPERATING WITH SAID MATRIX IN SAID OPERATIVE POSITION TO PROVIDE A GUIDE FOR DIRECTING AN IMAGE-RECEIVING SHEET INTO THE NIP BETWEEN SAID PRESSURE ROLLER AND SAID MATRIX, AND AN INOPERATIVE POSITION IN WHICH SAID PRESSURE ROLLER AND SQUEEGEE ARE WITHDRAWN FROM SAID SUPPORT; RESILIENT MEANS FOR CONSTANTLY URGING SAID ACTUATING MEANS INTO SAID OPERATIVE POSITION; AND STOP MEANS OR LIMITING WITHDRAWAL OF SAID MATRIX FROM SAID CONTAINER AND POSITIONING SAID MATRIX SO THAT SAID PRESSURE ROLLER IN SAID OPERATIVE POSITION ENGAGES SAID MATRIX ALONG A NIP LINE COINCIDING WITH THE LINE OF SEPARATION OF SAID SENSITIZED AND UNSENSITIZED PORTIONS, WHEREBY WHEN THE LEADING EDGE OF AN IMAGE-RECEIVING SHEET OF THE SAME SIZE AS THE SAID SENSITIZED PORTION OF SAID MATRIX IS GUIDE INTO SAID NIP AND SAID MATRIX IS WITHDRAWN FROM THE APPARATUS, SAID PRESSURE ROLLER URGES SAID IMAGERECEIVING SHEET AND SAID MATRIX INTO INTIMATE FACE TO FACE CONTACT FOR PRESSING THE IMAGE OF THE MATRIX ONTO THE IMAGE-RECEIVING SHEET WHEREBY SAID IMAGE IS TRANSFERRED TO SAID SHEET UPON SEPARATION OF SAID SHEET AND MATRIX.