Camera apparatus

Claim 1

PHOTOGRAPHIC APPARATUS FOR INCORPORATION WITH A CAMERA FOR, RESPECTIVELY, SUPPLYING, MOUNTING FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC EXPOSURE, AND PROCEESING A PLURALITY OF FILM ASSEMBLIES OF A FLIM PACK, WHICH FILM ASSEMBLIES EMBODY SELF-CONTAINED LIQUID-PROCEESING MEANS, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING MEANS FORMING A RECTANGULAR CHAMBER ADAPTED TO MOUNT SAID FILM PACK THEREWITH INCLUDING AN EXPOSURE APERTURE FORMED IN A FORWARD WALL THEREOF AND HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETE OPENING AT ONE END, COVER MEANS MOVABLY ATTACHED TO SAID CHAMBER MEANS ADJACENT TO SAID END FOR PERMTTING INTRODUCTION AND WITHDRAWAL OF SAID FILM PACK RELATIVE TO SAID CHAMBER MEANS WHEN AT OPEN POSITION AND FOR RENDERING SAID CHAMBER MEANS LIGHTTIGHT AND ADAPTED TO EXPOSURE AND PROCESSING OF SAID FILM ASSEMBLIES WHEN AT CLOSED POSITION, AND MEANS FOR PROCESSING SAID FILM ASSEMBLIES INCLUDING A FIRST PAIR OF PREDETERMINED SPACED COMPRESSION-APPLYING MEMBERS MOUNTED WITHIN SAID COVER MEANS FOR BEARING UPON AND ACTIVATING SAID LIQUID-PROCESSING MEANS TO PROCESS AND FILM ASSEMBLIES, A PAIR OF COOPERATING SLOT-LIKE APERTURE MEANS FORMED IN PART IN SAID COVER MEANS FOR SELECTIVELY ADVANCING PORTIONS OF SAID FILM ASSEMBLIES, FOR DRAWING SAID FILM ASSEMBLIES BETWEEN SAID COMPRESSION-APPLYING MEMBERS, AND FOR WITHDRAWING SAID FILM ASSEMBLIES FROM SAID CAMERA APPARATUS, AND A SECOND PAIR OF COMPRESSION-APPLYING MEMBERS ADAPTED TO BEAR AGAINST LONGITUDINAL MARGINAL AREAS OF EACH OF SAID FILM ASSEMBLIES IMMEDIATELY PRIOR TO ITS ADVANCEMENT BETWEEN SAID FIRST PAIR OF COMPRESSIONAPPLYING MEMBERS, SAID SECOND PAIR OF COMPRESSIONAPPLYING MEMBERS COMPRISING RESILIENT MARGIN-ENGAGING ELEMENTS WHICH ARE LATERALLY SPACED APART BY A DISTANCE SLIGHTLY LESS THAN THE WIDTH OF EACH FILM ASEMBLY AND ARE ADAPTED TO BE FLEXED, THROUGH TENSIONING OF SAID FILM ASSEMBLY DURING ITS ADVANCEMENT, SO AS TO LIE IN A PLANE SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL WITH AND AT LEAST ADJACENT TO THE PLANE OF A FILM ASSEMBLY PASSING BETWEEN SAID FIRST PAIR OF COMPRESSION-APPLYING MEMBERS.