Hologram and method of and apparatus for producing the same

• US 6,291,109 B1
• Filed: 05/26/1999
• Issued: 09/18/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1992
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Company Limited
• Inventors: Ueda, Kenji, Suga, Kazuhiro, Nishimura, Hiroyuki, Sekiguchi, Atsushi
• Primary Examiner(s): ANGEBRANNDT, MARTIN J
• Application Number:
  US09/320,195
• Time in Patent Office: 846 Days
• Field of Search: 430/1, 430/2, 430/290, 359/1, 359/12
• US Class Current: 430/1
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/0248 Volume holograms
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/0252 Laminate comprising a hologram layer
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/0256 having specific functional layer
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/18 Particular processing of hologram record carriers, e.g. for obtaining blazed holograms photographic processing in general G03C, G03D
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/202 Contact copy when the reconstruction beam for the master H1 also serves as reference beam for the copy H2
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2223/25 Index matching material
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2227/04 Production line for mass production
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2240/55 Thickness
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2250/10 arranged to be transferred onto a carrier body adhesive layer G03H2250/35
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2250/12 Special arrangement of layers
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2250/32 Antireflective layer

Abstract

A duplicating photosensitive material film is brought into close contact with an ND glass reduced in thickness so as to become flexible or a flexible sheet or an ND glass coated with a cushioning layer through an optical contacting liquid containing a surface active agent. In addition, a spacer is interposed between a hologram original plate and a duplicating photosensitive material, and a space defined by the spacer is filled with an optical contacting liquid, thereby regulating the thickness of the optical contacting liquid layer with the spacer. Therefore, when pressure is applied, the optical contacting liquid is uniformly pressed, so that it can be made uniform and thin in thickness. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a failure of duplication of a hologram image due to undesirable flow of the optical contacting liquid. In addition, the wettability of the optical contacting liquid improves, so that it is possible to prevent trapping of air and foaming and to make the optical contacting liquid uniform and thin in thickness. Thus, it becomes possible to duplicate a hologram image excellently. In addition, a cushioning layer is provided on the inner side of an AR coated ND glass or on the upper side of a photosensitive material film, and another cushioning layer is provided on the side of an original plate protecting glass which is closer to the optical contacting liquid or on the lower side of the photosensitive material film. With this arrangement, even if dust enters, it can be effectively held inside the cushioning layers. Thus, it is possible to prevent undesirable flow of the optical contacting liquid and lifting of the film due to dust and hence possible to perform duplication effectively without any hindrance. Also disclosed is a hologram producing apparatus which includes mechanisms for feeding and taking up a duplicating photosensitive material film, and a contacting liquid dropping mechanism. The apparatus further includes a mechanism for nipping an excess of contacting liquid dropped, a mechanism for drying the contacting liquid attached to the exposed duplicating photosensitive material film, a mechanism for positioning the film, etc.

Claims

1. A hologram producing method in which an image of an original plate hologram is recorded on a duplicating photosensitive material film by applying laser light to a duplicating system in which an original plate unit, which includes said original plate hologram supported by a substrate and an original plate protecting glass bonded to an upper side of said original plate hologram, is brought into close contact with a duplicating unit which includes said duplicating photosensitive material film placed in close contact with a glass selected from the group consisting of an anti-reflection coated glass, an ND glass, and an anti-reflection coated ND glass through an optical contacting liquid, wherein said optical contacting liquid has a viscosity in the range of 100 cps to 10,000 cps so that a foreign substance which may mingle during duplication is buried in said viscous optical contacting liquid, thereby reducing the incidence of depression-shaped defects caused by foreign substances, wherein said optical contacting liquid is selected from the group consisting of:

Acetylacetone, Acetophenone, Anisole, Aniline, Allyl alcohol, Indene, Ethylbenzene, Ethylene glycol, Ethylenediamine, Benzoyl chloride, o-xylene, m-xylene, p-xylene, Valeric acid, Glycerin, Chlorobenzene, Chloroform, Carbon tetrachloride, Dioxane, Cyclohexanol, Cyclohexanone, Cyclohexene, Cyclopentane, 1,2-dichloroethane, Dichloromethane, Dibromomethane, Ethyl bromide, Styrene, Thiophenol, Thiophene, cis-decalin, Trans-decalin, Decane, 1-decene, Tetrachloroethylene, Tetrahydrofuran, Triethylamine, Trichloroacetaldehyde, Trichloronitromethane, o-toluidine, Toluene, Nicotine, Nitrobenzene, (+)-a-pinene, Pyridine, Pyrrole, Phenol, Butadiene, Furan, Furural, Bromobenzene, Bromoform, Benzylamine, Benzaldehyde, Benzene, Benzonitrile, 1-pentanol, Formamide, Mesitylene, Methylcyclohexane, 2-methylpyridine, Methyl iodide, Diethyl sulfide or a mixture of a plurality of compounds selected from among said group.

2. A hologram producing method in which an image of an original plate hologram is recorded on a duplicating photosensitive material film by applying laser light to a duplicating system in which an original plate unit, which includes said original plate hologram supported by a substrate, is brought into close contact with a duplicating unit which includes said duplicating photosensitive material film placed in close contact with a glass selected from the group consisting of an anti-reflection coated glass, an ND glass, and an anti-reflection coated ND glass through an optical contacting liquid, wherein the thickness of said glass is set in the range of 0.1 mm to 1.5 mm so that said glass is flexible, wherein said optical contacting liquid is selected from the group consisting of:

Acetylacetone, Acetophenone, Anisole, Aniline, Allyl alcohol, Indene, Ethylbenzene, Ethylene glycol, Ethylenediamine, Benzoyl chloride, o-xylene, m-xylene, p-xylene, Valeric acid, Glycerin, Chlorobenzene, Chloroform, Carbon tetrachloride, Dioxane, Cyclohexanol, Cyclohexanone, Cyclohexene, Cyclopentane, 1,2-dichloroethane, Dichloromethane, Dibromomethane, Ethyl bromide, Styrene, Thiophenol, Thiophene, cis-decalin, Trans-decalin, Decane, 1-decene, Tetrachloroethylene, Tetrahydrofuran, Triethylamine, Trichloroacetaldehyde, Trichloronitromethane, o-toluidine, Toluene, Nicotine, Nitrobenzene, (+)-a-pinene, Pyridine, Pyrrole, Phenol, Butadiene, Furan, Furural, Bromobenzene, Bromoform, Benzylamine, Benzaldehyde, Benzene, Benzonitrile, 1-pentanol, Formamide, Mesitylene, Methylcyclohexane, 2-methylpyridine, Methyl iodide, Diethyl sulfide or a mixture of a plurality of compounds selected from among said group.

3. The method of claim 2 in which said glass determines a layer thickness of said optical contacting liquid, said glass being sufficiently flexible to produce an optical contacting liquid layer thickness sufficiently thin to prevent fluid flow that could degrade said image.

4. A hologram producing method in which an image of an original plate hologram is recorded on a duplicating photosensitive material film by applying laser light to a duplicating system in which an original plate unit, which includes said original plate hologram supported by a substrate, is brought into close contact with a duplicating unit which includes said duplicating photosensitive material film placed in close contact with a polymeric material sheet through an optical contacting liquid, wherein said sheet is flexible and equal to said optical contacting liquid in refractive index, in which said polymeric material sheet determines a layer thickness of said optical contacting liquid, said polymeric material sheet being sufficiently flexible to produce a layer thickness sufficiently thin to prevent fluid flow that could degrade said image, wherein said optical contacting liquid is selected from the group consisting of:

Acetylacetone, Acetophenone, Anisole, Aniline, Allyl alcohol, Indene, Ethylbenzene, Ethylene glycol, Ethylenediamine, Benzoyl chloride, o-xylene, m-xylene, p-xylene, Valeric acid, Glycerin, Chlorobenzene, Chloroform, Carbon tetrachloride, Dioxane, Cyclohexanol, Cyclohexanone, Cyclohexene, Cyclopentane, 1,2-dichloroethane, Dichloromethane, Dibromomethane, Ethyl bromide, Styrene, Thiophenol, Thiophene, cis-decalin, Trans-decalin, Decane, 1-decene, Tetrachloroethylene, Tetrahydrofuran, Triethylamine, Trichloroacetaldehyde, Trichloronitromethane, o-toluidine, Toluene, Nicotine, Nitrobenzene, (+)-a-pinene, Pyridine, Pyrrole, Phenol, Butadiene, Furan, Furural, Bromobenzene, Bromoform, Benzylamine, Benzaldehyde, Benzene, Benzonitrile, 1-pentanol, Formamide, Mesitylene, Methylcyclohexane, 2-methylpyridine, Methyl iodide, Diethyl sulfide or a mixture of a plurality of compounds selected from among said group.