EP0829359A2 - Tête d'enregistrement à jet d'encre et dispositif d'enregistrement à jet d'encre comportant une telle tête - Google Patents

Tête d'enregistrement à jet d'encre et dispositif d'enregistrement à jet d'encre comportant une telle tête Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0829359A2
EP0829359A2 EP97115021A EP97115021A EP0829359A2 EP 0829359 A2 EP0829359 A2 EP 0829359A2 EP 97115021 A EP97115021 A EP 97115021A EP 97115021 A EP97115021 A EP 97115021A EP 0829359 A2 EP0829359 A2 EP 0829359A2
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
ink
jet recording
ink jet
recording head
top plate
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP97115021A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP0829359A3 (fr
EP0829359B1 (fr
Inventor
Akihiro Yamanaka
Kazuaki Masuda
Hajime Yamamoto
Eiichiro Shimizu
Yasuo Kotaki
Teruo Arashima
Jun Hinami
Wataru Takahashi
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Canon Inc
Original Assignee
Canon Inc
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Canon Inc filed Critical Canon Inc
Publication of EP0829359A2 publication Critical patent/EP0829359A2/fr
Publication of EP0829359A3 publication Critical patent/EP0829359A3/fr
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0829359B1 publication Critical patent/EP0829359B1/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
    • B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
    • B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
    • B41J2/1752—Mounting within the printer
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/14—Structure thereof only for on-demand ink jet heads
    • B41J2/14016—Structure of bubble jet print heads
    • B41J2/14024—Assembling head parts
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/165—Prevention or detection of nozzle clogging, e.g. cleaning, capping or moistening for nozzles
    • B41J2/16517—Cleaning of print head nozzles
    • B41J2/16535—Cleaning of print head nozzles using wiping constructions
    • B41J2/16538—Cleaning of print head nozzles using wiping constructions with brushes or wiper blades perpendicular to the nozzle plate
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
    • B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
    • B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
    • B41J2/17513—Inner structure
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
    • B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
    • B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
    • B41J2/17526—Electrical contacts to the cartridge
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/17—Ink jet characterised by ink handling
    • B41J2/175—Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
    • B41J2/17503—Ink cartridges
    • B41J2/17553—Outer structure
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/165—Prevention or detection of nozzle clogging, e.g. cleaning, capping or moistening for nozzles
    • B41J2/16517—Cleaning of print head nozzles
    • B41J2/16535—Cleaning of print head nozzles using wiping constructions
    • B41J2/16541—Means to remove deposits from wipers or scrapers
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/135—Nozzles
    • B41J2/14—Structure thereof only for on-demand ink jet heads
    • B41J2002/14362—Assembling elements of heads

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an ink jet recording head and a recording apparatus having such an ink jet recording head.
  • ink supply is effected in the following two manners.
  • the ink jet recording head is mounted on a carriage and an ink tank having large capacity (volume) is disposed at a predetermined position on a recording apparatus, and ink is supplied from the ink tank to the ink jet recording head through an ink tube.
  • the running cost is very cheap.
  • the structure and material of the ink jet recording head must be devised, and, thus, the ink jet recording head itself tends to be expensive.
  • an ink tank and an ink jet recording head are integrated as an ink jet unit which is in turn detachably mounted on a carriage.
  • a long ink tube is not required, replacement of ink can easily be performed, and the entire apparatus can be made compact.
  • the running cost becomes expensive.
  • the ink jet recording head since the ink jet recording head a service life of which has not yet been expired is also discarded, this is not preferred in view of ecology.
  • an object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording head in which color deviation caused by dispersion in accuracy of adhering points of ink droplets can be prevented to improve image quality of a fine color image, high speed recording can be performed and the number of parts is reduced and which is compact and reliable.
  • another object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording head, an ink jet unit and an ink jet recording apparatus, which is compact and cheap and in which operability and reliability can be improved.
  • a further object of the present invention is to provide in an ink jet recording head, an ink jet unit and an ink jet recording apparatus, in which, even when an ink tank is mounted on and dismounted from the ink jet recording head in a condition that the ink jet recording head is mounted on the ink jet recording apparatus, positional deviation between the heads which would affect a bad influence upon color recording can be prevented to record a high quality image.
  • an ink jet recording head comprising a top plate in which two groups of ink passage grooves for forming ink passages, two ink chamber frames, ink introduction passages, two rows of ink discharge ports are formed, two substrates on which a plurality of resistive heat generating elements for discharging ink are formed in correspondence to the two rows of ink discharge ports, and two elastic members for contacting under pressure and securing the substrates and the top plate for each said substrate, and wherein the junction between the substrate and the top plate forms the ink passages and the ink chambers therebetween, and further wherein a groove for isolating the ink discharge port rows from each other is formed between the ink discharge port rows and a depth of the groove is greater than depths of the ink discharge ports and the ink passages.
  • an electrical connection surface may be provided in a plane perpendicular to an ink discharging direction of the head or inclined with respect to the ink discharging direction by ⁇ 5 degrees or less, and an ink discharge surface may be protruded toward a recording material with respect to the electrical connection surface by 5 mm or more.
  • Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an ink jet head 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention (in this embodiment, two rows of ink discharge ports are provided).
  • ink passage grooves defining ink passages
  • ink chambers and ink discharge ports are previously formed in a top plate 1.
  • Substrates on which resistive heat generating elements are mounted are electrically connected to a carriage by wiring substrates 2.
  • the substrates having the heat generating elements are urged against and secured to the top plate 1 by elastic members 3.
  • Ink discharge ports 5 are formed in the top plate 1, and a recess 6 having ribs 9 is formed in the top plate 1 at a central portion thereof.
  • the top plate can be manufactured and assembled more easily than a top plate having three or more rows of ink discharge ports.
  • Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a detailed structure of the ink jet head 10 of Fig. 1 to facilitate the understanding of parts and an assembling method therefor.
  • the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements are electrically connected to the respective wiring substrates 2.
  • Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the ink jet head 10 of Fig. 1, showing an internal structure thereof and ink passages.
  • an ink introduction passage 7 serves to ink from an ink container 11 to an ink chamber 8.
  • the ink from the ink container 11 passes through the ink introduction passage 7 and enters into the ink chamber 8 defined by the top plate 1 and the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements, and flows (from the ink chamber 8) into ink passages within which the respective resistive heat generating elements are disposed.
  • Film-boiling is caused in the ink in the ink passage by thermal energy from the resistive heat generating element, thereby discharging the ink from the discharge port 5.
  • sealing agent is applied to connection portions between the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements and the wiring substrates 2, thereby preventing the ink from adhering to the connection portions.
  • the top plate 1 is molded from resin, and the ink discharge ports 5, ink passages, ink chambers and ink introduction passages 7 are formed by molding or laser-working. Since the ink discharge ports 5 and the ink passages must be formed with high accuracy, they are preferably formed by the laser-working.
  • the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements serves to cause the film-boiling in the ink by utilizing thermal energy to effect the recording.
  • the plurality of resistive heat generating elements arranged in a line and aluminium wirings for supplying electric power to the respective resistive heat generating elements are formed on the respective substrate made of silicon by a film-forming technique.
  • Each substrate includes shift registers and driving transistors to reduce the number of TAB connecting pads. It is necessary that the substrates 4 and the top plate 1 are assembled with each other with high accuracy.
  • Each wiring substrate 2 serves to electrically connect the corresponding substrate 4 to the printer (ink jet recording apparatus).
  • One end of the wiring substrate 2 is connected to the corresponding substrate 4 via a TAB and the other end is provided with a connection pad portion for receiving an electrical signal from the printer.
  • the connection pad portion is secured to the top plate 1 with high accuracy by adhesive. Hence, since the head can be handled as a single unit, the assembling can be facilitated, and the "recycle" is permitted.
  • the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements are secured to the top plate 1 by mechanical biasing forces of the elastic members 3.
  • the substrates 4 are closely contacted with the top plate 1 by means of the elastic members 3.
  • the top plate 1 must be deformed finely, because, it is impossible that interfaces between the substrates 4 and the top plate 1 are made flat completely and thus any gaps (in the order of several ⁇ m) are created between the substrates and the top plate.
  • the ink discharge portions of the top plate corresponding to the substrates 4 can easily be deformed to achieve the complete contact between the substrates and the top plate.
  • ribs 9 are formed at both longitudinal ends of the recess 6 to facilitates the deformation of portions of the top plate on which the ribs are not formed, thereby ensuring the close contact between the substrates and the top plate.
  • the illustrated embodiment can be suitably applied to a case where, when the top plate 1 is connected to the substrates 4 without any external force, gaps are created between the top plate and the substrates.
  • a wedge member is wedged into the recess at a position corresponding to the central portions of the substrate so that the central portions of the substrates are urged toward the top plate by the wedge member, thereby enhancing the close contacting ability between the substrates and the top plate.
  • the wedge member may be formed from any material having hardness equal to or greater than hardness of the top plate; when the wedge member is formed from material same as that of the top plate, since there is no difference in thermal expansion, the uniform close contact can be achieved.
  • the recess (groove) formed between the ink discharge port rows helps to prevent mixing of colors during the cleaning of the ink discharge surfaces. This will be explained hereinbelow.
  • a carriage 200 is reciprocally shifted on a guide shaft 205 by means of a lead screw 204 driven by a carriage motor 203.
  • a recording head 202 including a head and an ink tank is secured to the carriage 200, and ink discharged from the recording head is adhered onto an opposed recording medium or recording sheet 206, thereby forming an image on the recording sheet.
  • the recording sheet 206 is supplied by a sheet supply motor (not shown), a sheet supply roller (not shown) and a sheet hold-down plate 209.
  • the recording apparatus is capped by a cap (not shown).
  • a wiper 110 serves to clean a face surface (ink discharge surface) of the recording head 202 thereby to remove the ink and foreign matters adhered to the face surface after the recovery operation or during the recording operation.
  • the wiper 110 is normally retarded to a position where the wiper is not contacted with the head.
  • the wiper is advanced to be contacted with the face surface of the head 202 shifted together with the carriage 200.
  • the wiper 110 as a wiping member is advanced to a wiping position where the wiper is entered into the recess 6 of the top plate 1.
  • a face surface portion of the top plate 1 positioned at one side of the recess is wiped.
  • a face surface of the top plate positioned at the other side of the recess is similarly wiped.
  • two wiping members may be provided so that one of the wiping members wipes one of the face surface portions in one direction and the other wiping member wipes the other face surface portion in the opposite direction.
  • the face surface portion is wiped by the wiper 110 after the wiper 110 is contacted with the edge of the recess 6, the ink adhered to the wiper 110 is removed from the wiper by the edge of the recess to be held in the recess 6.
  • the face surface can be wiped by the wiper 110 always maintained in a cleaned condition.
  • both edges of the recess may be chamfered.
  • the chamfered portions act as entrance guides for the wiper 110 and serve to prevent the wiper 110 from being damaged by the edges of the recess.
  • the edges may be rounded.
  • l1 denotes a deformable area (free length) of the wiper
  • l2 denotes a penetrate amount of the wiper into the recess
  • t denotes a thickness of the wiper.
  • the wiping ability for the face surface mainly depends upon the above parameters. That is to say, the longer the free end and/or the smaller the penetrate amount and/or the smaller the thickness, the smaller the urging force of the wiper acting against the face surface; whereas, the shorter the free end and/or the greater the penetrate amount and/or the greater the thickness, the greater the urging force of the wiper acting against the face surface. If the urging force is too poor, the ink cannot be removed from the face surface completely, and, if the urging force is too great, the wiper will be deformed excessively not to remove the ink from the face surface completely and the face surface will be damaged.
  • the wiper when the wiper is made of urethane, the free end is selected to 4 mm and the thickness is selected to 0.3 mm, the optimum penetrate amount is in a range from 0.4 mm to 1.5 mm. Further, since the penetrate amount is determined by a positional relation between the head and the wiper, it is desirable that the penetrate amount is selected to be greater than 4.0 mm in consideration of dispersion. In addition, it was found that the thickness of the wiper is preferably 15 mm or more and the penetrate amount is preferably 2 mm or more.
  • a depth (A) of the recess is preferably selected to 0.3 mm or more and a width (B) of the recess is preferably selected to 0.5 mm or more.
  • a head provided at its face surface with a water-repellent area for preventing deviation of an ink discharging angle due to leakage of ink and a hydrophilic area for trapping the ink droplets adhered to the face surface is generally known.
  • a preferred embodiment in which hydrophilic areas 13 are provided on the face surface of the top plate 1 is shown in Fig. 7.
  • the wiping operation of the wiper 110 is effected from the center of the top plate 1 toward the either of two rows of nozzles (ink discharge ports) 5.
  • the hydrophilic areas 13 are disposed outwardly of the respective rows of nozzles 5 (near ends of the top plate).
  • Figs. 8 to 10 correspond to Figs. 1 to 3 and show an ink jet recording head 10 according to a second embodiment of the present invention and an ink jet cartridge on which the ink jet recording head is mounted.
  • the main structures of the head and cartridge are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment, and the same or similar elements as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals.
  • Ink passage grooves (defining ink passages), ink chambers and ink discharge ports are previously formed in a top plate 1.
  • Substrates on which resistive heat generating elements are mounted are electrically connected to a carriage by wiring substrates 2.
  • the substrates having the heat generating elements are urged against and secured to the top plate 1 by elastic members 3.
  • Ink discharge ports 5 are formed in the top plate 1.
  • the top plate can be manufactured and assembled more easily than a top plate having three or more rows of ink discharge ports.
  • Fig. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing a detailed structure of the ink jet head 10 of Fig. 2 to facilitate the understanding of parts and an assembling method therefor.
  • the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements are secured to respective metallic plates 15 by adhesive and are electrically connected to the respective wiring substrates 2.
  • the wiring substrates 2 are secured to the metallic plates 15 by adhesive so that a bending force (generated when the wiring substrate is bent) does not act on the corresponding substrate 4 having the resistive heat generating elements.
  • Fig. 10 is a sectional view of the ink jet head 10 of Fig. 8, showing an internal structure thereof and ink passages.
  • An ink introduction passage 7 serves to ink from an ink container to an ink chamber 8.
  • Film-boiling is caused in the ink in the ink passage by thermal energy from the resistive heat generating element, thereby discharging the ink from the discharge port 5.
  • interfaces between the top plate and the substrates are sealed by sealing agent. Further, sealing agent is applied to connection portions between the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements and the wiring substrates 2, thereby preventing the ink from adhering to the connection portions.
  • the top plate 1 is formed by molding, and the ink discharge ports 5, ink passages 14, ink chambers and ink introduction passages 7 are formed by molding or laser-working.
  • the ink discharge ports 5 and the ink passages 14 must be formed with high accuracy.
  • angular deviation of the ink discharge ports 5 in each row with respect to the ink discharging direction is minimized, if distances between the ink discharge ports 5 and the recording material are changed, since the relative adhesion points of the ink droplets (onto the recording material) from each row are unchanged, electrical correction can be omitted, and, thus, electrical simplicity can be achieved.
  • surface-finish around the ink discharge ports 5 is effected uniformly by enhancing the manufacturing accuracy.
  • the molded parts are formed from material having good molding ability and good resistance to ink. In this respective, polysulfon is desirable, but other molding materials may be used.
  • the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements serves to cause the film-boiling in the ink by utilizing thermal energy to effect the recording.
  • the plurality of resistive heat generating elements arranged in a line and aluminum wirings for supplying electric power to the respective resistive heat generating elements are formed on the respective substrate made of silicon by a film-forming technique.
  • Each substrate includes shift registers and driving transistors to reduce the number of TAB connecting pads. It is necessary that the substrates 4 and the top plate 1 are assembled with each other with high accuracy, because the correct ink discharge cannot be achieved unless the substrates 4 are correctly aligned with the ink discharge ports 5.
  • Each wiring substrate 2 serves to electrically connect the corresponding substrate 4 to the printer.
  • One end of the wiring substrate 2 is connected to the corresponding substrate 4 via a TAB and the other end is provided with a connection pad portion for receiving an electrical signal from the printer.
  • the connection pad portion is secured to the top plate 1 with high accuracy by adhesive. Hence, since the head can be handled as a single unit, the assembling can be facilitated, and the "recycle" is permitted.
  • the substrates 4 having the resistive heat generating elements are secured to the top plate 1 by mechanical biasing forces of the elastic members 3.
  • Fig. 9 is a schematic perspective view showing an ink jet recording head unit having the ink jet recording head 10 according to the second embodiment.
  • the ink jet recording head 10 is directly secured to a front face of the ink container (ink tank) 11 in a mounting direction (to the printer, i.e., the ink jet recording apparatus) so that the ink jet recording head can be detachably mounted to the ink jet recording apparatus.
  • the third embodiment relates to an ink jet unit in which an ink tank and an ink jet recording head can be detachably mounted on a carriage, and four main functional portions are provided on surfaces of the recording head.
  • These functional portions include (a) a portion for receiving an electrical signal from the printer (referred to as “electrical connection portion” hereinafter), (b) a portion for receiving ink from the ink tank (referred to as “ink supply portion” hereinafter), (c) a portion for discharging the ink (referred to as “ink discharge portion” hereinafter), and (d) a portion for positioning the ink jet recording head with respect to the carriage (referred to as “positioning portion” hereinafter).
  • the four functional portions are constituted in consideration of the following conditions, to improve the reliability of the ink jet recording head, image quality and replacing ability of the ink jet recording head and the ink tank.
  • ink supply portion or the electrical connection portion is provided on the same surface on which the ink discharge portion is provided, mist of ink discharged from the ink discharge portion is scattered onto the electrical connection portion to cause "short circuit" due to conductivity of the ink mist, or paper powder from the recording material (disposed near the electrical connection portion) adhered to the electrical connection portion causes poor electrical contact.
  • the ink jet recording heads for effecting the color recording must be assembled with each other accurately.
  • FIG. 11 An example of an ink tank and an ink jet recording head according to the third embodiment constructed in consideration of the above conditions is shown in Fig. 11.
  • an ink jet recording head 100 includes ink discharge portions 101, a holder 102 and electrical connection portions 103.
  • An ink tank 106 is connected to an ink supply pipe 105 arranged in the ink discharging direction (perpendicular to the electrical connection portion) at the holder 102 to which the ink jet recording head 100 is secured, thereby permitting the ink supply.
  • Fig. 12 is a view looked at from the ink discharging direction of the ink jet unit shown in Fig. 11.
  • the ink discharge portions 101 and the electrical connection portions 103 are disposed at positions 101A, 101B and 103A, 103B symmetrically around a rotational center A.
  • Positioning portions 104C and 104D are provided at a corner of the ink jet recording head 100 and serve to position the ink jet recording head 100 in X and Y directions.
  • the positioning of the ink jet recording head in a Z direction is effected by positioning portions 104A (Fig. 11) and 104B (Fig. 12).
  • a groove 107 is formed between the ink discharge portions 101A and 101B and a length of the groove is greater than lengths of the ink discharge portions.
  • constructural elements of the recording head are arranged on the recording head to satisfy the following conditions. That is to say, the ink discharge portions are not provided on the same surfaces on which the ink supply portions and the electrical connection portions are provided. In this way, mist of ink discharged from the ink discharge portion is prevented from being scattered onto the electrical connection portion thereby to prevent "short circuit" due to conductivity of the ink mist, and, since the electrical connection portions are disposed remote from the recording material, paper powder from the recording material (disposed near the electrical connection portion) is prevented from being adhered to the electrical connection portions thereby to prevent the poor electrical contact.
  • the electrical connection portions are provided in a plane perpendicular to an ink discharging portion of said head or inclined with respect to the ink discharging direction by ⁇ 5 degrees or less and the ink discharge surfaces are protruded from the electrical connection surfaces by 5 mm or more, by utilizing such step (height difference) as an electrical connecting portion of the carriage of the printer, protection walls for shielding the ink mist and paper powder can be obtained.
  • the "cost-down" can be achieved because common parts can be used.
  • the color mixing can be prevented.
  • the ink supply portion such as the ink tank is connected to the head along the ink discharging direction, when the ink tank is replaced (dismounted and mounted), the load acting on the head is distributed symmetrically and uniformly at outside areas of the ink discharge port rows, thereby preventing the positional deviation of the head which would affect a bad influence upon the color recording.
  • the present invention provides an ink jet recording head comprising a top plate in which two groups of ink passage grooves for forming ink passages, two ink chamber frames, ink introduction passages, two rows of ink discharge ports are formed, two substrates on which a plurality of resistive heat generating elements for discharging ink are formed in correspondence to the two rows of ink discharge ports, and two elastic members for contacting under pressure and securing the substrates and the top plate for each said substrate, and wherein the junction between the substrates and the top plate forms the ink passages and the ink chambers therebetween, and further wherein a groove for isolating the ink discharge port rows from each other is formed between the ink discharge port rows and a depth of the groove is greater than depths of the ink discharge ports and the ink passages.

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  • Particle Formation And Scattering Control In Inkjet Printers (AREA)
  • Ink Jet (AREA)
EP19970115021 1996-08-30 1997-08-29 Tête d'enregistrement à jet d'encre et dispositif d'enregistrement à jet d'encre comportant une telle tête Expired - Lifetime EP0829359B1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (9)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP230447/96 1996-08-30
JP23044796 1996-08-30
JP23044796 1996-08-30
JP230445/96 1996-08-30
JP23044596 1996-08-30
JP23044596 1996-08-30
JP11475697A JP3428856B2 (ja) 1996-08-30 1997-05-02 インクジェット記録ヘッド及び該インクジェット記録ヘッドを搭載するインクジェット記録装置
JP11475697 1997-05-02
JP114756/97 1997-05-02

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0829359A2 true EP0829359A2 (fr) 1998-03-18
EP0829359A3 EP0829359A3 (fr) 1999-03-10
EP0829359B1 EP0829359B1 (fr) 2002-12-18

Family

ID=27312815

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP19970115021 Expired - Lifetime EP0829359B1 (fr) 1996-08-30 1997-08-29 Tête d'enregistrement à jet d'encre et dispositif d'enregistrement à jet d'encre comportant une telle tête

Country Status (3)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0829359B1 (fr)
JP (1) JP3428856B2 (fr)
DE (1) DE69717928T2 (fr)

Cited By (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP0953448A1 (fr) * 1998-05-01 1999-11-03 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Ensemble d'essuie-tête pour imprimante à jet d'encre
EP1110734A1 (fr) * 1999-12-23 2001-06-27 Hewlett-Packard Company, A Delaware Corporation Collecteur de débris de balai et méthode l'utilisant
WO2023104397A1 (fr) * 2021-12-08 2023-06-15 Memjet Technology Limited Module d'impression agnostique en termes d'orientation et réseau de modules d'impression multiples

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP6204323B2 (ja) * 2014-10-27 2017-09-27 京セラドキュメントソリューションズ株式会社 インクジェット記録装置

Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4803499A (en) * 1986-02-27 1989-02-07 Soartec Corp Moveable ink jet thermal printing head
EP0581298A2 (fr) * 1992-07-31 1994-02-02 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Tête d'enregistrement à jet d'encre, cartouche pour tête d'enregistrement à jet d'encre, appareil d'enregistrement l'utilisant et méthode pour la fabrication de la tête
EP0644051A1 (fr) * 1993-09-16 1995-03-22 Hewlett-Packard Company Un ciruit intermédiaire flexible pour une cartouche d'impression à jet d'encre ayant orifices plusieurs
EP0659573A2 (fr) * 1993-12-22 1995-06-28 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Tête à jet de liquide, cartouche de tête à jet de liquide et appareil à jet de liquide
EP0694400A2 (fr) * 1994-07-29 1996-01-31 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Tête d'impression à jet d'encre, cartouche pour tête d'impression, appareil d'enregistrement à jet d'encre et procédé de fabrication de la tête

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4803499A (en) * 1986-02-27 1989-02-07 Soartec Corp Moveable ink jet thermal printing head
EP0581298A2 (fr) * 1992-07-31 1994-02-02 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Tête d'enregistrement à jet d'encre, cartouche pour tête d'enregistrement à jet d'encre, appareil d'enregistrement l'utilisant et méthode pour la fabrication de la tête
EP0644051A1 (fr) * 1993-09-16 1995-03-22 Hewlett-Packard Company Un ciruit intermédiaire flexible pour une cartouche d'impression à jet d'encre ayant orifices plusieurs
EP0659573A2 (fr) * 1993-12-22 1995-06-28 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Tête à jet de liquide, cartouche de tête à jet de liquide et appareil à jet de liquide
EP0694400A2 (fr) * 1994-07-29 1996-01-31 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Tête d'impression à jet d'encre, cartouche pour tête d'impression, appareil d'enregistrement à jet d'encre et procédé de fabrication de la tête

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP0953448A1 (fr) * 1998-05-01 1999-11-03 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Ensemble d'essuie-tête pour imprimante à jet d'encre
US6244685B1 (en) 1998-05-01 2001-06-12 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Head wiping arrangement for ink jet printer
EP1110734A1 (fr) * 1999-12-23 2001-06-27 Hewlett-Packard Company, A Delaware Corporation Collecteur de débris de balai et méthode l'utilisant
US6517186B1 (en) 1999-12-23 2003-02-11 Hewlett-Packard Company Transaction printing device having wiper debris collectors
WO2023104397A1 (fr) * 2021-12-08 2023-06-15 Memjet Technology Limited Module d'impression agnostique en termes d'orientation et réseau de modules d'impression multiples

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
JPH10119285A (ja) 1998-05-12
EP0829359A3 (fr) 1999-03-10
DE69717928D1 (de) 2003-01-30
DE69717928T2 (de) 2003-06-05
EP0829359B1 (fr) 2002-12-18
JP3428856B2 (ja) 2003-07-22

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