JP2000108400A - Device and method for printing by trajectory aerosol - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a print head capable of high quality and high speed print ing. SOLUTION: There is disclosed a print head 34 used in a printer. In the print head 34, a propelling medium flows in a fluid passage toward a printing medium 38 and a printing material such as ink or toner is controlled to be introduced into the propelling medium flow such that sufficient energy for moving to the printing medium 38 is supplied to the them. A plurality of fluid passages for directing the propelling medium flow and printing material enable high quality and high resolution printing. The plurality of printing materials are introduced into the passage to be mixed in the fluid passage before printing on the printing medium 38. The printing materials are mixed and superposed on the printing medium 38 without executing aligning of a registor. One embodiment of a full-color printer having a single fluid passage is disclosed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to the field of printing devices and, more particularly, to components of an apparatus that can print a printing material onto a substrate by introducing the printing material into a high velocity propellant stream. .

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Ink jet printing is a general printing technique at present, and there are various types of ink jet printing such as thermal ink jet (TIJ) and piezoelectric ink jet. This method generally removes droplets of liquid ink,
It is emitted from an orifice provided at one end of the flow path. For example, in a TIJ printer, droplets are ejected by explosively generating bubbles in a flow path for transporting ink. Bubbles are generated by a resistor-type heater provided on one surface of the flow path.

[0003]

Several drawbacks have been identified with conventional TIJ and other ink jet devices.
For a 300 spot / inch (spi) TIJ device,
The discharge orifice for ejecting ink droplets is typically about 64
μm, the channel interval (pitch) is about 84 μm, and
0 spi device, width about 35 μm, pitch about 42 μm
It is. The size of the discharge orifice is limited by the viscosity of the liquid ink used in the device. In order to reduce the width of the discharge orifice, the amount of liquid (for example, water) can be increased to dilute the ink and lower its viscosity. However, when the liquid content of the ink increases, ink wicking (ink due to capillary action) occurs. Bleeding), wrinkling of paper, and drying time of ejected ink droplets are prolonged, which adversely affects resolution, image quality (for example, minimum spot size, mixing between colors, spot shape), and the like. The spot size is related to the discharge orifice width, and the resolution is related to the spot size.
The resolution of TIJ printing is, for example, up to 900 spi at best.

Another disadvantage of the conventional ink jet technology is that
Grayscale printing is difficult. That is, it is very difficult to change the size of the spot printed on the printing medium with the ink jet apparatus. To generate small dots, reduce the propulsion force (heating in the TIJ device) to eject a smaller amount of ink, or
Increasing the propulsive force to eject more ink to generate a large dot will change the trajectory of the ejected droplets. This makes accurate dot placement difficult or impossible, and not only makes monochromatic grayscale printing unclear, but also makes multicolor grayscale ink jet printing impossible. Furthermore, to obtain the desired grayscale printing,
As in the case of TIJ, instead of changing the dot size, the density is changed while keeping the size constant.

[0005] Another disadvantage of common ink jet devices is the printing speed. Approximately 80% of the time required to print a spot is spent waiting for the ink jet channels to be refilled with ink by capillary action. By diluting the ink more, the ink can be flowed quickly to some extent, but the above-mentioned problems such as wicking, wrinkling of a printing medium, and drying time occur.

A common problem encountered with injection printing devices is clogging of the flow path. This problem is liable to occur in a TIJ apparatus or the like that uses an aqueous ink colorant, and a non-printing cycle for cleaning the flow path is periodically performed during operation. In operation, this operation is necessary because the ink usually remains in the ejector waiting to be ejected, during which time drying begins and clogging occurs.

Other techniques involved as background to the present invention include certain aerosol and spraying devices such as electrostatic grids, electrostatic ejection (so-called tone jets), acoustic ink printing, dye sublimation, and the like.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to an element for use in a new device for printing a printing substance directly or indirectly on a substrate, which overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages and other disadvantages further described herein. Things. In particular, the present invention uses a propellant flowing through the flow path and a printing substance that is introduced into the flow path in a regulated manner (that is, can be changed during use) or metered, and the printing substance is covered by the energy of the propellant. The present invention relates to an apparatus of a type that reaches a printed body. The propellant is typically a dry gas that is constantly flowing through the flow path while the printing device is in operation (ie, powered on or similar in a printing standby state). This device is called "ballistic aerosol printing" because it prints by injecting non-colloidal solid or semi-solid fine particles or a liquid printing substance onto a substrate. The flow path is shaped so that the propellant and the printing substance can be directed parallel (or converged) to the printing medium.

In the following summary and detailed description, a ballistic aerosol printing device is described.
Although many of the general features of ol marking apparatus and its use are described, the invention includes all statements contained herein, as is apparent from the appended claims.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In this apparatus, a propellant is introduced into a flow path from a propellant port to form a propellant flow. The printing substance is then introduced into the propellant stream through one or more printing substance injection ports. The propellant enters the channel at high speed, or
A structure in which a propellant is introduced into a flow path at high pressure and a high-pressure propellant is converted into the flow path at high speed (for example, de Laval (de Lav))
al) or similar convergent / divergent nozzles). In this case, the propelling body is introduced from a port provided at the front end of the flow path (converging section), and the printing substance is propelled from a printing substance port provided near the end of the flow path (diverging section or downstream thereof). Introduce into the body flow.

When using a plurality of ports, each port
Different colors (eg, cyan, magenta, yellow, black), pre-printing materials (eg, printing material adhesives), post-printing materials (eg, surface finishes for prints such as matte or glossy coatings), Invisible printing substances (eg, magnetic particle attached substances, ultraviolet fluorescent substances, etc.),
Alternatively, it is used for other printing substances that can be applied to a printing medium. The printing substance is provided with kinetic energy from the propellant stream and is ejected toward the printing substrate from a discharge orifice located at the end of the flow path.

In the embodiment, a structure provided with one or more such flow paths is referred to as a print head in the present case.
The width of the discharge (or injection) orifice of the channel is typically 250
μm or less, preferably 100 μm or less. When a plurality of flow paths are used, the pitch or interval between the adjacent flow paths from end to end (or from the center to the center) is also 250 μm or less, preferably 100 μm or less. Alternatively, the channels are arranged in a zigzag arrangement to reduce the interval between the channels. Part or all of the discharge orifice and / or each flow path may be circular, semicircular, elliptical,
It has a cross-sectional shape such as a square, rectangle, or triangle.

The material to be applied to the substrate is transported to the port by any of various methods, such as simple gravity feed, hydrodynamics, static electricity, or ultrasonic transport, or a combination thereof. The substance is also metered into the propellant stream from the port by various means, such as control of a transport device or a stand-alone device such as pressure balancing, static electricity, acoustic energy, ink jet, and the like.

The substance to be applied to the substrate may be solid or semi-solid particles such as toner or various toners of different colors, a suspension of such a printing substance in a carrier, or a charge director for such a printing substance. (Director),
And those suspended in a carrier together with a phase-change substance. In a preferred embodiment, a printing substance that is solid or semi-solid particulate, dried or suspended in a liquid carrier, is used. Such printing substances are referred to in the present case as fine particle printing substances. A distinction is made between this substance and liquid printing substances, dissolved printing substances, atomized printing substances or similar non-particulate substances, which are generally referred to herein as liquid printing substances. However, as noted elsewhere in this application, certain applications of the present invention may employ such liquid printing materials.

Further, since various printing substances (for example, not limited to aqueous printing substances) can be used, it is possible to print on various substrates according to the present invention. For example, the present invention can print directly on non-porous substrates, such as polymers, plastics, metals, glass, treated and finished surfaces. By reducing wicking and eliminating drying time, excellent printing on porous substrates such as paper, textiles, and ceramics can be obtained. Further, the present invention can be used for indirect printing, for example, printing on an intermediate transfer roller or belt, printing on an adhesive backing film, nip transfer device, and the like.

The substance injected onto the printing medium is subjected to post-injection processing such as fixing or drying, overcoating, and curing. In the case of fixing, the ejected substance itself has sufficient kinetic energy, so that upon collision with the printing medium, it is effectively melted and fused to the printing medium. In order to do this more effectively, the printing medium may be heated. A pressure roller is used to cool and fix the printing substance on the printing medium. It is also possible to use a phase change (solid-liquid-solid) between the time when the printing substance is ejected and the time when it reaches the printing medium (during flight). As a means of initiating the first phase change, a heated wire is placed in the particle path. Alternatively, a similar effect can be obtained by increasing the temperature of the propulsion body. In one embodiment, a laser is used to heat and melt the particulate matter in flight, causing an initial phase change. During melting and fixing,
Electrostatic auxiliary means may be used. That is, the particulate matter is held at the desired position for a time sufficient to melt and fix at the final desired position. Further, the post-injection processing also varies depending on the type of the fine particles. For example, UV curing substances
Place in flight or on a substrate that holds the substance
It is cured by performing V irradiation.

Since the propellant is flowing continuously in the flow path, it effectively and continuously cleans the flow path to reduce or eliminate clogging of the flow path due to deposition of substances. Further, a closing structure is provided to shut off the flow path from the outside when the device is not used. Alternatively, the print head is brought into physical contact with the substrate to be printed (for example, a platen) to close the flow path. In order to efficiently clean the channel, a cleaning cycle is incorporated at the start and end of the operation of the printing apparatus. The waste removed from the device is discharged to a cleaning unit. On the other hand, the propulsion body flow can be switched to flow through the port and into the reservoir so that clogging of the orifice can be evacuated from the port.

Thus, the present invention and its various embodiments provide many of the advantages set forth above and in more detail below.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a ballistic aerosol printing device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the apparatus 10 comprises one or more injectors 12 to which a propellant 14 is supplied. The printing substance 16 is the control 2
0, transported by the transport mechanism 18 under the control of
2 is introduced. (Arbitrary elements are indicated by dotted lines.) The printing substance is metered (i.e., introduced in a regulated manner) by the metering supply means 21 to the injector under the control of the control 22. The printing material ejected from the ejector 12 is processed in a post-injection process 23 provided in the device 10 as necessary. Each of these elements will be described in more detail later. Apparatus 1
0 is a printer of a type generally connected to, for example, a computer network, a personal computer, etc.
Obviously, it can be used in facsimile machines, copiers, marking machines, or various other printing machines.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 1 will be better understood by a ballistic aerosol printing device 24 of the type shown in the sectional view of FIG. According to this embodiment, the substance to be printed is a four-color toner of the type further described herein, for example cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), black (K), which are Printed continuously or otherwise simultaneously, with or without mixing. FIG. 2 and the associated description describe an apparatus for printing four colors (one color at a time or a mixture thereof), but with fewer or more colors, or as another or additional material. Surface-forming substance (or other substrate surface pretreatment) for adhering printing substance particles, desired substrate finish quality (matte, satin or glossy finish or other substrate surface after) Apparatus for printing materials that are invisible to the naked eye (such as magnetic particles, ultraviolet fluorescent particles, etc.), or other materials associated with a printed substrate, are clearly contemplated herein.

The device 24 comprises a body 26, which includes a plurality of cavities 28C for receiving the substance to be printed.
28M, 28Y, and 28K (these are collectively referred to as a cavity 28) are formed. The body 26 also has a propulsion body cavity 30 formed therein. Mounting parts 3
Reference numeral 2 denotes a connection between the propulsion body cavity 30 and a propulsion body source 33 such as a compressor and a propulsion body storage unit. Body 26
Is connected to a print head 34, including a support 36 and a flow path layer 37, surrounded by other layers.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of a portion of the device 24. Each cavity 28 has a respective port 42C, 42M, 42Y, 42K (collectively referred to as port 42) having a circular, elliptical, rectangular, etc. cross section, which are adjacent to the cavity and the body 26. The connection with the flow path 46 is established. The longitudinal axis of the port 42 and the flow path 4
Although shown as intersecting substantially perpendicularly to the front-rear axis of 6, this angle may be other than 90 degrees, as is appropriate for certain applications of the device.

Similarly, the propellant body cavity 30 also has a port 44 having a circular, elliptical, rectangular, etc. cross section between the cavity and the flow passage 46, through which the propellant moves. Alternatively, to introduce the propulsion body into the flow channel 46,
Port 44 ′ in support 36, port 44 ″ in channel layer 37, or both, print head 34.
Can also be prepared. As will be described further below, the printing substance exits the cavity 28 through the port 42 and enters the propellant stream flowing through the flow path 46. As shown in FIG. 2, the printing substance and the propellant move toward an object 38, for example, paper, supported by a platen 40 by an arrow A.
Proceed in the direction of.

The propellant print material flow pattern from a printhead with many of the features described herein remains approximately parallel up to a distance of 10 mm, with optimal print distances of one to several mm.
It has been experimentally found that this is the case. For example, the printing substance stream from the printhead may be at least four times the width of the discharge orifice and at least 20% of the width of the discharge orifice.
As described above, desirably, 10% or more does not deviate. However, the proper spacing between the printhead and the substrate depends on a number of parameters and is not in itself a part of the present invention.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the print head 34 comprises a support 36 and a channel layer 37 in which a channel 46 is formed. Additional layers, such as insulating layers, cover layers, etc. (not shown), may be formed on portions of the printhead 34. The support 36 is made of any suitable material, such as glass, ceramic, etc., on which (directly or indirectly) a thick, durable photoresist (eg,
Form a relatively thick layer of material, such as liquid photosensitive epoxy resin) and / or dry photoresist based film. In this layer, a channel having the characteristics described below is formed by etching, machining, or other methods.

Referring to FIG. 4, which is a cross-sectional view of the print head 34, in one embodiment, from the near side, the propulsion body receiving portion 47, then the converging portion 48, and the diverging portion 5
The channel 46 is formed so as to be 0 and the printing substance injection section 52. The transition point between the converging section 48 and the diverging section 50 is called a throat 53, and the converging section 48, the diverging section 50, and the throat 5
3 together with a nozzle. This general form of flow path is also called a DeLaval inflation tube. A discharge orifice 56 is provided at the tip of the flow path 46.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, portion 48 converges in the plane of FIG. 4 instead of the plane of FIG.
Similarly, portion 50 diverges in the plane of FIG. 4 rather than in the plane of FIG. This usually determines the shape of the cross section of the discharge orifice 56. For example, the orifice 56 shown in FIG.
Corresponds to the device shown in FIGS. But,
According to the manufacturing method and application example of the device of the present invention, the convergence /
The diverging part is not the plane of FIG. 4 but the plane of FIG. 3 (FIG. 5).
(B)), or both surfaces (FIG. 5 (c)), or any other surface or combination of surfaces, or all surfaces (exemplified in FIGS. 6 (a) to 6 (c)). ) As manufactured.

In another embodiment shown in FIG.
Has no converging and diverging parts and has a constant cross section along its axis. The cross section of this channel may be rectangular or square (FIG. 8 (a)), elliptical or circular (FIG. 8 (b)) or other shapes (FIG. c) and 8 (d)).

Referring again to FIG. 3, the propellant is positioned approximately perpendicular to the long axis of the flow passage 46, with the propellant cavity 30.
The fluid enters the flow channel 46 through the port 44. In other embodiments, the propellant may be, for example, port 44 'or port 4
4 "or in another manner not shown, the flow path 4
6. Enter the flow path parallel (or at another angle) to the long axis of 6. The propellant is continuously flowing through the flow path while the printing device is active (e.g., "power on" or similar print standby state). Alternatively, in certain applications of the invention,
By the designation, adjustment is made so that the propulsion body flows through the flow path only when the print body is ejected. The adjustment of the propulsion body is performed by the valve 31 provided between the propulsion body source 33 and the flow path 46. Or for example switch on / off the compressor,
Alternatively, it selectively causes a chemical reaction that generates a propellant,
Furthermore, by other means not shown in the present case, the amount of the propellant is adjusted by controlling the generation of the propellant.

The printing substance is injected into the flow path while being adjusted through one or more ports 42 provided in the printing substance injection section 52. That is, during use, the amount of printing substance introduced into the propellant stream is adjusted from zero to a maximum for each spot. The propellant and the printing substance move from the front end of the flow path 46 to the front end where the discharge orifice 56 is provided.

The print head 34 is formed in various ways. For example, FIGS. 41 (a) to (c) and FIGS.
With reference to (c), the print head 34 is manufactured as follows. First, the support 36, which is an insulating support such as glass or a semi-insulating support such as silicon, or an arbitrary support coated with an insulating layer, is cleaned and separately prepared for lithography. One or more metal electrodes 54 are formed (eg, by photolithography) or printed on the surface of the support 36 that will be the bottom surface of the flow path 46. This is shown in FIG.

Next, almost all the surface of the support is usually spin-coated.
A thick photoresist is applied by a spin-on method, or the layer 310 is attached. Layer 310
Is very thick, for example, 100 μm or more. This is shown in FIG. Next, flow channels 46 are formed in layer 310 using known methods, such as lithography, ion milling, or the like.
Preferably, the converging section 48, the diverging section 50, the throat 53
Form with. The structure at this point is shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG.

At this time, in the support of the propulsion body receiving portion 47,
The propulsion body inlet 44 '(shown in FIG. 3) may be machined.
This uses a diamond drill, ultrasonic drill or other methods known in the art, depending on the material of the support used. Alternatively, the propellant inlet 4 in the layer 310
4 "(shown in FIG. 3), but here the propellant inlet 44 is formed in the next layer to be coated, as described below.

A layer 312 of another relatively thick photoresist or similar material is formed directly on layer 310. Layer 3
12 preferably has a thickness of 100 μm or more and is preferably coated by lamination, but may be coated by spin-on or other methods. Alternatively, layer 312 may be layer 310
Glass or other suitable material that adheres to the substrate. The structure at this point is shown in FIG.

Next, ports 42 and 44 are formed by drawing a pattern on the layer 312 by, for example, photolithography or ion milling. Layer 312 is also patterned by machining or other known methods. The structure at this point is shown in FIG.

As another method, the flow path 46 is formed directly in the support by, for example, photolithography, ion milling or the like. Again, the layer 312 is coated as described above. Alternatively, the printhead is made of an acrylic resin or similar, moldable and / or machineable material, into which the channel 46 is molded or machined. In this embodiment,
The same material layer 312 is bonded to other structural parts by a suitable means.

Further, before coating layer 312 on layer 310, electrodes 314 and 315, which are rectangular, ring-shaped (described), or other shapes as desired, are pre-formed on layer 312. In this embodiment, port 42 and possibly port 44 are also formed prior to coating layer 312. Electrode 31
4 is a suitable metal, such as aluminum, formed by sputtering, lift-off or other methods. Dielectric layer 3
16 is coated to protect the electrode 314 and provide a flat upper surface 318. A second dielectric layer (not shown) also protects the electrode 315 and provides a flat lower surface 3
In order to make it 19, it coats under the layer 312. FIG. 42C shows the structure of this embodiment.

Although the print head 34 having one flow path is shown in FIGS. 4 to 8, the print head according to the present invention has an arbitrary number of flow paths, and its range is one or several flow paths. It will be appreciated that the width of the channels can be from hundreds of micrometers to thousands of channels and page widths (eg, 8.5 inches (21.59 cm) or more). The width W of each discharge orifice 56 is 250 μm or less, preferably 100 μm.
μm or less. The pitch P between adjacent discharge orifices 56 or the distance from end to end (or from center to center) is 250 μm or less, preferably 100 μm or less in the non-zigzag arrangement whose end view is shown in FIG. . The pitch in the case of a two-dimensional zigzag arrangement as shown in FIG. 9B is even smaller. For example, Table 1 shows typical pitches and widths of non-zigzag arrangements at different resolutions.

[0039]

[Table 1] As shown in FIG. 10, a wide array of printhead channels is supplied with printing material from a continuous cavity 28 having ports 42 leading to each channel 46. Similarly, each channel 46 from the continuous propellant cavity 30 through the port 44
Is supplied with a propulsion body. The ports 42 are individual openings in the cavity, as shown in FIG. 11 (a), or a continuous opening 43 (opening 43C in the figure) over the entire array, as shown in FIG. 11 (b). Is shown).

In the arrangement of channels 46, each channel has the same size and cross-section so that the propulsion velocity through the channels is identical or substantially the same. Alternatively, one or more specific flow paths 46 may have different sizes and / or cross-sectional shapes (or by means of selectively applying a coating or the like) so as to have different propulsion body speeds. You can also.
This is advantageous when trying to use different printing substances having very different masses or to obtain different printing effects when using printing substances and other printing material treating agents together. It will be apparent that, in other ways, it may be appropriate in certain applications of the invention.

According to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 12 (a) and 12 (b), the device 24 may include a clip, clasp, clasp, or other known holding means (not shown). It includes a removable and replaceable body 60 that attaches to the device 24 by possible means. FIG. 12 (a)
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the body 60 is removable from the printhead 34 and other parts of the device 24. FIG.
In the embodiment shown in (b), the main body 60 and the print head 34 form a unit that can be removed from the mount 64 of the device 24 and replaced. FIG. 12A and FIG.
In any of the embodiments of (b), electrical contact is maintained between the body 60 and the device 24 to control the electrodes and other devices within or associated with the body 60. .

In each case, the body 60 is a disposable cartridge containing the printing substance and the propellant. Alternatively, the printing substance and / or propellant cavities 28, 30
Can be replenished. For example, the openings 29C, 29M, 2
9Y, 29K (collectively referred to as opening 29)
Is for introducing a printing substance into each cavity. The cavity 30 contains solid carbon dioxide (C
There is a propellant source 62 such as O ₂ ), a compressed gas cartridge (again, such as carbon dioxide), a chemical reactant, etc., which can be permanent, removable, replaceable, or refillable with the body 60. Alternatively, the cavity 30
A small compressor or similar means (not shown) for generating a pressurized propellant. Or,
The propellant source is removable and replaceable separately and independently of body 60. Further, when only the cavity 28 and its related parts are mounted on the main body 60, the device 24 is provided with propulsion body generating means such as a compressor and a chemical reaction vessel.

A process 70 for printing on a substrate with a printing substance according to the present invention is shown in a stepwise manner in FIG. In step 72, a propellant is supplied to the flow path. Next, at step 74, the printing substance is metered into the channel. In the flow path for injecting a plurality of printing substances to the printing medium, the printing substance is mixed in the flow path in step 76, and the printing substance mixture is injected to the printing medium. In this way, single pass color printing is obtained without the need for color registration. In another single pass color printing, print head 34 and substrate 38
The multiple printing substances are introduced continuously, maintaining a constant registration between the two. This step is optional, as indicated by the dashed arrow 78, since not all prints will use multiple print substances. In step 80, the printing substance is ejected from the discharge orifice at the end of the flow path toward the printing medium with energy sufficient to reach the printing medium. As indicated by arrow 83, the above process repeats with printhead reregistration. Appropriate post-injection processing, such as fixing and drying of the printing material, is performed in step 82, which is also optional, as indicated by dashed arrow 84. Each of these steps will be described in further detail. As aforementioned,
The role of the propellant is to provide the printing material with at least enough kinetic energy to impinge on the printing material. The propellant may be a compressor, a refillable or non-refillable reservoir, connected to or independent of a printhead, cartridge, or other element of the printing device 24, a phase change of material (eg, solid to gaseous CO _2). ), Supplied by a chemical reaction or the like. In each case, the propellant shall be dry, free of contaminants, and will not, first of all, impede the printing of the substrate by the printing substance and will not cause or induce flow path clogging. Must. For this purpose, a suitable dryer and / or filter (not shown) is provided between the propellant source and the flow path.

In one embodiment, the propulsion is provided by a compressor of a known type. This compressor
Ideally, a propellant at a stable pressure is provided as soon as the switch is turned on, but a valve is provided between the compressor and the flow path so that only the propellant at operating pressure and speed flows into the flow path 46. Good to use.

In these embodiments, the flow path is connected to an external compressor or similar external propulsion source.
The propulsion body needs to be generated by the device 24 itself. In addition, small desktop devices require the use of small propellant sources. One method is generally available is to use a replaceable CO ₂ cartridges in the apparatus. However, such cartridges have a relatively small amount of propellant and must be replaced frequently. Also,
Larger pressurized propellant containers can be used, but the size of the device (eg, a small desktop printer)
This limits the size of the propellant container. For this reason, it is desirable to use a self-contained physically small propulsion unit. In this embodiment, a replaceable cartridge in which the propellant and the printing substance are mixed can be used.

In another embodiment, the propellant is supplied by a reaction. The purpose of this embodiment is to provide a small propellant source, for example, into the propellant cavity 30. Liquid or solid chemicals or compounds undergo various spontaneous and involuntary reactions to generate gas, and the reaction vessels are relatively small because they use solids or liquids.
Most simply, the reactants are heated above their boiling point to generate gas phase material. When a reaction or change occurs in a closed system, a pressure change occurs. So, when one kind of reaction occurs in a closed system,

(Equation 1) At this time, R is a reactant, P1 and P2 are pressures, P
2 is much larger than P1. To effect this reaction, a heating element 87 (such as the filament shown in FIG. 3) is provided in the propellant cavity 30 (or a container containing other reactants).

This is modified to show a case where a non-spontaneous reactant system is activated by heating.

(Equation 2) At this time, R _{1 to} R. . . Is a reactant and P2 is also much larger than P1.

However, in order to avoid the influence of the heated propellant on the printing substance (for example, melting in the flow path is likely to cause clogging of the flow path), heating is not required (and excessive heat is generated). ), It is more desirable to use the following reaction.

[0049]

(Equation 3) This is a phase change at room temperature (eg, from solid to gaseous CO ₂ ). Alternatively, the reaction is as follows.

[0050]

(Equation 4) Such reactions are well known in the art and are used to generate gaseous propellants.

As with the means for turning the device on and off, the reaction is usually controlled so that the reaction can be started / terminated when desired. Alternatively, the reaction takes place in the propellant cavity, which is connected to the flow path 46 via a valve for regulating the propellant flow. Normally, in this embodiment, it is necessary to provide a valve for adjusting the propulsion body to a predetermined operating pressure.

The propellant flow velocity and pressure to be set depend on the embodiment of the printing apparatus described below. In general, examples of suitable propellants include CO ₂ , clean and dry air, N ₂ ,
Gaseous reaction products are exemplified. The propellant is preferably non-toxic (in some embodiments, a wider range of propellants can be used, such as by sealing the device in a special chamber or the like). Desirably, the propellant is gaseous at room temperature, but hot gas may be used in suitable embodiments.

Any generated or supplied propulsion body enters the flow path 46, moves in the front-rear direction along the flow path, and is discharged from the discharge orifice 56. The flow path 46 is oriented so that the propellant stream discharged from the discharge orifice 56 proceeds toward the printing medium.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a solid, fine particle printing substance is used for printing on a printing medium. The size of the printing substance particles is 0.5 to 10.0 μm, preferably 1 to
Sizes in the 5 μm range, but beyond this range, are also used in certain applications (eg, larger or smaller ports and channels through which particles move).

The use of solid, particulate printing materials has several advantages. First, the clogging of the flow path is less than that of, for example, liquid ink. Secondly, the wicking and bleeding of the printing substance (or its carrier) on the substrate and small or no printing substance / substrate interaction. Third
In addition, the problem of spot position due to surface tension at the discharge orifice seen in liquid printing materials is avoided. 4th
In addition, it is possible to avoid blockage of the flow channel caused by attachment of bubbles due to surface tension. Fifth, multiple printing materials (eg, multiple colored toners) can be used to print a single channel multiple material (eg, multicolor) without risking contamination of the channel for subsequent printing (eg, pixels). Can be mixed at the time of introduction into the channel. This eliminates registration costs (e.g., equipment, time, associated print parts, etc.). Sixth, it is possible to eliminate a portion (up to 80% of the duty cycle in TIJ) related to replenishment of the flow path of the duty cycle. Seventh, in the case of a liquid printing substance, a processing time is limited because a drying time is required.
This becomes unnecessary.

Although dry particulate printing materials have many advantages, in some applications it is advantageous to use liquid printing materials or a combination of liquid and dry printing materials. In such instances, liquid printing materials may be used instead of solid printing materials, or appropriate operations and equipment described herein or obvious to those skilled in the art, for example, changing metering equipment. Changes will be made to use the invention.

In some applications of the present invention, it is desirable to perform a pre-printing treatment on the surface of the substrate. For example, to help the particulate printing material settle in the desired spot arrangement,
It is preferred that the surface of the printing medium is coated in advance with an adhesive layer prepared to hold the fine particle printing substance. Examples of such materials include transparent and / or colorless polymers, such as homopolymers, random copolymers, or block copolymers, which are available as polymer solutions dissolved in low boiling solvents. Apply to print substrate. The thickness of the adhesive layer applied to the printing medium is 1 to 10 μm, preferably about 5 to 10 μm. Examples of such materials include linear or branched polyester resins, poly (styrenic) homopolymers, poly (acrylate) and poly (methacrylate) homopolymers and mixtures thereof, or styrenic monomers And acrylic acid esters, methacrylic acid esters or butadiene monomers and mixtures thereof, polyvinyl acetal, polyvinyl alcohol, vinyl alcohol-vinyl acetal copolymer, polycarbonate, and mixtures thereof. These surface pretreatment materials are ejected from channels of the type described herein provided at the leading edge of the printhead, thereby ejecting both the pretreatment material and the printing material in a single channel. . Alternatively, a pretreatment substance is applied to the entire surface of the printing medium, and then the printing described in the present application is performed separately.
Further, in some applications, as further described, it is desirable to mix the printing material and the pretreatment material in flight and print both simultaneously.

Similarly, in certain applications of the present invention, it may be desirable to perform post-print processing on the surface of the substrate. For example, it is desirable to perform gloss finish on a part or all of the printed printing medium. In one example, it is necessary to separately perform printing including both a character and a graphic on a printing medium by using the method described in the present application, and selectively perform gloss finishing only on the graphic portion excluding the character portion. This is accomplished by performing post-print processing from the trailing edge flow path of the printhead, which allows for printing and post-print processing in a single flow path. Alternatively, appropriate printing is performed on the entire surface of the printing medium, and then post-printing processing is performed through the printing apparatus of the present invention. In some applications, it is desirable to apply the printing material and the post-treatment material simultaneously during flight, such as by mixing the printing material and the post-treatment material, as further described herein. Examples of materials to achieve the desired surface finish include linear or branched polyester resins, poly (styrenic) homopolymers, poly (acrylate) and poly (methacrylate) homopolymers and mixtures thereof. , Or a random copolymer of a styrenic monomer and an acrylate, methacrylate or butadiene monomer and a mixture thereof, polyvinyl acetal, polyvinyl alcohol,
Examples thereof include vinyl alcohol-vinyl acetal copolymer, polycarbonate, and mixtures thereof.

Other pre- and post-printing processes include drafting / overwriting of prints with invisible printing materials, anti-modification coatings on documents, eg, specific wavelengths (eg, infrared or ultraviolet) with a special decoder. Range), protective encryption using a specific wavelength dye or pigment, and the like. Other pre- and post-printing treatments include the substrate or surface geological coating (eg, optionally embossing to a rough or smooth substrate), physical or chemical on the substrate. Substances that cause a reaction (for example, two kinds of substances that, when mixed on a printing medium, cause a reaction to cure or otherwise fix the printing substance to the printing medium) are included. Unless otherwise stated, or as will be apparent to those skilled in the art, the devices and methods referred to in this application for transporting, metering, storing, etc. of printed materials include pre- and post-print processing. Substances (and, generally, other non-printing substances) can be used as well.

As mentioned above, the printing material may be either a solid particulate material or a liquid. However, there are several options for this combination. For example, apart from a mere aggregation of solid particles, a solid printing material suspended in a gaseous carrier (ie, an aerosol) or a liquid carrier. Other examples include multiphase materials. Referring to FIG. 34, this material is a solid printing material particle 28.
6 suspended in a discontinuous agglomeration of the liquid carrier medium 288. The mixture of particles and the surrounding carrier is in a pool 290 of carrier media. The carrier medium is a colorless dielectric that gives the printing substance fluidity. The solid printing material particles 286 have a size of about 1 to 2 μm and have an effective charge. In a manner further described below, the charged printed material particles 286 are applied to a suitable electrode 292 near port
And is directed to the channel 296. Auxiliary electrode 298 facilitates ejection of printing material particles 286. A meniscus 300 is formed on the flow path side of the port 294. As the particle 286 / carrier 288 mixture is pulled through the meniscus 300, the surface tension causes particles 2
86 is pulled out of the carrier medium 288, leaving only a thin film of the carrier medium on the surface. This thin film is useful for depositing particles 286 on most types of substrates and preserving the particle position prior to post-injection processing (eg, fusing), especially at low injection speeds.

The next step in the printing process is usually to meter the printing substance into the propellant stream. In the following, the metering supply of printing substances will be described in particular, but it is clear that this description also includes metering supply of other substances such as the above-mentioned pre-printing and post-printing processing substances. For clarity, only the printed material is described. Thus, metering is provided in various embodiments of the present invention.

According to a first embodiment for metering the printing substance, the printing substance comprises a substance which carries an electrostatic charge. For example, the printing material includes a pigment suspended in a binder with a charge director. The charge director is, for example, the corona 6 in the cavity 28 shown in FIG.
6C, 66M, 66Y, 66K (collectively referred to as corona 66). Alternatively, the propellant gas is initially charged, for example, by corona 45 in cavity 30 (or other suitable location such as port 44). The charged propellants are fluidized beds 86C, 86M, 86
Y, 86K (collectively referred to as fluidized beds 86, which will be described further below) and are injected into cavity 28 through port 42 for two purposes: to provide charge to the printing material. Other methods include frictional charging by other means or other devices outside the cavity 28.

Referring again to FIG. 3, one of the flow paths 46
The electrodes 54C and 54 are provided on the surface facing the port 42, respectively.
M, 54Y, 54K (collectively referred to as electrode 54)
To form In the cavity 28 (or elsewhere, such as at or in the port 44), a corresponding counter electrode 55C,
55M, 55Y, and 55K (collectively referred to as a counter electrode 55) are formed. When an electric field is created by the electrode 54 and the counter electrode 55, the charged printed material is attracted to the electric field and exits the cavity 28, passes through the port 42, and exits at substantially right angles to the propellant flow in the flow path 46. The shape and position of the electrodes, and the charge applied thereto, determine the strength of the electric field and the force that injects the printing substance into the propellant stream. In general, the momentum imparted to the printing material by the force of the propellant flow is greater than the injection force, and the printing material once entering the propellant flow in the flow path 46 is discharged together with the propellant flow toward the printing medium by the discharge orifice 5.
Adjust the force for injecting the printing substance into the propellant stream so as to be ejected from 6.

Instead of or in addition to electrode 54 and counter electrode 55, each port 42 is provided with an electrostatic gate. FIG.
Referring to (a) and FIG. 14 (b), the gate is a two-part annular or strip-shaped electrode 90 (a), 90 (b) having an inner diameter of the port 42, and It is connected to a controllable switchable power supply via layers 91 (a) and 91 (b). The electric field generated by the annular electrode attracts or repels the charged print material. Layer 91
(A) and 91 (b) form a pattern by photolithography, machining or other method, and each electrode 90
(A) and 90 (b) are converted into a matrix address.

FIG. 15 shows another embodiment of a method for metering and supplying a printing substance. This embodiment includes one or more flow path sections 1 extending substantially parallel to the direction of the propellant flow in flow path 46.
36. Each channel 136 is formed between the body 26 (or a suitable upper layer) and the layer 138 with the layer 140 interposed therebetween as a spacing layer. Each layer is a suitable, thick, etched photoresist, machined plastic or metal, or other material defined by the particular application of the present invention. The length of the flow path 136 (in the direction in which the printing substance moves) is up to 100 μm or more. The plate-like electrodes 142 and 144 facing the surface of the main body 26 and the layer 138 of the flow path portion 136 substantially in parallel.
Are provided.

With such an aperture arrangement, the various electrodes are addressed by lines, either rows or columns, so that a matrix addressing scheme can be used. In one embodiment, the electrodes form an electrostatic gate for metering of the printing substance.

Normally, and especially in the case of a parallel plate electrode as shown in FIG. 15, a charged printing material or an uncharged printing material is used. When using an uncharged printing material, the printing material has a significantly higher dielectric constant than both air and the propellant. In such a case, opposite (+/-) charges are applied to the electrode pair. Uncharged printing materials are polarized by the electric field between the parallel plate electrodes, essentially two electrodes forming a capacitor. Due to the electric field created between the electrodes, the printing substance selectively stays in this electric field (ie, a more energetically favorable position between the electrodes). In this way, discharge of the printing substance from the port is prevented. If not applied to the electrode,
Due to back pressure, pressure bursts, etc., the printing material is discharged through the port into the propellant stream. An alternating current is applied to the electrodes to prevent deposition of the printing material.

In the case of charged printing material, in the "on" state, one electrode attracts the printing material (the other repels), preventing the printing material from entering the propellant stream. In the “off” state,
The electrodes allow the printed material to pass through, for example, a back pressure, a pressure burst, or an electrode 5 applied to a polarity opposite to the charge of the printed material.
By the action of a third electrode, such as 4, the printing substance flows into the propellant stream. The charge on the printing material can be of either polarity (positive or negative).

In another embodiment of the invention, metering is performed by injecting a liquid printing substance from its source into a propellant stream, for example with an acoustic ink ejector. FIG. 16 shows a schematic diagram of this embodiment. In the embodiment 154 of FIG. 16, the flow path 46 is above the level of a pool 156 of printing material, which is a liquid printing material such as, for example, liquid ink. Embodiment 154 includes a planar piezoelectric transducer 158, such as a thin film ZnO transducer.
It is coated or otherwise bonded to the back of a suitable acoustically conductive support, such as an acoustically flat plate of quartz, glass, silicon or the like. On the opposite or front side of the support 160, on or in it, a coaxial phase shape of a Fresnel lens, spherical acoustic lens or other focusing means 162 is formed. Applying an rf voltage to the transducer 158 produces an acoustic beam that focuses on the surface of the pool 156 and ejects droplets 164 from the pool into the propellant stream. For grayscale printing, use splash 16
By adjusting the size of 4 (by adjusting the intensity of the acoustic beam), the number of droplets ejected in a short time, etc., the amount of printing substance ejected into the propellant stream is adjusted.

In yet another embodiment 166, an ink jet device such as a TIJ device 168 is used to meter the liquid printing material into the propellant stream. FIG. 17 shows a schematic diagram of this embodiment. According to the embodiment 166, the TIJ injector 168 is installed adjacent to the flow channel 46, and the injector 168 is installed.
Is ejected from the port 172 of the flow path 46. Here, too, the printing substance 170 is a liquid substance, such as a liquid ink, stored in the cavity 174. Printing substance 170 is brought into contact with heating element 176. Upon heating, the heating element produces a bubble 177 which has a T
It is extruded from the channel 178 in the IJ device 168. Foam 1
The movement of 77 pushes a certain amount of printing material into the channel (as in other known methods) and enters the propellant stream in the form of printing material droplets 181. The use of a plurality of such TIJ injectors in conjunction with the single ballistic aerosol printing channel of the present invention provides a printing apparatus and method that has superior printing speed, gray scale, and other advantages over the prior art. Is obtained.

There are various other possible embodiments for injection of the liquid printing substance (pressurized injection, mechanical valve adjustment, etc.). Obviously you can. For example, the apparatus shown in FIG. 3 works well when the size of the port 42 is determined according to the viscosity of the printing substance and a liquid meniscus is formed in the port 42. This meniscus and the corresponding electrode 54 form an essentially parallel capacitor plate. When an appropriate charge is applied to the electrode 54, the droplets are pushed out of the meniscus into the channel 46. This method works well with conductive (and, to some extent, non-conductive) liquids such as inks, printing material pre-treatment and post-treatment materials.
This is the same technology known as tone jet,
This technique can also be used as the metering supply device and method of the present invention.

To make the embodiments described herein more effective, it is desirable to use a jet of pressure or a uniform force to eject the printing material from cavity 28 and into the propellant stream. As shown in FIG. 18, the pressure jets are generated in various cavities, such as piezoelectric transducers / vibration plates 68C, 68M, 68Y, 68K (collectively referred to as transducer / vibration plates 68). Supplied by equipment. One or more of the transducers / diaphragms 68 may be associated with or independently of the auxiliary metering device, addressing means 69C, 69M, 69Y, 69K.
(These are collectively referred to as addressing means 69). Various other alternatives may also be used, such as pressure from a propellant source controlled by a gate.

For metering the printing substance into the propellant stream according to the invention, other techniques can also be used. For example,
The above-described technique called toner jet is used. This technique is disclosed, for example, in published patent application WO 97 27 058.
It is described in (A1), the contents of which are incorporated herein. Alternatively, a micro mist device may be used.

In many embodiments relating to the metering of the printing substance according to the invention, no moving parts are used.
For this reason, metering supply is performed at a very high switching speed, for example, 10 kHz or more. Furthermore, the absence of mechanically moving parts makes the metering device more reliable.

Many simple addressing schemes can be used to control the metering device used. One of the schemes is shown in FIG. Here, the metering supply devices 202C, 2C,
Each "row" of an array 200 of 02M, 202Y, 202K, etc. (collectively referred to as metering device 202) is coupled to each other via, for example, a grounded common line 206. Each "row" consists of a metering device 202 which together controls the introduction of printing substance into the single channel 46. Each metering device in each column is connected, for example, to wiring 208 that connects the associated metering device to a control mechanism such as multiplexer 210.
To address each. It should be noted that the width of each "column" is, for example, on the order of 84 μm so as to have a sufficient width to form the wiring 208 having a width of, for example, on the order of 5 μm. In another embodiment shown in FIG.
Instead of the common line 206, each "row" of the metering device 202 is individually addressed, for example a multiplexer 212, so that the metering device is completely matrix-addressed.

Several mechanisms are useful and necessary to implement certain embodiments of the present invention. For example, referring again to FIG. 3, it is necessary to smooth the flow of the printing substance from the cavity 28 to the flow path 46 and to prevent the port 42 from being clogged. As a solution, a small amount of propellant is flowed back into cavity 28. for that purpose,
The pressure in the flow path and the cavity must be balanced so that the pressure in the cavity is slightly lower than the flow path.
FIG. 21 shows an arrangement for performing pressure balancing. FIG.
Reference numeral 1 denotes a cavity 214 according to an embodiment, in which one wall of the cavity discharges the printing substance in the cavity 214 to a flow path 46 (under the control of a metering device (not shown)). There is a port 42 leading to a flow path 46 for communication. One wall of the cavity 214 has an opening with a filter 220 that is so coarse that the printed material does not leak. The filter 220 is connected via a pipe 222 to a valve 224 controlled by a circuit component 226. The circuit component 226 includes a pressure sensor 228 in the cavity 214 and a pressure sensor 230 in the channel 46, for example, immediately before the converging portion (not shown).
It is also connected to. The pressure in the cavity 214 is measured by the pressure sensor 228 and compared with the pressure in the flow path measured by the pressure sensor 230. At the start of operation of the device, the valve 224 is closed until the pressure in the flow path 46 increases. When the operating pressure reaches a steady state, the valve 224 opens under control. The circuit component 226 controls the pressure in the cavity 214 by a controllable regulating valve
Keep slightly lower. The amount of the propellant flowing backward from the flow channel to the cavity is adjusted by the pressure difference.

Referring again to FIG. 3, cavity 28 through port 42 as previously described (or by other means).
The propellant that enters creates local disruption of the printing material near port 42. When using printing materials that are of moderate plasticity, packing density, magnetism, etc. and formed into particles of appropriate size and shape, the friction between the particles due to disturbances (ie, by the propellant passing through the printing material) And other binding forces become sufficiently small that the printing material has a liquid-like property in the disturbed part. In this state, the fluidized portion 86 of the printing substance
C, 86M, 86Y, 86K (these are combined and fluidized bed 8
6). By creating a fluidized bed 86 in the manner described herein, the printing material is in a uniform flow, producing a less viscous liquid-like material, and the port 42 is effectively and continuously cleaned with a countercurrent propellant. . Thereby, an accurate spot size, position, color and the like can be obtained.

Referring to FIG. 22, line 240 is a plot of pressure in flow path 46 near port 42 of FIG. 21 versus time. Line 242 corresponds to FIG.
Pressure (P ₂₃₀ ) at the sensor 230 (that is, the flow path 46)
(Pressure just before the nozzle portion). Line 244 indicates the set pressure (P _set ) at which cavity 241 is maintained. When the pressure in the flow path becomes a steady state, the flow path 46 and the cavity 21
Since it takes some time to reach the desired pressure equilibrium between the four pressures, it is desirable to equilibrate the pressure earlier in order to prevent clogging and leakage of the printing substance. Thus, for example, a pressurized propellant from a propellant source is introduced into the cavity through the opening 232 in the cavity 214 shown in FIG. 21 (or the cavity 214 is pressurized by another method).

FIG. 23 shows another arrangement 260 with a fluidized bed.
Is shown. In this embodiment, the electrodes and applicator are used not only to create a fluidized bed, but also for metering. Conceptually, this embodiment can be divided into three parts, which complementarily perform the "bound", "metering" and "ejection" of the printing substance. A printing material carrier 262, such as a donor roll, belt, drum, etc., to which the printing material is supplied with a conventional magnetic brush 283, is placed slightly away from a cavity 264 formed in the body 266. At the base of the body 266 is a cavity 264
A port 268, which is, for example, a cylindrical opening, is formed to connect the flow path 46 with the flow path 46. The main body 266 may be a monolithic structure or, for example, a semiconductor layer 272 (such as silicon) and an insulating layer 27.
4 (such as Plexiglas). The walls of cavity 264 are optionally coated with a dielectric (such as Teflon) to provide a moderately smooth insulating boundary. Of course, this coating can be used in the other embodiments described herein.

The first electrode 276 is formed on the cavity side of the port 268. This is a continuous metal layer placed in the structure, or a pattern corresponding to each port 268 of such a port arrangement. Port 26
The second electrode 278 is formed on the side of the channel 8. It is usually annular, concentric with port 268. If necessary, an auxiliary electrode 54 is formed in the flow path to help discharge the printing substance from the cavity 264.

By properly selecting the voltage at each point in the arrangement 260, three desired functions can be obtained. For example, Table 2 shows examples of possible voltages.

[0082]

[Table 2] In the arrangement 260, the printing substance 282 is charged, for example, by triboelectric or ionic charging, so that the carrier 262
Is held. Because of the AC voltage in cavity 264,
Charged toner "bounces" between the carrier and the first electrode 276. The DC bias is the potential difference maintained between the carrier 262 and the print material transport roll 284, and supplies the print material from the print material reservoir 287 continuously. For printed materials with a narrow particle size and charge-diameter ratio (Q / d) distribution, the bouncing is synchronized to the AC frequency. The optimum AC frequency depends on the transit time of the printing material between the carrier 262 and the first electrode 276. That is, the cycle T is twice the transit time τ.

The gate adjustment voltage opens ("on") and closes ("off") the port 268. In the “on” state, the polarity of the voltage is the exact opposite of the polarity of the charged printed material,
Thus, the printing substance is attracted to the electric field between the first electrode 276 and the second electrode 278, respectively. Finally, when the ejection voltage is reached by the auxiliary electrode 54, the charged printing material particles are ejected into the channel 46, where they are carried by the propellant stream towards the printing substrate.

It is necessary to move the printing substance to the port 42 in a controlled manner, in particular with speed, precision and precise timing. This process is called printing substance transport, and can be performed by various methods.

As one of the methods, each printing substance particle is moved by using an electrostatic transport wave. Referring to FIG. 24, in this method, each port 42 is provided near
A synchronized DC high voltage wave is applied to grids 148 of equally spaced electrodes 88. The grid 148 may be photolithographically formed of aluminum inside the cavity or on a removable carrier mounted within the cavity.

In FIG. 25, to meter and supply the printing substance,
An embodiment is shown comprising an electrode 88 for electrostatic transport waves with electrodes 142 (not shown) and 144. However, various other combinations of transport and metering methods are also
It will be understood that it is within the scope of the present invention.

A protective layer and a moderating layer are applied over the electrode 88 to protect the surface of the electrode 88 and to dissipate the charge quickly with a known time constant to move the printing material along the grit 148. A suitable coating also helps control the direction of movement of the printing material, reduces the printing material trapped between the electrodes, reduces oxidation and corrosion of the electrodes, and reduces arcing between the electrodes.

It is clear that the transport and metering functions described in the present case are performed in a single device and are integrated in a single step. However, the method of transporting and / or metering printing substances according to the present invention, alone or together, solves many of the problems encountered in the prior art. For example, the printing substance can be injected into the propellant stream almost immediately. This solves the problem of the waiting time required for filling the flow path, which is common in ink jet devices. Furthermore, the speed of the printing substance from entering the propellant stream to being printed on the substrate is significantly faster than that obtained with the prior art,
In fact, in some embodiments, it can be supplied continuously.

As an example, consider a printhead with a page width (8.5 inches (21.59 cm)) array using channels arranged at 600 spi. It is assumed that the spot size is 1.5 times the diameter of the discharge orifice (for simplicity, the cross section of the discharge orifice is circular).
At this time, the spot area is 2.25 times the orifice. The printing material is a solid fine particle toner having a diameter of 1 μm, and covers the entire surface of the printing medium, which is paper, in a single color to a thickness of 5 particles. This includes 2.25 ×
It means that it is necessary to supply a printing material having a length of 10 particles × 1 μm or 22.5 μm.
The length is 15 μm.

To prevent clogging, it is further assumed that the feed rate of the printing material is an order of magnitude or more lower than the speed of the propellant. When the propellant speed is about 300 m / s (m / s), the supply speed of the printing substance is 1 m / s (the ejection speed of the TIJ droplet is approximately 1 m / s).
0 m / s). At 1 m / s, it takes 25 μs to feed a 15 μm long printing substance. In other words, the spot printing time is about 25 μs / spot.

In this arrangement, 8.5 × 11 inches (2
It takes 11 inches (27.94 cm) x 600 spi x 2 to print completely on 1.59 x 27.94 cm) paper.
It takes 5 μs / spot, or 165 milliseconds (ms).
In theory, this corresponds to about 360 pages / minute. T
Compare with the IJ device for a maximum of about 20 pages / minute. One of the reasons for this increase in throughput is that a continuous supply of printing material is possible. That is, in the TIJ apparatus, the printing time (printing material ejection time) is only 20% (80% of the TIJ duty cycle) like the duty cycle.
% Of the time spent on replenishing the ink in the flow path), as compared to 100% of the printing time in the duty cycle in this device.

In one embodiment, despite the formation of a fluidized bed in the cavity, the print material tends to collect in stagnation areas, such as corners of the cavity, causing the fluidized bed to decay,
There is a risk that the ejection of the printing substance into the flow path may be hindered. An example is shown in FIG. In order to solve this problem and further facilitate the transport of the printing substance, the agglomerated printing substance in the cavity is vigorously stirred. FIG. 26B shows an embodiment 250 for performing such stirring. At least one wall 254 of the cavity 28 has a piezoelectric material 256
To create mechanical and pressure agitation in the cavity 28. This agitation keeps the printing material in the cavity 28 in a dynamic state and prevents stagnation.

In an apparatus using a large number of printing substances such as a full-color printing machine, two or more kinds of printing substances are mixed in a flow path before being injected onto a printing medium. (The following statement is also
It contains other substances such as pre-print processing and post-print processing substances. In this case, each printing substance is metered into the channel. This requires unique control of the metering of each printing substance, and the required addressing and other metering limits the processing speed. For example, FIG. 27 shows a multicolor printing apparatus that supplies one or more colors of a printing substance to each channel 46. In order to control the flow of the printing substance to the flow path 46,
For example, a metering supply device 104 of the type described above is provided by a row address line 106 and a column address line
Address in matrix form. Eight inches (21.59) of the passively addressed row address conductor 106
Due to the RC time constant associated with the cm) length set, the minimum achievable signal rise time for these wires is limited to a few microseconds. We assumed this to be 2 μs at 5 kHz. Thus, the minimum "on" time of the metering device is about 5 μs. In n-bit grayscale printing, it takes 2 × 5 ⁿ μs / spot to cover all of each color. For this reason, printing the entire page at 600 spi requires 11 inches (27.94 cm) × 600 sp.
i × (2 × 5 ⁿ ) μs / spot, or about 33 × 2 ⁿ ms
Cost. This corresponds to about 1800 × 2 ⁻ⁿ pages / minute. Gray scale with 5 bits per channel (n = 5)
In this device, the device can process up to 56 pages per minute in full color, and full color (when using CMYK spectra) is used for each spot in a single flow path. For example, 2
It should be noted that it is the focus of the present invention to provide a relatively high spot density of 300 spi or more in gray scales of a bit or more, and to obtain various levels of gray scale without significantly changing the spot size. is there. That is, while keeping the spot size constant at, for example, 120 μm, the density of the printing substance is changed to obtain different levels of gray or color for each spot.

[0094] Other addressing schemes are known which provide faster addressing and thus faster printing. For example, using a parallel addressing scheme (ie, having no row address lines), the signal rise time is an order of magnitude smaller. With a minimum metering device "on" time of 1 μs, full color grayscale printing can be performed at about 280 pages / minute.

Since there is a trade-off between throughput and color depth / gray scale, the device can be set to optimize either or both of these characteristics. In Table 3,
Based on the above assumptions, the throughput and the color depth / grayscale matrix, and the required print material feed rates are summarized.

[0096]

[Table 3] It is worth noting that color depth and throughput are not fixed by the device. These values can be adjusted by the user when setting up the printing device.

It is also noted that the number of colors to be printed is substantially Gaussian distribution with respect to spot size / density. FIG. 28 shows values in a 4-color, 2-bit gray scale device.

The precise control of the spot position of the printing substance is
Affected by propellant speed. The size and shape of the spot is also involved in this speed. On the other hand, the propellant speed used is determined in part by the size and mass of the printing substance particles. Furthermore, the spot location, size and shape depend on how parallel the fully open propulsion is kept (ie, multiple times the diameter of the discharge orifice). FIG. 29 shows a conceptual diagram of the propellant / printing medium interaction viewed from almost right above the printing medium. Streamline 110 shows that the cylindrical propellant flow is in the form of a flow away from the disk of printing substance spots 112 at the surface of the substrate.

Usually, the printing material particles are arranged on the printing medium by the inertial force (vertical momentum) given by the propelling body. However, the location on the substrate is deviated from the center by the lateral component of the hydrodynamic force that occurs at the propellant / substrate interface, as shown in FIG. Particles of lower mass (in terms of propellant velocity) are deflected from the center of the propellant flow and even from the spot center. As a result,
The spot becomes a Gaussian density distribution 114 also shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 31, there is shown an example of the most severe estimation of the deflection of the printing material particles due to the propellant / printing medium interface effect (so-called lateral traction on the printing medium surface).
At this time, in the propellant stream 118 having a width L / 2 (that is, the width of the discharge orifice 56 shown in FIG. 3 is L / 2), the density ρ _p
Particles 116 produce a perfectly flat substrate 38 at a velocity v
Let's say it goes vertically. On the surface of the printing material, there is a laterally propelling body flow 120 of thickness L, the speed of which is v due to the propelling material impinging on the printing material. That is, in the worst case, the propellant velocity is completely converted to a lateral flow at the substrate surface.

Printing Material Particles 11 Due to Lateral Traction
6 is calculated for different particle diameters D. From the Reynolds number equation,

(Equation 5) At this time, ρ _g = 1.3 kg / m ³ , μ _g = 1.7 × 1
0 is ^-5 kg-s / m ^2. Particle size 3 μm, flow velocity v = 30
At 0 m / s, the Reynolds number is 70. This corresponds to a traction constant (CD) of 2.8. Traction force FD is given by the following equation.

[0102]

(Equation 6) This lateral traction deviates the trajectory of the normally incident particle 116, causing it to draw a trajectory with a radius of curvature R, determined by the equation for inertial centripetal force F _i .

[0103]

(Equation 7) To get R

(Equation 8) The resulting displacement x is given by:

[0104]

(Equation 9) Or, if the diameter L / 2 of the vertical propulsion body flow is set to half the arrangement pitch,

(Equation 10) Table 4 shows the deviation x obtained under various conditions at the flow velocity v, the particle diameter D, the given arrangement density, and the particle density of 1000 kg / m ³ .

[0105]

[Table 4] From the above, the spot size in the worst case at a flow velocity of 300 m / s, a printing material particle size of 1 μm, a resolution of 600 spi, and a propellant flow width (that is, the size of the discharge orifice) of 21 μm is as follows.

[0106]

[Equation 11] The spread of the spot size is caused by lateral traction at the propellant flow / substrate interface. Note that this is the most severe case. That is,
(1) There is no stagnant part and the cross flow is fully developed,
(2) neglect friction loss and substrate phase, assume that the cross flow velocity is exactly equal to the propellant flow velocity, and (3) the traction force is
It works without attenuation to a distance of twice the diameter of the jet from the printing medium, and disappears when it is further away. It should also be noted that the Reynolds number is very small due to the characteristic length scale, and turbulence cannot occur according to microfluidic flow theory. That is, as the particle size decreases, R increases and at some point R approaches the 2 L thick lateral propellant flow. In this case, the printing material particles are largely deviated from the center of the spot and finally do not reach the printing medium. From the above, this is 10 (based on the assumptions made here).
It has been shown to occur with printed materials of particle size below 0 nm.
This not only shows satisfactory spot size and position control, but also requires special mechanisms to extract the printing substance from the propellant stream and place it on the substrate under the assumed conditions. This is an example of not doing so.

However, if one wishes to further enhance the extraction of printing substance particles from the propellant stream on the surface of the substrate (eg,
For example, the flow rate / particle size is small), an electrostatically enhanced particle extraction method is used. Printed object or platen (if used)
To the opposite of the charge of the printing material particles and enhance the extraction of the particles by the attractive force between the particles and the substrate / platen.
Such an embodiment 178 is shown in FIG. Here, a platen 1 that can receive and hold an effective charge
Place body 26 near 80. The charge on platen 180 is supplied by donor roller 182, which moves with platen 180 by belt 184 or other means, or by other known methods (triboelectric brush, piezoelectric coating, etc.).

In one example, a positive effective charge is supplied from the donor roller 182 to the platen 180. The printing material particles 188 are provided with a negative net charge, for example, by corona or other means, as shown in FIG. Printed object (for example, paper)
Place on the platen side between the printing material source and the platen. Due to the attraction between the printing material 188 and the platen, the printing material is accelerated toward the platen, and if the attraction is strong enough, particularly in embodiments where the speed of the propellant is relatively slow, the traction of the propellant in the lateral direction The deviation of the printing substance from the center of the spot due to the above can be overcome. In addition, this attractive force can cause the printed material to bounce off the substrate, referred to as "bounce," and the purpose of the substrate prior to post-injection processing (eg, fixing by heating and / or pressure rolls 186). It helps to solve problems such as adhesion to non-printed parts and adhesion to places other than the printing medium. This is particularly beneficial when kinetic energy fusion, described below, cannot be used.

The printing substance once injected onto the printing medium is
It must be adhered or fixed to the substrate. Although there are many fusing methods according to the present invention, one simple method uses the kinetic energy of the printing material particles. This includes printing material particles, upon impact with the medium to be printed, it must be sufficient speed V _c for the particles to melt with kinetic energy by plastic deformation of the impact (the printing material is a infinitely hard objects Assume). After melting (complete phase change to a liquid or glass phase or similar temporary reversible phase change), the particles re-solidify (or otherwise return to their original phase), thereby causing the substrate Established in

The following requirements are required for performing kinetic energy fusion. (1) The kinetic energy of the particle is large enough to exceed the elastic limit of the particle. (2) The kinetic energy is greater than the heat required for the particles to undergo a phase change beyond their softening point. FIG. 35 is a plot 190 of the number of printed matter particles versus kinetic energy for an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, illustrating the general conditions under which kinetic energy fusion occurs. Below a certain kinetic energy value, the particles have insufficient energy to fuse to the substrate, above which the particles have sufficient kinetic energy to fuse. This constant kinetic energy value is called a kinetic energy fusion threshold, and is shown in FIG.
5 is indicated by a boundary line 192. Essentially, particles having a kinetic energy of 194 will not fuse due to insufficient heating, and particles having an energy of 196 will fuse. There are two ways to increase the percentage of print material particles that fuse. The first is to lower the threshold for kinetic energy fusion. This is essentially related to the quality of the printing material. Second, the entire kinetic energy curve is shifted, for example, by increasing the propellant speed.

The kinetic energy E _k of a spherical particle having a velocity v, a density ρ, and a diameter d is given by the following equation.

[0112]

(Equation 12) Spherical particles having a diameter d, heat capacity C _p , and density ρ are converted to room temperature T _0.
Energy E _m necessary for heating to above its softening point T _s of is given by the following equation.

[0113]

(Equation 13) Diameter d, the particle is a Young's modulus E, beyond its elastic limit sigma _e, energy E _p required to deform up to the plastic deformation region is given by the following equation.

[0114]

[Equation 14] The ultimate speed _vcp for causing plastic deformation is given by the following equation.

[0115]

(Equation 15) That is, the ultimate speed v for causing kinetic energy fusion
_cm is given by the following equation.

[0116]

(Equation 16) _{C p = 1000J / kgK, T} s = 60 ℃, T o = 20 ℃
For a thermoplastic, the ultimate velocity required to produce kinetic energy fusion is 280 m / s. This is consistent with the assumption made earlier. It should be noted that this value does not depend on particle size and density.

To make the propulsion body flow 280 m / s or more,
There are several ways. One is that, depending on the structure of the apparatus, a propelling body having a relatively high pressure (for example, about several atmospheric pressures in one example) is supplied to a flow path having a converging section 48 and a diverging section 50, for example, a so-called so-called FIG. The pressure is supplied to the converging section of the de Laval nozzle to convert the pressure of the propellant into velocity. In one example, the propulsion vehicle has subsonic (e.g., 3
31 m / s or less). In another example, the propulsion body is subsonic at the converging section 48, supersonic at the diverging section 50, and at or very close to the sonic speed at the throat 53 between the converging section and the diverging section.

FIG. 36 shows the propellant velocity v at the discharge orifice 56 versus the propellant pressure in the flow path 46 (corresponding to about 300 spots / inch), the cross section of which is a square having a side length of 84 μm. is there. As can be seen, 280 m / s can easily be achieved at moderate pressures in either the flow path with or without the nozzle.

In the above, the printing medium is assumed to be infinitely stiff, but in many cases this is not the case. The elastic effect of the substrate reduces the apparent E coefficient without reducing the yield strength of the material (that is, more energy is needed to obtain the yield stress of the material, and Requires more energy and increases V _cp ). That is, despite the kinetic energy being greater than the energy required to melt the particles, if the collision is elastic, the particles may bounce and the heating may be insufficient. Thus, in some devices (due to the elasticity of the substrate), the pre-impact velocity of the printing substance particles must be higher or an auxiliary melting device must be used.

When auxiliary melting is required (that is, the printing medium has elasticity, the speed of the printing substance particles is small, etc.)
Can use many means. For example, one or more heated filaments 122 may be provided near the injection port 54 (shown in FIG. 4). This reduces the kinetic energy required to melt the printing material particles, or indeed melts at least a portion of the printing material particles in flight. To provide a similar effect, a heated filament 124 is placed near the print substrate 38 (also shown in FIG. 4) instead of or in addition to the filament 122.

Another method of assisting the fusing process is to pass the printing material through a powerful, collimated beam of light, such as a laser beam, thereby reducing the kinetic energy required to melt the printing material particles. Or giving the particles sufficient energy to melt at least a portion of the particles in flight. This embodiment is shown in FIG. This is because the laser beam 132 emitted from the laser 134 is generated while the stream 130 of the printing material particles is traveling toward the printing medium 37.
It passes through powerful and parallel light such as. Of course, a similar result can be obtained with a light source other than the laser 134.

As shown in FIG. 32, a particle having a density ρ, a mass m, a diameter d, a heat capacity C _p , and a softening point T _s has a velocity v,
It is assumed that the laser beam passes through a laser beam having a width L ₁ and a height L ₂ . The temperature change ΔT of the particles due to the heat input ΔQ is given by the following equation.

[0123]

[Equation 17] The laser output density p is obtained by dividing the laser output P by the area of the ellipse as follows.

[0124]

(Equation 18) Energy absorbed to the particles per unit time, the area of the laser power density × irradiation particles being (πd ^2/4) is given by × absorption coefficient alpha.

[0125]

[Equation 19] The energy absorbed by a particle as it travels through the beam is given by:

[0126]

(Equation 20) Thus, the temperature change is given by the following equation.

[0127]

(Equation 21) Assuming that the initial temperature of the particle is T ₀ , the laser power required to heat the particle above its glass transition temperature is given by:

[0128]

(Equation 22) As an example, assume the following values:

[0129]

[Table 5] According to this example, the laser power required to melt the printing substance particles is 1.9 watts. This is the normal power range of commercially available laser devices, such as continuous beam, fiber-coupled laser diode arrays.

FIG. 38 is a plot of the output of the light source required to melt the particles against the particle size at various particle velocities, for example, showing the particle size and speed at which in-flight melting by a laser diode is possible. ing. The advantage of in-flight melting is that the bulky substance is heated (not a bulky printing substance or a substrate). Thus, in-flight fusing can be used in a variety of printing material supply packages (eg, fixed installation and removable printing material containers, etc.), and the printing material has a low enthalpy despite the relatively high particle temperature. Because of its low thermal mass, it can be used for various printing media.

Also, depending on the particular application of the invention, other methods of assisting the melting process may be used. For example, the propulsion body itself is heated. Although the heat of the propellant melts the printing material particles and causes contamination and clogging of the flow path, it is not desirable as a result. However, sufficient heat energy is given to the particles to shorten the melting time, which is necessary for impact fusion. Reduce kinetic energy. The substrate (or the substrate carrier, such as a platen) is heated sufficiently to assist in kinetic energy fusing or to actually melt the printing material particles. Alternatively, similarly to the fixing method used in current electrophotographic apparatuses, heat, pressure, or a combination of the two is used to perform fixing in a separation section of the apparatus. UV as printing material
When a curable substance is used, UV irradiation is performed during flight or on a printing medium to fix or cure the substance.

It is clear that an important point of the present invention is that phase change and fixation can be performed on a pixel-by-pixel basis. That is, much of the prior art has been limited to bulk liquid-phase printing materials, such as liquid inks or toners in liquid carriers. In the present invention, a single-pass printing using a plurality of printing substances or a plurality of colors per pixel, which is very excellent in resolution, can be performed.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the propellant is flowing continuously through the flow path while the printing apparatus is operating.
This includes maximizing the speed at which the device can print on the substrate (a constant stand-by state), constantly removing print material that accumulates in the flow path, and removing contaminants (paper fibers, dust, external There are several purposes, such as preventing the ingress of moisture from moisture.

In a non-operating state such as when the power of the apparatus is turned off, the propulsion body does not flow in the flow path. In order to prevent intrusion of contaminants in this state, a closed structure 1 shown in FIG.
The 46 is brought into contact with the surface of the print head 34, in particular the discharge orifice 56. The closing structure 146 is a rubber plate or other impervious material capable of sealing the flow path from the outside.
Alternatively, if the print head 34 is movable in the printing device, it is moved to a maintenance section in the printing device, as commonly used in TIJs and other printing devices. Also,
A printing device that prints on a sheet-like medium supported by a platen, a roller, and the like. Further, when the platen, the roller, and the like are made of an appropriate material such as rubber, the print head 34 is connected to the platen, the roller, and the like. To close the flow path. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 40, the platen, the roller, and the like are moved to make contact with the print head 34.

The port 42 and the flow path 136 connected to the port 42,
And the electrodes 142, 144 are cleaned by the propellant flow forming the fluidized bed described above. Alternatively, cleaning is performed by adjusting the pressure equilibrium between the flow path and the printing substance cavity and flowing a propellant through the port or the like when the printing substance is not injected into the flow path.

Another embodiment 320 is shown in FIG. In the embodiment 320, it is indispensable to make the print head 322 reverse the propulsion body flow. Much of the description herein similarly applies to this embodiment, except that fluidized bed 324 is formed by a suitable gas, such as a propellant from propellant source 33, under the control of valve 326 or similar means. Is done. The aerosol section 328 is formed on the fluidized bed 324 by the same gas or other means as the fluidized bed 324. Print material from aerosol section 328 is metered into the propellant stream.

As described above, it has become clear that the present invention discloses various embodiments of the ballistic aerosol printing apparatus and components thereof. These embodiments include an integrated reservoir and compressor for supplying a pressurized propellant, a replenishable or equivalent remotely located print material reservoir, a high propellant for kinetic energy fusion. From large-scale equipment with speed (equivalent to supersonic speed) designed to print very high throughput or very large areas quickly on one or more wide variety of substrates A small device (e.g., with high quality, high speed printing (color or single color) on paper, with replaceable cartridges filled with printing substance and propellant)
Desktop type, home office, etc.). The embodiments described and mentioned in the present case allow for printing of a single printing material, printing of a single channel full color printing material, printing of a material that is invisible to the naked eye, printing of a pre-printing material, a post-printing material, etc. In this case, substantially all of the printing substance can be mixed in the flow path of the apparatus before printing on the substrate, or can be mixed on the substrate without registering again. can do. However, it is clear that the description of the present application is merely an example and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention and the scope of the claims thereof.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an apparatus for printing on a printing medium according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is another cross-sectional view of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a cross-sectional view of a flow path having a nozzle of the printing apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of several examples of flow paths according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of several examples of flow paths according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a flow path without a nozzle of the printing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of another example of a flow channel according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an end view of a non-zigzag array and a two-dimensional zigzag array channel according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a channel arrangement of the device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a plan view showing a part of the flow channel arrangement shown in FIG. 10 of the port according to the two embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 12 shows two different embodiments of the invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a printing apparatus having a detachable main body.

FIG. 13 is a process flow diagram relating to printing of a material to be printed according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view (FIG. 14 (a)) and a plan view (FIG. 14 (b)) of a printing material metering device using an annular electrode according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of a printing substance metering device using two electrodes according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of a printing material metering device using an acoustic ink ejector according to yet another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 illustrates a TI according to yet another embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a printing material metering device using a J ejector.

FIG. 18 shows a still further embodiment of the present invention.
1 is a cross-sectional view of a printing substance metering device using a piezoelectric transducer / vibrating plate.

FIG. 19 is a schematic illustration of an array of printing substance metering devices coupled for matrix addressing.

FIG. 20 is another schematic diagram of an array of printing substance metering devices coupled for matrix addressing.

FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment for generating a fluidized bed of printing material in a cavity.

FIG. 22 is a graph plotting pressure versus time in a pressure balanced cavity of an embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention using another printing substance supply device.

FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view of a printing substance transport device using an electrode grid and an electrostatic traveling wave according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 25 is a cross-sectional view of an assembly for both printing substance transport and metering according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 26 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment filled with a fluidized bed of printing material according to the present invention.

FIG. 27 is a plan view of a channel arrangement and addressing circuit components according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 28 shows spot size (or spot density) obtained by the embodiment of the ballistic aerosol printing apparatus of the present invention.
It is a graph which shows distribution of the number of colors per hit.

FIG. 29 is a plan view showing an example of a propulsion body flow pattern at an interface with the printing medium, as viewed from directly above the printing medium.

30 is a side view of the propellant flow pattern of FIG. 29 and a graph showing the print material particle distribution as a function of position in the propellant flow.

FIG. 31 is a model diagram for calculating a lateral deviation from a spot center of a printing substance in a most extreme case.

FIG. 32 is a model diagram for calculating a laser output required for post-laser injection printing material processing, such as auxiliary melting.

FIG. 33 is a cross-sectional view of a ballistic aerosol printing device that electrostatically assists in extraction and / or pre-fixation retention of printing material.

FIG. 34 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the present invention using solid printing substance particles suspended in a liquid carrier medium.

FIG. 35 is a graph showing a threshold value of kinetic energy fusion and plotting the number of particles with respect to kinetic energy in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 36 is a graph plotting propellant velocity at a discharge orifice versus propellant pressure in a flow path with or without convergence / divergence in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 37 is a cross-sectional view showing a flow path and a light beam arranged for performing a printing material process after the light-assisted emission.

FIG. 38 is a graph plotting the output of a light source versus print material particle size, showing the effective range of print material processing after light assisted ejection.

FIG. 39 uses a closure structure to reduce or prevent clogging, moisture effects, etc., according to an embodiment of the present invention;
It is sectional drawing which shows a ballistic aerosol printing apparatus.

FIG. 40 is a cross-sectional view illustrating closing a flow path by moving a platen into contact with a discharge orifice according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 41 is a cross-sectional view showing the process of manufacturing the print head according to the present invention.

FIG. 42 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a process of manufacturing a print head according to the present invention.

FIG. 43 is a cross-sectional view showing certain portions of another embodiment of a ballistic aerosol printing device according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 10 ballistic aerosol device, 12 ejector, 14 propellant, 16 print substance, 18 transport mechanism, 20, 22 control, 21 metering, 23 post-injection processing, 24 ballistic aerosol device, 26 body, 28 cavity, 29 opening, 30 propellant cavity, 31 valve, 32 fittings, 33 propellant source, 34 printhead,
36 support, 37 flow path layer, 38 printing medium, 40
Platen, 42 port, 43 opening, 44 port, 45 corona, 46 flow path, 47 propulsion receiver,
48 converging section, 50 diverging section, 52 printing substance injection section,
53 throat, 54 electrodes, 55 counter electrode, 56 discharge orifice, 60 body, 62 propellant source, 64 mount, 66 corona, 68 transducer / diaphragm, 69 addressing means, 86 fluidized bed, 87 heating element, 88, 90 electrodes, 91 contact layers, 104 metering device, 106 row address conductors, 108 column address conductors, 110 streamlines, 112 print material spots, 114
Gaussian density distribution, 116 particles, 118 propellant flow,
120 lateral propellant flow, 122, 124 heated filament, 130 flow, 132 laser beam, 134 laser, 136 channel section, 138 layers,
140 spacing layer, 142, 144 plate electrode,
146 closed structure, 148 grid, 154 embodiment, 156 pool, 158 transducer, 1
60 support, 162 convergence means, 164 droplets, 16
8 TIJ injector, 170 print material, 172 port, 174 cavity, 176 heating element, 177
Foam, 178 channels, 180 platens, 181 droplets,
182 donor roller, 184 belt, 186 heating and / or pressure roll, 188 printing material particles, 190
Plot, 192 boundaries, 194, 196 parts,
200 arrangement, 202 metering supply device, 206 common line, 208 wiring, 210, 212 multiplexer,
214 cavity, 220 filter, 222 piping, 224 valve, 226 circuit components, 228, 2
30 pressure sensor, 232 opening, 240, 242
244 lines, 250 embodiments, 254 walls, 256
Piezoelectric material, 260 arrangement, 262 print material carrier,
264 cavity, 266 body, 268 port,
272 semiconductor layer, 274 insulating layer, 276 first electrode, 278 second electrode, 282 printing material, 283 magnetic brush, 284 printing material transport roll, 286 solid printing material particles, 287 printing material reservoir, 288 liquid carrier medium, 290 Pool, 292 electrodes, 294
Ports, 296 channels, 298 auxiliary electrodes, 300 meniscus, 310, 312 layers, 314, 315 electrodes, 320 embodiment, 322 print head, 3
24 Fluidized bed, 326 valve, 328 aerosol section.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (31) Priority claim number 09/163924 (32) Priority date September 30, 1998 (September 30, 1998) (33) Priority claim country United States (US) (31) Priority claim number 09/163954 (32) Priority date September 30, 1998 (September 30, 1998) (33) Priority claim country United States (US) (31) Priority claim number 09/164104 (32) Priority date September 30, 1998 (September 30, 1998) (33) Priority claim country United States (US) (31) Priority claim number 09/164124 (32) Priority date September 30, 1998 ( (September 30, 1998) (33) Priority claim country United States (US) (31) Priority claim number 09/164250 (32) Priority date September 30, 1998 (September 30, 1998) (33) Priority Claimed Country United States (US) (72) Inventor Jern Nolandy United States Mountain View, California Mountain View Avenue 957 (72) Inventor Raju Be Apte United States of America Palo Alto Matadero Avenue 210 (72) Inventor Philip Di Floyd United States of America Sunnyvale Vicent Drive, California 1251 Partition 103 (72) Inventor Jonathan A. Small United States California Los Altos Van Buran Street 577 (72) Inventor Gregory Jay Kovacs Canada Ontario Mississauga Sawmill Valley Drive 4155 (72) Inventor Meng H. Lean United States New York Blair Cliff Manor Sleepy Hello Road 353 (72) Inventor Armin Earl Volker United States of America Palo Al, California To Alma Street 3351 # 113 (72) Inventor Stephen Bee Volte United States Rochester Denonville Ridge, NY 3 (72) Inventor Ann-Changsea Hamilton Day Lewood Crescent 160, Ontario 160 (72) Inventor Frederick Jay Endicott United States California San Carlos Britann Avenue, USA 3336 # 14 (72) Inventor Gregory Be Anderson United States Woodside California Way 714, California Inventor Dan A Hayes United States Fairport Mason Road, New York 297 (72) Inventor Joel A Kuby United States New York Rochester Spring Valley Drive 63 (72) Inventor Warren Be Jackson United States San Francisco Castenada Avenue, California 160 (72) Inventor Karen A. Moffat, Canada Brantford Majestic Court, Ontario 7 (72) Inventor, T Brian McAnnine, Canada Burlington Woodview Road, Ontario 581 (72) Inventor, Richard P. N. Viagin Canada, Ontario 3515 (72) Inventor Maria N.V.Macdawgall Canada Burlington Sarem Road 5335 (72) Inventor Daniel Sea Boyls Canada Mississauga Yoville Road 2456 (72) Inventor Paul Di Sabo Canada Ontario Islington Poplar Heights Drive 93 (72) Inventor Andrew A. Burlin United States of America California Near San Jose Dalton Place 1789 (72) inventor Gee Aye Neville Connell, California, USA queue party Roh Anson Avenue 10386

Claims (12)

[Claims] An injection device for a particulate printing material, comprising:
The apparatus includes at least two adjacent flow paths, a structure including a discharge orifice having a width of 250 μm or less in the flow paths, a printing material storage unit connected to the flow paths, and at least one flow path. A metering supply device that is connected between a passage and the printing substance storage unit and connects the two, and that can selectively introduce the particulate printing substance from the storage unit to at least one of the flow paths. Equipment to do. 2. An injection device for a particulate printing material, comprising:
The apparatus includes a flow path for receiving a propellant flow, the flow path having a discharge orifice through which the propellant flow passes, and a particulate printing material storage unit connected to the flow path. A metering supply device between the flow path and the printing material reservoir, the metering supply device being capable of selectively introducing particulate printing material from the reservoir to the propellant stream. 3. An apparatus for disposing a particulate printing material on a substrate, said apparatus comprising at least two adjacent channels, each of said channels having a width of 250 μm or less. A propellant source connected to each of the flow paths, wherein a propellant supplied by the propellant source forms a propellant flow flowing through the flow path, and wherein the propellant flow is in motion. A propellant source having energy, wherein each of said flow paths directs said propellant stream through said discharge orifice to said substrate; and a printing substance storage coupled to each of said flow paths, said storage comprising: A printing substance, wherein the fine particle printing substance is introduced into the flow of the propellant in each of the flow paths while being controlled, and the kinetic energy of the flow of the propellant causes the fine particle printing substance to collide with the printing medium. Including a reservoir and A printing device characterized by the above-mentioned. 4. The printing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein at least two adjacent flow paths are not separated from other adjacent flow paths by 250 μm or more. 5. The printing apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a plurality of printing substance storage sections, each storage section being connected to at least one of said flow paths, and propelling printing substance from each said storage section. A printing apparatus characterized in that it is introduced while being controlled in a body flow. 6. A method for disposing a printing substance on a printing medium, comprising: supplying a propellant to a head structure, wherein the head structure has a flow path, and the flow path has A discharge orifice having a width of not more than 250 μm through which the propellant flows, the propellant flowing through the flow passage, thereby forming a propellant flow having kinetic energy, and the flow passage covers the propellant flow through the flow passage; A step of directing a particulate printing substance to the propellant stream in the flow path while controlling the same, and a step of printing the particulate printing substance by the kinetic energy of the propellant stream. Impacting the body. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the method further comprises the step of continuously flowing the propellant stream through the flow path while the printing device is in operation. Features method. 8. The method of claim 6, further comprising the step of introducing a plurality of different printing substances into the propellant stream while controlling the plurality of different printing substances by the energy of the propellant stream. Impacting the body, wherein at least one of said printing substances is a particulate printing substance. 9. The method according to claim 6, further comprising the step of mixing the plurality of printing substances in the flow path before impinging the plurality of printing substances on the printing medium. 10. A method for performing printing on a printing medium, comprising: supplying a propelling body to a head structure, wherein the head structure includes a flow path having a discharge orifice. Flowing through the flow path, thereby forming a propellant flow having kinetic energy, the flow path discharging the propellant flow from the discharge orifice and directing the propellant flow toward the printing medium; A step of introducing the printing substance fine particles from the discharge orifice by controlling the kinetic energy of the propelling body flow and colliding with the printing medium at a speed V _C. A step having a kinetic energy sufficient for the printing substance fine particles to melt by plastic deformation when the printing substance fine particles collide with the printing medium; and re-solidifying the printing substance fine particles, Printing method comprising the the steps of fixing the printing material to said printing substrate by Les. 11. The printing method according to claim 10, wherein the propellant stream imparts kinetic energy to the printing substance particles, and (a) the collision of the printing substance particles with the printing medium includes the printing substance particles. (B) a printing method wherein the printing substance fine particles are heated to a temperature higher than their softening point by a collision of the printing substance fine particles with the printing medium to cause a phase change. 12. A cartridge that is removable and replaceable with a printhead, wherein the printhead includes at least one reservoir containing a printing substance, and at least one of the reservoirs includes a print included in the reservoir. A storage section having a port for passing a substance, a flow path section having at least one flow path formed therein, wherein the flow path extends from a propulsion body receiving section to a discharge orifice, and the flow path includes a printing substance. A receiving portion, wherein the port connects the storage portion and the printing material receiving portion with a flow channel portion; and at least one electrostatic control device acting on a printing material contained in at least one of the storage portions. A metering device, wherein the at least one metering device is coupled to and located near at least one of the ports and acts on the printing substance. An electrostatic metering supply device for metering the printing substance while controlling the printing substance from the storage section to the printing substance receiving section.