JP2002026471A - Flexible printed wiring board, liquid spray head using the same, head cartridge and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent unwanted peel-off from occurring at stress-concentrated regions of bond zones on a flexible printed wiring board having a solder resist layer at least partly bonded to a support member through adhesives. SOLUTION: The flexible printed wiring board 14 comprises a flexible base sheet 23, electric circuits 19 patterned in specified shapes on the base sheet 23 surface, and a solder resist layer 21 covering the electric circuits 19 and the base sheet 23 surface. At least a part of the solder resist layer 21 is bonded to a support member through adhesives to form a bond zone. The gap size W between a plurality of adjacent wirings 19P, 19S of the electric circuit 19 in a stress concentrated region Z easy to peel off the support member 12 at the bond zone of the solder resist layer 21 is set wider than the gap size R between a plurality of adjacent wirings 19P, 19S of the electric circuit 19 in other bond zone than the stress concentrated region Z.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flexible printed wiring board having a joint where at least a part of a solder resist layer is joined to a supporting member via an adhesive, and a liquid discharge head and a head cartridge using the same. And an image forming apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Inkjet printers have low running costs, can be miniaturized, and can easily print color images using a plurality of color inks. It is widely used in equipment and commercialized.

On the other hand, an electric machine such as a piezo element is used as a discharge energy generating section for generating discharge energy for discharging a processing liquid for adjusting the printability of ink or ink on a print medium from the discharge port of the print head. Known are those that use a conversion element, those that emit heat by irradiating electromagnetic waves such as lasers and discharge droplets by the action of this heat, and those that heat the liquid by an electrothermal conversion element that has a low heat-generating antibody. Have been.

[0004] Among them, an ink jet type print head which discharges liquid droplets by using thermal energy,
Since the ejection ports can be arranged at a high density, high-resolution printing can be performed. In particular, printheads that use electrothermal transducers for the ejection energy generator are easy to miniaturize, and have the advantages of IC technology and micromachining technology, which have recently made remarkable progress in technology in the field of semiconductors and markedly improved reliability. Since it can be utilized more than enough, high-density mounting is easy, and the manufacturing cost is low, it is advantageous in various points.

[0005] Various configurations of print heads used in such an ink jet printer are known, and an example thereof is shown in FIG. That is, the head unit 10 includes the head main body 11 and the head main body 1.
An electrically insulating supporting member 12 for supporting the fixed member 1 in a fixed state;
A flexible printed wiring board 14 electrically connected at one end to an electrode terminal 13 provided on the head main body 11; the head main body 11 has a flow path for a liquid (not shown) supplied to the head main body 11; A molding member 15 having a liquid reservoir (not shown) communicating with the path is connected.
The other end of the flexible printed wiring board 14 is electrically connected to a relay board 16 mounted on the molding member 15.

Although the support member 12 may be the molded member 15 itself, the accuracy of assembling the head body 11, heat conductivity,
Alumina or the like is often used in consideration of the difference in expansion between the members during heating.

[0007] The flexible printed wiring board 14 is fixed in a bent state from the head body 11 to the forming member 15. FIG. 14 shows a cross-sectional structure of a joint portion between the flexible printed wiring board 14 and the head body 11. Show. That is, the support member 12 and the flexible printed wiring board 14 are fixed via the adhesive 18. The flexible printed wiring board 14 is usually
By coating the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 constituting 9 with the solder resist layer 21, it plays a role of preventing migration and preventing a pattern short due to adhesion of dust and the like. With such a configuration, the support member 12 and the solder resist layer 21 are in close contact with each other via the adhesive 18. The flexible printed wiring board 14 is formed to have a relatively large length and is bent in order to absorb an assembly error in assembling the head body 11 in a manufacturing process and a dimensional error of each part. Must be kept free. That is, the flexible printed wiring board 14
Are not integrally fixed to the molding member 15.

The relay board 16 is electrically connected to a board provided on a carriage (not shown) of the ink jet printer to send a drive signal from the printer main body to a discharge energy generating section (not shown) of the head main body 11 or to discharge a liquid. Supply the necessary power to The connection portion between the other end of the flexible printed wiring board 14 and the relay board 16 is covered with a sealing agent 17 to protect the electrical connection therebetween.

[0009]

In the conventional head unit 10 shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the flexible printed wiring board 14 is bent along the supporting member 12 and the forming member 15 as shown in FIG. At this time, a reaction force (hereinafter, referred to as a peeling force) is generated due to the rigidity of the flexible printed wiring board 14 itself, which tends to peel from the support member 12. If the adhesive force by the adhesive 18 is smaller than the peeling force, the solder resist layer 21
Peeling occurs at the interface between the adhesive 18 and the support member 12 and the adhesive 18.

However, even if the adhesive force of the adhesive 18 is sufficiently larger than the above-mentioned peeling force, and the support member 12 and the solder resist layer 21 are firmly joined via the adhesive 18, FIG. As shown in FIG.
2 and the flexible printed wiring board 14, more specifically, the electric circuit portion 1 of the flexible printed wiring board 14.
It has been clarified by the present inventors that the peeling may occur between the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21 constituting the layer 9.

When such a peeling phenomenon occurs on the flexible printed wiring board 14, the electrical circuit portion 19 at the peeled portion is exposed. There is a possibility that a complicated printing operation cannot be performed. Also, depending on the configuration of this printer, the flexible printed wiring board 14
It is also conceivable that the peeled off portion may interfere with other members. When the peeling state of the flexible printed wiring board 14 further advances due to the peeling force, not only the connection part with the relay board 16 (the part covered with the sealing material 17) but also the bonding part with the head main body 11 (the electrode terminal 13). In such a case, the peeled flexible printed circuit board 14 may be caught on the print medium being printed, causing a failure of the ink jet printer.

FIG. 16 shows a state in which the conventional flexible printed circuit board 14 is unfolded before being joined to the head body 11 in a broken state. The flexible printed wiring board 14 has a device hole 2 in which the head body 11 is positioned.
2, a power supply line 19P of the electric circuit unit 19 for the head main body 11 and a signal line 19S such as a logic wiring or a logic power supply are formed with a gap G therebetween along the longitudinal direction. . Power supply line 19
Since P supplies power to the ejection energy generating section of the head main body 11, it is preferable to make the wiring width as large as possible to reduce wiring resistance as much as possible.

However, since the parts cost of the flexible printed wiring board 14, the size of the head main body 11, and the size (compactness) of the ink jet printer itself are restricted, the width of the wiring width of the power supply line 19P is limited. Imposes inevitable constraints. In other words, in order to increase the width of the power supply line 19P in the flexible printed wiring board 14 having a limited width, it is desirable that the gaps G between the power supply and signal lines 19P and 19S be as narrow as possible. It is.

In such a situation, a sufficient contact area between the base sheet 23 of the flexible printed wiring board 14 and the solder resist layer 21 exhibiting a good bonding property with respect to the base sheet 23 cannot be obtained, and gold plating is performed. Copper foil layer 2
Since the contact area between the solder resist layer 21 and the solder resist layer 21 having poor adhesion to the solder resist layer 21 becomes large, the above-described problem, that is, peeling between the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21 occurs. It is considered that a phenomenon occurs.

The above problem does not necessarily occur, but may occur when the size and cost of the ink jet printer are reduced in the future.

For example, by increasing the thickness of the support member 12 and increasing the bonding area of the flexible printed wiring board 14 to the support member 12, the separation between the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21 can be achieved. However, when the size of the head unit 10 and the size of the printer body are reduced, the thickness of the support member 12 needs to be reduced as much as possible. The bonding area of the flexible printed wiring board 14 becomes short, and peeling occurs between the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21 having low bonding strength. In addition, by setting a large bending radius at the bent portion of the flexible printed wiring board 14, it is possible to prevent peeling between the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21 to some extent. If the spacing between components is set as small as possible in order to reduce the size of the device, even the size of this bending radius may affect the size reduction, and the bending radius must be reduced. Disappears. As described above, when the bending radius of the bent portion of the flexible printed wiring board 12 is reduced, substantially no assembling or absorption of component variations can be substantially expected, so that a large peeling force is generated and the gold-plated copper foil layer is generated. Peeling occurs between the solder resist layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21. Furthermore, since the solder resist layer 21 is generally made of a material having low heat resistance, the supporting member 12 and the flexible printed wiring board 1
When a room temperature curing type adhesive is used as the adhesive 18 for bonding the solder resist 4 to the solder resist layer 4, the solder resist layer 21 is not heated and the solder resist layer 21 is not thermally degraded. Although the adhesiveness between the copper foil layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21 can be relatively maintained, the room-temperature-curable adhesive generally takes a long time to cure, so that the production tact of the head unit 10 is long. However, there are problems such as that the space is left and a space for leaving the adhesive is required. Therefore, it is conceivable to use a thermosetting adhesive that can shorten the curing time and shorten the manufacturing tact time. In this case, however, heat is applied to the solder resist layer 21 and the solder resist layer 2
No. 1 causes thermal degradation, and the bonding strength between the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21 is reduced to cause problems such as peeling from the copper resist. In addition, along with the miniaturization of the print head and the increase in the density of the discharge ports, it is necessary to narrow the pitch of the power supply line 19P and the signal line 19S constituting the electric circuit section 19 formed on the flexible printed wiring board 14. In this case, the base sheet 2 of the flexible printed wiring board 14
3 and the contact area between the solder resist layer 21 and the solder resist layer 21 exhibiting a good bonding property with respect thereto tend to be further reduced.
Separation between the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 and the solder resist layer 21 is more likely to occur.

[0017]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a solder joint in which at least a part of a solder resist layer is joined to a support member via an adhesive, and where the solder resist layer is easily separated from the support member at a stress concentration region. An object of the present invention is to provide a flexible printed wiring board capable of preventing unnecessary separation between a resist layer and an electric circuit section, and a liquid discharge head, a head cartridge and an image forming apparatus using the same.

[0018]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided:
A flexible base sheet, an electric circuit portion patterned in a predetermined shape on the surface of the base sheet, and a solder resist layer covering the electric circuit portion and the surface of the base sheet. A flexible printed wiring board having a joint part at least partially joined to a support member via an adhesive, wherein the solder resist layer is in a stress concentration area where the joint part of the solder resist layer is easily peeled from the support member. A gap size between a plurality of adjacent wires of the electric circuit portion is set to be wider than a gap size between a plurality of adjacent wires of the electric circuit portion in the joint other than the stress concentration region. It is assumed that.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a flexible base sheet, an electric circuit portion patterned in a predetermined shape on the surface of the base sheet, the electric circuit portion and the surface of the base sheet. And a solder resist layer covering the solder resist layer, at least a part of the solder resist layer is a flexible printed wiring board having a joint to be joined to the support member via an adhesive, the solder resist layer to the joint of the solder resist layer In the wiring forming the electric circuit in the stress concentration region that is easily separated from the support member, the gap between a plurality of adjacent power supply lines is set to be at least 0.8 times the width of each power supply line. It is characterized by having been done.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head body having a discharge energy generating section for generating discharge energy for discharging a liquid from a discharge port in response to an electric signal, and a support member for supporting the head body. A liquid discharge head comprising a power supply for supplying drive power to the energy generating means and a flexible printed wiring board for making an electrical connection with the head body, wherein the flexible printed wiring board is A flexible base sheet, an electric circuit portion patterned in a predetermined shape on the surface of the base sheet, and a solder resist layer covering the electric circuit portion and the surface of the base sheet. At least a portion is bonded to the support member via an adhesive to form a bonding portion, and the bonding of the solder resist layer is performed. A gap dimension between a plurality of adjacent wirings of the electric circuit portion in a stress concentration region that is easily peeled from the insulating member is different from a plurality of adjacent electric circuit portions in the joining portion other than the stress concentration region. It is characterized in that it is set wider than the gap size between the wirings.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a head body having a discharge energy generating section for generating discharge energy for discharging liquid from a discharge port in response to an electric signal, and a support for supporting the head body. Member, a liquid discharge head comprising a power supply for supplying drive power to the energy generating means and a flexible printed wiring board for making an electrical connection with the head body, wherein the flexible printed wiring board is A flexible base sheet, an electric circuit portion patterned in a predetermined shape on the surface of the base sheet, and a solder resist layer covering the electric circuit portion and the surface of the base sheet. At least a part of the layer forms a bonding portion to be bonded to the supporting member via an adhesive, and the bonding of the solder resist layer is performed. In the wiring, which constitutes the electric circuit in the stress concentration region that is easily peeled from the support member at the portion, the gap between a plurality of adjacent power supply lines is 0.8 times or more the width of each power supply line. Is set to.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a liquid discharge head according to the third or fourth aspect of the present invention, and a liquid tank for storing liquid supplied to the liquid discharge head. Head cartridge.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a liquid ejecting head mounting portion according to the third or fourth aspect of the present invention, and means for transporting a print medium. And an image forming apparatus for forming an image on a print medium using a liquid.

According to the present invention, the contact area between the solder resist layer and the base sheet in the stress concentration region increases, and the solder resist layer hardly peels off from the electric circuit portion. In this case, since the wiring interval is locally increased only in the stress concentration region, the wiring resistance of each wiring does not increase so much, and it is not necessary to increase the area of the flexible printed wiring board.

[0025]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In a flexible printed wiring board according to a first embodiment of the present invention, individual wirings of an electric circuit portion at a joint are formed at regular intervals, and individual wirings of an electric circuit portion in a stress concentration region are formed. May be set to be smaller than the width of each wiring of the electric circuit portion in the region of the joint other than the stress concentration region.

In the flexible printed wiring board according to the first and second aspects of the present invention, it is preferable that a plurality of wirings of the electric circuit portion in the stress concentration region extend along the longitudinal direction of the base sheet. A gold plating layer that covers the electric circuit section may be formed between the electric circuit section and the solder resist layer, and the chemical stability of the gold plating layer causes separation between the solder resist layer and the electric circuit section. Make it harder to wake up. Further, the base sheet may be formed of a polyimide-based film and the electric circuit portion may be joined to the base sheet via an adhesive, or the solder resist layer may be formed of an epoxy-based material.

In the liquid discharge head according to the third and fourth embodiments of the present invention, the adhesive for bonding the solder resist layer and the support member may be a thermosetting adhesive. The thermosetting adhesive has a short curing time, and depending on the curing temperature, the solder resist layer that has a problem with heat resistance may be affected by heat and peeling off from the electric circuit may not easily occur. . Further, the support member may be an electrically insulating alumina excellent in assembling and parts accuracy and thermal conductivity, and the stress concentration region is in the vicinity of a portion bent along two mutually intersecting surfaces of the support member. May be on one side. Further, the discharge energy generating section may have an electrothermal converter that generates thermal energy for causing the liquid to cause film boiling and discharging the liquid from the discharge port.

[0028] In the head cartridge according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the liquid tank may be detachable from the liquid ejection head via attaching / detaching means.

In the image forming apparatus according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the mounting portion may have a carriage which can scan and move in a direction intersecting with the transport direction of the print medium. It may be removably mounted on the carriage via means. Further, the liquid may be a processing liquid for adjusting the printability of the ink on the ink and / or the print medium.

[0030]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a serial type ink jet printer will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 14. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and the present invention is not limited thereto. It can be applied to other technologies that should be included in the concept of the present invention described in the claims.

In this specification, "print"
(Sometimes referred to as "records") refers to not only meaningful information such as characters and figures, but also significant or insignificant, and whether it is manifested so that humans can perceive it visually. Regardless of whether or not the image, pattern, pattern, and the like are widely formed on a print medium, or when the medium is processed. "Print media"
Not only paper used in general printing equipment, but also widely used for fabrics, plastic films, metal plates, etc.
Ceramics, wood, leather and the like that can accept ink are also referred to. Further, “ink” (sometimes referred to as “liquid”) is to be interpreted broadly as in the definition of “print” described above, and by being applied on a print medium, an image, pattern, pattern, etc. A liquid that can be subjected to formation or processing of the print medium, or treatment of the ink (eg, solidification or insolubilization of the colorant in the ink applied to the print medium), and includes all liquids used for printing.

1. Apparatus Main Body FIGS. 1 and 2 show a schematic configuration of a printer using an inkjet printing method. In FIG. 1, an outer shell of a printer main body M1000 of this embodiment includes an outer member including a lower case M1001, an upper case M1002, an access cover M1003, and a discharge tray M1004, and a chassis M3019 housed in the outer member.
(See FIG. 2).

The chassis M3019 is composed of a plurality of plate-like metal members having a predetermined rigidity, forms a skeleton of the printer, and holds each printing operation mechanism described later.

The lower case M1001 is connected to the apparatus main body M1.
000, and the upper case M1002 forms a substantially upper half of the outer shell of the apparatus main body M1000, and a combination of the two cases provides a storage space for storing each mechanism described later inside. It has a hollow body structure. An opening is formed in each of the upper surface and the front surface of the apparatus main body M1000.

Further, one end of the discharge tray M1004 is rotatably held by the lower case M1001, and the opening formed on the front surface of the lower case M1001 can be opened and closed by the rotation. For this reason,
When executing the printing operation, the discharge tray M100
By rotating the opening 4 to the front side to open the opening, the print sheet can be discharged from here, and the discharged print sheets P can be sequentially stacked. Further, two auxiliary trays M1004a and M1004b are stored in the paper discharge tray M1004.
By pulling out each tray as needed, the sheet support area can be expanded or reduced in three stages.

One end of the access cover M1003 is rotatably held by the upper case M1002 so that an opening formed on the upper surface can be opened and closed. When the access cover M1003 is opened, the inside of the main body is opened. The stored head cartridge H1000 or ink tank H1900 can be replaced. Although not particularly shown here, the access cover M10
When the cover 03 is opened and closed, a projection formed on the back surface rotates the cover opening / closing lever, and the open / closed state of the access cover can be detected by detecting the rotation position of the lever with a microswitch or the like. It has become.

A power key E0018 and a resume key E001 are provided on the rear upper surface of the upper case M1002.
9 is provided so as to be able to be pressed, and LED E0020
Is provided, and when the power key E0018 is pressed,
The LED E0020 is turned on to notify the operator that printing is possible. Also, LE
The DE0020 has various display functions, such as changing the blinking method and color, and notifying the operator of a printer trouble or the like. Further, the buzzer E0021 (FIG. 7) can be smoothed. When the trouble is solved, printing is resumed by pressing the resume key E0019.

2. Next, the print operation mechanism according to the present exemplary embodiment, which is stored and held in the apparatus main body M1000 of the printer, will be described.

The print operation mechanism in this embodiment includes an automatic feeding unit M3022 for automatically feeding the print sheet P into the apparatus main body, and a print sheet P sent one by one from the automatic feed unit. A transport unit M3029 for guiding the print sheet P from the print position to the discharge unit M3030 while guiding the print sheet P to a desired print position, a print unit for performing a predetermined print on the print sheet P transported to the print position, the print unit, and the like. And a recovery unit (M5000) for performing a recovery process for.

Here, the printing section will be described.
The printing unit includes a carriage M4001 movably supported by a carriage shaft M4021, and a head cartridge H1000 removably mounted on the carriage M4001 via attaching / detaching means (not shown).

2.1 Head Cartridge First, a head cartridge used in the printing section will be described with reference to FIGS.

The head cartridge H in this embodiment
As shown in FIG. 3, reference numeral 1000 denotes an ink tank H1900 for storing ink, and a print head H1001 for discharging ink supplied from the ink tank H1900 from nozzles according to print information. The print head H1001 includes a carriage M4001 described later.
So-called cartridge type, which is removably mounted on the printer.

The head cartridge H1000 shown here
In order to enable photographic high-quality color prints, ink tanks such as black, light cyan,
An independent ink tank H1900 for each color of light magenta, cyan, magenta and yellow is provided, and is provided in each ink tank H1900 and is an elastically deformable detachable lever which can be locked to the head card ridge H1000. By operating the H1901, each can be detached from the print head H1001, as shown in FIG. Therefore, the removal lever H1901 functions as a part of the attachment / detachment means of the present invention.

As shown in an exploded perspective view of FIG. 5, the print head H1001 has a print element substrate H1100 as a head body of the present invention (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as a head body) and a support member of the present invention. First plate (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as a support member) H1
200, an electric wiring board as a flexible printed wiring board of the present invention (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as a flexible printed wiring board) H1300, a second plate H14
00, tank holder H1500, flow path forming member H160
0, a filter H1700, and a seal rubber H1800.

On the printed element substrate H1100, a plurality of printed elements for discharging ink on one side of the Si substrate and electric wiring such as aluminum for supplying power to each printed element are formed by a film forming technique. A plurality of ink flow paths and a plurality of ejection ports H11 corresponding to print elements
00T is formed by a photolithography technique, and an ink supply port for supplying ink to a plurality of ink flow paths is formed so as to open on the back surface. The printed element board H1100 is the first plate H1.
200, an ink supply port H1201 for supplying ink to the print element substrate H1100 is formed. Further, the first plate H1200 has a second plate H14 having an opening.
00 is adhered and fixed, and the second plate H14
00, the electric wiring board H1300 is held so as to be electrically connected to the printed element board H1100. The electric wiring board H1300 is for applying an electric signal for discharging ink to the printed element board H1100. The electric wiring corresponding to the printed element board H1100 and the electric wiring located at the end of the electric wiring and from the main body. External signal input terminal H130 for receiving signals
The external signal input terminal H1301 is positioned and fixed to the back side of a tank holder H1500 described later.

On the other hand, a flow path forming member H1600 is fixed to the tank holder H1500 which detachably holds the ink tank H1900 by, for example, ultrasonic welding, and an ink flow path H1501 extending from the ink tank H1900 to the first plate H1200 is formed. Has formed. In addition, a filter H1700 is provided at the ink tank side end of the ink flow path H1501 that engages with the ink tank H1900, so that dust can be prevented from entering from the outside. In addition, a seal rubber H1800 is attached to an engagement portion with the ink tank H1900, so that evaporation of ink from the engagement portion can be prevented.

Further, as described above, the tank holder H15
00, a tank holder portion composed of a flow path forming member H1600, a filter H1700, and a seal rubber H1800, a printed element substrate H1100, a first plate H
1200, an electric wiring board H1300, and a print element section composed of a second plate H1400 are bonded to each other by an adhesive or the like, thereby forming a print head H1001.
Is composed.

2.2 Carriage Next, the carriage M4001 on which the head cartridge H1000 is mounted will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, the carriage M4001
The print head H1001 to the carriage M400
1, a carriage cover M4002 for guiding to a predetermined mounting position on the print head H1001, and a head set lever M4007 which engages with the tank holder H1500 of the print head H1001 and presses the print head H1001 to the predetermined mounting position. ing.

That is, the head set lever M4007 as the attaching / detaching means of the present invention is provided on the upper part of the carriage M4001 so as to be rotatable with respect to the head set lever shaft, and the engaging portion with the print head H1001 has a spring. A headset plate (not shown) is provided, and a print head H1001 is provided by this spring force.
And is mounted on the carriage M4001 while pressing.

Further, a contact flexible print cable (see FIG. 7; hereinafter, referred to as a contact F) is provided at another engagement portion of the carriage M4001 with the print head H1001.
E0011 is provided and a contact FPC is provided.
Contact part on E0011 and print head H10
01 (external signal input terminal) H
1301 makes electrical contact with each other so that various kinds of information for printing can be transferred and power can be supplied to the print head H1001.

Here, an elastic member such as rubber (not shown) is provided between the contact portion of the contact FPC E0011 and the carriage M4001, and the contact portion is formed by the elastic force of the elastic member and the pressing force of the headset lever spring. The secure contact with the carriage M4001 is enabled. Further contact FPCE0
Reference numeral 011 is connected to a carriage substrate E0013 mounted on the back of the carriage M4001 (see FIG. 7).

3. Scanner The printer in this embodiment can also be used as a reading device by mounting a scanner on the carriage M4001 instead of the above-described head cartridge H1000.

This scanner moves in the main scanning direction together with the carriage M4001 on the printer side, and reads a document image fed instead of a print medium in the course of movement in the main scanning direction. By alternately performing a reading operation along the main scanning direction and a document feeding operation along the sub-scanning direction, one document image information can be read.

FIGS. 6A and 6B show this scanner M6.
000, a scanner M6000
FIG.

As shown, the scanner holder M6001
Has a substantially box-like shape, and contains therein an optical system and a processing circuit necessary for reading. When the scanner M6000 is mounted on the carriage M4001, a reading unit lens M600 is provided at a portion facing the original surface.
The lens M6006 is used to read the document image by focusing the document surface on an internal reading unit. On the other hand, the illumination unit lens M6005
Has a light source (not shown) inside, and the light emitted from the light source is applied to the document via a lens M6005.

The scanner cover M6003 fixed to the bottom of the scanner holder M6001 is attached to the scanner holder M6.
The inside of 001 is fitted so as to shield light, and the operability of attaching and detaching to and from the carriage M4001 is improved by louver-shaped grips provided on the side surface. Scanner holder M60
01 has substantially the same outer shape as the print head H1001, and can be attached to and detached from the carriage M4001 by the same operation as the head cartridge H1000.

The scanner holder M6001 houses a substrate having a read processing circuit, and a scanner contact PCB connected to the substrate is provided so as to be exposed to the outside. The scanner M6000 is mounted on the carriage M4001. Scanner contact PCB when attached
M6004 is a contact F on the carriage M4001 side.
The substrate is brought into contact with the PC E0011 and the carriage M40
01 is electrically connected to a control system on the main body side.

4. Next, an electric circuit configuration according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing an overall configuration example of an electric circuit in this embodiment.

The electric circuit in this embodiment mainly includes a carriage board (CRPCB) E0013 and a main PCB.
(P rinted C ircuit B oard) E0014, and is configured by including a power supply unit E0015.

Here, the power supply unit E0015 is connected to the main PCB E0014 and supplies various drive powers.

The carriage substrate E0013 is a printed circuit board unit mounted on the carriage M4001 (FIG. 2). The carriage substrate E0013 functions as an interface for transmitting and receiving signals to and from the print head H1001 through the contact FPC E0011. , A change in the positional relationship between the encoder scale E0005 and the encoder sensor E0004 is detected based on the pulse signal output from the encoder sensor E0004, and the output signal is converted to a flexible flat cable (C
RFFC) Main PCB E001 through E0012
4 is output.

[0064] Further, the main PCB E0014 is a printed circuit board unit that controls driving of each unit of the ink jet printing apparatus in this embodiment, a paper end sensor (PE sensor) E0007, an automatic sheet feeding (A utomatic
S heet F eeder: hereinafter referred to as ASF) sensor E00
09, cover sensor E0022, parallel interface (parallel I / F) E0016, serial interface (serial I / F) E0017, resume key E
0019, LED E0020, power key E0018,
An I / O port for the buzzer E0021 and the like is provided on the board. Further, a motor (CR motor) E000 serving as a drive source for causing the carriage M4001 to perform main scanning.
1, a motor (LF motor) E0002 serving as a drive source for transporting a print medium, a print head H1001
(PG motor) E0003 which is used for both the recovery operation of the printer and the feeding operation of the print medium to control the driving of these motors.
GAP sensor E0008, PG sensor E0010, CRFFC E0012, power supply unit E for detecting the gap between print head H1001 and print medium
0015.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the main PCB E0014.

In the figure, E1001 is a CPU,
The CPU E1001 has a clock generator (CG) E1002 connected to the oscillation circuit E1005 therein, and generates a system clock by an output signal E1019. In addition, R through the control bus E1014
OM E1004 and ASIC (A pplication S pecif
It is connected to the ic I ntegrated C ircuit) E1006, RO
ASIC E10 according to the program stored in M
06, the input signal E1017 from the power key, the input signal E1016 from the resume key, the cover detection signal E1042, the head detection signal (HSENS) E10
13 is detected, and a buzzer signal (BUZ)
The buzzer E0021 is driven by E1018 to detect the state of the ink empty signal (INKS) E1011 connected to the built-in A / D converter E1003 and the state of the temperature detection signal (TH) E1012 by the thermistor. It determines the conditions and controls the driving of the inkjet printing apparatus.

Here, the head detection signal E1013 is a head mounting detection signal input from the head cartridge H1000 via the flexible flat cable E0012, the carriage board E0013, and the contact flexible print cable E0011, and the ink empty detection signal E1011 is the ink empty detection signal E1011. An analog signal and a temperature detection signal E1012 output from the empty sensor E0006 are analog signals from a thermistor (not shown) provided on the carriage substrate E0013.

E1008 is a CR motor driver which uses a motor power supply (VM) E1040 as a drive source and
CR motor control signal E1036 from IC E1006
Generates a CR motor drive signal E1037 according to
The R motor E0001 is driven. E1009 is LF / P
A G motor driver that uses a motor power supply E1040 as a drive source, generates an LF motor drive signal E1035 according to a pulse motor control signal (PM control signal) E1033 from the ASIC E1006, and thereby drives the LF motor and the PG motor A drive signal E1034 is generated to drive the PG motor.

E1010 is a power supply control circuit,
In accordance with a power control signal E1024 from CE1006, power supply to each sensor having a light emitting element is controlled. Parallel I / F E0016 is ASIC E10
, A parallel I / F signal E1030 from the external device 06 is transmitted to a parallel I / F cable E1031 connected to the outside,
Also, the signal of the parallel I / F cable E1031 is converted to ASI
It transmits to CE1006. Serial I / F E001
7 transmits the serial I / F signal E1028 from the ASIC E1006 to the serial I / F cable E1029 connected to the outside, and transmits the signal from the cable E1029 to the ASIC E1006.

On the other hand, power supply unit E0015 provides head power supply (VH) E1039 and motor power supply (VM)
E1040, a logic power supply (VDD) E1041 is supplied. Also, the head power ON signal (VHON) E1022 from the ASIC E1006 and the motor power ON
The signal (VMOM) E1023 is connected to the power supply unit E0015.
To control ON / OFF of the head power supply E1039 and the motor power supply E1040, respectively. Logic power (VDD) supplied from power supply unit E0015
E1041 is supplied to various parts inside and outside the main PCB E0014 after voltage conversion as necessary.

The head power signal E1039 is sent to the flexible flat cable E0011 after being smoothed on the main PCB E0014, and is used for driving the head cartridge H1000.

E1007 is a reset circuit which detects a drop in the logic power supply voltage E1041 and outputs a reset signal to the CPU E1007.
1 and the ASIC E1006 output a reset signal (RES
ET) Supply E1015 to perform initialization.

The ASIC E1006 is a one-chip semiconductor integrated circuit.
U1001 and outputs the above-described CR motor control signal E1036, PM control signal E1033, power control signal E1024, head power ON signal E1022, motor power ON signal E1023, etc., and outputs the parallel I / F E0016 and serial I / F. E001
7 and a PE detection signal (PES) E1025 from the PE sensor E0007, and an ASF sensor E
ASF detection signal (ASFS) E102 from 0009
6, a GAP detection signal (G
APS) PG from E1027, PG sensor E0010
The state of the detection signal (PGS) E1032 is detected, and data representing the state is sent to the CPU via the control bus E1014.
E1001 and CPU based on the input data
E1001 controls the drive of the LED drive signal E1038 to blink LEDE0020.

Further, the encoder signal (ENC) E10
A timing signal is generated by detecting the state of No. 20 and a print operation is controlled by interfacing with the head cartridge H1000 using the head control signal E1021. Here, the encoder signal (ENC) E1020 is an output signal of the CR encoder sensor E0004 input through the flexible flat cable E0012.
The head control signal E1021 is supplied to the print head H1001 via the flexible flat cable E0012, the carriage board E0013, and the contact FPC E0011.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of the ASIC E1006.

In the figure, the connection between the blocks is described in terms of print data and motor control data.
Only the flow of data related to the control of the heads and mechanical components of each part is shown. Control signals related to reading and writing of registers built in each block, clocks, control signals related to DMA control, and the like are complicated in the drawings. Omitted for avoidance.

In the figure, reference numeral E2002 denotes a PLL controller. As shown in FIG. 9, an ASIC E is provided by a clock signal (CLK) E2031 and a PLL control signal (PLLON) E2033 output from the CPU E1001.
A clock (not shown) to be supplied to most of the inside 1006 is generated.

E2001 is a CPU interface (CPU I / F), and the reset signal E1015, C
Soft reset signal (PDWN) E2032 output from PU E1001, clock signal (CLK) E2
031 and control signals from the control bus E1014, control of register read / write for each block as described below, supply of a clock to some blocks, acceptance of an interrupt signal, and the like (both not shown) are performed. An interrupt signal (INT) E2034 is output to the CPU E1001, and the ASIC E1006 is output.
Notifies the occurrence of an internal interrupt.

Reference numeral E2005 denotes a DRAM, which is a reception buffer E201 as a data buffer for printing.
0, work buffer E2011, print buffer E2
014, each area such as a development data buffer E2016, a motor control buffer E2023 for motor control, and a buffer used in the scanner operation mode, which is used in place of the print data buffer described above. Scanner capture buffer E20
24, a scanner data buffer E2026, and a transmission buffer E2028.

The DRAM E2005 has a CP
It is also used as a work area necessary for the operation of the EU 1001. That is, E2004 is a DRAM control unit, which is provided from the CPU E1001 by the control bus to the DRAM control unit.
Access to E2005 and DMA control unit E described later
Switching from access to the DRAM E2005 from 2003 is performed to perform a read / write operation to the DRAM E2005.

The DMA controller E2003 receives a request (not shown) from each block, and receives an address signal and a control signal (not shown), and in the case of a write operation, write data E2038, E2041, E2044, and E2.
053, E2055, E2057 and the like are output to the DRAM control unit E2004 to perform DRAM access. In the case of reading, the read data E2040, E2043, E2045, E2045 from the DRAM control unit E2004 are read.
2051, E2054, E2056, E2058, E2
059 is passed to the requesting block.

E2006 is based on IEEE1284I /
F and CPU via CPU I / FE 2001
The parallel I / F E0016 is controlled by the control of E1001.
, A bidirectional communication interface with an external host device (not shown), and a parallel I / F at the time of printing.
Received data from E0016 (PIF received data E2
036) is transferred to the reception control unit E2008 by DMA processing.
05 (1284 transmission data (RDPIF) E2059) stored in the transmission buffer E2028 in
It is transmitted to the parallel I / F by MA processing.

[0083] E2007 is USB (U niversal S erial B
us) I / F and C via CPU I / FE 2001
Under the control of the PUE 1001, the serial I / F E00
17, a bidirectional communication interface with an external host device (not shown) is provided, and a serial I / F
Received data from E0017 (USB received data E2
037) is transferred to the reception control unit E2008 by DMA processing, and the DRAM E2005 is read at the time of scanner reading.
(US) stored in the sending buffer E2028
B transmission data (RDUSB) E2058) is transmitted to the serial I / F E0017 by DMA processing. The reception control unit E2008 writes the reception data (WDIF) E2038 from the selected I / F of the 1284 I / FE2006 or the USB I / FE 2007 into the reception buffer write address managed by the reception buffer control unit E2039.

Reference numeral E2009 denotes a compression / decompression DMA controller which controls the CPU via a CPU I / F E2001.
Under the control of E1001, the reception data (raster data) stored in the reception buffer E2010 is read from the reception buffer read address managed by the reception buffer control unit E2039, and the data (RDWK) E204.
0 is compressed / expanded in accordance with the designated mode, and written as a print code string (WDWK) E2041 in the work buffer area.

E2013 is a print buffer transfer DMA
In the controller, C via CPU I / FE 2001
Work buffer E20 under the control of PU E1007
11 is read, and each print code is read from the head cartridge H10.
00 and rearranged to an address on the print buffer E2014 suitable for the data transfer order (WDWP).
E2044). E2012 is a work clear DMA controller, and CPU I / F E2001
The designated work fill data (WDWF) E2042 is repeatedly written into the area on the work buffer to which the transfer by the print buffer transfer DMA controller E2013 is completed under the control of the CPU E1001 via the CPU.

Reference numeral E2015 denotes a print data development DMA controller, which is a C controller via the CPU I / FE 2001.
The head control unit E201 is controlled by the PU E1001.
8 is used as a trigger to read out the print codes rearranged and written on the print buffer and the data for expansion written on the data buffer for expansion E2016, and develop print data (RDHDG). E2045 as column buffer write data (WDHDG) E2047
Write to 2017. Here, the column buffer E2017
Is an SRAM for temporarily storing transfer data (developed print data) to the head cartridge H1000, and a print data developed DMA controller E2015
It is shared and managed by both blocks by a handshake signal (not shown) between the two blocks.

E2018 denotes a head control unit, which is a CPU I /
Under the control of the CPU E1001 via the FE2001, the head cartridge H10 is controlled via a head control signal.
00 or an interface with the scanner, and print data development DMA based on a head drive timing signal E2049 from the encoder signal processing unit E2019.
Data expansion timing signal E20 for the controller
Output 50.

During printing, the developed print data (RDHD) E2048 is read from the column buffer in accordance with the head drive timing signal E2049, and the data is output to the head cartridge H1000 as a head control signal E1021.

In the scanner reading mode, the fetched data (WDHD) E2053 input as the head control signal E1021 is transferred to the DRAM E2005.
The data is DMA-transferred to the upper scanner fetch buffer E2024. E2025 is a scanner data processing DMA controller, which is a CPU via a CPU I / F E2001.
The scanner capture buffer E2 is controlled by the control of E1001.
024 stored in the capture buffer (R
DAV) E2054 is read, and processed data (WDAV) E2055, which has been subjected to averaging and the like, is stored in a DRAM.
Write to the scanner data buffer E2026 on E2005.

E2027 is a scanner data compression DMA controller, which is a CP via the CPU I / F E2001.
Under the control of the U E1001, the processed data (RDYC) E2056 on the scanner data buffer E2026 is read out to perform data compression, and the compressed data (WDYC)
E2057 is written and transferred to the sending buffer E2028.

E2019 is an encoder signal processing unit, which receives an encoder signal (ENC) and receives a signal from the CPU E1.
In addition to outputting the head drive timing signal E2049 in accordance with the mode determined by the control of 001, information relating to the position and speed of the carriage M4001 obtained from the encoder signal E1020 is stored in a register.
1001. The CPU E1001 determines various parameters in controlling the CR motor E0001 based on this information. E2020 denotes a CR motor control unit, which is a CPU via a CPU I / F E2001.
By the control of E1001, the CR motor control signal E103
6 is output.

Reference numeral E2022 denotes a sensor signal processing unit, which includes detection signals E1032, E1024, and E102 output from the PG sensor E0010, the PE sensor E0007, the ASF sensor E0009, the GAP sensor E0008, and the like.
6, E1027, and based on the mode determined by the control of the CPU E1001, these sensor information are
001, and a sensor detection signal E205 to the LF / PG motor control DMA controller E2021.
2 is output.

The LF / PG motor control DMA controller E2021 is controlled by the CPU I / F E2001
The DRAM E2005 is controlled by the PU E1001.
In addition to reading the pulse motor drive table (RDPM) E2051 from the upper motor control buffer E2023 and outputting the pulse motor control signal E1033, depending on the operation mode, the pulse motor control signal E1033 is output using the sensor detection signal as a control trigger.

E2030 is an LED control unit.
CPU E1001 via CPU I / F E2001
, An LED drive signal E1038 is output.
Further, E2029 is a port control unit, and CPUI /
Under the control of the CPU E1001 via the FE2001, a head power ON signal E1022, a motor power ON signal E1023, and a power control signal E1024 are output.

5. Next, the operation of the inkjet printing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

When the apparatus main body 1000 is connected to the AC power supply, first, in step S1, first initialization processing of the apparatus is performed. In this initialization process, the ROM and RA
An electric circuit system check such as a check of M is performed to confirm whether the present device can be normally operated electrically.

Next, in step S2, the apparatus main body M100
0 power key E001 provided on the upper case M1002.
8 is turned on, and the power key E00
If the button 18 has been pressed, the process moves to the next step S3, where a second initialization process is performed.

In the second initialization process, various driving mechanisms of the apparatus and the print head H1001 are checked. That is, when the various motors are initialized and the head information is read, it is confirmed whether the apparatus can operate normally.

Next, in step S4, an event is waited. That is, the apparatus monitors command events from the external I / F, panel key events due to user operations, internal control events, and the like, and executes a process corresponding to the event when these events occur.

For example, if a print command event from the external I / F is received in step S4, the process proceeds to step S5, and if a power key event is generated by a user operation in the same step, the process proceeds to step S10. The process proceeds to step S11 when another event occurs in the same step.

Here, in step S5, a print command from the external I / F is analyzed to determine the designated paper type, paper size, print quality, paper feeding method, etc. Stored in the RAM E2005 in the device,
Proceed to step S6.

Next, in step S6, paper feeding is started by the paper feeding method designated in step S5, the paper is fed to the print start position, and the flow advances to step S7.

In step S7, a printing operation is performed. In this printing operation, the print data sent from the external I / F is temporarily stored in a print buffer, and then the CR motor E0001 is driven to drive the carriage M400.
1 starts moving in the main scanning direction, and the print data stored in the print buffer E2014 is supplied to the print head H1001 to print one line, and the print operation of one line of print data ends. Then, the LF motor E0002 is driven, and the LF roller M30 is driven.
01 is rotated to feed the paper in the sub-scanning direction. After this,
The above operation is repeatedly performed, and when printing of one page of print data from the external I / F is completed, the process proceeds to step S8.

At step S8, the LF motor E0002
Is driven to drive the paper discharge roller M2003, and the paper feeding is repeated until it is determined that the paper is completely fed out of the apparatus. When the paper is completely discharged, the paper is completely discharged onto the paper discharge tray M1004a. Becomes

Next, in step S9, it is determined whether or not the printing operation of all pages to be printed has been completed. If there are pages to be printed remaining, the process returns to step S5. The operations from S5 to S9 are repeated, and when the printing operation for all pages to be printed is completed, the printing operation is completed. Then, the process proceeds to step S4 to wait for the next event.

On the other hand, in step S10, a printer termination process is performed, and the operation of this apparatus is stopped. That is, in order to turn off the power of various motors and heads, the state is shifted to a state where the power can be turned off, then the power is turned off, and the process proceeds to step S4 to wait for the next event.

At step S11, other event processing other than the above is performed. For example, a process corresponding to a recovery command from various panel keys of this apparatus or an external I / F, a recovery event generated internally, and the like are performed. After the process is completed, the process proceeds to step S4 and waits for the next event.

6. Print Head A print element substrate H1100 of the print head H1001 in the present embodiment, that is, a broken structure of the head main body 11, is shown in FIG. 11, and the electric wiring board H1300 in an unfolded state before being joined to the head main body 11, ie, a flexible printed wiring. FIG. 12 shows the appearance of the plate 14 in a broken state. The head body 11 has a discharge energy generating section, a liquid chamber, a discharge port, and the like formed on a silicon substrate 24 having a thickness of 0.5 mm to 1 mm by using a film forming technique.

The silicon substrate 24 has an elongated liquid supply port 25 formed therethrough. On both sides of the liquid supply port 25, a plurality of electrothermal transducers 26 arranged at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal direction of the liquid supply port 25 are formed in a state shifted from each other by a half pitch to constitute a discharge energy generation unit. are doing. On the silicon substrate 24, in addition to these electrothermal transducers 26, the electrode terminals 13 for electrically connecting the electrothermal transducer 26 to the printer main body via the flexible printed wiring board 14 and aluminum are formed. An electric wiring or the like (not shown) is formed by a film forming technique, and a drive signal to the electrothermal converter 26 is given from a drive IC (not shown) via these electrode terminals 13, and at the same time, the driving power is supplied to the electrothermal converter 26. Supplied to

The liquid supply port 25 is provided on the silicon substrate 24.
An upper plate member 29 having a plurality of discharge ports 28 respectively facing the electrothermal converter 26 via a liquid chamber 27 communicating with the upper surface is formed. That is, a liquid flow path 30 communicating with the liquid supply port 25 and the individual liquid chambers 27 is formed between the upper plate member 29 and the silicon substrate 24, and these are formed by the photolithography technique similarly to the discharge port 28. It is formed together with the upper plate member 29.

The liquid supplied from the liquid supply port 25 into each of the liquid chambers 27 is supplied with a drive signal to the corresponding electrothermal converter 26 in the liquid chamber 27 so that the liquid is supplied with the heat generated by the electrothermal converter 26. The liquid is boiled and discharged from the discharge port 28 by the pressure of the generated bubble.

The head main body 11 is joined to a support member 12 formed of alumina or the like, and further has an ejection opening 28 of the head main body 11 opened from a device hole 22 formed in the flexible printed wiring board 14. Flexible printed wiring board 1 so that surface 31 is exposed.
14 and the support member 12 are joined via an adhesive 18 as shown in FIG. 14, and the flexible printed wiring board 14 and the electrode terminals 13 of the head main body 11 are joined in a conductive state.

The head main body 11 described above, an electrically insulating support member 12 made of alumina or the like for supporting the head main body 11 in a fixed state, and one end side of the head main body 11
Unit having a flexible printed wiring board 14 electrically connected to electrode terminals 13 provided on the head unit 10
Is a head cartridge H100 as shown in FIG.
0, that is, integrally connected to the molding member 15, and the other end side of the flexible printed wiring board 14 is electrically connected to the relay board 16 mounted on the molding member 15.

As shown in FIG. 14, the flexible printed wiring board 14 bent from the head body 11 to the forming member 15 is joined to the base sheet 23 via an adhesive (not shown). An electric circuit portion 19, a gold-plated copper foil layer 20 covering the surface of the electric circuit portion 19, and a solder covering the surface of the base sheet 23 including the electric circuit portion 19 and the gold-plated copper foil layer 20. In this embodiment, a polyimide film having a thickness of about 50 to 125 μm is used as the base sheet 23. The thickness of the copper foil constituting the electric circuit portion 19 is 18 to 70 μm, and the thickness of the solder resist layer 21 is 5 to 50 μm.

The electric circuit section 19 includes a power supply line 19P of the electric circuit section 19 to the head main body 11, and a signal line 19S such as a logic wiring or a logic power supply, which extend along the longitudinal direction of the flexible printed wiring board. Extend. In this embodiment, a portion where a peeling phenomenon easily occurs as shown in FIG. 15 (a portion joined to the side end surface of the support member 12; this region is hereinafter referred to as a stress concentration portion) Z
Adjacent power supply line 19 in (shaded area in FIG. 12)
P and the gap dimension W between the signal lines 19S are adjusted to the adjacent power supply lines 19P and signal lines 19S in other areas.
It is set larger than the gap dimension R between them. Specifically, the length of the stress concentration portion Z substantially corresponding to the plate thickness of the support member 12 is 3 to 5 mm, and the wiring widths of the power supply line 19P and the signal line 19S in the region other than the stress concentration portion Z are each set to 0. .4 to 2.0 mm and about 25 to 80 μm, and these gap dimensions R are set to about 25 to 80 μm.
9P and the signal line 19S have a wiring width of 0.2 to 1 respectively.
mm, 25 to 80 μm, and the gap dimension W between the power supply lines 19P adjacent to each other is set to 0.16 to 1 μm.
It is set to about mm. In this case, the gap size W in the stress concentration portion Z is set to be equal to the width dimension of each power supply line 19P.
It is effective to set it to 8 times or more.

As described above, by setting the gap dimension W of the power supply line 19P in the stress concentration section Z to be 0.8 times or more the gap dimension R in the other area, good joint characteristics can be obtained in the stress concentration section Z. It is possible to increase the bonding area between the solder resist layer 21 and the base sheet 23, thereby suppressing the peeling phenomenon between the solder resist layer 21 and the gold-plated copper foil layer 20 at the stress concentration portion Z. . In this case, the wiring resistance of the power supply line 19P only slightly increases in the stress concentration portion Z, so that there is no problem that the discharge characteristics of the print head H1001 are reduced.

The above-mentioned numerical values are merely examples of this embodiment, and dimensions outside this range can be adopted. In any case, the adjacent power supply lines 19P and signal lines in the stress concentration portion Z are used. The gap size W between the 19S is set to be larger than the gap size R between the adjacent power supply lines 19P and the signal lines 19S in the other areas, and the peel strength at the stress concentration portion Z of the flexible printed wiring board 14 is set higher than that of the other areas It is effective to set a higher value. Further, the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and the essential idea of the present invention is that when a peeling force is strongly applied to a specific portion of the flexible printed wiring board 14, This means that the peel strength is improved, and the present invention can be applied to liquid ejection heads having various configurations.

The present invention includes a means (for example, an electrothermal converter or a laser beam) for generating thermal energy as energy used for discharging the liquid, and the state of the liquid is controlled by the thermal energy. The present invention brings about an excellent effect in an ink jet type liquid ejection head, a head cartridge, or an image forming apparatus which causes a change. According to such a method, it is possible to achieve higher density and higher definition of the print.

The typical configuration and principle are described in, for example, US Pat. No. 4,723,129 and US Pat.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 0796. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and the continuous type. In particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it is arranged corresponding to the sheet or the flow path holding the liquid. Heat energy is generated by applying at least one drive signal to the electrothermal transducer to give a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling corresponding to print information, thereby causing film boiling on the heat working surface of the liquid discharge head. As a result, bubbles in the liquid corresponding to this drive signal one-to-one can be formed, which is effective. By the growth and shrinkage of the bubble, the liquid is discharged through the discharge port to form at least one droplet.
When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of the liquid having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. If the conditions described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the rate of temperature rise of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent printing can be performed.

The structure of the liquid discharge head is a combination of a discharge port, a liquid path, and an electrothermal transducer as disclosed in each of the above-mentioned specifications (the electrothermal transducer is arranged along the liquid path). U.S. Pat. No. 6,059,055 discloses a configuration in which a disposed linear liquid flow path or an electrothermal converter is disposed in a region where a heat acting portion is bent in addition to a liquid flow path and a right-angled liquid flow path directly facing the discharge port. Patent No. 4558333 and US Patent No. 44596
The configuration using the specification of No. 00 is also included in the present invention. In addition, JP-A-59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an aperture for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is provided. A configuration based on JP-A-59-138461, which discloses a configuration corresponding to a discharge unit,
The effects of the present invention are effective. That is, according to the present invention, printing can be performed reliably and efficiently regardless of the form of the liquid discharge head.

Further, the present invention can be effectively applied to a full-line type liquid ejection head having a length corresponding to the maximum width of a print medium that can be printed by the image forming apparatus. Such a liquid ejection head may have a configuration that satisfies the length by a combination of a plurality of liquid ejection heads or a configuration as a single integrally formed liquid ejection head.

In addition, even in the case of the serial type as in the above-described embodiment, the liquid ejecting head is integrally fixed to the carriage that moves and scans, or the carriage is exchangeably mounted on the carriage. Use a replaceable chip-in type liquid ejection head that enables electrical connection with the device and supply of liquid from the apparatus body, or a head cartridge that has a tank that stores liquid integrally with the liquid ejection head itself. In this case, the present invention is effective.

As a configuration of the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the addition of recovery means for properly discharging the liquid from the liquid discharge head and preliminary auxiliary means make the effect of the present invention more stable. It is preferable because it can be performed.
Specific examples thereof include a capping unit for the liquid ejection head, a cleaning unit, a pressurizing or suctioning unit, a preheating unit for heating using an electrothermal transducer, another heating element, or a combination thereof. ,
Preliminary ejection means for performing ejection separately from the printing operation can be used.

The type and number of mounted liquid ejection heads are, for example, not only one provided corresponding to a single color ink, but also a plurality of types having different print colors and densities (brightness). A plurality may be provided corresponding to the ink. That is, for example, the print mode of the image forming apparatus is not limited to a print mode of only a mainstream color such as black, and may be either an integrated liquid discharge head or a combination of a plurality of liquid discharge heads. The present invention is extremely effective also in an apparatus provided with at least one of the print modes of full-color by color or mixed color. In this case, it is also effective to discharge a processing liquid (printability improving liquid) for adjusting the printability of the ink to the print medium from a dedicated or common liquid discharge head according to the type of print medium and the print mode.

Further, in the embodiment of the present invention described above, a material which solidifies at room temperature or lower and softens or liquefies at room temperature may be used, or the liquid itself may be used at 30 ° C. to 70 ° C. In general, the temperature is adjusted within the range described above to control the temperature so that the viscosity of the liquid is in the stable ejection range. Therefore, a liquid that is in a liquid state when the used print signal is applied may be used. In addition, in order to positively prevent the temperature rise due to thermal energy by using it as the energy of the state change from the solid state to the liquid state, or to prevent the liquid from evaporating, it is solidified in a standing state and liquefied by heating May be used.
In any case, the liquid is liquefied by the application of the thermal energy according to the print signal, and is liquefied only by the application of the thermal energy, such as the one from which the liquid is ejected and the one which already starts to solidify when reaching the print medium. The present invention can be applied to the case of using a material having a property. The liquid in such a case is, as described in JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-71260, in a state where it is held as a liquid or solid substance in the concave portion or through hole of the porous sheet. Alternatively, it may be configured to face the electrothermal converter. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned liquids is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

The form of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention can be used not only as an image output terminal of an information processing apparatus such as a computer, but also as a copying apparatus combined with a reader or the like, as well as a facsimile apparatus having a transmission / reception function. The printing medium may be in the form of a printing device. The printing medium may be a sheet or long paper or cloth, or a plate or wood, stone, resin, glass, metal, or the like, or may be three-dimensional. Examples include three-dimensional structures.

[0127]

According to the present invention, the gap between a plurality of adjacent wirings of the electric circuit portion in the stress concentration region where the solder resist layer is easily separated from the support member at the joint portion is changed to the joint portion other than the stress concentration region. Of the electric circuit in the stress concentration region where the electric circuit portion is set to be wider than the gap size between a plurality of adjacent wirings or is easily separated from the supporting member at the joint of the solder resist layer. Since the gap between a plurality of adjacent power supply lines is set to be at least 0.8 times the width of each power supply line, the contact area between the solder resist layer and the base sheet in the stress concentration area increases, and the stress concentration increases. It is possible to suppress separation of the solder resist layer and the electric circuit portion in the region, prevent a failure of the image forming apparatus, and obtain a liquid discharge head with a high yield. Can.

In this case, by locally widening the wiring interval only in the stress concentration region, a problem such as an increase in wiring resistance in each wiring or an increase in the area of the flexible printed wiring board does not occur.

When the gold plating layer covering the electric circuit portion is formed between the electric circuit portion and the solder resist layer, furthermore, the gold plating layer causes further chemical stability between the solder resist layer and the electric circuit portion due to the chemical stability. Can be hardly peeled off.

When a thermosetting adhesive is used as an adhesive for bonding the solder resist layer and the supporting member, the tact time can be reduced by shortening the curing time. Also, depending on the curing temperature of the adhesive,
The solder resist layer having a problem in heat resistance is affected by heat, so that peeling between the solder resist layer and the electric circuit portion can be further reduced.

When alumina is used as the support member, the support member can be provided with electrical insulation, and can have excellent assembling and parts accuracy and thermal conductivity.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an external configuration of an inkjet printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state where an exterior member of the printer shown in FIG. 1 is removed.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an assembled state of a head cartridge used in a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is an exploded perspective view showing the head cartridge shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the print head shown in FIG. 4 as viewed obliquely from below.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a scanner cartridge which can be mounted on a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention in an inverted manner instead of the head cartridge shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram schematically showing an overall configuration of an electric circuit in the printer of one embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a block diagram showing an example of an internal configuration of a main PCB of the electric circuit shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of an ASIC in the main PCB shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a cutaway perspective view of a head body in the printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a schematic front view showing a part of a flexible printed wiring board according to an embodiment of the present invention in a broken state.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of a head unit used in the inkjet printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is an extracted enlarged cross-sectional view of a joint portion between a support member and a flexible printed wiring board in the head unit shown in FIG.

FIG. 15 is a schematic front view showing a part of the conventional flexible printed wiring board shown in FIG. 12 in a broken state.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 14, schematically showing a state in which a gold-plated copper foil layer and a solder resist layer in a conventional flexible printed wiring board are separated.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Head unit 11 Head main body 12 Support member 13 Electrode terminal 14 Flexible printed wiring board 15 Molding member 16 Relay board 17 Sealant 18 Adhesive 19 Electric circuit part 19P Power supply line 19S Signal line 20 Gold-plated copper foil layer 21 Solder Resist layer 22 Device hole 23 Base sheet 24 Silicon substrate 25 Liquid supply port 26 Electrothermal converter 27 Liquid chamber 28 Discharge port 29 Upper plate member 30 Liquid flow path 31 Discharge port face G Gap P Print sheet Z Stress concentration part W, R Clearance dimension between adjacent lines M1000 Machine body M1001 Lower case M1002 Upper case M1003 Access cover M1004 Eject tray M1004a, M1004b Auxiliary tray M2003 Discharge roller M3001 LF roller M3019 Chassis M3 22 Automatic feeding section M3029 Conveying section M3030 Ejecting section M4000 Printing section M4001 Carriage M4002 Carriage cover M4007 Headset lever (detachment means) M4021 Carriage shaft M5000 Recovery system unit M6000 Scanner M6001 Scanner holder M6003 Scanner cover M6004 Scanner contact PCB M M6006 Reading unit lens E0001 Carriage motor E0002 LF motor E0003 PG motor E0004 Encoder sensor E0005 Encoder scale E0006 Incempty sensor E0007 PE sensor E0008 GAP sensor E0009 ASF sensor E0010 PG sensor E0011 Contact FPC (flexible print cable) E0012 CRFFC (flexible flat cable) E0013 Carriage board E0014 Main board E0015 Power supply unit E0016 Parallel I / F E0017 Serial I / F E0018 Power key E0019 Resume key E0020 LED E0021 Buzzer E0022 Cover sensor E1001 CPU E1002 OSC (CPU built-in oscillator) E1003 A / D (A / D converter with a built-in CPU) E1004 ROM E1005 Oscillation circuit E1006 ASIC E1007 Reset circuit E1008 CR motor driver E1009 LF / PG motor driver E1010 Power supply control circuit E1011 INKS (ink end detection signal) E1012 TH (Thermistor temperature detection) Signal) E1013 HSENS (Head Detection signal) E1014 control bus E1015 RESET (reset signal) E1016 RESUME (resume key input) E1017 POWER (power key input) E1018 BUZ (buzzer signal) E1019 oscillation circuit output signal E1020 ENC (encoder signal) E1021 head control signal E1022 head control signal E1022 Head power ON signal) E1023 VMON (Motor power ON signal) E1024 Power control signal E1025 PES (PE detection signal) E1026 ASFS (ASF detection signal) E1027 GAPS (GAP detection signal) E0028 Serial I / F signal E1029 Serial I / F cable E1030 Parallel I / F signal E1031 Parallel I / F cable E1032 PGS (PG detection signal) E1033 PM control signal Pulse motor control signal) E1034 PG motor drive signal E1035 LF motor drive signal E1036 CR motor control signal E1037 CR motor drive signal E0038 LED drive signal E1039 VH (head power supply) E1040 VM (motor power supply) E1041 VDD (logic power supply) E1042 COVS ( Cover detection signal) E2001 CPU I / F E2002 PLL E2003 DMA controller E2004 DRAM controller E2005 DRAM E2006 IEEE1284 I / F E2007 USB I / F E2008 Reception controller E2009 Compression / expansion DMA controller E2010 Work buffer E2011 Work buffer E2011 DMA controller E2013 Print buffer transfer DMA controller E 014 Print buffer E2015 Print data expansion DMA controller E2016 Expansion data buffer E2017 Column buffer E2018 Head control unit E2019 Encoder signal processing unit E2020 CR motor control unit E2021 LF / PG motor control unit E2022 Sensor signal processing unit E2023 Motor control buffer E20204 Scanner loading Buffer E2025 Scanner data processing DMA controller E2026 Scanner data buffer E2027 Scanner data compression DMA controller E2028 Sending buffer E2029 Port controller E2030 LED controller E2031 CLK (clock signal) E2032 PDWM (software control signal) E2033 PLLON (PLL control signal) E2034 INT (Interrupt Signal) E2036 PIF received data E2037 USB receive data E2038 WDIF (received data / raster data) E2039 reception buffer control unit E2040 RDWK (reception buffer read data /
Raster data) E2041 WDWK (work buffer write data /
Print code) E2042 WDWF (work fill data) E2043 RDWP (work buffer read data / print code) E2044 WDWP (reorder print code) E2045 RHDDG (print development data) E2047 WHDDG (column buffer write data / expansion print data) E2048 RDHD (column buffer read data / developed print data) E2049 Head drive timing signal E2050 Data develop timing signal E2051 RDPM (pulse motor drive table read data) E2052 Sensor detection signal E2053 WDHD (captured data) E2054 RDAV (capture buffer read data) E2055 WDAV (data buffer write data /
E2056 RDYC (data buffer read data / processed data) E2057 WDYC (transmission buffer write data / compressed data) E2058 RDUSB (USB transmission data / compression data) E2059 RDPIF (1284 transmission data) H1000 Head cartridge (molding member) H1001 Print head H1100 Print element board (head body 11) H1100T Discharge port H1200 First plate (support member 12) H1201 Ink supply port H1300 Electric wiring board (flexible printed wiring board 14) H1301 External signal input terminal H1400 Second Plate H1500 Tank holder H1501 Ink flow path H1600 Flow path forming member H1700 Filter H1800 Seal rubber H1900 Inn Tank H1901 removal lever

Claims (19)

[Claims] 1. A semiconductor device comprising: a flexible base sheet; an electric circuit portion patterned on a surface of the base sheet in a predetermined shape; and a solder resist layer covering the electric circuit portion and the surface of the base sheet. A flexible printed wiring board having a joining portion in which at least a part of the solder resist layer is joined to a supporting member via an adhesive, wherein a stress that easily separates from the supporting member at the joining portion of the solder resist layer. A gap size between a plurality of adjacent wirings of the electric circuit portion in the concentration region is set to be wider than a gap size between a plurality of adjacent wirings of the electric circuit portion in the joining portion other than the stress concentration region. A flexible printed wiring board characterized by the following. 2. An individual wiring of the electric circuit portion at the joint portion is formed at a constant interval, and a width dimension of an individual wiring of the electric circuit portion in the stress concentration region is different from that of the stress concentration region. 2. The flexible printed wiring board according to claim 1, wherein the width of each of the wirings of the electric circuit portion in the region of the joint portion is set to be smaller than the width dimension of each wiring. 3. A semiconductor device comprising: a flexible base sheet; an electric circuit portion patterned in a predetermined shape on the surface of the base sheet; and a solder resist layer covering the electric circuit portion and the surface of the base sheet. A flexible printed wiring board having a joining portion in which at least a part of the solder resist layer is joined to a supporting member via an adhesive, wherein a stress that easily separates from the supporting member at the joining portion of the solder resist layer. In the wiring constituting the electric circuit in the concentrated area, a gap between a plurality of adjacent power supply lines is set to be 0.8 times or more a width of each power supply line. Printed wiring board. 4. The electric circuit part according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of wires of the electric circuit portion in the stress concentration region extend along a longitudinal direction of the base sheet. The flexible printed wiring board according to the above. 5. The flexible print according to claim 1, further comprising a gold plating layer covering the electric circuit portion between the electric circuit portion and the solder resist layer. Wiring board. 6. The base sheet according to claim 1, wherein the base sheet is formed of a polyimide-based film, and the electric circuit portion is joined to the base sheet via an adhesive. The flexible printed wiring board according to the above. 7. The flexible printed circuit board according to claim 1, wherein the solder resist layer is formed of an epoxy-based material. 8. A head main body having a discharge energy generating section for generating discharge energy for discharging liquid from a discharge port in response to an electric signal, a support member for supporting the head main body, and the energy generating means. A liquid supply head comprising a power supply for supplying driving power and a flexible printed wiring board for making an electrical connection with the head body, wherein the flexible printed wiring board has a flexible base sheet, An electric circuit portion patterned into a predetermined shape on the surface of the base sheet, and a solder resist layer covering the electric circuit portion and the surface of the base sheet, at least a part of the solder resist layer contains an adhesive. And a joining portion formed by joining the insulating member at the joining portion of the solder resist layer. The gap size between the plurality of adjacent wirings of the electric circuit portion in the stress concentration region where the peeling is easy to occur is the gap size between the plurality of adjacent wirings of the electric circuit portion in the joining portion other than the stress concentration region. A liquid ejection head characterized by being set wider than the above. 9. A head body having a discharge energy generating section for generating discharge energy for discharging liquid from a discharge port in response to an electric signal, a support member for supporting the head body, and the energy generating means. A liquid supply head comprising a power supply for supplying driving power and a flexible printed wiring board for making an electrical connection with the head body, wherein the flexible printed wiring board has a flexible base sheet, An electric circuit portion patterned into a predetermined shape on the surface of the base sheet, and a solder resist layer covering the electric circuit portion and the surface of the base sheet, at least a part of the solder resist layer contains an adhesive. Forming a joining portion to be joined to the supporting member through the support member, and peeling off from the supporting member at the joining portion of the solder resist layer. A gap between a plurality of adjacent power supply lines is set to be 0.8 times or more the width of each power supply line among wirings constituting the electric circuit in a stress concentration region that is easily separated. Liquid ejection head. 10. The liquid discharge head according to claim 8, wherein the adhesive for bonding the solder resist layer and the support member is a thermosetting adhesive. 11. The liquid discharge head according to claim 8, wherein the support member is made of alumina. 12. The stress concentration region is located on one side of the surface near a portion bent along two mutually intersecting surfaces of the support member.
A liquid discharge head according to any one of claims 1 to 11. 13. The discharge energy generating unit according to claim 8, wherein the discharge energy generating unit includes an electrothermal converter that generates thermal energy for causing liquid to be discharged from the discharge port by causing film boiling of the liquid. The liquid ejection head according to claim 12. 14. A head cartridge comprising: the liquid discharge head according to claim 8; and a liquid tank for storing liquid supplied to the liquid discharge head. 15. The head cartridge according to claim 14, wherein the liquid tank is detachable from the liquid ejection head via attachment / detachment means. 16. A printing medium comprising: a mounting portion for a liquid ejection head according to claim 8; and a conveyance unit for a printing medium, wherein the printing medium is ejected from an ejection port of the liquid ejection head. An image forming apparatus, which forms an image on an image. 17. The image forming apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the attachment unit has a carriage that can scan and move in a direction that intersects a direction in which the print medium is conveyed. 18. The image forming apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the liquid discharge head is detachably mounted on the carriage via a detachable unit. 19. The liquid according to claim 16, wherein the liquid is a processing liquid for adjusting the printability of the ink on an ink and / or a print medium.
The image forming apparatus according to any one of the above.