JP2005144713A - Thermal head and electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a thermal head which can uniformly cool a heating element generating heat in operations, by uniformly and thinly infilling a filler on a support without the need for skill through the use of a simple constitution, and electronic equipment. <P>SOLUTION: In this thermal head, the heating element, composed of a head substrate 1 wherein a plurality of heater elements 12 are arranged on a substrate 11, is mounted on the support 2 with a heat radiating function via the filler 3 with a high heat transfer coefficient; at least a pair of reference bases 21 is provided on a surface, equipped with the heating element composed of the head substrate 1, of the support 2; and the filler 3 is infilled into an area which is formed by the reference bases 21. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus device such as a thermal head, and more particularly to a heating element that generates heat during operation, such as a head substrate in which heating elements are arranged on a substrate, so that it can be uniformly cooled. .

  As is well known, in a thermal head of an electronic apparatus device, for example, a thermal printer, a heating element is arranged on a substrate to form a head substrate. It is already well known that heat is generated.

In view of the above points, conventionally, a head substrate having a heating element is installed on a thermally conductive support through a fluid filler so as to prevent the filler from oozing out of the substrate. In addition, there is one that is sealed with a sealing material (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 60-162043

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However, in the configuration described in Patent Document 1 described above, when the filler is applied onto the substrate, it is extremely difficult to apply a uniform thin film because the filler is applied in a nominal amount. Therefore, a portion where the filler is applied thickly and a portion where the filler is applied thinly, uneven heat transfer occurs, the heat from the head substrate cannot be dissipated uniformly, and the portion where the sealing material intervenes, There are problems such as extremely poor heat transfer.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems, and has a very simple configuration, so that a filler can be uniformly and thinly packed on a support without requiring skill, and at the time of operation. An object of the present invention is to provide a thermal head and an electronic device that can uniformly cool a heating element that generates heat.

  In order to achieve such an object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a heating element comprising a head substrate in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged on a substrate is supported by a heat dissipation function via a filler having a high heat transfer coefficient. In the thermal head mounted on the body, at least a pair of reference bases are provided on the surface of the support on which the heating element consisting of the head substrate is mounted, and the region formed by the reference bases is filled with the filler. To do.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in an electronic device device in which a heating element that generates heat during operation is mounted on a support having a heat dissipation function via a filler having a high heat transfer coefficient, the heating element of the support is mounted. At least a pair of reference stands are provided on the surface to be formed, and the filler is filled in a region formed by the reference stands.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, an interval between the pair of reference bases is formed to be substantially the same as a width of the heating element, and at least a part of the heating element is fitted in this region.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, at least two height adjustment bosses are formed in a region formed by the reference table.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the reference table is formed in a square shape, and at least a part of the heating element is fitted into the rectangular region.

  In the invention described in claim 6, the support base and / or the height adjusting boss are formed by press working.

  According to the configuration of the first aspect of the present invention, the area formed by the reference table is filled with the filler, and is stretched with reference to the reference table using a spatula or the like, without requiring skill. It is very easy to fill the support uniformly and thinly with the filler, and the heat transfer from the heating element comprising the head substrate in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged on the substrate to the support becomes substantially uniform. . Therefore, the heat dissipation of the heating element becomes uniform, the heating element can be cooled uniformly, and this type of thermal head can be used stably over a long period of time.

  According to the configuration of the second aspect of the present invention, the area formed by the reference table is filled with the filler, and is stretched with reference to the reference table using a spatula or the like. Very simply, the support can be uniformly and thinly filled with the filler, and the heat transfer from the heating element that generates heat during operation to the support becomes substantially uniform. Therefore, the heat dissipation of the heating element becomes uniform, the heating element can be cooled uniformly, and this type of electronic device can be used stably over a long period of time.

  According to the configuration of the invention described in claim 3, the distance between the pair of reference stands is formed substantially the same as the width of the heating element, and at least a part of the heating element is fitted in this region. Therefore, it is preferable because the positioning of the heating element can be ensured.

  According to the configuration of the invention described in claim 4, since at least two or more height adjustment bosses are formed in the region formed by the pair of reference bases, when attaching the heating element, This is preferable because overtightening is eliminated and the thickness of the filler can be made more uniform.

  According to the configuration of the fifth aspect of the present invention, since at least a part of the heating element is fitted into a square area formed by the reference table, positioning of the heating element in the front-rear and left-right directions is performed. This is preferable because it can be ensured.

  According to the configuration of the invention described in claim 6, since the support base and / or the height adjustment boss is formed by press working, work such as welding is unnecessary and mass production is possible. .

  In a thermal head in which a heating element comprising a head substrate in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged on a substrate is attached to a support having a heat dissipation function via a filler having a high heat transfer coefficient, the head of the support At least a pair of reference stands is provided on the surface on which the heating element made of the substrate is mounted, and the interval between the reference stands is formed substantially the same as the width of the heating element, and in the region formed by the reference stand, At least two or more height adjustment bosses are formed, and a region formed by the reference table is filled with the filler.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an enlarged main part of a thermal head as an example of an electronic apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows a filler used as a support for the thermal head shown in FIG. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the state filled uniformly.

  Reference numeral 1 denotes a head substrate which is a heating element. The head substrate 1 is provided on a substrate 11 made of ceramics such as alumina, an underglaze layer (not shown), and a heating resistor 12 which is a heating element that generates heat during operation. A conductive pattern for energization and an external lead-out wiring pattern are formed, and the heating resistor 12 that is continuous in a straight line is formed on the conductive pattern by screen printing or the like, and a protective layer (not shown) is used to protect them. Is formed. The head substrate 1 is attached to a support 2 to be described later using a bolt or the like (not shown).

  Reference numeral 2 denotes a support having a heat dissipation function, and this support 2 is used to prevent heat from the heating resistor 12 that is a heating element of the head substrate 1 from being accumulated on the substrate 11, that is, the substrate. 11 is made of a material having excellent thermal conductivity such as aluminum. Reference numeral 3 denotes a filler made of, for example, silicon grease having a high heat transfer coefficient. This filler 3 is used to transfer heat from the substrate 11 to the support body 2. Intervening in between.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, at least a pair of reference bases 21 is formed on the surface of the support 2 on which the head substrate 1 is mounted by, for example, pressing. The height T1 of the reference table 21 serves as a reference for the thickness with which the filler 3 is filled, and may be about 0.1 mm to 0.5 mm. In addition, 22 is a recessed part formed when the said reference stand 21 is formed by press work.

  In the embodiment with the above configuration, in order to fill the filler 3 in the region formed by the reference table 21-21 of the support table 2, the region formed by the reference table 21-21 on the support table 2 in advance. 2 with a suitable amount of filler 3 or with the filler 3 placed on the spatula 4 so as to straddle the reference base 21-21 as shown in FIG. By moving the spatula 4 in the direction of the arrow and filling the filler 3 while stretching it, the filler 3 can be uniformly and thinly filled on the support 2 without any special skill. . Therefore, heat transfer from the head substrate 1 formed by arranging a plurality of heating resistors 12 on the substrate 11 to the support 2 becomes substantially uniform, and uniform cooling can be achieved effectively. As a result, this type of thermal head can be used stably over a long period of time.

  Note that if the interval T2 between the reference bases 21-21 is formed to be substantially the same as the width of the head substrate 1 mounted therebetween, the head substrate 1 based on the region formed by the reference base 21-21. May be arranged, or a part thereof may be fitted, and positioning of the head substrate 1 is ensured, which is preferable.

  Next, another embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 will be described. In this embodiment, at least two or more height adjustment bosses are formed in the region formed by the reference table. FIG. 3 is a schematic side sectional view showing an enlarged main part of a thermal head which is an example of an electronic apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 shows a support used for the thermal head shown in FIG. It is a top view. In FIGS. 3 and 4, the same reference numerals as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 indicate substantially the same parts. Hereinafter, the difference will be mainly described.

  In this embodiment, the area formed by the reference table 21-21 provided with the support 2 is filled with the filler 3 as in the above-described embodiment, and at least two or more belt-like heights are filled in the area. An adjustment boss 23 is formed, the head substrate 1 is disposed on the height adjustment boss 23, and the head substrate 1 is fixed using bolts 5 from the back surface side of the support 2. The height adjusting bosses 23 may be formed by pressing. In this case, when the reference table 21 is pressed, it is needless to say that the height adjusting bosses 23 may be simultaneously formed in the same process using a mold or the like. In the figure, 24 is a recess formed when the height adjusting boss 23 is formed by pressing, and 25 is a through hole provided in the support base 2 for inserting the bolt 5.

  Also with this configuration, as in the above-described embodiment, the support 3 can be very easily made without any special skill by filling the filler 3 with the spatula using the spatula or the like while stretching it. 2 can be filled with the filler 3 uniformly and thinly. Therefore, heat transfer from the head substrate 1 in which the plurality of heating elements 12 are arranged on the substrate 11 to the support 2 becomes substantially uniform, and effective uniform cooling can be achieved. As a result, this type of thermal head can be used stably over a long period of time. Furthermore, when the head substrate 1 is attached, the height adjustment boss 23 is limited, so that it is not necessary to perform one-side fastening or over-tightening, and the thickness of the filler 3 can be made more uniform.

  Next, still another embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 will be described. In this embodiment, the reference table is formed in a square shape. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a thermal head as an example of an electronic apparatus for explaining still another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 shows a support used for the thermal head shown in FIG. It is a top view. 5 and FIG. 6, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 1 to FIG. Hereinafter, the difference will be mainly described.

  In this embodiment, the reference base 21 is formed in a square shape having substantially the same shape as the head substrate 1, and four circular height adjustment bosses 23 are formed in the square area formed by the reference base 21. As in the above-described embodiment, at least one of the rectangular regions formed by the reference table 21 is filled with a filler and the head substrate 1 is mounted on the height adjustment boss 23. The head substrate 1 is fixed by using a bolt (not shown) or the like from the back surface side of the support 2 so as to be fitted to the region. Needless to say, the width of the reference table 21 and the size of the height adjusting boss 23 may be appropriately selected according to the size of the head substrate 1.

  This configuration is preferable because the same effects as the above-described embodiments can be obtained, and the front / rear / left / right positioning of the head substrate 1 can be ensured. Further, since the filler is held in the rectangular region formed by the reference table 21, there is an effect that there is no fear of bleeding even if the fluidity becomes extremely high.

  Each of the above-described embodiments is a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Of course, the present invention may be applied to a heating element that generates heat during operation, such as a field effect transistor that is a voltage control element used in an electronic device as a heating element.

It is a schematic sectional drawing which expands and shows the principal part of the thermal head which is an example of the electronic device apparatus by one Example of this invention. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the state which fills the support body used for the thermal head shown in FIG. 1 with a filler uniformly. It is a schematic sectional side view which expands and shows the principal part of the thermal head which is an example of the electronic device apparatus by other Examples of this invention. It is a top view which shows the support body used for the thermal head shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows schematic structure of the thermal head which is an example of the electronic device apparatus for demonstrating the further another Example of this invention. It is a top view which shows the support body used for the thermal head shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 Head substrate (heating element)
11 Substrate 12 Heating resistor (heating element)
2 Support 21 Reference stand 23 Height adjustment boss 3 Filler

Claims (6)

In a thermal head in which a heating element composed of a head substrate in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged on a substrate is attached to a support having a heat dissipation function via a filler having a high heat transfer coefficient,
A thermal head characterized in that at least a pair of reference bases are provided on a surface of the support body on which a heating element comprising a head substrate is mounted, and a region formed by the reference bases is filled with the filler. In an electronic device device in which a heating element that generates heat during operation is attached to a support having a heat dissipation function via a filler having a high heat transfer coefficient,
An electronic device apparatus, wherein at least a pair of reference bases are provided on a surface of the support on which a heating element is mounted, and an area formed by the reference bases is filled with the filler. The distance between the pair of reference bases is formed to be substantially the same as the width of the heating element, and at least a part of the heating element is fitted in this region. The thermal head or electronic device described. 3. The thermal head or electronic device according to claim 1, wherein at least two height adjustment bosses are formed in a region formed by the reference table. 3. The thermal head or electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the reference base is formed in a rectangular shape, and at least a part of the heating element is fitted in the rectangular region. The thermal head or electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the support base and / or the height adjustment boss are formed by press working.

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