JP2007276156A - Inkjet recording head - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inkjet recording head of such a structure that a supporting member is bonded to a recording element substrate and a body section in which productivity can be enhanced as compared with prior art without using adhesives abundantly. <P>SOLUTION: In the inkjet recording head comprising the body section 111 having at least one ink supplying channel for introducing ink from an ink storing section, a recording element substrate 131 having an ink delivering section and a heater generating thermal energy for delivering ink from the ink delivering section, and a supporting member 121 having at least one opening corresponding to the ink supplying channel, a relation of c≤a<b is satisfied, wherein (a) is the coefficient of linear expansion of the supporting member 121, b is the coefficient of linear expansion of the body section 111 and c is the coefficient of linear expansion of the recording element substrate 131. The supporting member 121 is bonded to the recording element substrate 131 using adhesives and molded integrally with the body section 111. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an ink jet recording head that ejects ink onto a recording surface of a recording medium to obtain a recorded image. The present invention can be applied not only to a general printing apparatus, but also to a copying machine, a facsimile machine having a communication system, a word processor having a printing unit, or a multifunction recording apparatus in which these apparatuses are combined.

  An ink jet recording apparatus that forms an image by selectively ejecting ink from a plurality of ink ejection openings on a recording surface of a recording medium based on the recording data and forming the image by attaching the ink to the recording surface of the recording medium is practical. It is offered to. In such an ink jet recording apparatus, a detachable ink jet recording head is provided in a carriage unit that is disposed to face the recording surface of the recording medium and is scanned in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the recording medium.

  With reference to FIG. 7, an ink jet recording head generally used at present will be described. Such an ink jet recording head includes a main body 11, a recording element substrate 12, and a printed wiring board 13. The main body 11 includes an ink supply unit 15 to which the ink tank 14 is mounted, and an input terminal unit 16 that is electrically connected to a carriage unit (not shown) and receives a drive control signal group from the carriage unit. The recording element substrate 12 is bonded to the bonded surface of the ink supply unit 15. The printed wiring board 13 electrically connects the recording element substrate 12 and the input terminal portion 16, and supplies a drive control signal group from the input terminal portion 16 to the recording element substrate 12.

  Under such a configuration, a drive control signal is supplied to each heater (not shown) configured on the recording element substrate 12 through the printed wiring board 13, and each heater generates heat. At this time, the ink introduced from the main body 11 is heated, bubbles are generated due to the film boiling phenomenon, and are discharged from the ink discharge port 17 toward the recording surface of the recording medium as the bubbles expand.

  As described above, in the configuration in which the recording element substrate 12 is bonded to the bonded surface of the main body portion 11, the temperature of the recording element substrate 12 increases and the temperature of the main body portion 11 on the bonded surface also increases. The main body 11 and the recording element substrate 12 are thermally expanded. However, generally, the main body portion 11 made of resin has a larger linear expansion coefficient than the recording element substrate 12 made of silicon, and due to the difference in the linear expansion coefficient between the main body portion 11 and the recording element substrate 12. The recording element substrate 12 is stressed. For this reason, there is a possibility that the recording element substrate 12 is damaged, or the arrangement of the ink discharge ports 17 in the recording element substrate 12 is not linear but deformed so as to be curved.

  FIG. 8 illustrates an ink jet recording head disclosed in Patent Document 1. FIG. The ink jet recording head 20 includes a main body 21 and a recording element substrate 22. An ink tank 24 is mounted on the main body 21, and the recording element substrate 22 is electrically connected to the printed wiring board 23. The ink jet recording head 20 has a configuration in which a support member 25 having a linear expansion coefficient equivalent to that of the recording element substrate 22 is interposed between the recording element substrate 22 and the main body 21. According to Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-260, this configuration prevents the recording element substrate 22 from being damaged because the recording element substrate 22 and the support member 25 are integrally expanded even when the temperature of the recording element substrate 22 rises and thermally expands. There is a description that it is possible.

FIGS. 9A and 9B illustrate how the support member 25 is bonded to the recording element substrate 22 connected to the printed wiring board 23 and the main body 21 in this ink jet recording head. The first bonding surface 26 of the support member 25 is bonded to the main body 21 by an adhesive, and the second bonding surface 27 is bonded to the recording element substrate 22 by an adhesive. In this manner, since the support member 25 is bonded to the recording element substrate 22 and the main body portion 21 using the adhesive, it is possible to ensure liquid tightness.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-044420

  In the inkjet recording head disclosed in Patent Document 1, the support member 25 uses an adhesive for the first bonding surface 26 and the second bonding surface 27 that are bonded to the main body 21 and the recording element substrate 22. Yes. However, in the structure of an ink jet recording head that uses a lot of adhesive, the manufacturing process of the ink jet recording head increases the number of processes such as the coating process and the curing process, and the process time is also long because drying of the adhesive requires a lot of time. As a result, productivity decreases. Therefore, in the configuration of the ink jet recording head, it is desired to suppress the use of an adhesive as much as possible.

  In consideration of the above problems, the present invention is configured without using a large amount of adhesive in an ink jet recording head in which a support member is bonded to a recording element substrate and a main body, and is intended to improve productivity compared to the conventional art. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink jet recording head capable of achieving the above.

The ink jet recording head of the present invention is made in view of the above-mentioned problems,
A main body having at least one ink supply path for introducing ink from the ink reservoir;
A recording element substrate having an ink discharge portion for discharging ink and a heater for generating thermal energy for discharging ink from the ink discharge portion;
A support member having at least one opening corresponding to the ink supply path;
In an inkjet recording head comprising
When the linear expansion coefficient of the support member is a, the linear expansion coefficient of the main body is b, and the linear expansion coefficient of the recording element substrate is c, the relationship of c ≦ a <b is satisfied.
The support member is bonded to the recording element substrate using an adhesive and is formed integrally with the main body.

  According to the present invention, in the ink jet recording head in which the support member is bonded to the recording element substrate and the main body portion, the main body portion and the support member are integrated with each other without bonding the main body portion and the support member using the adhesive. With the molded configuration, it becomes possible to improve the productivity as compared with the prior art.

(First embodiment)
First, the entire inkjet recording head of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  The ink jet recording head 101 includes a main body 111, a support member 121, a recording element substrate 131, and a printed wiring board 135. An ink tank (not shown) and a support member 121 are integrated with the main body 111. Further, the recording element substrate 131 includes an ink discharge port (not shown) for discharging ink, and is disposed in the recording element substrate accommodating portion 136 of the printed wiring board 135. The printed wiring board 135 electrically connects the recording element substrate 131 and the input terminal portion 117 provided in the main body 111 via the terminal portion 137, and the drive control signal group from the input terminal portion 117 is transferred to the recording element substrate. 131. For connection between the printed wiring board 135 and the recording element board 131, for example, a TAB (tape automated mate bonding) system can be adopted.

  Next, the joining of the support member 121, the recording element substrate 131, and the main body 111 in the ink jet recording head of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

  First, in FIG. 1A, a support member 121 is provided in the recess 113 of the main body 111. The support member 121 is arranged so that the opening 123 of the support member 121 and the ink supply path 112 correspond to each other. Further, the ink supply path 112 is partitioned by the intermediate wall 115 of the main body 111. In the present embodiment, an ink jet recording head having three ink supply paths 112 capable of supplying different types of inks is shown. Yes.

  The support member 121 is molded integrally with the main body 111 when the main body 111 made of resin is molded. For molding the support member 121 and the main body 111, for example, insert molding can be used. Insert molding is a simultaneous molding method in which a member and a resin are integrally molded by pouring resin into the mold while the member is placed in the mold.

  Further, the support member 121 is disposed in the outer peripheral region of the ink supply path 112, and the ink supply path 112 and the opening 123 are configured to correspond exactly. The bonded surface 122 of the support member 121 is a surface to be bonded to the bonded surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131 as described later, and is formed on the same plane as the bottom surface 114 of the recess 113.

  On the recording element substrate 131, for example, a thin film is formed of a silicon material having a thickness of 0.5 to 1.0 mm. In addition, ink discharge ports 133 for discharging ink are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface, and the ink supply openings 132 are provided so as to extend in this arrangement direction. Further, a heater (not shown) is disposed corresponding to the ink discharge port 133.

Next, the support member 121 will be described with reference to FIG. The support member 121 formed integrally with the main body 111 has a rectangular plate shape, and a central portion is formed in a slit shape. The bonded surface 122 is bonded to the bonding surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131. The opening 123 is formed so as to correspond to the ink supply path 112 of the main body 111. The support member 121 is made of the same silicon as the recording element substrate 131, for example. However, the material of the support member 121 is not limited to silicon, and is equal to the linear expansion coefficient of the material of the recording element substrate 131 or larger than the linear expansion coefficient of the material of the recording element substrate 131. Any material having a linear expansion coefficient smaller than the linear expansion coefficient may be used. Further, in order to make it easy for heat generated in the recording element substrate 131 to be transmitted to the main body 111, the thermal conductivity of the material of the support member 121 is the same as the thermal conductivity of the material of the recording element substrate 131, or the recording element substrate 131. It is preferable that the thermal conductivity of the material is larger. Therefore, as a material of the support member 121, for example, alumina (Al ₂ O ₃ ), aluminum nitride (AlN), silicon carbide (SiC), silicon nitride 4 (Si ₃ N ₄ ), molybdenum (Mo), tungsten ( W) and engineering plastic resins.

  FIG. 1B illustrates a configuration in which the support member 121 and the recording element substrate 131 are bonded. The recording element substrate 131 connected to the printed wiring board 135 is disposed in the recess 113 of the main body 111 so that the opening 123 of the support member 121 and the ink supply opening 132 of the recording element substrate 131 correspond to each other. Therefore, the ink supply path 112, the opening 123, and the ink supply opening 132 are in direct communication. At that time, the bonding surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131 is bonded to the bonded surface 122 of the support member 121 by the adhesive 141. The adhesive 141 is desirably a low viscosity, low curing temperature, cured in a short time, has a relatively high hardness after curing, and has ink resistance.

  In the present embodiment, a configuration in which the bonding surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131 contacts only the bonded surface 122 of the support member 121 is illustrated. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and the bonding surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131 may be bonded to the bottom surface 114 of the recess 113 using an adhesive.

  In the present embodiment, as indicated by arrows A and B in FIG. 1B, the ink in the ink supply path 112 travels between the main body 111 and the support member 121 and leaks outside. There is a possibility that different kinds of inks may be mixed. Therefore, it is desirable that the combination of materials is such that the support member 121 and the main body 111 are in close contact when the support member 121 and the main body 111 are integrally formed.

  Under such a configuration, a drive control signal is supplied to each heater (not shown) configured on the recording element substrate 131 through the printed wiring board 135, and each heater generates heat. At this time, the ink introduced into the ink supply opening 132 of the recording element substrate 131 via the ink supply path 112 is heated to generate bubbles due to the film boiling phenomenon, and recording is performed from the ink discharge port 133 as the bubbles expand. The ink is discharged toward the recording surface of the medium.

  At this time, even when the recording element substrate 131 is expanded by the heat of each heater (not shown), the recording element substrate 131 is bonded to the support member 121 and expands integrally with the support member 121. Therefore, the substantial cross-sectional area of the recording element substrate 131 is increased, and the recording element substrate 131 is prevented from being damaged by a temperature change.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the support member 121 is formed integrally with the main body 111 so that the opening 123 of the support member 121 and the ink supply path 112 correspond to each other. Therefore, it is possible to provide an ink jet recording head in which the supporting member 121 is bonded to the recording element substrate 131 and the main body 111 without using an adhesive for joining the supporting member 121 and the main body 111.

(Second Embodiment)
A second embodiment of the ink jet recording head according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. About the same member as 1st Embodiment, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and shown, The duplication description is abbreviate | omitted.

  FIG. 4 illustrates the support member 121, the recording element substrate 131, and the main body 111 in the ink jet recording head of the present embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, the support member 121 is embedded in the outer peripheral region of the ink supply path 112 of the main body 111. Therefore, the support member 121 is configured not to contact the ink in the ink supply path 112. The integral molding of the support member 121 and the main body 111 can be performed by simultaneous molding such as insert molding as in the first embodiment.

  When the recording element substrate 131 connected to the printed wiring board 135 is disposed in the recess 113 of the main body 111 so that the ink supply path 112 of the main body 111 corresponds to the ink supply opening 132 of the recording element substrate 131, recording is performed. The bonding surface 134 of the element substrate 131 is bonded to the bonding surface 122 of the support member 121 and the bonding surface 116 of the main body 111 using an adhesive 141. As in the first embodiment, the adhesive 141 desirably has a low viscosity, a low curing temperature, cures in a short time, has a relatively high hardness after curing, and has ink resistance.

  As in the first embodiment, the support member 121 formed integrally with the main body 111 may have a rectangular plate shape and a central portion formed in a slit shape. . In this embodiment, the support member 121 is configured to be embedded in the outer peripheral region of the ink supply path 112, so that the ink supply is performed when the opening 123 is larger than the cross section of the ink supply path 112 and is integrally formed. The path 112 and the opening 123 are formed so as to correspond to each other. In addition, a bonded surface 122 that is bonded to the bonding surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131 is provided around the opening 123.

Further, the support member 121 is made of the same silicon as the recording element substrate 131, for example. However, the material of the support member 121 is not limited to silicon, and is equal to the linear expansion coefficient of the material of the recording element substrate 131 or larger than the linear expansion coefficient of the material of the recording element substrate 131. Any material having a linear expansion coefficient smaller than the linear expansion coefficient may be used. Further, in order to make it easy for heat generated in the recording element substrate 131 to be transmitted to the main body 111, the thermal conductivity of the material of the support member 121 is the same as the thermal conductivity of the material of the recording element substrate 131, or the recording element substrate 131. It is preferable that it is larger than the thermal conductivity. Therefore, as a material of the support member 121, for example, alumina (Al ₂ O ₃ ), aluminum nitride (AlN), silicon carbide (SiC), silicon nitride 4 (Si ₃ N ₄ ), molybdenum (Mo), tungsten ( W) and engineering plastic resins.

  In the present embodiment, the bonding surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131 is configured to be bonded to the bonded surface 122 of the support member 121 and the bonding surface 116 of the main body 111 by the adhesive 141. However, when the support member 121 and the main body 111 are molded, if the combination of materials is such that the support member 121 and the main body 111 are in close contact, the bonding surface 116 of the main body 111 and the recording element substrate 131 are bonded. Bonding with the surface 134 can be omitted. This is because the support member 121 and the main body 111 are molded in close contact with each other, so that the ink in the ink supply path 112 is between the main body 111 and the support member 121 as shown by arrows A and B in FIG. This is because the ink does not leak to the outside and different types of ink do not mix with each other.

  Under such a configuration, a drive control signal is supplied to each heater (not shown) configured on the recording element substrate 131 through the printed wiring board 135, and each heater generates heat. At this time, the ink introduced into the ink supply opening 132 of the recording element substrate 131 via the ink supply path 112 is heated to generate bubbles due to the film boiling phenomenon, and recording is performed from the ink discharge port 133 as the bubbles expand. The ink is discharged toward the recording surface of the medium.

  At this time, even when the recording element substrate 131 is expanded by the heat of each heater (not shown), the recording element substrate 131 is bonded to the support member 121 and expands integrally with the support member 121. Therefore, the substantial cross-sectional area of the recording element substrate 131 is increased, and the recording element substrate 131 is prevented from being damaged by a temperature change.

  As described above, in the ink jet recording head of this embodiment, the support member 121 is formed integrally with the main body 111. Therefore, as in the first embodiment, an ink jet recording head in which the support member 121 is bonded to the recording element substrate 131 and the main body 111 without using an adhesive for bonding the support member 121 and the main body 111. Can be provided.

  Further, the support member 121 is disposed so as to be embedded in the outer peripheral region of the ink supply path 112 of the main body 111, and does not touch the ink in the ink supply path 112. Therefore, the material of the support member 121 can be selected regardless of the liquid contact property with respect to ink.

(Third embodiment)
A third embodiment of the ink jet recording head according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The same members as those in the first and second embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 5 shows the support member 121 in the ink jet recording head of this embodiment. The support member 121 of the present embodiment has a rectangular frame shape, and the central portion is an opening 123. In addition, a bonded surface 122 that is bonded to the bonding surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131 is provided around the opening 123.

  FIG. 6A shows the bonding between the recording element substrate 131 and the main body 111 when the support member 121 of the present embodiment is used. In the present embodiment, the support member 121 has a plurality of ink supply paths 112 formed in a region of the main body 111 corresponding to the openings 123 so that one opening 123 corresponds to the plurality of ink supply paths 112. Has been. Therefore, the support member 121 is formed so as to be embedded in the outer peripheral area of the ink supply path 112 of the main body 111 except for the intermediate wall 115, and the main body section without the support member 121 being in contact with the ink of the ink supply path 112. 111 is formed integrally with the body.

  When the recording element substrate 131 connected to the printed wiring board 135 is disposed in the recess 113 of the main body 111 so that the ink supply path 112 of the main body 111 corresponds to the ink supply opening 132 of the recording element substrate 131, recording is performed. The bonding surface 134 of the element substrate 131 is bonded to the bonded surface 122 of the support member 121 with an adhesive 141. Since the support member 121 is not formed on the intermediate wall 115, the recording element substrate 131 and the main body 111 are bonded to each other with the adhesive 141. As in the first and second embodiments, the adhesive 141 has a low viscosity, a low curing temperature, cures in a short time, has a relatively high hardness after curing, and has ink resistance. desirable.

  FIG. 6B shows another example of the bonding between the recording element substrate 131 and the main body 111 when the support member 121 of the present embodiment is used.

  In the figure, the support member 121 is formed integrally with the main body 111 in the outer peripheral region of the ink supply path 112 except for the intermediate wall 115 of the main body 111. Here, the plurality of ink supply paths 112 of the main body 111 are formed so that one opening 123 corresponds to the plurality of ink supply paths 112, that is, inside the opening 123. Further, similarly to the first embodiment, the bonding surface 134 of the recording element substrate 131 is configured to contact only the bonded surface 122 of the support member 121 except for the intermediate wall 115 of the main body 111. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration.

  6 (a) and 6 (b), the support member 121 of the present embodiment has a shape in which the opening 123 is opened in a frame shape, so that the support member 121 is not formed on the intermediate wall 115 of the main body 111. The recording element substrate 131 and the main body 111 are bonded. Therefore, even when the intermediate wall 115 of the main body 111 is narrow, it is not necessary to work on the support member 121 of the intermediate wall 115, and the mold structure when the main body 111 and the support member 121 are integrally molded is simplified. The

  Under such a configuration, a drive control signal is supplied to each heater (not shown) configured on the recording element substrate 131 through the printed wiring board 135, and each heater generates heat. At this time, the ink introduced into the ink supply opening 132 of the recording element substrate 131 via the ink supply path 112 is heated to generate bubbles due to the film boiling phenomenon, and recording is performed from the ink discharge port 133 as the bubbles expand. The ink is discharged toward the recording surface of the medium.

  At this time, even when the recording element substrate 131 is expanded by the heat of each heater (not shown), the recording element substrate 131 is bonded to the support member 121 and expands integrally with the support member 121. Therefore, the substantial cross-sectional area of the recording element substrate 131 is increased, and the recording element substrate 131 is avoided from being damaged by a temperature change.

  In this embodiment, the support member 121 having a frame-like shape is formed integrally with the main body 111, and the gold when the main body 111 and the support member 121 are formed integrally. The mold structure is simplified.

Sectional drawing which shows the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view of the supporting member in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. 1 is an overall view of an ink jet recording head of the present invention. Sectional drawing which shows the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view of the supporting member in the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. Sectional drawing which shows the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the conventional inkjet recording head. The exploded perspective view which shows the Example of patent document 1. FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the Example of patent document 1. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 111 Main body part 131 Recording element board | substrate 133 Ink ejection port 121 Support member 112 Ink supply path 141 Adhesive

Claims (6)

A main body having at least one ink supply path for introducing ink from the ink reservoir;
A recording element substrate having an ink discharge portion for discharging ink and a heater for generating thermal energy for discharging ink from the ink discharge portion;
A support member having at least one opening corresponding to the ink supply path;
In an inkjet recording head comprising
When the linear expansion coefficient of the support member is a, the linear expansion coefficient of the main body is b, and the linear expansion coefficient of the recording element substrate is c, the relationship of c ≦ a <b is satisfied.
An ink jet recording head, wherein the supporting member is bonded to the recording element substrate using an adhesive and is formed integrally with the main body.   The inkjet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the support member is embedded around the ink supply path and does not directly contact the ink in the ink supply path.   The ink jet recording head according to claim 2, wherein the main body portion inside the opening is bonded to the recording element substrate using an adhesive.   4. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the support member is molded in close contact with the main body portion. 5.   5. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the main body has a plurality of ink supply paths, and the support member has one opening corresponding to the plurality of ink supply paths. 6. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the support member has a thermal conductivity equal to or greater than a thermal conductivity of the recording element substrate.

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