JP2007307842A - Nozzle plate manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for efficiently manufacturing a nozzle plate free from a protrusion such as a burr, a scratch or a deposit. <P>SOLUTION: The nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention forms separation lines 10 of nozzle plates 2 by using a groove lines 10A and slit lines 10B, and thereby the nozzle plates 2 are not separated from a nozzle sheet 9 even after a separation line forming processing. As a result, the remaining part of the nozzle sheet 9 becomes a working space 11, a working process is performed without touching the nozzle plates 2 by using the working space 11, and the nozzle plates 2 are hardly scratched or stained, so that a productivity and work efficiency is improved. The nozzle plates 2 also hardly have a protrusion such as a burr, since the nozzle plates 2 are bent and cut at the groove lines 10A when they are separated from the nozzle sheet 9. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a nozzle plate having nozzles as ink ejection openings in an inkjet head.

  In recent years, due to the widespread use of inkjet printers and the like, it has been demanded to manufacture higher performance inkjet heads with high productivity.

  First, the configuration of a general inkjet head will be described. Generally, an ink jet head is manufactured by bonding a nozzle plate and an ink jet head main body. The ink jet head body includes an ink flow path and energy generation means for extruding ink. The nozzle plate has a plurality of nozzle holes that are minute holes for discharging droplets, and the nozzle holes are provided at positions corresponding to the ink flow paths. With the above configuration, the ink pushed out by the energy generating means passes through the ink flow path and is ejected from the nozzle hole.

  As described above, the nozzle plate constitutes an ink discharge path of the inkjet head, and in order to produce a high-performance inkjet head, a technique for producing a highly accurate nozzle plate is required.

  The nozzle plate is bonded to the inkjet head main body after cutting out the nozzle plate from the nozzle sheet, which is the base material of the nozzle plate, in accordance with the shape of the nozzle plate bonding surface of the inkjet head main body and performing nozzle hole processing. In addition, nozzle holes may be formed on the nozzle plate after the nozzle plate is bonded to the ink jet head body.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a method for efficiently producing a higher quality nozzle plate. Patent Document 1 discloses a nozzle plate assembling method, in which a first sheet is attached to a sheet-like nozzle plate base material, that is, a nozzle sheet, and a second sheet is further attached thereon. . Then, the outer shape processing of the nozzle plate and the nozzle hole processing are performed from the surface on which the sheet is not attached.

  At this time, the outer shape processing of the nozzle plate is performed so that the nozzle plate and the first sheet are cut and the second sheet is partially cut and left, and the nozzle hole processing is performed by passing the nozzle plate through the first plate. Do not penetrate the sheet.

  According to this method, since the second sheet is not completely cut when the outer shape of the nozzle plate is processed, the individual nozzle plates do not fall apart, which is advantageous from the viewpoint of workability.

Then, after finishing the outer shape processing and nozzle hole processing, the second sheet is peeled off, the nozzle plate is separated into individual nozzle plates, and attached to the actuator, that is, the nozzle head main body. At this stage, since the first sheet is still attached to the nozzle plate, dust may enter the nozzle holes or damage the surface of the nozzle plate in the step of attaching to the nozzle head body. Can be prevented.
JP 2001-315339 A (published on November 13, 2001) JP 2004-114435 A (published on April 15, 2004)

  However, the method of patent document 1 includes the process of peeling an adhesive sheet | seat from a nozzle plate. The adhesive sheet is peeled off after being bonded to the nozzle head body. Therefore, when foreign matter such as adhesive residue or nozzle hole processing residue remains on the nozzle plate, it is very difficult to clean them.

  On the other hand, before adhering to the nozzle head main body, it is also conceivable to peel off the adhesive sheet and clean the nozzle plate to remove residues such as an adhesive. However, when the nozzle plate is peeled from the adhesive sheet, the respective nozzle plates are separated. At this time, if the nozzle plates are washed one by one, the operation becomes very complicated. In addition, when the separated nozzle plates are collectively cleaned, it becomes difficult to manage the solid state of the nozzle plates, and the nozzle plates come into contact with each other during cleaning, and there is a high risk of damage to the nozzle plates.

  As described above, the conventional nozzle plate processing process has a problem that the yield of the nozzle plate is reduced due to contamination and damage.

  On the other hand, a method not using such an adhesive sheet is also conceivable. For example, a method of separating the nozzle plate from the nozzle sheet after a necessary process is completed without separating the nozzle plate from the nozzle sheet is conceivable. According to this method, it is possible to perform processes such as processing and cleaning on a plurality of nozzle plates at the same time, thereby improving work efficiency.

  In this case, when separating the nozzle plate from the nozzle sheet, it is necessary to be able to separate the nozzle plate with a simple method and with a low load, and it is necessary not to damage the nozzle plate. In the cleaning process, the bonding force between the nozzle plate and the nozzle sheet is required so that the nozzle plate is not inadvertently separated.

  As a method for cutting the sheet, a method of cutting with a sharp blade or the like, or a method of providing perforated through regions at regular intervals to facilitate cutting along the through portions is generally used. ing. However, when cutting with a sharp blade or the like, plastic deformation such as burrs occurs at the cut portion. At this time, the surface where burrs are generated differs depending on whether the ink discharge surface is cut from the back surface or the discharge surface.

  When cutting from the back surface of the ink discharge surface, protrusions such as burrs are generated on the ink discharge surface of the nozzle plate. If there are protrusions on the discharge surface, the protrusions interfere with the contact of the wipe blade with the nozzle surface during maintenance, causing ink accumulation, or the protrusions damaging the wipe blade used for maintenance. There is a fear. When the wipe blade is damaged, ink remaining is left during the wiping operation, resulting in an ink pool. Along with this, there is a high possibility that the ejection droplets will be distorted, satellites, etc., and the landing accuracy may be deteriorated. Further, it is conceivable that the ink remaining in the nozzle plate dries out and enters near or into the nozzle hole, causing deterioration in landing accuracy or failure.

  On the other hand, when cutting from the ink discharge surface, a protrusion is formed on the back surface of the ink discharge surface. Since the back surface is an ink jet head bonding surface, if a nozzle plate having protrusions such as burrs is bonded, the flatness of the nozzle plate surface is deteriorated, resulting in deterioration of landing accuracy. In other words, cutting with a blade causes plastic deformation such as burrs, which causes deterioration of the performance of the ink jet head device.

  Further, in the case of cutting by perforation processing or the like, if a blade or the like is used when cutting the perforation, burrs will be generated at the perforation portion. In addition, there is a problem that marks that become perforations remain. Ink jet heads manufactured with a nozzle plate with perforations left behind may be caught on the wipe blade when wiping the surface of the nozzle plate for maintenance, etc. There is.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a method for efficiently producing a nozzle plate free from protrusions and scratches such as burrs and deposits on the nozzle plate surface.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention forms a nozzle hole in the nozzle sheet substrate in the method of manufacturing a nozzle plate of an inkjet head using a nozzle sheet substrate. Nozzle hole forming step, separation line forming step of forming a separation line by digging the entire outer periphery of the nozzle plate along the outer shape of the nozzle plate to be acquired with respect to the nozzle sheet base material, and the separation And a separation step of separating the nozzle plate from the nozzle sheet substrate in a line.

  According to the above configuration, since the separation line is formed by digging the entire outer periphery of the nozzle plate, the nozzle plate is connected to the nozzle sheet base material even after the separation line forming step is finished.

  Therefore, the nozzle sheet base material after the separation line forming step has a remaining portion that does not become a nozzle plate around a portion that becomes a nozzle plate after separation. Therefore, by using the remaining portion around the nozzle plate as a work space, it is possible to perform subsequent processing steps without touching the nozzle plate, so it is difficult for the nozzle plate to be scratched or soiled during the processing step. The productivity and work efficiency of the nozzle plate can be improved.

  Moreover, in the separation step, protrusions such as burrs are less likely to occur by separating the nozzle sheet base material from the nozzle sheet base material along the separation line. This is because the thickness of the nozzle sheet base material in the separation line is reduced by forming the separation line by digging.

  Further, since the nozzle plate is not fixed with an adhesive sheet as in Patent Document 1, deposits such as an adhesive are not attached to the nozzle plate. In addition, by forming the separation line of the nozzle plate in the separation line forming step, it is not necessary to set the alignment of the frame position or confirm the cutting position in the separation step, and the work becomes simple.

  In the nozzle plate manufacturing method of this invention, it is preferable that the said nozzle sheet base material can acquire a some nozzle plate. As described above, in the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention, since the separation line is formed by digging the entire outer periphery of the nozzle plate, the nozzle plate is connected to the nozzle sheet base material even after the separation line forming step is finished. It will be.

  Therefore, when a nozzle sheet base material capable of acquiring a plurality of nozzle plates is used, processing steps such as cleaning and inspection can be performed on the nozzle sheet base material on which the plurality of nozzle plates are processed. The nozzle plates can be batch processed in a batch, and the productivity and work efficiency of the nozzle plates can be improved.

  In the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention, it is preferable that in the separation line forming step, the separation line is formed so that a part of the separation line penetrates the nozzle sheet substrate.

  According to the above configuration, the separation line has a portion that penetrates the nozzle sheet base material and a portion that does not penetrate the nozzle sheet base material. In the separation step, only the non-penetrating portion is separated. Since the nozzle plate can be separated, the separation process is facilitated.

  In the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention, in the separation step, the nozzle plate is preferably separated from the nozzle sheet substrate by bending the nozzle sheet substrate in the separation line.

  Since the separation line is thinned by digging, the nozzle plate can be separated from the nozzle sheet substrate by bending the nozzle sheet substrate in the separation line. Separation by bending is unlikely to generate burrs on the cut surface, unlike cutting with a blade or the like. Further, since wrinkles and the like generated by cutting with a laser beam or the like do not adhere to the nozzle plate, it is possible to manufacture a nozzle plate that is clean and has high processing accuracy.

  In the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention, in the separation line forming step, the separation line is preferably extended to the end of the nozzle sheet base material and dug.

  Since the separation line extends to the end of the nozzle sheet base material, when separating the nozzle plate in the separation process, it can be separated along the separation line and the extended portion. The applied load is reduced. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the plastic deformation of the nozzle plate and manufacture a nozzle plate with high processing accuracy.

  In the nozzle plate manufacturing method of this invention, it is preferable that the said nozzle sheet base material has a polyimide as a main component.

  Since the nozzle plate is in direct contact with the ink, the nozzle plate is preferably manufactured from a nozzle sheet base material having excellent chemical resistance. A polymer mainly composed of polyimide is suitable as a material for the nozzle sheet base material because of its excellent chemical resistance.

  In the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention, it is preferable that the separation line is formed by excimer laser light in the separation line forming step.

  If excimer laser light is used, the plastic deformation of the nozzle sheet substrate is difficult to occur. Further, since high-precision processing can be performed, it is suitable for a precise processing step of forming a separation line. Further, excimer laser light can also be used in the nozzle hole forming step. In this case, since the same processing apparatus can be used, a processing process can be simplified.

  Further, when the separation line is formed by laser light such as excimer laser, it is preferable to use a mask in which two kinds of light transmittances in the light transmission region are set.

  According to said structure, it sets so that the laser beam which passed the part with a high light transmittance penetrates a nozzle sheet base material, and the laser beam which passed the part with a low light transmittance does not penetrate a nozzle sheet base material It is possible to form the penetrating part and the non-penetrating part in the separation line without changing the output of the laser beam.

  In the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention, the nozzle sheet substrate has a thickness of 50 to 150 μm, the depth of the separation line is 50 to 85% with respect to the thickness of the nozzle sheet substrate, The width is preferably 20 to 100% with respect to the thickness of the nozzle sheet substrate.

  According to the above conditions, depending on the material and size of the nozzle plate, the nozzle plate may be separated from the nozzle sheet base material before the separation step, or may not be cut by bending in the separation step, or uncut portions may occur. Separation can be performed satisfactorily without causing problems such as

  As described above, the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present invention is a method for manufacturing a nozzle plate of an inkjet head using a nozzle sheet base material, and a nozzle hole forming step for forming nozzle holes in the nozzle sheet base material. And a separation line forming step of forming a separation line by digging the entire outer periphery of the nozzle plate along the outer shape of the nozzle plate to be acquired with respect to the nozzle sheet base material, and the separation line A separation step of separating the nozzle plate from the nozzle sheet base material, so that the nozzle plate can be efficiently manufactured by using the remaining portion remaining after the nozzle plate separation in the nozzle sheet base material as a work space. In addition, a nozzle plate that has no protrusions and deposits such as burrs on the nozzle plate surface can be manufactured. It is possible.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the ink jet head 1 of the present embodiment includes a nozzle plate 2 and an ink jet head main body 3. An ink flow path 4 is formed in the inkjet main body 1. The ink jet main body 1 and the nozzle plate 2 are bonded to each other at the nozzle plate bonding surface 6 of the ink jet main body 1.

  The nozzle plate 2 is formed with nozzle holes 5 which are ink discharge ports. Further, the ink flow path 4 of the inkjet head main body 3 and the nozzle hole 5 of the nozzle plate 2 are communicated with each other. Ink passes through the ink flow path 4 and is ejected from the nozzle holes 5 of the nozzle plate 2.

  Hereinafter, the manufacturing process of the nozzle plate 2 will be described in steps.

[Step 1: Production process of nozzle sheet for forming nozzle plate]
Step 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the nozzle sheet 9. Step 1 is a step of forming the nozzle sheet 9 by forming the liquid repellent film 8 on one side of the sheet-like nozzle sheet substrate 7.

  As illustrated, the nozzle sheet 9 includes a nozzle sheet substrate 7 and a liquid repellent film 8. The surface on which the liquid repellent film 8 is formed becomes an ink ejection surface in the nozzle plate 2. Due to the liquid repellency of the liquid repellent film 8, it is possible to prevent ink accumulation on the ink ejection surface.

  As a material of the nozzle sheet base material 7, a resin sheet such as polyimide, polystyrene, polyamide, polymethylmethacrylate, or the like is suitable.

  In general, when a nozzle sheet is manufactured by manufacturing a nozzle sheet, ablation processing using a laser beam is used for high-precision processing such as cutting out the nozzle plate and forming nozzle holes. When ablation processing is performed using laser light, if the light absorption coefficient of the work piece is small, the laser light energy is not absorbed, and the laser light energy is converted into heat energy inside the work piece, causing thermal damage. , Precision machining becomes difficult.

  Here, in this embodiment, since it is assumed that the nozzle sheet 9 is processed using excimer laser light, a material having a high light absorption coefficient with respect to the wavelength of the excimer laser light is used for the nozzle sheet substrate 7. Is desirable.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, a polymer mainly composed of polyimide is used as the material for the nozzle sheet base material 7. A polymer containing polyimide as a main component has a light absorption coefficient of 1000 cm ⁻¹ or more for excimer laser light having a wavelength of 248 nm.

  As a result, the nozzle sheet 9 can be easily ablated using an excimer laser beam having a wavelength of 248 nm. In addition, since a polymer mainly composed of polyimide has a characteristic of excellent chemical resistance, it is suitable as a material for the nozzle plate 2 in direct contact with ink. About the thickness of the nozzle sheet 9, about 50-150 micrometers is suitable from surfaces, such as workability. A more preferred thickness is 50 to 125 μm.

[Step 2: Nozzle hole forming process]
Step 2 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a process of forming the nozzle holes 5 in the nozzle sheet 9. As illustrated, the nozzle holes 5 are formed by irradiating the nozzle sheet 9 with excimer laser light L. 4 shows a state in which the excimer laser light L is irradiated to the nozzle sheet 9 from the surface opposite to the liquid repellent film 8, the excimer laser light L is irradiated from the surface of the liquid repellent film 8. The nozzle hole 5 can also be formed.

  The excimer laser light L is applied to the nozzle sheet 9 through a mask pattern (not shown). Thereby, the mask pattern is reduced and projected onto the nozzle sheet 9. Therefore, by changing the mask pattern, the nozzle hole 5 having an arbitrary shape can be formed.

[Step 3: Separation line forming process of nozzle plate]
Step 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 5 to 7. Step 3 is a process of processing the separation line of the nozzle plate 2 on the nozzle sheet 9.

  In the present embodiment, the separation line forming step is performed after the nozzle hole forming step, but the separation line forming step may be performed first, and then the nozzle hole forming step may be performed. Moreover, as will be described later, the nozzle hole forming step and the separation line forming step can be performed simultaneously.

  Fig.1 (a) is a top view which shows an example of the nozzle sheet 9 in the stage which complete | finished the nozzle hole formation process and the separation line formation process. In the nozzle sheet 9 at the stage where the separation line forming process is completed, as shown in the figure, a groove-like line portion 10A, an extended portion 12 of the groove-like line portion 10A, a slit line portion 10B, and a nozzle hole 5 are formed. . Although FIG. 1A shows a state in which two nozzle plates 2 are manufactured from one nozzle sheet 9, the number of nozzle plates 2 manufactured from one nozzle sheet 9 is not particularly limited.

  Then, by forming the groove-like line portion 10 </ b> A and the slit line portion 10 </ b> B on the nozzle sheet 9, a separation line 10 for separating the nozzle plate 2 is formed. Here, since the groove-like line portion 10A does not penetrate the nozzle sheet 9, while the slit line portion 10B penetrates the nozzle sheet 9, the nozzle plate 2 is a nozzle at the portion of the groove-like line portion 10A. It is connected to the seat 9.

  In the present embodiment, in the separation line forming step, the separation line 10 is formed by the groove-like line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B, but may be formed only by the groove-like line portion 10A.

  However, when the slit line portion 10B is formed as in the present embodiment, only the grooved line portion 10A needs to be cut in the nozzle plate separation step described later. The separation process becomes easy.

  In the nozzle sheet 9, the outer edge portion where the nozzle plate 2 is not formed is used as the work space 11. The work space 11 can be used for, for example, handling, writing identification information of the nozzle plate 2, fixing to a jig, and the like, thereby improving workability and productivity.

  The extended portion 12 is a portion obtained by extending the groove-like line portion 10 </ b> A to a position reaching the end of the nozzle sheet 9. In the separation line forming step, the extension portion 12 is not necessarily formed. Even when the extension portion 12 is not provided, the nozzle plate 2 can be manufactured through a nozzle plate separation process described later.

  However, when the extension portion 12 is provided as in the present embodiment, when the nozzle plate 2 is separated from the nozzle sheet 9 in the nozzle plate separation step described later, the nozzle plate 2 is not loaded, and more It is preferable to provide the extension portion 12 because it can be reliably separated.

  FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view showing the A-A ′ cross section in FIG. As shown in the figure, since the groove-like line portion 10A does not penetrate the nozzle sheet 9, the nozzle plate 2 is not separated from the nozzle sheet 9. Therefore, the remaining portion of the nozzle plate 2 in the nozzle sheet 9 is used as the work space 11. be able to. Further, as shown in FIG. 1A, when a plurality of nozzle plates 2 are manufactured from one nozzle sheet 9, the nozzle sheet 9 is subjected to a process such as cleaning, so that the plurality of nozzle plates 2 are formed. It becomes possible to process in a lump, and production efficiency can be improved.

  Next, a process of forming the groove-like line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B will be described. The groove-shaped line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B are formed by irradiating the nozzle sheet 9 with the excimer laser light L through the mask pattern in the same manner as when the nozzle hole 5 is formed in step 2, and the mask pattern is used as the nozzle pattern. By reducing and projecting onto the sheet 9, the nozzle sheet 9 is processed into a desired shape.

  Further, the depth of the groove-like line portion 10A can be controlled by adjusting the energy density of the excimer laser beam L and the number of shots. That is, by changing the energy density and the number of shots according to the thickness of the nozzle sheet 9, a non-penetrating groove-like line portion 10 </ b> A can be formed, and the slit line portion 10 </ b> B penetrating the nozzle sheet 9 can be formed. It can also be formed.

  FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a process of forming the groove-like line portion 10 </ b> A in the nozzle sheet 9. As illustrated, the groove-like line portion 10A is formed by irradiating the nozzle sheet 9 with excimer laser light L. FIG. 5 shows a state in which the excimer laser light L is irradiated to the nozzle sheet 9 from the surface opposite to the liquid repellent film 8. However, the excimer laser light L is irradiated from the surface of the liquid repellent film 8. The groove-like line portion 10A can also be formed.

  The excimer laser light L irradiated to the groove-shaped line portion 10A has an energy density of 60% with respect to the excimer laser light L irradiated to the slit line portion 10B. As a result, the excimer laser light L irradiated to the groove-like line portion 10A does not penetrate the nozzle sheet 9 and can form the groove-like line portion 10A having a groove depth of 35 μm.

  The order of forming the groove-like line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B is not particularly limited. After forming the groove-like line portion 10A, the slit line portion 10B may be formed, or the reverse order may be employed. Further, the groove-like line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B can be simultaneously formed. When processing the groove-like line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B at the same time, the energy density of the excimer laser light L applied to the groove-like line portion 10A and the excimer laser light L applied to the slit line portion 10B is changed. There is a need.

  Further, the groove-like line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B can be simultaneously processed by a method using a pattern mask as described below. FIG. 6 shows an example of a pattern mask used when the groove-like line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B are processed simultaneously. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of the pattern mask 13. As illustrated, the pattern mask 13 includes an opening pattern 14A and an opening pattern 14B. Although FIG. 6 shows an example of a pattern mask when the extension portion 12 is not formed, a pattern mask having an opening pattern corresponding to the extension portion 12 can also be used.

  The opening pattern 14A is formed of a metal film made of Cr or the like, and the transmittance of the excimer laser light L is about 60%. That is, when the excimer laser light L passes through the opening pattern 14A, the energy density is reduced to about 60% before passing. As a result, the excimer laser light L that has passed through the opening pattern 14A does not penetrate the nozzle sheet 9, and the groove-like line portion 10A can be formed.

  On the other hand, since the transmittance of the excimer laser light L is about 100% in the opening pattern 14B, the excimer laser light L that has passed through the opening pattern 14B penetrates the nozzle sheet 9 to form the slit line portion 10B. Can do. The transmittance in the opening pattern 14A and the opening pattern 14B can be arbitrarily set by changing the film thickness of the metal film.

  According to the method using the pattern mask 13, it is not necessary to change the output of the excimer laser beam L between the formation of the groove-like line portion 10A and the formation of the slit line portion 10B. Further, since the groove-like line portion 10A and the slit line portion 10B can be formed in one processing step, the throughput in the processing step of the nozzle plate 2 can be improved.

  FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a pattern mask 15 which is another example of the pattern mask. Similar to the pattern mask 13, the pattern mask 15 includes an opening pattern 14 A and an opening pattern 14 B, and further includes an opening pattern 16.

  The opening pattern 16 is provided so as to correspond to the position of the nozzle hole 5 in the nozzle sheet 9. Further, the transmittance of the excimer laser light L in the opening pattern 16 is set to almost 100%, as in the opening pattern 14B. Accordingly, the excimer laser light L that has passed through the opening pattern 16 can penetrate the nozzle sheet 9 and form the nozzle holes 5.

  According to the method using the pattern mask 15, the groove-like line portion 10 </ b> A, the slit line portion 10 </ b> B, and the nozzle hole 5 can be formed at a time, and the throughput in the processing process of the nozzle plate 2 can be further improved. .

[Step 4: Nozzle sheet ashing and cleaning process]
Step 3 is a step of removing deposits such as wrinkles generated on the nozzle sheet 9 by processing with the excimer laser light L in Step 2 or Step 3. In this embodiment mode, first, ashing and laser irradiation are performed, and then, deposits that could not be removed by ashing and laser irradiation are removed by ultrasonic cleaning.

[Step 5: Nozzle plate separation process]
Step 5 will be described with reference to FIGS. Step 5 is a process of separating the nozzle plate 2 from the nozzle sheet 9.

  In step 5, first, the nozzle sheet 9 is divided into predetermined blocks 17. The block division may be cut using excimer laser light, or may be cut with a blade or the like. Since the cut surface of the block 17 is formed outside the nozzle plate 2, burrs or the like may occur on the cut surface of the block 17. In this block division, if the nozzle plate 2 is protected by using a buffer material or the like, the nozzle plate 2 can be prevented from being damaged.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the block 17 includes five nozzle plates 2 and a work space 11 on the outer periphery of the nozzle plate. In the present embodiment, the width of the work space 11 is 10 mm. Note that the width of the work space 11 can be arbitrarily set according to the number of productions, production facilities, and the like.

  Further, the way of dividing the blocks is not limited to the form shown in FIG. As a method of dividing the blocks, for example, as shown in FIG. 9, one nozzle sheet 9 may be used as one block 17, and as shown in FIG. 10, one nozzle plate 2 is used as one block 17. Also good. The block division may be performed in accordance with the number of production, workability in the production process, and the like.

  FIG. 11 is a plan view of the divided block 17. As shown in the drawing, the block 17 is formed with a groove-like line portion 10 </ b> A and its extended portion 12, a slit line portion 10 </ b> B, and a nozzle hole 5, and the outer edge portion of the nozzle plate 2 becomes a work space 11. Yes. FIG. 11 shows only a part of the block 17.

  Next, the nozzle plate 2 is separated from the block 17. The nozzle plate 2 is separated by bending the nozzle sheet 9 at, for example, 180 ° or more at the groove-like line portion 10A. At this time, by using the work space 11, the nozzle plate 2 can be separated from the nozzle sheet 9 without touching the nozzle plate 2 or applying a load to the nozzle plate 2.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a state where the nozzle plate 2 is separated by bending. As illustrated, the work space 11 is separated from the nozzle plate 2 by bending the work space 11 toward the surface on which the grooved line portion 10A is not formed. In addition, when it does not isolate | separate by one bending, it can isolate | separate by repeating bending.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a cut surface of the nozzle plate 2 separated by the bending process of the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, almost no burrs or returns occur on the cut surface.

  On the other hand, FIG. 14 is a figure which shows the cut surface at the time of cutting out a nozzle plate with a design knife. As shown in the figure, a burr 18 having a thickness of about 10 μm is generated for a polyimide nozzle sheet having a thickness of 50 μm. Thus, with a nozzle plate in which burrs 18 are generated, a high-quality inkjet head cannot be produced.

  For example, in FIG. 14, a burr 18 protrudes from the right side surface of the nozzle sheet. If this surface is a liquid repellent surface, it may cause ink residue or damage to the blade that performs the wiping operation. Further, when this surface is used as a surface to be bonded to the ink jet head main body 3, there is a possibility that an adhesive shift or a piece contact may occur when bonding.

  In the above description, for the rectangular nozzle plate 2, an example in which the vertical direction (longitudinal direction) is the groove-like line portion 10 </ b> A and the parallel direction (lateral direction) is the slit line portion 10 </ b> B with respect to the row of nozzle holes is shown. The vertical direction may be a slit portion and the horizontal direction may be a groove-shaped portion.

  FIG. 15 is a plan view showing an example in which the slit line portion 10B is formed in the vertical direction and the groove-like line portion 10A is formed in the horizontal direction in the separation line forming step. Comparing FIG. 15 with FIG. 1A, the ratio of the groove-like line portion 10A, that is, the non-penetrating portion is larger in the separation line of the nozzle plate 2 in FIG. As described above, in the example shown in FIG. 1A, the groove-like line portion 10A is formed in the vertical direction, and the slit line portion 10B is formed in the horizontal direction.

  Here, since the more groove-shaped portions are more resistant to impact, the nozzle sheet 9 shown in FIG. 15 is more resistant to impact than the nozzle sheet 9 shown in FIG. That is, when there is a possibility that the nozzle plate 2 is separated from the nozzle sheet 9 during the cleaning process, a method in which the vertical direction is the slit line portion 10B and the horizontal direction is the groove-shaped line portion 10A is effective. .

  Further, when the processing step places a burden on the sheet, the slit line portion 10B in the vertical direction and the groove-like line portion 10A in the horizontal direction can be used before the nozzle plate 2 is separated in the nozzle plate separation step. It is also conceivable that the nozzle plate 2 is separated from the nozzle sheet 9 in this processing step. In such a case, the separation line of the nozzle plate 2 may be formed only by the groove-like line portion 10A. At this time, in the nozzle plate separation step, the above-described bending process is performed on all sides of the nozzle plate 2 to separate them.

[About the depth and width of the groove-shaped part]
In the present embodiment, a nozzle sheet 9 having a thickness of 50 μm is used and is bent and cut at the groove-like line portion 10A. The ease of cutting at this time is determined by the thickness of the nozzle sheet 9, the depth and width of the groove-like line portion 10A. In the present embodiment, as an optimum condition, the depth of the groove-like line portion 10A is set to 35 μm and the width is set to 20 μm with respect to a nozzle sheet of 50 μm. Experiments were also performed on other conditions, and the results are shown in the following table. Table 1 shows the case of a nozzle sheet having a thickness of 50 μm, and Table 2 shows the case of a nozzle sheet having a thickness of 125 μm.

  In the table, the nozzle plate is not separated from the nozzle sheet during the process, can be bent and cut, and the case where no cutting residue is generated is marked with ◯, and the others are marked with x.

  Moreover, the numbers shown in parentheses in the table indicate the ratio of the depth or width of the groove-like line portion 10A to the thickness of the nozzle sheet.

表１、表２とも、溝状ライン部１０Ａの幅がノズルシートの厚さに対して１００％を超えると良好な切断ができない結果となっている。また、溝状ライン部１０Ａの深さに関しては、ノズルシートの厚さに対して８５％を超えると良好な切断ができない結果となっている。

In both Table 1 and Table 2, when the width of the groove-like line portion 10A exceeds 100% with respect to the thickness of the nozzle sheet, it is a result that good cutting cannot be performed. In addition, regarding the depth of the groove-like line portion 10A, when the thickness exceeds 85% with respect to the thickness of the nozzle sheet, it is a result that good cutting cannot be performed.

  From the above experimental results, when the present invention is used, the depth of the groove-like line portion 10A with respect to the thickness of the nozzle sheet 9 depends on how the nozzle plate is handled, the manufacturing process, the size of the nozzle plate, and the like. Is 50 to 85%, more preferably 50 to 80%, and the width is 20 to 100%, more preferably 20 to 80%.

[About wipe operation of nozzle surface]
As described above, according to the nozzle plate manufacturing method of the present embodiment, no protrusions such as burrs are generated on the cut surface of the nozzle plate 2, so that the wipe blade is damaged during the wiping operation of the ink-jet head, or the ink remains unwiped Can be prevented from happening.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the claims. That is, embodiments obtained by combining technical means appropriately modified within the scope of the claims are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  According to the present invention, a high-quality nozzle plate can be efficiently produced, so that it can be suitably used for manufacturing an inkjet printer using an inkjet head as a basic component.

  Furthermore, in recent years, application of inkjet technology to production apparatuses has been promoted, but the present invention can also be applied to inkjet heads used in such production apparatuses.

It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a top view which shows an example of the state of the nozzle sheet after a separation line formation process. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a perspective fragmentary sectional view of an inkjet head. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is sectional drawing of the nozzle sheet | seat used as the base material of a nozzle plate. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is sectional drawing which shows the process of forming a nozzle hole in a nozzle sheet. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is sectional drawing which shows the process of forming a groove-shaped line part in a nozzle sheet. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a top view which shows the example of a mask pattern. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a top view which shows the example of another mask pattern. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a figure which shows an example of block division of a nozzle sheet. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a figure which shows the other example in block division of a nozzle sheet. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a figure which shows another example in block division of a nozzle sheet. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a top view which shows the state of the block cut out from the nozzle sheet. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a figure which shows a mode that a nozzle plate is isolate | separated by bending. It is a figure which shows the cut surface of the nozzle plate by the nozzle plate manufacturing method of this invention. It is a figure which shows the cut surface of the nozzle plate cut | disconnected using the prior art. It is a figure which shows one Embodiment of this invention, and is a top view which shows another example of the state of a nozzle sheet after a separation line formation process.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inkjet head 2 Nozzle plate 3 Inkjet head main body 4 Ink flow path 5 Nozzle hole 6 Nozzle plate adhesion surface 7 Nozzle sheet base material 8 Liquid repellent film 9 Nozzle sheet 10 Separation line 10A Groove line part 10B Slit line part 11 Work space 12 Extension part 13 Pattern mask 14A Opening pattern 14B Opening pattern 15 Pattern mask 16 Opening pattern 17 Block 18 Burr L Laser light

Claims (9)

In a method for producing a nozzle plate of an inkjet head using a nozzle sheet substrate,
Nozzle hole forming step for forming nozzle holes for the nozzle sheet substrate,
Separation line formation step of forming a separation line by digging the entire outer periphery of the nozzle plate along the outer shape of the nozzle plate to be obtained for the nozzle sheet substrate,
A separation step of separating the nozzle plate from the nozzle sheet base material in the separation line.   The nozzle plate manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the nozzle sheet base material can acquire a plurality of nozzle plates.   3. The nozzle plate manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein in the separation line forming step, the separation line is formed so that a part of the separation line penetrates the nozzle sheet base material.   The nozzle plate manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, in the separation step, the nozzle plate is separated from the nozzle sheet base material by bending the nozzle sheet base material in a separation line. .   5. The nozzle plate manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein in the separation line forming step, the separation line is extended to the end of the nozzle sheet base material and dug.   The nozzle plate manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the nozzle sheet base material contains polyimide as a main component.   The nozzle plate manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein in the separation line forming step, a separation line is formed by excimer laser light.   4. The nozzle plate manufacturing method according to claim 3, wherein in the separation line forming step, a separation line is formed by laser light using a mask in which two kinds of light transmittances of the light transmission region are set. The nozzle sheet substrate has a thickness of 50 to 150 μm,
The depth of digging in the separation line forming step is 50 to 85% with respect to the thickness of the nozzle sheet substrate,
The nozzle plate manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein a digging width is 20 to 100% with respect to a thickness of the nozzle sheet base material.

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