JP2021192965A - Recording head and method for manufacturing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a technology for keeping efficiency of collecting foreign matters with a filter of a recording head of a liquid recording device even when shape change occurs in a component of the recording head.SOLUTION: A recording head includes: a liquid discharge port for discharging liquid; a liquid supply port for supplying liquid to the liquid discharge port; and a filter layer which is provided in a liquid flow channel between the liquid supply port and the liquid discharge port and in which multiple openings are arranged in a planar manner, where at least part of the filter layer is divided therefrom.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a recording head and a method for manufacturing the same.

An inkjet recording head (hereinafter, also simply referred to as a “recording head”) is used in a liquid recording device such as an inkjet recording device. Silicon devices are often used for the recording heads of liquid recording devices, and in their manufacture, microfabrication, which is a micromachining technology, is used to meet the demands for high density, high accuracy, cost reduction, and tact-up. Technology is used. Such microfabrication technology also includes photolithography technology for patterning a photosensitive resist coated with a film thickness of several microns to several tens of microns using a high-precision exposure device and a developing process.

Here, when using the recording head of the liquid recording device, foreign matter such as dust may be mixed in the liquid (ink or the like). Here, the recording head is known to have a structure in which a resin layer forming a liquid discharge port and a liquid flow path is laminated on a silicon substrate having a large opening serving as a liquid supply port. In such a recording head, when a foreign substance is mixed in the liquid, it easily passes through the opening of the silicon substrate and reaches the liquid flow path or the liquid discharge port beyond the opening. As a result, foreign matter is clogged in the flow path and the flow of the liquid is obstructed, which may cause spitting or twisting. Generally, a recording head is configured by combining a plurality of different materials such as a liquid supply system from the outside and a support member for holding the substrate in addition to the above-mentioned silicon substrate and resin layer. Foreign matter may be mixed in by joining the materials.

Therefore, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for collecting foreign matter from a liquid by providing a filter layer between the liquid supply port and the liquid flow path. Patent Document 1 further discloses a technique for preventing clogging of the filter at the time of collecting foreign matter, thereby enabling stable discharge without reducing the flow rate of the liquid even after collecting dust.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2012-196944

In the configuration described in Patent Document 1, the filter layer provided in the recording head includes a through hole having an opening diameter equal to or smaller than the discharge port diameter, and a dust collecting protrusion for collecting dust in the liquid. As a result, the liquid can be discharged stably. However, since the through holes and protrusions are formed in one filter layer, if the substrate or chip holding the filter undergoes shape changes such as expansion and contraction or deformation due to heat shrinkage or material stress, the filter will be affected accordingly. There is a risk that the opening of the object will change and the efficiency of collecting foreign matter will decrease.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to maintain the efficiency of foreign matter collection by the filter of the recording head even if the shape of the components of the recording head of the liquid recording device is changed. To provide technology.

The present invention adopts the following configuration. That is,
A liquid discharge port that discharges liquid and
A liquid supply port that supplies the liquid to the liquid discharge port,
A filter layer having a plurality of openings arranged in a plane, provided in a liquid flow path between the liquid supply port and the liquid discharge port,
It is a recording head equipped with
The recording head is characterized in that at least a part of the filter layer is divided.

The present invention also employs the following configuration. That is,
A liquid discharge port that discharges liquid and
A liquid supply port that supplies the liquid to the liquid discharge port,
A filter layer having a plurality of openings arranged in a liquid flow path between the liquid supply port and the liquid discharge port, and a filter layer having a plurality of openings.
It is a recording head equipped with
When the filter layer is provided in the liquid flow path, the region far from the liquid discharge port is set as the first region, and the region close to the liquid discharge port is set as the second region, a force is applied to the filter layer. The recording head is characterized in that the degree of change in the shape of the opening in the first region is smaller than the degree of change in the shape of the opening in the second region.

The present invention also employs the following configuration. That is,
A process of forming a filter layer in which a plurality of openings are arranged in a plane on a substrate on which a liquid supply port is formed, and a process of forming a filter layer.
On the filter layer, an orifice layer is formed so as to communicate with the liquid supply port via the filter layer to form a liquid flow path and to form a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid from the liquid flow path. Process and
Have,
It is a method of manufacturing a recording head, characterized in that at least a part of the filter layer is divided.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a technique for maintaining the efficiency of collecting foreign matter by the filter of the recording head even if the constituent members of the recording head of the liquid recording device change in shape.

Schematic perspective view showing an example of a recording head configuration Sectional drawing which shows an example of the structure of a recording head Sectional drawing which shows an example of the manufacturing method for a recording head Sectional drawing which shows the continuation of the example of the manufacturing method for a recording head. Top view showing an example of the filter configuration of the recording head Top view showing another example of the filter configuration of the recording head Top view showing another example of the filter configuration of the recording head Top view showing another example of the filter configuration of the recording head Sectional view and plan view showing another example of the recording head configuration Sectional drawing showing another example of a recording head configuration Top view showing a comparative example of the filter configuration of the recording head

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be exemplified in detail with reference to the drawings. However, unless otherwise specified, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative arrangements, and the like of the components described in this embodiment are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention to those.
In the following description, the same reference numerals are given to the parts having the same function, and the description thereof will be omitted.

In the following description, "record" is not limited to the case of forming significant information such as characters and figures, and may be significant or unintentional. Further, regardless of whether or not it is manifested so that it can be visually perceived by humans, it may include a case where an image, a pattern, a pattern or the like is widely formed on a recording medium, or the medium is processed.
Further, the "recording medium" may include not only commonly used paper but also cloth, plastic film, metal plate, glass, ceramics, wood, leather and the like that can accept ink.

Also, "liquid" or "ink" should be broadly interpreted as in the definition of "recording" above. Therefore, it may contain a liquid that is applied onto a recording medium and is used for forming an image, a pattern, a pattern, etc., processing the recording medium, or processing an ink (for example, coagulation or insolubilization of a colorant in the ink). ..

Further, when explaining the apparatus configuration and the manufacturing method in the present specification, an expression indicating the hierarchical relationship of each layer (for example, a description that another layer is provided on the “top” or “surface” of a certain layer) may be used. be. However, this explanation is for convenience only and is not intended to limit the relationship with the direction of gravity.

<Overall configuration>
A liquid recording head used in a liquid recording device will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a schematic partially broken perspective view of the recording head 100. The recording head 100 is also called a recording element, and is a member installed on a carriage of a liquid recording device, for example, and ejects a liquid (ink or the like) toward a recording medium.

The recording head 100 generally has a structure in which a silicon substrate 1, an intermediate layer (not shown in this figure, which will be described later) and an orifice layer 6 are laminated in this order.
The silicon substrate 1 is a substrate formed by anisotropic etching a single crystal silicon having a plane orientation of [100] to form a liquid supply port 8 which is a through port. Two rows of energy generating elements 2 are formed side by side at a predetermined pitch on the silicon substrate 1. The liquid supply port 8 is opened between rows of energy generating elements 2. The energy generating element 2 is an element that gives kinetic energy for discharging to a liquid, and as an example, an electric heat conversion element and a switching element that energizes the electric heat conversion element can be used. A membrane film (omitted in this figure, which will be described later) is also formed on the silicon substrate 1. Further, the silicon substrate 1 is provided with an external connection terminal 36, and can transmit and receive data to and from a control unit (not shown) provided in the liquid recording device or an external device (not shown), and can receive power supply from the power supply device. do.

On the intermediate layer (not shown) formed on the silicon substrate 1, a plurality of liquids are discharged so as to be opened above the liquid flow path and the energy generating element 2 by the orifice layer 6 forming the flow path forming member. The outlet 9 is formed. A liquid flow path upper portion 12 (see FIG. 2) is formed between the liquid supply port 8 and each liquid discharge port 9. The upper portion 12 of the liquid flow path may include, for example, a plurality of individual flow paths communicating with each of the plurality of liquid discharge ports 9 and a plurality of foam chambers, and each liquid discharge port 9 from the liquid supply port 8 which is a common liquid chamber. It becomes a flow path of the liquid toward. Therefore, foreign matter such as dust may be mixed in the upper portion 12 of the liquid flow path. The upper part 12 of the liquid flow path is partitioned from the opening of the liquid supply port which is the lower liquid flow path by the filter layer, and the upper part and the lower part of the liquid flow path are combined to form the liquid flow path.

When the energy generating element 2 generates pressure while the liquid flow path is filled with the liquid through the liquid supply port 8, ink droplets are ejected from the liquid ejection port 9 and adhere to the recording medium. Recording is done.

<Cross section configuration>
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the recording head 100 of FIG. 1 cut through AA and in a cross section perpendicular to the recording head 100. A membrane film 3 is formed on the surface of a silicon substrate 1 on which an energy generating element 2 is formed, and a resin layer is laminated on the membrane film 3 to form an intermediate layer 4. In addition to the function as a foreign matter collecting filter, the intermediate layer 4 may be provided with a function of preventing peeling of the substrate and the flow path forming member. The intermediate layer 4 includes a peripheral portion 4b in addition to the filter portion 4a which is the filter layer of the present invention.

The silicon substrate 1 is formed with a liquid supply port 8 which is a lower part of the liquid flow path and has a large opening. An orifice layer 6 which is a flow path forming member is laminated on the intermediate layer 4. Due to the shape of the orifice layer 6, the liquid flow path upper portion 12 is formed between the intermediate layer 4 and the orifice layer 6. The upper part 12 of the liquid flow path allows the liquid to pass to the liquid discharge port 9 formed on the surface of the orifice layer.

The plurality of arrows shown in FIG. 2 represent the flow of the liquid from the liquid supply port 8 toward the upper part 12 of the liquid flow path through the filter portion 4a. The direction of the arrow indicates the direction in which the liquid flows, and the length of the arrow indicates the magnitude of the flow rate. The flow rate in the central region (first region) of the filter unit 4a located far from the liquid discharge port 9 is relatively small, and the peripheral region (second region) of the filter unit 4a located near the liquid discharge port 9 is relatively small. It can be seen that the flow rate in the area) is large. Therefore, in order to suppress the change in the filter opening shape due to the shape change of the constituent members and maintain the collection efficiency of foreign matter as much as possible, the opening area of the peripheral region of the filter portion 4a, which is particularly close to the liquid discharge port 9, is changed. It is important not to let them.

<Manufacturing method>
Each step (a) to (f) of the processing method of the silicon substrate 1 for manufacturing the recording head 100 provided with the foreign matter collecting filter will be described with reference to the cross-sectional views of FIGS. 3A and 3B.
First, in step a of FIG. 3A, a silicon substrate 1 is prepared in which the main surface is the [100] surface as the base material and the energy generating element 2 and the membrane film 3 are formed on the surface as one surface. The membrane film 3 is not particularly limited as long as it can remove unnecessary parts by wet etching or dry etching in a later step.

Next, in step b of FIG. 3A, a resin is applied to the surface of the silicon substrate 1 to form a resin layer as the intermediate layer 4. When forming the resin layer, a method such as a spin coating method, a direct coating method, or a dispensing method can be used. Then, a resist is applied to the surface of the intermediate layer 4 and then exposed and developed to form a resist pattern. Then, a desired filter pattern is formed by etching the intermediate layer 4 with the resist as a mask. In step b of FIG. 3A, a state in which the filter pattern has already been formed is shown. A desired filter pattern may be formed by directly exposing and developing a photosensitive material as the resin for forming the filter without using a resist.

Next, in the step c of FIG. 3A, the photosensitive resin is applied on the intermediate layer 4 to form the mold material layer 5. A method such as a spin coating method, a direct coating method, or a dispensing method can be used to form the mold material layer 5. Then, by exposure and development, a desired flow path pattern is formed in the mold material layer 5. When forming the orifice layer 6 as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 described later, a desired shape can be obtained by patterning the mold material in this step. In step c of FIG. 3A, a state in which the already patterned mold material layer 5 is formed is shown.

Next, in step d of FIG. 3B, a coating resin to be an orifice layer 6 is applied on the mold material layer 5. The spin coating method, direct coating method, dispense method, etc. can also be used for coating the coating resin. Then, the portion corresponding to the liquid discharge port 9 is exposed, developed, and removed to form the orifice layer 6 having the liquid discharge port 9.

Next, in step e of FIG. 3B, a non-penetrating hole is formed on the back surface (lower surface of the paper surface) of the silicon substrate 1 using a laser beam, a drill, or the like, and then the back surface of the silicon substrate 1 is etched. As a result, the liquid supply port 8 is formed on the silicon substrate 1. In the etching process, the surface of the orifice layer 6 may be protected with a cyclized rubber, tape, or the like, and the etching solution may be stored in a container for batch processing, or the silicon substrate 1 and the container may be sealed. , The single-wafer method may be used in which only the treated surface is exposed to the etching solution.

Next, in the step f of FIG. 3B, the mold material layer 5 and the membrane film 3 in the liquid flow path are removed from the silicon substrate 1. For this, a wet method in which the silicon substrate 1 is immersed in a solution for treatment may be used, or a dry method in which the silicon substrate 1 is treated with an etching gas may be used.

By each of the above steps, a liquid flow path is formed on the silicon substrate 1 from the liquid supply port 8 which is the lower part of the liquid flow path, passes through the upper part 12 of the liquid flow path through the filter portion 4a, and reaches the liquid discharge port 9. To. Then, the silicon substrate 1 is cut and separated by a laser sorter, a dicing sorter, or the like to form chips. The recording head 100 can be manufactured by joining the electric wiring for driving the energy generating element 2 to each chip and then joining the chip tank member for liquid supply.

<Filter configuration example>
Subsequently, a configuration example of the filter unit 4a, which forms a filter layer capable of suppressing deformation as much as possible and maintaining the collection performance of foreign substances even if there is heat shrinkage or material stress, will be described. The following example shows a mesh-like filter in which a plurality of openings are continuous on a plane.
FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a configuration example of the filter portion 4a of the intermediate layer 4 included in the recording head 100. In the filter portion 4a in this example, a mesh-like filter pattern in which a plurality of openings are combined on a plane is formed. Then, the filter portion 4a is divided and has a shape of being divided at the center when arranged in the flow path. Here, since the meshed opening is divided, the openings on both sides of the divided members (referred to as the first divided region and the second divided region) are located at the opposite ends of the opening. Each includes comb-shaped protrusions derived from the edges. In this figure, the protruding portions of the comb teeth (comb teeth 4c1 and 4c2) included in the two divided filters are arranged so as to face each other.

FIG. 4A shows a normal state in which an external force such as heat shrinkage or stress does not act on the filter portion 4a. At this time, the opening width of the opening 4d1 of the central region 4a1 of the filter portion 4a is w1, and the opening width of the opening 4d2 of the peripheral region 4a2 is w2.
FIG. 4B shows a state in which an external force F acts on the filter portion 4a and is pulled. At this time, as a result of the distance between the comb teeth increasing in the central region 4a1, the opening width of the central region 4a1 of the filter portion 4a widens and changes to w3. Therefore, the opening area of the opening 4d1 of the central region 4a1 also increases. However, the opening width of the peripheral region 4a2 remains unchanged at w2. Therefore, the area of the opening 4d2 of the peripheral region 4a2 does not change.

Here, as described above, the flow rate in the vicinity of the peripheral region 4a2 is larger than the flow rate in the vicinity of the central region 4a1. Therefore, even if the filter portion 4a is deformed by an external force, the opening area of the filter in the peripheral region through which a larger amount of liquid passes does not change, so that the foreign matter collecting performance does not significantly deteriorate.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the filter unit 4a having a configuration different from that of FIG. The point that the filter portion 4a on which the mesh-like filter pattern is formed is divided is common, but the point that the divided resin comb tooth portions (comb teeth 4c1 and 4c2) are arranged so as to alternately mesh with each other. different. In the illustrated example, the intervals of the alternately arranged comb teeth are all the same, but different intervals may be mixed.

FIG. 5A shows a normal state in which no external force acts on the filter portion 4a, and the opening width of the central region 4a1 is w4 and the opening width of the peripheral region 4a2 is w5.
FIG. 5B shows a state in which an external force F acts on the filter portion 4a and is pulled. At this time, as a result of the distance between the comb teeth in the central region 4a1, the opening width of the central region 4a1 of the filter portion 4a expands and changes to w6, and the area of the opening 4d1 also increases. However, since the opening width of the peripheral region 4a2 remains unchanged at w5, the opening area of the peripheral region 4d2 having a large liquid flow rate does not change, and the foreign matter collecting performance does not significantly deteriorate.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the filter unit 4a having a different configuration. FIG. 5 shows the points where the filter portion 4a on which the mesh-like filter pattern is formed is divided and the points where the divided resin comb tooth portions (comb teeth 4c1 and 4c2) are arranged so as to alternately mesh with each other. It is the same as the example of. However, in the example of FIG. 6, the number, shape, and arrangement of the comb teeth 4c1 of one of the divided filters and the comb teeth 4c2 of the other filter are different, and the two comb teeth 4c1 and one are different. Comb teeth 4c2 correspond. Even with the shape of the comb teeth, the effect of the divided filter does not change.

FIG. 6A is a normal state in which no force acts on the filter portion 4a, and the opening width of the central region 4a1 is w7 and the opening width of the peripheral region 4a2 is w8.
FIG. 6B shows a state in which an external force F acts on the filter portion 4a, the opening width of the central region 4a1 expands and changes to w9, and the area of the opening 4d1 also increases. However, since the opening width of the peripheral region 4a2 remains unchanged at w8 and the area of the opening 4d2 does not change, the deterioration of the foreign matter collecting performance is suppressed.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the filter unit 4a having a different configuration. Similar to FIG. 5, the comb tooth portions (comb teeth 4c1 and 4c2) of the divided filter portions 4a are arranged so as to alternately mesh with each other. Further, as shown in FIG. 7A, a part of the divided portion of the filter is connected by a resin (comb tooth connecting portion 4c3) having a width narrower than the width of the resin constituting the filter (comb tooth width). ..

In this case, even if stress is applied to the filter portion 4a due to deformation or expansion and contraction of the chip, the resin in the thin portion expands and contracts first, and sometimes a part is divided to relieve the stress, so that the opening area of the filter is relaxed. Does not change. The resin connecting the divided portions of the filter may be thinner than the resin constituting the filter as long as it can be patterned by photolithography, and its location and thickness are not particularly limited.
FIG. 7B shows a state in which the comb tooth connection portion 4c3 is broken. Even in this case, the opening width of the central region 4a1 expands from w10 to w12, and the area of the opening 4d1 increases. However, since the opening width of the peripheral region 4a2 having a large liquid flow rate does not change at w11 and the area of the opening 4d2 does not change, the foreign matter collecting performance can be maintained as much as possible.

As described above, the configuration example of the filter unit 4a used as the filter layer has been described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 7. In these examples, at least a part of the mesh-shaped filter portion 4a is divided, and comb teeth are formed at the divided ends. By forming comb teeth at the end of the divided area, even if an external force is applied and the divided part is pushed open, the opening width and opening area are widened and the filter effect is slightly reduced, but the filter effect can be maintained to some extent. .. However, the present invention is not limited to this. At least a part of the planar filter having a shape in which a plurality of openings are arranged in a planar manner like a mesh is divided, and when an external force is applied, the peripheral region of the filter portion 4a is larger than the central region. However, it suffices if the degree of shape change is small.

<Orifice portion configuration example>
FIG. 8 shows an example in which the structure of the orifice layer 6 is different. FIG. 8A is a cross-sectional view taken through AA of FIG. 1 and cut in a cross section perpendicular to the recording head 100, as in FIG. 2. FIG. 6B is a plan view of the filter unit 4a.

The orifice layer 6 of this example has a filter connecting portion 6a for connecting the filter portion 4a of the intermediate layer 4 to the orifice layer 6. The presence of the filter connection portion 6a can prevent the divided filter from falling into the liquid supply port 8 and conversely turning up to the upper part 12 of the liquid flow path. As shown in the figure, it is sufficient that a part of the filter portion is connected, and the location and the number thereof are not particularly limited as long as the flow of the liquid is not obstructed. In the illustrated example, the filter connecting portions 6a are arranged every two comb teeth for each of the divided filter portions 4a.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the orifice layer 6 different from that of FIG. The orifice layer 6 of this example includes a filter holding portion 6b which is arranged on the upper part of the filter and is formed apart from the filter portion 4a. The filter holding portion 6b exerts an effect of preventing the filter from being turned up by the flow of liquid when foreign matter is collected by the filter.

Hereinafter, preferred examples of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to examples in which various components of the present invention are combined. However, the present invention is not limited to these examples.

[Example 1]
First, as the silicon substrate 1, a wafer in which an energy generating element 2 and a driving circuit thereof were formed on the surface and silicon oxide and silicon nitride as a membrane film 3 were formed was prepared. Then, a resin layer as an intermediate layer 4 for forming a foreign matter collecting filter was applied to the surface of the silicon substrate 1 by a spin coating method. After applying a resist on it, it was exposed and developed to form a resist pattern. By dry etching the resin layer using this resist pattern as a mask, a filter pattern having a divided central portion was formed on the surface of the silicon substrate. Subsequently, the mold material layer 5 and the orifice layer 6 were patterned. Subsequently, the silicon substrate 1 was subjected to wet etching treatment at 83 ° C. using an etching solution of 22 parts by weight of TMAH to form an opening to be a liquid supply port 8. Finally, the membrane film 3 and the mold material layer 5 were removed to obtain a silicon substrate 1 having a desired liquid supply port and liquid discharge port opened. The silicon substrate 1 was cut and separated by a dicing sorter into chips, and electrical wiring was connected to obtain a recording head 100 for an inkjet recording device.

When the recording head 100 was observed after a high temperature and low temperature temperature cycle, no deformation of the filter was observed. Further, when the flow of ink was confirmed using a high-speed camera, the flow of ink from the liquid supply port 8 to the liquid discharge port 9 was observed, and no particular curling or dropping of the filter was observed. Further, when a printing inspection was performed using ink, dust in the ink could be collected by the ink filter, and good ink ejection without blurring or unevenness of printing was possible.

[Example 2]
In this embodiment, the filter pattern shape formed on the surface of the silicon substrate is a combination of the comb teeth of each of the divided filters as shown in FIG.
Other than that, the silicon substrate 1 was prepared in the same process as in Example 1 to obtain a recording head 100.

When the recording head 100 was observed after a high temperature and low temperature cycle, no deformation of the filter was observed. Moreover, when the flow of ink was confirmed using a high-speed camera, the flow of ink from the liquid supply port to the liquid discharge port was observed, and no particular curling or dropping of the filter was observed. Further, when a printing inspection was performed using ink, dust in the ink could be collected by the ink filter, and good ink ejection without blurring or unevenness of printing was possible.

[Example 3]
In this embodiment, the filter pattern shape formed on the surface of the silicon substrate is such that the comb teeth of the divided filters are alternately combined with each other as shown in FIG. 7, and the combined comb teeth and the comb teeth are combined. It is connected by a comb tooth connecting portion 4c3 made of a resin having a narrow gap. Other than that, the silicon substrate 1 was prepared in the same process as in Example 1 to obtain a recording head 100.

When the recording head 100 was observed after a high temperature and low temperature cycle, a thin resin was torn off in a part, but no deformation of the filter was observed. Moreover, when the flow of the ink was confirmed using a high-speed camera, the flow of the ink from the liquid supply port to the liquid discharge port was observed, and no particular curling or dropping of the filter was observed. Further, when a printing inspection was performed using ink, dust in the ink could be collected by the ink filter, and good ink ejection without blurring or unevenness of printing was possible.

[Comparative Example 1]
Subsequently, as a comparative example with the present invention, the filter pattern shape formed on the surface of the silicon substrate as shown in FIG. 10 is shown. In the comparative example, since the filter is not divided, there is no comb tooth portion. In other respects, the silicon substrate 1 was prepared in the same process as in Example 1 to obtain a recording head 100.

When the recording head 100 of this comparative example was observed after a high temperature and low temperature temperature cycle, deformation of the filter was observed. That is, in the pre-deformation state of FIG. 10A, the width and area of the opening 4d1 of the central region 4a1 of the filter portion 4a and the opening 4d2 of the peripheral region 4a2 are about the same. On the other hand, in FIG. 10B, which has undergone deformation due to the temperature cycle, the area of the opening 4d2 of the peripheral region 4a2 is increased.
Moreover, when the flow of the ink was confirmed using a high-speed camera, the flow of the ink from the liquid supply port to the liquid discharge port was observed, and no particular curling or dropping of the filter was observed. However, when a print inspection was performed using ink, dust in the ink that had passed through the filter was clogged in the ink ejection port, and printing blurring and unevenness occurred. This is thought to be related to the increase in the amount of foreign matter that cannot be filtered by the filter due to the widening of the opening in the area around the filter where the flow rate is high.

(effect)
As described above, according to the recording head 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention, even when an external force is applied and a shape change (for example, elongation or deformation due to heat shrinkage or material stress) occurs in the constituent members of the recording head 100. , The opening shape and opening area of the filter portion 4a of the intermediate layer 4 are unlikely to change. In particular, the opening area in the area around the filter where the amount of liquid passing is large does not increase. As a result, the efficiency of collecting foreign matter by the filter can be maintained.

1: Silicon substrate, 4a: Filter part, 4d1: Aperture, 4d2: Aperture, 6: Orifice layer, 8: Liquid supply port, d9: Liquid discharge port, 12: Upper part of liquid flow path

Claims (10)

A liquid discharge port that discharges liquid and
A liquid supply port that supplies the liquid to the liquid discharge port,
A filter layer having a plurality of openings arranged in a plane, provided in a liquid flow path between the liquid supply port and the liquid discharge port,
It is a recording head equipped with
A recording head characterized in that at least a part of the filter layer is divided. The plurality of openings included in the filter layer are arranged in a mesh pattern.
When the filter layer is provided in the liquid flow path, the region far from the liquid discharge port is defined as the first region, and the region close to the liquid discharge port is defined as the second region. The recording head according to claim 1, wherein the recording head is divided in the area of 1. When the filter layer is divided into a first divided region and a second divided region, the divided openings are provided at the opposite ends of the first divided region and the second divided region. The recording head according to claim 2, wherein a comb tooth is formed based on the edge of the head. The recording head according to claim 3, wherein the protrusion of the comb tooth in the first divided region and the protrusion of the comb tooth in the second divided region face each other. The recording head according to claim 3, wherein the comb teeth in the first dividing region and the comb teeth in the second dividing region are in mesh with each other. The filter layer has a comb tooth connecting portion having a width narrower than the width of the comb teeth, which connects the comb teeth in the first dividing region and the comb teeth in the second dividing region. The recording head according to any one of claims 3 to 5. In the recording head, a substrate provided with the liquid supply port, the filter layer, and an orifice layer forming the liquid flow path and the liquid discharge port are laminated in this order.
The recording head according to any one of claims 3 to 6, further comprising a filter connecting portion connecting the orifice layer and at least a part of the comb teeth of the filter layer. In the recording head, a substrate provided with the liquid supply port, the filter layer, and an orifice layer forming the liquid flow path and the liquid discharge port are laminated in this order.
One of claims 3 to 6, wherein the orifice layer has a filter holding portion that protrudes from the orifice layer toward the filter layer and faces the filter layer via the liquid flow path. The recording head described in the section. A liquid discharge port that discharges liquid and
A liquid supply port that supplies the liquid to the liquid discharge port,
A filter layer having a plurality of openings arranged in a liquid flow path between the liquid supply port and the liquid discharge port, and a filter layer having a plurality of openings.
It is a recording head equipped with
When the filter layer is provided in the liquid flow path, the region far from the liquid discharge port is set as the first region, and the region close to the liquid discharge port is set as the second region, a force is applied to the filter layer. The recording head is characterized in that the degree of change in the shape of the opening in the first region is smaller than the degree of change in the shape of the opening in the second region. A process of forming a filter layer in which a plurality of openings are arranged in a plane on a substrate on which a liquid supply port is formed, and a process of forming a filter layer.
On the filter layer, an orifice layer is formed so as to communicate with the liquid supply port via the filter layer to form a liquid flow path and to form a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid from the liquid flow path. Process and
Have,
A method for manufacturing a recording head, characterized in that at least a part of the filter layer is divided.

Images