JP3015179B2 - INK JET PRINT HEAD AND INK JET PRINTING APPARATUS HAVING THE HEAD - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a small-sized ink jet recording head detachable from, for example, an ink jet recording apparatus main body and an ink jet recording apparatus having the head.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various recording methods have been developed today. In particular, an ink jet recording method in which ink is ejected from an ejection port in accordance with a recording signal to perform recording has been widely used in recent years because the size of the apparatus is easily reduced and noise reduction is easy. Many ink jet recording heads used in this ink jet recording apparatus are detachable from the recording apparatus main body for easy maintenance. The supply of the ink and the supply of the electric signal are each performed by, for example, a tube joint, a connector contact terminal, or the like.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are a schematic side sectional view and a schematic perspective view, respectively, showing an example of an ink jet recording head according to the background art. Here, an ink jet recording head of a form in which ink is ejected particularly by using thermal energy is shown.

On the upper surface of the support plate 1, a heat generating portion (hereinafter, also referred to as a "heater") of an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy is provided on the surface, and an energy substrate (hereinafter, referred to as "heater") made of Si or the like. A heater board 2) and a wiring board 9 whose base material is made of glass / epoxy or the like for transmitting an electric signal sent from the printing apparatus main body to the heater board 2 are bonded and disposed. ing. The heater board 2 and the wiring board 9 are connected by wire bonding 7.

[0005] On the upper surface of the wiring board 9, contact pads 4 (hereinafter, also referred to as "connection terminals") which are in contact with and electrically connected to the flexible wiring board of the printing apparatus main body are provided. The ink is supplied from the main body of the recording apparatus via the ink supply member 6 into the top plate 5 which forms the common liquid chamber and the wall of the ink path, and is discharged from the discharge port 8.

[0006]

However, since the ink joint portion and the contact pad portion are arranged on the same surface side of the support plate 1, the ink joint portion after the recording head is detached from the recording apparatus main body and detached and attached. There is a problem that the contact pad portion is contaminated with ink due to slight leakage of ink from the ink, and a contact failure may occur.

In recent years, further miniaturization of the device has been demanded. However, the number of connection terminals and the pad area are limited in the contact pad portion, and it is also difficult to reduce the area occupied by the contact pad portion. Since the area of the support plate of the recording head is determined by the total of the heater board portion, the wire bonding portion, and the contact pad portion,
There is also a problem that further miniaturization cannot be easily achieved.

The main object of the present invention is to solve these problems and to provide a small-sized ink jet recording head capable of performing stable recording with higher reliability and an ink jet recording apparatus provided with the head. I do.

[0009]

According to the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording head, which is provided on a support and on one surface of the support, and discharges ink from a discharge port in response to a recording signal. An energy substrate provided with energy generating means for generating energy used for
A portion provided on the one surface of the support adjacent to the energy substrate and a portion provided with a connection terminal for receiving a recording signal from a recording apparatus main body, wherein the connection terminal is A wiring substrate for transmitting the received recording signal to the energy substrate, wherein the wiring substrate is bent at least 90 degrees so that the portion provided with the connection terminal is provided on the one surface of the support. And is disposed on the surface on the opposite side.

[0010] In particular, in the present invention, by bending the wiring board by about 180 degrees, the portion of the support on which the connection terminal of the wiring board is provided on the surface opposite to the surface on which the energy substrate is provided. It is arranged.

In addition, the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is provided with a support, and is provided on one surface of the support, and generates energy used for discharging ink from a discharge port in response to a recording signal. An energy substrate provided with an energy generating means, a portion disposed on the one surface of the support adjacent to the energy substrate, and a connection terminal for receiving a recording signal from a recording apparatus main body. And a wiring board for transmitting the recording signal received by the connection terminal to the energy board.
The wiring board is bent by 90 degrees or more,
An ink jet recording head in which a portion provided with the connection terminal is disposed on a surface opposite to the one surface of the support, and a mounting member for mounting the ink jet recording head, It is characterized by having.

[0012]

According to the present invention, since the contact pads are arranged on the side of the support opposite to the side on which the heater board is arranged, both sides of the support plate can be used effectively.
Since the area of the support plate can be reduced, the size of the recording head can be further reduced.

Further, since the contact pad portion is arranged on the side opposite to the ink joint portion, it is possible to prevent the contact pad portion from being contaminated with ink and from being adversely affected by electrical contact.

[0014]

【Example】

(Embodiment 1) An ink jet recording head according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1A is a schematic side sectional view showing an ink jet recording head according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B shows an ink jet recording head in which an ink tank is detachably provided. It is a schematic side sectional view. FIG. 2A is a schematic perspective view of the ink jet recording head viewed from the top side, and FIG. 2B is a schematic perspective view of the ink jet recording head viewed from the bottom side.

First, an overall configuration of an ink jet recording head according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. Along with the support plate 1 made of aluminum or the like, a heat generating portion (heater) of an electrothermal converter that generates heat energy used for ejecting ink is provided on the surface, and an energy substrate made of Si or the like is used as a base material. A flexible wiring board 3 made of polyimide or polyester and having connection terminals (contact pads) 4 for transmitting electric signals sent from the main body of the printing apparatus to the heater board 2;
And are arranged. The heater board 2 and the wiring board 9 are connected by wire bonding 7.

On the back side of the wire bonding 7 between the support plate 1 and the flexible wiring board 3, a first reinforcing plate 301 made of glass / epoxy or the like is bonded and interposed. The flexible portion of the flexible wiring board 3 on which the reinforcing plate is not provided is bent by about 180 degrees. Then, a second reinforcing plate 302 made of glass / epoxy or the like is bonded to a position corresponding to the contact pad 4 of the flexible wiring board 3 on the back side of the support plate 1. The contact pads 4 of the flexible wiring board 3 are in contact with the contact pads of the flexible wiring board of the printing apparatus main body to supply an electric signal.

The ink is supplied from the main body of the recording apparatus through the ink supply port 6a of the ink supply member 6 into the top plate 5 forming the common liquid chamber and the wall of the ink path, and is heated by the heater on the heater board 2. From the discharge port 8.

Next, the main part of the manufacturing process of the recording head in this embodiment will be described.

First, an adhesive such as an epoxy-based adhesive or a silicone-based adhesive such as SE9145, SE4410 (manufactured by Toray Dow Corning Silicone Co., Ltd.) is applied to a required portion on one side of the washed support by screen printing or the like. Apply the agent. In addition, as the support, it is possible to use ceramic or glass, but it is preferable to use a metal such as Al.

Next, at one end of the surface to which the adhesive has been applied,
The heating board 2 is positioned and adhered, and one end of the wiring board 3 made of a metal base material is protruded from the other end of the same surface so that a portion where a contact pad serving as a connection terminal with the apparatus side protrudes. The part is positioned and bonded by a positioning part (not shown).

Thereafter, the connection terminals of the heater board 2 and the wiring board 3 are connected by wire bonding 7 or the like.
Then, an ink path and a common liquid chamber are formed by bonding a top plate on the heater board, and the ink supply member 6 is connected to the top plate and sealed with a sealant such as a silicone resin.

Next, the portion of the wiring board protruding from the support (the portion provided with the contact pads) is bent and positioned 180 degrees, and adhered to the back surface of the support plate 1.

The base material of the wiring board 3 may be any metal (including an alloy) that can withstand a large bending of 90 degrees or more, and for example, a metal made of aluminum, copper, or the like is desirable. . In addition, if the metal wiring board is bent to a radius of about 2.5 times or less the thickness of the wiring board, the wiring may be cracked and may be disconnected. For this reason,
This thickness is desirably as thin as possible from the point of bending, but a certain thickness is necessary at points of shape retention and flatness of the contact surface. Such a preferred thickness range in this embodiment is 0.5 m
m or less and 0.1 mm or more.

In FIG. 2B, reference numeral 9 denotes a positioning opening used when the wiring board 3 is bent and bonded, and an opening is also formed in the support at a position corresponding to the positioning hole of the wiring board 3. Alternatively, a concave portion is provided, and positioning is performed by aligning these positions. However, the positioning may be performed not only by the method using the opening of the wiring board 3 as described above, but also by the shape (for example, engagement relationship) between the wiring board and the support. It is also desirable to perform the same positioning on the side of the wiring board 3 where the wiring board 3 is connected to the heater board.

By arranging the contact pads on the side opposite to the side on which the heater board 2 is provided, both sides of the support plate 1 can be used effectively.
According to this embodiment, since the area of the support plate 1 can be reduced, the size of the recording head can be reduced. Further, since the contact pad portion is arranged on the side opposite to the ink joint portion, it is possible to prevent the contact pad portion from being contaminated with ink or adversely affecting electrical contact.

(Embodiment 2) In Embodiment 1 described above, wire bonding is used for connection between the heater board 2 and the flexible wiring board 3, but other connection methods may be used.

FIG. 3 is a schematic side sectional view showing an embodiment using TAB for connecting the heater board 2 and the flexible wiring board 3. According to the present embodiment, since the area occupied by the connection portion can be further reduced than the connection portion by wire bonding, the area of the support plate 1 can be further reduced, and the inkjet recording head can be further reduced in size.

(Embodiment 3) In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the case where the flexible wiring board 3 is bent by about 180 degrees has been described. However, the bending angle is not necessarily limited to about 180 degrees. Good.

FIG. 4 is a schematic side sectional view showing an embodiment in which a mold member or the like whose shape can be freely designed is used as the support 11 on which the heater board 2 and the flexible wiring board 3 are disposed.

In this embodiment, the bending angle is between 90 degrees and 180 degrees, which is smaller than that of the above-described embodiment. Therefore, the stress on the bent portion of the flexible wiring board 3 is reduced, and the reliability is increased. In addition, there is an advantage that the degree of freedom of design relating to the position of the contact pad and the bending angle is increased.

An example of the ink jet recording apparatus equipped with the ink jet recording head according to the above embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing a main part of an example of the ink jet recording apparatus.

In FIG. 7, reference numeral 320 denotes a platen 324.
This is a head / ink tank separation / exchange type ink jet cartridge head having a plurality of ink ejection ports facing the recording surface of a recording paper (not shown) conveyed thereon. 3
Reference numeral 16 denotes a carriage on which the ink jet recording head 320 is mounted. The carriage 16 is connected to a part of a drive belt 318 that transmits the driving force of a drive motor 317, and has two guide shafts 329A and 329B arranged in parallel with each other.
Is slidable. Thus, the ink jet recording head 320 can reciprocate over the entire width of the recording paper.

326 is an ink jet recording head 320
This is a recovery device for recovering and preventing an ink discharge failure from the ink jet recording head, and is provided at a predetermined position in a moving range of the inkjet recording head 320, for example, at a position facing a home position. The recovery device 326 caps the ejection port of the inkjet recording head 320 by the driving force of the motor 322 via the transmission mechanism 323. In connection with the capping operation of the ejection port of the ink jet recording head 320 by the cap 326A of the recovery device 326, suction of ink from the ejection port by an appropriate suction means (not shown) provided in the recovery device 326, or the ink jet recording head The ink is fed by an appropriate pressurizing means (not shown) provided in the ink supply path to the ink. Thus, a recovery process is performed in which the ink is forcibly discharged from the discharge port and foreign substances such as thickened ink inside the discharge port are removed.

A blade 330 is disposed on the side surface of the recovery device 326 and is made of silicon rubber and serves as a wiping member. The blade 330 is held in a cantilever form by a blade holding member 330A, and the recovery device 32
As in the case of No. 6, it is operated by the motor 322 and the transmission mechanism 323 to enable engagement with the ejection opening surface of the inkjet recording head 320. Thereby, for example, at an appropriate timing during the recording operation of the inkjet recording head 320, or after a recovery process using the recovery device 326, or the like,
The blade 330 is projected into the moving range of the ink jet recording head 320,
With the movement operation of the ink jet recording head 32,
It is possible to wipe off foreign substances such as dew condensation, wetness, or dust adhering to the discharge port surface of the No. 0.

The driving of the recording paper transporting means, the carriage and the recovery device, and the driving of the recording head of the ink jet recording apparatus are controlled based on commands and signals output from control means including a CPU on the apparatus main body side, for example. You.

Next, the configuration and electric circuit of an information processing apparatus incorporating the above-described recording apparatus will be described.

FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view showing the appearance of an information processing device 604 incorporating a recording device. In the figure, reference numeral 601 denotes the above-described printer unit; 602, a keyboard unit having keys for inputting characters, numerals, and other characters, keys for giving various commands, and the like;
A display unit including three display units.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit configuration of an information processing device incorporating a recording device.

Referring to FIG. 5, reference numeral 501 denotes a controller which performs main control; 502, a CPU in the form of a microcomputer for executing a certain procedure; 503, an area for expanding text data and image data; 504 is a ROM that stores programs corresponding to the above-described procedures and other fixed data such as font data, and 505 is a block that creates an execution cycle of the CPU 502 and a timing that is necessary for a printing operation by the printer unit 601. Timer, 506 is CPU
An interface unit that connects a signal from the peripheral device 502 to a peripheral device.

Reference numeral 507 denotes a controller of the printer unit 601. Reference numeral 508 denotes a head driver that sends a recording signal, electric power, and the like to the head cartridge 101.
Reference numerals a and b denote motor drivers for transmitting signals, electric power, and the like necessary for driving the carrier motor 402a and the transport motor 402b, respectively. Reference numeral 510 detects the position of the carrier 102 and determines whether the carrier 102 is at the home position, for example. Sensor 511 detects the presence or absence of the recording medium 6 in order to prevent the recording from being performed in a place other than the recording medium 6 when the recording medium 6 is not inserted or the recording is completed up to the end of the page. Paper sensor.

Further, reference numeral 605 denotes, for example, an FDD, an HDD,
An external storage device 512 such as a RAM card is an external interface for communicating with another information processing device or controlling a peripheral device by directly connecting to an internal bus.

Although not included in the block diagram of FIG. 9, there is another power supply section for supplying power to the above electric circuit, such as a rechargeable battery, a disposable dry battery, Alternatively, there is an AC power converter when the information processing apparatus main body is fixed and used.

The present invention provides an excellent effect particularly in a recording head and a recording apparatus of a type in which ink is ejected by utilizing thermal energy among the ink jet recording methods. The present invention can also be applied to a recording head of a type that discharges ink using an electrostrictive element.

The typical structure and principle are described in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent No. 796. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and the continuous type. In particular, in the case of the on-demand type, liquid (ink)
By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to the recorded information and providing a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling, to the electrothermal transducer disposed corresponding to the sheet or the liquid path in which is held, This is effective because thermal energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and the film is boiled on the heat-acting surface of the recording head. As a result, bubbles in the liquid (ink) can be formed in one-to-one correspondence with the drive signal. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble to form at least one droplet. When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of a liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable. Examples of the drive signal in the form of a pulse include those described in U.S. Pat.
Suitable are those described in US Pat. No. 45,262. If the conditions described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface described above are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the configuration of the recording head, in addition to the combination of the ejection port, the liquid path, and the electrothermal converter (linear liquid flow path or right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications, U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 which disclose a configuration in which a heat acting portion is arranged in a bending region.
A configuration using the specification of Japanese Patent No. 459600 is also included in the present invention.

Further, as a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium that can be recorded by the recording apparatus, a combination of a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above specification is used. Either a configuration that satisfies the length or a configuration as one integrally formed recording head may be used, but the present invention can more effectively exert the above-described effects.

In addition, the print head is exchangeable with a print head of the chip type, which can be electrically connected to the main body of the apparatus and can supply ink from the main body of the apparatus, or is integrated with the print head itself. The present invention is also effective when a cartridge-type recording head provided in a fixed manner is used.

It is preferable to add recovery means for the print head, preliminary auxiliary means, and the like provided as components of the printing apparatus of the present invention since the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. To be more specific, a capping unit, a cleaning unit, a pressure or suction unit, a preheating unit using an electrothermal converter, another heating element, or a combination thereof, for the recording head. ,
Performing a preliminary ejection mode in which ejection is performed separately from printing is also effective for performing stable printing.

Further, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to the recording mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but may be a single recording head or a combination of plural recording heads. The present invention is also very effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of full colors by color mixture.

In the embodiments of the present invention described above, the description is made using the liquid ink. However, in the present invention, even if the ink is solid at room temperature, it is an ink that is softened at room temperature. Can also be used. In the above-described ink-jet apparatus, the temperature of the ink itself is 30 ° C. or more and 70 ° C.
In general, the viscosity of the ink is controlled so as to be in a stable ejection range by adjusting the temperature within a range of not more than ° C.
Therefore, in such an ink jet apparatus, it is sufficient to use ink that is liquid when the apparatus to which the recording signal is applied is used. In addition, the thermal energy is positively used as the energy of the state change from the solid state to the liquid state of the ink to prevent the temperature rise of the head due to the thermal energy, or by solidifying the ink in a standing state. In order to prevent evaporation of the ink, the ink is liquefied and ejected in a liquid state by applying thermal energy in accordance with the recording signal, or the ink is already solidified when it reaches the recording medium. Inks having the property of being liquefied for the first time by energy can also be used in the present invention.

[0051]

As described above, according to the present invention, when the wiring board is bent by 90 degrees or more, the connection of the wiring board on the surface of the support opposite to the surface on which the energy substrate is provided is provided. Since the portion provided with the terminals is provided, both surfaces of the support can be used effectively. Since the area of the support can be reduced, the size of the recording head can be further reduced.

Further, since the contact pad portion is arranged on the side opposite to the ink joint portion, it is possible to prevent the contact pad portion from being contaminated by ink and from being adversely affected by electrical contact.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a schematic side sectional view showing an ink jet recording head according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a diagram in which an ink tank is detachably provided on the ink jet recording head. It is a typical side sectional view shown.

FIG. 2A is a schematic perspective view of an ink jet recording head according to one embodiment of the present invention, as viewed from above.
(B) is a schematic perspective view of the ink jet recording head viewed from the bottom side.

FIG. 3 is a schematic side sectional view showing an inkjet recording head according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic side sectional view showing an ink jet recording head according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic side sectional view showing an example of an ink jet recording head according to a related art serving as a background.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of an ink jet recording head according to a related technology serving as a background.

FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a main part of an example of an ink jet recording apparatus.

FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an appearance of an information processing apparatus incorporating a recording device.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an electric circuit configuration of an information processing device incorporating a recording device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Support plate 2 Heater board 3 Flexible wiring board 301 First reinforcement plate 302 Second reinforcement plate 4 Contact pad 5 Top plate 6 Ink supply member 7 Wire bonding 8 Discharge port 9 Glass epoxy base wiring board 10 TAB 11 Support

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. An image forming apparatus comprising: a support; and an energy generating unit disposed on one surface of the support and configured to generate energy used for discharging ink from a discharge port in accordance with a recording signal. An energy substrate, a portion provided on the one surface of the support body adjacent to the energy substrate, and a portion provided with a connection terminal for receiving a recording signal from a recording apparatus main body; A wiring board for transmitting the recording signal received by the connection terminal to the energy board, wherein the wiring board is bent by 90 degrees or more,
An ink jet recording head, wherein a portion provided with the connection terminal is disposed on a surface of the support opposite to the one surface. 2. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein said wiring board is bent by about 180 degrees. 3. An ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein said energy generating means is an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy as said energy. 4. An ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein an ink passage communicating with said discharge port is formed on said energy substrate corresponding to said energy generating means. 5. The ink jet recording head according to claim 4, wherein an ink tank for storing the ink supplied to the passage is integrally provided. 6. A support, and an energy generating means disposed on one surface of the support and configured to generate energy used for discharging ink from a discharge port in accordance with a recording signal is provided. An energy substrate, having a portion provided on the one surface of the support adjacent to the energy substrate and a portion provided with a connection terminal for receiving a recording signal from a recording apparatus main body; A wiring board for transmitting the recording signal received by the connection terminal to the energy substrate, wherein the wiring board is bent by 90 degrees or more, so that the portion provided with the connection terminal is provided on the support body. An ink jet recording head comprising: an ink jet recording head disposed on a surface opposite to the one surface; and a mounting member for mounting the ink jet recording head. Recording apparatus.