JP3428856B2 - Inkjet recording head and inkjet recording apparatus equipped with the inkjet recording head - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet recording head and a recording device having the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art (1) Ink jet recording apparatuses of this type are mostly connected to word processors or personal computers and used as color printers or as facsimiles or copying machines.

As an ink jet recording head for a color printer used therein, conventionally, each color (black, yellow, magenta, cyan) is allocated by dividing the ink ejection portion in one head, and the number of nozzles per color is small. But,
One head type characterized by low cost, head type that separates each color that can increase the number of nozzles per color, but costs more, type that arranges multiple heads when printing, ink of each color independent It is roughly classified into three types in which the ejection unit is incorporated into one base to form one set head unit.

In the one-head split type, since the ejection ports of each color are opened in one orifice plate, the assembly precision can be excluded only by the processing precision, and the positional precision of the ejection ports of each color is good. There are few printing deviations, and the number of parts is small, which is advantageous for downsizing.

The type in which a plurality of heads are arranged is easy to make because the parts of each head can be made common and the head itself has a simple structure. However, since a plurality of heads are arranged, the overall size of the head portion becomes large and heavy.

In the assembled head unit type, the orifice plate of each color measures the positional deviation of ink droplets ejected from the ejection port, corrects the deviation, and is accurately assembled to the base, so that printing of each color is performed. Deviation is small, and even when the heads are replaced, it is easy because they are integrated as a combined head, and since the number of ejection openings for each color can be increased, high-speed recording is possible.

Further, the wiring board having the connection pad of the head is fixed to a component other than the ink container or the top plate. The method of fixing the top plate and the substrate on which the resistive heating element is formed also uses adhesive or springs. The spring method is that the top plate is fixed on the base plate on which the resistive heating element is formed. On top of which a spring is attached.

In the future, in order to further reduce the size required as an ink jet recording head for a color printer and to increase the recording speed, it is expected that the above-described two types of head configurations, that is, the one-head internal division and the combined head unit type will be used.

(2) On the other hand, the present ink jet recording system of this type can easily realize a small, lightweight and inexpensive apparatus as compared with the other systems, has less noise at the time of recording, and can also record on plain paper. Therefore, in recent years, low-cost printers have become the mainstream. Among them, the bubble jet method is a method of easily arranging a large number of ink ejection openings of an ink jet recording head with high density and a method of low energy consumption in electric driving, and therefore many products using this method are used. Is being offered to the market.

The form of ink supply in the presently known ink jet printing apparatus is roughly classified into the following two cases. That is, the first is to mount an ink jet recording head on a carriage and arrange a large-capacity ink tank at a predetermined position of the apparatus main body. Is the method of supplying.

When this method is adopted, the operating cost is very low, but the life of the ink jet recording head itself is required to be almost the same as or longer than that of the printing apparatus used, and therefore the ink jet recording head. However, the cost of the inkjet recording head itself tends to be high.

On the other hand, as a second method, there is an ink jet unit in which an ink tank and an ink jet recording head are integrated and which can be attached to and detached from a carriage. When this method is adopted, there is almost no need to run the tube, the ink replacement process is easy, and the device can be made compact. However, since the ink tank and the inkjet recording head are both replaced when the ink in the ink tank is exhausted, the operating cost becomes high. In particular, in such a case, the inkjet recording head having a life until at least the ink is used up is wasted, which is not preferable from the viewpoint of ecology and the like.

As one configuration for solving the problems of the above-mentioned second method, there is a configuration in which the ink jet recording head and the ink tank can be separated and each can be attached to and detached from the carriage. It is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4953. With such a configuration, the ink jet recording head and the ink tank can be exchanged independently of each other, and therefore, it is effective for solving the above-mentioned problems such as an increase in operating cost.

[0014]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

(A) However, even in the one-head-in-one division method of the previous section (1), there are the following problems. That is, since the plurality of resistive heating elements of one substrate on which the resistive heating elements are formed are divided for each color, the number of resistive heating elements assigned to each color is small, and printing cannot be performed at high speed.

Further, the set head unit type of the above item (1) also has the following problems. That is, when outputting a high-definition color image, it is necessary to reduce the deviation of the landing points of the ink droplets of each color. Therefore, the assembling of the orifice plate of each color requires higher accuracy, and the orifice plate is bonded to the base. As for the method, a method that does not shift the position as much as possible is required. Inevitably, the time required for the assembly becomes long, and an expensive assembling apparatus must be used. Also, since several heads are basically arranged, the size of the combined head unit becomes large and the number of parts also increases.

Further, since the wiring board having the connection pads is fixed to a component other than the ink container or the top plate, the head and the ink container cannot be separated to form a disposable head, or a fixing component for the head is attached. Therefore, the number of parts was increasing. Although the spring method is also used for fixing the top plate and the substrate on which the resistive heating element is formed, the assembly is easy,
As they were assembled on the base plate, the number of parts was large and the assembly time was long. Further, in order to assemble the substrate on which the plurality of resistive heating elements are formed on the base plate, the size becomes large and the assembly is difficult.

(B) Further, in the structure in which the ink jet recording head unit is attached to and detached from the carriage described in the item (2) and the ink jet recording head and the ink tank are separable, the following points are taken. Therefore, it was necessary to design the ink jet recording head and the ink jet unit.

That is, it is possible to prevent a decrease in electrical reliability due to adhesion of ink or paper powder, to improve accuracy in mounting an ink jet recording head or the like on a carriage, to improve the ease of replacement of an ink tank or the like, color recording. To improve the mutual alignment accuracy of the ink jet recording heads for performing the above, it is easy to manufacture the ink jet recording heads, and the like.

Therefore, the object of the present invention was made in view of the problems of the above-mentioned (a) and (b).
For item (a), it is possible to prevent printing deviation of each color due to ink droplet landing point accuracy and the like to improve the image quality of a high-definition color image, enable high-speed recording, and reduce the head size.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an inkjet recording head having a small number of parts and high reliability.

With respect to the item (b), it is an object to provide an ink jet recording head, an ink jet unit, and an ink jet recording apparatus which are inexpensive and can be miniaturized, and have high operability and reliability. An ink jet recording head and an ink jet unit capable of recording a high-quality image without misaligning the heads that affect color recording even if an ink tank or the like is attached or detached while being mounted in the ink jet recording device. And to provide an inkjet recording apparatus.

[0021]

Means for Solving the Problems] was to achieve the object
Therefore, in the present invention, the inkjet recording head is
Configure as in (1). (1) Two ink flow channel groove groups for forming an ink flow channel, two ink liquid chamber frames and an ink introduction channel are formed,
Further, a top plate having a plurality of rows of a plurality of ink ejection openings arranged therein, and a plurality of resistive heating elements for ejecting ink respectively corresponding to the two rows of ink ejection openings are formed. One substrate and two elastic members for pressing and fixing the substrate and the top plate for each substrate. By joining the substrate and the top plate, the ink flow path and the ink liquid chamber are formed. An inkjet recording head to be formed,
The said top plate, said ink ejection opening array has a groove that separates Lee ink ejection opening arrays each other is formed between the, <br/> ink discharge ports and ink flow path of the groove is the top plate is formed Than the part
Ink having a depth reaching a deepest position
Jet recording head.

In the ink jet recording head, the electrical connection surface is arranged within ± 5 ° in the direction perpendicular to the ink ejection direction of the head, and the ink ejection surface is on the recording material side with respect to the electrical connection surface. The configuration may be such that the protrusion is arranged at least by 5 mm or more.

[0023]

With the above-described structure of the present invention, the following operational effects are obtained. (B) In the ink jet recording head, a plurality of substrates having resistive heating elements are pressed and fixed by elastic members to a top plate having ink flow channel grooves, ink liquid chamber frames, etc. By forming the discharge port of each color with a laser beam with high precision, it is possible to improve the printing quality and image quality by using the laser beam. In addition, the number of parts is small and the assembly work is short, the product reliability and yield are improved, the size can be reduced, and a small printer can be realized. Furthermore, since a plurality of substrates having resistive heating elements can be used, high speed printing is possible. Further, by providing a groove (recess) that is deeper than the ink flow path between the ink ejection port arrays, each substrate can be brought into good contact with the top plate.

(B) Further, reliability is improved by not forming the ink ejection surface on the same surface as the ink supply surface and the electrical connection surface, and 180 degrees with the center point of the two ink ejection rows as the center of rotation. ° By arranging it in a rotated position, it is possible to reduce costs by sharing parts, and by connecting the ink supply part in the ink ejection direction, the load applied to the head when attaching and detaching the ink tank is evenly distributed outside the ink row. By receiving it, it is also possible to prevent the positional deviation of the head which affects the color recording.

[0025]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 schematically shows the structure of an ink jet head 10 (a first embodiment of the present invention is one in which ink ejection ports are arranged in two rows) according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view. In the figure, 1 is a top plate in which an ink flow path groove, an ink liquid chamber frame, and an ink ejection port are previously opened, 2 is a wiring board for electrically connecting a board on which a resistive heating element is mounted and a carriage side, 3 is an elastic member for pressing and fixing the substrate having the resistive heating element to the top plate 1,
Reference numeral 5 is an ink ejection port formed in the top plate 1, 6 is a recess provided in the center of the top plate 1, and 9 is a rib provided in the recess 6.

In the configuration of the two-row arrangement of this example, one row side and the two-row side can be produced symmetrically, and since the ink introduction paths can be gathered together at one place, compared to the three-row arrangement or more. The top plate is easy to make and easy to assemble.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the detailed structure of the ink jet head 10 shown in FIG. 1, and is a schematic view drawn so that the outline of the parts structure and assembly can be understood.
In the figure, 4 is a substrate having the above-mentioned resistive heating element,
The wiring board 2 is electrically connected by TAB mounting.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view drawn so that the internal structure of the ink jet head 10 shown in FIG. 1 and the outline of the ink path can be understood. In the figure, 7 is an ink introduction path for guiding the ink from the ink container to the ink liquid chamber, and the ink passes from the ink container 11 through this ink introduction path 7,
The liquid enters the liquid chamber 8 formed by the top plate 1 and the substrate 4 having the resistive heating element, and further enters the ink channel having the resistive heating element from the liquid chamber 8. Then, film boiling is caused in the ink by the thermal energy of the resistive heating element, and the ink is ejected from the ejection port 5.

The liquid chamber 8 is formed by the top plate 1 and the substrate 4 having the resistive heating element, and is sealed with a sealant in order to completely seal the gap between them and prevent ink leakage. Also,
The sealant is also used in the TAB connecting portion between the substrate 4 having the resistive heating element and the wiring substrate 2 to prevent ink adhesion and protect it.

The top plate 1 is formed by integrally molding resin or the like,
The ink ejection port 5, the ink flow path groove, the ink liquid chamber frame, and the ink introduction path 7 are processed by molding or laser processing. Since the ink ejection port 5 and the ink flow path groove need to be processed with high precision, they are preferably formed by laser processing.

In addition, the ink ejection port 5 should have a smaller angle variation in the ink ejection direction for each ink column, and the relative ink from each ink column may be changed even if the distance between the ink ejection port 5 and the recording medium changes. Since the landing position of does not change, electrical correction is basically unnecessary and the configuration is electrically simple. Therefore, the processing accuracy is increased and the surface treatment around the ink ejection port 5 is made uniform. For these integrally molded products, it is necessary to select a material that is not easily corroded by the moldability and ink, and polysulfone is preferable as a concrete material, but other molding materials may be used.

The substrate 4 having a resistive heating element is used for recording by causing film boiling on the ink by thermal energy, and the resistive heating elements arranged in a plurality of rows on the Si substrate An electric wiring such as Al for supplying electric power to the substrate is formed by a film forming technique, and in order to reduce the number of pads for TAB, the substrate has a shift register and a driving transistor built therein. The substrate 4 and the top plate 1 need to be assembled with high precision.

The wiring board 2 connects the electric signal from the board 4 and the main body printer (ink jet recording apparatus), one side is connected to the board 4 by TAB, and the other side is the electric signal from the main body printer. It has a connection pad for receiving. The connection pad portion is accurately fixed to the top plate 1 by adhesion. Therefore, the head can be treated as one unit, and the assembly is easy and the recycling is easy.
Further, the substrate 4 having the resistive heating element is fixed to the top plate 1 by mechanical biasing by the elastic member 3.

Then, as described above, the substrate 4 is made of the elastic member 3
Due to this, the top plate 1 is in close contact with the top plate 1, and therefore, the top plate 1 needs to be slightly deformed in order to make a complete contact. This is because it is impossible to make the contact surfaces of the substrate 4 and the top plate 1 completely flat in a single product state, and the contact surface is several μm
This is because a certain degree of transparency is generated.

Therefore, by providing a groove (recess) 6 deeper than the ink ejection portion (ink ejection port and ink flow path) between the two ejection port arrays of the top plate, each substrate of the top plate is provided for each substrate. The ink ejecting portion corresponding to is easily deformed, and the contact state between the substrate and the top plate can be improved.

Further, in this embodiment, the recess 6 of the top plate 1 is used.
The ribs 9 are provided at both ends of the structure, and the top plate in the part without the ribs is structured to be easily deformed to improve the adhesion.

That is, the present embodiment is suitable when the top plate 1 and the substrate 4 are connected to each other without external force, and there is a gap between both ends.

Further, when the ribs are provided at both ends of the concave portion as described above, a gap may occur in the central portion of the substrate. Therefore, after pressing and fixing the substrate and the top plate with an elastic member, a member that becomes a wedge from the width of the recess (groove) is inserted in the vicinity of the center of the substrate of the recess, and this wedge moves from the inside of the recess to the center of the substrate. By pressing the corresponding part, the adhesion between the substrate and the top plate can be further increased. Here, the member to be the wedge may be any material as long as it has a hardness equal to or higher than the material forming the top plate,
By using the same material as the top plate, it is possible to reduce the risk that the balance of adhesion will change due to temperature changes.

By the way, in the present embodiment, when the inks of different colors are used for the two ink ejection port arrays, the recesses (grooves) provided between the ink ejection port arrays are used for cleaning the ink ejection port surface. It is also effective in preventing color mixing. This will be described below.

First, an ink jet recording apparatus equipped with such an ink jet head will be described with reference to FIG.

In the configuration of FIG. 13, the carriage 200
Are moved in parallel on the lead screw 204 and the guide shaft 205 by the lead screw 204 which is interlocked with the carriage motor 203.

On the carriage 200, a print head 202 in which a head and an ink tank are integrated is fixed, and ink ejected from the print head 202 is printed by the print head 2.
The image is formed by landing on the recording medium facing the No. 02, that is, the recording paper 206. The recording paper 206 is discharged by a paper discharge motor (not shown), a paper feed roller, a paper discharge roller, and a paper pressing plate 209 which are interlocked with the motor in association with printing. Then, at the time of non-printing or at the time of recovery operation, capping is performed by a cap (not shown).

The wiper 110 is a print head 202.
Is for cleaning the face surface (ink ejection surface) of the ink, and removes ink and foreign matter adhering to the face surface after the recovery operation or during printing. Usually this wiper 110
It retreats to a position where it does not contact the head, moves forward only during wiping, and contacts the face surface of the head 202 that has moved together with the carriage 200.

Next, the wiping operation when the above ink jet head unit is attached to the recording apparatus will be described below.

When wiping is performed, the wiper 110, which is a cleaning member, advances to the wiping position in synchronization with the head that moves together with the carriage, as shown in FIG.
It penetrates into the concave portion 6 of the top plate 1. Then, by moving the carriage as it is, the face surface on one side of the top plate 1 is wiped. Further, when the carriage moves in the opposite direction, the wiping operation is performed in the same manner as described above, so that the face surface on the opposite side is also wiped.

That is, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 5, since the two nozzle rows have different wiping directions, it is possible to prevent the waste of ink due to the color mixture and the preliminary ejection associated therewith. Also, since wiping is performed only when necessary for each nozzle row, it is not necessary to improve the durability of the face surface more than necessary. Particularly, in a head provided with a recording ink on one side and a treatment liquid that reacts with the ink on the other hand to improve print quality, water resistance, etc., a reaction occurs when the ink and the treatment liquid come into contact with each other. It is desirable to change the wiping direction on the member and as described above.

Further, since the ridge line of the concave portion 6 and the wiper 110 are in contact with each other at the time of wiping, the face surface is wiped, so that unnecessary ink adhering to the wiper 110 is removed and retained in the concave portion 6. Therefore, wiper 1
10 makes it possible to wipe the face surface in a clean state at all times.

Further, it is more preferable that the ridgeline of the recess 6 is chamfered as shown in FIG. The chamfered portion serves as an intrusion guide for the wiper 110 and prevents the wiper 110 from being damaged by the edge. Figure 6
Then, it was chamfered, but it may be rounded.

In FIG. 6, l1 is a deformable region where the blade is not fixed (free length), l2 is the amount of penetration into the face surface, and t is the thickness of the blade. The wipeability of the face surface is largely determined by the above parameters.
That is, as the free length is long, the amount of penetration is small, and the thickness is thin, the pressure contact force of the blade with respect to the face surface becomes weaker, and conversely, the pressure contact force increases. At this time, if the pressure contact force is too weak, the ink will be left unwiped, and if it is too strong, the blade will be deformed too much and the ink will be left unwiped and the durability of the face surface will be deteriorated.

According to experiments conducted by the present inventors, for example, the blade material: urethane, free length: 4 mm, thickness: 0.3 m
At m, the optimum range of penetration is 0.4 to 1.5 mm
Was in the range. Since the amount of penetration is determined by the positional relationship between the head and the blade, it is desirable to have an optimum range of 0.4 mm or more in consideration of variations.
Further, according to the experimental results obtained by changing the above parameters, the blade thickness is 0.15 mm or more and the penetration amount is 0.2
It is desirable that it is mm or more.

The recess 6 of the top plate 1 is formed by the wiper 1
It is preferable that the depth (A) is 0.3 mm or more and the width (B) is 0.5 mm or more so as not to prevent the intrusion of 10.

Generally, a head having a water repellent area for preventing the ejection angle from bending due to ink leakage on the face surface and a hydrophilic area for trapping ink droplets adhering to the face surface is known. But such a top plate 1
A preferred embodiment of a head having a hydrophilic portion 13 on its face surface is shown in FIG.

The operation of the wiper 110 of this embodiment is shown in FIG.
Similar to the embodiment shown in (1), the process is performed from the center of the top plate 1 toward the outside of each nozzle row. In this case, as shown in FIG. 7, the hydrophilic portions 13 are provided outside the respective nozzle rows (top plate end portions). That is, since the hydrophilic portion 13 in which foreign matter such as adhered ink is likely to collect is located downstream of the nozzle in the wiper direction, there is no fear of pushing the foreign matter into the nozzle by the wiper 110. In this embodiment, the hydrophilic portions 13 are provided for both of the two nozzle rows, but the hydrophilic portion 13 may be provided for only one of them.

(Second Embodiment) FIGS. 8 to 10 show an ink jet recording head 10 according to a second embodiment of the present invention corresponding to FIGS. 1 to 3 of the first embodiment and an ink jet cartridge equipped with the head. Show. In each drawing, the main structure is almost the same as in the first embodiment,
The same (corresponding) components as those in FIGS.

The second embodiment will be described below, including the portions overlapping with the first embodiment. 1 is a top plate in which an ink flow path groove, an ink liquid chamber frame, and an ink ejection port are opened in advance, 2 is a wiring board for electrically connecting a substrate having a resistive heating element and a carriage side, 3 is a resistance The elastic members 5 for pressing and fixing the substrate having the resistive heating element to the top plate 1 are ink ejection openings opened in the top plate 1. In the two-row array of this example, the two-row side can be formed symmetrically with the one-row side, and since the ink introduction paths are gathered together at one place in the central portion, the two-row side can be arranged in a higher position than the three-row arrangement. The plate 1 is easy to make and easy to assemble. Furthermore, the parts in each row are basically the same,
It is also advantageous in terms of cost.

Further, FIG. 9 is a schematic view drawn so that an outline of the component structure and assembly of the ink jet recording head 10 shown in FIG. 8 can be understood. Reference numeral 4 denotes a substrate having a resistive heating element, which is adhered to the metal plate 15. The wiring board 2 is electrically connected by TAB mounting. Further, the wiring board 2 is fixed to the metal plate 15 by adhesion so that when the wiring board 2 is bent, the bending force is not applied to the board 4 having the resistive heating element.

Further, FIG. 10 is a sectional view drawn so that the outline of the internal structure and ink path of the ink jet recording head 10 shown in FIG. 8 can be understood. Reference numeral 7 is an ink introduction path for guiding the ink from the ink container to the ink liquid chamber.

From the ink container, the ink passes through the ink introduction path 7 and enters the ink liquid chamber 8 formed by the top plate 1 and the substrate 4 having the resistive heating element. The liquid chamber 8 enters the ink flow path groove 14 having the resistive heating element, and the thermal energy of the resistive heating element causes film boiling to the ink to eject the ink from the ejection port 5.

The ink liquid chamber 8 is formed by the top plate 1 and the substrate 4 having a resistive heating element, and the space between them is completely sealed and sealed with a sealant to prevent ink leakage. Further, the sealant is used for the T between the substrate 4 having the resistive heating element and the wiring substrate 2.
It is also used for the AB connection to prevent ink adhesion and protect it.

The top plate 1 is integrally molded, and the ink ejection port 5, the ink flow path groove 14, the ink liquid chamber frame and the ink introduction path 7 are processed by molding or laser beam processing. The ink ejection port 5 and the ink flow path groove 14 need to be processed with high accuracy. With respect to the ink ejection ports 5, it is better to reduce the variation in the angle in the ink ejection direction for each ink column, even if the distance between the ink ejection ports 5 and the recording medium changes, and the relative ink landing position from each ink column. In principle, no electrical correction is required, and the configuration is electrically simple. Therefore, the processing accuracy is increased and the surface treatment around the ink ejection port 5 is made uniform. For these integrally molded products, it is necessary to select a material that is difficult to be corroded by the moldability and the ink, and polysulfone is preferable as a concrete material, but other molding materials may be used.

The substrate 4 having a resistive heating element is used to cause film boiling on the ink by thermal energy for recording, and the resistive heating elements arranged in a plurality of rows on the Si substrate This is a substrate in which an electric wiring such as Al for supplying electric power to the substrate is formed by a film forming technique, and a shift register and a driving transistor are incorporated in order to reduce the number of TAB pads. The substrate 4 has an ink ejection port 5
If the position is not aligned, normal discharge cannot be performed, and therefore the top plate 1 needs to be assembled with high accuracy.

The wiring board 2 connects the board 4 and the electric signal from the main body printer, and the board 4 and the T board are connected on one side.
The other side has a connection pad for receiving an electric signal from the main body printer. The connection pad portion is accurately fixed to the top plate 1 by adhesion. Therefore, the head can be handled as one unit, which is easy to assemble and convenient for recycling. Further, the substrate 4 having the resistive heating element is fixed to the top plate 1 by mechanical urging by the landing member 3.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view schematically showing an ink jet recording head unit having the ink jet recording head 10 of the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. The inkjet recording head 10 is directly fixed to the front side of the ink container (tank) 11 in the mounting direction of the inkjet recording device, and is configured to be mounted in the inkjet recording device.

(Third Embodiment) Prior to detailed description of this embodiment,
First, the basic configuration of an inkjet recording head to which the present invention is applied and its configuration requirements will be described, including some duplication of the above description.

The embodiment of the present invention is an ink jet unit in which an ink tank and an ink jet recording head can be attached to and detached from a carriage, and (a) a portion for receiving an electrical signal from the apparatus main body side (hereinafter referred to as "electrical connection portion"). "," (B) a portion that receives ink from the ink tank (hereinafter, referred to as "ink supply section"), (c) a portion that ejects ink (hereinafter, referred to as "ink ejection section"),
(D) Four main functional portions, that is, a portion for positioning the inkjet recording head with respect to the carriage (hereinafter, referred to as "positioning portion") are provided on each surface of the recording head.

Further, in the construction of these four main functional parts, the reliability of the ink jet recording head, the image quality, and the ease of replacement of the ink jet recording head and the ink tank are required. It is desirable to consider the conditions.

If the ink supply section or the electrical connection section is also provided on the same surface where the ink ejection section is provided, the mist of the recording ink ejected from the ink ejection section is electrically changed. Short-circuiting may occur due to ink mist conduction due to scattering at the connection part, and paper dust etc. adhering to the electrical connection part may be defective due to the short distance between the recording material and the electrical connection part. May occur.

When the ink jet recording head is replaced or the separated ink tank is replaced, the attachment / detachment force is applied to the carriage and the ink jet recording head. When the inkjet recording head moves due to such a load, the accurate position of the inkjet recording head cannot be ensured, so that the accurate landing position of the recording ink cannot be ensured and the image quality is deteriorated. .

In the manufacturing process, it is necessary to assemble the inkjet recording heads for performing color recording with high accuracy in alignment with each other.

FIG. 11 shows an example of the construction relating to the ink jet recording head and ink tank of the third embodiment according to the present invention in consideration of the above conditions.

In the figure, 100 is an ink jet recording head, and 101, 102 and 103 are an ink ejecting portion, a holder and an electrical connecting portion of the ink jet recording head 100, respectively. Reference numeral 106 denotes an ink tank, which supplies ink by connecting with a holder 102, which is fixed to the ink jet recording head 100, with an ink supply pipe 105 arranged in an ink ejection direction, that is, a direction perpendicular to an electrical connection surface. .

FIG. 12 is a structural view of the ink jet unit shown in FIG. 11 as viewed from the ink ejection direction side. The ink ejection section 101 and the electrical connection section 103 described above each have a center point A as a center of rotation 101A. , 101B; 1
It is in a state of being arranged in 03A and 103B. Here, 104C and 104D are the inkjet recording head 100.
Is a positioning portion provided at a corner of the inkjet recording head 100 for positioning the inkjet recording head 100 in the X and Y directions with respect to a main body (not shown). Positioning in the Z direction is performed by 104B and 104A in FIG. Here, the groove 107 is formed by the ink ejection portions 101A and 101A.
It is configured between B and its length is longer than that of the ink ejection portion.

In the present embodiment, each component of the recording head described above is arranged in the recording head so as to satisfy the following conditions. That is, by not forming the ink ejection surface on the same surface as the ink supply surface or the electrical connection surface, the mist of the recording ink ejected from the ink ejection portion scatters to the electrical connection portion and is caused by the conduction of the ink mist. It becomes possible to prevent a short circuit, and since the distance between the recording material and the electrical joint surface is large, it is possible to prevent electrical contact failure due to paper dust or the like adhering to the electrical connection surface.

In particular, in this embodiment, the electrical connection surface is arranged within ± 5 ° in the direction perpendicular to the ink ejection direction, and the ink ejection surface is arranged so as to project by 5 mm or more from the electrical connection surface. By utilizing this stepped portion as an electrical connection portion of the printer main body carriage, it is possible to obtain the above-mentioned effect as a wall for preventing ink mist and paper dust.

Furthermore, in order to perform color recording, when the ink ejecting portions are arranged in two rows in the main scanning direction, the ink ejecting portions in the first row and the corresponding electrical connection surfaces and two are formed.
By arranging the ink ejecting units in the columns and the corresponding electrical connection surfaces at positions rotated by 180 ° about the center of rotation of the two columns, it is possible to reduce costs by using common parts.

By providing a groove having a length longer than that of the ink ejecting portions between the above-mentioned two rows of ink ejecting portions, it is possible to prevent color mixture when the ink colors of the respective ink ejecting portions are different. .

Then, the ink supply portion such as the separated ink tank is pressed in the ink ejection direction and connected, so that the load applied to the head at the time of attachment / detachment such as ink tank replacement is evenly applied to the outer side of the ink row. As a result, it is possible to prevent the displacement of the head that affects the color recording.

[0079]

As described above, according to the present invention, (1) in an ink jet recording head, a plurality of substrates having a ceiling plate on which ink channel grooves and an ink liquid chamber frame are formed and a resistive heating element By pressing and fixing with an elastic member, the top plate is integrally formed with high precision, and the discharge port etc. of each color is accurately processed by accurately processing the discharge port etc. with the reference surface built into the top plate as a reference. Printing misregistration can be prevented and printing quality and image quality can be improved. In addition, the number of parts is small and assembly work can be shortened, product reliability and yield can be improved, and the size can be made smaller and small printers are also possible. Become. Furthermore, since a plurality of substrates having resistive heating elements can be used, high speed printing is possible.

By providing a groove (concave portion) deeper than the ink ejection portion (ink ejection port and ink flow path) between the two ejection port arrays on the top plate, each substrate of the top plate is provided for each substrate. The corresponding ink ejection portion is deformed, and the contact state between the substrate and the top plate can be improved. (2) Furthermore, reliability is improved by arranging the ink ejection surface so as to project by at least 5 mm or more without forming the ink ejection surface on the same surface as the ink supply surface or the electrical connection surface. By arranging the center point of the ink ejection row of the row at a position rotated by 180 ° about the rotation center, cost reduction can be achieved by sharing the parts, and the ink tanks are pressed in the ink ejection direction and connected. By evenly applying the load applied to the head to the outside of the ink column when the ink tank is attached or detached, it is possible to prevent the head misalignment that affects the color recording.

(3) Furthermore, by providing a recess near the center of the top plate of the head having a plurality of nozzle rows, which allows the wiper member to enter, it is possible to prevent color mixing and unwiping, and to wipe the wiper. The number of times can be minimized, which improves the durability of the face surface and the wiper.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing the configuration of an inkjet head according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a detailed configuration of the inkjet head of FIG.

3 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal configuration of the inkjet head of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view schematically showing the configuration of a head unit having the inkjet head of FIG.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation during wiping of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation during wiping of the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation during wiping of the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a schematic external perspective view of an inkjet recording head according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an exploded schematic view of the inkjet recording head of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing an internal structure and an ink flow path of an ink jet recording head of a second embodiment.

FIG. 11 is an external perspective view of an inkjet recording head unit according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram viewed from the ink ejection direction side of FIG.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the configuration of an inkjet recording apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Top plate 2 wiring board 3 elastic members 4 Substrate with resistive heating element 5 ink outlet 6 Top plate center recess 7 Ink introduction path 8 ink chamber 9 ribs 10 inkjet head 11 ink container 12 joint seal 13 hydrophilic part 14 Ink flow channel 15 metal plate 100 inkjet recording head 101, 101A, 101B Ink ejection section 102 holder 103, 103A, 103B electrical connection 104A, 104B, 104C, 104D Positioning unit 105 ink supply pipe 106 ink tank 107 groove 110 Wiper (cleaning member) A rotation center

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (72) Wataru Takahashi 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Toshiaki Masuda 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. Incorporated (72) Inventor Hajime Yamamoto 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Yasuo Kotaki 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. ( 72) Inventor Akihiro Yamanaka 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (56) Reference JP-A-4-99632 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B41J 2/05 B41J 2/16 B41J 2/165

Claims (15)

(57) [Claims] 1. A ceiling in which two ink flow channel groove groups for forming an ink flow channel, two ink liquid chamber frames and an ink introduction channel are formed, and a plurality of ink ejection ports are arranged in two rows. A plate, two substrates on which a plurality of resistive heating elements for individually ejecting ink are formed in correspondence with the two ink ejection port arrays, and the substrate and the top plate for each substrate. the has two elastic members for pressing fixing, and an ink jet recording head in which the ink flow path and an ink liquid chamber is formed by said substrate and the top plate is joined to said top plate the ink discharge port groove separating Lee ink ejection opening arrays each other are formed between the rows, than the portion where the groove is <br/> ink discharge ports and ink flow paths of the top plate is formed
An ink jet recording head having a depth reaching a deep position . 2. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein a flexible wiring substrate having a connection pad for making electrical contact with the carriage side is connected to the substrate, and the wiring substrate is fixed to the top plate. 3. An ink jet recording head, wherein the top plate according to claim 1 is a resin molded integrally. 4. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein a metal plate is provided on the elastic member side of the substrate. 5. The ink jet recording head according to claim 2, wherein a metal plate is provided on the elastic member side of the substrate, and the wiring substrate is fixed to the top plate and the metal plate. 6. The inkjet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the ink ejection directions are the same with an error of ± 2 ° or less for each ink ejection port array. Recording head. 7. An ink jet recording head for ejecting the ink according to claim 1, wherein:
The electrical connection surface is arranged within ± 5 ° in the direction perpendicular to the ink ejection direction of the head, and the ink ejection surface is arranged so as to project at least 5 mm toward the recording material side with respect to the electrical connection surface. An inkjet recording head characterized by: 8. The ink jet recording head according to claim 7, wherein the ink ejecting portion is 2 in the main scanning direction.
The first row of ink ejection units and their corresponding electrical connection surfaces and the second row of ink ejection units and their corresponding electrical connection surfaces are arranged 180 degrees around the center of rotation of the second row. An inkjet recording head characterized by being arranged at a rotated position. 9. The groove has a depth of 0.3 mm or more and a width of 0.5.
The inkjet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the inkjet recording head has a thickness of at least mm. 10. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein ribs are provided in the vicinity of both ends of the groove in a direction perpendicular to the row of ink ejection ports. 11. The ink jet recording head according to claim 3, wherein a wedge member is provided near the center of the groove. 12. The ink jet recording head according to claim 11, wherein the wedge member is made of the same material as that of the top plate. 13. An inkjet recording head according to any one of claims 1 to 12, and a cleaning member for cleaning an ejection port surface provided with an ink ejection port of a top plate of the recording head. An inkjet recording apparatus characterized by the above. 14. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the cleaning member is caused to enter a groove of the top plate when the discharge member surface is cleaned by the cleaning member. 15. The moving direction of the cleaning member is different for each ink ejection port array of the recording head.
4. The inkjet recording device according to item 4.