JP6337423B2 - Flow path unit manufacturing method and functional mother board - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a manufacturing method and a functional mother board of the passage unit.

  2. Description of the Related Art There is known a recording head manufacturing method including a cutting step of cutting a ceramic sheet along a cutting line passing through an edge of a chip region to obtain a plurality of actuator units (see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-341076 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-96071

  When cutting out a plurality of functional units from one ceramic fired body, if the cutting accuracy and efficiency are poor, it is impossible to reduce the manufacturing cost of the product and improve the yield.

The present invention has been made to solve at least the above problems, to provide a manufacturing method and a functional mother board of the channel unit capable of producing a plurality of channel unit precisely and efficiently .

  One aspect of the present invention is that the method for manufacturing a functional unit is more fragile than a portion having a plurality of functional grooves and the functional grooves disposed at positions sandwiched by the functional grooves. A precursor forming step of forming a substrate precursor having a ceramic precursor provided with a divided portion; a firing step of firing the substrate precursor to form a functional mother substrate; and the function in the divided portion Dividing the sexual mother substrate into a plurality of functional units.

  According to the said structure, a board | substrate precursor has a to-be-divided part which is weaker than the part which has a functional groove | channel in the position pinched | interposed into a functional groove | channel. And after baking a board | substrate precursor and forming a functional mother board, the several functional unit which has a functional groove | channel in each is obtained by dividing | segmenting a functional mother board in a to-be-divided part. For this reason, each functional unit can be efficiently and accurately cut out from the functional mother board, which leads to a reduction in product manufacturing costs and an improvement in yield.

In one aspect of the present invention, the deformation ratio of the divided portion before and after the baking step is larger than the deformation ratio of the portion having the functional groove before and after the baking step.
The portion to be divided is fragile as compared with other portions of the substrate precursor, and thus is easily deformed due to the shrinkage of the material that occurs during firing of the substrate precursor. In other words, the part to be divided is more easily deformed than the other part when the substrate precursor is baked, so that the other part (the part having the functional groove) is suppressed from being greatly deformed, and dimensional deviation and warpage are suppressed. Less excellent products (functional units) can be obtained.

One of the aspects of the present invention may be configured such that the divided portion has a thinner bottom than the functional groove. Or the said part to be divided | segmented is good also as a structure which has a through-hole arranged in a fixed or indefinite space | interval.
In this way, the fragile state is specifically realized by adopting a configuration in which the divided portion has a bottom that is thinner than the functional groove or a configuration having through holes arranged at constant or indefinite intervals. Easy and accurate division of the functional mother board in the process is realized.

The technical idea according to the present invention is not realized only in the form of a method for manufacturing a functional unit. For example, an object existing in the process of the manufacturing method (for example, a substrate including a part to be divided) can be regarded as one invention.
As an example, in a functional mother board configured by having a plurality of ceramic fired products provided with a plurality of functional units each having a plurality of functional grooves divided for each chip region, the functional unit substrate is provided in a predetermined chip region. Between the functional unit and the functional unit provided in the chip region adjacent to the predetermined chip region is provided with a portion to be divided that is more fragile than the portion provided with the functional groove. Can understand the configuration.
Moreover, as a functional unit manufactured by the manufacturing method, in the functional unit that includes a plurality of functional grooves and has a ceramic fired product, at least a part of the end surface of the functional unit includes: It is possible to grasp a configuration in which a protrusion protruding outward from the end surface is provided.
In addition, the liquid ejecting head and the liquid ejecting apparatus including the functional unit can also be regarded as inventions. Furthermore, it is possible to capture an invention of a manufacturing method for manufacturing the liquid ejecting head and the liquid ejecting apparatus.
Further, the present invention can adopt the following aspects.
A precursor for forming a substrate precursor having a ceramic precursor comprising a plurality of pressure chambers, and a portion to be divided that is disposed at a position sandwiched between the pressure chambers and is more fragile than a portion having the pressure chambers A forming step, a firing step of firing the substrate precursor to form a functional mother substrate, and a dividing step of dividing the functional mother substrate into a plurality of flow path units in the divided portion. The method of manufacturing a flow path unit is characterized in that the divided part has a thinner bottom than the pressure chamber.
The method for manufacturing a flow path unit, wherein the portion to be divided includes a cavity that does not open on an outer surface of the substrate precursor.
The flow path unit manufacturing method, wherein a deformation ratio of the divided part before and after the baking process is larger than a deformation ratio of a portion having the pressure chamber before and after the baking process.
The method of manufacturing a flow path unit, wherein the divided part has through holes arranged at regular or irregular intervals.
A flow path unit provided in a predetermined chip area in a functional mother board having a plurality of fired ceramics provided in a state where a flow path unit having a plurality of pressure chambers is divided into chip areas. And a flow path unit provided in a chip region adjacent to the predetermined chip region, a split portion that is weaker than a portion provided with the pressure chamber is provided, The functional mother board is characterized in that the division part has a thinner bottom than the pressure chamber.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view schematically illustrating the configuration of a liquid ejecting head. 2A is a cross-sectional view of the liquid ejecting head at a position A1-A1 in FIG. 1, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of the liquid ejecting head at a position A2-A2 in FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating each step in the method for manufacturing the liquid jet head. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state corresponding to a part of the steps of the method for manufacturing the liquid jet head. The top view of a flow path substrate or a flow path substrate precursor. Sectional drawing in the position of A3-A3 of FIG. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a flow path substrate precursor and a flow path substrate before and after the firing step corresponding to FIG. 6. (A), (b) is sectional drawing which shows the example from which a to-be-divided part differs, respectively. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a flow path substrate precursor and a flow path substrate before and after the firing step corresponding to FIG. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a flow path substrate precursor and a flow path substrate before and after the firing step corresponding to FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the other example of a to-be-divided part. The cross-sectional perspective view which shows the other example of a to-be-divided part. The perspective view which shows the example of the end surface of a flow-path unit. The perspective view which shows the other example of the end surface of a flow path unit. Schematic which shows an example of an inkjet printer.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. The following embodiments are merely examples of the present invention, and all the features shown in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the solution means of the invention.

1. Example of Outline of Channel Unit and Liquid Ejecting Head FIG. 1 illustrates an outline of the configuration of the liquid ejecting head 1 including the channel unit U0.
FIG. 2A shows the liquid jet head 1 by a cross-sectional view at a position A1-A1 in FIG.
FIG. 2B shows the liquid jet head 1 by a cross-sectional view at the position A2-A2 in FIG.
The flow path unit U0 is an example of a functional unit according to the present invention. The functional unit is a general term for various devices having a configuration equivalent to the flow path unit U0 and at least a part of the flow path unit U0. The functional unit can also be called an actuator unit.
In the figure mentioned above, the code | symbol D1 has shown the thickness direction of the flow-path unit U0. Reference sign D3 indicates the longitudinal direction of the flow path unit U0, and reference sign D4 indicates the short direction of the flow path unit U0. The directions D1, D3, and D4 are orthogonal to each other, but may not be orthogonal as long as they intersect each other. For the sake of clarity, the enlargement ratio in each direction D1, D3, D4 may be different, the area ratio of the piezoelectric element 3 may also be different, and the drawings may not be consistent.

  The positional relationships described in the present specification are merely examples for explaining the invention, and do not limit the invention. Therefore, it is also included in the present invention that the diaphragm is disposed at a position other than above the pressure chamber, for example, below, left, right, etc. Also, the same direction, position, etc., orthogonal, etc., not only mean exactly the same, orthogonal, etc., but also include errors that occur during manufacturing. Furthermore, contacting and joining include both the presence of an intervening material such as an adhesive and the absence of any intervening material.

A liquid ejecting head 1 illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a flow path unit U0 having portions 10, 20, and 30 and a nozzle 62 communicating with the pressure chamber 21, and ejects (discharges) ink (liquid). An ink jet recording head. A liquid ejecting apparatus 200 illustrated in FIG. 15 is an ink jet printer (recording apparatus) equipped with the liquid ejecting head as described above.
The diaphragm unit 10 is a piezoelectric actuator having the diaphragm 11, the piezoelectric element 3, the lead electrode 84, and the like. The diaphragm 10 is deformed according to the drive signal SG1 and applies pressure to the liquid in the pressure chamber 21.

  The diaphragm 11 seals one surface (surface 20a) of the spacer portion 20. The piezoelectric element 3, the lead electrode 84, and the like are provided on the surface 11 a of the vibration plate 11 opposite to the back surface 11 b in contact with the spacer portion 20. The rear surface 11 b of the diaphragm 11 constitutes a part of the wall surface of the pressure chamber 21. That is, the diaphragm 11 which is a part of the wall of the pressure chamber 21 is deformed by the piezoelectric element 3 according to the drive signal SG1.

  The piezoelectric element 3 includes a piezoelectric layer 82, a lower electrode (first electrode) 81 provided on the pressure chamber 21 side of the piezoelectric layer 82, and an upper electrode (second electrode) provided on the other side of the piezoelectric layer 82. Electrode) 83. Each piezoelectric element 3 shown in FIG. 1 is in a position corresponding to each pressure chamber 21. The control circuit board 91 for driving and controlling the piezoelectric element 3 is connected to the upper electrode 83 via a cable 92 such as a flexible board, and the drive signal SG1 is supplied from the control circuit board 91. One of the electrodes 81 and 83 may be a common electrode that is electrically connected to an electrode constituting another piezoelectric element and is applied with an electric potential of the same voltage (electrical signal is supplied). As the constituent metals of the upper and lower electrodes, for example, one or more of Pt (platinum), Au (gold), Ir (iridium), Ti (titanium), and the like can be used. For the piezoelectric layer 82, for example, a ferroelectric material such as PZT (lead zirconate titanate), a material having a perovskite structure such as a lead-free perovskite oxide, or the like can be used. The lead electrode 84 may be connected to the lower electrode 81 or may be connected to the upper electrode 83.

  The spacer portion 20 is formed with a pressure chamber 21 penetrating in the thickness direction D1. The spacer portion 20 is sandwiched between the vibration plate 11 and the connection portion 30, whereby the pressure chamber 21 is provided inside the flow path unit U0. Each pressure chamber 21 is formed in a long shape with its longitudinal direction arranged along the short direction D4 of the flow path unit U0, and a plurality of pressure chambers 21 are arranged in the longitudinal direction D3 of the flow path unit U0. A partition wall 22 is provided between the pressure chambers 21. Pressure is applied to the liquid in the pressure chamber 21 by deformation of the diaphragm 11 that is a part of the wall. A plurality of rows of pressure chambers 21 arranged in the longitudinal direction D3 of the flow path unit U0 may be arranged in the short direction D4 of the flow path unit U0.

  The connection portion 30 is formed with a liquid supply hole 31 and a communication hole 32 penetrating in the thickness direction D1 at a position communicating with each pressure chamber 21. That is, the connection part 30 seals the other surface (back surface 20b) opposite to the surface 20a in the spacer part 20 except for the holes 31 and 32. Each supply hole 31 is provided at a position corresponding to one end in the longitudinal direction (D4) of each pressure chamber 21, and each communication hole 32 is provided at a position corresponding to the other end in the longitudinal direction (D4) of each pressure chamber 21. ing. The holes 31 and 32 and the pressure chamber 21 become the flow path F1 through which the liquid of the flow path unit U0 passes. In the present embodiment, at least the pressure chamber 21 in the flow path F1 corresponds to a “functional groove” in the claims. In addition, the functional groove can be simply referred to as a “groove”, and can also be referred to as a “flow path groove” in the flow path unit U0.

In the sealing plate 40 joined to the back surface 30b of the connection part 30, the liquid common supply hole 41 penetrating in the thickness direction D1, the communication hole 42, and the liquid introduction hole 43 to the reservoir 51 (FIG. 2A) Reference) is formed. The common supply hole 41 is formed in a long shape whose longitudinal direction is arranged along the longitudinal direction D <b> 3 of the sealing plate 40, and is provided at a position communicating with the plurality of supply holes 31 of the connection portion 30. Each communication hole 42 is provided at a position communicating with each communication hole 32 of the connection portion 30. The liquid introduction hole 43 is provided at a position not in contact with the flow path unit U0. The back surface 40 b of the sealing plate constitutes a part of the wall surface of the reservoir 51.
The reservoir plate 50 is formed with a reservoir 51 and a communication hole 52 penetrating in the thickness direction D1. The reservoir 51 is a common liquid chamber (common ink chamber) communicating with the common supply hole 41 and the liquid introduction hole 43. Each communication hole 52 is provided at a position communicating with each communication hole 42 of the sealing plate.

In the nozzle plate 60, nozzles 62 penetrating in the thickness direction D1 are formed at positions communicating with the respective communication holes 52. The back surface of the nozzle plate 60 is a nozzle surface 60 b that ejects droplets from the nozzles 62. The nozzle plate 60 shown in FIG. 1 has a nozzle row in which nozzles 62 communicating with the pressure chambers 21 are arranged at a predetermined interval (nozzle pitch P) in a predetermined direction (D3). The plurality of nozzles 62 may be arranged in a so-called staggered pattern.
The liquid ejecting head 1 does not necessarily include the sealing plate 40 and the reservoir plate 50. For example, when there is no sealing plate 40, the reservoir plate 50 can be joined to the flow path unit U0, and when there is no reservoir plate 50, the nozzle plate 60 can be joined to the flow path unit U0. When the sealing plate 40 and the reservoir plate 50 are not provided, the functions of these plates are assigned to other plates. The liquid ejecting head 1 may include another plate such as a so-called compliance plate. For example, the compliance plate may be disposed between the reservoir plate 50 and the nozzle plate 60. Furthermore, any of the above-described plates may be composed of a plurality of plates, and conversely, a single plate may have the functions of the plurality of plates.

  In the liquid ejecting head 1 described above, a liquid such as ink is introduced from the liquid introduction hole 43 to fill the reservoir 51, and fills the pressure chamber 21 through the common supply hole 41 and the individual supply holes 31. When the piezoelectric element 3 is deformed so as to bend the diaphragm 11 toward the pressure chamber 21 according to the drive voltage (drive signal SG1) from the control circuit board 91, the diaphragm 11 is also deformed accordingly. Due to the deformation of the vibration plate 11, the pressure of the liquid in the pressure chamber 21 increases, and droplets are ejected from the nozzle 62 through the communication holes 32, 42, 52.

2. Example of Manufacturing Method Next, a method of manufacturing a liquid jet head will be described with reference to FIGS. The manufacturing method of the liquid ejecting head includes a manufacturing method of the flow path unit (a manufacturing method of the functional unit).
FIG. 3 shows each step in the manufacturing method of the liquid ejecting head in the form of a flowchart.
FIG. 4 illustrates a state corresponding to a part of the manufacturing method of the liquid jet head by a vertical cross section along the longitudinal direction D3 of the flow path unit U0.

In the precursor forming step (step S1), first, a precursor of the functional mother substrate 100 (substrate precursor 300) is formed using ceramics. The functional mother board 100 means a member in a state before being cut into a plurality of flow path units U0 (functional units).
FIG. 5 illustrates the functional mother substrate 100 (or substrate precursor 300) from the viewpoint of facing the surface 11a (see FIG. 1). The functional mother board 100 has a plurality of flow path units U0 before being divided. In FIG. 5, each of the regions partitioned by the chain line indicates a chip region corresponding to the flow path unit U <b> 0. Note that the chain line does not actually exist. That is, in the present embodiment, the flow path units U0 are not manufactured individually, but a plurality of flow path units U0 are cut out from the functional mother board 100 after the functional mother board 100 is formed (step S5 described later).

  The functional mother substrate 100 (substrate precursor 300) has a portion to be divided 70 at a position (on the chain line in FIG. 5) that divides each chip region corresponding to each flow path unit U0. The part to be divided 70 is a part that is located between the functional grooves and is more fragile than the part having the functional grooves (area corresponding to the flow path unit U0). The position sandwiched between the functional grooves referred to here is a function belonging to a functional groove (pressure chamber 21) belonging to a chip area corresponding to a certain flow path unit U0 and a chip area corresponding to another adjacent flow path unit U0. It can be said that it is a position between the flow channel units U0.

In forming the substrate precursor 300, the precursors 111, 120, and 130 are formed. The precursor 111 is a precursor of the diaphragm 11, the precursor 120 is a precursor of the spacer unit 20, and the precursor 130 is a precursor of the connection unit 30. For example, ceramic powder obtained by adding yttrium oxide (Y ₂ O ₃ ) to about ₃ to 8% and silicon dioxide (SiO ₂ ) to about 1 to 3% in a molar ratio to zirconia (ZrO ₂ ) is used as a binder. A green sheet is formed by sheeting the dispersed paste. Then, the green sheet is subjected to machining using a mold or the like, machining such as cutting, cutting, punching, or laser processing as necessary. Thereby, the sheet-like precursor 111, the sheet-like precursor 120 having the pressure chamber 21, and the sheet-like precursor 130 having the holes 31 and 32 are obtained. In addition, all or a part of the precursors 111, 120, and 130 also have the above-described divided portion 70.

  FIG. 6 illustrates a cross-section at the position A3-A3 in FIG. 5, and particularly illustrates the divided portion 70 formed at a position sandwiched between the flow path units U0. Divided portion 70 includes, for example, a recess 71 dug down from surface 11a along thickness direction D1, and a recess 72 dug down from back surface 30b along thickness direction D1. The thickness T of the bottom of the portion to be divided 70 is smaller than the thickness of the bottom of the functional groove (pressure chamber 21), that is, the thickness of the precursor 130 in FIG. Thus, it can be said that the to-be-divided part 70 is weaker than the part which has a functional groove | channel, since a bottom is thinner than the part which has a functional groove | channel. The part to be divided 70 may be continuously formed on the entire periphery (on the chain line in FIG. 5) of each chip region corresponding to each flow path unit U0, or is formed on at least a part of the periphery. It is good.

  The precursors 111, 120, and 130 are stacked as shown in FIG. 4A and FIG. The precursors 120 and 130 may not be separate sheets, but may be sheets formed in a single sheet. The precursors 111, 120, and 130 may be formed by a gel cast method using a slurry containing ceramic powder, a binder, and a solvent. The above is the precursor forming step. FIG. 4 illustrates a part of the range corresponding to one flow path unit U0 included in the functional mother substrate 100 or the substrate precursor 300.

The addition amount (molar ratio) of each additive is not limited to the above-mentioned numerical values. Yttrium oxide is added for the purpose of stabilizing the crystal in the firing step (step S3) described later. Further, in place of or in addition to at least a part of the additive, calcium oxide (CaO), magnesium oxide (MgO), barium oxide (BaO), cerium oxide (CeO ₂ ), aluminum oxide (Al ₂ A part or combination of O ₃ ) or the like may be added to zirconia. In addition, silicon dioxide not only contributes to the stabilization, but also plays a role of increasing the effect of removing carbon from the precursors 111, 120, and 130.

  Next, the substrate precursor 300 is set in a heating device (not shown), and the substrate precursor 300 is heated by the heating device at a low temperature of about 100 ° C. to 300 ° C., for example, and the substrate precursor 300 is integrally degreased. A degreasing process is performed (step S2). Subsequently, a baking process for integrally baking the substrate precursor 300 is performed (step S3). The firing temperature is, for example, about 1300 ° C to 1400 ° C. By such firing, a functional mother substrate 100 having a ceramic fired product in which the vibration plate 11, the spacer portion 20, and the connection portion 30 are integrally bonded is obtained (FIG. 4B).

  Next, after the functional mother board 100 is taken out from the heating device, as shown in FIG. 4C, the lower electrode 81, the lead electrode 84 (see FIG. 2A), the piezoelectric layer on the diaphragm 11 82 and the upper electrode 83 are formed (piezoelectric element forming step, step S4). The electrodes 81, 83, and 84 may be formed by a vapor phase method such as a sputtering method, or may be formed by a method of heating a coating film formed by a liquid phase method such as a spin coating method. When the piezoelectric layer is formed by a liquid phase method such as a spin coating method, for example, a precursor solution coating process in which a metal organic material constituting PZT is dispersed in a dispersion medium, for example, a drying process at about 170 to 180 ° C., for example, What is necessary is just to perform the combination of the degreasing process of about 300-400 degreeC, and the baking process of about 600-700 degreeC several times, for example. Unnecessary electrodes and piezoelectric layers may be removed by patterning. Alternatively, the resist pattern may be formed on the vibration plate, and the electrode and the piezoelectric layer may be removed together with the resist pattern after the electrode and the piezoelectric layer are formed on the entire surface of the vibration plate.

Next, the functional mother board 100 is divided into chip area units in the divided portion 70 to form a plurality of flow path units U0 (division step, step S5). The division along the part to be divided 70 is performed using, for example, a laser or a dicing saw. Thereby, a plurality of flow path units U0 are obtained from one functional mother substrate 100 (a large number of flow path units U0 are taken).
The process up to here corresponds to the manufacturing method of the flow path unit U0.

Thereafter, the flow path unit U0, the sealing plate 40, the reservoir plate 50, and the nozzle plate 60 are joined (joining step, step S6), and the control circuit board 91 is connected to the piezoelectric element 3 by the cables 92 (board connection). Process, step S7). The members U0, 40, 50, 60 are joined by a method in which members are thermocompression-bonded with a thermocompression-bonding adhesive sheet formed with substantially the same holes as the members to be joined, and a liquid adhesive. The method of apply | coating between members, the method of thermocompressing members using the member which has thermocompression bonding property (self-compression bonding property), etc. are possible. In addition, the material of the said plates 40, 50, 60 can use 1 or more types, such as metals, such as stainless steel and nickel, a synthetic resin, ceramics, for example. The connection of the control circuit board 91 may be made before joining a part or all of the members U0, 40, 50, 60.
Thus, the liquid jet head 1 as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B is manufactured.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the substrate precursor 300 has the divided portion 70 that is more fragile than the portion having the functional groove at a position between the functional grooves. Then, after the substrate precursor 300 is fired to form the functional mother substrate 100, the functional mother substrate 100 is divided at the division target portion 70, so that a plurality of functional grooves (a plurality of pressure chambers 21) are formed in each. Is obtained. For this reason, each flow path unit U0 can be efficiently and accurately cut out from the functional mother board 100, which leads to a reduction in product manufacturing cost and an improvement in yield.

3. Additional Description of Divided Parts FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining one of the effects according to the present embodiment. The upper part of FIG. 7 illustrates the cross section of the substrate precursor 300 before the baking process, and the lower part of FIG. 7 illustrates the cross section of the functional mother substrate 100 after the baking process from the same viewpoint as FIG. Yes. In FIG. 7, the illustration is simplified by omitting the hatching of the cross section and the description of the flow path (pressure chamber 21 and the like). Further, FIG. 7 illustrates three flow path units U <b> 0 that are connected to each other by the divided portion 70. Since the substrate precursor 300 is a ceramic precursor, the material shrinks when fired. In addition, the degree of shrinkage is not necessarily the same on one side (for example, the front surface 11a) side and the other surface (for example, the back surface 30b) side. , Warpage that the surface 11a side is convex) may occur. Since such warpage can give variation to the shape of each flow path unit U0, it is preferable that the warpage be as small as possible. However, it can be said that a relatively large warp is likely to occur in the method of firing a large-sized member (functional mother substrate 100) that is an aggregate of a large number of flow path units U0 as in the present embodiment.

  In the lower part of FIG. 7, the functional mother board 100 when the divided portion 70 according to the present embodiment does not exist is illustrated by a chain line, and the functional mother board when the divided portion 70 according to the present embodiment exists. 100 is illustrated by a solid line. According to the figure, it can be seen that the warp of the entire functional mother board 100 is suppressed when the divided portion 70 is present. Since the portion to be divided 70 is weaker than other portions (portions corresponding to the flow path unit U0), it is easily deformed due to the shrinkage of the material generated when the substrate precursor 300 is fired. In addition, the presence of the divided portion 70 divides the warpage and prevents the entire functional mother board 100 from being greatly warped. That is, when the divided portion 70 is easily deformed in place of other portions when the substrate precursor 300 is fired, the other portions are prevented from being greatly deformed, and there is little dimensional deviation or warping (the variation in shape is small). A small number of high quality flow path units U0 can be obtained. In FIG. 7, the “warp” of the functional mother board 100 is exaggerated for easy understanding, and the degree of warpage actually occurring is not accurately expressed.

  FIGS. 8A and 8B each show another example of the shape of the divided portion 70 by the same cross section as FIG. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 8A, the divided portion 70 may be configured by a concave portion 73 dug down from the back surface 30b along the thickness direction D1. Moreover, the to-be-divided part 70 may be comprised by the recessed part 74 dug down from the surface 11a along the thickness direction D1, as shown, for example in FIG.8 (b). In any case illustrated in FIG. 8, the thickness T of the bottom of the portion to be divided 70 is formed thinner than the thickness of the bottom of the functional groove (pressure chamber 21) (the thickness of the precursor 130). Has been. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, the shape of the recesses 71, 72, 73, 74 as the divided part 70 may be substantially the same width from the opening on the front surface 11a or the back surface 30b to the bottom. However, in consideration of operability when releasing the molds for forming the recesses 71, 72, 73, 74, a tapered shape that tapers toward the bottom may be used.

  9 shows a cross section of the substrate precursor 300 before and after the firing step and a cross section of the functional mother substrate 100 in the same manner as FIG. 7 when the divided portion 70 has the shape shown in FIG. This is illustrated in In FIG. 9, the width of the opening of the divided portion 70 before the firing step is p1, and the width of the opening of the divided portion 70 after the firing step is p2, where p1 <p2. At the time of firing, as the flow path units U0 on both sides of the divided portion 70 contract, the fragile divided portion 70 opens so that the opening is pulled to both sides. As a result of such deformation of the divided part 70, the warping of the entire functional mother board 100 is divided, and the warpage of each flow path unit U0 is small compared to the case where there is no divided part 70. Stay in things.

  FIG. 10 shows the cross section of the substrate precursor 300 before and after the firing step and the cross section of the functional mother substrate 100 in the case where the divided portion 70 has the shape shown in FIG. It is illustrated by the method of. In FIG. 10, the width of the bottom of the divided portion 70 before the firing step is p1, and the width of the bottom of the divided portion 70 after the firing step is p2, where p1 <p2. At the time of firing, the bottom of the fragile split portion 70 is pulled to both sides as the flow path units U0 on both sides of the split portion 70 contract. As a result of such deformation of the divided part 70, the warping of the entire functional mother board 100 is divided, and the warpage of each flow path unit U0 is small compared to the case where the divided part 70 is not provided. Stay in things.

  In addition, the deformation ratio (the deformation ratio from p1 to p2) of the divided portion 70 before and after the firing process is the deformation ratio of the portion having the functional groove before and after the firing process (for example, the deformation of the pressure chamber 21 in the direction D4). It can be said that it is larger than the ratio. The deformation ratio is obtained, for example, by the ratio of the amount of change in size (absolute value) before and after firing with respect to the size before firing.

  FIG. 11 shows another example of the shape of the divided portion 70 by the same cross section as that of FIGS. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the divided portion 70 may include at least a cavity 75 having no opening on either the front surface 11 a or the back surface 30 b. The cavity 75 is formed in the same process as the pressure chamber 21 in the precursor 120, for example. Further, in FIG. 11, the divided portion 70 includes a cavity 76 and a recess 76 dug down along the thickness direction D1 from the back surface 30b. Of course, also in the configuration of FIG. 11, the divided portion 70 may include a recess formed on the front surface 11 a side, or may include a recess formed on each of the front surface 11 a side and the back surface 30 b side. In FIG. 11, the taper shape is adopted for the cavity 75 and the recess 76.

  FIG. 12 shows another example of the divided portion 70 in a partially sectional perspective view of the substrate precursor 300. For example, as shown in FIG. 12, the divided portion 70 may be realized by forming through holes 77 penetrating from the front surface 11a to the back surface 30b at regular or indefinite intervals. In the dividing step, the plurality of flow path units U0 can be efficiently and accurately cut out from the functional mother board 100 by cutting the portion to be divided 70 by the plurality of through holes 77. In the case of cutting with a laser or a dicing saw, the divided portion 70 for suppressing deformation becomes a cutting allowance, so that a large number of pieces can be taken with little waste.

  FIGS. 13 and 14 illustrate part of the end surfaces 101 and 102 of one flow path unit U0 after being divided from the functional mother board 100, respectively. The end surfaces 101 and 102 are side surfaces that connect the front surface 11a and the back surface 30b of the flow path unit U0. FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the end face 101 after cutting when the functional mother board 100 is cut in the divided portion 70 as shown in FIGS. FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing an end face 102 after cutting when the functional mother board 100 is cut in the divided portion 70 as shown in FIG. 12, for example. As can be seen from FIGS. 13 and 14, the flow path unit U <b> 0 has a protrusion 101 a that protrudes outward from the end surfaces 101, 102 to at least a part of the end surfaces 101, 102 generated by dividing the divided portion 70. , 102a are provided. It can be said that such protrusions 101 a and 102 a are part of the divided portion 70.

4). Example of Liquid Ejecting Device FIG. 15 shows the appearance of a liquid ejecting apparatus 200 that is an ink jet recording apparatus having the above-described liquid ejecting head 1 as a recording head. When the liquid ejecting head 1 is incorporated in the recording head units 211 and 212, the liquid ejecting apparatus 200 can be manufactured. In the liquid ejecting apparatus 200 illustrated in FIG. 15, the liquid ejecting head 1 is provided in each of the recording head units 211 and 212, and ink cartridges 221 and 222 that are external ink supply units are detachably provided. A carriage 203 on which the recording head units 211 and 212 are mounted is provided so as to be able to reciprocate along a carriage shaft 205 attached to the apparatus main body 204. When the driving force of the driving motor 206 is transmitted to the carriage 203 via a plurality of gears and a timing belt 207 (not shown), the carriage 203 moves along the carriage shaft 205. A recording medium 290 fed by a feed roller (not shown) is conveyed onto the platen 208 and printed by ink droplets supplied from the ink cartridges 221 and 222 and ejected from the liquid ejecting head 1.
The liquid ejecting apparatus 200 may be a so-called line head type printer that is fixed so that the liquid ejecting head does not move during printing and performs printing only by moving the recording medium.

5. Applications, Others The liquid ejected from the fluid ejecting head may be any material that can be ejected from the liquid ejecting head. Fluid. Such fluids include ink, liquid crystal, and the like. In addition to image recording devices such as printers, liquid ejecting heads can be mounted on color filter manufacturing devices such as liquid crystal displays, electrode manufacturing devices such as organic EL displays and FEDs (electrolytic emission displays), biochip manufacturing devices, etc. is there.

  The piezoelectric element for applying pressure to the pressure chamber is not limited to the thin film type as shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), but is a laminated type in which piezoelectric materials and electrode materials are alternately laminated, and longitudinal vibration. A longitudinal vibration type that gives a pressure change to each pressure chamber may be used. In addition, the piezoelectric actuator is an actuator that ejects droplets from the nozzle by bubbles generated by heat generated by the heat generating element, so-called a droplet that is ejected from the nozzle by deforming the diaphragm by static electricity generated between the diaphragm and the electrode. An electrostatic actuator or the like may be used. Furthermore, the present invention can be applied to various other flow path units.

The configuration of the functional unit (actuator unit) described so far is also applicable to devices other than the flow path unit U0 for ejecting liquid.
For example, the actuator unit can be used as an ultrasonic sensor or an infrared sensor by using a cavity corresponding to the pressure chamber 21 described so far as a receiving unit for receiving ultrasonic waves or infrared rays from the outside. . Further, by changing the above-described piezoelectric element from the bending mode to the beam mode, it can be used for a gyroscope, an acceleration sensor, an ultrasonic motor, or the like. In these cases, the connection part 30 having the supply hole 31 and the communication hole 32 is not necessary.
In addition, the configurations disclosed in the embodiments and modifications described above are mutually replaced, the combinations are changed, the publicly known technology, and the configurations disclosed in the embodiments and modifications described above are mutually connected. It is possible to implement a configuration in which replacement or combination is changed. The present invention includes these configurations and the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Liquid ejecting head, 3 ... Piezoelectric element, 10 ... Vibration plate part, 11 ... Vibration plate, 11a ... Front surface, 20 ... Spacer part, 21 ... Pressure chamber, 30 ... Connection part, 30b ... Back surface, 31 ... Supply hole, 32 ... Communication hole, 40 ... Sealing plate, 50 ... Reservoir plate, 51 ... Reservoir, 60 ... Nozzle plate, 62 ... Nozzle, 70 ... Divided part, 71, 72, 73, 74, 76 ... Recessed part, 75 ... Cavity , 77... Through hole, 100. Functional mother substrate, 111, 120, 130... Precursor, 200... Liquid ejecting apparatus, 300.

Claims (4)

A precursor for forming a substrate precursor having a ceramic precursor comprising a plurality of pressure chambers, and a portion to be divided that is disposed at a position sandwiched between the pressure chambers and is more fragile than a portion having the pressure chambers Forming process;
A firing step of firing the substrate precursor to form a functional mother substrate;
A dividing step of dividing the functional mother board into the plurality of flow path units in the divided portion,
Wherein the dividing section, the rather a thin bottom than the pressure chamber, and wherein the split portion, a manufacturing method of the flow path unit, characterized in that it comprises a cavity which is not open to the outer surface of the substrate precursors. The deformation ratio of the object division unit before and after the firing step, production of the flow path unit according to claim 1 wherein greater than deformation ratio of the portion having a pressure chamber, it is characterized by before and after the firing process Method. Wherein the split portion, a manufacturing method of the flow path unit according to claim 1 or claim 2 characterized in that it has a through-hole arranged at regular or irregular intervals. In the functional mother board configured to have a fired ceramic product provided in a state where the flow path unit having a plurality of pressure chambers is divided for each chip region,
Between the flow path unit provided in the predetermined chip area and the flow path unit provided in the chip area adjacent to the predetermined chip area, it is more fragile than the part provided with the pressure chamber. A split part is provided,
Wherein the dividing section, the rather a thin bottom than the pressure chamber, and wherein the dividing unit, the functional mother board, characterized in that it comprises a cavity which is not open to the outer surface of the functional mother board.

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