JPH08127130A - Ink jet head, ink jet recording apparatus and manufacture thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide an ink jet head having an orifice plate high in mechanical strength and prevented from peeling, not generating the leakage of ink and adapted to an ink jet recording apparatus. CONSTITUTION: An ink jet head has a base plate having emitting energy generating elements applying emitting energy to ink provided thereto corresponding to ink passages and a top plate member having the grooves 412 corresponding to the ink passages and an orifice plate 403 having the emitting orifices 413 communicating with one ends of the grooves 412 arranged thereto integrally formed thereto. In this ink jet head wherein ink passages are formed by bonding the base plate and the top plate member and the rear surface of the orifice plate 403 collides with the end part of the base plate at the time of bonding, at least one or more grooves 1a, 1b are provided to the rear surface of the orifice plate 403.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet head for recording by ejecting a recording liquid from an ejection port, an ink jet recording apparatus using the same and a manufacturing method thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recording devices such as thermal transfer, LBP, dot impact and ink jet are used as output devices for personal computer terminals, copying machines, fax machines and the like.

Among them, the ink jet method is drawing attention as a printing method which is excellent in quietness. Among them, the method utilizing the bubbling of a liquid by heating (hereinafter referred to as BJ
It has been attracting attention as a high-quality and inexpensive printing method because of its excellent features such as high density, easy quietness, easy colorization, and high speed printing.

A general ink jet type head is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-101952, and its outline is shown in FIGS. 15 (A) and 15 (B). As shown in these figures, this ink jet head has a substrate (hereinafter referred to as a heater board) 01 provided with an ink ejection pressure element and a recording liquid (hereinafter referred to as an ink) bonded to the heater board 01. Liquid chamber 07
And a top plate 02 having an uneven portion forming the ink passage 08
Consists of The top plate 02 also integrally has an orifice plate 04 which has an ink ejection port 09 for communicating with the ink passage 08 and ejecting ink. The heater board 01 is a support substrate (hereinafter referred to as a base plate) 03
The top plate 02 is fixed on the heater board 01 by an adhesive so that the heater portion as the ink discharge pressure generating element arranged on the heater board 1 and the ink path 08 of the top plate 02 are aligned with each other. The orifice plate 04, which is adhered to the top plate 02 and is provided on the top plate 02, is arranged on the front end surface of the support substrate 03 like a front drip. The ink is supplied from the ink supply member 05 through the ink supply port 02a provided on the top plate 02.

In such an ink jet head, a gap between an orifice plate (hereinafter abbreviated as OP) 04 of a top plate 02, a heater board (hereinafter abbreviated as HB) 01 and a base plate (hereinafter abbreviated as BP) 03. The sealing agent is positively flown into the groove provided in BP03, and thereafter, the gap between each member and the capillary force generated between the sealing agent cause a gap between BP03 and OP04. Alternatively, the end surface of HB01 and OP04 are sealed.

The state of this flow is schematically shown in FIGS. 16 (A) to 16 (C). That is, the sealant 011 filled from both sides of the top plate 02 flows into the gaps 010a and 010b between the ink supply member 05 and the HB01, the top plate 02 and the like.

The gap treatment between OP and HB and BP by such a sealant is performed by mechanical strength such as peeling of OP,
In terms of ink leakage, the number of nozzles increases, that is, it becomes a particularly difficult and important point in a multi-nozzle head in which a plurality of HBs are arranged on a BP.

[0008]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional example, since the sealant is poured from both sides of the top plate,
There were the following problems.

1. In a head having a large number of nozzles arranged, the entire area of OP cannot be filled with the sealant by sealing from both sides (state of FIG. 15B). Therefore, the area that is not fixed by the sealant becomes large, and the OP is peeled off and the ink leaks from the gap.

[0010] 2. Since there is a groove on the BP, B of OP
In the top plate having a narrow area covering P, the effect of the groove for introducing the sealant is not exerted.

3. If the OP cannot be pressed against the HB with a jig or the like because the flow of the excessive amount of the sealant cannot be suppressed, the sealant will propagate through the gap between the OP and the end face of the HB with a smile and the discharge port or the ink flow path. Flow into.

If a high-viscosity sealant is used to obtain a head that avoids the above three problems, the following problems will occur.

1. Unevenness of the sealant occurs at the lower end of OP,
The cleaning mechanism of the head mounted on the recording apparatus does not work effectively.

2. Since the sealant is not filled between HB and OP, ink flows in between HB and OP, and this ink propagates the foaming pressure during recording, and pressure vibration is transmitted to the nozzles that are not used for recording. However, a so-called crosstalk phenomenon occurs in which the ejection state becomes unstable.

In view of such circumstances, an object of the present invention is to
The mechanical strength of the orifice plate is strong and does not peel off,
No ink leakage, no crosstalk during recording, good image quality and high yield.
An object of the present invention is to provide an inkjet head, an inkjet recording device, and a manufacturing method thereof that do not hinder the cleaning mechanism of the recording device.

[0016]

A first aspect of the present invention that achieves the above object is to provide a substrate provided with an ejection energy generating element for providing ejection energy to ink in correspondence with an ink flow path, and the ink flow. A top plate member integrally formed with a groove corresponding to the path and an orifice plate provided with an array of ejection openings for communicating ink with one end of the groove, and the substrate and the ceiling. The ink flow path is formed by joining with a plate member, and at the time of joining, in the inkjet head in which the edge of the substrate abuts against the back surface of the orifice plate, at least one groove is formed on the back surface of the orifice plate. An inkjet head characterized by having.

A second aspect of the present invention is the ink jet head according to the first aspect, characterized in that a part of the groove extends parallel to the direction of arrangement of the ejection ports.

A third aspect of the present invention is the ink jet head according to the first or second aspect, characterized in that part of the groove extends in a direction orthogonal to the direction of arrangement of the ejection ports.

A fourth aspect of the present invention is the ink jet head according to any one of the first to third aspects, characterized in that the grooves are formed in a grid pattern.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to third aspects, the groove is a first groove extending parallel to the direction of arrangement of the discharge ports, and the first groove. Second orthogonal
The inkjet head is characterized by having grooves.

A sixth aspect of the present invention is the ink jet head according to the fifth aspect, characterized in that the intersection of the first groove and the second groove is T-shaped.

A seventh aspect of the present invention is the ink jet head according to the fifth or sixth aspect, characterized in that the second groove extends to the end surface of the orifice plate.

An eighth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in any one of the first to seventh aspects, at least a part of the groove is a groove formed by processing with an excimer laser. It is in.

In a ninth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to eighth aspects, the ejection energy generating element is an electrothermal converter that generates thermal energy that causes film boiling in the ink. The inkjet head is characterized by

A tenth aspect of the present invention is an ink jet recording apparatus including any one of the ink jet heads of the first to ninth aspects, wherein the ink jet head is detachable from the recording apparatus main body. It is in an inkjet recording device.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, a substrate provided with an ejection energy generating element for giving ejection energy to ink is provided corresponding to an ink flow path, a groove corresponding to the ink flow path and one end of the groove. A top plate member integrally formed with an orifice plate provided so as to communicate with each other to eject ink and an orifice plate is provided, and an end portion of the substrate abuts a rear surface of the orifice plate on which the groove is formed. So as to form the ink flow path,
A step of pouring a sealant into the gap between the orifice plate and the end surface of the substrate through the groove formed on the back surface of the orifice plate to form an inkjet head. It is in.

A twelfth aspect of the present invention is the method of manufacturing an ink jet head according to the eleventh aspect, characterized in that a part of the groove extends parallel to the direction of arrangement of the ejection ports.

The thirteenth aspect of the present invention is the eleventh or first aspect.
In a second aspect, there is a method of manufacturing an inkjet head, wherein a part of the groove extends in a direction orthogonal to the ejection port array direction.

A fourteenth aspect of the present invention is the method for manufacturing an ink jet head according to any one of the eleventh to thirteenth aspects, characterized in that the grooves are formed in a grid pattern.

In a fifteenth aspect of the present invention according to any one of the eleventh to thirteenth aspects, the groove is a first groove extending in parallel with the discharge port arrangement direction, and the first groove. In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for manufacturing an inkjet head, the second groove being orthogonal to the second groove.

A sixteenth aspect of the present invention is the method for manufacturing an ink jet head according to the fifteenth aspect, characterized in that the intersection of the first groove and the second groove is T-shaped.

A seventeenth aspect of the present invention is the method of manufacturing an ink jet head according to the fifteenth or sixteenth aspect, characterized in that the second groove extends to the end surface of the orifice plate.

An eighteenth aspect of the present invention is the ink jet head according to any one of the eleventh to seventeenth aspects, wherein at least a part of the groove is a groove formed by processing with an excimer laser. In the manufacturing method.

In a nineteenth aspect of the present invention based on any one of the eleventh to eighteenth aspects, the ejection energy generating element is
A method of manufacturing an ink jet head, which is an electrothermal converter that generates heat energy that causes film boiling in the ink.

[0035]

The groove formed on the back surface of the orifice plate, which is the abutting surface of the grooved top plate, guides the flow of the sealant, and the sealant is controlled between the rear surface of the orifice plate and the end surface of the heater board. Will flow, and there will be no portion not filled with the sealant, the mechanical strength of the orifice plate will be strong, and peeling will not occur.

[0036]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

1A and 1B are explanatory views showing the features of an ink jet head according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A is a perspective view schematically showing the grooved top plate. FIG. 1 (B) is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1 (A).

A configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 (A) and 1 (B). This grooved top plate 40
First, 0 is formed by resin injection molding as a molded body having a function as a grooved top plate such as the common liquid chamber 411 and the ink supply port 414. In this molded body, individual ink channels are formed simultaneously from the common liquid chamber 411 at the time of molding, and only the ink channel forming surface is molded, and the ink channels are later formed by laser processing or the like. There are cases. In any case, the ink discharge port 413 and the ink circulation groove 412 communicating with this are formed in the grooved top plate 400 corresponding to each ink flow channel, and thus the ink circulation groove 412 is provided. It is called a grooved top plate because it does.

Grooves 1a and 1b are formed on the rear surface of the orifice plate (OP) 403, which is the front end surface on which the orifices of the grooved top plate 400 are arranged, as shown in FIG. That is, the grooves 1a and 1b on the back surface of the OP
Comprises a parallel groove 1a parallel to the direction of arrangement of the discharge ports, and a plurality of grooves 1b communicating with the groove 1a and orthogonal to each other in a T-shape and extending to the OP end face.

Grooves 1a and 1b on the back surface of OP403 described above
Is a groove for flowing a sealant, which is the main object of the present invention, and is therefore referred to as a sealing groove to distinguish it from an ink flow channel groove. Since the sealing grooves 1a and 1b are formed in the middle of the back surface of the OP 403, it is impossible to form the discharge groove array direction and the parallel groove 1a by injection molding.

The present inventors formed a groove on the back surface of the OP by a method using an excimer laser as shown in FIG.

A beam emitted from an excimer laser main body (not shown) is made uniform in pattern by an optical system (not shown), and is formed into a desired shape by an electroforming mask, an etching mask, or a photomask 20 such as chromium vapor deposition. At the same time, it is projected through the projection lens 30 onto the OP 403, which is a processed surface, to form a sealing groove.

Next, the shape of the groove will be described.

The sealing groove should have a structure that facilitates the flow of the sealant and at the same time does not allow it to flow into an unnecessary place.

From the viewpoint of facilitating the flow of the groove for this purpose, the pitch and width of the plurality of grooves 1b extending to the OP end face are determined according to the viscosity of the sealant and the number of nozzles arranged, and the depth of the groove. Is determined from the viscosity of the sealant, the OP thickness, and the laser processing capability. In this example, when a low-viscosity dealcohol type silicone sealant (TSE3995 manufactured by Toshiba Silicone Co., Ltd.) and a viscosity of about 3000 cp were used, the groove width was 0.05 to 0.2 m.
m, depth 0.005 to 0.05 mm, pitch 2 to 10 m
If formed within the range of m, the result obtained is that it sufficiently functions against the flow of sealing. On the other hand, from the viewpoint of not flowing to a place other than necessary, the groove 1a is parallel to the nozzle arrangement direction.
To provide.

The main groove 1a has the function of suppressing the flow of the above-mentioned sealing agent that has flowed in toward the discharge port, and changing the direction of flow in the nozzle arrangement direction. However, since a minute gap of 0.005 mm or less may occur between the end surface of HB and OP, the sealant flowing by the capillary force through the gap reaches the vicinity of the discharge port and blocks the discharge port. In some cases, a low-molecular-weight siloxane coating that is generated during curing may be formed in the ink flow path, resulting in ink repellency and unstable ink ejection. Therefore, it is necessary to control the distance d from the lower end of the ejection port for the groove 1a in the ejection port arrangement direction. The inventors examined the position of the groove 1a, the amount of the sealant, and the groove depth in the case of the sealing agent having the above viscosity, and as a result, d ≧ 0.2 mm and the groove width 0.05 to 0.2 mm. ,
If the depth is 0.005 to 0.05 mm, it is possible to manufacture a recording head with stable quality without causing the above-mentioned problem.

If the safety factor is to be further increased, refer to FIG.
As shown in (A) and (B), it is possible to stop the flow of the sealant by forming grooves 1c and 1d in parallel with the groove 1a to form a plurality of grooves. The shape of the groove may be a V-shaped groove 1e in cross section, a semicircular groove 1f, or the like, as shown in FIGS. 3 (C) and 3 (D).

Further, since such a groove can be freely formed by a mask, the grid-like grooves 1g and 1h may be formed as shown in FIGS. 4 (A) and 4 (B). The enclosed portion can be manufactured as either the rectangular columnar protrusion 2a or the columnar protrusion 2b.

The flow of the sealant on the OP back surface of the recording head incorporating the above-described grooved top plate will be described with reference to FIG.

First, as shown in FIG. 5 (A), OP40
The sealant 301 is dripped at the tip of the sealant inflow groove 1b at the lower end (upper side in the drawing) of 3.

Within a few seconds, the dropped sealant 301 was
Flow starts in the lower end of OP403 and in the sealing groove 1b of OP403. The flow direction is changed to the horizontal direction in the figure when the flow reaches the groove 1a parallel to the direction of arrangement of the discharge ports (Fig. 5).
(B)).

After a few minutes, the encapsulant 301 started to thicken, and the flow stopped when the encapsulation grooves 1a and 1b were almost filled (FIG. 5C).

In this way, OP403 and HB10
By filling the gap between the end surface of No. 0 and the end surface with the sealing agent 301 and fixing the two, it is possible to prevent the OP 403 from peeling off, and to manufacture a head with high image quality without ink leakage with high yield.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing the construction of an ink jet head using the grooved top plate of this embodiment, and FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the construction of the main parts of this ink jet head. Here, the density of the ink ejection ports is 360 dp.
i (360 per 25.4 mm or 70.
5 μm) and the number of ink ejection ports is 3008 (recording width 21
An inkjet head having a size of 2 mm will be described.

Since there are 3008 ink ejection ports, at least 3008 ejection energy generating elements are required. Here, a plurality of heater boards (substrates) 100 each having 128 ejection energy generating elements 101 are prepared. By arranging them in a straight line, a predetermined number of ejection energy generating elements can be secured. Each heater board 100 has a discharge energy generating element 1
128 pads 01 are provided at predetermined positions at a density of 360 dpi, and further supply a signal for driving the ejection energy generating element 101 at an arbitrary timing by an electric signal from the outside and a power for driving the pad. 102
have. Each heater board 100 is arranged on the surface of a support (base plate) 300 made of stainless steel, and is adhesively fixed with an adhesive.

FIG. 8 is a detailed view of the heater boards 100 arranged side by side. Each heater board 100 includes a support 30
Adhesive 30 applied to a predetermined place of 0 with a predetermined thickness
It is adhesively fixed by 1. At this time, between the two adjacent heater boards 100, the discharge energy generating element on one heater board and closest to the other heater board, and the discharge energy on the other heater board and closest to one heater board. The pitch between the energy generating elements is the same as the pitch P (= 70.5 μm) of the ejection energy generating elements 101 on each heater board 100. Therefore, even if 20 or more heater boards 100 are provided,
The ejection energy generating elements 101 are arranged at the same pitch P.

As the ejection energy generating element 101, specifically, an electrothermal converter which generates heat when energized according to a recording signal is used. Discharge energy generation element 1
01 is formed on the heater board 100, which is a silicon substrate, using a semiconductor device manufacturing technique. And
When the ejection energy generating element 101 generates heat due to the energization, the ink in the ink flow path corresponding to the ejection energy generating element is heated and foams, and the energy of the foaming causes the ink in the ink flow path to eject ink liquid from the ejection port. It will be ejected as a drop. This foaming is preferably due to film boiling. As the ejection energy generating element 101, a piezoelectric element or the like can be used.

Returning to FIG. 7, the wiring board 200 is also adhered to the support 300. The wiring board 200 is for supplying signals and power to each heater board 100, and the pads 102 on the heater board 100 and the signal / power supply pads 2 provided on the wiring board 200.
02 so as to have a predetermined positional relationship with the wiring board 200.
Is located. Heater board 10 of wiring board 200
A connector 201 to which a print signal and driving power are supplied from the outside is provided at the end portion that is not on the 0 side.

Next, the grooved top plate 400 will be described. FIG. 9 shows the grooved top plate 400 of this example, in which a molded body 460 to which functions as a grooved top plate such as a common liquid chamber and an ink supply port are added is formed by resin injection molding in advance. (FIG. 9 (E)). This molded body 460 has a shape similar to that of the grooved top plate 400 to be manufactured, but the position to be the orifice plate is padded in consideration of the amount of warpage during molding. Furthermore, the molded body 460 is not formed with ejection ports or ink flow channel grooves. Shaded portion 40 in the figure
Reference numerals 1 and 402 denote portions that are cut by cutting, and by removing the shaded portions 401 and 402,
It is possible to obtain a shape in which the ejection ports and the ink flow channel grooves are not formed. Further, by processing this state to form ejection ports and ink flow channel grooves, the final grooved top plate 400 can be obtained. A state in which the orifice plate is formed but the discharge port and the ink flow path groove are not formed is referred to as a top plate in correspondence with the final grooved top plate 400.

First, the top plate is formed by simultaneously cutting the orifice plate surface (ejection port surface), the ink flow path groove forming surface, and the heater board joint surface (butting surface) after molding with the resin by the method described above. Form. Then, an ink-repellent film is formed on the surface of the orifice plate in order to prevent the ejection performance from being deteriorated due to the peripheral edge of the orifice getting wet with ink. afterwards,
By excavating the ink flow channel forming surface with an excimer laser, the ink flow channel corresponding to each ejection energy generating element 101 of the heater board 100 is formed. The processing with the laser beam is performed by using a mask and repeating the processing in 128 channel units in the same manner as the heater board unit. After processing the ink flow path grooves, next, several micron (μm) to the surface of each wall between the ink flow path grooves and the HB to be joined so as to be in close contact even with a low pressing load.
A so-called marking process is performed in which a recess of ten and a few microns (μm) is provided. This processing is also performed by an excimer laser in 128 units using a mask using the same optical system as the ink flow channel groove processing. From the back side of the orifice plate at one end of each ink flow channel, 128
The discharge port (orifice) is perforated by a laser beam using a mask in units.

Next, a sealing groove is formed on the back surface of OP403 of the present invention. As described above, this processing is carried out by repeating processing of 128 units using the same excimer laser as in the previous step. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the shape of the OP backside sealing groove of the present embodiment. The shape of the sealing groove introduced into the present recording head is such that the groove width is the width W _{1 of the} groove 1 a = 0.1 mm, The width W ₂ of the half of the groove 1 b is 0.05 mm, the distance d from the lower end of the orifice 413 to the groove 1 a is 0.2 mm, and the depth of the groove is 0.00.
It was manufactured under the dimensional control of 5 + 0.005 mm. Here, the groove width W ₂ = 0.05 mm is set to prevent the groove depth from becoming partially deep due to overlapping by repeated processing. In addition, in order to prevent double machining of the groove of the pole portion due to the overlapping of repeated positioning accuracy variations, 3
In the case of 60 dpi, in 128 units, at 9.024 mm, the safety factor is decreased by 0.01 mm, and W ₃ = 9.
024-0.01 = 9.014 mm. The depth control is 0.2 μm when the excimer laser processing amount is polysulfone, which is the resin used for the grooved top plate.
Since the processing rate is m to 0.3 μm / pulse,
It was possible to obtain it by managing the processing time.

In this way, the grooved top plate 400 is finally completed.

As shown in FIG. 9, the grooved top plate 400 is
An ink channel 412 provided corresponding to the ejection energy generating element 101 provided on the heater board 100, and communicated with the ink channel 412 corresponding to each ink channel 412 for ejecting ink toward the recording medium. An orifice (ejection port) 413, a liquid chamber 411 communicating with each ink flow path 412 for supplying ink to each ink flow path 412,
It is configured such that constituent elements such as an ink supply port 414 for allowing the ink supplied from an ink tank (not shown) to flow into the liquid chamber 411 are integrally provided. Naturally, the grooved top plate 400 has a length that substantially covers the ejection energy generating element array provided with a plurality of heater boards 100 arranged side by side. And
As shown in FIG. 7, the grooved top plate 400 has the flow path 4
12 and the heater board 100 arranged on the support 300
The ejection energy generating element 101 is coupled to the support 300 so that the ejection energy generating element 101 has a predetermined positional relation.
As this coupling method, there are various methods such as a method of mechanically pressing the spring 500 and a spring holder 510 holding the spring 500, a method of fixing with an adhesive, and a method of using these methods together. FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the positional relationship between the support 300, the heater board 100, and the grooved top plate 400.

As a material for forming the grooved top plate 400,
Since the ink channel groove and the ejection port are provided, a resin that can form the groove accurately is preferable, and further, mechanical strength, dimensional stability,
It is desirable that the ink has excellent ink resistance. As such a material, for example, an epoxy resin, an acrylic resin, a diglycol dialkyl carbonate resin, an unsaturated polyester resin, a polyurethane resin, a polyimide resin, a melamine resin, a phenol resin, a urea resin, or the like is preferable, and polysulfone or polyether sulfone is particularly preferable. A resin such as phon is desirable from the viewpoint of its moldability and liquid resistance.

When the grooved top plate 400 is made of resin, the coefficient of linear thermal expansion is about 1 × 10 ⁻⁵ / ° C. to 1 × 10 ⁻⁴ / ° C. Here, polysulfone (coefficient of linear thermal expansion 56
The description will be made assuming that (× 10 ⁻⁶ / ° C.) is used. On the other hand, the heater board 100, which is a substrate, is made of a silicon substrate and has a linear thermal expansion coefficient of 2.4 × 10 ⁻⁶ / ° C. In addition, a support 300 on which the heater board 100 is arranged
Is made of stainless steel, and its linear thermal expansion coefficient is 17.3.
× 10 ⁻⁶ / ° C. Here, it is assumed that the recording head is assembled at a temperature near 25 ° C. It is quite possible that the temperature of the assembled recording head rises to about 60 ° C. during its operation. Therefore, in the configuration as described above, assuming that the assembly is accurately performed at 25 ° C., the difference at 60 ° C. due to the difference in expansion coefficient is calculated as follows.

[0066]

[Equation 1] 3008 nozzles x 0.0705 (pitch) x (60-25) x
(56 × 10 ^-6 -17.3 × 10 ^-6 ) = 0.287 mm That is, a deviation of 0.287 mm occurs, which is the size of four discharge ports. If such a deviation occurs, It cannot be used as an inkjet head. Therefore, the grooved top plate 400 is shown in FIG.
As shown in (D), the support member 415 for regulating the coefficient of thermal expansion of the grooved top plate 400 is provided with the grooved top plate along the longitudinal direction of the grooved top plate 400, that is, the ink flow passage arrangement direction. It is provided in 400 resins. Here, the support member 4
Reference numeral 15 is a pipe made of the same stainless steel as the support 300, and both ends thereof project from the main body portion of the grooved top plate 400 to serve as ink supply ports. Also, this support member 41
5, a hole 414 that communicates with the liquid chamber 411 is preliminarily machined, so that the inside of the support member 415, that is, the pipe, communicates with the liquid chamber. The surface of the support member 415 is subjected to surface processing such as blasting or knurling, so that the degree of adhesion between the support member 415 and the resin of the grooved top plate 400 is improved. The linear thermal expansion coefficient of the grooved top plate 400 as a whole matches the linear thermal expansion coefficient of stainless steel from the relationship of the mechanical strength (elasticity coefficient, etc.) between the support member 415 and the resin forming the grooved top plate 400. To do. By doing so, the grooved top plate 400 and the support body 300 have the same coefficient of thermal expansion, and the deviation due to the temperature rise does not occur at all.

Heater board 100 made of silicon substrate
Then, a difference in thermal expansion occurs between the support 300 and the grooved top plate 400. However, since the heater board is divided into 128-dot units, this difference in thermal expansion can be ignored. That is, the same as above, 25 ° C and 60
Calculating the difference in thermal expansion with respect to ° C is as follows.

[0068]

[Equation 2] 128 x 0.0705 x (60-25) x (17.3 x 10 ^-6 -2.
4 × 10 ⁻⁶ ) = 0.005 This is because the displacement between the discharge energy generating elements at both ends of the heater board 100 and the discharge port or ink flow path on the grooved top plate 400 side is 0.005 / 2 = 0.0025 mm, That is, 2.
It shows that it becomes 5 μm. The value of 2.5 μm is small compared to the pitch P = 70.5 μm, and does not affect the ejection performance of the inkjet head at all.

Next, the ink jet head will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. As explained so far, the orifice and the liquid flow should be applied to the heater board with the discharge energy generating element that is accurately arranged and bonded on the support made of glass, silicon, ceramics, metal, etc. The ink flow path is formed by joining the grooved top plate in which the channels are formed, and the inkjet head is manufactured.

FIG. 12 schematically shows an ink jet cartridge to which such an ink jet head is applied. This ink jet cartridge is detachably attached to the ink jet recording apparatus main body, and is an ink jet head 850 similar to the one described above and an ink capable of storing ink to be supplied to the ink jet head. Tank 85
1 and 1 are integrally formed.

FIG. 13 shows a schematic outline explanatory view of a so-called full line type ink jet head having a width corresponding to the recording width of a recording medium and an ink jet recording apparatus using the ink jet head. The full-line type inkjet head has a large number of ejection ports by its nature, and the effect of the present invention is most prominent.

In this recording apparatus, the full-line ink jet head 600 is arranged so as to face a recording medium 800 such as paper or cloth conveyed by a recording medium conveying roller 700. Then, while conveying the recording medium 800,
Recording is performed on the long recording medium 800 by ejecting the ink from the full line type inkjet head 600 toward the recording medium 800 according to a recording signal. In the case of the present invention, since the inkjet head is manufactured by arranging a plurality of heater boards provided with the ejection energy generating elements, a long inkjet head such as a full line recording head can be easily manufactured.

FIG. 14 shows an ink jet recording apparatus equipped with a small cartridge type ink jet head. In this recording device, the ink tank unit 10
01 and the inkjet head unit 1002 are integrated, and an inkjet head cartridge 1000 that is detachable from the main body of the recording apparatus is used. The inkjet head cartridge 1000 is mounted on a carriage 1010 that can reciprocate in the direction of the arrow in the figure. Further, a transport roller for transporting the recording medium 800, a motor 1003 as a drive source for driving the carriage 1010, and power from the drive source are supplied to the carriage 1010.
A carriage shaft 1004 and the like for transmitting to Furthermore, a signal supply unit (not shown) that supplies a signal for ejecting ink to the inkjet head unit 1002 is provided.

As described above, the ink jet recording apparatus using the ink jet head according to the present invention has been described for the case where only one ink jet head for ejecting a single color ink is mounted, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, it goes without saying that the inkjet head of the present invention is used for a color recording apparatus equipped with a plurality of inkjet heads corresponding to inks of a plurality of colors.

The typical construction and principle of the ink jet type recording head and recording apparatus according to the present invention are described in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,7.
It is preferably carried out using the basic principles disclosed in 40,796. The Koi method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and the continuous type, but in the case of the on-demand type in particular, the electricity arranged corresponding to the sheet or liquid path holding the liquid (ink) By applying at least one drive signal that gives a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling to the heat conversion body in response to the recorded information, heat energy is generated in the electrothermal conversion body, and as a result, this drive signal is generated. This is effective because bubbles can be formed in the liquid (ink) corresponding to the above. The liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection openings by the growth and contraction of the bubbles to form at least one droplet. It is more preferable to make this drive signal into a pulse shape because bubbles can be immediately and appropriately grown and contracted, so that liquid (ink) ejection with excellent responsiveness can be achieved. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. It should be noted that U.S. Pat. No. 4,313,124, which discloses an invention relating to the rate of temperature rise of the heat acting surface,
If the conditions described in the specification are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the constitution of the recording head, in addition to the combination constitution of the discharge port, the liquid passage, and the electrothermal converter (the linear liquid passage or the right-angled liquid passage) as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications. The present invention also includes configurations using US Pat. No. 4,558,333 and US Pat. No. 4,459,600, which disclose configurations in which a heat acting portion is arranged in a bending region. Is. In addition, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an opening for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is discharged. The present invention is also effective as a configuration based on Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-138461 which discloses a configuration corresponding to a part.

Further, as a full line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium which can be recorded by the recording device, a combination of a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above-mentioned specification is used. The present invention can exert the above-mentioned effects more effectively, although it may have a configuration satisfying the length or a configuration as one recording head integrally formed. In addition, the ink tank is integrated into the replaceable chip-type recording head, or the recording head itself, which can be electrically connected to the device body and supply ink from the device body when it is mounted on the device body. The present invention is also effective when a cartridge-type recording head that is specially provided is used.

Further, it is preferable to add recovery means for the recording head, preliminary auxiliary means, etc., which are provided as a constitution of the recording apparatus of the present invention, because the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. If you list these specifically,
Capping means, cleaning means, pressurization or suction means, electrothermal converters or heating elements other than these, or preheating means by a combination thereof, to the recording head, preliminary ejection for performing ejection other than recording Performing the mode is also effective for stable recording.

Further, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to the recording mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but the recording head may be integrally formed or a plurality of combinations may be used. The present invention is also extremely effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of full color by color mixing.

When the alloy material according to the present invention is used, resistance to impact of cavitation, resistance to erosion due to cavitation, electrochemical stability, chemical stability, oxidation resistance, dissolution resistance, heat resistance, thermal shock resistance. ,
It is possible to obtain an inkjet head and an inkjet head device including an electrothermal converter having a heating resistor having excellent mechanical durability and the like. In particular, it is possible to obtain an inkjet head and an inkjet device in which the heat generating portion of the heating resistor is in direct contact with the ink in the ink path. In the ink jet head and the ink jet device having this structure, the heat energy generated from the heat generating portion of the heat generating resistor can be directly applied to the ink, so that the heat conduction efficiency to the ink is good. Therefore, the power consumption by the heating resistor can be suppressed to a low level, and the temperature rise of the inkjet head (temperature change of the inkjet head) can be significantly reduced, so that the occurrence of the image density change due to the temperature change of the inkjet head is avoided. be able to. Further, it is possible to obtain a better responsiveness to the ejection signal applied to the heating resistor.

Further, in the heat generating resistor according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a desired specific resistance with good controllability and to make the dispersion of the resistance value within one ink jet head extremely small.

Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain an ink jet head and an ink jet apparatus which can discharge ink much more stably than the conventional ones and which is excellent in durability.

The ink jet head and the ink jet apparatus having the above-mentioned various favorable characteristics are very suitable for high speed recording and high image quality due to the multi-ejection.

In the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid, but it is an ink that solidifies at room temperature or lower, and is softened or liquid at room temperature, or the ink itself is 30 It is common to adjust the temperature within a range of ℃ to 70 ℃ to control the temperature of the ink so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range. good. In addition, the temperature rise due to the thermal energy is positively prevented by using it as the energy of the state change of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state, or the ink that solidifies in the standing state is used for the purpose of preventing the evaporation of the ink. However, in any case, by applying thermal energy such as ink that is liquefied by being applied according to the recording signal of the thermal energy and ejected as an ink liquid, or that has already started to solidify when it reaches the recording medium. The use of an ink having a property of liquefying for the first time is also applicable to the present invention. In such a case, the ink is retained as a liquid or solid in the recesses or through holes of the porous sheet as described in JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-71260, It may be configured to face the electrothermal converter. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In the present invention, recording means cloth, thread, paper,
The recording device includes the application of ink (printing) to all ink supports that receive application of ink such as sheet material.
The present invention includes all of various information processing devices or a printer as an output device thereof, and the present invention can be applied to these.

[0086]

As described above, according to the present invention,
By providing a groove for guiding the flow of the sealing agent on the OP back surface of the grooved top plate, the controlled sealing agent flows between the OP back surface and the HB end surface. Uniform adhesive strength is obtained, the mechanical strength is increased, and there is no fear of peeling under normal use environment.

2. Ink leakage does not occur because the sealant can be made to flow where necessary.

3. Since OP and the HB end face are in close contact with each other, crosstalk does not occur during recording.

4. Contamination due to low-molecular-weight siloxane generated from the sealant can be prevented and stable printing quality can be obtained.
Yield is improved.

5. Since a low-viscosity sealant can be used, OP
The unevenness of the lower end portion is eliminated, the cleaning mechanism of the recording apparatus is not hindered, and a high-quality image can always be obtained.

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily construct an ink jet head having a large number of, for example, 200 or more, typically thousands of ejection ports. Therefore, the present invention
By applying to a full line type ink jet head having a length corresponding to the recording width of the recording medium, a particularly remarkable effect is exhibited.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 schematically shows a grooved top plate of an inkjet head according to an embodiment of the present invention, (A) is a perspective view showing the structure, and (B) is a cross section taken along line AA of (A). It is a figure.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing a method for processing a sealing groove on the back surface of an orifice plate of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing another shape of the sealing groove on the rear surface of the orifice plate.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing another shape of the sealing groove on the rear surface of the orifice plate.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a flow of a sealant when the sealant is filled in a head using the sealed groove of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing the configuration of an inkjet head.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of main components of an inkjet head.

FIG. 8 is a detailed view showing a state in which a heater board is arranged.

9A and 9B relate to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 9A is a top view of a grooved top plate, FIG. 9B is a front view of a grooved top plate, FIG. 9C is a bottom view of a grooved top plate, and FIG. FIG. 7B is a sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG. 6B, and FIG. 8E is a sectional view of the same portion as that of the first molded body of the top plate.

FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing the shape of the sealing groove on the back surface of the orifice plate of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing a positional relationship between a support, a heater board, and a grooved top plate.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the configuration of an inkjet cartridge to which the inkjet head of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a conceptual configuration of a full-line type inkjet head and a recording apparatus using the inkjet head.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing an ink jet recording apparatus equipped with a small cartridge type ink jet head.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a conventional inkjet head.

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of a sealant in a conventional inkjet head.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1a Sealing groove (parallel to nozzle arrangement direction) 1b Sealing groove (orthogonal to 1a) 100 Heater board 101 Discharge energy generating element 102 Pad 200 Wiring board 201 Connector 202 Signal / power supply pad 300 Support 301 Adhesive 302 Sealing Agent 403 Orifice plate 411 Liquid chamber 412 Ink flow path 413 Discharge port 414 Ink supply port 415 Support member 460 Molded body 500 Spring 501 Spring holder 600 Full line inkjet head 700 Recording medium conveying roller 800 Recording medium 850 Inkjet head 851 Ink tank 1000 Inkjet head Cartridge 1010 Carriage

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Seiichiro Karita 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Haruhiko Terai 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Incorporated (72) Inventor Yu Iketani 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Yuuki Tajima 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc.

Claims (19)

[Claims] 1. A substrate provided with an ejection energy generating element for giving ejection energy to ink corresponding to an ink flow path, a groove corresponding to the ink flow path, and one end of the groove to communicate the ink. A top plate member integrally formed with an orifice plate provided with an array of ejection ports, and the ink flow path is formed by joining the substrate and the top plate member, and the joining is performed. An ink jet head in which an edge of the substrate abuts against the back surface of the orifice plate at times, wherein the back surface of the orifice plate has at least one groove. 2. The ink jet head according to claim 1, wherein a part of the groove extends in parallel with the ejection port arrangement direction. 3. The ink jet head according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a part of the groove extends in a direction orthogonal to the ejection port array direction. 4. The ink jet head according to claim 1, wherein the grooves are formed in a grid pattern. 5. The groove according to claim 1, wherein the groove includes a first groove extending parallel to the ejection port array direction and a second groove orthogonal to the first groove. An inkjet head characterized by having. 6. The ink jet head according to claim 5, wherein the intersection of the first groove and the second groove is T-shaped. 7. The ink jet head according to claim 5, wherein the second groove extends to an end surface of the orifice plate. 8. The inkjet head according to claim 1, wherein at least a part of the groove is a groove formed by processing with an excimer laser. 9. The ink jet head according to claim 1, wherein the ejection energy generating element is an electrothermal converter that generates heat energy that causes film boiling of the ink. 10. An inkjet recording apparatus comprising the inkjet head according to claim 1, wherein the inkjet head is attachable to and detachable from a recording apparatus main body. . 11. An ink is ejected by communicating with a substrate provided with an ejection energy generating element for giving ejection energy to ink in correspondence with an ink flow path, a groove corresponding to the ink flow path, and one end of the groove. And a top plate member integrally formed with an orifice plate provided with an array of ejection ports are joined so that the end of the substrate abuts against the rear surface of the orifice plate on which the groove is formed. A step of forming a flow path, and a step of forming an inkjet head by pouring a sealant into a gap between the orifice plate and the end surface of the substrate via the groove formed on the back surface of the orifice plate. A method for manufacturing an ink jet head, which is characterized. 12. The method for manufacturing an inkjet head according to claim 11, wherein a part of the groove extends in parallel with the direction of arrangement of the ejection ports. 13. The method for manufacturing an inkjet head according to claim 11, wherein a part of the groove extends in a direction orthogonal to the ejection port array direction. 14. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 13,
A method for manufacturing an inkjet head, wherein the grooves are formed in a grid pattern. 15. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 13,
A first groove extending in parallel with the direction of arrangement of the discharge ports;
And a second groove that is orthogonal to the first groove, and a method for manufacturing an inkjet head. 16. The method of manufacturing an ink jet head according to claim 15, wherein the intersection of the first groove and the second groove is T-shaped. 17. The method for manufacturing an ink jet head according to claim 15, wherein the second groove extends to an end surface of the orifice plate. 18. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 17,
At least a part of the groove is a groove formed by processing with an excimer laser, and a method for manufacturing an inkjet head. 19. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 18,
The method for manufacturing an inkjet head, wherein the ejection energy generating element is an electrothermal converter that generates thermal energy that causes film boiling in the ink.