JPH08309988A - Ink jet printing head and manufacture thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To obtain an ink jet printing head using a current supply system effectively preventing the bleeding of a bonding resin layer when a resin sheet is bonded to a lower electrode substrate, keeping the long-term stability of the boiling and emitting characteristics of conductive ink to perform printing of high quality and enhanced in durability and reliability. CONSTITUTION: A resin sheet 7 having ink passages, an ink chamber 9 and nozzle orifices 11, a lower electrode substrate obtained by arranging a large number of first and second electrodes 3a, 3b on a non-conductive substrate 2 in pairs and the bonding resin layer 8 bonding the lower electrode substrate are provided and stepped parts for preventing the bleeding of a bonding resin are formed to both side surfaces of the ink passages and the periphery of the ink chamber 9 of the resin sheet 7.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a current-carrying type ink jet printer head for conducting printing by discharging electricity from the conductive ink by Joule heat.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, computer technology has been advancing day by day. In particular, for printers that play a role in printing various information in office automation, low noise, high speed, high definition and low price have been achieved. There is a demand for colorization. In response to this, currently dot matrix printers, thermal transfer printers, LED printers,
Laser beam printers, inkjet printers, etc. have been developed and provided.

As a method of ejecting ink in an ink jet printer head used in an ink jet printer, a piezo method in which ink is pushed out by deformation of a piezo piezoelectric element, and a conductive ink is filled between a pair of electrodes and an electric current is applied between the electrodes. There is an energization method that energizes and boils and discharges the conductive ink by Joule heat.

An ink jet printer head using this energization method (hereinafter referred to as an ink jet printer head) has a method in which a direct current is applied between a pair of electrodes to boil and eject conductive ink by Joule heat.
An alternating current heating type method, which is high-frequency heating by alternating current application in which an alternating current is applied between a pair of electrodes to boil and eject conductive ink, is known. Among them, the alternating current heating method of applying an alternating voltage has a simpler structure than the method of using a piezo element, and the durability of the electrode is higher than that of the method of using a direct current and is becoming the mainstream.

A conventional ink jet printer head will be described below. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of an inkjet printer using an inkjet printer head using a conventional energization method, and FIG.
It is a cross-sectional end view of the electrode part taken along the line A ′.

1'is a conventional ink jet printer head, 2 is a non-conductive substrate made of glass or ceramics such as silicon, 3a is titanium on the non-conductive substrate 2,
The first electrodes 3b formed by patterning a metal film of gold, platinum, nickel or the like are second electrodes forming a pair simultaneously with the first electrodes 3a. Here, the first electrode 3
The a and the second electrode 3b are called an electrode portion. Reference numeral 4 denotes a lead wire portion formed integrally with the electrode portion and connected to a pad portion (not shown) with a flexible terminal (not shown) for applying a driving voltage from the outside to the end portion of the non-conductive substrate 2, Reference numeral 5 denotes an insulating layer formed on the electrode portion and the lead wire portion 4 and the like, and reference numeral 6 denotes an insulating layer opening portion where the ink is peeled off so as to contact the first electrode 3a and the second electrode 3b. 7 is a resin sheet that is adhered on the insulating layer 5 and has ink flow paths, ink chambers and nozzle holes, and 8 is a bonding resin that adheres the non-conductive substrate 2 and the resin sheet 7 after the insulating layer 5 is formed. It is a layer.

Reference numeral 9 denotes an ink chamber formed in the resin sheet 7,
Reference numeral 10 is a conductive ink with which the ink chamber 9 is filled, 11 is a nozzle hole which is arranged at a position substantially coincident with the upper center of the electrode of the resin sheet 7, and ejects the conductive ink 10.
Reference numeral 3 is a power supply unit for generating a drive voltage applied between the first electrode 3a and the second electrode 3b, and 14 is the first electrode 3a.
A control unit for applying a voltage so that the current flowing in the conductive ink 10 between the second electrode 3b and the second electrode 3b has a required value for boiling and discharging the conductive ink 10, and 15 is a control for the lead wire unit 4 and It is an external lead wire portion for connecting to the portion 14. Further, 16 is a printer sheet placed above the nozzle, 1
Reference numeral 7 is a bubble generated between the first electrode 3a and the second electrode 3b, 18 is an ink droplet ejected from the nozzle hole 11, and 19 is a print dot in which the ink droplet 18 is attached to the printer paper 16.

The manufacturing method of the conventional ink jet printer head having the above structure will be described below. First, on the non-conductive substrate 2 made of glass or ceramics, a physical film forming method such as a vapor deposition method or a sputtering method,
A conductive metal film (not shown) made of titanium or the like is laminated by a plating method or the like. Next, using photolithography or the like, the first electrode 3a and the second electrode 3 are formed on the metal film.
A pattern (not shown) of each shape of b and the lead wire portion 4 is formed, and the metal film in the portion where this pattern is not formed is removed by a chemical etching method or an ion milling method, and the first electrode 3a and the first electrode 3a are removed. The electrode portion including the two electrodes 3b and the lead wire portion 4 are formed. Next, the insulating layer 5 made of organic polymer or ceramics is uniformly formed on the non-conductive substrate 2 having the first electrode 3a, the second electrode 3b, the lead wire portion 4, etc. by coating or sputtering. Then, the insulating layer 5 around the first electrode portion 3a and the second electrode 3b, which are in contact with the ink, is opened again by using the photolithography method to form the insulating layer opening portion 6. In this way,
The lower electrode substrate of the inkjet printer head is completed.

Next, the manufacturing process of the resin sheet 7 having the ink flow path 12 for ejecting the conductive ink 10, the ink chamber 9 and the nozzle hole 11 will be described. First, the resin sheet 7 is previously coated with a bonding resin layer 8 made of a resin having a low viscosity so as to obtain a desired film pressure by a spin coater or the like. Next, an ink flow path 12, an ink chamber 9, and a nozzle hole 11 for ejecting the conductive ink 10 are formed on the resin sheet 7 by an excimer laser processing machine or the like. The resin sheet 7 and the non-conductive substrate 2 thus formed are adhered onto the insulating layer 5 so that the nozzle holes 11 are arranged at positions substantially matching the electrode portions. Next, the ink chamber 9 is filled with the conductive ink 10 through the ink flow path 12 to complete the inkjet printer head.

The operation of the conventional ink jet printer using the energization method manufactured as described above will be described below. From the power supply unit 13 through the control unit 14
When an alternating energizing voltage for ejecting the conductive ink 10 is applied to the conductive ink 10 between the electrode 3a and the second electrode 3b, the electrolyte in the conductive ink 10 vibrates and Joule heat is generated. Then, the conductive ink 10 is heated.
When the conductive ink 10 is heated, boiling occurs in the conductive ink 10 and bubbles 17 are formed between the first electrode 3a and the second electrode 3b. Further, the conductive ink 1 filled inside the ink chamber 9 as the bubbles 17 expand.
0 is pushed up, the ink droplet 18 flies from the nozzle hole 11, the ink droplet 18 adheres to the printer paper 16, and the print dot 19 is formed.

The repeated life for ink boiling and ink ejection is tens of millions for the cartridge type in which the ink jet printer head and the ink container are integrated and the print head is exchanged when the ink container is exchanged. The permanent type installed in the main body usually guarantees several hundred million times.

[0012]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional ink jet printer head, it is necessary to heat the lower electrode substrate and the resin sheet 7 while applying pressure. And is extruded into the ink flow path 12 and the ink chamber 9, and a bonding resin exudation portion 22 to the electrode portion is generated as shown in FIG. The bonding resin exudation portion 22 covers the electrode portion, which causes a deterioration in the energized state and a non-energized state when the alternating energizing voltage is applied, which causes a deterioration in print quality and a print defect, which is a fatal problem. Had a point. That is, the area of the exposed portion of the electrode portion to the conductive ink 10 is reduced, and as a result, the electric resistance is increased, and a sufficient current cannot be supplied to the conductive ink 10, so that bubbles due to heating cannot be generated, and the ink The droplet 18 cannot be ejected sufficiently. In addition, when the bonding resin bleeding portion 22 occurs in the ink flow path 12, the ink flow is obstructed, and the conductive ink 10 for ejection is not sufficiently supplied to the ink chamber 9 at a predetermined timing, so that proper ejection is performed. I can't.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and effectively prevents the bonding resin layer 8 from seeping out when bonding the resin sheet 7 and the lower electrode substrate, and boils and discharges the conductive ink. An object of the present invention is to provide an inkjet printer head using an energization method that is capable of performing high-quality printing while maintaining stability for a long period of time, and that has high durability and reliability, and a manufacturing method thereof.

[0014]

In order to achieve the above object, an ink jet printer head of the present invention includes a resin sheet having an ink flow path, an ink chamber and a nozzle hole,
An energization type inkjet printer head comprising a lower electrode substrate having an electrode portion arranged on a non-conductive substrate, and a joining resin layer for joining the resin sheet and the lower electrode substrate, wherein It is characterized in that a step for preventing seepage of the bonding resin to the ink flow path and the ink chamber is formed.

Further, the method for manufacturing an ink jet printer head of the present invention comprises a resin sheet forming step of forming a resin sheet having an ink flow path, an ink chamber and a nozzle hole,
A method for manufacturing an energization type inkjet printer head, which comprises a lower electrode forming step of disposing an electrode portion on a non-conductive substrate to form a lower electrode substrate, and a joining step of joining the resin sheet and the lower electrode substrate. In the resin sheet forming step, a joining resin applying step of applying a joining resin to the resin sheet and a step for forming a step for preventing the seepage of the joining resin into the ink flow path and the ink chamber in the resin sheet The present invention is characterized by including a processing step and a resin sheet processing step of processing an ink flow path, an ink chamber and a nozzle hole in a resin sheet.

[0016]

With the above structure, the bonding resin oozing out at the time of bonding is absorbed by the step portion formed on the resin sheet, and as a result, the bonding resin oozing out into the ink flow path and the ink chamber is prevented. It is possible to eliminate problems such as deterioration of electrode performance due to bleeding into the electrode portion and inhibition of ink flow due to bleeding into the ink flow path.

[0017]

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

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an essential part of an ink jet printer using an energization type ink jet printer head in one embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a non-conductive substrate, 3a is a first electrode, 3b is a second electrode, 5 is an insulating layer, 7 is a resin sheet, 8 is a bonding resin layer, 9 is an ink chamber, 10 is conductive ink, and 11 is a nozzle hole. , 13 is a power supply unit, 14 is a control unit, 15 is an external lead wire unit, 16 is printer paper, 17 is a bubble, 18 is an ink drop, and 19 is a print dot. Will be assigned and the description will be omitted. In this embodiment, unlike the conventional example, a step 20 is provided at the interface between the ink chamber 9 and the bonding resin layer 8 for preventing the seepage of the bonding resin into the ink flow path and the ink chamber. It is configured such that the bonding resin has entered.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart of the resin sheet forming process of the ink jet printer head in one embodiment of the present invention constructed as described above. First, in the bonding resin applying step (S1), a low-viscosity (for example, 200 cps to 300 cps) bonding resin is uniformly applied to the resin sheet 7 using a spin coater or the like, and then heated to bond the bonding resin as an intermediate state of the curing reaction. A resin layer is formed. Next, after a step is formed on the resin sheet 7 in the step processing step (S2), the resin sheet 7 is processed into a predetermined shape by an excimer laser or the like in the ink flow path, the ink chamber, and the nozzle hole processing step (S3). A passage (not shown), an ink chamber 9 and a nozzle hole 11 are formed.

Next, two steps (S2, S3) will be described with reference to FIG. 3 showing a step processing step and an ink flow path, ink chamber, and nozzle hole processing step. Here, FIG.
FIG. 3A is a step diagram of the step processing of the first embodiment, FIG. 3B is a process diagram of the ink flow path and the ink chamber of the first example, and FIG. 3C is a process chart of the nozzle hole processing of the first example. .

In the figure, 7 is a resin sheet, 8 is a bonding resin layer, 20 is a step, 9 is an ink chamber, 11 is a nozzle hole,
21 is an excimer laser beam. When an excimer laser is used for processing, as shown in FIG. 3A, the excimer laser beam 21 is formed on the surface of the bonding resin layer 8 on the resin sheet 7 in a similar shape to the ink chamber 9 and the ink flow path 12 to be processed later. Further, in addition to the diameter of the ink chamber 9 and the width of the ink flow path 12, an image is formed and irradiated so as to be 1.0 μm to 2.0 μm larger on one side than the width of the ink flow path 12.
Irradiation was continued to a depth of 5 μm to 2.0 μm to form a step 20.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, an excimer laser beam 21 is applied so as to form a predetermined ink flow path 12 (not shown) and ink chamber 9 at the bottom of the step 20. The ink 20 is imaged and irradiated at positions where it is evenly arranged in each part of the ink channel 12 (not shown) and the ink chamber 9, and irradiation is continued to a predetermined depth.
An ink chamber 9 (not shown) was formed. Step 2 here
Zeros are evenly arranged on both sides of the ink flow path 12 in the width direction and on the outer circumference of the ink chamber 9.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3 (c), the excimer laser beam 21 is imaged and irradiated at the central position of the bottom of the ink chamber 9 so as to form the predetermined nozzle hole 11, and the resin sheet 7 is irradiated. Irradiation was continued until it penetrated, and the nozzle hole 11 was formed.

Thereafter, as a joining step, the joining resin layer 8 is applied, and the resin sheet 7 having the ink flow path 12, the ink chamber 9, the nozzle holes 11, and the steps 20 is formed by using an aligner or the like to form a pair of nozzle holes 11. The first electrode 3a and the second electrode 3b were placed on the lower electrode substrate so as to be positioned at the central portions thereof, and the resin sheet 7 was heated while being pressed, so that the resin sheet 7 and the lower electrode substrate were joined.

The ink jet printer head of this embodiment manufactured as described above was compared with that of the conventional example having no step 20. As a result, the bleeding portion of the bonding resin is absorbed by the step 20, and there is almost no bleeding into the ink flow passage 12 and the ink chamber 9, so that the bleeding into the ink flow passage 12 is greater than that in the conventional example. No joining resin was found that would spill out to hinder the ink flow or bleed into the ink chamber 9 to cover the electrode portion, and the joining state was remarkably improved.

(Embodiment 2) Another embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 4 is a step forming process diagram in the second embodiment, showing a step forming state different from the step forming process in the first embodiment. Here, 7 is a resin sheet, 8 is a bonding resin layer, 20 is a step, and 21 is an excimer laser beam. As shown in FIG. 4, the excimer laser beam 21 is formed on the surface of the bonding resin layer 8 on the resin sheet 7 in a similar shape to the ink chamber 9 and the ink flow passage 12 to be processed later, and the diameter of the ink chamber 9 and the width of the ink flow passage 12 are the same. One side width is 1.5 μm to 3.
The bonding resin layer 8 is imaged and irradiated so that it becomes larger by 5 μm.
Irradiation was continued until only the above was completely removed to form a step 20.

Next, a predetermined ink flow path 12 (not shown)
Further, an excimer laser beam 21 is formed so as to have the shape of the ink chamber 9 at a position on the bottom of the step 20 where the step 20 is evenly arranged in each part of the ink flow path 12 (not shown) and the ink chamber 9. The image is irradiated and the irradiation is continued to a predetermined depth, and the ink flow path 12 (not shown) and the ink chamber 9 are irradiated.
Was formed. Here, the steps 20 are evenly arranged on both sides of the ink flow path 12 in the width direction and around the ink chamber 9.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3 (c), the excimer laser beam 21 is imaged and irradiated at the central position of the bottom of the ink chamber 9 so as to form a predetermined nozzle hole 11, and the resin sheet 7 is irradiated. Irradiation was continued until it penetrated, and the nozzle hole 11 was formed. Then, the resin sheet 7 and the lower electrode substrate were joined through the same joining process as in Example 1.

The ink jet printer head of this embodiment manufactured as described above was compared with that of the conventional example having no step 20. As a result, the exuding portion of the bonding resin is the region of the bonding resin that has been removed in advance, that is, the step 20.
The ink is absorbed into the ink flow path 12 and the ink chamber 9 and hardly oozes out. As compared with the conventional example, the ink flows out into the ink flow path 12 and obstructs the ink flow, and No bonding resin was found that exuded into the interior and covered the electrode part, and the bonding condition was remarkably improved.

[0031]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the resin sheet has the step for preventing the seepage of the joining resin into the ink flow path and the ink chamber, the stepping portion absorbs the seepage resin at the time of joining. As a result, the bleeding of the bonding resin into the ink flow path and the ink chamber is prevented.Therefore, problems such as deterioration of the electrode performance due to bleeding into the electrode portion and obstruction of the ink flow due to bleeding into the ink flow path may occur. It can be eliminated, and a good bonding state between the resin sheet and the lower electrode substrate can be obtained. This makes it possible to uniformly and surely supply current to the conductive ink when voltage is applied by alternating energization, prevent deterioration of energized state and occurrence of non-energized state, and discharge ink to the ink chamber. It is possible to realize an ink jet printer head which is sufficiently supplied at a predetermined timing, can realize stable printing quality and high resolution printing, and has high printing quality, long durability, and excellent reliability.

In the step of forming the step on the resin sheet, the width of one side is 1.0 μm on both sides of the ink flow path and the ink chamber.
m to 2.0 μm, a step having a depth of 0.5 μm to 2.0 μm in the resin sheet in addition to the pre-applied joining resin layer, or only the joining resin layer on one side of the ink flow path and on both sides of the ink chamber. Extrusion of the resin for bonding to the ink flow path and the ink chamber by processing and bonding the shape of the ink flow path, the ink chamber and the nozzle hole after removing in the region of 5 μm to 3.5 μm to provide a step Therefore, it is possible to realize a method for manufacturing an inkjet printer head that uses a current-carrying method that is excellent in workability and reliability and that has a high yield in a simple manufacturing process.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an essential part of an inkjet printer using an energization type inkjet printer head according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a resin sheet forming process for an inkjet printer head according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a step process diagram of the step of the first embodiment. FIG. 3B is a process diagram of the ink flow path and the ink chamber of the first example.

FIG. 4 is a step processing diagram of the second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of an essential part of an inkjet printer using an inkjet printer head using a conventional energization method.

6 is a sectional end view of the electrode portion taken along the line AA ′ in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Inkjet Printer Head 1'Conventional Inkjet Printer Head 2 Non-Conductive Substrate 3a First Electrode 3b Second Electrode 4 Lead Wire Part 5 Insulating Layer 6 Insulating Film Opening 7 Resin Sheet 8 Bonding Resin Layer 9 Ink Chamber 10 Conductive Ink 11 Nozzle Hole 12 Ink Flow Path 13 Power Supply Section 14 Control Section 15 External Lead Wire Section 16 Printer Paper 17 Bubble 18 Ink Drop 19 Printing Dot 20 Step 21 Excimer Laser Beam 22 Bonding Resin Seepage Section

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Kazufumi Hamabuchi 1006 Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A resin sheet having an ink flow path, an ink chamber and a nozzle hole, a lower electrode substrate having an electrode portion provided on a non-conductive substrate, and a bonding resin for bonding the resin sheet and the lower electrode substrate. An ink-jet printer head of an energization system comprising a layer, wherein the resin sheet is provided with a step for preventing bleeding of the bonding resin into the ink flow path and the ink chamber. 2. A resin sheet forming step of forming a resin sheet having an ink flow path, an ink chamber and a nozzle hole, and a lower electrode forming step of disposing an electrode portion on a non-conductive substrate to form a lower electrode substrate. A method of manufacturing an energization type inkjet printer head, comprising: a bonding step of bonding the resin sheet and the lower electrode substrate, wherein the resin sheet forming step applies a bonding resin to the resin sheet. And a step processing step of forming a step on the resin sheet for preventing the seepage of the bonding resin into the ink flow path and the ink chamber, and a resin sheet processing step of processing the ink flow path, the ink chamber and the nozzle hole on the resin sheet And a method for manufacturing an inkjet printer head. 3. In the step of processing a step on the resin sheet, one side width of 1.0 μ is provided on both sides of the ink flow path and around the ink chamber.
m to 2.0 μm, a step having a depth of 0.5 μm to 2.0 μm is formed on the resin sheet in addition to the bonding resin layer previously applied to the resin sheet, and then the ink flow path, the ink chamber and the nozzle hole are processed. The method for manufacturing an inkjet printer head according to claim 2, wherein the bonding is performed thereafter. 4. A step of forming a step on the resin sheet, wherein a joining resin layer previously applied to the resin sheet is formed on both sides of the ink flow path and around the ink chamber to have a width of 1.5 μm to 3.5 μm on one side.
The method for manufacturing an ink jet printer head according to claim 2, wherein after the ink is removed in the region m to form a step, the ink flow path, the ink chamber, and the nozzle hole are processed and then bonded.