JPH1029309A - Production of liquid discharging unit, liquid discharging head, and liquid discharging apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the heat accumulation to the liquid on a heating element to a large extent while enhancing discharge effect and discharge pressure by positioning a separation wall by a strike-against reference part and the end part on the upstream side in the liquid flow direction of a liquid passage wall to fit the same in a grooved member. SOLUTION: Movable members 31 are arranged in the liquid passages 10 of a grooved member 1 or on passage walls 10a and the grooved member 1 is vibrated by a vibration means such as a vibrator to generate the movement of the separation wall 30 in the arranging direction of the movable member 1 and the movable member 31 is fitted in the liquid passage of the grooved member 1. Further, the grooved member 1 is inclined so that the end part on the upstream side in the liquid flow direction of the liquid passage wall 10a becomes upward and, by vibrating the grooved member 1, the separation wall 30 is struck against the front strike reference part 4 and side surface strike reference part of the grooved member 1 to fit the separation wall 30 in the grooved member 1. The movable member 31 is fitted in the groove becoming the liquid passage 10 and the damage of the movable member 31 is not generated at a time of the alignment of the grooved member 1 and the element substrate.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a liquid discharge unit for discharging a desired liquid by generating bubbles caused by applying thermal energy to the liquid, a liquid discharge unit, and a liquid using the liquid discharge unit. The present invention relates to a discharge device.

[0002] The present invention also relates to paper, yarn, fiber, fabric, leather,
Printer, copier, facsimile with communication system, word processor with printer unit, etc. that record on recording media such as metal, plastic, glass, wood, ceramics, etc. This is an invention applicable to an industrial recording apparatus.

In the present invention, "recording" means not only giving an image having a meaning such as a character or a figure to a recording medium, but also giving an image having no meaning such as a pattern. Is also meant.

[0004]

2. Description of the Related Art By giving energy such as heat to ink, a state change accompanied by a steep volume change (formation of bubbles) is caused in the ink, and the ink is ejected from an ejection port by an action force based on this state change. An ink jet recording method in which an image is formed by attaching the ink onto a recording medium, that is, a so-called bubble jet recording method, is conventionally known. USP includes a recording apparatus using this bubble jet recording method.
4,723,129, etc.,
A discharge port for discharging ink, an ink flow path communicating with the discharge port, and an electrothermal converter as an energy generating means for discharging ink disposed in the ink flow path are generally disposed. ing.

According to such a recording method, a high-quality image can be recorded at high speed and with low noise, and in a head performing this recording method, ejection ports for ejecting ink are arranged at a high density. Therefore, it has many advantages that a high-resolution recorded image and a color image can be easily obtained with a small device. For this reason, this bubble jet recording method has recently been used in many office devices such as printers, copiers, and facsimile machines, and has been used in industrial systems such as textile printing devices.

[0006] As the bubble jet technology is used for products in various fields, the following various requirements have been increasing in recent years.

[0007] For example, as a study on a demand for improvement in energy efficiency, optimization of a heating element such as adjusting the thickness of a protective film is mentioned. This method is effective in improving the propagation efficiency of generated heat to the liquid.

In addition, in order to obtain a high quality image, a driving condition for providing a liquid discharging method or the like in which the ink discharging speed is high and a good ink discharging can be performed based on stable bubble generation has been proposed. From the viewpoint of high-speed printing, there has also been proposed a print head having an improved flow path shape in order to obtain a liquid discharge head having a high filling (refilling) speed of the discharged liquid into the liquid flow path.

[0009] Of these flow channel shapes, FIG.
(A) and (b) are disclosed in JP-A-63-199997.
No. 2, for example. The flow path structure and the head manufacturing method described in this publication are based on the back wave (pressure in the direction opposite to the direction toward the discharge port, that is, the pressure in the liquid chamber 12) generated by the generation of bubbles. It is an invention which pays attention to. This back wave is known as loss energy because it is not energy directed toward the ejection direction.

The invention shown in FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b) discloses a valve 10 which is located farther from the bubble generation region formed by the heating element 2 and located on the side opposite to the discharge port 11 with respect to the heating element 2. I do.

In FIG. 1 (b), the valve 10 has an initial position as if it is attached to the ceiling of the flow channel 3 by a manufacturing method using a plate material or the like. It is disclosed as hanging down. The present invention is disclosed as controlling the energy loss by controlling a part of the back wave by the valve 10.

However, in this configuration, as will be understood from consideration of the case where air bubbles are generated inside the flow path 3 for holding the liquid to be discharged, suppression of a part of the back wave by the valve 10 is not possible with liquid discharge. Is not practical.

Originally, the back wave itself is not directly related to the ejection as described above. When this back wave is generated in the flow path 3, as shown in FIG. 1A, the pressure directly related to the discharge among the bubbles has already made the liquid dischargeable from the flow path 3. Therefore, it is clear that even if only a part of the back wave is suppressed, the ejection is not greatly affected.

On the other hand, in the bubble jet recording method, since heating is repeated while the heating element is in contact with the ink, deposits are generated on the surface of the heating element due to scorching of the ink. In some cases, the generation of bubbles causes the generation of bubbles to be unstable, making it difficult to discharge ink satisfactorily. Further, even in the case where the liquid to be discharged is a liquid which is easily deteriorated by heat or a liquid in which foaming is difficult to be sufficiently obtained, a method for discharging the liquid to be discharged without changing the quality is desired. .

[0015] From such a viewpoint, the liquid (foaming liquid) that generates bubbles by heat and the liquid (ejected liquid) to be ejected are separated liquids, and the ejected liquid is ejected by transmitting the pressure due to foaming to the ejected liquid. The method is described in JP-A-61-69467, JP-A-55-81172, US Pat.
No. 0,259, and the like. In these publications, the ink, which is the ejection liquid, and the foaming liquid are completely separated by a flexible film such as silicon rubber so that the ejection liquid does not come into direct contact with the heating element, and the pressure due to the foaming of the foaming liquid is controlled. The configuration is such that the liquid is transmitted to the discharge liquid by deformation of the flexible film.
Such a configuration achieves prevention of deposits on the surface of the heating element, improvement in the degree of freedom in selecting the liquid to be discharged, and the like.

However, as described above, in the head having a structure in which the discharge liquid and the foaming liquid are completely separated, the pressure at the time of foaming is transmitted to the discharge liquid by expansion and contraction deformation of the flexible film. Is considerably absorbed by the flexible membrane. Further, since the amount of deformation of the flexible film is not so large, the effect of separating the ejection liquid and the foaming liquid can be obtained, but there is a possibility that the energy efficiency and the ejection force are reduced.

[0017]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is based on the fundamental discharge characteristics of a conventional system in which a bubble (particularly a bubble accompanying film boiling) is formed in a liquid flow path to discharge a liquid. It is assumed that the level is raised to an unpredictable level from a point of view that was not conventionally thought possible.

This premise reverts to the principle of droplet ejection,
The operation of the movable member in the liquid flow path, such as analyzing the principle of the mechanism of the movable member in the flow path, in order to provide a new droplet discharge method using bubbles, which has not been obtained in the past, and a head used therefor. By performing the first technical analysis starting from the point of origin, the second technical analysis starting from the principle of droplet ejection by bubbles, and the third technical analysis starting from the bubble forming region of the heating element for forming bubbles. It was done.

Based on these analyses, the positional relationship between the fulcrum and the free end of the movable member is determined so that the free end is positioned on the discharge port side, that is, on the downstream side. The present applicant has already applied for a completely new technique of actively controlling bubbles by arranging them face-to-face. According to this application, considering the energy that the bubble itself gives to the ejection amount, considering the growth component on the downstream side of the bubble is the largest factor that can significantly improve the ejection characteristics, that is, the growth on the downstream side of the bubble. It is also disclosed that efficient conversion of components in the ejection direction leads to improvement in ejection efficiency and ejection speed. Some of the present inventors have proposed an extremely high technical level as compared with the conventional state of the art in which the growth component downstream of the bubble is positively moved to the free end side of the movable member.

In the above invention, a heat generation region for forming bubbles, for example, downstream of a center line passing through the area center of the electrothermal transducer in the flow direction of the liquid, or downstream of the bubble such as the area center on the surface controlling foaming. It is also preferable to consider the structural elements such as the movable member and the liquid flow path related to the growth on the side, and on the other hand, the refill speed is significantly increased by considering the arrangement of the movable member and the structure of the liquid supply path. It also discloses improvements.

As described above, although the applicant and some of the present inventors have output the above-described groundbreaking invention, the present inventors have come up with a more preferable idea by the present invention. .

That is, the point that the present inventors have recognized relates to the positioning of the separation wall and the liquid flow path.
That is, the separation wall is aligned with the liquid flow path. However, since high accuracy is required for the alignment between the separation wall and the liquid flow path, an image processing apparatus or the like is required. Expensive assembly equipment had to be used. Further, the separation wall is a very precise member, and the separation wall may be damaged when being positioned on the grooved member having a plurality of grooves for forming the liquid flow path and the element substrate having the heating element. Therefore, there is provided a method of manufacturing a liquid discharge unit which takes a tact in assembling a separation wall, performs positioning by abutting on a yield reference portion, and can easily and accurately position both. It is in.

The second object of the present invention is to improve the discharge efficiency and the discharge pressure, to greatly reduce the heat storage in the liquid on the heating element, and to reduce the residual bubbles on the heating element. A liquid discharging unit capable of discharging a good liquid,
It is to provide a liquid ejection device and the like.

A third object of the present invention is to suppress the inertial force acting in the direction opposite to the liquid supply direction due to the back wave, and at the same time, reduce the meniscus retreat amount by the valve function of the movable member. An object of the present invention is to provide a liquid discharge unit or the like in which a refill frequency is increased and a printing speed and the like are improved.

A fourth object of the present invention is to provide a liquid discharge unit capable of reducing deposits on a heating element, expanding the range of use of a discharge liquid, and having sufficiently high discharge efficiency and discharge power. It is to provide a liquid ejection device and the like.

A fifth object of the present invention is to provide a liquid discharge unit, a liquid discharge device, and the like which can increase the degree of freedom in selecting a liquid to be discharged.

A sixth object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a liquid discharge unit which can easily manufacture the above-described liquid discharge unit.

A seventh object of the present invention is to provide an easy-to-manufacture and inexpensive unit and apparatus by configuring a liquid introduction path for supplying a plurality of liquids with a small number of parts, and to achieve miniaturization. To provide a liquid ejection unit, device, and the like.

An eighth object of the present invention is to obtain a recorded matter having a good image by using the liquid discharge unit of the present invention.

A ninth object of the present invention is to provide a head kit for facilitating reuse of the liquid discharge head of the present invention.

[0034]

Therefore, in order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a method for manufacturing a liquid discharge unit according to the present invention comprises a comb-shaped separating wall having a movable member that can be displaced;
A grooved member in which a plurality of grooves serving as liquid passages into which the comb teeth of the separation wall fit are arranged, wherein the grooved member is arranged in a direction in which the grooves are arranged. And the liquid flow path wall provided between the grooves, and the separation wall has a liquid flow direction of the collision reference part and the liquid flow path wall. A method for manufacturing a liquid discharge unit, wherein the liquid discharge unit is positioned by an upstream end and fitted to the grooved member.

According to the method for manufacturing a liquid discharge unit, the liquid discharge unit, the liquid discharge apparatus, and the like of the present invention based on a very novel discharge principle as described above, the separation wall to be combined and the element substrate are abutted. By abutting and aligning at the reference portion, a small, easy and accurate alignment of the tactless device can be achieved, and a synergistic effect between the generated bubbles and the movable member displaced thereby can be obtained. Since the liquid in the vicinity of the discharge port can be efficiently discharged, the discharge efficiency can be improved as compared with a conventional bubble jet type liquid discharge unit or the like. For example, in the most preferred embodiment of the present invention, a dramatic improvement in the discharge efficiency of twice or more could be achieved.

According to the characteristic structure of the present invention, it is possible to prevent non-ejection even when the apparatus is left for a long time at a low temperature or low humidity. There is also an advantage that it is possible to immediately return to a normal state by performing a slight recovery process.

More specifically, even under a long-term storage condition in which most of the conventional bubble jet type units having 64 discharge ports do not discharge, in the unit of the present invention, about half or less of discharge ports are defective. It just becomes. In addition, when these units are recovered by preliminary discharge, it is necessary to perform thousands of preliminary discharges by the conventional unit for each discharge port, but in the present invention, recovery is performed only by about 100 preliminary discharges. Was enough. This means that the recovery time can be shortened, the loss of liquid due to recovery can be reduced, and the running cost can be significantly reduced.

In particular, according to the configuration of the present invention having improved refill characteristics, responsiveness at the time of continuous ejection, stable growth of bubbles and stabilization of droplets are achieved, and high-speed recording and high image quality by high-speed liquid ejection are achieved. Recording could be enabled.

The other effects of the present invention will be understood from the description of each embodiment.

The terms “upstream” and “downstream” used in the description of the present invention refer to the flow direction of the liquid from the liquid supply source to the discharge port through the bubble generation region (or movable member).
Alternatively, it is expressed as an expression regarding this structural direction.

The “downstream side” of the bubble itself is as follows:
It mainly represents a portion on the ejection port side of a bubble which is considered to directly act on ejection of a droplet. More specifically, with respect to the center of the bubble, the downstream side with respect to the flow direction and the structural direction,
Alternatively, it means bubbles generated in a region downstream of the area center of the heating element.

The term “substantially sealed” used in the description of the present invention means that the bubble does not slip through a gap (slit) around the movable member before the movable member is displaced when the bubble grows. Means

Further, the term "separation wall" in the present invention means, in a broad sense, a wall (which may include a movable member) interposed so as to separate a bubble generation region from a region directly communicating with the discharge port. In a narrow sense, it means that the flow path including the bubble generation area is separated from the liquid flow path that directly communicates with the discharge port, and mixing of the liquid in each area is prevented.

[0044]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A completely new technology has been established, and the present applicant has already filed an application. According to this application, considering the energy that the bubble itself gives to the ejection amount, considering the growth component on the downstream side of the bubble is the largest factor that can significantly improve the ejection characteristics, that is, the growth on the downstream side of the bubble. An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

Before describing the embodiments of the present invention, embodiments of the liquid discharge head preferably applied to the present invention will be described below.

Next, a liquid discharge head and a liquid discharge method applicable to the present invention will be described.

(Embodiment 1) First, in this embodiment, the discharge force and the discharge efficiency are improved by controlling the direction of pressure propagation based on bubbles and the growth direction of bubbles for discharging liquid. An example will be described.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the liquid discharge head of this embodiment cut along the liquid flow direction, and FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the liquid discharge head.

In the liquid discharge head of this embodiment, a heating element 2 (a heating resistor having a shape of 40 μm × 105 μm in this embodiment) serving as a discharge energy generating element for discharging liquid, applies heat energy to the liquid. Is provided on the element substrate 1, and the heating element 2 is provided on the element substrate.
The liquid flow path 10 is arranged corresponding to the above. The liquid flow path 10 communicates with the discharge port 18 and also communicates with a common liquid chamber 13 for supplying the liquid to the plurality of liquid flow paths 10, and an amount of liquid corresponding to the liquid discharged from the discharge port. From the common liquid chamber 13.

A plate-shaped movable member 31 made of an elastic material such as metal and having a flat portion is provided on the element substrate of the liquid flow path 10 so as to face the heating element 2.
Are provided in a cantilever shape. One end of the movable member is fixed to a base (supporting member) 34 formed by patterning a photosensitive resin or the like on the wall of the liquid flow path 10 or the element substrate. Thus, the movable member is held and forms a fulcrum (fulcrum portion) 33.

The movable member 31 has a fulcrum (fulcrum portion; fixed end) 33 on the upstream side of a large flow flowing from the common liquid chamber 13 through the movable member 31 to the discharge port 18 by the liquid discharging operation. 33 is disposed at a position facing the heating element 2 at a distance of about 15 μm from the heating element so as to cover the heating element 2 so as to have a free end (free end portion) 32 on the downstream side with respect to 33. I have. A space between the heating element and the movable member is a bubble generation area. Note that the types, shapes, and arrangements of the heating element and the movable member are not limited thereto, and may be any shape and arrangement that can control the growth of bubbles and the propagation of pressure as described later. Note that the above-described liquid flow path 10
In order to explain the flow of the liquid to be discussed later, the movable member 31
The portion directly connected to the discharge port 18 with the boundary as the first liquid flow path 14 is divided into two areas of the bubble generation area 11 and the second liquid flow path 16 having the liquid supply path 12 for explanation. I do.

The movable member 31 is generated by causing the heating element 2 to generate heat.
Heat is applied to the liquid in the bubble generation region 11 between the heating element 2 and the heating element 2 to generate bubbles in the liquid based on the film boiling phenomenon as described in US Pat. No. 4,723,129. The pressure based on the generation of the air bubbles and the air bubbles act preferentially on the movable member, and the movable member 31 opens largely toward the discharge port around the fulcrum 33 as shown in FIG. 2 (b), (c) or FIG. To be displaced. Depending on the displacement or the displaced state of the movable member 31, the propagation of pressure based on the generation of bubbles and the growth of the bubbles themselves are guided to the ejection port side.

Here, one of the basic ejection principles of the present embodiment will be described. One of the most important principles in this embodiment is
The movable member disposed to face the bubble is displaced from the first position in the steady state to the second position after the displacement based on the pressure of the bubble or the bubble itself. This is to guide the pressure due to the generation of bubbles and the bubbles themselves to the downstream side where the discharge port 18 is arranged.

This principle will be described in further detail by comparing FIG. 4 schematically showing a conventional liquid flow path structure without using a movable member with FIG. 5 of the present embodiment. Here, the propagation direction of the pressure toward the discharge port is indicated by VA, and the propagation direction of the pressure toward the upstream side is indicated by VB.

In the conventional head as shown in FIG. 4, there is no structure for regulating the direction of pressure propagation by the generated air bubbles 40. Therefore, the pressure propagation direction of the bubble 40 is V1
As shown in V8, the direction was perpendicular to the surface of the bubble, and was oriented in various directions. Among them, those having a component in the pressure propagation direction in the VA direction which has the most influence on the liquid discharge are V1-V
4, ie, a directional component of pressure propagation in a portion closer to the discharge port than a position substantially half of the bubble, and is an important portion directly contributing to liquid discharge efficiency, liquid discharge force, discharge speed, and the like. Further, V1 works efficiently because it is closest to the ejection direction VA, while V4 has relatively little direction component toward VA.

On the other hand, in the case of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the movable member 31 shifts the pressure propagation directions V1 to V4 of the bubbles directed in various directions as shown in FIG. (To the discharge port side) to convert the pressure into the VA pressure propagation direction, whereby the pressure of the bubbles 40 directly and efficiently contributes to the discharge. Then, the bubble growth direction itself is guided in the downstream direction in the same manner as the pressure propagation directions V1 to V4, and grows more downstream than upstream. As described above, by controlling the growth direction itself of the bubble by the movable member and controlling the pressure propagation direction of the bubble, it is possible to achieve a fundamental improvement in the discharge efficiency, the discharge force, the discharge speed, and the like.

Next, returning to FIG. 2, the discharge operation of the liquid discharge head of this embodiment will be described in detail.

FIG. 2A shows a state before energy such as electric energy is applied to the heating element 2 and a state before the heating element generates heat. What is important here is that the movable member 31 is provided at a position facing at least a downstream portion of the bubble generated by the heat generated by the heating element. In other words, on the liquid flow path structure, at least downstream of the area center 3 of the heating element (from a line passing through the area center 3 of the heating element and orthogonal to the length direction of the flow path, so that the downstream side of the bubble acts on the movable member. The movable member 31 is arranged to the position (downstream).

FIG. 2B shows that the heating element 2 generates heat when electric energy or the like is applied to the heating element 2, and the generated heat heats a part of the liquid filling the bubble generation region 11, causing film boiling. This is a state in which accompanying air bubbles are generated.

At this time, the movable member 31 is displaced from the first position to the second position by the pressure based on the generation of the bubble 40 so as to guide the pressure propagation direction of the bubble 40 toward the discharge port. What is important here is that, as described above, the free end 32 of the movable member 31 is arranged on the downstream side (discharge port side), and the fulcrum 33 is arranged on the upstream side (common liquid chamber side). That is, at least a part of the movable member faces a downstream portion of the heating element, that is, a downstream portion of the bubble.

FIG. 2C shows a state in which the bubbles 40 have further grown, but the movable member 31 has been further displaced in accordance with the pressure accompanying the generation of the bubbles 40. The generated bubble grows greatly downstream from the upstream and grows greatly beyond the first position (dotted line position) of the movable member. Thus, bubble 4
When the movable member 31 is gradually displaced in accordance with the growth of 0, the pressure propagation direction of the bubble 40 and the direction in which the deposition is easily moved, that is, the growth direction of the bubble to the free end side is uniformly directed to the discharge port. It can be considered that being able to change the height also enhances the discharge efficiency. The movable member rarely hinders the transmission of bubbles or foaming pressure toward the discharge port, and efficiently controls the direction of pressure propagation and the direction of bubble growth according to the magnitude of the propagating pressure. Can be.

FIG. 2D shows a state in which the bubble 40 contracts and disappears due to the decrease in the internal pressure of the bubble after the above-mentioned film boiling.

The movable member 31 which has been displaced to the second position
Is the initial position (first position) in FIG. 2A due to the negative pressure due to the contraction of the bubble and the restoring force due to the spring property of the movable member itself.
Return to. Further, at the time of defoaming, VD1 and VD2 of the flow from the upstream side (B), that is, the common liquid chamber side, in order to supplement the contracted volume of the bubbles in the bubble generation region 11 and to supplement the volume of the discharged liquid. And the liquid flows in from the discharge port side like Vc of the flow.

The operation of the movable member and the operation of discharging the liquid accompanying the generation of bubbles have been described above. The refilling of the liquid in the liquid discharge head of this embodiment will be described in detail below.

The liquid supply mechanism in this embodiment will be described in more detail with reference to FIG.

When the bubble 40 enters the defoaming process after passing through the state of the maximum volume after FIG. 2 (c), a volume of liquid that compensates for the defoamed volume is placed in the bubble generation region in the first liquid flow path 14. The liquid flows from the discharge port 18 side and the common liquid chamber side 13 of the second liquid flow path 16. In the conventional liquid flow path structure without the movable member 31, the amount of the liquid flowing from the discharge port side to the defoaming position and the amount of the liquid flowing from the common liquid chamber are the same as the part closer to the discharge port than the bubble generation region and the common liquid. This is due to the magnitude of the flow resistance with the part close to the chamber (based on the flow path resistance and the inertia of the liquid).

For this reason, when the flow resistance on the side close to the discharge port is small, a lot of liquid flows from the discharge port side to the defoaming position, and the retreat amount of the meniscus becomes large. In particular, as the flow resistance on the side close to the discharge port is reduced to increase the discharge efficiency in order to increase the discharge efficiency, the meniscus M at the time of defoaming becomes larger, the refill time becomes longer, and the refill time becomes longer, and high-speed printing is performed. Was to hinder.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the movable member 31
In the case where the volume W of the bubble is W1 on the upper side of the first position of the movable member 31 and W2 is on the side of the bubble generation region 11 when the movable member returns to the original position at the time of defoaming, the meniscus is removed. The retreat stops, and the liquid supply for the remaining volume of W2 is mainly performed by the liquid supply from the flow VD2 in the second flow path 16. Thus, while the amount corresponding to about half of the volume of the bubble W has conventionally been the meniscus retraction amount, it has become possible to suppress the meniscus retreat amount to a smaller amount, which is about half of W1.

Further, the supply of the liquid for the volume of W2 is forcibly performed mainly from the upstream side (VD2) of the second liquid flow path along the surface of the movable member 31 on the side of the heating element using the pressure at the time of defoaming. Faster refilling was achieved.

The characteristic feature of this embodiment is that when refilling is performed by using the pressure at the time of defoaming with the conventional head, the vibration of the meniscus is increased and the image quality is degraded. In the high-speed refill in the example, the flow of the liquid on the discharge port side between the region of the first liquid flow path 14 on the discharge port side and the bubble generation area 11 is suppressed by the movable member, so that the vibration of the meniscus is extremely reduced. Is what you can do.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the second flow path 16
When high-speed refilling is achieved by forcibly refilling the foaming area through the liquid supply path 12 and suppressing the meniscus retraction and vibration described above, the method is used in the field of stable ejection, high-speed repetitive ejection, and recording. As a result, it is possible to improve image quality and realize high-speed recording.

The configuration of this embodiment further has the following effective functions. That is, the propagation of the pressure to the upstream side (back wave) due to the generation of bubbles is suppressed. Of the bubbles generated on the heating element 2, most of the pressure caused by the bubbles on the common liquid chamber 13 side (upstream side) is a force (back wave) for pushing back the liquid toward the upstream side. This back wave caused the pressure on the upstream side, the amount of liquid movement due thereto, and the inertia force accompanying the liquid movement, which reduced the refill of the liquid into the liquid flow path and hindered high-speed driving. . In the present embodiment, the refillability is further improved by first suppressing these effects on the upstream side by the movable member 31.

Next, further characteristic structures and effects of this embodiment will be described below.

The second liquid flow path 16 of this embodiment is provided with a liquid supply path 12 having an inner wall that is substantially flat with the heating element 2 (the heating element surface is not greatly reduced) upstream of the heating element 2. Have. In such a case, the bubble generation region 11
The supply of the liquid to the surface of the heating element 2 is performed by the movable member 31.
VD2 is performed along the surface on the side closer to the bubble generation region 11 of FIG. Therefore, stagnation of the liquid on the surface of the heating element 2 is suppressed, and deposition of gas dissolved in the liquid and so-called residual air bubbles that cannot be defoamed are easily removed. The heat storage does not become too high.
Therefore, more stable generation of bubbles can be repeated at high speed. In the present embodiment, the liquid supply path 12 having a substantially flat inner wall has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Any liquid supply path that has a gentle inner wall that is smoothly connected to the surface of the heating element. The movable member 31 is returned to the first position by using a large movable member so as to cover the body surface with stagnation of the liquid on the heating element and a large turbulent flow for the supply of the liquid. In the case where the flow resistance of the liquid between the discharge port of the first liquid flow path 14 and the area close to the discharge port is increased, the flow of the liquid from the VD 1 to the bubble generation area 11 is prevented. However, in the head structure of the present embodiment, the flow VD1 for supplying the liquid to the bubble generation region has a very high liquid supply performance, and the ejection efficiency is such that the movable member 31 covers the bubble generation region 11. Even if a structure requiring improvement is adopted, the liquid supply performance is not reduced.

The positions of the free end 32 and the fulcrum 33 of the movable member 31 are such that the free end is relatively downstream from the fulcrum, as shown in FIG. With such a configuration, it is possible to efficiently realize functions and effects such as guiding the pressure propagation direction and growth direction of bubbles to the ejection port side during the above-described foaming. Further, this positional relationship achieves not only a function and an effect on discharge, but also an effect that the flow resistance to the liquid flowing through the liquid flow path 10 can be reduced and the refill can be performed at a high speed even when the liquid is supplied. As shown in FIG. 6, when the meniscus M retracted by the discharge returns to the discharge port 18 by the capillary force, or when the liquid is supplied to the defoaming, the liquid flow path 10 (the first liquid This is because the free end and the fulcrum 33 are arranged so as not to go against the flows S1, S2, and S3 flowing through the flow path 14 (including the second liquid flow path 16).

In addition, in FIG. 2 of the present embodiment, as described above, the free end 32 of the movable member 31 has the area center 3 which divides the heating element 2 into an upstream area and a downstream area.
It extends with respect to the heating element 2 so as to face a position downstream of a line passing through the center (center) of the area of the heating element and perpendicular to the length direction of the liquid flow path. As a result, the movable member 31 receives a pressure or a bubble that greatly contributes to the discharge of the liquid generated downstream of the area center position 3 of the heating element, and the pressure and the bubble can be guided to the discharge port side, and the discharge efficiency and the like can be improved. Discharge force can be fundamentally improved.

In addition, many effects are obtained by utilizing the upstream side of the bubble.

Further, in the configuration of the present embodiment, the fact that the free end of the movable member 31 is subjected to an instantaneous mechanical displacement is also considered to contribute effectively to the ejection of the liquid.

(Embodiment 2) Hereinafter, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In this embodiment, the principle of the main liquid ejection is the same as in the previous embodiment. However, in this embodiment, the liquid flow path has a multi-flow path structure, so that more heat is applied. In order to supplement the volume of the liquid (foaming liquid) to be foamed by the liquid and the liquid mainly discharged (discharged liquid), such as VD1 and VD2 flowing from the upstream side (B), that is, the common liquid chamber side. Then, the liquid flows in from the discharge port side like the flow Vc.

Although the operation of the movable member and the operation of discharging the liquid in association with the generation of bubbles have been described above, they can be divided into the following.

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the liquid discharge head of this embodiment in the flow direction, and FIG. 8 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the liquid discharge head.

The liquid discharge head according to the present embodiment has a heating element 2 for applying thermal energy for generating bubbles in the liquid.
A second liquid flow path 16 for foaming is provided on the element substrate 1 provided with
The first liquid flow path 14 for the discharged liquid which is directly communicated with the discharge port 18 is disposed thereon.

The upstream side of the first liquid flow path communicates with the first common liquid chamber 15 for supplying the discharge liquid to the plurality of first liquid flow paths, and the upstream side of the second liquid flow path is The plurality of second liquid flow paths communicate with a second common liquid chamber for supplying a foaming liquid.

However, when the same liquid is used for the foaming liquid and the discharge liquid, the common liquid chamber may be made one and shared.

A separation wall 30 made of a material having elasticity such as metal is provided between the first and second liquid flow paths, and is provided between the first and second liquid flow paths. Are classified. In the case where the foaming liquid and the discharge liquid are liquids that should not be mixed as much as possible, the flow of the liquids in the first liquid flow path 14 and the second liquid flow path 16 can be separated as completely as possible by this separation wall. It is better to perform the separation, but if there is no problem even if the foaming liquid and the discharge liquid are mixed to some extent, the separation wall may not have the function of complete separation.

The separation wall of the portion located in the projection space above the heating element in the plane direction (hereinafter, referred to as the discharge pressure generation area; the area A in FIG. 7 and the air bubble generation area 11 in FIG.
The discharge port side (downstream side of the liquid flow) is a free end,
The movable member 31 has a cantilever shape in which the fulcrum 33 is located on the common liquid chamber (15, 17) side. This movable member 31
Is arranged so as to face the bubble generation region 11 (B), so that it operates so as to open toward the discharge port side on the first liquid flow path side by foaming of the foaming liquid (in the direction of the arrow in the figure). In FIG. 8 as well, a second liquid flow path is formed on the element substrate 1 on which the heating resistor as the heating element 2 and the wiring electrode 5 for applying an electric signal to the heating resistor are arranged. The separation wall 30 is arranged via the space.

The relationship between the arrangement of the fulcrum 33 and the free end 32 of the movable member 31 and the arrangement with the heating element is the same as in the previous embodiment.

Although the structure of the liquid supply passage 12 and the heating element 2 has been described in the previous embodiment, the structure of the second liquid flow path 16 and the heating element 2 in this embodiment also. The same is true.

Next, the operation of the liquid ejection head of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

In driving the head, the same aqueous ink was used as the discharge liquid supplied to the first liquid flow path 14 and the foaming liquid supplied to the second liquid flow path 16.

The heat generated by the heating element 2 acts on the foaming liquid in the bubble generation region of the second liquid flow path, so that the foaming liquid is added to the foaming liquid in the same manner as described in the previous embodiment. 1
Bubble 4 based on film boiling phenomenon as described in 29
Generates 0.

In this embodiment, since there is no escape of the foaming pressure from the three sides except for the upstream side of the bubble generation area, the pressure accompanying the bubble generation is applied to the movable member 6 disposed at the discharge pressure generating portion. The movable member 6 is displaced from the state of FIG. 9A to the first liquid flow path side as shown in FIG. 9B with the growth of bubbles. Due to the operation of the movable member, the first liquid flow path 14 and the second liquid flow path 16 communicate with each other largely, and the pressure based on the generation of bubbles mainly occurs in the direction (A direction) on the discharge port side of the first liquid flow path. Convey. The liquid is discharged from the discharge port by the propagation of the pressure and the mechanical displacement of the movable member as described above.

Next, as the bubbles shrink, the movable member 3
1 returns to the position shown in FIG.
In the case, the amount of the discharged liquid corresponding to the amount of the discharged liquid is supplied from the upstream side. Also in the present embodiment, the supply of the discharge liquid is in the direction in which the movable member closes, similarly to the above-described embodiment, so that the refill of the discharge liquid is not hindered by the movable member.

The second embodiment is the same as the first embodiment in the operation and effects of the main parts relating to the propagation of the foaming pressure accompanying the displacement of the movable member, the growth direction of the bubbles, the prevention of back waves, and the like. However, by adopting the two flow path configuration as in the present embodiment, there are further advantages as follows.

That is, according to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, the discharge liquid and the foaming liquid can be made different liquids, and the discharge liquid can be discharged by the pressure generated by the foaming of the foaming liquid. For this reason, conventionally, even if it is a high-viscosity liquid such as polyethylene glycol, which has been insufficiently foamed even when heat is applied and discharge power is insufficient, this liquid is supplied to the first liquid flow path,
Liquid that foams well in the foaming liquid (ethanol: water =
By supplying a liquid having a low boiling point and a liquid having a low boiling point to the second liquid flow path, a good discharge can be achieved.

Further, by selecting a liquid which does not generate deposits such as kogation on the surface of the heating element even if it receives heat as the foaming liquid, foaming can be stabilized and good ejection can be performed.

Further, in the structure of the head according to the present invention, the effects as described in the previous embodiment are also produced.
Further, a liquid such as a highly viscous liquid can be discharged with high discharge efficiency and high discharge force.

Even in the case of a liquid weak to heating, this liquid is supplied as a discharge liquid to the first liquid flow path, and a liquid which is hardly thermally degraded in the second liquid flow path and which is well foamed is supplied. This makes it possible to discharge the liquid weak to heating without causing thermal harm, and with high discharge efficiency and high discharge force as described above.

<Other Embodiments> While the embodiments of the main parts of the liquid discharge head and the liquid discharge method applicable to the present invention have been described above, the present invention can be preferably applied to these embodiments below. An embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. However, in the following description, there is a case where either one of the above-described embodiment of the one-passage form and the embodiment of the two-passage form is described. However, unless otherwise specified, the present invention is applied to both embodiments. It is a good thing.

<Arrangement Relationship Between Second Liquid Flow Path and Movable Member> FIG. 10 is a view for explaining the arrangement relation between the movable member 31 and the second liquid flow path 16 described above. FIG. 2A is a view of the vicinity of the separation wall 30 and the movable member 31 as viewed from above, and FIG. 2B is a view of the second liquid flow path 16 from which the separation wall 30 has been removed, as viewed from above. FIG. 3C is a diagram schematically showing the arrangement relationship between the movable member 6 and the second liquid flow path 16 by overlapping these elements. In each of the figures, the lower part of the drawing is the front side where the discharge ports are arranged.

The second liquid flow path 16 of this embodiment is located on the upstream side of the heating element 2 (the upstream side here is from the second common liquid chamber side to the heating element position, the movable member, and the first flow path). It has a constriction 19 at the upstream side in the large flow toward the discharge port, and suppresses the pressure at the time of bubbling from easily escaping to the upstream side of the second liquid flow path 16. It has a chamber (foaming chamber) structure.

As in the conventional head, the flow path for bubbling and the flow path for discharging the liquid are the same, and a constricted portion is formed so that the pressure generated on the liquid chamber side from the heating element does not escape to the common liquid chamber side. In the case of the head provided with the above, it is necessary to adopt a configuration in which the cross-sectional area of the flow path in the constricted portion does not become so small in consideration of liquid refilling.

However, in the case of this embodiment, most of the liquid to be discharged can be used as the discharge liquid in the first liquid flow path.
Since the foaming liquid in the second liquid flow path provided with the heating element can be prevented from being consumed so much, the amount of the foaming liquid filled in the bubble generation region 11 of the second liquid flow path may be small. Therefore, since the interval in the constricted portion 19 can be made very small, that is, several μm to several tens of μm, it is possible to further suppress the pressure at the time of foaming generated in the second liquid flow path from being released too much to the surroundings, and to concentrate and move. It can be turned to the member side. Since this pressure can be used as the discharge force via the movable member 31, higher discharge efficiency and discharge force can be achieved. However, the shape of the first liquid flow path 16 is not limited to the above-described structure, and may be any shape as long as the pressure accompanying the generation of bubbles can be effectively transmitted to the movable member side.

As shown in FIG. 10 (c), the side of the movable member 31 covers a part of the wall constituting the second liquid flow path. Dropping into the liquid flow path can be prevented. This can further enhance the separability between the ejection liquid and the foaming liquid described above. In addition, since the escape of bubbles from the slits can be suppressed, the discharge pressure and the discharge efficiency can be further increased. further,
The effect of the refill from the upstream side by the pressure at the time of the defoaming can be enhanced.

In FIG. 9B, the movable member 6
Of the second liquid flow path 4 with the displacement of the second liquid flow path 4
Some of the bubbles generated in the bubble generation region of the first liquid flow path 1
Although it extends to the fourth side, the ejection force can be further improved by setting the height of the second flow path such that the bubbles extend as compared with the case where the bubbles do not extend. In order for the bubble to extend to the first liquid flow path 14 in this manner,
It is desirable that the height of the second liquid flow path 16 be lower than the height of the maximum bubble, and it is desirable that this height be several μm to 30 μm. In this embodiment, the height is set to 15 μm.

<Movable Member and Separation Wall> FIG. 11 shows another shape of the movable member 31. Reference numeral 35 denotes a slit provided on the separation wall, and the slit forms the movable member 31. . (A) is a rectangular shape, (b) is a shape where the fulcrum side is narrower and the movable member is easy to operate, and (c) is a shape where the fulcrum side is wider and the movable member is wider. This is a shape that improves the durability of the device.
As a shape having good operability and durability, FIG.
As shown in (a), it is desirable that the width on the fulcrum side is narrowed in an arc shape, but the shape of the movable member is a shape that can easily operate without entering the second liquid flow path side. ,
Any shape having excellent durability may be used.

In the above embodiment, the plate-shaped movable member 31 and the separation wall 5 having this movable member have a thickness of 5 μm.
However, the material of the movable member and the separation wall is not limited to this, and has a solvent resistance to the foaming liquid and the discharge liquid, and has elasticity to operate well as the movable member. What is necessary is just to be able to form a fine slit.

As the material of the movable member, high durability
Metals such as silver, nickel, gold, iron, titanium, aluminum, platinum, tantalum, stainless steel, phosphor bronze, and alloys thereof, or resins having a nitrile group such as acrylonitrile, butadiene, styrene, and amide groups such as polyamide Resin, resin having a carboxyl group such as polycarbonate, resin having an aldehyde group such as polyacetal, resin having a sulfone group such as polysulfone,
In addition, resins and compounds such as liquid crystal polymers, highly ink-resistant metals such as gold, tungsten, tantalum, nickel, stainless steel, titanium, alloys of these and those with ink resistance coated on the surface or polyamide A resin having an amide group such as
Resins having an aldehyde group such as polyacetal, resins having a ketone group such as polyetheretherketone, resins having an imide group such as polyimide, resins having a hydroxyl group such as a phenol resin, resins having an ethyl group such as polyethylene, polypropylene, etc. A resin having an alkyl group, a resin having an epoxy group such as an epoxy resin, a resin having an amino group such as a melamine resin, a resin having a methylol group such as a xylene resin and its compound, and a ceramic such as silicon dioxide and its compound. desirable.

Examples of the material of the separation wall include polyethylene, polypropylene, polyamide, polyethylene terephthalate, melamine resin, phenol resin, epoxy resin, polybutadiene, polyurethane, polyetheretherketone, polyethersulfone, polyarylate, polyimide, polysulfone, and liquid crystal. A resin having good heat resistance, solvent resistance and moldability represented by recent engineering plastics such as polymer (LCP) and its compound, or silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, nickel,
Metals such as gold and stainless steel, alloys and their compounds, or those coated with titanium or gold on the surface are desirable. The width of the slit 35 is 2 μm in the present embodiment, but a liquid different from the foaming liquid and the discharge liquid is used. In order to prevent a mixture of the two liquids, the slit width may be set to an interval enough to form a meniscus between the two liquids to suppress the flow of the respective liquids. For example, as a foaming liquid, 2 cP
(Centipoise) of liquid, and 10
When a liquid of 0 cP or more is used, a liquid mixture can be prevented even with a slit of about 5 μm, but it is preferable that the slit be 3 μm or less.

The movable member in the present invention has a thickness on the order of μm (t μm), and a movable member having a thickness on the order of cm is not intended. For a movable member having a thickness on the order of μm, a slit width (W
μm), it is desirable to consider the manufacturing variation to some extent.

When the thickness of the member facing the free end and / or the side end of the movable member forming the slit is equal to the thickness of the movable member (FIGS. 9 and 21), the relationship between the slit width and the thickness is determined by manufacturing. By setting the following range in consideration of the variation, the mixture of the foaming liquid and the ejection liquid can be stably suppressed. Although this is a limited condition, as a design point of view, when a high-viscosity ink (5 cp, 10 cp, etc.) is used for a foaming liquid having a viscosity of 3 cp or less, W / t ≦
By satisfying the condition 1, the mixing of the two liquids can be suppressed for a long time.

The slit for providing the “substantially sealed state” of the present invention is more reliable if it is on the order of several μm.

<Head Structure with Two Flow Channels> A liquid discharge that can satisfactorily separate and introduce different liquids into the first and second common liquid chambers, can reduce the number of parts, and can reduce the cost. An example of the structure of the head will be described.

FIG. 12 is a schematic view showing the structure of such a liquid discharge head. The same reference numerals are used for the same components as those in the previous embodiment, and the detailed description is omitted here.

In this embodiment, the grooved member 50 is used.
Communicates in common with the orifice plate 51 having the discharge port 18, the plurality of grooves constituting the plurality of first liquid flow paths 14, and the plurality of liquid flow paths 14, and communicates with each of the first liquid flow paths 3. And a recess forming a first common liquid chamber 15 for supplying a liquid (ejection liquid).

The separation wall 30 is provided below the grooved member 50.
Can be formed to form a plurality of first liquid flow paths 14. Such a grooved member 50 has a first liquid supply path 20 that reaches the inside of the first common liquid chamber 15 from above. Further, the grooved member 50 penetrates the separation wall 30 from the upper part thereof and reaches the second common liquid chamber 17 in the second common liquid chamber 17.
The liquid supply path 21 of FIG.

The first liquid (discharged liquid) is indicated by an arrow C in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 12, the first liquid is supplied to the first common liquid chamber 15 and then to the first liquid flow path 14 via the first liquid supply path 20, and the second liquid (foaming liquid) is indicated by an arrow D in FIG. As shown, the second
It can be suppressed to the liquid supply path and can be concentrated and directed to the movable member side. Since this pressure can be used as the discharge force via the movable member 31, higher discharge efficiency and discharge force can be achieved. However, the shape of the first liquid flow path 16 is not limited to the above-described structure, and the first liquid flow path 16 is supplied to the second common liquid chamber 17 and then to the second liquid flow path 16 via the pressure 21 caused by the generation of bubbles. Has become.

In this embodiment, the second liquid supply path 21
Is arranged in parallel with the first liquid supply passage 20, but is not limited to this, penetrates the separation wall 30 arranged outside the first common liquid chamber 15, and 17 may be arranged in any way as long as it is formed so as to communicate with 17.

The thickness (diameter) of the second liquid supply path 21
Is determined in consideration of the supply amount of the second liquid.
The shape of the second liquid supply path 21 does not need to be round,
It may be rectangular or the like.

Further, the second common liquid chamber 17 is provided with a grooved member 50.
By the partition wall 30. As a forming method, as shown in an exploded perspective view of this embodiment shown in FIG. 30, a common liquid chamber frame and a second liquid path wall are formed on an element substrate by a dry film, and a groove with a fixed separation wall is provided. By bonding the combined body of the member 50 and the separation wall 30 to the element substrate 1, the second common liquid chamber 17 and the second liquid flow path 16 are bonded.
May be formed.

In the present embodiment, as described above, as a heating element for generating heat for generating air bubbles due to film boiling in a foaming liquid, on a support 70 formed of a metal such as aluminum. An element substrate 1 provided with a plurality of electrothermal conversion elements is provided.

On the element substrate 1, a plurality of grooves forming the liquid flow path 16 formed by the second liquid path wall, and a plurality of the foaming liquid flow paths are communicated. Forming a second common liquid chamber (common bubbling liquid chamber) 17 for supplying water, and a separation wall 30 provided with the movable wall 31 described above.
And are arranged.

Reference numeral 50 denotes a grooved member. The grooved member is joined to the separation wall 30 to form a discharge liquid flow path (first
A first common liquid chamber (common discharge liquid chamber) 15 which communicates with the groove forming the liquid flow path) 14 and the discharge liquid flow path to supply the discharge liquid to each discharge liquid flow path; Of the recess,
A first supply path (discharge liquid supply path) 20 for supplying discharge liquid to the first common liquid chamber, and a second supply path (foam liquid supply) for supplying foaming liquid to the second common liquid chamber 17. (Road) 21. The second supply passage 21 penetrates the separation wall 30 disposed outside the first common liquid chamber 15 and
7, the foaming liquid is not mixed with the discharge liquid by the communication path, and the foamed liquid is mixed with the second common liquid chamber 1.
5 can be supplied.

The arrangement of the element substrate 1, the separation wall 30, and the grooved top plate 50 is such that the movable member 31 is arranged corresponding to the heating element of the element substrate 1. A discharge liquid channel 14 is provided. Further, in the present embodiment, an example is shown in which one second supply path is provided in the grooved member, but a plurality of second supply paths may be provided according to the supply amount. Furthermore, the flow path cross-sectional area of the discharge liquid supply path 20 and the foaming liquid supply path 21 may be determined in proportion to the supply amount.

By optimizing the cross-sectional area of the flow path, it is possible to further reduce the size of the components constituting the grooved member 50 and the like.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the second supply path for supplying the second liquid to the second liquid flow path,
Since the first supply path for supplying the first liquid to the first liquid flow path is formed of the same grooved top plate as the grooved member, the number of parts can be reduced, and the process can be shortened and the cost can be reduced. Become.

Further, the supply of the second liquid to the second common liquid chamber communicating with the second liquid flow path is performed by the second liquid flow path in a direction penetrating the separation wall separating the first liquid and the second liquid. Since the structure is performed, the bonding step of the separation wall, the grooved member, and the heating element forming substrate only needs to be performed once, thereby improving the ease of manufacturing, improving the bonding accuracy, and discharging well. Can be.

Further, since the second liquid penetrates the separation wall and is supplied to the second liquid common liquid chamber, the supply of the second liquid to the second liquid flow path is ensured, and the supply amount can be sufficiently secured.
Stable discharge is possible.

<Liquid Discharge Head Cartridge> Next, a liquid discharge head cartridge equipped with the liquid discharge head according to the above embodiment will be schematically described.

FIG. 13 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a liquid discharge head cartridge including the above-described liquid discharge head. The liquid discharge head cartridge is schematically composed mainly of a liquid discharge head section 200 and a liquid container 90. I have.

The liquid discharge head unit 200 includes the element substrate 1,
It comprises a separation wall 30, a grooved member 50, a pressing spring 78, a liquid supply member 80, a support 70 and the like. As described above, the element substrate 1 is provided with a plurality of heating resistors for applying heat to the foaming liquid in a row, and a functional element for selectively driving the heating resistors. Are provided. This element substrate 1 and the aforementioned separation wall 3 having a movable wall
0, a foaming liquid passage is formed, and the foaming liquid flows. By joining the separation wall 30 and the grooved top plate 50, a discharge flow path (not shown) through which the discharged liquid to be discharged flows is formed.

The pressing spring 78 is a member for applying an urging force in the direction of the element substrate 1 to the grooved member 50. With this urging force, the element substrate 1, the separating wall 30, the grooved member 50, and a support member to be described later. 70 and satisfactorily integrated.

The support 70 is for supporting the element substrate 1 and the like. On the support 70, a circuit board 71 for connecting to the element substrate 1 and supplying an electric signal,
A contact pad 72 for exchanging electrical signals with the device by connecting to the device is provided.

The liquid container 90 contains therein a discharge liquid such as ink and a foaming liquid for generating bubbles, which are supplied to the liquid discharge head. Outside the liquid container 90, a positioning portion 94 for arranging a connection member for connecting the liquid ejection head and the liquid container and a fixed shaft 95 for fixing the connection portion are provided. The discharge liquid is supplied from the discharge liquid supply path 92 of the liquid container to the discharge liquid supply path 83 of the liquid supply member 80 via the supply path 81 of the connection member.
To the first through the discharge liquid supply path 20 of each member.
Are supplied to a common liquid chamber. Similarly, the foaming liquid is supplied from the supply path 93 of the liquid container to the foaming liquid supply path 84 of the liquid supply member 80 via the supply path 82 of the connection member, and the second liquid is supplied through the foaming liquid supply path 21 of each member. Supplied to the room.

In the above-described liquid discharge head cartridge, a description has been given of the supply form and the liquid container that can supply even when the foaming liquid and the discharge liquid are different liquids, but the discharge liquid and the foaming liquid are the same. However, the supply path and the container for the foaming liquid and the discharge liquid do not have to be divided.

It is to be noted that the liquid container may be refilled with the liquid after each liquid is consumed before use. For this purpose, it is desirable to provide a liquid inlet in the liquid container. Further, the liquid discharge head and the liquid container may be integrated or may be separable.

<Liquid Discharge Apparatus> FIG. 14 shows a schematic configuration of a liquid discharge apparatus equipped with the above-described liquid ejecting head. In the present embodiment, a carriage HC of a liquid ejection apparatus, which will be described using an ink ejection recording apparatus using ink as an ejection liquid, is a head cartridge in which a liquid tank section 90 containing ink and a liquid ejection head section 200 are detachable. And reciprocate in the width direction of the recording medium 150 such as recording paper conveyed by the recording medium conveying means.

When a drive signal is supplied from a drive signal supply means (not shown) to the liquid discharge means on the carriage, the recording liquid is discharged from the liquid discharge head to the recording medium in accordance with this signal.

Further, in the liquid discharge apparatus of this embodiment, the motor 111 as a drive source for driving the recording medium conveying means and the carriage, the gears 112 and 113 for transmitting the power from the drive source to the carriage. It has a shaft 85 and the like. With this recording apparatus and the liquid ejection method performed by this recording apparatus, a recorded matter of a good image could be obtained by ejecting liquid to various recording media.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram of the entire apparatus for operating ink discharge recording using the liquid discharge method and liquid discharge head of the present invention.

The recording apparatus receives print information from the host computer 300 as a control signal. The print information is temporarily stored in an input interface 301 inside the printing apparatus, and at the same time, is converted into data that can be processed in the printing apparatus, and is input to the CPU 302 also serving as a head drive signal supply unit. The CPU 302 processes data input to the CPU 302 using a peripheral unit such as the RAM 304 based on a control program stored in the ROM 303,
Convert to print data (image data).

In order to record the image data at an appropriate position on the recording paper, the CPU 302 creates drive data for driving a driving motor for moving the recording paper and the recording head in synchronization with the image data. The image data and the motor drive data are respectively
The image is transmitted to the head 200 and the drive motor 306 via the motor driver 305, and is driven at a controlled timing to form an image.

The recording medium which can be applied to the recording apparatus as described above, and to which a liquid such as ink is applied, includes various kinds of paper, OHP sheets, plastic materials used for compact discs and decorative plates, fabrics, aluminum sheets and the like. Metal materials such as copper and copper, leather materials such as cow skin, pig skin and artificial leather, wood such as wood and plywood, ceramic materials such as bamboo materials and tiles, and three-dimensional structures such as sponges can be targeted.

As the above-described recording device, various types of paper and O
A printer device for recording on an HP sheet or the like, a recording device for a plastic for recording on a plastic material such as a compact disc, a recording device for a metal for recording on a metal plate,
A recording device for leather for recording on leather, a recording device for wood for recording on wood, a recording device for ceramics for recording on ceramic materials, a recording device for recording on a three-dimensional network structure such as a sponge, and a cloth Also includes a textile printing device for performing recording on the paper.

As a discharge liquid used in these liquid discharge devices, a liquid suitable for each recording medium and recording conditions may be used.

<Recording System> Next, an example of an ink jet recording system for performing recording on a recording medium using the liquid discharge head of the present invention as a recording head will be described.

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of an ink jet recording system using the above-described liquid discharge head 201 of the present invention. The liquid ejection head in this embodiment is a full line type head in which a plurality of ejection ports are arranged at intervals of 360 dpi in a length corresponding to the recordable width of the recording medium 150, and is yellow (Y), magenta (M). , Cyan (C), and black (Bk) are fixedly supported in parallel by a holder 202 at predetermined intervals in the X direction.

A signal is supplied to each of these heads from a head driver 307 constituting drive signal supply means, and each head is driven based on this signal.

Each head has Y, M, C,
Bk four color inks are supplied from ink containers 204a to 204d, respectively. Reference numeral 204e denotes a foaming liquid container in which a foaming liquid is stored, and the foaming liquid is supplied from the container to each head.

A head cap 203 having an ink absorbing member such as a sponge therein is provided below each head.
a to 203d are provided, and the maintenance of the head can be performed by covering the ejection openings of each head during non-printing.

Reference numeral 206 denotes a transport belt which constitutes transport means for transporting various non-recording media as described in the above embodiments. The transport belt 206 is drawn around a predetermined path by various rollers, and is driven by a driving roller connected to a motor driver 305.

In the ink jet recording system of this embodiment, a pre-processing device 251 and a post-processing device 252 for performing various processes on a recording medium before and after recording are respectively provided upstream and downstream of the recording medium transport path. Provided.

The contents of the pre-processing and post-processing differ depending on the type of recording medium on which recording is performed and the type of ink. For example, for recording media such as metals, plastics, and ceramics, As a pretreatment, irradiation of ultraviolet rays and ozone is performed to activate the surface, thereby improving the adhesion of the ink. Further, in a recording medium such as plastic which easily generates static electricity, dust easily adheres to the surface due to the static electricity, and good recording may be hindered by the dust. For this reason, it is preferable to remove dust from the recording medium by removing static electricity from the recording medium using an ionizer device as a pretreatment.
When a cloth is used as a recording medium, an alkaline substance,
A treatment for providing a substance selected from a water-soluble substance, a synthetic polymer, a water-soluble metal salt, urea, and thiourea may be performed as pretreatment. The pre-processing is not limited to these, and may be a process of setting the temperature of the recording medium to a temperature suitable for recording.

On the other hand, the post-treatment is a fixing treatment for promoting the fixing of the ink to the recording medium to which the ink has been applied by heat treatment, ultraviolet irradiation, or the like, or a cleaning treatment applied to the recording medium and remaining unreacted after the pre-treatment. And the like.

Although the present embodiment has been described using a full-line head as a head, the present invention is not limited to this, and a small-sized head as described above is conveyed in the width direction of a recording medium to perform recording. It may be something.

[0159]

17 to 24 are schematic views showing embodiments 1 to 4 of a liquid discharge head manufactured according to the method of the present invention.

FIG. 17 shows a liquid discharge head according to the first embodiment of the present invention, which has a separation wall having a movable member that can be displaced, and a plurality of grooves serving as liquid passages provided corresponding to the movable member. It is a typical perspective view showing a member with a groove.

In FIG. 17, reference numeral 1 denotes a grooved member (top plate) having a groove (recess) serving as the liquid flow path 10 communicating with the discharge port.
Numeral 30 is a comb-shaped separating wall having a movable member 31 which can be displaced in accordance with the concave portion of the grooved member 1. The grooved member 1 is composed of two portions 1a and 1b of a thick portion 1a and a thin portion 1b, and a stepped portion which is a boundary surface between the two portions 1a and 1b, that is, a liquid flow path. Grooves are formed for forming a plurality of liquid flow paths 10 extending at equal intervals substantially in parallel to a direction orthogonal to the front butting reference portion 4 which is the upstream end of the wall 10a in the liquid flow direction. This stepped part of the grooved member 1 constitutes a front butting reference part 4 for the separating wall 30,
0 in the Y direction in the figure. The cross-sectional shape of each liquid flow path 10 has an inverted truncated trapezoidal shape that tapers toward the bottom of the groove, and is defined by flow path walls 10a having truncated trapezoidal cross-sectional shapes on both sides of the liquid flow path 10. Further, the grooved member 1 is provided with a side abutting reference portion 5 in the arrangement direction of the grooves for aligning the separation wall 30 in the X direction in the drawing so as to protrude upright.

The separating wall 30 is provided with a plurality of movable members 31 which can be displaced in a comb shape on the downstream side of the liquid flow, and each movable member 31 is arranged so as to correspond to each liquid flow path 10. .

In order to manufacture a liquid discharge head by combining the grooved member 1 and the separation wall 30 configured as described above, first, in order to align the separation wall 30 with the grooved member 1, FIG. The liquid flow path 1 of the grooved member 1 on which the movable member 31 of the separation wall 30 is to be arranged as shown in FIG.
The grooved member 1 is arranged in the channel wall 10a in the vicinity of the liquid flow path 10 or near the liquid flow path 10, and the grooved member 1 is vibrated by a vibrating means such as a vibrator to cause the separation wall 30 to move in the arrangement direction of the movable member 31. , Whereby the movable member 31
Into the liquid flow path 10 of the grooved member 1 (FIG. 2).
(B), the grooved member 1 is continuously vibrated in a state where the grooved member 1 is tilted so that the upstream end of the liquid flow path wall 10a in the liquid flow direction is directed upward. Against the front-side abutting reference portion 4 and the side-side abutting reference portion of the grooved member 1, whereby the alignment (fitting) between the separation wall 30 and the grooved member 1 is performed as shown in FIG. 1. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the separation wall 30 is accurately arranged at a desired position with respect to the grooved member 1. Here, the separation wall 30 may be fixed to the grooved member 1, and in this case, the subsequent assembling process can be performed more easily.

Further, according to the present embodiment, since the movable member 31 is fitted in the groove serving as the liquid flow path 10, there is no possibility that the movable member 31 is damaged when the grooved member 1 is aligned with the element substrate. .

FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a method of manufacturing a liquid jet head according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

In the previous embodiment, the grooved member 1 was vibrated in order to fit the separation wall 30 into the grooved member 1, but in this embodiment, the separation wall 30 is floated by pressurized air to be separated. A configuration for fitting the separation wall 30 to the grooved member 1 by its own weight will be described.

First, as in the previous embodiment, the liquid flow path 10 of the grooved member 1 on which the movable member 31 of the separation wall 30 is to be disposed.
Placed on a nearby flow channel wall 10a and then the grooved member 1
Is tilted so that the upstream end of the liquid flow path wall 10a in the liquid flow direction is directed upward, and the separation wall 30 is floated using pressurized air.
The movable member 31 can be fitted into the groove serving as the liquid flow path 10 of the grooved member 1 so that the separation wall 30 and the grooved member 1 can be aligned.

FIG. 20 is a schematic perspective view showing an example in which the pressurized air in the second embodiment is sent by using the liquid supply port 6 provided in the grooved member 1.

By feeding the compressed air from the liquid supply port 6 in this manner, the separation wall 30 can maintain a desired floating state, and the alignment between the separation wall 30 and the grooved member 1 can be easily performed. You can do it.

FIGS. 21 and 22 show front mounting reference portions 4a and 4b provided on the grooved member 1, respectively.
In FIG. 21, both end portions of the liquid flow channel row of the grooved member 1 are shaved and the front mounting reference portion 4a is provided only on the liquid flow channel wall 10a.
FIG. 22 shows a case where the front attachment reference portions 4b are attached only to both end portions of the liquid flow channel row of the grooved member 1.
In any case, the separation wall 30 and the grooved member 1 can be easily positioned. However, in the configuration shown in FIG. 22, the liquid is supplied from the gap between the separation wall 30 and the liquid passage wall 10a. Therefore, the refill speed of the liquid discharge head can be improved.

FIG. 23 is a schematic explanatory view for explaining a method for manufacturing a liquid jet head according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

In this embodiment, the upstream part of the liquid flow path wall 10a of the grooved member 1 has a semicircular cross-sectional shape as a front-side abutting reference part 4c, and the comb-shaped movable wall of the separating wall 30 abutted against the same. The abutting portions 4d corresponding to the gaps between the members 31 are cutouts having a V-shaped cross section so that positioning in two directions can be performed. That is, as shown in the drawing, the comb-shaped movable member 31 of the separation wall 30 is disposed so as to be fitted into the groove serving as the liquid flow path 10 of the grooved member 1, and the movable member 31 of the separation wall 30 The V-shaped notch-shaped abutment reference portion 4d is abutted against the abutment reference portion 4c having a semicircular cross-sectional shape of the liquid flow path wall 10a of the grooved member 1, whereby alignment is suitably performed. In this alignment, the abutment reference portion 4c of the liquid flow path wall 10a of the grooved member 1 forms a semicircular cross section, and the corresponding abutment reference portion 4d of the movable member 31 of the separation wall 30 corresponds to the cross section V. The separation wall 3 is formed by the engagement of
The separation wall 30 is aligned with respect to the grooved member 1 in two directions, namely, the front-rear direction and the left and right directions.

FIG. 24 is a schematic explanatory view for explaining a method for manufacturing a liquid jet head according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention.

In this embodiment, a pair of abutting reference pins 7 provided on the grooved member 1 and an elongated abutting reference window 8 provided on the separation wall 30 corresponding to each abutting reference pin 7. The abutment reference pin 7 and the abutment reference window 8 position the separation wall 30 with the grooved member 1.

In the present embodiment, first, when the comb-shaped movable member 31 of the separation wall 30 is arranged so as to fit into the groove serving as the liquid flow path 10 of the grooved member 1, almost simultaneously with the separation wall. Of the separation wall 30 so that the abutment reference window 8 of the separation wall 30 is inserted into the abutment reference pin 7 of the grooved member 1.
The abutment reference pin 7 of the grooved member 1 is fitted into the groove. Next, the separation wall 30 is attached to the abutting reference pin 7 of the grooved member 1.
The separation wall 30 is suitably aligned with the grooved member 1 by abutting the abutting reference window 8.

[0176]

According to the manufacturing method of the present invention based on the novel ejection principle using the movable member as described above, the separation wall to be combined and the element substrate are abutted and aligned at the abutting reference portions of both. By performing a small and easy and accurate alignment of the device that does not require a tact by performing, the liquid discharge method using the liquid discharge head manufactured by the method of the present invention, according to the head, etc.
Since a synergistic effect between the generated bubble and the movable member displaced by the bubble can be obtained, and the liquid in the vicinity of the discharge port can be efficiently discharged, the conventional bubble jet method,
Discharge efficiency can be improved as compared with a head or the like.

Further, according to the characteristic structure of the liquid discharge head manufactured by the manufacturing method of the present invention, it is possible to prevent non-discharge even when the liquid discharge head is left for a long time at low temperature and low humidity. There is also an advantage that even if a non-ejection occurs, the normal state can be immediately restored by performing only a slight recovery process such as preliminary ejection or suction recovery. Along with this, the recovery time can be shortened, the loss of liquid due to the recovery can be reduced, and the running cost can be significantly reduced.

According to the configuration in which the refill characteristics of the liquid discharge head manufactured by the manufacturing method of the present invention are particularly improved, the responsiveness at the time of continuous discharge, the stable growth of bubbles, and the stabilization of droplets are achieved. Thus, high-speed recording by high-speed liquid ejection and high-quality recording can be performed.

In addition, the use of a liquid that easily foams or a liquid that does not easily generate deposits (burns) on the heating element is used as the foaming liquid in the head having the two flow paths, so that the degree of freedom in selecting the discharge liquid is increased. Liquids that were difficult to be discharged by the conventional bubble jet discharge method, such as high-viscosity liquids that became high and hardly foamed, and liquids that easily formed a volume on the heating element, could be discharged well.

Further, a liquid or the like which is weak to heat could be ejected without adversely affecting the liquid by heat.

Further, according to the method of manufacturing a liquid discharge head of the present invention, the above-described liquid discharge head can be manufactured with high accuracy, the number of parts can be reduced, and the manufacturing can be performed easily at low cost.

Further, by using the liquid discharge head of the present invention as a liquid discharge recording head for recording, it was possible to achieve higher quality recording.

Further, it was possible to provide a liquid discharge apparatus, a recording system, and the like in which the liquid discharge head of the present invention was further improved in liquid discharge efficiency and the like.

Further, by using the head cartridge or the head kit of the present invention, the head can be easily used and reused.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view for explaining a liquid flow path structure of a conventional liquid discharge head.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating an example of the liquid ejection head of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the liquid ejection head of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing pressure propagation from bubbles in a conventional head.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing pressure propagation from bubbles in the head of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining a flow of a liquid according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a liquid ejection head according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a liquid ejection head according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the movable member.

FIG. 10 is a view for explaining a structure of a movable member and a liquid flow path.

FIG. 11 is a view for explaining another shape of the movable member.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a supply path of the liquid ejection head of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an exploded perspective view of the liquid ejection head cartridge.

FIG. 14 is a schematic configuration diagram of a liquid ejection device.

FIG. 15 is a device block diagram.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a liquid ejection recording system.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view illustrating Example 1 of the method for manufacturing a liquid ejection head according to the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram illustrating a movable member and a grooved member according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a schematic view illustrating Example 2 of the method for manufacturing a liquid ejection head according to the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram illustrating a modification of the second embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a schematic view showing a modification of the second embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a schematic view showing another example of the front mounting reference portion provided on the grooved member.

FIG. 23 is a schematic view illustrating Example 3 of the method for manufacturing a liquid ejection head according to the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a perspective view showing Embodiment 4 of the method for manufacturing a liquid ejection head according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Element board 2 Heating element 3 Center of area 4 Front abutment reference part 4a Front abutment reference part 4b Front abutment reference part 4c Front abutment reference part 4d Front abutment reference part 5 Side abutment reference part 6 Ink supply port 7 Abutment reference pin 8 abutment reference window 10 liquid flow path 11 bubble generation area 12 supply path 13 common liquid chamber 14 first liquid flow path 15 first common liquid chamber 16 second liquid flow path 17 second common liquid chamber 18 discharge Outlet 19 Narrowed part 20 First supply path 21 Second supply path 22 First liquid flow path wall 23 Second liquid flow path wall 24 Convex part 30 Separation wall 31 Movable member 32 Free end 33 Support point 34 Support member 35 Slit 36 Bubble generation Area front wall 37 Bubble generation area side wall 40 Bubble 45 Droplet 50 Grooved member 51 Orifice plate 70 Support 78 Spring 80 Supply member

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Hiroyuki Kigami 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Kimiyuki Hayashizaki 3- 30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Within Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Hisashi Fukai 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Takayuki Ono 3- 30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Toshio Kashino 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc.

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A comb-shaped separation wall having a movable member that can be displaced, and a grooved member in which a plurality of grooves serving as a liquid flow passage in which the comb teeth of the separation wall are fitted are arranged. A method of manufacturing a liquid ejection unit, wherein the grooved member has a reference portion for abutting the separation wall in an arrangement direction of the grooves, and a wall of the liquid flow path provided between the grooves. The method of manufacturing a liquid ejection unit, wherein the separation wall is positioned by the abutting reference portion and an upstream end of the liquid flow path wall in the liquid flow direction, and is fitted to the grooved member. 2. The liquid discharge unit further includes a discharge port that communicates with the liquid flow path to discharge the liquid, and an element substrate having a heating element that generates bubbles in the liquid in the liquid flow path. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the liquid flow path is formed by joining the element substrate and the grooved member. 3. The liquid discharging unit generates bubbles by heating the liquid in the liquid flow path by the heating element, and displaces the movable member by a pressure based on the generation of the bubbles to discharge the pressure. 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the liquid is discharged to an outlet side to discharge the liquid. 4. The liquid discharge unit according to claim 1, wherein the abutting reference portion of the grooved member is formed by a stepped portion having a different thickness of the grooved member. Manufacturing method. 5. The method according to claim 5, wherein the notch between the comb teeth of the separation wall and the upstream end of the liquid flow path wall of the grooved member in the liquid flow direction is a combination of a semicircular cross section and a V-shaped cross section. The method for manufacturing a liquid discharge unit according to claim 1, wherein: 6. The positioning between the separating wall and the grooved member is performed by a pair of abutting pins implanted in the grooved member and an elongated hole corresponding to the abutting pin provided on the separating wall. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method is performed by using an abutment window. 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein after the separation wall is arranged with respect to the grooved member, the separation wall is fitted to the grooved member by vibrating the grooved member. 7. The method for manufacturing a liquid discharge unit according to any one of 6. 8. The vibration of the grooved member is performed while tilting the grooved member such that the upstream end of the liquid flow path wall in the liquid flow direction is upward. Manufacturing method of a liquid discharge unit. 9. The self-weight of the separation wall by floating the separation wall using pressurized air while tilting the grooved member such that the upstream end of the liquid flow path wall in the liquid flow direction is upward. 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the separating wall is fitted to the grooved member. 10. A liquid discharge head manufactured by the method for manufacturing a liquid discharge unit according to claim 1. Description: 11. A liquid ejecting apparatus, wherein the liquid ejecting head according to claim 10 can be mounted thereon, and further comprising a transport unit for transporting a print medium onto which the liquid is ejected.