Etching a substrate: processes – Forming or treating thermal ink jet article
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-25
2003-01-07
Alanko, Anita (Department: 1765)
Etching a substrate: processes
Forming or treating thermal ink jet article
C216S049000, C216S100000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06503407
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink jet printer head actuator and a manufacturing method thereof, and more particularly, the present invention relates to an ink jet printer head actuator and a manufacturing method thereof, in which a protective thin film serving as an etching ceasing layer is integrally deposited between a vibrating plate and a chamber plate made of thin metal plates, whereby formation of a plurality of chambers by etching in the chamber plate is performed in a more precise and economical manner, and the vibrating plate is prevented from being corroded due to direct contact with ink, whereby mechanical rigidity of a printer head is improved.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, ink firing scheme in an ink jet printer head is largely divided into a thermal bubble jet type ink firing scheme and a piezo transducer type ink firing scheme.
In the thermal bubble jet type ink firing scheme, by electrically heating a chamber, ink which is stored in a chamber is fired through a nozzle by thermal expansion. In the piezo transducer type ink firing scheme, by driving a vibrating plate by a piezoelectric actuator, ink which is stored in a chamber is fired through a nozzle by vibrating force of the vibrating plate.
Because ink particles fired in these manners as described above have a size of several tens &mgr;m (about 40 &mgr;m) and a plurality of particles are fired simultaneously in many places, precise operability is required above all things.
FIG. 1
illustrates an embodiment of the piezo transducer type ink firing scheme which is widely used between the two ink firing schemes. In the piezo transducer type ink firing scheme, as a piezoelectric device, PZT is used.
In an ink jet printer head used in this piezo transducer type ink firing scheme, a nozzle plate
110
, a reservoir plate
120
, a restrictor plate
130
, a chamber plate
140
and a vibrating plate
150
are sequentially laminated from bottom to top. A lower electrode
161
, a piezoelectric element
163
and an upper electrode
162
are also sequentially laminated on the vibrating plate
150
thereby to constitute a piezoelectric actuator
160
.
In the above construction, the nozzle plate
110
is formed at its one side with a nozzle
111
of a small diameter. The nozzle
111
defines a discharging hole through which ink is actually fired.
The reservoir plate
120
which is laminated on the nozzle plate
110
is formed at one side thereof with a through hole
122
which is communicated with the nozzle
111
of the nozzle plate
110
for introducing ink into the nozzle
111
and at the other side thereof with a reservoir
121
which stores a proper amount of ink.
The restrictor plate
130
which is laminated on the reservoir plate
120
is formed at one side thereof with a through hole
132
which is communicated with the through hole
122
which is formed in the reservoir plate
120
to define a fluid passage and at the other side thereof with a restrictor
131
of a small diameter such that the restrictor
131
is communicated with the reservoir
121
for allowing a predetermined amount of ink to flow therethrough.
The chamber plate
140
which is laminated on the restrictor plate
130
is formed with a chamber
141
which are simultaneously communicated with the restrictor
131
and the through hole
132
which are formed at both sides of the restrictor plate
130
, respectively. Ink flows into the chamber
141
through the restrictor
131
and flows out of the chamber
141
through the through hole
132
. The chamber plate
140
allows ink flowing out of the chamber
141
to be fired through the nozzle
111
of the nozzle plate
110
after flowing through the through hole
132
of the restrictor plate
130
and the through hole
122
of the reservoir plate
120
.
On the other hand, the vibrating plate
150
which is laminated on the chamber plate
140
covers an upper end of the chamber
141
which is opened at an upper end of the chamber plate
140
. The vibrating plate
150
enables ink flowed into the chamber
141
to flow out of the chamber
141
through the through hole
132
of the restrictor plate
130
. In this connection, the vibrating plate
150
serves as an operating section which actually changes volume of the chamber
141
by its flexural deformation, thereby changing pressure in the chamber
141
to allow ink to flow.
Because the flexural deformation of the vibrating plate
150
cannot be naturally generated, the piezoelectric actuator
160
is provided on the vibrating plate
150
for rendering the flexural deformation of the vibrating plate
150
.
As described above, the piezoelectric actuator
160
comprises the lower electrode
161
, the upper electrode
162
and the piezoelectric element
163
intervened therebetween. The piezoelectric actuator
160
serves as driving means which generates deformation of the piezoelectric element
163
by intermittent control of electric power which is supplied from the outside to the piezoelectric element
163
.
In other words, piezoelectric element
163
contracts and expands depending upon electric power supply between the upper electrode
162
and the lower electrode
161
, and as this flexural deformation of the piezoelectric element
163
is transferred to the vibrating plate
150
as it is, the flexural deformation of the vibrating plate
150
is generated.
Accordingly, if the piezoelectric actuator
160
is electrically driven, as the flexural deformation of the vibrating plate
150
is generated, the volume within the chamber
141
of the chamber plate
140
is changed. If the volume expands, ink flows into the chamber
141
from the reservoir
121
through the restrictor
131
, and if the volume contracts, ink flows out of the chamber
141
through the respective through holes
132
and
122
and the nozzle
111
of the nozzle plate
110
.
On the other hand, as the conventional piezoelectric element is required to endure a high temperature (conventionally 800° C.-1200° C.) due to its manufactural peculiarity, the lower electrode
161
and the vibrating plate
150
which are provided below the piezoelectric element
163
must be made using heat resistant material (such as platinum, zirconium, etc.) which will not be deformed at a temperature higher than the above temperature. However, recently, as a method for manufacturing a piezoelectric element at a low temperature is disclosed in the art, it is possible to use various materials for making the vibrating plate
150
.
However, because the vibrating plate
150
is flexurally deformed as actual operating means which functions to suck ink into the chamber
141
and discharge ink through the nozzle
111
, there is caused a problem in that adherence between the vibrating plate
150
and the chamber plate
140
is likely to be deteriorated.
That is to say, in order to couple the chamber plate
140
to the vibrating plate
150
, in the conventional structure in which the vibrating plate
150
and the chamber plate
140
are made of ceramic materials, the vibrating plate
150
in the form of paste is applied onto the manufactured chamber plate
140
and then baked. Also, alternatively, separately manufactured vibrating plate
150
and the chamber plate
140
can be bonded to each other by using adhesive.
Especially, as shown in
FIG. 2
, the coupling structure between the vibrating plate
150
and the chamber plate
140
can be obtained in such a manner that a non-metallic mold
200
is attached to the vibrating plate
150
to define a space which is to be the chamber
141
, and after the chamber plate
140
is formed around the non-metallic mold
200
by electroforming, the non-metallic mold
200
is removed.
However, with this methods for coupling the vibrating plate
150
and the chamber plate
140
with each other by baking or bonding as described above, not only it is difficult to maintain sufficient mechanical rigidity between the vibrating plate
150
and the chamber plate
140
when the vibrating plate
150
is flexurally defor
Joung Jae Woo
Kim Il
Yoo Young Seuck
Alanko Anita
Darby & Darby
LandOfFree
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