Radiation imagery chemistry: process – composition – or product th – Imaging affecting physical property of radiation sensitive... – Making named article
Reexamination Certificate
2000-11-28
2002-10-29
McPherson, John A. (Department: 1756)
Radiation imagery chemistry: process, composition, or product th
Imaging affecting physical property of radiation sensitive...
Making named article
C430S945000, C347S047000, C347S065000, C219S121680, C219S121610, C219S121710
Reexamination Certificate
active
06472125
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head, and an ink jet recording head manufactured by such method of manufacture. More particularly, the invention relates to a method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head capable of forming the head with inorganic material without depending on the use of organic resin material. The invention is also intended to materialize the provision of an ink jet recording head manufactured by such method of manufacture.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, the ink discharge mechanism of an ink jet recording head to which the ink jet recording method is applicable has in general comprised discharge ports for discharging ink; the liquid chamber which retains ink to be supplied to the discharge ports; the ink flow paths which are communicated with the discharge ports and the liquid chamber; each of energy generating elements arranged a part of each of the ink flow paths for generating energy to discharge ink; and an ink supply port through which ink is supplied from outside to the liquid chamber.
For the processing of the ink flow paths and ink discharge ports, among those described above, which require minute structures and high precision, it has been generally practiced in recent years to perform the patterning irradiation of high energy ultraviolet laser, such as excimer laser, onto the resin material for the formation of an intended structure, and then, to execute sublimate etching therefor by the application of the photo-chemical reaction for cutting covalent bond of carbon atom. Here, this method is called collectively an ablation processing method in a sense of being executable without the intervention of providing liquid phase.
Also, as another method, it has been proposed to form ink flow paths by use of the wet etching which acts upon a material of ultraviolet decay type. In this method, the photolithographic process is used for processing an IC chip having a pressure generating source thereon with two kinds of resin materials, that is, the one that decays by the irradiation of ultraviolet rays, and the other that does not absorb ultraviolet rays, and then, a pattern that corresponds to the configuration of ink flow paths is made by use of the material of ultraviolet decay type, while the other side thereof is provided with an overcoated layer for the formation of ink discharge ports. Then, after the ink discharge ports have been etched, the material of ultraviolet decay type, which is processed in the form of the ink flow paths by the irradiation of ultraviolet rays, is low molecularly quantified to be conditioned so that solvent can be eluted.
However, although it is possible to process resin material by use of these conventional methods, it is difficult to process materials other than resin, thus necessitating use of a processible resin material for the formation of an intended structure. As a result, processing should be made dependent on the resin material despite such properties thereof as lower mechanical strength, easier surface spoilage, heating limit due to lower glass transition point, and the higher thermal expansion and moisture absorption coefficients which may result in easier generation of inner stress due to environmental temperatures or humidities, among some others. These may ensue in easier deformation or some other characteristic problems of resin material.
Particularly in case of an ink jet recording head, it is extremely difficult for the resin material to meet such requirements as higher durability and higher reliability so as to prevent the ink discharge surface from being spoiled due to chipping thereof and peeling off of water-repellent agent or inferior capability to maintain water-repellency, or so as to prevent it from the breakage of the bonded faces due to the generation of inner stress.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Now, therefore, the present invention is designed with a view to solving these problems encountered in the conventional art. It is an object of the invention to provide a method for manufacturing a highly durable and reliable ink jet recording head formed with inorganic material without depending on use of organic material so as to make it hard, and not easily damaged, and also, to enable the ink discharge surface thereof not to be easily spoiled, and the bonded faces not easily broken due to the inner stress, either. It is also an object of the invention to provide an ink jet recording head manufactured by such method of manufacture.
In order to achieve these objects, the invention provides a method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head, as well as an ink jet recording head manufacture by such method of manufacture, which are structured as described in the following paragraphs (1) to (18).
(1) A method for manufacturing an ink jet head, which is provided with an ink discharge mechanism structured to include at least an ink discharge port and an ink flow path on a member having a pressure generating source thereon, the pressure generating source giving pressure to ink being in contact therewith so as to propagate the pressure to the ink discharge port for discharging an ink droplet, and enabling the ink droplets to adhere to a recording medium, comprises the steps of forming in a thick film laminating step a patterning layer corresponding to the configuration of ink flow path on a member provided with the pressure generating source, and overcoating inorganic material layer on the pattering layer to form ink discharge surface; irradiating the patterned image of predetermined ink discharge port configuration by laser capable of completing sublimate ablation process before the laser beam is dispersed in a work piece as thermal energy;
subsequently, executing the sublimate ablation process on ink discharge ports almost simultaneously from the inorganic material layer on the ink discharge side up to the interior of the thickness of the patterning layer corresponding to the configuration of ink flow path; and removing the patterning layer corresponding to the configuration of the ink flow path after processing the ink discharge port to manufacture an ink jet recording head.
(2) A method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head referred to in the paragraph (1), wherein the laser is the laser continuously emitting from a laser oscillator photopulse (optical pulse) having large spatial and temporal energy concentration in pulse emission period of one picosecond or less, and the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator is irradiated on a specifically patterned image with a predetermined energy concentration and a predetermined number of aperture (NA) for the execution of sublimate ablation almost simultaneously from the inorganic material layer on the ink discharge side up to the interior of the thickness of the patterning layer corresponding to the configuration of the ink flow paths.
(3) A method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head referred to in the paragraph (1) or (2), wherein the energy concentration of laser beams satisfies the conditional expression of
(
a×n×E
)/
t
>13×10
6
[W/cm
2
]
where a is the absorptivity of the laser wave length irradiated to a work piece material; n is the number of aperture of the optical system on the work piece side to project the processing pattern to the work piece; E (unit [J/cm
2
/pulse]) is energy per unit area of the laser beam irradiated onto the work piece material per unit oscillating pulse period; and t (unit [sec]) is the width of laser oscillation pulse period.
(4) A method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head referred to in the paragraph (1), wherein the laser oscillator is a laser oscillator provided with a spatial compression device for light propagation.
(5) A method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head referred to in the paragraph (4), wherein the spatial compression device for light propagation comprises chirping pulse generating means; and vertical mode synchronizing me
Koide Jun
Kubota Masahiko
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
Fitzpatrick ,Cella, Harper & Scinto
McPherson John A.
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