Nozzle Arrangement With Expandable Actuator

• US 20080158306A1
• Filed: 02/25/2008
• Published: 07/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zamtec Limited (Memjet Limited)
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia
• Granted Patent: US 7,775,632 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 347/71
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14 Structure thereof only for on-demand ink jet heads
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14314 Structure of ink jet print heads with electrostatically actuated membrane
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14427 Structure of ink jet print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/16 Production of nozzles
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1623 bonding and adhesion
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1626 etching
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1628 dry etching
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1629 wet etching
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1631 photolithography
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1632 machining
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1635 dividing the wafer into individual chips
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1637 molding
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1639 sacrificial molding
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1642 thin film formation by CVD [chemical vapor deposition]
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1643 thin film formation by plating
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1645 thin film formation by spincoating
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1646 thin film formation by sputtering
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1648 Production of print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/16585 for paper-width or non-reciprocating print heads
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17513 Inner structure
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17596 : Ink pumps, ink valves
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/041 : Electromagnetic transducer
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/14346 : Ejection by pressure produced by thermal deformation of ink chamber, e.g. buckling
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/14435 : Moving nozzle made of thermal bend detached actuator
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/14443 : Nozzle guard
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2202/21 : Line printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/79 : in semiconductor storage media, e.g. directly-addressable memories
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/86 : Secure or tamper-resistant housings
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2129 : Authenticate client device independently of the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 1/121 : by printing code marks applying code marks to labels B65C9/46; marking or coding completed packages B65B61/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06037 : multi-dimensional coding
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/14 : using light without selection of wavelength, e.g. sensing reflected white light G06K7/10831 - G06K7/1097 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1417 : 2D bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 : by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/086 : by passive credit-cards adapted therefor, e.g. constructive particularities to avoid counterfeiting, e.g. by inclusion of a physical or chemical security-layer for security documents G07D7/00; for the reading of record-carriers in general G06K7/00; for the design of coded credit-cards G06K19/10
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/12 : Card verification
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/56 : using storage elements with more than two stable states represented by steps, e.g. of voltage, current, phase, frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/00 : Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/2628 : Alteration of picture size, shape, position or orientation, e.g. zooming, rotation, rolling, perspective, translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49083 : Heater type
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49117 : Conductor or circuit manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49128 : Assembling formed circuit to base
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49169 : Assembling electrical component directly to terminal or elongated conductor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49172 : by molding of insulating material
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49401 : Fluid pattern dispersing device making, e.g., ink jet

Abstract

A nozzle arrangement is provided for an inkjet printhead. The nozzle arrangement includes a substrate assembly. A nozzle extends from the substrate assembly and defines an ink ejection portal through which ink supplied therein can be ejected. An expandable actuator is located within the nozzle and can expand to eject ink within the nozzle out through the ink ejection portal. Preferably, the expandable actuator includes a stacked capacitor device which, in turn, includes a stack of capacitive plates between which is sandwiched a compressible material.

Claims

1. A nozzle arrangement for an inkjet printhead, the nozzle arrangement comprising:

a substrate assembly;

a nozzle extending from the substrate assembly and defining an ink ejection portal through which ink supplied to the nozzle can be ejected; and

an expandable actuator located within the nozzle and which can expand to eject ink within the nozzle out through the ink ejection portal.

2. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the expandable actuator includes a stacked capacitor device.

3. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 2, wherein the capacitor device includes a stack of capacitive plates between which is sandwiched a compressible material.

4. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 3, wherein the capacitive plates in the stack are arranged to form a pair of interleaved sets of electrodes, the sets being electrically coupled to respective conductive materials.

5. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 4, wherein the electrodes of one of the sets are formed from a different metal to the electrodes of the other set.

6. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 4, wherein the sets extend from opposite sides of the stack where they are electrically coupled to the conductive materials.

7. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 3, wherein compressible material includes any one of the following group:

a polymer;

styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene block copolymer;

piezoelectric materials such as PZT;

electrostrictive materials such as PLZT; and

materials that can be electrically switched between a ferro-electric and an anti-ferro-electric phase such as PLZSnT.

8. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the nozzle defines one or more ink inlet portals through which ink can be supplied to the nozzle.

9. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ink inlet portals are defined in a side wall of the nozzle.