Method of manufacture of a dual chamber single vertical actuator ink jet printer

• US 6,491,833 B1
• Filed: 07/10/1998
• Issued: 12/10/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Zamtec Limited (Memjet Limited)
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia
• Primary Examiner(s): Utech, Benjamin L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): AHMED, SHAMIM
• Application Number:
  US09/112,801
• Time in Patent Office: 1,614 Days
• Field of Search: 216/27, 347/54, 347/44, 438/21
• US Class Current: 216/27
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0005 Curl smoothing, i.e. smoothing down corrugated printing material, e.g. by pressing means acting on wrinkled printing material
• 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 2/1626 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 2/1639 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 3/445 Printers integrated in other types of apparatus, e.g. printers integrated in cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 30/00 Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites
• 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: G11C 11/56 : using storage elements with more than two stable states represented by steps, e.g. of voltage, current, phase, frequency

Abstract

This patent a method of manufacturing a Dual Chamber Single Vertical Actuator Ink Jet Printer print head wherein an array of nozzles are formed on a substrate utilising planar monolithic deposition, lithographic and etching processes. Preferably, multiple ink jet heads are formed simultaneously on a single planar substrate such as a silicon wafer. The print heads can be formed utilising standard vlsi/ulsi processing and can include integrated drive electronics formed on the same substrate. The drive electronics preferably being of a CMOS type. In the final construction, ink can be ejected from the substrate substantially normal to the substrate.

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing an ink jet printhead which includes a plurality of nozzle arrangements positioned on a substrate, each nozzle arrangement having a nozzle chamber defined in the substrate, a roof wall that covers the nozzle chamber, a pair of ink ejection nozzles defined in the roof wall and an ink ejecting mechanism positioned in the nozzle chamber to eject ink from each of the ink ejection nozzles, the ink ejecting mechanism and the nozzle chamber being configured so that, on displacement of the ink ejecting mechanism in one direction ink is ejected from one of the ink ejection nozzles and on displacement of the ink ejecting mechanism in another direction, ink is ejected from the other ink ejection nozzle, the method comprising the steps of:

etching said substrate to form the plurality of nozzle chambers;

depositing a sacrificial layer on the substrate so that the nozzle chambers are filled with sacrificial material,

forming each ink ejecting mechanism on said sacrificial layer using masks together with a suitable deposition and etching technique;

forming the roof wall with each said pair of ink ejection nozzles above each respective ink ejecting mechanism, and

etching the sacrificial layer to free each ink ejecting mechanism and to clear each said nozzle chamber.

2. A method of manufacturing an ink jet printhead as claimed in claim 1 which includes the step of forming integrated drive electronics on the substrate.

3. A method of manufacturing an ink jet printhead as claimed in claim 2 wherein said integrated drive electronics are formed using a CMOS fabrication process.

4. A method of manufacturing an ink jet printhead as claimed in claim 1 in which the step of forming the ink ejecting mechanism includes the step of forming a paddle arranged in the nozzle chamber and an actuator arranged externally of the nozzle chamber and connected to the paddle.