Inkjet printhead apparatus

• US 6,923,526 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2001
• Issued: 08/02/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/16/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Memjet Technology Ltd. (Memjet Limited)
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia
• Primary Examiner(s): Gordon, Raquel Yvette
• Application Number:
  US09/835,472
• Publication Number:
  US 20030103106A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,569 Days
• Field of Search: 347/54, 347/68, 347/69, 347/70, 347/71, 347/72, 347/50, 347/40, 347/20, 347/44, 347/47, 347/27, 347/63, 399/261, 361/700, 310328-330, 298/901
• US Class Current: 347/54
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04505 aiming at correcting alignment
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04516 preventing formation of satellite drops
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04518 reducing costs
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/0452 reducing demand in current or voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04528 aiming at warming up the head
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04541 Specific driving circuit
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04543 Block driving
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04553 detecting ambient temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04563 detecting head temperature; Ink temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04565 detecting heater resistance
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/0457 Power supply level being detected or varied
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04571 detecting viscosity
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04585 controlling heads based on thermal bent actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04588 using a specific waveform
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/0459 Height of the driving signal being adjusted
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04591 Width of the driving signal being adjusted
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04593 Dot-size modulation by changing the size of the drop
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04596 Non-ejecting pulses
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/04598 Pre-pulse
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14427 Structure of ink jet print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1623 : bonding and adhesion
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1628 : dry 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 2/1646 : thin film formation by sputtering
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1648 : Production of print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 25/005 : for serial printing movements superimposed to character- or line-spacing movements

Abstract

An inkjet printhead having a series of nozzles for the ejection of ink wherein each said nozzle has a rim formed by the deposition of a rim material layer (42) over a sacrificial layer (41) and a subsequent planar removal of at least said rim material layer so as to form said nozzle rim.

Claims

1. An inkjet printhead having a series of nozzles for the ejection of ink wherein each said nozzle has a rim formed by the deposition of a rim material layer over a sacrificial layer and a subsequent planar removal of at least said rim material layer so as to form said nozzle rim.

2. An inkjet printhead as claimed in claim 1 wherein said planar removal comprises chemical-mechanical planarization of said rim material layer.

3. An inkjet printhead as claimed in claim 2 wherein parts of said sacrificial layer are also removed by said planar removal.

4. An inkjet printhead as claimed in claim 1 wherein said planar removal process is an etching process.

5. An inkjet printhead as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rim material layer comprises TEOS glass.

6. An inkjet printhead as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rim material layer is PECVD Si₃N₄.

7. An injet printhead as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rim material layer is MOCVD TiN.

8. An inkjet printhead as claimed in claim 1 wherein said rim material layer is ECR CVD TiN.