Nozzle arrangement for an inkjet printing device with volumetric ink ejection

• US 7,284,838 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2006
• Issued: 10/23/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Memjet Technology Ltd. (Memjet Limited)
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia, McAvoy, Gregory John
• Primary Examiner(s): Do; An H.
• Application Number:
  US11/520,577
• Publication Number:
  US 20070008374A1
• Time in Patent Office: 404 Days
• Field of Search: 347/54, 347/65
• US Class Current: 347/54
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1433 Structure of nozzle plates
• 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 2/1629 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 2/1648 Production of print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• 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 2002/14475 characterised by nozzle shapes or number of orifices per chamber
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2202/15 Moving nozzle or nozzle plate
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49401 Fluid pattern dispersing device making, e.g., ink jet

Abstract

A nozzle arrangement for an inkjet printhead, the nozzle arrangement including a substrate that incorporates drive circuitry and defines an ink chamber and an ink supply channel in fluid communication with the ink channel. A cover is fast with the substrate to cover the ink chamber. The cover defines an ink ejection port bounded by a nozzle rim through which ink can be ejected. The cover includes a plurality of actuators extending radially with respect to the rim. Each actuator has a free end located proximal to the rim, each actuator being configured so that, on receipt of a drive signal from the drive circuitry layer, its free end can move into the ink chamber to reduce a volume of the ink chamber and thereby eject ink within the ink chamber from the ink ejection port.

Claims

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

a substrate that incorporates drive circuitry and defines an ink chamber and an ink supply channel in fluid communication with the ink channel; and

a cover fast with the substrate to cover the ink chamber, the cover defining an ink ejection port bounded by a nozzle rim through which ink can be ejected, the cover comprising a plurality of actuators extending radially with respect to the rim, each actuator having a free end located proximal to the rim, each actuator being configured so that, on receipt of a drive signal from the drive circuitry layer, its free end can move into the ink chamber to reduce a volume of the ink chamber and thereby eject ink within the ink chamber from the ink ejection port.

2. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cover further comprises a plurality of support struts each located between a respective adjacent pair of actuators and interposed between, and fast with, the substrate and the nozzle rim.

3. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein a free end of each actuator defines the shape of a segmented annulus.

4. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 3, wherein each actuator includes a body of material having a coefficient of thermal expansion such that the material can perform work when subjected to thermal expansion and contraction and a heater element connected to the drive circuitry and positioned in the body of material such that, when the heater element receives a drive current from the drive circuitry the actuator experiences differential thermal expansion and subsequent contraction.

5. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 4, in which the heater element comprises a serpentine copper heating circuit.

6. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the chamber is generally frusto-conical in shape with the ink supply channel opening into the chamber at a narrowed end of the chamber.

7. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cover includes six actuators.