Method of fabricating printhead for ejecting ink supplied under pulsed pressure

• US 7,341,672 B2
• Filed: 10/12/2006
• Issued: 03/11/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Memjet Technology Ltd. (Memjet Limited)
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Binh X.
• Application Number:
  US11/546,437
• Publication Number:
  US 20070029278A1
• Time in Patent Office: 516 Days
• Field of Search: 216/27, 216/37, 216/58, 216/79
• 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 2/14427 Structure of ink jet print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1623 bonding and adhesion
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1626 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 2/175 Ink supply systems ; Circuit parts therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17503 Ink cartridges
• 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 2202/21 : Line printing
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 30/00 : Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites
• 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: 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 1/2112 : using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2154 : the still video camera incorporating a hardcopy reproducing device, e.g. a printer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 : Still video cameras
• 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: H04N 5/7458 : the modulator being an array of deformable mirrors, e.g. digital micromirror device [DMD]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 977/932 : for electronic or optoelectronic application

Abstract

A method of fabricating a printhead is provided in which sacrificial material is deposited on a drive circuitry substrate and etched to define first zones, thermally expandable material is deposited on the first zones and etched with the substrate to define second zones, conductive material is deposited on the second zones and etched to define heating circuitry and connections between the heating and drive circuitry, thermally expandable material is deposited to embed the heating circuitry in the thermally expandable materials and etched to define thermally expandable actuator arms and closure members, chamber material is deposited and etched to form nozzle chambers having inkjet ports and associated actuator arms and closure members, the sacrificial material is etched so that each actuator arm has ends connected between the substrate and the associated closure member, and the substrate is etched to form ink supply channels for supply of ink under pulsed pressure.

Claims

1. A method of fabricating a printhead for ejecting ink supplied under pulsed pressure, comprising the steps of:

depositing sacrificial material on a drive circuitry substrate;

etching the sacrificial material to define first deposition zones;

depositing thermally expandable first material on the first deposition zones;

etching the first material and the substrate to define second deposition zones;

depositing conductive material on the second deposition zones so that the conductive material is on the etched first material and substrate;

etching the conductive material to define heating circuitry and connections between the heating and drive circuitry;

depositing thermally expandable second material to embed the heating circuitry in the first and second materials;

etching the second material to define thermally expandable actuator arms and associated closure members;

depositing and etching third material so as to form nozzle chambers having inkjet ports and associated ones of the actuator arms and closure members;

etching the sacrificial material so that each actuator arm has one end connected to the substrate and the other end connected to the associated closure member; and

etching the substrate to form ink supply channels in fluid communication with the nozzle chambers for supply of the ink under pulsed pressure which is ejected from the inkjet ports when the respective closure members are moved under thermal expansion of the respective actuator arms from a position at which the inkjet port is closed to a position at which the ink jetport is open.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, in which the first and second materials are polytetrafluoroethylene and the conductive material is copper.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, in which the nozzle chambers are deposited and etched so that the associated actuator arms and closure members are positioned within respective ones of the nozzle chambers.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, in which the second material is etched so that each actuator arm is shaped so that, in a rest condition, the actuator arm encloses an arc with the heating circuitry positioned so that, when the first and second materials are heated, differential thermal expansion of the first and second materials causes the actuator arm to at least partially straighten and subsequent cooling of the first and second materials causes the actuator arm to return to the rest condition thereby displacing the closure member between the closed and open positions.

5. A method as claimed in claim 4, in which the first and second materials are etched to so that each actuator arm defines a coil that partially uncoils when the first and second materials undergo the differential thermal expansion.

6. A method as claimed in claim 5, in which the conductive material is etched so that the heating circuitry includes a heater positioned proximate an inner edge of the actuator coil and a return trace positioned outwardly of the heater, so that an inner region of the actuator coil is heated to a greater extent with the result that the inner region expands to a greater extent that a remainder of the actuator coil.

7. A method as claimed in claim 6, in which the conductive material is etched so that a serpentine length of conductive material defines each heater.