Nozzle arrangement with thermally operated ink ejection piston

• US 7,465,026 B2
• Filed: 04/02/2007
• Issued: 12/16/2008
• 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): JACKSON, JUANITA DIONNE
• Application Number:
  US11/730,386
• Publication Number:
  US 20070171255A1
• Time in Patent Office: 624 Days
• Field of Search: 347/20, 347/44, 347/47, 347/54, 347/56, 347 61- 65, 347/67, 60527-529
• US Class Current: 347/54
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14 Structure thereof only for on-demand ink jet heads
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14427 Structure of ink jet print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1601 Production of bubble jet print heads B41J2/1606, B41J2/162 take precedence
• 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 2/17503 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 1/2154 : 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

Abstract

A nozzle arrangement is, provided for an inkjet printhead. The nozzle arrangement includes a wafer substrate assembly defining an ink inlet channel. A nozzle chamber structure is mounted to the wafer substrate assembly and defines a nozzle chamber in fluid communication with the ink inlet channel. The nozzle chamber structure further defines an ink ejection port through which ink in the nozzle chamber can be ejected. An electro-thermal actuator is mounted relative to the wafer substrate assembly and includes an electrically conductive heating element. A piston is coupled relative to the electro-thermal actuator so that, upon actuation of the actuator, the piston moves rectilinearly along the nozzle chamber to eject ink through the ink ejection port.

Claims

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

a wafer substrate assembly defining an ink inlet channel;

a nozzle chamber structure mounted to the wafer substrate assembly and defining a nozzle chamber in fluid communication with the ink inlet channel, the nozzle chamber structure further defining an ink ejection port through which ink in the nozzle chamber can be ejected;

an electro-thermal actuator mounted relative to the wafer substrate assembly and comprising an electrically conductive heating element; and

a piston coupled relative to the electro-thermal actuator so that, upon actuation of the actuator, the piston moves rectilinearly along the nozzle chamber to eject ink through the ink ejection port.

2. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the conductive heating element is a beam which is cantilevered relative to the wafer substrate assembly so that the beam rectilinearly expands along an axis upon its actuation, and the piston is directly coupled to the wafer substrate assembly so that the piston also moves along the axis.

3. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cross sectional area of the nozzle chamber is at least five times the cross sectional area of the ink ejection port.

4. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 3, wherein the cross sectional area of the nozzle chamber is about ten times the cross sectional area of the ink ejection port.

5. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the conductive heating element is generally “

U”

shaped.

6. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a motion amplifying means which is coupled between the conductive heating element and the piston.

7. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a lever mechanism which interconnects the conductive heating element and the piston so that the piston is driven rectilinearly.

8. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 7, wherein the lever mechanism has a ratio of between 20 and 60 to 1.

9. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 8, wherein the lever mechanism has a ratio of about 40 to 1.