Inkjet nozzle arrangement having interleaved heater elements

• US 7,708,386 B2
• Filed: 04/13/2009
• Issued: 05/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Zamtec Limited (Memjet Limited)
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia, McAvoy, Gregory John
• Primary Examiner(s): Do; An H
• Application Number:
  US12/422,936
• Publication Number:
  US 20090195621A1
• Time in Patent Office: 386 Days
• Field of Search: 347/54, 347/56, 347/65
• US Class Current: 347/56
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14 Structure thereof only for on-demand ink jet heads
• 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 2/16 Production of nozzles
• 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 29/49128 : Assembling formed circuit to base
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/4913 : Assembling to base an electrical component, e.g., capacitor, etc.
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49155 : Manufacturing circuit on or in base
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49156 : with selective destruction of conductive paths
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49401 : Fluid pattern dispersing device making, e.g., ink jet

Abstract

An inkjet nozzle arrangement is provided having a wafer defining an ink chamber for holding ink and a chamber roof covering the ink chamber. The chamber roof has an ink ejection port supported by a plurality of outwardly extending bridge members and a plurality of elongate heater elements interleaved between the bridge members for causing ejection of ink held in the ink chamber through the ink ejection port.

Claims

1. An inkjet nozzle arrangement comprising:

a wafer defining an ink chamber for holding ink;

a chamber roof covering the ink chamber, the chamber roof comprising;

an ink ejection port supported by a plurality of outwardly extending bridge members; and

a plurality of elongate heater elements interleaved between the bridge members for causing ejection of ink held in the ink chamber through the ink ejection port.

2. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heater elements are arranged to be generally circular and comprises a plurality of spaced apart serpentine stations which extend radially inward.

3. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 2, wherein each serpentine station is symmetric and comprises a mirrored pair of serpentine portions.

4. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ends of the heater elements terminate in a pair of vias which are connected to a metal layer of the wafer.

5. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ink chamber is generally funnel-shaped and tapers inwardly away from the chamber roof.

6. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 5, wherein the wafer further defines an ink supply inlet at an apex of the tapered ink chamber, the ink supply inlet being substantially aligned with the ink ejection port.

7. A nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein each bridge member defines an ink flow guide rail.