JPH0848041A - INKJET RECORDING HEAD, INKJET RECORDING DEVICE HAVING THE HEAD, AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE HEAD - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide an inkjet recording head having long-term reliability by preventing damage to a wire bonding portion. A substrate having a plurality of energy generating elements for ejecting ink, and a wiring board electrically connected to an electric connection pad provided on the substrate and for applying a voltage to the energy generating elements from the outside. And a grooved top plate that is joined to the substrate to form an ink flow path, and the electrical connection between the substrate and the wiring board and the substrate and the grooved top plate joint are sealed with a sealant. In the inkjet recording head described above, the substrate has a convex portion between the grooved top plate bonding portion and the electrical connection pad.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink jet recording head for recording by ejecting recording liquid (ink or the like) as ejection droplets from an ejection port (orifice) and adhering it to a recording medium. The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus equipped with a head and a method for manufacturing the head.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An ink jet recording system in which small droplets of ink are generated and adhered to a recording material such as paper for recording, noise during recording is extremely small, and high speed recording is possible, Moreover, it is a recording method that allows recording on plain paper. Among them, the so-called bubble jet recording method using a heating element as an energy generator for ejecting ink has recently attracted particular attention because it is easy to highly integrate the energy generator.

13 to 15 show a typical structure of the ink jet recording head of the bubble jet recording system.

FIG. 13 is a schematic view showing the structure of the ejection element of the ink jet recording head of the bubble jet recording system. A heating element 103 for generating ejection energy and a heating element wiring 102 for supplying an electric signal to the heating element are formed on a silicon substrate 101 by using a thin film forming technique in the semiconductor field. . The heating element 103 is formed in the ink passage, and by heating the ink in the ink passage based on the drive signal transmitted from the device, a state change is caused in the ink and bubbles are formed. Ink is ejected from the ejection port based on the volume change at the time of bubble formation.

Reference numeral 105 denotes a grooved top plate in which the groove wall of the ink passage and the common ink chamber wall 104 and the ejection port plate are integrally formed. The grooved top plate 105 and the silicon substrate 1
01 are joined to form an ink passage and a common ink chamber. Further, the ink is supplied to the ejection element from the common ink inlet 107 provided on the grooved top plate 105, and the filter 10 is provided in the common ink inlet 107.
6 is provided.

When the grooved top plate and the substrate are bonded to each other to form the ink flow path as described above, if the top plate and the substrate are bonded with an adhesive, the adhesive enters the ink flow path to form the flow path. Is not preferable because it may change. Therefore, at least the ink flow path wall portion is mechanically pressed for joining. However, since it may not be possible to reliably bond all the ink flow path walls to the substrate by mechanical pressing, a sealant is often used for the purpose of increasing the liquid tightness of the head. This sealant is provided at the joint portion of the member that comes into contact with the ink of the inkjet recording head. In addition, a sealant is also provided on a wire bonding portion between a substrate and a wiring substrate, which will be described later, from the viewpoint of preventing corrosion and disconnection.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of an ink jet recording head of the bubble jet recording system.
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the vicinity of an ejection port of a bubble jet recording type inkjet recording head. Discharge element 2
01 and a flexible wiring board (P for transmitting drive signals from the inkjet device to the ejection element 201).
The CB) 202 and the CB) 202 are adhesively fixed on a base plate 203 as a support for supporting the discharge element, and both are electrically connected by wire bonding 206. Ink intake member 205 and opening 20
Join the front cover 204 to which 7 is attached,
A silicone resin 301, which is a sealant, is filled as shown in FIG. 15 in order to seal the bonding portion of the member contacting the ink of the inkjet head and the wire bonding portion.

As a method of manufacturing such an ink jet recording head, for example, a method including the following steps can be mentioned. That is, a heating element on a silicon substrate,
The heater element wiring is formed by using a thin film forming technique such as sputtering to form a heater board. Next, bond the heater board and the PCB onto the base plate,
The two are electrically connected by aluminum wire bonding. After that, join the grooved top plate formed by injection molding etc. using resin such as polysulfone on the heater board, and finally join the front cover to the base plate, and then the silicone at each joint and wire bonding connection. An ink jet recording head is completed by filling a sealing agent such as resin.

[0009]

In the above-mentioned ink jet recording head, the wire bonding portion is exposed until the sealant is filled, so that it is vulnerable to external impact and all the electrical wiring of the ink jet recording head. If the base plate is handled while being subjected to the above-mentioned condition, disconnection of the wire bonding portion may occur, resulting in a decrease in yield. Further, the wire bonding portion may be oxidized or contaminated by the atmosphere or chemicals. Therefore, in order to prevent the above-mentioned disconnection, oxidation, contamination, etc., it is conceivable to seal the wire bonding portion before joining the grooved top plate, but when the distance between the Wibon pad and the heater board end is short. , For example, the distance is 1
If the length is shorter than mm, the sealant may flow into the grooved top plate contacting portion of the heater board, which may cause a gap between the grooved top plate and the substrate. If there is a gap between the grooved top plate and the substrate, the ink jet recording head causes crosstalk between adjacent ink passages and causes ejection failure. In recent years, the inkjet recording head tends to have a shorter distance between the wipe-on pad and the end portion of the heater board due to the demand for miniaturization, and the above-described probability of the sealing agent flowing in is increasing. Further, due to the miniaturization of the head, the top plate may extend up to the wire bonding part in order to increase the volume of the liquid chamber in some cases, so that the wire bonding part can be reliably sealed after joining the grooved top plate. It's getting harder.

[0010]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and even if the wire bonding portion is sealed before joining the grooved top plate, It is an object of the present invention to provide an inkjet recording head in which the flow does not flow into a portion of the heater board that is scheduled to come into contact with the grooved top plate. Still another object of the present invention is to prevent the problems such as disconnection, oxidation, and contamination of the wire bonding portion by enabling the wire bonding portion to be sealed in advance, which is excellent in yield and highly reliable inkjet recording. Is to provide the head.

According to the present invention to achieve the above object, a substrate having a plurality of energy generating elements for ejecting ink and an electric connection pad provided on the substrate are electrically connected to the energy generating element from the outside. A wiring board for applying a voltage, and a grooved top plate that is joined to the substrate to form an ink flow path, and an electrical connection portion between the substrate and the wiring board and the substrate and the grooved top plate are joined. In the inkjet recording head in which the part and the part are sealed with a sealant,
The substrate is an inkjet recording head characterized in that it has a convex portion between the grooved top plate joint portion and the electrical connection pad, and yet another embodiment of the present invention is a plurality of energy sources for ejecting ink. A substrate having a generating element, and electrically connected to an electrical connection pad provided on the substrate,
A wiring board for applying a voltage to the energy generating element from the outside, a grooved top plate that is joined to the board to form an ink flow path, and a sealing element for electrically connecting the board and the wiring board. 1 sealant and a second sealant that seals the substrate and the grooved ceiling plate joint portion, and are provided between the grooved ceiling plate joint portion and the electrical connection pad of the substrate. The inkjet recording head is characterized in that a boundary between the first sealant and the second sealant is formed by the convex portion.

Still another aspect of the present invention is to electrically connect to a substrate having a plurality of energy generating elements for ejecting ink and an electric connection pad provided on the substrate, and to the energy generating element from the outside. A wiring board for applying a voltage; a grooved top plate that is joined to the board to form an ink flow path; a first sealant that seals the electrical connection between the board and the wiring board; A second sealant for sealing the substrate and the grooved ceiling plate joint, and a convex portion provided between the grooved ceiling plate joint and the electrical connection pad of the substrate, wherein the groove The method for manufacturing an inkjet recording head is characterized in that the electrical connection between the substrate and the wiring substrate and the sealing of the electrical connection portion are performed before joining the top plate.

[0013]

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to embodiments.

(First Embodiment) First, an ink jet recording head according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1A is a sectional view of an ink jet recording head according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
(B) is the top view.

In FIG. 1, 807 is a base plate,
Reference numeral 806 is a heater board, 805 is a grooved top plate, and 815 is a wiring board (PCB).
And the grooved top plate 805 are joined together to form the liquid chamber 811 and the liquid passage 8.
13 is formed. An electrode pad 816 for electrically connecting to a wiring board (PCB) 815 is provided at the rear end of the heater board 806.
06 and PCB 815 have their respective electrode pads connected by wire bonding 808.
Reference numeral 820 denotes a convex portion formed between the grooved top plate installation planned location on the heater board and the wire bonding pad 816. The convex portion 820 is formed of an alkali-developable photosensitive resin. By forming the protrusions 820 with a photosensitive resin, not only the protrusions 820 can be formed accurately and easily by photolithography, but they can be formed in advance at desired positions on the heater board. It can be formed without increasing the number of steps. As the photosensitive resin, either liquid or solid one can be used, but it is preferable to form the photosensitive resin by a dry film because the height of the convex portion 820 can be increased. That is, in order to reliably stop the sealant at the protrusions 820, the protrusions 8
Since it is preferable to increase the height of 20, the convex portion 820
Is formed by patterning a dry film by photolithography or the like, so that the thickness of the convex portion 820 can be set to a desired value of 10 to 80 μm. Examples of the dry film usable in the present invention include α-540 (trade name: manufactured by Tokyo Ohka Co., Ltd.), Fottec (trade name: manufactured by Hitachi Chemical Co., Ltd.), and Pakurel (trade name: manufactured by DuPont Co., Ltd.). You can

Reference numeral 801 (a) is a first sealant for sealing the wire bonding, and the convex portion 820 provided on the heater board 806 prevents the first sealant from flowing into the grooved top plate side. It has become. Reference numeral 801 (b) is a second sealant that mainly seals the ink supply path constituent member joint portion represented by the grooved top plate joint portion.

Here, as the sealant used for the ink jet recording head, silicone type, silicone modified type, urethane type, epoxy type and the like can be applied. Further, the above-mentioned first sealant and second sealant may be the same type of sealant or different types of sealant. However, generally, none of the encapsulating agents used for ink jet recording heads satisfy all the required functions, so it is preferable to use a combination of different types of encapsulating agents. That is, the encapsulant used for the inkjet recording head is required to have the following functions. -Supply system parts must be adhesive enough to prevent them from peeling off in the environment of use. -The stress that breaks the supply system parts and nozzle elements does not work against temperature changes.・ Although the degree of contact varies depending on the part, it has ink resistance because it comes in contact with ink, and it should not produce eluate that affects ink performance. -It should have an air barrier property that prevents bubbles from entering the ink supply system. -When simultaneously sealing electrical connections, do not include corrosive substances.

Conventionally, there has been no sealant satisfying all of these functions, but according to the present invention, among these functions, the first sealant has a stress and a non-corrosive property particularly with respect to temperature change. Since the second sealant may be any material that is particularly excellent in ink resistance and air barrier properties, it is possible to perform the functional separation of the sealant and to have a comprehensively excellent performance. You can

In this embodiment, the first sealant is a silicone sealant, and the second sealant is a silicone-modified urethane sealant.

Further, the second sealant may be provided so as to seal the ink supply path constituent member joint portion and cover the first sealant as shown in FIG.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, even after forming the first and second sealants with a silicone-based sealant and then coating with a silicone-modified urethane-based sealant, almost the same as in FIG. The airtightness of can be obtained.

As the method of forming the convex portion, in addition to the above-mentioned photolithography, a method of applying a UV curable adhesive by a dispenser or a method of forming by screen printing can be applied.

Next, a method of manufacturing the ink jet recording head according to this embodiment will be described.

First, a heating element which is an energy generating element, a heating element wiring, and a wire bonding pad which is an electrical connecting portion are formed on a silicon wafer to be a heater board by using a photolithography technique or a film forming technique. At this time, a functional layer such as a protective layer may be provided if necessary.

Next, a negative dry film (DF) 3 α-540 (trade name: manufactured by Tokyo Ohka) is laminated on the silicon wafer 2 with a laminator 1 HRL-24 (trade name: manufactured by Liston Corporation) as shown in FIG. Laminate with a film thickness of 40 μm as in A). After that, as shown in FIG. 4B, a photomask 5 is used, and an exposure apparatus 4 PLA600 for parallel light is used.
(Product name: manufactured by Canon Inc.) is exposed. Next, FIG. 4 (C)
As shown in, a shower development is performed with an alkaline aqueous solution 8 containing 0.5% tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH), and post-baking (12
0 ° C for 1 minute + 180 ° C for 1 minute)
It is possible to form the convex portion 9 for blocking the flow of the sealant. Next, the silicon wafer 2 is cut into individual heater boards, and pure water is used to remove cutting powder. Pressure: 70 Kgf / cm
^2. Perform high pressure cleaning under the condition that the distance between the wafer and the cleaning nozzle is 10 mm.

The heater board prepared in this manner is used for a PC
B is bonded to the base plate together with B, and the wire bonding pads provided on the heater board and the PCB are electrically connected by wire bonding.

Thereafter, the wire-bonding portion is sealed by injecting a silicone-based sealant TSE6020 (trade name: manufactured by Toshiba Silicone Co., Ltd.) as a first sealant into the wire-bonding portion by a dispenser. At this time, since the first sealant is stopped by the convex portion formed on the heater board, the first sealant does not flow to the grooved top plate bonding portion.

Next, the grooved top plate is joined to the heater board, and further an ink supply unit for supplying ink to the ink jet head is joined to the grooved top plate.

Finally, a silicone-modified urethane sealant Takenate S-1100 (trade name: manufactured by Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.) is used as a second sealant at the joint portion of the ink supply member typified by the joint portion of the grooved top plate. The ink jet recording head is completed by injecting) with a dispenser.

In the ink jet recording head of the present embodiment example thus prepared, the first sealant does not flow to the place where the top plate is to be installed, and the hermeticity of the sealant is also improved as compared with the conventional case. It was

By the way, when the first sealant is injected as described above, it is performed by a dispenser, but since the height of the convex portion can be increased only up to about 60 μm as described above, the dispenser and the substrate are separated. Depending on the positional accuracy, the first sealant may overhang the convex portion. When the relationship with the fluidity of the sealant was investigated with respect to the passage of the sealant, the following was found. Here, in the present embodiment example, the fluidity of the sealant was measured by the following method. That is, 2 g of the sealant was applied onto a glass substrate washed with isopropyl alcohol, and the spread amount of the sealant after 30 minutes was set to 2 in the perpendicular direction as shown in FIG.
The fluidity was measured by the direction and the sum of the values.

In this measuring method, the spread value is 74
It has been found that by selecting a material within mm, it is possible to substantially prevent the sealing agent from jumping over the convex portion.

An experiment was conducted by using each of the sealants shown in FIG. 6 as the first sealant of the ink jet recording head of the embodiment example. Also, the same experiment was performed when the shape of the convex portion was changed to that shown in FIG. FIG. 6 shows the amount of spread of the sealant used in the experiment and the presence or absence of the protrusion of the sealant.

As is apparent from FIG. 6, in the case where the number of the protrusions was a single, the protrusion of the encapsulant did not occur in the material having a spread value of 74 mm or less. Further, when there were a plurality of protrusions, the sealant did not exceed the protrusions regardless of the spread amount.

By the way, in some of the ink jet recording heads of the present invention, the convex portion was peeled off from the substrate before sealing with the first sealing agent. Upon closer examination, it was found that the protrusions of the present invention were peeled off in the high pressure cleaning step of the above-described inkjet recording head manufacturing steps. It is considered that this is due to insufficient adhesion of the convex portions. From this viewpoint, when the relationship between the width of the convex portion and the peeling was examined, peeling occurred from the substrate when the film thickness was 40 μm and the convex portion width was 30 μm or less. Therefore, if the width of the convex portion is 40 μm or more, sufficient adhesion is secured and there is no possibility of peeling from the substrate.

(Example of the Second Embodiment) As described above, in the case where the width of the convex portion is 40 μm or more and there are a plurality of convex portions, there is no fear that the sealing agent will exceed the convex portion, but the convex portion of 40 μm or more in this way. Since there are a plurality of protrusions, the region where the convex portion is formed is widened, so that there is a case where the region cannot be secured with a small substrate.
At this time, a particular problem is the adhesion of the convex portion,
In the embodiment, in order to secure this adhesion, a groove parallel to the convex portion (a groove extending in the energy generating element arrangement direction) is provided on the upper surface of the convex portion so that the convex portion is It is possible to provide an ink jet recording head having the same effect of preventing the sealant from getting over as in the case of a plurality.

A description will be given below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 7A is a sectional view of the ink jet recording head according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
(B) is the top view.

In the figure, 807 is a base plate, and 8
Reference numeral 06 is a heater board, 805 is a grooved top plate, and 815 is a wiring board (PCB). The heater board 806 and the grooved top plate 805 are joined to form a liquid chamber 811 and a liquid passage 81.
3 are formed. An electrode pad 816 for electrically connecting to a wiring board (PCB) 815 is provided at the rear end of the heater board 806.
6 and the respective electrode pads provided on the PCB 815 are connected by wire bonding 808. 8
Reference numeral 21 is a convex portion formed between the wire bonding pad 816 and the grooved top plate installation scheduled location on the heater board. A groove (a groove extending in the energy generating element array direction) 822 parallel to the convex portion 821 is provided on the upper surface of the convex portion 821. According to this configuration, since the upper surface of the convex portion is similar to the state in which there are plural convex portions, it is possible to prevent the sealant from overhanging the convex portion, and since the width of the convex portion itself does not change, the convex portion is single. The same adhesion area as in the above case can be obtained, and the adhesion between the substrate and the convex portion can be sufficiently secured.

A method of forming the convex portion will be described below with reference to FIG.

First, the negative dry film (DF) 3 α-5 is formed on the silicon wafer 2 on which the electrothermal converter is formed.
Laminator 1 HRL 40 (trade name: manufactured by Tokyo Ohka)
-24 (trade name: manufactured by Liston) is laminated with a film thickness of 40 μm as shown in FIG. After that, FIG. 8 (B)
As shown in FIG. 5, a photomask 5 was used to perform exposure with a parallel light exposure device 4 PLA600 (trade name: manufactured by Canon Inc.). Next, as shown in FIG. 8C, shower development is performed with an alkaline aqueous solution 8 containing 0.5% tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH), and post baking (120 ° C. 1 minute + 180 ° C. 1 minute on a hot plate) is performed. A protrusion 9 for preventing the sealant from flowing can be formed on the substrate as shown in FIG.

As a method of forming a groove on the upper surface of the convex portion as shown in FIG. 8D, when a negative photoresist is used as the material of the convex portion, diffraction of light from the mask is performed. It can be realized by using. When using an exposure apparatus that uses parallel light, it can be realized by changing the DF thickness, the size of the space between DFs, the exposure amount, and the distance between the DF surface and the mask surface. As one example, as is clear from FIG. 9, the narrower the space and the thicker the DF film thickness, the larger the remaining amount of material between DFs (the remaining amount of DF material under the groove). this is. This is because the smaller the space is and the thicker the DF film thickness is, the more the light wraps around.

The same happens when the exposure amount is increased or the distance between the DF surface and the mask surface is increased,
The shape shown in FIG. 8D can be obtained.

Further, as a result of an experiment for changing the exposure apparatus to that of the reflection projection method to obtain the shape of FIG. 8D, it was realized by shifting the focus position.

Next, in order to confirm the effect of the groove formed on the upper surface of the convex portion, the condition of high pressure cleaning was set to pressure = 7.
When the distance between the wafer and the cleaning nozzle (cone type) is 0 Kgf / cm ² and the distance is 10 mm, the results of an examination of the type and shape of the convex pattern shown in FIG. Shown in 10.

As shown in this figure, even when the convex width is 40 μm for one convex portion and no groove, or when the convex width is 40 μm for one convex portion and groove. ,
The adhesion between the substrate and the convex portion was good. However, in the case of a single convex portion and no groove, there was a case where the sealant exceeded the sealant flow stop during wire sealing. This is because if there is only one protrusion and there is no groove, the sealant will exceed the protrusion due to the accuracy of die bonding when bonding the heater board to the base plate and the accuracy of the device (dispenser) used for wire sealing. Because.

In addition, one having a groove on the upper surface of the convex portion,
In the case of having a plurality of convex portions, the sealant did not exceed the convex portions. However, even if there were two convex portions, if the width of each convex portion was 30 μm or less, the adhesion was poor and peeling of the convex portions occurred.

As described above, in those having a groove on the upper surface of the convex portion, the sealing agent does not extend over the convex portion, and the width of the convex portion is 40 μm.
When the thickness was m or more, peeling of the convex portion did not occur.

Further, although the thickness of the convex portion is 40 μm as shown in FIG. 10, the thickness of the convex portion is 30, 5 similarly.
Even when the thickness was changed to 0 and 75 μm, the same result as in FIG. 10 was obtained.

(Example of Third Embodiment) First and Second Embodiments
In the examples, when the width of the convex portion is 40 μm or more and there are a plurality of convex portions, it is understood that there is no risk of the sealing agent exceeding the convex portion. However, since there are a plurality of convex portions having a size of 40 μm or more, the convex portion forming region is widened, so that there is a case where a small substrate cannot secure the region. At this time, a particular problem is the adhesive force of the convex portion, and in the second embodiment, the width of the convex portion is reduced by making unevenness on the surface of the substrate on which the convex portion is formed in order to improve the adhesive force. It is possible to provide an ink jet recording head with no risk of peeling even if the thickness is 40 μm or less.

A description will be given below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 11A is a sectional view of the ink jet recording head according to the third embodiment of the present invention.
(B) is the top view.

In the figure, 807 is a base plate, and 8
Reference numeral 06 is a heater board, 805 is a grooved top plate, and 815 is a wiring board (PCB). The heater board 806 and the grooved top plate 805 are joined to form a liquid chamber 811 and a liquid passage 81.
3 are formed. An electrode pad 816 for electrically connecting to a wiring board (PCB) 815 is provided at the rear end of the heater board 806.
6 and the respective electrode pads provided on the PCB 815 are connected by wire bonding 808. 8
Reference numeral 20 is a convex portion formed between the wire bonding pad 816 and the grooved top plate installation place on the heater board. In the lower layer of the convex portion 820, a concave-convex pattern is formed in which a plurality of concave portions 110 formed by a protective layer punching pattern are formed in a direction intersecting the convex portion 820. Since the convex portions 820 closely adhere to the protective layer on the substrate following the irregularities, the adhesive force of the convex portions 820 is improved as compared with the conventional case, and the convex portion width is 10 μm.
Even if it is m, the problem of peeling can be prevented. Here, since the uneven pattern is formed by the blank pattern of the protective layer,
The unevenness has a level difference of about 3 μm at most, and the level difference does not occur on the surface of the convex portion, and it has almost the same performance in preventing the sealing agent from getting over as if it had no uneven pattern. The protective layer on which the concavo-convex pattern is formed has the same effect whether it is a metal film, an organic film, or an inorganic insulating film.

Next, in order to confirm the effect of the concavo-convex pattern, the condition of high pressure cleaning is set as follows: pressure = 70 Kgf /
cm ² and the distance between the wafer and the cleaning nozzle (conical type) is 10 mm, the results of an examination of the type and shape of the convex pattern shown in FIG. .

As shown in this figure, in the case where the convex-concave pattern was formed on the lower layer of the convex portion, the convex portion was not peeled off from the substrate even if the convex portion width was 10 μm. Therefore, by forming a plurality of convex portions on the concavo-convex pattern, even if the convex portion forming region has a width of 30 μm, the adhesiveness is good and the sealing agent does not exceed the convex portions. Further, when the uneven pattern is formed on the lower layer of the one having the groove on the upper surface of the convex portion as described in the second embodiment, the adhesiveness is good even if the convex portion forming region is further narrowed, and the sealing agent. It is also possible to avoid the projections of No.

Further, in FIG. 12, the punching pattern in the lower layer of the convex portion has a comb tooth shape with a width of 10 μm and an interval of 10 μm, but similar results were obtained even when the width of the punching pattern was 5, 15 μm. Similar results were obtained even when the lower layer pattern was another pattern (square or circular).

The present invention is particularly effective in the ink jet recording type recording head and recording apparatus for recording by forming flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy among the ink jet recording methods. is there.

With regard to its typical structure and principle, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4740 are applicable.
No. 796, the present invention is preferably carried out using these basic principles. This recording method is applicable to both the so-called on-demand type and the continuous type.

This recording method will be briefly described. A sheet (liquid) holding a liquid (ink) or an electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to a liquid path is converted into a liquid (ink) corresponding to recording information. Thermal energy is generated by applying at least one drive signal for giving a rapid temperature rise that causes the film boiling phenomenon beyond the nucleate boiling phenomenon, and causes the film boiling on the heat acting surface of the recording head. . In this way, bubbles can be formed in one-to-one correspondence with the drive signal applied from the liquid (ink) to the electrothermal converter, which is particularly effective for the on-demand recording method. By the growth and contraction of the bubbles, liquid (ink) is ejected through the ejection holes,
Form at least one drop. It is more preferable to make the driving signal into a pulse shape because bubbles can be grown and contracted immediately and appropriately, and thus a liquid (ink) with excellent responsiveness can be ejected. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345 are used.
Those as described in the '262 patent are suitable. If the conditions described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

The structure of the recording head is a combination of discharge holes, liquid flow paths, and electrothermal converters as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications (straight liquid flow path or right-angled liquid flow path).
In addition, as disclosed in US Pat. No. 4,558,333 and US Pat. No. 4,459,600, the present invention includes a structure in which the heat acting portion is arranged in a bending region.

In addition, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 123670/1984, which discloses a structure in which a common slit is used as a discharge port for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and a pressure wave of thermal energy is absorbed. The present invention is also effective in a configuration based on Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 138461/1984 which discloses a configuration in which the corresponding opening corresponds to the ejection portion.

Further, as a recording head in which the present invention is effectively used, there is a full line type recording head having a length corresponding to the maximum width of the recording medium which can be recorded by the recording apparatus. The full line head may be a full line configuration formed by combining a plurality of print heads as disclosed in the above specification, or may be a single full line print head integrally formed.

In addition, by being mounted on the apparatus main body, it can be electrically connected to the apparatus main body and can be supplied with ink from the apparatus main body by a replaceable chip type recording head or the recording head itself. The present invention is also effective when a cartridge-type recording head that is specially provided is used.

Further, it is preferable to add a preliminary auxiliary means to the recording apparatus of the present invention because the recording apparatus of the present invention can be made more stable. More specifically, an electrothermal converter or a heating element other than this, or a preheating means by a combination of these, and means for performing a preejection mode for ejecting other than recording are added. Is also effective for stable recording.

Further, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to the mode in which only the mainstream color such as black is recorded, but the recording head may be integrally formed or a combination of plural recording heads. However, the present invention is extremely effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of a multicolor of different colors or a full color by color mixing.

In the embodiments of the present invention described above, the liquid ink is used for explanation. However, in the present invention, either an ink which is solid at room temperature or an ink which is in a softened state at room temperature is used. Can be used. In the above-mentioned inkjet device, the temperature of the ink itself is generally adjusted within the range of 30 ° C. or higher and 70 ° C. or lower to control the temperature of the ink so that the viscosity of the ink is within the stable ejection range. Any liquid may be used as long as the ink is liquid.

In addition, the excessive temperature rise of the head or ink due to thermal energy is positively prevented by using it as the energy for the state change of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state, or the evaporation of the ink is prevented. It is also possible to use an ink that solidifies when left as it is. In any case, liquefaction occurs only when heat energy is applied, such as when the ink is liquefied by applying heat energy according to the recording signal and ejected as an ink liquid, or when it begins to solidify when it reaches the recording medium. The use of an ink having such a property is also applicable to the present invention. Such an ink, as described in JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-71260, is retained as a liquid or solid in the recesses or through holes of the porous sheet, It may be configured to face the electrothermal converter.

In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

FIG. 16 is an external perspective view showing an example of an ink jet recording apparatus (IJRA) in which the recording head obtained by the present invention is mounted as an ink jet head cartridge (IJC). In the figure, 20 is a platen 2.
4 is an inkjet head cartridge (IJC) including a group of nozzles for ejecting ink so as to face the recording surface of a recording medium that is a recording medium that has been fed onto the recording medium 4. Reference numeral 16 is a carriage HC that holds the IJC 20, and is connected to a part of a drive belt 18 that transmits the driving force of the drive motor 17, and two guide shafts 19 that are arranged in parallel with each other.
By making it slidable with A and 19B, IJC2
The reciprocating movement over the entire width of the recording paper of 0 becomes possible.

Reference numeral 26 is a head recovery device, which is an IJC20.
Is arranged at one end of the movement path of, for example, at a position facing the home position. The IJC 20 is capped by the driving force of the motor 22 via the transmission mechanism 23.
In addition, by performing capping at the end of recording, I
JC is protected.

A blade 30 is provided on the side surface of the head recovery device 26 and is a wiping member made of silicon rubber. The blade 31 is a blade holding member 31.
The head recovery device 26 is held by A in a cantilever form.
Similarly to the above, the motor 22 and the transmission mechanism 23 operate to enable engagement with the ejection surface of the IJC 20. As a result, the blade 31 is projected into the movement path of the IJC 20 at an appropriate timing in the recording operation of the IJC 20 or after the ejection recovery process using the head recovery device 26, and the ejection surface of the IJC 20 is accompanied by the movement operation of the IJC 20. It removes dew condensation, wetness, dust, etc.

[0073]

As described above, by providing the convex portion between the grooved top plate joint portion of the substrate (heater board) and the electric connection pad (wire bonding pad), the sealing agent for the wire bonding portion can be provided in advance. The strength can be increased by filling, and it is possible to prevent disconnection, oxidation, contamination, etc. of the wire bonding portion during the manufacturing process.

Further, by dividing the sealant for the wire bonding portion and the sealant for the ink supply path constituting member by the convex portion, the sealant material suitable for each location can be selected, and the ink jet recording head can be selected. The long-term reliability of is also improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an inkjet recording head according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an ink jet recording head showing another form of the sealant application region of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing an inkjet recording head showing another mode of the sealant application region of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the amount of spread of the sealant and the protrusion of the sealant over the convex portion.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a method for measuring a spread amount of a sealing agent.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a method of forming a convex portion according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an inkjet recording head of a second embodiment example of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a method of forming a convex portion according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a DF film thickness and a remaining amount under a groove between DFs with respect to a space between DFs.

FIG. 10 is a diagram relating to the width and shape of the protrusion of the inkjet recording head according to the second embodiment, and how the sealant crosses the protrusion.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing an inkjet recording head of a third embodiment example of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram relating to the protrusion width, the adhesion to the shape, and the protrusion of the sealant over the protrusion of the inkjet recording head according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of an ejection element portion of an inkjet recording head.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of an inkjet recording head.

FIG. 15 is a partially enlarged view showing the configuration around the ejection port of the inkjet recording head.

FIG. 16 is an external perspective view showing an example of an inkjet recording apparatus in which the inkjet recording head according to the present invention is mounted as an inkjet cartridge.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Laminator Roller 2 Heater Board 3 Dry Film (DF) 4 Light Source 5 Photomask 6 Photosensitive Part 7 Shower Nozzle 8 Developer 9 Sealant Flow Stop 10 DF 11 Hot Plate 16 Carriage HC 17 Drive Motor 18 Drive Belt 19A guide shaft 19B guide shaft 20 inkjet head cartridge 22 motor 23 conduction mechanism 26 head recovery device 26A head recovery cap 30 blade 30A blade holding member 101 silicon substrate 102 heating element wiring 103 heating element 104 ink passage wall and common ink chamber wall 105 Groove top plate 106 Filter 107 Ink supply port 108 Wire bonding pad 201 Ejection element 202 Flexible wiring board (PCB) 203 Base plate 204 Front cover 205 Ink intake member 206 Wire bonding 207 Opening 301 Silicone resin 801 (a) Sealant for protecting the wire bonding portion 801 (b) Sealant for sealing the area other than the wire bonding portion 802 Ink supply member 803 Ink tank 804 Absorber 805 Groove top plate 806 Heater board 807 Base plate 808 Wire 809 Flexible wiring board (PCB) 810 Ink supply port 811 Ink chamber 812 Ink passage 813 Ink flow passage 820 Bank for sealant flow stop

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Shuji Koyama 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Mitsushi Kitani 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Within the corporation

Claims (41)

[Claims] 1. A wiring having a plurality of energy generating elements for ejecting ink and electrically connected to an electric connection pad provided on the substrate and for applying a voltage to the energy generating element from the outside. A substrate and a grooved top plate that is joined to the substrate to form an ink flow path, and an electrical connection portion between the substrate and the wiring substrate and the substrate and the grooved top plate joint portion are formed by a sealant. In the inkjet recording head to be sealed, the substrate has a convex portion between a grooved top plate bonding portion and the electrical connection pad. 2. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the convex portion is formed of an alkali-developable photosensitive resin. 3. The ink jet recording head according to claim 2, wherein the photosensitive resin is a dry film. 4. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the width of the convex portion is 40 μm or more. 5. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, which has a plurality of the convex portions. 6. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein a groove extending parallel to the arrangement direction of the plurality of energy generating elements is provided on the upper surface of the convex portion. 7. The plurality of grooves are provided.
Inkjet recording head. 8. The ink jet recording head according to claim 1, wherein the convex portion is formed on an uneven pattern provided on the substrate. 9. The uneven pattern is formed by a blank pattern of a protective layer provided on a substrate.
Inkjet recording head. 10. The relief pattern of the protective layer is a plurality of recesses formed in a direction intersecting with the protrusions.
Inkjet recording head. 11. A wiring having a plurality of energy generating elements for ejecting ink and electrically connected to an electric connection pad provided on the substrate and for applying a voltage to the energy generating element from the outside. A substrate, a grooved top plate that is joined to the substrate to form an ink flow path, a first sealant that seals an electrical connection portion between the substrate and the wiring board, and the substrate and the grooved top plate joint And a second sealant for sealing the part, and the first sealant and the second seal are provided by a convex portion provided between the grooved top plate bonding portion of the substrate and the electrical connection pad. An ink jet recording head, characterized in that boundaries of agents are formed. 12. The ink jet recording head according to claim 11, wherein the convex portion is formed of a photosensitive resin capable of alkali development. 13. The ink jet recording head according to claim 12, wherein the photosensitive resin is a dry film. 14. The ink jet recording head according to claim 11, wherein the width of the convex portion is 40 μm or more. 15. The ink jet recording head according to claim 11, which has a plurality of the convex portions. 16. The ink jet recording head according to claim 11, wherein a groove extending parallel to the arrangement direction of the plurality of energy generating elements is provided on the upper surface of the convex portion. 17. The ink jet recording head according to claim 16, wherein a plurality of the grooves are provided. 18. The ink jet recording head according to claim 11, wherein the convex portion is formed on an uneven pattern provided on the substrate. 19. The ink jet recording head according to claim 18, wherein the concavo-convex pattern is formed by a blank pattern of a protective layer provided on a substrate. 20. The relief pattern of the protective layer is a plurality of recesses formed in a direction intersecting with the protrusions.
9. Inkjet recording head. 21. The ink jet recording head according to claim 11, wherein the first sealant is a silicone-based sealant. 22. The ink jet recording head according to claim 21, wherein the second sealant is a silicone-modified urethane sealant. 23. The ink jet recording head according to claim 21, wherein the second sealant seals the ink supply path constituting member joint portion and covers the first sealant. 24. The first sealant and the second sealant are formed of a silicone-based sealant, and the second sealant is covered with a silicone-modified urethane-based sealant. Inkjet recording head. 25. A substrate having a plurality of energy generating elements for ejecting ink and wiring electrically connected to an electric connection pad provided on the substrate and for applying a voltage to the energy generating element from the outside. A substrate, a grooved top plate that is joined to the substrate to form an ink flow path, a first sealant that seals an electrical connection portion between the substrate and the wiring board, and the substrate and the grooved top plate joint A second encapsulant for sealing the part, and a convex portion provided between the grooved top plate bonding portion of the substrate and the electrical connection pad, and before the grooved top plate bonding. A method for manufacturing an inkjet recording head, characterized in that electrical connection between a substrate and a wiring substrate and sealing of the electrical connection portion are performed. 26. The method of manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 25, wherein the convex portion is formed of a photosensitive resin capable of being alkali-developed. 27. The method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 26, wherein the photosensitive resin is a dry film. 28. The method of manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 26, wherein the convex portion is formed by a photolithography method. 29. The method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 25, wherein the width of the convex portion is 40 μm or more. 30. The method of manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 25, wherein the method has a plurality of the convex portions. 31. The method of manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 25, wherein a groove extending parallel to the arrangement direction of the plurality of energy generating elements is provided on the upper surface of the convex portion. 32. The method of manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 31, wherein a plurality of the grooves are provided. 33. The method of manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 31, wherein the convex portion is formed of a negative photoresist. 34. The method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 33, wherein the convex portion is formed by a photolithography method. 35. The method of manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 25, wherein the convex portion is formed on an uneven pattern provided on the substrate. 36. The method for manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 35, wherein the concavo-convex pattern is formed by a pattern of a protective layer provided on a substrate. 37. The relief pattern of the protective layer is a plurality of recesses formed in a direction intersecting with the protrusions.
6. A method for manufacturing an inkjet recording head according to 6. 38. The method according to claim 25, wherein the first sealant is a silicone-based sealant. 39. The method according to claim 38, wherein the second sealant is a silicone-modified urethane sealant. 40. The method of manufacturing an ink jet recording head according to claim 38, wherein the second sealant seals the ink supply path constituting member joint portion and covers the first sealant. 41. The method according to claim 25, wherein the first sealant and the second sealant are formed of a silicone-based sealant and the second sealant is covered with a silicone-modified urethane-based sealant. Inkjet recording head manufacturing method.