Abstract: An ink manifold for supplying liquid ink to a heater chip of an inkjet printhead. Ink ports on one side of the manifold feed liquid ink to the ink channels on the other side of the manifold, and thus to the backside ink trenches of the heater chip. The placement and number of ink ports formed in the ink manifold are optimized so that when the heater chip and the ink manifold are scaled down in size, the ink carrying capacity of the printhead components is not compromised. Similarly, when the ink manifold is scaled down, the optimization process allows the seal width between the ink port features of the manifold to be maintained above a specified minimum.

Abstract: An ink jet printhead for use in ink jet printing includes a substrate and a nozzle plate. The substrate has an oblong recessed region forming a ceiling and interior side walls of a bubble chamber. The oblong recessed region has a length dimension that is greater than its width dimension. The oblong recessed region has a first end spaced apart from a second end in the length dimension. The substrate has an ink inlet channel passing through the ceiling to form an ink inlet port near the first end of the oblong recessed region. The nozzle plate is attached to the substrate to form a floor of the bubble chamber. The nozzle plate has an ink jet nozzle passing through the nozzle plate. The ink jet nozzle is positioned in fluid communication with the bubble chamber at a location near the second end of the recessed region.

Abstract: An ink manifold for supplying liquid ink to a heater chip of an inkjet printhead. Ink ports on one side of the manifold feed liquid ink to the ink channels on the other side of the manifold, and thus to the backside ink trenches of the heater chip. The placement and number of ink ports formed in the ink manifold are optimized so that when the heater chip and the ink manifold are scaled down in size, the ink carrying capacity of the printhead components is not compromised. Similarly, when the ink manifold is scaled down, the optimization process allows the seal width between the ink port features of the manifold to be maintained above a specified minimum.

Abstract: A micro-fluid ejection head and method for reducing a stagger pattern distance and improving droplet placement, on a receiving medium. The micro-fluid ejection head includes a substrate containing a plurality of ejection actuators on a device surface thereof and a fluid supply slot for providing fluid to be ejected by the micro-fluid ejection head. The ejection head also includes a flow feature component in flow communication with the fluid supply slot and configured for providing fluid ejection chambers and fluid supply channels for the fluid ejection chambers. Adjacent first and second ejection actuators in a substantially linear array of ejection actuators are each spaced a first distance from the fluid supply slot and second and third ejection actuators in the linear array of ejection actuators are each spaced a second distance from the fluid supply slot that is less than the first distance.

Abstract: Micro-fluid ejection heads and methods for extending the life of micro-fluid ejection heads. One such micro-fluid ejection head includes a substrate having a plurality of thermal ejection actuators. Each of the thermal ejection actuators has a resistive layer and a protective layer thereon. A flow feature member is adjacent the substrate and defines a fluid feed channel, a fluid chamber associated with at least one of the actuators and in flow communication with the fluid feed channel, and a nozzle. The nozzle is offset to a side of the chamber opposite the feed channel. A polymeric layer having a degradation temperature of less than about 400° C. overlaps a portion of the at least one actuator associated with the fluid chamber and positioned less than about five microns from at least an edge of the at least one actuator opposite the fluid feed channel.

Abstract: An ink jet printhead for use in ink jet printing includes a substrate and a nozzle plate. The substrate has an oblong recessed region forming a ceiling and interior side walls of a bubble chamber. The oblong recessed region has a length dimension that is greater than its width dimension. The oblong recessed region has a first end spaced apart from a second end in the length dimension. The substrate has an ink inlet channel passing through the ceiling to form an ink inlet port near the first end of the oblong recessed region. The nozzle plate is attached to the substrate to form a floor of the bubble chamber. The nozzle plate has an ink jet nozzle passing through the nozzle plate. The ink jet nozzle is positioned in fluid communication with the bubble chamber at a location near the second end of the recessed region.

Abstract: A micro-fluid ejection head and method for reducing a stagger pattern distance and improving droplet placement, on a receiving medium. The micro-fluid ejection head includes a substrate containing a plurality of ejection actuators on a device surface thereof and a fluid supply slot for providing fluid to be ejected by the micro-fluid ejection head. The ejection head also includes a flow feature component in flow communication with the fluid supply slot and configured for providing fluid ejection chambers and fluid supply channels for the fluid ejection chambers. Adjacent first and second ejection actuators in a substantially linear array of ejection actuators are each spaced a first distance from the fluid supply slot and second and third ejection actuators in the linear array of ejection actuators are each spaced a second distance from the fluid supply slot that is less than the first distance.

Abstract: Ink jet print head adapted to minimize orientation-induced line-width variation. The print head having n nozzles located at the vertices of a regular or quasi-regular polygon having an average side length savg, and each side length of the polygon is less than 20% deviation from the average side length savg. The n nozzles are configured to ink jet a line having a line-width w; and each of the n nozzles is configured to ink jet a spot having an average area-equivalent spot diameter d which satisfies the inequality condition (I) 0.7w?d+(n/?)savg?1.3w.

Abstract: Micro-fluid ejection heads and methods for extending the life of micro-fluid ejection heads. One such micro-fluid ejection head includes a substrate having a plurality of thermal ejection actuators. Each of the thermal ejection actuators has a resistive layer and a protective layer thereon. A flow feature member is adjacent the substrate and defines a fluid feed channel, a fluid chamber associated with at least one of the actuators and in flow communication with the fluid feed channel, and a nozzle. The nozzle is offset to a side of the chamber opposite the feed channel. A polymeric layer having a degradation temperature of less than about 400° C. overlaps a portion of the at least one actuator associated with the fluid chamber and positioned less than about five microns from at least an edge of the at least one actuator opposite the fluid feed channel.

Abstract: Micro-fluid ejection heads and methods for extending the life of micro-fluid ejection heads. One such micro-fluid ejection head includes a substrate having a plurality of thermal ejection actuators. Each of the thermal ejection actuators has a resistive layer and a protective layer thereon. A flow feature member is adjacent the substrate and defines a fluid feed channel, a fluid chamber associated with at least one of the actuators and in flow communication with the fluid feed channel, and a nozzle. The nozzle is offset to a side of the chamber opposite the feed channel. A polymeric layer having a degradation temperature of less than about 400° C. overlaps a portion of the at least one actuator associated with the fluid chamber and positioned less than about five microns from at least an edge of the at least one actuator opposite the fluid feed channel.

Abstract: Ink jet print head adapted to minimize orientation-induced line-width variation. The print head having n+1 nozzles. The n nozzles are located at vertices of a polygon having an average side length savg and one nozzle located at a center of the polygon. Each side length of the polygon is less than 20% deviation from the average side length savg. The n+1 nozzles are configured to ink jet a line having a line-width w; and each of the n+1 nozzles is configured to ink jet a spot having an average area-equivalent spot diameter d which satisfies the inequality conditions (I) 0.7w?d+(n/?)savg?1.3w.

Abstract: An ink tank for an inkjet printing device that includes a housing for containing ink, first and second chambers within the housing, and a partition separating the first and second chambers. The ink tank also includes a communication port connecting the first chamber in fluid communication with the second chamber, a tank outlet disposed within a wall of the housing, and a high capillary pressure producing member in direct communication with the outlet. The ink tank may be configured such that the ink may flow from the free ink space through the capillary pressure producing member and exit the outlet without having to travel through the communication port.

Abstract: An improved ink jet printhead for an ink jet printer and method therefor. The printhead includes a semiconductor substrate containing ink ejection devices. A thick film layer is attached to the substrate. A nozzle plate is attached to the thick film layer. The nozzle plate contains a plurality of ink ejection nozzles corresponding to the ink ejection devices. The printhead contains flow features having a height dimension and a width dimension formed therein for flow of ink to the plurality of ink ejection devices for ejection through the nozzles. At least a portion of the flow feature dimensions for at least one of the nozzles is formed in both the thick film layer and laser ablated in the nozzle plate, wherein the thick film layer contains at least 12% of the flow feature dimensions.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for making ink feed vias in semiconductor silicon substrate chips for an ink jet printhead and ink jet printheads containing silicon chips made by the method. The method includes applying a first photoresist material to a first surface side of the chip. The first photoresist material is patterned and developed to define at least one ink via location therein. An etch stop material is applied to a second surface side of the chip. At least one ink via is anisotropically etched with a dry etch process through the thickness of the silicon chip up to the etch stop layer from the first surface side of the chip. As opposed to conventional ink via formation techniques, the method significantly improves the throughput of silicon chip and reduces losses due to chip breakage and cracking. The resulting chips are more reliable for long term printhead use.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for making ink feed vias in semiconductor silicon substrate chips for an ink jet printhead and ink jet printheads containing silicon chips made by the method. The method includes applying a first photoresist material to a first surface side of the chip. The first photoresist material is patterned and developed to define at least one ink via location therein. An etch stop material is applied to a second surface side of the chip. At least one ink via is anisotropically etched with a dry etch process through the thickness of the silicon chip up to the etch stop layer from the first surface side of the chip. As opposed to conventional ink via formation techniques, the method significantly improves the throughput of silicon chip and reduces losses due to chip breakage and cracking. The resulting chips are more reliable for long term printhead use.

Abstract: The present invention is directed toward an improved heater chip for an ink jet printer. The heater chip has a diamond-like-carbon coating that functions as the cavitation and passivation layers of the heating elements on the heater chip. To improve the efficiency of the heater chip, the diamond-like-carbon coating is surrounded by a material that has a lower thermal conductivity than diamond. This surrounding layer limits thermal diffusion from the heating elements into the heater chip. A smoothing layer of tantalum is deposited over the diamond-like-carbon layer to insure that vaporization of the ink occurs at the ink's superheat limit. The diamond-like-carbon layer is preferably less than 8700 Angstroms in thickness such that less than 1 microjoule of energy is required to expel of ink droplet having a mass between 2-4 nanograms.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for making piezoelectric printheads for ink jet The method includes applying an insulating layer to a first surface of a silicon wafer having a thickness ranging from about 200 to about 800 microns. A first conducting layer is applied to the insulating layer on the first surface and a piezoelectric layer is applied to the first conducting layer. The piezoelectric layer is patterned to provide piezoelectric elements on the first surface of the silicon wafer. A second conducting layer is applied to the piezoelectric layer and is patterned to provide conductors for applying an electric field across each of the piezoelectric elements. A photoresist layer is applied to a second surface of the silicon wafer, and the photoresist layer is imaged and developed to provide pressurizing chamber locations. The silicon wafer is then dry etched through the thickness of the wafer up to the insulating layer on the first surface of the wafer.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for forming ink jet nozzle structures in an ablatable material. More particularly, the invention provides uniform nozzle structure by ablating an ablatable material with a laser beam while setting a field lens unit to various locations relative to a projection lens. The resulting ink jet nozzle structures have substantially orthogonal ink delivery trajectory paths relative to a plane defined by the length and width of the ablatable material regardless of the nozzles hole position relative to the edges of the ablatable material.

Abstract: An ink reservoir having a bubble generator includes an enclosure defining an interior space and an exterior space, the interior space being adapted for containing a supply of ink, the enclosure having a passage formed therein which permits fluid communication between the interior space and the exterior space, the passage including a surface, the passage defining a first aperture and a second aperture, wherein the second aperture is adjacent the interior space. A sphere is positioned in the passage and contacts a portion of the surface of the passage, the surface having a shape that permits ink to pass between the sphere and the surface. A membrane is positioned over the first aperture to retain the sphere in the passage, the membrane including at least one hole being sized to define a bubble admission pressure difference across a thickness of the membrane.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for forming ink jet nozzle structures in an ablatable material. More particularly, the invention provides uniform nozzle structure by ablating an ablatable material with a laser beam while setting a field lens unit to various locations relative to a projection lens. The resulting ink jet nozzle structures have substantially orthogonal ink delivery trajectory paths relative to a plane defined by the length and width of the ablatable material regardless of the nozzles hole position relative to the edges of the ablatable material.