Abstract: Limitations on the number of recording elements capable of being simultaneously driven are relaxed so that driving voltage fluctuation falls within an allowable range. The substrate includes arrays of recording elements, common power supply wires extended from portions near one end portions of the arrays to portions near the other end portions thereof and connected to a power supply-side electrode pad through a position near the one end portions of the arrays, and common ground wires extended from portions near the one end portions of the arrays to portions near the other end portions thereof and connected to a ground-side electrode pad through a position near the other end portions of the arrays. Thus, since the sum of the lengths of common wires from the electrode pads is equal for all the plurality of elements included in each array, and the combined resistance of common wiring portions becomes substantially equal.

Abstract: This invention relates to an element substrate capable of confirming an electrical connection status before a printhead malfunctions. The element substrate is a substrate for a printhead, which is detachable from a printing apparatus and includes a plurality of printing elements, a logical circuit for controlling the printing elements, and a voltage application terminal for applying a driving voltage to drive the printing elements. The logical circuit is driven at a voltage lower than the driving voltage. The element substrate includes a connection status output circuit which outputs a signal reflecting the electrical connection status between the printhead and the printing apparatus on the basis of the driving voltage.

Abstract: An inkjet printhead board and inkjet printhead is provided having a reliable storage element which allows for print without causing damages to an interlayer insulation film and protection film upon printing data unique to the printhead and is free from the restriction in arrangement position. For this purpose, a printing device board uses therein an information storage element formed common in material and process to electro-thermal converter element, the resistance value of which is changed to enable information storage so that information can be read out of the information storage element.

Abstract: This element substrate is an element substrate for a printhead which includes a plurality of printing elements to which a first voltage is applied, a plurality of driving elements which drive the plurality of printing elements, a logical circuit which outputs a driving signal to control the plurality of driving elements, and a driving voltage converter circuit which converts the voltage of the driving signal output from the logical circuit into a second voltage lower than the first voltage and outputs the second voltage to the plurality of driving elements. The element substrate includes a driving voltage generating circuit which generates, on the basis of the first voltage, the second voltage to drive the driving voltage converter circuit. The driving voltage generating circuit has a constant current source for generating a constant current based on the first voltage and generates the second voltage based on the constant current.

Abstract: An element substrate has a plurality of printing elements, and a block selection unit which divides the plurality of printing elements into a plurality of blocks and time-divisionally drives the blocks. The element substrate includes a plurality of input terminals which divide the plurality of printing elements included in each block into a plurality of groups and supply a driving voltage to the printing elements belonging to each group, a delay circuit which externally receives an enable signal for enabling energization to the printing elements and generates a plurality of delayed enable signals having different delay times with respect to the enable signal, and a wiring which supplies the enable signal and the plurality of delayed enable signals output from the delay circuit to different groups in the order of the different delay times.

Abstract: This invention relates to a printing apparatus, printhead, and cartridge type discrimination method capable of achieving high-reliability, high-quality printing by effectively utilizing a memory element incorporated in the printing apparatus and dealing with an error by all the building components of the printing apparatus. According to this invention, in a printing apparatus which prints on a printing medium with an ink cartridge and inkjet printhead mounted on a carriage, mounting of the ink cartridge on the carriage is detected, identification information is read from the non-volatile memory of the ink cartridge, and it is discriminated on the basis of the identification information whether or not the mounted cartridge is a certified one for the printing apparatus.

Abstract: Provided is a liquid discharge head substrate including: a substrate; a heating resistor layer formed on the substrate; a flow path for a liquid; a wiring layer stacked on the heating resistor layer and having an end portion which forms a step portion on the heating resistor layer; and a protective layer covering the heating resistor layer and the wiring layer including the step portion, and formed between the heating resistor layer and the flow path, in which the protective layer is formed by a Cat-CVD method.

Abstract: For providing a base member for liquid discharge head having internal surface of liquid flow path and discharge port, suppressed in swelling by liquid and having high precision and high reliability, the invention provides a base member including a base member, an energy generating element for discharging a liquid, formed on the base member, and a resin structure having a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid and disposed on the base member so as to cover the energy generating element, wherein a protective layer formed by a catalytic chemical vapor deposition is formed on a surface of the resin structure in which the liquid discharge port is opened.

Abstract: A recording head including outlets disposed in a staggered pattern so that the distances from an ink inlet to the outlets differ alternately for adjacent outlets. A recording head includes an outlet group including a plurality of outlets on at least one side of an ink inlet. The outlet group includes first outlets and second outlets, wherein the distance from the ink inlet to the first outlets differs from the distance from the ink inlet to the second outlets. First recording elements and second recording elements including heat resistors are provided. The first recording elements and second recording elements correspond to the first outlets and the second outlets, respectively, and are disposed in first ink channels and second ink channels, respectively. The first recording elements are rectangular, whereas the second recording elements are substantially square.

Abstract: In an ink jet head using a thermal energy for ejecting ink, this invention aims to reliably and uniformly remove kogations deposited on a heat application portion in contact with the ink. To realize this objective, the upper protective layer is arranged in an area including the heat application portion so that it can be electrically connected to serve as an electrode which causes an electrochemical reaction with the ink. The upper protective layer is formed of a material containing a metal which is dissolved by the electrochemical reaction and which does not form, on heating, an oxide film which hinders the dissolution. With this arrangement, a reliable electrochemical reaction can be produced to dissolve a surface layer of the upper protective layer, thereby removing kogations on the heat application portion reliably and uniformly.

Abstract: A recording head substrate includes a plurality of groups of recording elements arranged in arrays; a number, corresponding to a number of the groups, input contacts for receiving driving pulse signals; signal lines for supplying the driving pulse signals to the groups of recording elements from the input contacts, respectively, wherein in a region between two of the groups of recording elements are adjacent to each other, the signal lines are connected to the recording elements such that areas in which the groups of recording elements are disposed, respectively, have respective driving pulse signal change areas which are overlapped with each other.

Abstract: A ceramic heater which includes: a cylindrical substrate including an insulator; a resistor provided in one end side of the substrate; a pair of lead parts provided in the substrate, connected to the resistor and extending to an opposite end side of the substrate; and a pair of electrode parts exposed to a surface at an opposite end side of the substrate and connected respectively to the lead parts. Both lead parts are made of the same material as both electrode parts. An axial cross-sectional area of the electrode part is equal to or larger than a cross-sectional area of the lead part in a direction perpendicular to an axis of the ceramic heater.

Abstract: In the present invention, an episulfide compound having, in one molecule, at least one epithio structure represented by the following Formula 2: wherein R5 is C1–C10 hydrocarbylene or single bond, R6, R7 and R8 are each independently C1–C10 hydrocarbyl or hydrogen, Y is O, S, Se or Te, p is an integer from 1 to 5 and q is an integer from 0 to 5, is polymerized in the presence of a halide of a 13–16 group element of the long periodic table and/or a polymerization regulator represented by the following Formula 1: wherein R1, R2 and R3 are each C1–C10 hydocarbyl or hydrogen, R4 is C1–C10 hydrocarbylene or single bond, X is F, Cl, Br, I, As, SH, OH, C1–C10 alkoxyl, C1–C10 alkylthio, or C1–C10 mercaptoalkythio, and m is an integer from 1 to 5, to produce a cured resin suitable as an optical material. By using the polymerization regulator, the polymerization rate of the episulfide compound can be suitably regulated to obtain a cured resin with less defect.

Abstract: The present invention reliably blows a fuse element to store with high reliability data that corresponds to whether or not the fuse element has been blown. For this purpose, a resistor element is provided in a circuit through which an electric current flows to blow the fuse element in the ink jet printing head. The resistor element adjusts the electric current so that, in the process of blowing the fuse element, the current continues to flow for a predetermined duration even after a maximum current has passed through the fuse element. The predetermined duration is longer than a period from a time point when the electric current rises to a time point it reaches the maximum current.

Abstract: In a connection status output circuit for confirming the connection status with a recording apparatus via connecting terminals corresponding respectively to recording signal DATA, clock signal CLK for transferring the recording signal, and control signals LT and HE for controlling a recording operation according to the recording signal, the signals being received from the recording apparatus, when the connection status is confirmed, a signal designating the connection status is outputted, and when a recording operation is performed, the output signal does not change.

Abstract: Provided is a configuration for connecting common wires (a common power supply wire for connecting a plurality of printing elements commonly to a power supply and a common ground wire for connecting the plurality of printing elements commonly to a ground) to the outside, which configuration does not obstruct a constitution for reducing resistances of the common wires. For this purpose, the common wires are directly connected respectively to electrode leads of an electric wiring tape for external connection without use of electrode pads. In the case of this configuration, the widths of the common wires need not be narrower in vicinities of the electrode pads which would otherwise be in an edge of the board, and accordingly reduction of resistances of the common wires is not obstructed.

Abstract: A liquid discharge recording head includes a substrate having a liquid supply opening facilitating supplying liquid and heating resistors for generating energy for discharging the liquid, a flow path member having discharge openings and flow paths including first and second flow paths that are adjacent each other, the second flow path being longer than the first flow path, and a first resister corresponding to the first flow path and a second resistor corresponding to the second flow path, each of the first and second resistors being disposed at an area of the flow path member which is situated in correspondence with the liquid supply opening, wherein an amount of protrusion of the first resister at a side of the first flow path is greater than an amount of protrusion of the second resister at a side of the second flow path.

Abstract: An object of this invention is to drive different types of printing elements arranged in a printhead by proper powers without increasing the number of signal lines between the printhead and a printing apparatus main body, complicating the circuit configuration, and decreasing the printing speed. For this purpose, time division signals representing two driving periods corresponding to two types of printing elements are supplied to a printhead having the two types of printing elements which require different application powers in order to obtain a desired printing characteristic. Power is applied to the first type printing elements in the first driving period, and power is applied to the second type printing elements in the second driving period.

Abstract: Limitations on the number of recording elements capable of being simultaneously driven are relaxed so that driving voltage fluctuation falls within an allowable range. The substrate includes arrays of recording elements, common power supply wires extended from portions near one end portions of the arrays to portions near the other end portions thereof and connected to a power supply-side electrode pad through a position near the one end portions of the arrays, and common ground wires extended from portions near the one end portions of the arrays to portions near the other end portions thereof and connected to a ground-side electrode pad through a position near the other end portions of the arrays. Thus, since the sum of the lengths of common wires from the electrode pads is equal for all the plurality of elements included in each array, and the combined resistance of common wiring portions becomes substantially equal.

Abstract: In a liquid discharge detection method and apparatus which detect a liquid discharged from a liquid discharge head, an electrode is placed at a position where the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge head comes into contact with the electrode while being in contact with the head. When a liquid is discharged, and the head is connected to the electrode through the liquid, the circuit becomes a closed circuit. A voltage generated between the two ends of a resistor is obtained from a current flowing in the closed circuit. When this voltage becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined voltage, liquid discharge can be detected.