Patent Grant
9796180
The present invention relates to a liquid ejection device.
A liquid ejection device (liquid ejection head) is configured to change pressure in a region filled with liquid (pressure chamber) to eject a liquid droplet from a nozzle. A drop-on-demand liquid ejection head is most popular and is used in an inkjet printer for printing a document or an image or the like.
Liquid ejection systems are broadly divided into two systems. One of the systems is a system in which a capacity of the pressure chamber is changed by applying a voltage to an electromechanical coupling element represented by a piezoelectric element, to thereby eject liquid. The other of the systems is a system in which a resistor produces heat by a voltage applied thereto to generate an air bubble in the pressure chamber, to thereby eject liquid.
In recent years, a liquid ejection device for an industrial use is required to eject liquid with an extremely high degree of precision. For example, liquid ejection on the order of picoliters is required. Further, liquid ejection even on the order of subpicoliters or smaller is required.
A technology involving changing a capacity of a pressure chamber (ink channel) by displacing a partition formed of a piezoelectric material in a shear mode, to thereby eject liquid, can precisely control the capacity change of the pressure chamber, and thus has attracted great attention.
However, the liquid ejection devices disclosed in PTL 1 and PTL 2 cannot necessarily obtain a sufficiently large amount of displacement of the partition. It is one way to increase an amount of displacement by increasing the applied voltage, but, increasing the applied voltage increases dielectric loss, an amount of produced heat, damage to the partition, and a load on a driver element, which reduces reliability.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid ejection device that may improve efficiency of displacing a partition of a pressure chamber.
According to one aspect of an embodiment, a liquid ejection device includes a piezoelectric transducer including a plurality of pressure chambers; a plurality of partitions each including a piezoelectric material and dividing the plurality of pressure chambers; and a plurality of electrodes formed in the plurality of pressure chambers, respectively, wherein the plurality of partitions each include a first side wall and a second side wall that is positioned on a back surface side of the first side wall, wherein the first side wall includes a first wall surface positioned in an upper portion thereof, the first wall surface being positioned so as to be set back from a second wall surface positioned below the first wall surface in a direction normal to the first wall surface, wherein a first electrode of the plurality of electrodes is formed on the second wall surface, wherein a second electrode of the plurality of electrodes is formed on the second side wall, and wherein an upper end of the second electrode is higher than an upper end of the first electrode.
According to another aspect of an embodiment, a liquid ejection device includes a piezoelectric transducer including a plurality of pressure chambers; a plurality of partitions each including a piezoelectric material and dividing the plurality of pressure chambers; and a plurality of electrodes formed in the plurality of pressure chambers, respectively, wherein the plurality of partitions each include a first side wall and a second side wall that is positioned on a back surface side of the first side wall, wherein a first electrode of the plurality of electrodes is formed on a lower portion of the first side wall, and wherein a second electrode of the plurality of electrodes is formed on the second side wall and an upper surface of each of the plurality of partitions.
According to the one embodiment of the present invention, each of the partitions has the first side wall and the second side wall that is positioned on the back surface side of the first side wall. The first side wall has the first wall surface positioned in the upper portion thereof, and the first wall surface is positioned so as to be set back from the second wall surface positioned below the first wall surface in the direction of the normal to the first wall surface. According to the one embodiment of the present invention, each of the partitions has a portion having a smaller thickness, and thus, the partitions are more easily displaced. In addition, according to the one embodiment of the present invention, the first electrode is formed on the second wall surface, the second electrode is formed on the second side wall, and the height of the upper end of the second electrode is higher than the height of the upper end of the first electrode. Therefore, according to the one embodiment of the present invention, an electric field applied to the partitions may be increased. Therefore, according to the one embodiment of the present invention, the partitions may be more easily displaced in a shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partitions may be improved.
Further, according to the one embodiment of the present invention, electrodes are formed not only on the side walls of the partitions but also on the upper surfaces of the partitions, and thus, the electric field applied to the partitions may be increased. Therefore, according to the one embodiment of the present invention, the partitions may be more easily displaced in the shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partitions may be improved.
Further features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the attached drawings.
A liquid ejection device according to a first embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to the drawings.
As illustrated in
As a material of the piezoelectric plate 1, a piezoelectric material is used. As such a piezoelectric material, for example, piezoelectric ceramics is used. As the piezoelectric ceramics, for example, a ferroelectric lead zirconate titanate (PZT)-based ceramics material is used. Polarization treatment is applied to the piezoelectric plate 1 in a direction of, for example, the arrow D. The piezoelectric plate 1 has a thickness of, for example, about 1 mm.
A plurality of grooves (openings) 2a and 2b are formed in the piezoelectric plate 1 so as to be in parallel with one another. Such grooves 2a and 2b are formed for the purpose of forming pressure chambers (liquid channels). The grooves 2a and 2b are formed using, for example, a diamond wheel. The grooves 2a and 2b have a depth of, for example, about 230 μm.
As illustrated in
The groove 2b has the same width on a lower side and on an upper side.
The groove 2a and the groove 2b are alternately formed.
A portion of the piezoelectric plate 1 between the groove 2a and the groove 2b is a partition 4. Each of the partitions 4 is formed for the purpose of separating the pressure chambers (liquid channels) formed by the grooves 2a and 2b from one another.
The partition 4 has a side wall 9 facing the groove 2a and a side wall 10 facing the groove 2b.
The side wall 9 of one partition 4 and the side wall 9 of another partition 4 adjacent to the one partition 4 are opposed to each other.
Further, the side wall 10 of one partition 4 and the side wall 10 of another partition 4 adjacent to the one partition 4 are opposed to each other.
The side wall 9 facing the groove 2a has a wall surface 41 positioned in an upper portion of the side wall 9 and a wall surface 43 positioned below the wall surface 41. Specifically, the side wall 9 has the wall surface 41 positioned in a portion of the side wall 9 including an upper end thereof and the wall surface 43 positioned in a portion of the side wall 9 including a lower end thereof. In other words, the side wall 9 has the wall surface 41 positioned on an upper side of the side wall 9 and the wall surface 43 positioned on a lower side of the side wall 9. The wall surface 41 positioned on the upper side of the side wall 9 is positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 43 positioned below the wall surface 41 in a direction of a normal to the wall surface 41. In other words, the wall surface 41 positioned in the upper portion of the side wall 9 is retracted with respect to the wall surface 43 positioned below the wall surface 41.
The wall surface 41 is set back from the wall surface 43, and thus, there is a step between the wall surface 41 and the wall surface 43.
As described later, it is preferred that the wall surface 43 have a height that is 25% or more and 65% or less of a height of the side wall 9. In this case, the wall surface 43 has a height of, for example, about 115 μm.
Further, it is preferred that the wall surface 41 positioned in the upper portion of the side wall 9 be positioned so as to be set back by, for example, 10 μm or more from the wall surface 43 positioned below the wall surface 41 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 41. The reason is that, if an amount of the set back of the wall surface 41 from the wall surface 43 is excessively small, processing of forming the wall surface 41 is difficult.
A wall surface 44 exists on the side wall 10 facing the groove 2b. A wall surface set back from the wall surface 44 does not exist on the side wall 10 facing the groove 2b. Because a wall surface set back from the wall surface 44 does not exist on the side wall 10, an entire surface of the side wall 10 facing the groove 2b is the wall surface 44. An upper end of the wall surface 44 is positioned above an upper end of the wall surface 43.
The wall surface 41 is set back from the wall surface 43, and thus, a portion of the partition 4 on an upper side has a thickness smaller than that of a portion of the partition 4 on a lower side. It is preferred that the portion of the partition 4 on the upper side have a thickness of, for example, 30 μm or more, for the purpose of securing a sufficient physical strength of the partition 4.
An electrode (drive electrode) 3a is formed in the groove 2a. The electrode 3a is used for applying, in combination with an electrode 3b to be described later, the partition (piezoelectric material) 4 with an electric field in a direction perpendicular to the polarization direction D to displace the partition 4 in a shear mode.
The electrode 3a is formed on a bottom surface and the wall surfaces 43 of the groove 2a. Specifically, the electrode 3a is not formed on entire surfaces of the side walls 9, but formed on the wall surfaces 43 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 9. A height of an upper end of the electrode 3a is the same as a height of the upper end of the wall surface 43.
The electrodes (drive electrodes, partial electrodes) 3b are formed in the groove 2b. The partial electrode 3b positioned on one side of the groove 2b and the partial electrode 3b positioned on the other side of the groove 2b are separated from each other by a separating groove 222 formed in a bottom surface of the groove 2b. The separating groove 222 is formed along a longitudinal direction of the groove 2b so as to extend from one end of the groove 2b to reach the other end thereof. Further, the electrode 3b may be formed on the bottom surface and the wall surfaces 44 of the groove 2b. Specifically, the electrode 3b may be formed on entire surfaces of the side walls 10 of the partitions 4. A height of an upper end of the electrode 3b is the same as a height of an upper end of the side wall 10 of the partition 4.
The upper end of the wall surface 44 is positioned above the upper end of the wall surface 43, and thus, the upper end of the electrode 3b is positioned above the upper end of the electrode 3a.
As a material of the electrodes 3a and 3b, for example, a metal material such as aluminum or nickel is used. The electrodes 3a and 3b are formed by, for example, vapor deposition or electroless plating.
The cover plate 5 is mounted onto the piezoelectric plate 1. It is preferred to use, as the cover plate 5, for example, a material having a coefficient of thermal expansion equivalent to that of the piezoelectric plate 1. In this case, as a material of the cover plate 5, the same material as that of the piezoelectric plate 1 is used. A liquid introduction port 11 is formed in the cover plate 5. Further, a manifold 12 is formed in the cover plate 5. An upper surface of the piezoelectric plate 1 and a lower surface of the cover plate 5 are bonded together with, for example, an epoxy-based adhesive (not shown).
The cover plate 5 is positioned above the grooves 2a and 2b, and thus, the pressure chambers are formed along the longitudinal direction of the grooves 2a and 2b. The pressure chamber (liquid chamber) 2a is filled with liquid from a liquid bottle (not shown) through the liquid introduction port 11 and the manifold 12. When the liquid to be ejected is ink, the pressure chamber (ink chamber) 2a is filled with the ink. The pressure chamber 2a is to be the liquid channel (ink channel).
The orifice plate (nozzle plate) 7 is mounted on an end surface of the piezoelectric plate 1. The orifice plate 7 is formed of, for example, plastic. Nozzles 6 are formed in the orifice plate 7 at positions corresponding to those of the pressure chambers 2a. The orifice plate 7 is bonded to the end surface of the piezoelectric plate 1 with, for example, an epoxy-based adhesive (not shown).
When a voltage is applied between the electrodes 3a and 3b, an electric field in a direction perpendicular to the polarization direction D is applied to the partition (piezoelectric material) 4 to displace the partition 4 in the shear mode. When the partition (movable wall) 4 is displaced, a capacity of the pressure chamber (liquid chamber) 2a is changed. By appropriately changing the capacity of the pressure chamber 2a, the liquid (ink) can be ejected through the nozzles 6.
As described above, a plurality of liquid ejecting portions 13 each having the pressure chamber 2a capable of ejecting the liquid are arranged in an array in the piezoelectric transducer 8.
In this embodiment, a portion of the partition 4 on the upper side has a smaller thickness than that of a portion of the partition 4 on the lower side.
Specifically, the partition 4 is reduced in thickness in part. Therefore, in this embodiment, compared with a case in which the entire partition 4 is formed so as to have a large thickness, the partition 4 is more easily displaced. In addition, in this embodiment, the upper end of the electrode 3b is positioned above the upper end of the electrode 3a. Therefore, in this embodiment, compared with a case in which the height of the upper end of the electrode 3b is the same as the height of the upper end of the electrode 3a, the electric field applied to the partition 4 (piezoelectric material) can be increased. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the partition 4 can be more easily displaced in the shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partition 4 can be improved.
(Evaluation Results)
Next, results of evaluation of the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment are described.
The evaluation was made by comparing the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment and a liquid ejection device according to a reference example. The liquid ejection device according to this embodiment had the structure as illustrated in
In the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a depth of the grooves 2a and 2b, that is, a height of the side walls 9 and 10 of the partition 4 was 230 μm.
In the liquid ejection device according to the reference example, similarly to the case of the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a depth of a groove 2, that is, the height of the side walls 9 and 10 of the partition 4 was 230 μm.
In the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a height of the wall surface 43 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 9 of the partition 4 was 115 μm. Specifically, the height of the wall surface 43 was 50% of the height of the side wall 9 of the partition 4.
On the other hand, in the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a height of the wall surface 44 of the side wall 10 of the partition 4 was 230 μm, that was the same as the height of the side wall 10 of the partition 4.
In the liquid ejection device according to the reference example, the height of the wall surface 43 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 9 of the partition 4 was 115 μm similarly to the case of the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment. On the other hand, in the liquid ejection device according to the reference example, the height of the wall surface 44 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 10 of the partition 4 was also 115 μm. Specifically, in the liquid ejection device according to the reference example, not only the height of the wall surface 43 but also the height of the wall surface 44 was 50% of the height of the side walls 9 and 10 of the partition 4.
As can be seen from
Therefore, by setting the value of “a” so that the value of (a/b) is 25% or more and 65% or less, the amount of displacement of the partition 4 can be improved.
As described above, in this embodiment, each of the partitions 4 has the first side wall 9 and the second side wall 10 that is positioned on the back surface side of the first side wall 9. The first wall surface 41 positioned in the upper portion of the first side wall 9 is positioned so as to be set back from the second wall surface 43 positioned below the first wall surface 41 in the direction of the normal to the first wall surface 41. According to this embodiment, each of the partitions 4 has a portion having a smaller thickness, and thus, the partitions 4 are more easily displaced. In addition, according to this embodiment, the first electrode 3a is formed on the second wall surface 43, the second electrode 3b is formed on the second side wall 10, and the height of the upper end of the second electrode 3b is higher than the height of the upper end of the first electrode 3a. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the electric field applied to the partition 4 can be increased. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the partitions 4 can be more easily displaced in the shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partitions 4 can be improved.
A liquid ejection device according to a second embodiment of the present invention is described.
In the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a wall surface 42 positioned in an upper portion of the side wall 10 is positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 44 positioned below the wall surface 42 in a direction of a normal to the wall surface 42.
As illustrated in
As described later, it is preferred that the wall surface 44 positioned on a lower side of the side wall 10 have a height that is 1.4 times or more as much as the height of the wall surface 43 positioned on a lower side of the side wall 9 on a back surface side of the side wall 10. Further, it is preferred that the wall surface 44 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 10 have a height that is more than 50% of the height of the side wall 10. The height of the wall surface 44 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 10 is set so as to be more than 50% of the height of the side wall 10 for the purpose of applying a sufficient electric field to the partition 4 to obtain a large amount of displacement.
The wall surface 41 positioned on an upper side of the side wall 9 is positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 43 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 9 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 41.
In this embodiment, not only the wall surface 41 is positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 43 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 41, but also the wall surface 42 is positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 44 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 42. Therefore, in this embodiment, an upper portion of the partition 4 is reduced in thickness. Therefore, in this embodiment, the partition 4 is more easily displaced. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the partition 4 can be more easily displaced in the shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partition 4 can be further improved.
(Evaluation Results)
Next, results of evaluation of the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment are described.
The evaluation was made by comparing the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment and a liquid ejection device according to a reference example. The liquid ejection device according to this embodiment had the structure as illustrated in
In the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a depth of the grooves 2a and 2b, that is, a height of the side walls 9 and 10 of the partition 4 was 230 μm.
In the liquid ejection device according to the reference example, similarly to the case of the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a depth of a groove 2, that is, the height of the side walls 9 and 10 of the partition 4 was 230 μm.
In the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a height of the wall surface 43 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 9 of the partition 4 was 115 μm. Specifically, the height of the wall surface 43 was 50% of the height of the side wall 9 of the partition 4.
In the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, a height of the wall surface 44 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 10 of the partition 4 was changed.
In the liquid ejection device according to the reference example, the height of the wall surface 43 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 9 of the partition 4 was 115 μm similarly to the case of the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment. On the other hand, in the liquid ejection device according to the reference example, the height of the wall surface 44 positioned on the lower side of the side wall 10 of the partition 4 was also 115 μm. Specifically, in the liquid ejection device according to the reference example, not only the height of the wall surface 43 but also the height of the wall surface 44 was 50% of the height of the side walls 9 and 10 of the partition 4.
As can be seen from
Therefore, by setting the height “a” of the wall surface 43 and the height “c” of the wall surface 44 so that the value of (c/a) is 1.4 or more, the amount of displacement of the partition 4 can be sufficiently improved. Specifically, by setting the height “c” of the wall surface 44 on the lower side of the side wall 10 of the partition 4 to be 1.4 times or more as much as the height “a” of the wall surface 43 on the lower side of the side wall 9 of the partition 4, the amount of displacement of the partition 4 can be sufficiently improved.
(Method of Manufacturing Liquid Ejection Device)
Next, a method of manufacturing the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment is described.
First, the piezoelectric plate 1 is prepared. As a material of the piezoelectric plate 1, for example, a piezoelectric material such as piezoelectric ceramics is used. As the piezoelectric ceramics, for example, a ferroelectric lead zirconate titanate (PZT)-based ceramics material is used. Polarization treatment is applied to the piezoelectric plate 1 in a direction of, for example, the arrow D. The piezoelectric plate 1 has a thickness of, for example, about 1 mm.
Then, as illustrated in
Then, as illustrated in
Then, as illustrated in
Then, the conductive film 3 remaining on upper surfaces of the partitions 4 is removed by lapping (rough polishing) or the like.
Then, as illustrated in
Then, the orifice plate (nozzle plate) 7 (see
In this way, the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment is manufactured.
As described above, in this embodiment, not only the wall surface 41 is positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 43 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 41, but also the wall surface 42 is positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 44 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 42. Therefore, in this embodiment, an upper portion of the partition 4 is reduced in thickness. Therefore, in this embodiment, the partition 4 is more easily displaced. Because of this, according to this embodiment, the partition 4 can be more easily displaced in the shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partition 4 can be further improved.
[Evaluation Results]
Next, results of evaluation of the liquid ejection device according to the above-mentioned embodiment are described in the following.
Liquid ejection devices according to Examples 1 to 3 had the structure as illustrated in
Liquid ejection devices according to Examples 4 and 5 had the structure as illustrated in
Liquid ejection devices according to Examples 6 and 7 had the structure as illustrated in
Liquid ejection devices according to Comparative Examples 1 and 2 had the structure as illustrated in
In each of Comparative Examples 1 and 2, the height of the wall surface 44 was 230 μm. Further, in each of Comparative Examples 1 and 2, the wall surface 41 was set back by 10 μm from the wall surface 43 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 41. The thickness of the portion of the partition 4 on the lower side, that is, the dimension between the wall surface 43 and the wall surface 44, was 70 μm. The conductive film 3 remaining on the upper surface of the partition 4 was removed by lapping, and the cover plate 5 formed of the same material as that of the piezoelectric plate 1 was bonded onto the piezoelectric plate 1. The orifice plate 7 having the plurality of nozzles 6 formed therein, which corresponded to the respective ink channels 2a, was bonded to the end surface of the piezoelectric plate 1. In this way, the liquid ejection devices according to Comparative Examples 1 and 2 were manufactured.
A liquid ejection device according to Comparative Example 3 had the structure as illustrated in
Liquid ejection devices according to Comparative Examples 4 and 5 had the structure as illustrated in
Table 1 shows results of evaluation of the liquid ejection devices manufactured as described above. With reference to the amount of displacement in the case of Comparative Example 3, the ratios of the amount of displacement to the amount of displacement in the case of Comparative Example 3 are shown. When the evaluation was made, a sinusoidal wave of 1 kHz and ±5 V was applied between the electrodes 3a and 3b. A maximum displacement of the partition 4 was measured using a laser displacement gauge.
As can be seen from Table 1, in each of the cases of Examples 1 to 7, the amount of displacement is larger than that in the case of Comparative Example 3.
From this, it can be seen that, according to the liquid ejection devices according to the first and second embodiments described above, the efficiency of displacing the partition 4 may be improved with reliability. Therefore, according to the liquid ejection devices according to the first and second embodiments, dielectric loss, an amount of produced heat, and damage to the partition 4 are inhibited, and still a desired amount of displacement can be obtained. Therefore, according to the first and second embodiments, a satisfactory liquid ejection device with high reliability can be obtained.
A liquid ejection device according to a third embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to the drawings.
As illustrated in
As a material of the piezoelectric plate 101, a piezoelectric material is used. As such a piezoelectric material, for example, piezoelectric ceramics is used. As the piezoelectric ceramics, for example, a lead zirconate titanate (PZT: PbZrxTi1-xO3)-based ceramics material, which is a ferroelectric ceramics material. Note that, as the piezoelectric ceramics for forming the piezoelectric plate 101, there may be used, for example, barium titanate (BaTiO3) and lanthanum-substituted lead zirconate titanate (PLZT: (Pb,La) (Zr,Ti)O3). Polarization treatment is applied to the piezoelectric plate 101 in a direction of, for example, the arrow D. The piezoelectric plate 101 has a thickness of, for example, about 1 mm.
A plurality of grooves (openings) 104 and 105 are formed in the piezoelectric plate 101 so as to be in parallel with one another. The grooves 104 and the grooves 105 are alternately formed. The grooves 104 are formed for the purpose of forming pressure chambers (liquid channels). The grooves 105 are formed for the purpose of forming dummy pressure chambers, that is, dummy chambers.
A portion of the piezoelectric plate 101 between the groove 104 and the groove 105 is a partition 102. Each of the partitions 102 separates the pressure chamber 104 and the pressure chamber 105 from each other. As illustrated in
An electrode (drive electrode) 106 is formed in the groove 104. The electrode 106 is used for applying, in combination with an electrode 107 to be described later, the partition (piezoelectric material) 102 with an electric field in a direction perpendicular to the polarization direction D to displace the partition 102 in the shear mode. The electrode 106 is formed on lower portions of the side walls 113 and a bottom surface of the groove 104. A height h2 of the electrode 106 (height from the bottom surface of the groove 104 to an upper end of the electrode 106) is, for example, about half as much as a height h1 of the partition 102 (height from the bottom surface of the groove 104 to an upper surface of the partition 102). Note that, the height h2 of the electrode 106 is not limited thereto, and may be appropriately set so that the partition 102 is sufficiently displaced. The electrode 106 is, for example, connected to a ground potential GND.
A partial electrode 107a forming a part of the electrode 107 is formed in the groove 105. The partial electrode 107a is formed on a lower portion of the side wall 114 and a bottom surface of the groove 105. A height h3 of the partial electrode 107a (height from the bottom surface of the groove 105 to an upper end of the partial electrode 107a) is, for example, about half as much as the height h1 of the partition 102 (height from the bottom surface of the groove 105 to the upper surface of the partition 102). Note that, the height h3 of the partial electrode 107a is not limited thereto, and may be appropriately set so that the partition 102 is sufficiently displaced. The partial electrode 107a positioned on one side of the groove 105 and the partial electrode 107a positioned on the other side of the groove 105 are separated from each other by a separating groove 109 formed in the bottom surface of the groove 105. The separating groove 109 is formed along a longitudinal direction of the groove 105 so as to extend from one end of the groove 105 to reach the other end thereof. Further, the separating groove 109 is also formed in a groove 124 to be described later (see
A partial electrode 107b forming a part of the electrode 107 is formed on the upper surface of the partition 102. The partial electrode 107b formed on the upper surface of the partition 102 positioned on one side of the groove 105 and the partial electrode 107a positioned on the one side of the groove 105 are electrically connected to each other in a region (not shown). The partial electrode 107b formed on the upper surface of the partition 102 positioned on the other side of the groove 105 and the partial electrode 107a positioned on the other side of the groove 105 are electrically connected to each other in a region (not shown). For example, a signal voltage (control voltage, control signal) for applying an electric field of desired intensity to the partition 102 is applied to the electrode 107 including the partial electrode 107a and the partial electrode 107b. The electrode 107 positioned on one side of the groove 105 and the electrode 107 positioned on the other side of the groove 105 are electrically separated from each other, and thus, different signal voltages can be applied to the electrode 107 positioned on the one side of the groove 105 and to the electrode 107 positioned on the other side of the groove 105.
The groove 124 for forming the extracting electrode 107a extracted from the partial electrode 107a is formed in an end surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 on a front surface side, that is, an end surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 on a side to which the orifice plate 121 is mounted (see
An escape groove 123 for allowing, when the orifice plate 121 and the piezoelectric plate 101 are bonded together, an adhesive (not shown) overflowing from a bonded surface 132 to flow into the escape groove 123 is formed in the end surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 on the front surface side. Such an escape groove 123 is formed so as to be along a direction within the principal plane of the piezoelectric plate 101, and intersects the groove 124 for forming the extracting electrode 107a (see
The cover plate 103 is mounted onto the piezoelectric plate 101. It is preferred to use, as the cover plate 103, for example, a material having a coefficient of thermal expansion equivalent to that of the piezoelectric plate 101. In this case, as a material of the cover plate 103, the same material as that of the piezoelectric plate 101 is used. An upper surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 and a lower surface of the cover plate 103 are bonded together with, for example, an epoxy-based adhesive (not shown). The cover plate 103 is positioned above the grooves 104 and 105, and thus, portions where the grooves 104 and 105 are formed are pressure chambers. Note that, the portions where the grooves 104 are formed are to be pressure chambers 104, and thus, the grooves 104 and the pressure chambers 104 are described using the same reference numeral “104”. Further, portions where the grooves 105 are formed are to be pressure chambers (dummy chambers) 105, and thus, the grooves 105 and the pressure chambers (dummy chambers) 105 are described using the same reference numeral “105”.
The pressure chamber 104 and the pressure chamber 105 adjacent to the pressure chamber 104 are separated from each other by the same partition 102. Therefore, it is not necessarily easy to independently control a capacity of the pressure chamber 104 and a capacity of the pressure chamber 105 adjacent to the pressure chamber 104. Therefore, the pressure chamber 104 is used as a liquid channel, and the pressure chamber 105 adjacent to the pressure chamber 104 is used as a dummy.
It is also possible to control the capacities of the respective pressure chambers 104 and 105 so that the pressure chambers 105 can also be used as liquid channels. For example, the electrode 106 formed on the partition 102 on one side of the pressure chamber 104 and the electrode 106 formed on the partition 102 on the other side of the pressure chamber 104 are separated from each other, and different signal voltages are applied to those electrodes 106. It is thus possible to use not only the pressure chambers 104 but also the pressure chambers 105 as liquid channels.
In this case, a case in which the pressure chambers 105 are not used as liquid channels is described as an example.
As illustrated in
The dummy chambers 105 are formed so as not to reach an end surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 on a back surface side, that is, an end surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 to which the manifold 127 is mounted. This is for the purpose of preventing liquid from being supplied from the manifold 127 into the dummy chambers 105.
The manifold 127 is mounted on the back surface side of the piezoelectric transducer 110. The manifold 127 has a common liquid chamber 125 formed therein for supplying liquid (ink) to the pressure chambers 104 in the piezoelectric transducer 110. Liquid stored in a liquid bottle (not shown) is supplied into the manifold 127 through an ink supply port 128 formed on a back surface side of the manifold 127. Further, an ink discharge port (not shown) is also formed on the back surface side of the manifold 127. The ink supply port 128 and the ink discharge port are formed in the manifold 127, and thus, ink can circulate in the manifold 127.
The orifice plate 121 is mounted on the front surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101. The orifice plate 121 is formed of, for example, plastic. Nozzles 122 are formed in the orifice plate 121 at positions corresponding to those of the pressure chambers (liquid channels) 104. The orifice plate 121 is bonded to an end surface of the piezoelectric transducer 110 with, for example, an epoxy-based adhesive (not shown).
The flexible substrate 129 is mounted on a lower surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101. Wiring having terminals 130 and wiring having terminals 131 are formed on the flexible substrate 129. The terminals 131 are electrically connected to the electrodes 106 formed in the pressure chambers 104, respectively. The terminals 130 are electrically connected to the electrodes 107 formed in the dummy chambers 105 and on the partitions 102. A signal voltage is individually applied to each of the terminals 130. The terminals 131 are, for example, connected to the ground potential GND.
In this way, in the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment, by changing the capacity of the pressure chamber (liquid channel) 104, liquid can be ejected from the nozzle 122 (see
Next, a method of manufacturing the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment is described with reference to the drawings.
First, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Then, as illustrated in
Then, as illustrated in
In the region except for the vicinity of the end surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 on the front surface side, the processing is performed so that the grooves 104 have a fixed depth. In the vicinity of the end surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 on the front surface side, the processing is performed so that the grooves 104 have a depth that gradually reduces (see
Then, as illustrated in
Then, as illustrated in
Then, a conductive film (not shown) covering an entire surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 is formed. Such a conductive film can be formed as described below.
First, by etching the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101, minute depressions (unevenness) are formed in the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. Then, deleading treatment for removing from the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 lead (Pb) contained in the material of the piezoelectric plate 101 is applied.
Next, as described below, a plated catalyst is deposited onto the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. For example, tin (Sn) and palladium (Pd) are used as the plated catalyst. In this case, the deposition is described by way of the case where the plated catalyst of palladium is generated. First, the piezoelectric plate 101 is immersed into an aqueous solution of stannous chloride with a concentration of about 0.1%, thereby depositing stannous chloride onto the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. Subsequently, the piezoelectric plate 101 is immersed into an aqueous solution of palladium chloride with a concentration of about 0.1%, thereby allowing an oxidation-reduction reaction between tin chloride, which is deposited onto the piezoelectric plate 101 in advance, and palladium chloride to occur to generate metallic palladium on the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. Thus, the plated catalyst of metallic palladium is deposited onto the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101.
Next, the piezoelectric plate 101 in which metallic palladium is generated on its surface is immersed into, for example, a nickel plating bath, thereby generating an electroless plating film containing nickel (Ni) on the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. For example, the following films are formed as the electroless plating film: an electroless plating film of nickel-phosphorus (Ni—P) and an electroless plating film of nickel-boron (Ni—B). It is preferred that a thickness of the electroless plating film be set to be about 0.5 μm to 1.0 μm for the purpose of sufficiently cover the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 and sufficiently reducing electrical resistance. In this way, the electroless plating film is formed on the entire surface of the piezoelectric plate 101.
After that, for example, through replacement plating, a gold (Au) plating film, for example, is formed on the electroless plating film. In this way, the conductive film including the plating film is formed on the entire surface of the piezoelectric plate 101.
Then, unnecessary portions of the conductive film formed on the entire surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 are removed (see
Portions of the conductive film on the front surface side and on the back surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101 are removed. The portions of the conductive film on the front surface side and on the back surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101 can be removed by, for example, polishing. An amount of polishing at the time when the portions of the conductive film on the front surface side and on the back surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101 are removed is, for example, about 5 μm.
Further, portions of the conductive film on upper portions of the side walls 113 and 114 of the partition 102 are removed. The portions of the conductive film on the upper portions of the side walls 113 and 114 of the partition 102 can be removed using, for example, a dicing blade. As the dicing apparatus, for example, a dicing apparatus similar to the dicing apparatus used in forming the grooves 104 and 105 can be used. As the dicing blade used in removing the unnecessary portions of the conductive film on the side walls 113 and 114, for example, a dicing blade having a thickness smaller than that of the dicing blade used in forming the grooves 104 and 105 can be used. When the unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the side wall 113 facing the groove 104 is removed, a dicing blade having a thickness of, for example, about 55 μm is used. When the unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the side wall 114 facing the groove 105 is removed, a dicing blade having a thickness of, for example, about 50 μm is used. In both of these cases, the dicing blade has a diameter of, for example, about 64 mm. Further, in both of those cases, diamond grains contained in the dicing blade have a grain size of, for example, about #1600. Such dicing blades are used and, under the state in which the position is adjusted using a stage (not shown), the portions of the conductive film on the upper portions of the side walls 113 and 114 of the partition 102 are ground to be removed. In both of those cases, the portions of the conductive film to be removed by grinding are portions of the conductive film positioned in a range from the upper surfaces of the partitions 102 to a depth of, for example, about 115 μm.
Note that, the dicing blade used in removing the unnecessary portions of the conductive film on the side walls 113 and 114 of the partition 102 is not limited to such a dicing blade. A dicing blade having a thickness larger than that of the dicing blade used in forming the grooves 104 and 105 may also be used. In this case, not only the unnecessary portions of the conductive film can be removed, but also an upper portion of the partition 102 can be decreased in thickness.
Further, it is also possible to remove the unnecessary portions of the conductive film on the side walls 113 and 114 of the partition 102 using a laser beam or the like. As the laser beam, for example, an excimer laser or a KrF laser is used. The laser beam has an energy density of, for example, about 1 J/cm2 to 10 J/cm2. Through scanning with the laser beam at an appropriate speed, the unnecessary portions of the conductive film can be removed.
In this way, the unnecessary portions of the conductive film on the surfaces of the piezoelectric plate 101 are removed to form the electrodes 106 and 107 in desired shapes.
Then, as illustrated in
Further, the escape groove 123 is formed in the end surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 on the front surface side. As described above, the escape groove 123 is formed for allowing, when the orifice plate 121 and the piezoelectric plate 101 are bonded together, an adhesive (not shown) overflowing from the bonded surface 132 to flow into the escape groove 123. A longitudinal direction of the escape groove 123 is, for example, a direction along the direction within the principal plane of the piezoelectric plate 101. The escape groove 123 is formed so as to be positioned below openings of the pressure chambers 104 and 105. When the escape groove 123 is formed, the same dicing blade as the one used in forming the separating groove 109 can be used. The escape groove 123 has a depth of, for example, about 20 μm.
Further, a separating groove (not shown) is appropriately formed on a lower surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101. Such a separating groove is for the purpose of preventing a short circuit between the electrodes 106 and 107 through the conductive film existing on the lower surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101. Further, such a separating groove is for the purpose of preventing a short circuit between the terminals 130 and 131 and wiring patterns formed existing on the flexible substrate 129 through the conductive film on the lower surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101. Such a separating groove can be formed by, for example, scanning with a laser beam. As the laser beam, for example, an excimer laser or a KrF laser is used.
Then, the cover plate (top) 103 is mounted onto the piezoelectric plate 101 (see
Further, the manifold 127 is mounted on the back surface side of the piezoelectric transducer 110 (see
Further, the orifice plate 121 is mounted on the front surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101 (see
Further, the flexible substrate 129 is mounted to the lower surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101 (see
In this way, in this embodiment, the electrodes 107 are formed not only on the side walls 114 of the partitions 102 but also on the upper surfaces of the partitions 102, and thus, the electric field applied to the partitions 102 can be increased. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the partitions 102 can be more easily displaced in the shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partitions 102 can be improved.
Next, a liquid ejection device according to a modified example (No. 1) of this embodiment is described with reference to
In the piezoelectric transducer of the liquid ejection device according to this modified example, the electrode 107 is formed on an entire surface of the side wall 114 of the partition 102 facing the dummy chamber 105.
As illustrated in
The height h2 of the electrode 106 is set so that a sufficient electric field can be applied to the partition 102 to sufficiently displace the partition 102. When the height h2 of the electrode 106 is smaller than 35% of the height h1 of the partition 102, the partition 102 cannot necessarily be displaced by a sufficient amount of displacement. On the other hand, when the height h2 of the electrode 106 is larger than 57% of the height h1 of the partition 102, the partition 102 cannot necessarily be displaced by a sufficient amount of displacement. Therefore, it is preferred that the height h2 of the electrode 106 be in a range of from 35% or more to 57% or less of the height h1 of the partition 102. When the height h1 of the partition 102 is, for example, 230 μm, it is preferred that the height h2 of the electrode 106 be, for example, in a range of from 80 μm to 130 μm.
As described above, the electrode 107 may be formed on the entire surface of the side wall 114 of the partition 102 facing the dummy chambers 105.
Next, a liquid ejection device according to a modified example (No. 2) of this embodiment is described with reference to
In the piezoelectric transducer of the liquid ejection device according to this modified example, a portion of the electrode 107 positioned on the upper surface of the partition 102 covers a part of the upper surface of the partition 102.
In this modified example, an area of the portion of the electrode 107 positioned on the upper surface of the partition 102 is smaller than that in the case of the modified example (No. 1) illustrated in
In this way, the portion of the electrode 107 positioned on the upper surface of the partition 102 may cover only a part of the upper surface of the partition 102.
Next, a liquid ejection device according to a modified example (No. 3) of this embodiment is described with reference to
In the piezoelectric transducer of the liquid ejection device according to this modified example, a wall surface 115 positioned in an upper portion of the side wall 113 facing the pressure chamber 104 is positioned so as to be set back from a wall surface 116 positioned below the wall surface 115 in a direction of a normal to the wall surface 115.
As illustrated in
The electrode 107 covers the entire surface of the side wall 114 of the partition 102 facing the dummy chamber 105, and further, covers the entire upper surface of the partition 102.
In this way, the wall surface 115 positioned in the upper portion of the side wall 113 facing the pressure chamber 104 may be positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 116 positioned below the wall surface 115 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 115. The wall surface 115 and the wall surface 116 may be in parallel with each other, or may be slanted with respect to each other. According to this modified example, the upper portion of the partition 102 has a smaller thickness, and thus, the partition 102 is more easily displaced. Therefore, according to this modified example, the partitions 102 can be more easily displaced in the shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partitions 102 can be more improved.
Next, a liquid ejection device according to a modified example (No. 4) of this embodiment is described with reference to
In the piezoelectric transducer of the liquid ejection device according to this modified example, a wall surface 117 positioned in an upper portion of the side wall 114 facing the dummy chamber 105 is positioned so as to be set back from a wall surface 118 positioned below the wall surface 117 in a direction of a normal to the wall surface 117.
As illustrated in
Further, in this modified example, an upper portion of the side wall 114 facing the dummy chamber 105 is ground, and thus, the upper portion of the partition 102 is further reduced in thickness. Therefore, the wall surface 117 positioned in the upper portion of the side wall 114 facing the dummy chamber 105 is positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 118 positioned below the wall surface 117 in a direction of a normal to the wall surface 117. The wall surface 117 and the wall surface 118 may be in parallel with each other, or may be slanted with respect to each other. The partial electrode 107a in the dummy chamber 105 is formed so as to cover the wall surface 118, and is not formed on the wall surface 117 positioned above the wall surface 118. A height of the upper end of the partial electrode 107a is the same as a height of an upper end of the wall surface 118. The upper end of the wall surface 118 is positioned above the upper end of the wall surface 116.
The partial electrode 107b is formed so as to cover the entire upper surface of the partition 102. The partial electrode 107a formed in the dummy chamber 105 and the partial electrode 107b formed on the upper surface of the partition 102 are electrically connected to each other in a region (not shown).
As described above, the wall surface 117 positioned in the upper portion of the side wall 114 facing the dummy chamber 105 may be positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 118 positioned below the wall surface 117 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 117. The wall surface 117 and the wall surface 118 may be in parallel with each other, or may be slanted with respect to each other. According to this modified example, the upper portion of the partition 102 is further reduced in thickness, and thus, the partition 102 is more easily displaced. Therefore, according to this modified example, the partitions 102 can be more easily displaced in the shear mode, and the efficiency of displacing the partitions 102 can be more improved.
[Evaluation Results]
Next, results of evaluation of the piezoelectric transducer of the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment are described in the following.
A piezoelectric transducer of Example 8 had the structure as illustrated in
First, an un-polarized piezoelectric plate 111 (see
Then, processing for forming the pressure chambers 104 and the dummy chambers 105 was performed. The dicing blade had a thickness of 80 μm. The dicing blade had a diameter of 64 mm. The diamond grains contained in the dicing blade had a grain size of #1600. As the dicing apparatus, the dicing saw manufactured by DISCO Corporation (trade name: Fully Automatic Dicing Saw, model No: DAD6240, spindle type: 1.2 kW) was used. The dicing blade had a rotation speed of 20,000 rpm. The feeding speed of the stage was 0.2 mm/s. The height h1 of the partition 102 was 230 μm, and the partition 102 had a width (thickness) of 70 μm.
Then, the entire piezoelectric plate 101 was covered with the electroless plating film (not shown). The electroless plating film was formed by applying nickel (Ni) plating to the piezoelectric plate 101. The electroless plating film was formed as described below. Specifically, first, by etching the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 with a dilute solution of hydrofluoric acid, minute depressions were formed in the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. Then, by immersing the piezoelectric plate 101 into an aqueous solution of nitric acid with a concentration of 50% for 5 minutes at room temperature, the deleading treatment for removing lead from the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 was applied. Then, a catalyst was given to the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 as described below. First, the piezoelectric plate 101 was immersed into an aqueous solution of stannous chloride with a concentration of 0.1% for 2 minutes at room temperature, to thereby adsorb stannous chloride onto the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. Then, the piezoelectric plate 101 was immersed into an aqueous solution of palladium chloride with a concentration of 0.1% for 2 minutes at room temperature. This causes an oxidation-reduction reaction between tin chloride adsorbed in advance onto the piezoelectric plate 101 and palladium chloride to generate metallic palladium on the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. After this, an electroless nickel plating film was formed on the surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 as described below. A basic bath of the nickel plating was as described below. As a metal salt contained in the plating bath, nickel sulfate was used. As a reducing agent contained in the plating bath, borane dimethylamine complex (DMAB)((CH3)2NH.BH3) was used. A temperature of the plating bath was 60° C. NaOH and H2SO4 were used to adjust a pH of the plating bath to be 6.0. In this way, a Ni—B electroless plating film having a thickness of about 0.8 μm was formed on the entire surface of the piezoelectric plate 101. Further, through replacement plating, a gold plating film was formed on the entire surface of the piezoelectric plate 101 having the electroless plating film formed thereon. As a gold source contained in the plating bath, gold sodium sulfite was used. The plating bath was a non-cyan-type plating bath. The temperature of the plating bath was 68° C. The pH of the plating bath was 7.3. The thickness of the plating film was 0.05 μm. In this way, the conductive film including the plating films was formed on the entire surface of the piezoelectric plate 101.
Then, the unnecessary portions of the conductive film were removed. Specifically, the portions of the conductive film on the front surface side and on the back surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101 were removed. The amount of polishing when the conductive film on the front surface side and on the back surface side of the piezoelectric plate 101 was removed was 5 μm. Further, the conductive film on the upper portions of the side walls 113 and 114 of the partition 102 was removed. When the unnecessary portions of the conductive film were removed, a dicing blade was used, and the region in the range from the upper surface of the partitions 102 to 115 μm was removed by grinding. The dicing blade had a thickness of 60 μm, the dicing blade had a diameter of 64 mm, and the diamond grains contained in the dicing blade had a grain size of #1600. As the dicing apparatus, the dicing saw manufactured by DISCO Corporation (trade name: Fully Automatic Dicing Saw, model No: DAD6240, spindle type: 1.2 kW) was used. The dicing blade had a rotation speed of 20,000 rpm. The feeding speed of the stage was 0.1 mm/s. The dicing blade that had a sufficiently small thickness with respect to the dicing blade used in forming the grooves 104 and 105 was used, and thus, the dicing blade was able to be introduced into the grooves 104 and 105 without contact with the partition 102. After the height of the dicing blade was adjusted to be a desired height, the stage was moved under a state in which the dicing blade was in contact with the side walls 113 and 114 of the partition 102. The amount of the grinding of the partition 102 by the dicing blade was 2 μm. In this way, the unnecessary portions of the conductive film were removed to form the electrode 106 and the partial electrodes 107a and 107b in a desired pattern. Examination of machining marks by the dicing blade with use of a microscope revealed that there were steps in the partitions 102 of about 2 μm at the maximum and about 1 μm or less on average.
Then, the cover plate 103 formed of PZT was aligned with the piezoelectric plate 101, and the cover plate 103 was bonded onto the piezoelectric plate 101 with an epoxy adhesive.
In this way, the basic structure of the piezoelectric transducer as illustrated in
Piezoelectric transducers of Examples 9 to 11 had the structure as illustrated in
In each of Examples 9 to 11, the electrode 107 was formed so as to cover the entire side wall 114 of the partition 102 facing the dummy chamber 105 and the entire upper surface of the partition 102.
In Examples 9 to 11, the height h2 of the electrode 106 formed on the side wall 113 facing the pressure chamber 104 of the partition 102 had different values. In Example 9, the height h2 of the upper end of the electrode 106 was 35% of the height of the upper surface of the partition 102. Specifically, in Example 9, the height h2 of the electrode 106 was 80 μm. In Example 10, the height h2 of the upper end of the electrode 106 was 50% of the height of the upper surface of the partition 102. Specifically, in Example 10, the height h2 of the electrode 106 was 115 μm. In Example 11, the height h2 of the upper end of the electrode 106 was 57% of the height of the upper surface of the partition 102. Specifically, in Example 11, the height h2 of the electrode 106 was 130 μm.
Methods of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducers of Examples 9 to 11 were similar to the method of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducer of Example 8. However, in a step of removing unnecessary portions of the conductive film, the height of the dicing blade was appropriately set so that the desired portions of the conductive film were able to be removed as desired.
In this way, the basic structure of the piezoelectric transducer as illustrated in
A piezoelectric transducer of Example 12 had the structure as illustrated in
In Example 12, the electrode 107 was formed so as to cover the entire side wall 114 of the partition 102 facing the dummy chamber 105 and a part of the upper surface of the partition 102. Specifically, in Example 12, the area of the portion of the electrode 107 positioned on the upper surface of the partition 102 was smaller than that in the case of Example 11.
A method of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducer of Example 12 was similar to the method of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducer of Example 11. However, the unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the upper surface of the partition 102 was removed through scanning with a laser beam. As the laser beam, an excimer laser was used. The laser beam had an energy density of 6 J/cm2. A width of the removed unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the upper surface of the partition 102 was 30 μm.
In this way, the basic structure of the piezoelectric transducer as illustrated in
A piezoelectric transducer of Example 13 had the structure as illustrated in
In Example 13, by grinding the upper portion of the side wall 113 facing the pressure chamber 104, the upper portion of the partition 102 was reduced in thickness. Further, in Example 13, the electrode 107 was formed so as to cover the entire side wall 114 of the partition 102 facing the dummy chamber 105 and the entire upper surface of the partition 102.
A method of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducer of Example 13 was similar to the methods of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducers of Examples 9 to 11. However, when the unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the side wall 113 facing the pressure chamber 104 was removed, a dicing blade having a thickness of 100 μm was used. A center line of dicing of the dicing blade was aligned with a center line of the pressure chamber 104 in the longitudinal direction thereof. The dicing blade used to remove the unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the side wall 113 had a thickness larger than the thickness of the dicing blade used to form the pressure chamber 104. Thus, the upper portion of the side wall 113 of the partition 102 facing the pressure chamber 104 was ground. With this, the wall surface 115 positioned in the upper portion of the side wall 113 was positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 116 positioned below the wall surface 115 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 115. The wall surface 115 had a height h4 of 115 μm. The upper portion of the partition 102 had a thickness of 60 μm.
In this way, the basic structure of the piezoelectric transducer as illustrated in
A piezoelectric transducer of Example 14 had the structure as illustrated in
In Example 14, by grinding the upper portion of the side wall 113 facing the pressure chamber 104, the upper portion of the partition 102 was reduced in thickness, and further, by grinding the upper portion of the side wall 114 facing the dummy chamber 105, the upper portion of the partition 102 was further reduced in thickness.
A method of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducer of Example 14 was similar to the method of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducer of Example 13. However, when the unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the side wall 114 facing the dummy chamber 105 was removed, a dicing blade having a thickness of 100 μm was used. A center line of dicing of the dicing blade was aligned with a center line of the dummy chamber 105 in the longitudinal direction thereof. The dicing blade used to remove the unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the side wall 114 had a thickness larger than the thickness of the dicing blade used to form the dummy chamber 105. Thus, the upper portion of the side wall 114 of the partition 102 facing the dummy chamber 105 was ground. With this, the wall surface 117 positioned in the upper portion of the side wall 114 was positioned so as to be set back from the wall surface 118 positioned below the wall surface 117 in the direction of the normal to the wall surface 117. The wall surface 117 had a height h5 of 34 μm. The wall surface 118 had a height of 196 μm. The upper portion of the partition 102 had a thickness of 50 μm.
In this way, the basic structure of the piezoelectric transducer as illustrated in
A piezoelectric transducer of Comparative Example 6 had the structure as illustrated in
In Comparative Example 6, the electrode 107 was not formed on the upper surface of the partition 102.
A method of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducer of Comparative Example 6 was similar to the method of manufacturing the piezoelectric transducer of Example 8. However, the unnecessary portion of the conductive film on the upper surface of the partition 102 was removed by polishing. An amount of polishing at the time when the unnecessary portion of the conductive film existing on the upper surface of the partition 102 was removed was 5 μm.
In this way, the basic structure of the piezoelectric transducer as illustrated in
Piezoelectric transducers of Comparative Examples 7 and 8 had the structure as illustrated in
In each of Comparative Examples 7 and 8, the electrode 107 was formed so as to cover the entire side wall 114 of the partition 102 facing the dummy chamber 105 and the entire upper surface of the partition 102.
In Comparative Example 7, the height h2 of the upper end of the electrode 106 was 28% of the height h1 of the upper surface of the partition 102. Specifically, in Comparative Example 7, the height h2 of the electrode 106 was 65 μm.
In Comparative Example 8, the height h2 of the upper end of the electrode 106 was 63% of the height h1 of the upper surface of the partition 102. Specifically, in Comparative Example 8, the height h2 of the electrode 106 was 145 μm.
In this way, the basic structure of the piezoelectric transducer as illustrated in
Table 2 shows results of evaluation of the amounts of displacement of the piezoelectric transducers formed as described above. With reference to the amount of displacement in the case of Comparative Example 6, the ratios of the amount of displacement to the amount of displacement in the case of Comparative Example 6 are shown. The amount of displacement was a difference between the position of the partition 102 in an initial state (see
As can be seen from Table 2, in each of the cases of Examples 8 to 14, the amount of displacement is larger than that in the case of Comparative Example 6. When the same voltage is applied, a piezoelectric transducer having a larger amount of displacement is more excellent in performance.
As can be seen from Table 2, according to the liquid ejection device according to this embodiment described above, the efficiency of displacing the partition 102 may be improved with reliability. Therefore, according to this embodiment, dielectric loss, an amount of produced heat, damage to the partition 102, a load on a driver element, and the like are inhibited, and still a desired amount of displacement can be obtained. Therefore, according to this embodiment, a satisfactory liquid ejection device with high reliability can be obtained.
Table 3 shows results of evaluation of ejection performance of the liquid ejection devices formed as described above. With reference to a voltage necessary for attaining an ejection speed of 5 m/s in the case of Comparative Example 6, the ratios of the voltage to the voltage necessary in the case of Comparative Example 6 are shown. The ejection speed of 5 m/s is an ejection speed necessary for rendering an image with a relatively high resolution.
As liquid (ink) to be ejected, a liquid mixture of 85% ethylene glycol and 15% water was used. The ink was introduced from the ink supply port 128 of the manifold 127 into the piezoelectric transducer 110 through a Tygon tube (not shown).
When the evaluation was made, a voltage of a rectangular wave having a pulse width of 8 ρsec was applied between the electrodes 106 and 107 of the piezoelectric transducer 110. The voltage applied between the electrodes 106 and 107 of the piezoelectric transducer 110 was changed, and a voltage at the time when the ejection speed of 5 m/s was obtained was determined.
As can be seen from Table 3, in each of the cases of Examples 8 to 14, the voltage necessary for obtaining the ejection speed of 5 m/s is lower than that in the case of Comparative Example 6. Therefore, according to this embodiment, dielectric loss, an amount of produced heat, damage to the partition 102, a load on a driver element, and the like are inhibited, and still a desired ejection speed can be obtained. Because the amount of produced heat can be inhibited, a viscosity of the ink can be prevented from being reduced due to a temperature rise to prevent the ejection speed from being reduced, and, by extension, a liquid ejection device having a sufficient image rendering resolution can be provided.
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made.
For example, in the third embodiment, a case is described by way of example in which the partial electrode 107b positioned on the upper surface of the partition 102 is electrically connected to the partial electrode 107a formed in the dummy chamber 105, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the partial electrode 107b positioned on the upper surface of the partition 102 may be electrically connected to the electrode 106 formed in the pressure chamber 104.
Further, the pressure chamber 105 may be used as a liquid channel, not as a dummy chamber. In this case, liquid is supplied also to the pressure chamber 105 from the manifold 127. Further, in this case, the nozzles 122 are formed not only in regions corresponding to the pressure chambers 104 but also in regions corresponding to the pressure chambers 105.
While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.
This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2014-096529, filed May 8, 2014, and No. 2014-096777, filed May 8, 2014 which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-096529 | May 2014 | JP | national |
| 2014-096777 | May 2014 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2015/063701 | 5/1/2015 | WO | 00 |
| Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| WO2015/170777 | 11/12/2015 | WO | A |
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| 2000-108361 | Apr 2000 | JP |
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| Entry |
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| International Preliminary Report on Patentability dated Nov. 8, 2016, in International Application No. PCT/JP2015/063701. |
| International Search Report and Written Opinion in PCT/JP2015/063701, dated Aug. 4, 2015. |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20170100931 A1 | Apr 2017 | US |
