Ink jet head and manufacturing method thereof
AssigneeSharp Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsHitoshi Isono, Yoshinori Nakajima
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An ink jet head which has been improved to enable reliable connection of an electrode to an external portion without increasing manufacturing cost is provided. The ink jet head includes a base member, a cover member, a nozzle plate, and a plurality of electrode connecting portions. The electrode connecting portions are electrically isolated by second grooves formed in the surface of the base member. The surface of the electrode connecting portions are substantially flush with the upper surfaces of the walls.
Claims10
An ink jet head, comprising:
- a base member at least partially formed of a piezoelectric material, including a plurality of first grooves separated by walls and arranged in parallel in a surface of said piezoelectric material, and including electrodes on parts of the walls of said respective first grooves;
- a cover member provided on said base member to cover the plurality of first grooves thereby forming ink channels to be a pressure chamber;
- a nozzle communicating with said ink channel;
- and
- a plurality of electrode connecting portions formed on a surface of said base member for connecting said electrodes to an external portion, wherein said ink jet head applies a driving voltage to said electrode to cause shear deformation of said wall so as to cause pressure vibration to said ink channel to allow said nozzle to eject ink, said plurality of electrode connecting portions are electrically isolated by second grooves formed in the surface of said base member, and surfaces of said electrode connecting portions are substantially flush with upper surfaces of said walls.
A method of manufacturing an ink jet head including a base member at least partially formed of a piezoelectric material, including a plurality of first grooves separated by walls and arranged in parallel in a surface of said piezoelectric material, and including electrodes on parts of the walls of said first grooves,
- a cover member formed to cover said plurality of grooves of said base member to provide ink channels to be a pressure chamber, and
- a nozzle communicating with said ink channel, said ink jet head applying a drive voltage to said electrode to cause shear deformation of said wall so as to cause pressure vibration to said ink channel to allow said nozzle to eject ink, comprising the steps of:
- preparing a substrate at least partially formed of a piezoelectric material;
- forming grooves in a surface of said substrate with use of a resist having a prescribed pattern, so as to form an ink channel of said first groove having a sloped end portion on a side opposite said nozzle;
- forming a metal film on said slope and the surface of said substrate excluding a bottom portion of said ink channel;
- and
- dividing said metal film into a plurality of portions to form a plurality of electrically isolated electrode connecting portions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.