JPH09136417A - Liquid discharge head and liquid discharge apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ink-jet head and an ink-jet print apparatus which can accurately register hitting positions of a treatment liquid and recording ink and record with high image quality at high speed. SOLUTION: An ink-jet head 1 discharges ink thereby to record images, and discharges also a treatment liquid for turning a coloring matter in the ink insoluble or into an aggregation. Heater boards 7, 8 have energy generation elements 17, 18 for generating energy to discharge the ink or treatment liquid. A top plate 2 held between the heater boards 7 and 8 has feed paths 13, 14 for the ink and treatment liquid. A nozzle 3, 4 for discharging the recording ink and treatment liquid is formed between the top plate 2 and the heater board 7, 8.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to printing (recording).
The present invention relates to a liquid ejection head for performing printing by ejecting an application liquid from an ejection port by using thermal energy, and a liquid ejection device using the head. Here, as the print, cloth,
It includes the application of ink to all ink supports that receive various inks such as thread, paper, and sheet material, and includes all types of information processing devices or a printer as an output device thereof. The present invention can be applied to these.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Ink jet printing is capable of reducing noise generated during printing to a negligible level and is capable of high-speed printing, and can be fixed and printed on so-called plain paper without requiring special processing. Has recently attracted interest.

Among them, for example, JP-A-54-51837.
The inkjet printing method described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2843064 and German publication (DOLS) 2843064 is different from other inkjet printing methods in that thermal energy is applied to a liquid to obtain a driving force for ink ejection. , Have different characteristics.

That is, in the printing method disclosed in the above publication, the liquid subjected to the action of thermal energy causes a state change accompanied by a sharp increase in volume, and the action force of the state change causes the print head to change. The liquid is ejected from the orifice at the tip of the part. The liquid forms flying droplets, and the droplets adhere to the print target member to perform recording.

Particularly, the ink jet printing method disclosed in the above-mentioned DOLS 2843064 is not only very effectively applied to the so-called Drop-on-demand printing method, but also the print head is f
A high-resolution, high-resolution multi-orifice printhead can be easily realized with the
The feature is that high quality images can be obtained at high speed.

As shown in FIG. 7, the print head of the apparatus applied to the above-mentioned printing method is provided with an orifice (ejection port) 206 provided for ejecting a liquid droplet, and communicates with this orifice 206, A plurality of nozzles 20 partitioned by the flow path wall 203 has a heat acting portion, which is a portion where thermal energy for ejecting drops acts on the liquid, as a part of the configuration.
4, an ink ejection portion having a common liquid chamber 207 for supplying ejection liquid to each of these nozzles 204, an electrothermal converter (heating element) 202 as means for generating thermal energy, and this heating element. Wiring unit 20 for supplying power to 202
9 and a printhead substrate 201. Liquid is supplied to the common liquid chamber 207 from a liquid storage tank (not shown) via a supply pipe 208.

Under these circumstances, conventionally, an ink jet head using a pigment ink is liable to stick due to aggregation of the pigment component, has poor storage stability, has a high viscosity and cannot increase the ejection response frequency, and has a problem in that There is a problem that the fixing time is extremely long because of poor penetrability into recording paper.
Furthermore, in order to solve these problems, it has been practiced to reduce the pigment concentration or to use a solvent having a high permeability, but this also causes a deterioration in image quality due to a reduction in the recording concentration or bleeding on the recording paper, which is not very effective. Not raised.

On the other hand, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 58-128862 proposes an ink jet recording method in which a treatment liquid and a recording ink for improving image quality, storability and spreadability are overlaid. In this proposal, the color inkjet printing apparatus is composed of a separate drum type head.

[0009]

However, in this recording method, if the landing position of the treatment liquid and the landing position of the recording ink are slightly deviated from each other, the image quality, the fixing property, the weather resistance, etc. are remarkably deteriorated. In particular, in the above-mentioned conventional example, since the head for the processing liquid and the head for the recording ink are separately provided, in order to accurately align the landing positions of the processing liquid and the recording ink, the parts accuracy of each head and the printer main body Especially, it is necessary to make the precision of the carriage part strict.
The cost was increasing. Further, it takes a lot of time for the adjustment, and the cost is much higher than that of a general inkjet printer. This is particularly remarkable in a printer in which the user can replace the head. Further, it is easily understood that even if the response frequency is increased, it does not bring about a great effect on the printing speed. Further, these are the same problems in a recording method of a type in which different kinds of ink are overlapped at the ink landing positions.

A first object of the present invention is to provide a liquid ejecting head or the like capable of accurately recording the landing positions of different kinds of ink and the landing positions of the treatment liquid and the recording ink and performing high-speed recording with high image quality. Especially.

A second object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet printing apparatus capable of mounting an ink jet head capable of high-speed recording with high image quality by accurately adjusting the landing positions of different kinds of ink and the landing positions of the treatment liquid and the recording ink. To provide.

[0012]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a liquid ejection head according to the present invention is provided with a plurality of energy generating elements for generating energy for ejecting a liquid and is provided so as to face each other. Disposed between the first and second element substrates and the opposing first and second element substrates,
A groove for forming a liquid flow path corresponding to each of the energy generating elements between the first element substrate and the second element substrate;
A grooved member having a groove for forming a liquid flow path corresponding to each of the energy generating elements, and a discharge port communicating with each of the liquid flow paths. And

The liquid discharge head cartridge has the above-described liquid discharge head and a liquid storage container for holding ink supplied to the liquid discharge head.

Further, the liquid ejecting apparatus is characterized by having the above-mentioned liquid ejecting head and means for holding the liquid ejecting head detachably.

According to the liquid discharge head and the like of the present invention, a single grooved member having discharge ports for discharging two different types of liquid is used, and nozzles for discharging each liquid are integrated into both. Since it is configured, the deviation of the landing position of each liquid does not occur, and it is possible to obtain an image of extremely high quality and excellent in fixability and weather resistance.

Further, by integrally forming the nozzles for ejecting the above-mentioned two kinds of liquids, it is possible to obtain a liquid ejection head with a low manufacturing cost, so that it is possible to reduce the cost of the entire printer. .

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1A and 1B show an embodiment of the ink jet head (liquid ejection head) of the present invention, and FIG. 1A is a sectional view showing the internal structure of the ink jet head. FIG. 3B is a front view of a part of the external structure of the inkjet head as viewed from the orifice surface side.
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the external structure of the inkjet head shown in FIG. 1 viewed from the flow path side.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 is an ink jet head. The inkjet head 1 includes ink supply paths 13 and 14 for separately supplying the recording ink A and the treatment liquid B to the nozzles 3 and 4, and respective nozzles (liquid flow paths).
A plurality of grooves for configuring the common liquid chamber 1
5, 16 and the concave portion and the orifice (discharge port) 19,
A top plate (grooved member) 2 having 20 and two heater boards (element substrates) 7 and 8 sandwiching the top plate 2 from both sides are roughly configured. The nozzles 3 and 4 and the ink supply paths 13 and 14 are provided by closely contacting the top plate 2 and the heater boards (element substrates) 7 and 8 with each other.
Common liquid chambers 15 and 16 for supplying the recording ink A and the processing liquid B to the nozzles 3 and 4 and supplying the recording ink A and the processing liquid B to the nozzles 3 and 4, respectively. Outside the heater boards 7 and 8, the base plates 5 and 6 shown in FIG.
Is glued. On the heater boards 7, 8, ink is heated and foamed in a portion facing the nozzles, and an electrothermal conversion element 17, which is an energy generating element for discharging the liquid in the nozzles 3, 4 from the orifices 19, 20 by the foaming pressure,
18 are provided. Further, the heater boards 7 and 8 are supplied with electric energy and ejection control signals from the printed circuit boards 11 and 12 via wires (electrical wiring) 9 and 10.

The above-mentioned orifices 19 and 20 are arranged on the face surface 2a of the top plate 2, and a groove as a means for preventing the mixture of both liquids is provided between both orifice rows 19 and 20. 21 are provided along the arrangement direction of the orifice row. The mixing prevention means is not limited to the groove shape, and may be a convex shape or the like as long as it can prevent the two kinds of ink from mixing.

Since the orifices 19 and 20 provided on the face surface 2a are simultaneously opened by laser or photo-etching, the positional relationship can be made with high accuracy so as not to cause a deviation of several μm.

As described above, by arranging a plurality of element substrates so as to face each other and arranging the grooved member between them, a head for ejecting different liquids can be obtained very compactly and at low cost. Further, in particular, since the ejection openings corresponding to the respective element substrates are already arranged in the grooved member, the shape and arrangement of the ejection openings affect the manufacturing process of the liquid flow path by joining the element substrate and the grooved member. Not done. For this reason,
The accuracy of the landing positions of different liquids can be dramatically improved.

Further, since the above-mentioned grooved member integrally forms not only the groove and the discharge port which form the flow path corresponding to each of the element substrates but also the recess which forms the common liquid chamber, the number of parts is reduced. It is possible to obtain a high-performance ink ejection head which is less expensive and more inexpensive.

Since the above-mentioned grooved member is sandwiched by a plurality of element substrates, the grooved member is deformed by the heat transferred from the element substrate depending on the ejection state, for example, when the element is driven without the liquid being ejected. It can happen. On the other hand, like the present invention, the base plates (heat dissipation members) 5 and 6 made of a material having a high thermal conductivity and a large heat dissipation effect such as a metal such as an aluminum-based or copper-based metal or a metal such as stainless steel are provided outside the element substrate. If provided, there is no such concern. Of course, if heat generation is small and the grooved member is not deformed, the heat dissipation member may not be provided.

Further, in the liquid discharge head of the present invention, the wires 9 and 10 for electrically connecting the element substrate and the circuit boards 11 and 12 inside the opposing base plates.
Since it is provided, the electrical connection portion can be protected from the influence from the outside.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of an equivalent circuit formed on the base plates 5 and 6 of the ink jet head 1 shown in FIGS.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 301 is image data input, 302 is a data transfer shift register clock, and 3 is
Reference numeral 03 is a latch that holds S / R data, and 304 is an ENB that determines the print pulse width and timing. 305
Is an electrothermal conversion element as an energy generating element, 306 is a driving transistor, 307 is a power supply power source, and 308 is a logic power source.

Next, a method of forming an image with the above ink jet head will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 (a) to 4 (d).

FIGS. 4A to 4D are side views for explaining an example of a method for ejecting the recording ink and the treatment liquid by the ink jet head shown in FIGS.

First, as shown in (a), the inkjet head 1 discharges the treatment liquid from the orifice 19 to a predetermined position of the recording paper 29 as a recording medium while scanning in the direction of arrow C.

As shown in (b), the discharged processing liquid droplets 22 land on the recording paper 29 and permeate to form dots 24. About 30 dyn / c so that the treatment liquid penetrates the recording paper 29 at a high speed to form large dots.
A material having a physical strength of m or less and an extremely small surface tension is used. Also, when ejecting a liquid having such physical properties,
Since a sufficiently large dot can be obtained with a volume about half that of the recording ink, the nozzle configuration should have a suitable ejection characteristic corresponding to the physical properties of each ink.

Next, as shown in (c), the ink jet head 1 is further moved in the direction of arrow C while the recording paper 2 is being moved.
The recording ink is ejected from the orifice 20 to the dot 24 on the upper surface 9.

As shown in (d), the recording ink droplets 25 are accurately landed on the dots 24 to form the dots 26, and when both liquids are mixed, a coagulation reaction rapidly occurs and the recording ink is formed. Is reliably fixed, and a high-quality image is obtained.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the positional relationship between two series of orifices in one top plate in this embodiment will be described.

In the example shown in (a), a treatment liquid orifice array 19 and a recording ink orifice array 20 are provided in parallel to each other on the face surface 2a of the top plate 2 with a distance d therebetween. The velocity V in the direction in which the inkjet head 1 moves with respect to the recording paper (the direction of arrow C) has a relationship of V / d = f _op between the distance d between both orifices and the ejection frequency f _op. If the orifices 19 and 20 are formed correspondingly on the head movement line, the landing positions of the liquid dots from the orifices can be matched.

In the example shown in (b), the orifice rows 19 and 20 are inclined by an angle θ with respect to the direction (arrow C direction) in which the ink jet head 1 moves with respect to the recording paper. In this example, the orifice row 19 is an orifice. D for row 20
It is provided so as to be shifted by tan θ in the column direction.

With such a configuration, (a)
The recording density can be increased and the refill characteristics can be improved as compared with the example shown in FIG. Further, if the ejection drive timing is V / (d / cos θ) = f _op , the landing positions of the liquid dots from the respective orifices can be matched.

Although the ink and the treatment liquid have been described as different liquids in the description of the head, the present invention is not limited to this, and different types of ink may be used as the different liquids.

As such an example, mixed colors may be combined using inks of different colors, and in such a case, it is possible to eliminate the change in color due to the deviation of the landing position.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing an embodiment of an ink jet printing apparatus to which the print head according to the above embodiment can be mounted and applied.

In FIG. 6, reference numeral 1101 denotes a liquid ejection head cartridge having the print head according to the above-described embodiment and an ink container holding the ink supplied to the print head. This head cartridge 11
01 is mounted on a carriage 1107 that engages with a spiral groove 1106 of a lead screw 1105 that rotates via drive force transmission gears 1103 and 1104 in association with forward and reverse rotations of a drive motor 1102. The power of the motor causes the carriage 1107 to reciprocate along the guide 1108 in the directions of arrows a and b. A paper pressing plate 11 for the print paper P conveyed on the platen 1109 by a print medium supply device (not shown).
10 is the print paper P in the carriage movement direction.
Is pressed against the platen 1109.

Photocouplers 1111 and 1112 are arranged near one end of the lead screw 1105. Both of these photocouplers are home position detecting means for confirming the existence of the lever 1119 of the carriage 1107 in this area and for switching the rotation direction of the drive motor. In FIG. 6, reference numeral 1113 denotes the print head 1.
The cap member 1 that covers the entire surface of the nozzle 101 having the discharge port 304
It is a support member that supports 114. Reference numeral 1115 is a means for sucking ink from the head 1101 into the cap member 1114. The suction means 1115 performs suction recovery of the head 1101 through the opening 1116 in the cap. 1117 is a cleaning blade, and 1118 is a moving member that allows the blade 1117 to move in the front-rear direction (direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the carriage 1107).
118 is supported by a main body support plate 1120. Also,
Reference numeral 1121 denotes a lever for starting suction for suction recovery, which moves in accordance with the movement of the cam 1122 that engages with the carriage 1107, and the driving force from the drive motor is controlled by a known transmission means such as clutch switching. To be done. The print control unit that gives a signal to the heating element 101 provided in the head 1101 and controls the drive of each mechanism described above is provided on the printer side and is not shown here.

The printer 1100 having the above structure is
The platen 110 is provided by a print medium supply device (not shown).
Head 110 for print paper P conveyed on
1 performs recording while reciprocating over the entire width of the paper P, and the head 1101 is capable of high-density printing, and therefore high-precision and high-speed printing is possible.

In practicing the present invention, the ink used is not particularly limited to a dye ink, but a pigment ink in which a pigment is dispersed can be used. Can be used. It is also possible to use a combination of different types of ink having different colors and the like described below. The following can be mentioned as an example of the pigment ink which causes aggregation by mixing with the above-mentioned colorless liquid A1. That is, as described below, it is possible to obtain yellow, magenta, cyan, and black color inks Y2, M2, C2, and K2 each containing a pigment and an anionic compound.

Black ink K2 Anionic polymer P-1 (styrene-methacrylic acid-ethyl acrylate, acid value 400, weight average molecular weight 6,0)
00, an aqueous solution having a solid content of 20%, a neutralizing agent: potassium hydroxide) as a dispersant, the following materials were charged into a batch-type vertical sand mill (manufactured by Imex), and glass beads having a diameter of 1 mm were filled as a medium. The dispersion treatment was performed for 3 hours while cooling with water. The viscosity after dispersion was 9 cps and the pH was 10.0. The dispersion was centrifuged to remove coarse particles, thereby producing a carbon black dispersion having a weight average particle diameter of 100 nm.

(Composition of carbon black dispersion) -P-1 aqueous solution (solid content 20%) 40 parts-Carbon black Mogul L (manufactured by Cablack) 24 parts-Glycerin 15 parts-Ethylene glycol monobutyl ether 0.5 parts- Isopropyl alcohol 3 parts Water 135 parts

Next, the dispersion obtained above was sufficiently diffused to obtain a black ink K2 for ink jet containing a pigment. The solids content of the final preparation was about 10%.

Yellow ink Y2 Anionic polymer P-2 (styrene-acrylic acid-methyl methacrylate, acid value 280, weight average molecular weight 1
1,000, an aqueous solution having a solid content of 20%, and a neutralizing agent: diethanolamine) as a dispersant, and using the materials described below, a dispersion treatment was performed in the same manner as in the preparation of the black ink K2, and the weight average particle size A 103 nm yellow dispersion was prepared.

(Composition of Yellow Dispersion) P-2 aqueous solution (solid content 20%) 35 parts C.I. I. Pigment Yellow 180 24 parts (Nova Palm Yellow PH-G, manufactured by Hoechst) ・ Triethylene glycol 10 parts ・ Diethylene glycol 10 parts ・ Ethylene glycol monobutyl ether 1.0 part ・ Isopropyl alcohol 0.5 part ・ Water 135 parts

The yellow dispersion obtained above was sufficiently diffused to obtain a yellow ink Y2 for ink jet containing a pigment. The solids content of the final preparation was about 10%.

Cyan Ink C2 Using the anionic polymer P-1 used in the preparation of the black ink K2 as a dispersant, the following materials were used, and the same dispersion treatment as in the case of the carbon black dispersion described above was performed. Then, a cyan color dispersion having a weight average particle diameter of 120 nm was produced.

(Composition of cyan color dispersion) P-1 aqueous solution (solid content 20%) 30 parts C.I. I. Pigment Blue 15: 3 24 parts (Fast Gemble-FGF, Dainippon Ink and Chemicals) ・ Glycerin 15 parts ・ Diethylene glycol monobutyl ether 0.5 parts ・ Isopropyl alcohol 3 parts ・ Water 135 parts

The cyan color dispersion obtained above was sufficiently stirred to obtain a cyan ink C2 for ink jet containing a pigment. The solids content of the final preparation was about 9.6%.

Magenta Ink M2 Using the anionic polymer P-1 used in the preparation of the black ink K2 as a dispersant, the following materials were used and the same dispersion treatment as in the case of the carbon black dispersion described above was performed. Then, a magenta color dispersion having a weight average particle diameter of 115 nm was produced.

(Composition of magenta color dispersion) P-1 aqueous solution (solid content 20%) 20 parts C.I. I. Pigment Red 122 (Dainippon Ink and Chemicals) 24 parts ・ Glycerin 15 parts ・ Isopropyl alcohol 3 parts ・ Water 135 parts

The magenta color dispersion obtained above was sufficiently diffused to obtain a magenta ink M2 for ink jet containing a pigment. The solids content of the final preparation is about 9.2
%Met.

The treatment liquid for making the ink dye insoluble can be obtained as follows, for example.

That is, after mixing and dissolving the following components,
Further, after filtration under pressure with a membrane filter having a pore size of 0.22 μm (trade name: Fluoropore Filter, manufactured by Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.), the pH is adjusted to 4.8 with NaOH to obtain a treatment liquid Al.

[Component of Al] Low molecular weight component of cationic compound Stearyl trimethyl ammonium chloride 2.0 parts (trade name; Electrostop QE, manufactured by Kao) High molecular component of cationic compound Polyamine sulfone (average molecular weight: 5000) 3 0.0 parts (trade name; PAS-92, manufactured by Nitto Boseki) Thiodiglycol 10 parts Water balance

Further, the following can be mentioned as preferable examples of the ink which becomes insoluble when mixed with the treatment liquid.

That is, the following components were mixed, and the mixture was filtered under pressure with a membrane filter (trade name: chloropore filter, manufactured by Sumitomo Electric Industries) having a pore size of 0.22 μm, and the yellow, magenta, cyan, and black inks Y were used.
1, M1, C1, and K1 can be obtained.

Y1 C. I. Direct Yellow 142 2 parts Thiodiglycol 10 parts Acetyleneol EH (Kawaken Fine Chemical) 0.05 parts Water balance M1 I. Acid Red 289; C1 dye having the same composition as Y1 except that 2.5 parts is replaced with C.I. I. Acid Blue 9; Same composition as Y1 except that 2.5 parts were used. I. Food Black 2: the same composition as Y1 except that 3 parts were used

Treatment liquids (liquid compositions) shown above
In the present invention, when the treatment liquid and the ink described above are mixed with each other on the printing material or at the position where the ink penetrates into the printing material, the cations contained in the processing liquid as the first step of the reaction. Among the organic substances, a low molecular weight component or a cationic oligomer and an anionic compound used in the ink having a water-soluble dye or pigment ink used in the ink cause an association by ionic interaction, Instantly separates from the solution phase. As a result, dispersion destruction occurs in the pigment ink, and an aggregate of the pigment is formed.

Next, in the second stage of the reaction, the aggregate of the dye and the low molecular weight cationic substance or cationic oligomer or the aggregate of the pigment is adsorbed by the polymer component contained in the treatment liquid. In addition, the size of aggregates of dyes or aggregates of pigments generated by association becomes even larger, making it difficult for the aggregates to enter into the gaps between fibers of the print material, and as a result, only the liquid portion that is solid-liquid separated into the recording paper. By soaking in, both print quality and fixability are achieved. At the same time, the low molecular weight component of the cationic substance generated by the mechanism as described above or a cationic oligomer, an aggregate formed of an anionic dye and a cationic substance or an aggregate of the pigment has a high viscosity,
Since the liquid medium does not move with the movement of the liquid medium, even if adjacent ink dots are formed of different color inks as in the case of full-color image formation, they do not mix with each other, and bleeding does not occur. Also,
The aggregates are essentially water insoluble and the water resistance of the formed image is perfect. Further, it also has an effect of improving the light fastness of an image formed by the shielding effect of the polymer.

As the insolubilization or agglomeration used in the present specification, one example thereof is the phenomenon of the first stage only, and another example is the phenomenon including both the first stage and the second stage.

In carrying out the present invention, it is not necessary to use a cationic polymer substance having a large molecular weight or a polyvalent metal salt as in the prior art, or even if it is necessary to use the present invention, Since it is only necessary to supplementarily use it to further improve the effect, the amount used can be minimized. As a result, there is no decrease in the coloring property of the dye, which is a problem when trying to obtain the water resistance effect by using the conventional cationic polymer substance or polyvalent metal salt. Can be listed as the effect of.

The material to be printed used for carrying out the present invention is not particularly limited, and so-called plain paper such as conventionally used copy paper and bond paper can be preferably used. Of course, a coated paper specially prepared for inkjet printing and a transparent film for OHP can also be suitably used, and general high-quality paper and glossy paper can also be suitably used.

The present invention is particularly effective for a print head and printer of the type which ejects ink by utilizing thermal energy, which is proposed by Canon Inc. among inkjet printers. This is because according to such a method, it is possible to achieve higher density and higher definition of recording.

Regarding its typical structure and principle, see, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent No. 796. This method is a so-called on-demand type,
Although it can be applied to any type of continuous type, in particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it can be applied to a sheet holding liquid (ink) or an electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the liquid path. Applying at least one drive signal corresponding to the recorded information and providing a rapid temperature rise exceeding the nucleate boiling, causing the electrothermal transducer to generate thermal energy, causing film boiling on the heat acting surface of the printhead. This is effective because bubbles can be formed in the liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal on a one-to-one basis. Due to the growth and contraction of this bubble, the liquid (ink)
To form at least one droplet. When this drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be obtained.
It is more preferable that the discharge can be achieved. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, US Pat. No. 4,463,359,
The one described in the specification of US Pat. No. 4,345,262 is suitable. If the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 of the invention relating to the rate of temperature rise on the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

In addition to the combination of the ejection port, the liquid passage, and the electrothermal converter (the straight liquid passage or the right-angled liquid passage) as disclosed in the above-mentioned specifications, the structure of the print head is not limited to the above. The present invention also includes a configuration using US Pat. No. 4,558,333 and US Pat. No. 4,459,600, which disclose a configuration in which the heat acting portion is arranged in a bending region.

In addition, even in the case of the serial type as in the above example, the print head fixed to the apparatus main body or the electrical connection to the apparatus main body and the ink from the apparatus main body by being attached to the apparatus main body. The present invention is also effective when a replaceable chip type print head that can be supplied or a cartridge type print head in which an ink tank is integrally provided in the print head itself is used.

The type or number of print heads to be mounted is, for example, 1 for a single color ink.
In addition to those provided with only a plurality of inks, a plurality of inks may be provided corresponding to a plurality of inks having different recording colors and densities. That is, for example, the recording mode of the printing apparatus is not limited to the recording mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but may be constituted by integrally forming the print heads or a combination of a plurality of them. The present invention is also extremely effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of full-color recording modes by color mixing.

In addition, as a form of the ink jet printing apparatus of the present invention, other than the one used as an image output terminal of an information processing apparatus such as a computer, a copying apparatus combined with a reader or the like, and a facsimile apparatus having a transmitting / receiving function are provided. It may be a form or the like.

[0074]

As described above, while providing an ink jet head having high image quality and high printing speed, the landing points of both heads can be easily adjusted, and the cost of the printer main body is low.
It is possible to provide an inkjet head and an inkjet printing apparatus which are excellent in image fastness, fixability, image density, head durability, and the like.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1A and 1B are views showing an embodiment of an inkjet head of the present invention, FIG. 1A is a sectional view showing an internal structure of the inkjet head, and FIG. 1B is an inkjet head. 4 is a front view of a part of the external structure of FIG.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of an external structure of the inkjet head shown in FIG. 1 viewed from a flow path side.

3 is a plan view showing an example of an equivalent circuit formed on a base plate of the inkjet head shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG.

4A to 4D are side views illustrating an example of a method of ejecting a recording ink and a treatment liquid by the inkjet head shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

5A and 5B are plan views showing the positional relationship between the recording ink orifice and the treatment liquid orifice in the inkjet head shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. Both orifice rows are shown as being perpendicular to the main scanning direction of the inkjet head, and (b) shows a case where both orifice rows are inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the main scanning direction of the inkjet head.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing a printer as an inkjet printing apparatus of the present invention in which the inkjet head shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 can be mounted.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a broken internal structure of a conventional inkjet head.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Inkjet head 2 Top plate 3,4 Nozzle 5,6 Base plate 7,8 Heater board (plate) 9,10 Wire 11,12 Printed circuit board (PCB) 13,14 Flow path 15,16 Common liquid chamber 17,18 Electrothermal conversion element (energy generating element) 19, 20 Orifice 21 Groove

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Hiroshi Sugitani 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc.

Claims (15)

[Claims] 1. A first and second element substrate provided with a plurality of energy generating elements for generating energy for ejecting a liquid and facing each other, and the first and second facing elements. The energy generation is provided between the second element substrate and a groove which is arranged between the element substrates and forms a liquid flow path corresponding to each of the energy generating elements between the element substrate and the first element substrate. A liquid discharge head comprising: a grooved member having a groove for forming a liquid flow path corresponding to each of the elements and a discharge port communicating with each liquid flow path. 2. The liquid ejection head according to claim 1, wherein ink is ejected from an ejection port corresponding to the first element substrate, and a treatment liquid is ejected from an ejection port corresponding to the second element substrate. 3. The liquid ejection head according to claim 1, wherein the ejection ports corresponding to the first element substrate and the ejection ports corresponding to the second element substrate are arranged in the same plane. 4. A means for preventing mixing of the ink and the treatment liquid is provided between the ejection port corresponding to the first element substrate and the ejection port corresponding to the second element substrate. Item 2. The liquid ejection head of item 2. 5. The ejection port array corresponding to the first element substrate and the ejection port array corresponding to the second element substrate are arranged parallel to each other and at a right angle to the scanning direction of the head. The liquid discharge head according to claim 1. 6. A first ejection port array corresponding to the first element substrate and a second ejection port array corresponding to the second element substrate are arranged in parallel, and a head scanning direction is set. The liquid ejection head according to claim 1, which is inclined with respect to. 7. A predetermined discharge port of the first discharge port array by shifting the second discharge port array with respect to the position of the first discharge port array by a predetermined pitch in a direction along the line. 7. The liquid ejection head according to claim 6, wherein an imaginary line passing through in the scanning direction of the head and an imaginary line extending in the scanning direction of the head through a predetermined ejection port of the second ejection port array are coincident with each other. 8. The liquid ejection head according to claim 1, wherein the first and second element substrates have different shapes. 9. The characteristic of each of the energy generating elements arranged on the first and second element substrates is different.
Liquid ejection head. 10. The liquid discharge head according to claim 1, wherein the shapes of the respective liquid passages corresponding to the first and second element substrates are different from each other. 11. The liquid ejection head according to claim 2, wherein the treatment liquid contains a cationic substance having a low molecular weight component and a high molecular weight component, and the ink contains an anionic dye. 12. The liquid ejection head according to claim 2, wherein the treatment liquid contains a low molecular component and a high molecular component of a cationic substance, and the ink contains at least an anionic dye and a pigment. 13. A liquid ejection head cartridge comprising: the liquid ejection head according to claim 1; and a liquid storage container that holds ink supplied to the liquid ejection head. 14. A liquid ejecting apparatus comprising: the liquid ejecting head according to claim 1; and a unit that detachably holds the liquid ejecting head. 15. The liquid ejection head according to claim 12, further comprising: a unit that conveys a recording medium that receives ink ejected from the liquid ejection head; and a unit that conveys the liquid ejection head.