JPH05330062A - Method for producing nozzle of ink jet head - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] The nozzle plates can be joined without causing clogging, and the hole shape and hole position accuracy can be improved. [Structure] The base plate 1 and the flow channel plate 4 are bonded to each other in advance, and the flow channel plate 4 has a plurality of flow channels 5. In the nozzle plate, the adhesive 3 is applied to one surface of the film 2, and the adhesive 3 is semi-cured. After joining the nozzle plate to the base plate 1, both the film 2 and the adhesive 3 are simultaneously drilled by an excimer laser.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method for producing a nozzle of an inkjet head. For example, it is applied to all joints that require precision.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There are roughly two types of methods for forming nozzles in ink jet. A first method is a method in which one side that can serve as a base plate and a base plate is preliminarily formed with a flow path narrowed down to an area equivalent to the nozzle, and both are attached. 3A and 3B are views showing the first method, and FIG. 3A is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 3B.
In the figure, 11 is a base plate, 12 is a flow path, 13 is a nozzle, and 14 is an upper plate. Base plate 11 or top plate 1
The nozzle 12 is formed by forming the flow path 12 in 4 and joining them to each other. The disadvantage of this method is that the nozzle shape is not point-symmetrical, such as prismatic or half-moon shaped, so the droplet shape is asymmetrical, and dust or foreign matter easily adheres to the corners, which lowers jetting stability. .. Also, the nozzle 13
Since the base plate 11, the flow path 12, and the upper plate 14 are made of different materials, the surface energy is different and the injection direction is not stable.

The second method is to join a plate having a pre-established nozzle to the base plate. It is a known technique to open a plurality of nozzles by etching or Ni electroforming, but there is a problem in joining these plates. As a joining method, the adhesive is screen-printed on either the base plate or the nozzle plate by a screen printing method to bond the adhesive, but the adhesive does not penetrate the nozzle. However, there are drawbacks such as clogging and clogging or adhesion to the vicinity of the nozzle.

In order to solve this problem, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 14458/1992 proposes a "plate multi-layer joining method". The one disclosed in this publication provides an effective method for multi-layer bonding of plates having a small nozzle diameter and a small nozzle-to-nozzle pitch, in which plates having a plurality of films are bonded. Before this, an adhesive is applied to or adhered to the head main body, the area to be the nozzle is removed by photon energy, and the nozzle plate is joined. According to this method, since a large hole is formed in the adhesive layer with a predetermined photon energy, the diameter of the nozzle on the nozzle plate becomes small at the time of joining the nozzle plates, and the plate floats. Further, there is a drawback that it is difficult to align the hole position of the adhesive layer with the nozzle plate. As the function of the nozzle plate, not only the function of discharging the liquid,
It must have a function of preventing water vapor from permeating through the nozzle plate to reduce the insulation resistance of the piezoelectric body, and a function of not leaving an ink pool when the ink is dripped.

[0005]

[Purpose] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and is an inkjet head in which a nozzle plate can be joined without causing clogging, and hole shape and hole position accuracy can be improved. It is made for the purpose of providing a method for producing a nozzle.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides (1)
An adhesive is coated on one surface of the nozzle plate, the adhesive is left in a semi-cured state, the nozzle plate is joined to a base plate, and then the nozzle plate and the adhesive are bonded by an excimer laser. Both of them are drilled at the same time, and (2) the nozzle plate is composed of at least two layers of an adhesive layer, a water resistant layer, a moisture permeable layer, and a hydrophilic layer. .. Hereinafter, description will be given based on examples of the present invention.

FIGS. 1 (a) to 1 (d) are configuration diagrams for explaining an embodiment of a method for producing a nozzle of an ink jet head according to the present invention, in which 1 is a base plate and 2 is a film. 3 is an adhesive, 4 is a flow path plate, 5 is a flow path, and 6 is a nozzle. The preliminary base plate 1 and the flow path plate 4 are joined to each other, and the flow path plate 4 has a plurality of flow paths and has a shape narrowed in the width direction and the lateral direction with respect to the nozzle size. ..
The nozzle plate joined to this is in a semi-cured state in which the adhesive 3 is applied to one surface of the film 2. The film material has excellent ink resistance and high rigidity.
It may be a polymer material such as tersulfone or polyphenylene sulfide, or a glass material.

A thickness of 30 to 60 μm is preferable in terms of particle formation characteristics. The adhesive may be either a thermosetting epoxy type or a thermoplastic hot melt. As a coating method of the adhesive, there are a method of directly forming a film on a film by a bar coater and a method of forming a film on a film having a good releasability once and transferring it to the film. After coating the film surface with the adhesive, the solvent is removed to leave a semi-cured state. The film thickness is about 10 μm because the bonding strength and the adhesive melts during bonding.
Is appropriate. Prepare the above-mentioned members and
To join. The film laminate is pressurized (3kg / cm ² ) and heated (120 ° C) so that there are no residual bubbles, and the linear velocity is applied.
Perform at a speed of (0.5 mm / s). Temporary joining is performed with this, and then main curing (120 ° C./1 hr) is performed. The nozzle plate bonded under these conditions is in close contact with the base plate, and sufficient bonding strength can be obtained without the adhesive flowing into the opening of the flow path. Next, excimer light is used for nozzle processing, and the film surface corresponding to each flow path is irradiated to remove both the film and the adhesive at the same time.

FIGS. 2A to 2C are views showing an example of the structure of the nozzle plate. In the figure, 7 is a water resistant layer, 8 is a moisture permeable layer, 9 is a hydrophilic layer, and 10 is an adhesive layer. In FIG. 3A, a moisture-proof layer 8 required for the nozzle plate to prevent water vapor, a water-resistant layer 7 that does not absorb ink and is not deteriorated in swelling, even when the ink sags or the nozzle surface is wiped. A hydrophilic layer 9 is provided on the nozzle plate to form a uniform ink film without leaving a pool of ink. Further base
A bonding layer 10 is provided which enables bonding without overflow from the spray. The material is SiO ₂ , ITO, S for the moisture-proof layer 8.
The moisture permeability can be easily reduced by forming an inorganic film such as i ₃ N ₄ by sputtering with a thickness of 200 to 500Å. Further, as the hydrophilic layer 9, U
It can be produced by surface modification by V irradiation or plasma treatment.

FIG. 10B shows the moisture-proof layer 8 and the hydrophilic layer 9 which are integrated with each other. SiO ₂ , ITO, Si ₃ N ₄ , Al ₂ O
Not only the transparent film such as ₃ , but also a configuration example having both hydrophilic and moisture permeable functions by vapor deposition of Al or the like. Figure (c)
In this example, the water resistant layer 7 is made of a material having water resistant and moisture permeable functions. That is, a resin material can be applied to the member of the waterproof layer 7 in FIGS. (A) and (b), but both functions can be satisfied by using a glass material in FIG. (C). Is.

[00011]

[Effect] As is apparent from the above description, the present invention has the following effects. (1) A base adhesive is applied to the nozzle plate base material in advance so as to be in a semi-cured state, and the base plate is joined to the base plate.
It becomes possible to join without the adhesive flowing into the flow path opening of the plate. Further, the nozzle plate base material and the adhesive are simultaneously subjected to the excimer laser processing, so that the nozzle shape having a high circularity can be obtained without the adhesive flowing into the nozzle. (2) It is possible to maintain the function and improve the reliability by forming the nozzle plate material into a multilayer film having a plurality of functions.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram for explaining an embodiment of a method for forming a nozzle of an inkjet head according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a nozzle plate of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a conventional nozzle creation method.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Base plate, 2 ... Film, 3 ... Adhesive, 4 ...
Flow path plate, 5 ... Flow path, 6 ... Nozzle.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A nozzle plate is coated with an adhesive agent on one side thereof, the adhesive agent is left in a semi-cured state, the nozzle plate is joined to a base plate, and the nozzle plate is then cut by an excimer laser. A method for making a nozzle for an inkjet head, which comprises simultaneously making holes in both the adhesive and the adhesive. 2. The method for producing a nozzle for an inkjet head according to claim 1, wherein the nozzle plate is composed of at least two layers of an adhesive layer, a water resistant layer, a moisture proof layer and a hydrophilic layer.