Liquid Ejection Head Cover Member Silicon Carbide Thin Film
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Solution Overview
Problem
Liquid ejection heads in inkjet printers face challenges with paper jams damaging ejection ports and insufficient ink resistance, leading to adhesive failure and poor sealing properties, especially when using corrosion-resistant metals like stainless steel.
Innovation Solution
A liquid ejection head design featuring a substrate with ejection ports, a cover member bonded via an adhesive with a thin film containing silicon carbide, carbon-containing silicon oxide, or silicon nitride to enhance sealing and adhesive strength without compromising ink resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a metallic material is adhered and bonded onto a substrate where an ejection port is formed, then the surface of the ejection port is guarded from sheets, but different kinds of members (metal member and photosensitive resin layer) are adhered causing stress difference due to cure shrinkage and linear expansion, which may separate adhesive and metallic material
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite structure consisting of a metallic material (stainless steel) combined with a photosensitive resin layer to form the ejection port. This composite approach allows the metal to provide mechanical strength and resistance against paper jams, while the photosensitive resin enables precise ejection port formation and maintains sealing properties through chemical bonding.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent addresses stress differences by controlling curing parameters and thermal expansion parameters during the bonding process. By optimizing these parameters, the patent minimizes stress between the metal member and photosensitive resin layer, preventing separation and maintaining sealing properties over time.
2Reliability
If stainless steel is used for an ejection port protecting member to improve dissolution resistance, then corrosion resistance is improved, but stainless steel on bonding interface dissolves in ink, which separates adhesive and decreases adhesive strength
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different material properties to different locations: the bulk stainless steel provides corrosion resistance, while the bonding interface is treated with a specific surface preparation method to enhance adhesive bonding. This local differentiation ensures both dissolution resistance and strong adhesion without compromising either property.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a metallic material is adhered and bonded to laminate onto a substrate, then the surface of the ejection port is guarded from sheets, but long-term contact with ink may separate adhesive and metallic material
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary surface treatment on the metallic material before bonding to the substrate. This preliminary action creates a surface that is both resistant to sheet damage and highly compatible with adhesive bonding, ensuring long-term durability even during prolonged ink contact.
Data Source
AI summary
Included are: a substrate configured to form a channel for a liquid to be ejected; an ejection port formation member configured to form an ejection port, the liquid having passed through the channel being ejected via the ejection port; a cover member configured to bond to the ejection port formation member at an opposite side to the substrate via an adhesive; and a thin film formed on a face of the cover member, the face being on a side where the cover member is bonded to the ejection port formation member, the thin film containing silicon carbide, or any of carbon-containing silicon oxide, silicon nitride, and silicon oxynitride.