US5371527A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Orificeless printhead for an ink jet printer
Assignee: HP Inc
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Filing: 1991-04-25
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Granted: 1994-12-06
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Expires: 2011-04-25
Abstract
Abstract An orificeless thin film printhead for an ink jet pen which comprises a substrate having a plurality of vortex activators thereon, and ink dispensing means located adjacent to the substrate for providing a thin layer of ink of a controlled thickness over the surfaces of the vortex activators. A protective cover is disposed on the surface of the substrate and has one or more slots or other openings therein operative to expose the vortex activators during ink jet printhead operation. When each vortex activator is energized, the energy transferred from the surface of the activator into the liquid film creates a microjet and a shear force therein, followed by the formation of a vortex ring in the ink film. The vortex ring is in turn self-propelled at a relatively low velocity through the ink film to the free liquid surface thereby, producing stress at this surface to allow the high velocity ink at the core of the vortex ring to be efficiently transferred to an adjacent print medium with a high degree of directionality, thereby enhancing resolution and print quality on the printed media. In accordance with the present invention, vortex activators include, but without limitation, heater resistors, piston drivers, and piezoelectric cavities.
Inventors
- 👤 Robert J. Miller
- 👤 William R. Knight
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-06 17:54
CPC Classifications
B; B41; B41J; B41J2/00; B41J2/005; B41J2/01; B41J2/135; B41J2/14; B41J2/14008; B41J2002/14322
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 17
Claim 1
Independent Claim
102 words
An orificeless printhead for an ink jet printer comprising: a piezoelectric layer disposed on a chosen substrate and having a plurality of cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving ink therein, and means for deflecting said interior walls of said cavities to produce lateral force vectors on said ink within said cavities for propelling droplets of said ink onto an adjacent print media without passing through an orifice, wherein the lateral force vectors cause a vortex ring to be produced in said ink above at least one of said cavities, and said vortex ring causes an ink droplet to be ejected.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
102 words
An orificeless printhead for an ink jet printer comprising: a piezoelectric layer disposed on a chosen substrate and having a plurality of cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving ink therein, and means for deflecting said interior walls of said cavities to produce lateral force vectors on said ink within said cavities for propelling droplets of said ink onto an adjacent print media without passing through an orifice, wherein the lateral force vectors cause a vortex ring to be produced in said ink above at least one of said cavities, and said vortex ring causes an ink droplet to be ejected.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
19 words
The printhead defined in claim 1 wherein said deflecting means includes means for applying electrical signals to said cavities.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
23 words
The printhead defined in claim 1 wherein said piezoelectric layer is selected from the group consisting of piezoelectric polymers and piezoelectric polycrystalline materials.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
20 words
The printhead defined in claim 3 wherein said deflecting means includes means for applying electrical signals to said piezoelectric layer.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
127 words
An orificeless printhead for an ink jet printer comprising: a piezoelectric layer disposed on a chosen substrate and having a plurality of cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving ink therein, said piezoelectric layer is selected from the group consisting of piezoelectric polymers and piezoelectric polycrystalline materials, and means for deflecting said interior walls of said cavities to produce laterial force vectors on said ink within said cavities for propelling droplets of said ink onto an adjacent print media without passing through an orifice, wherein said deflecting means including signal applying means for applying electrical signals to said piezoelectric layer and said signal applying means including an inner electrode deposited within said cavities and an outer electrode disposed on an upper surface of said piezoelectric layer.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
127 words
An orificeless printhead for an ink jet printer comprising: a piezoelectric layer disposed on a chosen substrate and having a plurality of cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving ink therein, said piezoelectric layer is selected from the group consisting of piezoelectric polymers and piezoelectric polycrystalline materials, and means for deflecting said interior walls of said cavities to produce laterial force vectors on said ink within said cavities for propelling droplets of said ink onto an adjacent print media without passing through an orifice, wherein said deflecting means including signal applying means for applying electrical signals to said piezoelectric layer and said signal applying means including an inner electrode deposited within said cavities and an outer electrode disposed on an upper surface of said piezoelectric layer.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
109 words
A method of ink jet printing without use of an orifice plate which comprises the steps of: distributing a film of ink over a piezoelectric layer having a plurality of ink receiving cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving said ink therein, and deflecting said interior walls of said cavities for generating lateral force vectors on said ink to eject ink droplets onto an adjacent print media, whereby said ejected ink droplets do not pass through an orifice plate, wherein said deflecting produces a vortex ring in said ink above at least one of said cavities, and said vortex ring thereafter causes an ink droplet to be ejected.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
109 words
A method of ink jet printing without use of an orifice plate which comprises the steps of: distributing a film of ink over a piezoelectric layer having a plurality of ink receiving cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving said ink therein, and deflecting said interior walls of said cavities for generating lateral force vectors on said ink to eject ink droplets onto an adjacent print media, whereby said ejected ink droplets do not pass through an orifice plate, wherein said deflecting produces a vortex ring in said ink above at least one of said cavities, and said vortex ring thereafter causes an ink droplet to be ejected.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method defined in claim 6 wherein said interior walls of said cavities are deflected by applying controlled electrical signals thereto.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
56 words
The method defined in claim 6 which includes applying either a high voltage pulse or a high frequency series of pulses to selected surface locations of said piezoelectric layer and of sufficient energy to create lateral stresses within said piezoelectric layer to in turn produce lateral constriction within said cavities to eject said ink droplets therefrom.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
196 words
A method of ink jet printing without use of an orifice plate which comprises the steps of: distributing a film of ink over a piezoelectric layer having a plurality of ink receiving cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving said ink therein, and deflecting said interior walls of said cavities for generating lateral force vectors on said ink to eject ink droplets onto an adjacent print media, said deflecting is produced by applying either a high voltage pulse or a high frequency series of pulses to selected surface locations of said piezoelectric layer and of sufficient energy to create lateral stresses within said piezoelectric layer to in turn produce lateral constriction within said cavities to eject the ink droplets therefrom, wherein the ejection of the ink droplets from said cavities in said piezoelectric layer is produced by first producing a microjet velocity vector within said cavities followed by production of a vortex ring in said ink film above said cavities followed by a projectile in said ink film and finally followed by an ink droplet break-off profile extending from said film of ink, whereby said ejected ink droplets do not pass through an orifice plate.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
196 words
A method of ink jet printing without use of an orifice plate which comprises the steps of: distributing a film of ink over a piezoelectric layer having a plurality of ink receiving cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving said ink therein, and deflecting said interior walls of said cavities for generating lateral force vectors on said ink to eject ink droplets onto an adjacent print media, said deflecting is produced by applying either a high voltage pulse or a high frequency series of pulses to selected surface locations of said piezoelectric layer and of sufficient energy to create lateral stresses within said piezoelectric layer to in turn produce lateral constriction within said cavities to eject the ink droplets therefrom, wherein the ejection of the ink droplets from said cavities in said piezoelectric layer is produced by first producing a microjet velocity vector within said cavities followed by production of a vortex ring in said ink film above said cavities followed by a projectile in said ink film and finally followed by an ink droplet break-off profile extending from said film of ink, whereby said ejected ink droplets do not pass through an orifice plate.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
138 words
A method of ink jet printing without use of an orifice plate which comprises the steps of: distributing a film of ink over a piezoelectric layer having a plurality of ink receiving cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving said ink therein, and deflecting said interior walls of said cavities for generating lateral force vectors on said ink to eject ink droplets onto an adjacent print media, whereby said ejected ink droplets do not pass through an orifice plate, wherein said deflecting causes a vortex ring to be produced in said ink above at least one of said cavities, subsequently causes said vortex ring to be propelled away from said cavity and towards the surface of said ink film, and thereafter said propelled vortex ring causes an ink droplet to be ejected onto an adjacent print media.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
138 words
A method of ink jet printing without use of an orifice plate which comprises the steps of: distributing a film of ink over a piezoelectric layer having a plurality of ink receiving cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving said ink therein, and deflecting said interior walls of said cavities for generating lateral force vectors on said ink to eject ink droplets onto an adjacent print media, whereby said ejected ink droplets do not pass through an orifice plate, wherein said deflecting causes a vortex ring to be produced in said ink above at least one of said cavities, subsequently causes said vortex ring to be propelled away from said cavity and towards the surface of said ink film, and thereafter said propelled vortex ring causes an ink droplet to be ejected onto an adjacent print media.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
129 words
An orificeless printhead for an ink jet printer comprising: a piezoelectric layer disposed on a chosen substrate and having a plurality of cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving ink therein, and means for deflecting said interior walls of said cavities to produce lateral force vectors on said ink within said cavities for propelling droplets of said ink onto an adjacent print media without passing through an orifice, wherein the lateral force vectors produced by said deflecting means cause a vortex ring to be produced in said ink above at least one of said cavities, subsequently cause said vortex ring to be propelled away from said cavity and towards the surface of said ink film, and thereafter said propelled vortex ring causes an ink droplet to be ejected.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
129 words
An orificeless printhead for an ink jet printer comprising: a piezoelectric layer disposed on a chosen substrate and having a plurality of cavities therein with defined interior walls for receiving ink therein, and means for deflecting said interior walls of said cavities to produce lateral force vectors on said ink within said cavities for propelling droplets of said ink onto an adjacent print media without passing through an orifice, wherein the lateral force vectors produced by said deflecting means cause a vortex ring to be produced in said ink above at least one of said cavities, subsequently cause said vortex ring to be propelled away from said cavity and towards the surface of said ink film, and thereafter said propelled vortex ring causes an ink droplet to be ejected.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1997-12-05 | 1998-06-06 | 1998-12-06 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2001-12-05 | 2002-06-06 | 2002-12-06 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2005-12-05 | 2006-06-06 | 2006-12-06 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |