EP0613778B1 - Passivation layer for ceramic based charge plates - Google Patents

Passivation layer for ceramic based charge plates Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0613778B1
EP0613778B1 EP19940301322 EP94301322A EP0613778B1 EP 0613778 B1 EP0613778 B1 EP 0613778B1 EP 19940301322 EP19940301322 EP 19940301322 EP 94301322 A EP94301322 A EP 94301322A EP 0613778 B1 EP0613778 B1 EP 0613778B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
charge plate
substrate
polyimide
ink jet
charging electrodes
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
EP19940301322
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0613778A3 (en
EP0613778A2 (en
Inventor
Richard W. Sexton
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Kodak Versamark Inc
Original Assignee
Kodak Versamark Inc
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Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Kodak Versamark Inc filed Critical Kodak Versamark Inc
Publication of EP0613778A2 publication Critical patent/EP0613778A2/en
Publication of EP0613778A3 publication Critical patent/EP0613778A3/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0613778B1 publication Critical patent/EP0613778B1/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
    • B41J2/00—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed
    • B41J2/005—Typewriters or selective printing mechanisms characterised by the printing or marking process for which they are designed characterised by bringing liquid or particles selectively into contact with a printing material
    • B41J2/01—Ink jet
    • B41J2/07—Ink jet characterised by jet control
    • B41J2/075—Ink jet characterised by jet control for many-valued deflection
    • B41J2/08—Ink jet characterised by jet control for many-valued deflection charge-control type
    • B41J2/085—Charge means, e.g. electrodes

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to continuous ink jet printers and, more particularly, to improved constructions for the charge plate structure in such printers.
  • electrically conductive ink is supplied under pressure to a manifold region that distributes the ink to a plurality of orifices, typically arranged in a linear array(s).
  • the ink discharges from the orifices in filaments which break into droplet streams.
  • Individual droplet streams are selectively charged in the region of the break off from the filaments and charge drops are deflected from their normal trajectories. The deflected drops may be caught and recirculated, and the undeflected drops allowed to proceed to a print receiving medium.
  • Drops are charged by a charge plate having a plurality of charging electrodes along one edge, and a corresponding plurality of connecting leads along one surface.
  • the edge of the charge plate having the charging electrodes is placed in close proximity to the break off point of the ink jet filaments, and charges applied to the leads to induce charges in the drops as they break off from the filaments.
  • charge plates are presently coated with multiple wet layers, such as a photoresist available as KTFR Photoresist from Union Carbide Corporation, lacquers, and epoxies.
  • a photoresist available as KTFR Photoresist from Union Carbide Corporation, lacquers, and epoxies.
  • Such coatings provide insufficient protection of the charge leads as compared to a solid layer of polyimide.
  • Wet coatings are prone to pinholing, and marginal adhesion, are not easily controllable and have erratic results. Coatings applied by wet methods inherently form an uneven interface at the leading edge of the coating on the charge plate surface where the conductors form a 90° angle.
  • a solid layer of polyimide is convenient to apply, assures good adhesion, and eliminates pinholes.
  • Polyimide sheet can be preformed to establish the desired interface with the charge plate surface. The setback distance and coating angle on the top charge plate surface can be control led by cutting the polyimide sheet to the exact size and shape required.
  • a charge plate according to the present invention is provided with a polyimide dry film lamination which provides improved adhesion and impervious protection from ink.
  • the invention provides a method of making a charge plate for use in an ink jet printer, comprising the steps of forming a charge plate having a plurality of charging electrodes along an edge of a ceramic substrate and a corresponding plurality of conductive leads on a surface of said substrate, precleaning the surface to ensure complete wettability; and laminating a polyimide dry film layer by heating and applying pressure.
  • the invention further provides a charge plate for use in an ink jet printer as claimed in claim 3 below.
  • fig 1 illustrates a partial schematic cross-sectional diagram of a charge plate fabricated according to the present invention.
  • charge plate 10 cooperates with other known components used in continuous ink jet printers. That is, the charge plate 10 functions with a drop generator, drop catcher (which may be integral with the charge plate), media feed station, and data handling and machine control electronics (not shown) to selectively charge the drops to effect ink jet printing.
  • the charge plate 10 includes an insulating substrate 12 on which are formed conductive leads 14 and drop charging electrodes 16.
  • the conductive leads 14 and drop charging electrodes 16 are covered by a protective layer 18 of adhesively bonded polyimide film.
  • the laminating is preferably by means of heat and pressure.
  • the charge plate shown in Fig. 1 is fabricated in the following manner.
  • the charge plate is formed (20) with the leads and charging electrodes preferably as shown in U.S. Patent 4,560,991.
  • the charge plate is precleaned (22) to insure complete wettability of the top surface bearing the conductive leads 14, thereby assuring that the lamination to follow covers all conductive leads.
  • the top of the charge plate is next laminated with a protective layer of adhesively bonded polyimide film (24).
  • the polyimide film is bonded to the charge plate (26) by applying sufficient heat and pressure.
  • the polyimide is bonded to the charge plate by applying approximately 250 pounds per square inch of pressure at approximately 350°F for approximately fifteen minutes, and then cooling the polyimide film to 250°F while maintaining pressure.
  • the protective layer of adhesively bonded polyimide film can be applied using known techniques for laminating.
  • the bonding can be applied in a hydraulic press having electrically heated platens, or in a hot roll continuous laminator.
  • a preferred grade of adhesively bonded polyimide is R/flex R 2000 (a registered trademark of Rogers Corp, Chandler, Arizona) coverfilm, one to three mils thick, having one mil of acrylic B-staged adhesive.
  • the present invention is useful in the field of ink jet printing, and has the advantage of providing improved protection of metallic charging leads from electrical short circuits.
  • the present invention provides the further advantage of giving the charge plate circuitry impervious protection from ink.
  • the polyimide film coating according to the present invention is compatible with the ink jet printing ink formulations available from Eastman Kodak Company.
  • the preferred lamination means provides easily controllable, high uniform coverage, and the precleaning process insures complete coverage of the polyimide film coating.

Landscapes

  • Particle Formation And Scattering Control In Inkjet Printers (AREA)
  • Laminated Bodies (AREA)

Description

Technical Field
The present invention relates to continuous ink jet printers and, more particularly, to improved constructions for the charge plate structure in such printers.
Background Art
In continuous ink jet printing, electrically conductive ink is supplied under pressure to a manifold region that distributes the ink to a plurality of orifices, typically arranged in a linear array(s). The ink discharges from the orifices in filaments which break into droplet streams. Individual droplet streams are selectively charged in the region of the break off from the filaments and charge drops are deflected from their normal trajectories. The deflected drops may be caught and recirculated, and the undeflected drops allowed to proceed to a print receiving medium.
Drops are charged by a charge plate having a plurality of charging electrodes along one edge, and a corresponding plurality of connecting leads along one surface. The edge of the charge plate having the charging electrodes is placed in close proximity to the break off point of the ink jet filaments, and charges applied to the leads to induce charges in the drops as they break off from the filaments.
U.S. Patent No. 4,560,991, issued December 24, 1985, to W. Shutrum, describes one method of fabricating a charge plate for an ink jet printer. The charge plate taught by Shutrum is fabricated by electro-depositing the charging electrodes and leads on a flat sheet of etchable material, such as copper foil, to form a so-called "coupon." The coupon is bent in a jig at approximately a 90°angle. The leads are then bonded to a charge plate substrate, and the etchable material is removed.
In the prior art, charge plates are presently coated with multiple wet layers, such as a photoresist available as KTFR Photoresist from Union Carbide Corporation, lacquers, and epoxies. Such coatings provide insufficient protection of the charge leads as compared to a solid layer of polyimide. Wet coatings are prone to pinholing, and marginal adhesion, are not easily controllable and have erratic results. Coatings applied by wet methods inherently form an uneven interface at the leading edge of the coating on the charge plate surface where the conductors form a 90° angle.
One method for solving this problem is disclosed in commonly assigned pending application U.S. Serial No. 857,852, which teaches coating the conductive lead surface of a charge plate with a two-part epoxy. Although epoxy such as EPO-TEK 353ND from Epoxy Technologies, Billerica, Massachusetts, is shown to be resistent to some ink jet inks, the two-part curable epoxy can be inconvenient to apply.
Summary of the Invention
It is therefore the object of the present invention to provide a charge plate having a polyimide dry film lamination that avoids the problems noted above. A solid layer of polyimide is convenient to apply, assures good adhesion, and eliminates pinholes. Polyimide sheet can be preformed to establish the desired interface with the charge plate surface. The setback distance and coating angle on the top charge plate surface can be control led by cutting the polyimide sheet to the exact size and shape required.
A charge plate according to the present invention is provided with a polyimide dry film lamination which provides improved adhesion and impervious protection from ink.
The invention provides a method of making a charge plate for use in an ink jet printer, comprising the steps of forming a charge plate having a plurality of charging electrodes along an edge of a ceramic substrate and a corresponding plurality of conductive leads on a surface of said substrate, precleaning the surface to ensure complete wettability; and laminating a polyimide dry film layer by heating and applying pressure.
The invention further provides a charge plate for use in an ink jet printer as claimed in claim 3 below.
The invention will now be described in more detail and by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
  • Fig. 1 is a schematic partial cross-sectional view of a charge plate according to the present invention; and
  • Fig. 2 is a flow chart illustrating the steps employed to fabricate the charge plate of Fig.1
    • Referring to the drawings, fig 1 illustrates a partial schematic cross-sectional diagram of a charge plate fabricated according to the present invention. It will be understood that such charge plate generally denoted 10 cooperates with other known components used in continuous ink jet printers. That is, the charge plate 10 functions with a drop generator, drop catcher (which may be integral with the charge plate), media feed station, and data handling and machine control electronics (not shown) to selectively charge the drops to effect ink jet printing.
    The charge plate 10 includes an insulating substrate 12 on which are formed conductive leads 14 and drop charging electrodes 16. The conductive leads 14 and drop charging electrodes 16 are covered by a protective layer 18 of adhesively bonded polyimide film. The laminating is preferably by means of heat and pressure.
    Referring now to Fig. 2, the charge plate shown in Fig. 1 is fabricated in the following manner. First, the charge plate is formed (20) with the leads and charging electrodes preferably as shown in U.S. Patent 4,560,991. Next, the charge plate is precleaned (22) to insure complete wettability of the top surface bearing the conductive leads 14, thereby assuring that the lamination to follow covers all conductive leads. The top of the charge plate is next laminated with a protective layer of adhesively bonded polyimide film (24). Finally, the polyimide film is bonded to the charge plate (26) by applying sufficient heat and pressure. In a preferred embodiment, the polyimide is bonded to the charge plate by applying approximately 250 pounds per square inch of pressure at approximately 350°F for approximately fifteen minutes, and then cooling the polyimide film to 250°F while maintaining pressure.
    The protective layer of adhesively bonded polyimide film can be applied using known techniques for laminating. For example, the bonding can be applied in a hydraulic press having electrically heated platens, or in a hot roll continuous laminator. A preferred grade of adhesively bonded polyimide is R/flexR2000 (a registered trademark of Rogers Corp, Chandler, Arizona) coverfilm, one to three mils thick, having one mil of acrylic B-staged adhesive. Although B-staged adhesives are readily available and easy to apply, it is understood that other means of bonding a polyimide film to metals are equally applicable in the practice of this invention.
    Industrial Applicability and Advantages
    The present invention is useful in the field of ink jet printing, and has the advantage of providing improved protection of metallic charging leads from electrical short circuits. The present invention provides the further advantage of giving the charge plate circuitry impervious protection from ink. The polyimide film coating according to the present invention is compatible with the ink jet printing ink formulations available from Eastman Kodak Company. The preferred lamination means provides easily controllable, high uniform coverage, and the precleaning process insures complete coverage of the polyimide film coating.
    Having described the invention in detail and by reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, it will be apparent that other modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the invention defined in the appended claims.

    Claims (4)

    1. A method of making a charge plate for use in an ink jet printer, comprising the steps of:
      forming a charge plate (10) having a plurality of charging electrodes (16) along an edge of a ceramic substrate (12) and a corresponding plurality of conductive leads (14) on a surface of said substrate,
      precleaning the surface to ensure complete wettability; and
      laminating a polyimide dry film (18) layer by heating and applying pressure.
    2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the steps of heating and applying pressure comprise:
      applying approximately 1.7 MPa (250 pounds/sq.inch) of pressure at approximately 177 °C (350 °F) for approximately fifteen minutes; and
      cooling the polyimide film to 121 °C (250 °F) while maintaining the pressure.
    3. A charge plate for use in an ink jet printer comprising:
      an electrically insulating ceramic charge plate substrate (12);
      a plurality of charging electrodes (16) disposed along an edge of said charge plate substrate and a corresponding plurality of electrical leads (14) disposed on a surface of said charge plate substrate; and
      an adhesively bonded polyimide dry film (18) layer.
    4. A charge plate as claimed in claim 4 or 5, wherein said charging electrodes (16) are nickel.
    EP19940301322 1993-03-01 1994-02-24 Passivation layer for ceramic based charge plates Expired - Lifetime EP0613778B1 (en)

    Applications Claiming Priority (2)

    Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
    US2454893A 1993-03-01 1993-03-01
    US24548 1993-03-01

    Publications (3)

    Publication Number Publication Date
    EP0613778A2 EP0613778A2 (en) 1994-09-07
    EP0613778A3 EP0613778A3 (en) 1995-04-05
    EP0613778B1 true EP0613778B1 (en) 1998-06-10

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    Family Applications (1)

    Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
    EP19940301322 Expired - Lifetime EP0613778B1 (en) 1993-03-01 1994-02-24 Passivation layer for ceramic based charge plates

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    EP (1) EP0613778B1 (en)
    DE (1) DE69410852T2 (en)

    Families Citing this family (6)

    * Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
    Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
    GB9404741D0 (en) * 1994-03-10 1994-04-27 Domino Printing Sciences Plc Electrode assembly for a continuous ink jet printer
    DE69609248T2 (en) * 1995-05-26 2001-03-08 Scitex Digital Printing Inc Process for the production of charge electrodes
    EP0744290B1 (en) * 1995-05-26 2001-07-11 SCITEX DIGITAL PRINTING, Inc. Charge plate fabrication process
    US6234612B1 (en) * 1997-03-25 2001-05-22 Lexmark International, Inc. Ink jet printing apparatus having first and second print cartridges receiving energy pulses from a common drive circuit
    US7156488B2 (en) * 2004-05-05 2007-01-02 Eastman Kodak Company Ink repellent coating on charge device to improve printer runability and printhead life
    US20060082620A1 (en) 2004-10-15 2006-04-20 Eastman Kodak Company Charge plate fabrication technique

    Family Cites Families (6)

    * Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
    Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
    US4419674A (en) * 1982-02-12 1983-12-06 Mead Corporation Wire wound flat-faced charge plate
    US4560991A (en) * 1983-07-27 1985-12-24 Eastman Kodak Company Electroformed charge electrode structure for ink jet printers
    DE3480073D1 (en) * 1983-07-27 1989-11-16 Eastman Kodak Co A charge electrode structure for ink jet printers, and a method of fabricating the same
    EP0153436B1 (en) * 1984-02-27 1990-04-04 Codi-Jet Markierungs Systeme GmbH Ink jet printer
    US4587527A (en) * 1985-05-15 1986-05-06 Eastman Kodak Company Charging electrodes bearing a doped semiconductor coating
    JPH03218630A (en) * 1990-01-24 1991-09-26 Matsushita Electric Works Ltd Semiconductor device having high breakdown strength

    Also Published As

    Publication number Publication date
    EP0613778A3 (en) 1995-04-05
    DE69410852T2 (en) 1998-10-08
    DE69410852D1 (en) 1998-07-16
    EP0613778A2 (en) 1994-09-07

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