Air isolation of ink segments by microfluidic printing
US5973708A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 2, 1997 |
| Grant date | Oct 26, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 2, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB41J2/005
- WIPO fieldTextile and paper machines
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A microfluidic printing apparatus for transferring ink to a receiver includes at least one ink reservoir; a structure defining a plurality of chambers arranged so that the chambers form an array with each chamber being arranged to form an ink pixel; a plurality of microchannels connecting the reservoir to a chamber; and a plurality of microfluidic pumps each being associated with a single microchannel for supplying ink from an ink reservoir through a microchannel for delivery to a particular chamber. Air is delivered to isolate ink in the chamber so that a predetermined amount of ink in the chamber can be transferred to a receiver, and the microfluidic pumps are operated for delivering the predetermined amount of ink to each chamber.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.