Bubble valving for ink-jet printheads
US6003977A · kind A · utility
116Cited by
24References
14Claims
0Family size
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 30, 1996 |
| Grant date | Dec 21, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 30, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB41J2002/14387
- WIPO fieldTextile and paper machines
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
The configuration of an ink inlet through which flows ink into a chamber for expulsion from the chamber by a thermal process is such that a vapor bubble generated by the thermal process to eject ink from the chamber expands to simultaneously occlude the inlet, thereby to separate the ink within the chamber from ink within a channel that is in fluid communication with the inlet. The separation eliminates a liquid path between the chamber and the channel so that substantially no ink is blown back into the channel as the bubble expands, thereby improving the thermal efficiency of the process.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.