Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Corporation

National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology

Konica-minolta Holdings, Inc.

Shigeru Nishio

Kazuhiro Murata

Hironobu Iwashita

Kazunori Yamamoto

Tadashi Iwamatsu

Hiroyuki Hirakawa

Kazuhiko Furukawa

Haruhiko Deguchi

Hidetsugu Kawai

Tetsuya Inui

Yasuo Nishi

Shigeaki Kakiwaki

Yuhsuke Ebata

An electrostatic suction type fluid discharge method and device include a voltage applying means that applies a pulse voltage between a nozzle and a substrate, the nozzle having a diameter ranging from 0.01 &#x3bc;m to 25 &#x3bc;m, an upper limit voltage of the pulse voltage being equal to or greater than a discharge-inducing minimum voltage. A lower limit first voltage can be provided immediately before a rise of the pulse voltage, an absolute value of the lower limit first voltage being set smaller than the discharge-inducing minimum voltage. A lower limit second voltage can be provided immediately after a rise of the pulse voltage, an absolute value of the lower limit second voltage being set smaller than the discharge-inducing minimum voltage. With this structure, it is possible to simultaneously achieve miniaturization of nozzle, discharge of micro fluid droplet, high accuracy for discharge position, and decrease in drive voltage.

Electrostatic suction type fluid discharge method and device for the same

An ink jet apparatus electrifies ink in a nozzle, and ejects the ink from an ink ejecting hole onto a printing medium by a first electric field generated between the nozzle and the printing medium. The apparatus includes an ink catching device including an ink catching portion adjacent to the nozzle that catches an ejected substance. Between the nozzle and the ink catching portion, the apparatus applies a voltage for generating a second electric field which (i) causes an ejected substance, formed from the ink or the ink whose viscosity is changed, to be ejected from the nozzle, and (ii) causes the ink catching portion to attract the ejected substance. The apparatus, utilizes an electrostatic force to eject fluid, removes a clogging of an ejection head at any position, realizes less initial ejection fluctuation and improves the reliability of ejection.

Electrostatic attraction fluid ejecting method and apparatus

A corona discharge device () comprises a discharge electrode () for causing electric discharge, a discharge product removing member () provided around the discharge electrode (), and containing a material capable of removing a discharge product, and a shield plate () interposed between the discharge electrode () and the discharge product removing member (), having a through-hole () open toward the discharge electrode (), and having a surface opposed to the discharge electrode () and at least the surface being made of a metallic material. With this, a corona discharge device, a photoreceptor charger, and a method for making a discharge product removing member which realize high trapping efficiency for discharge products and a long life of a discharge product removing filter are provided.

Corona discharge device, photoreceptor charger, and method for making discharge product removing member

An inkjet head () has a liquid flow path section () for receiving liquid and, in response to application of a voltage, ejecting the liquid to an object on which a drawing is to be made. The degree of design freedom of the shape of the liquid channel section () or the shape of a liquid channel in the liquid channel section () can be improved because the liquid channel section () is formed on the upper surface of a substrate. Furthermore, the inkjet head can have a structure corresponding to the properties of liquid to be ejected or to an object to which the liquid is to be ejected.

Inkjet head and method for manufacturing the same

An electrostatic suction type fluid discharge device supplies a drive voltage from a power source between a nozzle and an insulating substrate, so as to supply an electric charge to a discharge material supplied into the nozzle. As a result, the discharge material is discharged from the nozzle hole onto the insulating substrate. The diameter of the hole of the nozzle falls within the range between &#x3c6;0.01 &#x3bc;m and &#x3c6;25 &#x3bc;m, the power source outputs, as the drive voltage, a bipolar pulse voltage that alternates between positive and negative and has a frequency of not less than 1 Hz.

Electrostatic suction type fluid discharge device, electrostatic suction type fluid discharge method, and plot pattern formation method using the same

A liquid ejection apparatus includes: a liquid ejection head () having a nozzle () with an inner diameter of 15 &#x3bc;m or less to eject droplets of charged solution onto a substrate; an ejection voltage supply () to apply an ejection voltage to a solution inside the nozzle; a convex meniscus generator () to form a state in which the solution inside the nozzle rises from the nozzle in a convex shape; and an operation controller () to control application of a drive voltage to drive the convex meniscus generator and application of an ejection voltage by the ejection voltage supply so that the drive voltage to the convex meniscus generator is applied in timing overlapped with the application of a pulse voltage as the ejection voltage by the ejection voltage supply.

Liquid ejection apparatus

With a micro nozzle in which the fluid discharge head has a nozzle with a micro hole having a diameter of 0.01 &#x3bc;m to 25 &#x3bc;m, the drive voltage during discharging operation is reduced. Further, by disposing an electrode section for applying a drive voltage to a discharge fluid on an external wall of a nozzle section, a distance between the electrode section and the nozzle hole is shortened. With this structure, the subject invention achieves both miniaturization of nozzle and reduction in drive voltage in an electrostatic suction type fluid discharge device. The subject invention also achieves an increase in discharge limit frequency while allowing use of materials with higher resistance for the fluid to be discharged.

Electrostatic suction type fluid discharge device

An emissive element array of a plurality of organic EL elements is arranged linearly on a single-crystal silicon substrate or polycrystalline silicon substrate with a drive circuit including an element switching its respective emissive element. The organic EL emissive elements have an edge emitting structure utilizing light emitted in an edge direction perpendicular to the direction of deposition of electrode layers and organic compound layers, and is constructed such that the emitting area of one emisive element, S, as viewed in the direction of deposition, and the period of emissive elements disposed side by side, d, have the relationship of S&#x3e;d. In this way, organic EL techniques can be applied to provide the required amount of light exposure and to produce an exposure device that is small and inexpensive.

Exposure device and image forming device

A developing apparatus includes a developer carrier carrying a developer on its surface, a developer regulating member regulating layer thickness of the developer, a charge amount control member controlling the charge amount of the developer and a charge supplying apparatus downstream of the charge amount control member. The charge amount control member controls the amount of charges of the developer, by causing the developer fly over the developer carrier, using an AC voltage applied between the developer carrier and the charge amount control member, and by applying the electric charges generated by gas electrolytic dissociation caused by the AC voltage. By this structure, a developing apparatus can be provided which can improve stability of development and image quality, without necessitating delicate arrangement of the component materials of the developer.

Developing apparatus having a charge amount control member

A developing device includes a developer carrier having a surface carrying a one-component developer thereon, developer control member abutting against the developer carrier to control a thickness of a layer of the developer, and a charge generation device provided downstream of the developer control member, as seen in a direction of a rotation of the developer carrier, and applying electric charge of a single polarity to a developer layer on the developer carrier, wherein the developer is charged under a condition that internal to the developer layer there occurs small aerial discharge caused by an electric field created by electric charge applied to a surface of the developer layer. Thus, the developing device can use a one-component developer, does not require toner having its components subtly adjusted and can cancel toner charged opposite in polarity, to form an image of high quality.

Growing community of inventors

Yamatokoriyama, Japan

Shigeru Nishio