The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jan. 08, 2002
Filed:
Apr. 12, 1999
David B. West, Cambridge, MA (US);
Scott Barraclough, Gloucester, MA (US);
Iris Graphics, Inc., Bedford, MA (US);
Abstract
A nozzle for an ink-jet printer is provided. The nozzle is manufactured from a heat-softenable tube and has a gradually converging inner diameter leading to an orifice less than 30 microns in diameter and an outer nozzle diameter proximate the orifice at least as great as the outer diameter at other points along the tube. The nozzle is produced by heating a short segment of a heat-softenable tube while rotating it, until said segment is sufficiently softened to cause the inner diameter to converge at an angle between 5 and 25 degrees with respect to the axis of symmetry of the tube, and until the inner diameter is equal to or less than a selected orifice diameter. The gradual taper is achieved solely as a result of heat-activated surface forces inherent in the tube material and without external drawing or pulling of the tube. Further the gradual taper facilitates achieving a desired orifice dimension during removal of a portion of the tube having an inner diameter less than the selected orifice diameter. The extremely small orifice size enables an ink-jet printer to deposit droplets of ink sufficiently small to make photographic-quality gray scale and color images. Such a nozzle can also advantageously be used for biological, medical and pharmaceutical apparatuses and devices.