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:
Mar. 04, 2003
Filed:
Jun. 26, 2000
Kenneth J. Courian, San Diego, CA (US);
Arun K. Agarwal, Corvallis, OR (US);
Hewlett-Packard Company, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Abstract
Novel designs and methods of manufacture of ink-jet printheads capable of providing ink-droplet-tail-break-off control and preventing meniscus overshoot in order to overcome the puddling, pen directionality, and ruffle problems associated with thermal-ink-jet printing are disclosed. A printhead for use in an ink-delivery system includes a substrate that has at least one ink ejector thereon. An orifice-plate member is positioned over and above the substrate. The orifice-plate member has at least one ink-transfer bore extending therethrough. The orifice-plate member further includes: a top surface that defines a top opening for the ink-transfer bore, a bottom surface that defines a bottom opening for the ink-transfer bore, and a counter-bore in the top surface that is in fluid communication with the ink-transfer bore. The counter-bore can be: concentric or non-concentric with the ink-transfer bore, a full or partial counter-bore, and symmetric or asymmetric. In addition, the counter-bore can also be deep enough to hold the ink meniscus. Lastly, the counter-bore can smooth, round and/or provide a more uniform edge around the ink-transfer bore. By providing one or more combinations of these features, the present invention is able to control the tail break-off of expelled ink-jet droplets and/or minimize meniscus overflow.