Element substrate and liquid discharge head

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9597893-B2
Application number	US-201514966615-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 11, 2015
Priority date	Jan 6, 2015
Publication date	Mar 21, 2017
Grant date	Mar 21, 2017

Abstract

If the shape of an element substrate is a parallelogram, a trapezoid, an uneven shape, or the like, there is no region where a driver transistor corresponding to a heater in the vicinity of an end portion of the element substrate is arranged, and thus the heater cannot be arranged near the end portion. The layout arrangement of driving circuits suitable for the substrate shape is required while suppressing an increase in the area of the element substrate. In an embodiment of this invention, the diffusion layer of the drain electrode of a driver transistor for driving a heater is divided in a direction perpendicular to that in which heaters are arranged, and the divided portions are connected to form one driver transistor. The divided portions are arranged stepwise.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An element substrate comprising:
a plurality of electrothermal transducers arranged in a predetermined direction; and
a plurality of driver transistors respectively corresponding to the plurality of electrothermal transducers and configured to drive the plurality of electrothermal transducers,
wherein each of the plurality of driver transistors is divided into a plurality of portions by dividing a diffusion layer of a drain electrode of the transistor into a plurality of diffusion layer portions of the drain electrode in a direction intersecting the predetermined direction,
the plurality of divided portions are connected and the plurality of divided diffusion layer portions are connected to form one driver transistor, and connected to the corresponding electrothermal transducer, and
wherein the element substrate has a side which is diagonally extended with respect to the predetermined direction, and the plurality of divided portions are arranged stepwise along the side.

2. The element substrate according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of divided portions are arranged stepwise.

3. The element substrate according to claim 1 , wherein any one of the plurality of divided portions is provided in a lower layer of the corresponding electrothermal transducer.

4. The element substrate according to claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of supply ports provided along the predetermined direction in which the plurality of electrothermal transducers are arranged and configured to supply liquid,
wherein any one of the plurality of divided portions is provided between the plurality of supply ports.

5. The element substrate according to claim 1 , wherein if N driver transistors are arranged at a length in the predetermined direction in which M electrothermal transducers are arranged where N is smaller than M, the N driver transistors are divided by a least common multiple of M and N, N divided portions are arranged in the predetermined direction, M divided portions are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the predetermined direction, and the M divided portions are connected to form one driver transistor.

6. The element substrate according to claim 5 , wherein the N divided portions are connected in the predetermined direction to form the one driver transistor.

7. The element substrate according to claim 5 , wherein the one driver transistor is formed by either connecting the N divided portions in the direction perpendicular to the predetermined direction, or connecting part of the N divided portions in the predetermined direction and connecting the remaining portions of the N divided portions in the direction perpendicular to the predetermined direction.

8. The element substrate according to claim 1 , wherein the shape of the element substrate is one of a parallelogram, a trapezoid, and an uneven shape.

9. The element substrate according to claim 1 , wherein the divided diffusion layer portions of the drain electrode are arranged in the direction intersecting the predetermined direction.

10. The element substrate according to claim 1 , wherein each of the driver transistors is formed by connecting the plurality of divided portions based on a shape of the element substrate.

11. A liquid discharge head including a plurality of element substrates, each comprising:
a plurality of electrothermal transducers arranged in a predetermined direction; and
a plurality of driver transistors respectively corresponding to the plurality of electrothermal transducers and configured to drive the plurality of electrothermal transducers,
wherein each of the plurality of driver transistors is divided into a plurality of portions by dividing a diffusion layer of a drain electrode of the transistor into a plurality of diffusion layer portions of the drain electrode in a direction intersecting the predetermined direction,
the plurality of divided portions are connected and the plurality of divided diffusion layer portions are connected to form one driver transistor, and connected to the corresponding electrothermal transducer,
the plurality of element substrates are arranged to form a full-line printhead having a printing width corresponding to a width of a print medium, and
wherein the element substrate has a side which is diagonally extended with respect to the predetermined direction, and the plurality of divided portions are arranged stepwise along the side.

Assignees

• Canon Kk

Inventors

• Kudo Tomoko
• Kasai Ryo

Classifications

• B41J2202/21

  Line printing · CPC title

• B41J2/335 Primary

  Structure of thermal heads · CPC title

• B41J2202/13

  Heads having an integrated circuit · CPC title

• B41J2/14072 Primary

  Electrical connections, e.g. details on electrodes, connecting the chip to the outside... · CPC title