A micro-valve includes an orifice plate including a first surface and a second surface, and an orifice extending from the first surface to the second surface. The micro-valve also includes a spacing member disposed on the first surface and offset from the orifice, a valve seat disposed on the first surface. The valve seat defines an opening in fluid communication with the orifice in a flow direction. The micro-valve also includes an actuating beam disposed on the spacing member extending from the spacing member toward the orifice, the actuating beam being moveable between an open position and a closed position. The micro-valve also includes a sealing member affixed to an end portion of the actuating beam. In a closed position, a sealing surface of the sealing member contacts the valve seat to close the micro-valve.

An arrayed electrohydrodynamic printhead without the extraction electrodes is provided. A printhead is formed by an ink cartridge, a flow channel plate, a nozzle plate, a control electrode layer. The ink cartridge includes an ink inlet, an ink outlet, an installation hole, a flow channel layer inlet, flow channel layer outlet. The flow channel plate has the functions of guiding the ink to flow into the nozzle plate and increasing the potential difference between the nozzles, and includes a flow channel inlet, a flow channel outlet, a drainage channel, and a microfluidic channel. A body of the nozzle plate includes nozzles and nozzle electrodes. The microfluidic channel forms a voltage division unit between each nozzle, so that the voltage on the triggered nozzle is dispersed in the flow channel without affecting other nozzles, and independent and controllable injection of each nozzle is thereby achieved.

A liquid ejection head includes a recording element substrate. The recording element substrate includes a recording element, a circuit wiring driving the recording element to eject liquid, a protective film, an electrode area, a plating bump, and a resin film having elastic properties. The electrode area electrically connects the circuit wiring to an external circuit through an opening in the protective film. The protective film covers the circuit wiring in an outer adjacent region to the opening to define a step in the protective film. The protective film protects the circuit wiring against the liquid. The plating bump is electrically connected to the electrode area. The resin film covers the step and extends from an inner peripheral region of the opening onto the protective film beyond an edge of the opening. The plating bump includes a part projecting from the electrode area onto an upper surface of the resin film.

A droplet ejector for a printhead comprises: a substrate having a mounting surface and an opposite nozzle surface; a nozzle-forming layer formed on at least a portion of the nozzle surface of the substrate; a fluid chamber defined at least in part by the substrate and at least in part by the nozzle-forming layer, the fluid chamber having a fluid chamber outlet defined at least in part by a nozzle portion of the said nozzle-forming layer, the said nozzle portion comprising an inner portion located closer to the fluid chamber outlet and an outer portion located closer to a periphery of the nozzle portion; and either or both of an inner actuator arrangement formed on the inner portion of the nozzle portion of the nozzle-forming layer and an outer actuator arrangement formed on the outer portion of the nozzle portion of the nozzle-forming layer.

A piezoelectric transducer includes a semiconductor body with a bottom electrode of conductive material. A piezoelectric element is on the bottom electrode. A first protective layer, on the bottom electrode and the piezoelectric element, has a first opening through which a portion of the piezoelectric element is exposed, and a second opening through which a portion of the bottom electrode is exposed. A conductive layer on the first protective layer and within the first and second openings is patterned to form a top electrode in electrical contact with the piezoelectric element at the first opening, a first biasing stripe in electrical contact with the top electrode, and a second biasing stripe in electrical contact with the bottom electrode at the second opening.

There is provided a liquid discharge head including: a communication plate having a plurality of descenders in respective communication with a plurality of nozzles, a pressure chamber plate being stacked on the communication plate and having a plurality of pressure chambers, a piezoelectric element arranged in a position overlapping with the pressure chambers in a stacking direction, and a discharge common channel extending in an array direction and being in communication with the plurality of pressure chambers. The discharge common channel includes: a first discharge portion formed in the communication plate; and a second discharge portion formed in the pressure chamber plate and in communication with the first discharge portion, the second discharge portion reaching as high as to a surface of the pressure chambers at the side of the piezoelectric element along the stacking direction.

A piezoelectric printhead includes a piezoelectric printing device, a manifold, a U-shaped flexible printed wiring element and an interconnection element. The piezoelectric printing device includes a piezoelectric plate and a substrate with at least one row of drop ejectors; first and second ink inlet ports; signal lines leading to corresponding signal input pads; and ground traces leading to at least one ground return pad. The manifold is fluidically connected to the ink inlet ports. The flexible printed wiring element includes a device connection region and a pair of legs that extend from the device connection region. The pair of legs includes signal connection lines and at least one ground connection line. The interconnection element is disposed between the device connection region of the flexible printing wiring element and a contact layer of the piezoelectric printing device that includes the signal input pads and the at least one ground return pad.

A liquid discharge apparatus is provided, including a liquid discharge head including: an upper substrate, a plurality of piezoelectric elements, an intermediate substrate, a lower substrate and a plurality of individual traces arranged on the upper substrate and extending toward the contacts arranged on the one end side in the second direction from the plurality of piezoelectric elements respectively.

A micro-valve includes an orifice plate including an orifice. The micro-valve further includes an actuating beam having a first end and a second end. The actuating beam also includes a base layer and a layer of piezoelectric material disposed on the base layer, a bottom electrode layer, and a top electrode layer. At an electrical connection portion of the actuating beam, the layer of piezoelectric material includes a first via, and a portion of the top electrode layer disposed within the first via, and a portion of the bottom electrode disposed beneath the first via. The actuating beam includes a base portion extending from the electrical connection portion and a cantilevered portion extending from the base portion. The cantilevered portion is movable in response to application of a differential electrical signal between the bottom electrode layer and the top electrode layer to one of open or close the micro-valve.

A droplet ejector for a printhead comprises: a substrate having a mounting surface and an opposite nozzle surface; a nozzle-forming layer formed on at least a portion of the nozzle surface of the substrate; a fluid chamber defined at least in part by the substrate and at least in part by the nozzle-forming layer, the fluid chamber having a fluid chamber outlet defined at least in part by a nozzle portion of the said nozzle-forming layer, the said nozzle portion comprising an inner portion located closer to the fluid chamber outlet and an outer portion located closer to a periphery of the nozzle portion; and either or both of an inner actuator arrangement formed on the inner portion of the nozzle portion of the nozzle-forming layer and an outer actuator arrangement formed on the outer portion of the nozzle portion of the nozzle-forming layer.