The method and apparatus for protecting the printhead heating elements in a thermal printer includes preparing the printer for label dispensing and then covering the printhead heating elements such that the label run or thermal material passing over the same does not contact the printhead heating elements. The cover for the printhead heating elements can take various forms. In one implementation, the cover is a sleeve configured to fit over the entire printhead assembly of the thermal printer. In another implementation, the cover is a shim placed between the printhead and a label run path. The printhead cover has a low coefficient of friction.

A thermal head of the present disclosure includes a substrate 7, a heat generating unit 9, an electrode, a covering layer 27, and a covering member 29. The heat generating unit 9 is positioned above the substrate 7. The electrode is positioned above the substrate and connected to the heat generating unit 9. The covering layer 27 covers at least a part of the electrode when viewed in plan. The covering member 29 is positioned on the covering layer 27. The covering layer 27 has an upper surface 27a and a lateral surface 27b that is positioned on a side of the heat generating unit 9. An arithmetic-average surface roughness Ra of the lateral surface 27b is higher than an arithmetic-average surface roughness Ra of the upper surface 27a.

A thermal head includes: an underglaze layer provided on an insulating substrate; an electrode provided on the underglaze layer; a heat generator provided on the electrode; a first protective layer containing a glass material and covering at least the heat generator; and a second protective layer provided on the first protective layer, having a melting point higher than that of the first protective layer, and made of a material whose thermal expansion coefficient at a temperature of 1000 C. or lower is substantially constant.

A thermal print head element includes a substrate, a glaze layer, a heat accumulating layer, a heat generating resistor layer, an electrode layer and an insulating protective layer. The glaze layer is disposed on the substrate to form a ridge portion that linearly extends. The heat accumulating layer covers the ridge portion and the substrate, and is formed with an opening portion that exposes a part of the substrate. The heat generating resistor layer covers the heat accumulating layer. The electrode layer covers the heat generating resistor layer to directly contact with the part of the substrate through the opening portion. The insulating protective layer covers the electrode layer and the heat generating resistor layer, and formed with a through hole so that a soldering region of the electrode layer is exposed outwards from the insulating protective layer through the through hole.

The present disclosure provides a thermal print head. The thermal print head includes a substrate having a main surface and a convex portion and including a semiconductor material; a resistor layer including a plurality of heat generating portions located on the convex portion; and a wiring layer conducted to the plurality of heat generating portions and formed to contact the resistor layer. The convex portion has a top surface, a first inclined surface and a second inclined surface. The first inclined surface and the second inclined surface are disposed between the main surface and the top surface, separated from each other in a sub-scanning direction, and tilted with respect to the main surface. A first tilted angle of the first inclined surface with respect to the main surface and a second tilted angle of the second inclined surface with respect to the main surface are greater than 55 degrees.

A manufacturing method of a thermal head structure capable of improving printing resolution includes the following steps. A heat storing layer, a first electrode pattern, a heat generating resistor layer, a second electrode pattern and an insulating protective layer are formed to be overlapped on a substrate, and the step of forming the heat generating resistor layer is between the step of forming the first electrode pattern and the step of forming the second electrode pattern chronologically.

A thermal head X1 according to the present disclosure includes a substrate, a heat generator, an electrode, and a protective layer. The heat generator is positioned on the substrate. The electrode is positioned on the substrate and connected to the heat generator. The protective layer covers the heat generator and part of the electrode. The protective layer contains titanium and nitrogen. The protective layer satisfies P2>P1 where P1 is the peak intensity of X-ray diffraction of the (111) plane, and P2 is the peak intensity of X-ray diffraction of the (200) plane.

A thermal print head includes: a substrate; a resistor layer supported by the substrate and including a plurality of heat generating portions arranged in a main scanning direction; a wiring layer supported by the substrate and forming an energizing path to the plurality of heat generating portions; and an insulating layer interposed between the substrate and the resistor layer, wherein the substrate has a cavity portion overlapping the plurality of heat generating portions when viewed in a thickness direction of the substrate.

A thermal printhead includes a substrate having an obverse surface, a projection formed on the obverse surface and extending in a primary scanning direction, a plurality of heating elements arranged in the primary scanning direction on the top of the projection, a groove dented from the top of the projection and extending in the primary scanning direction, and a heat storage member filling at least an opening of the groove.

According to one embodiment, a thermal print head includes a heat sink; a head substrate placed on the heat sink and having a plurality of heat generating elements arranged in a primary scanning direction; a circuit board placed on the heat sink so as to be adjacent to the head substrate in an auxiliary scanning direction and provided with a connection circuit; and a control element electrically connected to the heat generating element via a first bonding wire and electrically connected to the connection circuit via a second bonding wire, in which at least one of the first bonding wire and the second bonding wire includes any of a copper wire, a copper alloy wire, and a wire mainly made of copper and coated with a metal different from copper.