Method Of Processing Digital Image In A Digital Camera

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 10/831,238 filed Apr. 26, 2004, which is a Continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/112,750, filed on Jul. 10, 1998, now Issued U.S. Pat. No. 6,727,948, all of which are herein incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an image processing method and apparatus and, in particular, discloses a process for—utilising autofocus information in a digital image camera.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Recently, digital cameras have become increasingly popular. These cameras normally operate by means of imaging a desired image utilizing a charge coupled device (CCD) array and storing the imaged scene on an electronic storage medium for later down loading onto a computer system for subsequent manipulation and printing out. Normally, when utilizing a computer system to print out an image, sophisticated software may be available to manipulate the image in accordance with requirements.

Unfortunately such systems require significant post processing of a captured image and normally present the image in an orientation in which is was taken, relying on the post processing process to perform any necessary or required modifications of the captured image.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for enhanced processing of images captured by a digital camera utilising autofocus settings.

In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of generating a manipulated output image by means of a digital camera, the method comprising the steps of:

capturing a focused image using an automatic focusing technique generating focus settings;

generating a manipulated output image by applying a digital image manipulating process to the focused image, the digital image manipulating process utilizing the focus settings.

Preferably the focus settings include a current position of a zoom motor of the digital camera.

In a preferred embodiment the digital image manipulating process includes a step of locating an object within the focused image utilizing the focus settings.

The method may include the step of printing out the manipulated image by means of a printing mechanism incorporated into the digital camera.

It is preferred that the digital image manipulating process selectively applies techniques to the focused image on the basis of the focus settings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Notwithstanding any other forms which may fall within the scope of the present invention, preferred forms of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates the method of the preferred embodiment; and

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of the ARTCAM type camera.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The preferred embodiment is preferably implemented through suitable programming of a hand held camera device such as that described in the concurrently filed application, Applicant's reference ART01, U.S. Ser. No. 09/113,060 entitled “A Digital Camera with Image Processing Capability” filed concurrently herewith by the present applicant the content of which is hereby specifically incorporated by cross reference and the details of which, and other related applications are set out in the tables below. FIG. 2 shows a block diagram thereof.

The aforementioned patent specification discloses a camera system, hereinafter known as an “Artcam” type camera, wherein sensed images can be directly printed out by an Artcam portable camera unit such as illustrated in FIG. 2. Further, the aforementioned specification discloses means and methods for performing various manipulations on images captured by the camera sensing device 30 leading to the production of various effects in any output image 40. The manipulations are disclosed to be highly flexible in nature and can be implemented through the insertion into the Artcam of cards having encoded thereon various instructions for the manipulation of images, the cards 9 hereinafter being known as Artcards. The Artcam further has significant onboard processing power by an Artcam Central Processor unit (ACP) 32 which is interconnected to a memory device 34 for the storage of important data and images.

In the preferred embodiment, autofocus is achieved by processing of a CCD data stream to ensure maximum contrast. Techniques for determining a focus position based on a CCD data stream are known. For example, reference is made to “The Encyclopedia of Photography” editors Leslie Stroebel and Richard Zakia, published 1993 by Butterworth-Heinemann and “Applied Photographic Optics” by London & Boston, Focal Press, 1988. These techniques primarily rely on measurements of contrast between adjacent pixels over portions of an input image. The image is initally processed by the ACP in order to determine a correct autofocus setting.

This autofocus information is then utilized by the ACP 32 in certain modes, for example, when attempting to locate faces within the image, as a guide to the likely size of any face within the image, thereby simplifying the face location process.

Turning now to FIG. 1, there is illustrated an example of the method utilized to determine likely image characteristics for examination by a face detection algorithm 10.

Various images eg. 2, 3 and 4 are imaged by the camera device 28. As a by product of the operation of the auto-focusing the details of the focusing settings of the autofocus unit 5 are stored by the ACP 32. Additionally, a current position of the zoom motor 38 is also utilized as zoom setting 6. Both of these settings are determined by the ACP 32. Subsequently, the ACP 32 applies analysis techniques in heuristic system 8 to the detected values before producing an output 29 having a magnitude corresponding to the likely depth location of objects of interest 21, 31 or 41 within the image 2, 3 or 4 respectively.

Next, the depth value is utilised in a face detection algorithm 10 running on the ACP 32 in addition to the inputted sensed image 11 so as to locate objects within the image. A close output 29 corresponding to a range value indicates a high probability of a portrait image, a medium range indicates a high probability of a group photograph and a further range indicates a higher probability of a landscape image. This probability information can be utilized as an aid for the face detection algorithm and also can be utilised for selecting between various parameters when producing “painting” effects within the image or painting the image with clip arts or the like, with different techniques or clip arts being applied depending on the distance to an object.

It would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the present invention as shown in the specific embodiment without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiment is, therefore, to be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive.

The present invention is further best utilized in the Artcam device, the details of which are set out in the following paragraphs although it is not restricted thereto.

Ink Jet Technologies

The embodiments of the invention use an ink jet printer type device. Of course many different devices could be used. However presently popular ink jet printing technologies are unlikely to be suitable.

The most significant problem with thermal inkjet is power consumption. This is approximately 100 times that required for high speed, and stems from the energy-inefficient means of drop ejection. This involves the rapid boiling of water to produce a vapor bubble which expels the ink. Water has a very high heat capacity, and must be superheated in thermal inkjet applications. This leads to an efficiency of around 0.02%, from electricity input to drop momentum (and increased surface area) out.

The most significant problem with piezoelectric inkjet is size and cost. Piezoelectric crystals have a very small deflection at reasonable drive voltages, and therefore require a large area for each nozzle. Also, each piezoelectric actuator must be connected to its drive circuit on a separate substrate. This is not a significant problem at the current limit of around 300 nozzles per print head, but is a major impediment to the fabrication of pagewidth print heads with 19,200 nozzles.

Ideally, the inkjet technologies used meet the stringent requirements of in-camera digital color printing and other high quality, high speed, low cost printing applications. To meet the requirements of digital photography, new inkjet technologies have been created. The target features include:

low power (less than 10 Watts)

high resolution capability (1,600 dpi or more)

photographic quality output

low manufacturing cost

small size (pagewidth times minimum cross section)

high speed (<2 seconds per page).

All of these features can be met or exceeded by the inkjet systems described below with differing levels of difficulty. Fortyfive different inkjet technologies have been developed by the Assignee to give a wide range of choices for high volume manufacture. These technologies form part of separate applications assigned to the present Assignee as set out in the table below.

The inkjet designs shown here are suitable for a wide range of digital printing systems, from battery powered one-time use digital cameras, through to desktop and network printers, and through to commercial printing systems

For ease of manufacture using standard process equipment, the print head is designed to be a monolithic 0.5 micron CMOS chip with MEMS post processing. For color photographic applications, the print head is 100 mm long, with a width which depends upon the inkjet type. The smallest print head designed is IJ38, which is 0.35 mm wide, giving a chip area of 35 square mm. The print heads each contain 19,200 nozzles plus data and control circuitry.

Ink is supplied to the back of the print head by injection molded plastic ink channels. The molding requires 50 micron features, which can be created using a lithographically micromachined insert in a standard injection molding tool. Ink flows through holes etched through the wafer to the nozzle chambers fabricated on the front surface of the wafer. The print head is connected to the camera circuitry by tape automated bonding.

CROSS-REFERENCED APPLICATIONS

The following table is a guide to cross-referenced patent applications filed concurrently herewith and discussed hereinafter with the reference being utilized in subsequent tables when referring to a particular case:

Docket	Reference	Title
IJ01US	6,227,652	Radiant Plunger Ink Jet Printer
IJ02US	6,213,588	Electrostatic Ink Jet Printer
IJ03US	6,213,589	Planar Thermoelastic Bend Actuator Ink Jet
IJ04US	6,231,163	Stacked Electrostatic Ink Jet Printer
IJ05US	6,247,795	Reverse Spring Lever Ink Jet Printer
IJ06US	6,394,581	Paddle Type Ink Jet Printer
IJ07US	6,244,691	Permanent Magnet Electromagnetic Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ08US	6,257,704	Planar Swing Grill Electromagnetic Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ09US	6,416,168	Pump Action Refill Ink Jet Printer
IJ10US	6,220,694	Pulsed Magnetic Field Ink Jet Printer
IJ11US	6,257,705	Two Plate Reverse Firing Electromagnetic Ink
		Jet Printer
IJ12US	6,247,794	Linear Stepper Actuator Ink Jet Printer
IJ13US	6,234,610	Gear Driven Shutter Ink Jet Printer
IJ14US	6,247,793	Tapered Magnetic Pole Electromagnetic Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ15US	6,264,306	Linear Spring Electromagnetic Grill Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ16US	6,241,342	Lorenz Diaphragm Electromagnetic Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ17US	6,247,792	PTFE Surface Shooting Shuttered Oscillating
		Pressure Ink Jet Printer
IJ18US	6,264,307	Buckle Grip Oscillating Pressure Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ19US	6,254,220	Shutter Based Ink Jet Printer
IJ20US	6,234,611	Curling Calyx Thermoelastic Ink Jet Printer
IJ21US	6,302,528	Thermal Actuated Ink Jet Printer
IJ22US	6,283,582	Iris Motion Ink Jet Printer
IJ23US	6,239,821	Direct Firing Thermal Bend Actuator Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ24US	6,338,547	Conductive PTFE Ben Activator Vented Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ25US	6,247,796	Magnetostrictive Ink Jet Printer
IJ26US	6,557,977	Shape Memory Alloy Ink Jet Printer
IJ27US	6,390,603	Buckle Plate Ink Jet Printer
IJ28US	6,362,843	Thermal Elastic Rotary Impeller Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ29US	6,293,653	Thermoelastic Bend Actuator Ink Jet Printer
IJ30US	6,312,107	Thermoelastic Bend Actuator Using PTFE and
		Corrugated Copper Ink Jet Printer
IJ31US	6,227,653	Bend Actuator Direct Ink Supply Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ32US	6,234,609	A High Young's Modulus Thermoelastic Ink Jet
		Printer
IJ33US	6,238,040	Thermally actuated slotted chamber wall ink
		jet printer
IJ34US	6,188,415	Ink Jet Printer having a thermal actuator
		comprising an external coiled spring
IJ35US	6,227,654	Trough Container Ink Jet Printer
IJ36US	6,209,989	Dual Chamber Single Vertical Actuator Ink Jet
IJ37US	6,247,791	Dual Nozzle Single Horizontal Fulcrum Actuator
		Ink Jet
IJ38US	6,336,710	Dual Nozzle Single Horizontal Actuator Ink Jet
IJ39US	6,217,153	A single bend actuator cupped paddle ink jet
		printing device
IJ40US	6,416,167	A thermally actuated ink jet printer having a
		series of thermal actuator units
IJ41US	6,243,113	A thermally actuated ink jet printer including
		a tapered heater element
IJ42US	6,283,581	Radial Back-Curling Thermoelastic Ink Jet
IJ43US	6,247,790	Inverted Radial Back-Curling Thermoelastic Ink
		Jet
IJ44US	6,260,953	Surface bend actuator vented ink supply ink
		jet printer
IJ45US	6,267,469	Coil Acutuated Magnetic Plate Ink Jet Printer

Tables of Drop-on-Demand Inkjets

Eleven important characteristics of the fundamental operation of individual inkjet nozzles have been identified. These characteristics are largely orthogonal, and so can be elucidated as an eleven dimensional matrix. Most of the eleven axes of this matrix include entries developed by the present assignee.

The following tables form the axes of an eleven dimensional table of inkjet types.

Actuator mechanism (18 types)

Basic operation mode (7 types)

Auxiliary mechanism (8 types)

Actuator amplification or modification method (17 types)

Actuator motion (19 types)

Nozzle refill method (4 types)

Method of restricting back-flow through inlet (10 types)

Nozzle clearing method (9 types)

Nozzle plate construction (9 types)

Drop ejection direction (5 types)

Ink type (7 types)

The complete eleven dimensional table represented by these axes contains 36.9 billion possible configurations of inkjet nozzle. While not all of the possible combinations result in a viable inkjet technology, many million configurations are viable. It is clearly impractical to elucidate all of the possible configurations. Instead, certain inkjet types have been investigated in detail. These are designated IJ01 to IJ45 above.

Other inkjet configurations can readily be derived from these fortyfive examples by substituting alternative configurations along one or more of the 11 axes. Most of the IJ01 to IJ45 examples can be made into inkjet print heads with characteristics superior to any currently available inkjet technology.

Where there are prior art examples known to the inventor, one or more of these examples are listed in the examples column of the tables below. The IJ01 to IJ45 series are also listed in the examples column. In some cases, a print technology may be listed more than once in a table, where it shares characteristics with more than one entry.

Suitable applications include: Home printers, Office network printers, Short run digital printers, Commercial print systems, Fabric printers, Pocket printers, Internet WWW printers, Video printers, Medical imaging, Wide format printers, Notebook PC printers, Fax machines, Industrial printing systems, Photocopiers, Photographic minilabs etc.

The information associated with the aforementioned 11 dimensional matrix are set out in the following tables.

ACTUATOR MECHANISM (APPLIED ONLY TO SELECTED INK DROPS)

Actuator
Mechanism	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples

Thermal	An electrothermal heater heats the	Large force generated	High power	Canon Bubblejet
bubble	ink to above boiling point,	Simple construction	Ink carrier limited to water	1979 Endo et al GB
	transferring significant heat to the	No moving parts	Low efficiency	patent 2,007,162
	aqueous ink. A bubble nucleates	Fast operation	High temperatures required	Xerox heater-in-pit
	and quickly forms, expelling the	Small chip area required	High mechanical stress	1990 Hawkins et al
	ink.	for actuator	Unusual materials required	U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,181
	The efficiency of the process is		Large drive transistors	Hewlett-Packard
	low, with typically less than		Cavitation causes actuator failure	TIJ 1982 Vaught et
	0.05% of the electrical energy		Kogation reduces bubble formation	al U.S. Pat. No. 4,490,728
	being transformed into kinetic		Large print heads are difficult to
	energy of the drop.		fabricate
Piezoelectric	A piezoelectric crystal such as	Low power consumption	Very large area required for	Kyser et al U.S. Pat. No.
	lead lanthanum zirconate (PZT) is	Many ink types can be	actuator	3,946,398
	electrically activated, and either	used	Difficult to integrate with	Zoltan U.S. Pat. No.
	expands, shears, or bends to apply	Fast operation	electronics	3,683,212
	pressure to the ink, ejecting drops.	High efficiency	High voltage drive transistors	1973 Stemme U.S. Pat. No.
			required	3,747,120
			Full pagewidth print heads	Epson Stylus
			impractical due to actuator size	Tektronix
			Requires electrical poling in high	IJ04
			field strengths during manufacture
Electro-	An electric field is used to	Low power consumption	Low maximum strain (approx.	Seiko Epson, Usui
strictive	activate electrostriction in relaxor	Many ink types can be	0.01%)	et all JP 253401/96
	materials such as lead lanthanum	used	Large area required for actuator due	IJ04
	zirconate titanate (PLZT) or lead	Low thermal expansion	to low strain
	magnesium niobate (PMN).	Electric field strength	Response speed is marginal (~10 μs)
		required (approx. 3.5 V/μm)	High voltage drive transistors
		can be generated	required
		without difficulty	Full pagewidth print heads
		Does not require	impractical due to actuator size
		electrical poling
Ferroelectric	An electric field is used to induce	Low power consumption	Difficult to integrate with	IJ04
	a phase transition between the	Many ink types can be	electronics
	antiferroelectric (AFE) and	used	Unusual materials such as PLZSnT
	ferroelectric (FE) phase.	Fast operation (<1 μs)	are required
	Perovskite materials such as tin	Relatively high	Actuators require a large area
	modified lead lanthanum	longitudinal strain
	zirconate titanate (PLZSnT)	High efficiency
	exhibit large strains of up to 1%	Electric field strength of
	associated with the AFE to FE	around 3 V/μm can be
	phase transition.	readily provided
Electrostatic	Conductive plates are separated	Low power consumption	Difficult to operate electrostatic	IJ02, IJ04
plates	by a compressible or fluid	Many ink types can be	devices in an aqueous environment
	dielectric (usually air). Upon	used	The electrostatic actuator will
	application of a voltage, the plates	Fast operation	normally need to be separated from
	attract each other and displace		the ink
	ink, causing drop ejection. The		Very large area required to achieve
	conductive plates may be in a		high forces
	comb or honeycomb structure, or		High voltage drive transistors may
	stacked to increase the surface		be required
	area and therefore the force.		Full pagewidth print heads are not
			competitive due to actuator size
Electrostatic	A strong electric field is applied	Low current consumption	High voltage required	1989 Saito et al,
pull on ink	to the ink, whereupon electrostatic	Low temperature	May be damaged by sparks due to	U.S. Pat. No. 4,799,068
	attraction accelerates the ink		air breakdown	1989 Miura et al,
	towards the print medium.		Required field strength increases as	U.S. Pat. No. 4,810,954
			the drop size decreases	Tone-jet
			High voltage drive transistors
			required
			Electrostatic field attracts dust
Permanent	An electromagnet directly attracts	Low power consumption	Complex fabrication	IJ07, IJ10
magnet	a permanent magnet, displacing	Many ink types can be	Permanent magnetic material such
electro-	ink and causing drop ejection.	used	as Neodymium Iron Boron (NdFeB)
magnetic	Rare earth magnets with a field	Fast operation	required.
	strength around 1 Tesla can be	High efficiency	High local currents required
	used. Examples are: Samarium	Easy extension from	Copper metalization should be used
	Cobalt (SaCo) and magnetic	single nozzles to	for long electromigration lifetime
	materials in the neodymium iron	pagewidth print heads	and low resistivity
	boron family (NdFeB,		Pigmented inks are usually
	NdDyFeBNb, NdDyFeB, etc)		infeasible
			Operating temperature limited to the
			Curie temperature (around 540 K)
Soft magnetic	A solenoid induced a magnetic	Low power consumption	Complex fabrication	IJ01, IJ05, IJ08,
core electro-	field in a soft magnetic core or	Many ink types can be	Materials not usually present in a	IJ10
magnetic	yoke fabricated from a ferrous	used	CMOS fab such as NiFe, CoNiFe,	IJ12, IJ14, IJ15,
	material such as electroplated iron	Fast operation	or CoFe are required	IJ17
	alloys such as CoNiFe [1], CoFe,	High efficiency	High local currents required
	or NiFe alloys. Typically, the soft	Easy extension from	Copper metalization should be used
	magnetic material is in two parts,	single nozzles to	for long electromigration lifetime
	which are normally held apart by	pagewidth print heads	and low resistivity
	a spring. When the solenoid is		Electroplating is required
	actuated, the two parts attract,		High saturation flux density is
	displacing the ink.		required (2.0-2.1 T is achievable
			with CoNiFe [1])
Magnetic	The Lorenz force acting on a	Low power consumption	Force acts as a twisting motion	IJ06, IJ11, IJ13,
Lorenz force	current carrying wire in a	Many ink types can be	Typically, only a quarter of the	IJ16
	magnetic field is utilized.	used	solenoid length provides force in a
	This allows the magnetic field to	Fast operation	useful direction
	be supplied externally to the print	High efficiency	High local currents required
	head, for example with rare earth	Easy extension from	Copper metalization should be used
	permanent magnets.	single nozzles to	for long electromigration lifetime
	Only the current carrying wire	pagewidth print heads	and low resistivity
	need be fabricated on the print-		Pigmented inks are usually
	head, simplifying materials		infeasible
	requirements.
Magneto-	The actuator uses the giant	Many ink types can be	Force acts as a twisting motion	Fischenbeck, U.S. Pat. No.
striction	magnetostrictive effect of	used	Unusual materials such as Terfenol-	4,032,929
	materials such as Terfenol-D (an	Fast operation	D are required	IJ25
	alloy of terbium, dysprosium and	Easy extension from	High local currents required
	iron developed at the Naval	single nozzles to	Copper metalization should be used
	Ordnance Laboratory, hence Ter-	pagewidth print heads	for long electromigration lifetime
	Fe-NOL). For best efficiency, the	High force is available	and low resistivity
	actuator should be pre-stressed to		Pre-stressing may be required
	approx. 8 MPa.
Surface	Ink under positive pressure is held	Low power consumption	Requires supplementary force to	Silverbrook, EP
tension	in a nozzle by surface tension.	Simple construction	effect drop separation	0771 658 A2 and
reduction	The surface tension of the ink is	No unusual materials	Requires special ink surfactants	related patent
	reduced below the bubble	required in fabrication	Speed may be limited by surfactant	applications
	threshold, causing the ink to	High efficiency	properties
	egress from the nozzle.	Easy extension from
		single nozzles to
		pagewidth print heads
Viscosity	The ink viscosity is locally	Simple construction	Requires supplementary force to	Silverbrook, EP
reduction	reduced to select which drops are	No unusual materials	effect drop separation	0771 658 A2 and
	to be ejected. A viscosity	required in fabrication	Requires special ink viscosity	related patent
	reduction can be achieved	Easy extension from	properties	applications
	electrothermally with most inks,	single nozzles to	High speed is difficult to achieve
	but special inks can be engineered	pagewidth print heads	Requires oscillating ink pressure
	for a 100:1 viscosity reduction.		A high temperature difference
			(typically 80 degrees) is required
Acoustic	An acoustic wave is generated	Can operate without a	Complex drive circuitry	1993 Hadimioglu et
	and focussed upon the drop	nozzle plate	Complex fabrication	al, EUP 550,192
	ejection region.		Low efficiency	1993 Elrod et al,
			Poor control of drop position	EUP 572,220
			Poor control of drop volume
Thermoelastic	An actuator which relies upon	Low power consumption	Efficient aqueous operation requires	IJ03, IJ09, IJ17,
bend	differential thermal expansion	Many ink types can be	a thermal insulator on the hot side	IJ18
actuator	upon Joule heating is used.	used	Corrosion prevention can be	IJ19, IJ20, IJ21,
		Simple planar fabrication	difficult	IJ22
		Small chip area required	Pigmented inks may be infeasible,	IJ23, IJ24, IJ27,
		for each actuator	as pigment particles may jam the	IJ28
		Fast operation	bend actuator	IJ29, IJ30, IJ31,
		High efficiency		IJ32
		CMOS compatible		IJ33, IJ34, IJ35,
		voltages and currents		IJ36
		Standard MEMS		IJ37, IJ38, IJ39,
		processes can be used		IJ40
		Easy extension from		IJ41
		single nozzles to
		pagewidth print heads
High CTE	A material with a very high	High force can be	Requires special material (e.g.	IJ09, IJ17, IJ18,
thermoelastic	coefficient of thermal expansion	generated	PTFE)	IJ20
actuator	(CTE) such as	PTFE is a candidate for	Requires a PTFE deposition	IJ21, IJ22, IJ23,
	polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is	low dielectric constant	process, which is not yet standard in	IJ24
	used. As high CTE materials are	insulation in ULSI	ULSI fabs	IJ27, IJ28, IJ29,
	usually non-conductive, a heater	Very low power	PTFE deposition cannot be	IJ30
	fabricated from a conductive	consumption	followed with high temperature	IJ31, IJ42, IJ43,
	material is incorporated. A 50 μm	Many ink types can be	(above 350° C.) processing	IJ44
	long PTFE bend actuator with	used	Pigmented inks may be infeasible,
	polysilicon heater and 15 mW	Simple planar fabrication	as pigment particles may jam the
	power input can provide 180 μN	Small chip area required	bend actuator
	force and 10 μm deflection.	for each actuator
	Actuator motions include:	Fast operation
	1) Bend	High efficiency
	2) Push	CMOS compatible
	3) Buckle	voltages and currents
	4) Rotate	Easy extension from
		single nozzles to
		pagewidth print heads
Conductive	A polymer with a high coefficient	High force can be	Requires special materials	IJ24
polymer	of thermal expansion (such as	generated	development (High CTE conductive
thermoelastic	PTFE) is doped with conducting	Very low power	polymer)
actuator	substances to increase its	consumption	Requires a PTFE deposition
	conductivity to about 3 orders of	Many ink types can be	process, which is not yet standard in
	magnitude below that of copper.	used	ULSI fabs
	The conducting polymer expands	Simple planar fabrication	PTFE deposition cannot be
	when resistively heated.	Small chip area required	followed with high temperature
	Examples of conducting dopants	for each actuator	(above 350° C.) processing
	include:	Fast operation	Evaporation and CVD deposition
	1) Carbon nanotubes	High efficiency	techniques cannot be used
	2) Metal fibers	CMOS compatible	Pigmented inks may be infeasible,
	3) Conductive polymers such as	voltages and currents	as pigment particles may jam the
	doped polythiophene	Easy extension from	bend actuator
	4) Carbon granules	single nozzles to
		pagewidth print heads
Shape	A shape memory alloy such as	High force is available	Fatigue limits maximum number of	IJ26
memory alloy	TiNi (also known as Nitinol -	(stresses of hundreds of	cycles
	Nickel Titanium alloy developed	MPa)	Low strain (1%) is required to
	at the Naval Ordnance	Large strain is available	extend fatigue resistance
	Laboratory) is thermally switched	(more than 3%)	Cycle rate limited by heat removal
	between its weak martensitic state	High corrosion resistance	Requires unusual materials (TiNi)
	and its high stiffness austenic	Simple construction	The latent heat of transformation
	state. The shape of the actuator in	Easy extension from	must be provided
	its martensitic state is deformed	single nozzles to	High current operation
	relative to the austenic shape. The	pagewidth print heads	Requires pre-stressing to distort the
	shape change causes ejection of a	Low voltage operation	martensitic state
	drop.
Linear	Linear magnetic actuators include	Linear Magnetic	Requires unusual semiconductor	IJ12
Magnetic	the Linear Induction Actuator	actuators can be	materials such as soft magnetic
Actuator	(LIA), Linear Permanent Magnet	constructed with high	alloys (e.g. CoNiFe [1])
	Synchronous Actuator (LPMSA),	thrust, long travel, and	Some varieties also require
	Linear Reluctance Synchronous	high efficiency using	permanent magnetic materials such
	Actuator (LRSA), Linear	planar semiconductor	as Neodymium iron boron (NdFeB)
	Switched Reluctance Actuator	fabrication techniques	Requires complex multi-phase drive
	(LSRA), and the Linear Stepper	Long actuator travel is	circuitry
	Actuator (LSA).	available	High current operation
		Medium force is available
		Low voltage operation

BASIC OPERATION MODE

Operational
mode	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
Actuator	This is the simplest mode of	Simple operation	Drop repetition rate is usually	Thermal inkjet
directly	operation: the actuator directly	No external fields	limited to less than 10 KHz.	Piezoelectric inkjet
pushes ink	supplies sufficient kinetic energy	required	However, this is not fundamental to	IJ01, IJ02, IJ03,
	to expel the drop. The drop must	Satellite drops can be	the method, but is related to the	IJ04
	have a sufficient velocity to overcome the	avoided if drop velocity is	refill method normally used	IJ05, IJ06, IJ07,
	surface tension.	less than 4 m/s	All of the drop kinetic energy must	IJ09
		Can be efficient,	be provided by the actuator	IJ11, IJ12, IJ14,
		depending upon the	Satellite drops usually form if drop	IJ16
		actuator used	velocity is greater than 4.5 m/s	IJ20, IJ22, IJ23,
				IJ24
				IJ25, IJ26, IJ27,
				IJ28
				IJ29, IJ30, IJ31,
				IJ32
				IJ33, IJ34, IJ35,
				IJ36
				IJ37, IJ38, IJ39,
				IJ40
				IJ41, IJ42, IJ43,
				IJ44
Proximity	The drops to be printed are	Very simple print head	Requires close proximity between	Silverbrook, EP
	selected by some manner (e.g.	fabrication can be used	the print head and the print media or	0771 658 A2 and
	thermally induced surface tension	The drop selection means	transfer roller	related patent
	reduction of pressurized ink).	does not need to provide	May require two print heads	applications
	Selected drops are separated from	the energy required to	printing alternate rows of the image
	the ink in the nozzle by contact	separate the drop from the	Monolithic color print heads are
	with the print medium or a	nozzle	difficult
	transfer roller.
Electrostatic	The drops to be printed are	Very simple print head	Requires very high electrostatic	Silverbrook, EP
pull on ink	selected by some manner (e.g.	fabrication can be used	field	0771 658 A2 and
	thermally induced surface tension	The drop selection means	Electrostatic field for small nozzle	related patent
	reduction of pressurized ink).	does not need to provide	sizes is above air breakdown	applications
	Selected drops are separated from	the energy required to	Electrostatic field may attract dust	Tone-Jet
	the ink in the nozzle by a strong	separate the drop from the
	electric field.	nozzle
Magnetic pull	The drops to be printed are	Very simple print head	Requires magnetic ink	Silverbrook, EP
on ink	selected by some manner (e.g.	fabrication can be used	Ink colors other than black are	0771 658 A2 and
	thermally induced surface tension	The drop selection means	difficult	related patent
	reduction of pressurized ink).	does not need to provide	Requires very high magnetic fields	applications
	Selected drops are separated from	the energy required to
	the ink in the nozzle by a strong	separate the drop from the
	magnetic field acting on the	nozzle
	magnetic ink.
Shutter	The actuator moves a shutter to	High speed (>50 KHz)	Moving parts are required	IJ13, IJ17, IJ21
	block ink flow to the nozzle. The	operation can be achieved	Requires ink pressure modulator
	ink pressure is pulsed at a	due to reduced refill time	Friction and wear must be
	multiple of the drop ejection	Drop timing can be very	considered
	frequency.	accurate	Stiction is possible
		The actuator energy can
		be very low
Shuttered	The actuator moves a shutter to	Actuators with small	Moving parts are required	IJ08, IJ15, IJ18,
grill	block ink flow through a grill to	travel can be used	Requires ink pressure modulator	IJ19
	the nozzle. The shutter movement	Actuators with small	Friction and wear must be
	need only be equal to the width of	force can be used	considered
	the grill holes.	High speed (>50 KHz)	Stiction is possible
		operation can be achieved
Pulsed	A pulsed magnetic field attracts	Extremely low energy	Requires an external pulsed	IJ10
magnetic pull	an ‘ink pusher’ at the drop	operation is possible	magnetic field
on ink pusher	ejection frequency. An actuator	No heat dissipation	Requires special materials for both
	controls a catch, which prevents	problems	the actuator and the ink pusher
	the ink pusher from moving when		Complex construction
	a drop is not to be ejected.

AUXILIARY MECHANISM (APPLIED TO ALL NOZZLES)

Auxiliary
Mechanism	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
None	The actuator directly fires the ink	Simplicity of construction	Drop ejection energy must be	Most inkjets,
	drop, and there is no external field	Simplicity of operation	supplied by individual nozzle	including
	or other mechanism required.	Small physical size	actuator	piezoelectric and
				thermal bubble.
				IJ01-IJ07, IJ09,
				IJ11
				IJ12, IJ14, IJ20,
				IJ22
				IJ23-IJ45
Oscillating	The ink pressure oscillates,	Oscillating ink pressure	Requires external ink pressure	Silverbrook, EP
ink pressure	providing much of the drop	can provide a refill pulse,	oscillator	0771 658 A2 and
(including	ejection energy. The actuator	allowing higher operating	Ink pressure phase and amplitude	related patent
acoustic	selects which drops are to be fired	speed	must be carefully controlled	applications
stimulation)	by selectively blocking or	The actuators may	Acoustic reflections in the ink	IJ08, IJ13, IJ15,
	enabling nozzles. The ink	operate with much lower	chamber must be designed for	IJ17
	pressure oscillation may be	energy		IJ18, IJ19, IJ21
	achieved by vibrating the print	Acoustic lenses can be
	head, or preferably by an actuator	used to focus the sound
	in the ink supply.	on the nozzles
Media	The print head is placed in close	Low power	Precision assembly required	Silverbrook, EP
proximity	proximity to the print medium.	High accuracy	Paper fibers may cause problems	0771 658 A2 and
	Selected drops protrude from the	Simple print head	Cannot print on rough substrates	related patent
	print head further than unselected	construction		applications
	drops, and contact the print
	medium. The drop soaks into the
	medium fast enough to cause drop
	separation.
Transfer	Drops are printed to a transfer	High accuracy	Bulky	Silverbrook, EP
roller	roller instead of straight to the	Wide range of print	Expensive	0771 658 A2 and
	print medium. A transfer roller	substrates can be used	Complex construction	related patent
	can also be used for proximity	Ink can be dried on the		applications
	drop separation.	transfer roller		Tektronix hot melt
				piezoelectric inkjet
				Any of the IJ series
Electrostatic	An electric field is used to	Low power	Field strength required for	Silverbrook, EP
	accelerate selected drops towards	Simple print head	separation of small drops is near or	0771 658 A2 and
	the print medium.	construction	above air breakdown	related patent
				applications
				Tone-Jet
Direct	A magnetic field is used to	Low power	Requires magnetic ink	Silverbrook, EP
magnetic	accelerate selected drops of	Simple print head	Requires strong magnetic field	0771 658 A2 and
field	magnetic ink towards the print	construction		related patent
	medium.			applications
Cross	The print head is placed in a	Does not require	Requires external magnet	IJ06, IJ16
magnetic	constant magnetic field. The	magnetic materials to be	Current densities may be high,
field	Lorenz force in a current carrying	integrated in the print	resulting in electromigration
	wire is used to move the actuator.	head manufacturing	problems
		process
Pulsed	A pulsed magnetic field is used to	Very low power	Complex print head construction	IJ10
magnetic	cyclically attract a paddle, which	operation is possible	Magnetic materials required in print
field	pushes on the ink. A small	Small print head size	head
	actuator moves a catch, which
	selectively prevents the paddle
	from moving.

ACTUATOR AMPLIFICATION OR MODIFICATION METHOD

Actuator
amplification	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
None	No actuator mechanical	Operational simplicity	Many actuator mechanisms have	Thermal Bubble
	amplification is used. The		insufficient travel, or insufficient	Inkjet
	actuator directly drives the drop		force, to efficiently drive the drop	IJ01, IJ02, IJ06,
	ejection process.		ejection process	IJ07
				IJ16, IJ25, IJ26
Differential	An actuator material expands	Provides greater travel in	High stresses are involved	Piezoelectric
expansion	more on one side than on the	a reduced print head area	Care must be taken that the	IJ03, IJ09, IJ17-IJ24
bend actuator	other. The expansion may be	The bend actuator	materials do not delaminate	IJ27, IJ29-IJ39,
	thermal, piezoelectric,	converts a high force low	Residual bend resulting from high	IJ42,
	magnetostrictive, or other	travel actuator	temperature or high stress during	IJ43, IJ44
	mechanism.	mechanism to high travel,	formation
		lower force mechanism.
Transient	A trilayer bend actuator where the	Very good temperature	High stresses are involved	IJ40, IJ41
bend actuator	two outside layers are identical.	stability	Care must be taken that the
	This cancels bend due to ambient	High speed, as a new	materials do not delaminate
	temperature and residual stress.	drop can be fired before
	The actuator only responds to	heat dissipates
	transient heating of one side or the	Cancels residual stress of
	other.	formation
Actuator	A series of thin actuators are	Increased travel	Increased fabrication complexity	Some piezoelectric
stack	stacked. This can be appropriate	Reduced drive voltage	Increased possibility of short	ink jets
	where actuators require high		circuits due to pinholes	IJ04
	electric field strength, such as
	electrostatic and piezoelectric
	actuators.
Multiple	Multiple smaller actuators are	Increases the force	Actuator forces may not add	IJ12, IJ13, IJ18,
actuators	used simultaneously to move the	available from an actuator	linearly, reducing efficiency	IJ20
	ink. Each actuator need provide	Multiple actuators can be		IJ22, IJ28, IJ42,
	only a portion of the force	positioned to control ink		IJ43
	required.	flow accurately
Linear Spring	A linear spring is used to	Matches low travel	Requires print head area for the	IJ15
	transform a motion with small	actuator with higher	spring
	travel and high force into a longer	travel requirements
	travel, lower force motion.	Non-contact method of
		motion transformation
Reverse	The actuator loads a spring. When	Better coupling to the ink	Fabrication complexity	IJ05, IJ11
spring	the actuator is turned off, the		High stress in the spring
	spring releases. This can reverse
	the force/distance curve of the
	actuator to make it compatible
	with the force/time requirements
	of the drop ejection.
Coiled	A bend actuator is coiled to	Increases travel	Generally restricted to planar	IJ17, IJ21, IJ34,
actuator	provide greater travel in a reduced	Reduces chip area	implementations due to extreme	IJ35
	chip area.	Planar implementations	fabrication difficulty in other
		are relatively easy to	orientations.
		fabricate.
Flexure bend	A bend actuator has a small	Simple means of	Care must be taken not to exceed	IJ10, IJ19, IJ33
actuator	region near the fixture point,	increasing travel of a	the elastic limit in the flexure area
	which flexes much more readily	bend actuator	Stress distribution is very uneven
	than the remainder of the actuator.		Difficult to accurately model with
	The actuator flexing is effectively		finite element analysis
	converted from an even coiling to
	an angular bend, resulting in
	greater travel of the actuator tip.
Gears	Gears can be used to increase	Low force, low travel	Moving parts are required	IJ13
	travel at the expense of duration.	actuators can be used	Several actuator cycles are required
	Circular gears, rack and pinion,	Can be fabricated using	More complex drive electronics
	ratchets, and other gearing	standard surface MEMS	Complex construction
	methods can be used.	processes	Friction, friction, and wear are
			possible
Catch	The actuator controls a small	Very low actuator energy	Complex construction	IJ10
	catch. The catch either enables or	Very small actuator size	Requires external force
	disables movement of an ink		Unsuitable for pigmented inks
	pusher that is controlled in a bulk
	manner.
Buckle plate	A buckle plate can be used to	Very fast movement	Must stay within elastic limits of the	S. Hirata et al, “An
	change a slow actuator into a fast	achievable	materials for long device life	Ink-jet Head . . . ”,
	motion. It can also convert a high		High stresses involved	Proc. IEEE MEMS,
	force, low travel actuator into a		Generally high power requirement	February 1996, pp 418-423.
	high travel, medium force motion.			IJ18, IJ27
Tapered	A tapered magnetic pole can	Linearizes the magnetic	Complex construction	IJ14
magnetic	increase travel at the expense of	force/distance curve
pole	force.
Lever	A lever and fulcrum is used to	Matches low travel	High stress around the fulcrum	IJ32, IJ36, IJ37
	transform a motion with small	actuator with higher
	travel and high force into a	travel requirements
	motion with longer travel and	Fulcrum area has no
	lower force. The lever can also	linear movement, and can
	reverse the direction of travel.	be used for a fluid seal
Rotary	The actuator is connected to a	High mechanical	Complex construction	IJ28
impeller	rotary impeller. A small angular	advantage	Unsuitable for pigmented inks
	deflection of the actuator results	The ratio of force to
	in a rotation of the impeller vanes,	travel of the actuator can
	which push the ink against	be matched to the nozzle
	stationary vanes and out of the	requirements by varying
	nozzle.	the number of impeller
		vanes
Acoustic lens	A refractive or diffractive (e.g.	No moving parts	Large area required	1993 Hadimioglu et
	zone plate) acoustic lens is used to		Only relevant for acoustic ink jets	al, EUP 550,192
	concentrate sound waves.			1993 Elrod et al,
				EUP 572,220
Sharp	A sharp point is used to	Simple construction	Difficult to fabricate using standard	Tone-jet
conductive	concentrate an electrostatic field.		VLSI processes for a surface
point			ejecting ink-jet
			Only relevant for electrostatic ink
			jets

ACTUATOR MOTION

Actuator
motion	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
Volume	The volume of the actuator	Simple construction in	High energy is typically required to	Hewlett-Packard
expansion	changes, pushing the ink in all	the case of thermal ink jet	achieve volume expansion. This	Thermal Inkjet
	directions.		leads to thermal stress, cavitation,	Canon Bubblejet
			and kogation in thermal ink jet
			implementations
Linear,	The actuator moves in a direction	Efficient coupling to ink	High fabrication complexity may be	IJ01, IJ02, IJ04,
normal to	normal to the print head surface.	drops ejected normal to	required to achieve perpendicular	IJ07
chip surface	The nozzle is typically in the line	the surface	motion	IJ11, IJ14
	of movement.
Linear,	The actuator moves parallel to the	Suitable for planar	Fabrication complexity	IJ12, IJ13, IJ15,
parallel to	print head surface. Drop ejection	fabrication	Friction	IJ33,
chip surface	may still be normal to the surface.		Stiction	IJ34, IJ35, IJ36
Membrane	An actuator with a high force but	The effective area of the	Fabrication complexity	1982 Howkins U.S. Pat. No.
push	small area is used to push a stiff	actuator becomes the	Actuator size	4,459,601
	membrane that is in contact with	membrane area	Difficulty of integration in a VLSI
	the ink.		process
Rotary	The actuator causes the rotation of	Rotary levers may be	Device complexity	IJ05, IJ08, IJ13,
	some element, such a grill or	used to increase travel	May have friction at a pivot point	IJ28
	impeller	Small chip area
		requirements
Bend	The actuator bends when	A very small change in	Requires the actuator to be made	1970 Kyser et al
	energized. This may be due to	dimensions can be	from at least two distinct layers, or	U.S. Pat. No. 3,946,398
	differential thermal expansion,	converted to a large	to have a thermal difference across	1973 Stemme U.S. Pat. No.
	piezoelectric expansion,	motion.	the actuator	3,747,120
	magnetostriction, or other form of			IJ03, IJ09, IJ10,
	relative dimensional change.			IJ19
				IJ23, IJ24, IJ25,
				IJ29
				IJ30, IJ31, IJ33,
				IJ34
				IJ35
Swivel	The actuator swivels around a	Allows operation where	Inefficient coupling to the ink	IJ06
	central pivot. This motion is	the net linear force on the	motion
	suitable where there are opposite	paddle is zero
	forces applied to opposite sides of	Small chip area
	the paddle, e.g. Lorenz force.	requirements
Straighten	The actuator is normally bent, and	Can be used with shape	Requires careful balance of stresses	IJ26, IJ32
	straightens when energized.	memory alloys where the	to ensure that the quiescent bend is
		austenic phase is planar	accurate
Double bend	The actuator bends in one	One actuator can be used	Difficult to make the drops ejected	IJ36, IJ37, IJ38
	direction when one element is	to power two nozzles.	by both bend directions identical.
	energized, and bends the other	Reduced chip size.	A small efficiency loss compared to
	way when another element is	Not sensitive to ambient	equivalent single bend actuators.
	energized.	temperature
Shear	Energizing the actuator causes a	Can increase the effective	Not readily applicable to other	1985 Fishbeck U.S. Pat. No.
	shear motion in the actuator	travel of piezoelectric	actuator mechanisms	4,584,590
	material.	actuators
Radial	The actuator squeezes an ink	Relatively easy to	High force required	1970 Zoltan U.S. Pat. No.
constriction	reservoir, forcing ink from a	fabricate single nozzles	Inefficient	3,683,212
	constricted nozzle.	from glass tubing as	Difficult to integrate with VLSI
		macroscopic structures	processes
Coil/uncoil	A coiled actuator uncoils or coils	Easy to fabricate as a	Difficult to fabricate for non-planar	IJ17, IJ21, IJ34,
	more tightly. The motion of the	planar VLSI process	devices	IJ35
	free end of the actuator ejects the	Small area required,	Poor out-of-plane stiffness
	ink.	therefore low cost
Bow	The actuator bows (or buckles) in	Can increase the speed of	Maximum travel is constrained	IJ16, IJ18, IJ27
	the middle when energized.	travel	High force required
		Mechanically rigid
Push-Pull	Two actuators control a shutter.	The structure is pinned at	Not readily suitable for inkjets	IJ18
	One actuator pulls the shutter, and	both ends, so has a high	which directly push the ink
	the other pushes it.	out-of-plane rigidity
Curl inwards	A set of actuators curl inwards to	Good fluid flow to the	Design complexity	IJ20, IJ42
	reduce the volume of ink that they	region behind the actuator
	enclose.	increases efficiency
Curl	A set of actuators curl outwards,	Relatively simple	Relatively large chip area	IJ43
outwards	pressurizing ink in a chamber	construction
	surrounding the actuators, and
	expelling ink from a nozzle in the
	chamber.
Iris	Multiple vanes enclose a volume	High efficiency	High fabrication complexity	IJ22
	of ink. These simultaneously	Small chip area	Not suitable for pigmented inks
	rotate, reducing the volume
	between the vanes.
Acoustic	The actuator vibrates at a high	The actuator can be	Large area required for efficient	1993 Hadimioglu et
vibration	frequency.	physically distant from	operation at useful frequencies	al, EUP 550,192
		the ink	Acoustic coupling and crosstalk	1993 Elrod et al,
			Complex drive circuitry	EUP 572,220
			Poor control of drop volume and
			position
None	In various ink jet designs the	No moving parts	Various other tradeoffs are required	Silverbrook, EP
	actuator does not move.		to eliminate moving parts	0771 658 A2 and
				related patent
				applications
				Tone-jet

NOZZLE REFILL METHOD

Nozzle refill
method	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
Surface	After the actuator is energized, it	Fabrication simplicity	Low speed	Thermal inkjet
tension	typically returns rapidly to its	Operational simplicity	Surface tension force relatively	Piezoelectric inkjet
	normal position. This rapid return		small compared to actuator force	IJ01-IJ07, IJ10-IJ14
	sucks in air through the nozzle		Long refill time usually dominates	IJ16, IJ20, IJ22-IJ45
	opening. The ink surface tension		the total repetition rate
	at the nozzle then exerts a small
	force restoring the meniscus to a
	minimum area.
Shuttered	Ink to the nozzle chamber is	High speed	Requires common ink pressure	IJ08, IJ13, IJ15,
oscillating	provided at a pressure that	Low actuator energy, as	oscillator	IJ17
ink pressure	oscillates at twice the drop	the actuator need only	May not be suitable for pigmented	IJ18, IJ19, IJ21
	ejection frequency. When a drop	open or close the shutter,	inks
	is to be ejected, the shutter is	instead of ejecting the ink
	opened for 3 half cycles: drop	drop
	ejection, actuator return, and
	refill.
Refill	After the main actuator has	High speed, as the nozzle	Requires two independent actuators	IJ09
actuator	ejected a drop a second (refill)	is actively refilled	per nozzle
	actuator is energized. The refill
	actuator pushes ink into the
	nozzle chamber. The refill
	actuator returns slowly, to prevent
	its return from emptying the
	chamber again.
Positive ink	The ink is held a slight positive	High refill rate, therefore	Surface spill must be prevented	Silverbrook, EP
pressure	pressure. After the ink drop is	a high drop repetition rate	Highly hydrophobic print head	0771 658 A2 and
	ejected, the nozzle chamber fills	is possible	surfaces are required	related patent
	quickly as surface tension and ink			applications
	pressure both operate to refill the			Alternative for:
	nozzle.			IJ01-IJ07, IJ10-IJ14
				IJ16, IJ20, IJ22-IJ45

METHOD OF RESTRICTING BACK-FLOW THROUGH INLET

Inlet back-
flow
restriction
method	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
Long inlet channel	The ink inlet channel to the nozzle	Design simplicity	Restricts refill rate	Thermal inkjet
	chamber is made long and	Operational simplicity	May result in a relatively large chip	Piezoelectric inkjet
	relatively narrow, relying on	Reduces crosstalk	area	IJ42, IJ43
	viscous drag to reduce inlet back-		Only partially effective
	flow.
Positive ink	The ink is under a positive	Drop selection and	Requires a method (such as a nozzle rim	Silverbrook, EP
pressure	pressure, so that in the quiescent	separation forces can be	or effective hydrophobizing, or	0771 658 A2 and
	state some of the ink drop already	reduced	both) to prevent flooding of the	related patent
	protrudes from the nozzle.	Fast refill time	ejection surface of the print head.	applications
	This reduces the pressure in the			Possible operation
	nozzle chamber which is required			of the following:
	to eject a certain volume of ink.			IJ01-IJ07, IJ09-IJ12
	The reduction in chamber			IJ14, IJ16, IJ20,
	pressure results in a reduction in			IJ22,
	ink pushed out through the inlet.			IJ23-IJ34, IJ36-IJ41
				IJ44
Baffle	One or more baffles are placed in	The refill rate is not as	Design complexity	HP Thermal Ink Jet
	the inlet ink flow. When the	restricted as the long inlet	May increase fabrication	Tektronix
	actuator is energized, the rapid ink	method.	complexity (e.g. Tektronix hot melt	piezoelectric ink jet
	movement creates eddies which	Reduces crosstalk	Piezoelectric print heads).
	restrict the flow through the inlet.
	The slower refill process is
	unrestricted, and does not result in
	eddies.
Flexible flap	In this method recently disclosed	Significantly reduces	Not applicable to most inkjet	Canon
restricts inlet	by Canon, the expanding actuator	back-flow for edge-	configurations
	(bubble) pushes on a flexible flap	shooter thermal ink jet	Increased fabrication complexity
	that restricts the inlet.	devices	Inelastic deformation of polymer
			flap results in creep over extended
			use
Inlet filter	A filter is located between the ink	Additional advantage of	Restricts refill rate	IJ04, IJ12, IJ24,
	inlet and the nozzle chamber. The	ink filtration	May result in complex construction	IJ27
	filter has a multitude of small	Ink filter may be		IJ29, IJ30
	holes or slots, restricting ink flow.	fabricated with no
	The filter also removes particles	additional process steps
	which may block the nozzle.
Small inlet	The ink inlet channel to the nozzle	Design simplicity	Restricts refill rate	IJ02, IJ37, IJ44
compared to	chamber has a substantially		May result in a relatively large chip
nozzle	smaller cross section than that of		area
	the nozzle, resulting in easier ink		Only partially effective
	egress out of the nozzle than out
	of the inlet.
Inlet shutter	A secondary actuator controls the	Increases speed of the	Requires separate refill actuator and	IJ09
	position of a shutter, closing off	ink-jet print head	drive circuit
	the ink inlet when the main	operation
	actuator is energized.
The inlet is	The method avoids the problem of	Back-flow problem is	Requires careful design to minimize	IJ01, IJ03, IJ05,
located	inlet back-flow by arranging the	eliminated	the negative pressure behind the	IJ06
behind the	ink-pushing surface of the		paddle	IJ07, IJ10, IJ11,
ink-pushing	actuator between the inlet and the			IJ14
surface	nozzle.			IJ16, IJ22, IJ23,
				IJ25
				IJ28, IJ31, IJ32,
				IJ33
				IJ34, IJ35, IJ36,
				IJ39
				IJ40, IJ41
Part of the	The actuator and a wall of the ink	Significant reductions in	Small increase in fabrication	IJ07, IJ20, IJ26,
actuator	chamber are arranged so that the	back-flow can be	complexity	IJ38
moves to	motion of the actuator closes off	achieved
shut off the	the inlet.	Compact designs possible
inlet
Nozzle	In some configurations of ink jet,	Ink back-flow problem is	None related to ink back-flow on	Silverbrook, EP
actuator does	there is no expansion or	eliminated	actuation	0771 658 A2 and
not result in	movement of an actuator which			related patent
ink back-flow	may cause ink back-flow through the			applications
	inlet.			Valve-jet
				Tone-jet
				IJ08, IJ13, IJ15,
				IJ17
				IJ18, IJ19, IJ21

NOZZLE CLEARING METHOD

Nozzle
Clearing
method	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
Normal	All of the nozzles are fired	No added complexity on	May not be sufficient to displace	Most ink jet
nozzle firing	periodically, before the ink has a	the print head	dried ink	systems
	chance to dry. When not in use			IJ01-IJ07, IJ09-IJ12
	the nozzles are sealed (capped)			IJ14, IJ16, IJ20,
	against air.			IJ22
	The nozzle firing is usually			IJ23-IJ34, IJ36-IJ45
	performed during a special
	clearing cycle, after first moving
	the print head to a cleaning
	station.
Extra power	In systems which heat the ink, but	Can be highly effective if	Requires higher drive voltage for	Silverbrook, EP
to ink heater	do not boil it under normal	the heater is adjacent to	clearing	0771 658 A2 and
	situations, nozzle clearing can be	the nozzle	May require larger drive transistors	related patent
	achieved by over-powering the			applications
	heater and boiling ink at the
	nozzle.
Rapid	The actuator is fired in rapid	Does not require extra	Effectiveness depends substantially	May be used with:
succession	succession. In some	drive circuits on the print	upon the configuration of the inkjet	IJ01-IJ07, IJ09-IJ11
of actuator	configurations, this may cause	head	nozzle	IJ14, IJ16, IJ20,
pulses	heat build-up at the nozzle which	Can be readily controlled		IJ22
	boils the ink, clearing the nozzle.	and initiated by digital		IJ23-IJ25, IJ27-IJ34
	In other situations, it may cause	logic		IJ36-IJ45
	sufficient vibrations to dislodge
	clogged nozzles.
Extra power	Where an actuator is not normally	A simple solution where	Not suitable where there is a hard	May be used with:
to ink	driven to the limit of its motion,	applicable	limit to actuator movement	IJ03, IJ09, IJ16,
pushing	nozzle clearing may be assisted			IJ20
actuator	by providing an enhanced drive			IJ23, IJ24, IJ25,
	signal to the actuator.			IJ27
				IJ29, IJ30, IJ31,
				IJ32
				IJ39, IJ40, IJ41,
				IJ42
				IJ43, IJ44, IJ45
Acoustic	An ultrasonic wave is applied to	A high nozzle clearing	High implementation cost if system	IJ08, IJ13, IJ15,
resonance	the ink chamber. This wave is of	capability can be	does not already include an acoustic	IJ17
	an appropriate amplitude and	achieved	actuator	IJ18, IJ19, IJ21
	frequency to cause sufficient force	May be implemented at
	at the nozzle to clear blockages.	very low cost in systems
	This is easiest to achieve if the	which already include
	ultrasonic wave is at a resonant	acoustic actuators
	frequency of the ink cavity.
Nozzle	A microfabricated plate is pushed	Can clear severely	Accurate mechanical alignment is	Silverbrook, EP
clearing	against the nozzles. The plate has	clogged nozzles	required	0771 658 A2 and
plate	a post for every nozzle. The array		Moving parts are required	related patent
	of posts		There is risk of damage to the	applications
			nozzles
			Accurate fabrication is required
Ink pressure	The pressure of the ink is	May be effective where	Requires pressure pump or other	May be used with
pulse	temporarily increased so that ink	other methods cannot be	pressure actuator	all IJ series ink jets
	streams from all of the nozzles.	used	Expensive
	This may be used in conjunction		Wasteful of ink
	with actuator energizing.
Print head	A flexible ‘blade’ is wiped across	Effective for planar print	Difficult to use if print head surface	Many ink jet
wiper	the print head surface. The blade	head surfaces	is non-planar or very fragile	systems
	is usually fabricated from a	Low cost	Requires mechanical parts
	flexible polymer, e.g. rubber or		Blade can wear out in high volume
	synthetic elastomer.		print systems
Separate ink	A separate heater is provided at	Can be effective where	Fabrication complexity	Can be used with
boiling	the nozzle although the normal	other nozzle clearing		many IJ series ink
heater	drop e-ection mechanism does	methods cannot be used		jets
	not require it. The heaters do not	Can be implemented at no
	require individual drive circuits,	additional cost in some
	as many nozzles can be cleared	inkjet configurations
	simultaneously, and no imaging is
	required.

NOZZLE PLATE CONSTRUCTION

Nozzle plate
construction	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
Electroformed	A nozzle plate is separately	Fabrication simplicity	High temperatures and pressures are	Hewlett Packard Thermal Inkjet
nickel	fabricated from electroformed		required to bond nozzle plate
	nickel, and bonded to the print		Minimum thickness constraints
	head chip.		Differential thermal expansion
Laser ablated	Individual nozzle holes are	No masks required	Each hole must be individually	Canon Bubblejet
or drilled	ablated by an intense UV laser in	Can be quite fast	formed	1988 Sercel et al.,
polymer	a nozzle plate, which is typically a	Some control over nozzle	Special equipment required	SPIE, Vol. 998
	polymer such as polyimide or	profile is possible	Slow where there are many	Excimer Beam
	polysulphone	Equipment required is	thousands of nozzles per print head	Applications, pp.
		relatively low cost	May produce thin burrs at exit holes	76-83
				1993 Watanabe et
				al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,208,604
Silicon micro-	A separate nozzle plate is	High accuracy is	Two part construction	K. Bean, IEEE
machined	micromachined from single	attainable	High cost	Transactions on
	crystal silicon, and bonded to the		Requires precision alignment	Electron Devices,
	print head wafer.		Nozzles may be clogged by	Vol. ED-25, No. 10,
			adhesive	1978, pp 1185-1195
				Xerox 1990
				Hawkins et al., U.S. Pat. No.
				4,899,181
Glass	Fine glass capillaries are drawn	No expensive equipment	Very small nozzle sizes are difficult	1970 Zoltan U.S. Pat. No.
capillaries	from glass tubing. This method	required	to form	3,683,212
	has been used for making	Simple to make single	Not suited for mass production
	individual nozzles, but is difficult	nozzles
	to use for bulk manufacturing of
	print heads with thousands of
	nozzles.
Monolithic,	The nozzle plate is deposited as a	High accuracy (<1 μm)	Requires sacrificial layer under the	Silverbrook, EP
surface	layer using standard VLSI	Monolithic	nozzle plate to form the nozzle	0771 658 A2 and
micro-	deposition techniques. Nozzles	Low cost	chamber	related patent
machined	are etched in the nozzle plate	Existing processes can be	Surface may be fragile to the touch	applications
using VLSI	using VLSI lithography and	used		IJ01, IJ02, IJ04,
lithographic	etching.			IJ11
processes				IJ12, IJ17, IJ18,
				IJ20
				IJ22, IJ24, IJ27,
				IJ28
				IJ29, IJ30, IJ31,
				IJ32
				IJ33, IJ34, IJ36,
				IJ37
				IJ38, IJ39, IJ40,
				IJ41
				IJ42, IJ43, IJ44
Monolithic,	The nozzle plate is a buried etch	High accuracy (<1 μm)	Requires long etch times	IJ03, IJ05, IJ06,
etched	stop in the wafer. Nozzle	Monolithic	Requires a support wafer	IJ07
through	chambers are etched in the front	Low cost		IJ08, IJ09, IJ10,
substrate	of the wafer, and the wafer is	No differential expansion		IJ13
	thinned from the back side.			IJ14, IJ15, IJ16,
	Nozzles are then etched in the			IJ19
	etch stop layer.			IJ21, IJ23, IJ25,
				IJ26
No nozzle	Various methods have been tried	No nozzles to become	Difficult to control drop position	Ricoh 1995 Sekiya
plate	to eliminate the nozzles entirely,	clogged	accurately	et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,412,413
	to prevent nozzle clogging. These		Crosstalk problems	1993 Hadimioglu et
	include thermal bubble			al EUP 550,192
	mechanisms and acoustic lens			1993 Elrod et al
	mechanisms			EUP 572,220
Trough	Each drop ejector has a trough	Reduced manufacturing	Drop firing direction is sensitive to	IJ35
	through which a paddle moves.	complexity	wicking.
	There is no nozzle plate.	Monolithic
Nozzle slit	The elimination of nozzle holes	No nozzles to become	Difficult to control drop position	1989 Saito et al
instead of	and replacement by a slit	clogged	accurately	U.S. Pat. No. 4,799,068
individual	encompassing many actuator		Crosstalk problems
nozzles	positions reduces nozzle clogging,
	but increases crosstalk due to ink
	surface waves

DROP EJECTION DIRECTION

Ejection direction	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
Edge	Ink flow is along the surface of	Simple construction	Nozzles limited to edge	Canon Bubblejet 1979 Endo
(‘edge	the chip, and ink drops are ejected	No silicon etching	High resolution is difficult	et al GB
shooter’)	from the chip edge.	required	Fast color printing requires one	patent 2,007,162
		Good heat sinking via	print head per color	Xerox heater-in-pit
		substrate		1990 Hawkins et al
		Mechanically strong		U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,181
		Ease of chip handing		Tone-jet
Surface	Ink flow is along the surface of	No bulk silicon etching	Maximum ink flow is severely	Hewlett-Packard
(‘roof	the chip, and ink drops are ejected	required	restricted	TIJ 1982 Vaught et
shooter’)	from the chip surface, normal to	Silicon can make an		al U.S. Pat. No. 4,490,728
	the plane of the chip.	effective heat sink		IJ02, IJ11, IJ12,
		Mechanical strength		IJ20
				IJ22
Through	Ink flow is through the chip, and	High ink flow	Requires bulk silicon etching	Silverbrook, EP
chip, forward	ink drops are ejected from the	Suitable for pagewidth		0771 658 A2 and
(‘up shooter’)	front surface of the chip.	print		related patent
		High nozzle packing		applications
		density therefore low		IJ04, IJ17, IJ18,
		manufacturing cost		IJ24
				IJ27-IJ45
Through	Ink flow is through the chip, and	High ink flow	Requires wafer thinning	IJ01, IJ03, IJ05,
chip, reverse	ink drops are ejected from the rear	Suitable for pagewidth	Requires special handling during	IJ06
(‘down	surface of the chip.	print	manufacture	IJ07, IJ08, IJ09,
shooter’)		High nozzle packing		IJ10
		density therefore low		IJ13, IJ14, IJ15,
		manufacturing cost		IJ16
				IJ19, IJ21, IJ23,
				IJ25
				IJ26
Through	Ink flow is through the actuator,	Suitable for piezoelectric	Pagewidth print heads require	Epson Stylus
actuator	which is not fabricated as part of	print heads	several thousand connections to	Tektronix hot melt
	the same substrate as the drive		drive circuits	piezoelectric ink
	transistors.		Cannot be manufactured in standard	jets
			CMOS fabs
			Complex assembly required

INK TYPE

Ink type	Description	Advantages	Disadvantages	Examples
Aqueous, dye	Water based ink which typically	Environmentally friendly	Slow drying	Most existing
	contains: water, dye, surfactant,	No odor	Corrosive	inkjets
	humectant, and biocide.		Bleeds on paper	All IJ series ink jets
	Modern ink dyes have high water-		May strikethrough	Silverbrook, EP
	fastness, light fastness		Cockles paper	0771 658 A2 and
				related patent
				applications
Aqueous,	Water based ink which typically	Environmentally friendly	Slow drying	IJ02, IJ04, IJ21,
pigment	contains: water, pigment,	No odor	Corrosive	IJ26
	surfactant, humectant, and	Reduced bleed	Pigment may clog nozzles	IJ27, IJ30
	biocide.	Reduced wicking	Pigment may clog actuator	Silverbrook, EP
	Pigments have an advantage in	Reduced strikethrough	mechanisms	0771 658 A2 and
	reduced bleed, wicking and		Cockles paper	related patent
	strikethrough.			applications
				Piezoelectric ink-
				jets
				Thermal ink jets
				(with significant
				restrictions)
Methyl Ethyl	MEK is a highly volatile solvent	Very fast drying	Odorous	All IJ series ink jets
Ketone (MEK)	used for industrial printing on	Prints on various	Flammable
	difficult surfaces such as	substrates such as metals
	aluminum cans.	and plastics
Alcohol	Alcohol based inks can be used	Fast drying	Slight odor	All IJ series ink jets
(ethanol,	where the printer must operate at	Operates at sub-freezing	Flammable
2-butanol, and others)	temperatures below the freezing	temperatures
	point of water. An example of this	Reduced paper cockle
	is in-camera consumer	Low cost
	photographic printing.
Phase	The ink is solid at room	No drying time-ink	High viscosity	Tektronix hot melt
change (hot melt)	temperature, and is melted in the	instantly freezes on the	Printed ink typically has a ‘waxy’	piezoelectric ink
	print head before jetting. Hot melt	print medium	feel	jets
	inks are usually wax based, with a	Almost any print medium	Printed pages may ‘block’	1989 Nowak U.S. Pat. No.
	melting point around 80° C. After	can be used	Ink temperature may be above the	4,820,346
	jetting the ink freezes almost	No paper cockle occurs	curie point of permanent magnets	All IJ series ink jets
	instantly upon contacting the print	No wicking occurs	Ink heaters consume power
	medium or a transfer roller.	No bleed occurs	Long warm-up time
		No strikethrough occurs
Oil	Oil based inks are extensively	High solubility medium	High viscosity: this is a significant	All IJ series ink jets
	used in offset printing. They have	for some dyes	limitation for use in inkjets, which
	advantages in improved	Does not cockle paper	usually require a low viscosity.
	characteristics on paper	Does not wick through	Some short chain and multi-
	(especially no wicking or cockle).	paper	branched oils have a sufficiently
	Oil soluble dies and pigments are		low viscosity.
	required.		Slow drying
Microemulsion	A microemulsion is a stable, self	Stops ink bleed	Viscosity higher than water	All IJ series ink jets
	forming emulsion of oil, water,	High dye solubility	Cost is slightly higher than water
	and surfactant. The characteristic	Water, oil, and	based ink
	drop size is less than 100 nm, and	amphiphilic soluble dies	High surfactant concentration
	is determined by the preferred	can be used	required (around 5%)
	curvature of the surfactant.	Can stabilize pigment
		suspensions

Ink Jet Printing

A large number of new forms of ink jet printers have been developed to facilitate alternative ink jet technologies for the image processing and data distribution system. Various combinations of ink jet devices can be included in printer devices incorporated as part of the present invention. Australian Provisional Patent Applications relating to these ink jets which are specifically incorporated by cross reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian			US Patent/Patent
Provisional	Filing		Application and
Number	Date	Title	Filing Date
PO8066	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,227,652
		Apparatus (IJ01)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8072	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,213,588
		Apparatus (IJ02)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8040	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,213,589
		Apparatus (IJ03)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8071	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,231,163
		Apparatus (IJ04)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8047	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,247,795
		Apparatus (IJ05)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8035	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,394,581
		Apparatus (IJ06)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8044	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,244,691
		Apparatus (IJ07)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8063	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,257,704
		Apparatus (IJ08)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8057	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,416,168
		Apparatus (IJ09)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8056	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,220,694
		Apparatus (IJ10)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8069	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,257,705
		Apparatus (IJ11)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8049	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,247,794
		Apparatus (IJ12)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8036	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,234,610
		Apparatus (IJ13)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8048	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,247,793
		Apparatus (IJ14)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8070	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,264,306
		Apparatus (IJ15)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8067	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,241,342
		Apparatus (IJ16)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8001	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,247,792
		Apparatus (IJ17)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8038	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,264,307
		Apparatus (IJ18)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8033	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,254,220
		Apparatus (IJ19)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8002	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,234,611
		Apparatus (IJ20)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8068	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,302,528
		Apparatus (IJ21)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8062	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,283,582
		Apparatus (IJ22)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8034	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,239,821
		Apparatus (IJ23)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8039	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,338,547
		Apparatus (IJ24)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8041	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,247,796
		Apparatus (IJ25)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8004	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	09/113,122
		Apparatus (IJ26)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8037	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,390,603
		Apparatus (IJ27)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8043	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,362,843
		Apparatus (IJ28)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8042	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,293,653
		Apparatus (IJ29)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8064	15-Jul-97	Image Creation Method and	6,312,107
		Apparatus (IJ30)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9389	23-Sep-97	Image Creation Method and	6,227,653
		Apparatus (IJ31)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9391	23-Sep-97	Image Creation Method and	6,234,609
		Apparatus (IJ32)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0888	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method and	6,238,040
		Apparatus (IJ33)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0891	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method and	6,188,415
		Apparatus (IJ34)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0890	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method and	6,227,654
		Apparatus (IJ35)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0873	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method and	6,209,989
		Apparatus (IJ36)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0993	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method and	6,247,791
		Apparatus (IJ37)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0890	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method and	6,336,710
		Apparatus (IJ38)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP1398	19-Jan-98	An Image Creation Method	6,217,153
		and Apparatus (IJ39)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP2592	25-Mar-98	An Image Creation Method	6,416,167
		and Apparatus (IJ40)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP2593	25-Mar-98	Image Creation Method and	6,243,113
		Apparatus (IJ41)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP3991	9-Jun-98	Image Creation Method and	6,283,581
		Apparatus (IJ42)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP3987	9-Jun-98	Image Creation Method and	6,247,790
		Apparatus (IJ43)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP3985	9-Jun-98	Image Creation Method and	6,260,953
		Apparatus (IJ44)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP3983	9-Jun-98	Image Creation Method and	6,267,469
		Apparatus (IJ45)	(Jul. 10, 1998)

Ink Jet Manufacturing

Further, the present application may utilize advanced semiconductor fabrication techniques in the construction of large arrays of ink jet printers. Suitable manufacturing techniques are described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

			US Patent/
			Patent
Australian			Application
Provisional	Filing		and
Number	Date	Title	Filing Date
PO7935	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,224,780
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM01)
PO7936	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,235,212
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM02)
PO7937	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,280,643
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM03)
PO8061	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,284,147
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM04)
PO8054	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,214,244
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM05)
PO8065	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,071,750
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM06)
PO8055	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,267,905
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM07)
PO8053	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,251,298
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM08)
PO8078	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,258,285
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM09)
PO7933	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,225,138
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM10)
PO7950	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,241,904
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM11)
PO7949	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,299,786
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM12)
PO8060	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	09/113,124
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM13)
PO8059	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,231,773
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM14)
PO8073	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,190,931
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM15)
PO8076	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,248,249
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM16)
PO8075	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,290,862
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM17)
PO8079	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,241,906
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM18)
PO8050	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	09/113,116
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM19)
PO8052	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,241,905
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM20)
PO7948	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,451,216
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM21)
PO7951	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,231,772
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM22)
PO8074	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,274,056
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM23)
PO7941	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,290,861
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM24)
PO8077	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,248,248
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM25)
PO8058	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,306,671
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM26)
PO8051	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,331,258
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM27)
PO8045	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,110,754
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM28)
PO7952	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,294,101
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM29)
PO8046	15-Jul-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,416,679
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM30)
PO8503	11-Aug-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,264,849
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM30a)
PO9390	23-Sep-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,254,793
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM31)
PO9392	23-Sep-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,235,211
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM32)
PP0889	12-Dec-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,235,211
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM35)
PP0887	12-Dec-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,264,850
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM36)
PP0882	12-Dec-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,258,284
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM37)
PP0874	12-Dec-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,258,284
	97	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM38)
PP1396	19-Jan-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,228,668
	98	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM39)
PP2591	25-Mar-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,180,427
	98	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM41)
PP3989	9-Jun-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,171,875
	98	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM40)
PP3990	9-Jun-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,267,904
	98	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM42)
PP3986	9-Jun-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,245,247
	98	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM43)
PP3984	9-Jun-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,245,247
	98	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM44)
PP3982	9-Jun-	A Method of Manufacture of an	6,231,148
	98	Image Creation Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IJM45)

Fluid Supply

Further, the present application may utilize an ink delivery system to the ink jet head. Delivery systems relating to the supply of ink to a series of ink jet nozzles are described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications, the disclosure of which are hereby incorporated by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian			US Patent/Patent
Provisional	Filing		Application and
Number	Date	Title	Filing Date
PO8003	15-Jul-	Supply Method and	6,350,023
	97	Apparatus (F1)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8005	15-Jul-	Supply Method and	6,318,849
	97	Apparatus (F2)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9404	23-Sep-	A Device and Method	09/113,101
	97	(F3)	(Jul. 10, 1998)

MEMS Technology

Further, the present application may utilize advanced semiconductor microelectromechanical techniques in the construction of large arrays of ink jet printers. Suitable microelectromechanical techniques are described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian			US Patent/Patent
Provisional			Application and
Number	Filing Date	Title	Filing Date
PO7943	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS01)
PO8006	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS02)	6,087,638
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8007	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS03)	09/113,093
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8008	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS04)	6,340,222
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8010	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS05)	6,041,600
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8011	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS06)	6,299,300
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7947	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS07)	6,067,797
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7945	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS08)	09/113,081
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7944	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS09)	6,286,935
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7946	15-Jul-97	A device (MEMS10)	6,044,646
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9393	23-Sep-97	A Device and Method	09/113,065
		(MEMS11)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0875	12-Dec-97	A Device (MEMS12)	09/113,078
			(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0894	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	09/113,075
		(MEMS13)	(Jul. 10, 1998)

IR Technologies

Further, the present application may include the utilization of a disposable camera system such as those described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian			US Patent/Patent
Provisional	Filing		Application and
Number	Date	Title	Filing Date
PP0895	12-Dec-97	An Image Creation Method	6,231,148
		and Apparatus (IR01)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0870	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	09/113,106
		(IR02)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0869	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	6,293,658
		(IR04)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0887	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method	09/113,104
		and Apparatus (IR05)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0885	12-Dec-97	An Image Production	6,238,033
		System (IR06)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0884	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method	6,312,070
		and Apparatus (IR10)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0886	12-Dec-97	Image Creation Method	6,238,111
		and Apparatus (IR12)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0871	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	09/113,086
		(IR13)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0876	12-Dec-97	An Image Processing	09/113,094
		Method and Apparatus	(Jul. 10, 1998)
		(IR14)
PP0877	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	6,378,970
		(IR16)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0878	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	6,196,739
		(IR17)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0879	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	09/112,774
		(IR18)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0883	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	6,270,182
		(IR19)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0880	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	6,152,619
		(IR20)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0881	12-Dec-97	A Device and Method	09/113,092
		(IR21)	(Jul. 10, 1998)

DotCard Technologies

Further, the present application may include the utilization of a data distribution system such as that described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian			US Patent/Patent
Provisional	Filing		Application and
Number	Date	Title	Filing Date
PP2370	16-Mar-	Data Processing Method	09/112,781
	98	and Apparatus (Dot01)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP2371	16-Mar-	Data Processing Method	09/113,052
	98	and Apparatus (Dot02)	(Jul. 10, 1998)

Artcam Technologies

Further, the present application may include the utilization of camera and data processing techniques such as an Artcam type device as described in the following Australian provisional patent specifications incorporated here by cross-reference. The serial numbers of respective corresponding US patent applications are also provided for the sake of convenience.

Australian			US Patent/Patent
Provisional	Filing		Application and
Number	Date	Title	Filing Date
PO7991	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/113,060
	97	Apparatus (ART01)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7988	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	6,476,863
	97	Apparatus (ART02)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7993	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/113,073
	97	Apparatus (ART03)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9395	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	6,322,181
	97	Apparatus (ART04)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8017	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,747
	97	Apparatus (ART06)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8014	15-Jul-	Media Device (ART07)	6,227,648
	97		(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8025	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,750
	97	Apparatus (ART08)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8032	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,746
	97	Apparatus (ART09)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7999	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,743
	97	Apparatus (ART10)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7998	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,742
	97	Apparatus (ART11)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8031	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,741
	97	Apparatus (ART12)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8030	15-Jul-	Media Device (ART13)	6,196,541
	97		(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7997	15-Jul-	Media Device (ART15)	6,195,150
	97		(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7979	15-Jul-	Media Device (ART16)	6,362,868
	97		(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8015	15-Jul-	Media Device (ART17)	09/112,738
	97		(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7978	15-Jul-	Media Device (ART18)	09/113,067
	97		(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7982	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	6,431,669
	97	Apparatus (ART19)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7989	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	6,362,869
	97	Apparatus (ART20)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8019	15-Jul-	Media Processing Method and	6,472,052
	97	Apparatus (ART21)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7980	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	6,356,715
	97	Apparatus (ART22)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8018	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,777
	97	Apparatus (ART24)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7938	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/113,224
	97	Apparatus (ART25)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8016	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	6,366,693
	97	Apparatus (ART26)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8024	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	6,329,990
	97	Apparatus (ART27)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7940	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/113,072
	97	Apparatus (ART28)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7939	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/112,785
	97	Apparatus (ART29)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8501	11-Aug-	Image Processing Method and	6,137,500
	97	Apparatus (ART30)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8500	11-Aug-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,796
	97	Apparatus (ART31)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7987	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/113,071
	97	Apparatus (ART32)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8022	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	6,398,328
	97	Apparatus (ART33)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8497	11-Aug-	Image Processing Method and	09/113,090
	97	Apparatus (ART34)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8020	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	6,431,704
	97	Apparatus (ART38)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8023	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/113,222
	97	Apparatus (ART39)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8504	11-Aug-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,786
	97	Apparatus (ART42)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8000	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	6,415,054
	97	Apparatus (ART43)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7977	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/112,782
	97	Apparatus (ART44)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7934	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/113,056
	97	Apparatus (ART45)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7990	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/113,059
	97	Apparatus (ART46)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8499	11-Aug-	Image Processing Method and	6,486,886
	97	Apparatus (ART47)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8502	11-Aug-	Image Processing Method and	6,381,361
	97	Apparatus (ART48)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7981	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	6,317,192
	97	Apparatus (ART50)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7986	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/113,057
	97	Apparatus (ART51)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO7983	15-Jul-	Data Processing Method and	09/113,054
	97	Apparatus (ART52)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8026	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,752
	97	Apparatus (ART53)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8027	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,759
	97	Apparatus (ART54)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO8028	15-Jul-	Image Processing Method and	09/112,757
	97	Apparatus (ART56)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9394	23-Sep-	Image Processing Method and	6,357,135
	97	Apparatus (ART57)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9396	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	09/113,107
	97	Apparatus (ART58)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9397	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	6,271,931
	97	Apparatus (ART59)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9398	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	6,353,772
	97	Apparatus (ART60)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9399	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	6,106,147
	97	Apparatus (ART61)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9400	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	09/112,790
	97	Apparatus (ART62)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9401	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	6,304,291
	97	Apparatus (ART63)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9402	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	09/112,788
	97	Apparatus (ART64)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9403	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	6,305,770
	97	Apparatus (ART65)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PO9405	23-Sep-	Data Processing Method and	6,289,262
	97	Apparatus (ART66)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP0959	16-Dec-	A Data Processing Method	6,315,200
	97	and Apparatus (ART68)	(Jul. 10, 1998)
PP1397	19-Jan-	A Media Device (ART69)	6,217,165
	98		(Jul. 10, 1998)