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US 11,914,431 B2Granted
Method of creating mechanical strength and industrial design aesthetics for hinge area of computing devices
OwnerSteven J. Zielnicki, Kevin L. Kamphuisinventors
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Abstract
A hinge area and processes of forming the hinge area are described. The hinge area is part of cover of a laptop computer. A material used for the cover is of a certain thickness. Stamping and forming a shape that defines the hinge area is performed on the material. The top of the shape is cut to provide for sides of the hinge area. Squeeze forging operations are performed to thicken the sides, and CNC machining is further performed on the sides.
Claims9
A method of forming a hinge area for a computing device comprising the steps of:
- stamping a shape from a material with a certain thickness, wherein the stamping is die stamping with a first step that stamps and forms a first shape at 70 degrees and a second step that stamps and forms a final shape at 90 degrees;
- forming the inside of the hinge area in the shape;
- cutting a top of the shape to provide for sides of the hinge area;
- performing at least two squeeze forging operations to thicken the sides of the hinge area, wherein a first squeeze forging operation starts with a wall thickness of up to 1.2 mm, and a second squeeze forging operation increases the wall thickness to a finish of 1.8 mm, modifying by the forging wall height to up to 5.0 mm;
- and
- CNC machining the sides of the hinge area.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.