Console lid friction hinge
AssigneeNissan Technical Center North America, Inc.
InventorAlpesh Trivedi
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Embodiments of vehicle consoles and hinges for vehicle consoles are disclosed herein. One embodiment of a hinge for a vehicle console has a fixed component attached to the base structure of the console, a movable component attached to the lid of the console and a shaft connecting the fixed component to the movable component. A spacer is positioned on the shaft between and in contact with at least a portion of both the fixed and movable components and a securing member is positioned on the shaft to apply pressure against at least one of the fixed component and the movable component to produce friction between the movable component and the spacer and to resist rotational movement of the lid about an axis of the shaft.
Claims20
A hinge for a vehicle console having a lid and a base structure, the hinge comprising:
- a fixed component attached to the base structure;
- a movable component attached to the lid;
- a shaft connecting the fixed component to the movable component;
- a spacer on the shaft positioned between and in contact with at least a portion of both the fixed and movable components;
- and
- a securing member positioned on the shaft to apply pressure against at least one of the fixed component and the movable component to produce friction between the movable component and the spacer and to resist rotational movement of the lid about an axis of the shaft.
A vehicle console comprising:
- a base structure defining a cavity and having an opening permitting access to the cavity;
- a lid having a surface area sufficient to cover at least a portion of the opening when the lid is in a closed position;
- a hinge connected between the base structure and an edge of the lid and configured to allow rotational movement of the lid between the closed position and an open position, the hinge comprising:
- a movable component comprised of first and second hinge aims coupled to the lid with the first hinge arm proximate a first side edge of the lid and the second hinge arm proximate a second opposing side edge of the lid;
- a fixed portion connected to the base structure and comprising two mounting members;
- a shaft connecting the movable component to the fixed portion, the first and second hinge arms being spaced apart along the shaft and the two mounting members being spaced apart along the shaft;
- spacers mounted on the shaft and positioned such that at least one spacer is between and in contact with an end of one hinge arm and an adjacent one of the two mounting members;
- and
- a securing member mounted on the shaft applying pressure against at least one of the one hinge arm and the adjacent one of the two mounting members and producing sufficient friction between the at least one spacer and the one hinge arm to resist rotational movement of the lid about an axis of the shaft.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.