US 6,543,088 B2Granted

Hinge assembly

AssigneeSugatsune Kogyo Co., Ltd.

InventorShinichiro Koshikawa

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A bottom portion 11a is formed on an external end portion of a support sleeve portion 11 which is located on an external side, and an engagement recess 43 is formed in an inner peripheral surface of a support sleeve portion 21 which is located on an internal side. That end face of the engagement recess 43 which faces the support sleeve portion 11 side serves as an engagement surface 44. An engagement piece 45 is formed on one end portion of a hinge body 3. The engagement piece 45 is elastically deformed such that its distal end portion is displaced radially inward of the hinge body 3, thereby the engagement piece 45 is allowed to extend beyond a bottom surface of a key groove 41. Thereafter, the engagement body 45 is elastically restored such that its distal end portion is displaced radially outward of the hinge body 3, thereby the engagement piece 45 is engaged with the engagement recess 43. Then, the engagement piece 45, when abutted with the engagement surface 44 at its distal end face, prohibits the hinge body 3 from escaping from the support sleeve portion 21.

A hinge assembly comprising a first support sleeve portion and a second support sleeve portion disposed at a device main body and a rotating body respectively with axes thereof aligned and a hinge body having two end portions, the two end portions of said hinge body being inserted into said first support sleeve portion and said second support sleeve portion respectively, thereby pivotably connecting said device main body and said rotating body together,

said first support sleeve portion having both ends open, while said second support sleeve portion having a bottom portion and an open end, said hinge body being inserted into said first support sleeve portion from one end portion thereof located away from said second support sleeve portion, passing through said first support sleeve portion, and being inserted into said second sleeve portion,
said hinge assembly further comprising an engagement mechanism disposed between an inner peripheral surface of said first support sleeve portion and said hinge body and adapted to prohibit said hinge body from escaping from said first support sleeve portion and said second support sleeve portion in the direction from said second support sleeve portion side to said first support sleeve portion side,
said engagement mechanism includes an engagement recess portion formed in the inner peripheral surface of said first support sleeve portion and a totally elastically deformable engagement piece, such that a basal end portion of said engagement piece is integral with said hinge body and a distal end portion thereof is displaceable in a radial direction of said hinge body, the distal end portion of said engagement piece being displaced radially outward so as to be inserted into said engagement recess portion, a distal end surface of said engagement piece is abutted with a side surface of said engagement recess portion which faces in the direction from said first support sleeve portion side to said second support sleeve portion side, thereby said hinge body is prohibited from escaping from said first and second support sleeve portions in the direction from said second support sleeve portion side to said first support sleeve portion side.

Facts

Application

09/740,608Filed 19 Dec 2000

Priority

JP 11-37256628 Dec 1999

Published

US 2001/0004786 A128 Jun 2001

Granted

8 Apr 2003

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification9 codes

H04M 1/0216
Foldable telephones, i.e. with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position:…
G06F 1/1616
With several enclosures having relative motions, each enclosure supporting at least one I/O or computing function: with folding flat displays,…
G06F 1/1681
Miscellaneous details related to the relative movement between the different enclosures or enclosure parts: details related solely to hinges
E05D 11/1078
For maintaining the hinge in two or more positions, e.g. intermediate or fully open: the maintaining means acting parallel to the pivot

Abstract

Claims3