Hinge structure for collapsible portable phone

A hinge structure for a collapsible portable phone, comprising:

• an operating member provided with a phone operating portion on its surface;
• a display member, pivotally and collapsible coupled with said operating member and provided with a display image field in which numerals and/or letters for phone numbers and/or names may be displayed on its surface;
• and
• a biasing mechanism that exhibits a closing biasing force for biasing said display member in a closing direction between a closed condition that said display member is collapsed to said operating member and a predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated to said operating member in an opening direction and exhibits an opening biasing force for biasing said display member in the opening direction between a fully opened condition that said display member is fully opened to said operating member and a predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated in the closing direction, said biasing mechanism being provided at a pivot portion between said operating member and said display member,
• wherein a rotary shaft coupled with said operating member is provided, a bearing member provided with an elongate projections, which is engageable in a convex/concave engagement manner with a recess portion provided in said rotary shaft, is coupled with said display member, the recess portion provided on said rotary shaft and the elongated projection provided in said bearing member are engageable with each other from a disengaged condition, when said rotary shaft is rotated relative to said bearing member about an axis, so that a rotational biasing force is generated between said rotary shaft and said bearing member for rotating said rotary shaft, said rotational biasing force is set so that the recess portion provided in said rotary shaft and the elongate projection provided in said bearing member are disengaged away from each other so that said rotational biasing force does not work when said display member is being rotated to said operating member between said predetermined rotational positions, and said rotational biasing force is set so that the recess portion provided on said rotary shaft and the elongate projection provided in said bearing member are engageable with each other so that said display member is rotated from the collapsed condition relative to said operating member up to the predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated in the opening direction and from the opened condition that said display member is fully opened to said operating member to said predetermined rotational position that said display member is rotated in the closing direction to thereby work as the closing biasing force and the opening biasing force,
• wherein a pair of annular projections define the recess portion, said annular projections formed in a substantially C-shape having a substantially flat end face with rounded end portions, and said elongate projection having a substantially flat end face, and
• wherein a damping effect is generated by a contact resistance between the end faces of the annular projections and the end face of the elongate projection as the rotary shaft is rotated relative to the bearing member.

A hinge structure for a collapsible portable phone, comprising:

• an operating member provided with a phone operating portion on its surface;
• a display member, pivotally and collapsibly coupled with said operating member and provided with a display image field in which numerals and/or letters for phone numbers and/or names may be displayed on its surface;
• and
• a biasing mechanism that exhibits a closing biasing force for biasing said display member in a closing direction between a closed condition that said display member is collapsed to said operating member and a predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated to said operating member in an opening direction and exhibits an opening biasing force for biasing said display member in the opening direction between a fully opened condition that said display member is fully opened to said operating member and a predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated in the closing direction, said biasing mechanism being provided at a pivot portion between said operating member and said display member,
• wherein a rotary shaft coupled with said display member is provided, a bearing member provided with a recess portion, which is engageable in a convex/concave engagement manner with an elongate projection provided in said rotary shaft, is coupled with said operating member, the elongate projection provided on said rotary shaft and the recess portion provided in said bearing member are engageable with each other from a disengaged condition, when said rotary shaft is rotated relative to said bearing member about an axis, so that a rotational biasing force is generated between said rotary shaft and said bearing member f or rotating said rotary shaft, said rotational biasing force is set so that the elongate projection provided in said rotary shaft and the recess portion provided in said bearing member are disengaged away from each other so that said rotational biasing force does not work when said display member is being rotated to said operating member between said predetermined rotational positions, and said rotational biasing force is set so that the elongate projection provided on said rotary shaft and the recess portion provided in said bearing member are engageable with each other so that said display member is rotated from the collapsed condition relative to said operating member up to the predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated in the opening direction and from the opened condition that said display member is fully opened to said operating member to said predetermined rotational position that said display member is rotated in the closing direction to thereby work as the closing biasing force and the opening biasing force,
• wherein a pair of annular projections define the recess portion, said annular projections formed in a substantially C-shape having a substantially flat end face with rounded end portions, and said elongate projections having a substantially flat end face, and
• wherein a damping effect is generated by a contact resistance between the end faces of the annular projections and the end face of the elongate projection as the rotary shaft is rotated relative to the bearing member.

A hinge structure for a collapsible portable phone, comprising:

• an operating member provided with a phone operating portion on its surface;
• a display member, pivotally and collapsibly coupled with said operating member and provided with a display image field in which numerals and/or letters for phone numbers and/or names may be displayed on its surface;
• and
• a biasing mechanism that exhibits a closing biasing force for biasing said display member in a closing direction between a closed condition that said display member is collapsed to said operating member and a predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated to said operating member in an opening direction and exhibits an opening biasing force for biasing said display member in the opening direction between a fully opened condition that said display member is fully opened to said operating member and a predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated in the closing direction, said biasing mechanism being provided at a pivot portion between said operating member and said display member,
• wherein a rotary shaft coupled with said display member is provided, a bearing member provided with an elongate projection, which is engageable in a convex/concave engagement manner with a recess portion provided in said rotary shaft, is coupled with said operating member, the recess portion provided on said rotary shaft and the elongated projection provided in said bearing member are engageable with each other from a disengaged condition, when said rotary shaft is rotated relative to said bearing member about an axis, so that a rotational biasing force is generated between said rotary shaft and said bearing member for rotating said rotary shaft, said rotational biasing force is set so that the recess portion provided in said rotary shaft and the elongate projection provided in said bearing member are disengaged away front each other so that said rotational biasing force does not work when said display member is being rotated to said operating member between said predetermined rotational positions, and said rotational biasing force is set so that the recess portion provided on said rotary shaft and the elongate projection provided in said bearing member are engageable with each other so that said display member is rotated from the collapsed condition relative to said operating member up to the predetermined rotational position where said display member is rotated in the opening direction and from the opened condition that said display member is fully opened to said operating member to said predetermined rotational position that said display member is rotated in the closing direction to thereby work as the closing biasing force and the opening biasing force,
• wherein a pair of annular projections define the recess portion, said annular projections formed in a substantially C-shape having a substantially flat end face with rounded end portions, and said elongate projection having a substantially flat end face, and
• wherein a damping effect is generated by a contact resistance between the end faces of the annular projections and the end face of the elongate projection as the rotary shaft is rotated relative to the bearing member.