TWM456070U - Hinge structure - Google Patents

Description

Hinge assembly

The present invention relates to a hinge assembly, and more particularly to a hinge assembly for use in a notebook computer.

Many of the electronic products currently seen on the market use folding design, and the folding products are also one of the trends in the modern market. Taking a notebook computer as an example, the display and the main body are generally connected to each other by a hinge structure. When the user uses the notebook computer, the display can be used only after being unfolded relative to the main body of the main body; if the user does not use the notebook computer, the display and the main body of the main body can be folded together to reduce the three-dimensionality occupied by the notebook computer. Space, easy for users to collect and carry.

The hinge is mainly designed to provide a function of interconnecting and relatively deploying the display and the main body of the main body, and the hinge is generally equipped with a damping kit. The damping kit can buffer the relative unfolding action between the display and the main body of the main body, and even provides a stop effect, that is, when the display and the main body are relatively unfolded to a specific position, if not more than a specific external force is applied, the two cannot be changed at will. The relative position of the person.

The hinge assembly of the conventional notebook computer has a hinge and a damping kit. The hinge is used to couple the display and the main body, and the damping kit provides the hinge with a cushioning and stopping effect when performing a rotating motion. Since there are assembly tolerances on the notebook computer in the hinge assembly group, there is a risk of interference with a part of the notebook computer, so the hinge assembly is often set. Timing requires more clearance to accommodate assembly tolerances. In view of the above problems, the conventional improvement method is to directly connect part of the appearance component with the hinge component, that is, the hinge component includes the appearance component, so that no additional space for assembly tolerance is required, and thus the overall size of the notebook computer is small. .

Since the appearance member of the conventional hinge assembly is coupled to the hinge in an integrally formed manner, and the appearance member is generally formed by die casting of a zinc alloy. In this way, when the surface of the appearance part is scratched, the entire set of hinge components are often scrapped due to the appearance requirements, thereby increasing the cost of rework. Moreover, conventional hinge assemblies tend to oversize the entire set of hinge assemblies due to the dampering assembly.

In view of the above problems, the present invention is to provide a hinge assembly for solving the problems of excessive rework costs and excessive volume of the hinge assembly in the prior art.

The hinge assembly of the embodiment of the present invention is adapted to pivotally connect a first component and a second component, and includes a first connecting unit, a second connecting unit, a damping kit and an appearance member. The first connecting unit has a shaft, and the second connecting unit has a connecting end, and the connecting end is pivotally connected to the shaft in a rotatable relationship with respect to the shaft. When the damping kit is sleeved to the shaft and pivots between the first connecting unit and the second connecting unit, a damping is generated between the first connecting unit and the second connecting unit. In addition, the appearance member is coupled to the second joint unit in a detachable relationship and covers the shaft and the damping sleeve.

The hinge assembly of an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the damping kit is a rotary positioning damping kit.

The hinge assembly of the embodiment of the present invention, wherein the first connecting unit further has a first fixed end, the first fixed end has at least one screw hole, and the first fixed end is provided by a locking component The threaded hole is combined with the first element.

The hinge assembly of an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the first fixed end has a shape of a plate.

The hinge assembly of the embodiment of the present invention, wherein the second connecting unit further has a second fixing end, the second fixing end has at least one screw hole, and the second fixing end is coupled with the second element by a locking member.

The hinge assembly of an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the second fixed end has a shape of a rod.

The hinge assembly of the embodiment of the present invention, wherein the second connecting unit has a through hole, the appearance member further has a receiving groove, the through hole communicates with the receiving groove, and the shaft and the damping sleeve are located in the receiving groove.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, in a hinge assembly, a hole wall surface forming a through hole and a surface of the second joint unit are rounded.

The hinge assembly of the embodiment further includes at least one screw, the second connecting unit has at least one threaded hole, the appearance member has at least one screw hole corresponding to the threaded hole, and the second connecting unit is screwed to the screw hole by the screw Combined with the threaded hole and the appearance member.

The present invention discloses a hinge assembly according to an embodiment, wherein the appearance member is made of a zinc alloy.

According to the hinge assembly disclosed in the above embodiment, the appearance member is a separate member, that is, the appearance member is locked to the second joint unit in a detachable relationship. When the surface of the appearance member is scratched by the foreign object and affects the appearance thereof, the appearance member scraped off the surface only needs to be detached from the second joint unit, and a new appearance member can be replaced to complete the rework. Therefore, when the appearance has an appearance瑕 In other words, the hinge assembly disclosed in this embodiment does not need to dispose of the entire set of hinge assemblies together. Therefore, the design of the appearance member of the hinge assembly disclosed in the embodiment can reduce the cost of rework. In addition, since the damping assembly of the hinge assembly disclosed in the embodiment is located in the receiving groove of the appearance member, the overall volume of the hinge assembly can be reduced to facilitate the development of the miniaturization trend of the current products.

The features, implementations, and effects of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the preferred embodiments.

100‧‧‧Hinge assembly

110‧‧‧First Link Unit

112‧‧‧ shaft

114‧‧‧First fixed end

118‧‧‧First screw hole

120‧‧‧Second link unit

122‧‧‧Link end

1221‧‧‧through holes

124‧‧‧Second fixed end

125‧‧‧through hole

1251‧‧‧ fillet

126‧‧‧Threaded holes

127‧‧‧ pin hole

128‧‧‧Second screw hole

130‧‧‧ appearance parts

132‧‧‧ screw holes

134‧‧‧ accommodating slots

140‧‧‧damping kit

142‧‧‧First friction block

1421‧‧‧ Groove

1422‧‧‧The top surface

1423‧‧‧First through hole

143‧‧‧Bump

144‧‧‧second friction block

1441‧‧‧Bumps

1442‧‧‧second through hole

146‧‧‧ Elastic film set

1461‧‧‧Three through holes

148‧‧‧ nuts

150‧‧‧ screws

1 is a schematic structural view of a hinge assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a structural exploded view of a hinge assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 3 is based on Schematic diagram of the damping kit of "Fig. 2".

Please refer to FIG. 1 , which is a schematic structural view of a hinge assembly 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The hinge assembly 100 is adapted to pivotally connect a first component and a second component such that the first component and the second component have the function of opening and closing each other. The hinge assembly 100 includes a first joint unit 110, a second joint unit 120, a damping kit 140, and a look member 130. Referring to "2nd drawing" together, it is an exploded view of the structure of the hinge assembly 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The first connecting unit 110 has a shaft 112, and the second connecting unit 120 has a connecting end 122. The outer end of the connecting end 122 can be a plate body, but is not limited thereto. The connecting end 122 has a continuous through hole 1221 extending through the connecting end 122. The shaft 112 passes through the through hole 1221, and the connecting end 122 is pivotally connected to the shaft 112 in a rotatable relationship with respect to the shaft 112. The damping set 140 is sleeved to the shaft 112 and is pivoted when the first connecting unit 110 and the second connecting unit 120 are pivoted to each other. A damping is generated between the junction unit 110 and the second coupling unit 120.

The damping kit 140 of the present embodiment may be a rotary positioning damping kit, that is, the damping kit 140 may buffer the relative rotation of the first coupling unit 110 and the second coupling unit 120. In addition, the damping kit 140 can even provide the effect of stopping, that is, when the first coupling unit 110 and the second coupling unit 120 are relatively rotated relative to each other, the relative positions of the two are not easily changed by external force. .

For a detailed description of the structural design of the damper kit 140 to achieve the above-mentioned effects, please refer to "FIG. 3", which is a schematic structural view of the damper kit 140 according to "FIG. 2". The damping assembly 140 includes a first friction block 142, a second friction block 144, an elastic sheet set 146, and a nut 148 that are sequentially assembled to the shaft 112. In addition, the shaft 112 may be an elliptical cylinder, but not limited thereto. The first friction block 142 has a first through hole 1423. The first through hole 1423 can be a circular hole and matched to the shaft 112. The first friction block 142 is sleeved to the shaft 112 by the first through hole 1423, and the first friction block 142 is sleeved on the shaft 112 in a relationship rotatable relative to the shaft 112. In addition, the first friction block 142 has a protruding post 143 facing the second connecting unit 120. The connecting end 122 of the second connecting unit 120 has a latching hole 127. The stud 143 is inserted into the latching hole 127 to rotate the first friction block 142 with the second connecting unit 120 on the shaft 112.

The first friction block 142 has an abutting surface 1422. The abutting surface 1422 can have two recesses 1421. The second friction block 144 has a protrusion 1441 facing the top surface 1422 and corresponding to the recess 1421. The second friction block 144 has a second through hole 1442. The second through hole 1442 is an elliptical hole and corresponds to the shaft 112. The second friction block 144 is sleeved to the shaft 112 by the second through hole 1442, and the second friction block 144 is movable in the axial direction of the shaft 112 but is not opposite to the shaft. The relationship in which the rod 112 rotates is sleeved on the shaft 112, and the second friction block 144 abuts against the abutting surface 1422 of the first friction block 142.

The elastic sheet set 146 is an elastic body having a third through hole 1461. The third through hole 1461 is an elliptical hole and corresponds to the shaft 112. The elastic piece set 146 is sleeved to the shaft 112 by the third through hole 1461, and the elastic piece set 146 is sleeved on the shaft 112 in a relationship movable in the axial direction of the shaft 112 but not rotatable relative to the shaft 112. The elastic sheet set 146 abuts against the second friction block 144 and provides a thrust against the second friction block 144 to compress the abutting surface 1422 of the first friction block 142.

The nut 148 is locked to one end of the shaft 112 relative to the first connecting unit 110, and is locked to the shaft 112 by the nut 148 to connect the connecting end 122 of the shaft 112, the first friction block 142, The second friction block 144 and the elastic sheet set 146 are fixed to the shaft 112 without falling off. The second friction block 144 pushes against the first friction block 142 by providing an axial thrust by the elastic sheet set 146, thereby pressing the top surface 1422 of the first friction block 142. When the first friction block 142 rotates, the frictional force generated by the contact between the top surface 1422 and the second friction block 144 and the buffering force of the pivotal movement between the first coupling unit 110 and the second coupling unit 120 can be provided. In addition, by the arrangement of the bumps 1441 of the second friction block 144 and the recesses 1421 on the top surface 1422, the first joint unit 110 and the second joint unit 120 are pivoted to the corresponding grooves of the bumps 1441. When the position of the engagement is 1421, the first coupling unit 110 and the second coupling unit 120 can be arbitrarily changed without being subjected to an external force.

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , the appearance member 130 of the present embodiment is coupled to the second coupling unit 120 in a detachable relationship and covers the damping sleeve 140 . The material of the appearance member 130 is a zinc alloy, but not limited thereto, and the material of the appearance member 130 may also be other gold. A material such as an aluminum alloy. The appearance member 130 further has a receiving slot 134 for providing a set of receiving wires for use as a cable. The second connecting unit 120 further has a through hole 125. The through hole 125 is connected to the receiving groove 134, so that the wire group in the receiving groove 134 can be pierced through the through hole 125 to facilitate the line routing requirement. In addition, the damper sleeve 140 is disposed in the accommodating groove 134 and is not exposed. Therefore, the damping damper 140 of the embodiment can be arranged in a manner that can reduce the overall hinge assembly, compared to the conventional damper assembly 140 being disposed outside the appearance member 130. The volume of 100.

In addition, in the hinge assembly 100 of the embodiment, a hole wall surface of the through hole 125 and a surface of the second connecting unit 120 are connected to a rounded corner 1251, which means that a circular arc surface is formed at one of the ports of the through hole 125. To avoid the presence of sharp edges. In this way, when the wire group is pierced through the through hole 125, it is not damaged by the sharp edge of one of the through holes 125, thereby protecting the wire group.

The hinge assembly 100 of the embodiment further includes two screws 150. The second connecting unit 120 has two threaded holes 126 arranged side by side and adjacent to the through holes 125, and the appearance member 130 has two screw holes 132 corresponding to the threaded holes 126. The second connecting unit The 120 is coupled to the appearance member 130 by the screw 150 being locked to the screw hole 132 and the threaded hole 126. That is, the appearance member 130 is detachably attached to the second joint unit 120. Therefore, when the surface of the zinc alloy of the appearance member 130 is scratched by the foreign object to affect its appearance, the appearance member 130 which only scratches the surface is detached from the second connecting unit 120, and a new appearance member 130 is replaced. Rework. It should be noted that the combination of the appearance member 130 and the second connecting unit 120 in this embodiment is combined by the two screws 150, but the combination or the number of the screws 150 is not intended to limit the present invention, for example, for example. It is also possible to use only one screw 150 for locking, or a combination of snap-on construction instead of screws.

Please refer to "FIG. 2", the first link of the hinge assembly 100 of this embodiment. The element 110 further has a first fixed end 114 for engaging the first component, wherein the first component can be a lower chassis of a notebook computer, but not limited thereto. In addition, the outer shape of the first fixed end 114 may be a plate body, but not limited thereto. For example, the outer shape of the first fixed end 114 of the embodiment may also be a rod body. The first fixed end 114 has three first screw holes 118. The first fixed end 114 can be locked with the first component through a first screw hole 118 by a fastener, such as a screw, so that the first connecting unit 110 and the first connecting unit 110 A component is combined. It should be noted that the number of the first screw holes 118 of the first fixed end 114 of the embodiment is not limited to the present invention. The number of the first screw holes 118 may also be two or other numbers.

In addition, the second connecting unit 120 of the hinge assembly 100 of the embodiment further has a second fixed end 124 for engaging with the second component, wherein the second component can be a display of a notebook computer. Housing, but not limited to this. In addition, the shape of the second fixed end 124 may be a rod body, but not limited thereto. For example, the outer shape of the second fixed end 124 of the embodiment may also be a plate body. The second fixed end 124 has two second screw holes 128, wherein one second screw hole 128 is opened along the axial direction of the outer pole type of the second fixed end 124, and the other second screw hole 128 is perpendicular to the outer rod type. Open in the axial direction. It should be noted that the opening position of the second screw hole 128 is not intended to limit the present invention. The second fixing end 124 can be coupled to the second element by the second screw hole 128 being locked by the second screw hole 128 by a locking member such as a screw. It should be noted that the number of the second screw holes 128 of the second fixed end 124 of the embodiment is not limited to the present invention, and the number of the second screw holes 128 may also be three or the others.

The pivoting of the first component and the second component by the hinge assembly 100 causes the first component and the second component to have an unfolding or folding motion effect, and the damping component 140 can buffer the first component and the second component. Relatively unfolding actions can even provide a stop effect. which is When the first element and the second element are relatively unfolded to a specific position, the relative positions of the two elements are not arbitrarily changed by the external force.

According to the hinge assembly disclosed in the above embodiment, the appearance member is a separate member, that is, the appearance member is locked to the second joint unit in a detachable relationship. When the surface of the appearance member is scratched by the foreign object and affects the appearance thereof, the appearance member scraped off the surface only needs to be detached from the second joint unit, and a new appearance member can be replaced to complete the rework. Therefore, when the appearance component has an appearance flaw, the hinge assembly disclosed in the embodiment does not need to scrap the entire set of hinge assemblies together, so the design of the appearance component of the hinge assembly disclosed in the embodiment can reduce the rework cost. In addition, since the damping assembly of the hinge assembly disclosed in the embodiment is located in the receiving groove of the appearance member, the overall volume of the hinge assembly can be reduced to facilitate the development of the miniaturization trend of the current products.

Although the present invention has been described above in terms of the preferred embodiments thereof, it is not intended to limit the present invention, and it is intended that those skilled in the art can make some modifications and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The scope of the new patent protection shall be subject to the definition of the scope of the patent application attached to this specification.

110‧‧‧First Link Unit

112‧‧‧ shaft

114‧‧‧First fixed end

118‧‧‧First screw hole

120‧‧‧Second link unit

122‧‧‧Link end

1221‧‧‧through holes

124‧‧‧Second fixed end

125‧‧‧through hole

1251‧‧‧ fillet

126‧‧‧Threaded holes

127‧‧‧ pin hole

128‧‧‧Second screw hole

130‧‧‧ appearance parts

132‧‧‧ screw holes

134‧‧‧ accommodating slots

140‧‧‧damping kit

142‧‧‧First friction block

143‧‧‧Bumps

144‧‧‧second friction block

146‧‧‧ Elastic film set

148‧‧‧ nuts

150‧‧‧ screws

Claims (10)

A hinge assembly for pivoting a first component and a second component, the hinge component comprising: a first connecting unit having a shaft; and a second connecting unit having a connecting end pivotally connected to the connecting end The damper is disposed on the shaft and generates a damping between the first coupling unit and the second coupling unit when the first coupling unit and the second coupling unit pivot relative to each other; An appearance member covering the shaft and the damping kit. The hinge assembly of claim 1, wherein the damping kit is a rotary positioning damping kit. The hinge assembly of claim 1, wherein the first connecting unit further has a first fixed end, the first fixed end has at least one screw hole, and the first fixed end is configured by a fastener A screw hole is combined with the first member. The hinge assembly of claim 3, wherein the first fixed end has a shape of a plate. The hinge assembly of claim 1, wherein the second connecting unit further has a second fixed end, the second fixed end has at least one screw hole, and the second fixed end is coupled to the first fixed end by a lock Two components are combined. The hinge assembly of claim 5, wherein the second fixed end has a shape of a rod. The hinge assembly of claim 1, wherein the second connecting unit has a through hole, the appearance member further has a receiving groove, the through hole communicates with the receiving groove, and the damping sleeve is located in the receiving groove Inside. The hinge assembly of claim 7, wherein a hole wall surface and the second hole forming the through hole are formed A surface joint of the joint unit is a rounded corner. The hinge assembly of claim 1, further comprising at least one screw, the second connecting unit having at least one threaded hole, the appearance member having at least one screw hole corresponding to the threaded hole, the second connecting unit by the A screw is inserted into the screw hole and the threaded hole to be combined with the appearance member. The hinge assembly of claim 1, wherein the appearance member is made of a zinc alloy.