Mechanical folding and unfolding hinge and unfoldable structure
By designing a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge and utilizing a combination of a drive unit and a locking mechanism, the problem of low stiffness in conventional hinge structures is solved, achieving high stiffness and stability in hinge unfolding, which is suitable for deployable structures in aerospace equipment.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-04-28
- Publication Date
- 2026-03-24
AI Technical Summary
Conventional hinge structures have low stiffness after deployment, which cannot meet the stiffness, performance and precision requirements of aerospace equipment.
Design a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge, including a drive unit, a linkage coupling structure and a locking mechanism. The drive force is provided by a preset elastic component, and the hinge is locked in place by a spring pin and a locking groove, thereby increasing rigidity.
The increased stiffness and stability of the hinge ensure reliable locking of the position after deployment, enhancing the compactness of the structure and space utilization.
Smart Images
Figure CN224032941U_ABST
Abstract
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of aerospace deployment, in particular to a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge and deployable structure. BACKGROUND
[0002] Deployable structures have been widely used in many aerospace devices. With the development of aerospace devices towards larger and more complex, high-controllable and large-stored deployable structures are increasing.
[0003] Among them, the deployable structure is often provided with a hinge structure, but the conventional hinge structure cannot meet the requirements of stiffness, performance and precision of aerospace devices. For example, the conventional hinge structure is provided in the deployable structure, and the stiffness is low after unfolding, which affects the performance and precision.
[0004] Therefore, a new scheme of a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge is needed. CONTENT OF THE INVENTION
[0005] Therefore, the mechanical folding and unfolding hinge and the deployable structure provided by the embodiments of the present application solve the problem of low stiffness after unfolding of the conventional hinge structure.
[0006] The embodiments of the present application provide the following technical solutions:
[0007] The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge provided by the embodiments of the present application comprises a driving unit, a connecting rod coupling structure and a locking mechanism.
[0008] The driving unit is used to provide the driving force required for unfolding of the connecting rod coupling structure; the driving unit comprises an elastic component and a connecting piece.
[0009] The connecting rod coupling structure comprises a male hinge, a female hinge and a shafting assembly; the male hinge is a fixed part of the hinge; the female hinge cooperates with the male hinge to realize relative movement.
[0010] The shafting assembly is used to connect the male hinge and the female hinge and realize relative rotation of the two.
[0011] The driving unit is arranged between the rotation connection of the male hinge and the female hinge, one end of the elastic component is connected to the shafting assembly, the other end of the elastic component is connected to the connecting piece, one end of the connecting piece is fixed to the female hinge, and the other end of the connecting piece is connected to the elastic component.
[0012] The elastic component is used to release the stored potential energy to generate driving force to push the shafting assembly and the male hinge to rotate.
[0013] The connecting piece is used to drive the female hinge to rotate around the shaft assembly by connecting the other end of the elastic component, so as to realize the relative movement and unfolding of the male hinge and the female hinge.
[0014] The locking mechanism comprises a spring pin and a locking groove, and the spring pin is arranged on the male hinge.
[0015] The locking groove is arranged on the female hinge.
[0016] The locking mechanism is used to lock the relative position of the male hinge and the female hinge by the spring pin clamped into the locking groove after the hinge is unfolded to the position.
[0017] The embodiment of the present application also provides a deployable structure, and the mechanical folding and unfolding hinge as described in the above technical solution is mounted on the deployable structure, and is used to realize the conversion of the deployable structure from the folded state to the unfolded state.
[0018] Compared with the prior art, the above at least one technical solution adopted by the embodiment of the present application can achieve at least the following beneficial effects:
[0019] In the present application, a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge is designed, the hinge stiffness is improved by using a preset elastic component for driving, and the hinge has the characteristics of compact structure and good stability; the positioning butt joint between the male hinge and the female hinge is realized by the spring pin arranged on the male hinge and the locking groove arranged on the female hinge, and the spring pin and the locking groove can bear pressure and torque after cooperation; after the hinge is unfolded to the specified position, the spring pin is popped into the locking groove of the male hinge to complete the locking, the reliability of the in-place locking is ensured, and the hinge stiffness is increased after locking. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0020] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the drawings needed in the embodiments will be briefly introduced as follows. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and other drawings can also be obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor.
[0021] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge in the present application;
[0022] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the driving unit structure of a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge in the present application;
[0023] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the locking mechanism arrangement position of a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge in the present application;
[0024] Figure 4is a schematic diagram of a locking state of a locking mechanism of a mechanical folding and unfolding hinge.
[0025] Wherein, 1, driving unit, 11, elastic component, 12, cylindrical connecting piece, 2, connecting rod coupling structure, 21, male hinge, 22, female hinge, 23, shaft assembly, 231, end cover, 232, bearing, 233, shaft, 234, shaft sleeve, 3, locking mechanism, 31, spring pin, 32, locking groove. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] The embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.
[0027] The above embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, but not all the embodiments of the present application. The present application can also be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and each detail in the specification can be modified or changed based on different views and applications without departing from the spirit of the present application. It should be noted that the following embodiments and features in the embodiments can be combined with each other without conflict. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor are within the scope of protection of the present application.
[0028] It should be noted that the various aspects described below are within the scope of the appended claims. It should be apparent that the aspects described herein can be embodied in a wide variety of forms and that any specific structure and / or function described herein is merely illustrative. Based on the teachings herein one skilled in the art should appreciate that an aspect described herein can be implemented independently of any other aspects and that an aspect described herein can be implemented both as any number of software and / or hardware structures and as any number of combinations of software and / or hardware structures. For example, an apparatus can be implemented using any number and combination of the aspects described herein. Additionally, the features described herein can be implemented using software and / or hardware structures that are different than those described herein and / or can be implemented using structures that are a combination of the features described herein with other features not explicitly described herein.
[0029] It should also be noted that the drawings included in the following embodiments are only to illustrate the basic concept of the present application in a schematic manner, and only the components related to the present application are shown in the drawings, not the number, shape and size of the components when actually implemented. The actual implementation of each component may be a random change in shape, number and proportion, and the layout of the components may also be more complex.
[0030] Also in the following description, specific details are given to provide thorough understanding of examples. However, one skilled in the relevant art will understand that the examples can be practiced without these specific details.
[0031] Deployable structures have been widely used in many space devices. With the development of space devices towards larger and more complex, high-controllable and large-stored deployable structures are increasing.
[0032] Deployable structures play an important role, such as space deployable antennas are indispensable important equipment in the wireless communication system of spacecraft, as the deployable hinge of the antenna is related to the compact design of the satellite, the protection and utilization of solar energy, and provides the stability and attitude control of the structure, which is the frontier and hotspot of international aerospace research. However, the conventional hinge structure has low stiffness after deployment, which affects the performance and accuracy of the antenna.
[0033] In other words, the conventional hinge structure cannot meet the requirements of stiffness, performance and accuracy of space devices, such as setting the conventional hinge structure in the deployable structure, which has low stiffness after deployment, which will affect the performance and accuracy of the deployed structure.
[0034] Based on this, the embodiments of the present application provide a new scheme of mechanical folding and unfolding hinge, which sets a locking mechanism to lock the unfolding of the hinge in place. When reaching the specified position, the spring pin pops into the locking groove of the male hinge to complete the locking, ensuring the reliability of the in-place locking. The elastic potential energy remaining after locking increases the stiffness of the hinge, which has the characteristics of compact structure, high space occupancy and good stability.
[0035] The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application are described below in conjunction with the drawings.
[0036] As shown in Figures 1-4 The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge provided by the embodiments of the present application includes a driving unit 1, a connecting rod coupling structure 2 and a locking mechanism 3.
[0037] The connecting rod coupling structure 2 includes a male hinge 21, a female hinge 22 and an axle assembly 23. The driving unit 1 is arranged between the rotation connection between the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22. The axle assembly 23 includes a shaft 233.
[0038] The male hinge 21 is fixed on the shaft 233 through a key and rotates with the shaft 233, and the female hinge 22 also rotates around the shaft 233.
[0039] The driving unit 1 includes an elastic component 11 and a connecting piece such as a cylindrical connecting piece 12. In some embodiments, the elastic component 11 is a volute spring.
[0040] The elastic component 11 is fixed at one end on the shaft 233 by screw connection, and the other end is also fixed on the cylindrical connecting piece 12 by screw connection. The cylindrical connecting piece 12 is fixed at one end on the female hinge 22, and the other end is fixed on the elastic component 11. During operation, the shaft 233 is pulled at one end of the elastic component 11 to rotate the male hinge 21, and the cylindrical connecting piece 12 is pulled at the other end to drive the female hinge 22 to rotate around the shaft 233, thereby realizing the relative rotation of the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22 and the unfolding of the mechanism.
[0041] The locking mechanism 3 includes a spring pin 31 and a locking groove 32, wherein the spring pin 31 is arranged on the male hinge 21.
[0042] The locking groove 32 is arranged on the female hinge 22.
[0043] The locking mechanism 3 is used to lock the relative position of the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22 by the spring pin 31 being inserted into the locking groove 32 after the hinge is unfolded to the designated position.
[0044] The cylindrical connecting piece 12 has the characteristics of uniform stress distribution, good centering, easy processing and assembly, and adaptation to complex motion, which enables it to efficiently and stably transmit the driving force of the elastic component 11, ensures smooth relative movement of the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22, and realizes the folding and unfolding functions of the hinge.
[0045] In some embodiments, the locking mechanism includes two spring pins and two locking grooves. The two spring pins are arranged on both sides of the hole of the male hinge, and the front ends of the two spring pins protrude from the hole of the male hinge. The two locking grooves are arranged on the front ends of the two sides of the end face of the female hinge. The front ends of the spring pins are used to be inserted into the locking grooves under the elastic force of the spring in the spring pin when the male hinge and the female hinge are rotated to the designated position, thereby completing the locking.
[0046] One side of the locking groove is provided with a slope, which facilitates the sliding of the spring pin into the locking groove and realizes automatic locking.
[0047] When the male hinge and the female hinge are rotated by 180°, the top of the spring pin slides on the slope and is inserted into the pre-shaped hole at the front end of the locking groove to complete the limit locking. At this time, the spring pin and the female hinge are at an angle of 90°.
[0048] Specifically, the locking mechanism 3 includes two spring pins 31 and a locking groove 32. The two spring pins 31 are arranged on both sides of the hole of the male hinge 21, and the rear ends of the two spring pins 31 are provided with springs. In the state of not being unfolded to the position, the spring pins slightly protrude from the inside of the hole of the male hinge 21 under the elastic force of the springs, and the two spring pins 31 will not completely fall out of the hole of the male hinge 21. The locking groove 32 is arranged on both sides of the female hinge 22, and the distance from the locking groove 32 to the axis of the shaft 233 is equal to the distance from the spring pin 31 to the axis of the shaft 233. The locking groove 32 is slightly larger than the pin head of the spring pin 31. The side of the locking groove 32 in the direction of rotation of the spring pin 31 is arranged as an inclined surface to facilitate sliding and locking. When the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22 are rotated by 180° relative to each other, the pre-shaped (such as a circular) locking groove 32 holes at both ends of the female hinge 22 are sleeved on the spring pins 31, thereby achieving the locking of the hinge. The spring pin 31 is matched with the female hinge 22 at a matching angle of 90° to achieve locking. The elastic potential energy of the spring pin 31 provides a locking pre-tightening force to ensure the reliability of the locking in place. After locking, the stiffness of the hinge is increased, and the function of avoiding the unlocking caused by the mechanical environment is achieved.
[0049] In some embodiments, the shafting assembly 23 includes two end covers 231, two bearings 232, a shaft 233, and a shaft sleeve 234. The shaft 233 is arranged between the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22, and the hinge rotates around the shaft 233. The shaft key is arranged on the shaft 233, and the shaft 233 and the key are inserted into the male hinge 21, so that the shaft 233 rotates with the male hinge 21. The shaft sleeve 234 is also sleeved on the shaft 232. One side of the shaft sleeve 234 and the shaft 233 is processed into a flat surface, and one end of the elastic component 11 is arranged thereon to prevent the end of the elastic component 11 from rotating on the shaft. That is, one section of the shaft sleeve 234 is flush with the flat surface on the shaft to prevent the elastic component from rotating on the shaft. The two ends of the shaft 233 pass through the inner holes of the two bearings 232, and the two bearings 232 are arranged in the two holes of the female hinge 22 to fix the shaft 233 so that it does not produce radial movement. At the same time, the friction resistance generated by the rotation of the shaft 233 is reduced. The outer sides of the two bearings 232 are provided with end covers 231, and the outer sides of the end covers 231 are fixed to the two sides of the female hinge 22 by six screws. The inner sides of the end covers 231 are in contact with the outer rings of the bearings 232. In this way, the shaft 233 is pressed from two directions to prevent the shafting assembly 23 from moving axially.
[0050] The shaft serves as the rotation center of the male hinge and the female hinge.
[0051] The specific working process of the mechanical folding and unfolding hinge in the present application is as follows:
[0052] The elastic component 11 is initially in a compressed state, and when the hinge starts to unfold, the elastic component 11 of the driving unit 1 starts to release the elastic potential energy to generate driving force, which drives the shaft 233 and the cylindrical connecting piece 12 to drive the mutual movement and unfolding of the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22; when the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22 rotate relative to each other by 180° to reach the specified position, at this time the top of the spring pin 31 slides on the inclined surface and is clamped into the circular hole at the front end of the locking groove 32 to complete the limiting locking. The spring pin 31 and the female hinge 22 are matched at a matching angle of 90°, which ensures the reliability of the in-place locking and increases the rigidity of the hinge after locking.
[0053] In summary, the mechanical folding and unfolding hinge provided in the application sets a locking mechanism to lock the unfolding of the hinge in place, and when reaching the specified position, the spring pin is popped into the locking groove of the male hinge to complete the locking, which ensures the reliability of the in-place locking and increases the rigidity of the hinge after locking. The structure is compact, the space occupancy rate is high, and the stability is good. Specifically, the locking mechanism 3 is set to lock the unfolding of the hinge in place, and when reaching the specified position, the top of the spring pin 31 slides on the inclined surface and is clamped into the circular hole at the front end of the locking groove 32 to complete the limiting locking. The spring pin 31 and the female hinge 22 are matched at a matching angle of 90°, which ensures the reliability of the in-place locking and increases the rigidity of the hinge after locking.
[0054] In combination with the above embodiments, the application further provides an expandable structure, and the mechanical folding and unfolding hinge as described in the above technical solution is installed in the expandable structure to realize the conversion of the expandable structure from a folded state to an unfolded state. The expandable structure includes at least one of the following: a solar panel, a satellite antenna, a space telescope, a solar cell panel array, a hatch and a cover, a mechanical arm and an operating mechanism, a space experiment module, a telescopic structure, and a heat sink.
[0055] For example, the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22 are bolted by being installed to the end portions of two adjacent solar panels or antennas, and under the action of the driving unit 1, the male hinge 21 and the female hinge 22 gradually change from the folded state to the unfolded state, thereby driving the two adjacent solar panels or antennas to change from the folded state to the unfolded state.
[0056] The same and similar parts among the various embodiments in the specification can be referred to each other, and each embodiment focuses on the difference from other embodiments. In particular, for the product embodiments described later, since they correspond to the methods, the description is relatively simple, and the relevant parts can be referred to the part of the system embodiment.
[0057] The above merely provides the specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited to this. Any changes or replacements within the technical scope disclosed by the present application can be easily conceived by the person skilled in the art, and should be covered within the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.
Claims
1. A mechanical folding and unfolding hinge, characterized in that, include: Drive unit, linkage coupling structure and locking mechanism; The drive unit includes elastic components and connectors; The linkage coupling structure includes: a male hinge, a female hinge, and a shaft assembly; the male hinge serves as a fixed part of the hinge; the female hinge mates with the male hinge. The shaft assembly is used to connect the male hinge and the female hinge, so that the male hinge and the female hinge can rotate relative to each other; The drive unit is disposed between the rotational connection of the male hinge and the female hinge. One end of the elastic component is connected to the shaft assembly, and the other end of the elastic component is connected to the connector. One end of the connector is fixed to the female hinge, and the other end of the connector is connected to the elastic component. The elastic component is used to release its stored potential energy, generating a driving force to rotate the shaft assembly and the male hinge; The connector is used to drive the female hinge to rotate around the shaft assembly by connecting the other end of the elastic component, so as to enable relative movement and unfolding of the male hinge and the female hinge; The locking mechanism includes a spring pin and a locking groove, wherein the spring pin is disposed on the male hinge; The locking groove is provided on the female hinge; The locking mechanism is used to lock the relative positions of the male hinge and the female hinge by having the spring pin engage with the locking groove after the hinge has been fully extended.
2. The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge according to claim 1, characterized in that, The locking mechanism includes two spring pins and a locking groove; the two spring pins are disposed on both sides of the interior of the male hinge, and the front ends of the two spring pins extend from the interior of the male hinge respectively; the locking groove is disposed at the front ends of both sides of the end face of the female hinge. The front end of the spring pin is used to engage with the locking groove under the elastic force of the spring when the male hinge and the female hinge rotate relative to each other to a specified position, thereby completing the locking.
3. The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge according to claim 1, characterized in that: One side of the locking groove is provided with an inclined surface, which is used for the spring pin to slide into the locking groove to achieve automatic locking.
4. The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge according to claim 3, characterized in that, The male hinge rotates 180° relative to the female hinge, and the top of the spring pin slides and engages in the preset shaped hole at the front end of the locking groove on the inclined surface to complete the limiting lock. The spring pin is at 90° with the female hinge.
5. The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge according to claim 1, characterized in that: The elastic component is a spiral spring.
6. The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge according to claim 1, characterized in that, The connector is a cylindrical connector; one end of the cylindrical connector is fixed to the female hinge, and the other end of the cylindrical connector is connected to the elastic component.
7. The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The shaft assembly includes: two end caps, two bearings, and a shaft; The two end caps are respectively arranged on the two end faces of the female hinge; The bearing is arranged inside the end cover, located inside the female hinge; the shaft is arranged between the two end covers, with both ends of the shaft passing through the bearing; the bearing is placed in two holes in the female hinge to fix the shaft. The shaft serves as the rotation center for both the male and female hinges. The bearing is used to reduce friction between the shaft and the female hinge; The end cap is used to fix the bearing and prevent the shaft assembly from moving axially.
8. The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge according to claim 7, characterized in that, The shaft assembly also includes a bushing, which is mounted on the shaft. One end of the elastic member is connected to the shaft, and a cross-section of the bushing is flush with a plane on the shaft to prevent the elastic member from rotating on the shaft.
9. A deployable structure, characterized in that, The mechanical folding and unfolding hinge as described in any one of claims 1-8 is installed on the unfoldable structure to realize the transformation of the unfoldable structure from a folded state to an unfolded state.
10. The deployable structure according to claim 9, characterized in that, The deployable structure includes at least one of the following: solar panels, satellite antennas, space telescopes, solar panel arrays, hatches and shields, robotic arms and operating mechanisms, space experiment modules, retractable structures, and heat sinks.