Water drop-type hinge module for foldable portable terminal and foldable portable terminal using same

Abstract

The present invention relates to a water drop-type hinge module for a foldable portable terminal and a foldable portable terminal using same, wherein the water drop-type hinge module causes a folded part of the foldable portable terminal to form a water drop shape when the foldable portable terminal is folded from an unfolded state, thereby preventing a flexible display from being damaged. In particular, the present invention allows the portable terminal to stably rotate by means of a guide groove, formed on a swing cam of a swing plate, and a guide protrusion, formed on a base body, and stably maintain the angle thereof while in the unfolded state or the folded state.

Description

Teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile device and a foldable mobile device using the same

[0001] The present invention relates to a teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal and a foldable mobile terminal using the same, and in particular, to a teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal and a foldable mobile terminal using the same, wherein the folding portion of the flexible display is formed in a teardrop shape when the unfolded foldable mobile terminal is folded so that the flexible display is not damaged.

[0002] Generally, a flexible display panel is a display panel that can be bent to a predetermined curvature.

[0003] Since these flexible display panels use plastic substrates rather than commonly used glass substrates, they primarily use low-temperature manufacturing processes instead of conventional manufacturing processes to prevent damage to the substrates.

[0004] These flexible display panels are being manufactured as touchscreens capable of capacitive or resistive touch input, for example, so as to receive user commands via touch.

[0005] Meanwhile, conventional portable foldable display devices, i.e., foldable mobile terminals, are equipped with a flexible display panel capable of touch input as described above.

[0006] A conventional foldable portable terminal of this type forms a predetermined receiving space in which a folded portion of a flexible display panel can be bent into a curved shape at a portion where a pair of bodies supporting a flexible display panel are hinge-connected to each other.

[0007] Various hinge modules for opening and closing flexible displays such as the above are currently being developed.

[0008] However, most hinge modules have a complex structure and a very large number of parts, and the folding part is thick, and when the flexible display is folded, a large gap occurs in the folding part, posing a risk of foreign matter ingress and damage due to impact.

[0009] In particular, the foldable center of a flexible display must form a teardrop shape that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom to prevent damage and load concentration when folded, but conventional hinge modules had limitations in perfectly implementing this shape.

[0010] To solve these problems, the applicant developed the hinge module of registered patent No. 10-2644316.

[0011] Registered Patent No. 10-2644316 has a first insertion part and a second insertion part formed concavely on the outer circumference of one end of a second lever, respectively, in order to maintain the mobile terminal in a closed or unfolded state, and has stop protrusions formed by bending them at both ends of a plate spring so that the stop protrusions can be inserted into the first and second insertion parts.

[0012] However, as a result of the applicant repeatedly testing the above structure, it was discovered that the hinge module did not operate smoothly at the point where it was closed or unfolded, and there was a need to ensure that the angle was maintained more stably in the unfolded or folded state while the mobile terminal rotated stably.

[0013] The present invention aims to solve the aforementioned problems by providing a teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile device and a foldable mobile device using the same, which allows the folding center of the flexible display to stably form a teardrop shape when the foldable mobile device is folded using a relatively simple structure and a small number of parts, allows the hinge module to operate more smoothly at the point where it is closed or unfolded, and allows the mobile device to rotate stably while maintaining its angle more stably in the unfolded or folded state.

[0014] To achieve the above objective, the teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal according to the present invention comprises: a base body; a pair of swing sliders spaced apart from each other on both sides of the base body, with one end rotatably coupled to the base body in the vertical direction; a synchronization member that connects the spaced-apart pair of swing sliders to synchronize rotational movement; a pair of swing plates spaced apart from each other on both sides of the base body, with a swing cam formed in an arc shape at one end, the swing cam rotatably coupled to the base body in the vertical direction, and forming a folding portion of a flexible display mounted on the mobile terminal in a teardrop shape with a narrow upper end and a wide lower end when the mobile terminal is closed; and a plate spring fixedly coupled to the base body and having both ends in contact with the outer surface of the spaced-apart pair of swing cams. The device comprises a slide block, the upper end of which is rotatably hinged to the swing plate and the lower end of which is slidably connected to the swing slider and fixedly connected to a mobile terminal; wherein a guide groove is formed in an arc shape along the outer surface of the swing cam and a guide projection is formed on the base body that is inserted into the guide groove when the swing plate rotates.

[0015] The guide groove is formed on both sides of the central portion of the swing cam that contacts the leaf spring, and the guide projection is formed to protrude from both sides of the leaf spring.

[0016] The above base member is formed by mutually combining an upper body disposed on the upper part of the swing cam and a lower body disposed on the lower part of the swing cam, wherein the guide projection is formed to protrude upward from the lower body.

[0017] A fixing projection is formed protruding downwardly on the upper body, a through hole is formed in the plate spring, and a fastening hole is formed in the lower body; when the upper body and the lower body are combined, the fixing projection passes through the through hole and the fastening hole to fix the plate spring.

[0018] A first locking projection is formed on the guide projection, and a second locking projection is formed on one end of the guide groove, wherein the second locking projection contacts the first locking projection when the swing plate is rotated more than 90 degrees to limit the rotation angle of the swing plate.

[0019] A support projection is formed at the other end of the guide groove, wherein the support projection contacts the first locking projection when the swing plate is rotated to unfold horizontally, thereby maintaining the state in which the swing plate unfolds horizontally.

[0020] A pair of the above-mentioned swing plates have a seating groove formed on the opposite side of one side facing each other, and when the swing plate is rotated more than 90 degrees, the slide block rotates around the upper end hinged to the swing plate and is inserted into the seating groove to support the swing plate.

[0021] An inclined surface is formed on one side of the slide block facing the other side of the swing plate, and when the swing plate is rotated more than 90 degrees, the inclined surface of the slide block contacts the other side of the swing plate which is positioned at an angle.

[0022] When the folding portion of the flexible display is formed into a teardrop shape with a narrow upper part and a wide lower part by a pair of the above-mentioned swing plates, the slide block and the swing slider combined with the mobile terminal rotate 90 degrees in a horizontal state, and the swing plate rotates more than 90 degrees in a horizontal state.

[0023] In addition, the foldable mobile terminal of the present invention is characterized by being equipped with the hinge module described above.

[0024] According to the teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile device and the foldable mobile device using the same as described above, the following effects are achieved.

[0025] The present invention allows the folding center of a flexible display to fold stably while forming a teardrop shape when the foldable mobile terminal is folded, and by perfectly forming a teardrop shape, it is possible to prevent the flexible display from being damaged or subjected to a large load while folding, thereby improving durability.

[0026] In addition, the structure constituting the hinge module is relatively simple and consists of a small number of parts, which can improve productivity, assembly, and workability.

[0027] In particular, the present invention allows a mobile terminal to rotate stably by means of a guide groove formed in the swing cam of a swing plate and a guide projection formed in a base body, and can maintain its angle more stably in an unfolded or folded state.

[0028] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a hinge module in an unfolded state according to an embodiment of the present invention,

[0029] FIG. 2 is a unidirectional exploded perspective view of a hinge module according to an embodiment of the present invention,

[0030] FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a hinge module in the other direction according to an embodiment of the present invention,

[0031] FIG. 4 is a bottom perspective view of a swing cam according to an embodiment of the present invention,

[0032] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a guide projection according to an embodiment of the present invention,

[0033] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a hinge module in a folded state according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the plate spring portion of a hinge module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0035] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a guide projection portion of a hinge module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a sliding block portion of a hinge module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0037] FIG. 10 is a side view of a hinge module with a flexible display mounted thereon according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0038] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, the teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal of the present invention comprises a base body (10), a swing slider (20), a synchronization member (30), a swing plate (40), a leaf spring (50), and a slide block (60).

[0039] The above base body (10) is formed in the shape of a long rod.

[0040] In this embodiment, the base body (10) is composed of an upper body (11) and a lower body (12) that are stacked and combined with each other.

[0041] When the swing plate (40) is unfolded in a horizontal direction, the upper body (11) is positioned on the upper part of the swing plate (40) and the lower body (12) is positioned on the lower part of the swing plate (40).

[0042] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, a guide projection (13) is formed on the base body (10), and in this embodiment, the guide projection (13) is formed to protrude upward from the lower body (12).

[0043] The above swing slider (20) consists of a pair spaced apart from each other on both sides of the base body (10).

[0044] One end of the above-mentioned swing slider (20) is rotatably coupled to the base body (10) in the up-and-down direction.

[0045] The above synchronization member (30) synchronizes rotational movement by connecting a pair of mutually spaced swing sliders (20) to each other.

[0046] In this embodiment, a gear is formed at one end of the swing slider (20), and the synchronization member (30) is composed of two idler gears that mesh with the gear formed at one end of the swing slider (20).

[0047] On both sides of one end of the swing slider (20), a gear cover (35) is installed to support the swing slider (20) and the eyed gear so that they can be inserted and rotated.

[0048] With the combined structure of the above configuration, when one swing slider (20) rotates, the remaining swing slider (20) is also synchronized and rotated by the synchronization member (30), and the pair of swing sliders (20) rotate in a direction that moves closer to each other or further apart from each other.

[0049] The above swing plate (40) is spaced apart from each other on both sides of the base body (10), and a swing cam (41) formed in an arc shape is formed at one end.

[0050] As shown in FIG. 10, a flexible display (70) mounted on a mobile terminal is disposed on the upper surface of the swing plate (40).

[0051] The swing cam (41) is formed in a semicircular arc shape and is rotatably coupled to the base body (10) in the vertical direction.

[0052] Specifically, the swing cam (41) is positioned between the upper body (11) and the lower body (12) and is rotatably mounted on the upper body (11).

[0053] The above swing plate (40) forms the folding part of the flexible display (70) mounted on the mobile terminal when the mobile terminal is closed into a teardrop shape with a narrow upper part and a wide lower part.

[0054] The above leaf spring (50) is fixedly coupled to the base body (10) and contacts the outer surface of a pair of swing cams (41) that are spaced apart from each other.

[0055] At this time, the outer surface of the swing cam (41) is formed in an arc shape.

[0056] The above leaf spring (50) always contacts the above swing cam (41) when the swing plate (40) rotates, thereby applying frictional force so that the swing plate (40) maintains a stationary state at a certain angle, i.e., implements a free-stop function.

[0057] Elastic protrusions (51) are formed protruding in the direction at both ends of the above-mentioned plate spring (50).

[0058] In addition, two concave grooves (42) are formed on the back of the swing cam (41) for inserting the elastic protrusion (51) into the swing plate (40) when it is unfolded horizontally and rotated more than 90 degrees.

[0059] That is, as shown in FIG. 7(a), when the swing plate (40) is unfolded in the horizontal direction, the elastic protrusion (51) is inserted into one of the two concave grooves (42).

[0060] And, as shown in 7(b), when the swing plate (40) is folded by rotating more than 90 degrees, the elastic protrusion (51) is inserted into the other of the two concave grooves (42).

[0061] When the swing plate (40) is rotated, the elastic protrusion (51) is inserted into the concave groove (42), thereby providing a click sensation to the user. Additionally, when the elastic protrusion (51) reaches the vicinity of the concave groove (42), the elastic protrusion (51) slides into the concave groove (42), allowing the swing plate (40) to automatically rotate by a certain angle.

[0062] In addition, when the elastic protrusion (51) is inserted into the concave groove (42), that is, when a pair of swing plates (40) are horizontally unfolded or folded, the swing plates (40) are not rotated arbitrarily.

[0063] The above leaf spring (50) can be fixed in various ways, and in this embodiment, the leaf spring (50) is fixed to the base body (10) by the combination of the upper body (11) and the lower body (12).

[0064] Specifically, as illustrated in FIGS. 2, 3, 7, etc., a fixing projection (15) is formed protruding downwardly on the upper body (11), a through hole (52) is formed on the plate spring (50), and a fastening hole (16) is formed on the lower body (12).

[0065] When the upper body (11) and the lower body (12) are combined, the fixing projection (15) passes through the through hole (52) and the fastening hole (16) to fix the plate spring (50).

[0066] Therefore, the above leaf spring (50) can be naturally fixed by the combination of the upper body (11) and the lower body (12) without being fixed with a separate screw or the like, thereby reducing the assembly process.

[0067] The upper part of the slide block (60) is rotatably hinged to the swing plate (40), and the lower part is slidably connected to the swing slider (20).

[0068] The above slide block (60) is fixedly coupled to the mobile terminal.

[0069] With the above configuration and structure, as shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, when the hinge module and the mobile terminal are closed while the hinge module is in an unfolded state, that is, when the swing plates (40) on both sides rotate in a direction that moves closer to each other around the swing cam (41), the slide block (60) formed on the swing plate (40) rotates together with the swing plate (40).

[0070] At this time, the swing slider (20) penetrating the slide block (60) is withdrawn from the slide block (60) and slides while simultaneously rotating together with the slide block (60) due to the rotation of the slide block (60).

[0071] When one of the swing sliders (20) rotates, the other swing slider (20) also rotates together by the synchronization member (30).

[0072] At this time, the leaf spring (50) applies elastic force to the swing plate (40) while in contact with the swing cam (41) so that the swing plate (40) maintains a constant angle.

[0073] As shown in FIGS. 4, 6, 8, etc., a guide groove (43) is formed in an arc shape along the outer surface of the swing cam (41) which is formed in a semicircular shape.

[0074] And, as shown in FIG. 2, 5, 7, 8, etc., the base body (10), specifically the lower body (12), has a guide projection (13) formed therein that is inserted and disposed in the guide groove (43) when the swing plate (40) rotates.

[0075] The guide groove (43) and guide projection (13) can be formed at various locations. In this embodiment, the guide groove (43) is formed on both sides of the central portion of the swing cam (41) that contacts the plate spring (50), and the guide projection (13) is formed protruding from both sides of the plate spring (50).

[0076] The above guide projection (13) and guide groove (43) allow the swing plate (40) to rotate more stably without shaking when the swing plate (40) rotates.

[0077] As illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5, 8, etc., a first locking projection (14) is formed on the guide projection (13), a second locking projection (44) is formed on one end of the guide groove (43), and a support projection (45) is formed on the other end of the guide groove (43).

[0078] As illustrated in FIG. 8(b), the second stopper (44) contacts the first stopper (14) when the swing plate (40) is rotated more than 90 degrees (when it is rotated about 102 degrees) to limit the rotation angle of the swing plate (40).

[0079] And, as shown in FIG. 8(a), the support jaw (45) of the swing cam (41) contacts the first locking jaw (14) when the swing plate (40) is rotated to unfold horizontally, thereby maintaining the state in which the swing plate (40) unfolds horizontally.

[0080] When the swing plate (40) is fully folded or unfolded horizontally by the above-mentioned first stopper (14), second stopper (44), and support stopper (45), it can be made to maintain the angle without deviating from the preset angle.

[0081] Additionally, as illustrated in FIG. 3 and FIG. 9, etc., a pair of swing plates (40) have a concave seating groove (46) formed on the opposite side of one side facing each other.

[0082] As shown in FIG. 9, when the swing plate (40) is rotated more than 90 degrees, the slide block (60) rotates around the upper end hinged to the swing plate (40) and supports the swing plate (40) by being inserted into the seating groove (46).

[0083] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 9(a), when the swing slider (20), swing plate (40), and slide block (60) are unfolded in a horizontal direction, the slide block (60) is not inserted into the seating groove (46).

[0084] Then, as illustrated in FIG. 9(b), when the swing slider (20) and the slide block (60) rotate 90 degrees from a horizontal position, the slide block (60) rotates around the upper end hinged to the swing plate (40) and is inserted into the seating groove (46), thereby supporting the swing plate (40) that has rotated more than 90 degrees to maintain a stable angle without shaking.

[0085] At this time, the slide block (60) and the swing slider (20) combined with the mobile terminal rotate 90 degrees from the horizontal state due to an external force, and the swing plate (40) rotates more than 90 degrees from the horizontal state.

[0086] By rotating the pair of swing plates (40) as described above by more than 90 degrees, the folding portion of the flexible display (90) stably forms a teardrop shape with a narrow upper part and a wide lower part, as shown in FIG. 10.

[0087] In addition, the slide block (60) has an inclined surface (61) formed on one side facing the other side of the swing plate (40).

[0088] When the swing plate (40) is rotated more than 90 degrees, the inclined surface (61) of the slide block (60) comes into contact with the other surface of the swing plate (40) that is positioned at an angle, thereby safely supporting the swing plate (40) over a wider area.

[0089] The hinge module of the present invention as described above is applied to a foldable mobile terminal, and as shown in FIG. 10, when the foldable mobile terminal is folded, it is possible to stably form a teardrop shape in which the upper part of the center of the flexible display (70), that is, the folding part, is narrow and the lower part is wide.

[0090] In addition, the present invention allows the mobile terminal to rotate stably by means of a guide groove (43) formed in the swing cam (41) of the swing plate (40) and a guide projection (13) formed in the base body (10), and can maintain its angle more stably in the unfolded or folded state.

[0091]

[0092] The teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal and the foldable mobile terminal using the same according to the present invention are not limited to the embodiments described above, and can be implemented with various modifications within the scope permitted by the technical concept of the present invention.

[0093] The present invention can be applied to foldable mobile terminals, thus having industrial applicability.

Claims

1. Base body and; A pair of swing sliders spaced apart from each other on both sides of the base body, with one end rotatably coupled to the base body in the vertical direction; A synchronization member that synchronizes rotational motion by connecting a pair of mutually spaced swing sliders to each other; A pair of swing plates spaced apart from each other on both sides of the base body, having a swing cam formed in an arc shape at one end, wherein the swing cam is rotatably coupled to the base body in the vertical direction, and the folding portion of a flexible display mounted on the mobile terminal when the mobile terminal is closed is formed in a teardrop shape with a narrow top and a wide bottom; A plate spring fixedly coupled to the base body and contacting the outer surface of a pair of swing cams with both ends spaced apart from each other; It comprises a slide block, the upper end of which is rotatably hinged to the swing plate, the lower end of which is slidably connected to the swing slider, and which is fixedly connected to a mobile terminal; A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that a guide groove is formed in an arc shape along the outer surface of the swing cam, and a guide projection is formed on the base body to be inserted into the guide groove when the swing plate rotates.

2. In Claim 1, The guide grooves are formed on both sides of the central portion of the swing cam that contacts the leaf spring, and A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that the guide projections are formed protruding from both sides of the leaf spring.

3. In Claim 1, The above base member is, An upper body positioned on the upper part of the swing cam and a lower body positioned on the lower part of the swing cam are mutually combined to form the upper body, A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that the guide projection is formed to protrude upward from the lower body.

4. In Claim 3, A fixing projection is formed protruding downwardly on the upper body, and A through hole is formed in the above-mentioned plate spring, and A fastening hole is formed in the lower body above, A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that when the upper body and the lower body are combined, the fixing projection penetrates the through hole and the fastening hole to fix the plate spring.

5. In Claim 1, A first locking projection is formed on the above guide projection, and A second stopper is formed at one end of the above guide groove, A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that the second stopper contacts the first stopper to limit the rotation angle of the swing plate when the swing plate is rotated more than 90 degrees.

6. In Claim 5, A support projection is formed at the other end of the above guide groove, A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that the support projection contacts the first locking projection when the swing plate is rotated to unfold horizontally, thereby maintaining the state in which the swing plate is unfolded horizontally.

7. In Claim 1, A pair of the above-mentioned swing plates have a seating groove formed on the other side opposite to one side facing each other, A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that when the swing plate is rotated more than 90 degrees, the slide block rotates around the upper end hinged to the swing plate and is inserted into the seating groove to support the swing plate.

8. In Claim 7, The above slide block has an inclined surface formed on one surface facing the other surface of the swing plate, A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that when the swing plate is rotated more than 90 degrees, the inclined surface of the slide block contacts the other surface of the swing plate arranged at an angle.

9. In Claim 1, When the folding portion of the flexible display is formed into a teardrop shape with a narrow top and a wide bottom by a pair of the above-mentioned swing plates, The slide block and the swing slider combined with the mobile terminal rotate 90 degrees in a horizontal state, and A teardrop-type hinge module for a foldable mobile terminal, characterized in that the above-described swing plate rotates more than 90 degrees in a horizontal state.

10. A foldable mobile terminal equipped with a hinge module according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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