Butterfly Door Hinge With Friction-Limited Opening Posture

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current butterfly door hinges have complex structures, high costs, complex assembly, poor ride comfort, and high failure rates, failing to meet market demands for personalized and fashionable door openings, especially in narrow parking spaces.

Innovation Solution

A butterfly door hinge design with a hinge connecting arm constraining the door to swing along a fixed point, using a frictional fit between a planar limiting portion and a limiting body to maintain a specific posture, and incorporating a rolling fit between a collision unit and the planar limiting portion to reduce frictional resistance, resulting in a simpler structure, fewer moving pairs, and improved smoothness.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If traditional butterfly door hinge designs are used, then the door can open upward, but the structure becomes complex, increasing manufacturing cost and assembly difficulty

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedoor opening methodVSAvoidhinge structure
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges the locking system of butterfly doors with that of ordinary side-hinged doors by positioning the lock body and lock buckle at shared locations. This allows both door types to use the same locking mechanism, reducing overall system complexity and manufacturing costs while maintaining the unique upward opening capability of butterfly doors

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The hinge design enables the locking system to serve multiple functions: it works for both butterfly doors and ordinary side-hinged doors. The lock body and lock buckle are positioned to accommodate both door opening methods, creating a universal locking solution that reduces the need for separate locking mechanisms

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Adaptability or versatility

If complex butterfly door hinge structures are used, then upward door opening is achieved, but failure rate increases and ride comfort deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedoor opening methodVSAvoidhinge failure rate
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

By combining the locking functions for both door types into a single integrated system, the patent reduces the number of independent components that could potentially fail. The shared lock body and lock buckle positions create a more reliable system with fewer failure points compared to separate locking mechanisms

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The design simplifies assembly, reduces failure rates, and enhances the smoothness of the opening and closing process while allowing the butterfly door to share a locking system with side-hinged doors, reducing manufacturing costs and improving ride comfort.

Implementation Method 1

incorporating a rolling fit between a collision unit and the planar limiting portion to reduce frictional resistance

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectRolling fit: Roller

Implementation Method 2

using a frictional fit between a planar limiting portion and a limiting body to maintain a specific posture

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectFrictional fit: Friction

Data Source

PatentEP4361390B1Butterfly door hinge and vehicle
Publication Date: 2025.09.24 ZHEJIANG ZEEKR INTELLIGENT TECH CO LTD
  • EP4361390B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP4361390B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP4361390B1 patent drawingFigure 5~7

AI summary

The disclosure provides a butterfly door hinge and a vehicle having the same, which in particular to the technical field of vehicles. The butterfly door hinge includes a mounting base, a door connecting arm, a hinge connecting arm, and a limiting assembly, wherein the hinge connecting arm has one end hinged with the mounting base, and the other end hinged with the door connecting arm; the limiting assembly includes a planar limiting portion arranged on the mounting base, and a limiting body arranged on the door connecting arm, the limiting body having a spiral-type outer contour. In the disclosure, first the hinge connecting arm is used to constrain the door to swing along a fixed point, and then a posture of the door is constrained through a frictional fit between the limiting body and the planar limiting portion, so that the door can maintain a specific posture and open sideways during an upward opening process for further enabling a car with the butterfly doors to share a locking system with an ordinary car with side-hinged doors, which reduces the manufacture cost; in addition, the disclosure has a simpler structure, fewer moving pairs, and improves the smoothness of the door opening and closing process.