Foldable Terminal Hinge Structure With Sliding Blade Interlock
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional hinge structures for flexible or bendable portable terminals face issues with durability, vibration, noise, increased manufacturing complexity, and cost due to interlocking mechanisms that complicate the appearance and thickness.
Innovation Solution
A hinge device with a housing, hinge blades, and a slide member featuring inclined guide protrusions and grooves, along with a tension mechanism, allows for smooth folding and unfolding while reducing vibration and noise, simplifying the manufacturing process, and lowering part costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional interlocking structures with gears are used for hinge devices, then the folding function is achieved, but durability decreases and vibration or noise is generated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the gear interlocking mechanism from the hinge structure and replaces it with a direct sliding connection between the first and second bodies. The slide member moves linearly within the housing to enable folding, eliminating the gear components that cause vibration, noise, and durability issues while maintaining the folding functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the complex gear-based mechanical interlocking system with a simpler sliding mechanism. The slide member with inclined guide grooves and protrusions creates a smooth mechanical connection that eliminates gear engagement, thereby reducing vibration, noise, and improving durability without sacrificing the folding capability.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional interlocking structures with gears are used for hinge devices, then the folding function is achieved, but the manufacturing process becomes complicated and unit cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the gear components and complex interlocking mechanisms from the hinge structure. The simplified design uses only the housing, hinge blades, and a single slide member with inclined surfaces, dramatically reducing the number of parts and simplifying the manufacturing process while maintaining the folding function.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines multiple functions into the single slide member component. The slide member simultaneously provides the folding motion guide, the interlocking feature through inclined guide grooves and protrusions, and the structural connection between hinge blades, eliminating the need for separate gear components and simplifying manufacturing.
Data Source
AI summary
A hinge device of a portable terminal having a foldable structure, according to the present invention, comprises: a housing positioned between one-end portions of a first body and a second body; a first hinge blade and a second hinge blade fixed to the first body and the second body and rotationally supported on the housing to perform rotation movement as much as a predetermined angle between an ‘unfolded position’ at which the first body and the second body are placed on the same horizontal line and a ‘folded position’ at which the first body and the second body are facing and in contact with each other; and a slide member for interlocking the first hinge blade and the second hinge blade to perform a relative motion, wherein a first inclined guide protrusion and a second inclined guide protrusion are formed on bottom surfaces of the first hinge blade and the second hinge blade, a first inclined guide groove and a second inclined guide groove are formed on a top surface of the slide member in correspondence thereto, and the slide member is installed in the housing to reciprocate a predetermined distance in a direction of hinge axis line.