Foldable Hinge Structure for Water-Drop Display Stress Relief

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Solution Overview

Problem

Foldable electronic devices face challenges in maintaining a large screen size while ensuring portability, as increasing the screen size often compromises the device's compactness and introduces foreign substances and stress on the folding area.

Innovation Solution

A hinge structure that accommodates the folding area of a display, maintaining a water drop shape to reduce stress and deformation, and minimizing the space between housings to prevent foreign substances, while providing robustness against external impacts.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Area of moving object

If the screen size is increased to provide a larger display area, then the display area is improved, but the overall device size increases which deteriorates portability

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedisplay areaVSAvoiddevice size

Core Design Contradiction:

Area of moving objectVSVolume of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent employs a hinge structure that enables the display device to dynamically change its configuration between folded and unfolded states. This dynamic mechanism allows the device to achieve a large display area when unfolded while maintaining a compact form factor when folded, effectively resolving the contradiction between display area and device size for portability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The hinge structure introduces an additional spatial dimension by allowing the display to fold along a crease line. This dimensional transformation enables the device to transition from a planar extended state to a compact three-dimensional folded state, achieving both large display area and small portable size

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Strength

If the hinge structure is designed to accommodate the folding area, then stress on the display is reduced, but the space between housings increases which may allow foreign substances to enter

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestress resistanceVSAvoidforeign substances

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The hinge structure is nested within the housing assembly, with the hinge housing containing the hinge mechanism and the folding area of the display. This nested configuration allows the hinge structure to accommodate the folding area and reduce stress on the display while minimizing the external footprint, thereby preventing foreign substances from entering the internal components

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

Data Source

PatentUS20250004508A1Hinge structure and foldable electronic device including the same

Publication Date: 2025.01.02 SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO LTD

AI summary

A hinge structure includes a fixing bracket, a first rotation member including a first rail structure and rotated about a first axis, and a second rail structure extending from the first rail structure and rotated about a second axis, a second rotation member including a third rail structure and rotated about a third axis, and a fourth rail structure extending from the third rail structure and rotated about a fourth axis, a first link member including a first slide holding part including a third rail, a second link member including a second slide holding part including a fourth rail, a first arm member including a first slide structure, in which the first slide holding part is held, and a second arm member including a second slide structure, in which the second slide holding part is held, and a foldable electronic device including the same.