Furniture Fitting Damping Device for Gentle Closure
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fittings for pivotable front flaps on furniture cabinets often result in undesirable impacts when closing due to the strong spring device counteracting the flap's weight, leading to forced closure and potential damage.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a damping device arranged on the holding part that activates before the closed position is reached, damping the closing movement to prevent snapping and ensure a gentle closure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a strong spring device is used to counteract the flap's weight and facilitate opening, then the opening movement is improved, but the closing movement becomes forceful and causes impacts on the cabinet
Solution Approach 1:
The spring device is functionally segmented into two independent components: a strong spring for facilitating opening movement, and a separate damping device for controlling closing movement. This segmentation allows each component to optimize its function without interfering with the other, resolving the contradiction between easy opening and gentle closing.
Solution Approach 2:
The damping device acts as an intermediary element between the strong spring and the cabinet structure. It mediates the forceful closing movement by absorbing and dissipating energy, preventing direct impact on the cabinet while allowing the spring to maintain its strong closing force for easy opening.
2Reliability
If the spring device is designed to be strong for holding the flap closed and facilitating opening, then the reliability of flap closure is improved, but the closing force becomes excessive and causes damaging impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The force generation and force control functions are segmented into separate devices. The spring device provides reliable closing force for secure flap engagement, while the damping device separately controls the rate of closing to prevent excessive impact forces, allowing both reliability and gentleness to coexist.
Solution Approach 2:
The damping device is positioned to engage before the flap reaches the fully closed position, providing beforehand cushioning that gradually absorbs the closing energy. This prevents the sudden impact that would otherwise occur when the strong spring forces the flap against the cabinet, while still ensuring reliable closure.
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 damping device effectively absorbs the flap's closing force, preventing impacts and ensuring a smooth, controlled closure without damaging the cabinet.
Implementation Method 1
one from the fastening part to the mounting plate protruding bearing part, with one of the damping device associated damping stop arranged on the holding part, in such a way that the damping stop hits the damping device before the closed position is reached, so that the closing movement, which otherwise occurs in a snapping manner, is damped
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
In the case of a fitting for fastening an upwardly opening front shutter (or door) in a pivotable manner on a furniture cabinet, having an installation plate which can be fastened on the inside of a cabinet side wall, and having a retaining part which can be fastened on the inside of the shutter, in which case the installation plate and retaining part are connected to one another via an articulated-lever arrangement containing at least one toggle arrangement and having articulation axes at right angles to the installation plate, the connection being made such that the front shutter, which is positioned in front of the basic cabinet body, executes, upon opening, an opening movement which lifts the front shutter up from the basic cabinet body and has a pivot axis which moves in space, the fitting containing a spring device which retains the shutter in the closed position, the invention provides a fluidic damping device (50a, 50b, 50c) and a damping stop (51a, 51b; 51c) which is assigned to the damping device and runs against the damping device when the shutter is closed.