Multi-Pivot Hinge for Compact Auxiliary Laptop Displays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional laptop computers face a design tension between compactness and display screen size, as users desire both portability and sufficient screen size for comfortable viewing.
Innovation Solution
An auxiliary display system is added to the backplane of a primary laptop screen, allowing a secondary display to be rotated and oriented in various positions, including closed, open, standing, laptop, and cantilevered orientations, effectively doubling the information density without significantly increasing thickness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If an auxiliary display system is added to the backplane of a primary laptop screen, then information density and functionality are significantly increased, but device complexity and structural requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The auxiliary display system is segmented into separate functional modules: a display portion, a mount, and a hinge mechanism with first and second flange portions. This segmentation allows the auxiliary display to be added as a modular component rather than integrating it into the existing laptop structure, thereby increasing information density without proportionally increasing overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The auxiliary display system is nested onto the backplane of the primary laptop screen, utilizing the existing device structure as a mounting foundation. The hinge mechanism nests the display portion and mount together, allowing the auxiliary display to occupy space that would otherwise be unused, effectively doubling display capacity without significantly increasing the device's external dimensions.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a hinge mechanism with multiple pivot pins and connectors is used to enable rotation, then adaptability and positioning flexibility are improved, but manufacturing precision and assembly difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge mechanism is designed to be self-aligning through the geometric relationships between the first and second flange portions and their respective pivot pins. The inner pivot pins of one flange portion align with the outer pivot pins of the other flange portion through the rotation movement itself, reducing the need for high-precision pre-alignment during manufacturing and assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The connectors act as intermediary elements between the flange portions and pivot pins, providing a mechanism that accommodates minor misalignments while maintaining the rotational functionality. The connectors mediate the relationship between the rigid flange portions and the pivot pins, allowing for tolerance accumulation without compromising the overall positioning flexibility of the system.
3Ease of operation
If the display portion can rotate to multiple orientations, then ease of operation and user interaction are improved, but reliability and structural stability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge mechanism transitions the auxiliary display system from a static, fixed-position configuration to a dynamic, multi-position configuration. The ability of the display portion to rotate relative to the mount through the hinge mechanism provides operational flexibility while maintaining structural integrity at each positioned state through the mechanical constraints of the pivot pins and flange portions.
Data Source
AI summary
According to an aspect of the disclosure, an auxiliary display system comprises a hinge coupling a mount to a display portion. The hinge includes a first flange portion configured to couple to the mount, a second flange portion configured to couple to the display portion, inner pivot pins coupled to the flange portions, outer pivot pins coupled to the flange portions, a first connector having a first end rotatably coupled about the inner pivot pin of the first flange portion and a second end rotatably coupled about the outer pivot pin of the second flange portion, and a second connector having a first end rotatably coupled about the inner pivot pin of the second flange portion and a second end rotatably coupled about the outer pivot pin of the first flange portion.