CN220980100U

CN220980100U - Rotating shaft mechanism and folding electronic equipment

Info

Publication number: CN220980100U
Application number: CN202322557732.8U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 杨德森; 臧永强; 吴崚; 霍国亮; 李匡
Original assignee: Honor Device Co Ltd
Current assignee: Honor Device Co Ltd
Priority date: 2023-09-19
Filing date: 2023-09-19
Publication date: 2024-05-17
Anticipated expiration: 2033-09-19

Abstract

The embodiment of the application provides a rotating shaft mechanism and folding electronic equipment, wherein the rotating shaft mechanism comprises a shaft cover, the shaft cover is provided with a supporting side and a mounting side which are oppositely arranged in the thickness direction of the shaft cover, and the supporting side is used for supporting a folding screen of the folding electronic equipment. The mounting side is provided with a protruding reinforcing part, the reinforcing part is provided with a concave surface, and the concave surface is distributed on at least one side of the reinforcing part along the width direction of the shaft cover. The rotating shaft mechanism can not only improve the strength of the shaft cover, but also be beneficial to ensuring the flatness of the rotating shaft mechanism and the light and thin thickness of the folding electronic equipment through the arrangement of the reinforcing part in the shaft cover.

Description

Rotating shaft mechanism and folding electronic equipment

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to electronic devices, and particularly to a hinge mechanism and a foldable electronic device.

Background

With the development of technology, as the foldable electronic device can be switched between the flattened state and the folded state, the foldable electronic device not only has a large display area, but also can be convenient for a user to carry. Currently, folding electronic devices have been widely used in people's daily lives.

Currently, to achieve hovering of a foldable electronic device between a flattened state and a folded state, a damping assembly is typically provided in a spindle mechanism. The damping assembly comprises a damping swing arm and a damping piece, the damping swing arm is rotatably arranged on a shaft cover of the rotating shaft mechanism, and the damping piece is embedded at one end of the damping swing arm, which is connected with the shaft cover. In the process that the damping swing arm rotates relative to the shaft cover, the damping piece can elastically deform along the length direction of the shaft cover and generate damping force so as to help the stacked electronic equipment to hover between the flattened state and the folded state. In the design of the rotating shaft mechanism, the smaller the avoiding clearance between the damping piece and the shaft cover is, the better the smaller the avoiding clearance is, on the premise that the damping piece and the shaft cover can move in the process of ensuring elastic deformation.

However, on the premise that the thickness of the whole folding electronic device is unchanged, the strength of the shaft cover is limited by the avoiding gap between the damping piece and the shaft cover, so that the improvement of the strength of the shaft cover and the thinning of the folding electronic device cannot be simultaneously achieved.

Disclosure of utility model

The application provides a rotating shaft mechanism and a folding electronic device, which can not only improve the strength of a shaft cover, but also be beneficial to ensuring the flatness of the rotating shaft mechanism and the light and thin of the folding electronic device through the arrangement of the rotating shaft mechanism.

The first aspect of the embodiment of the application provides a rotating shaft mechanism, which comprises a shaft cover, wherein the shaft cover is provided with a supporting side and a mounting side which are oppositely arranged in the thickness direction of the shaft cover, and the supporting side is used for supporting a folding screen of folding electronic equipment;

The mounting side is provided with a protruding reinforcing part, the reinforcing part is provided with a concave surface, and the concave surface is distributed on at least one side of the reinforcing part along the width direction of the shaft cover.

According to the application, through the arrangement of the protruding reinforcing part on the mounting side of the shaft cover, the thickness of the shaft cover at the reinforcing part can be increased, so that the strength of the shaft cover is improved, the risk of fracture of the rotating shaft mechanism is reduced, and the reliability of the rotating shaft mechanism is improved. On this basis, through the setting of sunk surface, can dodge the assembly of some structures in the pivot mechanism on the axle cover to avoid the setting of strengthening portion to lead to the fact the influence to folding electronic equipment's thickness, when guaranteeing folding electronic equipment's frivolity, can be favorable to avoiding the structure of pivot mechanism in sunk surface department to lead to the fact the influence to pivot mechanism's planarization, in order to ensure pivot mechanism's planarization. And when some structures (such as damping piece and the like) in the rotating shaft mechanism are assembled at the concave surface, the assembly at the concave surface can be realized by utilizing the routable space in the width direction of the shaft cover, so that the strength of the shaft cover is not limited by the avoidance gap between the damping piece and the shaft cover and the thickness of the folding electronic equipment is not influenced while the reinforcing part is formed.

In some alternative embodiments, the reinforcement is located in the middle of the shaft cover on the mounting side in the width direction of the shaft cover, so that the shaft cover is not entirely thickened in its face shape, but only thickened at the reinforcement. Thus, when the concave surfaces are arranged on the two sides of the reinforcing part, the reinforcing part has the characteristic of an I-beam, and the bending strength of the shaft cover can be better improved even if the surface shape of the shaft cover is not thickened entirely.

In some optional embodiments, the top surface of the reinforcing portion is far away from the mounting side, the bottom surface of the reinforcing portion is formed on the mounting side of the shaft cover, the concave surface is an arc-shaped surface located between the top surface far away from the bottom surface, so that the space in the width direction of the shaft cover can be reasonably utilized while the rotating shaft mechanism moves to avoid in the structure of the concave surface through the arc-shaped surface, the width of the reinforcing portion is increased, and the strength of the reinforcing portion to the shaft cover is further improved. And through the setting of arcwall face, can also reduce the clearance of dodging between some structures and the reinforcing part of pivot mechanism in concave surface department and the axle cover.

In some alternative embodiments, the recess forms a side wall of the reinforcing portion in the width direction of the shaft cover, so that the reinforcing portion can avoid thickening the entire surface shape of the shaft cover while moving away from the structure located at the recess surface, so as to ensure light and thin folding electronic equipment.

In some optional embodiments, the concave surfaces are symmetrically arranged on two sides of the reinforcing part along the width direction of the shaft cover, so that two symmetrical concave surfaces are formed on two sides of the reinforcing part, and the structure of the reinforcing part and the structure of the shaft cover can be simplified while consistency of avoiding gaps between the concave surfaces and the concave surfaces on two sides of the reinforcing part is ensured, so that the rotating shaft mechanism has the characteristic of simple structure.

In some optional embodiments, the width of the reinforcing portion on the top surface side is smaller than the width of the reinforcing portion on the bottom surface side, so that the reinforcing portion can form a structure with a large top and a small bottom in the thickness direction of the shaft cover, thus not only avoiding the effect that the too large width of the reinforcing portion on the top affects the assembly of some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism at the concave surface, but also enabling the reinforcing portion to have a larger width at the bottom while moving the structure of the rotating shaft mechanism at the concave surface so as to further improve the lifting effect of the reinforcing portion on the strength of the shaft cover.

In some alternative embodiments, the width of the reinforcing portion gradually decreases in the direction from the top surface to the bottom surface, and by limiting the width of the reinforcing portion, not only can the reinforcing portion form a structure with a large top and a small bottom in the thickness direction of the shaft cover, but also the concave surface can be formed to form the side wall of the reinforcing portion in the width direction of the shaft cover, and the side wall of the reinforcing portion in the width direction of the shaft cover is an arc surface.

In some optional embodiments, the width of the reinforcing portion at the bottom surface is greater than or equal to one half of the width of the shaft cover and is smaller than the width of the shaft cover, so that on the basis that some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism move away through the concave surface, the reinforcing portion not only has a larger width at the bottom, but also can avoid thickening the whole surface shape of the shaft cover, so that the light and thin structure of the folding electronic device is ensured, and meanwhile, the structure of the rotating shaft mechanism at the concave surface can be beneficial to avoiding the influence of the structure of the rotating shaft mechanism on the flatness in the rotating shaft mechanism.

In some alternative embodiments, the reinforcement is an elongated structure such that the reinforcement has a length such that more area of the shaft cover in the length direction has a higher strength.

In some alternative embodiments, the axle cover comprises a support beam and at least two cover plates, a first surface of the support beam corresponding to the support side and a second surface of the support beam corresponding to the mounting side;

At least two apron along the length direction interval setting of supporting beam at the second surface, the reinforcing part is located the second surface to be located between two adjacent apron.

Through the setting of apron, can form pilot hole or arc wall on the axle cap with the cooperation of supporting beam to the processing of axle cap is convenient for. Through setting up between two adjacent apron of reinforcing part position for the reinforcing part can share the partial thickness of axle cap in apron department, in order to avoid the setting of reinforcing part, causes the influence to the whole thickness of axle cap.

In some alternative embodiments, the ends of the reinforcement extend on the support beam in a longitudinal direction of the support beam parallel to the longitudinal direction of the shaft cover, so that the reinforcement can form an elongated structure.

In some optional embodiments, the rotating shaft mechanism further comprises a connecting assembly and at least one connecting frame group, wherein the connecting frame group comprises two connecting frames, the two connecting frames are distributed on two sides of the shaft cover in the width direction and are movably connected with the shaft cover through the connecting assembly, so that the connecting assembly can drive the two connecting frames in the connecting frame group to move relative to the shaft cover, and the rotating shaft mechanism can be switched between a folded state and an unfolded state;

One side of the connecting frame far away from the shaft cover is fixedly connected with a corresponding middle frame in the folding electronic equipment, so that the first middle frame and the second middle frame can be driven to move relatively through the rotating shaft mechanism while the rotating shaft mechanism is connected with the first middle frame and the second middle frame through the connecting frame, and the switching of the folding electronic equipment between the folding state and the flattening state is realized.

In some alternative embodiments, the connecting component includes a structural member movably disposed on the shaft cover, where the structural member is located at the concave surface and has an avoidance gap with the concave surface, so that the structural member can be avoided in assembly on the shaft cover through the arrangement of the concave surface on the basis of improving the strength of the shaft cover by the reinforcing portion, so as to ensure the light and thin folding electronic device. And through the setting of dodging the clearance, can realize the motion dodging of shaft cap structure member.

In some alternative embodiments, the height of the reinforcement portion is less than or equal to the assembly height of the structural member on the mounting side, so as to avoid the excessive height of the reinforcement portion, affecting the flatness of the spindle mechanism, which is beneficial to ensuring the light and thin folding electronic device.

In some alternative embodiments, the connection assembly includes a damping assembly including a damping member, the structural member includes a damping member, and the damping member is located at the concave surface of the reinforcing portion and extends along the length direction of the shaft cover, so that the damping member is capable of generating a damping force on the shaft cover while being elastically deformed along the length direction of the shaft cover. Moreover, through the setting of damping piece in the concave surface department, on promoting the basis of the intensity of shaft cap in damping subassembly department through the enhancement portion, can dodge the assembly of damping piece on the shaft cap through the setting of concave surface, because the setting of dodging the clearance between damping piece and the concave surface, can also realize that the motion of shaft cap dodges the damping piece.

In some optional embodiments, the damping assembly further comprises a damping swing arm between the shaft cover and the connecting frame, the structural member comprises a damping swing arm, a first end of the damping swing arm is movably connected with the connecting frame, a second end of the damping swing arm is provided with an ejection cam, and the ejection cam is rotatably arranged on the shaft cover and located at the same concave surface with the damping member;

The damping piece is located in the side of the pushing cam and is configured to drive the damping piece to elastically deform along the length direction of the shaft cover when rotating along with the damping swing arm relative to the shaft cover, so that damping force is provided for the rotation of the connecting frame relative to the shaft cover through the elastic deformation of the damping piece.

And including the setting of damping swing arm through the structure for when two damping swing arms all rotate the setting in concave surface department through the ejector cam, the enhancement portion can be located between two damping swing arms, when the intensity of damping subassembly department is covered through enhancement portion promotion axle, can dodge the assembly position of ejector cam on the axle to the setting that avoids enhancement portion causes the influence to folding electronic equipment's complete machine thickness.

In some optional embodiments, the circumference of the push cam has a rotation surface, and the concave surface has an arc surface matched with the shape of the rotation surface, so that the concave surface can have higher anastomosis degree with the circumference of the push cam, thereby ensuring the formation of the reinforcing part and the movement avoidance of the shaft cover on the push cam, controlling the avoidance gap between the push cam and the concave surface in a smaller range, increasing the width of the reinforcing part and improving the strength lifting effect of the reinforcing part on the shaft cover.

In some alternative embodiments, a circumferential portion of the ejector cam is exposed on a side of the shaft cover facing the connecting frame, so as to increase a gap between the second end of the damping swing arm in the width direction of the shaft cover, and a reserved space is formed for the reinforcing part, and meanwhile, the assembly of the ejector cam on the shaft cover can be prevented from affecting the flatness of the rotating shaft mechanism.

In some alternative embodiments, the span between the ejector cams on both sides of the reinforcement is greater than twice the radius of the damping member and the sum of the clearance gap between the damping member and the concave surface, so that the clearance gap between the ejector cams on both sides of the reinforcement can be made large to provide sufficient clearance for the formation of the reinforcement while ensuring that the shaft cover is moving away from the ejector cams and the damping member.

In some alternative embodiments, the span between the ejector cams on either side of the reinforcement is greater than or equal to 0.25mm to ensure that sufficient headroom is reserved for the formation of the reinforcement.

In some alternative embodiments, a guide cam is arranged on one side of the damping piece, facing the ejection cam, a first end of the guide cam is meshed with the ejection cam, a second end of the guide cam is abutted with the damping piece, and two guide cams positioned on the same side of the damping piece are connected with each other;

The guide cam is configured to move along the length direction of the shaft cover under the driving of the push cam when the push cam rotates along with the damping swing arm relative to the shaft cover, and to drive the damping member to elastically deform.

The damping component can generate damping force through the arrangement of the push cam, the guide cam and the damping piece when the damping piece is compressed, the damping force can help the lower connecting frame to drive the first middle frame and the second middle frame to hover in the middle state, and stability of the damping swing arm and the connecting frame in the rotation process of the relative shaft cover is guaranteed.

In some alternative embodiments, the damping swing arms may be symmetrically disposed on both sides of the reinforcing portion along the width direction of the shaft cover, so as to ensure consistency of the avoidance gap between the ejector cams located on both sides of the shaft cover in the width direction and the corresponding concave surfaces while achieving interconnection of the two guide cams located on the same side of the damping member.

In some alternative embodiments, the number of the pushing cams is two, and the two pushing cams are arranged at intervals along the length direction of the shaft cover;

The damping piece is located between the two pushing cams, and the guide cams are arranged on one sides of the damping piece, facing the pushing cams, so that when the damping swing arm rotates relative to the shaft cover, the two guide cams can be synchronously pushed by the two pushing cams to simultaneously compress or release the damping piece, and the stability of the damping swing arm in the process of rotating relative to the shaft cover around the first rotating shaft is guaranteed.

In some alternative embodiments, the top surface of the reinforcing part is provided with a avoidance groove, and the avoidance groove is opposite to the joint of the two guide cams so as to avoid the joint of the two guide cams through the avoidance groove, so as to ensure the engagement of the two guide cams and the ejection cam.

In some optional embodiments, the connecting assembly further includes a synchronizing assembly, the connecting frame is movably connected with the shaft cover through the synchronizing assembly, so that the two connecting frames in the connecting frame set are driven to synchronously move relative to the shaft cover through the synchronizing assembly, so that the two connecting frames in the connecting frame set drive the first middle frame and the second middle frame to synchronously move, so that the accuracy of the movement of the first middle frame and the second middle frame is ensured, and the switching of the foldable electronic device between the folded state and the flattened state is facilitated.

In some optional embodiments, the connecting assembly further comprises a swing arm assembly, the connecting frame is movably connected with the shaft cover through the swing arm assembly, so that the movement of the connecting frame relative to the shaft cover can be realized through the transmission function of the swing arm assembly, and the switching of the first middle frame and the second middle frame between the unfolded state and the folded state can be realized.

The second aspect of the embodiment of the application provides a folding electronic device, which comprises a first middle frame, a second middle frame, a folding screen and a rotating shaft mechanism according to any one of the above, wherein the rotating shaft mechanism is connected between the first middle frame and the second middle frame;

The folding screen is positioned on one side of the rotating shaft mechanism where the supporting side of the shaft cover is positioned and is connected with the first middle frame and the second middle frame.

Through the setting of pivot mechanism in folding electronic equipment, on realizing folding electronic equipment and switching between folding state and the exhibition flat state, not only can improve the intensity of shaft cover, can realize folding electronic equipment's frivolity moreover.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a foldable electronic device in an intermediate state between a folded state and a flattened state according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the foldable electronic device in FIG. 1 in a folded state;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 1 in a flattened state;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a split structure of the foldable electronic device in FIG. 1;

fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of a shaft cover of a rotating shaft mechanism according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is an enlarged view of portion a of fig. 5;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 6 in the direction B-B;

FIG. 8 is an exploded view of a shaft cover of a spindle mechanism according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is an enlarged view of fig. 8 at section C;

FIG. 10 is a schematic structural view of a rotation shaft mechanism in a flattened state according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 11 is a schematic structural view of a hinge mechanism in a folded state according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 12 is a schematic view of a structure of a hinge mechanism in an intermediate state between a folded state and a flattened state according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 13 is an exploded view of a spindle mechanism according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 14 is an enlarged view of portion D of fig. 10;

FIG. 15 is a partial cross-sectional view of FIG. 14 in the direction E-E;

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 11 in the direction F-F;

Fig. 17 is an enlarged view of fig. 10 at section G;

FIG. 18 is a partial cross-sectional view of FIG. 17 in the direction H-H;

FIG. 19 is a partial cross-sectional view of FIG. 17 in the direction I-I;

Fig. 20 is an enlarged view of fig. 10 at section J.

Detailed Description

The terminology used in the description of the embodiments of the application herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments of the application only and is not intended to be limiting of the application.

Embodiments of the present application provide a foldable electronic device that may include, but is not limited to, foldable electronic devices 100 that are foldable cellular phones, notebook computers, ultra-mobile personal computer, UMPC, phone watches, interphones, wearable devices, handheld terminals, and the like. Wherein the wearable device includes, but is not limited to, a foldable smart wristband, a smart watch, a smart head mounted display, smart glasses, and the like.

The structure of the foldable electronic device of the present application will be further described below by taking a foldable mobile phone as an example.

Fig. 1 to 3 illustrate different configurations of a foldable electronic device 100 to which the present application is applicable, respectively. Specifically, the foldable electronic device 100 is the foldable electronic device 100. Wherein fig. 1 illustrates a configuration of the foldable electronic device 100 in an intermediate state between a folded state and a flattened state, fig. 2 illustrates a configuration of the foldable electronic device 100 in a folded state, and fig. 3 illustrates a configuration of the foldable electronic device 100 in a flattened state.

The structure of the folding electronic device 100 is specifically described below with reference to fig. 1 to 3. The folding electronic device 100 includes a hinge mechanism 6 and a center frame. The middle frame may include a first middle frame 1 and a second middle frame 2. The first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 are respectively connected to two opposite sides of the rotating shaft mechanism 6, so that the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 can relatively rotate around the rotating shaft mechanism 6, and flattening and folding of the foldable electronic device 100 are achieved.

The first intermediate frame 1 and the second intermediate frame 2 can be moved towards each other in the direction indicated by the arrow in fig. 1 to achieve the folded state shown in fig. 2. Referring to fig. 2, when the folding electronic device 100 is in a folded state, the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 are stacked on each other.

The first intermediate frame 1 and the second intermediate frame 2 can be moved in opposite directions as indicated by the arrows in fig. 1 to reach the flattened state shown in fig. 3. Referring to fig. 3, when the foldable electronic device 100 is in the flattened state, the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 are in the same plane.

It should be noted that, when the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 rotate to the intermediate state between the folded state and the folded state, the foldable electronic device 100 may hover at a certain angle between the folded state and the folded state. For example, the hover angle a of the foldable electronic device 100 may be 120 °, 130 °, 140 °, 150 °, or the like. In the present application, the hover angle a is not particularly limited in the present application.

The structure of a foldable electronic device 100 that can be folded once is shown in fig. 1 to 3. In some embodiments, the foldable electronic device 100 may also be capable of being folded twice or more (more than twice), where the foldable electronic device 100 may include a plurality of middle frames that are sequentially connected in a rotating manner, and two adjacent middle frames may be relatively far apart to be unfolded to a flattened state when rotated, and two adjacent middle frames may be relatively close to be folded to a folded state when rotated. In the present application, the number of middle frames in the folding electronic device 100 is not particularly limited.

The structure of the foldable electronic device 100 will be further described below by taking two middle frames as examples.

Fig. 4 shows a disassembled structure of the folding electronic device 100 in fig. 3.

Referring to fig. 4, each of the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 includes a middle plate 11 and a rim 12 connected to each other, and the rim 12 is provided around the peripheral edge of the middle plate 11 and constitutes a middle frame together with the middle plate 11. The foldable electronic device 100 further includes a rear cover 4, where the rear cover 4 may be disposed on the first middle frame 1 in a covering manner, and form a containing cavity with the first middle frame 1 to accommodate electronic devices such as a circuit board, a battery, a camera, and the like of the foldable electronic device 100. The placement of these electronic components in the housing cavity can be seen in the relevant layout in existing foldable electronic devices, and is not limited in the present application. Or the foldable electronic device 100 may include two rear covers 4, and the two rear covers 4 are respectively disposed on the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2. The present application is not particularly limited to the above two cases.

The structure of the foldable electronic device 100 will be further described below by taking the case where the rear cover 4 is provided on the first middle frame 1 as an example.

With continued reference to fig. 4, the foldable electronic device 100 may also include a folding screen 3, which folding screen 3 may be a flexible display screen. Folding screen 3 may include a first region 31, a second region 32, and a pliable region 33, with pliable region 33 being located between first region 31 and second region 32. In the use process of the foldable electronic device 100, the first area 31 and the second area 32 are always kept in a planar state, and the bendable area 33 can be bent to change the included angle between the first area 31 and the second area 32, so that the folding screen 3 can be folded or unfolded along with the movement of the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2, the switching of the foldable electronic device 100 between the folded state and the flattened state is realized, and the large display area of the foldable electronic device 100 and the characteristic of convenience in carrying of a user can be simultaneously met.

With continued reference to fig. 4, the folding screen 3 may be connected to the same side of the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2, and distributed on opposite sides of the first middle frame 1 as the rear cover 4. The first region 31 may be fixedly connected to the first middle frame 1 by bonding or other means, so as to support and fix the first region 31 on the first middle frame 1. The second region 32 may be fixedly attached to the second intermediate frame 2 by adhesive or other means to provide support and securement of the second region 32 to the first intermediate frame 1. The bendable region 33 may be provided corresponding to the spindle mechanism 6.

When the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 are driven by the rotating shaft mechanism 6 to rotate relatively, the first area 31 and the second area 32 of the folding screen 3 rotate along with the rotation of the connected middle frame, and the bendable area 33 of the folding screen 3 bends or flattens along with the change of the states of the first area 31 and the second area 32.

With continued reference to fig. 4 in combination with fig. 3, when the foldable electronic device 100 is in the flattened state, the foldable screen 3 is also in the flattened state. At this time, the bendable region 33 is in a flattened state where no bending occurs, and the first region 31 and the second region 32 are located at two sides of the bendable region 33 and are in a coplanar state with the bendable region 33, so as to provide a larger display area for the user.

With continued reference to fig. 4 in combination with fig. 2, when the foldable electronic device 100 is in the folded state, the folding screen 3 is also in the folded state. At this time, the first region 31 and the second region 32 are laminated to face each other, and the bendable region 33 is in a bent state. When the folding screen 3 is in the folded state, it can be enclosed on the outer sides of the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 and is visible to the user. Such a folding electronic device 100 may be referred to as an out-folding electronic device.

Of course, in some other embodiments, when the folding screen 3 is in the folded state, it may also be enclosed inside the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2, and not visible to the user, and such a folding electronic device 100 may be referred to as an in-folded electronic device. The foldable electronic device 100 has the characteristics of small volume, portability and storage convenience when in a folded state, regardless of the inward folding electronic device or the outward folding electronic device.

With continued reference to fig. 4 in combination with fig. 1, the spindle mechanism 6 may also provide a damping force to the first and second middle frames 1, 2 so that the first and second middle frames 1, 2 can hover in the aforementioned intermediate state by means of the damping force during rotation. When the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 hover in the intermediate state, the folding screen 3 also stays in the intermediate state therewith. At this time, the bendable region 33 is also in a bent state, and the bending degree of the bendable region 33 is smaller than that of itself when the folding screen 3 is in a folded state. The relative inclination between the first region 31 and the second region 32, the angle between the first region 31 and the second region 32 may be the aforementioned hover angle a.

The structure of the foldable electronic device 100 of the present application will be further described below by taking an out-folding electronic device as an example.

With continued reference to fig. 4, in some embodiments, the foldable electronic device 100 may include a non-foldable screen 5 in addition to the foldable screen 3, and the non-foldable screen 5 may be a rigid display screen. The non-folding screen 5 may be provided to cover the side of the second intermediate frame 2 opposite to the folding screen 3. The folding screen 3 and the non-folding screen 5 are electrically connected to a circuit board inside the folding electronic device 100, and can be used to display various information and also receive information input by a user.

Conventional spindle mechanisms typically include a spindle cover, a connecting frame, and a connecting assembly. The shaft cover is a main body supporting structure of the rotating shaft mechanism. The axle covers are located between the first and second middle frames 1 and 2, and the axle covers are elongated along the side edges of the opposite sides of the first and second middle frames 1 and 2. The shaft cover can be regarded as a rotation shaft of the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2, and the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 are rotated around the length direction (Y direction) of the shaft cover. The length direction of the shaft cover can be seen in the Y direction in fig. 4. The connecting frames can be distributed on two sides of the shaft cover along the width direction of the shaft cover and are fixedly connected with the first middle frame 1 or the second middle frame 2 on the corresponding side. The width direction of the shaft cover can be seen in the X direction in fig. 4. The connecting frame can be movably connected with the shaft cover through the connecting component, so that the connecting frame can move relative to the shaft cover through the connecting component, and the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 are driven to be switched between a folded state and a flattened state. The connection assembly generally comprises structural members which are movably arranged on the shaft cover so as to realize the assembly of the connection assembly on the shaft cover.

In the related art, in order to realize a hovering function of a foldable electronic device between a flattened state and a folded state, a damping assembly is generally disposed in a connection assembly of a conventional hinge mechanism. The damping assembly can comprise two damping swing arms and damping pieces, the two damping swing arms are rotatably arranged on two sides of the shaft cover in the width direction, and the damping pieces are embedded into one end, connected with the shaft cover, of each damping swing arm. The damping element and the damping swing arm are understood to be structural elements as mentioned above. In the process of the connecting frame moving relative to the shaft cover, the damping swing arm can rotate relative to the shaft cover. In the process that the damping swing arm rotates relative to the shaft cover, the damping piece is driven to elastically deform along the length direction of the shaft cover, and damping force is generated. The damping force can be used as resistance in the rotation process of the connecting frame, and can help the connecting frame to hover between the flattened state and the folded state in the motion process of the connecting frame relative to the shaft cover.

In the process of elastic deformation of the damping member, the circumferential dimension of the damping member may vary to different degrees, for example, the circumferential dimension of the damping member may become larger after the damping member is compressed along the length direction of the shaft cover. Because the damping piece is arranged on the shaft cover, in order to avoid interference between the damping piece and the shaft cover in the elastic deformation process, an avoidance gap is reserved between the damping piece and the shaft cover when the damping piece is arranged on the shaft cover, so that the movement avoidance of the damping piece is realized through the avoidance gap.

In the related art, in the design of the rotating shaft mechanism, on the premise of ensuring that the damping piece can move with the shaft cover to avoid in the elastic deformation process, the smaller the avoiding gap between the damping piece and the shaft cover is, the better.

At present, the folding electronic device is developed towards the direction of light weight and thinning, so that the thickness of the whole folding electronic device is smaller and smaller. The bending strength of the shaft cover has a strong correlation with its thickness, wherein the thickness direction of the shaft cover can be seen in the Z direction in fig. 4. For example, the greater the thickness of the shaft cover, the greater the strength such as bending strength, and the lesser the thickness of the shaft cover, the lesser the strength such as bending strength, based on the other parameters of the shaft cover (such as width and material) being unchanged.

However, on the premise that the thickness of the whole folding electronic equipment is unchanged, the thickness of the shaft cover is limited by the avoiding gap between the damping piece and the shaft cover, the thickness cannot be increased continuously, and the strength cannot be improved. That is, in the related art, the improvement of the strength of the shaft cover and the thinning of the foldable electronic device cannot be simultaneously achieved. Since the shaft cover serves as a main body supporting structure of the rotating shaft mechanism, the strength of the rotating shaft mechanism is greatly affected when the strength of the shaft cover is limited.

Therefore, how to simultaneously satisfy the light and thin design of the foldable electronic device and the improvement of the strength of the shaft cover has been called as a technical problem to be solved.

Fig. 5 shows a schematic view of the structure of the shaft cover 61 of the spindle mechanism 6. To this end, embodiments of the present application provide an improved shaft cover for a conventional spindle mechanism, and a spindle mechanism 6. Referring to fig. 5, the hinge mechanism 6 is applied to a folding electronic device 100. By providing the reinforcing portion 613 protruding from the shaft cover 61 of the rotation shaft mechanism 6, the local thickness of the shaft cover 61 can be increased to enhance the tensile strength of the shaft cover 61. On this basis, the reinforcement part 613 of the present application can reasonably utilize the layout space of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, and can prevent the thickness of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 and the foldable electronic device 100 from being influenced by the arrangement of the reinforcement part 613 while realizing the assembly of some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 on the shaft cover 61, so as to ensure the thinness and thinness of the foldable electronic device 100 and facilitate the ensuring of the flatness of the rotating shaft mechanism 6. Some of the structures in the spindle mechanism 6 include, but are not limited to, structural members (such as damping swing arms and damping members) mentioned in conventional spindle mechanisms. Hereinafter, the mounting structure on the mounting side 612 will be further described in connection with the specific structure of the spindle mechanism 6.

The structure of the spindle mechanism 6 according to the embodiment of the present application will be further described with reference to the drawings.

With continued reference to fig. 5, the spindle mechanism 6 includes a spindle cover 61, the spindle cover 61 having a support side 611 and a mounting side 612 disposed opposite to each other in a thickness direction (Z direction) of itself. The support side 611 is used to support the folding screen 3 (not shown) of the folding electronic device 100, so as to support the folding screen 3. For example, the support side 611 may correspond to the bendable region 33 of the folding screen 3 so as to support the bendable region 33. The mounting side 612 is used to provide a mounting basis for some of the above-mentioned arrangements of the spindle mechanism 6.

Fig. 6 shows an enlarged view of fig. 5 at a. Referring to fig. 6, the mounting side 612 has a raised reinforcement 613 thereon. By providing the reinforcement portion 613, the thickness of the shaft cover 61 at the reinforcement portion 613 can be increased, thereby improving the strength of the shaft cover 61, reducing the risk of breakage of the rotation shaft mechanism 6, and improving the reliability of the rotation shaft mechanism 6. The strength of shaft cover 61 may include, but is not limited to, tensile strength, among others.

With continued reference to fig. 6, the reinforcement portion 613 has a concave surface 6131 thereon, and the concave surface 6131 is distributed on at least one side of the reinforcement portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61. Fig. 6 shows a structure in which the concave surfaces 6131 are located on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613. In some embodiments, the recessed surface 6131 may also be located on one side of the reinforcement 613, on the basis of satisfying the fitting of the structural member 63 on the spindle mechanism 6 on the spindle cover 61. In the present application, whether or not the concave surface 6131 is located on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613 is not particularly limited.

The structure of the spindle mechanism 6 will be further described below taking the example in which the concave surfaces 6131 are located on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613.

With continued reference to fig. 6, the concave surface 6131 can avoid the assembly of some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 on the shaft cover 61, so as to avoid the influence of the arrangement of the reinforcing part 613 on the thickness of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 and the folding electronic device 100, so as to ensure the light and thin structure of the folding electronic device 100, and simultaneously be beneficial to avoiding the influence of the structure of the rotating shaft mechanism at the concave surface 6131 on the flatness in the rotating shaft mechanism 6. The flatness within the spindle mechanism 6 of the present application mainly refers to the flatness of the spindle mechanism 6 at the mounting side 612.

When some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 move relative to the shaft cover 61 at the concave surface 6131, in order to avoid interference between some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 and the shaft cover 61 in the moving process, the installation positions of some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 can be controlled, so that the smaller and better avoiding gaps between some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 and the concave surface 6131 are on the premise that some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 can move with the shaft cover 61 in the moving process to avoid.

The spindle mechanism 6 has some space available in the width direction of the spindle cover 61 as compared with the thickness direction of the spindle cover 61. Since the reinforcing portion 613 occupies the area of the mounting side 612 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, when the concave surfaces 6131 are formed on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613 and some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 are mounted on the concave surfaces 6131 on both sides, for mounting some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 on the concave surfaces 6131, the space which can be laid in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 can be reasonably utilized, so that some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 deviate towards both sides of the width direction of the shaft cover 61 relative to the shaft cover 61. Thus, not only can the assembly of some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 at the concave surfaces 6131 on two sides of the reinforcing part 613 be realized, the structure of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 at the concave surfaces 6131 can be prevented from influencing the flatness of the rotating shaft mechanism 6, but also a space can be reserved for the reinforcing part 613, so that the strength of the shaft cover 61 is not limited by the avoiding gap between the damping piece 641 and the shaft cover 61, and the thickness of the whole folding electronic device 100 can not be influenced.

When some structures in the hinge mechanism 6 include the damper 641 in the conventional hinge mechanism mentioned above, by the provision of the reinforcing portion 613, the strength of the hinge cover 61 is enhanced while ensuring the light and thin design of the hinge mechanism 6 while also satisfying the design requirement that the smaller the avoiding gap between the damper 641 and the hinge cover 61 in the design process, on the basis of realizing the assembly of the two dampers 641 on both sides in the width direction of the hinge cover 61.

With continued reference to fig. 6, in some embodiments, the reinforcement 613 may be located in the middle of the shaft cover 61 on the mounting side 612 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61. The width direction of the shaft cover 61 is the same as that mentioned above, and reference can be made to the X direction in fig. 5, respectively. The middle of the shaft cover 61 on the mounting side 612 is understood to mean that the shaft cover 61 comprises a central region of geometric center on the mounting side 612, instead of an edge region of the shaft cover 61 on the mounting side 612. By defining the position of the reinforcing portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, when the recessed surfaces 6131 are distributed on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613, it is possible to facilitate the assembly of some of the structures of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 at the recessed surfaces 6131.

The beam with the cross section in the shape of an I is called an I-beam for short. The I-beam can better disperse and transmit force when bearing external force, thereby effectively improving the bending resistance and strength of the I-beam and better resisting the bending action of the external force.

Fig. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of fig. 6 in the direction B-B. Referring to fig. 7, the reinforcement portion 613 is located in the middle of the shaft cover 61 on the mounting side 612 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, so that the shaft cover 61 is not entirely thickened in the face shape, but is thickened only at the reinforcement portion 613. Due to the arrangement of the concave surfaces 6131 on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613, the reinforcing portion 613 has the characteristic of an i-beam, and the bending strength of the shaft cover 61 can be improved well even if the surface shape of the shaft cover 61 is not thickened entirely. The effect of the reinforcement portion 613 on improving the strength of the shaft cover 61 is substantially equivalent to the effect of improving the strength of the shaft cover 61 by the same thickness as the reinforcement portion 613, and the risk of breakage of the rotation shaft mechanism 6 can be reduced, thereby improving the reliability of the rotation shaft mechanism 6.

In some embodiments, when the concave surface 6131 is distributed on one side of the reinforcing portion 613, the reinforcing portion 613 may also be located at an edge region of the mounting side 612 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61.

The structure of the spindle mechanism 6 will be further described below taking an example in which the concave surfaces 6131 are distributed on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613, and the reinforcing portion 613 is located in the middle of the mounting side 612 in the width direction of the spindle cover 61.

With continued reference to fig. 7, the concave surfaces 6131 are symmetrically provided on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61. That is, the reinforcing portion 613 has two symmetrical concave surfaces 6131 on both sides in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, which is advantageous in ensuring consistency of the escape clearance between the structure at the concave surfaces 6131 on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613 and the concave surface 6131, while also simplifying the structures of the reinforcing portion 613 and the shaft cover 61, so that the rotation shaft mechanism 6 has the feature of simple structure.

With continued reference to fig. 7, a top surface 6132 of the reinforcement 613 is remote from the mounting side 612, and a bottom surface 6133 of the reinforcement 613 is formed at the mounting side 612 of the shaft cover 61. The concave surface 6131 may be an arc surface located between the top surface 6132 and the bottom surface 6133, so that the structure of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 at the concave surface 6131 can be moved away through the arrangement of the arc surface, and meanwhile, the space in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 can be reasonably utilized, and the width of the reinforcing part 613 is increased, so that the strength of the reinforcing part 613 to the shaft cover 61 is further improved. The direction in which the width of the reinforcing portion 613 is located is parallel to the width direction of the shaft cover 61, see the X direction in fig. 7.

In addition, when the concave surface 6131 is an arc surface, the avoiding gap between some structures of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 at the concave surface 6131, the reinforcing part 613 and the shaft cover 61 can be reduced, so that the avoiding gap can be ensured to meet the design requirement of the rotating shaft mechanism 6.

The concave surface 6131 may be a non-arcuate surface when the strength of the shaft cover 61 is not excessively improved. In the present application, the shape of the concave surface 6131 is not particularly limited.

The structure of the spindle mechanism 6 will be further described below taking the concave surface 6131 as an example of an arc surface.

With continued reference to fig. 7, the recessed surface 6131 forms a side wall of the reinforcement portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, that is, the entire side wall of the reinforcement portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 is the recessed surface 6131. At this time, a side edge of the concave surface 6131 adjacent to the mounting side 612 is formed on the mounting side 612 of the shaft cover 61, so that the reinforcing portion 613 can be prevented from thickening the entire surface shape of the shaft cover 61 while the structure located at the concave surface 6131 is allowed to move away, so as to ensure light and slim of the foldable electronic device 100.

With continued reference to fig. 7, the width of the reinforcement portion 613 on the side of the top surface 6132 may be smaller than the width of the reinforcement portion 613 on the side of the bottom surface 6133. The width of the reinforcement 613 on the side of the top surface 6132 can also be understood as the width of the reinforcement 613 on the top 6134. The width of the reinforcement 613 on the side of the bottom 6133 can also be understood as the width of the reinforcement 613 on the bottom 6135. At this time, the reinforcing portion 613 can have a structure in which the top portion 6134 is large and the bottom portion 6135 is small in the thickness direction of the shaft cover 61. In this way, the excessive width of the reinforcing part 613 at the top 6134 part 6134 occupies too much layout space of the shaft cover 61 in the width direction, the assembly of some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 at the concave surface 6131 is affected, and the structure of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 at the concave surface 6131 is moved to avoid, so that the reinforcing part 613 has larger width at the bottom 6135, and the lifting effect of the reinforcing part 613 on the strength of the shaft cover 61 can be further improved.

With continued reference to fig. 7, the width of the reinforcement 613 may gradually decrease in the direction from the top surface 6132 to the bottom surface 6133. At this time, the cross section of the reinforcement portion 613 in the B-B direction may be regarded as a "mountain" structure or a "i" structure with the top removed so that the reinforcement portion 613 can have the characteristics of an i-beam, and can have a good improvement effect on the strength of the shaft cover 61 even in the case where the surface shape of the shaft cover 61 is not entirely thickened.

Further, when the width of the reinforcement portion 613 gradually decreases in the direction along the top surface 6132 to the bottom surface 6133, not only the structure in which the top portion 6134 is large and the bottom portion 6135 is small in the thickness direction of the shaft cover 61 but also the recessed surface 6131 is formed as a side wall of the reinforcement portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, and the side wall of the reinforcement portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 is made to be an arc-shaped surface so as to have the effect brought by the arc-shaped surface described above.

With continued reference to fig. 7, the width W ₁ of the reinforcement 613 at the bottom surface 6133 is greater than or equal to one-half the width of the shaft cover 61 and less than the width W ₂ of the shaft cover 61. One half the width of the shaft cover 61 may be understood as half of the W ₂ of the shaft cover 61. On the basis of moving away some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 through the concave surface 6131, the reinforcing part 613 can have larger width at the bottom 6135, the whole surface shape of the shaft cover 61 can be prevented from being thickened by the reinforcing part 613 while the lifting effect of the strength of the shaft cover 61 is further improved, so that some installation spaces are reserved in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 for some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6, the influence on the rotating shaft mechanism 6 and the thickness caused by the assembly of some structures in the rotating shaft mechanism 6 at the concave surface 6131 is avoided, and the flatness of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 and the light and thin thickness of the folding electronic device 100 are ensured.

With continued reference to fig. 7, the reinforcement portion 613 has a long strip shape, and the length direction of the reinforcement portion 613 is the same as the length direction of the shaft cover 61, specifically, the Y direction in fig. 7 can be seen. This enables the reinforcement portion 613 to have a certain length so that more area of the shaft cover 61 in the length direction has higher strength.

The longer the length of the reinforcing portion 613 is, the better the application is, and the length of the reinforcing portion 613 is not particularly limited, provided that some structures in the spindle mechanism 6 are not affected by the fitting of the spindle cover 61 on the mounting side 612.

Fig. 8 shows an exploded view of the shaft cover 61. Referring to fig. 8, in some embodiments, the shaft cover 61 may include a support beam 614 and at least two cover plates 615. The structure of the shaft cover 61 with five cover plates 615 is shown in fig. 8. In some embodiments, the number of cover plates 615 may also be two, three, four, etc. In the present application, the number of the cap plates 615 is not particularly limited. Wherein the first surface 6141 of the support beam 614 corresponds to the support side 611 and the second surface 6142 of the support beam 614 corresponds to the mounting side 612. At least two cover plates 615 are disposed at intervals on the second surface 6142 along the length direction of the support beam 614, so that an assembly hole or an arc groove can be formed on the shaft cover 61 through the cooperation of the cover plates 615 and the support beam 614, thereby simplifying the processing process of the shaft cover 61 at the assembly hole or the arc groove, and facilitating the processing of the shaft cover 61. Wherein, when the cover plate 615 is disposed on the second surface 6142, the cover plate 615 may be fixed to the support beam 614 by a screw, a bolt, or the like, so as to achieve the assembly of the cover plate 615 on the support beam 614.

The first surface 6141 of the support beam 614 may form a support side 611, the area of the second surface 6142 of the support beam 614 where the cover plate 615 is not disposed, and the side of the cover plate 615 remote from the support beam 614 may form a mounting side 612.

It should be noted that, when the machining process of the shaft cover 61 at the fitting hole or the arc groove is not excessively required, the shaft cover 61 may also include only the support beam 614.

The structure of the spindle mechanism 6 will be further described below by taking the example in which the spindle cover 61 includes a cover plate 615 and a support beam 614.

Fig. 9 shows an enlarged view of fig. 8 at section C. Referring to fig. 9, the reinforcement 613 may be located at the second surface 6142 between two adjacent cover plates 615. The thickness of the shaft cover 61 at the cover plate 615 is larger than the thickness of the shaft cover 61 at the support beam 614 without the cover plate 615 due to the fitting hole or the arc groove. Therefore, when the reinforcement portion 613 is located between two adjacent cover plates 615, the arrangement of the reinforcement portion 613 on the shaft cover 61 can be achieved, so that the reinforcement portion 613 can also share the partial thickness of the shaft cover 61 at the cover plates 615, so as to avoid the arrangement of the reinforcement portion 613 from affecting the overall thickness of the shaft cover 61.

Wherein the reinforcing portion 613 may be located at a middle portion of the second surface 6142 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, so that the reinforcing portion 613 may be located at a middle portion of the shaft cover 61 at the mounting side 612 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61. Likewise, the middle of the second surface 6142 may be understood as a middle region of the support beam 614 including the geometric center in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, instead of the edge region.

With continued reference to fig. 9, the ends of the reinforcement 613 may extend on the support beam 614 along the length of the support beam 614, the length of the support beam 614 being parallel to the length of the shaft cover 61, so as to increase the length of the reinforcement 613, thereby enabling the reinforcement 613 to form an elongated structure.

Fig. 10 to 12 each show a schematic view of the spindle mechanism 6 in different configurations. Wherein fig. 10 shows a flattened state of the spindle mechanism 6, fig. 11 shows a folded state of the spindle mechanism 6, and fig. 12 shows an intermediate state of the spindle mechanism 6 mentioned hereinabove.

Referring to fig. 10 to 12, the spindle mechanism 6 further includes a connection assembly (not shown) and at least one connection frame set (not shown). The connecting frame group comprises two connecting frames 62, wherein the two connecting frames 62 are distributed on two sides of the shaft cover 61 in the width direction and are movably connected with the shaft cover 61 through connecting components. Wherein, two connecting frames 62 may be symmetrically distributed at both sides of the shaft cover 61 in the width direction. The two connecting frames 62 in the connecting frame group can be driven to move relative to the shaft cover 61 through the connecting assembly, so that the switching of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 between the folded state and the unfolded state is realized.

With continued reference to fig. 10, when the spindle mechanism 6 is in the flattened state, the two link frames 62 in the link frame group are relatively moved into the same plane around the spindle cover 61 and are in the flattened state. With continued reference to fig. 11, when the spindle mechanism 6 is in the folded position, the two link frames 62 in the link frame set are relatively moved about the spindle cover 61 to a folded state in which they are stacked on each other.

The side of the connecting frame 62 remote from the shaft cover 61 is configured to be fixedly connected with the corresponding middle frame. Wherein, a connecting frame 62 in the connecting frame group can be positioned between the first middle frame 1 and the shaft cover 61 and fixedly connected with the first middle frame 1. Another connecting frame 62 of the connecting frame set may be located between the second intermediate frame 2 and the shaft cover 61 and fixedly connected to the second intermediate frame 2. Illustratively, the connecting frame 62 may be locked with the corresponding middle frame by a locking member such as a screw, a rivet, or the like, so as to achieve a fixed connection between the connecting frame 62 and the middle frame. The connection between the rotating shaft mechanism 6 and the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 can be realized through the fixed connection between the connecting frame 62 and the corresponding middle frame, so that the rotating shaft mechanism 6 drives the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 to move relatively, and the switching between the folded state and the flattened state of the folding electronic equipment 100 is realized.

During the movement of the two connection frames 62 of the connection frame set around the shaft cover 61, the partial structure in the connection assembly also moves with the movement of the two connection frames 62 of the connection frame set. And, with continued reference to fig. 12, the link assembly is capable of providing a damping force upon relative movement of the link frame 62 about the cover 61. The damping force can be used as the resistance in the rotating process of the connecting frame 62, and can help the connecting frame 62 to drive the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 to stay in the middle state at a certain hovering angle a. Hereinafter, the structure of the connection assembly will be further described with reference to the specific drawings.

Fig. 13 shows an exploded view of the swivel mechanism 6 of fig. 10. Referring to fig. 13, the spindle mechanism 6 includes only one set of connection frames. The two ends of the connecting frame 62 in the connecting frame group extend to the two ends of the shaft cover 61 in the length direction respectively, so that the connection firmness between the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 and the shaft cover 61 can be enhanced, and the stability of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 when the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 are driven to move is ensured.

Or in some embodiments, at least two connecting frame groups may be further disposed in the spindle mechanism 6, where the at least two connecting frame groups may be disposed at intervals along the length direction of the spindle cover 61 and are movably connected with the spindle cover 61 through different positions of the connecting assembly. At this time, the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 can be connected with different positions of the shaft cover 61 through the connecting frame groups, and the stability of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 when driving the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 to move can be ensured. In the present application, the number of the connection frame groups is not particularly limited.

The structure of the spindle mechanism 6 will be further described below by taking a connection frame set as an example.

Fig. 14 shows an enlarged view of fig. 10 at D, and fig. 15 shows a partial sectional view of fig. 14 in the direction E-E. Referring to fig. 14 and 15, the connection assembly may include a structural member 63 movably disposed on the shaft cover 61. As shown in fig. 15, the structural member 63 may be located at the concave surface 6131 with a relief gap between the structural member and the concave surface 6131. That is, the structural member 63 is fitted at the reinforcing portion 613. On the basis of improving the strength of the shaft cover 61 through the reinforcing part 613, the assembly of the structural member 63 on the shaft cover 61 can be avoided through the arrangement of the concave surface 6131, so that the influence of the arrangement of the reinforcing part 613 on the whole thickness of the folding electronic device 100 is avoided, and the light and thin folding electronic device 100 is ensured.

Further, by providing the escape gap, the movement escape of the structure 63 by the shaft cover 61 can be realized. On the premise of ensuring that the movement of the structural member 63 is avoided for the shaft cover 61, the mounting position of the structural member 63 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 can be controlled to ensure that the smaller and better the avoiding gap between the structural member 63 and the concave surface 6131 is, so that the avoiding gap between the structural member 63 and the concave surface 6131 meets the design requirement of the rotating shaft mechanism 6.

When the structural members 63 are disposed at the concave surfaces 6131 on both sides of the reinforcement portion 613, the space in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 can be reasonably utilized, and compared with the conventional rotation shaft mechanism, the two structural members 63 can be offset toward both sides of the width direction of the shaft cover 61 relative to the shaft cover 61, so that the shaft cover 61 can be free of a thick strength between the two structural members 63 while the assembly of the two structural members 63 on the shaft cover 61 is realized, thereby facilitating the formation of the reinforcement portion 613.

With continued reference to fig. 15, the height of the reinforcement portion 613 is less than or equal to the assembly height of the structural member 63 on the mounting side 612, so as to avoid the height of the reinforcement portion 613 from being too large, affecting the flatness of the hinge mechanism 6, which is beneficial to ensuring the light and thin of the foldable electronic device 100.

With continued reference to fig. 15 in combination with fig. 14 and 13, the connection assembly may include a damping assembly 64. The number of two damping assemblies 64 shown in fig. 13 may be one or at least two. At least two damping assemblies 64 may be disposed between the link frame group and the shaft cover 61 at intervals along the length direction of the shaft cover 61 so as to ensure stability of the intermediate state in which the first and second intermediate frames 1 and 2 hover as mentioned above. Two damping assemblies 64 are shown in fig. 13 and do not constitute a structural limitation of the spindle mechanism 6. In some embodiments, the number of damping assemblies 64 may also be three or more. In the present application, the number of the damper assemblies 64 is not particularly limited.

With continued reference to fig. 15 in combination with fig. 14, damping assembly 64 includes a damping member 641 and structural member 63 includes a damping member 641. The damping member 641 corresponds to the damping member in the related art mentioned above. By way of example, damping element 641 may include, but is not limited to, a spring or other resilient structure capable of elastic deformation. In the present application, the structure of the damper 641 is not particularly limited. The damping element 641 is located at the concave surface 6131 of the reinforcing portion 613 and extends along the length direction of the shaft cover 61, so that the damping element 641 is elastically deformed along the length direction of the shaft cover 61 and can generate a damping force on the shaft cover 61, and the damping force can be used as a resistance force in the rotating process of the connecting frame 62, so that the connecting frame 62 can be assisted to drive the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 to hover in an intermediate state.

In addition, on the basis of the strength of the shaft cover 61 at the damping assembly 64 being lifted by the reinforcing part 613, the assembly of the damping element 641 on the shaft cover 61 can be avoided by the arrangement of the concave surface 6131, so that the assembly of the damping element 641 on the shaft cover 61 can be realized, and meanwhile, the influence of the arrangement of the reinforcing part 613 on the whole thickness of the folding electronic device 100 can be avoided.

In addition, elastic deformation is generated in the damper 641 in the longitudinal direction of the shaft cover 61, and by providing a relief gap between the damper 641 and the concave surface 6131, movement relief of the damper 641 by the shaft cover 61 can be achieved.

With continued reference to fig. 15, the damping assembly 64 may include two damping elements 641, and the two damping elements 641 may be respectively located at the concave surfaces 6131 on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613 and symmetrically distributed at the concave surfaces 6131 on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61. During the mounting of the two dampers 641 on the shaft cover 61, the two sides in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 can be offset with respect to the shaft cover 61, and the shaft cover 61 can be left with a strength and a thickness between the dampers 641 for the shaft cover 61 while the mounting of the two dampers 641 on the shaft cover 61 is achieved, so that the formation of the reinforcing portion 613 is facilitated. The relief gap between the damper 641 and the concave surface 6131 can be controlled by forming the reinforcing portion 613. On the premise of realizing the avoidance of the movement of the shaft cover 61 to the damping element 641, the avoidance clearance between the damping element 641 and the concave surface 6131 is smaller and better, so as to ensure that the avoidance clearance between the damping element 641 and the concave surface 6131 meets the design requirement of the rotating shaft mechanism 6.

With continued reference to fig. 15 in combination with fig. 14, the damping assembly 64 also has a damping swing arm 642 between the axle cover 61 and the connecting frame 62. That is, the damping assembly 64 includes two damping swing arms 642, and the two damping swing arms 642 may be distributed at both sides of the shaft cover 61 in the width direction and between the corresponding link frame 62 and the shaft cover 61. For example, one of the two damping swing arms 642 may correspond to the connection frame 62 to which the first center frame 1 is connected, and the other of the two damping swing arms 642 may correspond to the connection frame 62 to which the second center frame 2 is connected.

With continued reference to fig. 15 in combination with fig. 14, the structural member 63 may also include a damping swing arm 642. The first end of the damping swing arm 642 may be movably coupled to the link 62. The second end of the damping swing arm 642 has a push cam 6421. The push cam 6421 is rotatably disposed on the shaft cover 61 and is located at the same concave surface 6131 as the damping piece 641 so as to realize movable connection of the damping swing arm 642 between the shaft cover 61 and the link frames 62, so that when two link frames 62 in the link frame group move relative to the shaft cover 61 and switch between the folded state and the flattened state, the damping swing arm 642 can move to different positions of the link frames 62 on the shaft cover 61 relative to the link frames 62.

The movement of the damping assembly 64 when the foldable electronic device 100 is switched between the flattened state and the folded state is further described below by taking the out-folded electronic device as an example.

Fig. 16 shows a partial cross-sectional view of fig. 11 in the direction F-F. Referring to fig. 16 in combination with fig. 14, in the process that the two connecting frames 62 in the connecting frame set move relative to the shaft cover 61 and switch from the flattened state to the folded state, the push cams 6421 of the two damping swing arms 642 can move in directions approaching each other around their own rotation axes and drive the first ends of the damping swing arms 642 to move toward a side away from the shaft cover 61 relative to the connecting frames 62. When two of the link frames 62 in the link frame set are in a folded state, the two damping swing arms 642 are also in a folded state stacked on top of each other.

Correspondingly, in the process that the two connecting frames 62 in the connecting frame set move relative to the shaft cover 61 and are switched from the folded state to the flattened state, the push cams 6421 of the two damping swing arms 642 can move around the rotation axes of the push cams 6421 in directions deviating from each other, and drive the first ends of the damping swing arms 642 to move relative to the connecting frames 62 towards the side close to the shaft cover 61. When two link frames 62 in a link frame set are in a flattened state, the two damping swing arms 642 are in a flattened state in the same plane.

Referring again to fig. 14, for example, a first end of the damping swing arm 642 may be slidably coupled to the link 62 to provide articulation of the first end of the damping swing arm 642 to the link 62. To achieve the sliding connection of the damping swing arm 642 with the link 62, the damping swing arm 642 has a first sliding portion 6422 at a position corresponding to the link 62, and the first sliding portion 6422 may form a first end of the damping swing arm 642. The connecting frame 62 is provided with a first sliding groove 621 at a position corresponding to the first sliding portion 6422, and the first sliding portion 6422 is slidably disposed in the first sliding groove 621, so that when the connecting frame 62 moves relative to the shaft cover 61, the first sliding portion 6422 can move in the first sliding groove 621, so as to realize movement of the first end of the damping swing arm 642 relative to the connecting frame 62.

The number of the first sliding portions 6422 may be two as shown in fig. 14, and the two first sliding portions 6422 may be disposed at intervals along the length direction of the shaft cover 61 and correspond to different positions of the connection frame 62. The connecting frame 62 is provided with first sliding grooves 621 at positions corresponding to the two first sliding portions 6422, and the first sliding portions 6422 are slidably disposed in the corresponding first sliding grooves 621. Or the number of the first sliding portions 6422 may be one, and the first sliding portions 6422 may be provided at the middle of the damping swing arm 642 in the length direction of the shaft cover 61. In the present application, the number of the first sliding portions 6422 is not particularly limited.

With continued reference to fig. 16, the shaft is provided with a first shaft 616 at the concave surfaces 6131 on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613, respectively, to correspond to the two damping swing arms 642. The first rotating shaft 616 is suspended at the concave surface 6131 and is fixed opposite to the shaft cover 61. The axis of the first rotating shaft 616 is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the shaft cover 61. The push cam 6421 may be sleeved on an end of the corresponding first shaft 616 and rotated about the first shaft 616 to achieve a rotational arrangement of the push cam 6421 on the shaft cover 61. The central axis of the first rotation shaft 616 forms the rotation axis of the push cam 6421.

The damper 641 is located laterally of the push cam 6421 and is configured to be able to drive the damper 641 to elastically deform in the longitudinal direction of the shaft cover 61 when rotated with the damper swing arm 642 relative to the shaft cover 61 so as to provide a damping force for the rotation of the link 62 relative to the shaft cover 61 by the elastic deformation of the damper 641. Specifically, the damping element 641 may be sleeved on the first rotating shaft 616 and located at a side of the ejecting cam 6421, so that the damping element 641 and the ejecting cam 6421 can be coaxially disposed while the damping element 641 is assembled on the shaft cover 61, so that the damping element 641 can be elastically deformed along the length direction of the shaft cover 61 when the damping swing arm 642 rotates relative to the shaft cover 61.

Referring again to fig. 14, the shaft cover 61 is provided with fitting holes at both ends corresponding to the first shaft 616, respectively, so that both ends of the first shaft 616 may be penetrated and fixed in the corresponding fitting holes to suspend the first shaft 616 on the shaft cover 61 and be fixed opposite to the shaft cover 61. The mounting hole may be surrounded by a cover plate 615 and a support beam 614.

Referring again to fig. 14, the damper 641 is provided with a guide cam 643 toward the side of the ejector cam 6421. The first end of the guide cam 643 is engaged with the ejector cam 6421, and the second end of the guide cam 643 abuts against the damper 641. The guide cam 643 is configured to move in the longitudinal direction of the shaft cover 61 by the driving of the push cam 6421 when the push cam 6421 rotates with the damping swing arm 642 relative to the shaft cover 61, and to drive the damping element 641 to elastically deform, so that when the push cam 6421 rotates with the damping swing arm 642 relative to the shaft cover 61, the damping element 641 can be driven to elastically deform by the guide cam 643, thereby providing a damping force for the rotation of the link 62 relative to the shaft cover 61.

Referring again to fig. 14, the guide cam 643 and the ejector cam 6421 each have an engagement groove 644 and an engagement projection 645 provided at intervals in the circumferential direction, and the engagement groove 644 of one of the guide cam 643 and the ejector cam 6421 engages with the engagement projection 645 of the other. Thus, during rotation of the ejector cam 6421 with the damping swing arm 642 relative to the shaft cover 61, the engagement projection 645 of the ejector cam 6421 will move out of one engagement recess 644 of the guide cam 643 into the next engagement recess 644 of the guide cam 643. During the process in which the push cam 6421 comes out of one of the engagement grooves 644 of the guide cam 643, the guide cam 643 is driven to move toward one side of the damper 641 in the longitudinal direction of the shaft cover 61, thereby compressing the damper 641. Accordingly, in the process of re-entering the next engagement groove 644 of the guide cam 643 by the ejector cam 6421, the damper 641 releases elastic potential energy and can push the guide cam 643 to move toward one side of the ejector cam 6421 in the longitudinal direction of the shaft cover 61 to re-engage the guide cam 643 with the ejector cam 6421.

The damping assembly 64 generates a damping force when the damping element 641 is compressed by the arrangement of the push cam 6421, the guide cam 643 and the damping element 641, and the damping force can be used as the resistance force of the damping swing arm 642 and the connecting frame 62 in the rotating process, so that the connecting frame 62 drives the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 to hover in the middle state under the help of the damping force, and the stability of the damping swing arm 642 and the connecting frame 62 in the rotating process relative to the shaft cover 61 is ensured.

Referring again to fig. 14, the two guide cams 643 located on the same side of the damping element 641 are connected to each other so as to realize the synchronous rotation of the push cams 6421 of the two damping swing arms 642 under the transmission of the two connected guide cams 643, which is advantageous for realizing the synchronous rotation of the connecting frames 62 on both sides of the shaft cover 61. For example, the connecting portion may be integrally connected with the two guide cams 643, which is advantageous for improving the connection strength of the two guide cams 643.

The top surface 6132 of the reinforcing part 613 is provided with an avoidance groove (not labeled), and the avoidance groove can be opposite to the joint of the two guide cams 643, so that the joint of the two guide cams 643 is avoided through the avoidance groove, and the engagement between the two guide cams 643 and the ejection cam 6421 is ensured.

Referring again to fig. 14, in some embodiments, the number of the ejector cams 6421 is two, the two ejector cams 6421 are arranged at intervals along the length direction of the shaft cover 61, the damper 641 is located between the two ejector cams 6421, and the guide cams 643 are provided on the side of the damper 641 facing the ejector cams 6421. At this time, both the two push cams 6421 of the damping swing arm 642 may correspondingly engage with one of the guide cams 643, so that when the damping swing arm 642 rotates relative to the shaft cover 61, the two guide cams 643 can be pushed synchronously by the two push cams 6421 to simultaneously compress or release the damping element 641, thereby facilitating the assurance of the smoothness of the damping swing arm 642 in the rotation about the first rotation axis 616 relative to the shaft cover 61.

The structure of the spindle mechanism 6 will be further described below by taking the example in which the damping swing arm 642 has two push cams 6421.

Referring again to fig. 14, since the structural member 63 includes the damping swing arms 642, and the push cams 6421 and the damping piece 641 are located at the same recessed surface 6131, when both the damping swing arms 642 are rotatably disposed at the recessed surface 6131 by the push cams 6421, the reinforcing portion 613 can be located between the push cams 6421 of both the damping swing arms 642 (as shown in fig. 16), so that the mounting of both the damping swing arms 642 at the recessed surface 6131 can be prevented from affecting the flatness of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 and the overall thickness of the foldable electronic device 100 by the disposition of the recessed surface 6131 while the strength of the shaft cover 61 at the damping assembly 64 is lifted by the reinforcing portion 613.

And, since the structural member 63 includes the damping swing arm 642, the height of the reinforcing portion 613 is made smaller than or equal to the fitting height of the damping swing arm 642 on the shaft cover, so as to further avoid the influence of the excessive height of the reinforcing portion 613 on ensuring the flatness of the spindle mechanism 6.

The clearance between the damping swing arm 642 and the concave surface 6131 can also be understood as the clearance between the push cam 6421 and the concave surface 6131. Therefore, by providing the escape clearance between the push cam 6421 and the concave surface 6131, the movement escape of the shaft cover 61 from the push cam 6421 can be also achieved.

Referring again to fig. 14, the damping swing arms 642 may be symmetrically disposed on both sides of the reinforcement portion 613 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 so as to achieve the interconnection of the two guide cams 643 on the same side of the damping piece 641 while also ensuring the consistency of the escape gaps between the push cams 6421 on both sides of the shaft cover 61 in the width direction and the corresponding concave surfaces 6131.

With continued reference to fig. 16, the circumferential direction of the ejection cam 6421 has a rotation surface, and the concave surface 6131 has an arc surface matching the shape of the rotation surface, so that the concave surface 6131 can have a higher degree of coincidence with the circumferential direction of the ejection cam 6421, thereby ensuring the formation of the reinforcing portion 613 and the avoidance of the shaft cover 61 to the ejection cam 6421, and simultaneously controlling the avoidance gap between the ejection cam 6421 and the concave surface 6131 in a smaller range, so as to increase the width of the reinforcing portion 613 and improve the strength improving effect of the reinforcing portion 613 to the shaft cover 61.

Moreover, since the damping element 641 and the ejector cam 6421 are coaxially disposed, when the escape gap between the ejector cam 6421 and the concave surface 6131 is small, the escape gap between the damping element 641 and the concave surface 6131 is also small, so that the escape gap between the damping element 641 and the concave surface 6131 can meet the design requirement of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 on the premise of realizing the escape of the movement of the shaft cover 61 to the damping element 641.

With continued reference to fig. 16, a circumferential portion of the push cam 6421 is exposed to a side of the shaft cover 61 toward the link frame 62 so as to achieve the displacement of the two damping swing arms 642 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, whereby the gap of the second ends of the damping swing arms 642 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 can be increased as compared with the conventional rotation shaft mechanism so as to reserve a space for the formation of the reinforcement 613. Further, by the displacement of the two damping swing arms 642 in the width direction of the shaft cover 61, it is also possible to avoid the influence of the fitting of the push cam 6421 on the shaft cover 61 on the flatness of the rotating shaft mechanism 6.

The span between the ejector cams 6421 located on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613 may be greater than twice the sum of the radius of the damper 641 and the escape clearance between the damper 641 and the concave surface 6131, so that the clearance between the ejector cams 6421 on both sides of the reinforcing portion 613 can be made large on the premise of ensuring that the shaft cover 61 is free from the movement of the ejector cams 6421 and the damper 641, so that a sufficient reserved space is provided for the formation of the reinforcing portion 613, which is advantageous for ensuring the strength-improving effect of the reinforcing portion 613 on the shaft cover 61.

The center distance between the first shafts 616 on both sides of the shaft cover 61 can be understood by the span between the push cams 6421 on both sides of the reinforcement 613. That is, the center-to-center distance between the first shafts 616 on both sides of the shaft cover 61 will also increase. At this time, the width of the shaft cover 61 at the fitting hole corresponding to the first shaft 616 may be larger than the width of the shaft cover 61 at the corresponding reinforcing portion 613, so that the fitting of the first shaft 616 on the shaft cover 61 is achieved.

Illustratively, the span between the ejector cams 6421 on either side of the reinforcement 613 is greater than or equal to 0.25mm to ensure that sufficient headroom is reserved for the formation of the reinforcement 613. The distance between the push cams 6421 located on both sides of the reinforcement portion 613 is also determined by the width-wise layout space of the spindle mechanism 6, and therefore, in the present application, the upper limit value of the distance between the push cams 6421 located on both sides of the reinforcement portion 613 is not particularly limited.

After the span between the ejector cams 6421 on both sides of the reinforcement portion 613 increases, the unsynchronized movement performance (the variability) of the ejector cams 6421 on both sides of the reinforcement portion 613 increases, which affects the synchronized rotation of the link frame 62 on both sides of the shaft cover 61.

To avoid that the difference of the push cams 6421 will increase, the gap between the push cams 6421 and the first rotation shaft 616 may be controlled to be as small as possible while ensuring that the push cams 6421 rotate on the shaft cover 61, so as to ensure the synchronized rotation of the push cams 6421 located on both sides of the reinforcement portion 613. In the present application, the clearance between the push cam 6421 and the first rotation shaft 616 is not particularly limited.

It should be noted that, in some embodiments, on the basis of the above-mentioned damping assembly 64, a damping structure may also be disposed on the connecting frame 62 in the connecting assembly, where the damping structure also includes a damping member (not shown) and a damping swing arm (not labeled), and one end of the damping swing arm of the damping structure is rotatably connected to the shaft cover 61, and the other end is slidably connected to the connecting frame 62. The damping member of the damping structure is disposed on the connecting frame 62, and the length direction of the damping member of the damping structure extends parallel to the width direction of the shaft cover 61, so that when the swing arm of the damping structure rotates relative to the shaft cover 61, the damping member 641 of the damping structure can be driven to generate elastic deformation on the connecting frame 62 along the width direction of the shaft cover 61, and generate damping force. The damping swing arm 642 and the damping element 641 may be disposed in the damping structure according to the related description of the conventional spindle mechanism 6, which is not described herein. On the basis of the damping structure, through the arrangement of the damping component 64, enough damping force can be provided for the rotating shaft mechanism 6, and smooth flattening of the rotating shaft mechanism 6 can be ensured, so that user experience is improved.

Fig. 17 shows an enlarged view of fig. 10 at G. Referring to fig. 17, the connection assembly may further include a swing arm assembly through which the connection frame 62 is movably connected with the shaft cover 61. The swing arm assembly is used as a main transmission part between the connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61, and through the transmission function of the swing arm assembly, the movement of the connecting frame 62 relative to the shaft cover 61 can be realized, so that the switching between the unfolding state and the folding state of the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 can be realized.

Referring to fig. 17 in combination with fig. 13, the swing arm assembly may include a main swing arm assembly. The main swing arm assembly may be plural. The plurality of main swing arm assemblies may be disposed at intervals along the length direction of the shaft cover 61. Four main swing arm assemblies are shown in fig. 13. In some embodiments, the spindle mechanism 6 may also include two, three, or other numbers of main swing arm assemblies. In the present application, the number of main swing arm assemblies is not particularly limited.

With continued reference to fig. 17 in combination with fig. 13, the main swing arm assembly includes two main swing arms 65, and the two main swing arms 65 are located at two sides of the width direction of the shaft cover 61 and are movably connected between the corresponding connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61, so that under the transmission action of the main swing arm assembly, the rotation and displacement (away from or close to) of the connecting frame 62 relative to the shaft cover 61 can be achieved, so as to achieve the switching between the unfolded state and the folded state of the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2.

Fig. 18 shows a partial cross-sectional view of fig. 17 in the direction H-H. Referring to fig. 18 in combination with fig. 17, one end of the main swing arm 65 may be slidably and rotatably connected with the corresponding link frame 62, and the other end of the main swing arm 65 may be slidably and rotatably connected with the shaft cover 61. In other words, both ends of the main swing arm 65 are rotatable about the shaft cover 61 and the corresponding link frame 62, respectively, so as to achieve the rotation of the link frame 62 with respect to the shaft cover 61. Moreover, when the two ends of the main swing arm 65 can slide relative to the shaft cover 61 and the corresponding connecting frame 62, the corresponding connecting frame 62 can be far away from or close to the shaft cover 61, the size of the gap between the corresponding connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61 is changed, and a certain deformation space is provided for the bendable region 33 of the folding screen 3.

Referring to fig. 18 in combination with fig. 17, in some embodiments, the main swing arm 65 may include a second sliding portion 651 and a third sliding portion 652, each of the second sliding portion 651 and the third sliding portion 652 being of an arc-shaped structure. The second sliding portion 651 is provided corresponding to the shaft cover 61, and the third sliding portion 652 is provided corresponding to the link frame 62. The shaft cover 61 has a first arc-shaped groove 617 provided at a position corresponding to the second sliding portion 651, and the link 62 has a second arc-shaped groove 622 provided at a position corresponding to the third sliding portion 652. A portion of the second sliding portion 651 protrudes into the first arc groove 617 and is capable of sliding along the first arc groove 617. The third sliding portion 652 protrudes into the second arc-shaped groove 622 and is capable of sliding along the second arc-shaped groove 622. By providing the main swing arm 65 in this way, not only the rotation of the link 62 about the shaft cover 61 but also the movement of the link 62 in a direction away from the shaft cover 61 or a direction toward the shaft cover 61 can be achieved.

Referring to fig. 18 in combination with fig. 17, an adapter plate 66 is further provided between the main swing arm 65 and the shaft cover 61, and the adapter plate 66 corresponds to the bendable region 33 of the folding screen 3 and supports the bendable region 33. The main swing arm 65 may be located on a side of the adapter plate 66 away from the folding screen 3, and connected with the adapter plate 66, so that when the main swing arm 65 moves relative to the shaft cover 61, the adapter plate 66 can be driven to move together relative to the shaft cover 61, so as to ensure that the flexible area 33 of the folding screen 3 can be stably supported by the adapter plate 66 in any posture.

In some embodiments, the main swing arm 65 may be fixedly connected with the adapter plate 66 by means of a clamping, bonding, interference fit, or the like, so as to ensure that the main swing arm 65 can be relatively fixed with the adapter plate 66 in a process of moving relative to the connecting frame 62 or the shaft cover 61, so that the main swing arm 65 drives the adapter plate 66 to move together relative to the shaft cover 61. In the present application, the fixing manner of the main swing arm 65 and the adapter plate 66 is not particularly limited.

The movement of the main swing arm 65 when the foldable electronic device is switched between the flattened state and the folded state will be further described below taking the out-folded electronic device as an example.

With continued reference to fig. 18, in the process of switching the foldable electronic device 100 from the flattened state to the folded state, the main swing arm 65 drives the connection frame 62 to rotate relative to the shaft cover 61 toward the side where the connection frame is away from the folding screen 3, and the two connection frames 62 in the connection frame group are close to each other to be in a stacked arrangement. At the same time, the main swing arm 65 drives the connecting frame 62 to move in a direction approaching the shaft cover 61, reducing the gap between the connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61, so as to provide enough deformation space for bending the bendable region 33 of the folding screen 3.

Correspondingly, in the process of switching the folding electronic device 100 from the folded state to the unfolded state, the main swing arm 65 drives the connecting frame 62 to rotate towards the side where the folding screen 3 is located relative to the shaft cover 61, and the two connecting frames 62 in the connecting frame group are far away from each other to the same plane. At the same time, the main swing arm 65 drives the connecting frame 62 to move away from the shaft cover 61, so as to increase the gap between the connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61, and provide an expansion space for flattening the bendable region 33 of the folding screen 3, so as to ensure that the bendable region 33 can be flattened smoothly.

Referring again to fig. 17 in conjunction with fig. 13, the swing arm assembly may include a secondary swing arm assembly. The secondary swing arm assembly may be plural. A plurality of secondary swing arm assemblies may be spaced apart along the length of the shaft cover 61. Two secondary swing arm assemblies are shown in fig. 13. In some embodiments, the spindle mechanism 6 may also include three or other numbers of secondary swing arm assemblies. In the present application, the number of sub-swing arm assemblies is not particularly limited.

Referring again to fig. 17, the sub-swing arm assembly includes two sub-swing arms 67, and the two sub-swing arms 67 are located on both sides of the shaft cover 61 in the width direction and are movably connected between the corresponding connection frame 62 and the shaft cover 61. Through the cooperation of the auxiliary swing arm assembly and the main swing arm assembly, the connection strength of the connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61 can be enhanced, and the stability of the connecting frame 62 relative to the movement of the shaft cover 61 is improved

Similar to the main swing arm 65, the auxiliary swing arm 67 not only can drive the connecting frame 62 to rotate relative to the shaft cover 61, but also can realize the movement of the connecting frame 62 towards the side far away from or close to the shaft cover 61 so as to change the gap between the connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61, and the related description of the main swing arm 65 can be seen, which is not repeated here.

Fig. 19 shows a partial cross-sectional view of fig. 17 in the I-I direction.

As shown in fig. 19, the end of the auxiliary swing arm 67 facing the shaft cover 61 can be slidably connected to the shaft cover 61, and the shaft cover 61 is slidably and rotatably connected. The end of the sub-swing arm 67 facing the corresponding link 62 may be slidably connected with the corresponding link 62. In this way, the auxiliary swing arm 67 is movably connected between the corresponding connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61, and meanwhile, the requirements of rotation and translation of the connected connecting frame 62 relative to the shaft cover 61 can be met. And, the auxiliary swing arm 67 and the adapter plate 66 may not be connected, so that the movement of the adapter plate 66 relative to the shaft cover 61 is not limited while the flexibility of the movement of the auxiliary swing arm 67 relative to the connecting frame 62 and the shaft cover 61 is ensured.

In some embodiments, the sub swing arm 67 has a fourth slide 671 and a fifth slide 672. The fourth sliding portion 671 has an arc-shaped structure, and the fifth sliding portion 672 has a flat plate-shaped structure. The shaft cover 61 is provided with a third arc-shaped groove 618 corresponding to the fourth sliding portion 671, and the connecting frame 62 is provided with a second slide groove 623 corresponding to the fifth sliding portion 672. The fourth sliding portion 671 extends into the third arc-shaped groove 618, and slides relative to the third arc-shaped groove 618, so that the corresponding connecting frame 62 is driven to rotate around the shaft cover 61 by the sliding of the fourth sliding portion 671 in the third arc-shaped groove 618. The fifth sliding portion 672 is slidably disposed in the second slide groove 623 such that sliding of the fifth sliding portion 672 in the second slide groove 623 causes the link frame 62 to translate in a direction away from or toward the shaft cover 61.

With continued reference to fig. 19, when the spindle mechanism 6 is in the flattened state, the amount of protrusion of the fourth sliding portion 671 into the third arc-shaped groove 618 is maximum, and the amount of protrusion of the fifth sliding portion 672 into the second slide groove 623 is minimum. At this time, the connection frames 62 located in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 are in a state of being away from each other so that the bendable region 33 of the folding screen 3 can be in a flattened state. Accordingly, when the spindle mechanism 6 is in the folded state, the amount of protrusion of the fourth sliding portion 671 of the sub-swing arm 67 into the third arc-shaped groove 618 is smallest, and the amount of protrusion of the fifth sliding plate portion into the second sliding groove 623 is largest. At this time, the connection frames 62 located in the width direction of the shaft cover 61 are in a state of being close to each other so that the bendable region 33 can be in a bent state.

Fig. 20 shows an enlarged view of fig. 10 at section J. Referring to fig. 20, the connection assembly may further include a synchronization assembly 68, where the connection frame 62 is movably connected with the shaft cover 61 through the synchronization assembly 68, so that under the action of the synchronization assembly 68, two connection frames 62 in the connection frame set can be driven to move synchronously with respect to the shaft cover 61, so that the two connection frames 62 in the connection frame set drive the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 to move synchronously, so as to ensure the accuracy of the movement of the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2, so as to facilitate the switching of the foldable electronic device 100 between the folded state and the flattened state.

With continued reference to fig. 20, the synchronization assembly 68 may include two synchronization swing arms 681, where the two synchronization swing arms 681 are symmetrically distributed on two sides of the width direction of the shaft cover 61 and are movably connected between the corresponding connection frame 62 and the shaft cover 61. The first end of the synchronization swing arm 681 is rotatably connected to the shaft cover 61, and the second end of the synchronization swing arm 681 is slidably connected to the third sliding slot 624 on the corresponding connecting frame 62.

When the rotation shaft mechanism 6 is switched from the unfolded state to the folded state, the first ends of the two synchronous swing arms 681 synchronously and reversely rotate, and the second ends of the two synchronous swing arms 681 slide along the third sliding groove 624, so that the two connecting frames 62 in the connecting frame set drive the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 to synchronously act.

In some embodiments, the first end of the synchronization swing arm 681 may be provided with a form of synchronization gear 6811 or other non-synchronization gear 6811, enabling synchronized and counter-rotation of the first ends of the two synchronization swing arms 681. In the present application, the structure of the first end of the synchronization swing arm 681 is not particularly limited. The following describes the synchronous movement of the first end of the synchronous swing arm 681 further using the synchronous gear 6811 as an example.

With continued reference to fig. 20, the shaft cover 61 is provided with a second rotation shaft (not shown) at a position corresponding to the synchronization gear 6811, the synchronization gear 6811 is rotatably provided on the shaft cover 61 by the second rotation shaft, and the synchronization gears 6811 of the two synchronization swing arms 681 are meshed with each other, so that when one of the two synchronization gears 6811 rotates relative to the shaft cover 61, the other of the two synchronization gears 6811 can be driven to rotate synchronously and reversely relative to the shaft cover 61, thereby enabling the first ends of the two synchronization swing arms 681 to rotate synchronously and reversely under the driving of the two synchronization gears 6811.

The reinforcing portion 613 may be provided in a structure other than the damper 641 and the damper swing arm 642, corresponding to the structure of the rotation shaft mechanism 6. For example, the reinforcing portion 613 may be further disposed between the two synchronizing gears 6811, at this time, the two synchronizing gears 6811 may be symmetrically disposed at the two concave surfaces 6131 of the reinforcing portion 613, so that the movement avoidance of the shaft cover 61 to the synchronizing gears 6811 can be achieved by the arrangement of the avoidance gap between the concave surfaces 6131 and the synchronizing gears 6811 while the strength of the rotation shaft mechanism 6 at the synchronizing assembly 68 is improved by the reinforcing portion 613.

The height of the reinforcing portion 613 between the two synchronizing gears 6811 may be smaller than the height of the reinforcing portion 613 between the two damping members 641 in order to avoid the arrangement of the reinforcing portion 613 from affecting the engagement of the two synchronizing gears 6811.

As described above, the folding electronic device 100 includes the first center 1, the second center 2, and the folding screen 3. Meanwhile, the stacked electronic device further comprises the rotating shaft mechanism 6, and the rotating shaft mechanism 6 can be connected between the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 so as to drive the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 to rotate around the shaft cover 61 relatively, so that the strength of the shaft cover 61 can be improved and the light and thin folding electronic device 100 can be realized on the basis that the folding electronic device 100 is switched between the folded state and the flattened state.

The folding screen 3 is located on the side of the supporting side 611 of the shaft cover 61 in the rotating shaft mechanism 6, and connects the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2, so that the folding screen 3 can be conveniently folded and flattened by supporting the bendable region 33 through the shaft cover 61 and the adapter plate 66.

It should be noted that, the connection between the folding screen 3 and the first middle frame 1 and the second middle frame 2 may be referred to the above description, and will not be repeated here.

In describing embodiments of the present application, it should be noted that, unless explicitly stated or limited otherwise, the terms "mounted," "connected," and "coupled" should be construed broadly, and may be, for example, fixedly coupled, indirectly coupled through an intermediary, in communication between two elements, or in an interaction relationship between two elements. The specific meaning of the above terms in the embodiments of the present application will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art according to specific circumstances.

The terms first, second, third, fourth and the like in the description and in the claims and in the above-described figures, if any, are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order.

Claims

1. The rotating shaft mechanism is characterized by comprising a shaft cover, wherein the shaft cover is provided with a supporting side and an installing side which are oppositely arranged in the thickness direction of the shaft cover, and the supporting side is used for supporting a folding screen of the folding electronic equipment;

The shaft cover is provided with a protruding reinforcing part on the mounting side, the reinforcing part is provided with a concave surface, and the concave surface is distributed on at least one side of the reinforcing part along the width direction of the shaft cover.

2. The spindle mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcing portion is located in a middle portion of the shaft cover on the mounting side in a width direction of the shaft cover.

3. The rotary shaft mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the recessed surfaces are symmetrically provided on both sides of the reinforcing portion in a width direction of the shaft cover.

4. The spindle mechanism of claim 1 wherein a top surface of the reinforcement is remote from the mounting side, a bottom surface of the reinforcement is formed on the mounting side of the shaft cover, and the recessed surface is an arcuate surface located between the top surface and the bottom surface.

5. The spindle mechanism according to claim 4, wherein the recessed surface forms a side wall of the reinforcing portion in a width direction of the shaft cover.

6. The spindle mechanism of claim 4 wherein the width of the reinforcement portion on the top surface side is less than the width of the reinforcement portion on the bottom surface side.

7. The spindle mechanism of claim 6 wherein the reinforcement portion tapers in width in a direction from the top surface to the bottom surface.

8. The spindle mechanism of claim 6, wherein the reinforcement has a width at the bottom surface that is greater than or equal to one-half the width of the shaft cover and less than the width of the shaft cover.

9. A spindle mechanism according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein the reinforcing portion is an elongate structure.

10. The spindle mechanism according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein the spindle cover comprises a support beam and at least two cover plates, a first surface of the support beam corresponding to the support side and a second surface of the support beam corresponding to the mounting side;

At least two apron along the length direction interval setting of supporting beam is in the second surface, the enhancement portion is located the second surface to be located between two adjacent apron.

11. The spindle mechanism of claim 10, wherein the ends of the reinforcement extend on the support beam along a length of the support beam that is parallel to a length of the shaft cover.

12. The spindle apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a connection assembly and at least one connection frame group including two connection frames distributed on both sides of the shaft cover in a width direction and movably connected with the shaft cover through the connection assembly; one side of the connecting frame, which is far away from the shaft cover, is fixedly connected with a corresponding middle frame in the folding electronic equipment.

13. The spindle apparatus of claim 12 wherein the connection assembly includes a structural member movably disposed on the shaft cover, the structural member being positioned at the recessed surface and having a relief gap with the recessed surface.

14. The spindle mechanism of claim 13 wherein the height of the reinforcement is less than or equal to the mounting height of the structural member on the mounting side.

15. The spindle apparatus of claim 13 wherein the connection assembly includes a damping assembly including a damping member, the structural member including the damping member, the damping member being located at the recessed surface of the reinforcement portion and extending along a length of the shaft cover.

16. The spindle mechanism of claim 15 wherein the damping assembly further has a damping swing arm between the shaft cover and the connection frame, the structural member further comprising a damping swing arm; the first end of the damping swing arm is movably connected with the connecting frame, the second end of the damping swing arm is provided with an ejection cam, and the ejection cam is rotatably arranged on the shaft cover and is positioned at the same concave surface with the damping piece;

The damping piece is located on the side of the pushing cam and is configured to drive the damping piece to elastically deform along the length direction of the shaft cover when rotating along with the damping swing arm relative to the shaft cover.

17. The spindle apparatus of claim 16 wherein the ejector cam has a surface of revolution in a circumferential direction, the concave surface being arcuate in shape to match the surface of revolution.

18. The spindle apparatus of claim 16 wherein a circumferential portion of the ejector cam is exposed on a side of the shaft cover facing the link.

19. The spindle apparatus of claim 18 wherein a span between the ejector cams on either side of the reinforcement is greater than twice a sum of a radius of the damping member and a relief gap between the damping member and the recessed surface.

20. The spindle apparatus of claim 19, wherein a span between the ejector cams on either side of the reinforcement is greater than or equal to 0.25mm.

21. The spindle apparatus according to claim 16, wherein a guide cam is provided on a side of the damper toward the ejector cam, a first end of the guide cam is engaged with the ejector cam, a second end of the guide cam is abutted against the damper, and two guide cams on the same side of the damper are connected to each other;

The guide cam is configured to move along the length direction of the shaft cover under the driving of the pushing cam when the pushing cam rotates along with the damping swing arm relative to the shaft cover, and to drive the damping piece to elastically deform.

22. The rotary shaft mechanism according to claim 21, wherein the damping swing arms are symmetrically disposed on both sides of the reinforcing portion in a width direction of the shaft cover.

23. The spindle apparatus of claim 22 wherein the number of ejector cams is two, the two ejector cams being spaced apart along the length of the shaft cover;

The damping piece is located between the two pushing cams, and one side of the damping piece, facing the pushing cams, is provided with the guide cams.

24. The spindle apparatus of claim 22, wherein the reinforcing portion has a relief groove in a top surface thereof, the relief groove being disposed opposite a junction of the two guide cams.

25. The spindle apparatus of claim 12 wherein the connection assembly further comprises a synchronization assembly, the connection bracket being movably coupled to the shaft cover by the synchronization assembly.

26. The spindle apparatus of claim 12, wherein the connection assembly further comprises a swing arm assembly, the connection frame being movably coupled to the shaft cover by the swing arm assembly.

27. A foldable electronic device comprising a first middle frame, a second middle frame, a folding screen, and a hinge mechanism according to any one of claims 1-26, the hinge mechanism being connected between the first middle frame and the second middle frame;

The folding screen is positioned on one side of the rotating shaft mechanism where the supporting side of the shaft cover is positioned, and is connected with the first middle frame and the second middle frame.