GB2319558A - A wooden hinge - Google Patents

Abstract

A hinge made substantially from wood, provided to join two members (1) and (2), comprises at least two parts (14) and (15). Each part is made from two wooden elements (3) and (5) which are joined together along a common join surface (10). A tube (8) of plastics material is situated in a bore through the two parts (14) and (15), and extends partially into grooves in both of the wooden elements (3) and (5). This tube (8) prevents metal-on-wood moving contact, as a rigid metal rod (26) passes through the bore to join the two parts (14) and (15). A plastics leaf (22) is also provided between (14) and (15) to prevent wood-on-wood moving contact. The parts of the hinge may be rounded once assembled to provide smooth edges and to enable members (1) and (2) to pivot freely.

Description

A Hinge The present invention relates to a hinge and a method of making a hinge. In particular, the present invention relates to a substantially wooden hinge e.g. for furniture.

It is standard for furniture, whether ornate or merely practical, to have, where necessary, metal hinges.

However, as the demand for different designs of furniture increases there is a strong emphasis on the overall aesthetic appearance of the furniture. One new way of manufacture is to provide wooden hinges to replace standard metal hinges.

As wood is less hard wearing than metal, the present applicants have appreciated that the life span of a wooden hinge is going to be shorter than that of a metal hinge. Also, owing to the type of material, the two wooden surfaces which are in slidable contact with each other will not provide the required surface necessary for a smooth operating hinge. Therefore, particularly for furniture receiving daily use, for example, kitchen furniture, a wooden hinge which is of the same configuration as a metal hinge will require continual replacement.

Another problem with wooden hinges is that they are inherently weaker than metal hinges. Wood has a grain and tends to split along the grain. If plywood is used, there is a tendency for the plies to separate. In a hinge, forces are concentrated along the axis of pivoting of the hinge. Therefore, the hinge needs to be strong along that line, and this is a problem in a wooden hinge.

A hinge which is to provide pivoting between a pair of members has one or more parts attached to one of the members, and other parts attached to the other member, the parts attached to the respective members then pivoting relative to each other in order to provide the hinge effect. For the sake of simplicity, the subsequent discussion assumes that the hinge has only two parts, one attached to each member. However, in practice, multiple parts may be attached to each member.

In the first aspect of the present invention, the two parts are formed from a single or preferably two or more separate wooden assemblies. Each wooden assembly comprises two wooden elements which are adhered together with the axis of pivoting running along the surface (e.g.

a plane) along which they joined.

Where two or more wooden assemblies provide the two parts, they are aligned along their axis of pivoting to form the hinge.

Where the parts are formed from a single assembly the assembly is cut substantially perpendicularly to the axis of pivoting, to divide the assembly and thus form the two parts of the hinge.

In this aspect, whether there is a single or a plurality of assemblies, the tube which sits along the groove between the elements, needs to be of a material which can be cut when the parts are cut, but need not be of wood. It is preferably of plastics.

Such a hinge will then generally need a rigid rod to connect the two parts, with one or both of the parts pivoting about that rod. It would be possible to drill a bore through the assembly, with the axis of the bore corresponding to the axis of pivoting. However, in practice this is difficult to achieve without the risk of splitting the wood.

Therefore, a development of the first aspect of the present invention proposes that a groove is formed in one of the elements making up a wooden assembly, with the axis of that groove corresponding to the axis of pivoting. A hollow tube is then placed along that groove. A similar groove is then formed in the other element, so that when the elements are secured together, the tube and the grooves are aligned. A suitable rod, eg. of metal, may then be inserted through the tube once the separate assemblies have been aligned.

With such an arrangement, in order to provide suitable strength, the grain of the wood, or the directions of the ply if plywood is used, need to be generally parallel to the plane along which the two wooden elements are joined.

Whilst such an arrangement provides a strong wooden hinge, there is still the disadvantage that if the surfaces of the parts rub against each other during pivoting, the pivoting will not be smooth or wear will be excessive. Therefore, it is preferable to provide a leaf of a non-wooden material between the parts. Indeed, the use of such a non-wooden leaf in a wooden hinge represents a second, independent, aspect of the present invention. In the second aspect, two wooden parts connected to respective members which are to be hinged are connected together by a rod about which one or both pivot, and there is a non-wooden leaf between the two parts which prevents wood-to-wood contact. Again, in the second aspect, although we have referred to one hinge part connected to each member, multiple hinge parts may be connected to each member.

When the first and second aspects are combined, a particularly advantageous arrangement is achieved in which there is no wood-to-wood contact, and no wood-tometal contact, assuming the central rod is of metal or similar strong material. The tube isolates the rod from the other components of the hinge, and the leaf separates the two pivoting parts. The leaf is preferably of plastics material, but may be of metal if desired.

When constructing a hinge according to any one of the aspects, it is easiest to start with wooden elements of generally rectangular cross-section (perpendicular to the axis of pivoting) and round those components once the wooden assembly has been assembled.

The rod holds the parts together, and thus the rounding operation can act on all parts at the same time, so there are no discontinuities along the hinge. If the parts were rounded independently, they may not match.

Although the aspects of the invention discussed above concentrate on the way that the hinge is formed, the present invention also relates to the hinge itself, when formed by that method.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described in more detail, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 shows an exploded view of a wooden assembly according the present invention; Fig. 2 shows two wooden assemblies; and Fig. 3 shows the hinge of Fig. 1 and Fig. 2.

In the embodiment which wil now be described, the hinge is formed from two wooden assemblies 1,2 (see Fig.

2). The construction of the wooden assemblies 1,2 will be described below in relation to one wooden assembly 1 (see Fig. 1) . The wooden assembly is formed by assembly of a plurality of components. The principal two components are two wooden elements 3,5 (see Fig. 1). These wooden elements 3,5 may be formed from solid wooden blocks cut to size, or may be formed by cutting suitable pieces of plywood. In the latter case, since the hinge may be a visible component, it is desirable that the plywood is entirely of surface-grade quality.

The first step in the assembly of the wooden assembly 1 is the forming of respective grooves 6,7 in each element 3,5. These grooves 6,7 are substantially semi-circular with the same radius of curvature. A tube 8 of plastics material with an outer radius corresponding to the radius of the grooves 6,7 is then located in one of the grooves (eg. the groove of element 5) and the other element positioned such that the tube 8 is received in the corresponding groove 6 of that other element 3.

The tube 8 thus ensures that the elements 3,5 are accurately aligned. The tube 8 is preferably of plastics material and has a central bore 9.

The wooden elements 3,5 need to be bonded together along their joining plane 10 so that joining plane 10 does not present a line of weakness of the hinge. This is achieved by suitable selection of the adhesive used to secure the elements 3,5 together. Furthermore, the grain of the wood of the elements 3,5, or the plies of the plywood if the elements 3,5 are made of plywood, is parallel to the joining plane 10 as this ensures maximum strength.

Next, the resulting assembly needs to be cut so that the second wooden assembly 2 can be aligned with the first wooden assembly 1. To do this, cuts 12 are made in the assembly, in a direction generally perpendicular to the axis of the tube 8, to define a series of parts 14,16,18,20. This exposes surfaces 14b,16a,16b,18a of the parts. Parts 16, 20 are cut further to separate them from the wooden assembly 1. This done by cutting the wooden element 5 in a direction generally parallel to the tube 8 at the edges of parts 16,20, so that those parts 16,20 are separated from the rest of element 5. The wooden assembly 1 without parts 16,18 is shown in Fig. 2.

The second wooden assembly 2 is formed as described above (see Fig. 2). The second wooden assembly 2 has two remaining parts 15,17. These two parts 15,17 are dimensioned so that they can interlock with the parts 14,18 of the first wooden assembly 1 so that the central bores 9 are aligned.

If the hinge is to pivot smoothly the exposed surfaces of the parts 14b, 15a,15b,18a,1-8b, 17a, should not contact each other. To prevent such contact, therefore, a leaf 22 (see Fig. 1 and Fig. 3) is inserted into a space 23 between the parts 14,15,18,17. Each leaf 22 has a hole 24 therein with a diameter corresponding to the inside diameter of the tube 8. The leaves 22 may be attached to one or other of the parts to which they are adjacent. Then, a rod 26 of eg. metal, is inserted into the bores 9 in the tube 8, so that it passes through the holes 24 in the leaves 22 which now separate the parts 14,15,18,17.

It is preferable to round the parts 14,15,18,17 so that they have a generally circular cross-section perpendicular to the tube 8 and rod 26. This can be done before the second wooden assembly 2 has been aligned with the first wooden assembly 1. With the parts 14,16,18,20 in the position shown in Fig.l, three corners can be rounded. Likewise, three corners of the parts 15,17 of the second wooden asembly 2 (see Fig.2) can be rounded.

This method of rounding will produce two wooden assemblies 1,2 with rounded parts of "knuckles" which are then used to interlock with each other.

However, the method of rounding could also be performed when the two wooden assemblies 1,2 are aligned.

This ensures that there are no discontinuities along the hinge. The rounding operation should also round the leaves 22, and for this reason it is preferable that the leaves 22 are of a soft plastics material so that they can be rounded eg. by sanding at the same time as the wooden parts 14,15,18,17 are rounded.

The resulting assembly thus provides a hinge-which is principally of wood, and thus may have a pleasing decorative effect when used with eg. wooden furniture (see Fig. 3). However, the hinge will operate smoothly.

The parts 14,15,18,17 are not in wood-to-wood contact, but are separated by the leaves 22. The leaves 22 may be freely rotatable, separate from the parts 14,15,18,17, but are preferably attached to one or other of the pieces 14,15,18,17 on one side or the other. Alternatively, it would be possible to use two leaves 22 inbetween adjacent parts with one leaf attached to the respective surfaces 14b,15a,15b,18a etc. The rod 26 provides axial strength, but is itself not in contact with wood. Instead, it is in contact with the tube 8 so that smooth pivoting may be achieved. To prevent the rod 26 sliding out of the hinge, it may be necessary to provide end stops on the rod which are wider than the bore 9 of the tube 8.

With such an arrangement, the parts 14,18 are attached to one of the members to be hinged, and the parts 15,17 to the other member to be hinged. It can be seen that the number of parts 14,15,18,17 is not critical, and will generally depend on the length and appearance of the hinge desired. Indeed, it is possible for the hinge to have only two parts.

Many variations of the embodiment described above are possible. For example, the wooden element 5 is larger than the element 3, so that the parts of the element 5 which do not overlap with the element 3 may form a hinge plate to be secured to one of the members.

It would be possible for the element 3 itself to extend beyond the region of overlap, to form a second hinge plate. Another possibility is for the element 5 to extend on both sides of the region of overlap, in a direction perpendicular to the tube 8 and rod 26, and for the parts 14,18 to be separated from such an extension in one direction, and the pieces 16,20 to be separated from the extension in the other direction. The result would be an arrangement in which the element 5 forms both hinge plates. Such hinge plates may then be secured to the members to be hinged together by any suitable means, such as nails, screws or adhesive.

Claims (21)

1. A method of making a hinge, comprising forming at least two parts, each having a bore, and positioning the parts adjacent each other, with a rod through the bores of the parts, the rod forming the hinge axis, wherein each part comprises two wooden elements joined at respective join surfaces with the bore extending partially into each join surface.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the bores are lined with a non-wooden tube.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein each join surface has a groove to accommodate said tube.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein each part is made by: (a) placing the tube in the groove of a first of the elements; (b) placing the second of the elements on the first of the elements, such that the tube fits in the groove in the second element; (c) fixing the two elements together.

5. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the grain of each wooden element is aligned with the direction of the bore.

6. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which there is at least one non-wooden leaf between the parts, the rod passing through said at least one non-wooden leaf.

7. A method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the parts are initially formed as a single assembly, which is then cut to separate the parts, the cutting including at least one cut perpendicular to the direction of the bore.

8. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein a plurality of parts are formed from one or more assemblies, and arranged adjacent one another.

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein the plurality of parts are formed from a single assembly which is formed from two wooden elements before being cut to form the parts, cuts being made perpendicular to the axis of the bore.

10. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein after the parts have been placed adjacent one another, and the rod is placed in the bores of the parts, the parts are rounded so that the parts have a circular cross-section perpendicular to the direction of the bore.

11. A method of making a hinge, comprising forming at least two parts, each having a bore, and positioning the parts adjacent each other, with a rod through the bores of the parts, the rod forming the hinge axis, wherein each part comprises at least one wooden element, and there is at least one non-wooden leaf between the parts, the rod passing through said at least one non-wooden leaf.

12. A hinge made according to the method of any one of claims 1 to 11.

13. A hinge having at least two parts, each having a bore, the parts being positioned adjacent each other, with a rod through the bores of the parts, the rod forming the hinge axis, wherein each part comprises two wooden elements joined at respective join surfaces with the bore extending partially into each join surface.

14. A hinge according to claim 13, wherein the bores are lined with a non-wooden tube.

15. A hinge according to claim 14, wherein each join surface has a groove to accommodate said tube.

16. A hinge according to any one of claims 13 to 15, in which the grain of each wooden element is aligned with the direction of the bore.

17. A hinge according to any one of claims 13 to 16, in which there is at least one non-wooden leaf between the parts, the rod passing through said at least one nonwooden leaf.

18. A hinge according to any one of the claims 13 to 17, wherein the parts have a circular cross-section perpendicular to the direction of the bore.

19. A hinge, having at least two parts, each having a bore, the parts being adjacent each other, with a rod through the bores of the parts, the rod forming the hinge axis, wherein each part comprises at least one wooden element, and there is at least one non-wooden leaf between the parts, the rod passing through said at least one non-wooden leaf.

20. A method of making a hinge as herein described with reference to Fig 1, Fig 2 or Fig 3.

21. A hinge as herein described with reference to Fig 1, Fig 2 or Fig 3.