TWI826141B - Foldable electronic deivce - Google Patents

Abstract

A foldable electronic device including a first body, a second body, a third body having a locking hole, a first hinge connecting the first and the second bodies, a second hinge connecting the second and the third bodies, a gear set, and a latch movably disposed in the second body is provided. The first and the second bodies are rotated relatively to be folded or unfolded, and the second and the third bodies are rotated relatively to be folded or unfolded. The gear set is connected between the first hinge and the latch so as to drive the latch when the first and the second bodies are rotated relatively. The locking hole is located on a moving path of the latch.

Description

Foldable electronic device

The present invention relates to an electronic device, and in particular to a foldable electronic device.

Portable computing devices (such as palmtop computers, laptop computers, notebook computers, personal computer tablets, etc.) are becoming more and more popular due to their light, thin, short shape and the functions required by users. In order to get better As a result, many portable computing devices will use base devices and display modules as display configurations to adjust the display and operation to meet the user's required operation and viewing purposes.

There is an adjustable notebook computer, which uses a bracket as a connection structure between the host computer and the screen, so that the three can open and close by relative rotation to create more movement dimensions and operation modes. It should be noted that current adjustable notebook computers completely rely on magnetic means to complete the positioning and fixation of components. That is, magnets are provided on the host, screen, and stand, so that when the components are close to each other, they are attracted by magnetic attraction. Combined and fixed.

However, for the user, the installation of magnets on the above-mentioned components that require relative movement will cause the user to increase the force to successfully detach the components. situation, that is, the user still has to hold and fix one of the components with one hand, and increase the force on the other component with the other hand, so that the two components can overcome the magnetic attraction and separate. In this way, it will cause inconvenience to the user.

In addition, because the magnetic attraction is too strong, it is easy for the two components to have a sufficient relative distance to ensure their separation. In other words, the range of the free movement state after the member is detached is thus restricted.

The present invention provides a foldable electronic device to provide a labor-saving opening and closing mechanism of the body.

The foldable electronic device of the present invention includes a first body, a second body, a third body, a first rotating shaft, a second rotating shaft, a gear set and a latch. The third body has a keyhole. The first rotating shaft connects the first body and the second body, so that the first body and the second body rotate and open relative to each other through the first rotating shaft. The second rotating shaft connects the second machine body and the third machine body, so that the second machine body and the third machine body rotate and open relative to each other through the second rotating shaft. The latch is movably disposed on the second body. The gear set is connected between the first rotating shaft and the latch to drive the latch when the second body and the first body rotate relative to each other. The lock hole of the third body is located at on the moving path of the latch.

Based on the above, in addition to using the first rotating shaft and the second rotating shaft as a mechanism for the first body, the second body, and the third body to rotate relative to each other and open and close the foldable electronic device, the foldable electronic device further uses a gear set and a latch. In conjunction with the rotation of the first rotating shaft, the first rotating shaft is allowed to pass through during the relative rotation opening and closing process of the first body and the second body. The latch is driven to move in the second body through the gear set, and therefore protrudes from the second body to interfere with the third body, or releases the interference with the third body and is recessed into the second body. In this way, whether the first rotating shaft, gear set and latch interfere with the third body, it can become a latch mechanism between the third body and the first body, thereby reducing the problem of magnetic attraction in the prior art. as a dependency of the latch function.

Furthermore, since the first rotating shaft, gear set and latch can provide structural interference to the third body, it is obviously better than the latch method that only relies on magnetic suction parts, and can effectively avoid accidental contact (causing the third body to Extreme situations such as the body detaching from the second body at an inappropriate time) or the user having to exert effort to separate the third body from the second body.

100: Foldable electronic devices

110:First body

120:Second body

121:Open your mouth

130:Third body

131:Keyhole

140:Gear set

141: fixed wheel

142: Transmission wheel

150:Latching parts

151:Latching convex part

152:Rack structure

H1: The first axis

H11: Shaft body

H12: Bracket

H2: Second axis

M1, M2: magnetic parts

S1: display surface

S2: Back

X1, X2: axis of rotation

1A to 1C are schematic diagrams of a foldable electronic device in different states according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1D illustrates the foldable electronic device of FIG. 1C from another perspective.

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of some components of the foldable electronic device.

FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of the relevant components of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 2A at the first rotating axis.

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of some components of the foldable electronic device.

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of the relevant components of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 3A at the first rotating axis.

FIG. 3C is an enlarged view of some components of the foldable electronic device in FIG. 3A .

Figure 4 shows a schematic diagram of the transformation of related components at the first rotating axis from a side view.

1A to 1C are schematic diagrams of a foldable electronic device in different states according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1D illustrates the foldable electronic device of FIG. 1C from another perspective. Please refer to FIGS. 1A to 1D at the same time. In this embodiment, the foldable electronic device 100 , taking a notebook computer as an example but not limited thereto, includes a first body 110 , a second body 120 , and a third body. 130. The first rotating shaft H1 and the second rotating shaft H2. The first body 110 is, for example, the host of a notebook computer, the second body 120 is, for example, a stand, and the third body 130 is, for example, a screen of a notebook computer. The first rotating shaft H1 connects the first body 110 and the second body 120 so that the first body 110 and the second body 120 rotate relative to each other along the rotation axis X1 through the first rotating shaft H1. The second rotation axis H2 connects the second body 120 and the third body 130 so that the second body 120 and the third body 130 rotate relative to each other along the rotation axis X2 through the second rotation axis H2, wherein the rotation axis X1 is parallel to the rotation axis X2 (That is, the rotation axis direction of the first rotation axis H1 is parallel to the rotation axis direction of the second rotation axis H2).

It should be noted that the first rotating axis H1 cannot be known from the drawings of FIGS. 1A to 1D due to the configuration of components. Therefore, the existence of the first rotating axis H1 is indicated by the rotation axis X1. The first rotating axis will be described in detail later. Relevant structural features of H1.

Based on the above component configuration, the foldable electronic device 100 can be converted between different states, such as the fully closed state shown in FIG. 1A , with the third body 130 stacked between the first body 110 and the second body 120 . At this time, the foldable electronic device 100 Considered to be in shutdown mode. For example, in the unfolded state shown in FIG. 1B , the third body 130 and the second body 120 are closed to each other, and the third body 130 is unfolded with the second body 120 relative to the first body 110 . At this time, the foldable electronic device 100 Considered to be in laptop operating mode. For example, in another unfolded state shown in FIG. 1C (or FIG. 1D), the second body 120 is unfolded relative to the first body 110, and the third body 130 is unfolded relative to the second body 120, so that the third body 130 is unfolded with its back side. S2 is supported by the second body 120 and therefore can be supported on the first body 110. At this time, the foldable electronic device 100 is regarded as being in the screen viewing mode. The state and mode conversion of the foldable electronic device 100 are not limited here.

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of some components of the foldable electronic device. FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of the relevant components of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 2A at the first rotating axis. Please refer to FIGS. 2A and 2B at the same time, which essentially correspond to the fully closed state shown in FIG. 1A . In this embodiment, the foldable electronic device 100 also includes a gear set 140 and a latch 150, and the first rotating shaft H1 can now clearly identify its structural composition, that is, it includes a bracket H12 and a shaft H11. The shaft H11 is fixed to the first body 110, the bracket H12 is fixed to the second body 120, and the bracket H12 is rotatably sleeved on the shaft H11 to allow the second body 120 to rotate relative to the first body 110, that is, The bracket H12 rotates relative to the shaft H11 along the rotation axis X1. Here, FIG. 2A mainly omits part of the second body 120 and exposes the part of the third body 130 that is shielded by the second body 120, so as to facilitate identification of the corresponding relationship between the latch 150 in the second body 120 and the third body 130. . The subsequent Figure 3A also adopts the same logic to illustrate.

More importantly, the gear set 140 of this embodiment includes fixed gears coupled to each other. The fixed wheel 141 and the transmission wheel 142, the fixed wheel 141 is fixedly sleeved on the shaft body H11, the transmission wheel 142 is pivoted on the bracket H12, and the transmission wheel 142 is connected between the latch 150 and the fixed wheel 141, the latch 150 It is movably arranged in the second body 120 . Here, the pivot axis of the transmission wheel 142 is parallel to the rotation axis direction of the first rotation axis H1 (ie, the rotation axis X1).

Furthermore, the latch 150 of this embodiment has latch protrusions 151 and a rack structure 152 located at opposite ends respectively, wherein the rack structure 152 is movably coupled to the transmission wheel 142 of the aforementioned gear set 140 , so it can be driven by the gear set 140 to move within the second body 120 , and the second body 120 has an opening 121 , and the third body 130 has a keyhole 131 . When the second body 120 and the third body 130 are relatively closed, the opening 121 and the lock hole 131 are co-located on the moving path of the latch protrusion 151 of the latch 150 . In this way, in the state shown in FIG. 2A , that is, when the first body 110 , the second body 120 and the third body 130 are closed and overlapped with each other, the latching protrusion 151 of the latching member 150 moves from the third body 110 to the third body 120 . The opening 121 of the second body 120 passes through, and penetrates into the third body 130 through the keyhole 131 of the third body 130 to cause structural interference to the third body 130. This is equivalent to the third body 130 using the latch 150. It can be locked to the second body 120, thereby completely avoiding the possibility that the third body 130 will detach from the second body 120.

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of some components of the foldable electronic device. FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of the relevant components of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 3A at the first rotating axis. FIG. 3C is an enlarged view of some components of the foldable electronic device in FIG. 3A . Please refer to FIG. 3A to FIG. 3B at the same time. When the second body 120 (together with the third body 130 locked thereon) rotates relative to the first body 110 through the first rotating axis H1, as shown in FIG. 2A (or FIG. 2B) Indication During the (deployment) process of the state transition to the state shown in Figure 3A (or Figure 3B, or Figure 3C), since the second body 120 will communicate with the bracket H12 and its upper transmission wheel 142 to rotate along the rotation axis X1, the gear set will be caused The linkage effect between 140 and the latch 150.

Figure 4 shows a schematic diagram of the transformation of related components at the first rotating axis from a side view. Please refer to Figure 4 and compare Figures 2A and 3A at the same time. It should be noted that Figure 4 uses the first body 110 as a reference component (the horizontal dotted line in the figure is used as an example), and the second body 120 is The movement process of the rotation axis H1 unfolding relative to the first body 110 (the state on the left side of Figure 4 is converted to the state on the right side of Figure 4, the bracket H12 rotates clockwise along the rotation axis X1 relative to the shaft body H11), is reflected in the gear set 140 and the latch The linkage state of the component 150 is shown. The relevant arrows are marked on the right side of the figure to facilitate identification of the movement of the components.

As shown in FIG. 4 , when the second body 120 and the first body 110 rotate relative to each other to open and close, the transmission wheel 142 rotates with the bracket H12 relative to the shaft H11 , and the transmission wheel 142 rotates in the direction of the rotation axis of the first rotation axis H1 (i.e. , revolves around the rotation axis X1), and is driven to rotate (clockwise) because it is engaged with the fixed wheel 141. Before reaching the position shown on the right side of FIG. 4 , the latch 150 still maintains a state of interfering with the third body 130 (as shown in FIG. 2A ), so it is equivalent to the third body 130 and the second body 120 being in mutual contact. When closing and closing, the second body 120 is adapted to rotate relative to the first body 110 until the position shown on the right side of Figure 4 is released before the interference relationship between the latch 150 and the third body 130 is released. Therefore, the second body Whether the second body 120 interferes with the third body 130 or not depends on the relative relationship between the second body 120 and the first body 110. The rotating opening and closing process is completed to achieve the conversion effect of driving the latch 150 to lock or unlock the third body 130 through the transmission relationship between the gear set 140 and the latch 150 .

It should also be mentioned that, please refer to FIG. 1B again, the foldable electronic device 100 of this embodiment also includes a plurality of magnetic pieces M1 and M2, which are respectively arranged on the second body 120 and the third body 130. When the first body 110 and the second body 120 are relatively closed and the second body 120 and the third body 130 are closed to each other (as shown in FIG. 1A ), the closed state is caused by the magnetic attraction corresponding to each other. The components M1, M2 and the latch component 150 are inserted into the keyhole 131 (shown in FIG. 2A) and are maintained by the structural interference of the third body 130. In addition, when the second body 120 and the third body 130 are closed to each other, and the first body 110 and the second body 120 are relatively unfolded to an angle (for example, as shown in FIG. 3A ), the latch 150 will unlock the third body. 130. At this time, the second body 120 and the third body 130 are maintained in the closed state only by the magnetic pieces M1 and M2. It should be noted that this embodiment does not limit the angle, and the relevant structural features and strokes of the gear set 140 and the latch 150 can be adjusted accordingly according to the usage conditions to appropriately adjust the unlocking timing.

Furthermore, precisely because the locking state between the second body 120 and the third body 130 is shared by the magnetic components M1, M2 and the latch component 150, the foldable electronic device 100 can be designed to reduce The magnetic suction force of the magnetic suction parts M1 and M2 can effectively solve the disadvantage of the existing device that only relies on the magnetic suction parts to complete the body locking, which is not conducive to the user's force application. This also means that on the premise that the latch 150 can provide structural interference with the third body 130, the magnetic parts M1 and M2 only need to meet the requirements to prevent the third body 130 from being easily removed from the second body due to the user's mistaken touch. 120 can be detached, so it can be large The magnetic force requirements of the magnetic pieces M1 and M2 are greatly reduced, and the number and position of the magnetic pieces M1 and M2 are simplified in the second body 120 and the third body 130 .

To sum up, in the above-mentioned embodiments of the present invention, the foldable electronic device uses the first rotating shaft and the second rotating shaft as a mechanism for the first body, the second body and the third body to rotate relative to each other and open and close the folding mechanism. , further, the gear set and the latch are matched with the rotation of the first rotating shaft, so that during the relative rotation opening and closing process of the first body and the second body, the first rotating shaft drives the latch through the gear set to rotate in the second Move within the body, and therefore protrude from the second body to interfere with the third body, or release interference with the third body and submerge into the second body. In this way, whether the first rotating shaft, gear set and latch interfere with the third body, it can become a latch mechanism between the third body and the first body, thereby reducing the problem of magnetic attraction in the prior art. as a dependency of the latch function.

Furthermore, since the first rotating shaft, gear set and latch can provide structural interference to the third body, it is obviously better than the latch method that only relies on magnetic suction parts, and can effectively avoid accidental contact (causing the third body to Extreme situations such as the body detaching from the second body at an inappropriate time) or the user having to exert effort to separate the third body from the second body.

100: Foldable electronic devices

110:First body

120:Second body

130:Third body

H2: Second axis

S2: Back

X1: axis of rotation

Claims (7)

A foldable electronic device includes: a first body; a second body; a third body having a keyhole; and a first rotating shaft connecting the first body and the second body so that the first body and the second body The first rotating shaft rotates relative to each other to open and close; the second rotating shaft connects the second body and the third body, so that the second body and the third body rotate relative to each other and opens and closes through the second rotating shaft; a gear set; and a latch, movably disposed on the second body, the gear set is connected between the first rotating shaft and the latch to drive when the second body and the first body rotate relative to each other The latch, the lock hole of the third body is located on the moving path of the latch, wherein the first rotating shaft includes a shaft body and a bracket, the shaft body is fixed to the first body, and the bracket is fixed to the third body. Two machine bodies, and the bracket is rotatably sleeved on the shaft body. The gear set includes a fixed wheel and a transmission wheel coupled to each other. The fixed wheel is fixedly sleeved on the shaft body, and the transmission wheel is pivoted on the bracket. , and the transmission wheel is connected between the latch and the fixed wheel. The latch has a rack structure and is movably coupled to the transmission wheel. The foldable electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pivot axis of the transmission wheel is parallel to the rotation axis of the first rotating shaft. The foldable electronic device of claim 1, wherein when the second body and the first body rotate relative to each other to open and close, the transmission wheel rotates with the bracket relative to the shaft, and the transmission wheel rotates with the first body. The rotation axis of the rotating shaft revolves around the center, and is driven to rotate due to meshing with the fixed wheel. The foldable electronic device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a plurality of magnetic attraction members, which are disposed correspondingly in pairs on the second body and the third body. When the first body and the second body are relatively closed and When the second body and the third body are closed to each other, the closed state is caused by the magnetic parts and the latch parts that are magnetically attracted to each other and penetrated through the keyhole to structurally interfere with the third body. maintained. The foldable electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of magnetic attraction members, each of which is disposed correspondingly on the second body and the third body. When the second body and the third body are closed to each other and When the first body and the second body are relatively unfolded to an angle, the latch unlocks the third body, and the second body and the third body are maintained closed only by the magnetic pieces. condition. The foldable electronic device of claim 1, wherein when the third body and the second body are closed to each other, the second body is adapted to rotate and open relative to the first body to drive the latch. The parts are locked or unlocked on the third body. The foldable electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rotation axis of the first rotation axis is parallel to the rotation axis of the second rotation axis.

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