US2331512A - Hinge - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 12, 1943. v K. a. SIEDSCHLAG 2,331,512

HINGE Filed Apr l 15, 1940 2 Shee ts-Sheet 1 Patented 12.1943

Karl G. Siedschiag, Kent, out. assignor to American Hard Rubber Company, New ,York N. Y., a corporation of New York Application. April1'3. 1940, Serial No. szasao 2 Claims.

The invention relates an improvement in covers for cooler cabinets, and more particularly I to an improved hinge for such covers.

Certain types of cooler cabinets for containing ice cream and the like for use at soda fountains and similar places, are provided with double covers consisting of two sections hinged together so that each section of the cover may be turned or folded back on the other section. Since the ice cream is usually located immediately below the cover in a readily accessible position and with no protective covering between it and the hinged cover, it isnecessary that the hinge be constructed and connected with the two sections of the cover in such manner as to prevent the passage from the outside of water and other -liquids through the hinge to the space below.

Effort heretofore madeto provide a simple and cheap absolutely leak-proof hinge have not been entirely successful in all respects. Th cheaper constructions soon become leaky and the more nearly liquid-impervious constructions are expensive to manufacture. The result has been that so little are the hinges themselves depended on to prevent the leakage of liquids therethrough into the ice'cream below, that the top surfaces of the covers are usually provided adjacent the hinges with raised liquid-deflecting portions or.

shoulders, which when effective, add to the cost of the covers, and which detract from the appearance of the covers. Moreover, thehinges of cooler cabinet covers have usually heretofore been composed of brass, plated with nickel or chromium. In the course of use the bright plating material wears away and e zposes the less attractive metal of which the hinge is composed.

One object of the invention is to provide a two-section or folding cooler cabinet cover with a hinge of such construction and arrangement that it is'impossible for liquids'to pass through the hinge. Another object of the invention is to provide a liquid-imperviou hinge of such simple construction that it can be produced relatively cheaply. A further object of the invention is to construct the hinge of such materials that it will keep its original appearance indefinitely. To the accomplishment of these'end the invention consists in connecting together the inmi edges of'the two sections of the cover by means of a flexible, liquid-impervious strip, the lateral sides of which are integral with or secured non-leakably to the inner edges of the cover sections. The invention is more'fully described hereinafter and is particularly pointed out inthe appendedclaimss" a In the accompanying drawings illustrating the invention, Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a two section cooler cabinet cover with one form of the improved hinge applied thereto; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, but

-- showing one section of the cover folded back onto the other section; Fig. 4 is an enlargement of the middle portion of Fig. 2 in order to show more clearly the hinge construction; Fig. 5 is a view, similar to Fig. 4, of another form of binge;

and Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5, but showing one of the cover sections in the act of being turned to open position.

The improved hinge construction of the present invention may be applied to and used in connection with any general type of two-section cooler cabinet cover, whether composed wholly of a plastic material or wholly of metal, or part- 1y of a plastic material and partly of metal. In general, double or folding cooler cabinet covers are divided transversely at about their middle point into two sections of equal size and shape. The inner or adjacent edges of the cover sections are straight and may abut each other-or be spaced apart. In applying the flexible, wa ter-impervious strip to the inner edges of the cover sections to serve as a non-leakable hinge therefor, the side edges ,or lateral sides of the strip are connected with the cover sections in such manner as not to lessen the flexibility of the strip for use as a hinge and'yet positively prevent the passage of liquid through the joint between the hinge and the cover sections.

For the purpose of illustrating the application of the improved hinge construction to a two-section cover for cooler cabinets, there is shown in Figs. 1 and 2 a cover composed of a plastic material such as hard rubber. In top plan the two cover sections I and 8 are of usual contour, with rounded outer ends 9 and the lateral margins of their inner, adjacent ends meeting at the transverse joint it. More specifically the cover sections 1 and 8 comprise atop wall l2, an outer end wall I3 and a bottom wall it, molded integrally and forming a hollow body adapted to be filled with cork l5. Withthe foregoing parts the present invention is not particularly concerned, except as they cooperate with the following parts constituting the elements of the invention. Thecover section I. is provided with the inner wall ii and-the cover sectionl with theinner wall i8. The walls-J1 and, l8 v are detachably secured tothe cover walls. i2 and i4. ,The;inner adjacent faces I9 of the walls I! and I8 are substantially vertically and parallelly arranged and are spaced apart, and extend throughout the width of the Y hollow bodies formed by the cooperating walls,

to 4 for connecting the cover sections so that each cover section may be opened and folded back onto the other cover section, as shown in Fig. 3, and for positively preventing the passage of water and other liquids down through the opening between the cover sections into the space below, consists of a strip or panel of soft rubber 22 subwalls are set into recesses in the lower inner corstantially as long as the width of the hollow body parts of the cover sections, as shown in Fig. 1, that is to say, the hinge of soft rubber is as long as the inner walls I1 and I8 so as to cover the space between them. The strip or panel 22 is somewhat arched, as 'seen in Figs. 2 and 4. The under surface of the lateral sides 24 of the strip 22 of soft rubber is molded integrally with the upper edges of the hard rubber inner, walls I1 and I8, as indicated in Fig. 4. The margins 25 of the lateral sides 24 of the strip 22 extend outwardly beyond the outer faces of the walls I! and I8 and are received in kerfs formed in the inner top corners of the top cover walls I2. Transversely extending bumper stops 2'! of soft rubber are provided on the inner faces of the walls I! and I8.

Since the hard rubber wall H, the soft rubber strip 22 and the hard rubber wall I8 are integrally molded, the two cover sections I and 8 must occupy substantially the relative positions shown in Fig. 3 when the walls I1 and I8 are attached to the walls I2 and I3. Fig. 3 also illustrates the condition of the' soft rubber strip 22 when one cover section is turned back onto the other one. This relative position ofthe cover sections may be frequently and rep'eatedly assumed without deterioration of the flexibility of the soft rubber composing the hinge strip 22.

Referring particularly to Figs. 2 and 4, it will be observed that the hinge of the present invention for use in connecting the sections of a cooler cabinet cover completely seals the space beneath the opening between the cover sections from the space above the hinge, since there are no working parts relatively movable between themselves and hence no abutting joints through which liquid can pass. The molded, non-movable joint between the lateral sides of the soft rubber hinge and the outer faces of the top ends-of the hard rubber walls I1 and I8 is absolutely impervious to the passage of liquids. If liquid penetrates the joint between the margins 25 of the hinge and thetop cover-walls I2, it is stopped by the liquid-tight joint-between the upper parts of the walls I1 and I8 and the inner edges of the top cover walls I2. Besides, the joints at these points lead into the cork-filled interior of the hollow cover sections.

The modified form of the improved hinge illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 may be applied to the same construction of two-section cover shown in Figs. 1 to 4, and the cover parts of Figs. 5 and 6, corresponding to the equivalent parts of Figs. 1 to 4 are given the same reference numerals. In this form of the invention the inner wall of cover section 1 is indicated at 38 and'the inner wall of cover section 8 at 2|. The upper ends of these ners of the top walls I2 of the cover sections 1 and 8. The inner faces of the walls 30 andll are provided with bumper blocks 32, preferably composed of soft rubber.

In the modifiedform-of the invention shown in Figs. 5 and 6 the strip or panel of soft rubber constituting the improved hinge, instead of being molded integrally with the inner walls of the cover sections, is non-leakably connected with them by hard rubber strips fastened to the inner walls of the hollow cover sections, and with which the soft rubber strip is integrally molded. The modified form of soft rubber hinge is indicated at 34 and in cross section is an inverted U. The ends of the arms of the U.-shaped soft rubber strip are molded integrally with the upper ends of the hard rubber strips 35 and 35, secured in a leak-tight joint to the inner faces, respectively, of the upper portions of the walls 30 and The mode of operation of the modified form of soft rubber hinge is exactly the same as that of the form of hinge shown in Figs. 1 to 4.

The novel form of hinge constituting the subject-matter of the present application is shown applied to a novel form of two-section cooler cabinet cover in which-the top and bottom walls, the side walls, and the outer end wall of each cover section are molded integrally from a plastic substance, whereas the inner end wall is removable. Thi novel form of cover constitutes the subject-matter of'U. S. Patent No. 2,276,205, issued March 10, 1942, to H. D. King, and accordingly, no claim is made in this application to the novel form of cover herein shown and described. Moreover it will be understood the novel hinge is not to be restricted to application to this novel form of cover, since it is equally applicable to cooler cabinet covers in which the side and end walls are integraland either the top or bottom wall is removable.

Having thus described the invention what I claim as new is:

.1. A unitary and integrally constituted hinge member for connecting together two adjacent sections of a cooler cover, said hinge comprising two strips of hard rubber, each strip having provisions for enabling its attachment flatwise to oppositely disposed portions of adjacent sections of a cooler cover, and a flexible strip of soft rubber connecting together said strips of hard rubber along the lengths of their upper edges, said strip of soft rubber being U-shaped in crosssection with the two ends of the U-shaped crosssection molded integrally along their edges with the longitudinal edges of the hard rubber strips respectively so as to form a hinge U-shaped in cross-section with the widths of the hard rubber strips constituting extended arms of the U and the rounded part of the soft rubber is the connecting portion of the hinge extending beyond the areas of the hard rubber strips when the hinge is attached to oppositely disposed portions of adjacent sections of a closed cooler cover.

- 2. A unitary and integrally constituted hinge member for connecting together two adjacent sections of a cooler cover, said hinge consisting of two strips of hard rubber, each having provisions for enabling its attachment to oppositely disposed portions of adjacent sections of a cooler cover, strips of soft rubber, one attached to each of said hard strips of rubber to serve as bumper blocks, and a flexible strip of soft rubber connecting together said strips of hard rubber along their upper edges, said flexible strip having an

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