US3820192A - Door hinge unit - Google Patents

Abstract

A DOOR HINGE UNIT IS PROVIDED WITH A FIXED LEAF AND A MOVABLE LEAF JOINED BY A HINGE PIN FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER. A TORSION BAR HAVING A MAIN STRAIGHT PART AND OPPOSED U-SHAPED BENDS AT EACH END IS ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON ONE OF THE LEAVES ALONG THE MAIN PART OF THE BAR. ONE U-SHAPED BEND IS ANCHORED IN THE SAME LEAF AND A CHECK ARM HAVING TWO SEPARATE OPENINGS IS MOUNTED ON THE OPPOSITE END OF THE BAR AND THE MAIN PART THEREOF. THE CHECK ARM IS PROVIDED WITH CAM PORTIONS WHICH SELECTIVELY ENGAGE A ROLLER DETENT ON THE OTHER LEAF TO HOLD THE DOOR IN A PLURALITY OF POSITIONS.

Description

United States Patent Nakano et al.

DOOR HINGE UNIT Inventors: Ryuzo Nakano, Oaza; Shinichiro Yamazaki, Toyota; Shinzi Ogasawara, Hekinan, all of Japan Aisin Seiki Kabushiki Kaisha, Kariya City, Aichi Pref, Japan Filed: Aug. 21, 1973 Appl. No.: 390,274

Assignee:

Foreign Application Priority Data Aug. 21, 1972 Japan 47-97841 U.S. Cl. 16/145, 16/180 Int. Cl E05d 11/10 Field of Search 16/145, 142, 180, 85, 82,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS ll/l962 Faber l6/l42 2/l968 Marchione 16/180 [111 3,820,192 5] June 28, 1974 3,371,374 3/l968 Marchione....- l6/l80 3,434,179 3/l969 Marchione l6/l45 Primary Examiner-Bobby R. Gay

Assistant ExaminerDoris L. Troutman Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Sughrue, Rothwell, Mion, Zinn & Macpeak ABSTRACT A door hinge unit is provided with a fixed leaf and a movable leaf joined by a hinge pin for pivotal movement relative to each other. A torsion bar having a main straight part and opposed U-shaped bends at each end is rotatably mounted on one of the leaves along the main part of the bar. One U-shaped bend is anchored in the same leaf and a check arm having two separate openings is mounted on the opposite end of the bar and the main part thereof. The check arm is provided with cam portions which selectively engage a roller detent on the other leaf to hold the door in a plurality of positions.

1 Claim, 5 Drawing Figures mmmmz m4 am, 1 92 FIG. 3

noon HINGE UNIT- BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to improvements in and relating to door hinge units, especially adapted for use on automotive vehicles.

2. Description of the Prior Art Door hinge units for automotive vehicles have been manufactured rather preferably from steel sheets in place of cast iron material in consideration of weightand cost reduction. v

A still further tendency in this field of the art is such that the door side leaf and the pillar side leaf of the door hinge unit are manufactured into respective separate pieces for separate attachment to the door and the related chassis pillar, so as to realize an easy and economical assembly job.

The thus separately attached leaves are assembled together by means of a hinge pin at a rather later and nearly final stage of the automotive assemblying line. Therefore, it is desirable to leave an idle space above the head of hinge pin for drive it into position by a ham- 'met or the like tool. It is a further demand in practice to design the door hinge unit such that door check mechanism 'can be pre-assembled to either the door side leaf or pillar side leaf on account of rather limited available space within the hinge unit upon execution of the drive fit of hinge pin. Or alternatively, it is highly desirable not to attach the door check means to the door hinge unit per se.

In the generally employed type of the door hinge unit made of steel and comprising the above mentioned separate type leaves, the check mechanism includes a check arm which is pivotably mounted at its one end on such end portion of the door side leaf positioned at the opposite side thereof to a hinge pin center, a check roller being provided which is rotatably supported on the side portion of pillar side leaf and adapted for rolling on the wavy upper surface of said check arm which is pushed up at its opposite end by means of a coil spring. In this prior type of door hinge, unit, the coil spring is mounted on the head part of hinge pin on account of limited space in the unit for properly positioning of such coil spring. Therefore, this spring must be attached in position upon coupling of the both leaves by means of hinge pin which results in a substantial increase of labor and cost in the assembly job.

Further, in the case of the torsion bar type door hinge unit having as its door check means a torsion bar shaped substantially into an elongated C and wherein its one of bent-back ends is fixedly attached to the pillar side leaf and its another bent-back end is kept in pressure engagement with the said check roller, the torsion bar is subjected to an appreciable torsion and severe bending stresses which give rise to frequent issuance of unpleasant creak noises during closing and opening operation of the door, especially at the fixed portion of the bar.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION A main object of the invention is to provide an im- A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved door hinge unit which is capable of being assembled in an easy and economical way.

A still further object is to provide an improved door hinge unit substantially devoid of generation of unpleasant creak noises as conventionally and liably encountered during opening and closing operation of the door.

These and further objects, features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent when read the following detailed description of the invention by reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a front view of a preferred embodiment of the invention which is shown in its complete doorclosure position.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the same embodiment when seen from the right-hand side in FIG. 1.

- FIG. 4 is a right-hand side view of the same embodiment which is, however, shown in its semi-door-opened state.

FIG. 5 is a similar view to FIG. 4 wherein the door hinge unit has been kept at its totally door-opened state.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the drawings, FIGS. 1 5, numeral 1 represents a pillar side leaf made of steel sheet through press job and comprises an attaching portion la formed with upwardly extending curved side portions lb which are formed in turn with hinge center openings 1c at an upper part thereof and with roller center openings 1d at a lower part thereof.

A stop pin 9 is inserted through said roller center openings 1d and fixed in position by means of its serrated portion 9a relative to the leaf 1. The pin 9 is formed at its one end a reduced diameter portion 9b which engages relatively rotatably with a check roller 10 at 10a. An E-ring 11 is attached to a ring groove 90 formed on said reduced diameter portion 9b for prevention of slipping out of the check roller 10 from the stop pin 9.

Flanged bushings 4 and 5 made of hard plastics or sintered alloy are coaxially and forcibly are forcedly driven into the hinge center openings 10 with their flanges 4b and 5b directing outwardly.

Numeral 2 represents a door side leaf made of steel sheet through pressing job comprises an attaching portion 2a which is bent up at its both ends with parallel side wall portions 2b and 2c. The inside separating distance between these side wall portions 2b and 20 has been selected to be slightly larger than the mutual outside distance between side wall portions lb of pillar side leaf 1 added with thickness of the flanges 4b and 5b of bushings 4 and 5, respectively. These side wall portions 2b and 2c are formed coaxially with hinge center openings 2d, having respective inside diameters precisely equal to the axial bores 4a and 5a of said bushings 4 and 5 driven into through hinge center openings 1c of pillar side leaf 1, respectively.

The side wall 20 is formed at its upper part with a projecting extension 2e which acts a stop for limiting the opening degree of the door, as will be more fully described hereinafter. At a lower level than the said projecting extension 2e when seen in FIG. 3, the side wall 2c is formed with an inclined edge portion 2g. On the side wall 2b,'a projection 2f is formed which acts as a door-closing stop, as will be more fully described hereinafter.

The distances of the door-closing stop 2f and the door-opening stop 2e measured from the center of hinge center opening 2d is longer than the distance measured from the center of hinge center opening 1c to that of roller center opening 1d minus the radius of the outer periphery of check roller center 10. The distance of the intermediate portion 2g measured from the center of hinge center opening 2d is shorter than the distance extending from the center of hinge center opening of pillar side leaf 1 to that of roller center opening 1d minus the radius of the outer periphery of check roller 10.

The small wall portion 2b is formed with a recess 2i opening leftwards and downwards in FIG. 3, the bottom of said recess 2i being formed to have a semicircular configuration as shown therein.

The second or other side wall portion 2b of door side leaf 2 is formed, as shown in FIG. 3 at the upper part of the side wall, with a door-opening stop projection 2j which has the same outline configuration with that of the projecting extension 2e. In addition, it is further formed at its lower portion with a door-closing stop projection 2m. The intermediate edge portion 2e extends between these stop projections 2j and 2m.

The distances measured from the stop projections 2j and 2m to the center of hinge center opening 2d of door-side leaf 2 are longer than the distance measured from hinge center opening 10 of pillar side leaf 1 to that ,of roller center opening 1d minus the radius of stop pin 9. On the other hand, the distance from the intermediate portion 2e to the center of hinge center opening 2d of door side leaf 2 is smaller than that measured from the center of hinge center opening lc of pillar side leaf 1 to that of roller center opening 1d, minus the radius of stop pin 9.

At a closely lower level from the door closing stop 2m when seen in FIG. 3 a leftwardly and downwardly opening recess 2n is formed on side wall portion 2b, having equally a semi-circular bottom configuration. This recess 2n has same arrangement and dimensions as those of the foregoing recess 2i.

Torsion bar 7 has inwardly bent- back ends 7b and 7c which are arranged parallel to its main straight portion 7a. The bent-back end portion 7b is formed at about its center of the whole length and on its side surface with a notch or groove 7e. The connecting part 7d between the bent-back straight end portion 70 and the main straight portion 7a is formed into a substantially semicircular curve.

Check arm 8 is formed, as shown in FIG. 3, at its one end with a circular opening 8a and at its opposite end with a slot opening 8b. The distance between the centers of said opening 8a and slot 8b is selected to be equal to that between the mid-point of main straight portion 7a of torsion bar 7 and the mid-point of bentback end portion 7c. The diameter of circular opening 80 is selected to allow the semi-circularly curved portion 7d to pass therethrough. The width of slot 8b is selected to be slightly larger than the outside diameter of torsion bar 7. Check arm 8 are formed at its lower part when seen in FIG. 4 with peaks 8d and 8e and valleys 8c and 8e arranged in an alternating way. In close proximity to peak 8f, it is formed with an inclined portion 8g.

In order to assemble check arm 8 and torsion bar 7 together, circular opening 80 of check arm 8 is brought intoengagement with the bent-back end portion of torsion bar 7 and the former is slidingly advanced through the curved connecting part 7d onto the main straight portion 7a, thus the both members being engaged with each other relatively rotatably. Then, check arm Sis properly rotated and the slot 8b is slid onto the bent-back straight end 70 of torsion bar 7. At this stage, check arm 8 will be prevented from a'rightward move ment upon engagement with the inner extremities of the curved connecting portion 7d when seen in FIGS. 1 and 2. In this case, the inclination of an imaginary straight line connecting the centers of the crosssections of the bent- back end portions 7b and 7c of torsion bar 7 relative to the related constituent parts of the door hinge unit may well be supposed from FIG. 3. In advance of the complete assembly of the aforementioned both parts, the bent-back end portion 70 of torsion bar 7 is inclined further downwards in comparison with its position shown in FIG. 3. At this stage, the person who is making the assembly job positions the torsion bar 7 at its right side relative position as possible in the semi-assembly and in FIG. 3, by placing the main straight portion 7a of torsion bar 7 into engagement with the recesses 2a and Zn and the bent-back portion 7b into engagement the recess or groove 2k formed on the upper part of the intermediate portion 2e of side wall 2b, while the tip end of bent-back portion 7c of torsion bar 7 is kept in physical separation with the outer surface of side wall 20 of door side leaf 2. Next, while the bent-back end portion 7c is being twisted clockwise in FIG. 3, torsion bar 7 is moved leftwards in FIG. 1 and the tip end extremity of the bent-back 7c is inserted into a slot 2p formed through side wall 2c of door side leaf 2. At this stage, the recess or notch 72 on the bent-back 7b is brought into engagement with recess or notch 2k on the side wall 2b, while it is being kept incontact with the outer surface of small wall portion 2h of door side leaf 2. In this way, torsion bar 7 and check arm 8 are positively prevented from movement in the horizontal direction when seen in FIG. 1.

Hinge pin 3 has its outer diameter slightly smaller than the bores at 4a and 5a of flanged bushings 4 and 5 forcibly driven into hinge center openings 1c, and than those at hinge center openings 2d of door side leaf 2. At the one end of hinge pin 3, it is formed with an enlarged head 3a, said serrated portion 312 being arranged at a close proximity of said head 3a. The length of this portion 3b is selected to be slightly smaller than the thickness of side wall portion 2c of door side leaf 2 and the outside diameter at 3b is slightly larger than the bore at 2d. A shallow ring groove 30 is formed in close proximity to the tip end of hinge pin 3 for reception of a spring clip 6 which serves for otherwise possible disengagement of the hinge pin. The main part of hinge pin 3 is passed through several openings 10 and 2d and pressure or blow is applied axially on the head 30, so as to drive the serrated portion 3b into the righthand one 2d of hinge center openings of door side leaf 2. Therefore, hinge pin 3 is fixedly positioned at this leaf 2, while it is freely rotatable relative to the door side leaf l.

At this stage, check roller may take its any position shown in any one 'of FIGS. 3, 4 and 5. In FIG. 3, check roller 10 is in engagement with valley 80 on check arm 8. In FIG. 4, it is engagement with valley 8e on check arm 8. In FIG. 5, it is in engagement with sloped edge 8g of the check arm. With any position taken by the check roller 10, hinge center openings 1c, 1c, 2d and 2d are kept in registration with one after another in line by slightly torsioned clockwise in FIGS. 3 5 of the torsion bar .7, so as to drive the hinge pin 3 forcibly into position.

The operation of the door hinge unit so far shown and described is as follows:

In FIG. 3, the check arm 8 mounted rotatably on the main straight part 7a of torsion bar 7 on door side leaf 2 is' kept in pressure contact with check roller 10 connected rotatably with pillar side leaf 1 by means of stop pin 9 at close proximity of valley 80 on check am 8 towards the peak 8d, said check arm being subjected to counter clockwise turning moment around the main portion 7a thereof and thus the door side leaf 2 is subjected to clockwise turning moment around hinge pin 3. At the same time and in this condition, when the door, not shown, is closing together with said leaf 2, naturally fixed thereto although the fixing means have been omitted on account of its very popularity, the first stop portion 2f will be brought into collision against the check roller 10, and second stop portion 2m will brought into pressure contact with stop pin 9. Thus, rotation of door side leaf2 is positively prevented so that a completely closed condition of the door as well as the leaf 2 is brought about with high safety.

When the door side leaf is rotated counter clockwise from its position shown in FIG. 3, the contact point between check arm 8 and check roller I0 will shift with increasing the torsional moment accumulated in the torsion bar 7. When this contact point comes to the peak 8d on check arm 8, the turning moment at the leaf 2 will become maximum and when it passes over this contact point, the leaf 2 will automatically rotate counter clockwise and when other valley 8e on check arm 8 will come up to said check roller 10, as shown in FIG. 4, the turning moment will become minimum, thereby a half opening condition of the door being realized with high safety.

When the leaf 2 is further rotated counter clockwise and other peak 8f on check arm 8 to contact with check roller 10, the turning moment of leaf 2 will become maximum and check roller 10 will roll along the inclined surface 8g on check arm 8, thus the leaf 2 being rotated automatically in counter clockwise direc- When the door together with its leaf 2 is rotated clockwise from its fully opened position shown in FIG. 5, the contact point between check arm 8 and check roller 10 will come to the peak 8f on check arm 8. At this stage, the door side leaf 2 has a maximum turning moment. After this time point, the leaf 2 will be rotated automatically. When the contact point between check arm 8 and check roller I0 comes to valley 8e on check arm 8, the turning moment will become minimum, thus a half opened door condition being held with safety.

When the door side leaf is turned further clockwise, the contact point between check arm 8 and check roller 10 will come to peak 80 on check arm 8. At this time, the turning moment will become maximum and then, the door will turn automatically. When the first door-closing stop 2f on the leaf 2 is brought into collision against check roller 10 and second stop portion 2m on the leaf 2 collides against hinge pin 9. Then, the door is held at its fully closed position with safety.

In the door opening and closing operations as was referred to hereinbefore, although the torsion bar 7 receives always force at 7d from check arm 8, it does not shift in the horizontal direction in FIG. I, because main portion 7a and bent-back 7c of torsion bar 7 are kept in engagement with circular opening 8a and slot 8b and therefore, a kind of loop is formed among check arm 8 and tip end and side surface 7d of torsion bar 7. And, as shown in FIG. 1, while the left-hand side of check arm 8 is kept in intimate contact with the righthand side of small wall portion 2h of the leaf 2, the recess or notch 7e on torsion bar 7 is kept in engagement with the recess or notch 2k on the leaf 2. Although the force as acting at 7c; 7d of torsional moment to act upon the main portion 7a of torsion bar 7, it does not provide any bending moment at 70; 7d of the torsion bar.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are as follows:

I. A door hinge unit comprising a first leaf fixedly attached to said door; a second leaf fixedly attached to said pillar; a hinge pin pivotably joining said leaves; a torsion bar having a straight main part and its each end shaped into a U-bend; a check arm having two separate openings for receiving one end of said torsion bar and said main part thereof; at least one peaked portion formed on said check arm for door-checking service, the main part of said torsion bar being rotatably mounted on one of said leaves; the opposite bent-back end of said torsion bar being fixedly attached to said one of the leaves; and roller means rotatably mounted on the other of said leaves and kept in pressure engagement with a checking surface formed on said check

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