WO2008007464A1

WO2008007464A1 - Hinge mechanism and foldable electronic apparatus with the same

Info

Publication number: WO2008007464A1
Application number: PCT/JP2007/000752
Authority: WO
Inventors: Masao Higuchi; Kazuaki Ibaraki; Kunikazu Miyamoto; Takeharu Naitou
Original assignee: Japan Aviation Electronics Industry, Limited
Priority date: 2006-07-13
Filing date: 2007-07-11
Publication date: 2008-01-17
Also published as: JP4384142B2; JP2008019989A

Abstract

A hinge mechanism for a foldable electronic apparatus having a cable interconnecting circuits arranged in two housings, the hinge mechanism having a structure for protecting the cable. A foldable electronic apparatus having the hinge mechanism is also provided. The hinge mechanism (8) has a shaft (20), a first mechanism pivotally supported by the shaft (20), a second mechanism non-pivotally supported by the shaft (20), and a washer (27). The shaft (20) has a shaft and a through-hole (33) penetrating in the axial direction. The first mechanism has a cam (21), a first spacer (24a), a first outer shell (25a), and a fixed member (26). The secondmechanism has a first member (22a), a second member (22b), a first pressing member (23a), a second pressing member (23b), a second spacer (24b), and a second outer shell (25b).

Description

Specification

Hinge mechanism and foldable electronic device equipped with this hinge mechanism

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to a hinge mechanism and a foldable electronic device provided with the hinge mechanism.

Background art

[0002] A foldable electronic device such as a foldable mobile phone is provided with a hinge mechanism for connecting two housings. This type of hinge mechanism is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-6 5 7 78 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2 0 0 2-1 5 5 9 2 3.

[0003] A foldable electronic device is equipped with a cable for connecting circuits provided in two casings. If this cable is damaged, the electronics will not function. Therefore, there is a need for a mechanism to properly protect cables.

Patent Document 1: JP-A-10-6 5 7 7 8

Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2 0 0 2 _ 1 5 5 9 2 3

Disclosure of the invention

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to provide a foldable electronic device provided with a hinge mechanism having a mechanism for protecting a cable and provided with the hinge mechanism.

[0005] According to one aspect of the present invention, a shaft having a shaft and having a hole penetrating in the axial direction, a first mechanism rotatably supported on the shaft, and the shaft A hinge mechanism having a second mechanism that is non-rotatably supported is obtained.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Here, the mobile phone is open.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing the cellular phone of FIG. 1 folded.

[Fig. 3] Hinge mechanism and cable with connector mounted on the cellular phone shown in Fig. 1 FIG.

4 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing the hinge mechanism of FIG. 3. FIG.

FIG. 5 is another perspective view schematically showing the hinge mechanism of FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view schematically showing a part of the mobile phone of FIG. 1. There is no Hinge mechanism built into it.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view schematically showing a part of the mobile phone of FIG. 1. There is a Hinge mechanism built in.

8 is a view for explaining one state of the hinge mechanism of FIG.

FIG. 9 is a view for explaining another state of the hinge mechanism of FIG. 3.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the foldable electronic device according to one embodiment of the present invention is a mobile phone 1. In FIG. 1, the display area and buttons on the mobile phone 1 are omitted for the sake of simplicity. The present invention is not limited to a mobile phone and may be other foldable electronic devices.

The mobile phone 1 includes an upper casing 2 and a lower casing 3 each having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The upper casing 2 has an upper inner casing 4 and an upper outer casing 5. The lower casing 3 has a lower inner casing 6 and a lower outer casing 7. The upper housing 2 has a substantially rectangular upper inner surface 10, and the lower housing 3 has a substantially rectangular lower inner surface 11. When the cellular phone 1 is open as shown in FIG. 1, the upper inner surface 10 0 and the lower inner surface 11 are oriented in substantially the same direction, and when the cellular phone 1 is closed as shown in FIG. 2, the upper inner surface 10 is The lower inner surface 1 1 faces each other.

As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile phone 1 includes a joint portion 12 provided near the short side of the upper inner surface 10 and the lower inner surface 11. The joint portion 1 2 functions as a rotating shaft when the cellular phone 1 is opened and closed. The joint portion 1 2 includes first and second sub-joint portions 1 3 a and 1 3 b provided on the lower inner housing 6, a side surface portion 14 provided on the lower outer housing 7, and an upper outer portion. A third sub-joint portion 15 provided in the casing 5 and a fourth sub-joint portion 17 provided in the upper inner casing 4 are configured. Inside the joint part 1 2 is shown in Fig. 3. As shown, a hinge mechanism 8 and a cable 9 with a connector are provided.

The first and second sub-joint portions 1 3 a and 1 3 b shown in FIG. 1 are disposed at one end and the other end of the short side of the lower inner surface 11 so as to protrude from the lower inner surface 11. Yes. An imaginary line that connects the first sub-joint portion 13 a and the second sub-joint portion 13 b defines the rotation axis of the opening / closing operation of the mobile phone 1. The first and second sub-joint portions 1 3 ₃ and 1 3 b are provided with holes that extend along the rotation axis. The side surface portion 14 covers the holes of the first and second sub-joint portions 1 3 a and 1 3 b from the outside of the rotating shaft. A substantially cylindrical third sub-joint portion 15 is disposed between the first sub-joint portion 1 3 a and the second sub-joint portion 1 3 b. A substantially semi-cylindrical opening 16 is provided in the vicinity of the center of the rotation axis of the third sub-joint portion 15. A fourth sub-joint portion 17 covers the opening 16. The third sub-joint portion 15 rotates around the rotation axis between the first sub-joint portion 13 a and the second sub-joint portion 13 b.

[001 1] The hinge mechanism according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5 as well.

Referring to FIG. 3, the cable 9 with a connector includes a cable 18, a first connector 19 a and a second connector 19 b. Cable 18 is partially held by hinge mechanism 8. The first connector 19 a is harnessed at one end of the cable 18, and the second connector 19 b is harnessed at the other end of the cable 18. The first connector 19 a is connected to a circuit (not shown) inside the lower housing 3, and the second connector 19 b is connected to a circuit (not shown) inside the upper housing 2.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, the hinge mechanism 8 includes a shaft 20, a first mechanism that is rotatably supported by the shaft, and a first mechanism that is rotatably supported by the shaft. 2 mechanisms and washers 27. In the present embodiment, the first mechanism is connected to the lower housing 3, and the second mechanism is connected to the upper housing 2. The first mechanism consists of a cam 2 1, a first spacer 2 4 a, a first outline 2 5 a and a fixing member 2 And 6. The second mechanism includes a first member 2 2a, a second member 2 2b, a first pressing member 2 3a, a second pressing member 2 3b, a second spacer 2 4b and a second And an outer shell 2 5 b.

As shown in FIG. 4, the shaft 20 has a shaft portion 30 that connects the first end portion 31 and the second end portion 32. The shaft portion 30 extends linearly. The shaft part 30 is a cavity. The cross section of the shaft part 30 has a substantially elliptical outer shape. In this specification, the term “substantially oval” includes a shape of a running track composed of a pair of arcs and a pair of straight portions. The cross section of the first end portion 31 is an annular shape smaller than the outer shape of the shaft portion 30. The second end portion 32 has a substantially elliptical flange shape having a straight portion. The shaft 20 is provided with a through hole 33 that passes from the first end portion 31 to the shaft portion 30 and penetrates to the second end portion 32. The cable 18 is passed through and held in the through hole 33.

As shown in FIG. 4, the cam 21 is disposed between the first member 2 2a and the second member 2 2b. The cam 21 has a first cam surface 4 O a facing the first member 2 2 a side and a second cam surface 40 b facing the second member 2 2 b side. A hole 41 is provided so as to penetrate between the first cam surface 40a and the second cam surface 40b.

[001 6] The shaft portion 30 of the shaft 20 is passed through the hole 4 1. The hole 41 has a diameter larger than the maximum diameter of the cross section of the shaft portion 30. For this reason, the shaft 20 can freely rotate in the hole 41.

[001 7] The first cam surface 40 a and the second cam surface 40 b are symmetrical to each other with respect to a plane that passes through the center of the cam 21 in the rotation axis direction and is orthogonal to the rotation axis. The first cam surface 40 a is provided with two first recesses 42 a that are positioned symmetrically with respect to the hole 41. In the second cam surface 40 b, two second recesses 42 b that are symmetrically positioned with respect to the hole 41 are provided. The first recess 4 2 a and the second recess 4 2 b correspond in the direction of the rotation axis.

[0018] The cam 21 has an outer peripheral surface 43, and the outer peripheral surface 43 is provided with two stopper protrusions 44 protruding in the radial direction of the shaft 30. Two strikes The upper protrusions 44 are located symmetrically with respect to the rotation axis. The line connecting the two stopper protrusions 4 4 is orthogonal to the other line connecting the two first recesses 4 2 a.

[001 9] The first member 2 2 a is disposed between the cam 2 1 and the first pressing member 2 3 a. The first member 2 2 a has a surface 50 0 a facing the cam 2 1 side and a first pressing member

2 3 a and a surface 5 1 a facing toward the a side. A hole 52a is provided so as to penetrate between the surface 50a and the surface 51a. The shaft portion 30 of the shaft 20 is passed through the hole 52a. The shape of the hole 5 2 a is a substantially ellipse having approximately the same size as the cross section of the shaft portion 30 of the shaft 20. Accordingly, the first member 2 2 a and the second member 2 2 b can slide in the direction of the rotation axis along the shaft portion 30, but cannot rotate separately from the shaft 20. That is, the hole 5 2 a rotates as the shaft 20 rotates. A first convex portion 53a is provided on the surface 50a. First convex part 5

3 a protrudes toward the first cam surface 40 a side. The first convex portions 5 3 a are located symmetrically with respect to each other. The first convex portion 53a functions as a follower portion or a cam follower portion that slides on the first cam surface 40a around the rotation axis.

The second member 2 2 b is disposed between the cam 2 1 and the second pressing member 2 3 b. The second member 2 2 b is composed of a surface 50 b facing the cam 21 and the second pressing member.

2 3 b and face 5 1 b. A hole 52b is provided so as to penetrate between the surface 50b and the surface 51b. The shaft portion 30 of the shaft 20 is passed through the hole 52b. The shape of the hole 5 2 b is a substantially ellipse having substantially the same size as the cross section of the shaft portion 30 of the shaft 20. Accordingly, the first member 2 2 a and the second member 2 2 b can slide in the direction of the rotation axis along the shaft portion 30, but cannot rotate separately from the shaft 20. That is, the hole 5 2 b rotates as the shaft 20 rotates. A second convex portion 53b is provided on the surface 50b. Second convex part 5

3 b protrudes to the second cam surface 40 b side. The second protrusions 5 3 b are located symmetrically with respect to each other. The second convex portion 53b functions as a follower portion or a cam follower portion that slides on the second cam surface 40b.

[0021] The first convex portion 5 3 a and the second convex portion 5 3 b correspond to each other in the rotation axis direction. is doing. Accordingly, when the first convex portion 53a contacts the first concave portion 42a, the second convex portion 53b also contacts the second concave portion 42b.

[0022] The first pressing member 23a is movably supported on the shaft 20 between the first member 22a and the first spacer 24a. In the present embodiment, the first pressing member 23 a is a coil spring, and the shaft 20 is passed through the first pressing member 23 a and partially enclosed. The first pressing member 23 a presses the surface 50 a of the first member 22 a on the first cam surface 40 a of the gum 21.

[0023] The second pressing member 23b is movably supported on the shaft 20 between the second member 22b and the second spacer 24b. The second pressing member 23 b presses the surface 50 b of the second member 22 b on the second cam surface 40 b of the cam 21.

[0024] The force pressing the first member 2 2a and the second member 2 2b against the cam 21 is given by two pressing means, that is, the first pressing member 2 3a and the second pressing member 2 3b. It is done. Thereby, compared with the case where there is only one pressing means, each pressing force of the first pressing member 23a and the second pressing member 23b can be reduced.

[0025] The first spacer 24a is an annular plate member sandwiched between the first pressing member 23a and the first outer shell 25a. The first spacer 2 4 a is provided with a hole 5 4 a. The first end portion 31 of the shaft 20 is passed through the hole 5 4 a. The shape of the hole 54 b is substantially the same circle as the cross section of the first end portion 31 of the shaft 20. The shaft 20 rotates freely in the hole 5 4 b.

[0026] The second spacer 24b is an annular plate member sandwiched between the second pressing member 23b and the second outer shell 25b. The second spacer 2 4 b is provided with a hole 5 4 b. The shaft portion 30 of the shaft 20 is passed through the hole 5 4 b. The shape of the hole 5 4 b is substantially an ellipse which is substantially the same as the outer shape of the cross section of the shaft portion 30. The second spacer 2 4 b rotates as the shaft 20 rotates.

[0027] The first outer shell 25a has an end portion 61a and a body portion 60a. End 6 1 a is It is located between the first spacer 2 4 a and the fixing member 2 6. The end 6 1 a extends in a disk shape in a plane perpendicular to the rotation axis. The end 61a is provided with a hole 62a. The shaft 20 is passed through the hole 6 2 a in the direction of the rotation axis. The shape of the hole 6 2 a is a substantially circular shape having substantially the same size as the cross section of the first end portion 31 of the shaft 20. The shaft 20 rotates freely in the hole 6 2 a. Two locked portions 6 3 a are provided on the outer peripheral edge portion of the end portion 6 1 a at symmetrical positions around the hole 6 2 a.

[0028] The body portion 60a has a cylindrical shape, and extends from the outer peripheral edge portion of the end portion 61a in the rotation axis direction. The body 60a is composed of the cam 21, the first member 22a, and the first pressing member.

2 3 a and the first spacer 2 4 a are covered. Two convex piece holding portions 64, each having a force-off shape or a cut-out shape, are provided on a part of the edge of the body portion 60a. The two convex piece holding portions 64 are formed on the edge of the trunk portion 60 a at symmetrical positions around the rotation axis.

[0029] The second outer shell 25b has an end 61b and a second body 60b. The end portion 61 b is located between the second spacer 24 b and the second end portion 32 of the shaft 20. The end portion 6 1 b extends in a disk shape in a plane orthogonal to the rotation axis. The end 6 1 b is provided with a hole 6 2 b. Hole 6 2 b has shaft 20 shaft

30 is passed through in the direction of the rotation axis. The shape of the hole 6 2 b is a substantially ellipse having approximately the same size as the outer shape of the cross section of the shaft portion 30. As the shaft 20 rotates, the second outer shell 25 b rotates.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 5, two locked portions 63b are provided on the outer peripheral edge of the end 61b. The two locked grooves 6 3 b are symmetrically positioned around the shaft 20. The second end portion 3 2 is in surface contact with the end portion 6 1 b to prevent the shaft 20 from entering the hinge mechanism 8.

[0031] As shown in FIG. 4, the body 60b has a cylindrical shape and extends from the outer peripheral edge of the end 61b in the direction of the rotation axis. The body portion 6 Ob covers the second member 22b, the second pressing member 23b, and the second spacer 24b.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 3, the convex piece holding portion 6 4 is engaged with the stopper convex portion 4 4 of the cam 21. It has been stopped. For this reason, even if the shaft 20 rotates, the cam 21 is relatively fixed with respect to the first outer shell 25 a.

The fixed member 26 shown in FIG. 4 is a plate-like member provided between the end portion 6 1 a and the washer 2 7. The fixing member 26 is provided with a hole 70. The second end portion 31 of the shaft 20 is passed through the hole 70. The shape of the hole 70 is a substantially circular shape having the same size as the outer shape of the cross section of the first end portion 31. The shaft 20 rotates freely in the hole 70. The fixing member 26 includes two locking pieces 7 1 a at positions facing the two locked portions 6 3 a.

As shown in FIG. 3, two locking pieces 7 1 a are locked to the two locked portions 6 3 a. For this reason, the first outer wall 25 a does not rotate even when the shaft 20 rotates, and is fixed relative to the fixing member 26.

[0035] The washer 27 in FIG. 4 is an annular plate member, and the first end 3 1 of the shaft 20 is arranged so that the fixing member 26 is sandwiched between the washer 27 and the end 61a. Is inserted. The tip of the first end portion 31 is caulked on the outside of the washer 27.

Referring to FIG. 6, in the third sub-joint portion 15, the locking member 7 2 is provided so as to fill approximately half of the opening 16 on the second sub-joint portion 1 3 b side. It is fixed. The shape of the locking member 72 is substantially circular. The locking member 72 rotates with the upper outer casing 5. The locking member 7 2 has two locking pieces 7 1 b, a shaft receiver 7 3, and a wiring outlet 7 4. The two locking pieces 7 1 b protrude from the first sub-joint portion 13 a and are locked to the two locked portions 6 3 b of the hinge mechanism 8. The shaft receiver 73 has a substantially elliptical cross section, opens toward the first sub-joint portion 13a, and receives the second end 32 of the shaft 20. The wiring outlet 74 is opened on the upper outer casing 5 side.

[0037] A housing portion 75 is provided on the first sub-joint portion 13a side. By inserting the hinge mechanism 8 in the direction of the rotation axis indicated by the arrow 76, the hinge mechanism 8 is mounted in the housing portion 75.

Referring to FIG. 7, the hinge mechanism 8 is attached to the accommodating portion 75. Hinge Two locking pieces 7 1 b of the locking member 7 2 are locked to the two locked portions 6 3 b of the mechanism 8, and the shaft 20 of the hinge mechanism 8 is the locking member 7 2 of FIG. Shaft receiving 7 7 3 received. As a result, the shaft 20 and the second outer shell 25 b of the hinge mechanism 8 rotate integrally with the upper outer casing 5. As shown in FIG. 7, the fixing member 26 of the hinge mechanism 8 is press-fitted into the accommodating portion 75 so as not to rotate. As a result, the fixing member 26 of the hinge mechanism 8 rotates together with the lower inner housing 6.

The cable 18 is passed through and held in the through hole 33 in the hinge mechanism 8. One end of the cable 18 exits from the first end 31 1 side and extends into the lower inner housing 6. The other end of the cable 18 exits from the second end portion 32 side and is guided into the upper outer casing 5 from the wiring outlet 74 shown in FIG.

[0040] Referring to Figs. 8 and 9, the first outline 25a and the second outline 25b of the hinge mechanism 8 are omitted for the sake of simplicity.

FIG. 8 shows a state of the hinge mechanism 8 when the upper housing 2 and the lower housing 3 of the mobile phone 1 are completely closed as shown in FIG. The first convex portion 5 3 a of the first member 2 2 a is located on the first concave portion 4 2 a of the cam 2 1, and the second member 2 2 b on the second concave portion 4 2 b of the cam 2 1 The second convex portion 5 3 b is located.

FIG. 9 shows the state of the hinge mechanism 8 when the upper housing 2 is slightly opened relative to the lower housing 3. As the upper casing 2 and the lower casing 3 rotate relative to each other, the shaft 20 rotates relative to the fixing member 26. As a result, the first member 2 2 a and the second member 2 2 b rotate relative to the cam 21. In this way, the first convex portion 53a rides on the first cam surface 40a outside the first concave portion 42a, and the second convex portion 53b is the first outer surface outside the second concave portion 42b. Take the 2 cam face 4 0 b.

[0043] When the upper casing 2 is further opened with respect to the lower casing 3, the first convex portion 5 3a and the second convex portion are formed by the first pressing member 2 3a and the second pressing member 2 3b. The part 5 3 b is pressed against and slides on the first cam surface 40 a and the second cam surface 40 b.

[0044] The upper housing 2 is fully opened by rotating it 180 degrees relative to the lower housing 3 in FIG. In such a state, as in FIG. 8, the first convex portion 5 3 a and the second convex portion 5 3 b force are pressed by the pressing force of the first pressing member 2 3 a and the second pressing member 23 b. Refit into the first recess 4 2 a and the second recess 4 2 b. As a result, the hinge mechanism 8 is clicked. When closing, the first convex portion 5 3a and the second convex portion 5 3b force fall into the first concave portion 4 2a and the second concave portion 4 2b, whereby the hinge mechanism 8 is clicked.

Claims

The scope of the claims

[1] A shaft having an axis and having a hole penetrating in the axial direction;

A first mechanism pivotally supported on the shaft;

A second mechanism supported by the shaft to be non-rotatable;

A hinge mechanism comprising:

2. The hinge mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the hole is for inserting a cable.

[3] The shaft has first and second ends,

The first mechanism includes a cam rotatably supported by the shuffle rod, and the cam includes a first cam surface facing the first end side, and the second end side. A second cam surface facing the

The second mechanism includes first and second members, and first and second pressing members,

The first member has a first follower portion, and is rotated around the shaft so as to be slidable on the shaft in the axial direction with the first follower portion facing the first cam surface. Supported by immobility,

The first pressing member presses the first follower flange portion of the first member onto the first force surface of the cam,

The second member has a second follower portion, and is rotated around the shaft so as to be slidable in the axial direction on the shaft with the second follower portion facing the second cam surface. Supported by immobility,

The second pressing member is for pressing the second follower flange portion of the second member onto the second cam surface of the force member.

The hinge mechanism according to claim 1 or 2.

[4] Two first recesses are formed on the first cam surface,

The first recesses are positioned symmetrically with respect to the shaft, and two second recesses are formed on the second force surface,

The second recesses are positioned symmetrically with respect to the shaft, And the first follower part of the first member has two first convex parts, and the first convex part is the shaft. The second follower part of the second member has two second convex parts, and the second convex parts are symmetrical with respect to the shaft. 4. The hinge mechanism according to claim 3, wherein the hinge mechanism is positioned in a position corresponding to the first convex portion in the axial direction.

[5] The first mechanism further includes a first shell that is rotatably supported by the shuffle rod, and that houses the first member, the first pressing member, and the cam.

The second mechanism is further supported by the shaft so as not to rotate, and further includes a second outer shell that accommodates the second member and the second pressing member.

The hinge mechanism according to claim 3 or claim 4.

[6] The cam has a stopper convex portion protruding outward in the radial direction of the shaft,

The first outer shell includes an end portion through which the shaft is threaded, the first member, the first pressing member, and a trunk portion that houses the cam.

A notch is provided on the edge of the body,

6. The hinge mechanism according to claim 5, wherein movement of the cam with respect to the body portion in a circumferential direction of the shuffle rod is restricted by accommodating the stopper convex portion in the notch-shaped portion.

[7] The hinge mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 6,

A first housing fixed relative to the cam;

A second housing fixed relative to the shaft;

A foldable electronic device equipped with.

[8] The hinge mechanism according to claim 5 or claim 6,

A first housing fixed relative to the first shell;

A second housing fixed relative to the second shell;

A foldable electronic device comprising: The foldable electronic device, wherein the first mechanism of the hinge mechanism further includes a fixing member for fixing the first outer shell to the first casing.

The first housing has protruding first and second sub-joint portions,

The second casing has a third sub-joint portion located between the first sub-joint portion and the second sub-joint portion,

Inside the first and third sub-joint portions, there is an accommodating portion that communicates the second and third sub-joint portions,

The hinge mechanism is accommodated in the accommodating portion,

A convex piece protruding in the axial direction is formed on the third sub-joint portion,

A convex piece holding portion is formed on the second outer shell,

The convex piece holding portion holds the convex piece, whereby the movement of the second outer shell with respect to the third sub-joint portion in the circumferential direction of the shaft is restricted,

The fixing member is press-fitted into the first sub-joint portion, whereby the hinge mechanism is fixed inside the accommodation hole.

9. A foldable electronic device according to claim 8.