WO2012099437A2 - Portable electronic device having a multi-hinge structure - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a portable electronic device comprising: a device body; a display unit; a first hinge unit arranged in the device body; a second hinge unit arranged in the display unit; and a support arm, both ends of which are connected to the first hinge unit and to the second hinge unit, respectively, wherein the support arm is configured such that the shape or length thereof is variable in order to adjust the spacing between the first hinge unit and second hinge unit.

Description

Portable electronic device with multi-hinge structure

The present invention relates to a portable electronic device, and more particularly, to a portable electronic device having an improved coupling relationship between a device body and a display unit.

This application claims the priority based on Korean Patent Application No. 10-2011-0005656, filed January 20, 2011 and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2011-0109462, filed October 25, 2011, All content disclosed in the specification and drawings of an application is incorporated in this application.

Portable electronic devices such as smartphones, UMPCs, PDAs, and the like, which are rapidly increasing in demand, are usually equipped with a small display unit of 10 inches or less, and a main body of a device where a keyboard is disposed is also provided in a very small size corresponding to the display unit. to be.

Such portable electronic devices are preferably designed to be user-friendly so as to satisfy the needs of the light and thin components and to conveniently use the device body and the display unit.

In general, portable electronic devices, such as a bar type, flip type, folding type, slide type, etc., have been released in the form of a combination of a main body and a display unit.

However, the conventional coupling structure as described above is inconvenient to use because there is a very limited degree of freedom for folding or unfolding the display unit with respect to the main body of the device, and there is a need for improvement.

Alternatively, Korean Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 10-2005-0060827 discloses a clamshell mobile communication terminal characterized in that the main body and the folder are rotatably coupled to each other. However, a portable electronic device having such a structure causes a lot of wear to the coupling portion by rotation and slide between the main body and the folder, so that the coupling structure is very unstable.

In addition, it is not easy to freely adjust and fix the angle of the display unit, which is inconvenient, and the size of the display unit is very limited, which impairs the multimedia functionality.

The present invention was devised in consideration of the above problems, and provides a portable electronic device having improved freedom by a multi-hinge structure to maintain a firm fastening between the main body of the device and the display unit, and to support various angle adjustment functions. Its purpose is.

In order to achieve the above object, a portable electronic device according to the present invention includes a device main body and a display unit, a first hinge part provided in the device main body, a second hinge part provided in the display part, and both ends thereof. And a support arm connected to the first hinge portion and the second hinge portion, wherein the support arm has a structure having a variable shape or length such that a gap is adjustable between the first hinge portion and the second hinge portion. It is done.

The support arm may have at least two connecting bars and a third hinge portion connecting adjacent connecting bars.

Alternatively, the support arm may have a connecting bar having a predetermined length, or a multistage pipe structure capable of stretching the length.

The first hinge portion may be provided at one edge of the main body of the device, and the second hinge portion may be provided at the rear of the display portion.

The display unit may be folded on an upper surface of the main body of the device in a state where a distance between the first hinge portion and the second hinge portion is maximum or minimum.

The portable electronic device may further include a guide part formed on an upper side or a side of the main body of the device, and configured to guide the display unit to move on an upper portion of the main body of the device according to a gap between the first hinge part and the second hinge part. can do.

The guide part may be formed in a groove shape, and the display part may include a slider that is slidably fastened in the groove.

Alternatively, the guide part may be formed in a groove shape, and a guide bar of a multi-stage pipe structure may be provided in the groove, the length of which may be expanded and contracted as the display part moves.

The present invention can support various folding and angle adjustment functions considering user convenience while maintaining a fastening state between the device body and the display unit by the multi-hinge and the support arm.

In addition, the present invention is a sliding and angle adjustment between the device body and the display unit can be made smoothly by the multi-hinge and the support arm and the guide portion, and the coupling between the device body and the display unit is maintained closely, which is excellent in durability and structural stability have.

The following drawings attached to this specification are illustrative of preferred embodiments of the present invention, and together with the detailed description of the invention to serve to further understand the technical spirit of the present invention, the present invention is a matter described in such drawings It should not be construed as limited to.

1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a portable electronic device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

2 and 3 are a plan view showing a coupling configuration of the display unit and the main body of the device which can be employed in the present invention;

4 is a rear view of FIG. 1;

Figure 5 is a side view showing the operation of the portable electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention,

6 is a side view illustrating an operation process of a portable electronic device according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an example in which a structure for guiding sliding of a display unit is provided in FIG. 1.

<Description of main reference numerals in the drawings>

100: device body 110: display unit

120: first hinge portion 130: support arm

131: first connecting bar 132: second connecting bar

140: second hinge portion 150: guide portion

151: slider

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, terms or words used in the specification and claims should not be construed as having a conventional or dictionary meaning, and the inventors should properly explain the concept of terms in order to best explain their own invention. Based on the principle that can be defined, it should be interpreted as meaning and concept corresponding to the technical idea of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments described in the specification and the drawings shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiment of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical idea of the present invention, various modifications that can be replaced at the time of the present application It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a portable electronic device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a portable electronic device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may include a first hinge provided in the device body 100 and the display unit 110, and the device body 100 and the display unit 110, respectively. The branch part 120 and the second hinge part 140 and both ends of the support arm 130 are connected to the first hinge part 120 and the second hinge part 140.

Although the first hinge portion 120, the second hinge portion 140 and the support arm 130 is shown in the center portion of the portable electronic device in the drawings, but is not limited to this, the first hinge portion 120 ) And the second hinge portion 140 and the support arm 130 may be provided on both left and right sides with respect to the center of the portable electronic device.

Devices for operating a portable electronic device corresponding to, for example, a smartphone, a UMPC, a PDA, and the like are mounted inside the main body of the device 100, and a keyboard used as an input device is provided on an upper surface thereof. Here, the keyboard provided in the device main body 100 may be provided in the form of an integrated keyboard installed in the device main body 100 as shown in FIG. 2, and the virtual keyboard displayed through the touch screen as shown in FIG. 3. It may be provided in the form of a keyboard.

The display unit 110 is an apparatus for displaying an image output from the apparatus main body 100, and is provided in the form of a flat panel display such as an LCD.

The first hinge part 120 is provided at one edge of the device main body 100, and the second hinge part 140 is provided at the rear of the display 110. The second hinge unit 140 may be formed to be exposed to the outside of the rear surface of the display unit 110. Alternatively, the second hinge unit 140 may be formed in a predetermined storage space provided at the rear of the display unit 110. Here, the storage space is preferably formed to accommodate the entire support arm 130, including the second hinge portion 140. Although not shown in the drawing, the second hinge 140 may be slidably installed along a predetermined section of the rear surface of the display 110.

Both ends of the support arm 130 are hinged to the first hinge portion 120 and the second hinge portion 140. The present invention implements a function of variously folding, unfolding, and adjusting the angle of the display unit 110 by an organic operation between the first hinge unit 120, the support arm 130, and the second hinge unit 140. do.

As shown in FIG. 4, the support arm 130 basically provides a function of supporting the display unit 110 with respect to the device body 100. In addition, the support arm 130 has a structure in which a shape or a length is changed so that the gap between the first hinge portion 120 and the second hinge portion 140 can be adjusted. Provides the ability to rotate or move back and forth.

As shown in FIG. 5, the support arm 130 is provided in a joint structure having a first connecting bar 131 and a second connecting bar 132 adjacent to each other, and a third hinge portion 133 connecting them. do. Here, the number of connecting bars constituting the support arm 130 and the third hinge portion 133 is not limited to the example illustrated in the drawings and may be variously modified.

The support arm 130 is changed in shape or length as the first connecting bar 131 and the second connecting bar 132 are folded or unfolded with respect to the third hinge portion 133. Since the distance between the first hinge portion 120 and the second hinge portion 140 is adjusted according to the deformation or the change of the length of the support arm 130, it is possible to slide the display 110 on the device body 100. .

5 (a) to 5 (c) illustrate a process of unfolding and standing the display unit 110 that is folded on the upper surface of the device main body 100. FIG. 5A illustrates a state in which the front surface of the display 110 is folded outward. In this case, the display 110 maintains a state in which the distance between the first hinge part 120 and the second hinge part 140 is maximum. Alternatively, the present invention may be folded in a state in which the display unit 110 is inverted by using the second hinge unit 140. In addition, the display 110 may be designed to be folded in a state where the gap between the first hinge 120 and the second hinge 140 is at a minimum.

As shown in (b) to (c) of FIG. 5, as the display unit 110 is unfolded, the display unit 110 is erected while sliding on the upper surface of the device main body 100, and the first hinge unit 120 is mounted. ), The screen angle may be appropriately adjusted by adjusting the rotation angles with respect to the second hinge part 140 and the third hinge part 133.

Although not shown in the drawings, a predetermined fixing member may be added between the display 110 and the device main body 100 to fix the screen angle of the display 110.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 6, a portable electronic device having a multi-stage pipe structure in which the support arm 130 is flexible in length may be provided. In addition, according to a modified example of the present invention, a portable electronic device in which at least one of the first connecting bar 131 and the second connecting bar 132 constituting the support arm 130 of the above-described embodiment is configured in the form of a multistage pipe. May be provided.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the support arm 130 may be formed by a straight connecting bar having a predetermined length. The connecting bar is provided in substantially the same form as the first connecting bar 131 or the second connecting bar 132 illustrated in FIG. 5, and both ends thereof have a first hinge portion 120 and a second hinge portion 140. Are each connected to.

As shown in (a) to (c) of FIG. 6, as the display 110 is unfolded, the display 110 is erected while sliding on an upper surface of the device main body 100, and the first hinge part ( The screen angle may be appropriately adjusted by the rotation angle of the 120 and the second hinge unit 140 and the stretching length of the support arm 130.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, the device main body 100 guides the display unit 110 moving from the upper portion of the device main body 100 according to the distance adjustment between the first hinge part 120 and the second hinge part 140. A guide portion 150 having a groove structure may be provided. Here, the lower end of the display 110 is provided with a slider 151 which is fastened to be linearly slidable in the groove. Although shown in the drawing an example in which the guide portion 150 is formed on the upper portion of the main body 100, the guide portion 150 is not limited to this may be formed on the side of the main body 100.

Since the sliding operation of the display 110 is performed while the slider 151 is fastened in the guide part 150, the device main body 100 and the display 110 may maintain a close coupling relationship.

In addition, the guide part 150 may be equipped with a guide bar (not shown) whose length is stretched in conjunction with the movement of the display 110. Like the support arm 130 shown in FIG. 6, the guide bar may be provided in a multi-stage pipe structure, or may be provided in a conventional spring showbar or joint form. One end of the guide bar is fixed to the device body 100, and the other end is coupled to the slider 151. Here, the slider 151 may be hinged to the other end of the guide bar and / or the display 110.

As described above, the portable electronic device according to the present invention is a display unit 110 by the rotation and deformation operation according to the organic coupling of the multi-hinges and the support arm 130 provided in the device body 100 and the display unit 110 ) Can be folded and unfolded.

Although the present invention has been described above by means of limited embodiments and drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto and will be described below by the person skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Of course, various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the claims.

The present invention can be usefully applied to a portable electronic device such as a smart phone or a portable computer because it can be freely deformed into a shape that is convenient to carry and use by folding and unfolding the display unit.

Claims (8)

1. In a portable electronic device having a device body and a display unit,

   A first hinge part provided in the device main body, a second hinge part provided in the display part, and a support arm connected at both ends thereof to the first hinge part and the second hinge part,

   The support arm is a portable electronic device, characterized in that the shape or the length of the structure is variable so as to enable the gap adjustment between the first hinge portion and the second hinge portion.
2. The method of claim 1,

   And the support arm has at least two connecting bars and a third hinge for connecting adjacent connecting bars.
3. The method of claim 1,

   The support arm is a portable electronic device, characterized in that it has a connecting bar having a predetermined length, or a multi-stage pipe structure that can be stretched in length.
4. The method according to claim 2 or 3,

   The first hinge portion is provided at one edge end of the device main body,

   The second hinge portion is a portable electronic device, characterized in that provided on the back of the display.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein

   The display unit is a portable electronic device, characterized in that the folding on the upper surface of the main body of the device in a state where the distance between the first hinge portion and the second hinge portion is the maximum or minimum.
6. The method of claim 1,

   A guide part formed on an upper side or a side of the device main body and guiding the display unit moving in an upper part of the device main body according to an adjustment of a distance between the first hinge part and the second hinge part; Portable electronic devices.
7. The method of claim 6,

   The guide portion is formed in the shape of a groove,

   The display unit is a portable electronic device, characterized in that provided with a slider slidably fastened in the groove.
8. The method of claim 6,

   The guide portion is formed in the shape of a groove,

   The groove is provided in the groove is provided with a guide bar of a multi-stage pipe structure is stretched in accordance with the movement of the display unit.

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