Patent ID: 8833877
Filing Date: 2014-09-16
Classification: E05F,E05Y,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A hinge assembly for pivotably attaching a door to a domestic appliance, the hinge assembly comprising: a hinge body configured to attach to the door such that the hinge body is fixed relative to the door; a damper cylinder attached to the hinge body and having an inside surface; a foot attached to the hinge body and the cylinder, the foot being configured to engage a foot receiving portion of the domestic appliance such that the hinge body and the door pivot relative to the domestic appliance; a rod partially located inside the cylinder and partially located outside the cylinder, the rod having an outer surface and being slidable relative to the cylinder in a reciprocating motion between a fully contracted position and a fully extended position; and a coil spring positioned inside the cylinder and around the rod such that the rod extends through a center of a coil of the coil spring, the coil spring having an inner surface that is an inside surface of the coil of the coil spring, and an outer surface that is an outside surface of the coil of the coil spring, wherein the rod has a first portion that is the entire portion of the rod that is inside the coil of the coil spring when the rod is in the fully contracted position, the first portion of the rod has a uniform diameter, and the outer surface of the rod contacts the inner surface of the coil spring to prevent any portion of the outer surface of the coil spring from contacting the inside surface of the cylinder.