Abstract:
A hinge assembly includes a base, a link, a spring, and a pair of clutches. The spring attaches to the link, and the link attaches to an object to be supported, e.g., an LCD monitor. The clutches resist pivotal motion between the link and the base, and between the object and the link, wile the spring is in tension and balances the weight of the object. One or more additional combinations of these elements can be placed in parallel, joined by anti-sway bars, to further stabilize the assembly.

Description:
[0001]     This application is related to and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to U.S. provisional patent application No. 60/614,560, filed 30 Sep. 2004, bearing attorney docket number P2010US00, entitled “Display Hinge Assembly with An Adjustable Counter Balance”, by Paul Amdahl, David Kim, Robert Riccomini, and Gerson Goldberg, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The present invention relates to hinge assemblies, and more specifically to such assemblies used to support visual displays such as computer monitors and LCD television monitors.  
         [0004]     2. Brief Description of the Related Art  
         [0005]     Hinges or clutches have in the past been used to hold an LCD&#39;s position in a vertical (up-down) position and a tilted position. One problem that has been encountered with such prior systems using clutches is the difficulty in the user&#39;s feel of up-down movement; because the clutches are counter-balancing the overall weight of the LCD assembly (e.g., 15″˜4.6 lbs, 17″˜7.3 lbs, and 19″˜10.3 lbs), the torque values of the clutches need to be quite high. Thus, in upward movement, the user has to not only overcome the torque value of the clutches, but also the overall weight of the LCD assembly.  
         [0006]     There remains a need, therefore, for improvements in hinge assemblies that assist a user in adjusting the height and/or tilt of the object to which the hinge is attached.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     According to a first aspect of the invention, a hinge assembly useful for supporting an object includes a base, an attachment element configured and arranged to attach to said object, a link extending between the base and the attachment element, a tension element extending between the base and the link, and a resistive torque supplying device attached to the base and pivotally attached to the link, wherein the resistive torque supplying device inhibits the link pivoting relative to the base.  
         [0008]     Still other aspects, features, and attendant advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from a reading of the following detailed description of embodiments constructed in accordance therewith, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]     The invention of the present application will now be described in more detail with reference to exemplary embodiments of the apparatus, given only by way of example, and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0010]      FIG. 1  illustrates a right top rear perspective view of portions of an exemplary embodiment of a hinge assembly in accordance with the principles of the present invention; and  
         [0011]      FIG. 2  illustrates a right side elevational view of portions of the exemplary embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS  
       [0012]     Referring to the drawing figures, like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding elements throughout the several figures.  
         [0013]     A counter balanced hinge assembly in accordance with principles of the present invention assists the up-down movement of a display, e.g., a LCD assembly, thus giving a user very smooth feel during up-down movement.  
         [0014]     Turning now to the drawing figures, a first exemplary embodiment of a hinge assembly in accordance with the principles of the present invention is illustrated. Throughout the following description, reference will be simultaneously made to both  FIGS. 1 and 2 , as different portions of the exemplary hinge assembly have been excluded from each drawing figures to aid in a clearer understanding of the principles of the invention in general, and of the exemplary hinge assembly specifically.  
         [0015]      FIGS. 1 and 2  illustrate an exemplary hinge assembly  10  embodying principles of the present invention. The hinge  10  includes a base  12 , a display attachment element  14 , movable link  16  between the base and the display attachment element, a tension member  18 , and resistive torque supplying elements  20 ,  22 . While the following description details exemplary embodiments of structures which together act as a hinge assembly, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that other structures can be employed to perform the same or similar functions as those described herein without departing from the principles of the present invention.  
         [0016]     The base  12  includes a base bottom  42 , a first base half  30 , and a second base half  32  spaced from the first base half. An upstanding flange  34  is attached to the base  12 , and includes an attachment point  38 , e.g., one or more holes, a purpose of which will be described in greater detail below. A control bar  44  extends between the first  30  and second  32  base halves, which provides a tension direction transition point as also described in greater detail below. The control bar  44  also enables the tension member  18  to be longer than would otherwise be possible without the control bar, because the tension member passes over the control bar between the two points of attachment of the tension member to the other structures of the assembly. In this manner, exemplary embodiments of assemblies according to principles of the present invention can be more finely tuned, including longer tension members with higher effective spring rates, than embodiments of the present invention in which the tension member does not pass over the control bar  44 .  
         [0017]     The display attachment element  14  can take any of numerous forms, an example of which includes a bar or plate  46  to which a display D is firmly attached by known ways. The display D has a mass M, the gravitational force from which is, at least in part, counteracted by structures described herein.  
         [0018]     The movable link  16  is attached to the base  12  at a base end  64  and to the display attachment element  14  at a display end  66 , and joins the two together. According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the movable link  16  includes at least a parallel pair of bars, including an upper bar  60  and a lower bar  62 . In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in the figures, each bar  60 ,  62  includes spaced apart portions at both the base end  64  and the display end  66 , and are pivotally attached to the base halves  30 ,  32  at pivot points  40 , and directly or indirectly to the display attachment element  14  at the display end  66 . As can be seen in both drawing figures, an attachment point  68  is provided, e.g., on the lower bar  62 , for attaching a tension member to the movable link  16 ; the attachment point can be located anywhere on the link in accordance with the present invention. A clutch attachment point  48  is provided on the display attachment element  14 , as will be described in greater detail below.  
         [0019]     While a single base/link/display attachment/tension element/resistive torque supplying element combination can support a display D, the present invention extends to the provision of more than one such combination, acting in parallel with each other to support a display D. As illustrated in the drawing figures, a second combination of these elements is illustrated spaced apart from the first set of these elements, bridged by the display attachment element  14 ; of course, if the display D itself is sufficiently rigid, the display attachment element need not bridge the two sets of elements, and the two or more attachment elements can separately and independently attach to the display D, in accordance with the principles of the present invention.  
         [0020]     The second base/link/display attachment/tension element/resistive torque supplying element combination includes an upper bar  80 , lower bar  82 , base  84 , flange  86 , control bar  88 , and the other structures described herein. Thus, the second set is, essentially, a duplicate of the first, and preferably includes the same elements. Optionally, one or more anti-sway bars  100 ,  102 , extend between the movable links  16 , and inhibit or prevent the parallel sets of structures from moving out of parallel planes. While the bars  100 ,  102  are illustrated as extending between both upper and lower bars  60 ,  62 , other embodiments in accordance with the principles of the present invention include only a single anti-sway bar joining portions of the movable links  16 . Thus, as illustrated in the exemplary embodiment of the drawing figures, a four-bar linkage links the bases  12 ,  84 , and the display D.  
         [0021]     With more specific reference to  FIG. 2 , tension element  18  and resistive torque supplying elements  20 ,  22  are illustrated. In general terms, the tension element  18  provides a tension force between the base  12  and the link  16 , while the resistive torque supplying element  20  resists, but does not prevent, pivotal motion between the link  16  and the base  12 , and the resistive torque supplying element  22  resists, but does not prevent, pivotal motion between the link  16  and the display attachment element  14 . In this manner, the tension element  18  can provide most, or all, of the force necessary to offset the gravitational force of the display D, optionally assisted by the force provided by resistive torque supplying element  20 . The resistive torque supplying element  20  provides a force resisting up and down motion of the display D, while the resistive torque supplying element  22  provides a force resisting tilting or rotation of the display D at the attachment point  48 .  
         [0022]     The tension element  18  can be, according to the principles of the present invention, embodied in one or more of numerous structures. By way of example and not of limitation, one or more tension springs  110  can be stretched, preferably with a pre-tension, between the base  12 , e.g., at the attachment point  38 , and the link  16 , e.g., at the attachment point  68 . When the attachment point  38  is provided near the bottom of the base  12 , it is advantageous to extend the tension element  18  over the control bar  44 , thus providing the tension force vector with an upward component that, by appropriate selection of the spring rate of the tension element  18 , at least partially, and preferably completely compensates for the gravitational force on the display D.  
         [0023]     As can be seen in  FIG. 2 , the base includes an internal, that is, between the two halves  30 ,  32 , upstanding flange  36  to which the resistive torque supplying element  20  is firmly attached. The resistive torque supplying element  20  is pivotally attached to the link  16 , e.g., at the lower bar  62 , at an attachment point  120 . Thus, the link  16  can pivot at the resistive torque supplying element  20 , but only after a preselected rotational force (moment) is applied to the display end  66  of the link  16 . Thus, the resistive torque supplying element  20  stabilizes the interaction between the tension element  18  and the display D, and optionally can provide some of the force necessary to offset the weight of the display.  
         [0024]     The display end  66  of the link  16  is attached to a resistive torque supplying element  22  in an optionally different manner; the resistive torque supplying element  22  is illustrated in part in broken lines, and exemplarily has the same general shape as resistive torque supplying element  20 . A link  124  is provided between the upper bar  60  and the lower bar  62 , and includes a slot  130 . The resistive torque supplying element  22  is attached to the attachment point  48  on the display attachment element  14  at the pivot point  122 , while other portions of the resistive torque supplying element  22  extend into and are retained in the slot  130 . In this manner, the display D can be tilted about the pivot point  122 , once sufficient force/moment is applied to the display to overcome the force of the resistive torque supplying element  22 , while the link  124  keeps the upper bar  60  and lower bar  62  parallel at pivot points  126 ,  128 .  
         [0025]     The resistive torque supplying elements  20 ,  22 , preferably include a friction clutch such as those commonly commercially available in numerous sizes and friction force values. Further optionally, adjustable friction clutches can be provided, by which the statics of and motion between the structures described herein can be finely tuned. The tension element  18  can include one or more tension springs. Preferably, although not necessarily, the elements  20 ,  22 , supply the same amount of resistive torque, and/or tension elements  18  supply the same amount of force, so the motion of the hinge is substantially even.  
         [0026]     Further optionally, the display D can be replaced with any other object for which it is useful to control a height and/or a tilt, including, but not limited to, computing devices, lamps, mirrors, static displays, signs, chalkboards, whiteboards, cameras, etc.  
         [0027]     While the invention has been described in detail with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various changes can be made, and equivalents employed, without departing from the scope of the invention. Each of the aforementioned documents is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.