Patent Publication Number: US-2023161387-A1

Title: Hinge

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority of Taiwanese Patent Application No. 110143538, filed on Nov. 23, 2021. 
     FIELD 
     The disclosure relates to a hinge, and more particularly to a hinge for use with a foldable electronic device that enables a sliding motion. 
     BACKGROUND 
     In general, a conventional hinge for use in a foldable electronic device, such as a notebook computer, enables pivotal motions about a fixed axis such that two casings of the foldable electronic device are pivotable with respect to each other to convert between an open state and a closed state. However, in terms of usability, the conventional hinge lacks the ability of enabling sliding motions that brings the upper casing (which has the display screen) toward a user for better viewing. 
     SUMMARY 
     Therefore, the object of the disclosure is to provide a hinge that enables a sliding motion. 
     According to the disclosure, a hinge includes a base seat, a moving platform and a shaft unit. 
     The base seat includes a rack that extends in a front-back direction. The moving platform is movable on the base seat along the front-back direction. The shaft unit includes a rotating shaft, a main gear member and a first bevel gear piece. The rotating shaft rotatably extends through the moving platform in a left-right direction. The main gear member rotatably extends through the moving platform, is co-movable with the moving platform along the front-back direction, and is meshed with the rack to constitute a rack and pinion system. The first bevel gear piece is fixedly sleeved on the rotating shaft and is meshed with the main gear member such that, during rotation of the rotating shaft relative to the moving platform, the first bevel gear piece co-rotates therewith and drives rotation of the main gear member, which is converted into linear motion of the main gear member relative to the rack by virtue of the rack and pinion system, to thereby result in collective linear motion of the shaft unit and the moving platform along the front-back direction relative to the base seat. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: 
         FIG.  1    is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a hinge according to the disclosure being mounted between a first device body and a second device body of an electronic device, illustrating a shaft unit of the first embodiment at a first position; 
         FIG.  2    is a perspective view similar to  FIG.  1   , illustrating the shaft unit at a second position; 
         FIG.  3    is a perspective view of the first embodiment, wherein the shaft unit is at the first position; 
         FIG.  4    is an exploded perspective view of the first embodiment; 
         FIG.  5    is a perspective view of a second upright block of a moving platform of the first embodiment; 
         FIG.  6    is a top view of the first embodiment; 
         FIG.  7    is a bottom view of the first embodiment; 
         FIG.  8    is a perspective view of the first embodiment, wherein the shaft unit is at the second position; 
         FIG.  9    is a side view of the first embodiment mounted in the electronic device, wherein the shaft unit is at the first position; and 
         FIG.  10    is a side view similar to  FIG.  9   , wherein the shaft unit is at the second position; 
         FIG.  11    is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the hinge according to the disclosure; and 
         FIG.  12    is an exploded perspective view of the second embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Before the present disclosure is described in greater detail, it should be noted that where considered appropriate, reference numerals or terminal portions of reference numerals have been repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements, which may optionally have similar characteristics. 
     Referring to  FIGS.  1  to  3   , a first embodiment of a hinge  10  according to the disclosure is adapted to be mounted between a first device body  20  and a second device body  30  to form an electronic device  100 . The electronic device  100  is a foldable device, such as a mobile phone, a tablet, a tablet computer, or a notebook computer. In the present embodiment, the electronic device  100  is a notebook computer, and is mounted with two of the hinges  10  that are symmetrically disposed. The first device body  20  is mounted with a keyboard, and the second device body  30  is mounted with a display screen. The hinge  10  includes a base seat  1 , a moving platform  2  and a shaft unit  3 . 
     Referring to  FIGS.  3  to  7   , the base seat  1  includes a seat body  11 , a rack  12  and a guide rod  13 . The seat body  11  has first and second side portions  112 ,  113  that are spaced apart from each other in a front-back direction (D 1 ), and a middle portion  114  that interconnects the first and second side portions  112 ,  113  such that the middle portion  114  and the first and second side portions  112 ,  113  substantially form a U-shape. The middle portion  114  of the seat body  11  is formed with a guide groove  111  that extends in the front-back direction (D 1 ). 
     The rack  12  extends in the front-back direction (D 1 ) and between the first and second side portions  112 ,  113  of the seat body  11 . The guide rod  13  extends in the front-back direction (D 1 ) through the moving platform  2  and the first and second side portions  112 ,  113  of the seat body  11 . 
     The moving platform  2  is disposed between the first and second side portions  112 ,  113  of the base seat  1 , and is movable on the base seat  1  along the front-back direction (D 1 ). The moving platform  2  includes a bottom plate  21 , a first upright block  22   a  and a second upright block  22   b.  The bottom plate  21  of the moving platform  2  has one end that is formed with a guide rib  23  extending in the front-back direction (D 1 ) and movably received in the guide groove  111  of the base seat  1 , and an opposite end that is provided for the shaft unit  3  to extend therethrough. 
     The first upright block  22   a  of the moving platform  2  is disposed fixedly on the bottom plate  21 , and is provided for the shaft unit  3  to extend therethrough. The second upright block  22   b  of the moving platform  2  is disposed fixedly on the bottom plate  21 , is spaced apart from the first upright block  22   a  along a left-right direction (D 2 ), is provided for the shaft unit  3  to extend therethrough, and is formed with two positioning grooves  22   b   1  at opposite ends thereof. Each of the positioning grooves  22   b   1  has an inclined section. 
     The shaft unit  3  includes a rotating shaft  31 , a main gear member  32 , a first bevel gear piece  33   a,  a second bevel gear piece  33   b,  a connecting plate  34 , a first gasket  35   a,  a second gasket  35   b,  a plurality of spring washers  36  and a fastener  37 . 
     The rotating shaft  31  rotatably extends through the moving platform  2  in the left-right direction (D 2 ). The shaft unit  3  is convertible by rotation of the rotating shaft  31  between a first position, where the shaft unit  3  is proximate to the first side portion  112  of the seat body  11  and the moving platform  2  abuts against the first side portion  112  of the seat body  11 , and a second position, where the shaft unit  3  is proximate to the second side portion  113  of the seat body  11  and the moving platform  2  abuts against the second side portion  113  of the seat body  11 . 
     Specifically, the rotating shaft  31  has an extending portion  311  that rotatably extends through the first and second upright blocks  22   a,    22   b  and that is provided for the first bevel gear piece  33   a  to be sleeved fixedly thereon, an abutment portion  312  that is connected to one of opposite ends of the extending portion  311  and that abuts against the first upright block  22   a,  a linking portion  313  that is connected to an end of the abutment portion  312  distal from the extending portion  311 , and a threaded portion  314  that is connected to the other one of the opposite ends of the extending portion  311 . 
     The main gear member  32  rotatably extends through the moving platform  2  in an up-down direction (D 3 ), is co-movable with the moving platform  2  along the front-back direction (D 1 ), and is meshed with the rack  12  to constitute a rack and pinion system. The main gear member  32 , the first bevel gear piece  33   a  and the second bevel gear piece  33   b  are all disposed between the first upright block  22   a  and the second upright block  22   b  with the first bevel gear piece  33   a  and second bevel gear piece  33   b  abutting against the first upright block  22   a  and the second upright block  22   b,  respectively. 
     Specifically, the main gear member  32  has a bevel gear segment  321 , a linking segment  322  that is connected to the bevel gear segment  321  and that extends through the moving platform  2 , and a pinion segment  323  that is connected to the linking segment  322  and that is meshed with the rack  12 . The first bevel gear piece  33   a  is fixedly sleeved on the rotating shaft  31  and is meshed with the bevel gear segment  321  of the main gear member  32 . The second bevel gear piece  33   b  is movably sleeved on the rotating shaft  31 , is meshed with the bevel gear segment  321  of the main gear member  32 , and has opposite ends that abut respectively against the second upright block  22   b  and the bevel gear segment  321  of the main gear member  32  such that the first bevel gear piece  33   a  is prevented from moving along the left-right direction (D 2 ) relative to the rotating shaft  31 . 
     The connecting plate  34  is fixedly connected to the linking portion  313  of the rotating shaft  31 . The connecting plate  34  and the base seat  1  are adapted to be connected to the second device body  30  and the first device body  20 , respectively. The first gasket  35   a  and the second gasket  35   b  are co-rotatably sleeved on the extending portion  311  of the rotating shaft  31  and are spaced apart from each other. The first gasket  35   a  is formed with two positioning protrusions  35   a   1  that are opposite to each other, and that are configured to be movably received in the positioning grooves  22   b   1  of the second upright block  22   b , respectively. It should be noted that, in variations of the embodiment, the positioning grooves  22   b   1  of the second upright block  22   b  and the positioning protrusions  35   a   1  of the first gasket  35   a  are not limited to the present configuration and may change positions with each other (i.e., the second upright block  22   b  may be formed with the positioning protrusions  35   a   1  and the first gasket  35   a  may be formed with the positioning grooves  22   b   1 ). 
     The spring washers  36  are sleeved on the extending portion  311  of the rotating shaft  31 , and are disposed between the first gasket  35   a  and the second gasket  35   b.  Specifically, the spring washers  36  abut against one another, and an assembly of the spring washers  36  has opposite ends abutting respectively against the first gasket  35   a  and the second gasket  35   b,  exerting a spring force therebetween. The fastener  37  is a nut that is threadedly engaged with the threaded portion  314  of the rotating shaft  31 , and that abuts against the second gasket  35   b  to ensure abutments among the first gasket  35   a,  the second gasket  35   b  and the spring washers  36  and to prevent the first gasket  35   a,  the second gasket  35   b  and the spring washers  36  from moving in the left-right direction (D 2 ) along the extending portion  311  of the rotating shaft  31 . 
     Referring to  FIG.  3    and  FIGS.  8  to  10   , when a user intends to use the electronic device  100  and unfolds the first and second device bodies  20 ,  30 , the rotating shaft  31  is driven by the connecting plate  34  to rotate relative to the base seat  1  and the moving platform  2 , thereby converting the shaft unit  3  from the first position to the second position (i.e., when the first and second device bodies  20 ,  30  are folded, the shaft unit  3  is at the first position; when the first and second device bodies  20 ,  30  are unfolded, the shaft unit  3  is at the second position). 
     Specifically, during rotation of the rotating shaft  31 , the first bevel gear piece  33   a  co-rotates the rotating shaft  31  and drives rotation of the main gear member  32 , which is converted into linear motion of the main gear member  32  relative to the rack  12  by virtue of the rack and pinion system, to thereby result in collective linear motion of the shaft unit  3  and the moving platform  2  along the front-back direction (D 1 ) relative to the base seat  1 . In addition, the rotation of the main gear member  32  also drives the second bevel gear piece  33   b  to rotate for stabling the rotation of the rotating shaft  31 . 
     It should be noted that, as shown in  FIGS.  9  and  10   , when the shaft unit  3  is at the first position (or the first and second device bodies  20 ,  30  are folded), a first distance (d 1 ) is measured between the shaft unit  3  and a rear end of the first device body  20  (see  FIG.  9   ), and the positioning protrusions  35   a   1  of the first gasket  35   a  are received in the positioning grooves  22   b   1  of the second upright block  22   b,  respectively. By virtue of the spring force of the spring washers  36 , engagement of the positioning protrusions  35   a   1  and the positioning grooves  22   b   1  provides a positioning effect, which prevents the first and second device bodies  20 ,  30  from being accidentally unfolded, unless a certain amount of external force is applied. 
     When the shaft unit  3  is at the second position (or the first and second device bodies  20 ,  30  are unfolded), a second distance (d 2 ) greater than the first distance (d 1 ) is measured between the shaft unit  3  and the rear end of the first device body  20  (see  FIG.  10   ), and the positioning protrusions  35   a   1  are not received in the positioning grooves  22   b   1 . 
     It should also be noted that, when the shaft unit  3  is converted from the second position back to the first position, by virtue of the above-mentioned inclined section of the positioning grooves  22   b   1 , the positioning protrusions  35   a   1  are guided by the inclined section to slide smoothly into the positioning grooves  22   b   1 . Furthermore, by virtue of the above-mentioned spring force of the spring washers  36 , after an initial exertion of an external force that starts the movement of the positioning protrusions  35   a   1  toward the positioning grooves  22   b   1 , the positioning protrusions  35   a   1  are able to continue moving into the positioning grooves  22   b   1  even when the external force is no longer exerted. As such, the first and second device bodies  20 ,  30 , are able to gradually and automatically move toward each other until folded. 
     Referring to  FIGS.  11  and  12   , a second embodiment of the hinge  10 ′ according to the disclosure is similar to the first embodiment, and the difference between the two is described as follows. 
     In the second embodiment, the shaft unit  3  further includes a sleeve piece  38  that is movably sleeved on the rotating shaft  31  to replace the second bevel gear piece  33   b  of the first embodiment, and the configuration of the first bevel gear piece  33   a ′ is slightly different from that of the first embodiment. The sleeve piece  38  has opposite ends that abut respectively against the second upright block  22   b  and the first bevel gear piece  33   a ′ such that the first bevel gear piece  33   a ′ is prevented from moving along the left-right direction (D 2 ) relative to the rotating shaft  31 . By virtue of the sleeve piece  38 , less energy is wasted (on driving the rotation of the second bevel gear piece  33   b ′), and a feeling of gear idling that the user might feel involving the rotation of the second bevel gear piece  33   b ′ is reduced. 
     In sum, by virtue of the configurations and meshing engagements among the rack  12 , the main gear member  32 , and the first bevel gear piece  33   a,  the embodiments of the hinge  10  according to the disclosure enable a sliding motion that brings the first device body  20  of the electronic device  100  toward the user when the electronic device  100  is unfolded, providing better viewing experiences. 
     In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects, and that one or more features or specific details from one embodiment may be practiced together with one or more features or specific details from another embodiment, where appropriate, in the practice of the disclosure. 
     While the disclosure has been described in connection with what are considered the exemplary embodiments, it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.