Abstract:
The present invention uses a unique slide hinge, preferably mounted to the side of the exterior door for a storage compartment in a recreational vehicle. The hinge is particularly applicable for use with a trunk door on vehicles over 5,500 pounds gross vehicle weight. Unlike the more common piano hinges, the slide hinge provided by the present invention can be staked, i.e. “mechanically retained,” in an open orientation. For example, the hinge can be held in an orientation that forms a 90° angle between the door and the body of the recreational vehicle. The hinge also presents a low profile relative to the mounting surface when the hinge is in the open orientation.

Description:
[0001]     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/565,312, filed Apr. 26, 2004. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention is related to a slide hinge, and more particularly, to a slide hinge for exterior luggage compartment doors for a recreational vehicle.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     Recreational vehicles provide a convenient and comfortable mode of travel. Such vehicles typically have one or more storage compartments accessible from outside the vehicle. The exterior doors to these compartments must allow the compartment to be readily opened to provide access to the compartment, while also maintaining a tight seal when closed to prevent water from entering the compartment. Currently, many interior doors are mounted using a piano-type hinge, often on the top of the door, or perhaps on the side of the door.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     The present invention uses a unique slide hinge, preferably mounted to the side of the exterior door for a storage compartment in a recreational vehicle. The hinge is particularly applicable for use with a trunk door on vehicles over 5,500 pounds gross vehicle weight. Unlike the more common piano hinges, the slide hinge provided by the present invention can be staked, i.e. “mechanically retained,” in an open position. For example, the hinge can be held in a position that forms a 90° angle between the door and the body of the recreational vehicle. The hinge also presents a low profile relative to the mounting surface when the hinge is in the open position.  
         [0005]     The hinge includes a first mount, a second mount, and a linkage connecting the first mount to the second mount. The linkage comprises a first link pivotally mounted to the first mount at a first position, a second link pivotally mounted to the first mount at a second position spaced from the first position, a third link pivotally mounted to the second mount at a third position, and a fourth link pivotally mounted to the second mount at a fourth position spaced from the third position. The first link is pivotally connected to the third link at a location spaced from the first mount and the second mount, and the second link is pivotally connected to the third and fourth links at respective locations spaced from each other and the first mount and the second mount. The resulting linkage allows the second mount to move between a first orientation where the first mount is approximately perpendicular to the second mount and a second orientation where the first mount is approximately parallel to the second mount.  
         [0006]     In an exemplary embodiment the first mount is a base mount and the second mount is a movable mount. The movable mount further includes a hole through which a pin can be inserted to lock the hinge in the second orientation by blocking movement of at least one of the links of the linkage. A door typically is mounted to the movable mount for movement therewith and the base mount typically is mounted to an inside wall of a compartment to support the movable mount as the door moves between respective open and closed orientations.  
         [0007]     The foregoing and other features of the invention are hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims, the following description and annexed drawings setting forth in detail a certain illustrative embodiment of the invention, this embodiment being indicative, however, of but one of the various ways in which the principles of the invention may be employed. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a recreational vehicle with an open external compartment illustrating an exemplary application of the present invention.  
         [0009]      FIG. 2  is a side view of a hinge provided by the present invention in a first orientation.  
         [0010]      FIG. 3  is a side view of the hinge in  FIG. 2  in a second orientation.  
         [0011]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a vehicle door including a hinge provided by the present invention.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0012]     Referring now in detail to the drawings, and initially to  FIG. 1 , the present invention provides a slide hinge  20  that is particularly advantageous for use on an exterior door  22  of a storage compartment  24  of a recreational vehicle  26 . In this case, multiple hinges, two hinges in the illustrated embodiment, are used to support the door.  
         [0013]     An exemplary hinge and its operation will be described with reference to  FIGS. 2-10 . The hinge  20  includes a first mount  30 , a second mount  32 , and a linkage  34  interconnecting the first mount  30  and the second mount  32 . In the illustrated embodiment, the first mount  30  is a base mount that is mounted to a surface of the vehicle  26 . The second mount  32  is a movable mount to which the exterior door  22  is mounted for movement therewith. The base mount  30  and the movable mount  32  are formed of a sheet metal and have an approximately U-shape cross-section, with the base of the U-shape defining a mounting face and the legs of the U-shape cross-section providing mounting surfaces for the linkage  34 . The base mount  30  includes a generally planar mounting face  36  that typically is mounted to an inside wall of a storage compartment  24  ( FIG. 1 ) and the movable mount  32  has a mounting face  38  that typically is mounted to an inside surface of a door  22  ( FIG. 1 ). The door, particularly if it is an exterior door, typically will have one or more flexible, water-tight seals  39  mounted to the vehicle or the door or both.  
         [0014]     When the hinge  20  is in a first orientation ( FIG. 2 , for example), the movable mount  32  holds the door  22  in a closed position  32  against the vehicle  26 , with its mounting face  38  approximately perpendicular to the mounting face  36  of the base mount  30 . When the hinge  20  is in a second orientation ( FIG. 3 , for example), the movable mount  32  is spaced from the vehicle  26  and oriented such that its mounting face  38  is substantially parallel to the mounting face  36  of the base mount  30 . In the open position, the door  22  is at a ninety-degree angle with respect to an outer surface of the vehicle  26 . The hinge  20  can hold the door in this position to make it easier to access the compartment, as will be described below.  
         [0015]     Before describing a hold-open mechanism, however, we should describe the linkage  34  that enables the movable mount  32  to support and move a door  22  relative to the base mount  30 . The linkage  34  connecting the base mount  30  and the movable mount  32  includes at least four links. In the illustrated embodiment the linkage  34  includes five links, although equivalent structures would be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art and more or fewer pieces could be used to construct the same linkage. The illustrated embodiments include first, second, third, and fourth links  40 ,  42 ,  44 ,  46 , respectively. In the illustrated embodiment, the first, third and fourth links  40 ,  44  and  46  are formed of lengths of sheet metal having an approximately U-shape cross-section with the legs of the U-shape providing laterally spaced link members that act together. The second link  42  includes a pair of spaced apart link members that have identical shapes and are mounted on opposite lateral sides of the other links.  
         [0016]     The first and second links  40  and  42  are mounted to the base mount  32  at one end thereof at spaced apart pivot points  52  and  54 . The pivot points are formed of hollow rivet tubes that extend through openings in both the mounting surfaces of the base mount and the links  40  and  42  to connect the first and second links  40 ,  42  to respective sides of the base mount  30 . Similarly, the third and fourth links  40 ,  46  are secured in the same manner to the movable mount  23  at spaced apart pivot points  56  and  58 . The first link  40  is then pivotally or rotatably connected to the third link  44  at connection point  60  and the second link  42  also is connected to the third link  44  at connection point  62 . The second link  42  also is pivotally connected to the fourth link  46  at connection point  64 . The resulting linkage  34  thus allows the movable mount  32  to move between the first orientation shown in  FIG. 2  and the second orientation shown in  FIG. 3 .  
         [0017]     As is well known, varying the length of the respective links and the spacing between the connection points and pivot points can vary the position of the movable mount at the first and second orientations and orientations therebetween. For purposes of this description, there is no difference in operation between pivot points on the mounts and connection points in the linkage, the names were simply used to distinguish between the connections to the base mount and the movable mount on the one hand and the connections between and among the links themselves on the other hand.  
         [0018]     Although the illustrated links are made of sheet metal, other materials and shapes of materials could be used to create the linkage provided by the present invention, depending on the loads involved and the strength of materials that are used. In an application such as this, where the hinge  20  is used to support an external door on a recreational vehicle, strength is important as the hinge may be called upon to endure a significant amount of abuse. The U-shape cross-section of the links provides improved stability and stiffness to the hinge in directions that cross the parallel pivot axes of the pivot points and connection points.  
         [0019]     As previously mentioned, the hinge  20  can also be staked, in other words mechanically retained, in one or more positions, such as, but not limited to, the illustrated second orientation. One way to accomplish this is shown in the illustrated exemplary embodiment. In this embodiment the movable mount  32  includes a hole  66  through opposing legs (i.e. mounting surfaces) of the U-shape cross-section of the movable mount. A pin  70  can be inserted through those openings to hold the hinge in its second orientation. As shown in  FIG. 3 , when the pin  70  is inserted in the hole  66 , the pin  70  interferes with movement of the fourth link  46  and thus prevents the linkage  34  from moving from the second orientation. Another hole  68  can be provided in the movable mount  32  to store the pin  70  in a position that does not interfere with movement of the linkage when the pin is not in use. Other means for holding the hinge  20  in the second orientation also can be provided and the present invention is not limited to a manually inserted pin. However, the ability to hold a door open in a fixed orientation such as this greatly facilitates loading and unloading the storage compartment that is served by the hinge.  
         [0020]     It will be appreciated that the base mount  30  can be the first mount  30 , as described above, or alternatively can be the second mount  32 . Similarly, the movable mount  32  can be the second mount  32 , as described above, or alternatively can be the first mount  30 . The designation of the first mount  30  as the base mount and the second mount  32  as the moveable mount is merely for illustrative purposes. Therefore, it will be understood that the first and second mounts  30  and  32  can be either base or moveable mounts as desired.  
         [0021]     Although the invention has been shown and described with respect to a certain preferred embodiment equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon reading and understanding this specification and the annexed drawings. In particular regard to the various functions performed by the above-described integers (components, assemblies, devices, compositions, etc.), the terms (including a reference to a “means”) used to describe such integers are intended to correspond, unless otherwise indicated, to any integer which performs the specified function of the described integer (i.e., that is functionally equivalent), even though not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure that performs the function in the illustrated exemplary embodiment or embodiments of the invention.