Hinge assembly for flat panel display appliance

[00002] The present invention relates to a hinge assembly capable of adjusting a tilting angle of a display in a flat panel display appliance, and more particularly, to a hinge assembly adapted to be easily assembled using a common bolt as a hinge shaft of a rotation around which a display is pivoted, without separately machining the hinge shaft.

[00003] Generally, a hinge assembly for a display appliance used in a personal computer includes, as shown in FIG. 1, an L-shaped mounting plate 3 having a vertical portion 3b formed with a hinge shaft receiving hole and a horizontal portion 3c at one side secured to a casing body of the display appliance; and a hinge shaft 1 having a mounting portion 1a secured to an upper cover of a casing of the display appliance, an extended portion 1c at the other side pivotally inserted into the hinge shaft receiving hole of the mounting plate 3, and a flange 1b between the mounting portion and the extended portion. The extended portion 1c has at a free end thereof a faceted portion 1c′ with a threaded portion formed thereon.

[00004] The hinge assembly also includes washers 2a and 2b disposed at both ends of the mounting plate, an axially biased resilience washer 4, a sleeve member 5 contacted with the resilience washer 4, a torsion spring 6, a washer 7 restricting a pivoting range and having a stopper boss 7a, and a nut 8.

[00005] The sleeve member 5 has a flange portion 5a contacted with the resilience washers 4 and a tubular portion 5b receiving the torsion spring 6 therein. The torsion spring has one bent end 6a inserted into a hole 3a formed at the vertical portion 3b of the mounting plate, and the other end supported by the stopper boss 7a of the washer 7.

[00006] The pivot range restricting washer 7 is formed with a hole having a shape corresponding to that of the faceted portion 1c′ of the extended portion 1c. Since the faceted portion 1c′ is inserted into the hole, when the hinge shaft is pivoted in one direction, the pivot range is restricted until the braking boss 7a reaches to the end 6a of the torsion spring 6. When the hinge shaft is pivoted in the counter direction, the washer 7 is applied with elasticity against the pivoting operating, since the braking boss 7a is stopped by the other end of the torsion spring.

[00007] Since the hinge assembly as described above requires the specially faceted hinge shaft, the hinge shaft has to be machined through a faceting process including milling and turning during the manufacturing of the hinge assembly, thereby increasing the manufacturing cost. In addition, separate components corresponding to the shape of the faceted hinge shaft must be manufactured, thereby complicating the design of the hinge assembly and making difficult to assemble the hinge. Furthermore, there is another problem in that the relatively soft plate of the components of the hinge assembly can be easily worn by the rotation of the hinge shaft.

[00008] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to solve the problems involved in the prior art and to provide a hinge assembly adapted to be easily assembled using a common bolt without separately machining a hinge shaft of a basic axis around which a display is pivoted.

[00009] Another object of the present invention is to provide a hinge assembly in which stationary and movable plates are not worn during rotation.

[00010] Another object of the present invention is to provide a hinge assembly capable of adjusting a tilting angle of a display without using a separate component assembled which is a faceted hinge shaft so as to restrict a pivoting range of the hinge shaft.

[00011] Another object of the present invention is to provide a pivot assembly which has excellent pivotable performance and is capable of being easily assembled and reducing the manufacturing cost thereof.

[00012] In order to accomplish the above mentioned objects, the present invention provides a hinge assembly for adjusting a tilting angle of a display for a flat panel display appliance, comprising: a movable plate fixed to a rear side of the display and having a through-hole; a stationary plate coupled to a stand for the display appliance and having a through-hole; a hinge shaft passing through the through-holes of the movable and stationary plates and having a head portion; a coupling member fixed to one end of the hinge shaft; a first washer disposed between the head portion of the hinge shaft and the movable plate; a second washer disposed between the movable and stationary plates; a third washer disposed between the stationary plate and the coupling member; and an elastic washer, disposed between the head portion of the hinge shaft and the coupling member, for applying compressive elasticity to the hinge shaft in an axial direction.

[00013] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the through-hole of the stationary plate is opened at an upper portion thereof.

[00014] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the movable plate has a bent boss at an upper end of the through-hole, and the stationary plate has a pivot guide having a certain pivot range at an upper end of the through-hole, the bent boss of the movable plate moving along the pivot guide so as to pivot about the hinge shaft.

[00015] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the movable plate has a latching groove formed at a portion parallel to the hinge shaft. One end of a coil spring is fixed to the latching groove of the movable plate and the other end is fixed to a fixing hole formed at the stationary plate, the coil spring applying a resistant force against a pivoting direction of the movable plate relative to the stationary plate around the hinge shaft.

[00016] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hinge shaft has an axially extended portion with a threaded portion formed thereon, and a head portion larger in diameter than the extended portion.

[00017] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hinge shaft is a commonly used bolt.

[00018] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the coupling member is a nut.

[00019] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first, second and third washers are flat washers.

[00020] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first, second and third washers have oil impregnating grooves for preventing wear of a contacted portion between the washers and adjacent components and for securing smooth pivoting movement.

[00021] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, at least one of the movable and stationary plates has oil impregnating grooves for preventing wear of a contacted portion between the washers and adjacent components and for securing smooth pivoting movement.

[00022] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the third washer is a stationary washer fixedly coupled to the stationary plate.

[00023] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the stationary washer has at least one fixing boss, and the stationary plate has around the through-hole a fixing hole receiving the fixing boss of the stationary washer.

[00024] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the elastic washer is a hemispheric washer.

[00025] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the elastic washer is a flange-type elastic washer with a contacting rim being formed along the circumference of the washer.

[00026] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the elastic washer is disposed in close proximity to at least one of the first, second and third washers.

[00027] According to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the elastic washer is interposed between the third washer and the coupling member, and the coupling member is a washer-type nut.

[00028] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the present invention as claimed.

[00039] Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention; examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the embodiments, like parts are shown by corresponding reference numerals throughout the drawings, and additive explanation thereof will be omitted.

[00040] FIG. 2 shows a perspective view illustrating the assembled state of a hinge assembly for a flat panel display appliance according to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which a coil spring is eliminated. FIG. 2 shows only one side of the hinge assembly. Even though the hinge assembly of the present invention may be installed at one side of the flat panel display appliance, as shown in FIG. 2, it is possible to adjust the tilting angle of the display of the flat panel display, without installing another hinge assembly having the same construction as the hinge assembly.

[00041] As shown in FIG. 2, the hinge assembly 100 of the present invention includes a hinge member A having a movable plate 10 fixed to a rear side of a display of a flat panel display appliance for securing the hinge member A, and a stationary plate 20 coupled to a stand supporting the display against a certain bottom and disposed adjacent to the movable plate to cause the movable plate to be rotated. The term “movable” in the movable plate means that the movable plate can be rotated relative to the stationary plate. The term “stationary” in the stationary plate is an expression having a meaning relative to the term “movable” used in the movable plate. “Stationary” means that the stationary plate functions as a reference point when the movable plate rotates around the hinge shaft.

[00042] The rotation between the movable and stationary plates is performed by rotating the movable plate relative to the stationary plate around the hinge member coupled to the movable and stationary plates, since the stationary plate coupled to the stand for the display forms a fixed supporting point. The tilting angle of the display can be adjusted by the relative rotation. As will be described hereinafter, since the hinge member coupled to the movable and stationary plates is applied with compressive resilience in an axial direction from the resilient washer, the movable and stationary plates are closely contacted to each other, and thus the rotated position of the hinge member is maintained, even upon the relative rotation of the plates.

[00043] FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the hinge assembly according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the movable plate 10 secured to the rear side of the display of the flat panel display appliance includes a horizontal portion arranged parallel to the rear side of the display and a vertical portion arranged vertical to the horizontal portion and having a through-hole 13 through which a hinge shaft is passed.

[00044] The stationary plate 20 coupled to the stand for the display includes a vertical portion arranged parallel to the vertical portion of the movable plate, and the vertical portion of the stationary plate has a through-hole 23 through which the hinge shaft is passed.

[00045] In order to restrict the rotating range of the movable plate when the movable plate rotates relative to the stationary plate around the hinge shaft 30, the vertical portion of the movable plate 10 has a bent stopper boss 11 upwards of the through-hole 13. Also, the stationary plate 20 may be provided with an arch stopper member 21 above the through-hole 23 for restricting a pivoting range B of the movable plate cooperating with the bent stopper boss 11 of the movable plate 10. An arched stopper member is provided along a pivoting radius of the bent stopper boss of the movable plate rotated relative to the stationary plate 20 around the hinge shaft.

[00046] The hinge shaft 30 using common bolt is inserted into the through-holes of the movable and stationary plates, and a nut 70 is fastened to the threaded portion formed at one end of the hinge shaft, thereby completing the assembly of the hinge member. The hinge shaft has a head portion and a cylindrical engaging portion having a diameter smaller than that of the head portion. The engaging portion has a threaded portion formed at one end thereof, and a nut is fastened to the threaded portion.

[00047] The hinge shaft of the hinge member utilizes a common bolt comprising a hexagonal head portion 30a and a threaded portion 30b, so that a faceting process including milling and turning required during the manufacturing of a conventional hinge assembly may be eliminated, thereby allowing for easy manufacturing of the hinge assembly which in turn decreases the manufacturing costs.

[00048] First, second and third washers 41, 42 and 43 are interposed between the head portion of the hinge shaft, the movable plate 10, the stationary plate 20 and the nut 70, respectively, so as to secure the close fastening between the contacted components, to increase frictional force and to decrease the wear of the contacted components. The first, second and third washers 41, 42 and 43 may be flat washers, and have oil impregnating grooves 41a and 42a (oil impregnating groove of the third washer is not shown in the accompanying drawings). These oil impregnating grooves may be formed at anyplace of a portion where a certain component becomes in frictional contact with another component, besides the first, second and third washers.

[00049] As described above, since the movable plate 10 rotates relative to the stationary plate 20, some portions contacted each other are severely worn out. In particular, the stationary plate 20 serving as the supporting point of the rotation is made of a soft material compared with the closely disposed washers, thereby requiring for the wear prevention of the portions contacted with the washers near the through-hole of the stationary plate.

[00050] The third washer 43 may be adapted to be fixedly engaged to the stationary plate 10. To this end, the third washer 43 is formed with bent bosses 43a along a circumference thereof. The stationary plate is provided with fixing holes 25a for receiving the bent bosses 43a adjacent to the through-hole 23. If the bent bosses and the fixing holes 25a correspond to each other, the number and position thereof may be freely altered.

[00051] An elastic washer 51 for applying axial compressive resilience to the hinge member is disposed at a proper position between the head portion of the hinge shaft and the nut 70. The elastic washer is of a hemispheric or disc shape, and is biased in the direction of the hinge shaft by the fastening force of the nut to securely maintain the engagement of the hinge member.

[00052] According to an alternative embodiment of the present invention, an elastic washer 51′ is disposed to cause a flange 51a of the washer to be in contact with the first washer 41 between the first washer and the movable plate 10. The elastic washer 51 may be positioned at anywhere because it would simply need to apply the axial compressive resilience to the hinge member. For example, the elastic washer may be disposed on both sides of the second or third washer 42 or 43. If the third washer 43 is fixedly engaged to the second plate, the nut 70 may be a washer-type nut (not shown) integrally formed with the washer.

[00053] FIG. 4 shows a perspective view illustrating a hinge assembly for a flat panel display appliance according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which a coil spring is installed. FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the hinge assembly shown in FIG. 4. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the hinge assembly may include a coil spring member 60 for adjusting the tilting angle of a large-size display in the direction of the nut 70 from the stationary plate 20. In the case of a heavy and big display, since the binge assembly is not securely positioned against the movable and stationary plates only by the fastening force of the nut and the compressive resilience of the elastic washer, the heavy display may be effectively supported by applying a resistive force in the pivot direction using the spring member, when the movable plate rotates relative to the stationary plate (i.e., adjusting the tilting angle of the display).

[00054] In order to install the coil spring member 60, the movable plate 10 has a latching groove 16 formed at the horizontal portion parallel to the hinge shaft and receiving one end 60b of the coil spring member 60. The other end 60a of the coil spring member 60 is inserted into a fixing hole 25b formed at the stationary plate. At that time, the fixing hole 25b of the stationary plate is also intended to receive the bent boss of the stationary washer.

[00055] According to an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the through-hole of the stationary plate may be opened upwards so as to easily assemble the hinge assembly through the opened portion. In this case, the hinge assembly may be installed through the opened portion of the stationary plate, thereby allowing for easy assembly of the hinge assembly.

[00056] The hinge assembly employing the stationary plate with the opened through-hole is shown in detail in FIGS. 6 to 9.

[00057] FIGS. 6 and 7 are perspective and exploded views illustrating the hinge assembly for a flat panel display appliance, in which a coil spring is eliminated. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the hinge assembly 100 of the present invention includes a hinge member A, a movable plate 10 fixed to a rear side of a display of the flat panel display appliance for securing the hinge member A, and a stationary plate 20 coupled to a stand supporting the display appliance against a certain bottom and disposed adjacent to the movable plate to cause the movable plate to be rotated.

[00058] The movable plate 10 secured to the rear side of the display of the flat panel display appliance includes a horizontal portion arranged parallel to the rear side of the display and a vertical portion arranged vertical to the horizontal portion and having a through-hole 13 through which the hinge shaft is passed.

[00059] The stationary plate 20 coupled to the stand of the display appliance includes a vertical portion parallel to the vertical portion of the movable plate. The vertical portion has a through-hole 23 of which an upper portion is opened and which receives the hinge shaft 30 through the opened portion. Generally, when assembling the hinge assembly, since the hinge shaft is mounted to the movable plate and then the stationary plate is installed, the stationary plate can be easily installed from the bottom of the hinge shaft, in the state the hinge shaft is inserted into the movable plate. Specifically, it is easy to secure the mounting space sufficient to install components of the hinge assembly upon the installation, thereby allowing for convenient installation of the hinge assembly.

[00060] In order to restrict the rotating range of the movable plate when the movable plate rotates relative to the stationary plate around the hinge shaft 30, the vertical portion of the movable plate 10 is formed with a bent stopper boss 11 upwards the through-hole 13. Also, the stationary plate 20 may be provided with a partially arch stopper member 21 above the opened through-hole 23 for restricting a pivoting range B of the movable plate cooperating with the bent stopper boss 11 of the movable plate. The partially arch portion is provided along a pivoting radius of the bent stopper boss of the movable plate rotated relative to the stationary plate 20 around the hinge shaft.

[00061] As described above, since the movable plate 10 rotates relative to the stationary plate 20, one portion of the hinge member securely engaged to the movable and stationary plates severely wears. In particular, the stationary plate 20 serving as the supporting point of the relative rotation is made of a soft material compared with the closely disposed washers, thereby preventing the wear of the contacted portion of the through-hole. In addition, since the through-hole 23 of the stationary plate is opened upwards, the hinge member mounted to the opened through-hole of the stationary plate may be released from the opened portion, therefore requiring the stationary plate to have a function of preventing release of the hinge member and a function of wear-resistance as well.

[00062] To this end, a third washer 43 may be adapted to be fixedly engaged to the stationary plate 10 as an axially fixing washer. The term “axially fixing washer” is a functional expression indicative of fixing the hinge member to the stationary plate.

[00063] For the fixing to the stationary polate 10, the third washer 43 is formed with bent bosses 43a along a circumference thereof The stationary plate is provided with fixing holes 25a for receiving the bent bosses 43a adjacent to the through-hole 23. If the bent bosses and the fixing holes 25a correspond to each other, the number and position thereof may be freely altered.

[00064] Components of the hinge assembly shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, but not described herein, have the same function as that described in the embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 3

[00065] FIG. 8 shows a perspective view illustrating a hinge assembly for a flat panel display appliance according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which a coil spring is installed. FIG. 9 is an exploded view of the hinge assembly shown in FIG. 8. The hinge assembly may include a coil spring member 60 for adjusting the tilting angle of a large-size display in the direction of the nut 70 from the stationary plate 20. In the case of a heavy and big display, since the hinge assembly is not securely positioned against the movable and stationary plates by the fastening force of the nut and the compressive resilience of the elastic washer, the heavy display may be effectively supported by applying a resistive force in the pivot direction, when the movable plate rotates relative to the stationary plate (i.e., adjusting the tilting angle of the display).

[00066] In order to install the coil spring member 60, the movable plate 10 has a latching groove 16 formed at the horizontal portion parallel to the hinge shaft and receiving one end 60b of the coil spring member 60. The other end 60a of the coil spring member 60 is inserted into a fixing hole 25b formed at the stationary plate. At that time, the fixing hole 25b of the stationary plate is also intended to receive the bent boss of the stationary washer.

[00067] Components of the hinge assembly shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 but not described herein have the same function as that described in the embodiment of FIGS. 6 and 7

[00068] While the present invention has been described and illustrated herein with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers all modifications and variations of this invention that come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

[00069] With the above description, the present invention provides a hinge assembly adapted to be easily assembled using a common bolt, without separately machining a hinge shaft of a basic axis around which a display is pivoted. In addition, the hinge assembly is adapted so that the stationary and movable plates are not worn out when they rotate. Also, the hinge assembly can adjust the tilting angle of the display, without using a separate component assembled to the faceted hinge shaft so as to restrict the pivoting range of the hinge shaft. Furthermore, the present invention can provide a pivot assembly which has excellent pivotable performance capable of being easily assembled and reducing the manufacturing cost thereof