Telephonic communications – Terminal – Housing or housing component
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-19
2001-11-20
Chiang, Jack (Department: 2642)
Telephonic communications
Terminal
Housing or housing component
Reexamination Certificate
active
06320961
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to portable communication equipment and, more particularly to a hinge mechanism for use in a portable communication apparatus such as a portable telephone.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a foldable portable telephone is composed of a main body and a foldable portion which is rotatably supported on a single shaft by a hinge mechanism to rotate it between open and closed positions. A rotation of the foldable portion is preferably restricted and held at a desired angle with respect to the main body to allow stable and easy operation. There have been known a large number of single mechanisms that restrict and maintain a rotation of the foldable portion. Further preferably, a force required rotating the foldable portion between opened and closed positions is kept constant.
Such a hinge mechanism can be achieved by combining an elastic part such as a leaf spring or a coil spring and a well-known positioning and holding means using the fit between a ball and a recess. For example, Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 2525942 discloses a hinge mechanism in which a protrusion biased by a coil spring is engaged in a recess to hold the foldable part in position. Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 8-218721 discloses a hinge mechanism with a fixing function in which a protrusion of a slidable cam biased by a coil spring is engaged in a recess of a fixed cam to hold the foldable part in position.
Needless to say, in the field of portable telephones, a drastic reduction in size and weight is demanded more and more. Although miniaturization of a leaf spring or a coil spring is also needed, the miniaturization makes it more difficult to provide the leaf spring or coil spring with a spring constant as large as necessary. A spring made of metal blocks weight reduction. A complicated mechanism composed of a lot of parts blocks cost reduction.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a hinge mechanism for a portable telephone with simplified structure allowing easy folding/unfolding and holding operation of a foldable portion.
According to the present invention, a hinge mechanism for a foldable portable telephone composed of a main housing and a foldable housing which is rotatably supported to the main housing by the hinge mechanism to rotate the foldable housing between an opened position and a closed position is comprised of: a first cylindrical member coupled to the main housing, the first cylindrical member having a first cylindrical hollow formed therein, and an inner side wall of the first cylindrical hollow having a plurality of positioning recesses formed in a predetermined pattern corresponding to at least the opened position; a second cylindrical member coupled to the foldable housing, the second cylindrical member having a second cylindrical hollow formed therein and a plurality of holes formed in a side wall thereof, wherein the second cylindrical member is rotatably fit in the first cylindrical hollow of the first cylindrical member; an elastic cylinder fit in the second cylindrical hollow of the second cylindrical member; and a sphere freely fit in each of the holes of the second cylindrical member, wherein spheres fit in the holes are pinched between the elastic cylinder and the inner side wall of the first cylindrical hollow of the first cylindrical member to allow each sphere to be fit into a corresponding one of the positioning recesses.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a hinge mechanism includes a pair of shaft units, each shaft comprising: a first cylindrical member engaged with the main housing, the first cylindrical member having a first cylindrical hollow formed therein, and an inner side wall of the first cylindrical hollow having a plurality of positioning recesses formed in a predetermined pattern corresponding to at least the opened position; a second cylindrical member engaged with the foldable housing, the second cylindrical member having a second cylindrical hollow formed therein and a plurality of holes formed in a side wall thereof, wherein the second cylindrical member is rotatably fit in the first cylindrical hollow of the first cylindrical member; an elastic cylinder fit in the second cylindrical hollow of the second cylindrical member; a sphere freely fit in each of the holes of the second cylindrical member, wherein spheres fit in the holes are pinched between the elastic cylinder and the inner side wall of the first cylindrical hollow of the first cylindrical member to allow each sphere to be fit into a corresponding one of the positioning recesses; and a stopper for stopping the shaft unit moving in an axial direction of the hinge mechanism.
The stopper may comprise a hook portion formed at an end of the second cylindrical member, wherein the hook portion is hooked to the first cylindrical member to stop movement of the first and second cylindrical members in the axial direction.
Preferably, the inner side wall of the first cylindrical hollow has a plurality of sets of positioning recesses formed thereon and the second cylindrical member has a plurality of sets of holes formed thereon, the sets of the positioning recesses corresponding to the sets of the holes, respectively.
As described above, the spheres are outwardly biased by the elastic cylinder fit in the second cylindrical hollow of the second cylindrical member. Therefore, the foldable housing can be opened with an appropriate resistance to rotate and then the spheres snap into the positioning recesses to cause the foldable housing to be securely and easily held in position.
Further, since the elastic cylinder is used to generate an outwardly biased force, a shaft unit can be assembled with a small number of parts, resulting in simplified structure and reduced cost. Further, the hinge can be easily assembled by inserting the shaft units thereto.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5927997 (1999-07-01), Ruland et al.
patent: 0611108 (1994-08-01), None
patent: 2215393 (1989-09-01), None
patent: 0356502 (1989-09-01), None
patent: 2263305 (1993-07-01), None
patent: 8-218721 (1996-08-01), None
patent: 2525942 (1996-11-01), None
patent: 1105727 (1999-02-01), None
Chiang Jack
NEC Corporation
Sughrue Mion Zinn Macpeak & Seas, PLLC
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