WO2024255865A1 - Friction hinge and vehicle interior component comprising same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a friction hinge, comprising a friction shaft and a housing, wherein the friction shaft is provided with a cantilever structure formed into a mandrel friction portion, the housing is provided with a housing cavity to provide a cavity for the cantilever structure to be inserted into to form a friction pair, and when the friction shaft moves relative to the housing, torque is provided by means of friction between the inner wall of a hole of the housing cavity and the outer circle of the cantilever structure. The present disclosure further relates to a vehicle interior component comprising the friction hinge. According to the friction hinge of the present disclosure, a friction plate and a mandrel are combined into one friction shaft, reducing the number of the assembly parts; moreover, when assembling the friction shaft to the housing, precise alignment is not required, and the friction shaft can be installed into the housing at any angle and position of the circumference, thereby reducing the assembly difficulty, lowering the cost, and better facilitating batch production.

Description

Friction hinge and vehicle interior component including the friction hinge Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a friction pair, and more particularly to a friction hinge and a vehicle interior component including the friction hinge.

Background Art

It is known that the friction hinge assembly is used to provide friction torque in the rotation direction. The components of the friction hinge assembly in the prior art are relatively complex, including at least three parts: a housing, a friction plate and a core shaft, wherein the housing is fixed, one or more friction plates are limited in the housing, and the core shaft is fixedly connected to the rotating component and can rotate. When moving, the torque is provided by friction between the inner circle of the friction plate hole and the outer circle of the core shaft.

Obviously, the known friction hinge assembly requires high processing accuracy for each piece, such as fine grinding of the shaft core, fine punching of the friction plate, etc. The assembly is difficult to assemble, for example, each friction plate must be precisely aligned and assembled, resulting in a high assembly price.

Public Content

In order to solve the problem of high assembly price in the above-mentioned prior art, the present disclosure provides a friction hinge and a vehicle interior component including the friction hinge.

According to the friction hinge disclosed in the present invention, it includes a friction shaft and a shell, wherein the friction shaft has a cantilever structure formed as a core shaft friction portion, and the shell has a shell cavity to provide a cavity for the cantilever structure to be inserted into to form a friction pair, and when the friction shaft moves relative to the shell, torque is provided by friction between the inner wall of the hole of the shell cavity and the outer circle of the cantilever structure.

Preferably, the friction shaft further comprises a sealing cover, and the cantilever structure is connected to the sealing cover.

Preferably, the cantilever structure comprises a connecting portion and a cantilever portion in the axial direction, wherein the cantilever portion is connected to the cover via the connecting portion.

Preferably, the cantilever portion and the cover define a slot therebetween.

Preferably, a through hole is formed inside the cantilever portion.

Preferably, the through hole is connected to the outside through the gap so that the cantilever portion is formed into a non-closed ring structure.

Preferably, the through hole and the cantilever portion are eccentrically arranged so that the annular structure of the cantilever portion has a gradually varying thickness.

Preferably, a plurality of friction protrusions are formed on the outside of the cantilever portion, which are interference-fitted with the inner wall of the hole of the housing cavity and provide a rotational friction torque.

Preferably, the plurality of friction protrusions include: a pair of friction protrusions symmetrically located on both sides of the gap; and another friction protrusion located in the same radial direction of the cantilever portion as the gap.

Preferably, the plurality of friction protrusions include: a pair of friction protrusions symmetrically located on both sides of the gap; and another friction protrusion, the distance between the other friction protrusion and one of the pair of friction protrusions is different from the distance between the other friction protrusion and the other of the pair of friction protrusions.

Preferably, the shell further comprises a seal, which is connected and fixed at the outlet of the shell cavity to cooperate with the cover to form a closed space to protect the friction pair contained therein.

Preferably, the friction shaft further comprises a shaft end interface, the shaft end interface and the cantilever structure are respectively connected to opposite sides of the cover, and the shaft end interface is connected to the rotating component.

Preferably, the shaft end interface comprises a cylindrical two-side cut platform structure.

A vehicle interior component according to the present disclosure includes the friction hinge described above.

Preferably, the vehicle interior component comprises a flip armrest of a secondary instrument panel, a flip small table, a flip screen, a rotating screen or a seat headrest ear piece.

Preferably, the vehicle interior component comprises a fixed component fixed in the vehicle and a rotating component rotatable relative to the fixed component, wherein one of the friction shaft and the housing is fixedly connected to the fixed component, and the other is fixedly connected to the rotating component.

According to the friction hinge disclosed in the present invention, the friction plate and the core shaft in the prior art are combined into one friction shaft, the number of assembly parts is reduced, and there is no need for precise alignment when assembling the friction shaft to the housing. It can be installed at any angle position on the circumference, which reduces the difficulty of assembly, makes the cost lower, and is more conducive to mass production.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an overall schematic diagram of a vehicle equipped with a friction hinge according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 shows an application scenario of a friction hinge according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 shows another application scenario of the friction hinge according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is an assembly diagram of a friction hinge according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the friction hinge of FIG. 4 .

FIG. 6 is a first view of the friction shaft of the friction hinge of FIG. 5 .

7 is a second view of the friction shaft of the friction hinge of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 8 shows the interference friction between the friction protrusion of FIG. 7 and the housing.

FIG. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of a housing of the friction hinge of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the friction shaft in FIGS. 6 to 8 .

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are given below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and described in detail.

As shown in FIG1 , a friction hinge according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure is installed at the rotating hinge portion of the interior functional part product circled by the dotted frame of the vehicle V. As shown in FIG2 , a friction hinge A according to the present disclosure is installed on the flip armrest B of the auxiliary instrument panel. As shown in FIG3 , a friction hinge A according to the present disclosure is installed on the flip screen C. It should be understood that the application scenarios and locations shown in the figure are only examples and not limitations, and they can also be applied to components such as a flip small table, a rotating screen, and a seat headrest ear. These vehicle interior components all include a fixed component fixed in the vehicle and a rotating component rotatable relative to the fixed component.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, a friction hinge A according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure includes a friction shaft 1 and a housing 2, wherein friction is generated between the friction shaft 1 and the housing 2 through relative movement, and the friction shaft 1 integrates the functions of a core shaft and a friction plate, and provides torque through the friction between the inner wall of the hole of the housing 2 and the outer circle of the friction shaft 1 during movement. In this embodiment, the friction shaft 1 and the housing 2 are interference fitted. It should be understood that theoretically 0 clearance or a very small clearance + grease is also feasible. In this embodiment, the housing 2 is fixed, that is, the housing 2 is fixedly connected to the fixed component, and the friction shaft 1 is fixedly connected to the rotating component and can rotate. It should be understood that the housing can also be fixedly connected to the rotating component after "changing the structural type", while the friction shaft is fixedly connected to the fixed component.

Compared with the independent friction plates in the prior art, the friction hinge A disclosed in the present invention combines the friction plate and the core shaft into a new part, namely the friction shaft 1, and the number of assembly parts is reduced from at least three (or more friction plates) to only two. When the friction shaft 1 is assembled to the housing 2, the friction shaft 1 does not need to be precisely aligned, and can be installed at any angle position on the circumference, which reduces the difficulty of assembly and makes the cost lower. More conducive to mass production.

As shown in FIG6 , the friction shaft 1 includes a shaft end interface 11 and a cover 12, wherein the shaft end interface 11 is connected to the rotating component, and the cover 12 is fixedly connected to the shaft end interface 11. In this embodiment, the shaft end interface 11 includes a cylindrical two-side cut platform structure. It should be understood that the cylindrical two-side cut platform structure is only used as an example and not as a limitation.

The friction shaft 1 includes a cantilever structure 15, which is fixedly connected to the end surface of the cover 12 facing away from the shaft end interface 11 to provide elastic deformation. In fact, the cantilever structure 15 is formed as a core shaft friction part, and its thickness D can be adjusted as needed, that is, the torque can be adjusted accordingly.

In the prior art with independent friction plates, the friction part is between the inner circle of the friction plate and the outer circle of the core shaft, and the friction torque needs to be adjusted stepwise by changing the number of friction plates, and arbitrary torque changes cannot be achieved. The friction part of the friction hinge A disclosed in the present invention is changed to between the outer circle of the friction shaft 1 and the inner wall of the hole of the housing 2. During the manufacturing process, the thickness D of the friction part of the core shaft can be adjusted steplessly by machining, and any required friction torque can be adjusted within the design range, so that the flip product can achieve any angle stop or slow closing function.

As shown in FIG. 7 , the cantilever structure 15 includes a connecting portion 151 and a cantilever portion 152 in the axial direction, wherein the cantilever portion 152 is connected to the cover 12 via the connecting portion 151 .

A slot 13 is defined between the cantilever portion 152 and the cover 12, so that the cantilever portion 152 is formed into an elastic structure. It should be understood that the size of the slot 13 can be adjusted as needed to provide the required torque.

A through hole 14 is formed inside the cantilever portion 152, so that the cantilever portion 152 is formed into an elastic structure. In particular, the through hole 14 is connected to the outside through the gap 141, so that the cantilever portion 152 is formed into a non-closed annular structure. In this embodiment, the through hole 14 is not located at the rotation center of the cantilever portion 152, and its eccentric arrangement makes the annular structure of the cantilever portion 152 have a gradual thickness, as shown in FIG8 .

Three friction protrusions 16 are formed on the outside of the cantilever part 152, which are interference-fitted with the inner wall of the hole of the housing 2 and can provide rotational friction torque, as shown in FIG8. In this embodiment, in the orientation shown in the figure, two friction protrusions 16 are symmetrically located on both sides of the gap 141, and another friction protrusion 16 is located directly below the gap 141, that is, in the same radial direction of the cantilever part 152 as the gap 141. This arrangement can provide the same friction torque/friction force when the friction shaft 1 rotates forward or reversely relative to the housing 2. It should be understood that the specific position and number of the friction protrusions 16 can be adjusted as needed.

As shown in FIG9 , the housing 2 includes a seal 21 and a shell cavity 22, wherein the shell cavity 22 provides a cavity for the cantilever structure 15 of the friction shaft 1 to be inserted therein to form a friction pair, and the seal 21 is connected and fixed at the outlet of the shell cavity 22 to cooperate with the cover 12 of the friction shaft 1 to form a closed space, thereby protecting the friction pair contained therein and preventing foreign matter from entering. Specifically, the inner wall of the hole of the shell cavity 22 is interference-fitted with the friction protrusion 16 of the friction shaft 1.

FIG. 10 shows a variant of the friction shaft 1, which differs from the friction shaft 1 shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 only in that, for the three friction protrusions 16 formed outside the cantilever portion 152, in the orientation shown in the figure, the first friction protrusion 16a and the second friction protrusion 16b are respectively located on both sides of the gap 141 in a bilaterally symmetrical manner, but the third friction protrusion 16c is not located directly below the gap 141, but is located below the gap 141 and closer to the second friction protrusion 16b, that is, the third friction protrusion 16c and the gap 141 are not in the same radial direction of the cantilever portion 152, and thus are separated from the first friction protrusion 16a and the second friction protrusion 16b by different distances. Based on this arrangement, the length of the first section 152a of the cantilever portion 152 located between the first friction protrusion 16a and the third friction protrusion 16c is greater than the length of the second section 152b of the cantilever portion 152 located between the second friction protrusion 16b and the third friction protrusion 16c.

In the illustrated orientation of the friction shaft 1, this arrangement can provide a larger lever arm when the friction shaft 1 rotates rightward relative to the housing 2, and provide a smaller lever arm when the friction shaft 1 rotates leftward relative to the housing 2, that is, the force required when the friction shaft 1 rotates rightward relative to the housing 2 is smaller than the force required when the friction shaft 1 rotates leftward relative to the housing 2. Therefore, this arrangement can achieve the effect of providing different friction torques/friction forces in forward and reverse rotations.

In addition, according to other embodiments not shown, no matter which arrangement method the multiple friction protrusions 16 adopt, the cantilever portion 152 can form a multi-layer structure along its axial direction, that is, the thickness D can be formed by multiple layers, grooves are provided between adjacent layers, and each layer is provided with one or more friction protrusions 16.

The housing 2 further includes a mounting point 23 and a mounting structure 24, wherein the mounting point 23 is formed on the mounting structure 24 so that the housing 2 is fixed. In this embodiment, the mounting point 23 is a screw hole, and a screw is installed through the screw hole to install and connect the housing 2 to the fixing bracket. It should be understood that the screw hole here is only used as an example and not a limitation, and structures such as rivet holes can also be used here. In this embodiment, the mounting structure 24 is an ear piece, which contacts the fixing bracket to prevent the housing 2 from rotating.

Obviously, the deformation stiffness of the cantilever structure 15 can be controlled by the width of the slot 13 of the friction shaft 1 or the shape of the through hole 14. The protrusion size of the friction protrusion 16 can control the friction shaft 1 and the shell. The positive pressure of the interference part between the friction shaft 1 and the housing 2 can be controlled by the deformation stiffness and the interference, thereby controlling the friction torque during relative rotation.

The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. The above embodiments of the present disclosure may also be modified in various ways. That is, all simple, equivalent changes and modifications made according to the claims and the contents of the specification of the present disclosure fall within the protection scope of the claims of the present disclosure. The conventional technical contents are not described in detail in the present disclosure.

Claims (16)

A friction hinge is characterized in that the friction hinge includes a friction shaft and a shell, wherein the friction shaft has a cantilever structure formed as a core shaft friction portion, the shell has a shell cavity to provide a cavity for the cantilever structure to be inserted into to form a friction pair, and when the friction shaft moves relative to the shell, torque is provided by friction between the inner wall of the hole of the shell cavity and the outer circle of the cantilever structure. The friction hinge according to claim 1 is characterized in that the friction shaft also includes a cover, and the cantilever structure is connected to the cover. The friction hinge according to claim 2 is characterized in that the cantilever structure comprises a connecting portion and a cantilever portion in the axial direction, wherein the cantilever portion is connected to the cover via the connecting portion. The friction hinge according to claim 3, wherein a slot is defined between the cantilever portion and the cover. The friction hinge according to claim 3 is characterized in that a through hole is formed inside the cantilever portion. The friction hinge according to claim 5 is characterized in that the through hole is connected to the outside through a gap so that the cantilever portion forms a non-closed annular structure. The friction hinge according to claim 6 is characterized in that the through hole and the cantilever portion are eccentrically arranged so that the annular structure of the cantilever portion has a gradually varying thickness. The friction hinge according to claim 6 is characterized in that a plurality of friction protrusions are formed on the outside of the cantilever portion, which are interference fit with the inner wall of the hole of the shell cavity and provide rotational friction torque. The friction hinge according to claim 8 is characterized in that the plurality of friction protrusions include: a pair of friction protrusions symmetrically located on both sides of the gap; and another friction protrusion located in the same radial direction of the cantilever portion as the gap. The friction hinge according to claim 8 is characterized in that the plurality of friction protrusions include: a pair of friction protrusions symmetrically located on both sides of the gap; and another friction protrusion, the distance between the other friction protrusion and one of the pair of friction protrusions is different from the distance between the other friction protrusion and the other of the pair of friction protrusions. The friction hinge according to claim 2 is characterized in that the shell further comprises a seal, which is connected and fixed at the outlet of the shell cavity to cooperate with the cover to form a closed space to protect the friction pair contained therein. The friction hinge according to claim 2 is characterized in that the friction shaft also includes a shaft end interface, the shaft end interface and the cantilever structure are respectively connected to opposite sides of the cover, and the shaft end interface is connected to the rotating component. The friction hinge according to claim 12 is characterized in that the shaft end interface includes a platform structure cut on both sides of the cylinder. A vehicle interior component, characterized in that the vehicle interior component comprises the friction hinge according to any one of claims 1-13. The vehicle interior component according to claim 14 is characterized in that the vehicle interior component includes a flip armrest of a secondary instrument panel, a flip small table, a flip screen, a rotating screen or a seat headrest ear piece. The vehicle interior component according to claim 14 is characterized in that the vehicle interior component includes a fixed component fixed in the vehicle and a rotating component rotatable relative to the fixed component, wherein one of the friction shaft and the housing is fixedly connected to the fixed component and the other is fixedly connected to the rotating component.