CN114754065A

CN114754065A - Mechanism for supporting bidirectional folding of flexible screen terminal

Info

Publication number: CN114754065A
Application number: CN202210538331.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 徐高依; 廖巧华; 张智勇
Original assignee: Shenzhen Smooth Technology Co ltd; Dongguan Simongqi Intelligent Technology Co ltd
Current assignee: Shenzhen Smooth Technology Co ltd; Dongguan Simongqi Intelligent Technology Co ltd
Priority date: 2022-05-18
Filing date: 2022-05-18
Publication date: 2022-07-15
Anticipated expiration: 2042-05-18
Also published as: CN114754065B

Abstract

The invention discloses a mechanism for supporting bidirectional folding of a flexible screen terminal. The invention has the advantages that the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge can be perfectly combined, the hollowing of the cross position of the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge is avoided, and the compactness, firmness and stability of the bidirectional folding mechanism are ensured. The transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge can be folded independently, the middle piece cannot obstruct the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge, the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge can be folded smoothly, and the folding hand feeling is good.

Description

Mechanism for supporting bidirectional folding of flexible screen terminal

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of folding hinges, in particular to a mechanism for supporting bidirectional folding of a flexible screen terminal.

Background

Along with the realization of flexible OLED screen, intelligent terminal equipment also develops to collapsible direction gradually, and folding equipment not only can provide bigger display screen, but also can fold and accomodate, conveniently carries the use.

The hinge mechanism adopted by the existing folding equipment can only realize one-way folding, namely transverse folding or longitudinal folding, and as the application scenes in the future increase, new folding requirements are inevitably put forward for the folding equipment. For example, chinese patent 202010424334.7 discloses a foldable mechanism, which can switch the display device between three display states (tablet, mobile phone, notebook), increasing the diversity of the use states of the display device. For another example, the rotation mechanism disclosed in chinese patent 202121433706.9, which is bent in the horizontal and vertical directions, can also realize the folding of the display device in the horizontal and vertical directions, so as to realize the switching of different states of the display device.

However, the structures disclosed in both of the above patents have drawbacks in design: the cross position structure of the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge is weak, and the overall stability of the folding mechanism is poor. In patent 202010424334.7, the four hinges are connected by flexible connecting blocks made of flexible metal or rubber blocks at the crossing positions, and the structural strength is weak; the flexible metal or rubber block has elastic stress, the folding of the hinge is hindered by the elastic stress in the folding process, the torsion of the hinge needs to be designed to overcome the elastic stress, the design is complex, and the cost is high; the flexible connecting block may deform in any direction during the folding process, and the structural stability is poor.

In patent 202010424334.7, however, the crossing position of the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge is in a hollow state, and no structure is provided for supporting, so that the stability is not ensured.

Thus, the prior art is deficient and needs improvement.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide a bidirectional folding mechanism for supporting a flexible screen terminal, which is simple in structure, good in stability and not easy to deform.

The technical scheme of the invention is as follows:

a mechanism for supporting bidirectional folding of a flexible screen terminal comprises a first hinge and a second hinge arranged along a first direction, a third hinge and a fourth hinge arranged along a second direction, wherein the intersections of the first hinge, the second hinge, the third hinge and the fourth hinge are flexibly connected through an intermediate piece; the middle part comprises a base, and a first connecting arm, a second connecting arm, a third connecting arm and a fourth connecting arm which are matched with the base in a rotating mode, and the first connecting arm, the second connecting arm, the third connecting arm and the fourth connecting arm are connected with the first hinge, the second hinge, the third hinge and the fourth hinge respectively.

Optionally, a first arc-shaped groove and a second arc-shaped groove are arranged in the first direction of the base, and a third arc-shaped groove and a fourth arc-shaped groove are arranged in the second direction of the base; the first connecting arm, the second connecting arm, the third connecting arm and the fourth connecting arm are respectively rotatably clamped in the first arc-shaped groove, the second arc-shaped groove, the third arc-shaped groove and the fourth arc-shaped groove.

Optionally, the first arc-shaped groove and the second arc-shaped groove are staggered with each other, and the third arc-shaped groove and the fourth arc-shaped groove are staggered with each other.

Optionally, the first hinge, the second hinge, the third hinge, and the fourth hinge respectively include a first bottom shell, a second bottom shell, a third bottom shell, and a fourth bottom shell, and the first bottom shell, the second bottom shell, the third bottom shell, and the fourth bottom shell respectively have a first extending portion, a second extending portion, a third extending portion, and a fourth extending portion that extend toward the back of the middleware.

Optionally, the first hinge, the third hinge and the fourth hinge are torsion hinges, and the second hinge is a non-torsion hinge.

Optionally, the first hinge comprises at least two torsion hinge modules.

Optionally, the third hinge comprises at least one torsional hinge module and the fourth hinge comprises at least one torsional hinge module.

Optionally, the torsion hinge module is a biaxial hinge.

Optionally, the third hinge comprises a torsion-free hinge module, and the fourth hinge comprises a torsion-free hinge module.

The invention also provides a flexible screen terminal which comprises the flexible screen terminal bidirectional folding supporting mechanism.

The invention has the beneficial effects that:

(1) the flexible screen terminal supporting bidirectional folding mechanism provided by the invention can realize perfect combination of the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge, avoid hollowing of the cross position of the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge, and ensure the compactness, firmness and stability of the bidirectional folding mechanism.

(2) The transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge can be folded independently, the middle piece cannot obstruct the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge, the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge can be folded more smoothly, and the folding hand feeling is good;

(3) the intermediate member is simple in construction and easy to assemble.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a flexible screen terminal according to the present invention in a first use state.

Fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of the flexible screen terminal in a second use state according to the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of the flexible screen terminal in a third use state according to the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a bidirectional folding mechanism in the flexible screen terminal according to the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a schematic front structure view of the first bottom case, the second bottom case, the third bottom case, the fourth bottom case and the middle piece.

Fig. 6 is a schematic front structure view of the first bottom case, the second bottom case, the third bottom case, the fourth bottom case and the middle piece.

Fig. 7 is a front structural view of the intermediate member.

Fig. 8 is a back structure diagram of the intermediate member.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the intermediate member.

Fig. 10 is a schematic structural view of the base.

Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the intermediate member in a first direction.

Fig. 12 is a sectional view of the intermediate member in a second direction.

Fig. 13 is a schematic structural view of the first connecting arm or the second connecting arm.

Fig. 14 is a schematic structural view of the third connecting arm or the fourth connecting arm.

Detailed Description

The invention is described in detail below with reference to the figures and the specific embodiments.

As shown in fig. 1, the present invention provides a flexible screen terminal, which includes a foldable body and a flexible screen disposed on the foldable body, wherein the foldable body includes a first body 201, a second body 202, a third body 203, a fourth body 204 and a bidirectional folding mechanism 100, and the first body 201, the second body 202, the third body 203 and the fourth body 204 are rotatably connected by the bidirectional folding mechanism 100. As shown in fig. 1, in the first use state, the first body 201, the second body 202, the third body 203 and the fourth body 204 can be unfolded to form a flat plate; as shown in fig. 2, in the second use state, the first body 201 and the second body 202 can be folded by 180 degrees, and the third body 203 and the fourth body 204 can be folded by 180 degrees; as shown in fig. 3, in the third use state, the first body 201 and the second body 202 are relatively unfolded, the third body 203 and the fourth body 204 are relatively unfolded, and the third body 203 and the fourth body 204 are folded by 90 degrees with respect to the first body 201 and the second body 202.

As shown in fig. 4, in the embodiment of the present invention, the bidirectional folding mechanism 100 includes a first hinge 110 and a second hinge 120 arranged in a first direction, and a third hinge 130 and a fourth hinge 140 arranged in a second direction. The first direction and the second direction are perpendicular, the first hinge 110 and the second hinge 120 form a longitudinal hinge, and the third hinge 130 and the fourth hinge 140 form a transverse hinge. The first body 201 and the second body 202 are connected by a first hinge 110 in the second direction, and the third body 203 and the fourth body 204 are rotatably connected by a second hinge 120 in the second direction; the first body 201 and the third body 203 are connected by the third hinge 130 in the first direction, and the second body 202 and the fourth body 204 are connected by the fourth hinge 140 in the first direction. The intersections of the first hinge 110, the second hinge 120, the third hinge 130, and the fourth hinge 140 are flexibly connected by an intermediate member 150. The middle part 150 can realize perfect combination of the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge, avoid hollowing of the cross position of the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge, ensure the compactness, firmness and stability of the bidirectional folding mechanism 100, avoid the obstruction of the middle part 150 to the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge, realize mutually independent folding of the transverse hinge and the longitudinal hinge, ensure smooth folding and good folding hand feeling; and the intermediate member 150 is simple in construction and easy to assemble.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 7-8, in the embodiment of the present invention, the intermediate member 150 includes a base 155, a first connecting arm 151, a second connecting arm 152, a third connecting arm 153, and a fourth connecting arm 154. The first connecting arm 151 and the second connecting arm 152 are arranged along a first direction, the third connecting arm 153 and the fourth connecting arm 154 are arranged along a second direction, first ends of the first connecting arm 151, the second connecting arm 152, the third connecting arm 153 and the fourth connecting arm 154 are rotatably matched with the base 155, and first ends of the first connecting arm 151, the second connecting arm 152, the third connecting arm 153 and the fourth connecting arm 154 are connected with the first hinge 110, the second hinge 120, the third hinge 130 and the fourth hinge 140 respectively.

More specifically, as shown in fig. 10 to 14, a first arc-shaped groove and a second arc-shaped groove are formed in the first direction of the base 155, a third arc-shaped groove and a fourth arc-shaped groove are formed in the second direction of the base 155, and the first connecting arm 151, the second connecting arm 152, the third connecting arm 153 and the fourth connecting arm 154 are rotatably engaged in the first arc-shaped groove, the second arc-shaped groove, the third arc-shaped groove and the fourth arc-shaped groove, respectively.

A first arc-shaped arm 151b, a second arc-shaped arm 152b, a third arc-shaped arm 153b and a fourth arc-shaped arm 154b are arranged at the first end of the first connecting arm 151, the second connecting arm 152, the third connecting arm 153 and the fourth connecting arm 154, the first arc-shaped arm 151b, the second arc-shaped arm 152b, the third arc-shaped arm 153b and the fourth arc-shaped arm 154b are respectively clamped in the first arc-shaped groove, the second arc-shaped groove, the third arc-shaped groove and the fourth arc-shaped groove in a rotating way, so that the first arc-shaped arm 151b can rotate along the trajectory of the first arc-shaped groove, the second arc-shaped arm 152b can rotate along the trajectory of the second arc-shaped groove, the third arc-shaped arm 153b can rotate along the trajectory of the third arc-shaped groove, the fourth arc-shaped arm 154b can rotate along the trajectory of the fourth arc-shaped groove, to ensure that the first hinge 110 and the second hinge 120 can be stably 90 folded with respect to the base 155 and the third hinge 130 and the fourth hinge 140 can be stably 180 folded with respect to the base 155.

In the present embodiment, a first filling part 151a, a second filling part 152a, a third filling part 153a and a fourth filling part 154a are disposed in the arc openings of the first arc-shaped arm 151b, the second arc-shaped arm 152b, the third arc-shaped arm 153b and the fourth arc-shaped arm 154b to enhance the structural strength of the first arc-shaped arm 151b, the second arc-shaped arm 152b, the third arc-shaped arm 153b and the fourth arc-shaped arm 154 b.

Accordingly, a first receiving groove 155e, a second receiving groove 155f, a third receiving groove 155g, and a fourth receiving groove 155h for receiving the first filling part 151a, the second filling part 152a, the third filling part 153a, and the fourth filling part 154a are provided in the base 155.

In this embodiment, in order to prevent the accommodating groove from affecting the effect of the engagement and the limitation between the arc-shaped arm and the arc-shaped groove, the first arc-shaped groove is widened, so that the width of the first arc-shaped groove is greater than the width of the first accommodating groove 155e, and two first arc-shaped clamping grooves 155i are formed on the inner walls of the two sides of the first accommodating groove 155 e; meanwhile, the first arc-shaped arm 151b is widened such that both sides of the first arc-shaped arm 151b protrude from both side surfaces of the first filling part 151 a. In this way, the two side portions of the first arc-shaped arm 151b are engaged with the first arc-shaped engaging groove 155i, so that the first connecting arm 151 can only rotate along the track of the first arc-shaped engaging groove, thereby ensuring the movement restriction effect of the first connecting arm 151.

Similarly, the second arc-shaped groove widens to set up and forms two second arc-shaped clamping grooves 155j at the inner walls of the two sides of the second accommodating groove 155f, the third arc-shaped groove widens to set up and forms two third arc-shaped clamping grooves 155k at the inner walls of the two sides of the third accommodating groove 155g, and the fourth arc-shaped groove widens to set up and forms two fourth arc-shaped clamping grooves 155l at the inner walls of the two sides of the fourth accommodating groove 155 h.

In other embodiments, arc-shaped grooves may be concavely formed in the side surfaces of the first filling portion 151a, arc-shaped retaining arms are arranged in the first receiving grooves 155e, and the first connecting arm 151 and the base 155 are rotatably engaged through the arc-shaped grooves and the arc-shaped retaining arms, which are not limited to the rotating engagement structure that the first arc-shaped arm 151b is arranged on the first connecting arm 151 and the first arc-shaped groove is arranged on the base 155. The rotation matching structure of the second connecting arm 152, the third connecting arm 153 and the fourth connecting arm 154 between the base 155 is the same.

In the embodiment of the invention, the first arc-shaped groove and the second arc-shaped groove are staggered, and the third arc-shaped groove and the fourth arc-shaped groove are staggered. Specifically, the first arc-shaped groove is inclined to the left, the second arc-shaped groove is inclined to the right, the third arc-shaped groove is inclined to the left, and the second arc-shaped groove is inclined to the right, so that the first connecting arm 151, the second connecting arm 152, the third connecting arm 153 and the fourth connecting arm 154 can be seamlessly spliced in a first use state, and the miniaturization of the middle part 150 is facilitated.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the first hinge 110, the third hinge 130, and the fourth hinge 140 are torsion hinges, and the second hinge 120 is a non-torsion hinge. Specifically, a first torsion hinge module 112 and a second torsion hinge module 113 are respectively disposed at two ends of the first hinge 110, a first torsion-free hinge module is disposed on the second hinge 120 for realizing 180-degree folding between the first body 201 and the second body 202, and between the third body 203 and the fourth body 204, and the second torsion hinge module 113 at the lower end of the first hinge 110 is used for supplementing a torsion force missing from the second hinge 120. The third hinge 130 has a third torsion hinge module 132 and a second non-torsion hinge module 133 at two ends thereof, and the fourth hinge 140 has a fourth torsion hinge module 142 and a third non-torsion hinge module 143 at two ends thereof, for realizing 90-degree folding between the first body 201 and the third body 203, and between the second body 202 and the fourth body 204.

In this embodiment, the second torsion-free hinge module 133 is disposed on a side of the third hinge 130 close to the middle piece 150, and the third torsion-free hinge module 143 is disposed on a side of the fourth hinge 140 close to the middle piece 150, so as to avoid a problem that torsion is concentrated in a crossing region and causes an excessive effort in 90-degree folding of the flexible screen terminal.

In the present embodiment, the first torsion hinge module 112, the second torsion hinge module 113, the third torsion hinge module 132, the fourth torsion hinge module 142, the first non-torsion hinge module, the second torsion hinge module 133, and the third torsion hinge module 143 all adopt biaxial hinges, so as to increase the bending curvature of the flexible screen terminal in the second use state and the third use state, and reduce the possibility of the flexible screen being damaged by bending.

Optionally, as shown in fig. 4 to 8, in the embodiment of the present invention, the first hinge 110, the second hinge 120, the third hinge 130, and the fourth hinge 140 further include a first bottom case 111, a second bottom case 121, a third bottom case 131, and a fourth bottom case 141, respectively, the first torsion hinge module 112 and the second torsion hinge module 113 are disposed at two ends of the first bottom case 111, the first torsion-free hinge module is disposed on the second bottom case 121, the third torsion hinge module 132 and the second torsion-free hinge module 133 are disposed at two ends of the third bottom case 131, and the fourth torsion hinge module 142 and the third torsion-free hinge module 134 are disposed at two ends of the fourth bottom case 141. The bottom shell is used for protecting and containing the torsion hinge module and the non-torsion hinge module, and the hinge module is prevented from being exposed outside.

On the basis of the above-described embodiment, first connecting arm 151, second connecting arm 152, third connecting arm 153, and fourth connecting arm 154 of intermediate member 150 are connected to first bottom case 111, second bottom case 121, third bottom case 131, and fourth bottom case 141, meanwhile, an end of the first bottom case 111 extends toward the back surface of the base 155 to form a first extending portion 111a, an end of the second bottom case 121 extends toward the back surface of the base 155 to form a second extending portion 121a, an end of the third bottom case 131 extends toward the back surface of the base 155 to form a third extending portion 131a, an end of the fourth bottom case 141 extends toward the back surface of the base 155 to form a fourth extending portion 141a, and the first surface 155a, the second surface 155c, the third surface 155d, and the fourth surface 155b of the base 155 corresponding to the first extending portion 111a, the second extending portion 121a, the third extending portion 131a, and the fourth extending portion 141a are set to be curved surfaces. Thus, in the second usage state, the first extension portion 111a and the second extension portion 121a can enclose the first face 155a and the second face 155c of the base 155; in the third use state, the third extending portion 131a and the fourth extending portion 141a can cover the third surface 155d and the fourth surface 155b of the base 155, so that the base 155 is prevented from being completely exposed to the outside in the use process, and can be kept partially shielded and supported, thereby reducing the probability that the base 155 is directly pressed by a foreign object.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the first hinge module 112 and the second hinge module 113 are elastically connected to the first lifter plate 114, the third hinge module 132 and the second hinge module 133 are elastically connected to the second lifter plate 134, and the fourth hinge module 142 and the third hinge module 143 are elastically connected to the third lifter plate 144. In the first use state, the first torsion hinge module 112 and the second torsion hinge module 113 can lift the first lifting plate 114, the third torsion hinge module 132 and the second torsion-free hinge module 133 can lift the second lifting plate 134, and the fourth torsion hinge module 142 and the third torsion-free hinge module 143 can lift the third lifting plate 144 to better support the folded portion of the flexible screen; in the second or third use condition, the second or

third lifting plate

134, 144 can be elastically retracted to provide a larger accommodation space for the folded portion of the flexible screen.

The present invention is not limited to the above preferred embodiments, and any modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principle of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A bidirectional folding mechanism for supporting a flexible screen terminal comprises a first hinge and a second hinge which are arranged along a first direction, and a third hinge and a fourth hinge which are arranged along a second direction, wherein the intersections of the first hinge, the second hinge, the third hinge and the fourth hinge are flexibly connected through an intermediate piece; the middle part comprises a base, and a first connecting arm, a second connecting arm, a third connecting arm and a fourth connecting arm which are matched with the base in a rotating mode, and the first connecting arm, the second connecting arm, the third connecting arm and the fourth connecting arm are connected with the first hinge, the second hinge, the third hinge and the fourth hinge respectively.

2. The mechanism of claim 1, wherein the base has a first arcuate slot and a second arcuate slot disposed in a first direction, and a third arcuate slot and a fourth arcuate slot disposed in a second direction; the first connecting arm, the second connecting arm, the third connecting arm and the fourth connecting arm are respectively and rotatably clamped in the first arc-shaped groove, the second arc-shaped groove, the third arc-shaped groove and the fourth arc-shaped groove.

3. The mechanism of claim 2, wherein the first and second arcuate slots are offset from each other and the third and fourth arcuate slots are offset from each other.

4. The mechanism of claim 1, wherein the first, second, third and fourth hinges comprise first, second, third and fourth bottom shells, respectively, and the first, second, third and fourth bottom shells have first, second, third and fourth extensions extending toward the back of the middle piece, respectively.

5. The mechanism of any one of claims 1-4, wherein the first hinge, the third hinge, and the fourth hinge are torsion hinges, and the second hinge is a non-torsion hinge.

6. The mechanism of claim 5, wherein the first hinge comprises at least two torsion hinge modules.

7. A mechanism according to claim 5, wherein the third hinge comprises at least one torsion hinge module and the fourth hinge comprises at least one torsion hinge module.

8. The mechanism of claim 5 or 6, wherein the torsion hinge module is a two-axis hinge.

9. The mechanism of claim 7, wherein the third hinge comprises a torsionless hinge module and the fourth hinge comprises a torsionless hinge module.

10. A flexible screen terminal comprising a mechanism for supporting bi-directional folding of a flexible screen terminal as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9.