Flat panel display apparatus equipped with a supplemental stopper

• US 6,231,021 B1
• Filed: 12/14/1998
• Issued: 05/15/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Hong, You-sik
• Primary Examiner(s): Braun, Leslie A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Le, Tan
• Application Number:
  US09/210,611
• Time in Patent Office: 883 Days
• Field of Search: 248/917, 248/918, 248/919, 248/920, 248/921, 248/922, 248/923, 248/125.7, 248/130, 248/125.9, 248/133, 248/371, 248/370, 248/395, 248/398, 248/178.1, 248/179.1, 248/474, 248/479, 248/291.1, 248/292.12, 248/284.1, 361/681
• US Class Current: 248/371
• CPC Class Codes: E05D 11/06 Devices for limiting the opening movement of hinges
• CPC Class Codes: E05D 3/10 with non-parallel pins
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2999/00 Subject-matter not otherwise provided for in this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: F16M 11/10 around a horizontal axis F16M11/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16M 11/2014 around a vertical axis F16M11/2035 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1601 Constructional details related to the housing of computer displays, e.g. of CRT monitors, of flat displays constructional details related to flat displays integrated in a portable computer, e.g. laptop, handheld computer G06F1/1637; constructional details related to television receivers H04N5/64
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1612 Flat panel monitor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 248/923 Tilting

Abstract

A flat-panel display apparatus including a display unit having a screen; a stand unit supporting the display uni; a hinge unit connected between the display unit and the stand unit, to enable forward and backward tilting and leftward and rightward swivelling of the display unit. A pair of tilt stoppers are formed in the hinge unit to prevent excessive tilting of the display unit either forwardly or rearwardly. A pair of supplemental stoppers is formed at external sides of the hinge member to reinforce the tilt stoppers to prevent the excessive tilting of the display unit.

Claims

1. A flat panel display apparatus comprising:

a display unit having a screen;

a stand unit supporting said display unit;

a hinge unit connected between said display unit and stand unit and enabling a tilting operation of said display unit, said hinge unit having a tilt stopper mechanism formed therein to stop the tilting operation of said display unit in response to said display unit tilting a predetermined angle, said hinge unit further comprising a tilting bracket fixed to a lower part of the display unit; and

a supplemental stopper mechanism formed outside of said hinge unit, to assist the stopping of the tilt operation by said tilt stopper mechanism, said supplemental stopper mechanism contacting said tilting bracket to stop the tilting operation in response to said display unit tilting the predetermined angle.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

said hinge unit includes a hinge main body in which said tilt stopper mechanism is formed; and

said supplemental stopper mechanism includes a pair of supplemental stoppers respectively mounted on opposite sides of said hinge main body.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

said hinge unit includes a hinge main body in which said tilt stopper mechanism is formed; and

said supplemental stopper mechanism is integrally formed with said hinge main body.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said tilting bracket has a lower tilting protruded end unit which contacts said supplemental stopper mechanism in response to said display unit tilting the predetermined angle in a first tilt direction and an upper protruded end unit which contacts said supplemental stopper mechanism in response to said display unit tilting another predetermined angle in a second tilt direction opposite the first tilt direction.

5. A flat panel display apparatus comprising:

a display unit having a screen;

a stand unit supporting said display unit;

a hinge unit connected between said display unit and stand unit and enabling a tilting operation of said display unit, said hinge unit comprising;

a hinge main body;

a tilt stopper mechanism formed in the hinge main body to stop the tilting operation of said display unit in response to said display unit tilting a predetermined angle, the tilt stopper mechanism comprising;

a pair of tilt apparatus units each including;

a tilting bracket fixed to a lower part of said display unit,

a hinge bracket fixed to said hinge main body and having an engagement unit, an upper tilting protruding end unit and a lower tilting protruding end unit which move in conjunction with said tilting bracket,

a tilting shaft fixedly connected to said hinge bracket and rotatably connected to said tilting bracket, and

a tilt stopper having an upper stopper protruding end unit and a lower stopper protruding end unit, wherein said engagement unit is between said upper stopper protruding end unit and said lower stopper protruding end unit to limit an amount of tilting of said tilting bracket and said display unit; and

a supplemental stopper mechanism formed outside of said hinge unit, to assist the stopping of the tilt operation by said tilt stopper mechanis, said supplemental stopper mechanism comprising a pair of stopper protrusions respectively between a corresponding pair of said upper tilting protruding end unit and said lower tilting protruding end unit, to limit the amount of tilting of said tilting bracket and said display unit.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein said stopper protrusions are respectively formed at opposite sides of said hinge main body.

7. The apparatus as claim 6, wherein said pair of stopper protrusions are integrally formed on the opposite sides of said hinge main body.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein:

each of said pair of hinge brackets has at least one hole;

said hinge main body has a plurality of bosses;

and the apparatus further comprises screws which pass through said at least one hole of each of said pair of hinge brackets and engage a corresponding one of the plurality of bosses.

9. A display apparatus for displaying information, the apparatus comprising:

a display unit having a screen to display the information;

a stand to support said display unit on a surface;

a hinge unit connecting said display unit to said stand, to enable said display unit to be tilted about an axis parallel to the surface, and having a stopper mechanism formed inside of said hinge unit to stop said display unit from tilting greater than a predetermined angle in a particular direction, the hinge unit comprising;

a hinge main body which is connected to said stand;

a tilting shaft connected to said hinge main body;

first and second stopper protrusions; and

a tilting bracket fixed to said display unit and rotatable about said tilting shaft, wherein said tilting bracket has an engagement protrusion and first and second tilting protrusions;

wherein said engagement protrusion is between said first and second stopper protrusions, and contacts one of said first and second stopper protrusions to prevent additional tilting of said display unit in response to said display unit tilting the predetermined angle in the particular direction or another direction opposite the particular direction by the predetermined angle; and

a supplemental stopper mechanism formed outside of said hinge unit, to stop said display unit from tilting greater than the predetermined angle in the particular direction, said supplemental stopper mechanism comprising a stopper protrusion between said first and second tilting protrusions, and which contacts one of said first and second tilting protrusions to prevent the additional tilting of said display unit in response to said display unit tilting the predetermined angle in the particular direction or the another direction by the predetermined angle.

10. The display apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said supplemental stopper protrusion is formed on an external surface of said hinge main body.

11. The display apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said first and second tilting protrusions are substantially at right angles to each other.

12. The display apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein said first and second stopper protrusions are substantially parallel to each other.

13. The display apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said first and second stopper protrusions are substantially parallel to each other.

14. The display apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said hinge unit further comprises:

an another tilting shaft connected to said hinge main body;

other first and second stopper protrusions; and

an another tilting bracket fixed to said display unit and rotatable about said another tilting shaft, wherein said another tilting bracket has an another engagement protrusion and other first and second tilting protrusions;

wherein

said another engagement protrusion is between said other first and second stopper protrusions, and contacts one of said other first and second stopper protrusions to prevent the additional tilting of said display unit in response to said display unit tilting the predetermined angle in the particular direction or the another direction; and

said supplemental stopper mechanism further comprises an another stopper protrusion between said other first and second tilting protrusions, and which contacts one of said other first and second tilting protrusions to prevent the additional tilting of said display unit in response to said display unit tilting the predetermined angle in the particular direction or the another direction by the predetermined angle.

15. The display apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein said supplemental stopper protrusion and said another supplemental stopper protrusion are formed on an external surface and at opposite sides of said hinge main body.

16. A display apparatus for displaying information, comprising:

a display unit having a screen to display the information;

a stand to support said display unit on a surface;

a hinge device connecting said display unit to said stand, to enable said display unit to be tilted about an axis parallel to the surface, said hinge device comprising;

a pair of tilting brackets fixed to said display unit, each having an engagement unit and first and second tilt protruding elements, and

a hinge main body having a pair of tilting shafts about which said pair of tilting brackets are respectively rotatable and a pair of tilt stoppers formed within said hinge main body and a pair of supplemental stoppers formed external of said hinge main body;

wherein movement of each engagement unit is limited by first and second protrusions of a corresponding one of said tilt stoppers, and movement of each pair of first and second tilt protruding elements is limited by a corresponding one of said supplemental stoppers.

17. A display apparatus for displaying information, comprising:

a display unit having a screen to display the information;

a stand to support the display unit;

a hinge main body attached to the stand;

a hinge bracket fixed to the hinge main body;

a tilting bracket connected to the display unit, the tilting bracket and the hinge bracket comprising a hinge, the tilting bracket rotating with respect to the hinge bracket about an axis, to enable the display unit to be tilted about the axis;

a first stopper mechanism formed within the hinge, to stop the display unit from tilting greater than a predetermined angle in a particular direction; and

a supplemental stopper affixed to the hinge main body and protruding in a direction corresponding to the axis, the supplemental stopper contacting the tilting bracket at the predetermined angle, to stop the display unit from tilting greater than the predetermined angle in the particular direction.