Single-joint furniture hinge

• US 5,218,739 A
• Filed: 11/06/1991
• Issued: 06/15/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Karl Lautenschlager GmbH & Co. KG
• Original Assignee: Karl Lautenschlager GmbH & Co. KG
• Inventors: Lautenschlager, Reinhard
• Primary Examiner(s): Larson, Lowell A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MCKEON, MICHAEL
• Application Number:
  US07/788,467
• Time in Patent Office: 587 Days
• Field of Search: 16/335, 16/336, 16/333, 16/321, 16/291, 16/292, 16/293, 16/297
• US Class Current: 16/335
• CPC Class Codes: E05D 11/1014 for maintaining the hinge in only one position, e.g. closed
• CPC Class Codes: E05D 11/105 the maintaining means acting perpendicularly to the pivot axis
• CPC Class Codes: E05D 5/08 of cylindrical shape
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 1/1284 with a leaf or similar spring
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/20 for furnitures, e.g. cabinets

Abstract

Single-joint hinge (10) for the pivotable attachment of a door element (12), which comes to rest against a cabinet body, with a hinge (16), which is visible in the closed position of the door element and the door element contact part (20) of which has a press-in pot (38), which can be inserted into a recess (36) machined in the edge region in the back of the door element (12), breaking through to the adjacent edge border of the door element, and in which an offset joint component (sliding piece 44), which can be inserted from the edge border parallel to the flat sides of the door element, is attached and which carries the part of the hinge that is assigned to the door element, in the form of a bearing link (54) accommodating the hinge pin, at the end of a projection (52) that is bent at right angles and is extended to the outside of the door element (12). The body contact piece (18) of which single-joint hinge is constructed as an extended supporting arm (22) attached to the body supporting wall (14) assigned to it, the front edge of which supporting arm (22), facing the door element, has a section, which is bent at right angles and is taken to the leading edge of the body wall (14), and two supporting legs (30), which project from there, accommodate between themselves the right-angled projection (52) carrying the hinge assigned to the door element (12) and in the free ends of which the bearing links (12) for the hinge pin are constructed. By arranging a pre-formed bent spring (58), constructed as a leaf spring, in a depression (56) of the right-angled segment (28) of the body contact part and a sliding lug (60) at the area of the offset hinge component (44) which lies opposite the door element contact part (20), a locking device which keeps the door element (12) in the closed position is formed.

Claims

1. A single-joint hinge assembly for the pivotable attachment of a door element to a cabinet wall against which it rests in a closed position, the hinge assembly comprising a door element contact part and a cabinet wall contact part which are pivotably joined at a hinge pivot portion, the hinge pivot portion being visible when the door element is in the closed position,

the door element contact part comprising a pot-shaped element which can be press-fitted into a recess machined in the face of the door element which faces the cabinet wall, the recess opening out into a hinged edge of the door element, the pot-shaped element having an offset joint component slidingly inserted in an inward direction from the hinged edge of the door element parallel to the face of the door element for attachment to the pot-shaped element, the offset joint component carrying the door element contact part of the hinge assembly by way of a bearing link accommodating a hinge pin, the bearing link being at the end of a projection, the projection being an extension of the offset joint component perpendicular thereto and extending outward of the hinged edge of the door element,

the cabinet wall contact part comprising an extended supporting arm attached to an inside face of the cabinet wall, the supporting arm having an extension thereof perpendicular to the face of the cabinet wall and adjacent a hinged edge thereof, the supporting arm extension having two supporting legs projecting outward from the hinged edge of the cabinet wall and spaced apart to accommodate therebetween the extension of the offset joint component of the door element contact part, free ends of the supporting legs having bearing links for accommodating the hinge pin, the perpendicular extension of the supporting arm having therein a depression opening out in the direction of the legs,

a leaf spring disposed in the depression and secured via a connecting end of the leaf spring, the leaf spring being situated so that it essentially covers the depression and is biased outward from the depression, the leaf spring comprising an essentially flat body portion and a free end portion which arcs inward toward the edge of the cabinet wall, a projecting sliding lug positioned at the extension of the offset joint component such that the lug lies opposite the leaf spring when the door element is in the closed position, the arc-shaped free end of the leaf spring exerting a force against the lug to thereby bias the door element in a closing direction as it approaches the closed position.

2. The hinge assembly of claim 1, wherein the connecting end of the leaf spring is also arched back into the depression.

3. The hinge assembly of claim 2, wherein the arc of the free end of the leaf spring runs over an arc of the order of about 180°

to comprise within the depression a second leaf spring segment, which is essentially flat, and is supported on the bottom of the depression.

4. The hinge assembly of claim 3, wherein a free end of the second leaf spring segment, which is supported on the bottom of the depression, is canted in the direction of the hinged edge of the cabinet wall and engages a conforming slot-like recess in the bottom of the depression.

5. The hinge assembly of claim 3, wherein the second leaf spring segment is held by a holding pin which passes transversely through the depression, and comes to rest against the flat side of the second leaf spring segment that faces away from the bottom of the depression.

6. The hinge assembly of claim 2, wherein the connecting end of the leaf spring is held in a conforming accommodation slot in the perpendicular extension of the cabinet body contact part.

7. The hinge assembly of claim 1, wherein the cabinet body contact part and the offset joint component of the door element contact part are made of metal, and the lug is a separate plastic part held in a recess in the offset joint component.

8. A single-joint hinge assembly for the pivotable attachment of two opposing door elements to a common cabinet wall against which they rest in a closed position, the hinge assembly comprising two door element contact parts and a cabinet wall contact part which are pivotably joined at a hinge pivot portion, the hinge pivot portion being visible when the door elements are in the closed position,

each door element contact part comprising a pot-shaped element which can be press-fitted into a recess machined in the face of the door element which faces the cabinet wall, the recess opening out into a hinged edge of the door element, the pot-shaped element having an offset joint component slidingly inserted in an inward direction from the hinged edge of the door element parallel to the face of the door element for attachment to the pot-shaped element, the offset joint component carrying the door element contact part of the hinge assembly by way of a bearing link accommodating a hinge pin, the bearing link being at the end of a projection, the projection being an extension of the offset joint component perpendicular thereto and extending outward of the hinged edge of the door element,

the cabinet wall contact part comprising an extended supporting arm attached to an inside face of the cabinet body, the supporting arm having an extension thereof perpendicular to the face of the cabinet body and adjacent a hinged edge thereof, the supporting arm extension having two supporting legs projecting outward from the hinged edge of the cabinet body and spaced apart to accommodate therebetween the extension of the offset joint component of both door element contact parts, the two offset joint component extensions being arranged one on top of the other within the space between the legs, each offset joint component extensions having a dimension such that the sum thereof equals the dimension of the space between the legs, free ends of the supporting legs having bearing links accommodating the hinge pin, the perpendicular extension of the supporting arm having therein two depressions opening out in the direction of the legs,

a leaf spring disposed in each depression and secured via a connecting end of the leaf spring, each leaf spring being situated so that it essentially covers the depression in which it is secured and is biased outward from the depression, each leaf spring comprising an essentially flat body portion and a free end portion which arcs inward toward the edge of the cabinet wall, a projecting sliding lug positioned at the extension of each offset joint component such that the lug lies opposite a respective leaf spring when corresponding door element is in the closed position, the arc-shaped free end of the leaf spring exerting a force against the lug to thereby bias the door element in a closing direction as it approaches the closed position, such that each door element can pivot on the hinge assembly independently from the other door element.