[0001] One of the aspects requiring more care in the technique for manufacturing furniture
hinges is the structure sturdiness. In fact, in their maximum opening position furniture
hinges are stressed by a great effort caused by the long arm due to the door and obviously
this effort must be borne without yieldings over a great number of operations.
[0002] A particularly critical element of a hinge as regards its sturdiness is the stamped
plate housing connecting the hinge system to the door. In fact this housing supports
an articulation pin which is arranged very close to one of its side walls which in
turn is very close to the door edge. It is therefore frequent that in such a position
breakages and deformations of the housing take place, which brings about the breaking
of the adjacent door edge.
[0003] The situation is further complicated by the necessity of supplying the housing wall
with stress relief openings in order to avoid interferences between said housing and
the articulation, which further weakens the structure. In the known art, these stress
relief openings are usually embodied by two rectangular cuts in the housing wall,
so that the remaining wall portion between said cuts forms a tab the upper end of
which constitutes a support for the lower arm of the articulation when the hinge is
in the open position.
[0004] Although this solution involves undeniable advantages by virtue of the support supplied
to said arm, it is also true that the efforts discharged by said arm on the housing
are rather high and, by acting just close to the stress relief openings, breakages
and deformations are very likely to occur. An increase in the thickness and quality
of the material used would however raise the cost of the hinges as above described
in an unacceptable manner.
[0005] The general object of the invention is to obviate the aforesaid drawbacks by providing
a hinge having a housing offering less chances of being subjected to breakage and
deformation while at the same time affording an improved support to an articulation
arm without involving an unacceptable increase in the production cost.
[0006] The above object has been achieved, in accordance with the invention, by providing
a furniture door hinge of the type comprising a wing to be fastened to the piece of
furniture and a housing to be embedded into the door and fastened thereto, which are
connected by articulated arms pivotally mounted thereto, the housing comprising a
substantially cylindrical side wall close to the wing, said wall exhibiting openings
in order to avoid interferences in the housing, close to the cylindrical wall, with
one pivot end of a lower articulated arm, said openings defining a wall region between
them which by its upper edge forms a support for said lower articulated arm when it
is in the open hinge position, characterized in that the wall region between the openings
widens out as it departs from its upper support edge.
[0007] The innovatory principles of the invention and its advantages as compared to the
known art will be more apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter by
way of non-limiting example of a possible embodiment applying said principles, reference
being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:
- Fig. 1 is a schematic side elevation view partly in section of a hinge in accordance
with the invention;
- Fig. 2 is a partial plan view of the hinge shown in Fig. 1;
- Fig. 3 is a view taken along line III-III in Fig. 1.
[0008] Referring to the drawings, as shown in Fig. 1, a hinge generally denoted by reference
numeral 10, comprises a wing base 11 fastened to a wall 12 of a piece of furniture
and supporting, by means of arms 13 and 14, a partly embedded housing 15 close to
the edge of a door 16.
[0009] Arms 13 and 14 are pivotally mounted to the base by means of pins 17 and 18 and to
the housing by means of pins 19 and 20, respectively.
[0010] As already said, for kinematic reasons in hinges of the concerned type the position
of the end 25 of the lower arm 13 wrapped around the pin 19 must be located so close
to one 24 of the housing walls (formed with a cylindrical bending) near the wing that
such a wall must be provided with stress relief openings at least at two end positions
21, 22 so as to avoid interferences. The portion 23 included between the two stress
relief openings defines a region or tab 23 the upper edge of which constitutes a support
for the arm 13 when the hinge is in the open position.
[0011] As an innovation, the stress relief openings 21 and 22 are shaped in such a way as
to provide the centre region 23 with side edges 26 and 27 widening out towards the
base.
[0012] In particular the side edges 26 and 27 are bent so as to form a decreasing slope
as they depart from the upper support edge. It has been found advantageous to make
the bending of said side edges in such a way that it may substantially follow a profile
given by the intersection of the wall 24 with an imaginary cylinder substantially
coaxial with the pivot axis 19 between said lower arm and the housing and the diameter
of which is slightly greater than the diameter of the end 25 thereof.
[0013] In this manner the achieved result is that of maximizing the material of the central
portion giving it a surprisingly high strength also by virtue of its shape provided
with curved edges, which strength brings about a greater resistance of the whole housing.
Thus deformations and breakages of the hinge in the housing region are avoided even
in case of particularly hard applications such as long and heavy doors.
[0014] It is therefore apparent that the intended purposes of improving the mechanical sturdiness
features of the hinge without increasing the production cost of the same have been
achieved.
[0015] Obviously the above description of an embodiment applying the innovative principles
of the invention is given by way of example only and therefore must not be considered
as a limitation to the scope of the invention herein claimed.
[0016] For example the particular wing shape and fastening of the same to the piece of furniture
optionally by adopting position adjusting means, as well as the housing shape can
be of any type known in the art as any expert technician can easily envisage. Likewise,
the proportions and shapes of the articulation arms may be different from the described
ones depending on the desired pattern and use intended for the particular hinge.
1. A hinge (10) for furniture doors of the type comprising a wing (11) to be fastened
to the piece of furniture and a housing (15) to be embedded into the door and fastened
thereto, which are connected by articulated arms (13, 14) pivotally mounted thereto,
the housing comprising a substantially cylindrical side wall (24) close to the wing,
said wall exhibiting openings (21, 22) in order to avoid interferences in the housing,
close to the cylindrical wall, with one pivot end (25) of a lower articulated arm
(13), said openings defining a wall region (23) between them which by its upper edge
forms a support for said lower articulated arm when it is in the open hinge position,
characterized in that the wall region (23) between the openings widens out as it departs
from its upper support edge.
2. A hinge according to claim 1, characterized in that the wall region (23) between the
openings widens out in such a way that its curved side edges (26, 27) have a decreasing
slope as they depart from the upper support edge.
3. A hinge according to claim 2, characterized in that the bending of the side edges
(26, 27) substantially follows a profile given by the intersection of the wall (24)
with an imaginary cylinder substantially coaxial with the pivot axis between said
lower arm (13) and the housing (15) and the diameter of which is greater than the
diameter of the arm pivot end (25).