阅读说明：本技术 阻尼铰链及使用此阻尼铰链的西式马桶 (Damping hinge and western-style toilet using same ) 是由 仓持龙太 河村英治 于 2019-08-07 设计创作，主要内容包括：本申请提供一种仅使用流体阻尼机构的阻尼铰链及组合流体阻尼机构和扭转阻尼机构的阻尼铰链,其构造简单且不需耗时组装,可便宜地制造且尤其针对西式马桶的马桶盖或马桶坐垫等开合体。流体阻尼机构包括：卡止凸条部,在圆柱盒设有的流体收容室内空出既定间隔面向轴方向设置；阀片,剖面呈略U字形且嵌入到各卡止凸条部；叶片部,接触流体收容室内的内周壁且设在卡止凸条部间；转动轴,具有与阀片接触的中径部；及弧状沟,设在圆柱盒侧壁和卡止凸条部间。除了流体阻尼机构,扭转阻尼机构在圆柱盒设有的扭转收容室内且邻接流体收容室,其包括：连接轴,在轴方向连结转动轴且设置成可一起转动；及扭簧,环卷于连接轴设置且将连接轴往一方向转动推动。(The present application provides a damping hinge using only a fluid damping mechanism and a damping hinge combining a fluid damping mechanism and a torsion damping mechanism, which has a simple structure and does not require time-consuming assembly, can be manufactured at low cost, and is particularly suitable for an opening and closing body such as a toilet lid or a toilet seat of a western-style toilet. The fluid damping mechanism includes: a locking convex strip part arranged in the axial direction of the fluid containing chamber with a predetermined spacing in the fluid containing chamber; a valve plate having a substantially U-shaped cross section and fitted into each of the locking convex strip portions; a blade portion which contacts the inner peripheral wall of the fluid accommodating chamber and is provided between the locking convex portions; a rotating shaft having an intermediate diameter portion contacting the valve sheet; and an arc-shaped groove provided between the side wall of the cylindrical case and the locking convex strip portion. In addition to the fluid damping mechanism, the torsion damping mechanism is in a torsion accommodating chamber provided in the cylindrical case and adjacent to the fluid accommodating chamber, and includes: a connecting shaft connected to the rotating shaft in the axial direction and configured to rotate together; and the torsional spring is wound around the connecting shaft and pushes the connecting shaft to rotate in one direction.)

1. In a damping hinge using a fluid damping mechanism for openably and closably mounting an opening and closing body on an opened and closed body, wherein the fluid damping mechanism comprises:

a cylindrical case having one end opened and attached to the opened/closed body;

a plurality of locking convex strip portions arranged in the axial direction from the inner wall portion on the inner peripheral wall of a fluid containing chamber arranged in the cylindrical case;

a valve plate having a substantially U-shaped cross section and engaged with each of the locking convex strip portions;

a cover mounted on the fluid receiving chamber of the cylindrical case; and

a rotating shaft that penetrates the cover in a watertight manner, and that is attached to the opening/closing body side, wherein a plurality of blade portions that protrude toward one end portion of the rotating shaft are sealed in the fluid accommodating chamber together with damping oil;

wherein, during the rotation action of the rotating shaft, fluid passages are formed between the valve plates and the locking convex strip, between the arc-shaped groove arranged on the inner peripheral wall of the cylindrical box and the vane part, and between the middle diameter part provided with the vane part in a protruding way and the valve plates.

2. The damped hinge according to claim 1, wherein the valve sheet is provided with an insertion regulating piece portion regulating an insertion direction of the valve sheet when the valve sheet is inserted and engaged with the locking ridge portion at one side end portion side thereof.

3. In a damping hinge using a fluid damping mechanism for openably and closably mounting an opening and closing body to an opened and closed body and a torsion damping mechanism, wherein the fluid damping mechanism comprises:

a cylindrical case having both end portions opened and attached to the opened/closed body side and provided with a fluid accommodating chamber and a torsion accommodating chamber through a partition wall;

a plurality of locking ridges provided in the fluid containing chamber in the axial direction from the partition wall surface;

a valve plate having a substantially U-shaped cross section and engaged with each of the locking convex strip portions;

a first cover attached to an open end side of the fluid containing chamber; and

a rotating shaft that penetrates the first cover in a watertight state, and that is attached to the opening/closing body side, wherein a plurality of blade portions that protrude toward one end portion of the rotating shaft are sealed in the fluid storage chamber together with damping oil;

wherein, during the rotation action of the rotation shaft, fluid passages are formed between each valve plate and the locking convex strip, between the arc-shaped groove provided on the partition wall of the cylindrical case and the vane portion, and between the intermediate diameter portion provided with the vane portion in a protruding manner and the valve plate, and the torsion damping mechanism comprises:

a connecting shaft rotatably provided in the torsion accommodating chamber, penetrating the partition wall in a watertight state, and engaged with the rotating shaft in the fluid accommodating chamber in an axial direction;

a second cover which is installed on the open end side of the torsion containing chamber and pivotally supports one end part side of the connecting shaft; and

and the torsional spring is arranged between the connecting shaft and the cylindrical box in a winding manner.

4. The damped hinge according to claim 3, wherein the valve sheet is provided with an insertion regulating piece portion regulating an insertion direction of the valve sheet when the valve sheet is inserted and engaged with the locking ridge portion at the one side end portion side thereof.

5. The damped hinge according to claim 3, wherein the torsion damping mechanism is assembled by the partition wall when the rotation shaft and the connection shaft are coaxially coupled, and then the rotation shaft is inserted into an inlet portion of the fluid housing chamber, the connection shaft is engaged with the rotation shaft, the blade portion is inserted into the fluid housing chamber, and thereby the initial moment is set at the connection shaft.

6. The damped hinge according to claim 3, wherein when the rotation shaft is coupled to the coupling shaft in the coaxial direction, a deformation shaft portion for mounting is provided on the side of the coupling shaft, and a deformation coupling hole is provided on the side of the rotation shaft.

7. The damped hinge according to claim 6, wherein gas release grooves are provided in axial directions of the deformation coupling hole of the rotation shaft and the coupling shaft portion, respectively.

8. A damped hinge, comprising:

a cylindrical case having a partition wall in a cylindrical shape;

a valve member provided with a fluid chamber provided across the partition wall in the cylindrical case, the fluid chamber being in contact with one side of the partition wall and being restricted from rotating, the valve member having a pair of valve pieces provided with a predetermined gap in an outer periphery and facing in an axial direction;

a rotating shaft which is rotatably provided in the fluid containing chamber in a watertight state while being in contact with the valve element, and which has at least a flange portion and a pair of blade portions provided in succession to the flange portion, the rotating shaft being restricted from moving in the axial direction;

a connecting shaft which is provided in a torsion accommodating chamber provided on the other side of the partition wall in the cylindrical case so as to be restricted from moving in the axial direction in the same manner, and which is connected to the rotating shaft in a coaxial and watertight manner via the partition wall;

a fluid damping mechanism provided on the rotating shaft side; and

a torsion damping mechanism provided on the connecting shaft side;

wherein, this fluid damping mechanism includes:

a pair of blade portions provided between the pair of valve sheet portions, provided from the flange portion, and contacting the surface portion of the valve element;

a first fluid housing chamber and a second fluid housing chamber provided between the pair of valve plate portions, housing the pair of vane portions therein, respectively, and filled with fluid oil;

a pair of first fluid passages provided in the first fluid chamber and the second fluid chamber, respectively, and operated by the pair of vane portions in a predetermined rotation angle range of the rotation shaft; and

and a pair of second fluid passages provided in the valve plate portion and operated by the pair of vane portions in the same manner in the fully-opened angular range of the rotating shaft.

9. The damped hinge according to claim 8, wherein either one of the rotation shaft and the connection shaft is axially coupled by the partition wall by bearing in a first bearing hole provided in the partition wall when the rotation shaft and the connection shaft are coaxially coupled.

10. The damped hinge according to claim 8, wherein the second fluid passage is provided between the face portion of the valve member and the pair of blade portions provided on the rotation shaft side.

11. The damped hinge according to claim 8, wherein the first fluid passage is provided between the pair of the valve piece portions of the valve element and a pair of retaining ridge portions provided inside the cylindrical case that the pair of the valve piece portions are engaged with.

12. A western style toilet using each damping hinge as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 11.

Technical Field

The invention relates to a damping hinge suitable for opening and closing a combined body and a western-style closestool using the damping hinge. For example, the openable member is a toilet lid or a toilet seat, etc., as opposed to an openable member such as a western-style toilet.

Background

Conventionally, a hinge for opening and closing an opening and closing body such as a toilet lid or a toilet seat of an opening and closing body formed of, for example, a western style toilet is a damper hinge which is used at the rear of the opening and closing body and controls an opening and closing moment of the opening and closing body. Known techniques of the related damping hinges are a damping hinge using a fluid damper as shown in japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2017-13666, a damping hinge using a torsion spring as shown in japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2017-198271, and a damping hinge combining a fluid damper and a torsion spring as shown in japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2009-297131.

However, the damping hinge using the fluid damping described in japanese patent application laid-open No. 2017-13666 is complicated in structure, and therefore, a damping hinge having a simpler structure and low manufacturing cost is required. Further, the damping hinge using a torsion spring disclosed in japanese patent application laid-open No. 2017-198271 may have the following tendency if it is a damping hinge using a torsion spring alone: the opening-closing body is pushed in the opening direction when the opening-closing body is opened, but the opening-closing body floats up with respect to the body to be opened by vibration or shaking in the opened state of the opening-closing body. Further, the damper hinge disclosed in japanese patent application laid-open No. 2009-297131 is not only complicated in structure, but also requires a jig or the like for assembly, which causes a problem of time consumption. Further, since the toilet seat and the toilet cover have different weights and different rotational moments, damping hinges corresponding to the toilet seat and the toilet seat are required.

Disclosure of Invention

Thus, a first object of the present invention is, in view of the above, to provide a damped hinge which is simple in construction, does not require time-consuming assembly, can be cheap and is particularly useful for toilet lids.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a damping hinge which can open and close an opening and closing body with a very light operating force, and which does not float up due to vibration in a fully closed state of the opening and closing body and does not naturally fall down in a fully opened state.

To achieve the above object, according to the present invention, in a damping hinge using a fluid damping mechanism for openably and closably mounting an opening and closing body to an opened and closed body, the fluid damping mechanism includes: a cylindrical case having one end opened and mounted on the opened/closed body side; a plurality of locking convex strip parts which are arranged on the inner peripheral wall of the fluid containing chamber from the inner wall part to the axial direction, and the fluid containing chamber is arranged in the cylindrical box; a valve plate having a substantially U-shaped cross section and engaged with each of the locking convex strip portions; a cover mounted on the fluid receiving chamber of the cylindrical case; and a rotating shaft penetrating the cover in a watertight state, and sealing a plurality of blade portions protruding from one end portion side of the rotating shaft into the fluid containing chamber together with the damping oil, the rotating shaft being attached to the opening/closing body side; when the rotating shaft rotates, fluid passages are formed between the valve plates and the locking raised strip, between the arc-shaped grooves and the blade parts arranged on the inner peripheral wall of the cylindrical box, and between the middle diameter part provided with the blade parts and the valve plates.

In this case, according to the damper hinge of the present invention, when the valve sheet is inserted into and engaged with the locking ridge portion at the one end side of the valve sheet, the insertion regulating piece portion for regulating the insertion direction of the valve sheet is provided.

Further, according to the damping hinge of the present invention, in a damping hinge using a fluid damping mechanism and a torsion damping mechanism, the fluid damping mechanism openably and closably mounts an opening and closing body on an opened and closed body, wherein the fluid damping mechanism includes: a cylindrical case having two end portions opened and mounted on the opened/closed body side, and having a fluid accommodating chamber and a torsion accommodating chamber provided with a partition wall therebetween; a plurality of locking convex strip parts which are arranged from the separating wall surface to the axial direction in the fluid containing chamber; a valve plate having a substantially U-shaped cross section and engaged with each of the locking convex strip portions; a first cover mounted on the open end side of the fluid chamber; and a rotating shaft penetrating the first cover in a watertight state, and enclosing a plurality of blade portions protruding from one end portion side of the rotating shaft in the fluid containing chamber together with the damping oil, the rotating shaft being attached to the opening/closing body side; wherein, during the rotation action of the rotating shaft, fluid passages are formed between each valve plate and the locking convex strip part, between the arc-shaped groove arranged on the separating wall of the cylindrical box and the blade part, and between the middle diameter part provided with the blade part in a protruding way and the valve plate, and the torsion damping mechanism comprises: a connecting shaft rotatably provided in the torsion accommodating chamber, penetrating the partition wall in a watertight state, and engaged with the rotating shaft in the fluid accommodating chamber in the axial direction; a second cover which is installed on the open end side of the torsion containing chamber and pivotally supports one end part side of the connecting shaft; and the torsional spring is arranged between the connecting shaft and the cylindrical box in a winding manner.

In this case, according to the damper hinge of the present invention, when the valve sheet is inserted into and engaged with the locking ridge portion at the one end side of the valve sheet, the insertion regulating piece portion for regulating the insertion direction of the valve sheet is provided.

Further, according to the damper hinge of the present invention, when the rotation shaft and the connection shaft are coaxially connected to each other through the partition wall, the torsion damper mechanism is first assembled, and then the rotation shaft is inserted into the inlet portion of the fluid housing chamber, the connection shaft is engaged with the rotation shaft, and the blade portion is inserted into the fluid housing chamber, thereby setting the initial moment on the connection shaft.

Further, according to the damper hinge of the present invention, when the rotating shaft is connected to the connecting shaft in the coaxial direction, the mounting deformation shaft portion is provided on the connecting shaft side, and the deformation connection hole is provided on the rotating shaft side.

Further, according to the damper hinge of the present invention, the gas release grooves are provided in the deformation coupling hole of the rotation shaft and in the axial direction of the coupling shaft portion, respectively.

Further, according to the damping hinge of the present invention, a damping hinge comprises: a cylindrical case having a partition wall in a cylindrical shape; a valve member provided on a side of the partition wall where the fluid accommodating chamber is in contact with the partition wall so as to be restricted from rotating, the fluid accommodating chamber being provided with the partition wall in the cylindrical case in between, and the valve member having a pair of valve piece portions provided on an outer periphery thereof with a predetermined interval therebetween and facing in an axial direction; a rotating shaft which is rotatably provided in the fluid containing chamber in a watertight state while being in contact with the valve element, and which has at least a flange portion and a pair of blade portions provided in succession to the flange portion, the blade portions being restricted from moving in the axial direction; a connecting shaft which is provided in the torsion accommodating chamber in such a manner that the movement in the axial direction is restricted, the torsion accommodating chamber being provided on the other side of the partition wall in the cylindrical case, and being connected to the rotating shaft in a coaxial and watertight state via the partition wall; a fluid damping mechanism provided on the rotating shaft side; and a torsion damping mechanism disposed on the connecting shaft side; wherein, fluid damping mechanism includes: a pair of blade portions which are positioned between the pair of valve sheet portions, are provided from the flange portion, and contact the surface portion of the valve member; a first fluid chamber and a second fluid chamber provided between the pair of valve pieces, respectively accommodating the pair of vane portions therein and filled with fluid oil; a pair of first fluid passages provided in the first fluid chamber and the second fluid chamber, respectively, and operated by the blade portion in a predetermined rotation angle range of the rotation shaft; and a pair of second fluid passages provided in the valve piece and operated by the vane portions in the same manner in the fully-opened angular range of the rotating shaft.

In the damper hinge according to the present invention, when the rotating shaft and the connecting shaft are coaxially coupled to each other through the partition wall, either one of the rotating shaft and the connecting shaft is axially coupled to each other by being received in the first bearing hole provided in the partition wall.

According to the damping hinge of the present invention, the second fluid passage is provided between the face portion of the valve member and the pair of blade portions provided on the rotation shaft side.

Further, according to the damper hinge of the present invention, the first fluid passage is provided between the pair of valve plate portions of the valve element and the pair of locking ridges provided in the cylindrical case engaged with the pair of valve plate portions.

Also, according to the damping hinge of the present invention, a western-style toilet uses the above-described damping hinges.

The present invention is configured as described above, and according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an inexpensive damper hinge which has a small number of parts and a simple structure and can absorb an impact when an openable and closable body is closed with respect to an openable and closable body.

According to the present invention, when the valve sheet is inserted and engaged with the locking ridge portion, the insertion direction is not deviated by the insertion regulating piece portion, so that it is possible to prevent an assembly error and an increase in cost due to reassembly caused by the assembly error.

According to the present invention, the impact of the openable and closable body on the closed state of the openable and closable body can be absorbed, the openable and closable body can be opened slightly without feeling the original weight of the openable and closable body when opened, and the openable and closable body can be prevented from being lifted up by vibration or shaking applied from the outside when closed.

According to the present invention, when the valve sheet is inserted and engaged with the locking ridge portion, the insertion direction is not deviated by the insertion regulating piece portion, so that it is possible to prevent an assembly error and an increase in cost due to reassembly caused by the assembly error.

According to the present invention, since the fluid can be communicated with the first fluid passage through the second fluid passage, a damper hinge with better operability can be provided.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a damper hinge that ensures coupling engagement between a connecting shaft and a rotating shaft.

According to the present invention, when the deformable shaft portion for attaching the connecting shaft is inserted into the deformable coupling hole of the rotating shaft and coupled, the insertion and coupling operation is facilitated.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a damper hinge in which an openable and closable body can absorb an impact when closed with respect to an openable and closable body, can be opened without feeling the original weight of the openable and closable body when opened, and can automatically open the openable and closable body even in the middle of an opening and closing operation.

According to the present invention, the rotating shaft and the connecting shaft having different functions can be coaxially connected with each other through the partition wall.

According to the present invention, the second fluid passage is provided between the face portion of the valve element and the blade portion of the rotating shaft, whereby the angular range of operation of the fluid damper mechanism can be arbitrarily determined.

According to the present invention, since the fluid can flow through the arcuate groove and the arcuate groove together, a damper hinge with better operability can be provided.

According to the present invention, a western style toilet may be provided that uses a damped hinge having the above characteristics.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a western-style toilet using the damping hinge of the present invention, wherein (a) is a perspective view thereof, and (b) is a perspective view showing a state where a toilet lid is opened.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a damping hinge for a toilet lid according to the present invention.

Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the damping hinge shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating an internal configuration of the damping hinge shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a cylindrical case showing the damped hinge shown in fig. 2, and (a) is a left side view thereof, and (b) is a longitudinal sectional view thereof.

Fig. 6 shows a rotation shaft of the damper hinge shown in fig. 2, wherein (a) is a front view thereof, (b) is a right side view thereof, and (c) is a longitudinal sectional view thereof.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the valve sheet of the damper hinge shown in fig. 2, (a), (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line a-a of (a), and (c) is a cross-sectional view showing an engagement state between the locking ridge and the valve sheet.

Fig. 8A is an explanatory view illustrating an operation of the damper hinge shown in fig. 2, wherein (a) shows a fully opened state of the toilet lid, and (b) shows a starting closed state of the toilet lid.

Fig. 8B is an explanatory view illustrating the operation of the damper hinge shown in fig. 2, (c) shows an intermediate closed state of the toilet lid, and (d) shows a fully closed state of the toilet lid.

Fig. 9 shows a damper hinge according to a second embodiment of the present invention, wherein (a) is a perspective view thereof, (b) is a plan view thereof, and (c) is a left side view thereof.

Fig. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an internal configuration of the damping hinge shown in fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the damping hinge shown in fig. 9.

Fig. 12 is a cylindrical case showing the damping hinge shown in fig. 9, wherein (a) is a perspective view thereof, (b) is a left side view thereof, and (c) is a right side view thereof.

Fig. 13 shows a rotation shaft of the damper hinge shown in fig. 9, where (a) is a perspective view thereof, (b) is a left side view of (a), and (c) is a right side view of (a).

Fig. 14 is a view showing a connecting shaft of the damper hinge shown in fig. 9, (a) is a front view thereof, (b) is a plan view thereof, (c) is a left side view thereof, and (d) is a right side view thereof.

FIG. 15 is a view showing a valve plate of the damper hinge shown in FIG. 9, wherein (a) is a perspective view thereof, (B) is a plan view thereof, and (c) is a sectional view taken along line B-B of (a).

Fig. 16A is a flowchart for explaining a procedure of applying an initial moment to the torsion spring of the torsion damping mechanism, where (a) shows a state before the turning shaft is inserted into the cylindrical case, (b) shows a state before the turning shaft is inserted into the cylindrical case and the turning shaft is inserted into the mounting deformation shaft portion coupled to the coupling shaft and the coupling shaft, and (c) shows a state where the turning shaft is turned from the insertion engagement state of (b).

Fig. 16B is a flowchart for explaining a procedure for applying an initial moment to the torsion damping mechanism, and (d) shows a state in which the blade portions of the rotating shaft are inserted into the fluid accommodating chamber from the state (c) in fig. 16A, and (e) shows a state in which the insertion is completed.

Fig. 17 is a diagram illustrating a procedure for setting an initial torque on the connecting shaft from the side surface side, (a) shows a state where the deformable shaft portion for attachment of the connecting shaft is inserted into the deformable coupling hole of the rotating shaft, and (b) shows a state where the rotating shaft is rotated from the insertion engagement state of (a) and the initial torque is set on the connecting shaft.

Fig. 18A is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the operation of the damping hinge shown in fig. 9, wherein (a) is a state showing a fully opened state of the toilet seat, and (b) is a state showing a state where the toilet seat starts to be closed.

Fig. 18B is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the operation of the damping hinge shown in fig. 9, wherein (c) shows an intermediate closed state of the toilet seat and (d) shows a fully closed state of the toilet seat.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the damped hinge of the present invention.

Fig. 20 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the damping hinge shown in fig. 19.

Fig. 21 is an exploded perspective view showing the damper hinge shown in fig. 19.

Fig. 22 shows a cylindrical case of the damper hinge shown in fig. 19, wherein (a) is a perspective view thereof, (b) is a left side view thereof, and (c) is a right side view thereof.

Fig. 23 is a sectional view taken along line a-a of fig. 22 (b), showing the cylindrical case of the damper hinge shown in fig. 19.

Fig. 24 shows a rotation shaft of the damper hinge shown in fig. 19, in which (a) is a perspective view thereof, (b) is a left side view thereof, and (c) is a right side view thereof.

Fig. 25A is a view showing a valve element of the damper hinge shown in fig. 19, wherein (a) is a left side view thereof, and (b) is a perspective view of (a) viewed from one side thereof.

Fig. 25B is a perspective view showing the valve element of the damping hinge shown in fig. 19, (C) is a perspective view showing fig. 25A (a) viewed from another side, and (d) is a sectional view taken along line C-C of fig. 25A (a).

Fig. 26 is a diagram for explaining the first fluid passage of the damper hinge shown in fig. 19, in which (a) is an enlarged side sectional view thereof, and (b) is a sectional view viewed from an arrow a side of (a).

Fig. 27 is a plan view showing a coupling shaft of the damping hinge shown in fig. 19.

Fig. 28 is a cross-sectional view of the first lid showing the damped hinge shown in fig. 19, where (a) is a left side view thereof and (b) is a D-D line.

Fig. 29 is a sectional view of the second lid showing the damped hinge shown in fig. 19, wherein (a) is a left side view thereof, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line E-E of (a).

Fig. 30A is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the operation of the damper hinge shown in fig. 19, wherein (a) shows a fully opened state of the lid body, and (b) shows a starting closed state of the lid body.

Fig. 30B is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the operation of the damper hinge shown in fig. 19, wherein (c) shows an intermediate closed state of the lid body, and (d) shows a completely closed state of the lid body.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the damping hinge according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the damping hinge is used as a damping hinge for opening and closing an openable and closable body such as a toilet lid or a toilet seat with respect to an openable and closable body such as a western-style toilet. However, the damper hinge according to the present invention is not limited to this, and may be used for opening and closing an opening and closing body such as a cover with respect to an opening and closing body such as various electric appliances or cabinets. For this reason, in the following description, the opening and closing body is described as a toilet lid of a western style toilet in the first embodiment, and then, as a toilet seat of the western style toilet in the second embodiment, but it is described as an opening and closing body in the claims.

Fig. 1(a) and (b) illustrate a western style toilet 100 using the damping hinge of the present invention. As shown in the drawings, the western-style toilet 100 has: a toilet body 101; a toilet seat pad 102; a toilet lid 103; a pair of damping hinges 1A, 1B for the toilet lid 103, installed at the rear of the toilet body 101; damping hinges 2A, 2B for the toilet seat 102; and a water tank 104. In the damping hinges 1A, 1B, 2A, and 2B of the embodiment, although any one of the damping hinges 1A, 1B, 2A, and 2B has the same structure for both the right and left sides, only one of the damping hinges 1A and 2A of the present invention may be used, and the other damping hinge 1B or 2B may have another structure.

[ EXAMPLES one ]

First, the damper hinges 1A and 1B for the toilet lid 103 will be described. The damper hinges 1A and 1B are based on the damper hinges having the same left-right structure as described above, and the damper hinge 1A on the right side of the toilet body 101 will be described below. Naturally, the structure of the left damper hinge 1B may be different from the structure of the right damper hinge 1A.

The damping hinge 1A of the present invention, as shown in fig. 1 to 7, is composed of the following elements: a cylindrical case 2 having a side wall 2a at one side end and a cover 3 attached to the other side end in a watertight state; a fluid storage chamber 4 surrounded by the side wall 2a, the inner peripheral wall 2b, and the cover 3 in the cylindrical case 2; a rotating shaft 5 provided so as to rotatably penetrate the lid 3 in a watertight state in the axial direction of the axial center portion in the fluid containing chamber 4; and a fluid damper mechanism R1 provided in the fluid storage chamber 4.

The cylindrical case 2 is made of synthetic resin, and as shown in fig. 2 to 5, a pair of mounting portions 2c and 2d used when the case is mounted to the western-style toilet 100 are arranged to be apart from each other, and protrude below both end portions of the outer periphery of the cylindrical case 2, and a mounting portion 2e having a mounting hole 2 e' protrudes from one side portion. On the inlet side of the fluid storage chamber 4, a cover attachment hole portion 2f having a diameter slightly larger than the inside diameter of the fluid storage chamber 4 is provided facing the side wall 2a, and a pair of locking ridges 2g, 2g are provided on the inside of the inner peripheral wall 2b at an interval of 180 degrees in the axial direction from the side surface of the side wall 2 a. Arc-shaped grooves 2h, 2h for guiding the fluid in the circumferential direction from the base portions of the locking ridges 2g, 2g are provided in the side wall 2a, a pivot support circumferential groove 5g is provided in the axial direction of the shaft center portion on the side where the vane portions 5f, 5f are provided in the rotation shaft 5, and the rotation shaft 5 is rotatably supported in a bearing cylindrical portion 2j of the cylindrical case 2. In the embodiment, two fixing holes 2i and 2i for fixing the cover are provided at an interval of 180 degrees from the outer circumferential surface to the inner circumferential surface of the cover attaching hole portion 2f of the cylindrical case 2. Also, the number of fixing holes is not limited to this embodiment.

The cap 3 is also made of synthetic resin and fitted into the cap fitting hole portion 2f, a shaft insertion hole 3a is provided in the axial direction of the axial center portion of the cap 3, and fitting holes 3b, 3b are provided in the outer periphery of the cap 3 facing the radial direction in accordance with the positions of the fixing holes 2i, 2 i. The cover 3 is fixed to the cover attachment hole 2f by spring pins 3c and 3c that are press-fitted into the attachment holes 3b and 3b through the fixing holes 2i and 2 i. The spring pins 3c, 3c may be simple pins or mounting screws.

The fluid storage chamber 4 is a space surrounded by the side wall 2a, the inner peripheral wall 2b, and the cover 3 of the cylindrical case 2, stores therein the vane portions 5f, 5f of the rotating shaft 5, and is filled with damping oil 7, 7.

The rotary shaft 5 is also made of synthetic resin, and as shown in particular in fig. 3, 4 and 6, the rotary shaft 5 has: a mounting deformation shaft portion 5a provided from one end side of the rotating shaft 5; a pivot support part 5b provided in succession to the mounting deformation shaft part 5 a; a large diameter portion 5c provided in connection with the pivot support portion 5 b; a flange portion 5d provided in connection with the large diameter portion 5 c; and a pair of blade portions 5f, 5f provided in succession to the flange portion 5d and protruding at 180-degree intervals in the radial direction of the intermediate diameter portion 5e having a smaller diameter than the flange portion 5 d. In the rotating shaft 5, in a state where the vane portions 5f, 5f are inserted between the valve plates 8, 8 described later and the peripheral surface of the intermediate diameter portion 5e of the rotating shaft 5 is in contact with the bottom surfaces of the valve plates 8, as shown in fig. 2 and 4, the rotating shaft 5 is rotatably accommodated in the fluid accommodation chamber 4 in a watertight state described later except for the portion of the deformation shaft portion 5a for attachment.

Further, the fluid damping mechanism R1 is composed of the following elements: a first fluid storage chamber 4a and a second fluid storage chamber 4b provided in the fluid storage chamber 4; a pair of blade portions 5f, 5f provided on the rotating shaft 5 and disposed in the first fluid storage chamber 4a and the second fluid storage chamber 4 b; a pair of locking ridges 2g, 2g protruding from the inner peripheral wall 2b of the fluid housing chamber 4 in the axial direction; a pair of valve plates 8, 8 which can move a plurality of widths in the circumferential direction of the fluid storage chamber 4 and are locked to the pair of locking convex bar portions 2g, and have a U-shaped section; arcuate grooves 2h, 2h for guiding a fluid provided in the circumferential direction from the base of each of the locking ridges 2g, 2g of the side wall 2 a; and damping oils 7, 7 filled in the fluid storage chamber 4.

Since the valve plates 8 and 8 have the same structure, only one of them will be described. In particular, as shown in fig. 7, the valve sheet 8 has a substantially U-shaped cross section in the vertical direction with respect to the extending direction, the valve sheet 8 has side walls 8c and 8d standing upright from the bottom 8a, the groove 8b is formed thinly from the top of one side wall 8d to the inner side and further toward the inner side of the bottom 8a, and the groove 8e is provided at the top of the other side wall 8 c. When the valve sheet 8 is fitted into and engaged with the locking ridge 2g, a gap is formed between both sides of the locking ridge 2g and the inside of the side walls 8c and 8d, and the valve sheet 8 can be rotated in the circumferential direction with respect to the locking ridge 2g only in the range of the gap. In this case, when the side wall 8c contacts the side portion of the locking ridge 2g, no gap is formed between the side wall 8c and the side wall, and thus the first fluid passage 10a described later is not formed. When the side wall 8c is separated from the side portion of the locking ridge 2g, the groove 8b and the groove 8e provided at the top of the side wall 8c are connected to form a first fluid passage 10 a. The fluid passage may be formed by the arcuate grooves 2h, 2h and the blade portions 5f, and is referred to as a second fluid passage 10 b. The fluid passage may be formed between the outer side surface of the bottom portion 8a of the valve sheet 8 and the intermediate diameter portion 5e of the rotating shaft 5. This will be referred to as a third fluid passage 11a in this specification.

Next, an example of an assembly procedure of the damper hinge 1A of the present invention will be described. First, the valve sheets 8, 8 are fitted into the locking ridges 2g, 2 g. In this case, since the insertion regulating pieces 8h and 8h are provided at the one end portions of the respective valve sheets 8 and 8, the fitting direction is not deviated. Next, after the necessary amounts of damping oil 7, 7 are injected into the fluid containing chamber 4, the seal 9 such as an O-ring is inserted between the locking ridges 2g, 2g in the fluid containing chamber 4 from one side of the vane portions 5f, 5f in a state where the seal is attached to the outer periphery of the large diameter portion 5c of the rotating shaft 5. As described above, the blade portions 5f and 5f have the outer diameters having the same size as the inner diameter of the cylindrical case 2, and the blade portions 5f and 5f are inserted into the cylindrical case 2. Next, the pivot support portion 5b of the rotating shaft 5 is inserted into the shaft insertion hole 3a of the cover 3 and fitted into the cover mounting hole portion 2f of the cylindrical case 2. Since the cap attaching hole portion 2f is a stepped hole having a larger diameter than the inner diameter of the fluid housing chamber 4 as shown in fig. 3 and 4, the cap 3 is attached to the cap attaching hole portion 2f on the open end side of the cylindrical case 2 without being too deep into the fluid housing chamber 4. At the same time, the lid 3 presses the flange portion 5d of the rotating shaft 5, so that the outer sides of the blade portions 5f, 5f of the rotating shaft 5 abut against the inner peripheral wall 2b of the fluid storage chamber 4, and the outer periphery of the intermediate diameter portion 5e of the rotating shaft 5 abuts against the outer side surfaces of the bottom portions 8a of the valve sheets 8, 8.

At this time, the seal 9 is deformed to assist the pressure contact between the large diameter portion 5c of the rotating shaft 5 and the inner peripheral wall 2b of the fluid containing chamber 4. Next, the cover 3 is fixed to the cylindrical case 2 using the spring pins 3c, 3 c. When fixed in this manner, as shown in fig. 2 in particular, the seal 9 seals the space between the cylindrical case 2 and the rotating shaft 5 in a watertight manner in a state where the mounting deformation shaft portion 5a protrudes outside the cylindrical case 2. As shown in fig. 8A and 8B in particular, a first fluid chamber 4a and a second fluid chamber 4B are formed, in which damping oil 7, 7 is filled in the fluid storage chamber 4 of the cylindrical case 2 and which is partitioned by the middle diameter portion 5e of the rotating shaft 5, the side wall 2a, the valve plates 8, and the flange portion 5 d. The assembly is completed in this manner, and the fluid damper mechanism R1 is formed.

Next, the operation of the damper hinge 1A will be described. As shown in fig. 1 and 2 in particular, the damper hinge 1A is configured such that the toilet lid 103 is attached to the toilet body 101 so as to be openable and closable by inserting the mounting deformation shaft portion 5a of the rotating shaft 5 into a deformation mounting hole (not shown) provided in the mounting portion 103a of the toilet lid 103, inserting the mounting portions 2c and 2d provided in the cylindrical case 2 into mounting holes (not shown) provided in the toilet body 101, and fixing one of the mounting portions 2e to the toilet body 101. In the embodiment, although a pair of damper hinges 1A and 1B is used, only one damper hinge 1A will be described in the following description. The damping hinge 1A performs the following operations: a closing action when the toilet lid 103 is closed from the open position shown in fig. 8A (a) to the closed position shown in fig. 8B (d), and conversely, an opening action when the toilet lid 103 is opened from the closed position shown in fig. 8B (d) to the open position shown in fig. 8A (a).

When the toilet lid 103 is closed from the fully open angle, as shown in fig. 8A (b), since the second fluid passages 10b, 10b formed by the damping oils 7, 7 passing through the arcuate grooves 2h, 2h move in the first fluid storage chamber 4a and the second fluid storage chamber 4b at the beginning, the opening and closing operation can be performed with a small force. When the toilet lid 103 is closed still further, as shown in fig. 8B (c), since the second fluid passages 10B, 10B are closed, the fluid resistance is increased, and this time the toilet lid 103 is slowly closed by the damping oil 7, 7 moving through the third fluid passages 11a, 11 a.

In other words, the case of closing from the fully opened state of the toilet lid 103 shown in fig. 8A (a) will be described in detail again: in the fully opened state of the toilet lid 103, the valve plates 8, 8 are positioned to rotate counterclockwise, and the first fluid passages 10a, 10a are opened. When the user starts to close the toilet lid 103 by hand from the fully opened state, the rotation shaft 5 rotates clockwise in the drawing, and first, as shown in fig. 8A (b), although the first fluid passages 10a, 10a are pressed and closed by the damping oils 7, the second fluid passages 10b, 10b move the damping oils 7, 7 in the first fluid storage chamber 4a and the second fluid storage chamber 4b from one to the other of the first fluid storage chamber 4a and the second fluid storage chamber 4b by the arcuate grooves 2h, and the toilet lid 103 is closed smoothly.

Then, as shown in fig. 8B (c), the toilet lid 103 is closed further, and the second fluid passages 10B, 10B are closed and the damping oils 7, 7 move only through the third fluid passages 11a, so that the toilet lid 103 is closed gradually, and becomes a completely closed state shown in fig. 8B (d).

Next, a case where the toilet lid 103 is opened from the fully closed state shown in fig. 8B (d) will be described. When the toilet lid 103 is in the fully closed state, as shown in fig. 8B (d), the respective paddle portions 5f, 5f are positioned on the side portions opposite to the respective locking ridges 2g, as compared with the respective paddle portions 5f, 5f shown in fig. 8A (a). When the user lifts up with his/her hand placed on the front side of the toilet lid 103, the rotation shaft 5 starts rotating in the counterclockwise direction, allowing the opening operation of the toilet lid 103. At this time, the valve plates 8, 8 are rotated counterclockwise by the damping oils 7, 7 in the first fluid storage chamber 4a and the second fluid storage chamber 4b pressed by the paddle portions 5f, and the damping oils 7, 7 flow from the first fluid storage chamber 4a to the second fluid storage chamber 4b and from the second fluid storage chamber 4b to the first fluid storage chamber 4a through the first fluid passages 10a, so that the toilet lid 103 is smoothly opened.

When the toilet lid 103 is opened to the intermediate opening angle (60 degrees in the embodiment) shown in fig. 8B (c), the second fluid passages 10B, 10B are opened by further opening operation of the toilet lid 103, so that the toilet lid 103 can be opened more easily to assume the fully opened state shown in fig. 8A (a).

Also, in the present embodiment, the fully open angle of the toilet lid 103 is 120 degrees, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The fully open angle may be set appropriately. For example, in the case of urination, the toilet seat 102 or the toilet lid 103 does not necessarily need to be opened to an angle of 90 degrees or more of the fully opened position, and the holding may be stopped at positions such as 60 degrees or 70 degrees.

Further, the damping hinge is used as a hinge for opening and closing a lid of a western style toilet, but the present invention is not limited thereto. As described above, in addition to the case of the damping hinge for a toilet lid, the damping hinge is widely used in a case where a cushion is required when the opening/closing body is opened or closed, a case where the opening/closing body is required to be kept in a self-standing state, or the like. For example, various openable and closable bodies such as an electric appliance, a cabinet, a manuscript pressing plate of a copying machine, and an openable and closable screen body of an office automation (office automation) machine.

[ example two ]

Next, a damping hinge according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the damping hinges 2A and 2B are described as the damping hinges of the toilet seat 102 of the western style toilet, but the damping hinges 2A and 2B of the present invention are not limited thereto, and may be used for opening and closing a toilet lid, a lid of various electric appliances or a cabinet, and the like, as in the damping hinges of the first embodiment. For this reason, the opening and closing body will be described as a toilet seat in the following description, and will be described as an opening and closing body in the claims.

The damper hinges 2A and 2B are also damper hinges having the same left-right structure, and the damper hinge 2A on the right side of the toilet body 101 will be described below. Naturally, the structure of the left damper hinge 2B may be different from the structure of the right damper hinge 2A.