Articulated swing away hinge

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6748626
  • Patent Number
    6,748,626
  • Date Filed
    Wednesday, August 14, 2002
    22 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, June 15, 2004
    20 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Examiners
    • Gall; Lloyd A.
    • Boswell; Christopher
    Agents
    • Hahn Loeser & Parks, LLP
    • Clark; Robert J.
Abstract
An improved swing away style door hinge utilizing three articulated hinge members and a means for controlling the position of at least one of the hinge members with respect to at least one other hinge member such that the hinge allows greater access through a doorway when the door is opened at a 90 degree angle.
Description




FIELD OF THE INVENTION




The present invention relates generally to hinges and more particularly, to an articulated, swing away hinge which allows greater access through a doorway, directly replaces standard existing hinges, and is an aesthetically pleasing hinge. The present invention also relates to concurrently filed patent applications by the same inventor, application Ser. No. 60/403,350 entitled GEARED SWING AWAY HINGE and application Ser. No. 10/218,356 entitled FOUR PIVOT SWING AWAY HINGE, both herein incorporated by reference.




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




The most common standard door hinge is a butt hinge which comprises two plates or leaves hingedly attached to each other about a single pivot point. A typical prior art butt hinge


100


is shown in FIG.


1


A and comprises a door side leaf


102


and a jamb side leaf


104


. The door side leaf


102


is typically mortised into a heel or edge


110


of the door


106


and the jamb side leaf


104


is typically mortised into jamb


108


of the doorway. Each of the leaves


102


,


104


are further provided with a plurality of apertures (not shown) for passage of screws therethrough in order to attach the door side leaf


102


to the door heel or edge


110


and the jamb side leaf


104


to the door jamb


108


. The leaves


102


,


104


each have one or more rolled, tubular segments or knuckles (not shown) along a side edge. The knuckles of each leaf


102


,


104


are specifically sized and arranged so as to mesh in axial alignment with the knuckles of the other leaf, thereby forming a hinge bone. A pin


112


is inserted through the axially aligned knuckles to effectively couple the leaves


102


,


104


so that they are movable relative to one another about a common axis, defined by the hinge pin


112


.




A problem with the standard butt hinge


100


is that when the door


106


is open at a 90 degree angle as shown in

FIG. 1A

, the entire door


106


is in the doorway thereby cutting down the available width or access through the doorway clearance space. The doorway clearance space


107


is generally defined as the space between two parallel planes


109


, wherein each plane


109


is co-planar to a corresponding front face


111


of a door stop


113


on either side of the doorway as best shown in FIG.


1


B. The problem is further accentuated by the fact that it is preferred in architectural design to place doorways near a corner of the room in order to cut down on lost room/wall available space, promote airflow in the structure, etc., as shown in FIG.


1


B. The result is that the hinge side of the doorway may have a wall


130


perpendicular to the doorway wall


128


which limits the door movement to significantly less than the 180 degrees needed to clear the door


106


from the doorway clearance space


108


. This requires that the door


106


is removed from the doorway by disconnecting all the hinges


100


any time furniture or other larger objects are needed to be moved through the doorway.




One attempt to solve the door clearance problem is the swing away or offset hinge. The offset hinge also comprises two leaves in the form of brackets hingedly attached to each other about a single pivot point such that the brackets nest in each other when the door is closed. As shown in

FIG. 2

, the offset hinge


120


has a pivot point formed by the hinge pin


112


which is significantly offset away from the doorjamb


108


. When the door is opened at 90 degrees, the door is no longer in the doorway clearance space


108


. However, several problems with the offset hinge


120


have prevented the use of the offset hinge


120


in most applications other than hospitals and other functional based environments. The offset hinge


120


is not aesthetically pleasing. The bracket leaves


122


,


124


must extend completely over the casing of the doorway in order to enable the door to swing out of the passageway. The operation of the brackets


122


,


124


place the door


106


at a significant distance from the doorway when the door


106


is opened at 90 degrees. This results in large moment, compressive, and tensile forces acting on the hinges


120


due to the weight and position of the door


106


. This requires that the brackets


122


,


124


are oversized to compensate for the strength requirement, or that additional hinges


120


are used to mount the door


106


. In addition, the entire surface of both bracket leaves


122


,


124


are visible when the door is opened making the offset hinge


120


even more aesthetically unpleasing and is a potential hazard to children.




In view of the above noted problems as well as other problems associated with prior art hinges, there remains a need in the art for an aesthetically pleasing hinge assembly which moves the door out of the doorway when the door is opened at a 90 degree angle.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




It is an object of the invention to provide an improved hinge utilizing a plurality of hinged pivot points which overcomes at least one deficiency in the prior art. These and other advantages are provided by a hinge comprising: a first hinge member having a first generally planar end portion having a plurality of attachment holes, a second end portion, and an intermediate portion between the first end portion and the second end portion; a second hinge member having a first end, a second end, and plurality of attachment holes formed between the first end and the second end; a third hinge member having a first end hingedly attached to the second end of the first hinge member and a second end hingedly attached to the second end of the second hinge member; and a means for controlling the position of the second hinge member with respect to the first hinge member; wherein the hinge is movable from a closed position wherein the second hinge member and the first end portion of the first hinge member are generally parallel to each other to at least an open position wherein the second hinge member and the first end portion of the first hinge member are generally perpendicular to each other.




These and other advantages are also provided by a hinge for attachment of a door to a door jamb of a doorway, the doorway having a clearance space defined by the space between two parallel planes, each plane tangent to a corresponding front face of a door stop on either side of the doorway, the hinge comprising: a first hinge member fixably attached to the door jamb; a second hinge member fixably attached to the door; a third hinge member having a first end hingedly attached to the first hinge member at a first hinge point and a second end hingedly attached to the second hinge member at a second hinge point; wherein the second hinge point is rotatable about the first hinge point; and a means for controlling the position of the second hinge member with respect to the first hinge member; wherein the door is positioned outside of the doorway clearance space when the door is opened 90 degrees.











These and other advantages of the present invention will be apparent as described below and in relation to the drawings.




BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




Better understanding of the present invention will be had when reference is made to the accompanying drawings, wherein identical parts are identified with identical reference numerals, and wherein:





FIG. 1A

is an end view of a standard prior art butt hinge attached in mortise fashion to a door and a door jamb shown with the door closed and opened at 90 degrees;




FIG


1


B shows a standard prior art butt hinge attached in mortise fashion to a door and a door jamb with the door positioned in a doorway in a closed position;





FIG. 2

is an end view of a prior art offset hinge attached to a in mortise fashion door and a door jamb shown with the door closed and door opened at 90 degrees;





FIG. 3

is an end view of the hinge of the present invention attached in mortise fashion to a door and a door jamb shown in the door closed position;





FIG. 4

is an end view of the hinge of the present invention attached in mortise fashion to a door and a door jamb shown in the door open position;





FIG. 5A

is an end view of the hinge of the present invention shown in the closed position;





FIG. 5B

is a door jamb side elevational view of the hinge of the present invention shown in the closed position;





FIG. 5C

is a wall side elevational view of the hinge of the present invention shown in the closed position;





FIG. 6A

is an end view of the hinge of the present invention shown in the open position;





FIG. 6B

is a door jamb side elevational view of the hinge of the present invention shown in the open position; and





FIG. 6C

is a wall side elevational view of the hinge of the present invention shown in the closed position.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




Referring now to

FIGS. 3 and 4

, the hinge


10


of the present invention is shown attaching a door


106


to a door jamb


108


in a door closed position and a door open position, respectively. The hinge


10


comprises a first hinge member


12


fixably attached to the door jamb


108


, a second hinge member


22


fixably attached to the door


106


, and a third hinge member


32


having a first end


34


hingedly attached to the first hinge member


12


at a first hinge point


61


and a second end


36


hingedly attached to the second hinge member


22


at a second hinge point


62


. Hinge


10


also comprises a means


42


for controlling the relative positions of the first hinge member


12


and the second hinge member


22


. The means


42


for controlling the relative positions may comprise at least one fourth hinge member


42


having a first end


42


hingedly attached to the first hinge member


12


and a second end


44


hingedly attached to second hinge member


32


.




The first hinge member


12


comprises a first generally planar portion


14


fixably attached to the door jamb


108


, a second end portion


16


, and an intermediate portion


18


. The first hinge member


12


is configured generally as an obtuse angle such that the second end portion


16


and intermediate portion


18


are angled from the planar first portion


14


away from the door


106


and away from wall


128


when the door


106


is in the closed position. The intermediate portion


18


is configured to provide clearance for a casing (not shown) which may be attached to the wall


128


. The second end portion


16


of the first hinge member


12


is positioned and configured to provide a point of rotation that in conjunction with the remainder of hinge


10


, allows the door


106


to swing out of the doorway clearance space


109


when the door is opened 90 degrees. The second end portion


16


of the first hinge member


12


comprises at least one knuckle portion


16


as best shown in

FIGS. 5C and 6B

.




Referring again to

FIGS. 3 and 4

, the second hinge member


22


comprises a first end portion


24


fixably attached to the door


106


, a second end portion


26


and an intermediate portion


28


between the first end portion


24


and the second end portion


26


. The second end portion


26


of the second hinge member


22


comprises at least one knuckle portion


26


. The first portions


24


,


14


of the second and first hinge members


22


,


12


each include a plurality of apertures


92


for attachment to the door and door jamb, respectively. When the present hinge


10


is used for retro-fitting an existing hinge, the apertures


92


are preferably positioned in different locations than the apertures of the existing hinge. This allows a new tight connection as compared to looseness that may accompany the use of old holes in the door


106


and/or door jamb


108


. The first portions


14


,


24


of the first and second hinge members


12


,


22


are generally the same size and thickness as the leaves


102


,


104


of a standard butt hinge


120


. This enables the standard door mortise to be used such that little or no additional machining is required. It is important that the distance between the door heel


110


and the door jamb


108


remains generally the same as with a standard butt hinge


120


, especially when retro-fitting standard butt hinge


120


with the hinge of the present invention


10


. This ensures that the strike side of the door


106


properly engages and that the door


106


operates properly.




The third hinge member


32


comprises a first end


34


hingedly attached the second portion


16


of the first hinge member


12


and a second end


34


hingedly attached to the second end


26


of the second hinge member


22


. Hinge member


32


also comprises an intermediate portion


38


between the first end


34


and second end


36


of hinge member


32


. The third hinge member


32


provides an articulated connection between the first hinge member


12


and the second hinge member


22


. The first end


34


and second end


36


of hinge member


32


generally comprise at least one knuckle portion


34


,


36


to provide a hinged attachment to the other hinge members


12


,


22


.





FIGS. 3 and 4

show the general range of motion of the hinge


10


. The hinged attachments of the hinge members is generally accomplished by a hinge pin positioned through axially aligned knuckles to effectively couple the leaves about a common axis or pivot point defined by the hinge pin as best shown with respect to

FIGS. 4A-5C

. Referring again to

FIGS. 3 and 4

, the first hinge pivot point


61


is formed by the attachment of the second end


16


of the first hinge member


12


to the first end


34


of the third hinge member


32


. Pivot point


61


or hinge pin


61


, is fixed in position. The second pivot point


62


is formed by the attachment of the second end


36


of the third hinge member


32


to the second end


26


of the second hinge member


22


. Pivot point


62


is able to rotate in an arc


71


about the fixed first pivot point


61


.




The second hinge member rotates about the second pivot point


62


. However, a means


42


for controlling the position of the door


106


is needed to move the door


106


out of the doorway


108


. Means


42


may be provided by the at least one fourth hinge member


42


. The first end


44


of the fourth hinge member


42


is pivotally attached to the second end


16


of the first hinge member


12


at pivot point


63


and the second end


46


is pivotally attached to the intermediate portion


28


of the second hinge member


12


at pivot point


64


. Pivot point


64


is able to rotate in an arc


72


about the fixed pivot point


63


.




As best shown in

FIGS. 5A-6C

, the hinge members


12


,


22


, and


32


, each have one or more rolled, tubular segments or knuckles


16


,


26


,


34


and


36


. The knuckles


16


,


26


,


34


and


36


of each hinge member


12


,


22


, and


32


, are specifically sized and arranged so as to mesh in axial alignment with the knuckles of an adjacent hinge member, thereby forming a hinge bone. Hinge pins (not shown) are inserted through the axially aligned knuckles


16


,


26


,


34


and


36


to effectively couple the hinge members


12


,


22


,


32


so that they are movable relative to one another about a common axis, defined by the pivot points


61


and


62


.




The fourth hinge member


42


of hinge


10


is formed as at least one link member


42


and preferably two link members


42


positioned above and below the hinge


10


. Being positioned in different planes, the link members


42


are able to slide over the other hinge members


12


,


22


,


32


and not limit the movement of the hinge


10


. Instead of being connected by hinge pins through a plurality of intermeshing knuckles, the fourth hinge member


42


is pivotally attached at pivot point


63


and


64


by a pin attachment. A pin


52


is attached to opposite ends of the knuckle portion


16


of the first hinge member


12


and extends above and below the hinge member


12


for attachment of the first ends


44


of the fourth hinge member


42


. A pin


54


is attached to opposite ends of the intermediate portion


28


of the second hinge member


22


and extends above and below the hinge member


22


for attachment of the second ends


46


of the fourth hinge member


42


. Pin


54


is generally adjacent the second end


26


of the second hinge member and it is contemplated that pin


54


could be fixably attached to second end


26


similar to that of pin


52


. Although not shown, it is further contemplated that the fourth hinge member


42


could be positioned between the top and bottom of the hinge


10


such as, for example, a centrally located position utilizing a single fourth hinge member


42


.




In operation of the hinge


10


, the door


106


is fixably attached to the second hinge member


22


which has first end


24


rotatable about pivot point


62


and intermediate portion


28


rotatable about pivot point


64


. The kinematical relationship of the hinge members allows the door to be completely out of doorway clearance space


108


when the door


106


is opened about 90 degrees. In addition, the door


106


is generally 30% closer to the wall


128


than a comparable offset hinge


120


. The four pivot points


61


-


64


generally form a quadrilateral and provide increased strength to the hinge


10


. In contrast, this provides a significant strength advantage over the single offset pivot point


112


of the offset hinge


120


which is positioned a much greater distance from the door


106


. The single offset hinge point


112


must endure the entire weight of the door compounded by the moment effect of the distance of the door from the hinge point


112


.




Hinge


10


is aesthetically pleasing. In the door closed position, hinge


10


has a minimized surface area “footprint” as shown in

FIG. 5C

, which is much smaller that the large surface area footprint of the offset hinge


120


. The curved surfaces of the third hinge member


32


and of portions of the first hinge member


12


also provide an enhanced look to the hinge


10


.




Although the present invention has been described above in detail, the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken as a limitation on the present invention. It is contemplated that modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the scope and content of the present invention are to be defined only by the terms of the appended claims.



Claims
  • 1. A hinge for attachment of a door to a jamb attachment face of a door jamb of a doorway, the doorway having a clearance space defined by the space between two parallel planes, each plane tangent to a corresponding front face of a door stop on either side of the doorway, the hinge comprising:a first hinge member fixably attached to the door jamb; a second hinge member fixably attached to the door; a third hinge member having a first end hingedly attached to the first hinge member at a first hinge point and a second end hingedly attached to the second hinge member at a second hinge point; wherein the second hinge point is rotatable about the first hinge point; and a fourth hinge member pivotally attached to the first hinge member at a third hinge point generally adjacent the first hinge point and pivotally attached to the second hinge member at a fourth hinge point generally adjacent the second hinge point; wherein the fourth hinge point is rotatable about the third hinge point; wherein the door is positioned outside of the doorway clearance space when the door is opened 90 degrees and moveable to a position wherein the second hinge member is completely on the jamb side of the jamb attachment face.
  • 2. The hinge of claim 1, wherein the fourth hinge member is positioned on a top end of the hinge.
  • 3. The hinge of claim 2, wherein the fourth hinge member comprises a first fourth hinge member and a second fourth hinge member wherein the first fourth hinge member is positioned on a top end of the hinge and the second fourth hinge member is positioned on a bottom end of the hinge.
  • 4. The hinge of claim 1, wherein a first end of the fourth hinge member is pivotally attached to a pin extending from the second hinge member.
  • 5. The hinge of claim 4, wherein the pin extending from the second hinge member is positioned on the second hinge member at a location between the attachment of the second hinge member to the door and the pivotal attachment location of the third hinge member to the second hinge member.
  • 6. The hinge of claim 1, wherein a second end of the fourth hinge member is pivotally attached to a pin fixably attached to and extending from the first hinge member.
  • 7. A hinge comprising:a first hinge member having a first generally planar end portion having an attachment face side, an exposed side opposite the attachment base side, and a plurality of attachment holes, a second end portion, and an intermediate portion between the first end portion and the second end portion; a second hinge member having a first end, a second end, and plurality of attachment holes formed between the first end and the second end; a third hinge member having a first end hingedly attached to the second end of the first hinge member and a second end hingedly attached to the second end of the second hinge member; and at least one fourth hinge member pivotally attached to the first hinge member at a third hinge point proximate the first hinge point and pivotally attached to the second hinge member at a fourth hinge point proximate the second hinge point; wherein the hinge is movable from a closed position wherein the second hinge member and the first end portion of the first hinge member are generally parallel to each other to at least an open position wherein the second hinge member and the first end portion of the first hinge member are generally perpendicular to each other such that the second hinge member is generally positioned on the attachment side of the first end portion of the first hinge member.
  • 8. The hinge of claim 7, wherein the fourth hinge member is positioned on a top end of the hinge.
  • 9. The hinge of claim 7, wherein the fourth hinge member comprises a pair of fourth hinge members wherein a first fourth hinge member is positioned on a top end of the hinge and a second fourth hinge member is positioned on a bottom end of the hinge.
  • 10. The hinge of claim 7, wherein the intermediate portion and second end of the first hinge member are generally formed at an obtuse angle with the generally planar first end of the first hinge member.
  • 11. A hinge for attachment of a door to a jamb attachment face of a door jamb of a doorway, the doorway having a clearance space defined by the space between two parallel planes, each plane co-planar with a corresponding front face of a door stop on either side of the doorway, the hinge comprising:a first hinge member fixably attached to the door jamb; a second hinge member fixably attached to the door, a third hinge member having a first end hingedly attached to the first hinge member and a second end hingedly attached to the second hinge member; and at least one fourth hinge member positioned generally perpendicular to the first, second and third hinge members, having a first end pivotally attached to the second hinge member and a second end pivotally attached to the first hinge member; wherein the door is positioned outside of the doorway clearance space when the door is opened 90 degrees and moveable to a position wherein the second hinge member is completely on the jamb side of the jamb attachment face.
  • 12. The hinge of claim 11, wherein the first hinge member comprises a first generally planar end portion fixably attached to the door jamb, a second end portion including at least one knuckle, and an intermediate portion between the first end portion.
  • 13. The hinge of claim 12, wherein the second end portion and the intermediate portion of the first hinge member are generally formed at an obtuse angle with the generally planar first end of the first hinge member.
  • 14. The hinge of claim 11, wherein the first end of the fourth hinge member is attached to a pin extending from the second hinge member.
  • 15. The hinge of claim 14, wherein the pin extending from the second hinge member is positioned on the second hinge member at point between the attachment of the second hinge member to the door and the hinged connection of the third hinge member to the second hinge member.
  • 16. The hinge of claim 11, wherein the second end of the fourth hinge member is attached to a pin fixably attached to and extending from the knuckle of the second end of the first hinge member.
  • 17. The hinge of claim 16, wherein the pin fixably attached to and extending from the knuckle of the second end of the first hinge member is attached to a doorway side of the knuckle at a position between the third hinge member and the intermediate portion of the first hinge when the hinge is positioned in a door closed configuration.
  • 18. The hinge of claim 11, wherein the at least one fourth hinge member comprises a first fourth hinge member and a second fourth hinge member;wherein the first fourth hinge member is attached on a top side of the first and second hinge members; and wherein the second fourth hinge member is attached on a bottom side of the first and second hinge members.
  • 19. The hinge of claim 18, wherein a first end of the first fourth hinge member is pivotally attached to a pin extending from the top side of the second hinge member and the first end of the second fourth hinge member is pivotally attached to a pin extending from the bottom side of the second hinge member.
  • 20. The hinge of claim 18, wherein the second end of the first fourth hinge member is pivotally attached to a pin fixably attached to and extending from a top side of a first knuckle formed on a second end of the first hinge member and the second end of the second fourth hinge member is pivotally attached to a pin fixably attached to and extending from a bottom side of a second knuckle formed on the second end of the first hinge member.
  • 21. A hinge for attachment of a door to a jamb attachment face of a door jamb of a doorway, the doorway having a clearance space defined by the space between two parallel planes, each plane co-planar with a corresponding front face of a door stop on either side of the doorway, the hinge comprising:a first hinge member comprising a first generally planar end portion fixably attached to the door jamb, a second end portion forming a plurality of knuckles, and an intermediate portion between the first end portion and the second end portion; a second hinge member comprising a first generally planar end portion fixably attached to the door, a second end portion forming a plurality of knuckles, and an intermediate portion between the first end portion and the second end portion; a third hinge member having a first end hingedly attached the second end of the first hinge member and a second end hingedly attached to the second end of the second hinge member; and at least one fourth hinge member having a first end pivotally attached to a pin extending from a top side of the intermediate portion of the second hinge member and a second end pivotally attached to a pin fixably attached to and extending from a top side of a first knuckle formed on the second end of the first hinge member; wherein the door is positioned outside of the doorway clearance space when the door is opened 90 degrees and moveable to a position wherein the second hinge member is completely on the jamb side of the jamb attachment face.
  • 22. The hinge of claim 21, further comprising a second fourth hinge member having a first end pivotally attached to a pin extending from a bottom side of the intermediate portion of the second hinge member and a second end pivotally attached to a pin fixably attached to and extending from a bottom side of a second knuckle formed on the second end of the first hinge member.
  • 23. A hinge comprising:a first hinge member having a first generally planar end portion having a plurality of attachment holes, a second end portion, and an intermediate portion between the first end portion and the second end portion; a second hinge member having a first end, a second end, and plurality of attachment holes formed between the first end and the second end; a third hinge member having a first end hingedly attached to the second end of the first hinge member at a first hinge point and a second end hingedly attached to the second end of the second hinge member at a second hinge point, wherein the second hinge point is rotatable about the first hinge point; and at least one fourth hinge member pivotally attached to the first hinge member at a third hinge point proximate the first hinge point and pivotally attached to the second hinge member at a fourth hinge point proximate the second hinge point, wherein the fourth hinge point is rotatable about the third hinge point; wherein the second hinge point rotates in a counter-clockwise direction about the first hinge point and the fourth hinge point rotates in a counter-clockwise direction about the third hinge point when the door is moved from a closed position to an open position when the hinge is installed as a right hinge and wherein the second hinge point rotates in a clockwise direction about the first hinge point and the fourth hinge point rotates in a clockwise direction about the third hinge point when the door is moved from a closed position to an open position when the hinge is installed as a left hinge.
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