Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Ki-Bok Son

Jae-Il Seo

Sung-Ill Kang

Byung-Yeol Ko

Jong-Hwan Choi

Yoo-Sug Yoon

A hinge apparatus for connecting a first housing and a second housing of a portable terminal is provided. The hinge apparatus includes a hinge housing and a damping member. The hinge housing is connected to the second housing and has an internal wall formed with one or more guide grooves extending in a circumferential direction of the hinge housing. The damping member is rotatably received in the hinge housing and rotates as the second housing rotates. The damping member has one or more frictional projections. In a first section corresponding to the position where the second housing is folded onto the first housing, the frictional projections contact the internal wall of the hinge housing. Similarly, in another section corresponding to the position where the rotation of the second housing is stopped after rotating away from the first housing, the frictional projections also contact the internal wall of the hinge housing. As a result, the hinge apparatus dampens impact produced at the moment the housings are folded or stopped after rotating away from each other, thereby improving the endurance and structural stability of the portable terminal.

Hinge apparatus for a portable terminal and portable terminal having the same

A hinge apparatus and a portable terminal are provided including a pair of housings configured to open or close and one of the housings is positioned in parallel with a side of the other to rotate the portable terminal about 90&#xb0; according to user preference. Thus, the user can enjoy the horizontal view of a screen of a display device. Consequently, the user can conveniently watch the screen provided through a multimedia service. The hinge apparatus that rotates a housing such that the housing is positioned in parallel with a side of the other housing provides a driving force exerted in a direction that is the same as or opposite to a direction the housing rotates to implement a semi-automatic operation and provide user convenience.

Growing community of inventors

Gumi-si, South Korea

Ki-Bok Son