US20070205341A1

US20070205341A1 - Rotatable apparatus

Info

Publication number: US20070205341A1
Application number: US11/625,511
Authority: US
Inventors: Ting-Hui Chih; Min-Jye Chen
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: BenQ Corp
Priority date: 2006-03-03
Filing date: 2007-01-22
Publication date: 2007-09-06
Also published as: TWI333098B; TW200734723A

Abstract

The invention discloses a rotatable apparatus including a base and a main body attached thereon. The rotatable apparatus utilizes a gear cooperating with a rack to make the main body rotate and further move along the rack during the rotation of the main body, so as to prevent the main body from colliding with the base.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a rotatable apparatus, and more particularly to a rotatable apparatus which utilizes a gear to cooperate with a rack, so as to prevent a main body of the rotatable apparatus from colliding with a base during the rotation.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The horizontal length of the conventional liquid crystal display (LCD) is usually longer than the vertical length, such that the user can obtain a broader view in horizontal direction. Recently, as technology has been developed gradually, the personal computer (PC) has more and more functions. Consequently, rotatable LCD has been developed for the user to operate these various functions. In other words, the user may rotate the LCD by 90 degrees based on individual needs, so as to obtain a broader view in the vertical direction.
In the prior art, when the user wants to rotate an LCD from horizontal to vertical, he/she needs to lift the LCD by a specific distance to prevent the LCD from colliding with a plane or a base during the rotation. Afterward, the LCD is rotated to a fixed position. According to the aforesaid mechanism of the convention LCD, it is not very convenient for the user to operate, and the design is also more complicated.
Therefore, the scope of the present invention is to provide a rotatable apparatus to solve the aforesaid problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A scope of the invention is to provide a rotatable apparatus which utilizes a gear to cooperate with a rack, such that a main body of the rotatable apparatus is capable of moving upward and downward along the rack during the rotation, so as to prevent the main body from colliding with a base.
According to a preferred embodiment, the rotatable apparatus of the invention comprises a base, a holder, a rack, an auxiliary fastening member, a gear and a main body. The holder has a first end and a second end, and the holder is mounted onto the base via the first end. The rack is mounted onto the second end of the holder; it has a front side and a back side, wherein a plurality of teeth are provided on the front side, and a guide rail is provided on the back side. The auxiliary fastening member has a guide groove cooperating with the guide rail of the rack, such that the auxiliary fastening member is capable of moving upward and downward along the rack. The auxiliary fastening member also has a protrusion which protrudes from the guide groove. The gear has a first side and a second side. The first side of the gear is rotatably attached to the protrusion of the auxiliary fastening member, and the gear is meshed with the teeth of the rack. The main body is attached to the second side of the gear.
In the aforesaid preferred embodiment, the rotation of the main body together with the gear is actuated by applying an external force on the main body to make the gear rotate relative to the teeth of the rack; at the same time, the guide groove of the auxiliary fastening member moves relative to the guide rail of the rack. Consequently, the main body rotates and moves relative to the base. In other words, when the user wants to rotate the main body of the rotatable apparatus by a specific angle, the main body is capable of moving upward and downward along the rack due to the cooperation between the gear and the rack. When the base of the rotatable apparatus is placed on a plane, and the horizontal length of the main body is longer than the vertical length, the main body is capable of rotating and moving upward along the rack, such that the user can rotate the main body by a specific angle, and the invention can prevent the main body from colliding with the base.
The advantage and spirit of the invention may be understood by the following recitations together with the appended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE APPENDED DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a back perspective view illustrating the rotatable apparatus according to a first preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1B is a back perspective view illustrating the main body (shown in FIG. 1A) being rotated by 90 degrees.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the rotation of the rotatable apparatus shown in FIG. 1A.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, FIG. 1A is a back perspective view illustrating the rotatable apparatus 10 according to a first preferred embodiment of the invention. FIG. 1B is a back perspective view illustrating the main body 22 (shown in FIG. 1A) being rotated by 90 degrees. As shown in FIG. 1A, the rotatable apparatus 10 comprises a base 12, a holder 14, a rack 16, an auxiliary fastening member 18, a gear 20, and a main body 22. The main body 22 may be a display device. In this embodiment, the main body 22 is an LCD. The holder 14 has a first end 140 and a second end 142. The holder 14 is mounted onto the base 12 via the first end 140. The rack 16 is mounted onto the second end 142 of the holder 14 and has a front side 160 and a back side 162. A plurality of teeth are provided on the front side 160, and a guide rail is provided on the back side 162. In another preferred embodiment, the holder 14 and the rack 16 are monolithically formed.
As shown in FIG. 1B, the auxiliary fastening member 18 has a guide groove 180 cooperating with the guide rail 162 of the rack 16, such that the auxiliary fastening member 18 is capable of moving upward and downward along the rack 16. The auxiliary fastening member 18 also has a protrusion 182 which protrudes from the guide groove 180. The gear 20 has a first side and a second side. The first side of the gear is rotatably attached to the protrusion 182 of the auxiliary fastening member 18, and the gear 20 is meshed with the teeth of the rack 16. The main body 22 is attached to the second side of the gear 20.
In the aforesaid embodiment, the rotation of the main body 22 together with the gear 20 is actuated by applying an external force on the main body 22 to make the gear 20 rotate relative to the teeth of the rack 16; at the same time, the guide groove 180 of the auxiliary fastening member 18 moves relative to the guide rail 162 of the rack 16. In other words, when the user wants to rotate the main body 22 of the rotatable apparatus 10 by a specific angle, the main body 22 is capable of moving upward and downward along the rack 16 due to the cooperation between the gear 20 and the rack 16, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. When the main body 22 rotates from the state shown in FIG. 1A to the state shown in FIG. 1B, the main body 22 moves upward along the rack 16, so as to prevent the main body 22 from colliding with the base 12 or the plane where the base 12 is placed. When the main body 22 rotates from the state shown in FIG. 1B to the state shown in FIG. 1A, the main body 22 moves downward along the rack 16. Furthermore, the gear 20 is rotatably attached to the protrusion 182 of the auxiliary fastening member 18 by a hinge (not shown in the figures), such that the main body 22 can be rotataed by a specific angle and be fixed at the specific angle.
In the aforesaid embodiment, the rotatable apparatus 10 further comprises a resilient member 24, as shown in FIG. 1A. The resilient member 24 is positioned between the rack 16 and the auxiliary fastening member 18, so as to assist the gear 20 in rotating relative to the rack 16. Accordingly, it is easier for the user to rotate the main body 22. The resilient member 24 may be a line spring or the like.
Referring to FIG. 2, FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the rotation of the rotatable apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1A. As shown in FIG. 2, to prevent the main body 22 from colliding with the base 12 or the plane where the base 12 is placed, the rotatable apparatus 10 can be further designed to satisfy an inequality (equation 1) as follows:
R×θ>√{square root over (L² +W ²)}−W. Equation 1
In equation 1, L represents half of the length of the main body 22, W represents half of the width of the main body 22, R represents the radius of the gear 20, and θ represents a desired angle with which the main body 22 is rotated. Furthermore, R×θ represents the distance which the main body 22 moves up while the main body 22 is rotated by the angle θ.
Compared to the prior art, when the user wants to rotate the main body 22 of the rotatable apparatus 10 by a specific angle θ, the main body 22 is capable of moving upward along the rack 16 due to the cooperation between the gear 20 and the rack 16, so as to prevent the main body 22 from colliding with the base 12 or the plane where the base 12 is placed. Accordingly, the invention simplifies the complicated structure of the prior art, and it is more convenient and practical for the user.
With the example and explanations above, the features and spirits of the invention will be hopefully well described. Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device may be made while retaining the teaching of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A rotatable apparatus, comprising:

a base;

a holder having a first end and a second end, the holder being mounted onto the base via the first end;

a rack, mounted onto the second end of the holder, having a front side and a back side, a plurality of teeth being provided at the front side, and a guide rail being provided at the back side;

an auxiliary fastening member having a guide groove cooperating with the guide rail of the rack, such that the auxiliary fastening member is capable of moving upward and downward along the rack, the auxiliary fastening member having a protrusion protruding from the guide groove;

a gear having a first side and a second side, the first side of the gear being rotatably attached to the protrusion of the auxiliary fastening member, and the gear being meshed with the teeth of the rack; and

a main body attached to the second side of the gear;

wherein the rotation of the main body together with the gear is actuated by applying an external force on the main body to make the gear rotate relative to the teeth of the rack, and the guide groove of the auxiliary fastening member moves relative to the guide rail of the rack.

2. The rotatable apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a resilient member positioned between the rack and the auxiliary fastening member, so as to assist the gear in rotating relative to the rack.

3. The rotatable apparatus of claim 2, wherein the resilient member is a line spring.

4. The rotatable apparatus of claim 1, further satisfying an inequality as follows:

R×θ>√{square root over (L² +W ²)}−W,

wherein L represents half of the length of the main body, W represents half of the width of the main body, R represents the radius of the gear, and θ represents a desired angle with which the main body is rotated.

5. The rotatable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the holder and the rack are monolithically formed.

6. The rotatable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the main body is a display device.

7. The rotatable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first side of the gear is rotatably attached to the protrusion of the auxiliary fastening member by a hinge.