Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
101520253035FL67791CA 02264218 1999-03-03ADJUSTABLE HINGE The present invention relates to a hinge used toSpecifically, the presentmount a door to a frame.invention relates to a cabinet hinge with a frame wingmountable to the frame that allows the position of thehinge to be adjusted on the frame for alignment of the doorwith respect to the frame without requiring that the hingebe removed from either the door or the frame. Morespecifically, the present invention relates to a cabinethinge with a frame wing having two opposed mounting slotssecured to the frame by at least one fastener as to allowthe adjustment of the position of the hinge withoutrequiring that the at least one fastener be removed fromthe frame.BACKGROUND OF INVENTIONVarious arrangements are known for pivotallymounting a cabinet door to a cabinet frame. In a commonarrangement a hinge is used to mount the door to the frame.The hinge includes a mounting structure (e.g. a door wingsuch as a mounting plate or hinge cup) which is fastened tothe cabinet door by one or more fasteners (such as mountingscrews) and a frame wing which is fastened to the cabinetframe. The mounting of a cabinet door to a cabinet framerequires that the door be properly aligned with the cabinetframe for suitable operation of the door as well as toprovide a suitable aesthetic appearance. It is well knownto use wood screws or like fasteners to mount the hinge tothe cabinet frame and the cabinet door. According to suchknown mounting arrangements, a cabinet assembler may berequired to drill holes for the wood screws.mounting of the cabinet door to the cabinet frame requiresPreciseprecise positioning of the screw holes by the assembler.However, achieving sufficiently precise positioning of theholes is often difficult, due to measurement error, machinel01520253035FL6779lCA 02264218 1999-03-03tool inaccuracies, cabinetâ material variations, humanerror, ECC.Accordingly, adjustable cabinet hinges, whichallow for adjustment of the position of the cabinet doorwith to the gainedpopularity. An exemplary adjustable cabinet hingedisclosed in, for example, U.S. Patent No. 5,375,297 titled"Furniture Hinge," issued to Lautenschlager on December 27,1994, discloses a hinge including a fastening plate havinga slot running in the longitudinal direction of the edge ofthe face frame of the cabinet and having an entry slot forThe hinge position may be adjusted byrespect cabinet frame have inisa mounting screw.sliding the mounting screw within the slot. Alternatively,the fastening plate has at least one entry hole adjacent tothe slot.However, such conventional cabinet hingeadjustment arrangements may be relatively complex, whichincreases manufacturing and assembly costs. Therefore, toovercome the limitations presented by conventional cabinethinge adjustment arrangements, it is desirable for anMoreover, suchadjustable hinge to be easy to manufacture.conventional adjustable hinges may be relatively difficultto assemble or install properly, and difficult to adjust.Accordingly, it would be advantageous to have acabinet hinge that is relatively simple in its design andrelatively simple to assemble, Itwould also be advantageous to have a cabinet hinge thatinstall and adjust.requires as few as one fastener for mounting to the frame.§ï¬ï¬ï¬ARY OF zgg INVENTIONThe present invention relates to a hunge formounting a door to a frame including a door wing to bemounted on the door, a frame wing to be mounted on theframe and at least one fastener having a head portion andThe frame wing is rotatably connected toThethe mounting slots having an oblong shape.a shaft portion.the door wing. frame wing vincludes two opposedmounting slots,l01520FL67791CA 02264218 1999-03-03The length of the mounting slots are each greater than thediameter of the shaft portion of one of the fasteners. 9The present invention also relates to a framewing for mounting a cabinet door hinge to a cabinet frameand for adjusting the position of the cabinet door relativeto the cabinet frame. The cabinet door hinge has a doorwing mounted to the cabinet door and rotatably connected toThe frame wing includes a hinge portionThe hinge portion has a first end andthe frame wing.and a base portion.a second end, the first end being rotatably connected tothe frame wing. The base portion is connected on one sideto the second end of the hinge portion and has at least oneThe leg extends substantially perpendicular to theThe base portion has at least two opposedleg.base portion.mounting slots for accepting at least one fastener.The further relatescabinet hinge including a door wing to be mounted on apresent invention to acabinet door, a frame wing to be mounted on a cabinet frameand rotatably connected to the door wing, and at least onefastener having a shaft portion to secure the frame wing tothe cabinet frame. The frame wing includes two opposedmounting slots. The mounting slots are oblong shapedhaving a length substantially greater than the diameter ofthe shaft portion of the fastener.1015202530FL67791CA 02264218 1999-03-03BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSFIGURE 1 is a partially exploded perspective view of a cabinet hinge having a mounting cup and a frame wingcoupled thereto according to a preferred embodiment showingtwo mounting screws.FIGURES 2A through 2C are sectional plan views ofthe cabinet hinge, shown in FIGURE 1, depicting the stagesof installing and securing the hinge.FIGURE 3A is a front elevation view of the framewing of FIGURE 1.FIGURE 3B is a plan view of the frame wing.FIGURE 4A is a front view of an alternativeembodiment of the frame wing.FIGURE 4B is a top view of the frame wing ofFIGURE 4A.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTSReferring to the FIGURES,alternative embodiments of an adjustable hinge for mountinga cabinet door to a cabinet frame are shown. It should benoted ;; outset that the hinge can be used in any of awide va:_;:y of applications, with any of a wide variety ofconcealed andpreferred andcabinet doors and other doors, such asunconcealed cabinet hinge arrangements known to thoseskilled in the art who may review this disclosure.With to FIGURE 1,embodiment of an adjustable hinge I0 is shown.used to mount a substantially solid cabinet door 20 forareference preferredHinge 10 isselective pivotal movement between an opened position anda closed position with respect to a cabinet frame 25. Inthe embodiments shown in the FIGURES, cabinet door 20 is ofan overlay type, as is described in U.S. Patent No.5,355,557 (entitled âCONCEALED SELFâCLOSING HINGE WITHINTEGRAL HINGE PIN MEANSâ) issued to Cress et al. onOctober 18, 1994. Door 20 is shown in cutâaway and may bemade of any suitable material for a cabinet door includingbut not limited to wood, melamine, pressboard, metal,plastic, etc.101520253035FL6779lCA 02264218 1999-03-03FIGURE 1, includes a doorwing 30 shown with a hinge cup 31 pivotally coupled to aReferring to hinge 10frame wing 32. According to the preferred embodiment.hinge cup 31 is adapted to be mounted into and around a(not shown) in thesubstantially circular bore or recess(although, the hinge cup may beadapted to fit into other bore geometries,Frame wing 32 is adapted to beinner surface of door 20not limited tosubstantially circular).mounted to an edge 34 (shown in FIGURES 1 and 2)According to a preferred embodiment, hinge cupof cabinetframe 25.31 is installed substantially within door 20 and frame wing32 is mounted to edge 34 of frame 25 in an arrangementdesigned to conceal the hinge from view (when viewed fromthe front of the cabinet). This arrangement is commonlyknown in the art as a âconcealedâ hinge.Door wing 30 with hinge cup 31 is fixed to door20 by fasteners 29 (shown as mounting screws). Door wing30 is rotatably coupled with frame wing 32, typically by aclosing mechanism (e.g. a spring 35a and cam 35b actingabout pin 33). According to alternative embodiments, anyof a variety of other arrangements of securing the doorwithout a or ofwing to the door (e.g. "hinge cup")providing a pivotal relationship between the door wing andthe frame wing may be used. Frame wing 32 is preferablymade from cold rolled one-pass steel, but may be made fromother suitable materials such as other metals, ceramics,polymers, etc.3Aa baseIn a preferred embodiment shown in FIGURES 1,and 3B, frame wing 32 includes a hinge arm 36,portion 37, two open-ended, oblong shaped, opposed mountingslots 38,first end 41 and aHinge arm 36 has aFirst end 41and a connecting region 39.second end 42. isrotatably connected to the hinge cup by collar 35 and pin33.portionis connected to base portion 37. Base43portion.Second end 4237 extendingAsframe wing 32 may alsohas at least one outer legsubstantially perpendicular to thedepicted in FIGURES 1, 3A, and 3Bhave an inner leg 44 extending substantially perpendicularbaseâ-3-101520253035FL67791CA 02264218 1999-03-03to base portion 37. (A frame wing having both an inner leg44, an outer leg 43, and a base portion 37 is referred toas a "full wrap" frame wing by those skilled in the art.A frame wing having either an inner leg 44 or an outer leg43, "partialwrap" frame wing by those skilled in the art.)and a base portion 37 is referred to as aAccordingto a particular preferred embodiment, frame wing 32 has twoopposed mounting slots 38, separated by a connecting region39, The two opposed mountingslots 38 are designed to accept and engage at least onecut into base portion 37.fastener, e.g. mounting screw 60.Frame wing 32 is secured to frame 25 byfasteners, e.g. mounting screws 60. As shown in thepreferred embodiment, mounting is effected by partiallyscrewing one mounting screw 60a into edge 34 of frame 25.Frame wing 32 is then positioned on edge 34 such that oneof the two opposed mounting slots 38 engages the shaftportion of the mounting screw 60a (that is partiallyscrewed into edge 34). The oblong shape of slot 38 allowsthe position of frame wing 32 Ix: be laterally adjustedalong the edge of frame 25. A second mounting screw 60bmay then be screwed into edge 34 of frame 25 such that theshaft portion of the second mounting screw 60b engages witha second slot 38. (Alternatively, a single fastener (e.g.a single mounting screw) may be used instead of twomounting screws for a single frame wing). Mounting screw60 includes a head with a diameter greater than the widthof the mounting slots 38; alternatively, the mounting screwcan be provided with a washer (not shown), such that whenmounting screw 60 is tightened by screwing it into edge 34,washer bears or presses against the face of frame wing 32opposite of edge 34 of base portion 37, to hold frame wing32Accordingin its relative position with respect to frame 25.types ofnut and boltto alternative embodiments, otherfasteners may be employed, e.g. rivets,combinations, or threaded sleeve and-screw combinations.Frame wing 32 may be adjusted relative to frame25 in a lateral or longitudinal direction corresponding-5-101520253035FL6779lCA 02264218 1999-03-03with the length of mounting slots 38 (depending upon thenumber and arrangement of the fasteners). As depicted inFIGURES 2A through 2C, an adjustment mounting screw 60 mayinitially be partially screwed into edge 34 and frame wing32 may be put into the proper position such that slot 38engages the shaft of mounting screw 60, as depicted inFIGURE 2A. Mounting screw 60 may then be further tightenedso that frame wing 32 may still remain movable with respectto frame 25, as depicted in FIGURE 2B. with frame wing 32frame wing 32 may beWhen themountingmovable with respect to frame 25,adjusted so that it is in the desired position.desired position of frame wing 32 is achieved,screw 60 may be tightened such that frame wing 32secured and remains essentially immovable under ordinaryoperational forces, as depicted in FIGURE 2C.According to an alternative embodiment, depictedin FIGURES 4A and 4B, frame wing 50 has two opposedmounting slots 52 located within base portion 37, separatedby and conjoined with a substantially circular aperture 54.The mounting and adjustment arrangement is similar to theismounting and adjustment arrangement of other embodiments.That is, a first mounting screw 60 is partially screwedinto position, frame wing 50 is placed over mounting screw60 such that the head portion of nwunting screw 60 isthrough 54 50positioned such that slot 52 engages the shaft portion ofinserted aperture and frame wing ismounting screw 60. Mounting screw 60 is further tightenedMounting screw50A secondand frame wing 50 is positioned as desired.60 thatsubstantially immovable under operational loads.is further tightened such frame wing ismounting screw may also be screwed into the other opposedmounting slot 52, to more firmly affix frame wing 50 in thedesired position, increasing strength and rigidity of thehinge mounting arrangement to frame 25.It is understood that, while the detaileddrawings and specific examples given describe preferredexemplary embodiments of the present invention, they arefor the purpose of illustration only. The present"1/ ._FL6779lCA 02264218 1999-03-03invention is not intended to be limited to the preciseembodiments disclosed. For example, although two mountingscrews are depicted in the FIGURES, only a single mountingscrew need be used. Various changes may be made to thedetails disclosed without departing from the spirit of theinvention, which is defined by the following claims.
