Appliance Design - February 2009 - (Page 23)

JoINING A detent hinge from Southco. A constant torque hinge from Southco. HINGE OPENS DOOR TO STEALTH FRIDGES pivot. This offsets the weight of the lid, and holds it upright. In addition to the spring force, Weber Knapp uses a controlled-friction device to add more resistance. If only the spring force was levering against the pivot point, there would be little friction in the system and it would move freely with a small push. The movement would continue until the hinge reached the limits of its opening or the energy from the push was spent. Adding friction makes it more of an effort to move the lid, which in turn gives the overall unit a greater perception of quality, Pangborn says. To design a counterbalanced support, Pangborn says that important factors include how much the device to be counterbalanced weighs, if it will be moving about at a fixed pivot point, or if it needs to sweep through a range of motion. If so, that would require a mechanism to create the motion that is desired. Weight distribution can also be a factor. With a simple fixed pivot model, the weight, and the center of gravity would be all the information that is needed. However, the weight could be unevenly distributed. For example, for the document handler, the distributed weight might be very heavy on The Weber Knapp Co., Jamestown, NY www.weberknapp.com offers concealed hinges to help hide high end refrigerators within kitchen cabinets. Currently used by Sub-Zero Freezer Co., the non-protruding hinges are invisible once doors are closed. Hinges also have a self-closing feature biased toward the closed position over a 30 degree angle. The four-bar hinges are only .75” high and can support a 107 lb., fully loaded door, or can be used in 36” wide, 155 lb. doors of the latest “stealth” models. Fully adjustable, depending upon kitchen layout, the standard full-open position of 105 degrees can be easily changed to 90 degrees. The hinges will also remain within speciﬁcations after 300,000 test cycles. The fully adjustable hinge, from WEBER KNAPP, conceals most kitchen appliances creating a “stealth” environment within the home. Using this technology most appliances are hidden behind existing cabinetry to create a more streamlined appearance to any kitchen without sacriﬁcing functionality. To have a custom designed, counter balanced hinge developed for your application, contact: Tom Cofﬁn at 800 828-9254, ext. 263 or tcofﬁn@weberknapp.com www.applianceDESIGN.com applianceDESIGN February 2009 23 http://www.weberknapp.com http://www.weberknapp.com http://www.appliancedesign.com

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Appliance Design - February 2009 Contents Editorial Shipments/Forecasts News Watch Force-Sensing Technology Offers Designers an Alternative Approach to Creating Touch-Control Interfaces A Flammable Vapor Sensing Technology that was Originally Developed for use in Water Heaters has Evolved for use in a Broader Array of Applications Latches, Hinges, and Slides Must Reliably Secure Parts Together, Sometimes for Hundreds of Thousands of Cycles. Beyond their Utilitarian Functions, They Can Also Change Consumer Perceptions Elastomeric Electrical Connectors Can Solve Space Constraint Problems in Electronic Products and Provide Some Cost Advantages as Well A Multi-Layer Ceramic Capacitor with a Novel Electrode Design Can Suppress Electromagnetic Interference, Improve Circuit Performance, and Reduce the Number of Needed Components Design Marts Association Report: AHRI Advertisers’ Index

Appliance Design - February 2009

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