US20120055503A1

US20120055503A1 - Cosmetics Box Having Damping Effect When Being Opened

Info

Publication number: US20120055503A1
Application number: US12/876,213
Authority: US
Inventors: An-Kung Kuo
Original assignee: Lo Mei Cosmetics Enterprise Co Ltd
Current assignee: Lo Mei Cosmetics Enterprise Co Ltd
Priority date: 2010-09-06
Filing date: 2010-09-06
Publication date: 2012-03-08

Abstract

A cosmetics box includes a housing, a receiving tray secured in the housing, a lid pivotally mounted on the housing to cover the receiving tray, and two pivot mechanisms mounted between the lid and the receiving tray so that the lid is pivotally connected with the receiving tray. Thus, when the lid is pivoted relative to the housing, the rotation of the lid is damped and braked by the pivot mechanisms to largely reduce the rotation speed of the lid relative to the housing, thereby preventing the lid from violently hitting the housing and the receiving tray due to an excessive force and a higher rotation speed, and thereby protecting the articles contained in the receiving tray.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a makeup product and, more particularly, to a cosmetics box.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional cosmetics box comprises a housing, a receiving tray secured in the housing, and a lid pivotally mounted on the housing to cover the receiving tray. The receiving tray has an inner portion formed with a plurality of receiving chambers to receive a makeup product, such as a powder, puff, lip gloss and the like. However, when a user applies a larger force on the lid to close the lid relative to the housing, the lid easily hits the housing and the receiving tray violently so that the articles contained in the receiving tray are easily broken due to hit of the lid. In addition, when the lid hits the housing and the receiving tray violently, noise is produced during the closing process of the lid, thereby easily causing an uncomfortable sensation to the user.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a cosmetics box, comprising a housing, a receiving tray secured in the housing, a lid pivotally mounted on the housing to cover the receiving tray, and two pivot mechanisms mounted between the lid and the receiving tray so that the lid is pivotally connected with the receiving tray.
Each of the pivot mechanisms includes a main body, an operation member rotatably mounted in the main body, a damping member movably mounted in the main body and pressing the operation member to damp rotation of the operation member, a stop member mounted on the main body, and an elastic member mounted in the main body and biased between the stop member and the damping member to press the damping member toward the operation member.
The main body of each of the pivot mechanisms has a first end formed with a polygonal limit hole and a second end formed with a passage having a size smaller than that of the limit hole. The operation member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a first end formed with a rotation disk rotatably mounted in the limit hole of the main body and a second end formed with a polygonal driven post extending through and protruding outward from the passage of the main body. The rotation disk of the operation member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a side formed with two opposite first abutting blocks and two opposite first locking grooves disposed between the two first abutting blocks. The rotation disk of the operation member of each of the pivot mechanisms has two opposite first oblique guide faces each extending from a respective one of the two first abutting blocks to a respective one of the first locking grooves. The damping member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a side formed with two opposite second abutting blocks and two opposite second locking grooves disposed between the two second abutting blocks. The damping member of each of the pivot mechanisms has two opposite second oblique guide faces each extending from a respective one of the two second abutting blocks to a respective one of the second locking grooves. Each of the two second abutting blocks of the damping member is detachably locked in a respective one of the first locking grooves of the operation member at a normal state and is movable to press a respective one of the two first abutting blocks of the operation member. At this time, each of the two first abutting blocks of the operation member is detachably locked in a respective one of the two second locking grooves of the damping member at a normal state. The stop member of each of the pivot mechanisms is inserted into the limit hole of the main body.
The main body of each of the pivot mechanisms has an outer wall formed with a polygonal shank. The damping member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a periphery formed with a polygonal limit portion movably mounted in the limit hole of the main body. The housing has an inner portion formed with a mounting space to receive the receiving tray. The housing has a side formed with an elongate opening. The opening of the housing has two opposite sides each formed with a stop wall abutting the stop member of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms. The receiving tray has an inner portion formed with at least one receiving chamber. The receiving tray has a side formed with two spaced mounting seats to receive the pivot mechanisms respectively. Each of the mounting seats of the receiving tray is received in the opening of the housing and abuts the respective stop wall of the housing. Each of the mounting seats of the receiving tray has an inner portion formed with a polygonal locking hole locked onto the shank of the main body of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms. The lid has a side formed with a pivot seat pivotally mounted between the mounting seats of the receiving tray. The pivot seat of the lid has two opposite ends each formed with a polygonal driving hole locked onto the driven post of the operation member of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms.
The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a cosmetics box having a damping effect when being opened.
According to the primary advantage of the present invention, when the lid is pivoted relative to the housing, the rotation of the lid is damped and braked by the pivot mechanisms to largely reduce the rotation speed of the lid relative to the housing, thereby preventing the lid from violently hitting the housing and the receiving tray due to an excessive force and a higher rotation speed, and thereby protecting the articles contained in the receiving tray.
According to another advantage of the present invention, the rotation speed of the lid is reduced largely so that the lid will not hit the housing so as to prevent the lid from producing noise when being closed and to prevent a user's finger from being clipped by the lid and the housing.
According to a further advantage of the present invention, when the lid is closed or opened, the two first abutting blocks of the operation member are locked in the second locking grooves of the damping member, and the two second abutting blocks of the damping member are locked in the first locking grooves of the operation member so that the lid is positioned in place exactly and will not be moved relative to the housing any more.
Further benefits and advantages of the present invention will become apparent after a careful reading of the detailed description with appropriate reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cosmetics box in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the cosmetics box as shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a pivot mechanism of the cosmetics box as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is another exploded perspective view of a pivot mechanism of the cosmetics box as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view of the cosmetics box as shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a front cross-sectional view of the cosmetics box as shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a locally enlarged view of the cosmetics box as shown in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a schematic operational view of the cosmetics box as shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a schematic operational view of the cosmetics box as shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to the drawings and initially to FIGS. 1-7, a cosmetics box in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises a housing 10, a receiving tray 20 secured in the housing 10, a lid 40 pivotally mounted on the housing 10 to cover the receiving tray 20, and two pivot mechanisms 30 mounted between the lid 40 and the receiving tray 20 so that the lid 40 is pivotally connected with the receiving tray 20.
Each of the pivot mechanisms 30 includes a main body 31, an operation member 32 rotatably mounted in the main body 31, a damping member 33 movably mounted in the main body 31 and pressing the operation member 32 to damp rotation of the operation member 32, a stop member 35 mounted on the main body 31, and an elastic member 34 mounted in the main body 31 and biased between the stop member 35 and the damping member 33 to press the damping member 33 toward the operation member 32.
The main body 31 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has an outer wall formed with a polygonal shank 311. The main body 31 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a first end formed with a polygonal limit hole 312 and a second end formed with a passage 314 having a size smaller than that of the limit hole 312. The main body 31 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a periphery formed with a fixing portion 313. Preferably, the fixing portion 313 of the main body 31 is a fixing slot.
The operation member 32 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a first end formed with a rotation disk 321 rotatably mounted in the limit hole 312 of the main body 31 and a second end formed with a polygonal driven post 325 extending through and protruding outward from the passage 314 of the main body 31. The rotation disk 321 of the operation member 32 has a size greater than that of the passage 314 of the main body 31 so that the rotation disk 321 of the operation member 32 will not be detached from the passage 314 of the main body 31. The rotation disk 321 of the operation member 32 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a side formed with two opposite first abutting blocks 324 and two opposite first locking grooves 322 disposed between the two first abutting blocks 324. The rotation disk 321 of the operation member 32 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has two opposite first oblique guide faces 323 each extending from a respective one of the two first abutting blocks 324 to a respective one of the first locking grooves 322. The operation member 32 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a central portion formed with a guide hole 326.
The damping member 33 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a periphery formed with a polygonal limit portion 331 movably mounted in the limit hole 312 of the main body 31. The limit portion 331 of the damping member 33 has a shape and size matching that of the limit hole 312 of the main body 31 so that the damping member 33 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 is movable axially relative to the main body 31 and is non-rotatable relative to the main body 31. The damping member 33 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a side formed with two opposite second abutting blocks 334 and two opposite second locking grooves 332 disposed between the two second abutting blocks 334. The damping member 33 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has two opposite second oblique guide faces 333 each extending from a respective one of the two second abutting blocks 334 to a respective one of the second locking grooves 332. Each of the two second abutting blocks 334 of the damping member 33 is detachably locked in a respective one of the first locking grooves 322 of the operation member 32 at a normal state and is movable to press a respective one of the two first abutting blocks 324 of the operation member 32. At this time, each of the two first abutting blocks 324 of the operation member 32 is detachably locked in a respective one of the two second locking grooves 332 of the damping member 33 at a normal state. The damping member 33 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a central portion formed with a guide rod 335 inserted into the guide hole 326 of the operation member 32.
The stop member 35 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 is inserted into the limit hole 312 of the main body 31. The stop member 35 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a periphery formed with a locking portion 351 engaging the fixing portion 313 of the main body 31 to lock the stop member 35 onto the main body 31. Preferably, the locking portion 351 of the stop member 35 is a locking wedge locked in the fixing portion 313 of the main body 31. The stop member 35 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has an inner portion formed with a receiving recess 352 to receive the elastic member 34. Thus, the operation member 32, the damping member 33 and the elastic member 34 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 are limited between the main body 31 and the stop member 35.
The elastic member 34 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 has a first end received in the receiving recess 352 of the stop member 35 and a second end received in the limit hole 312 of the main body 31.
The housing 10 has an inner portion formed with a mounting space 11 to receive the receiving tray 20. The mounting space 11 of the housing 10 has a peripheral wall formed with at least one snap-fit groove 12. The housing 10 has a side formed with an elongate opening 13. The opening 13 of the housing 10 has two opposite sides each formed with a stop wall 14 abutting the stop member 35 of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms 30.
The receiving tray 20 has a periphery formed with at least one snap-fit block 24 snapped into and locked in the snap-fit groove 12 of the housing 10 to lock the receiving tray 20 in the mounting space 11 of the housing 10. The receiving tray 20 has an inner portion formed with at least one receiving chamber 21 to receive a makeup product, such as a powder, puff, lip gloss and the like. The receiving tray 20 has a side formed with two spaced mounting seats 22 to receive the pivot mechanisms 30 respectively. Each of the mounting seats 22 of the receiving tray 20 is received in the opening 13 of the housing 10 and abuts the respective stop wall 14 of the housing 10. Each of the mounting seats 22 of the receiving tray 20 has an inner portion formed with a polygonal locking hole 23 locked onto the shank 311 of the main body 31 of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms 30.
The lid 40 has a side formed with a pivot seat 41 pivotally mounted between the mounting seats 22 of the receiving tray 20. The pivot seat 41 of the lid 40 has two opposite ends each formed with a polygonal driving hole 42 locked onto the driven post 325 of the operation member 32 of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms 30. The driving hole 42 of the pivot seat 41 is aligned with the locking hole 23 of a respective one of the mounting seats 22. The driving hole 42 of the pivot seat 41 is deflected slightly and has a periphery that is staggered with the locking hole 23 of the respective mounting seat 22 through an angle.
In operation, referring to FIGS. 7-9 with reference to FIGS. 1-6, when the lid 40 is pivoted relative to the housing 10 and the receiving tray 20, the pivot seat 41 of the lid 40 is pivoted relative to the mounting seats 22 of the receiving tray 20. At this time, the locking hole 23 of each of the mounting seats 22 is locked onto the shank 311 of the main body 31 of the respective pivot mechanism 30, and the driving hole 42 of the pivot seat 41 is locked onto the driven post 325 of the operation member 32 of the respective pivot mechanism 30 so that when the pivot seat 41 of the lid 40 is pivoted relative to the mounting seats 22 of the receiving tray 20, the operation member 32 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 is rotated relative to the main body 31 and is rotated relative to the damping member 33. In such a manner, when the operation member 32 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 is rotated relative to the damping member 33, each of the two first abutting blocks 324 of the operation member 32 is detached from the respective second locking groove 332 of the damping member 33 and is moved to press the respective second abutting block 334 of the damping member 33 as shown in FIG. 8. At this time, the elastic member 34 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 presses the damping member 33 toward the operation member 32 so that the damping member 33 applies a damping force to the operation member 32 by engagement between the second abutting blocks 334 of the damping member 33 and the first abutting blocks 324 of the operation member 32 so as to reduce the rotation speed of the operation member 32. Thus, the rotation of the operation member 32 of each of the pivot mechanisms 30 is damped by the damping member 33 to largely reduce the rotation speed of the lid 40 relative to the housing 10, thereby preventing the lid 40 from violently hitting the housing 10 and the receiving tray 20 due to an excessive force and a higher rotation speed.
When the lid 40 is pivoted successively relative to the housing 10 to the position as shown in FIG. 9 where the angle between the lid 40 and the housing 10 approximates one hundred and eighty degrees (180°), the two first abutting blocks 324 of the operation member 32 are locked in the second locking grooves 332 of the damping member 33, and the two second abutting blocks 334 of the damping member 33 are locked in the first locking grooves 322 of the operation member 32 so that the lid 40 is positioned in place and will not be moved relative to the housing 10 any more. On the contrary, when the lid 40 is pivoted back relative to the housing 10 to cover the housing 10 and the receiving tray 20 as shown in FIG. 1, the driving hole 42 of the pivot seat 41 is deflected slightly so that each of the pivot mechanisms 30 provides a force to press the lid 40 downward successively so as to cover the lid 40 closely and tightly, thereby preventing the lid 40 from being opened easily.
Accordingly, when the lid 40 is pivoted relative to the housing 10, the rotation of the lid 40 is damped and braked by the pivot mechanisms 30 to largely reduce the rotation speed of the lid 40 relative to the housing 10, thereby preventing the lid 40 from violently hitting the housing 10 and the receiving tray 20 due to an excessive force and a higher rotation speed, and thereby protecting the articles contained in the receiving tray 20. In addition, the rotation speed of the lid 40 is reduced largely so that the lid 40 will not hit the housing 10 so as to prevent the lid 40 from producing noise when being closed and to prevent a user's finger from being clipped by the lid 40 and the housing 10. Further, when the lid 40 is closed or opened, the two first abutting blocks 324 of the operation member 32 are locked in the second locking grooves 332 of the damping member 33, and the two second abutting blocks 334 of the damping member 33 are locked in the first locking grooves 322 of the operation member 32 so that the lid 40 is positioned in place exactly and will not be moved relative to the housing 10 any more.
Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment(s) as mentioned above, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claim or claims will cover such modifications and variations that fall within the true scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A cosmetics box, comprising:

a housing;

a receiving tray secured in the housing;

a lid pivotally mounted on the housing to cover the receiving tray; and

two pivot mechanisms mounted between the lid and the receiving tray so that the lid is pivotally connected with the receiving tray;

wherein each of the pivot mechanisms includes:

a main body;

an operation member rotatably mounted in the main body;

a damping member movably mounted in the main body and pressing the operation member to damp rotation of the operation member;

a stop member mounted on the main body; and

an elastic member mounted in the main body and biased between the stop member and the damping member to press the damping member toward the operation member;

the main body of each of the pivot mechanisms has a first end formed with a polygonal limit hole and a second end formed with a passage having a size smaller than that of the limit hole;

the operation member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a first end formed with a rotation disk rotatably mounted in the limit hole of the main body and a second end formed with a polygonal driven post extending through and protruding outward from the passage of the main body;

the rotation disk of the operation member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a side formed with two opposite first abutting blocks and two opposite first locking grooves disposed between the two first abutting blocks;

the rotation disk of the operation member of each of the pivot mechanisms has two opposite first oblique guide faces each extending from a respective one of the two first abutting blocks to a respective one of the first locking grooves;

the damping member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a side formed with two opposite second abutting blocks and two opposite second locking grooves disposed between the two second abutting blocks;

the damping member of each of the pivot mechanisms has two opposite second oblique guide faces each extending from a respective one of the two second abutting blocks to a respective one of the second locking grooves;

each of the two second abutting blocks of the damping member is detachably locked in a respective one of the first locking grooves of the operation member at a normal state and is movable to press a respective one of the two first abutting blocks of the operation member;

each of the two first abutting blocks of the operation member is detachably locked in a respective one of the two second locking grooves of the damping member at a normal state;

the stop member of each of the pivot mechanisms is inserted into the limit hole of the main body.

2. The cosmetics box of claim 1, wherein

the main body of each of the pivot mechanisms has an outer wall formed with a polygonal shank;

the damping member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a periphery formed with a polygonal limit portion movably mounted in the limit hole of the main body;

the housing has an inner portion formed with a mounting space to receive the receiving tray;

the housing has a side formed with an elongate opening;

the opening of the housing has two opposite sides each formed with a stop wall abutting the stop member of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms;

the receiving tray has an inner portion formed with at least one receiving chamber;

the receiving tray has a side formed with two spaced mounting seats to receive the pivot mechanisms respectively;

each of the mounting seats of the receiving tray is received in the opening of the housing and abuts the respective stop wall of the housing;

each of the mounting seats of the receiving tray has an inner portion formed with a polygonal locking hole locked onto the shank of the main body of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms;

the lid has a side formed with a pivot seat pivotally mounted between the mounting seats of the receiving tray;

the pivot seat of the lid has two opposite ends each formed with a polygonal driving hole locked onto the driven post of the operation member of a respective one of the pivot mechanisms.

3. The cosmetics box of claim 2, wherein

the driving hole of the pivot seat is aligned with the locking hole of a respective one of the mounting seats;

the driving hole of the pivot seat is deflected slightly and has a periphery that is staggered with the locking hole of the respective mounting seat through an angle;

the mounting space of the housing has a peripheral wall formed with at least one snap-fit groove;

the receiving tray has a periphery formed with at least one snap-fit block snapped into and locked in the snap-fit groove of the housing to lock the receiving tray in the mounting space of the housing.

4. The cosmetics box of claim 1, wherein

the main body of each of the pivot mechanisms has a periphery formed with a fixing portion;

the fixing portion of the main body is a fixing slot;

the stop member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a periphery formed with a locking portion engaging the fixing portion of the main body to lock the stop member onto the main body;

the locking portion of the stop member is a locking wedge locked in the fixing portion of the main body.

5. The cosmetics box of claim 1, wherein

the operation member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a central portion formed with a guide hole;

the damping member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a central portion formed with a guide rod inserted into the guide hole of the operation member;

the rotation disk of the operation member has a size greater than that of the passage of the main body so that the rotation disk of the operation member is not detached from the passage of the main body;

the limit portion of the damping member has a shape and size matching that of the limit hole of the main body so that the damping member of each of the pivot mechanisms is movable axially relative to the main body and is non-rotatable relative to the main body.

6. The cosmetics box of claim 1, wherein

the stop member of each of the pivot mechanisms has an inner portion formed with a receiving recess to receive the elastic member;

the operation member, the damping member and the elastic member of each of the pivot mechanisms are limited between the main body and the stop member;

the elastic member of each of the pivot mechanisms has a first end received in the receiving recess of the stop member and a second end received in the limit hole of the main body.