Hinges and method of making same

Claim 1

A HINGE COMPRISING (A) AN UPPER HINGE SEGMENT, (B) A LOWER HINGE SEGMENT, (C) AN INTERMEDIATE HINGE SEGMENT, (D) EACH OF SAID HINGE SEGMENTS BEING IN THE FORM OF CHRODAL SEGMENTS OF A CIRCLE, (E) SAID UPPER AND LOWER HINGE SEGMENTS EACH HAVING (1) A MAIN BODY PORTION IN THE FORM OF A CHORDAL SEGMENT OF A CIRCLE, AND (2) AN AUXILIARY BODY PORTION IN THE FORM OF A CHORDAL SEGMENT OF A CIRCLE AND HAVING A SHORTER CHORD LENGTH THAN SAID MAIN BODY PORTION, (F) EACH OF SAID MAIN BODY PORTIONS INCLUDING A FLANGE ON THE ARCUATE PERIPHERAL EDGE PORTION THEREOF WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY L-SHAPED IN TRANSVERSE CROSS-SECTION, (G) EACH OF SAID FLANGES HAVING (1) ONE LEG DISPOSED SUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR TO THE REMAINDER OF SAID MAIN BODY PORTION OF WHICH IT FORMS A PART, AND (2) ANOTHER LEG PROJECTING RADIALLY INWARDLY FROM SAID ONE LEG AND OVERLYING SAID AUXILIARY BODY PORTION, (H) EACH OF SAID AUXILIARY BODY PORTIONS (1) PROJECTING FROM A RESPECTIVE ONE OF SAID MAIN BODY PORTIONS TOWARD SAID OTHER LEG THEREON, AND (2) HAVING ITS ARCUATE PERIPHERAL EDGE PORTION DISPOSED IN PARALLEL RADIALLY INWARDLY SPACED RELATION TO SAID ONE LEG ON SAID LAST-MENTIONED MAIN BODY PORTION, (I) THE ARCUATE PERIPHERAL EDGE PORTION OF SAID INTERMEDIATE HINGE SEGMENT HAVING TWO FLANGE PORTIONS, (J) EACH OF SAID LAST-MENTIONED FLANGE PORTIONS BEING DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID AUXILIARY BODY PORTION AND SAID ONE LEG, AND BETWEEN SAID AUXILIARY BODY PORTION AND SAID AND SAID OTHER LEG OF RESPECTIVE ONES OF SAID FIRST TWO-MENTIONED HINGE SEGMENTS IN INTERLOCKING ENGAGEMENT THEREWITH FOR HOLDING ALL OF SAID HINGE SEGMENTS AGAINST LATERAL MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER, (K) TWO HINGE PLATES MOUNTED ON AND MOVABLE WITH RESPECTIVE ONES OF SAID UPPER AND LOWER HINGE SEGMENTS, (L) SAID HINGE SEGMENTS HAVING A CLOSED POSITION WHEREIN THEY ARE DISPOSED IN STACKED VERTICALLY ALIGNED POSITION, (M) SAID SINGE SEGMENTS BEING ROTATABLE RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER AROUND THE RADIAL CENTER AXIS OF SAID ARCUATE PERIPHERAL EDGE PORTIONS FROM SAID CLOSED POSITION THROUGH A PATH OF MOVEMENT EFFECTIVE TO ROTATE SAID UPPER AND LOWER HINGE SEGMENTS RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER THROUGH AN ARC OF 180 DEGREES INTO AN OPEN POSITION, AND (N) ABUTMENT MEANS ON SAID HINGE SEGMENTS FOR LIMITING SAID ROTATION OF SAID UPPER AND LOWER HINGE SEGMENTS RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER.