JPS5949397B2 - window awning - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a retractable blind or window covering;
In particular, it relates to retractable blinds whose width can be adjusted arbitrarily at the installation location without the use of tools.

Telescoping blinds are generally known.

In order to combine such blinds with windows of various widths, the width of the entire blind assembly must be adjusted.

Telescoping blind assemblies typically include a sheet of vinyl or other material, a roller attached to the sheet, a spring-driven drive member for driving the roller, and a bottom edge of the sheet to provide rigidity to the bottom edge of the sheet. Consists of lightweight platelets inserted into joints formed along the

The sheet may be a flexible material, such as a vinyl material, that can be easily cut and fitted to the window.

The rollers and bottom plates used in conventional blinds must be cut using tools such as saws.

Moreover, even though conventional blinds are provided with a break line, the lower edge of the material that is folded back and joined to insert the bottom plate must be cut with a knife or the like at the joint or seam.

Prior art blind locking devices also include a gravity operated pawl that pivots about an axis parallel to the central axis of the blind roller and engages a notched cam or wheel.

Such a device is necessarily relatively large to accommodate the rollers and pawls pivoting on an axis that is a considerable distance from the axis of the model wheel.

Special shafts had to be provided for the pawls, and the pawls, pivots, and wheels had to be manufactured to tight tolerances given the available space.

Another prior art locking device includes a pair of mating members having elongated edges extending parallel to the axis of rotation and a curved portion inserted into a hole extending transversely to the axis of rotation. Some have free-floating pins.

Such an arrangement has the disadvantage that the relatively light pins, which are driven by gravity and centrifugal forces, do not always reliably engage and disengage when required.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a blind whose width can be easily adjusted without the use of any tools.

Another object of the invention is to provide a blind which can be adjusted in width and mounted on support brackets with a few simple working steps.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a smooth-operating, releasable automatic locking device for use in combination with blind rollers.

Yet another object of the invention is a closed, dust-tight hook for use in conjunction with a blind roller, which is assembled as a unit and inserted into the blind roller without tools or mechanical devices. An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic locking device.

In the present invention, the sheet of the blind is provided with a plurality of tear lines to facilitate its tearing.

Furthermore, the rollers of the blind consist of two telescoping parts to which the sheet is attached and which accommodate a spring-driven blind drive member.

The sheet is folded back along its bottom edge in a known manner;
Then, they are joined at intermittent locations so as not to overlap the broken lines.

A light platelet of adjustable length in multiple sections is inserted into the pocket formed by the fold.

The telescoping portions of the roller assembly are locked against rotation relative to each other.

A drive member adapter is provided at one end of the roller assembly for supporting a drive member attached to the blind support bracket.

Furthermore, an end pin adapter is provided into which the end pin supported by the second blind support bracket is inserted.

In assembly during the manufacturing stage of this blind, the roller and bottom plate assembly with both adapters is stretched to the full width of the blind sheet.

Adhesive is applied along the length of the outer surfaces of the inner and outer image areas of the telescoping rollers.

However, the adhesive on the inner part is covered with paper or other suitable protective material on their outer surface.

Initially, the blind sheet can only be applied to the adhesive side of the outer part of the telescoping roller.

The releasable automatic locking device also preferably comprises two halves which are fastened together and which, when joined, extend radially outwardly from the central axis and a hole extending along the central axis. A cylindrical body is formed having two oppositely extending grooves.

A pair of dowels extend from one half across the groove and into corresponding holes in the other half.

The dowels align the two halves being joined and pivot a pair of substantially flat elongated plates that taper in one direction.

The plates can pivot within the hole and engage a mold wheel having the same central axis as the hole.

The plate, which functions as a pawl in many conventional devices, includes a pivot hole for pivoting to the dowel.

These pivot holes are remote from the ends of the plate to provide a counterweight as the plate pivots on the dowel.

This counterweighted pawl operates under the influence of gravity or centrifugal force when the blind is rolled up or down, but the counterweight makes the operation smooth.

A substantially dust-tight closed structure houses the moving parts.

The device of the invention includes an enlarged diameter end portion having an end panel to which the device cover and device are attached.

Form the end cover of the lower brine roller.

The two halves to be joined are preferably fabricated by molding of plastic or similar material without the need for precision machining.

The cylindrical outer surface of the halves includes a ribbed portion that engages the ribbed inner surface of the blind roller.

One ribbed portion is provided with a shoulder by which one end of the drive spring is attached to one half.

The fabrication of spring-driven blinds is greatly simplified because the blind drive member assembly of the present invention, comprising the die wheel, pawl, spring, and housing, is easily assembled as a single unit and inserted into the blind roller as a unit. It is simplified to

This novel blind according to the invention can be installed without any tools and in just a few simple steps.

First, try placing a blind on the window to get the required width.

The inner portion of the telescoping roller is then pushed in until the length of the roller matches the required width of the blind.

The blind sheet is then unwound and the excess width of the sheet is torn along the break line closest to the outer edge of the newly positioned inner portion of the telescoping roller.

The break is made along the entire length of the break line, the bottom platelet or platelet assembly is adjusted to the desired width, and the excess width is torn off.

The adhesive protective covering of the inner portion extending from the outer portion of the telescoping roller is then peeled off.

The sheet is pressed and adhered to this newly exposed adhesive.

The bottom platelet is then adjusted to the required length.

The blinds are now completed and hung on the window.

The following description will be made with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the sheet material 101 of the blind is provided with a plurality of parallel break lines 110 on one side edge thereof.

The thickness of this sheet material is typically about 0.11 mm (1000 mm).
0.31 mm (4+ths of an inch) to about 12 thousandths of an inch (0.31 mm).

The break line is the line along which the material is weakened.

It may be applied, for example, by providing a border that does not penetrate the sheet material, or by weakening the material at the line with an etching solvent.

The end of each break line may be notched or scored to facilitate breaking along that line, as shown at 111.

In an embodiment of the invention, the blind sheet 101 is attached to the outer portion 120 of the telescoping roller by an adhesive band 121.

There is also an adhesive zone 1 on the outer surface of the inner portion 122 of the telescoping roller.
23, this zone 123 is covered with an overlay 124 of paper or other suitable protective material 124 until the sheet is adjusted to the required width as described below.

The adhesive used in zones 121, 123 is sheet material 1
01, which is easily available on the market.

As seen in FIG. 1, the lower portion of the blind sheet 101 is folded back to form a pocket 103.

A seam is made along the upper edge of this pocket.

This seam may be created, for example, by well-known heating or ultrasonic sealing techniques.

In order to facilitate tearing of the strip of sheet along one break line 110, the seam is an intermittent joint consisting of several sections 112 spaced far enough apart that the seam does not overlap the break line. formed in parts.

FIG. 4 shows the retractable bottom platelet or bottom platelet assembly inserted into the pocket 103 of the blind.

This platelet consists of three parts: two substantially equal pieces made of lightweight material such as hard plastic or metal.
It consists of two outer parts 401 and 402 and a central part 403 made of a material such as light wood.

The central portion 403 is connected to the outer portion 401. as shown in FIG.
402 for a tight fit.

FIG. 5 shows the outer parts 401 and 402 and the central part 403.
FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 in FIG. 4 showing the overall configuration of the device.

As previously mentioned, the roller of the sunshade assembly consists of two telescoping sections.

A cross-sectional view of the outer telescoping portion 120 is shown in FIG.

The outer part 120 is a hollow tube with a folded seam 201.

The seam 201 projects inwardly, so that the outer surface of the tube is smooth, but the inner surface is provided with projections of substantially rectangular cross section with a certain width and thickness.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the portion 122 forming the inner tube of the telescoping roller.

Inner tube section 122 includes a seam 1301 similar to seam 201 of outer tube section 120 .

Furthermore, the inner tube section 122 comprises a recess 302 having a rectangular cross-section that is slightly larger than the rectangular cross-section of the seam 201 of the outer tube section 120 .

When the two telescoping parts 120 and 122 are combined,
Seam 201 is aligned with quadrilateral 302 and locks relative rotation of slidably mated portions 120 and 122.

FIG. 7 shows a spring-driven drive member for retracting the shade sheet and an adapter 701 for the drive member.

FIG. 8 is a front view of the drive member adapter, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view thereof taken along line 9--9.

Adapter 701 is made of plastic or similar material and is inserted into open end 126 of outer portion 120 of the telescoping roller.

The adapter includes a plurality of rib-like projections 7 having a tapered portion 704.
Equipped with 03.

Diameter D1, shown in FIG. 8, is sized slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the tube such that the adapter fits within the tube section 120.

Tapered portion 704 facilitates insertion into aperture 126.

The distance between adjacent ribs 703 is dimensioned to allow seam 201 to fit between the ribs such that when adapter 701 is inserted into tubing section 120, the seam 201 and ribs 703 lock. The lock prevents relative rotation of the adapter and tube.

A seat retraction drive member 702 of a known type as shown in FIG. 7 is fitted into the recess 901.

FIG. 6 shows an end pin adapter 1001 and an end pin 100.
2 is shown.

End pins such as this one are well known.

The overall outline of the adapter 1001 is similar to the drive member adapter 701.

FIG. 10 is a front view of the end pin adapter, and FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view thereof at line 11--11.

The end pin adapter is inserted into the open end 128 of the inner portion 122 of the telescoping roller.

Diameter D2 in FIG. 10 is configured to fit within tube section 122.
It is made slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the tube.

The distance between the rib portions 10030 is dimensioned to allow a fit between adjacent ribs 1003 of the seams 301 and recesses 302 of the tube portion 122.3 This fit prevents the adapter 1001 and the tube portion 122 from rotating relative to each other. It will be locked like that.

End pin 1002 is inserted into center hole 1005.

FIG. 12 shows first and second halves 511 and 512 of sunshade drive member assembly 510. FIG.

As seen in the figures, the halves each have a semicircular hole into which the cylinder 513 is inserted when the two halves are brought together.

One half 511 includes a dowel or dowel 514 extending from a face 515 thereof.

The other half 512 includes dowel holes 516 in their opposing surfaces 515 that mate with dowels 514 .

Dowel nail 514 and corresponding dowel hole 516
can be better understood in FIGS. 14 and 16.

The purpose of the dowels is to align the two halves and to pivot the pawls 517.

The opposing surfaces 515 of both halves 511 and 5120 are recessed so that when they are brought together, there is a
For example, as can be seen in FIG. 16, a space is formed for inserting a claw 517.

The claw 517 is a generally flat and elongated plate as shown in FIG.

Pawl 517 is pivoted on dowel 514 and is movable radially outwardly away from the axis of rotation.

The cylinder 513 has an opening 523 into which the rod 51
One end of 8 is non-rotatably engaged (14th
(Fig. and Fig. 15).

As shown in FIG. 13, a spring 519 is attached to an elongated hole 534 in rod 518.

The outer end of spring 519 is attached to one half 511 or 512, as described below.

The cylinder 513 further includes a blind support bracket (
flat portion 5 fitted non-rotatably into the
21.

When the halves 511, 512 are brought together, they simply fit inside the blind roller 535 and are tightly engaged to its inner surface by rib portions (not shown) on the inner surface of the roller.

One or both halves 511, 512 are provided with a rectangular shoulder 540 near the spring end on the outer surface of the housing they consist of.

As shown in FIG. 13, spring 519 has a rectangular aperture 537 at its end that fits into shoulder 540.

In the assembled state, the spring 519 and the cylinder 51
3, the pawl 517, and the halves 511 and 512 form an independent unit that can be inserted directly into the teller roller.

In the shade assembly, drive member adapter 701 with drive member 702 and end pin adapter 1001 with end pin 1002 are inserted into telescoping roller openings 126 and 128, respectively.

The telescoping rollers are extended to a length corresponding to the full width of the shade sheet 101 and the upper part of the sheet is attached to the adhesive zone 121 of the outer tube section 120.

The bottom plate shown in FIG. 4 is inserted into the plate pocket 103 and extended to the full width of the seat 101.

When installing the awning, the required width is determined, and the sheet is torn along one breaking line 110 at the point closest to the required width.

With the platelet removed or pushed to one side, the break line is broken along its entire length without the use of any tools.

The inner telescoping portion 122 is then pushed into the outer telescoping portion 120 until the telescoping roller has a length corresponding to the window width.

The overlay 124 is then peeled away from the portions of the adhesive zone 123 that do not overlap the outer portion 1200, thus applying the shade sheath N 01 to the newly exposed portions of the adhesive zone 123.
The upper part of is glued.

The bottom platelet is reinserted and lengthened to match the new width of the seat by sliding its outer parts 401 and 402 towards each other.

When the blind 536 is installed and lowered,
The end of the spring attached to one half at shoulder 540 rotates with the shade roller, while the other end of the spring is connected to rod 518 at slot 534 so that the original It stays where it is and doesn't move.

When the blind is lowered, the roller 535 and the joined halves 511, 512 fitted thereto are turned counterclockwise and, if the blind is correctly installed, the flat part 521 of the cylinder 513 It will be engaged with a fixed window support bracket (not shown).

Therefore, even if the roller 530, the halves 511 and 512, and the pawl 517 rotate about the core of the roller, the mold wheel 522
remains steadfast.

As can be seen from the drawings, the mold wheel 522 does not prevent counterclockwise rotation of the roller that lowers the blind.

Centrifugal force forces the pawls 517 away from the mold wheel 522 as the rollers rotate.

When the rollers stop, one of the pawls engages the mold wheel by gravity.

The clockwise rotational force by spring 519 presses the pawl against the teeth of mold wheel 522 .

When raising the blind a certain distance, the blind sheet is first rolled down in a counterclockwise direction and, when released, is rolled up by the clockwise rotational force of the spring.

Preferably, according to the present invention, the pawl 517 is counterbalanced, so that even with a slight centrifugal force at a small rotational speed, the distal end 517a of the pawl separates from the mold wheel 522.

Due to the counterbalance, the tips 517a of the claws can be easily removed from the mold wheel, so that the brining roller can be operated smoothly.

By counterbalancing the claws 517, the number of stopping positions of the roller sunshade can be increased.

The die wheel 522 shown in FIG. 16 has six teeth.

In a blind drive member where the pawl is removed from the mold wheel by centrifugal force, if the pawl does not have a counterbalance, the rotation speed of the mold wheel must be increased accordingly.
A large toothed or notched surface of the mold wheel is used.

Normally such drive members therefore have only two or four stopping positions.

Each half 511 and 512 includes a raised edge 528 and a front cover 524.

Edge 528 fits within the end of the shade roller as shown in FIG. 13, and front cover 524 covers the drive member assembly and roller.

As can be seen from the drawing, the two halves 511 and 512
When combined, a closed unit is formed.

The mold wheel 522 is in the recess 525, and the claw 517 is in the recess 5.
15, so dust and debris will not get on those moving parts.

What has been described above is one specific embodiment of the invention, and it goes without saying that many variations are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 is a perspective view of a blind incorporating some features of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the outer portion of the telescoping roller taken along line 2--2 of FIG. 1; and FIG. 4 is a front view of the bottom plate; FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 4; and FIG. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the blind drive member and its adapter, Fig. 8 is a front view of the blind drive member and adapter, and Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the blind drive member and its adapter.
10 is a front view of the end pin adapter; FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along line 11-1"1 of FIG. 10; FIG. 12 is a blind drive member assembly. FIG. 13 is an exploded perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 13 is a side view of the roller blind assembly cut away to show the blind drive member assembly and the spring attachment; FIG. 14 is a side view of the roller blind assembly; Cross-sectional view taken along line 14-14 in Fig. 13, 1st
Figure 5 is a sectional view taken along line 15-15 in Figure 14, and Figure 16.
Figure; is a sectional view taken along line 1616 in FIG. 15. 101...Blind sheet, 103...Pocket, 110...Broken line, 112...Joint part, 120.
122 ... Telescoping roller outer and inner parts, 121
．． 123...Adhesive zone, 401.402.403.
・Bottom plate outer and central portions, 701 ・Drive member, ・Adapter, 702 ・Drive member, 1001 ・
・End pin adapter, 1002... End pin, 51
0... Drive member assembly, 511.512... Half part, 513... Cylinder, 514... Dowel nail,
515... Recessed portion, 517... Claw, 518... Rod, 519... Spring, 521... Flat portion, 522...
...Model car, 524...Front cover, 528...Edge, 535...Blind roller, 536...Blind, 540...Shoulder.

Claims (1)

Claims: 1. In a blind assembly which is installed and adjusted by the ultimate user without the use of tools during installation, comprising: a sheet of flexible material from the top to the bottom of the sheet; the sheet with a plurality of weakened lines extending and extending along at least one edge portion, the weakened lines being substantially parallel to each other;
The blind assembly is formed to provide a clean straight edge by peeling the sheet along one of the weakened lines, and the blind assembly further includes a telescoping roller assembly; The assembly has a first portion and a second portion, the second portion being insertable within the first portion thereby shortening the length of the telescoping roller assembly and further reducing the length of the telescoping roller assembly. The assembly has a bottom platelet assembly that cooperates with a lower end of the seat for the first portion, the bottom platelet assembly being adjustable such that the bottom platelet assembly is telescoping. A blind assembly characterized in that the length of the roller assembly and the adjustable width of the sheet can be matched. 2. In the blind assembly according to claim 1, each weakened line is formed by a continuous indentation extending into the sheet by a portion of its thickness. A blind assembly characterized in that the blind assembly is formed by continuous notches.