Flexible or portable closure – partition – or panel – Roll type – With guides or fabric edge holders
Patent
1997-01-03
2000-09-19
Purol, David M.
Flexible or portable closure, partition, or panel
Roll type
With guides or fabric edge holders
160 35, A47G 502
Patent
active
061197580
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a closing device comprising a flexible screen, such as an awning, whose lateral edges are guided in guide channels, thus allowing the screen to be moved between a closed position and an open position.
2. Prior Art
Some prior art closing devices have a flexible screen with a weighting bar extending over the whole width of the screen on a lower edge to allow the closing of the screen essentially under the weight of this weighting bar and to maintain it in a taut condition.
The presence of such a weighting bar has various disadvantages. Thus, a result of inertia, the speeds of opening and closing are limited and special precautions must be taken in order to brake the upward and downward motion of the screen in a sufficient amount of time before its stoppage. Furthermore, the weight of such a weighting bar necessitates a relatively large amount of energy to bring the screen into its open position. Finally, reliable safety means must be provided in the screen's control circuit in order to prevent accidents when a person or any object is below the screen during its descent towards the closed position.
Other prior art closing devices are provided with driving means having return-pulleys which pull on the lateral edges of the screen to bring the latter into its closed position. In such a closing device, it is not essential to provide a weighting and stiffening bar at the lower edge of the screen. From a practical point of view, however, such a stiffening and weighting bar is generally necessary to ensure the correct functioning of the closure.
OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One of the main purposes of the present invention is to provide a flexible screen closing device which no longer requires a stiffening and weighting bar.
For this purpose, according to the invention, the lateral edges of the screen are substantially incompressible or rendered incompressible in their lengthwise direction. Driving means are provided making it possible to apply a thrust force to these edges in the longitudinal direction of the edges in their guide channels in order to move the screen towards its closed position and towards its open position.
Advantageously, the screen is provided, near or on the lateral edges mentioned above, with a series of members which are substantially rigid in the longitudinal direction of these edges. These members are able to bear against one another in the direction of the lateral edges, and are preferably able to be articulated with respect to each other such as to allow the rolling up or flexion of the screen in its open position.
According to one embodiment of the invention, the rigid link members surround the lateral edges of the screen forming a protrusion with respect to the surface of the screen. This protrusion is held and moved in guide channels.
According to another embodiment of the invention, the screen has, in the vicinity of at least one of its lateral edges guide channels, stiffening means making it possible to render the edges substantially incompressible in their lengthwise direction. These stiffening means are formed by a notched belt integral with the screen and extending along at least one of the lateral edges of the screen. Driving means cooperate with the notched belt to open and close the screen.
The invention also concerns a closing device which does not necessarily require lateral edges which are compressible or rendered incompressible in the direction of their movement towards their closed position, along their length.
This device is characterized by the fact that the screen is substantially stretched between guide channels at least in the closed position, wherein means are provided to avoid the compression of the lateral edges (2) of the screen (1) in their lengthwise direction at least during the movement towards the closed position and the presence of a stiffening element near the free edge of the screen on the side of the closed position.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWIN
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Dynaco International
Purol David M.
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