Flexible or portable closure – partition – or panel – Plural strip – slat – or panel type – Venetian blind type
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-03
2001-12-18
Johnson, Blair M. (Department: 3634)
Flexible or portable closure, partition, or panel
Plural strip, slat, or panel type
Venetian blind type
C160S17700R, C024S499000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06330900
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application corresponds to and claims priority to European Application Nos. 98203694.9, filed Nov. 3, 1998; 98200368.1, filed Feb. 11, 1999; and 99202210.3, filed Jul. 7, 1999. These European applications are hereby incorporated by reference as though fully set forth herein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
a. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a holder for a vertical section of an architectural covering, such as a drape or a vaned fabric for covering an architectural opening, like a window or door. This invention particularly relates to a holder for vertically arranged louvers of a louvered Venetian blind.
b. Background Art
Vertical Venetian blinds have generally been provided with a horizontally-extending head rail, in which there have been several carriers that can be moved along the length of the head rail. Each carrier has typically supported a vertically-extending louver in such a manner that the consumer of the Venetian blind could move the louver along the length of the head rail and also could rotate the louver about its vertical axis. For example, carriers have each included a drive hub of a gear wheel driven by a worm gear, and the drive hub has supported a depending louver holder that has been adapted to support securely the top portions of a louver while the carrier has been moving and turning the louver holder and the louver. See U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,775.
Different types of louver holders have been provided in carriers for vertical Venetian blinds. For example, louver holders have held upper marginal portions of louvers between their pairs of downwardly-extending pinching fingers. See German Gebrauchsmuster 85 23 104, German Offenlegungschrift 27 15 018 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,309. Louver holders have also held upper marginal portions of louvers on hooks that are provided on their downwardly-extending fingers and that extend through apertures in the upper marginal portions of the louvers. See U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,775. However, the grip of each of such louver holders on the upper marginal portions of the louvers has not always been sufficiently secure to suit the consumer. This has been a particular problem when louvers of different thicknesses of material have been used with the same holder and after louvers have had to be removed and replaced on the same holders.
There has continued to exist, therefore, a need for a holder which (i) is simple to make and install on a head rail, (ii) is simple to affix to a vertical section of an architectural covering and subsequently to detach from the vertical section, and (iii) securely affixes the vertical section to the head rail when the holder is used to move the vertical section along the length of the head rail or to rotate the section about its vertical axis.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with this invention, a holder is provided for suspending a vertical section of an architectural covering from a carrier of a horizontally-extending head rail; the holder comprising:
a downwardly-extending first leg;
a generally downwardly-extending second leg that is pivotally connected to the first leg for movement between a first position, in which it extends substantially parallel to the first leg, and a second position, in which it is at an acute angle to the first leg;
the first leg having a first longitudinal side facing the second leg and the second leg having a second longitudinal side facing the first leg;
one of the first and second longitudinal sides, having a longitudinally extending first notch and the other of the first and second longitudinal sides having a first shoulder projecting generally perpendicularly therefrom so as to be received in the first notch when the second leg is in the first position;
the pivotal connection of the first and second legs extending laterally and being located above the first notch and the first shoulder; and
means on the first leg, above the pivotal connection, for attaching the first leg to the carrier.
In accordance with an advantageous aspect of the holder of the invention, the first leg has a longitudinally-elongate intermediate portion that is above the first notch and the first shoulder and that has a pair of laterally opposite sides, through which the pivotal connection (A) passes; and the second leg has two parallel arms which are above the first notch and the first shoulder and which extend longitudinally at least to the pivotal connection. It is especially advantageous that one of: i) the pair of laterally opposite sides of the intermediate portion and ii) facing lateral side portions of the two parallel arms have a pair of recesses about the pivotal connection; and the other one of: i) the pair of laterally opposite sides of the intermediate portion and ii) facing lateral side portions of the two parallel arms have a pair of laterally-extending pivots along the pivotal connection; each pivot being laterally inserted in one of the recesses.
It is particularly advantageous that each parallel arm carries one of the pivots and has a longitudinal end with a polygonal, particularly rectangular, longitudinal profile, and each recess is vertically elongated whereby the pivots can be moved to vertical extremities of the recesses, so as to move the second leg downwardly relative to the first leg when the first shoulder is in the first notch. It is quite particularly advantageous that the longitudinal side of each recess, remote from the second leg, is open and wherein longitudinally adjacent the open longitudinal sides of the pair of recesses are means for resiliently abutting against the longitudinal ends of the arms when the pivots are inserted in the recesses, advantageously an upwardly-extending spring, so that the pivots are prevented from moving longitudinally outwardly of the recesses through their open longitudinal sides. It is more quite particularly advantageous that a vertically-extending second notch is in the bottom of one of the first notch and the first shoulder and a vertically-extending second shoulder is on the bottom of the other of the first notch and the first shoulder; the second shoulder being adapted to be inserted vertically into the second notch, when the second leg is in the first position, by moving the second leg downwardly relative to the first leg, whereby the second leg is prevented from moving from the first position to the second position.
It is also particularly advantageous that each parallel arm carries one of the pivots, each recess is generally round and advantageously, on the bottom of the intermediate member of the first leg, adjacent an opposite longitudinal side of the second leg, are means for resiliently abutting against the opposite longitudinal side of the second leg when the pivots are in the recesses, especially a downwardly-extending leaf spring, so that the second leg is resiliently held in the first position. It is quite particularly advantageous that the spring extends downwardly to about the first notch and is longitudinally biased towards the first notch to keep the first shoulder of the second leg biased towards the first notch.
It is further particularly advantageous that each parallel arm carries one of the pivots, each recess is generally round and advantageously, on the arms and especially also between the arms, are means for resiliently abutting against a laterally-extending upper stop on the first leg, above the recesses, especially a cantilever spring that extends longitudinally and upwardly away from the first leg, so that the second leg is resiliently held in the first position. It is quite particularly advantageous that a lower portion of the spring separates and reinforces a laterally bifurcated, upper portion of the second leg, on which are the arms. It is more quite particularly advantageous that the spring is a laterally bifurcated, cantilever spring, each tine of which is upwardly biased towards one of a pair of the upper stops on laterally opposite sides of the first leg.
It is still further particularly advantageous that each parallel arm carries on
Dorsey & Whitney LLP
Hunter Douglas Industries BV
Johnson Blair M.
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