BRPI0616601B1 - SELECTIVE TILTING SYSTEM FOR A BLANKET SYSTEM FOR ARCHITECTURAL OPENINGS - Google Patents

Description

Patent Descriptive Report for "TILTING MECHANISM AND METHOD FOR SELECTIVELY TILTING A PERSIAN'S PICKS", BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application S / N 60 / 714,139, filed September 2, 2005, which is hereby incorporated by reference.

The present invention relates to roofs for architectural openings, and more specifically, horizontal blinds, such as Venetian blinds, designed to selectively tilt open or tilt closed portions of the blind, or tilt open twice as wide. standard pitch while having the look of a conventional blind when slanted closed with either the room side up or the room side down.

[003] The prior art is guided by two documents considered most relevant. The first, US 6,845,802 B1, filed August 1, 2002, describes a window shutter inductor system that allows a portion of the shutter to be selectively closed while the shutter balance remains open slanted. The other, GB 2,158,137, deposited on March 26, 1985, refers to a shutter with a window lining that, in the open position, resembles a mini blind, and in the closed position resembles a blackout. with pleats whose effect can be achieved using various combinations of drums, tilt rods and control devices in an assembly comprising an opposite direction movable ladder system.

Typically, a Venetian blind has a top rail or other frame member which both supports the blind and hides the mechanisms used to raise and lower or open and close the blind. Lifting and lowering is done by a lifting cord attached to the bottom rail (or bottom vane). The vanes, which are supported from the upper rail, may be allowed to tilt to open the louver and allow maximum light through the louver, or close the louver with the room side down (the edges of the louvered vanes). closest to the room are facing downwards, meaning that the other edges of the reeds, the edges which are closest to the window or the wall, will be facing upwards), or to close the blind with the room side up .

[005] The inclination of the closed shutter may be made for the purpose of blocking the light, or for privacy, or both. In order to obtain optimum shutter performance, it may be desirable to open one portion of the shutter while closing another portion of the shutter. For example, it may be desirable, in an office environment, to close the underside of the shutter closed to block sunlight from a computer screen, or to provide privacy so that someone standing outside the window cannot Look through the window and see what is happening inside the room. However, at the same time, it may be desirable to have the upper portion of the slanted shutter open to allow some light and / or natural ventilation in the room. Another case of an application for such a "split" blind project may be in a house where the floor of the house is at a higher elevation than the outside ground. A person standing inside the house could see outside freely, but an outside person could not effectively see inside except to the highest extent as permitted by the open section of the blind.

[006] In addition to the privacy and glare elimination problem, the light control feature of the split shutter design (also referred to as selective tilt design) is also beneficial in that it minimizes ultraviolet light deterioration. which results from sunlight impacting interior furniture, rugs, wooden floors, etc. while still maintaining indirect illumination of the exterior as well as a clear view of the exterior.

This is specifically practical and applicable in buildings with a roof balcony over the window area or where the windows are lowered into the wall, creating a balcony.

In some cases it is desirable to "open tilt" the blind as much as possible to allow more light through the blind or to allow a clearer area of view. In this case, this can be achieved by using standard width vanes where adjacent pairs of vanes move together to stack against each other when sloping open, resulting in a "double pitch" arrangement. In this double pitch arrangement, the open area between adjacent pair of vanes is essentially twice the open area that would be achieved if the vanes were equally spaced in the normal arrangement, thus the term "double pitch".

In still other cases, it is desirable to tilt a closed reed in one direction (say, the side of the room upwards) while the reeds immediately adjacent to this reed are closed in the other direction (room side down). This results in an aesthetically pleasing "pleated appearance" (also sometimes referred to as a Tiffany appearance) of the blind when in the closed position.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[009] In one embodiment, a louver system allows the user to openly slant or slant the entire shutter, as well as to openly slant one portion of the louver while another portion of the louver is slanted closed.

In another embodiment, a louver system allows the user to tilt the vanes closed as on a conventional louver (or room side up or room side down), but open tilt to double the standard pitch.

In another embodiment, a louver system allows the user to tilt the vanes open as in a conventional louver but tilt the vanes closed in alternate directions (one is with the room side up while the next reed is with the room side down) to create a "creased" look.

Various embodiments of the present invention provide drum portions with the tilt cables and / or actuator strings connected to the various drum portions. Since both tilt ropes and actuator cords serve to actuate the louver blades, the terms "tilt ropes" and "actuator cords" are sometimes used interchangeably in this specification.

A tilt mechanism utilizes two drums that are coaxially aligned, mounted within a housing, and with a tilt rod extending through the geometric axis of rotation of the drums. The tilt rod engages a drum drive which in turn engages one or the other of the two reels of the reel.

Another tilt mechanism utilizes two drums that are substantially parallel but not coaxial with one another. These two drums are independently driven by separate tilt rods extending through the rotational geometry of their respective drums.

Various arrangements for fixing and routing the tilt cables (or actuator strings) to the drums result in both types of tilt mechanisms being able to achieve either of the desired capacities.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a louver system made in accordance with the present invention, with a partially exploded perspective view of the mechanism within the upper rail also shown above the louver;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of one of the tilt stations of Figure 1, with the housing cover removed for clarity;

Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view of the tilt station of Figure 2;

Figure 3B is a perspective view of a vertical section taken along the geometric axis of rotation of the inclination station of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of one of the drums of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is an opposite end perspective view of the drum of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a front end view of the drum of Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a perspective view of another drum of Figure 3;

Figure 8 is an opposite end perspective view of the drum of Figure 7;

Figure 9 is a perspective view of the tilt station housing of Figure 3;

Figure 10 is a perspective view, from the opposite angle, opposite end of the housing of Figure 9;

Figure 11 is a perspective view of the tilt station drum driver of Figure 3;

Figure 12 is an opposite end perspective view of the drum driver of Figure 11;

Figures 13-15 are a series of perspective views showing the process of assembling the two drums, the drum driver, and the spring of Figure 3;

Figure 16 is a cross-sectional view through the drum of Figure 5;

Figures 17-19 are a continuation of the series of perspective views showing the process of assembling the two drums, the drum driver, and the spring of Figure 3;

Figure 20 is a schematic, partially broken perspective view of the louver of Figure 1, showing the position of the drums and the routing of the inclination cables for a double pitch configuration, as well as corresponding end views of the drums to indicate further. clearly the relative rotational positions of the drums;

Figure 21 is similar to Figure 20, but showing the positions of the louver vanes and drums when the louver is closed with the room side down;

Figure 22 is similar to Figure 20, but showing the positions of the louver blades, and drums when the louver is closed with the room side up;

Figure 23 is a schematic, partially broken perspective view of the louver of Figure 1, showing the position of the drums and the routing of the tilt ropes to a tilt configuration that allows one portion of the louver to open while another is closed as well as corresponding end views of the drums to more clearly indicate the relative rotational positions of the drums;

Figure 24 is similar to Figure 23, but showing the positions of the louver vanes and drums when the louver is closed with the room side up;

Figure 25 is similar to Figure 23, but showing the positions of the louver blades, and the drums when the lower louver is closed with the room side down while the upper louver remains slanted open;

Figure 26 is a schematic, partly broken perspective view of the louver of Figure 1 showing the position of the drums and the routing of the inclination cables for a pleated appearance and a double pitch configuration, as well as corresponding end views of the drums to more clearly indicate the relative rotational positions of the drums;

Figure 27 is similar to Figure 26, but showing the positions of the louver blades, and the drums when the louver is closed pleated in one direction;

Figure 28 is similar to Figure 27, but showing the positions of the louver blades, and the drums when the louver is closed pleated in an opposite direction;

Figure 29 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a louver system made in accordance with the present invention, with a partially exploded perspective view of the mechanism within the upper rail also shown above the louver;

Figure 30 is a perspective view of the louver indexing gear mechanism of Figure 29;

Figure 31 is an exploded perspective view of the indexing gear mechanism of Figure 30;

Figure 32 is a partially exploded perspective view of the indexing gear mechanism of Figure 30;

Figure 33 is a view along line 33-33 of Figure 32;

Figure 34 is a perspective view of the housing cover for the indexing gear mechanism of Figure 31;

Figure 35 is a perspective view of one of the driven gears of the indexing gear mechanism of Figure 31;

Figure 36 is a perspective view of the indexing gear of the indexing gear mechanism of Figure 31;

Figure 37 is a perspective view of one of the louver tilt stations of Figure 29;

Figure 38 is an exploded perspective view of the tilt station of Figure 37;

Figure 39 is a perspective view of one of the tilt station drums of Figure 37;

Figure 40 is a perspective view of the tilt station housing of Figure 37;

Fig. 41 is a schematic, partially broken perspective view of the louver of Fig. 29 showing the position of the drums and the routing of the inclination cables for a double pitch configuration as well as the corresponding view of the indexing gear mechanism. to indicate more clearly the relative rotational positions of the driven gears;

Figure 42 is similar to Figure 41, but showing the positions of the louver vanes, drums and indexing gear mechanism when the louver is closed with the room side down;

Figure 43 is similar to Figure 42, but showing the positions of the louver vanes, drums and indexing gear mechanism when the louver is closed with the room side up;

Fig. 44 is a schematic, partially broken perspective view of the louver of Fig. 29 showing the position of the drums and the routing of the tilt ropes to a tilt configuration that allows part of the louver to be opened while another part is closed, as is the corresponding view of the indexing gear mechanism to more clearly indicate the relative rotational positions of the driven gears;

Figure 45 is similar to Figure 44, but showing the positions of the louver vanes, drums, and indexing gear mechanism when the lower louver is closed with the room side down while the louver remains slanted open ;

Figure 46 is similar to Figure 44, but showing the positions of the louver vanes, drums and indexing gear mechanism when the upper louver is closed with the room side up while the lower louver remains slanted open ;

Fig. 47 is a schematic, partially broken perspective view of the louver of Fig. 29 showing the position of the drums and the routing of the incline cables for a pleated appearance and a double pitch configuration as well as the corresponding view of the mechanism. indexing gears to more clearly indicate the relative rotational positions of the driven gears;

Figure 48 is similar to Figure 47 but shows the positions of the louver vanes, drums, and indexing gear mechanism when the louver is pleated closed in one direction; and Figure 49 is similar to Figure 47 but shows the positions of the louver vanes, drums, and indexing gear mechanism when the louver is pleated closed in the opposite direction, DESCRIPTION

SINGLE SLOPE DESIGN. COAXIAL DRUM

The louver 10 of Figure 1 includes an upper rail 12 and a plurality of vanes 14 suspended from the upper rail 12 by inclining cables 16 and their associated transverse strands 16t (see Figure 20), which together comprise the tapes. in stairs. Lifting strands 20 are secured to the bottom of the lower vane (or lower rail) 18, which is typically heavier than the other vanes 14. As is well known in the art, lifting strings 20 are routed through holes routing in the vanes 14, through the upper rail 12, and outwardly through a lanyard locking mechanism 22. Tilting lanyards 24 operate a lanyard biaser 26, which is used to rotate a tilting rod 28 around its longitudinal geometrical axis in order to actuate the tilt stations 30. In this embodiment, there are two sets of tilt cables 16, which are given more specific designations in Figure 20 as follows: -16 is the generic designation for tilt cables - suffix "a" is used for the first set and "b" is used for the second set of tilt ropes - additional suffix T or "r" is used to indicate the fre front (room side) or rear (wall side or window side) [0018] Note that in some cases, there is no second set of tilt cables. An actuator cord may also be used in some cases (as in Figure 23) and designated as 16x. Actuator cord 16x runs parallel to the tilt cables 16 and attaches to one of the tilt cables 16 via a knot 32 (see Figure 23) or other securing means such as through a clip attachment 32, which is described in U.S. Patent No. 6,845,802, Selective Tilt Arrangement for a Shutter System for Architectural Apertures, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. Although the tilt rod 28 in this embodiment is actuated by a bead 26 (which is described in detail in Canadian Patent Number 2,206,932 "Anderson", issued December 4, 1997 (December 4, 1997), which (hereinafter incorporated by reference), it is understood that other types of actuators may be used, such as a rod biaser or a motorized biaser.

Referring briefly to Figures 2 and 3, the tilt station 30 includes a first drum 34, a second drum 36, a drum driver 38, a torsion spring 40, a housing 42, and a housing cover 44.

Referring to Figures 4, 5, 6, and 16, the first drum 34 includes two concentric cylinders 46, 48 interconnected by a centrally located web 50. The outer cylinder 46 defines two axially extending torn openings 52 spaced apart from each other. approximately one hundred and twenty (120) degrees, as well as an axially projecting limit stop 54 to approximately sixty (60) degrees from one of the two torn openings 52.

Approximately midway through its axial dimension, the inner cylinder 48 abruptly expands to a larger inner diameter cylinder 58 across a substantial portion of its circumference. This results in a crescent-shaped flange 56 (see Figure 6) extending approximately two hundred and twenty (220) degrees around the circumference of the inner cylinder 48, and this flange 56 terminates in radially extending shoulders 60. 62. As explained in more detail below, flange 56 acts to position and contain drum driver 38 within tilt station 30, and shoulders 60, 62 allow drum driver 38 to rotationally drive each of the drums 34, 36. Core 50 defines a hollow aperture 64 (see Figure 6) which is used to secure torsion spring 40 to drums 34, 36, as explained in more detail below.

Referring to Figures 7 and 8, the second drum 36 is identical to the first drum 34, except that the second drum 36 includes an axially extending circumferential ring 66 with an inner diameter which is slightly larger than the diameter. outer ring 46. This ring 66 is found only on the end of the drum 36 opposite the end defining the torn openings 52 and the limit stop 54, and this end where the ring 66 is located is referred to as the inner end 68. second drum 36, the other end turning outer end 70. Similarly, first drum 34 has an inner end 72, and an outer end 74. When the drums 34, 36 are assembled together, the ring 66 of the second drum 36 overlaps the inner end 72 of the first drum 34 to prevent any of the tilt cables 16 from falling between the first and second drums 34, 36, as will be apparent below.

Referring to Figures 11 and 12, the cylindrically formed drum driver 38 defines a non-cylindrically profiled inner hollow shaft 76 designed to engage the tilt rod 28 such that rotation of the tilt rod 28 causes rotation of the tilt rod. drum driver 38. The drum driver 38 also includes an axially extending rectangular key 78 located midway between the ends of the drum driver 38. The length of the drum driver 38 is slightly longer than the length of the two drums 34, 36 when assembled together, so that the ends of the drum driver 38 extend beyond the drum assembly, and these ends may be used for a rotational support of the drum assembly on the bearings 96, 98 of the housing 42 as described below in more detail. The length of the key 78 is substantially equal to the distance from the flange 56 of the first drum 34 to the flange 56 of the second drum 36 when the two drums 34, 36 are assembled together. The outer diameter of the drum driver 38 is slightly smaller than the diameter of the inner cylinder 48 of the first and second drums 34, 36. When the drum driver is inserted into both drums 34, 36, as described in more detail below, the drum driver 38 is located within, and is coaxially aligned with the two drums 34, 36. The key 78 selectively couples the shoulders 60, 62 of the drums 34, 36 depending on the direction of rotation of the tilt rod 28, as explained below. in more detail.

As shown in Figure 3, the torsion spring 40 includes two axially extending ends 80, 82 which, as explained in more detail below, extend through the openings 64 in the souls 50 of the drums 34, 36. respectively, which ties the first and second drums 34, 36 together and preloads them against the key 78 of the drum driver 38. As also shown in Figure 3B, the torsion spring turns 40 lie within the formed cavity between the outer cylinders 46, the larger diameter portions 58 of the inner cylinders 48 and the souls 50 of the drums 34, 36.

Figures 13-15 and 17-19 show the process of assembling the two drums 34, 36, the drum driver 38, and the spring 40. Figure 13 indicates that the first step is to insert the end 82 of the spring 40 through opening 64 (see Figure 6) in second drum 36. The next step (Figure 14) is to insert drum driver 38 into inner cylinder 48 of second drum 36, with one end of key 78 pushed inward (see Figure 15) until it tops the flange 56 of the second drum 36. Next, the first drum 34 is mounted by inserting the second end 80 of spring 40 through opening 64 in the first drum 34, and then bringing the two drums 34, 36 together. until their corresponding inner ends 72, 68 meet, and the ring 66 of the second drum 36 overlaps the inner ring 72 of the first drum 34 (see Figure 17).

The next step is to bend the ends 80, 82 of the spring 40 which protrude through the respective openings 64 of the drums 34, 36 to secure the ends 80, 82 over their respective drums 34, 36. A tool 84 (as shown in Figure 17) may be used for this purpose, or the ends may simply be bent using needle nose pliers, a flat head screwdriver, or other known means. The drums 34, 36 are now mounted with the torsion spring 40 and the drum drive 38 within the assembly. Spring 40 holds drums 34, 36 together (because the ends 80, 82 of spring 40 have been bent sideways so that they do not slide back out of drums 34, 36).

The next step (see Figure 18) is to preload the drums 34, 36 against the key 78 of the drum driver 38. This is accomplished by holding each drum 34, 36 and separating them just enough for one of the drums. 34, 36 move axially far enough to release the key 78 of the drum driver 38. The drum 34 is then rotated counterclockwise 360 degrees with respect to the drum 36, and the drums are brought back together again, and are then released. Both drums 34, 36 immediately rotate in opposite directions, forced by the tensioning force of the torsion spring 40, until the first shoulder 60 of the first drum 34 and the second shoulder 62 of the second drum 36 both impact the actuator key 78. 38. The two drums 34, 36 are now preloaded against the key 78 of the drum driver 38.

As indicated in Figure 19, any drum 34, 36 may be rotated about its common rotational geometry axis (which also corresponds to the rotational geometry axis of the drum driver 38). If the first drum 34 is turned clockwise (as seen from the vantage point of Figure 19) while keeping the second drum 36 stationary, the second shoulder 62 of the first drum 34 impacts the key 78 of the drum driver 38 causing the drum driver 38 rotates clockwise as well. This key 78 in turn impacts against the second shoulder 62 of the second drum 36 so that the second drum 36 is also rotated clockwise, and the entire assembly rotates as a unit unless and until something prevents such rotation. (which, as discussed below, is precisely what can happen when the limit stop 54 on drums 34, 36 hits one of the limit stops on housing 42).

On the other hand, if the first drum 34 is rotated counterclockwise, its second shoulder 62 is moving away from the key 78, so that the first drum 34 can rotate relative to the second drum 36. which can thus remain stationary. However, in order to rotate the first drum 34, the spring preload force 40 must be overcome.

The same situation is true for the second drum 36, provided that the vantage point is the opposite end to that of Figure 19. That is, as seen from the rear of Figure 19, the second drum 36 can be rotated clockwise. only if the entire assembly rotates with it, and it can be rotated counterclockwise while the first drum 34 remains stationary as long as the user exceeds the spring preload force 40. Throughout the remainder of this specification, we will refer to the position of drums 34, 36 where no external force is acting to overcome spring preload force 40 as the neutral position for tilt station 30. This is the position in which the first drum 34 has its second cam 62 against key 78 and second drum 36 has its second cam 62 against key 78.

Referring now to Figures 3, 9, and 10, housing 42 includes two side walls 86, 88, two end walls 90, 92, and a bottom wall 94. End walls 90, 92 define shaped bearings. 96, 98 respectively, which provide a rotational support of the drum assembly supporting the ends of the drum driver 38. Arms 100, 102 extend at an angle of approximately 45 degrees from the planes defined by the end walls 90. 92, and these extend above and above the centerline of the tilt rod 28 as it passes through the drum driver 38, thereby preventing the drum assembly from rising out of the housing 42. The ends of the inner cylinders 48 of the drums 34, 36 are larger in diameter than the bearings 96, 98, and the distance between the ends of the inner rollers 48 is only slightly less than the distance between the bearings 96, 98, so that the inner rollers 48 will topone of the bearings 96, 98 if the drums 34, 36 are moved in an axial direction, thereby preventing the drums 34, 36 from moving too much in the axial direction.

On either side of each bearing 96, 98 there are two shoulders 110, 112 (best seen in Figure 3, against end wall 92, but also present on opposite end wall 90), with upper shoulder 110 being less lowered (at a higher elevation) than the lower shoulder 112. These shoulders 110, 112 act as limit stops by cooperating with limit stop 54 on their respective drums 34, 36 to limit the degree to which drums 34 .36 are free to rotate in any direction.

This limit stop feature will be explained below in more detail.

The lower wall 94 of the housing 42 defines two elongated torn openings 104, 106, and a shorter rectangular opening 108. The elongated torn openings 104, 106 are for the front and rear tilt cables to pass through the housing 42 and through corresponding openings (not shown) in the upper rail 12. The shortest rectangular opening 108 is for the lifting strings 20.

Referring to Figures 3 and 3B, a housing cover 44 fits over housing 42 to add dimensional integrity to housing 42 and prevent tilt cables 16 from tangling or falling out of drums 34, 36 in the event of a loose condition of the cables 16 (such as when someone physically picks up some of the louvers 14 from the louver 10).

Referring to Figures 1 and 3, once the drum assembly has been assembled and preloaded as described in Figures 13-19, it is dropped into the housing 42, with the ends of the drum driver 38 becoming rotationally supported by the bearings 96, 98 of housing 42. The tilt rod 28 is inserted through the hollow shaft 76 of the drum driver 38, and one end of the tilt rod 28 is connected to the cord drive tilt mechanism 26 as shown. Typically, two or more tilt stations 30 are mounted on the tilt rod 28, and the entire tilt drive assembly is installed within the upper rail 12 of the louver 10.

At some point or before or after installation of the tilt drive assembly over the top rail 12, the tilt cables 16 are secured to the drums 34, 36 according to the required racking to achieve the desired configuration. as explained below in more detail. To secure the tilt cables 16 to drums 34, 36, a flare (such as a knot or bead) is tied to the end of the tilt cable which is not to be secured, and this flare is inserted behind the desired torn opening 52 on the outer cylinder 46 of the desired drum 34, 36, with the remainder of the tilt cable 16 extending through that torn opening 52. The flare prevents the tilt cable 16 from loosening from the respective drum 34, 36 and thereby quickly grips and effectively the tilt cable 16 on its drum 34, 36. DOUBLE STEP SETTING

Figures 20-22 show the routing of tilt ropes for a typical double pitch louver configuration. In these three figures, and in all similar figures that follow, the routing of the tilt cables 16 and the position of the drums 34, 36 (specifically to show the relative location of the tethering points of the ends of the tilt cables 16 in the drums 34, 36) are shown relative to the corresponding position of the louver blades 14. For clarity, end views of the corresponding drums 34, 36 are included as part of these views to help show the location of the mooring point of each tilt cables 16 (tied into the torn openings 52 of drums 34, 36), or the location of the limit stop 54.

As previously explained, the mooring lines are generically designated as item 16, but are additionally identified by the following suffixes: - "a" is for the first set of tilt lines, those that support the upper (or top) 14t on each pair of top and bottom reeds 14t, 14b - "b" is for the second set of tilt ropes, those that support the bottom (or bottom) reed 14b on each pair 14t, 14b - "f is for the front tilt ropes, those on the side of the louver room - "r" is for the rear tilt ropes, those on the wall side (also referred to as the window side) of the louver - "x" is for a drawstring actuator which is typically attached to one of the tilt cables 16 Referring briefly to Figure 1, note that the tilt mechanism 26 is a worm gear drive mechanism, as taught in US Patent No. 6,561,252, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. The bead pulley is directly connected to a worm which drives a gear to which the tilt rod 28 is connected. As is well known in the art, in a worm gear mechanism, the worm is capable of driving the gear either clockwise or counterclockwise. However, the gear is unable to drive back the endless; The mechanism locks as the gear starts to drive back the worm. Although an endless gear is a very convenient and timely way to ensure that the tilt mechanism 26 cannot be driven backwards, other means (such as racks, one-way brakes, or clutches, all with adequate release mechanisms). ) may be employed in alternative embodiments to ensure the same condition.

The ability to drive the tilt rod 28 in any direction (clockwise or counterclockwise) from the inlet end (using lanyard tilt 26), but not to be able to drive back the tilt rod 28 from the end Output is a useful feature for the operation of the tilt station 30, as discussed below in more detail.

Referring to Figure 20, drums 34, 36 are in their neutral position (again, this neutral position refers to the position of drums 34, 36 where no external force is acting to overcome spring preload force). 40, and so when the first drum 34 has its second shoulder 62 against the key 78, and the second drum 36 has its second shoulder 62 against the key 78). The vanes 14 are opened in a double pitch configuration, where each pair of adjacent vanes 14t, 14b is stacked against each other, and there is a large void between this pair of adjacent vanes 14t, 14b and the next pair of adjacent vanes. 14t, 14b. This large void space is approximately twice the standard distance, or twice the pitch (dp) between the vanes of a conventional blind that has evenly spaced vanes.

The upper reed 14t of each upper and lower pair of reeds 14t, 14b is supported by a transverse strand 16t extending between the first set of front and rear tilt cables 16af, 16ar. (For convenience we will sometimes refer to tilt ropes when we mean the entire associated ladder ribbon that includes both the front and rear tilt ropes and the cross strands connecting these front and rear tilt ropes, and this use will be obvious within context in which it is used). The first rear tilt cable 16ar is routed over the first drum 34 of the tilt station 30 and is secured in one of the torn openings 52ar in the first drum 34 (note that the generic designation of the torn opening is 52, as shown, for example, Figure 5 but this designation has been modified with the suffix air which corresponds to the suffix of the tilt cable 16ar which is attached to this specific torn opening (this nomenclature will be followed throughout this specification). The first front tilt cable 16af is routed over the second drum 36 and is secured in the torn opening 52af over the second drum 36. The ring 66 of the second drum 36 prevents the tilt cables from falling between the two drums 34, 36 .

Similarly, the lower reed 14b of each pair of reeds 14t, 14b is supported by the transverse strands 16t extending between the second set of front and rear tilt cables 16bf, 16br. The rear tilt cable 16br of the second set is routed over the second drum 36 and is secured to the torn opening 52br in the second drum 36. Finally, the front tilt cable 16bf of the second set of tilt cables is routed over the first drum 34 and is secured in the torn opening 53bf over that first drum 34.

All tilt cables 16 are tied to drums 34, 36 so that when the drums are in their "neutral" position as shown in Figure 20, the vanes 14 are arranged in the double pitch configuration where adjacent upper and lower vane pairs 14t, 14b are stacked against each other, creating a large double pitch space "dp" between the vane pair sets 14t, 14b.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 21, one of the tilt strands 24 is pulled to cause the tilt rod 28 to rotate clockwise (as seen from the vantage point of Figures 1 and 21). Clockwise rotation of tilt rod 28 causes clockwise rotation of drum driver 38 (and key 78) in tilt station 30. As key 78 rotates, it pushes against first shoulder 60 (see Figure 5) of first drum 34, thereby causing the first drum 34 to rotate clockwise as well. Second drum 36 also wants to accompany key 78, as torsion spring 40 is preloading second drum 36 against key 78. However, immediately after second drum 36 begins to rotate clockwise, its stop limit 54 impacts the upper cam limit stop 110 (see Figure 3) on its end of housing 42, stopping any further clockwise rotation of the second drum 36, despite the strain of torsion spring 40. Of course, as the second drum 36 has stopped rotating, the user must now exert sufficient force to overcome the tensioning force of the torsion spring to continue rotating the tilt rod 28, drum driver 38, and first drum 34. As the user continues rotating the tilt rod 28 clockwise, the first drum 34 continues to rotate until its limit stop 52 impacts the lower cam limit stop 112 on its respective end wall 90 of housing 42. At this point, the vanes are in the closed position, the room side down, as shown in Figure 21. The change in drum positions 34, 36 can be seen more clearly by comparing the position limit stop 54 on the first drum 34 shown in Figure 20 (in neutral position) with the end position of the stop 54 on the first drum 34 shown in Figure 21 indicating that the first drum 34 turned clockwise through almost a total of 180 degrees of travel.

The torn openings 52ar and 52bf in the first drum 34, which are connected with the first rear tilt cable 16ar and the second front tilt cable 16bf, also rotated the same distance of approximately 180 degrees of travel. As a result, the rear tilt cable 16ar of the upper vane 14t was pulled approximately equal to π X r (where r is the radius of the drum 34), and the front tilt cable 16bf of the lower vane 14b was extended the same. distance. The other two tilt cables 16af, 16br, which are connected to second drum 36, remain virtually immobile. As a result, the front edges (room side) of the upper vanes 14t do not move, while the rear edges (wall side) of these upper vanes 14t swing upward to a downward sloping room side orientation ( as seen in Figure 21). Similarly the rear edges (wall side) of the lower vanes 14b move up only a very short distance, while the front edges (room side) of these lower vanes 14b swing downwards to complete the downward sloping closed orientation of the side of the blind room as shown in Figure 21.

To summarize, in Figure 21, the second drum 36 does not spin (or rotates a very short distance of only a few degrees of travel before the limit stops prevent further rotation), and the first drum 34 rotates at clockwise (as seen from left Figure 21) so as to move the fully open double-pitched blind of Figure 20 to the closed room side blind below Figure 21. The very short rotation of the second drum 36 allows the edges adjacent pairs of vanes 14 overlap one another so that there is no visible light play when the shutter is closed.

Note that limit stops 110, 112 (see Figure 3) are referred to as upper limit stop 110 and lower limit stop 112 as this is as shown in the figures and this designation makes it easier to distinguish the two stops. 110, 112. However, the limit stops 110, 112 may both be at the same height relative to each other, so it may be more accurate to simply refer to them as a first stop 110 and a second stop 112.

Torsion spring 40 forces drums 34, 36 back to neutral position, forcing first drum 34 to rotate counterclockwise and forcing second drum 36 to rotate clockwise. However, there are mechanisms in place that prevent both of these rotations, as explained below. The second drum 36 cannot rotate further clockwise due to the interaction of its limit stop 54 with the limit stop 110 of housing 42. The first drum 34 cannot rotate counterclockwise because it is stopped by the tilt of bead 26. In order for the first drum 34 to rotate counterclockwise, it would need to push the drum driver 38 counterclockwise, as the key 78 of the drum driver 38 is in contact with the first shoulder 60 of the first drum 34. Rotation of the drum driver 38 would also require rotation of the tilt rod 28, as the coincident non-circular cross sections of the drum driver 38 and tilt rod 28 cause them to rotate together. However, in order for the tilt rod 28 to be counterclockwise driven by the drum 34, it would need to drive the tilt gear 26 (as previously indicated, this tilt gear 26 is described in Canadian Patent No. 2,206,932 "Anderson ", dated 4 December 1997 (12/04/1997), which is hereby incorporated by reference). However, as previously explained, the endless gear cannot be driven backwards, so any attempt by the tilt rod 28 to drive the tilt 26 causes the tilt mechanism 26 to lock. Therefore, the louvers 14 of the louver 10 remain in the position desired by the user unless and until the user drives them to a new position by pulling one of the tilt strands 24 at the inlet end of the tilt 26. To return the louver from this position To the neutral position in Figure 20, the user would pull the other tilt cord 24, driving the tilt mechanism, tilt rod 28, and drum driver 38 counterclockwise. This allows the mill 40 to bring the first drum 34 back to neutral position while the second drum 36 remains in the same position.

Figure 22 shows the same double-pitched louver as Figure 20 but with the tilt mechanism having moved the louver to the position in which the vanes are inclined closed with the room side up. To achieve this from the neutral position of Figure 20, the user pulls the other tilt strand 24 (see Figure 1) (not the one that was pulled to obtain the closed sloping position down the room side of Figure 21). This causes the counterclockwise rotation of the tilt rod 28 as well as the counterclockwise rotation of the drums 34, 36. However, the limit stop 54 on the first drum 34 almost immediately impacts the upper shoulder limit stop. 110 on its respective wall 90 of housing 42, bringing an additional rotation of the first drum 34 to a stop. Second drum 36 continues to rotate counterclockwise until eventually its limit stop 54 impacts lower lower limit stop 112 at its respective end 92 of housing 42, bringing this second drum 36 to a halt. The second drum 36 would have rotated counterclockwise approximately 180 degrees (as evidenced by comparing the positions of the limit stop 54 on the second drum 36 in Figures 20 and 22).

The first rear tilt cable 16ar and the second front tilt cable 16bf, which are attached to the first drum 34, remain substantially stationary, while the ends of the first front tilt and second rear tilt 16af and 16br rotate. counterclockwise with the second drum 36. The first forward tilt cable 16af winds over the second drum 36, pulling the room-side edges of the upper vanes 14t upward by a distance of approximately π X r.

At the same time, the second rear tilt cable 16br unwinds from the second drum 36, dropping the wall side edges of the lower vanes 14b by the same distance as K X r. The end result is the room-side sloping shutter upwards of Figure 22.

SELECTIVE TILT CONFIGURATION

Figures 23-25 show a routing of inclined cables 16 in a mechanism very similar to that described above to achieve an arrangement in which one part of the blind can be closed while another part remains open. Referring to Figure 23, there are few hardware differences between this configuration and the configuration shown in Figure 20. First, instead of having two sets of double-step ladder tapes, this roller blind has a standard single-step ladder tape with one rear tilt cable 16r, a front tilt cable 16f, and transverse strands 16t extending between the front and rear tilt cables 16f, 16r. Second, another tilt cable or actuator cord 16x is secured to the rear tilt cable 16r at node 32 or other securing means such as a cord securing clamp 32. Third, the first drum 34 does not have a limit stop 54 ( boundary stop 54 can simply be cut out of a first standard drum 34 to accommodate this configuration).

In this configuration, the rear tilt cable 16r winds counterclockwise around the second drum 36 and secures the second drum 36 to the torn opening 52r. Front tilt cable 16f winds clockwise around second drum 36 and secures second drum 36 to torn aperture 52f. The third tilt cable or actuator cord 16x winds clockwise around the first drum 34 and locks the first drum 34 into the torn opening 52x. The other torn opening 52 of the first drum 34 is not used to anchor a cord in this embodiment. In Figure 23, drums 34, 36 are shown in their neutral position, with all inclined vanes 14 open in a single pitch configuration, with all vanes 14 evenly spaced.

[0054] In Figure 24, one of the tilt strands has been pulled causing the tilt 26 to drive the tilt rod 28 counterclockwise, which also drives drum driver 38 and both drums 34, 36 on the anticlockwise. The second drum 36 is counter-clockwise driven by the key 78 on the drum driver 38, stopping when its limit stop 54 reaches the lower shoulder limit stop 112 on the wall 92. As the limit stop 54 on the first drum 34 has been removed, there is nothing to prevent spring 40 from triggering the first drum 34 counterclockwise along with the second drum 36. As the second drum 36 rotates counterclockwise, it raises the front cable 16f and lower the rear cable 16r. As the first drum rotates counterclockwise, it lowers the actuator cable 16x the same distance as the rear tilt cable 16r. Thus the entire shutter tilts closed with the room side up. When the tilt cord 24 is released, the endless gear on the tilt drive 26 locks the tilt rod 28 into position, which causes both drums 34, 36 to remain in the position they were when the tilt cord 24 has been released.

To pivot back to neutral and beyond, the other tilt strand 24 is pulled, causing the tilt rod 28 to rotate clockwise. Figure 25 shows the position of the louver when the tilt rod 28 has been turned clockwise beyond the neutral position of Figure 23. As the tilt rod 28 is clockwise driven by the tilt drive 26, it drives the drum drive 38 clockwise, and key 78 of drum driver 38 contacts a cam over first drum 34, driving first drum 34 clockwise. Spring 40 begins to cause second drum 36 to rotate clockwise along with first drum 34, but its limit stop 54 impacts upper shoulder limit stop 110 on wall 92 of housing 42 in neutral position, preventing any further clockwise rotation of the second drum 36. The first drum 34 continues to rotate clockwise, causing the actuator cable 16x to wrap over the first drum 34, which raises the actuator cord 16x. Since the 16x actuator cable is connected to the rear tilt cable 16r at point 32, it raises the rear tilt cable 16r at that point 32. All reeds 14 supported by cross strands 16t below point 32 are affected as the rear tilt cable 16r raises the edges of the wall side of those vanes 14. The result is that all vanes below the tie-down point 32 of the 16x actuator cable on the rear tilt cable 16r are closed with the room side down, and the swing of the vanes. 14 remains slanted open, as shown in Figure 25.

The location of the mooring point 32 relative to the rear tilt cable 16r determines the point at which "breakage" occurs between the vanes which are inclined closed and those which remain inclined open. If the 16x actuator cable were alternately tied to the front tilt cable 16f instead of the rear tilt cable 16r, then the louver portion below the tie down point 32 would close in the room-side up position instead of the room-side position. bass as shown here. It follows that by reversing the position of the drums 34, 36 within the housing 42, the action of the louver 10 can be reversed from the foregoing description. For example, going from Figure 23 to Figure 24, the vanes 14 would close with the room side up instead of the room side down shown.

APPEARANCE CONFIGURATION

Figures 26-28 show the routing of tilt ropes for a pleated appearance louver configuration. Referring to Figure 26, there are no hardware differences between this pleated appearance configuration and the double-pitch configuration of Figure 20. In both cases, the two tilt cable assemblies 16af, 16ar and 16bf, 16br are twice the pitch. standard. The only differences are in the routing of tilt cables 16.

[0058] In this arrangement, again, there are two sets of tilt ropes. The first front tilt cable 16af of the upper vanes 14t winds counterclockwise around the second drum 36 and secures the second drum 36 to the torn opening 52af. The first rear tilt cable 16ar of the upper vanes 14t winds clockwise around the first drum 34 and locks the first drum 34 into the torn opening 52ar. The second front tilt cable 16bf of the lower vanes 14b winds clockwise around the second drum 36 and secures second drum 36 to torn aperture 52bf. Finally, the second rear tilt cable 16br of the lower vanes 14b winds counterclockwise around the first drum 34, and engages the first drum 34 in the torn opening 52br.

As with the double pitch shutter shown in Figure 20, the pleated appearance configuration of Figure 26 also begins with the vanes 14 in a double pitch configuration when the drums 34, 36 are in the neutral position. Referring now to Figure 27, as the tilt drive 26 drives the tilt rod 28 clockwise, the key 78 contacts the first drum 34 clockwise, and the spring 40 forces the second drum 36 to rotate in the clockwise too. However, the limit stop 54 on the second drum 36 almost immediately impacts against the upper shoulder limit stop 110 at the end 92 of the housing 42, preventing any further clockwise rotation of the second drum 36 beyond the neutral position. The first drum 34 continues to rotate until its limit stop 54 impacts the lower shoulder limit stop 112 on the wall 90 of housing 42.

As the front (or room side) tilt cables 16af, 16bf of both top and bottom reeds 14t, 14b, respectively, are tied to the second drum 36, this second drum 36 rotates only a few degrees before if their limit stop prevents further clockwise rotation, the front (or room side) edges of these vanes 14t, 14b remain almost stationary. On the other hand, the rear tilt cables 16ar and 16br are tied to the first drum 34 which is rotating. When the first drum 34 rotates clockwise, the first rear tilt cable 16ar winds over the first drum 34, raising the rear edges (or wall side) of the upper vanes 14t to the position shown in Figure 27. At the same time At the same time, the rear tilt handle 16br of the lower vane 14b is unrolling from the first drum 34, dropping the rear edges (or wall side) of the lower vane 14b to the position shown in Figure 27, resulting in a closed-looking slanted shutter. pleated, with the upper vanes 14t sloping down the side of the room, and the lower vanes 14b sloping up the room side up.

Figure 28 shows the pleated-looking shutter of Figure 26 but sloping closed in the opposite direction to that of Figure 27. In this case the tilt rod 28 is rotated counterclockwise and only the second drum 36 rotates counterclockwise This time (the first drum 34 only starts to spin and is immediately stopped by its limit stop 54 by contacting the upper shoulder limit stop 110 on the wall 90 of housing 42). In this case, as the first and second rear tilt cables 16ar and 16 br are attached to the first drum 34, and the first drum 34 does not rotate, so the rear edges (wall side) of the upper and lower vanes 14t, 14b remain essentially stationary. At the same time, the first and second front tilt cables 16af and 16f rotate with the second drum 36, with the first front cable 16af coiling over the second drum 36 as drum 36 rotates counterclockwise, thereby raising the front (room side) edges of the upper vanes 14t. The second forward tilt cable 16bf of the lower vanes 14b unwinds from the second drum 36 as the second drum 36 rotates counterclockwise, and this drops the front (room side) edges of the lower vanes 14b. The result is a pleated-looking closed slant with the upper vane 14t inclined with the room side up, and the lower vane 14 b inclined with the room side down as shown in Figure 28.

It may be noted that in order to achieve closing of the vanes 14 when tilted in opposite directions, as is the case with the pleated appearance configuration described above, it may be advantageous to carve both front and rear edges of one of each pair. of vanes 14 to allow clearance for the cross staircase 16t. This notch may be in the lower vanes 14b only, or the upper vanes 14t only, or it could be in both upper and lower vanes 14t, 14b, or this could be only on one edge of each vane 14 (opposite edges).

DOUBLE SLOPE STEM DESIGN, PARALLEL DRUM

Referring now to Figure 29, the louver 120 is very similar to the louver 10 of Figure 1 except that instead of utilizing the tilting stations 30, the tilting function is performed using dual tilt rods 28 which functionally interconnect. parallel drum tilt stations 122 with indexing gear mechanism 124, as described in more detail below.

The indexing gear mechanism 124 is in turn connected to a tilt mechanism, such as the endless gear tilt 26, via a short tilt rod 28 '.

Referring briefly to Figures 30-33, the indexing gear mechanism 124 includes an indexing gear 126, a room side driven gear 128, a wall side driven gear 130, an indexing gear housing 132 , and a housing cover 134.

Referring to Figure 36, the indexing gear 126 is a generally cylindrical gear defining a left portion 136 and a right portion 138. The left portion 136 includes a toothed portion 140 extending in an arc of approximately 200 degrees, with the balance of the left portion 136 being a smooth, toothless portion 142. Similarly, the right portion 138 defines a smooth, toothless portion 144 which extends through the same arc of approximately 200 degrees corresponding to the portion 140. However, a solid shoulder 146 extends along the balance of the right portion 138. Indexing gear 126 also defines a non-cylindrical hollow shaft 148 sized to receive the similarly profiled tilt rod 28 '. The exterior of this axis 148 defines a cylindrical axis 150.

Referring now to Figure 35, the wall side driven gear 130 is a generally cylindrical element defining a left portion 152 and a right portion 154, and these portions 152, 154 are separated by a radially projecting flange. 155. Right cylindrical portion 154 defines a non-cylindrical hollow shaft 156 sized to receive similarly profiled tilt rod 28. Left portion 152 includes a first smooth portion 158 with a concave section 160 (see also Figure 31) precisely fabricated to match locking hub or shoulder 146 on indexing gear 126 to prevent movement of driven gear 130 during rest, as explained below in more detail. Left portion 152 also includes a toothed portion 162 which engages the toothed portion 140 of the indexing gear 126. Finally, a short shaft 164 projects to the left of the toothed portion 162. The room side driven gear 128 is identical. to the wall side driven gear 130.

Referring to Figure 34, housing 132 defines a main cavity 166 which accommodates index gear 126. A hollow aperture 168 (see also Figure 31) rotatably supports axis 150 of index gear 126, the which projects to the left beyond the toothed portion 140. Two smaller diameter cavities 172 on either side of the hollow opening 168 receive and rotationally support the left ends 164 of the driven gears 128, 130.

Referring to Figure 31, housing cover 134 includes a plate 174 defining a hollow aperture 176 which rotationally supports the right end of the axis 150 of the indexing gear 126. Plate 174 also defines two hollow cylindrical projections 178 sized. to accommodate and rotationally support the straight ends 154 of the driven gears 128,130.

To assemble the indexing gear mechanism 124, the indexing gear 126 and driven gears 128,130 are inserted into their respective cavities 166, 170 of housing 132 (see Figure 34) so that the left end of the shaft 150 of the indexing gear 126 extends through the opening 168 in the housing 132, and the shafts 164 of the driven gears 128, 130 are received within the recesses 172 in the housing 132. The housing cover 134 is then fitted over the housing 132 ( with projections 135 in the housing 132 mounting (fitted into openings 137 in the cover), such that the right end of the index gear shaft shaft 150 extends through the opening 176 in the housing cover 134, and the right end portions 154 of driven gears 128, 130 extend into hollow cylindrical projections 178 of housing cover 134. Drive gears 128, 130 are lines with the indexing gear 126 as shown in Figures 32 and 33, with the concave sections 160 of the driven gears 128, 130 nearly engaging the shoulder 146 of the indexing gear 126. We will refer to this position of the driven gears 128, 130 with respect to the indexing gear 126 (and the corresponding position of the tilt drums 184, 182 as described below) as the neutral position.

The indexing gear mechanism 124 operates using the principle of a Geneva indexing drive which converts a continuous rotational motion into an intermittent motion, providing repeatable indexing to the same position. In this case, as the indexing gear 126 rotates clockwise from the neutral position (as seen from the vantage point of Figures 31-33) the room side driven gear 128 rotates briefly counterclockwise until its concave section 160 coincides with the shoulder 146 of the indexing gear 126. The toothed portion 162 of the room side driven gear 128 then encounters the toothless portion 142 of the indexing gear 126. The indexing gear 126 can thus continue to rotate clockwise. while room-side driven gear 128 remains stationary, prevented from rotation by shoulder 146 of indexing gear 126 topping into concave section 160 of room-side driven gear 128.

However, as indexing gear 126 continues to rotate clockwise, wall-side driven gear 130 rotates counterclockwise and continues to rotate several times before its concave section 160 tops. on shoulder 146 of indexing gear 126, stopping further rotation.

If the indexing gear 126 rotates counterclockwise from the neutral position, the opposite situation occurs. Namely, the wall side driven gear 130 rotates clockwise very briefly before being prevented from further rotation by its concave section 160 topping on shoulder 146 of indexing gear 126. Room side driven gear 128 also rotates clockwise and continues to do so by several revolutions before its concave section 160 tops the shoulder 146 of the indexing gear 126, stopping an additional rotation. Of course, the tilt rods 28 extend into the hollow cylindrical projections 178 and are received within the hollow shafts 156 of the right portions 154 of the driven gears 128, 130 so that the tilt rods 28 rotate with their respective driven gears 128,130.

Referring now to Figures 37 and 38, each tilt station 122 includes a housing 180, a wall side tilt drum 182, and a room side tilt drum 184.

Figure 39 shows a wall side tilt drum 182 which is a cylindrical member defining the cylindrical shafts 185 projecting from both ends, each cylindrical shaft 185 defining an inner, non-cylindrical hollow shaft 186 sized to receive and engage the similarly profiled tilt rod 28. Wall-side tilt drum 182 also defines an outer cylindrical surface 188 which is connected to the inner cylindrical shaft 185 through webs 190. Two elongated apertures 192 are defined through the outer cylindrical surface. One of the openings 192 is located near one end of the cylinder 188, and the other near the other end, with the two openings 192 being approximately 180 degrees apart. Both openings 192 can be seen in Figure 39. Tilt cables 16 are secured to these openings as described in more detail below. Room side tilt drum 184 is identical to wall side tilt drum 182.

Figure 40 is a perspective view of housing 180 of tilt station 122 of Figures 37 and 38. Housing 180 includes two side walls 194, 196, two end walls 198, 200, and a bottom wall 202. End walls 198, 200 each define two U-shaped supports 204a, 204b, and 206a, 206b, respectively, which provide a rotational support for the axes 185 of drums 182, 184 as seen in Figure 37. Arms 208a, 208b and 210a, 210b extend at an angle of approximately 45 degrees from the planes defined by end walls 198, 200, and these project through and above the centerline of the inclining rods 28 which extend through hollow shafts 186 of drums 182, 184, thereby serving to prevent drums 182,184 from lifting out of housing 180.

Bottom wall 202 of housing 180 defines two longitudinally aligned torn openings 212, with a shorter rectangular opening 216 between the two torn openings 212. Torn openings 212 are for front and rear tilt cables to pass through housing 180 and through corresponding openings (not shown) in the upper rail 12. The rectangular opening 216 provides a passage for the lifting strings 20.

To mount the tilt mechanism shown in Figure 29, first the tilt stations 122 are assembled. Tilting cables 16 are prorated through the torn openings 212 on the bottom surface 202 of housing 180. The ends of the tilt cables 16 are secured to their respective drums 182, 184 to their respective torn openings 192. Routing and securing these cables Tilt 16 is made according to the explanation below to obtain the desired tilt setting.

The drums 182, 184 are installed on their respective U-shaped supports 204a, 204b, and 206a, 206b, respectively. The tilt rods 28 are inserted through the hollow shafts 186 of the tilt drums 182,184, and the ends of these tilt rods 28 are inserted into the hollow shafts 156 of the driven gears 130, 128 respectively. The driven gears 130, 128 would already have been mounted over the indexing gear mechanism 124 as previously described. A short tilt rod 28 'is used to connect the output of the bead tilt mechanism 26 to the hollow shaft 148 of the indexing gear 126. Note that the bead tilt mechanism 26 shown here is just one type of many tilt mechanisms. which can be used in this request. Although a lanyard slider 26 is shown, it is understood that the slant rod 28 'may be rotated by other means such as a rod slider or a motorized slider. indexing 124 is an integral part of the tilt mechanism 26, so no tilt rod 28 'is required, DOUBLE STEP SETTING

Figures 41-43 show the routing of tilt cables 16 for a double pitch louver configuration. As discussed above, in these three figures, and all similar figures that follow, the routing of the cables 16 and the position of the tilt drums 182, 184 (specifically to show the relative location of the tie-down points of the cable ends). 16 in the tilt drums 182, 184) are shown relative to the corresponding position of the louver blades 14 of the blind. 120 For clarity, a perspective end view of the corresponding indexing gear mechanism 124 is included as part of these views ( with housing 132 removed for clarity) to show the orientation of the indexing gear 126 and driven gears 128,130 that correspond to the orientation of the tilt drums 182,184 and reeds 14.

As explained above, tilt ropes are generally indicated as item 16, but are further identified by the following suffixes: - "a" is for the first set of tilt ropes, those that support the upper reeds (or 14t in each pair - "b" is for the second set of tilt ropes, those that support the lower (or bottom) reeds 14b in each pair - "f" is for the front tilt ropes, those in the room side of the louver - "r" is for the rear tilt cables, those on the wall side (also referred to as the window side) of the louver - "x" is for an actuator cord which is typically attached to one of the tilt cables 16 Referring to Figure 41, tilt drums 182, 184 are in their neutral position (as a reminder, this neutral position refers to the position of tilt drums 182, 184 which corresponds to the position of the gears). driven gears 128, 130 where they are aligned with the indexing gear 126 as shown in Figures 32 and 33, with the concave sections 160 of the driven gears 128, 130 nearly engaging the shoulder 146 of the indexing gear 126) and with the vanes open in a double-step configuration. The first room side tilt cable 16af is counterclockwise twisted around and is secured to the wall side drum 182 in the torn opening 192af. The first wall side tilt cable 16ar is clockwise routed over and is secured to the room side drum 184 in the torn opening 192ar. The second room-side tilt cable 16bf is routed counterclockwise over and is secured to the room-side drum 184 in the torn opening 192bf (not shown in Figure 41, but visible in Figure 42). Finally, the second wall side tilt cable 16br is clockwise routed over it and is attached to the wall side drum 182 and the torn opening 192br (not shown in Figure 41, but visible in Figure 43). In this routing and configuration of the incline cables 16, the vanes 14 are open inclined in a double pitch configuration as shown in Figures 41 and 29 when the drums and gears are in neutral position.

Referring to Figure 42 as the indexing gear 126 is rotated counterclockwise from the neutral position (pulling one of the two tilt strands 24 causing the tilt mechanism 26 to rotate the tilt rod 28 'clockwise). counterclockwise), the wall side driven gear 130 (and with it, its corresponding tilt drum 182, connected to the wall side driven gear 130 by the tilt rod 28) only begins to turn clockwise before its concave section 160 tops the shoulder 146 of the indexing gear 126 preventing any further rotation of the wall side driven gear 130. This condition is shown in Figure 42 where the lashing point 192af for room side tilt cable 16af of the upper vane 14t is shown to have rotated only a few degrees clockwise, creating the desired overlap between adjacent pairs of vane 14 (as above). discussed in relation to a previous embodiment 10). Thus, the first front and second rear tilt cable 16af, 16br attached to the wall side tilt drum 182 remain essentially stationary.

However, as the indexing gear 126 is rotated counterclockwise from the neutral position, the toothed portion 162 of the room side driven gear 128 engages the toothed portion 140 of the indexing gear 126 so that it is room side driven gear 128 (and its corresponding room side tilt drum 184) are clockwise driven and continue to rotate in a clockwise direction by several revolutions before its concave section 160 contacts gear shoulder 146 126 to prevent any further rotation. The first rear tilt cable 16ar fastened to the room side tilt drum 184 in the torn opening 192ar coils over the room side tilt drum 184, pulling up the wall side of the upper vanes 14t. At the same time, the second front tilt cable 16bf unwinds from the room side tilt drum 184, lowering the room side of the lower vanes 14b. The result is the closed sloping configuration, with the room side down of the vanes 14 as shown in Figure 42.

[0085] Figure 43 illustrates the position of the indexing gear 126, driven gears 128, 130, and tilt drums 182, 184 for the shutter vanes 14 in the closed inclined configuration, with the room side up. In this case, the indexing gear 126 is rotated clockwise from the neutral position shown in Figure 41. This causes the room side driven gear 128 to start to rotate counterclockwise, but its concave portion 160 readily tops. at shoulder 146 of indexing gear 126, locking the room-side driven gear 128 (and its corresponding room-side tilt drum 184) from any additional counterclockwise rotation. As a result, the first rear tilt cable and the second front tilt 16ar, 16bf, which are attached to the room side tilt drum 184, remain essentially stationary. However, the wall side driven gear 130 and its corresponding wall side tilt drum 182 rotate counterclockwise by several revolutions, lifting the first front tilt cable 16af as it coils over the tilt drum wall side 182, and lowering the second rear tilt cable 16br as it unwinds from the wall side tilt drum 182. The result is the closed inclination of the vanes 14 in the upward side room configuration shown in Figure 43. ALTERNATIVE CONFIGURATION

Figures 44-46 show an alternate routing of the tilt ropes 16 over the same parallel drum mechanism described above so as to be able to tilt one portion of the closed shutter while another portion remains open. Referring to Figure 44, the hardware differences between this louver and the double pitch configuration louver in Figure 41 are as follows: Instead of having two sets of double step ladder ribbons at each tilt station, this Roller shutter has a single standard step configuration ladder tape, which includes the front and rear cables and cross strands 16f, 16r, 16t. It also has a 16x actuator tilt cable attached to the rear tilt cable 16r on the knot or cord clamp 32. The routing of these tilt cables 16 is as described below.

Rear (wall-side) tilt cable 16r winds clockwise around wall-side tilt drum 182 and locks onto wall-side tilt drum 182 into torn opening 192r (not visible in Figure 44 but seen in Figure 46). Front (room side) tilt 16f winds counterclockwise around wall side tilt drum 182 and engages wall side tilt drum 182 in torn aperture 192f. Actuator tilt cable 16x wraps clockwise around room side tilt drum 184 and engages room side tilt drum 184 in torn opening 192x. In Figure 44, the mechanism (the indexing gear 126, driven gears 128, 130, and tilt drums 182, 184) is in their neutral position, and the vanes 14 are all angled open.

In Figure 45, the indexing gear 126 has been rotated counterclockwise through the tilt 26 and tilt rod 28 ', which rotates the driven gears 128, 130 (and their corresponding tilt drums 184, 182). ) in a clockwise direction. Wall side driven gear 130 stops rotating so that immediately according to its concave section 160 coincides with shoulder 146 of indexing gear 126, while room side driven gear 128 (and its tilt drum 184) continues to rotate for several revolutions. This means that the front and rear tilt cables 16f, 16r are not pulled up or released from their drum 182 by any substantial distance. However, the 16x actuator cable, which is attached to the room side tilt drum 184 by 192x, coils over the room side tilt drum 184. This lifts the 16x actuator cable, and this also lifts the cable tilt 16r at point 32 where the 16x actuator cord is attached to the rear tilt cable 16r, as shown in Figure 45. The end result is the tilt configuration of Figure 45, where the upper portion of the shutter remains open while the Lower section of the shutter is slanted closed with the room side down.

[0090] In Figure 46, the indexing gear 126 has been rotated clockwise from its neutral position (through tilt 26 and tilt rod 28 '), which rotates driven gears 128, 130 (and their tilt drums 184 , 182 correspondents) in a counterclockwise direction. Room-side driven gear 128 (and its corresponding room-side tilt drum 184) begins to rotate counterclockwise and is immediately prevented from further rotation as concave portion 160 of room-side driven gear 128 coincides with the shoulder 146 of the indexing gear 126. The actuator bead 16x which is attached to the room side tilt drum 184 thus remains essentially still.

Wall-driven gear 130 continues to rotate counterclockwise, causing wall-side tilt drum 182 to rotate counterclockwise as well. This causes the front tilt cable 16f to wrap over the wall side tilt drum 182 while the rear tilt cable 16r unwinds from the wall side tilt drum 182. However, as the drawstring acts 16x is attached to the rear tilt cable 16r at the lashing point 32, and since the actuator cord 16x remains substantially immobile, the rear tilt cable 16r falls only to those vanes 14 which are above the lashing point 32. Below the lashing point lashing 32, the 16x actuator cord holds the rear tilt cable 16r, preventing it from falling. Thus, the vanes 14 above the mooring point are slanted closed, with the room side up, while the swing of the vanes 14 tilts only partially closed, approximately at an angle of 45 degrees.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the location of the mooring point 32 relative to the rear tilt cable 16r affects the point at which "breakage" occurs between the reeds which are inclined closed and those which remain inclined. open. It will also be obvious that connecting the actuator tilt cable to the front tilt cable 16f rather than to the rear tilt cable as shown here would result in the closed slanting shutter below the breakpoint toward the room side upwards instead of the room-side configuration shown below in Figure 45.

APPEARANCE CONFIGURATION

Figures 47-49 show an alternate routing of tilt ropes for a pleated appearance louver configuration. Referring to Figure 47, there are no hardware differences between this pleated appearance configuration and the double-step configuration of Figure 41. The only differences are in the routing of tilt cables 16.

The front tilt handle 16af of the upper vanes 14t winds clockwise around and is secured to the room side tilt drum 184 at 196af. The rear tilt cable 16ar of the upper vanes 14t winds counterclockwise around and is secured to the wall side tilt drum 182 at 192ar. The front tilt cable 16bf of the lower vanes 14b winds counterclockwise around and is secured to the room side tilt drum 184 at point 192bf. Finally, the rear tilt cable 16br of the lower vanes 14b winds clockwise around and is secured to the wall side tilt drum 182 at point 192br.

As with the double pitch shutter shown in Figure 41, the pleated appearance configuration also begins with the vanes 14 in a double pitch configuration where the mechanisms are in the neutral position as shown in Figure 47. Referring now to Figure 48, as the tilt rod 28 'is turned clockwise, it drives the indexing gear 126 clockwise, and the corresponding driven drums 128, 130 (and their corresponding tilt drums 184, 182) are forced to rotate clockwise. counter-clockwise. Room-side driven gear 128 and its corresponding room-side tilt drum 184 are almost immediately prevented from further counterclockwise rotation as concave portion 160 of room-128 driven gear coincides with shoulder 146 therefore, the front tilt cables 16af, 16bf, which are attached to the room side drum 184, remain essentially stationary, and the vane fronts 14t, 14b remain essentially stationary.

Wall-driven gear 130 and its corresponding wall-side tilt drum 182 continue to rotate counterclockwise by several revolutions. This coils the first rear tilt cable 16ar over the wall side tilt drum 182 and unwinds the second rear tilt cable 16br, thus causing the rear side of the upper vanes to be raised and the rear side of the lower vanes to be raised. lowered thereby resulting in the pleated appearance of Figure 48, with the upper vanes 14t inclined with the room side down, and the lower vanes 14b inclined with the room side up.

[0097] Figure 49 shows the pleated-looking shutter of Figure 48 but sloping closed in the opposite direction. In this case the tilt rod 28 'was turned counterclockwise from the neutral position by turning the indexing gear 126 counterclockwise and driving the driven gears 182, 184 clockwise. Since wall side driven gear 130 readily stops because its concave section 160 coincides with shoulder 146 of indexing gear 126, only room side driven gear 128 and its corresponding room side tilt drum 184 continue to rotate clockwise. In this case, as the first and second rear tilt cables 16ar and 16br are secured to the wall-side tilt drum 182, and since the wall-side tilt drum 182 does not rotate, then the rear edges (on the wall side) upper and lower vanes 14t, 14b remain essentially stationary. At the same time, the front tilt cable 16af of the upper vane 14t winds over the room-side tilt drum 184 and the front tilt cable 16bf of the lower vane 14b unwinds from the room-side tilt drum 184 thereby raising the front edge of the upper vanes 14t and lowering the front edge of the lower vanes 14b, creating the pleated appearance shown in Figure 49, with the upper vanes in the room side up position and the lower vanes in the side position. from the room down.

Although various embodiments have been shown and described, it is understood that it is not practical to describe all possible variations and combinations that could be made within the scope of the present invention. It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that modifications may be made to the above described embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention as claimed.

Claims (15)

Tilting mechanism (30,122) for tilting a cover for architectural openings comprising: a tilt rod (28,28 ') having a first rotational geometry axis; first and second drums (34,36,182,184) rotationally driven by the tilt rod (28,28 '); first and second tilt cables (16af, 16ar, 16bf, 16br, 16x), wherein the first tilt cable is connected to the first driven drum (34,182), and the second tilt cable is connected to the second driven drum (36,184) , so that the first and second tilt ropes (16af, 16ar, 16bf, 16br, 16x) are raised and lowered with the rotation of their respective driven drums; and means (54,110,112,146,160) for stopping rotation of the second drum (36,184) while driving the first drum (34,182); characterized by the fact that it further comprises: a driver (38,126) mounted for rotation in a first and a second direction with the tilt rod (28,28 '), wherein the driver (38,126) drives the first and second driven drums ( 34,36,182,184); and means (54,110,112,146,160) for stopping rotation of the first drum (34,182) while driving the second drum (36,184). Tilting mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that the driver is a drum driver (38) mounted for rotation around the first axis of rotation and includes first and second drive surfaces (78); wherein the first and second driven drums (34,36) are mounted for rotation about the first geometry axis; wherein rotating the tilt rod (28) and drum driver (38) in a first direction causes the first drive surface of the drum driver (38) to drive the first driven drum (34), and rotation of the drum drive (38) in the opposite direction causes the second drum drive driving surface (38) to drive the second driven drum (36); and further comprises a spring (40) connected to both the first and second driven drums (34,36) and forcing the first and second driven drums (34,36) into contact with the first and second drive surfaces (78), respectively. Tilt mechanism according to Claim 1 or 2, characterized in that one of the first and second tilt cables is an actuator cable (16x) and further comprises a third tilt cable which is part of a tape. ladder, where the actuator cable is attached to the third tilt cable. Tilting mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it further comprises: a housing (42) supporting the first and second driven drums (34,36) for rotation, the housing (42) defining at least one housing limit stop (110,112), and at least one of the first and second driven drums (34,36) defining a drum limit stop (54) which cooperates with the housing limit stop (110,112). ) to stop the rotation of the driven drum in at least one direction while allowing the other of the driven drums to continue to rotate. Tilting mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the driver is a drive gear (126) mounted for rotation around the first geometry axis and further comprises first and second axes. driven gears (128,130) mounted for rotation with first and second driven drums (182,184), respectively, the first driven gear (128) and first driven drum (182) mounted for rotation about a second geometry axis, parallel to the first geometry axis, and the second driven gear (130) and second driven drum (184) mounted for rotation about a third geometry axis, parallel to the first geometry axis. Tilting mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it comprises: an upper rail (12); a plurality of vanes (14) suspended from the upper rail (12), including a plurality of adjacent upper and lower vanes (14t, 16b); first and second ladder strips (16a, 16b) extending downwardly from the upper rail (12), each of the first and second ladder strips (16a, 16b) including a front tilt cord (16af, 16bf), a rear (16ar, 16br) tilt cord and a plurality of transverse (16t) cords extending between their respective front (16af, 16bf) and rear (16ar, 16br) tilt strings, wherein the transverse (16t) cords of the first ladder strip support the upper vanes 14t of each adjacent upper and lower pair of vanes and the transverse strands 16t of the second ladder ribbon support the lower vanes 14b of each pair of upper and lower adjacent vanes, each of the tilt strands having a first end, wherein the front (16af, 16bf) and rear (16ar, 16br) tilt strands of the first and second ladder strips (16a, 16b) include first and second tilt ropes; wherein the rotation of the tilt rod (28) raises and lowers the front (16af, 16bf) and rear (16ar, 16br) tilt strands of the first and second ladder strips (16a, 16b) to move the vanes (14) from a first position where the upper and lower adjacent vanes (14t, 16b) of each pair are stacked against each other in a double pitch open position to a second position where the lower and upper vanes (14t) 16b) are in an inclined closed position. Tilting mechanism according to claim 6, characterized in that the second position comprises the joined upper and lower vanes (14t, 14b) inclined in a first direction selected from the up and side room side group from the room down. Tilting mechanism according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the second position comprises the upper inclined vanes (14t) in a first direction selected from the room side up and room side to lower and the lower vanes 14b inclined in a second direction opposite the first direction to form a pleated appearance. Tilting mechanism according to claim 7, characterized in that the rotation of the inclination rod (28) to raise and lower the inclination strings also moves the vanes to a third position in which the upper and lower vanes are joined together. (14t, 14b) are closed slants in a second direction that is opposite the first direction. Tilting mechanism according to any one of claims 6 to 9, characterized in that the front tilt rope (16af) of the first ladder strip (16a) is the first tilt rope and the rear tilt rope (16a). 16ar) of the first ladder tape (16a) is the second tilt cable. Tilting mechanism according to claim 10, characterized in that the front tilt rope (16af) of the second ladder strip (16b) is secured to one of the first and second rotating drums (34,36,182,184) and the rear tilt strand (16ar) of the second ladder strip (16b) is secured to the other of the first and second rotating drums (34,36,182,184). 12. Method for selectively tilting the louvers of a louver characterized by the fact that it comprises the steps of; suspending a plurality of vanes (14) from an upper rail (12) by first and second ladder strips (16a, 16b), vanes (14) including a plurality of adjacent upper and lower vanes (14t) 14b) each of the ladder straps including a front tilt strand (16af, 16bf), a rear tilt strand (16ar, 16br), and a plurality of transverse strands (16t) extending between respective incline strands front and rear, wherein the transverse strands of the first stair strip support the upper vanes 14t and the transverse strands of the second stair strip support the lower vanes 14b of the adjacent upper and lower pair of vanes, and each one of the tilt strands has a first end; securing the first ends of the front and rear tilt strands of the first and second ladder strips to a tilt mechanism (30,126) as defined in any one of claims 1 to 5; and rotating a tilt rod (28) of the tilt mechanism (30,126) to drive the tilt mechanism rotary drums to move the vanes (14) from a first position where the adjacent upper and lower vanes in each pair are stacked one by one. against each other in a double pitch open position to a second position in which the vanes are inclined closed. Method according to claim 12, characterized in that the second position includes the upper and lower vanes of each pair inclined in a first direction selected from the room side up and room side down group . A method according to claim 12 or 13, further comprising the step of rotating the tilt rod (28) to drive the drums to move the vanes to a third position wherein the upper and lower vanes of each pair are inclined closed in a second direction opposite to the first direction. Method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, characterized in that the second position includes the upper vanes of each pair inclined in a first direction selected from the room side up and room side group downward and the bottom vanes of each pair inclined in a second direction opposite the first direction to form a pleated appearance.