EP0111927A1

EP0111927A1 - Drapery

Info

Publication number: EP0111927A1
Application number: EP83112838A
Authority: EP
Inventors: William Alan Becker; Richard A. Marlow; William I. Schlags
Original assignee: EVERLON Inc
Current assignee: EVERLON Inc
Priority date: 1982-12-20
Filing date: 1983-12-20
Publication date: 1984-06-27

Abstract

A drapery for suspending from a curtain rod (18) comprises a plurality of parallel rigidized panels (12) of which adjacent panels are hingedly joined to each other along their adjacent edges (14). A means such as loops (16) for suspending said drapery from the curtain rod (18) is provided.

When the drapery is folded, the adjacent panels fold one upon the other, and when the drapery is extended, the adjacent panels form a continuous drapery.

Description

This invention relates to drapery, typically for windows, which is comprised of a plurality of panels, and may be hung on a curtain rod.
There are numerous types of curtains and drapery known in the art. One particular type of curtain is a continuous fabric type curtain which is joined to a curtain rod by hooks or slides. This particular type of curtain has several undesirable features. Principal among these is the fact that it is difficult to open the drape or curtain because the fabric does not have foldable pleats therein. Attempts to resolve this have included pleating or pinning of the curtain at the top of the fabric to facilitate opening of the curtain. Another drawback of this construction is that unless the entire fabric is made diaphanous, or "see through", such a curtain will not transmit light. If the curtain is made completely diaphanous, then it is possible for persons on the outside to look in. This may be undesirable.
Another type of drapery is known as "vertical blinds". These "blinds" consist of a plurality of parallel rigidized panels which are joined to each -other, typically at the tops and bottoms, by a plurality of chains which permit their opening and closing upon one another. The panels also slide upon a track at the top and/or bottom. One of the major drawbacks of this type of drapery is that the mechanismsrequired are fairly complicated and are prone to malfunction.
It is an object of this invention to provide a durable., relatively-inexpensive drapery which does not suffer from the disadvantages of known drapery, in particular it does not wrinkle, does not require pinning to make the drapery fall in a proper fashion, and is extremely flexible.
A further object of this invention is to provide a drapery which can be easily and inexpensively installed, and has a minimum of associated hardware and can be mounted to simple fittings well known in the art.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a drapery which does not require an elaborate mounting track, is relatively light in weight and does not require periodic pressing or pinning to create and maintain the pleats for folding.
It is still a further object of this invention to provide a drapery by which the same drape can be used to cover a wide and variable area depending upon how far the drapery is extended.
It is another object of this invention to provide a drapery which can be mounted on the well known plain curtain rod, is relatively inexpensive to manufacture, has a relatively wide variety of uses,-and can be used for full length or short length drapes.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a drapery which covers a wide area and can be opened from either end or from the middle and is extremely flexible as to the manner of mounting.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a drapery which can be easily removed and mounted.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a drapery of which a minor portion is diaphanous, thus permitting light to pass therethrough, and a major portion is impermeable to light to prevent persons from looking therethrough.
According to the invention a drapery having a plurality of parallel rigidized panels is characterized in that adjacent panels are hingedly joined to'each other along their adjacent edges and hanging means is provided for suspending said drapery from a curtain rod so that when the drapery is folded, adjacent panels fold one upon the other, and when the drapery is extended, adjacent panels for.m a continuous drapery.
A practical embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:-

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a drapery hanging on a curtain rod,
Fig. 2 is a top view of the drapery extended (solid lines) and folded (dotted lines),
Fig. 3 is a front view of the drapery,
Fig. 4 is a top view of a portion of the drapery showing two adjacent panels and
Fig. 5 is a side view of the drapery showing two adjacent.panels.

In the drawings a drapery 10 is provided comprising a plurality of parallel rigidized panels 12. Adjacent panels 12 are hingedly joined to one another along their adjacent edges 14. A means, e.g. loop 16, is provided for hanging said drapery 10 on a curtain rod 18. When the drapery 10 is folded, the adjacent panels 12 fold one upon the other (Fig. 4 - dotted lines.), and when the drapery 10 is extended, the adjacent panels 12 form a continuous drapery (Figs. 1 and 3).
As is shown more clearly in Figs. 4 and 5 the panels 12 are fabric.panels which are thick enough to.be considered "rigidized". By the term "rigidized" as used herein, it is meant that the panel 12 is sufficiently rigid to form a planar panel without substantial folds or creases therein to permit adjacent panels 12 to fold one upon the other when the drapery is folded (see Fig. 4 - dotted lines), and when the drapery is extended, the adjacent panels form a continuous drapery. This requires a certain density of fabric for all fabric panels 12. Alternatively, the panels form a continuous drapery. This requires a certain density of fabric for all fabric panels 12. Alternatively, the panels can be fabric covered planar cores wherein the core is made of a thin sheet metal or polymeric material. This latter type panel (not shown) is more expensive and less desirable than a completely fabric panel but is still within the scope of this invention.
As can be seen more clearly in Figs. 4 and 5 the drapery contains adjacent panels 12 hingedly joined to each other by a length of fabric attached along the length of the adjacent edges of the fabric panels or by a plurality of threads joining the adjacent fabric edges of adjacent panels. Such fabric or thread hinge is generally designated 20 herein. The present invention includes both types of hinges. Preferably, the fabrics or threads 20 which hingedly join adjacent panels are threads of the fabric which form the panels 12 and form a continuum therewith to provide for strength and continuity of design when the drapery is open. Optionally, a border trim at the top 22 and bottom 24 of the drapery 10 may be used to reinforce the joint between the panels 12.
In a preferred embodiment of this invention, the fabric or threads as the case may be form a diaphanous area. By the use of the term "diaphanous", it is meant that the area 20 joining the adjacent edges 14 of adjacent panels 12 is characterized by a texture. of a fineness such as to permit the passage of light therethrough. Such a diaphanous area 20 along the adjacent edges 14 of the panels permits, when the drapery is in its extended configuration, a certain amount of light to pass therethrough to light up, for example, the interior of a house. Preferably the panels do not transmit light and prevent those from the outside from looking in.
Generally, it is difficult to define quantatively the area 20 joining adjacent edges 44 of adjacent panels 12, so that the area 20.will permit folding of the panels one upon the other, however, for general guidance, when the panels and area 20 are made of fabric, it is preferred that area 20 be less than one-fourth the density of the panel. Such a low density can provide a diaphanous area.20 between the panels 12 for certain type fabrics, and permits the panels 12 to be folded one upon the other about such area 20.
As can be seen in Figs. 1, 3 and 5, the drapes 10 are hung on a curtain rod 18 by a loop 16 which is attached to the top centre of the panel 12. The attachment may be reinforced by having top trim 22 overlap loop 16.
Typically and preferably, the panels 12 are identical to each other and generally can be made of any length or width. Referring to _Fig. 2, with respect to the width of the panel 12, this is primarily determined by the distance the curtain rod 18 is away from the wall 26 to permit folding of the panels one upon the other to form a tight compact area, with the thread or fabric area 20 acting as a hinge.
As shown in Fig. l, aligning means 26 in the form of a'thread anchored to each panel is provided to facilitate spacing of the panels in the extended position so that they lie in a uniform parallel and aligned relationship.
The drapery of this invention can be manufactured by methods well known in the art for manufacturing fabrics, fabric type materials, curtains and drapery.

Claims

1. A drapery having a plurality of parallel rigidized panels (12), characterized in that adjacent panels (12) are hingedly joined to each other along their adjacent edges (14) and hanging means (16) is provided for suspending said drapery from a curtain rod (18) so that when the drapery is folded, adjacent panels fold one upon the other, and when the drapery is extended, adjacent panels form a continuous drapery.

2. A drapery according to claim 1, characterized in that adjacent panels (12) are of fabric and are hingedly joined to each other by a length of the same hinge fabric (20) extending along the length of adjacent edges (14) of the panels.

3. A drapery according to claim 2, characterized in that the hinge fabric is diaphanous.

4. A drapery according to claim 2, characterized in that the hinge fabric density is less than one-fourth the density of the panel.

5. A drapery according to claim 1, characterized in that the panels are hingedly joined to.one another by a plurality of threads joining the adjacent fabric edges (14) of adjacent panels.

6. A drapery according to claim 5, characterized in that the threads (20) joining the adjacent fabric edges are the same threads as are used in the fabric panel and form a continuum therewith.

7. A drapery according to claim 1, characterized in that the means for hanging the panels comprises a loop (16) at the.top and centre of each panel.

8. A drapery according to claim 1, characterized in that aligning means (26) connects adjacent panels to facilitate spacing of the panels in the extended curtain.