GB2589129A

GB2589129A - Blackout curtain

Info

Publication number: GB2589129A
Application number: GB1917000.0A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Brooks Shiret; Campbell-Kealy Colette; Jackson Janet; Tyler Tatjana
Original assignee: Cleland Mciver Ltd
Current assignee: Cleland Mciver Ltd
Priority date: 2019-11-21
Filing date: 2019-11-21
Publication date: 2021-05-26
Anticipated expiration: 2039-11-21
Also published as: GB2589162B; GB202008935D0; GB201917000D0; GB2589129B; GB2589162A

Abstract

A blackout curtain comprises a curtain sheet and a row of pole apertures 2 disposed adjacent a top edge 6 of the curtain sheet. The curtain further comprises a cover flap 10, wherein a top edge 11 of the cover flap is secured to the top edge of the curtain sheet and the bottom edge 12 of the cover flap is unattached. The cover flap extends substantially the full width of the curtain sheet and hangs down behind the pole. The distance between the top and bottom edges of the cover flap is suitable for covering all the pole apertures. In use, the flap aims to block light entry at the top of the curtain and through the pole apertures. Also disclosed is a blackout curtain comprising a curtain sheet; a row of pole apertures disposed adjacent a top edge of the curtain sheet; and an attachment element 14 secured to a rear face 5 of the curtain sheet in line with the row of pole apertures to secure the curtain to a curtain pole mounting bracket. The attachment element may comprise a flexible strip. In use, the flexible strip aims to block light entry at the sides of the curtain.

Description

Cleland McIver Limited

BLACKOUT CURTAIN

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to blackout curtains.

BACKGROUND

Blackout curtains are made of flexible sheet material which is substantially impermeable to light. They have many possible uses. They may be hung on a wall over a window or door opening to prevent light from entering a room, e.g. to enable night shift workers to sleep during the day without disturbance by natural daylight. They may also be used to reduce heat loss from a room.

A popular way of hanging curtains is to suspend them on a curtain pole which is mounted on stand-off brackets fixed to the wall. The pole is threaded through a series of pole apertures extending along a top edge of the curtain. Normally one edge of the curtain is prevented from moving along the pole by arranging two pole apertures on opposite sides of a mounting bracket, usually the two end pole apertures adjacent to one edge of the curtain. -2 -

Such a mounting arrangement is generally unsuitable for blackout curtains, however. Since the curtain apertures are necessarily larger than the pole diameter, light can pass through gaps between the edges of the apertures and the pole. Furthermore, since conventional stand-off brackets space the curtain pole away from the wall there is often a large gap along the sides and top of the curtain through which light can pass.

A known blackout curtain addresses this problem by providing a sleeve along the top edge of the curtain to receive the curtain pole. A slit is formed in the front of the sleeve, which allows one end of the pole to protrude through. The end of the sleeve is slipped over the bracket to form a return at one edge of the curtain. Whilst this arrangement stops light from passing around the pole it has a number of significant drawbacks. The curtain is not easy to hang on the pole which has to be threaded through the sleeve, and the end of the sleeve must also be manipulated over the bracket. Furthermore, the sleeve does not run smoothly along the pole and bunches up when the curtain is opened, preventing the curtain from being fully drawn back. The end of the pole protruding from the curtain is unsightly, and the range of mounting brackets which can be used is limited since many brackets are too large and/or prevent the side return from hanging close to the wall.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

When viewed from one aspect the present invention proposes a -3 -blackout curtain: - a curtain sheet (1) having a front face (4), a rear face (5), opposite top and bottom edges (6, 7), and two side edges (8, 9); - a row of pole apertures (2) disposed adjacent to the top edge of the curtain sheet to receive a curtain pole (P); - a cover flap (10) having opposite top and bottom edges (11, 12) and being opposed to said rear face (5) of the curtain sheet; - wherein said top edge (11) of the cover flap is secured to the top edge (6) of the curtain sheet and the bottom edge (12) of the cover flap is unatttached; - wherein the cover flap (10) extends for substantially the full width of the curtain sheet between said side edges (8, 9); - wherein the distance between the top and bottom edges (11, 12) of the cover flap (10) is sufficient to cover all the pole apertures (2).

In one embodiment the distance X between the top and bottom edges (11, 12) of the cover flap is at least three times the distance Z from the top edge (6) of the curtain sheet to the bottom of the curtain apertures (2).

In a preferred embodiment the cover flap (10) includes a slit (13) extending from the bottom edge (12) of the cover flap transverse to said bottom edge.

When viewed from another aspect the invention provides a blackout curtain: - a curtain sheet (1) having a front face (4), a rear face (5), -4 -opposite top and bottom edges (6, 7), and two side edges (8, 9); - a row of pole apertures (2) disposed adjacent to the top edge of the curtain sheet to receive a curtain pole (P); - an attachment element (14) is secured to the rear face of the curtain sheet (1) in line with the row of pole apertures (2) to secure the curtain to a curtain pole mounting bracket (B).

In a preferred embodiment the attachment element (14) comprises a flexible strip which is fixed to the rear face of the curtain sheet at two spaced positions. The longitudinal dimension of the flexible strip extends substantially parallel to the two side edges (8, 9).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following description and the accompanying drawings referred to therein are included by way of non-limiting example in order to illustrate how the invention may be put into practice. In the drawings: Figure 1 is a general front view of a pair of blackout curtains hung on a curtain pole; Figure 2 is a rear view of an upper portion of the blackout curtain with the cover flap raised; Figure 3 is a rear view of an upper portion of the blackout -5 -curtain with the cover flap lowered; Figure 4 is a further general view of the blackout curtain hung on a curtain pole looking from the rear of the curtain; Figure 5 is a top view showing one end of the blackout curtain hung on a curtain pole over a window opening; Figure 6 is a general view of the end of the blackout curtain shown in Fig. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring firstly to Fig. 1, each blackout curtain L, R includes a curtain sheet 1 of a flexible sheet material, e.g. a woven textile fabric, which blocks light. Each curtain is shown partly-drawn and hung on a curtain pole P which is mounted on two stand-off brackets (Fig.s 5 and 6) which are attached to a wall W at opposite ends of the pole. For purposes of illustration the two ends of the pole P are shown separately, viewed from different angles. The curtain pole is inserted through pole apertures 2, which will normally be edged by circular eyelets of a suitable rigid material such as metal or plastic. The eyelets are larger than the pole P leaving gaps 3 between the eyelets and the pole. This is necessary to allow the curtain to hang neatly and slide easily along the pole. Each curtain can therefore be moved to one end of the -6 -pole in a concertina configuration or drawn out along the pole to a flatter configuration. Generally (but not necessarily) two curtains will be mounted on a single pole, but only one of the curtains is described in detail below.

Referring now to Fig. 2, the blackout curtain is shown with the curtain sheet 1 flattened out prior to being hung. The curtain sheet has a front face 4 (shown in Fig. 1), a rear face 5, a top 6, a bottom edge 7 (shown in Fig. 4), and two side edges 8 and 9. The pole apertures 2 are arranged in a row disposed adjacent to the top edge 6 to receive the curtain pole. A cover flap 10 is formed from similar blackout material to the curtain sheet 1, and is also flexible as suggested by the fact that it is shown in a wavy configuration in the drawing. The flap 10 has top and bottom edges 11 and 12, the top edge 11 being secured along the top edge 6 of the curtain sheet 1, e.g. by sewing, and the opposite bottom edge 12 remaining free and unattached. The cover flap 10 extends for substantially the full width of the curtain sheet between the side edges 8 and 9. In this embodiment the flap 10 is divided into two sections 10a and 10b by a slit 13 which extends from the bottom edge 12, running transverse to the bottom edge towards the top edge 11. The slit may join the top edge 11, thus dividing the flap into two separate sections 10a and 10b, but the slit may also end short of the top edge 11 such that the two sections 10a, 10b are joined together at the top. It will be noted that the slit 13 is positioned towards one end of the flap 10 so that the section 10a is considerably shorter than the section 10b. In the drawing the slit 13 is shown adjacent to the second pole -7 -aperture 2b, relative to an edge 8. However, the slit could be positioned adjacent to the first pole aperture 2a which is immediately adjacent to the edge 8, or part-way between the first and second pole apertures 2a and 2b.

The ends of the cover flap remain unattached to the curtain sheet 1 at the side edges 8 and 9. However, two fastening elements 20 and 21 are attached to the longer flap 10b and the adjacent edge 9 of the curtain, the purpose of which is explained below. The fastening elements could be complementary pads of hook-and-loop material, press studs, buttons and loops, etc. Turning now to Fig. 3, the cover flap 10 is fastened to the top edge 6 of the curtain sheet 1 and lies flat against the rear face 5 of the curtain sheet. It can be seen that the distance X between the top and bottom edges 11 and 12 of the cover flap is substantially less than the distance Y between the top and bottom edges 6 and 7 of the curtain sheet. The distance X is sufficient for the cover flap 10 to cover all the pole apertures 2. Preferably the distance X is at least twice the distance Z from the top edge 6 of the curtain sheet to the bottom edge of the curtain apertures 2, which is indicated in Fig. 2. Most preferably the distance X is at least three times the distance Z. Fig. 2 also shows an attachment element 14 secured to the rear face 5 of the curtain sheet 1 in line with the row of pole apertures 2. The attachment element 14 comprises a flexible strip, e.g. of the same material as the curtain sheet 1. The longitudinal -8 -dimension of the flexible strip extends substantially parallel to the two side edges 8 and 9 and the strip is considerably narrower than the distance between the first pole aperture 2a and the adjacent edge 8 of the curtain sheet. The strip is fixed to the rear face of the curtain sheet at two spaced positions, namely the upper and lower ends of the strip. The spaced fixings could, for example, be achieved by permanently sewing the ends of the strip to the curtain sheet. However, at least one of the fixings could be releasable, for example using a press stud, button and loop, or two pads of hook-and-loop material. The attachment element 14 is preferably disposed adjacent to a first of the pole apertures, 2a, which is immediately adjacent to side edge 8 of the curtain sheet. In the drawing the attachment element 14 is positioned between the first and second pole apertures 2a and 2b. Alternatively, the attachment element 14 may be positioned between the first pole aperture 2a and the adjacent side edge 8 of the curtain sheet.

When the blackout curtain is hung on a curtain pole as shown in Fig.s 1 and 4 the flap 10 is draped over curtain pole P and hangs down the rear face 5 behind the pole apertures 2, blocking light from passing through the apertures. The slit 13 allows the two sections 10a and 10b to hang on opposite sides of the curtain pole mounting bracket which is normally positioned between the first and second apertures, 2a and 2b (Fig. 2).

Since the flap 10 fills much of the space between the rear of the curtain and the wall on which the pole is mounted it also blocks light from passing between the top edge 6 and the wall. -9 -

Fig.s 5 and 6 show how the attachment element 14 is passed over the mounting bracket B when the curtain is hung on the pole P. In both drawings the cover flap 10 has been omitted for clarity. The attachment element is shown positioned between the first pole aperture 2a and the adjacent edges of the curtain sheet. The curtain pole P is mounted on two hook-like mounting brackets B which are fixed to a wall W adjacent to a window. Each attachment element 14 is passed over the respective mounting bracket B which causes the edge 8 of the curtain sheet 1 to curve round to meet the wall W. This blocks light which would otherwise pass between the edge 8 and the wall W. With the arrangement described, as well as being aesthetically pleasing the blackout curtain also reduces heat loss between the top and sides of each curtain and the wall, increasing the energy efficiency of the building.

In the common situation where two curtains are hung on the pole they are opposite-handed with the slits and attachment elements on the opposite sides of the two curtains, corresponding to the positions of two mounting brackets. The fastening elements 20 and 21 allow the cover flaps 10b at the meeting edges of the two curtains to be fastened to the rear edges 9 of the respective curtain sheets. This ensures that the cover flaps hang neatly behind the curtains when they are drawn back to the ends of the pole, and also prevents the flaps from protruding in front of the curtains when they are closed.

-10 -Whilst the above description places emphasis on the areas which are believed to be new and addresses specific problems which have been identified, it is intended that the features disclosed herein may be used in any combination which is capable of providing a new and useful advance in the art.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A blackout curtain: - a curtain sheet (1) having a front face (4), a rear face (5), opposite top and bottom edges (6, 7), and two side edges (8, 9); - a row of pole apertures (2) disposed adjacent to the top edge of the curtain sheet to receive a curtain pole (P); - a cover flap (10) having opposite top and bottom edges (11, 12) and being opposed to said rear face (5) of the curtain sheet; - wherein said top edge (11) of the cover flap is secured to the top edge (6) of the curtain sheet and the bottom edge (12) of the cover flap is unatttached; - wherein the cover flap (10) extends for substantially the full width of the curtain sheet between said side edges (8, 9); - wherein the distance between the top and bottom edges (11, 12) of the cover flap (10) is sufficient to cover all the pole apertures (2).
2. A blackout curtain according to claim 1 wherein the distance X between the top and bottom edges (11, 12) of the cover flap is substantially less than the distance Y between the top and bottom edges (6, 7) of the curtain sheet.
3. A blackout curtain according to claim 2 wherein the distance X between the top and bottom edges (11, 12) of the cover flap is at least twice the distance Z from the top edge (6) of the curtain sheet to the bottom of the curtain apertures (2).
-12 - 4. A blackout curtain according to claim 2 wherein the distance X between the top and bottom edges (11, 12) of the cover flap is at least three times the distance Z from the top edge (6) of the curtain sheet to the bottom of the curtain apertures (2).
5. A blackout curtain according to any preceding claim wherein the cover flap (10) includes a slit (13) extending from the bottom edge (12) of the cover flap transverse to said bottom edge.
6. A blackout curtain according to claim 5 wherein the slit (13) is positioned between first and second pole apertures (2a, 2b).
7. A blackout curtain according to claim 6 wherein the first and second pole apertures (2a, 2b) are located at one end of the row of pole apertures immediately adjacent to one of said side edges (8) of the curtain sheet.
8. A blackout curtain according to any preceding claim which includes fastening elements (20, 21) for releasably connecting the cover flap (10) to an adjacent side edge (9) of the curtain sheet.
9. A blackout curtain according to any preceding claim wherein an attachment element (14) is secured to the rear face of the curtain sheet (1) in line with the row of pole apertures (2) to -13 -secure the curtain to a curtain pole mounting bracket (B).
10. A blackout curtain according to claim 9 wherein the attachment element (14) comprises a flexible strip which is fixed to the rear face of the curtain sheet at two spaced positions.
11. A blackout curtain according to claim 10 wherein the flexible strip is permanently fixed to the rear face of the curtain sheet at two spaced positions.
12. A blackout curtain according to claim 10 wherein the flexible strip is releasably fixed to the rear face of the curtain sheet at one or both of said spaced positions.
13. A blackout curtain according to any of claims 10 to 12 wherein the longitudinal dimension of the flexible strip extends substantially parallel to the two side edges (8, 9).
14. A blackout curtain according to any of claims 9 to 13 wherein the attachment element (14) is disposed adjacent to a first of said pole apertures (2a) which is immediately adjacent to one of the side edges (8) of the curtain sheet.
15. A blackout curtain: - a curtain sheet (1) having a front face (4), a rear face (5), opposite top and bottom edges (6, 7), and two side edges (8, 9); - a row of pole apertures (2) disposed adjacent to the top edge of the curtain sheet to receive a curtain pole (P); -14 - -an attachment element (14) is secured to the rear face of the curtain sheet (1) in line with the row of pole apertures (2) to secure the curtain to a curtain pole mounting bracket (B).
16. A blackout curtain according to claim 15 wherein the attachment element (14) comprises a flexible strip which is fixed to the rear face of the curtain sheet at two spaced positions.
17. A blackout curtain according to claim 16 wherein the flexible strip is permanently fixed to the rear face of the curtain sheet at two spaced positions.
18. A blackout curtain according to claim 16 wherein the flexible strip is releasably fixed to the rear face of the curtain sheet at one or both of said spaced positions.
19. A blackout curtain according to any of claims 16 to 18 wherein the longitudinal dimension of the flexible strip extends substantially parallel to the two side edges (8, 9).
20. A blackout curtain according to any of claims 15 to 19 wherein the attachment element (14) is disposed adjacent to a first of said pole apertures (2a) which is immediately adjacent to one of the side edges (8) of the curtain sheet.