US1468832A - Means for operating window shades - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 25,1923. I 1,468,832

W- R- PARSONS v MEANS FOR OPERATING WINDOW SHADES Filed Oct. 9, 1920 Patented Sept. 25, 1923.

- raiser NTi EEC.

WINSLOW R. reasons, or SAN nrneo, CALIFORNIA."

MEANS FOR OPERATING WINDOVJ SHADES.

:Application filed Gctober Q, 1920. Serial No. 415,783.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WINsLow R. PARSONS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of San Diego, in the county of San Diego and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means for 'Gperating l Vindow Shades, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

This invention relates'to improvements in means for operating window shades wound upon and suspended from the top of a window by a spring-actuated roller, heretofore provided with a'ratchet' and pawl adapted for detachablysecuring the shade in any of its adjusted positions, and which requires that the shade or cord suspended therefrom shall be constantly held andmanipulated by'hand until the desired adjustment is made and the pawl is locked to the ratchet.

The skill required for adjusting and securing such window shades in their adjusted position is beyond the skill of a child, and with all the skill that a grown-up may have from long practice, it not infrequently occurs that, after the exercise of great patience, in the effort to secure the shade in its adjusted position, it will slip from the hand of the operator and very rapidly wind, for its full length. upon the roller.

Regardless of the means for raising-or lowering a window shade, every such shade which, at one end, is free to swing from its point of suspension, is liable to be blown away from the sash by a sudden or prolonged gust of wind to a position beyond the reachof a grown-up person, and so gyrated and twisted and torn as to unfit it, as frequently occurs, for further use. My invention is therefore directed to a remedy for these several objectionable features accruing to the window shades, above re ferred to. i

The object of my invention broadly stated, is to provide a means for operating window shades that even quite a young child is able to adjust and secure them in their adjusted position.

A further object of my invention is a means by which it is both possible and practicable to suspend a window shade froma spring-actuated roller by means operating to maintain the shade under a-tension con- "stantly maintaining the exposed portion of the shade in a smoothed-out condition and thereof and continuously in perfect.alinement with thespring-actuated roller upon which it iswound.

A further object of my invention is'to avoid any necessity for the presence or use of a ratchet and pawl for a shade roller and to have the free end of the shadeso con.- nected with thetopand bottom bars of the windowframe with but a slight change in the bottom bar and devices which are not only very'simple, cheap and convenient of operation by a child for adjusting and seeuring the shade in its adjusted positiomand in the absence ofany possibility of the shade being blown either outwardly orv inwardly beyond said frame, or of its being distorted or injured by wind of less force than is necessary to burst the shade at a point midway between the ends of the exposed portion thereof.

With these ends in view, my invention finds its embodiment in certain features of novelty in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts by which the said objects are attained, all as hereinafter fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings and morepartioularly pointed out in the claims. 7

In said drawings, 7

Fig. '1 is a perspective view of a window shade in which my invention finds its embodiment in its operative position with the roller therefor and the the top and bottom ends of the window frame.

Fig. 2 is a section longitudinally through the topand bottom bars of the frame, with the shade and sustaining devices shown in side elevation.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of a pulley secured to the top bar of the frame, with its hanger partly in'section and more particularly showing the location and arrangement of a friction brake for the pulley.

Fig. dis a perspective view of the shade roller, indicating the arrangement of the spring therein for automatically operating the roller and elevating the shade.

Similar characters of reference indicate the same parts in the several figures of the drawings. l

The window frame for the sash thereof comprises the usual top bar 5, bottom bar or sill 6, and side bars 77, to the side bars of which are secured, in the usual manner, the usual bracket bearing 8 at opposite ends particularly throughout the adjustment for the pintle 9 of the roller, which, as usual,

contains a coiled spring 10 connected at its outer end to the pintle and secured at its opposite end to the roller.

In other words, the roller for the shade may be and preferably is of the well known Hartshorn construction, with the ratchet and pawl removed therefrom, and in order that the roller may continuously exert such a force as is necessary to wind the shade for its full length thereon.

Adjacent the underside and centrally of the length of the top bar of the window frame, is a pulley wheel 11 journaled by means of its shaft 12- in a bracket 18 secured tothe top bar by screws or tacks 14.

Interposed between one and maybe both sides of the bracket and the pulley, is a friction brake 15 for the end of the pulley opposed thereto, which may be of felt, fiber or other suitable material, secured in its operative position by any well known means,

. and which is adapted to produce sufficient friction to prevent the pulley from running on its bearings, from the force of the pull of the coiled spring for the roller.

Mounted upon and preferably confined in a recess 16 in the bottom bar 6 of the frame, is asm'aller pulley 17, of ordinary construc tion, concealed by a plate 18 provided with perforations for the passage therethrough of the cord 19, passing but once under and around pulley 17 but twice around the pulley 11, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 the free ends of which are secured to the bottom edge of a window shade 20, provided, as usual, with a stiffening stick 21. As shown in the drawings, a screw eye 22 is passed through the fabric of the shade into the stiffening stick and the ends of the cords are passed through and secured to this screw eye, but any suitable device for connecting the ends of the cord with the bottom edge of the shade may be used, preferably such means as will conceal the ends of the cord or knots therein, if there be any.

The total length of the cord for operating the shade should not be less than the distance between the supporting surfaces of the pulley 11 and that of the bottom bar of the window frame, to provide for lowering the edge of the free end of the shade to Contact with substantially the latter surface, and for the purposes of concealing the roller 17 within the bottom bar, the length of the cord is accordingly increased.

My invention, however, essentially finds its embodiment in the suspension of a window shade from a roller provided with a spring operating uninterruptedly to wind the shade upon a roller, and a cord secured at both of its ends to the end of the shade and passing thence over supports respectively secured to .the top and bottom crossbars of a window frame and preferably along the line of the longitudinal center ofwidth of the shade.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A device for the purpose described comprising in combination a window shade, a suspending roller there-for, av spring operating to wind the shade on said roller, a cord, and means freely supporting said cord from the top and bottom bars of a window frame both ends of which cord are located and secured adjacent to the free end of the shade.

2. A device for the purpose described comprising in combination a window shade,

a permanently located suspending roller herefor, a spring operating without interruption to wind the shade on said roller, a cord, and means for supporting said cord from the top and bottom bars of a window frame on a line parallel with the longitudinal center of the shade, the free ends of which cord are secured to and adjacent the free end ofsaid shade.

3. A device for the purpose described comprising in combination a window shade, a suspending roller therefor and imm va'ble bearings for said roller, a spring continuously operating to wind the shade on said roller, and pulleys for supporting said cord fromthe top and bottom bars of a window frame on a. vertical line parallel with the longitudinal center of the shade.

4. A device for the purpose described comprising in combination a. window shade, a suspending roller therefor, a spring continuously operating to wind the shade on said roller, a cord, pulleys for supporting said cord in a straight line from the top and bottom bars of a window frame and a yield ing friction brake opposed to one of said pulleys. 1 K

5. A. device for the purpose described comprising in combination a widow shade, a suspending roller therefor, a spring continuously operating to wind the shade on said roller, pulleys secured to the top and bottom bars of a window frame on a vertical straight line parallel with the longitudinal center of the shade and a. friction brake opposed to the toppulley.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and afliXed my seal, this 15th day of September, A. D. 1920.

WINSLOWV PARSONS. [1 s] lVitnesses JNo. G. ELLIOTT, H. SLACK,

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