US2559072A - Drapery support - Google Patents

Description

July 3, 1951 c. F. HASSELWANDER DRAPERY SUPPORT 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed NOV. 13, 1948 I I I mm H I mW H H WW I H WI I I I n n w mfi n lmwm hfl l nn u mfiw INVENTOR. OLAUIDE 1-. HASSELWANDER nfinlniililllt July 3, 1951 c. F. HASSELWANDER DRAPERY SUPPORT 2 Sheets-Sheet, 2

Filed Nov. 13, 1948 INVEN TOR. CLAUDE E HASSELWANDER ATTORNEY Patented July 3, 19I

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE? DRAPERY SUPPORT Claude F. Hasselwander, Rochester, N. Y., as-

signor to Taylorvshantz, Inc., Rochester, N. Y-., a corporation of New York Application November 13, 1948, Serial No. 59,886

3 Claims. 1-.

The present invention relates to supports or hangers for curtains or draperies.

For decorative effect, a drapery is hung in plaits or folds. The drapery may be gathered into plaitsor folds after it is hung, but unless this is done by an expert, the-plaits will not be uniform or artistically arranged. For this reason draperies are usually pre-plaited by forming the material into plait form and sewing the plaits in place before hanging the drapery. This is expensive because it requires -a tailor or seamstress experienced in this field to plait the drapery properly. Moreover, these pre-plaited draperies are diflicult to clean, without removing the stitching, and that requires that the drapery, be restitched into plaits again after cleaning.

For all of these reasons, drapery supports have been devised which are adapted to form and hold draperies in uniform plaits or folds when suspended from them. Such drapery supports of this nature, of which I am aware, however, are rigid in form and are shaped to hold draperies or curtains only in folded. position. It is impossible, when a drapery or curtain is suspended from .one of these supports, to draw the drapery or curtain closed across the Window or opening in connection with whichthedrapery or curtain is being used.

A primary object of this invention is to provide a drapery or. curtain support which may be I opened or closed, and from which a drapery or curtain. will be suspended in uniform plaits or folds, when the support'is in open position, and which, when closed, will stretch the curtain or drapery across the. window or doorway opening over which it is hung.

A further objectof, the invention is to provide a drapery or curtain support of the character described which is soconstructed that the drapery or curtain will automatically be formed into uniform plaits or folds,..without any pre-stitchingfor thatpurpose, when the support is in open position.

Another object of the invention is to provide asupportof this character which is adjustable to various positions andwhich is..so constructed that a drapery or curtain will hang thereon in uniform, artisticplaits orfolds in any adjusted position of the support.

Another object of the invention is to provide a drapery or curtain support ofthe character described whichis so constructed thatthe drapery or. curtain may readily beremoved therefrom for cleaning.

A.further object of theinventionis to provide 5 a support of the character described which may be manufactured atrelatively low cost, but which may be made of. materials that will last indefinitely.

Other objects ofthe invention will be apparent hereinafter from the specification and from the recital of the append'edclaims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a drapery support made according to one embodiment of this invention and comprising a pair or set of drapery holders, one of said holders having a drapery suspended therefrom;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 1, with the upper portion of the channel member or trackway, on which the drapery holders move, broken away to show the carriages or trollies for the drapery holders;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary plan view, of the drapery support showing the drapery holders in closed position;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the support, looking from the front and showing the channel or trackway fragmentarily and one of the drapery holders in its fully open position;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the support looking from the front and showing this drapery holder closed and showing how in closed position it overlaps the adjacent end of the other drapery holder;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view looking from the rear atthe pair or set of drapery holders in closed position, the channel or trackway being. removed in order better to illustrate the construction; and

Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view taken, for instance, on the line l'! of Fig. 5.

In the illustrated embodiment of my invention, there is provided a channel member [0, which is adapted to be secured to the frame of, the window or. door on which the drapery or ourtain. is to be hung. This member may be stamped out of a singlepiece of sheet metal, folded upon itselfi'at top and bottom, asv denoted at H and 12 (Fig. '7), and shapedstohave a downturned. flange l4-and an upturned flange l5. at its front. The folded. portions II and I2 of the channel member reinforce this member and separate it into two compartments I o and I1 -(Figs. 4, 5.and '7) For supporting a draperyorcurtain, ordinarily there are a pair of draperyeholders provided, one for each of a pair of draperies or curtains. These drapery holders are generally similar in construction. Each comprises a plurality of flat spacer plates 20 which are connected to one another by loop or plait-forming members comprising a pair of straps 22 and 23. Each member 22 is hingedly connectedat its inner end by means of a hinge pin 24 to one of the spacer plates 20, and each member 23 is hingedly connected at its inner end by means of a hinge pin 25 to the next adjacent spacer plate 20. The two members 22 and 23, whichmay be called shaper members, are hingedly connected at their outer ends by a hinge pin 26. The members 22 and 23 are made of spring metal and each is slightly bowed outwardly so that when a pair is in looped position, as shown in Figs. 2 and 4, adjacent members 22, 23 will project toward one another well over the intermediate plate 20, being thus under compression.

There are two studs 21 secured to each plate 20. These studs serve as journals for wheels 30 (Figs. 6 and 7). The studs project forwardly through the opening between the upper and lower flanges l4 and I of the channel member ID and are riveted to the plates 20. Spacers or washers 3| are mounted on the studs properly to space the plates 20 from the front face of the channel member and from the wheels 30. Each pair of studs is riveted at the rear to a cord guide-plate 32. These plates seat against shoulders 33 formed on the studs. The upper and lower inside surfaces of the compartment I! of the channel member form trackways on which the wheels 30 are adapted to roll. A plate 20, a plate 32, and the associated pair of wheels 30 form a carriage or trolley. When adjacent carriages or trolleys are moved toward one another, cooperating bowed plates 22 and 23 are folded, as shown in Figs; 2 and 4, and when adjacent carriages or trolleys are moved apart cooperating bowed plates 22 and 23 may be extended as shown in Figs. 3 and 5.

Each member 32 is generally U-shaped and has rearwardly projecting wings 34. Each wing 34 is drilled at top and bottom to form two guide holes 35 through which the control cord 36 extends.

The control cord 36 may be an endless cord. It is adapted to be trained over a pulley 31 (Fig. 1) through the lower holes 35 in the wings 34 of the plates 32 of the pair of drapery holders, around a pulley 38 (Fig. 1) at the extreme right of the right hand drapery holder, through the upper holes 35 in the wings 34 of the plates 32, and around a pulley 39 at the extreme left of the left hand drapery holder. The pulleys 31 and 39 are suitably journaled on shafts 46 in a bracket 42 thatis secured at the left hand end of the channel member Ill. The pulley 28' is suitably journaled in a bracket 43 that is secured to the channel member ID at the right hand end thereof.. V

The guide cord 36 has knots 46 and 41 (Fig. 6) tied in it at the right and left hand sides, respectively, of the left hand wing of the plate 32 which is secured to plate 20a. It has knots 48 and 49 tied in it at the right and left hand sides, respectively, of the right hand wing of the plate 32, which is secured to plate 201). By pulling on the right hand part of the downwardly extending portion of cord 36 (Fig. 1), then, the two sections of the drapery holder can be pulled toward one another, flattening out the loops 22 and 23 from the positions shown in Figs. 1 and 2 to that of Fig.3. By pulling on the left hand part of the downwardly dropping 'cord, on the other hand, these members can be formed into loops again. Because the loop members 22 and 23 are made of spring metal, when one of the plates 20 is moved either to spread or to looped position the movement is passed on successively to the other plates and through them to the other loop members; and so the movement of one loop member of a section tends to move all the rest of that section.

As previously-stated, the two drapery holders of a set are substantially alike. The principal difference between them is in their adjacent spacer plates 20. These plates are denoted at 20a and 2022, respectively, for the right and left hand drapery holders. The plate 20a is provided with an offset portion 45 (Fig. 5) which is adapted to overlap andlie in front of the right hand end of plate 20b when the drapery holders are in closed position. This permits complete closure of the drapery support without leaving any ugly gap between the holders.

The spacer plates 20 at the right and left hand ends of the right and left hand drapery holders, respectively, which are designated 20c and 20d, respectively, may be made somewhat longer than the intermediate spacer plates 20 to project over and cover the brackets 42 and 43, respectively. These plates are connected only at one end to the shaper members, the plate 20c being connected at its left hand side to a shaper member 23 and the plate 26d being connected to ashaper member 22. The plates 20c and 20d are secured to the brackets 43 and 42 and are held in fixed position. The plates 20a and 20b likewise are connected at only one end to the shaper members. Thus, the plate 26a is connected at its right end to a shaper member 22 and the plate 20b at its left end to a shaper member 23.

The drapery or curtain 50, which is to be hung, may be secured to the plates 20, 22 and 23 in conventional fashion, as by pins that are secured in loops 52 that are stamped outwardly from these plates. In Fig. 1, one section of a drapery or curtain is shown hung from the left hand drapery or curtain holder.

One of the features of the drapery support of the present invention is that whatever the position of the forming or loop members, the drapery or curtain, which is supported thereon, will hang in uniform, graceful folds. When the drapery holders are in the position shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 4, the members 22 and 23 thereof form closed loops upon'which the suspended draperies or curtains are formed in folds or plaits of uniform size and shape, providing a very artistic, decorative appearance. When the drapery holders are pulled to the position shown in Figs. 3 and 5, the draperies or curtains are closed over the window or door opening and are not entirely flat but again have uniform loop arrangement which again is very artistic and decorative. In all the infinite number of intermediate positions to which the drapery holders can be moved by pulling on cord 36, this same uniformity of plaiting or looping will be obtained. Thus, the drapery or curtain when suspended from my support will at all times have an artistic and decorative arrangement and the housewife need never worry about the appearance of her curtains or draperies.

While the invention has been described in connection with a particular embodiment thereof, it is capable of further modification, and this application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the invention following, in general, the principles ofthe invention and including such departures from the present disclosure a as come within known or customary practice in the art to which the invention relates and as may be applied to the essential features hereinbefore set forth and as fall within the scope of the invention or the limits of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A support for curtains, draperies, and the like comprising a trackway, a plurality of spacer plates, rollers secured to the backs of the spacerplates to support the spacer-plates movably on the trackway in front of the trackway, forming members connecting adjacent spacer-plates, each of said forming members comprising a pair of spring straps, each of which is pivotally connected at one end to one end of a spacer-plate and which are pivotally connected at their opposite ends to one another, said straps being shaped to be bowed outwardly away from one another when adjacent spacer plates are moved toward one another, and means for moving the spacer plates toward or from one another.

2. A support for curtains, draperies, and the like comprising a trackway, and two separate fabric holders, each of said fabric holders comprising a plurality of rigid, longitudinally spaced spacer plates, rollers secured to the spacer-plates to support the spacer-plates movably on the trackway, and a plurality of flexible forming members, each of which is pivotally connected at its free ends to two adjacent spacer-plates, and means connecting the spacer-plates of the two fabric holders, said last named means being movable to move a spacer-plate of one fabric holder toward or from a spacer-plate of the other fabric holder to expand or contract the forming members of the two fabric holders,

3. A support for curtains, draperies, and the like comprising a trackway, and two separate fabric holders, each of said fabric holders coniprising a plurality of rigid, longitudinally spaced spacer plates, rollers secured to the backs of the spacer-plates to project from the backs thereof to support the spacer-plates movably in front of the trackway, and forming members connecting adjacent spacer plates, each of said forming members comprising a pair of spring straps, each of which is pivotally connected at one end to one of two adjacent spacer plates and which are pivotally connected at their opposite ends to one another, said straps being shaped to be bowed outwardly away from one another when adja-- cent spacer plates are moved toward one another, and a drawcord operatively connected to one spacer plate of each of the two drapery holders to move the drapery holders toward or from one another when the drawcord is moved in one direction or the other, the two adjacent spacer plates of the two drapery holders having portions which are offset relative to one another to overlap when the spacer plates are moved to the full extent toward one another.

CLAUDE F. HASSELWANDER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 661,608 Holtzclaw Nov. 13, 1900 978,219 Sarkisian Dec. 13, 1910 1,756,365 Kirsch Apr. 29, 1930 1,973,487 Kenney et al Sept. 11, 1934 2,366,986 Siden Jan. 9, 1945 2,388,061 Isserstedt Oct. 30, 1945 2,512,736 Brenner et al June 27, 1950

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