WO1998039171A1 - Sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation - Google Patents

Sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation Download PDF

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Publication number
WO1998039171A1
WO1998039171A1 PCT/US1997/003435 US9703435W WO9839171A1 WO 1998039171 A1 WO1998039171 A1 WO 1998039171A1 US 9703435 W US9703435 W US 9703435W WO 9839171 A1 WO9839171 A1 WO 9839171A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
extension tube
outer diameter
window area
passenger transportation
stopper
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US1997/003435
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Hai Tee Young
Original Assignee
Hai Tee Young
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Hai Tee Young filed Critical Hai Tee Young
Priority to AU19873/97A priority Critical patent/AU1987397A/en
Priority to PCT/US1997/003435 priority patent/WO1998039171A1/en
Publication of WO1998039171A1 publication Critical patent/WO1998039171A1/en

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60J—WINDOWS, WINDSCREENS, NON-FIXED ROOFS, DOORS, OR SIMILAR DEVICES FOR VEHICLES; REMOVABLE EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE COVERINGS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES
    • B60J1/00—Windows; Windscreens; Accessories therefor
    • B60J1/20—Accessories, e.g. wind deflectors, blinds
    • B60J1/2011—Blinds; curtains or screens reducing heat or light intensity
    • B60J1/2088—Lamellar or like blinds

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to sunshine shelter, and more particularly to a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of a passenger transportation such as vehicle, airplane, ship and ferry, etc..
  • the sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention can prevent the radiation of sun shine from attacking the passengers without obstructing the passengers' field of vision.
  • the strong sunshine may shine upon the driver's face and eyes that the driver may be annoyed by those discomfort, uneasiness and inconvenience caused by the strong sunshine. It may affect the driver's driving judgment and cause much hazard and unexpected danger during driving.
  • a pair of conventional shelter wings are mounted on an upper edge of a front windshield of a vehicle.
  • the driver and the front passenger can swing the shelter wings toward the front windshield for shading the upper portion of the windshield to prevent the sunshine from shining directly upon the driver's and the front passenger's eyes.
  • the shelter wings also obstacle portion of the windshield that reduces the field of vision of the driver that lessens the driving safety.
  • the driver change the car's direction he or she has to use one hand to re-adjust the position of the shelter wing from the front windshield to the side window. It may divert the driver's attention and cause accident.
  • the faces, hands and the bodies of the driver and the front passenger are still exposed to the sunshine from most directions. The defectives cause by the sunshine to human skin are unavoidable.
  • the cardboard shelter is made of hard cardboard paper and is foldable.
  • the twisted shelter is made of nylon cloth with two circular springs mounted therein and is also foldable by twisting.
  • Such conventional shelters are very troublesome that the driver has to unfold and extend it to cover the entire front windshield while parking. Before driving, the driver also has to refold and remove it from the front windshield. The folding and unfolding, as well as the installing and removing, operations are too troublesome and require much time since the interior space of a vehicle is too narrow for operating a shelter as large as the windshield.
  • a sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation of the present invention comprises a plurality of shelter assemblies mounted on a windshield of the passenger transportation respectively, in which each of said shelter assemblies comprises
  • a blind device having a plurality of slats mounting parallelly and rotably on said mounting device, wherein said slats of said blind device are adjustable for disposing angle, extended to cover the respective window area and gathered for lapping together.
  • Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a front windshield of a vehicle, having installed with a pair of sunshine shelter apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • Fig. 2 is a partial exploded perspective view of a sunshine shelter apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • Fig. 3 is a partial sectional view of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • Figs.4 A to 4C are three end views illustrating the operation conditions of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • Fig. 5 is a front view of a windshield shelter assembly of a second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
  • Fig. 6 is a partial exploded perspective view of the windshield shelter assembly of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
  • Fig. 7A and 7B are partial sectional view of the windshield shelter assembly of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention, showing the frictional configuration between the mounting rod and the top member.
  • Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the windshield shelter assembly, in an upper overlapped position, of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
  • Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the windshield shelter assembly, in a lower extended shading position, of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
  • Fig. 10 is an end view of a car door with side window of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention, wherein a window shelter assembly is installed and its blind device is in an extended shading position.
  • Fig. 11 is an end view of a car door with side window of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention, wherein on which the window shelter assembly is installed and the blind device is in a gathering position.
  • Fig. 12 is a front view of a car door with side window of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention, wherein the window shelter assembly is installed and its blind device is in an extended shading position.
  • Fig. 13 is a partial sectional view illustrating the operating device of the window shelter assembly of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
  • Fig. 14 is a front view of a back windshield with a window shelter assembly installed thereon according to the above second preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • Figs. 15A and 15B are two end views illustrating an alternative mode of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to the third preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • Fig. 16 is a perspective view of a front windshield of a vehicle, having installed with a pair of sunshine shelter apparatus according to the above third preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • Figs. 17A and 17B are two end views illustrating the application of the sunshine shelter apparatus of the above third preferred embodiment of the present invention to a side window of the vehicle.
  • Fig. 18 is a perspective front view of a shelter assembly of a fourth preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
  • Fig. 19 is a partial exploded perspective view of the shelter assembly according to the above fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • Fig. 20 is a partial schematic view showing the sliding relation between a rail and the blind device according to the above fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment
  • a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation of the present invention comprises a pair of extensible devices 10, a mounting device 20 and a blinding device 30.
  • each of the extensible devices 10 comprises a predetermined number of hollow extension tubes 11, 12, 13.
  • the number of the extension tubes for the pair of extensible devices 10 can be two, four, five, or six, depending on the size of the window area of the passenger transportation and the desire of users.
  • the first extension tube 11 has an inner diameter larger than an outer diameter of the second extension tube 12 adapted for slidably inserting into the first extension tube 11.
  • the second extension tube has an inner diameter larger than an outer diameter of the third extension tube 13 adapted for slidably inserting into the second extension tube 12.
  • each first extension tube 11 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a supporting head 111 which is hinged on the mounting device 20.
  • a bottom end of each first extension tube 11 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a ring shaped first stopper 112 which has an outer diameter fitted with the inner diameter of the first extension tube 11, an inner diameter equal to the outer diameter of the second extension tube 12, and a first enlarged base ring 113 having an outer diameter larger than the outer diameter of the first extension tube 11.
  • the first extension tube 11 further comprises a first holding member 114 firmly attached to a bottom end portion of the first extension tube 11.
  • each second extension tube 12 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a first stopping head 121 having a shank 121a inserted into the top end of the second extension tube 12 and an enlarged stub 121b having an outer diameter equal to the inner diameter of the first extension tube 11.
  • the enlarged stub 121b has a ring groove 121c for integrally retaining a frictional ring 12 Id which has an outer diameter slightly larger than the inner diameter of the first extension tube 11.
  • each second extension tube 12 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a ring shaped second stopper 122 which has an outer diameter fitted with the inner diameter of the second extension tube 12, an inner diameter equal to the outer diameter of the third extension tube 13, and a second enlarged base ring 123 having an outer diameter larger than the outer diameter of the second extension tube 12.
  • the second extension tube 12 further comprises a second holding member 124 firmly attached to a bottom end portion of the second extension tube 12.
  • each third extension tube 13 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a second stopping head 131 having a shank 131a inserted into the top end of the third extension tube 13 and an enlarged stub 131b having an outer diameter equal to the inner diameter of the second extension tube 12.
  • the enlarged stub 131b has a ring groove 131c for integrally retaining a frictional ring 131d which has an outer diameter slightly larger than the inner diameter of the second extension tube 12.
  • each third extension tube 13 firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a ring shaped third stopper 132 which has an outer diameter fitted with the inner diameter of the third extension tube 13 and an enlarged base ring 133 having an outer diameter larger than the outer diameter of the third extension tube 13.
  • the third extension tube 13 further comprises a third holding member 134 firmly attached to a bottom end portion of the third extension tube 13.
  • connection between the first and second extension tubes 11, 12 or the second and third extension tubes 12, 13 can be processed by firstly screwing the first stopping head 121 or the second stopping head 131 into the top end of the second extension tube 12 or the top end of the third extension tube 13 respectively, secondly inserting the top end portion of the second extension tube 12 or the top end portion of the third extension tube 13 into the bottom end of the first extension tube 11 or the bottom end of the second extension tube 12 respectively, and then finally screwing the first stopper 112 or the second stopper 122 to the bottom end of the first extension tube 11 or the bottom end of the second extension tube 12 respectively.
  • the second extension tube 12 or the third extension tube 13 can be forced to draw back into the first extension tube 11 or the second extension tube 12 respectively to reduce the overall length of the extensible device 10 or be forced to stretch out from the first extension tube 11 or the second extension tube 12 to elongate the length of the extensible device 10 until the first stopping head 121 or the second stopping head 131 is blocked by the first stopper 112 or the second stopper 122 respectively. Due to the friction existed between the inner surface of the first and second extension tubes 11, 12 and the frictional rings 12 Id or 13 Id respectively, the user must apply a pulling or pushing force larger than the frictional force in order to stretch out or draw back the second or third extension tube 12, 13. Certainly, on each extension tube 11, 12, 13, an air hole 14 is formed thereon to enable air in and out.
  • the mounting device 20 comprises a pair of T-shape mounting heads 21, which are firmly affixed to an interior ceiling PTl of a passenger transportation PT (as shown in Fig. 1), for hingedly jointing with the two supporting heads 111 so as to support the two extensible devices 10 in position respectively, wherein the two extensible devices 10 can be adjusted to parallel with a window area PT2 or the ceiling PTl of the passenger transportation PT (as shown in Figs. 4A to 4C).
  • Each mounting head 21 has a vertical joint member 211 downwardly extended from a horizontal mounting member 212 which is adapted for screwing or adhering to an edge of the ceiling PTl, adjacent to the respective window area PT2, such as the front windshield or the side window, of the passenger transportation PT.
  • Each of the joint members 211 has a vertical rear side wall 214, a vertical front side wall 215, a trapezoid bottom end 213 which defines a narrowed horizontal edge 213a and two inclined side edges 213b and 213c.
  • a through hole 216 is formed on the joint member 211 at a predetermined height.
  • Each of the supporting heads 111 has two parallel joint wings Ilia, 111b extended upwardly to define a receiving gap 111c therebetween.
  • Each of the two joint wings Il ia, 11 lb has a vertical elongated hole 11 Id, 11 le thereon.
  • the width of the receiving gap 111c is equal to the thickness of the joint member 211, so that the joint member 211 can be inserted into the receiving gap 111c and be pressed between the two joint wings Ilia, 111b until the horizontal edge 213a is propped against a bottom surface 11 If of the receiving gap 111c.
  • a bolt 22 is penetrated through the through hole 216 and the two elongated holes 11 Id and 11 le. By screwing a nut 23 to the threaded end of the bolt 22, the supporting head 111 is firmly connected with the mounting head 21.
  • the two extensible devices 10 are parallelly hanged from the ceiling PTl of the passenger transportation PT by means of the two mounting heads 21 of the mounting device 20.
  • the blinding device 30 comprises a predetermined number of thin and light slats 31, 32, 33.
  • Each slat 31, 32, 33 has two cylindrical plugs 311, 321, 331 coaxially protruded from the two ends thereof.
  • Each cylindrical plug 311, 321, 331 provides a plurality of longitudinal tiny teeth 312, 322, 332 thereon.
  • Each holding member 114, 124, 134 has a circular receiving socket 115, 125, 135 having a diameter equal to the respective plug 311, 321, 331 and a plurality of longitudinal tiny engaging teeth 15 provided thereon.
  • each slats 31, 32, 33 can .be rotatably mounted between the three pairs of holding members 114, 124, 134 respectively by inserting the two plugs 311, 321, 331 of each slat 31, 32, 33 into the two receiving sockets 115, 125, 135 of each pair of holding members 114, 124, 134.
  • the frictional engagement configuration between the teeth 312, 322, 332 of each plug 311, 321, 331 and the engaging teeth 15 of each receiving socket 115, 125, 135 enables the slat 31, 32, 33 to be firmly held in position unless a rotating force is applied to the slat 31, 32, 33 to overcome the engagement friction between the teeth 312, 322, 332 and the engaging teeth 15.
  • the slats 31, 32, 33 are adjustable to any desire inclined angle, such as positioning at horizontal position to enable the passenger to view through (as shown in Fig. 4A) or positioning at vertical position to block the sunshine (as shown in Fig.4B).
  • the extensible device 10 further comprises three folding device 16, 17, 18 attached on each of the slats 31, 32, 33 respectively.
  • Each of the folding device 16, 17, 18 has a connecting groove 161, 171, 181 for connecting to the slats 31, 32, 33 and a shading plate 162, 172, 182 hingedly connected to each of the connecting groove 161, 171, 181 respectively.
  • 115, 125, 135 are positioned in a lower, a middle and an upper position respectively, so that the first, second and third slats 31, 32, 33 are mounted on different planes. Therefore, when the three pair of extension tubes 11, 12, 13 are contracted together, as shown in Fig. 4C, the three slats 31, 32, 33 can be overlapped together.
  • the user may contract the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus to the minimum length by inserting the pair of second extension tubes 12 into the pair of first extension tubes 11 and inserting the pair of third extension tubes 13 into the pair of second extension tubes 12. Therefore, the overall length of the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is just approximately equal to the length of the first extension tube 11. Besides, all the slats 31, 32, 33 can be turned in parallel with the extension tubes 11, 12, 13 so as to reduce the overall thickness of the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus to equal to the diameter of the first extension tube 11.
  • the pair of extensible devices 10 and the three slats 31, 32, 33 can be folded upwardly to the ceiling PTl of the passenger transportation by rotating the supporting heads 111 upwards until the bottom surfaces 111 f of the receiving gaps 111c thereof are propped against the vertical rear side walls 214 of the two joint members 211 of the two mounting heads 21 respectively.
  • the user may simply swing the pair of extensible devices 10 and the three slats 31, 32. 33 downwards until the bottom surfaces 11 If of the receiving gaps 111c of the pair of supporting heads 111 are propped against the inclined side edges 23 lb of the two joint members 211 of the pair of mounting heads 21 respectively, so that the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is parallel with the window area PT2 just as the operation of the conventional shelter wings.
  • the improvement of the present invention over the conventional shelter wings is that the user may further stretch out the second and third extension tubes 12, 13 to enlarge the sheltering area.
  • the user may turn all the slats 31, 32, 33 parallel to the window area PT2 to entirely block the sunshine, as shown in Fig. 4B.
  • the user may also adjust the inclined angle of each slat 31, 32, 33 to shelter the direct sunshine and to enable the passenger to view outside.
  • all the slats 31, 32, 33 are positioned horizontally and parallelly that the surrounding in front of the window area PT2 is visible to the passenger through the intervals between those thin slats 31, 32, 33.
  • portion of the sunshine is shaded by the slats 31, 32, 33 from shining upon the passenger's face.
  • FIG. 5 to 9 a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of a passenger transportation according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. As shown in
  • each windshield shelter assembly A10 comprises a mounting device A20 and a blind device A30 which has a plurality of slats A31 rotatably and parallelly mounted on the mounting device A20.
  • the mounting device A20 comprises a mounting rod A21 and a wing frame A22 mounted on the mounting rod A21.
  • a connecting end of the mounting rod A21 is rotatably mounted to one of the top corner, the right corner or the left corner, of the front windshield Cl in the usual manner as that of the conventional shelter wing mounted on the upper portion of the front windshield Cl.
  • the mounting rod A21 as shown in Fig. 5, is extended to the medial upper portion of the front windshield Cl where a clip-fit catch A211, as the well known manner, is affixed for holding the mounting rod A21 in horizontal position.
  • the wing frame A22 includes a horizontal top member A221 having a longitudinal casing hole A220 which is rotatably casing with the mounting rod A21 so as to mount the wing frame A22 in position.
  • Two side members A222, A223 are extended from the two ends of the top member A221 for spacedly mounting the slats A31 of the blind device A30 in parallel position.
  • a recess A224 is provided near the free end of the top member A221 so that a portion of the mounting rod A21 is exposed there for connecting with the clip-fit catch A211.
  • An inner side of each side member A222, A223 has a plurality of holding holes A225 and stoppers A226 which are protruded adjacent to the holding holes A225 respectively.
  • the slats A31 of the blind device A30 are thin blades made of rigid material, such as plastic or wooden blades, as shown in Fig. 6. One side of each slat is extended from two ends thereof to protrude two end pivots A32 respectively.
  • Each slat A31 is mounted to the wing frame A22 by pivotally and rotatably inserting the two end pivots A32 thereof into two of the holding holes A225 provided on the two side members A222 and A223 respectively for spacedly and parallelly holding in position. Therefore, when the slats are swinging downward, the bottom sides of the slats A31 are stopped and supported by abutting to the stoppers A226 respectively. As shown in Figs.
  • both the top member A221 and the mounting rod A21 provide a frictional configuration, in which two opposing sections of arcuate jutting teeth A212 are protruded on an outer circumference of the mounting rod A21 and two opposing sections of arcuate protruding teeth A227 are protruded on an inner circumference of the casing hole A220 of the horizontal top member A221.
  • the jutting teeth A212 of the mounting rod A21 and the protruding teeth A227 of the casing hole A220 will be engaged with each other when the top member A221 is trend to rotate, so that the engagement of the jutting teeth A212 and the protruding teeth A227 would prevent the top member A221 to self-rotate due to the gravity.
  • the blind device A30 can be swung downwards.
  • the windshield shelter assembly A10 is normally swung up to abut upon the ceiling of the car when it is not used.
  • the four sections of the jutting teeth A212 and protruding teeth A227 are staggered and thus provides a locking effect to the mounting device A20 for holding the blind device A30 in position.
  • the mounting device A20 and the blind device A30 When the driver or passenger of the car applied a certain force to swing the mounting device A20 and the blind device A30 downward to overcome the friction between the jutting teeth A212 and the protruding teeth A227, the mounting device A20 is rotated downwardly until the teeth A212 and A227 are staggered again. At that moment, the mounting device A20 and the blind device A30 are swung to and locked in a lower shading position abutting to the windshield, as the broken lines shown in Fig. 8.
  • the slats A31 will rotate forward to overlap with each other so as to provide as much room as possible above the driver's or the front passenger's head.
  • an additional second windshield shelter unit AlOa is connected to the first windshield shelter assembly A10 as disclosed above, as shown in Figs. 5, 8 and 9.
  • the second windshield shelter unit AlOa comprises a second mounting device A20a which has two side pieces A21a, A22a pivotally connected to the two free ends of the two side members A222, A223 of the first windshield shelter assembly 10, and a second blind device A30a which includes a plurality of slats A3 la mounted horizontally and spacedly between the two side pieces A21a, A22a in the same mounting manner as the slats A31 mounted on the first mounting device A20.
  • the pivotal connection between the two side pieces A21a, A22a and the two side members A222, A223 also utilizes the frictional configuration, as shown in Figs. 7A and 7B, between the top member A221 and the mounting rod A21, so as to enable the second windshield shelter unit AlOa to swing between a lower position abutting to the windshield, as shown in Fig. 8, and an upper position overlapping with the first windshield shelter assembly A10, as shown in Fig. 9.
  • the shading area of the windshield Cl is increased so that even the steering wheel C2 can be shaded from sunshine by the second windshield shelter unit AlOa. Accordingly, the face and the hands of the driver can both be shaded from the radiation of sunshine.
  • the unshaded lower portion of the windshield Cl can merely permit the sunshine directing to the instrument panel C3 of the car, as shown in Fig. 9.
  • the sun is located horizontally to the car, during sunrise or sunset, the faint and gentle sunshine is harmless to the driver or passengers.
  • the aforesaid windshield shelter assembly A10 and unit AlOa can also apply to the back windshield for shading the sunshine from the back of the car.
  • the window shelter assembly A10' comprises a mounting device A20' and a blind device A30'.
  • the mounting device A20' includes a case A21' and a hanging unit A22' which is a S-shaped hanger with one thin upper U-shaped end firmly hanged on the top edge of the side window C4 and the other lower U-shaped end extended on the inner side of the side window C4.
  • the case A21' is horizontally hanged and affixed to the inner side of the car door C5.
  • the blind device A30' comprises a plurality of slats A31' which are made of thin plastic or wooden material and connected spacedly and parallelly by means of transparent thread, such as the fishing thread, in the usual manner.
  • the blind device A30' further comprises a rigid top frame A32' and a U-shaped slat hanger A33' which is connected on the top frame A32' for hooking with the lower U-shaped end of the hanging unit A22' when the blind device A30' is extended to cover the window C4.
  • the slats A31' have different length wherein the uppermost and the bottom slats A31' have the shortest and the longest length respectively while the other intermediate slats A31' increase their length one by one.
  • the length of the case A21' is slightly longer than the longest bottom slat A31' so that all the slats A31' can be collected within the case A21' while they are gathering together, as shown in Fig. 11.
  • Two linking threads A34', A35' spacedly link the slats A31' together in parallel manner by penetrating a central portion of each slat.
  • An operating device A40' is equipped with the blind device A30 for adjusting the angle of the slats A31' simultaneously, which comprises an operating thread unit A41' and an operating button A42'.
  • the operating thread unit A41' includes an endless transparent thread A411' positioned between the two linking threads A34' and A35' for encircling all the slats A31' and a plurality of transverse threads A412' connected between the two sides of the endless thread A411' and positioned aboveneath and underneath of each slat A31', as shown in Figs. 10 and 13.
  • the operating button A42' is a round gear positioned at the bottom of the case A21', in which the lower portion of the operating button A42' is exposed through a bottom opening A211' provided at the respective position of the case A21 ' for operation.
  • the bottom side of the endless thread A411 ' is affixed to the operating button A42', as shown in Fig. 13, and the top side of the endless thread A411' encircles the top frame A32'.
  • the window shelter assembly A10' With the installation of the window shelter assembly A10' to the side window C4, one can lift the blind device A30' up and hang the slat hanger A33' to the hanger unit A22' so as to extend the blind device A30' for sunshine shading. Moreover, when the window C4 moves down, the blind device A30' will move down simultaneously to enable air circulation, as shown in Fig. 10. It is worth to mention that the window shelter assembly A10' according to the present invention can be built-in the car construction, such as the car doors, and also be installed to the back windshield C6, as illustrated in Fig. 14.
  • Figs. 15A and 15B illustrates an alternative mode of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to a third preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which the mounting member 212 of each mounting head 21 is mounted on the end edge of a conventional shelter wing 40 by means of an adapter 24, in which the shelter wing 40 is foldably installed at the edge of the window area PT2 such as the front windshield.
  • the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus When the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is not used, it can be contracted to reduce it size and folded upwardly to overlap with the shelter wing 40 to provide as much room as possible above the driver or passenger's head, as shown in Fig. 15 A.
  • the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is used, the user may swing the shelter wing 40 as well as the two extensible devices 10 and the slats 31, 32, 33 down towards the front windshield PT2, as shown in Fig. 15B.
  • Fig. 16 illustrates the situation of having a pair of sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention mounted to the two shelter wings 40 of the front windshield PT2, in which the rear view mirror 50 is attached to the front windshield PT2 by means of an universal ball joint 51 , so that the two shelter wings 40 can be extended to in touch with each other for avoiding any sunshine penetrating between the two shelter wings 40.
  • the two shelter wings 40 When the two shelter wings 40 are swung down, the user may adjust the position of the rear view mirror 50 through the ball joint 51 to dodge the shelter wings 40.
  • the sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention not only is adapted to installed at the front windshield or the rear windshield of an automobile as disclosed above, but also is capable of installing at the side window PT3 of the automobile, as shown in Figs. 1 A and 17B.
  • Fig. 17A illustrates the situation of the sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention which is folded upwardly to the ceiling PTl when it is not used. Due to the fact that the side window PT3 is almost perpendicular to the ceiling PTl, as shown in Fig.
  • the two extensible devices 10 is folded downwards until the bottom surfaces 11 If of the receiving gaps 111c of the pair of supporting heads 111 are propped against the horizontal edges 213a of the two joint member 211 of the pair of the mounting heads 21 respectively.
  • a windshield shelter assembly A100 according to a fourth preferred embodiment is illustrated, which can be installed to the front or back windshield and comprises a mounting device A200 and a blind device A300.
  • the mounting device A200 includes a plurality of rails A210, A220, A230 made of resilient material, which are installed to the two sides and a central portion of the windshield C7 and extended upward to the ceiling C8 of a car.
  • Each side rail A210, A220 has an interior sliding chamber A240 and an inner side slot A250 extended along the length of the rail.
  • the central rail A230 has two interior sliding chambers A240 and two side slots A250 located on the its sides respectively.
  • the blind device A300 comprises a plurality of slats A310 spacedly and parallelly mounted between the two side rails A210, A220 and the central rail A230 in order to form a right and a left section.
  • the right and the left sections can be operated separately.
  • the two ends of each slat A310 connect with two sliding units A320 respectively.
  • Each sliding unit A320 includes a circular sliding block A340 and a polygonal neck A350 connected between the sliding block A340 and the respective end of the slat A310.
  • Four linking threads A360 are connected to the sides of the slats A310 respectively for spacedly linking together.
  • the slats A310 are mounted to the mounting device A200 by casing the outer sliding blocks A340 in the interior sliding chambers A240 of the side rails A210, A220 and the central rail A230 respectively.
  • the polygonal necks A350 have a size slightly smaller than the slots A250 and are positioned along the slots A250 respectively for guiding the slats A310 to prevent self-rotation.
  • the slats A310 are mounted horizontally between the rails A210, A220, A230, in which the sliding blocks A340 are in touch with each other for maintaining the interval between the slats, and are casing in the sliding chambers A240 for enabling easy sliding along the rails.
  • the horizontally arrayed slats A310 can reduce the thickness of the blind device A300 so as to provide as much room as possible above the driver's or passengers' head. If the driver or the passenger would like to alter the angles of the slats A310, he or she merely needs to apply a turning force to rotate the slats A310.
  • the necks A350 can be forced to turn an angle so as to enable the slats A310 to be inclined outwardly or inwardly or positioned vertically to cover the windshield while parking.
  • the present invention shall neither let the radiation of the sunshine attack people nor hidden the field of vision of the passengers that the conventional curtain configuration and tinting glasses did.
  • the shelter assembly applies to substitute the curtain configurations of land, sea and air transportation' window area, the passengers can maintain their field of vision, in the meantime, and shade the radiation of sunshine from reaching them by positioning the slats of the blind device horizontally. If the passengers want to sleep or to shut off all kinds of outdoor lighting, they can merely rotate all the slats to lie flat in order to entirely cover the window area, so that neither sunshine nor any other light can leak in to disturb the passengers.
  • the present invention is specially good for long journey night buses and night trains.
  • the sunshine shelter apparatus With the installation of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to the present invention to a passenger transportation, its most window area is shaded as integral curtains to stop intrusion of sun radiation on all window area, and thus the present invention not only does help to human's health but also consumes less energy on air condition.
  • the interior of a vehicle can be shaded to prevent direct sun heating that the vehicle may maintain a lower interior temperature under sunshine.
  • the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus not only can also be adjusted to shelter the entire window area from sunshine while parking or desired by the passengers can be adjusted to shelter only a top portion of the window area.

Abstract

A sun shade for a window area of a passenger vehicle includes a plurality of sun shade assemblies mounted on the respective windows of the vehicle. Each sun shade assembly includes a mounting device (20) and a blind device (30). The mounting device (20) includes a pair of extensible elements each having a first extension tube (11) and a second extension tube (12) coaxially connected end-to-end together in such a manner that the pair of second extension tubes (12) are capable of slidably retracting into the pair of first extension tubes (11). Each of the first and second extension tubes has an air hole (14) thereon and includes a holding member (15) which is attached to a bottom end portion thereof. The mounting device (20) is hinged with a pair of first extension tubes (11) for spacedlly mounting the pair of extensible elements in a parallel manner to an upper position, adjacent to the window area. The blind device includes at least two thin slats (31, 32), each of which is rotatably mounted between the two pairs of holding members (15).

Description

Titie
Sunshine Shelter Apparatus For Window Area Of Passenger Transportation
Background of the Present Invention
The present invention relates to sunshine shelter, and more particularly to a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of a passenger transportation such as vehicle, airplane, ship and ferry, etc.. The sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention can prevent the radiation of sun shine from attacking the passengers without obstructing the passengers' field of vision.
It is well known that overmuch exposure under sunshine does no good to human health, for example it hurts human skin and eyes and even causes skin cancer. However, the drivers or the passengers on those transportation such as trains, buses, ships, and airplanes are always inevitably disturbed or hurt by the radiation of sunshine. Most people complain about the radiation of sunshine because it does hurt to their skin and makes their skin aging and becoming rough and tanned with wrinkle.
Conventional method for reducing the shortcomings mentioned above is to tint all window glasses. However, it is illegal in most of the states in United States because the tinting may reduce the vision of the drivers and passengers, especially at night and cloudy weather. In mass transportation, such as airplanes, ships, trains, and buses, integral rigid curtains or cloth curtains are utilized to cover the entire window area for preventing the sunshine to disturb the passengers. But, the curtains would obstacle the whole field of vision of the passengers in the mean time.
When the vehicles are driven under sunshine, the strong sunshine may shine upon the driver's face and eyes that the driver may be annoyed by those discomfort, uneasiness and inconvenience caused by the strong sunshine. It may affect the driver's driving judgment and cause much hazard and unexpected danger during driving.
A pair of conventional shelter wings are mounted on an upper edge of a front windshield of a vehicle. The driver and the front passenger can swing the shelter wings toward the front windshield for shading the upper portion of the windshield to prevent the sunshine from shining directly upon the driver's and the front passenger's eyes. However, the shelter wings also obstacle portion of the windshield that reduces the field of vision of the driver that lessens the driving safety. Moreover, when the driver change the car's direction, he or she has to use one hand to re-adjust the position of the shelter wing from the front windshield to the side window. It may divert the driver's attention and cause accident. Besides, the faces, hands and the bodies of the driver and the front passenger are still exposed to the sunshine from most directions. The defectives cause by the sunshine to human skin are unavoidable.
Most drivers have such experience that when the vehicle park outdoor under the sunshine, the sun radiation may directly shine on the vehicles. The airtight interior of the vehicle will become hot an stuffy for re- entrance. Especially the steering wheel will be heated to become hand burning. The driver has to open the doors to enable air circulating for a while until the interior temperature decreases, and then starts the engine to run the air condition before the driver and the passengers get in the vehicle. It wastes much of time, so that to some impatient people, they may rush in the vehicle and drive. The extremely hot interior may affect the driving attention of the driver and the burning steering wheel is difficult to operate that may cause unexpected accident.
Two common devices are used currently to solve the aforesaid problems, which are a cardboard shelter and a twisted shelter for covering the entire front windshield of a vehicle. The cardboard shelter is made of hard cardboard paper and is foldable. The twisted shelter is made of nylon cloth with two circular springs mounted therein and is also foldable by twisting. Such conventional shelters are very troublesome that the driver has to unfold and extend it to cover the entire front windshield while parking. Before driving, the driver also has to refold and remove it from the front windshield. The folding and unfolding, as well as the installing and removing, operations are too troublesome and require much time since the interior space of a vehicle is too narrow for operating a shelter as large as the windshield. Moreover, we need to reserve some room for storing up the conventional extensible shelter when it is not used. The most essential shortcoming of such conventional extensible shelters is that since the space between the front windshield and the steering wheel and the back sight mirror is so narrow, every time when they are unfolded to cover or removed from the windshield, the back sight mirror may be bumped to move away from its original position. The driver has to reset the position of the back sight mirror before driving every time.
Summary of the Present Invention It is a main object of the present invention to provide a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation, which can shade the sunshine from shining upon the faces and hands of driver and passengers without obstructing their vision.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation that the shading angle thereof can be adjusted according to the direction and angle of the sunshine.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation, which can be adjusted to shelter the entire window area from sunshine while parking or desired by the passengers.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation, which can be easily operated to unshelter the entire window area.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation, which is easy to operate and install. It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation, which can be adjusted to shelter only a top portion of the window area.
Accordingly, a sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation of the present invention comprises a plurality of shelter assemblies mounted on a windshield of the passenger transportation respectively, in which each of said shelter assemblies comprises
a mounting device installed to a framework of each respective window area; and
a blind device having a plurality of slats mounting parallelly and rotably on said mounting device, wherein said slats of said blind device are adjustable for disposing angle, extended to cover the respective window area and gathered for lapping together.
Brief Description of the Drawings
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a front windshield of a vehicle, having installed with a pair of sunshine shelter apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 2 is a partial exploded perspective view of a sunshine shelter apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 3 is a partial sectional view of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Figs.4 A to 4C are three end views illustrating the operation conditions of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to the above preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 5 is a front view of a windshield shelter assembly of a second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
Fig. 6 is a partial exploded perspective view of the windshield shelter assembly of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
Fig. 7A and 7B are partial sectional view of the windshield shelter assembly of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention, showing the frictional configuration between the mounting rod and the top member.
Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the windshield shelter assembly, in an upper overlapped position, of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the windshield shelter assembly, in a lower extended shading position, of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
Fig. 10 is an end view of a car door with side window of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention, wherein a window shelter assembly is installed and its blind device is in an extended shading position.
Fig. 11 is an end view of a car door with side window of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention, wherein on which the window shelter assembly is installed and the blind device is in a gathering position.
Fig. 12 is a front view of a car door with side window of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention, wherein the window shelter assembly is installed and its blind device is in an extended shading position.
Fig. 13 is a partial sectional view illustrating the operating device of the window shelter assembly of the above second preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
Fig. 14 is a front view of a back windshield with a window shelter assembly installed thereon according to the above second preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Figs. 15A and 15B are two end views illustrating an alternative mode of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to the third preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 16 is a perspective view of a front windshield of a vehicle, having installed with a pair of sunshine shelter apparatus according to the above third preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Figs. 17A and 17B are two end views illustrating the application of the sunshine shelter apparatus of the above third preferred embodiment of the present invention to a side window of the vehicle.
Fig. 18 is a perspective front view of a shelter assembly of a fourth preferred embodiment according to the present invention.
Fig. 19 is a partial exploded perspective view of the shelter assembly according to the above fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 20 is a partial schematic view showing the sliding relation between a rail and the blind device according to the above fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment
Referring to Figs. 1 to 4, a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation of the present invention comprises a pair of extensible devices 10, a mounting device 20 and a blinding device 30.
As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, each of the extensible devices 10 comprises a predetermined number of hollow extension tubes 11, 12, 13. In accordance with the present preferred embodiment, there are totally three extension tubes 11, 12, 13. In fact,, the number of the extension tubes for the pair of extensible devices 10 can be two, four, five, or six, depending on the size of the window area of the passenger transportation and the desire of users. The first extension tube 11 has an inner diameter larger than an outer diameter of the second extension tube 12 adapted for slidably inserting into the first extension tube 11. The second extension tube has an inner diameter larger than an outer diameter of the third extension tube 13 adapted for slidably inserting into the second extension tube 12.
A top end of each first extension tube 11 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a supporting head 111 which is hinged on the mounting device 20. A bottom end of each first extension tube 11 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a ring shaped first stopper 112 which has an outer diameter fitted with the inner diameter of the first extension tube 11, an inner diameter equal to the outer diameter of the second extension tube 12, and a first enlarged base ring 113 having an outer diameter larger than the outer diameter of the first extension tube 11. The first extension tube 11 further comprises a first holding member 114 firmly attached to a bottom end portion of the first extension tube 11.
A top end of each second extension tube 12 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a first stopping head 121 having a shank 121a inserted into the top end of the second extension tube 12 and an enlarged stub 121b having an outer diameter equal to the inner diameter of the first extension tube 11. The enlarged stub 121b has a ring groove 121c for integrally retaining a frictional ring 12 Id which has an outer diameter slightly larger than the inner diameter of the first extension tube 11. A bottom end of each second extension tube 12 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a ring shaped second stopper 122 which has an outer diameter fitted with the inner diameter of the second extension tube 12, an inner diameter equal to the outer diameter of the third extension tube 13, and a second enlarged base ring 123 having an outer diameter larger than the outer diameter of the second extension tube 12. The second extension tube 12 further comprises a second holding member 124 firmly attached to a bottom end portion of the second extension tube 12.
A top end of each third extension tube 13 is firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a second stopping head 131 having a shank 131a inserted into the top end of the third extension tube 13 and an enlarged stub 131b having an outer diameter equal to the inner diameter of the second extension tube 12. The enlarged stub 131b has a ring groove 131c for integrally retaining a frictional ring 131d which has an outer diameter slightly larger than the inner diameter of the second extension tube 12. A bottom end of each third extension tube 13 firmly connected with, for example by screwing, a ring shaped third stopper 132 which has an outer diameter fitted with the inner diameter of the third extension tube 13 and an enlarged base ring 133 having an outer diameter larger than the outer diameter of the third extension tube 13. The third extension tube 13 further comprises a third holding member 134 firmly attached to a bottom end portion of the third extension tube 13.
Accordingly, the connection between the first and second extension tubes 11, 12 or the second and third extension tubes 12, 13 can be processed by firstly screwing the first stopping head 121 or the second stopping head 131 into the top end of the second extension tube 12 or the top end of the third extension tube 13 respectively, secondly inserting the top end portion of the second extension tube 12 or the top end portion of the third extension tube 13 into the bottom end of the first extension tube 11 or the bottom end of the second extension tube 12 respectively, and then finally screwing the first stopper 112 or the second stopper 122 to the bottom end of the first extension tube 11 or the bottom end of the second extension tube 12 respectively. Therefore, the second extension tube 12 or the third extension tube 13 can be forced to draw back into the first extension tube 11 or the second extension tube 12 respectively to reduce the overall length of the extensible device 10 or be forced to stretch out from the first extension tube 11 or the second extension tube 12 to elongate the length of the extensible device 10 until the first stopping head 121 or the second stopping head 131 is blocked by the first stopper 112 or the second stopper 122 respectively. Due to the friction existed between the inner surface of the first and second extension tubes 11, 12 and the frictional rings 12 Id or 13 Id respectively, the user must apply a pulling or pushing force larger than the frictional force in order to stretch out or draw back the second or third extension tube 12, 13. Certainly, on each extension tube 11, 12, 13, an air hole 14 is formed thereon to enable air in and out.
As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the mounting device 20 comprises a pair of T-shape mounting heads 21, which are firmly affixed to an interior ceiling PTl of a passenger transportation PT (as shown in Fig. 1), for hingedly jointing with the two supporting heads 111 so as to support the two extensible devices 10 in position respectively, wherein the two extensible devices 10 can be adjusted to parallel with a window area PT2 or the ceiling PTl of the passenger transportation PT (as shown in Figs. 4A to 4C). Each mounting head 21 has a vertical joint member 211 downwardly extended from a horizontal mounting member 212 which is adapted for screwing or adhering to an edge of the ceiling PTl, adjacent to the respective window area PT2, such as the front windshield or the side window, of the passenger transportation PT.
Each of the joint members 211 has a vertical rear side wall 214, a vertical front side wall 215, a trapezoid bottom end 213 which defines a narrowed horizontal edge 213a and two inclined side edges 213b and 213c. A through hole 216 is formed on the joint member 211 at a predetermined height. Each of the supporting heads 111 has two parallel joint wings Ilia, 111b extended upwardly to define a receiving gap 111c therebetween. Each of the two joint wings Il ia, 11 lb has a vertical elongated hole 11 Id, 11 le thereon. The width of the receiving gap 111c is equal to the thickness of the joint member 211, so that the joint member 211 can be inserted into the receiving gap 111c and be pressed between the two joint wings Ilia, 111b until the horizontal edge 213a is propped against a bottom surface 11 If of the receiving gap 111c. A bolt 22 is penetrated through the through hole 216 and the two elongated holes 11 Id and 11 le. By screwing a nut 23 to the threaded end of the bolt 22, the supporting head 111 is firmly connected with the mounting head 21. Basically, the two extensible devices 10 are parallelly hanged from the ceiling PTl of the passenger transportation PT by means of the two mounting heads 21 of the mounting device 20. The blinding device 30 comprises a predetermined number of thin and light slats 31, 32, 33. Each slat 31, 32, 33 has two cylindrical plugs 311, 321, 331 coaxially protruded from the two ends thereof. Each cylindrical plug 311, 321, 331 provides a plurality of longitudinal tiny teeth 312, 322, 332 thereon. Each holding member 114, 124, 134 has a circular receiving socket 115, 125, 135 having a diameter equal to the respective plug 311, 321, 331 and a plurality of longitudinal tiny engaging teeth 15 provided thereon. Accordingly, each slats 31, 32, 33 can .be rotatably mounted between the three pairs of holding members 114, 124, 134 respectively by inserting the two plugs 311, 321, 331 of each slat 31, 32, 33 into the two receiving sockets 115, 125, 135 of each pair of holding members 114, 124, 134. The frictional engagement configuration between the teeth 312, 322, 332 of each plug 311, 321, 331 and the engaging teeth 15 of each receiving socket 115, 125, 135 enables the slat 31, 32, 33 to be firmly held in position unless a rotating force is applied to the slat 31, 32, 33 to overcome the engagement friction between the teeth 312, 322, 332 and the engaging teeth 15. In other words, the slats 31, 32, 33 are adjustable to any desire inclined angle, such as positioning at horizontal position to enable the passenger to view through (as shown in Fig. 4A) or positioning at vertical position to block the sunshine (as shown in Fig.4B).
As shown in Fig 2, the extensible device 10 further comprises three folding device 16, 17, 18 attached on each of the slats 31, 32, 33 respectively. Each of the folding device 16, 17, 18 has a connecting groove 161, 171, 181 for connecting to the slats 31, 32, 33 and a shading plate 162, 172, 182 hingedly connected to each of the connecting groove 161, 171, 181 respectively.
As shown in Figs. 4A to 4C. it is worth to mentioned that the first, second and third receiving sockets
115, 125, 135 are positioned in a lower, a middle and an upper position respectively, so that the first, second and third slats 31, 32, 33 are mounted on different planes. Therefore, when the three pair of extension tubes 11, 12, 13 are contracted together, as shown in Fig. 4C, the three slats 31, 32, 33 can be overlapped together.
As shown in Fig. 4C, when the sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention is not used, the user may contract the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus to the minimum length by inserting the pair of second extension tubes 12 into the pair of first extension tubes 11 and inserting the pair of third extension tubes 13 into the pair of second extension tubes 12. Therefore, the overall length of the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is just approximately equal to the length of the first extension tube 11. Besides, all the slats 31, 32, 33 can be turned in parallel with the extension tubes 11, 12, 13 so as to reduce the overall thickness of the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus to equal to the diameter of the first extension tube 11. The pair of extensible devices 10 and the three slats 31, 32, 33 can be folded upwardly to the ceiling PTl of the passenger transportation by rotating the supporting heads 111 upwards until the bottom surfaces 111 f of the receiving gaps 111c thereof are propped against the vertical rear side walls 214 of the two joint members 211 of the two mounting heads 21 respectively.
When the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is used, the user may simply swing the pair of extensible devices 10 and the three slats 31, 32. 33 downwards until the bottom surfaces 11 If of the receiving gaps 111c of the pair of supporting heads 111 are propped against the inclined side edges 23 lb of the two joint members 211 of the pair of mounting heads 21 respectively, so that the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is parallel with the window area PT2 just as the operation of the conventional shelter wings. As shown in Figs. 4 A and 4B, the improvement of the present invention over the conventional shelter wings is that the user may further stretch out the second and third extension tubes 12, 13 to enlarge the sheltering area. During parking, the user may turn all the slats 31, 32, 33 parallel to the window area PT2 to entirely block the sunshine, as shown in Fig. 4B. Besides, the user may also adjust the inclined angle of each slat 31, 32, 33 to shelter the direct sunshine and to enable the passenger to view outside. As shown in Fig.4A, all the slats 31, 32, 33 are positioned horizontally and parallelly that the surrounding in front of the window area PT2 is visible to the passenger through the intervals between those thin slats 31, 32, 33. In the meanwhile, portion of the sunshine is shaded by the slats 31, 32, 33 from shining upon the passenger's face.
Please referring to Figs. 5 to 9, a sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of a passenger transportation according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. As shown in
Fig. 5, two identical windshield shelter assemblies A10 are mounted on the right and left portions of the front windshield Cl of a car. Each windshield shelter assembly A10 comprises a mounting device A20 and a blind device A30 which has a plurality of slats A31 rotatably and parallelly mounted on the mounting device A20.
The mounting device A20 comprises a mounting rod A21 and a wing frame A22 mounted on the mounting rod A21. A connecting end of the mounting rod A21 is rotatably mounted to one of the top corner, the right corner or the left corner, of the front windshield Cl in the usual manner as that of the conventional shelter wing mounted on the upper portion of the front windshield Cl. The mounting rod A21, as shown in Fig. 5, is extended to the medial upper portion of the front windshield Cl where a clip-fit catch A211, as the well known manner, is affixed for holding the mounting rod A21 in horizontal position. The wing frame A22 includes a horizontal top member A221 having a longitudinal casing hole A220 which is rotatably casing with the mounting rod A21 so as to mount the wing frame A22 in position. Two side members A222, A223 are extended from the two ends of the top member A221 for spacedly mounting the slats A31 of the blind device A30 in parallel position. A recess A224 is provided near the free end of the top member A221 so that a portion of the mounting rod A21 is exposed there for connecting with the clip-fit catch A211. An inner side of each side member A222, A223 has a plurality of holding holes A225 and stoppers A226 which are protruded adjacent to the holding holes A225 respectively.
The slats A31 of the blind device A30 are thin blades made of rigid material, such as plastic or wooden blades, as shown in Fig. 6. One side of each slat is extended from two ends thereof to protrude two end pivots A32 respectively. Each slat A31 is mounted to the wing frame A22 by pivotally and rotatably inserting the two end pivots A32 thereof into two of the holding holes A225 provided on the two side members A222 and A223 respectively for spacedly and parallelly holding in position. Therefore, when the slats are swinging downward, the bottom sides of the slats A31 are stopped and supported by abutting to the stoppers A226 respectively. As shown in Figs. 7 A, 7B and 8, both the top member A221 and the mounting rod A21 provide a frictional configuration, in which two opposing sections of arcuate jutting teeth A212 are protruded on an outer circumference of the mounting rod A21 and two opposing sections of arcuate protruding teeth A227 are protruded on an inner circumference of the casing hole A220 of the horizontal top member A221. The jutting teeth A212 of the mounting rod A21 and the protruding teeth A227 of the casing hole A220 will be engaged with each other when the top member A221 is trend to rotate, so that the engagement of the jutting teeth A212 and the protruding teeth A227 would prevent the top member A221 to self-rotate due to the gravity. If a'rotation force is applied to the top member A221 to overcome the friction between the jutting teeth A212 of the mounting rod A21 and the protruding teeth A227 of the top member A221, the blind device A30 can be swung downwards. As shown in Fig. 8, the windshield shelter assembly A10 is normally swung up to abut upon the ceiling of the car when it is not used. In the meantime, the four sections of the jutting teeth A212 and protruding teeth A227 are staggered and thus provides a locking effect to the mounting device A20 for holding the blind device A30 in position. When the driver or passenger of the car applied a certain force to swing the mounting device A20 and the blind device A30 downward to overcome the friction between the jutting teeth A212 and the protruding teeth A227, the mounting device A20 is rotated downwardly until the teeth A212 and A227 are staggered again. At that moment, the mounting device A20 and the blind device A30 are swung to and locked in a lower shading position abutting to the windshield, as the broken lines shown in Fig. 8.
As shown in Fig. 9, when the mounting device A20 and the blind device A30 are swung down to its lower shading position, all the slats A31 will swing down due to gravity until they are stopped and supported by the stoppers A226 respectively. In that lower position, the slats A31 are positioned horizontally and parallelly that the surrounding in front of the windshield is visible to the driver through the intervals between those thin slats A31. In the meanwhile, portion of the sunshine is shaded by the slats from shining upon the driver's or the front passenger's face.
As shown in Fig. 8, when the mounting device A20 and the blind device A30 are swung up to its upper position, the slats A31 will rotate forward to overlap with each other so as to provide as much room as possible above the driver's or the front passenger's head.
In order to provide more shading area to the windshield, an additional second windshield shelter unit AlOa is connected to the first windshield shelter assembly A10 as disclosed above, as shown in Figs. 5, 8 and 9. The second windshield shelter unit AlOa comprises a second mounting device A20a which has two side pieces A21a, A22a pivotally connected to the two free ends of the two side members A222, A223 of the first windshield shelter assembly 10, and a second blind device A30a which includes a plurality of slats A3 la mounted horizontally and spacedly between the two side pieces A21a, A22a in the same mounting manner as the slats A31 mounted on the first mounting device A20. The pivotal connection between the two side pieces A21a, A22a and the two side members A222, A223 also utilizes the frictional configuration, as shown in Figs. 7A and 7B, between the top member A221 and the mounting rod A21, so as to enable the second windshield shelter unit AlOa to swing between a lower position abutting to the windshield, as shown in Fig. 8, and an upper position overlapping with the first windshield shelter assembly A10, as shown in Fig. 9. With the installment of the second windshield shelter unit AlOa, the shading area of the windshield Cl is increased so that even the steering wheel C2 can be shaded from sunshine by the second windshield shelter unit AlOa. Accordingly, the face and the hands of the driver can both be shaded from the radiation of sunshine.
It is worth to mention that the unshaded lower portion of the windshield Cl can merely permit the sunshine directing to the instrument panel C3 of the car, as shown in Fig. 9. When the sun is located horizontally to the car, during sunrise or sunset, the faint and gentle sunshine is harmless to the driver or passengers. Furthermore, the aforesaid windshield shelter assembly A10 and unit AlOa can also apply to the back windshield for shading the sunshine from the back of the car.
To the side window C4 of the car, as shown in Figs. 10 to 13, a window shelter assembly A 10' is installed. The window shelter assembly A10' comprises a mounting device A20' and a blind device A30'. The mounting device A20' includes a case A21' and a hanging unit A22' which is a S-shaped hanger with one thin upper U-shaped end firmly hanged on the top edge of the side window C4 and the other lower U-shaped end extended on the inner side of the side window C4. The case A21' is horizontally hanged and affixed to the inner side of the car door C5. The blind device A30' comprises a plurality of slats A31' which are made of thin plastic or wooden material and connected spacedly and parallelly by means of transparent thread, such as the fishing thread, in the usual manner. The blind device A30' further comprises a rigid top frame A32' and a U-shaped slat hanger A33' which is connected on the top frame A32' for hooking with the lower U-shaped end of the hanging unit A22' when the blind device A30' is extended to cover the window C4.
Since the side window C4 has an slant side, as shown in Fig. 12, the slats A31' have different length wherein the uppermost and the bottom slats A31' have the shortest and the longest length respectively while the other intermediate slats A31' increase their length one by one. The length of the case A21' is slightly longer than the longest bottom slat A31' so that all the slats A31' can be collected within the case A21' while they are gathering together, as shown in Fig. 11. Two linking threads A34', A35' spacedly link the slats A31' together in parallel manner by penetrating a central portion of each slat.
An operating device A40' is equipped with the blind device A30 for adjusting the angle of the slats A31' simultaneously, which comprises an operating thread unit A41' and an operating button A42'. The operating thread unit A41' includes an endless transparent thread A411' positioned between the two linking threads A34' and A35' for encircling all the slats A31' and a plurality of transverse threads A412' connected between the two sides of the endless thread A411' and positioned aboveneath and underneath of each slat A31', as shown in Figs. 10 and 13. The operating button A42' is a round gear positioned at the bottom of the case A21', in which the lower portion of the operating button A42' is exposed through a bottom opening A211' provided at the respective position of the case A21 ' for operation. The bottom side of the endless thread A411 ' is affixed to the operating button A42', as shown in Fig. 13, and the top side of the endless thread A411' encircles the top frame A32'. Thus, when the driver or passenger rotates the operating button A42', by altering the angle of each slat A31' simultaneously, the slats A31' can be adjusted to be positioned horizontally to enable vision, inclined outwardly, inclined inwardly, or positioned vertically to entirely cover the window C4.
With the installation of the window shelter assembly A10' to the side window C4, one can lift the blind device A30' up and hang the slat hanger A33' to the hanger unit A22' so as to extend the blind device A30' for sunshine shading. Moreover, when the window C4 moves down, the blind device A30' will move down simultaneously to enable air circulation, as shown in Fig. 10. It is worth to mention that the window shelter assembly A10' according to the present invention can be built-in the car construction, such as the car doors, and also be installed to the back windshield C6, as illustrated in Fig. 14.
Figs. 15A and 15B illustrates an alternative mode of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to a third preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which the mounting member 212 of each mounting head 21 is mounted on the end edge of a conventional shelter wing 40 by means of an adapter 24, in which the shelter wing 40 is foldably installed at the edge of the window area PT2 such as the front windshield. When the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is not used, it can be contracted to reduce it size and folded upwardly to overlap with the shelter wing 40 to provide as much room as possible above the driver or passenger's head, as shown in Fig. 15 A. When the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is used, the user may swing the shelter wing 40 as well as the two extensible devices 10 and the slats 31, 32, 33 down towards the front windshield PT2, as shown in Fig. 15B.
Fig. 16 illustrates the situation of having a pair of sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention mounted to the two shelter wings 40 of the front windshield PT2, in which the rear view mirror 50 is attached to the front windshield PT2 by means of an universal ball joint 51 , so that the two shelter wings 40 can be extended to in touch with each other for avoiding any sunshine penetrating between the two shelter wings 40. When the two shelter wings 40 are swung down, the user may adjust the position of the rear view mirror 50 through the ball joint 51 to dodge the shelter wings 40.
The sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention not only is adapted to installed at the front windshield or the rear windshield of an automobile as disclosed above, but also is capable of installing at the side window PT3 of the automobile, as shown in Figs. 1 A and 17B. Fig. 17A illustrates the situation of the sunshine shelter apparatus of the present invention which is folded upwardly to the ceiling PTl when it is not used. Due to the fact that the side window PT3 is almost perpendicular to the ceiling PTl, as shown in Fig. 17B, when the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus is in use, the two extensible devices 10 is folded downwards until the bottom surfaces 11 If of the receiving gaps 111c of the pair of supporting heads 111 are propped against the horizontal edges 213a of the two joint member 211 of the pair of the mounting heads 21 respectively.
Please referring to Figs. 18 to 20, a windshield shelter assembly A100 according to a fourth preferred embodiment is illustrated, which can be installed to the front or back windshield and comprises a mounting device A200 and a blind device A300. The mounting device A200 includes a plurality of rails A210, A220, A230 made of resilient material, which are installed to the two sides and a central portion of the windshield C7 and extended upward to the ceiling C8 of a car. Each side rail A210, A220 has an interior sliding chamber A240 and an inner side slot A250 extended along the length of the rail. The central rail A230 has two interior sliding chambers A240 and two side slots A250 located on the its sides respectively. The blind device A300 comprises a plurality of slats A310 spacedly and parallelly mounted between the two side rails A210, A220 and the central rail A230 in order to form a right and a left section. The right and the left sections can be operated separately. The two ends of each slat A310 connect with two sliding units A320 respectively. Each sliding unit A320 includes a circular sliding block A340 and a polygonal neck A350 connected between the sliding block A340 and the respective end of the slat A310. Four linking threads A360 are connected to the sides of the slats A310 respectively for spacedly linking together.
The slats A310 are mounted to the mounting device A200 by casing the outer sliding blocks A340 in the interior sliding chambers A240 of the side rails A210, A220 and the central rail A230 respectively. The polygonal necks A350 have a size slightly smaller than the slots A250 and are positioned along the slots A250 respectively for guiding the slats A310 to prevent self-rotation. Please referring to Fig. 20, the slats A310 are mounted horizontally between the rails A210, A220, A230, in which the sliding blocks A340 are in touch with each other for maintaining the interval between the slats, and are casing in the sliding chambers A240 for enabling easy sliding along the rails. When the blind device A300 is pushed upward to slide to the ceiling C8 position, the horizontally arrayed slats A310 can reduce the thickness of the blind device A300 so as to provide as much room as possible above the driver's or passengers' head. If the driver or the passenger would like to alter the angles of the slats A310, he or she merely needs to apply a turning force to rotate the slats A310. The necks A350 can be forced to turn an angle so as to enable the slats A310 to be inclined outwardly or inwardly or positioned vertically to cover the windshield while parking.
The present invention shall neither let the radiation of the sunshine attack people nor hidden the field of vision of the passengers that the conventional curtain configuration and tinting glasses did. When the shelter assembly applies to substitute the curtain configurations of land, sea and air transportation' window area, the passengers can maintain their field of vision, in the meantime, and shade the radiation of sunshine from reaching them by positioning the slats of the blind device horizontally. If the passengers want to sleep or to shut off all kinds of outdoor lighting, they can merely rotate all the slats to lie flat in order to entirely cover the window area, so that neither sunshine nor any other light can leak in to disturb the passengers. The present invention is specially good for long journey night buses and night trains.
With the installation of the sunshine shelter apparatus according to the present invention to a passenger transportation, its most window area is shaded as integral curtains to stop intrusion of sun radiation on all window area, and thus the present invention not only does help to human's health but also consumes less energy on air condition. Besides, the interior of a vehicle can be shaded to prevent direct sun heating that the vehicle may maintain a lower interior temperature under sunshine. Besides, the extensible sunshine shelter apparatus not only can also be adjusted to shelter the entire window area from sunshine while parking or desired by the passengers can be adjusted to shelter only a top portion of the window area.

Claims

What is Claimed is:
1. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, comprising a plurality of shelter assemblies mounted on a windshield of the passenger transportation respectively, in which each of said shelter assemblies comprises
a mounting device installed to a framework of each respective window area and
a blind device having a plurality of slats mounting parallelly and rotably on said mounting device, wherein said slats of said blind device are adjustable for disposing angle, extended to cover the respective window area and gathered for lapping together.
2. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 1, in which two identical shelter assemblies are installed to a right and left portion of the windshield of the passenger transportation, wherein said mounting device of each of said windshield shelter assemblies comprises a mounting rod and a wing frame mounted on said mounting rod; said mounting rod being rotatably mounted to one of two top corner of the windshield and being extended to a medial upper portion of the windshield; said wing frame including a horizontal top member which has a longitudinal casing hole for rotatably casing with said mounting rod so as to mount said wind frame in position, and two side members extended from two ends of said top member for spacedly mounting said slats of said blind device in parallel position; moreover, two inner sides of said two side members each having a plurality of holding holes, one side of each said slat extended from its two ends to protrude a pivot so that said slats are mounted to said mounting device by pivotally and rotatably inserting said two end pivots into said holding holes of same level on said two side members respectively for spacedly and parallelly holding in position.
3. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 2, in which said two side members of said mounting device further comprises a plurality of stoppers which are protruded adjacent to said holding holes respectively, said stoppers being just positioned underneath said slats respectively so as to stop and support said slats by abutting to their bottom sides when the slats are swinging downward.
4. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 2, in which said top member of said mounting device further comprises a recess provided near the free end of said top member so that portion of said mounting rod is exposed there for connecting with a clip-fit catch installed to said medial portion of a top side of the windshield.
5. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 3, in which said casing connection between said top member and said mounting rod utilizes a frictional configuration wherein an outer circumference of said mounting rod forming two opposing sections of arcuate jutting teeth and an inner circumference of said casing hole of said horizontal top member also forming two opposing sections of arcuate protruding teeth, so that an additional rotating force must be applied to said mounting device when said jutting teeth sand said protruding teeth are in contact in order to overcome the friction therebetween, and thus said blade device is firmly held in an upper and a lower shading positions abutting upon the ceiling of a passenger transportation and the windshield respectively.
6. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 5, further comprising an addition second windshield shelter unit which is connected to said first windshield shelter assembly and comprises a second mounting device which has two side pieces pivotally connected two free ends of said two side members of said first windshield shelter assembly, and a second blind device which includes a plurality of slats mounted horizontally and spacedly between said two side pieces; whereby said second windshield shelter unit is able to swing between a lower position abutting to the windshield and an upper position overlapping with said first windshield shelter assembly.
7. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 1, in which said mounting device of said shelter assembly comprises a case and a hanging unit which is a S-shaped hanger with one thin upper U-shaped end firmly hanged on the top edge of the respective window and an other lower U-shaped end extended on an inner side of the window; said case being horizontally hanged and affixed to said inner side of the window framework; said slats of said blind device further comprising a rigid top frame and a U-shaped slat hanger which is connected on said top frame for hooking with said lower U-shaped end of said hanging unit when said blind device is extended to cover the window.
8. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 7, in which said slats each having a different length wherein said toppest and bottom slats have the shortest and the longest length respectively while said other intermediate slats increase their length one by one, wherein the length of said case is slightly longer than said longest bottom slat so that all said slats can be collected within said case while they are gathering together.
9. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 7, in which said blind device further comprises a predetermined number of linking thread spacedly link the slats together in parallel form by penetrating said slats.
10. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 9, further comprising an operating device which is equipped with said blind device for adjusting the angle of said slats simultaneously and comprises an operating thread unit and an operating button; wherein said operating thread unit includes an endless thread positioned parallel to said linking thread for encircling all said slats and a pluraUty of transverse threads connected between two sides of said endless thread and positioned aboveneath and underneath of each said slat, said operation button being a round gear positioned at the bottom of said case with its lower portion exposing through a bottom opening provided at the respective position of said case for operation, the bottom side of said endless thread being affixed to said operating button while the top side of said endless thread encircles said top frame, so that when the driver or passenger rotates said operating button, said slats can be adjusted to be positioned horizontally to enable vision, inclined outwardly, inclined inwardly, or positioned vertically to entirely cover the window area by altering the angle of each said slat simultaneously.
11. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 1, in which said shelter assemblies comprises
a pair of extensible devices, in which each of said extensible devices comprises a first extension tube and at least a second extension tube coaxially connected end to end together, said first extension tube having an inner diameter larger than an outer diameter of said second extension tube, so that said pair of second extension tubes are capable of slidably inserting into said pair of first extension tubes respectively, a top end of each said first extension tube being firmly connected with a supporting head, a bottom end of each said first extension tube providing a first stopper to prevent said second extension tube from entirely stretching out from said first extension tube, each said first extension tube having a first air hole thereon and further comprising a first holding member which is firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said first extension tube, a top end of each said second extension tube being firmly connected with a first stopping head which has an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said first extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective first extension tube and said enlarged stub, a bottom end of each said second extension tube providing a second stopper to prevent each said second extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, each said second extension tube having a second air hole thereon and further comprising a second holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of said second extension tube;
said mounting device, which is hingedly jointed with said pair of supporting heads of said pair of first extension tubes, for spacedly mounting said pair of extensible devices in parallel manner to an upper position, adjacent to said window area, of said passenger transportation; and
said blinding device further comprising at least two thin and light slats, in which said two slats are rotatably mounted between said two pairs of holding members which are attached to said bottom end portions of said pair of first extension tubes and said pair of second extension tubes respectively, wherein said slats are mounted on different planes, so that when said second pair of extension tubes are contracted within said pair of first extension tubes, said slats are overlapped together.
12. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 11, in which said mounting device comprises a pair of mounting heads firmly affixed to said upper position of said passenger transportation, wherein each said mounting head has a vertical joint member extended downwardly, each of said joint members having a vertical rear side wall, a vertical front side wall, a trapezoid bottom end which defines a narrowed horizontal edge and two inclined side edges, a through hole being formed on each said joint member at a predetermined height, wherein each of said supporting heads has two parallel joint wings extended upwardly to define a receiving gap therebetween, each said joint wing having a vertical elongated hole thereon, a width of said receiving gap being slightly smaller than a thickness of said joint member, so that each said joint member is capable of inserting into each said receiving gap and being pressed between said two wings until said horizontal edge is propped against a bottom surface of said receiving gap, each said mounting head further comprising a bolt penetrated through said through hole and said two elongated holes of said two joint wings, and a nut connected to an threaded end of said bolt, so as to firmly connected said pair of supporting heads with said pair of mounting heads respectively.
13. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 11, in which each said slat has two cylindrical plugs coaxially protruded from two ends of said slat, and that each said holding member has a circular receiving socket having a diameter equal to said respective plug, so that each said slat is rotatably mounted between each said pair of holding members by inserting said two plugs of each said slat into said two receiving sockets of each said pair of holding members.
14. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 13, in which each said plug provides a plurality of longitudinal tiny teeth thereon, each said receiving socket having a plurality of longitudinal tiny engaging teeth provided thereon for engaging with said teeth of said plug which is inserted into said receiving socket, so that each said slat is firmly held in position by means of an engagement friction defined between said teeth of each said plug and said engaging teeth of each said receiving socket unless a rotating force is applied to each said slat to overcome said engagement friction.
15. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 12, in which each said slat has two cylindrical plugs coaxially protruded from two ends of said slat, and that each said holding member has a circular receiving socket having a diameter equal to said respective plug, so that each said slat is rotatably mounted between each said pair of holding members by inserting said two plugs of each said slat into said two receiving sockets of each said pair of holding members.
16. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 15, in which each said plug provides a plurality of longitudinal tiny teeth thereon, each said receiving socket having a plurality of longitudinal tiny engaging teeth provided thereon for engaging with said teeth of said plug which is inserted into said receiving socket, so that each said slat is firmly held in position by means of an engagement friction defined between said teeth of each said plug and said engaging teeth of each said receiving socket unless a rotating force is applied to each said slat to overcome said engagement friction.
17. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 11, in which said first and second stoppers are in ring shaped, wherein each said first stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube, an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube, and a first enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding first extension tube for retaining said corresponding first holding member, and that each said second stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube for retaining said corresponding second holding member, and that each said first stopping head has a shank inserted into said top end of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter equal to said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube.
18. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 12, in which said first and second stoppers are in ring shaped, wherein each said first stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube, an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube, and a first enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding first extension tube for retaining said corresponding first holding member, and that each said second stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube for retaining said corresponding second holding member, and that each said first stopping head has a shank inserted into said top end of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter equal to said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube.
19. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 14, in which said first and second stoppers are in ring shaped, wherein each said first stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube, an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube, and a first enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding first extension tube for retaining said corresponding first holding member, and that each said second stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube for retaining said corresponding second holding member, and that each said first stopping head has a shank inserted into said top end of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter equal to said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube.
20. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 16, in which said first and second stoppers are in ring shaped, wherein each said first stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube, an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube, and a first enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding first extension tube for retaining said corresponding first holding member, and that each said second stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube for retaining said corresponding second holding member, and that each said first stopping head has a shank inserted into said top end of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter equal to said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube.
21. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 11, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third stopper to prevent .each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
22. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 12, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third stopper to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
23. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 14, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third stopper to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
24. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 16, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third stopper to prevent >each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device fiirther comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
25. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 17, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has a shank inserted into said top end of said third extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third ring shaped stopper which has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said third extension tube, so as to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, and that said ring shaped second stopper further has an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said third extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
26. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 18, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has a shank inserted into said top end of said third extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third ring shaped stopper which has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said third extension tube, so as to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, and that said ring shaped second stopper further has an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said third extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
27. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 19, in which each said extensible device fiirther comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has a shank inserted into said top end of said third extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third ring shaped stopper which has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said third extension tube, so as to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, and that said ring shaped second stopper fiirther has an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said third extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device fiirther comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
28. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 20, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has a shank inserted into said top end of said third extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third ring shaped stopper which has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said third extension tube, so as to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, and that said ring shaped second stopper further has an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said third extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube fiirther comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
29. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 11, in which each said mounting head is affixed to an interior ceiling of said passenger transportation.
30. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 11, in which each said mounting head is mounted on an end edge of a shelter wing of a front windshield of said passenger transportation by means of an adapter.
31. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 1, in which said mounting device includes a plurality of rails, made of resilient material, which are installed to two sides of the window area and extended upward to the ceiling of the passenger transportation, wherein said two side rails have an interior sliding chamber and an inner side slot extended along the length of said rails respectively, said slats of said blind device being spacedly and parallelly mounted between said two side rails; said two ends of each said slat being connected with two sliding units respectively, in which each of said sliding units includes a circular sliding block and a polygonal neck connected between said sliding block and the respective end of said slat, moreover, a predetermined number of linking threads are connected to said slats respectively for spacedly linking together; whereby said slats are mounted to said mounting device by casing said outer sliding blocks in said interior sliding chambers of said side rails respectively, said polygonal necks having a size slightly smaller than said slots and being positioned along said slots respectively for guiding said slats to prevent self-rotating movement.
32. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 1, in which said mounting device includes two side rails and a central rail which are made of resilient material and are installed to the two sides and the central portion of the window area and extended upward to the ceiling of the passenger transportation, wherein each of said two side rails has an interior sliding chamber and an inner side slot extended along the length of said rail respectively and said central rail has two interior sliding chambers and two side slots located on its two sides respectively, said slats of said blind device being spacedly and parallelly mounted between said two side rails and said central rail in order to form a right and a left sections which can be operated separately, moreover, said two ends of each said slat being connected with two sliding units respectively, in which each of said sliding units includes a circular sliding block and a polygonal neck connected between said sliding block and the respective end of said slat, a predetermined number of linking threads being conne╬▒ed to said slats respectively for spacedly linking together; said slats being mounted to said mounting device by casing said outer sliding blocks in the interior sliding chambers of said side rails and said central rail respectively, said polygonal necks having a size slightly smaller than said slots and being positioned along said slots respectively for guiding said slats to prevent self-rotating movement.
33. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 11, in which said mounting device comprises a pair of mounting heads firmly affixed to said lower position of said passenger transportation, wherein each said mounting head has a vertical joint member extended downwardly, each of said joint members having a vertical rear side wall, a vertical front side wall, a trapezoid bottom end which defines a narrowed horizontal edge and two inclined side edges, a through hole being formed on each said joint member at a predetermined height, wherein each of said supporting heads has two parallel joint wings extended upwardly to define a receiving gap therebetween, each said joint wing having a vertical elongated hole thereon, a width of said receiving gap being slightly smaller than a thickness of said joint member, so that each said joint member is capable of inserting into each said receiving gap and being pressed between said two wings until said horizontal edge is propped against a bottom surface of said receiving gap, each said mounting head further comprising a bolt penetrated through said through hole and said two elongated holes of said two joint wings, and a nut connected to an threaded end of said bolt, so as to firmly connected said pair of supporting heads with said pair of mounting heads respectively.
34. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 33, in which each said slat has two cylindrical plugs coaxially protruded from two ends of said slat, and that each said holding member has a circular receiving socket having a diameter equal to said respective plug, so that each said slat is rotatably mounted between each said pair of holding members by inserting said two plugs of each said slat into said two receiving sockets of each said pair of holding members.
35. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 34, in which each said plug provides a plurality of longitudinal tiny teeth thereon, each said receiving socket having a plurality of longitudinal tiny engaging teeth provided thereon for engaging with said teeth of said plug which is inserted into said receiving socket, so that each said slat is firmly held in position by means of an engagement friction defined between said teeth of each said plug and said engaging teeth of each said receiving socket unless a rotating force is applied to each said slat to overcome said engagement friction.
36. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 33, in which said first and second stoppers are in ring shaped, wherein each said first stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube, an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube, and a first enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding first extension tube for retaining said corresponding first holding member, and that each said second stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube for retaining said corresponding second holding member, and that each said first stopping head has a shank inserted into said top end of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter equal to said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube.
37. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 35, in which said first and second stoppers are in ring shaped, wherein each said first stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube, an inner diameter equal to said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube, and a first enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding first extension tube for retaining said corresponding first holding member, and that each said second stopper has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said corresponding second extension tube for retaining said corresponding second holding member, and that each said first stopping head has a shank inserted into said top end of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diameter equal to said inner diameter of said corresponding first extension tube.
38. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 33, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third stopper to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
39. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 35, in which each said extensible device fiirther comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly connected with a second stopping head which has an enlarged stub having an outer diameter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respective second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third stopper to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device fiirther comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
40. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 36, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly conne╬▒ed with a second stopping head which has a shank inserted into said top end of said third extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diamtter at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide fri╬▒ion between an inner surface of said respe╬▒ive second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third ring shaped stopper which has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diam╬▒er of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diam╬▒er larger than said outer diam╬▒er of said third extension tube, so as to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respective first extension tube, and that said ring shaped second stopper further has an inner diameter equal to said outer diam╬▒er of said third extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely stretching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
41. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 37, in which each said extensible device further comprises a third extension tube which has an outer diameter smaller than said second extension tube adapted for slidably inserting said second extension tube, a top end of each said third extension tube being firmly conne╬▒ed with a second stopping head which has a shank inserted into said top end of said third extension tube and an enlarged stub having an outer diam╬▒er at least equal to said inner diameter of said second extension tube so as to provide friction between an inner surface of said respe╬▒ive second extension tube and said enlarged stub of said second stopping head, a bottom end of each said third extension tube providing a third ring shaped stopper which has an outer diameter fitted with said inner diameter of said corresponding second extension tube and an enlarged base ring having an outer diameter larger than said outer diameter of said third extension tube, so as to prevent each said third extension tube from entirely inserting into said respe╬▒ive first extension tube, and that said ring shaped second stopper fiirther has an inner diameter equal to said outer diam╬▒er of said third extension tube, wherein each said third extension tube is prevented from entirely str╬▒ching out form each said second extension tube by means of each said second stopper, each said third extension tube further comprising a third holding member firmly attached to a bottom end portion of each said third extension tube, and that said blinding device further comprises a third slat rotatably mounted between said pair of third holding member.
42. A sunshine shelter apparatus for a window area of a passenger transportation, as recited in claim 37, in which said extensible device further comprises three folding device attached on each of said slats respe╬▒ively, in which each of said folding device has a conne╬▒ing groove for conne╬▒ing to said slats and a shading plate hingedly conne╬▒ed to each of said conne╬▒ing groove respe╬▒ively.
PCT/US1997/003435 1997-03-05 1997-03-05 Sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation WO1998039171A1 (en)

Priority Applications (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AU19873/97A AU1987397A (en) 1997-03-05 1997-03-05 Sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation
PCT/US1997/003435 WO1998039171A1 (en) 1997-03-05 1997-03-05 Sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/US1997/003435 WO1998039171A1 (en) 1997-03-05 1997-03-05 Sunshine shelter apparatus for window area of passenger transportation

Publications (1)

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WO1998039171A1 true WO1998039171A1 (en) 1998-09-11

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WO (1) WO1998039171A1 (en)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2846282A1 (en) * 2002-10-28 2004-04-30 Webasto Systemes Carrosserie Automobile sun visor comprises two small strips able to slide between storage position near windscreen upper part and deployed position where they are coplanar and opposite windscreen upper part

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US1557388A (en) * 1923-08-01 1925-10-13 Edward B Tilden Antiglare device
US2574729A (en) * 1949-07-15 1951-11-13 Clifford C Coffman Remote-control blind operator for motor vehicles
US3412506A (en) * 1967-05-19 1968-11-26 Shiota Masayoshi Securing means for sunshade screens for automobiles or the like
US4618132A (en) * 1983-05-31 1986-10-21 Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha Rear window light screen particularly for an automobile

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US1557388A (en) * 1923-08-01 1925-10-13 Edward B Tilden Antiglare device
US2574729A (en) * 1949-07-15 1951-11-13 Clifford C Coffman Remote-control blind operator for motor vehicles
US3412506A (en) * 1967-05-19 1968-11-26 Shiota Masayoshi Securing means for sunshade screens for automobiles or the like
US4618132A (en) * 1983-05-31 1986-10-21 Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha Rear window light screen particularly for an automobile

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2846282A1 (en) * 2002-10-28 2004-04-30 Webasto Systemes Carrosserie Automobile sun visor comprises two small strips able to slide between storage position near windscreen upper part and deployed position where they are coplanar and opposite windscreen upper part
EP1415834A1 (en) 2002-10-28 2004-05-06 Webasto Vehicle Systems International GmbH Sun visor for motor vehicles

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