US2860699A - Bottomrail assembly - Google Patents

Description

k Nov. 18, 1958 w. H. BRAUN 2,860,699

' BOTTOMRAILV ASSEMBLY Filed Feb. '7, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 32 3/ I Q INVENTORZ 27 27 WILLIAM H. BRAUN ATTYS.

Nov. 18, 1958 w. H. BRAUN BOTTOMRAIL ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 7, 1957 Flfil I.

INVENTOR WILLIAM H. BRAUN BY WW ATTYS.

'a loop which supports the bottomrail.

is lowered. formed with suflicient clearance between it and the bot- BOTTOMRAIL ASSEMBLY William H. Brann, Elkins Park, Pa., assignor to Corey- McFall Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application F ehruary 7, 1957, SerialNo. 638,854

4 Claims. (Cl. 160-173) The present invention relates to bottomrail assemblies for Venetian blinds, and has particular application to assemblies embodying hollow metallic bottomrails.

The conventional bottomrail construction for Venetian blinds embodies fasteners for securing the lower terminal portions of the tape to the bottomrail and a tape cover plate mounted to overlie the fasteners. In other constructions, the free ends of the tape strips on the inside and the outside of the blindare fastened together to form A tape cover plate frictionally engages the tape with the rail to secure the same against inadvertent displacement. In either construction, the tape must be securely fastened to sus- -pend 'the bottomrail above the window sill with sufficient clearance to prevent damage to the sill when the blind In addition, the tape cover plate must be cover plates to the bottomrail they frequently scr-ape'the paint from the bottomrail, damaging the finish.

In-addition to the drawbacks of the conventional tape cover plates, themetallic end members of the conventional bottomrail assembly are not entirely satisfactory. The

end members, when the blind is raised and lowered,

frequently slide along the mullions or theside frames of the window. Not only are the'end members likely to :damage Ttheffinish of the mullions or side frames, but

they also cause undesirable noise.

With the foregoing in mind, the present inventionprovid'es as bottomrail assembly which is constructed to operate withoutdamaging the surface finish of the window structure.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel bottomrail assembly which affords ready mounting of the blind tapes to the bottomrail.

A further object of the present invention is to provide in a bottomrail assembly a tape clamp member which is adapted tolie flush against the bottomrail and be secured thereto without danger of damaging the finishthereof.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a bottomrail construction for Venetian blinds which supports the rail on the window sill with the tapecover clampsout of engagement with thesill.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a bottomrail assembly which is of simple mechanical structure, but which is fully eifective in operation and use.

All of the objects of the present invention and the various features and details of theconstruction and operation thereof are more fully set'forth thereinafterwith reference to the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a Venetian 2,860,699 Patented Nov. 18, 1958 ICC Mind assembly embodying the bottomrail assembly'rnade in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a view in elevation of the structure shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing the end'cover member and the tape clamp member of the assembly removed;

Fig. 4 is a detached perspective view of the end cover member;

Fig. 5 is a detached perspective view of the tape-clamp member;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 7 is an end elevational view showinga modified form of end cover membermade in'accordance with the 1 present invention;

Fig. 8'is aviewsimilarto Fig. 2 with portionsbroken away to illustrate a modified construction of the blind in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 9 is a view in inverted plan with the tapes and tape-clamp member removed of the structure shown in sistingo'f front and back strips 11, '11 interconnected by crosspieces12. Slats 13 are supported on the cross pieces "12, and a bottomrail 15 is suspended by and encloses the terminalportions of the tape strips 11, It. A cord16 passes throughregistering apertures in the slats 13 intermediate adjacent cross pieces 12 of the ladder tape it and is securedto the bottomrail '15, for example, through a cord-receiving aperture 17 .as shown in Fig. 6.

1 The bottomrailis preferably of tubularmetallic struc- .ture consistingof top and bottom walls 21 and 22 re .spectivelyand front and back side walls 23 and 24. .As shown in Fig. 3, the top and bottom walls 21 and 22 are formed to provide an ornamental appearance and the ends 'of-the'bottom rail are open as indicated at 25 in Fig. 3.

In accordance with the present invention, a tape-clamp .element 26 cooperateswith the bottomrail to secure the tape strips 11, :11to therail. The bottom wall 22 of the bottomrail 15 is formed 'with tape-receiving apertures -27, 27 to receive the terminal portion of the tape strips r11, 11 and clamping elements 32, 32 of the tape clamp As shown =-in-Fig. '5, the tape-clamp 26 comprises a dished 'body .portion '30 having a peripheral flange 31 which conforms substantially to the contour of the bottom walls-220i the bottomrail 15. Opposite. sides of the fiangeS-l are formed with resilientupward projections 32,32 which constitute the clamping elements of the clamp .26 and cooperate with :the apertures 27, 27 to .interlockor secure the terminal portions ofthe tape-strips 11, .11 to 5 and bears against the undersurface of the .upper wall 21 .ofthe bottomrail 15, as shown in Fig. 6. i In accordance with anotherfeature of the invention,

the open en'd25 of the bottomrail is covered by an end cover member 'orcap 40. Preferably the capis made of plastic, for other .resilient material, and comprises top a'ndbott'om walls -4L-a'nd :42 conforming to the contour of thetop and bottom walls 21 and 22of-the bottomrail,

and-side walls'43 and 44-conforminglto the side walls 23 and 24 of'the 'railr15. Anend 'wall is 'providedtatfis to close the end of the bottomrail 25 and. lend rigidity to the end cap.

As shown in Fig. 1, the end wall 45 of the cap 40 is formed with an offset portion 46 which not only serves the function of continuing the ornamental motif of the bottomrail, but also serves to provide a projecting slide portion which may travel in channels formed on the side rail or mullion of the window frame. Even in the absence of such channels the projecting portion 46 operates to cushion the bottomrail against impact against the side rail or mullion of the window frame. Thus, when the blind is raised and lowered the lateral displacement of the blind will not damage the side frame or mullion, and will not create the noisy condition of metal impinging against the window frame.

The bottom wall 42 of the cap 40, is formed with a depending bumper leg 47. As shown in Fig. 2, the leg projects sufficiently far below the bottomrail to support the rail on the sill 48 of the window sufficiently elevated to provide clearance between the sill 48 and the bottom of the tape clamp 26. This is accomplished by forming the leg 47 with a vertical dimension greater than the vertical dimension of the tape clamp body portion 30 and flange 31. Accordingly when the blind is lowered, the bottomrail may rest upon the bumper legs 47 at each end thereof without danger of damage to the sill since the bumper legs are formed of the same plastic or other resilient material which constitutes the remainder end cap 40.

A modified form of end cap is shown in Fig. 7, wherein the bumper leg 47a extends about the three walls 44a, 42a, and 43a of the end cap 40a. The lateral extensions of the leg 47a may therefore travel in channels 50, 50 mounted on the side frame or mullionof the window. By reason of the use of resilient material in fabricating the end cap, the action of the blind is silent and smooth.

The present bottomrail construction affords the mounting of pulleys or rollers within the bottomrail for use with a compound blind. In a compound blind, the cord is not secured to the bottomrail, but is anchored .at one end in the top rail of the blind, travels through the slats in the conventional manner, passes around a pair of spaced rollers in the bottomrail, upwardly through the slats in a conventional manner and then to the top rail over a pulley to constitute the actuating cord for raising and lowering the blinds. 'In a compound blind, the cord is displaced two feet for every foot of elevation or lowering desired.

Referring now to Figs. 8 to 14 inclusive, a bottomrail 55 having tape clamp member 56 securing the tapes 57 and an end cover element 58 is formed as described above. The cord 61, instead of being tied as shown in Fig. 6, is trained around a pulley 62 mounted in a bracket 63 supported in the tape clamp aperture 64. As shown in Fig. 11, the aperture 64 in the rail 55 is patterned after the apertures 27, 27 of the rail 22 shown in Fig. 3. The aperture 64 is formed by removing the bottom wall 22 intermediate the apertures 27, 27 to form an H-shaped aperture 64, which, as shown in Fig. 11, has webs 65, 65 projecting thereinto for engaging with the bracket 63.

As shown in Fig. 12, the bracket 63 comprises an elongated U-shaped member having a base 66 adapted to bear against the under-surface of the upper wall 67 of the bottomrail 55, and depending leg members 68, 68 terminating in out-turned foot portions 69, 69 adapted to bear against the under-surface of the bottom wall 70 of the bottomrail 55 adjacent the opposite ends of the aperture 64. The base 66 of the bracket is provided with an upstanding nipple 72 which is dimensioned to fit snugly within the cord-receiving aperture 73 of the top wall 67, (see Fig. The legs 68, 68 adjacent the feet 69, 69 are provided with inturned tangs74 which engage over the interior or upper surface of the webs 65, 65. The roller is mounted in the bracket 63 by depending journal pieces 75, 75 and a rivet or the like as indicated at 76.

The bracket 63 is readily snapped into position in the bottomrail, as shown in Figs. 13 and 14 by disposing the legs 68, 68 on opposite sides of the webs 65, 65, and simply pressing the bracket 63 upwardly to engage the nipple 72 within the .aperture 73 of the bottomrail. The material forming the bracket 63 is preferably thin metallic sheet material having a degree of resiliency which permits the legs 68, 68 to be displaced outwardly to allow the tangs 74 to engage behind the webs 65, 65. After the bracket 63 is properly installed, the tapes 57 are mounted in proper position in the aperture 65 and the tape clamp 56 engaged in the aperture 64 to complete the assembly of the blind.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have been herein illustrated and described, it is not intended to limit the invention to such disclosure, but changes and modifications may be made therein and thereto within the scope of the following claims. For example, in lieu of forming the end cap entirely of plastic or other resilient material, the end cap may be formed of metal, and a plastic or rubber bumper leg may be mounted on the metal end cap to provide the desired support which will not mar the finish of the window sill. Likewise, the projection 46 of the end cap 40 may be of plastic or may be provided with plastic inserts.

I claim:

1. In a bottomrail assembly for Venetian blinds and the like having tapes and comprising .a tubular bottomrail having a top wall and a bottom wall, means defining cord-receiving apertures in said top wall, wall means defining at least one tape-receiving aperture in said bottom wall, a roller, and a bracket mounting said roller and releasably mounted in said bottomrail intermediate said cord-receiving aperture and said tape-receiving aperture, said bracket comprising a generally U-shaped member having a base mounted flush against said top wall, a hollow nipple adapted to be received in said cordreceiving aperture to anchor the bracket against longitudinal displacement in said bottomrail, and leg members projecting normal to said base and terminating in engagement with said bottom wall adjacent said tape-receiving aperture to releasably secure said bracket to said bottomrail, a tape clamp member releasably engaged with said bottomrail in registry with said tape-receiving aperture, said clamp member comprising a body portion formed to lie flush against and depend below the undersurface of said bottom wall adjacent said tape-receiving aperture to cover the same and enclose said bracket, and clamping elements for seating in said tape-receiving apertures and biased outwardly into divergent relationship toward the wall means defining said aperture and operable to interlock the terminal portions of the tapes with said bottomrail upon insertion of said tapes between said clamping elements and said wall means.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said leg portions of the bracket are provided with out-turned foot portions adapted to engage against the bottom surface of said bottom wall and including tangs on said leg portions adapted to engage over the upper surface of said bottom wall adjacent said aperture to prevent inadvertent downward displacement of said bracket.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said cordreceiving apertures are of generally H-configuration having webs projecting thereinto intermediate the legs of said bracket at opposite ends thereof, and wherein further said bracket member is formed of resilient material to afford outward flexure of said legs to permit passage of said tangs over the webs of said aperture for engagement therebehind.

4. In a bottomrail assembly for Venetian blinds and the like having tapes and comprising a tubular bottomrail having a top wall and a bottom wall, means defining cord-receiving apertures in said top wall and wall means defining at least one aperture in said bottom wall underlying said oord-receiving aperture, a tape clamp member releasably engaged with said bottomrail in registry with said tape-receiving aperture, said clamp member comprising a body portion formed to cover said aperture in the bottom wall, a roller, and a bracket mounting said roller and disposed in said bottomrail intermediate said cord-receiving aperture and said bottom wall aperture, said bracket comprising a generally U-shaped member having a base mounted flush against said top wall, a hollow nipple adapted to be received in said cord-receiving aperture to anchor the bracket against longitudinal displacement in said bottomrail, and leg members projecting normal thereto and terminating in engagement with said bottom wall adjacent said aperture therein.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Lawson et a1 Nov. 30, 1937 Junkunc Ian. 1, 1946 Clark et a1. Aug. 28, 1951 Bruner Dec. 18, 1951 Lorentzen Nov. 17, 1953 Wilson Ian. 7, 1955 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 2,860,699 November 18, 1958 William H, Braun It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

In the grant, lines 2 and 12, and in the heading to the printed specification, lines 3 and 4, name of assignee, for "Corey-McFall Oompan each occurrence, read m Carey-McFall Company Signed and sealed this 17th day of March 1959.

EAL) test:

XL H, AXLINE ROBERT C. WATSON eating Officer Conmissioner of Patents

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