In one aspect, a cord retention assembly for a covering for an architectural structure may include a cord guide coupled to a shade panel of the covering that is configured to receive a corresponding cord of the covering. The cord guide may form a closed shape and may also be configured to define an entryway around at least a portion of a perimeter of the closed shape. In addition, the cord retention assembly may include at least one retention member installed relative to the cord guide such that the retention member(s) prevents the entryway of the cord guide from being rotated past the attachment location defined between the shade panel and the cord guide.

A retractable cover for architectural openings having collapsible vanes includes a support structure in the form of a sheet of material, monofilaments, tapes, ribbons, cords, or the like, supporting an upper edge of a plurality of vertically spaced, horizontally extending vanes with the lower edges of the vanes in most embodiments of the invention being connected to operating elements adapted to raise the lower edges of each vane toward the upper edges to define openings or gaps between the vanes through which vision and light can pass in an open condition of the covering. Variations of the covering do not require movement of a lower edge of a vane relative to an upper edge but simply movement of some vanes relative to other vanes. The vanes can be made of materials having different flexibilities and where more rigid materials are used, creased fold lines can be established for desired operability.

A retractable cover for architectural openings having collapsible vanes includes a support structure in the form of a sheet of material, monofilaments, tapes, ribbons, cords, or the like, supporting an upper edge of a plurality of vertically spaced, horizontally extending vanes with the lower edges of the vanes in most embodiments of the invention being connected to operating elements adapted to raise the lower edges of each vane toward the upper edges to define openings or gaps between the vanes through which vision and light can pass in an open condition of the covering. Variations of the covering do not require movement of a lower edge of a vane relative to an upper edge but simply movement of some vanes relative to other vanes. The vanes can be made of materials having different flexibilities and where more rigid materials are used, creased fold lines can be established for desired operability.

Venetian blind with horizontal slats suspended via carriers. The carriers extend through openings in the slats and include supports each supporting a slat adjacent one of the openings. The openings and the supports are arranged for providing stable support for each of the slats in at least two, mutually distinct positions. The orientations of individual slats or of subgroups of the slats can be adjusted very quickly by directly engaging the slats to be adjusted with a hand or an operating member between a limited number of predefined orientations. An orderly visual appearance can be achieved easily, even though the orientations of the slats are adjusted individually, since slats intended to be in the same orientation automatically assume mutually identical orientations.

Venetian blind with horizontal slats suspended via carriers. The carriers extend through openings in the slats and include supports each supporting a slat adjacent one of the openings. The openings and the supports are arranged for providing stable support for each of the slats in at least two, mutually distinct positions. The orientations of individual slats or of subgroups of the slats can be adjusted very quickly by directly engaging the slats to be adjusted with a hand or an operating member between a limited number of predefined orientations. An orderly visual appearance can be achieved easily, even though the orientations of the slats are adjusted individually, since slats intended to be in the same orientation automatically assume mutually identical orientations.

A window blind includes a headrail, a bottom rail, and a plurality of slats. The slats are horizontally suspended between the headrail and the bottom rail through ladder tapes. Each ladder tape has two warps, wherein an end of the warps is connected to a ladder drum, and another end thereof passes through the bottom rail to be connected thereto. When the ladder drum is rotated, the ladder tapes could be pulled smoothly, and the slats supported by the ladder tapes could be tightly closed. Whereby, the window blind could provide a good shielding effect.

A mechanical device is comprised of a master wheel assembly, one or multiple slave wheel assemblies, a control rod, a shaft assembly, as well as multiple pairs of cord holders and cords. The master and slave wheel assemblies are connected by a shaft assembly and are mounted at the edge of a top slat of a conventional Venetian blind. The master wheel assembly is driven by a control rod and provides rotational power to slave wheel assemblies through the shaft assembly. One end of the paired cords is tightened to the master and slave wheel assemblies, and the other end is tightened, with cord holders, to a user-selected slat that divides the Venetian blind into an upper and a lower region. Manual manipulating the control rod causes the master and slave wheel assemblies to make synchronic bi-directional tilting of slats in lower region of the Venetian blind without interfering operation of the Venetian blind. Combining with operation of slat-adjusting system of Venetian blind, this device enables selective control of slat tilting in lower and upper regions of Venetian blind for privacy and maximum natural lighting adjustments.

A window shade includes a top box, a bottom bar and a shade connected between the top box and the bottom bar. Multiple wire units extend through holes of the shade. Each wire unit includes two connection wires and multiple cross wires which are spaced and transversely connected between the connection wires. Each wire unit has an operation wire for controlling the shade, the operation wire alternatively extends between the cross wires along the longitudinal direction of the shade. The holes in the shade each include two passages formed at two inner ends thereof. The connection wires extend through the two passages. At least one tooth extends from each of two insides of each of the holes and located between the two passages. When the wire unit is pulled outward, the cross wires are restricted by the teeth so that the operation wire is restricted from being pull out.

A window shade includes a top box, a bottom bar and a shade connected between the top box and the bottom bar. Multiple wire units extend through holes of the shade. Each wire unit includes two connection wires and multiple cross wires which are spaced and transversely connected between the connection wires. Each wire unit has an operation wire for controlling the shade, the operation wire alternatively extends between the cross wires along the longitudinal direction of the shade. The holes in the shade each include two passages formed at two inner ends thereof. The connection wires extend through the two passages. At least one tooth extends from each of two insides of each of the holes and located between the two passages. When the wire unit is pulled outward, the cross wires are restricted by the teeth so that the operation wire is restricted from being pull out.

A covering for an architectural feature having generally horizontal vane elements extending between generally inner and outer vertical support members that can adjust and control the amount and quality of light transmitted through the covering is described. In one embodiment, the covering has elongate tapes as vertical support members that have a width substantially less than the length of the vane elements, and adjacent inner and adjacent outer elongate tapes are separated by a distance. In one embodiment, the vane elements are multi-layered, cellular vanes. The elongated multilayered vanes may include elongate stiffeners that may be associated with, coupled to, and or inserted within pockets formed in, the multilayered vanes. Also disclosed is a method of operation and manufacture.