Suspension Unit for a Curtain Device

Abstract

Suspension unit for a curtain device with at least one curtain guide and at least one curtain, that is suspended on a plurality of the suspension units, with a guide element for guiding the suspension unit in the curtain guide. The suspension unit has a body to which a curtain suspension for attaching a curtain to the suspension unit, and the guide element, are connected. At least the body consists of at least two different material sections which differ in terms of their hardness.

Claims

1. A suspension unit for a curtain device, comprising a body to which is connected a curtain suspension for attaching a curtain to the suspension unit, and a guide element for guiding the suspension unit in a curtain guide of the curtain device, wherein the body has a hard material section and a soft material section, which differ in their hardness, the hard material section having an interior space which is lined, or at least partially filled, with the soft material section.

2. The suspension unit according to claim 1, wherein the body has a frame with lateral supports, which belong to the hard material section, and wherein interim spaces between the supports are covered or filled with the soft material section at least on opposite sides of the body.

3. The suspension unit according to claim 2, wherein an interior space of the frame between the supports is covered or at least partially filled with the soft material section.

4. The suspension unit according to claim 1, wherein the soft material section protrudes beyond the hard material section at least in direction of movement of the suspension unit in the curtain guide.

5. The suspension unit according to claim 1, wherein the body receives the guide element in a floating way.

6. The suspension unit according to claim 1, wherein the guide element has a connection or a shaft through a region of the body filled with a soft material.

7. The suspension unit according to claim 6, wherein a shaft bearing or a shaft bearing sleeve made of a hard material is provided in the region of the body filled with the soft material.

8. The suspension unit according to claim 1, wherein provided as guide element is a sliding element with gliders, which is borne in a sliding way on the curtain guide, or a roller device with rollers, which is borne in a rollable way on the curtain guide, and the guide element is composed of a hard material on its outer side which abuts the curtain guide.

9. The suspension unit according to claim 8, wherein the sliding element or the roller device has an inner volume with a soft material.

10. The suspension unit according to claim 1, wherein provided as guide element at a first end of the body is a sliding element, which is borne in a movable way in the body.

11. The suspension unit according to claim 8, wherein the gliders are rigidly disposed on a connection, which extends through a region of the body filled with a soft material.

12. The suspension unit according to claim 1, wherein the body has at a second end a bearing made of the soft material section for movable bearing of the curtain suspension.

13. The suspension unit according to claim 1, wherein a substance of the hard material section consists of polyoxymethylene (POM), polypropylene (PP), or polyamide (PA) and a substance of the soft material section consists of caoutchouc.

14. A body for a suspension unit for a curtain device according to claim 1, which consists of at least two different material sections that differ in their hardness.

15. A curtain device with at least one curtain guide and at least one curtain which is suspended on a plurality of suspension units with a guide element (3) for guiding of the suspension units in the curtain guide, the suspension units being designed according to claim 1.

Description

[0023] Advantageous embodiments of the invention are presented in the following with reference to the drawings, which serve merely explanatory purposes and are not to be interpreted in a limiting way. Features of the invention disclosed by the drawings should be considered as belonging to the disclosure of the invention individually and in any combination. In the drawings:

[0024] FIG. 1 shows a three-dimensional view of a first embodiment of a suspension unit with a roller device according to the invention,

[0025] FIG. 2 shows a three-dimensional partial view of the first embodiment of the suspension unit according to FIG. 1,

[0026] FIG. 3 shows a longitudinal section through a first longitudinal axis through the suspension unit according to FIG. 1,

[0027] FIG. 4 shows a longitudinal section through a longitudinal axis, orthogonal to the first longitudinal axis, through the suspension unit according to FIG. 1,

[0028] FIG. 5 shows an exploded view of a body of the first embodiment of the suspension unit according to FIG. 1,

[0029] FIG. 6 shows a three-dimensional view of a second embodiment of a suspension unit with a first sliding element according to the invention,

[0030] FIG. 7 shows a longitudinal section through the suspension unit according to FIG. 6,

[0031] FIG. 8 shows a three-dimensional view of a third embodiment of a suspension unit with a second sliding element according to the invention,

[0032] FIG. 9 shows a longitudinal section through the suspension unit according to FIG. 8,

[0033] FIG. 10 shows an exploded view of a body of the third embodiment of the suspension unit according to FIG. 8 and

[0034] FIG. 11 shows a three-dimensional view of a fourth embodiment of a suspension unit with a roller device according to the invention,

[0035] FIG. 12 shows a longitudinal section through a first longitudinal axis through the suspension unit according to FIG. 11,

[0036] FIG. 13 shows a longitudinal section through a longitudinal axis, orthogonal to the first longitudinal axis, through the suspension unit according to FIG. 11,

[0037] FIG. 14 shows an exploded view of a body of the fourth embodiment of the suspension unit according to FIG. 11.

[0038] FIGS. 1 to 14 show different embodiments of a suspension unit for a curtain device according to the present invention with different guide elements, which has a body 1, a curtain suspension 2 for attachment of a curtain to the body 1 and a guide element 3 for guiding the suspension unit in a curtain guide of the curtain device. The guide element 3 connects to a first, upper end of the body 1 and the curtain suspension 2 connects to a second, lower end of the body 1. The body 1 consists of at least two different material sections, which differ in their hardness. The body is produced in an injection molding method, for example. Materials or substances are used as described above. The same reference numerals shall be used for comparable elements in the different embodiments with comparable functions. In particular the bodies 1 of the different embodiments have a similar structure, so that its description can be referred to for all embodiments.

[0039] FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of a suspension unit for a curtain device according to the present invention with a guide element in the form of a roller device. The structure of the body 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. The body 1 is composed of a hard material section 20, a soft material section 30 and a shaft bearing sleeve 12 of hard material. The hard material section 20 and the soft material section 30 can each be composed of a plurality of regions of a hard or a soft material or such a substance. Although in the exploded view the individual parts are shown as separate elements, in order to render the details more visible, the body is however designed as one piece.

[0040] The hard material section 20 is designed as frame and has lateral supports 4 at four edges of the hard material section. On a front and a rear side open interim spaces are formed, between the supports 4, in the form of aperture 18. The frame is open on both sides. The supports 4 are connected to one another by a terminal end 6 in the form of an arch-like bridging structure and below by a bottom element 16. Provided in the bottom element 16 is a slit or slot for introduction of the curtain suspension. In the interior between the supports 4 an interior space 17 of the frame is formed.

[0041] The soft material section 30 is designed in a precisely fitted way for the interior space 17 of the hard material section 20 and abuts on its inner sides, except in the region of the bottom element 16, which remains free of soft material. In particular the soft material section 30 has on the front and rear side an interim space filling 5, an upper soft region 11 and a central soft region 15. The interim space filling 5 penetrates between the supports of the hard material section 20. The upper soft region 11 has an axial passage 19, which extends from one side to the other side of the body in a way perpendicular to a pulling or pushing direction of the suspension unit. The central soft region 15 fills the interior space 17 approximately in the upper half of the body, so that an interim space 14 remains free in the lower half. Protruding downwardly from the central soft region 15 are extensions 13, which form a lining of the inner side of the supports 4.

[0042] The shaft bearing sleeve 12 is constituted by a sleeve with a length, so that the sleeve protrudes slightly beyond the passage 19 of the soft material section 30; for this see also FIG. 2. The shaft bearing sleeve 12 has on its circumference a multiplicity of ribs 21, which lie in grooves in the inner circumference of the passage 19.

[0043] As can be seen in FIG. 1, the interim space fillings 5 of the soft material section protrude on the front and rear side beyond the supports 4 of the hard material section. In the other regions around the circumference of the body the outside of the body is composed of hard material. On the front and the rear side of the body there is predominantly a soft material situated outside.

[0044] Inserted in the bottom element 16 of the hard material section 20 is the curtain suspension 2. On a lower end the curtain suspension has a curtain fastener 9 in the form of a ring. On the upper end an anchor element 10 is provided, which is hung in the bottom element 16 and comes to lie in the interim space 14 of the body 1. Alternatively other designs are also possible as curtain suspension, such as e.g. shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 11 to 14 or as is known from the state of the art.

[0045] Provided as guide element 3 on the upper end of the body 1 is a roller device, which has rollers 7 and a shaft 8. The shaft 8 extends through the shaft bearing sleeve 12 and disposed on both ends of the shaft 8 is one roller 7 each. The rollers 7 protrude beyond the sides of the body 1, so that they rest on a curtain guide of a curtain device and are able to be guided thereby. The rollers 7 are rotatable with respect to the body 1. The shaft 8 of the guide element 3 runs through the upper soft region 11 of the soft material section. Preferably the soft material of the upper soft region 11 is flexible in such a way that the shaft 8 is slightly movable within the soft region 11. Thus a kind of floating bearing of the shaft can take place. Alternatively, the shaft bearing sleeve can be connected to the hard material section e.g. through rigid crosspieces or ribs, so that the shaft bearing sleeve is fixed relative to the body and guides the shaft 8 in a stationary way.

[0046] If a multiplicity of suspension units are inserted in a curtain guide for guiding a curtain, these units can be moved in the usual way in a longitudinal direction of the curtain guide, for example by pulling on the curtain. The suspension unit preferably has on the body 1 laterally on the hard material section a pull cord attachment 22, however, on which a pull cord can be attached, which connects together the individual suspension units. By pulling on the cord in one direction or the other, the suspension units can be moved along the curtain guide. The pull cord attachment can be achieved e.g. by means of a clamp.

[0047] For curtain positioning the suspension units are moved along the curtain guide. Tensions, swinging movements or vibrations arising thereby are damped by means of the soft material in the body 2, as mentioned at the beginning. If the individual suspension units bump into one another, the interim space fillings 5 of the soft material of the individual suspension units hit one another, so that noise generation is reduced.

[0048] It can be seen from FIG. 2 that the shaft bearing sleeve 12 protrudes laterally beyond the upper soft region 11. The rollers 7 on the shaft 8 are thus kept spaced apart from the soft material 11, so that the rollers 8 are not braked by the soft material.

[0049] Shown in FIG. 3 is the suspension unit in a longitudinal section through the front and rear side. As described previously, the curtain suspension 2 with the anchor element 10 is hung in the bottom element 16 of the hard material section, and the shaft 8 of the roller device lies in the shaft bearing sleeve 12 in the upper soft region 11, which is covered upwardly by the terminal end 6 of the hard material frame. The interim space fillings 5 protrude beyond the front and rear side. The interior space of the hard material frame is filled at least in the upper half with soft material by means of the upper soft region 11 and the central soft region 15. The central soft region 15 passes over into the interim space fillings 5 and the extensions 13. Below the central soft region 15 an interim space 14 remains free, in which the anchor element 10 can be inserted and borne in a movable way. Despite the portion of soft material, the body has a sufficient stiffness, owing to the structure of the hard material section, in order to be able to guide a curtain in the curtain guide.

[0050] Shown in FIG. 4 is the suspension unit in a longitudinal section through the side of the body 1. The shaft 8 of the roller device extends through the shaft bearing sleeve 12, which protrudes on both sides beyond the upper soft region 11. The rollers 7 are fixed at the ends of the shaft 8 by axle caps 23. A spacing remains between the inner side of the rollers 7 and the outer side of the upper soft region 11 and also the terminal end 6. As already mentioned, the rollers can be composed of hard material on the outside and have in the interior a soft material, which e.g. abuts a shaft of hard material.

[0051] FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of a suspension unit according to the present invention which has a sliding element as guide element. The body 1 and the curtain suspension 2 correspond to those of the first embodiment as it is shown in FIGS. 1 to 5. The sliding element comprises two gliders 40, which are disposed on the body 1 on the right and the left and protrude beyond this body. The gliders 40 are designed as elements with an oval or elliptical outer circumference, with which the gliders abut on or against the curtain guide of a curtain device and are able to be shifted thereon. The gliders 40 preferably have a hard material section on the outer circumference. The gliders 40 can have a region of soft material inside.

[0052] As can be seen from FIG. 7, the gliders 40 are borne on the body 1 in the same way as the rollers 7 of the first embodiment. Reference is therefore made also to the description in this respect. The gliders 40 are disposed substantially at both ends of the shaft 8, which extends through the body 1. The shaft 8 is provided in the soft end region 11 of the body 1. The soft end region 11 can damp the movements of the gliders 40. There is a floating bearing of the gliders 40, as already explained above. Provided between the soft end region 11 and the shaft 8 is once again a shaft bearing sleeve 12 made of a hard material, so that there is good sliding ability between the hard shaft 8 and the hard shaft bearing sleeve 12 when the shaft 8 rotates in the shaft bearing sleeve 12.

[0053] The gliders 40 in this embodiment are borne in a movable way relative to the body 1. With a shifting of the suspension unit on the curtain guide, on the one hand, the gliders 40 can roll with their outer circumference on the curtain guide and thus assume an optimal position for the sliding movement. On the other hand, the body 1 with the curtain suspension 2 can be tilted relative to the curtain guide and thus can also assume an optimal position for the shifting of the suspension unit. Resulting therefrom is a simple sliding of the suspension units along the curtain guide and a reduction of the force necessary to do this.

[0054] Provided in FIGS. 8 to 10 is a third embodiment of a suspension unit according to the invention with a sliding element as guide element, which is fixed relative to the body. The body 1 is designed on its upper end in a way corresponding to the previous embodiments, and has a hard material section 20 with terminal end 6 and supports 4 and a soft material section 30 with a passage 19 in the upper region and interim space fillings 5, as previously described. In this embodiment the soft material section 30 of the body 1 extends from the upper to the lower end in the hard material section 20. At its lower end the body 1 has a flat bottom element 16, on which a curtain suspension 2 is provided in a fixed way. The curtain suspension 2 is preferably designed in one piece with the body 1 and thus belongs to the hard material section of the suspension unit. The curtain suspension 2 has a curved part protruding downward from the body 1 as curtain fastener 9, which forms a passage, so that a curtain can be attached to the curved part, for example by hooking, clipping or sewing.

[0055] As shown in FIG. 8, the sliding element has two gliders 40′, which protrude on both sides in an upper region of the body 1 and are able to rest on a curtain guide. The shape of the gliders 40′ corresponds substantially to the shape of the gliders 40 of the second embodiment. As can be seen from FIG. 10, the gliders 40′ are rigidly connected to one another through an elongated connection 44. The connection 44 is of cylindrical design, <and> has on the outer circumference a plurality of ribs 45 running in longitudinal direction. The connection is comparable to the shaft bearing sleeve 12 of the previous embodiments. Alternatively the connection 44 could also have an elongated form with an angular outer circumference.

[0056] Die connection 44 of the gliders 40′ is disposed in a torque-proof way in the passage 19 of the soft material section 30, as shown in FIG. 9. The ribs 45 engage in recesses in the circumference of the passage 19, in order to prevent a rotation of the connection 44 in the body 1. The connection 44 is preferably of hard material. Through the bearing of the connection 44 in the soft material section 30 of the body 1, the gliders 40′ are borne in a floating way relative to the body 1. With movement of the connection 44 in the material section 30 the soft material can deform in a flexible way and damp the movement of the gliders 40′.

[0057] The individual elements of the suspension unit in the form of the body 1, the curtain suspension 2 and the guide element 3 are in this embodiment rigid with respect to one another. The suspension unit is preferably produced by a two-component injection molding process, as previously described.

[0058] With a displacement of the suspension unit along the curtain guide, the suspension unit can roll away on the oval or elliptical contact surfaces of the gliders 40′ so that the suspension unit can be tilted relative to the curtain guide and can assume a smooth-running position. The movements of the suspension units along the curtain guide of the curtain device are damped by the soft material sections of the suspension units, so that noise generation is diminished and an easy adjustment of a curtain of the curtain device becomes possible.

[0059] FIGS. 11 to 14 show a fourth embodiment of a suspension unit for a curtain device according to the present invention with a guide element in the form of a roller device, comparable to the first embodiment. Structural elements with the same function are designated by the same reference numerals. The body 1 comprises a hard material section 20 and a soft material section 30. Integrated in the hard material section 20 is a shaft bearing 50, which is formed by means of cross-pieces 51 on the upper end of the hard material section 20.

[0060] The hard material section 20 acts as a frame and again has lateral supports 4 at four edges of the hard material section. The frame is open on both sides. On the front and rear side the apertures 18 are filled in by the interim space filling 5. The supports 4 are connected to one another above by a terminal end 6 and below by a bottom element 16. Provided in the bottom element 16 is a keyhole-type opening with a narrow entry region 53 and a round bearing region 54, whose diameter is greater than the width of the entry region 53. Formed in the interior between the supports 4 is the interior space 17 of the frame. The hard material section 20 has a pull cord attachment 22, to which a pull cord can be fixed which connects together the individual suspension units.

[0061] The soft material section 30 is designed for the interior space 17 of the hard material section 20 in a form-fitting way and abuts its inner sides, except in the region of the bottom element 16 over the entry region 53 and bearing region 54. The soft material section 30 has in this embodiment a gap 55, which extends parallel to the shaft bearing 50. The gap 55 runs somewhat farther than to the middle of the soft material section 30. It can also be longer, however. The gap 55 does not completely divide the soft material section 30, however. The gap 55 is situated approximately between the upper soft region 11 and the central soft region 15. Furthermore the soft material section 30 has an axial passage 19. The gap 55 of the soft material section 30 and the crosspieces 51 of the hard material section 20 are best seen in FIG. 14. The suspension unit is provided in fact as a single piece, the crosspieces 51 coming to lie in the gaps 55. The upper soft region 11 and the central soft region 15 of the soft material section 30 thereby surround the shaft bearing 50 of the hard material section 20.

[0062] In a way similar to that of the embodiment of FIG. 1, the interim space fillings 5 of the soft material section protrude on the front and rear sides beyond the supports 4 of the hard material section, as can be seen in FIG. 11. In the other regions around the circumference of the body, the outside of the body is constituted by hard material. On the front and rear side of the body, predominantly a soft material is situated outside.

[0063] Inserted into the bearing region 54 in the bottom element 16 of the hard material section 20 is the curtain suspension 2. Borne at the lower end of the curtain suspension is the curtain fastener 9 in the form of a ring. Provided on the upper end is the anchor element 10, which is hung in the bearing region 54. Foreseen above the ring bearing is a horizontal bearing surface 56, from which a vertical extension 57 protrudes upwardly, which ends with the anchor element 10. The extension 57 is designed round with two opposite flat areas 58. The diameter of the extension 57 in the region of the flat areas 58 corresponds to the width of the entry region 53. The diameter of the extension 57 in the circular region is bigger and corresponds to the diameter of the bearing region 54. The diameter of the anchor element 10 is bigger than the diameter of the bearing region 54.

[0064] To insert the curtain suspension 2 into the bearing region 54, the extension 57 is aligned to the entry region 53 in such a way that it can be pushed through this entry region. In the bearing region 54 the extension 57 is rotated by about 90° so that the extension 57 no longer fits through the entry region 53. The bearing surface 56 thereby comes to be situated on the lower side of the bottom element 16 and the anchor element 10 on the upper side of the bottom element 16. The curtain suspension 2 is securely held in this position in the body 1.

[0065] Provided as on the upper end of the body 1 is again a roller device as guide element 3 comprising rollers 7 and shaft 8. The shaft 8 extends through the shaft bearing 50, and disposed on both ends of the shaft 8 is one roller 7 each. The rollers 7 protrude beyond the sides of the body 1, so that they rest on a curtain guide of a curtain device and can be guided thereby. The shaft 8 of the guide element 3 runs through the upper soft region 11 of the soft material section 30, as already described with respect to the embodiment according to FIG. 1.

[0066] Shown in FIG. 12 is the suspension unit in a longitudinal section through the front and rear side. As previously described, the curtain suspension 2 with the bearing surface 56, the extension 57 and the anchor element 10 is held in the bearing region 54 of the bottom element 16. The shaft 8 of the roller device lies in the shaft bearing 50, which lies in the upper soft region 11. The interim space fillings 5 protrude beyond the front and rear side. The interior space of the hard material frame is filled, at least in the upper half, with soft material. Below the central soft region 15 an interim space 14 remains empty in which the anchor element 10 can be inserted in a movable way and borne.

[0067] Shown in FIG. 13 is the suspension unit in a longitudinal section through the sides of the body 1. The shaft 8 of the roller device extends through the shaft bearing 50, which shaft protrudes on both sides beyond the upper soft region 11. The rollers 7 are attached at the ends of the shaft 8. As FIG. 13 shows, the soft material section 30 in this direction is narrower than the hard material section 20, so that the hard material protrudes beyond the upper soft material section 11 and the central soft material section 15. Thus, on their inner sides, the rollers 7 are situated opposite the hard material on which they slide more easily when rolling than on the soft material.

TABLE-US-00001 List of Reference Numerals  1 body  2 curtain suspension  3 guide element  4 support  5 interim space filling  6 terminal end  7 rollers  8 shaft  9 curtain fastener 10 anchor element 11 upper soft region 12 shaft bearing sleeve 13 extension 14 interim space 15 central soft region 16 bottom element 17 interior space 18 interim space 19 passage 20 hard material section 21 ribs 22 pull cord attachment 23 cap 30 soft material section 40, 40′ gliders 44 connection 45 ribs 50 shaft bearing 51 crosspiece 53 entry region 54 bearing region 55 gap 56 bearing surface 57 extension 58 flat area