This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/199,551, filed Nov. 18, 2008 and incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a roller blind for architectural openings, such as doors and windows. More specifically, the present invention relates to roller blinds with slats for providing directional shading.

2. Description of the Related Art

Various systems are known for controlling the amount of light that may pass through an architectural opening, such as a door or a window. Such systems are frequently used as aesthetic and/or functional door or window coverings.

One such system is a roller shade or blind. Roller blinds are manufactured from, for example, a woven fabric. Such blinds have a common aesthetic design, are typically lightweight and have a minimal amount of moving parts. The fabric winds compactly about a center roller when retracted, making the system easy to manipulate, e.g., carry and install.

Roller blinds have known problems. For example, traditional roller blinds, e.g., those having vinyl screens, tend to skew or shift along the longitudinal axis of the roller while the blind is being retracted. Once skewed, the roller could not be further retracted until the blind was extended and the shifted portion was properly realigned.

Another problem with typical blinds having vinyl screens is that the screens essentially block all light from passing into a space. As such, the space is either bathed in sunlight or very dark.

More recently, screens for roller blinds have been fabricated from a dense fiberglass core with a vinyl PVC coating. Such a screen, known as a fiberglass roll screen, often includes a plurality of spaced apart apertures which allow ambient light to pass into a room. The apertures, and therefore the blinds, are incapable of providing a directional shading of light. Rather, direct light passes through from all directions. Accordingly, the fabric must be sufficiently opaque to limit the passage of light, and in particular, direct sunlight. Screen fabric of this type typically has an open area of three to five percent of the total area of the screen.

On the other hand, horizontal slatted blind systems allow directional shading of light. However, such systems are less desirable to those seeking the simplicity, benefits and style of a roller type blind. For example, slatted systems require additional structure for rotating the slats to obtain the desired light directing characteristics. Slatted systems also require vertical ladder cords to maintain the slats in proper vertical, horizontal and angular orientation. To avoid the use of an abundance of ladder chords, slats need to be manufactured from rigid material, such as metal, wood, or rigid plastic, which adds significant weight.

An example of a typically complex slatted blind is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,722,382 to Vecchiarelli. This publication discloses utilizing a plurality of lift cords, which pass through holes in each slat and are secured to a bottom rail member. The lift cords may be pulled to raise or lower the slats relative to a headrail. The complexity of this system increases its cost as a whole and increases the likelihood that it will malfunction.

Yet other publications teach horizontally slatted blinds which are capable of being retracted in a rolled-up form. Two such publications include U.S. Pat. No. 2,012,887 to major, granted on Aug. 27, 1935, and German Patent (Patentschrift) No. 70,451, granted in 1893.

The '887 publication discloses vertically extending strips and attachment members connecting slats to the strips. As illustrated in FIG. 2 of the publication, incorporated herein by reference, the slats have a radius of curvature which is greater than the radius of curvature for the roller. As such, the edges of the slats extend tangentially beyond the roller while the blind is retracted. Such a system is incapable of forming the compact configuration about the roller when the blind is retracted. Instead, the retracted blind forms a configuration which is bulky and difficult to manipulate.

The '451 publication discloses the opposite problem illustrated in the '887 publication. As illustrated in FIG. 3 of the '451 publication, incorporated herein by reference, the slats are formed with a constant curvature radius, which appears to be the curvature of the roller. Most slats will flex away from the roller as the blind is retracted. This is because the radius of the retracted blind increases as the blind is retracted. The end result, however, is the same as with the '887 publication. The retracted blind forms a configuration which is bulky and difficult to manipulate.

Another type of blind is disclosed in prior art Patent Specification Number GB 1,494,842, filed on Apr. 23, 1975 by Margaret L. Steel, incorporated herein by reference. The '842 publication illustrates in FIG. 9 and discloses at page 3, starting at line 63, a “temperature sensitive blind”. The blind has slats that are formed by bonding two plastics with different thermal expansion coefficients, so that the curvature of the slats changes as a function of temperature. For example, as the temperature rises, the slats flatten out. On the other hand, as the temperature lowers, the curvature of the slats increases.

Depending on the temperature, such temperature sensitive slats would exhibit problems associated with both the '887 and '451 publications. As the temperature decreases the curvature of the slats, the slats will extend tangentially beyond the roller while the blind is retracted. As the temperature increases the curvature of the slats, most slats will flex away from the roller as the blind is retracted. In either circumstance, the retracted blind forms a configuration which is bulky and difficult to manipulate.

In addition to the above stated issues in the art, another disadvantage of known blind systems is that they are generally designed to cover architectural openings on the inside of a building. Directional shading blinds have not been introduced which can be readily positioned in the interior or exterior due to the complexity of the design, resulting in a potential for failure in an exterior environment. The present invention fulfills this need.

SUMMARY OF THE EMBODIMENTS

In light of this brief description of the disadvantages of prior-art blind systems, a roller blind is disclosed which provides horizontal slats for directional shading, enabling the application of a screen fabric which allows a greater portion of visible light to pass therethrough. The disclosed slatted roller blind is free from the usage of ladder cords and is simplistic in design. The disclosed slatted roller blind maintains a compact formation of a roller shade when retracted and has greater resistance to skewing along the longitudinal axis of the roller while being retracted. Furthermore, the disclosed slatted roller blind design is capable of being utilized as an outdoor or indoor blind.

Other aspects of the embodiments of the invention will become apparent from the drawings and respective descriptions that follow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

It is to be understood that the following drawings depict details of only typical embodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be considered to be limiting of its scope, and in particular:

FIG. 1 illustrates the sun facing side of a slatted roller blind, according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a side view of the blind illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of the blind illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of the invention in which the slats are progressively spaced; and

FIG. 5 represents a magnified view of the embodiment in FIG. 1, illustrating a fabric used for the screen.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSED EMBODIMENTS

Turning to FIG. 1, a slatted roller blind 10 is illustrated, according to an embodiment of the invention. The slatted roller blind includes plural slats or louvers 11, discussed in detail, below. The slats 11 distinguish the slatted roller blind 10 from a traditional roller blind because, for reasons discussed below, the slats 11 provide the blind with directional shading.

The slatted roller blind 10 includes a roller 12. The axial length of the roller 12, defined between opposing side edges 14, 16 of the roller 12, spans the width of the blind 10. The roller 12 is designed to support the blind 10 without additional ladder cords. The illustrated roller 12 is about twenty inches long, but a full range of lengths are anticipated for covering architectural openings of various sizes.

The slatted roller blind includes a screen 18. The width of the screen, defined by opposing side edges 20, 22, is substantially the same as the width of the roller 12. The length of the screen 18, which is the length of the blind 10, is defined by opposing top and bottom screen edges 24, 26. The top edge 24 is connected directly to the roller 12 and the bottom edge 26 is distanced therefrom. The screen length can be a typically available length for off-the-shelf roller blinds or can be a tailored length as specified for upscale window or door treatments.

The plural slats 11 include, e.g., first and second vertically spaced slats 30, 32 Each of the slats has substantially the same length, defined by opposing side edges 34, 36 in first slat 30, and opposing side edges 38, 40 in the second slat 32. Furthermore, the length of the slats is substantially the same as the length of the roller 12.

Each of the slats 30, 32 also has substantially the same circumferential dimension, defined by opposing front and back edges 42, 44 in the first slat 30, and opposing front and back edges 46, 48 in the second slat 32. The depth of each slat 40, 42 is proportional to Pi, which is effectively about a third of the circumference of the outer diameter of the roller 12. Deeper slats will provide the blind with poor retracting and extending characteristics. Other problems associated with a deeper slat is the propensity to trap water in an exterior placement. On the other hand, slats shallower than about a third of the circumference will have less slat material to direct and/or block light and thus function less effectively and have an adverse effect on directional shading.

FIGS. 2 and 3 will now be referenced to illustrate the edge curvature of the slats 11. As illustrated in FIG. 2, when retracted, the blind 10, with the screen 18 and slats 11 wound about the roller 12, forms a spiral curve 50. The curvature of each slat edge is defined by the segment of the spiral curve 50 on which the respective slat is positioned when the blind is retracted. As such, the curvature in the set of slats 11 changes progressively between each adjacent slat 30, 32. That is, slats nearer to the top of the blind 10 have a mean, or average radius which is less than that for slats nearer to the bottom of the blind.

In order to achieve the described progressive curvature pattern, each of the slats 30, 32 is initially adhered to the screen 18 at respective slat rear edges 44, 48, during the manufacturing process. During this process, the screen 18 is wound about the roller 12 so that the blind 10 is in a retracted configuration. The blind 10 is then heat treated to permanently set the slats in a desired form.

The curved slats provide directional light shading not capable with ordinary roller shades. As indicated above, the open area for a typical fiberglass roll screens must be limited to three to five percent or else direct sun from above would be overly bright in the internal space. With the slatted roller blind 10, the function of controlling direct sun penetration from above is performed by the slats rather than the screen. The open area of the screen 18 in the slatted roller blind 10 can be forty to fifty percent.

Furthermore, the retracted configuration of the slatted roller blind is significantly more compact than the cited prior art slatted blinds. As illustrated with the prior art, slats having the same radius of the roller would flex away from the roller when the blind is retracted. On the other hand, slats having an edge radius greater than the roller would tangentially extend past the roller when the blind is retracted. Both undesirable prior art configurations, which provide a bulky and difficult to manipulate retracted blind, are avoided with the disclosed slatted roller blind.

Moreover, for at least two separate reasons, the curved slats 30, 32 provide the screen with a greater resistance from becoming skewed or shifting along the longitudinal axis of the roller while the blind is being retracted. Firstly, the properly curved slats 30, 32 of the disclosed material urge the screen 18 into the horizontally correct alignment. Secondly, the tight-rollup form, itself, separate from the urging function performed by the slat material, eliminates skew. Accordingly, matching the slat curvature to the roller diameter enables a tight roll-up packing and eliminates skew. This is distinct advantage to prior art roller shades.

The slatted roller blind, due to its compact retracted configuration, can be fabricated in relatively long units and rather easily subdivided with a hand or electric saw. For example, the blind can be fabricated in sixteen-foot lengths, which is about two and a half times the typical blind length. Statistically, such a length provides a reasonable yield when cutting for custom sized shades of the normal size range between three and eight feet wide.

A progressive spacing can also be provided between slats, as illustrated in exaggerated form in FIG. 4. Here, the blind 10 is installed such that front edge of the slats projects towards the direct incident light.

As can be seen in FIG. 4, vertical spacing between adjacent slats, i.e., lengthwise along the screen, progressively increases, starting at the top slat and continuing to the bottom slat. For example, turning to the top three slats 52, 54, 56, the distance between the second and third slats 54, 56 is greater than the distance between the first and second slats 52, 54, The actual spacing gradient between each slats could increase by, for example, ten-thousandths to fifteen-thousandths of an inch.

In FIG. 4, direct incident light is illustrated in as sets of essentially parallel lines 58, 60. Due to the progressive spacing, direct light is blocked from passing through the top pair of slats 52, 54. On the other hand, some direct light is capable of passing through, for example, the bottom pair of slats (the aforementioned first and second slats) 30, 32.

The progressive spacing provides more view and less shade through the bottom slats 30, 32 as compared with the top slats 52, 54. As a result, sunlight is allowed to enter and brighten a space while being blocked from the eyes of persons standing in the space.

It is to be appreciated that the reversed spacing progression could be desired and implemented into the blind design. Such a reverse spacing could be appropriate for an office in which a person needs to sit for long periods at a computer. The person may wish to flood the top of the room with light while blocking ambient light from the bottom of the room.

Yet alternatively, a constant spacing between slats may be desired and implemented into the blind design. Other spacing options, such as a progression defined by non-linear gradient, such as a parabolic gradient, or a non-uniform gradient, would be within the scope of the invention.

Consideration will now be given to the materials used for the slatted roller blind 10. The roller 12 illustrated in FIG. 1 is fabricated from an aluminum tube having an outer diameter of approximately two inches and a wall thickness of approximately a sixteenth of an inch. However other tube materials and sizes could be utilized depending on the space available and required material characteristics. As a variation in size, a one inch outer diameter tube is a readily acceptable option.

The material used for the screen 18 depends on the use of the blind 10. An indoor blind 10, as illustrated in the figures, and particularly in FIG. 5, is manufactured from a woven or knit, semi-sheer or sheer fabric. Furthermore, the illustrated indoor fabric includes an aesthetic design print or pattern 62. The specifically illustrated pattern 62 provides the appearance of sets of lines which extend lengthwise along the screen and are grouped widthwise along the screen. However, other print or pattern designs are acceptable.

For external purposes, instead of a woven fabric, a rollable screen suitable for outdoor exposure is utilized. Such a screen would be more durable than an indoor screen. Materials may include, by way of illustration, but without limiting the possible selection, metal, such as aluminum, or plastic, vinyl, fiberglass, and the like. A typical window screen, for example, can be fabricated from an aluminum mesh. Such window screens are readily applicable as screens 18 for the slatted roller blind. The screen material may alternatively be core-and-sheath, such as vinyl-coated fiberglass yarns, or polyethylene coated polypropylene yarns, which are heat-fused after weaving to fix the yarns at their crossing points.

If the screen is in the form of a wire mesh material, the screen may be oriented at a forty-five degree angle or some other angle which offsets the mesh from a typical window or door screen orientation. Such contrast between the screen mesh in the slatted roller blind and a window or door screen avoids a visual moiré pattern.

The slats 30, 32 are manufactured from a non-woven blackout, i.e., opaque, fabric, such as a non-woven fabric laminated to an opacifying film. The slats could also be manufactured by thermoplastic, by itself, such as PVC, PET (polyester) or polycarbonate. One example of suitable fabric is seven to fifteen mils thick PVC, PET, or PC film, which is thermo-formable at between 170 and 250 degrees F. Another example is laminating one mil of white PET (opacifying film) to a non-woven, fifty to eighty grams-per-square-meter fabric, made of thermo-formable polyester fiber, which easily accepts glue and coloring as desired. The slats 30, 32 can be adhered to the screen 18 at the respective slat rear edges 44, 48 using a co-polyester adhesive hot-melt, applied under pressure.

Turning to other components of the slatted roller blind, the roller may be optionally installed in a headrail (not shown). The size of the headrail would be large enough to house the roller and retracted blind.

The blind is fitted with a weighted bottom rail for maintaining the screen in a taut condition. The weight of the bottom rail would be particularly useful for the blind disposed in an exterior side of the architectural opening. In this configuration, the weight of the bottom rail would maintain stability of the blind despite, e.g., the presence of wind in an exterior configuration. Typically, tracks or tension cables, which engage the bottom rail, provide additional resistance to wind.

The headrail and bottom rail may take on any of a number of shapes. Considerations for selecting a shape would be anticipated durability, cost, or aesthetic requirements of the overall blind assembly.

Alternatively, the blind assembly, whether in an interior or exterior installation, may be provided within a frame. When disposed in a frame, the bottom rail, for example, might be unnecessary.

Control of the roller, to extend or retract the blind, could be implemented by either a direct control mechanism or an indirect control mechanism. An example of a direct control mechanism is a lift cord with associated gears. An example of an indirect control mechanism is an electric motor operated by a wall switch or a wireless remote. The wireless remote could communicate with the electric motor using electronics typically adapted for radio frequency communications.

The use of a direct control mechanism will typically be in an indoor installation. The use of an indirect control mechanism will typically be in an exterior installation. However, neither configuration of the control mechanisms is limited to the exterior or interior installation. Various known options for direct or indirect operation of the roller are available. Accordingly, further discussion of these components is omitted.

Although several embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed above, the present invention should not to be taken to be limited thereto. In fact, it is to be understood that one of ordinary skill in the art will be able to devise numerous arrangements, which, although not specifically shown or described, will embody the principles of the present invention and will fall within its scope. Modifications to the above would be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art, but would not bring the invention so modified beyond the scope of the appended claims.