Patent Publication Number: US-2022235609-A1

Title: Manual Window Treatment Having a Floating Chain Tensioner

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/521,474, filed Jul. 24, 2019, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/702,536, filed Jul. 24, 2018, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     A window treatment may be mounted in front of one or more windows, for example, to prevent sunlight from entering a space and/or to provide privacy. Window treatments may include, for example, but are not limited to, roller shades, roman shades, venetian blinds, or draperies. A roller shade typically includes a flexible shade fabric wound onto an elongated roller tube. Such a roller shade may include a weighted hembar located at a lower end of the shade fabric. The hembar may cause the shade fabric to hang in front of one or more windows that the roller shade is mounted in front of. 
     A typical window treatment may be manually-operated or motor-operated. In the case of a manually-operated window treatment, the rotation of the roller tube may be provided by an input wheel that receives an input chain. The input wheel converts a pulling force applied to the input chain into a rotational force. A typical input chain may be a ball or beaded chain loop. A non-limiting example of a manual roller shade having a beaded chain is described in greater detail in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0121353, published May 29, 2008, entitled MANUAL ROLLER SHADE HAVING CLUTCH MECHANISM, CHAIN GUIDE AND UNIVERSAL MOUNTING, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. A holding device may be installed at the bottom of the ball chain loop such that the input chain may be tensioned and may not be free hanging. This holding device may be provided because it may be desirable that the input chain cannot be pulled to create a large loop, for example, having a gap of four inches or greater, between the hanging sides of the cord. 
     One example of a manual roller shade that has a beaded chain that is not formed in a loop is described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0090795, published Apr. 19, 2012, entitled MANUAL ROLLER SHADE SYSTEM, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. However, there is still a desire to have a manual shade with a beaded chain that is exposed and can be grabbed by the user to move the shade fabric, while still maintaining a relatively small loop when the chain is pulled (e.g., less than four inches). 
     SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     A drive assembly for use with a manually-operated window treatment, according to aspects of the present disclosure, may include a drive chain, e.g., but not limited to, a ball chain, arranged in the form of a loop between a manual clutch mechanism coupled to the window treatment and an end tensioner. The drive assembly may include one or more intermediate tensioners disposed on the drive-chain loop between the manual clutch mechanism and the end tensioner. The one or more intermediate tensioners may provide a mechanism by which to prevent slack in the loop, for example, such that sides of the loop cannot be pulled to create a large loop, for example, having a gap of four inches or greater, between the hanging sides of the cord. 
     Various aspects of the present disclosure may be directed to various types of mechanisms for the one or more intermediate tensioners. According to such aspects of the present disclosure, an intermediate tensioner may include at least one sprocket, which may engage both sides of the drive chain loop, and may be contained within a housing. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a perspective view of an example of a window treatment system. 
         FIG. 2  shows a front view of the window treatment system of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  shows a side cross-sectional view of an example of a drive assembly of a window treatment system. 
         FIGS. 4-6A  show side cross-sectional views of other examples of drive assemblies of a window treatment system. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ASPECTS OF THE DISCLOSURE 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view and  FIG. 2  is a front view of an example manual window treatment  100  (e.g., a manually-operated roller shade). The example window treatment  100  may include a roller tube  110 , a covering material  112  (e.g., a flexible shade fabric), and one or more brackets  114 . The covering material  112  may be windingly received by the roller tube  110 . The roller tube  110  may be elongated from a first end  116  to a second end  118  ( FIG. 2 ). The brackets  114  may be located at opposite ends of the manual roller shade  100  for supporting the manual window treatment  100  from a fixed support surface such as a wall or ceiling of a structure, for example. 
     The manual window treatment  100  may comprise a drive assembly  120  (e.g., a drive mechanism), which may include a manual clutch mechanism  121  that may be located at the first end  116  of the roller tube  110 . The manual clutch mechanism  121  may be bi-directional to provide for raising and lowering of the covering material  112  (e.g., between a fully-open position and a fully-closed position). The manual clutch mechanism  121  may be configured to rotatably drive the roller tube  110 . The manual clutch mechanism  121  may be configured to prevent back-driving of the roller tube  110  that could otherwise occur, for example, if a pulling force was applied to a lower end of the covering material  112  supported by the roller tube  110 . The manual window treatment  100  may include an idler assembly  122  ( FIG. 2 ) that may be located adjacent to the second end  118  of the roller tube  110  opposite the manual clutch mechanism  121 . The idler assembly  122  may provide rotatable support for the roller tube  110  at the second end  118  of the roller tube  110 . 
     The drive assembly of the manual window treatment  100  may also comprise a drive chain  124  (e.g., a beaded or ball chain). The drive chain  124  may be received by the manual clutch mechanism  121  in the roller tube  100 , such that oppositely-located (e.g., front and rear) portions of the drive chain  124  hangs from the manual clutch mechanism  121 . For example, the drive chain  124  may be anchored by an end tensioner  126  (e.g., an end chain tensioner), which may be attached to a structure (e.g., a wall, a window sill, and/or a surface adjacent to the window) near the bottom end of the shade fabric. The drive chain  124  may form a loop, e.g., a continuous loop. The loop of the drive chain  124  may have a first end at the manual clutch mechanism  121  and a second end at the end tensioner  126 . 
     The loop of the drive chain  124  may comprise two sides defined between the first and second ends of the loop (e.g., adjacent front and rear portions of the drive chain  124 ). The manual clutch mechanism  121  maybe configured to rotate the roller tube  110  in response to movements of the drive chain  124 . For example, the drive chain  124  may be configured to provide for a sufficient number of rotations of the roller tube  110  for raising or lowering the covering material  112  (e.g., from the fully-closed position to the fully-open position or vice versa) when a pulling force is applied to a section of the front or rear portion of the drive chain  124 . 
     The drive assembly of the manual window treatment  100  may also comprise an intermediate tensioner  128  (e.g., a floating chain tensioner) disposed between the manual clutch mechanism  121  and the end tensioner  126 . The intermediate tensioner  128  may be configured to float between the manual clutch mechanism  121  and the end tensioner  126 , for example, around a midpoint of the drive chain  124  between the manual clutch mechanism  121  and the end tensioner  126 . The intermediate tensioner  128  may be configured to prevent the drive chain  124  from being pulled to form too large of a loop as will be described in greater detail below with reference to  FIG. 3 . 
       FIG. 3  is a simplified left-side cross-sectional view of an example of the manual window treatment  100  taken through the line shown in  FIG. 2  (e.g., through the center of the drive chain  124 ). Note that in  FIG. 3 , the drive chain  124  is shown enlarged and having a shorterlength for illustrative purposes. The manual clutch mechanism  121  may comprise a drive sprocket  130  having bead notches  132  in which beads  125  of the drive chain  124  may be received, such that movements of the drive chain rotate the drive sprocket. The drive sprocket  130  may comprise a drive pin  134  coupled to the roller shade  110  to provide for rotation of the roller tube in response to movements of the drive chain  124 . The mechanical construction of an example drive assembly is described in greater detail in previously-referenced U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0121353. The end tensioner  126  may provide a stationary, curved surface  142 , which may, for example, be formed as an outer circumference of a circular or partially circular (e.g., at least semi-circular) member  140 . 
     The intermediate tensioner  128  may comprise an inner sprocket  150  having bead notches  152  for receiving the beads  125  of adjacent front and rear portions of the drive chain  124 . The inner sprocket  150  may rotate around an inner pin  154  as the drive chain  124  is moved. The intermediate tensioner  128  may also comprise clamps  156  disposed along and/or in parallel with vertical sides of the intermediate tensioner  128 , on both sides of inner sprocket  150 , in order to hold the adjacent front and rear portions of the drive chain  124  against the inner sprocket  150 . The clamps  156  may comprise inner surfaces  158  along which the beads  125  of the drive chain  124  may slide as the beads are received in the bead notches  152  of the inner sprocket  150  while the inner sprocket rotates. The inner sprocket  150  and the clamps  156  may be housed in a housing  159  of the intermediate tensioner  128 . The inner pin  154  around which the inner sprocket  150  rotates may be connected to the housing  159  and/or an arm or other structure (not shown) that may extend between the clamps  156 . 
     The housing  159  may be of a two-piece design, a non-limiting example of which is shown in  FIG. 3 . The housing  159  may have first and second pieces  159   a  and  159   b.  The inner sprocket  150 , the clamps  156 , the inner pin  154 , and/or other parts that may be discussed below may be disposed within the housing  159 , and one or both of the first and second pieces  159   a,    159   b  of housing  159  may have holes, slots, grommets, etc., that may permit the two sides of the loop of drive chain  124  (e.g., the adjacent front and rear portions of the drive chain  124 ) to pass through the intermediate tensioner  128  and engage with the mechanism(s) within the housing  159 . The first and second pieces  159   a,    159   b  may be attached to one another by means of, for example, but not limited to, a snap-fit mechanism, glue, one or more screws, etc., or combinations thereof. 
     The intermediate tensioner  128  may operate to limit the drive chain  124  to forming a loop characterized by a distance D between front and rear portions of the drive chain  124  when one side of the drive chain is pulled with a force F (e.g., from forming a loop bigger than a loop characterized by than the distance D between front and rear portions of the drive chain  124 ). For example, when the drive chain  124  has a length of approximately seven feet between the manual clutch mechanism  121  and the end tensioner  126 , where the intermediate tensioner  128  is located at the midpoint of the drive chain  124  between the manual clutch mechanism  121  and the end tensioner  126 , the intermediate tensioner  128  may limit the drive chain  124  to forming a loop characterized by a distance of  3 . 25  inches between front and rear portions of the drive chain  124  when one side of the drive chain is pulled with a force of 5 pounds. Without the intermediate tensioner  128  installed, the drive chain  124  may form a loop characterized by a distance of 4.5 inches when one side of the drive chain is pulled with a force of 5 pounds. 
       FIG. 4  is a simplified left-side cross-sectional view of an example of a drive assembly  120   a  of a manual window treatment (e.g., the manual window treatment  100 ) taken along the line shown in  FIG. 2 . The drive assembly  120   a  shown in  FIG. 4  is similar to the drive assembly  120  of the manual window treatment  100  shown in  FIG. 3 , except for the structure of the end tensioner  126 . The drive assembly  120   a  shown in  FIG. 4  may comprise an end tensioner  126   a  (e.g., which may replace the end tensioner  126  of the drive assembly  120  of the manual window treatment  100  shown in  FIG. 3 ). The sprocket  144  of the end tensioner  126   a  may comprise a sprocket  144  that may have bead notches  146  for receiving the beads  125  of the drive chain  124  and may rotate around a pin  148  as the drive chain  124  is moved. 
       FIG. 5  is a simplified left-side cross-sectional view of another example of a drive assembly  120   b  of a manual window treatment (e.g., the manual window treatment  100 ) taken along the line shown in  FIG. 2 . The drive assembly  120   b  shown in  FIG. 5  is similar to the driveassembly  120  of the manual window treatment  100  shown in  FIG. 3 , except for the form of the intermediate tensioner  128 . The drive assembly  120   b  shown in  FIG. 5  may comprise an intermediate tensioner  128   b  (e.g., which may replace the intermediate tensioner  128  of the driveassembly  120  of the manual window treatment  100  shown in  FIG. 3 ). The intermediate tensioner  128   b  may contain multiple inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b.  For example, the intermediate tensioner  128   b  may comprise two inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b  as shown in  FIG. 5 , but may also comprise more than two such inner sprockets. The inner sprockets  160   a,    106   b  may have respective bead sockets  162   a,    162   b  for receiving the beads  125  of the adjacent front and rear portions of the drive chain  124 . The inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b  may rotate about respective inner pins  164   a,    164   b  as the drive chain  124  is moved. 
     Pairs of clamps  166   a,    166   b  may be provided (e.g., similar to clamps  156 ) on both sides of respective inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b.  The clamps  166   a,    166   b  may comprise respective inner surfaces  168   a,    168   b,  along which the beads  125  of the drive chain  124  may slide as the beads are received in the bead sockets  162   a,    162   b  of the inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b  while the inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b  rotate. The inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b  may be housed in a housing  169 , and the inner pins  164   a,    164   b  about which the inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b  rotate may be connected to the housing  169  and/or to arms or other structures that may extend between the pairs of clamps  166   a,    166   b.  In addition, the multiple inner sprockets  160   a,    160   b,  along with their inner pins  164   a,    164   b  and pairs of clamps  166   a,    166   b  may be separated and housed in separate housings  169   a,    169   b  disposed along the drive chain  124  as illustrated in  FIG. 5A , which shows intermediate tensioners  128   a,    128   b  disposed along drive chain  124 . 
       FIG. 6  is a simplified left-side cross-sectional view of another example of a driveassembly  120   c  of a manual window treatment (e.g., the manual window treatment  100 ) taken along the line shown in  FIG. 2 . The drive assembly  120   c  shown in  FIG. 6  is similar to the driveassembly  120  of the manual window treatment  100  shown in  FIG. 3  except for the form of the intermediate tensioner  128 . The drive assembly  120   c  shown in  FIG. 6  may comprise an intermediate tensioner  128   c  (e.g., which may replace the intermediate tensioner  128  of the driveassembly  120  of the manual window treatment  100  shown in  FIG. 3 ). The intermediate tensioner  128   c  of  FIG. 6  may comprise an inner sprocket  170 , having bead sockets  172  for receiving the beads  125  of the drive chain  124 . The inner sprocket  170  may rotate about a pin  174 . In contrast to the previous examples, the intermediate tensioner  128   c  may not include clamps, but instead may include outer sprockets  180   a,    180   b,    180   c,    180   d  (e.g., satellite sprockets). A first pair of the outer sprockets  180   a,    180   b  may engage the front portion of the drive chain  124  and maintain engagement of the front portion of the drive chain  124  with the inner sprocket  170 . A second pair of the outer sprockets  180   c,    180   d  may engage the rear portion of the drive chain  124  and maintain engagement of the rear portion of the drive chain  124  with the inner sprocket  170 . 
     Using the outer sprocket  180   c  as an illustrative but non-limiting example, a respective outer sprocket  180   c  may have bead sockets  182  for receiving the beads  125  of the drive chain  124 , and may rotate about a pin  184 . The inner socket  170  and outer sprockets  180   a,    180   b,    180   c,    180   d  may be contained within a housing  179 . The inner pin  174  about which the inner sprocket  170  rotates may be connected to the housing  179  and/or to arms, a support frame, or other structures that may contained within housing  179  or be attached to or part of housing  179 . Similarly, the pins  184  about which the outer sprockets  180   a,    180   b,    180   c,    180   d  rotate may be similarly disposed. The pins  184  and/or the inner pin  174  may be disposed on a common structure or two or more different structures (e.g., but not limited to, a case in which the inner pin  174  is attached to the housing  179 , while the pins  184  are part of or attached to a frame within or attached to the housing  179 ). 
     In the example of  FIG. 6 , as a force is applied to the drive chain  124 , the drivechain  124  may be guided along and around the sprocket  130  of the manual clutch mechanism  121  and along and around the curved surface  142  of the end tensioner  126  or the sprocket  144  of the end tensioner  126 . As part of this, the beads  125  of the drive chain  124  maybe guided into and out of the intermediate tensioner  128   c.  Within the intermediate tensioner  128   c,  the beads  125  of the drive chain  124  may engage with the inner sprocket  170  and the outer sprockets  180   a,    180   b,    180   c,    180   d  of intermediate tensioner  128   c.  As such, the outer sprockets  180   a,    180   b,    180   c,    180   d  may serve to guide the drive chain  124  such that the beads  125  are maintained in engagement with the inner sprocket  170  as the drive chain  124  is in motion. 
     It is further contemplated that the housing  179  may contain more than one inner sprocket  170  and more than one set of outer sprockets  180   a,    180   b,    180   c,    180   d.  Furthermore, it is also contemplated that more than one intermediate tensioner, e.g., intermediate tensioners  128   c,    128   d,  may be provided along drive chain  124  as illustrated in  FIG. 6A . It is yet further contemplated that combinations of the features found in the intermediate tensioners  128 ,  128   b,    128   c  may be used in a single chain drive assembly and that the variations of the end tensioner  126 ,  126   a  of  FIGS. 3 and 4  may be used in combination with any intermediate tensioner  128 ,  128   b,    128   c  or combinations and variations thereof. 
     According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, one or more components may be attached to a stationary structure, such as, but not limited to, a wall, window frame, or window sill. In particular, intermediate tensioners  128 ,  128   b,    128   c  and/or end tensioners  126 ,  126   a  may be fixed to one or more such stationary structures, using, for example, but not limited to, glue, nails, screws, tape, staples, tacks, brackets, etc. 
     According to some aspects of the present disclosure, the drive chain  124  may not limited to being a ball chain. In one further example, the drive chain may contain links (not shown), rather than beads  125 . In this example, an intermediate tensioner may comprise a sprocket (not shown) having pins designed to engage the links of the drive chain as the drivechain is drawn through the window treatment drive assembly. 
     Finally, it is contemplated that, while the drive assemblies  120 ,  120   a,    120   b,    120   c  described above are described in the context of a roller shade, the drive assemblies may also be used with other types of manual window treatments, such as, but not limited to, cellular shades, draperies, Roman shades, venetian blinds, vertical blinds (e.g., the rotation that rolls the roller shade up or down may be translated into horizontal forces, e.g., using an appropriate transmission mechanism, as may be known in the art, to open and close vertical blinds, draperies, or the like), etc.