Window and other Blinds.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd Mar., 1897-Accepted, 17th Apr.,
1897
Window and other Blinds.
A communication by THE DAVIS CAR SHADE COMPANY, of Portland, in the
County of Cumberland and State of Maine, United States of America.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.E., of The Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6, Lord Street, Liverpool and 6, Bank Street,
Manchester, both in the County of Lancaster, 118, New Street, Birmingham in
the County of Warwick and 322, High Holborn in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
This invention relates to a device for retaining the lower edge of a spring roller
curtain or blind against the pull of the spring roller and it is designed particularly
to be used in connection with the window blinds of closed railway cars or for the.
curtains of open street cars.
The invention applies to that class of spring roller curtains in which the curtain
stick is guided in grooves or run ways in the window casing on each side of the
opening and it consists of a hollow curtain stick in combination with a flexible guide
as a cord, sprocket chain, or tape on each side of the casing, one end of each guide
being secured to the upper portion of the casing and the other end being secured to
the lower portion of the casing, on each side, the body of each guide forming a
loop which extends into the hollow curtain stick from each end and there passing
over a common pulley or connecting pulleys so that as the curtain stick is moved
up and down each guide will be let off and taken up at the same rate of speed so
that the two ends of the curtain stick will always be maintained in a horizontal
position and the ends will be retained in the grooves without the possibility of their
being displaced by raising or lowering on end.
In the accompanying drawings are illustrated several modifications of the
invention all of which will be hereinafter fully explained.
In the drawing,
Fig. 1 shows a vertical longitudinal section through a hollow curtain stick secured
at the lower end of the curtain and constructed according to one form of the
invention,
Fig. 2 is a section somewhat enlarged taken on the line of Fig. 1,
Fig. 3 is a section similar to that of Fig. 1 showing the hollow curtain stick
disconnected from the curtain.
Fig. 4 shows a modification of the sprocket wheels of Fig. 1,
Fig. 5 is a view of the perforated tape.
Fig. 6 shows a modification of the end of the hollow curtain stick.
In Fig. 1 is shown one form of the device as applied to the lower end of a
curtain. B, represents the curtain roller which is provided with the ordinary
spring so adjusted that a constant pull is exerted on the curtain, A is the curtain
and C represents the groove in the side of the casing in which runs the end of the
curtain stick D. The hollow curtain stick D is maintained in a constant horizontal
position by means of flexible guides as cords, sprocket chains or perforated tapes.
As shown in Fig. 1, a perforated tape 9, one on each side of the window is made
use of

page_text: One end of each tape is secured to the top of the casing in the groove C, the
opposite end being secured to the bottom of the casing and the body of each tape
forms a loop which extends into the end of the hollow curtain stick, each loop
extending around common or connecting pulleys. As shown in Fig. 1, each tape
passes around a sprocket wheel E, the teeth of which fit in the perforations of the
tape. The teeth e of the two sprocket wheels engage recesses in the opposite
wheels so that the wheels serve the purpose of both sprocket wheels and gears, the
motion of one being positively communicated to the other. Curved guides / are
provided at the ends of the hollow curtain stick over which the tapes pass as they
enter the curtain stick. These frictional guides / produce friction enough in
connection with the friction of the gears or sprocket wheels to resist the pull of the
spring roller so that the curtain will remain in place wherever it is left. If less
friction is desired anti-friction rolls t may be used instead of the frictional guides /
as shown in Fig. 6.
It will be seen that by the arrangement described, when the curtain stick is
raised or lowered by a force applied at any point, each of the tapes is taken up and
let off at exactly the same rate of speed so that the curtain stick must at all times
remain perfectly horizontal and consequently it cannot escape from its grooves.
A modification of the sprocket wheels is shown in Fig. 4. Here each tape
passes over a plain sprocket wheel P, each sprocket wheel being secured to a
gear R, the two gears engaging so that the motion of one sprocket wheel will be
communicated to the other.
In Fig. 3 is shown a modification of the device in which a cord is used as a
substitute for the sprocket tape or chain. In this case instead of having each
flexible guide pass over connecting pulleys, they pass over a common pulley J
journalled in the centre.
The cords n on one end is crossed and passes over the grooved pulley M in one
end of the curtain stick, while the cord o.is straight and passes over the guide
pulley L in the other end of the hollow curtain stick.
It will be seen that when the cords are kept taut so that they will not slip on the
pulley J, the movement of one cord will be communicated to the other.
Fig. 5 shows the form of sprocket tape which it is preferred to use having
openings i.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondents, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. In a guide for spring actuated blinds, the combination with a casing and a
spring actuated blind, of a hollow stick thereon, flexible guides secured by one end
to the upper portion of said casing and by the other end to the lower portion of
said casing, one on each side of the curtain, the holy of stid guides forming loops
which extend into the ends of said curtain stick and thence around common or
connecting wheels or pulleys so that the motion of one guide is communicated to
the other.
2. In a guide for spring actuated blinds, the combination with a casing and a
spring actuated blind, of a hollow curtain stick on said blind, a sprocket chain or
tape secured by one end to the upper portion of said casing and by the other end to
the lower portion of said casing, one on each side, each of said tapes or chains
forming a loop which extends into the end of said hollow curtain stick and thence
passes over a sprocket wheel journalled in said hollow curtain stick, said sprocket
wheels being geared or otherwise connected so that the notion of one will be
communicated to the other.
"
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents.