Safety device

Abstract

 A safety device to be applied on the control loop of a blind or curtain, said loop having two substantially vertical branches hanging from the supporting structure of the blind or curtain, which substantially extend parallel to one another and are joined at the bottom to define a loop portion,
said safety device having a rigid containment structure (1), configured for resting on said loop, remaining hanging therefrom and enabling sliding thereof, with respect to the device, during control of the blind,
said structure comprising a contrast portion (3), designed to rest on said loop portion, and a top edge (5), which, in the condition where the device is installed on the control loop, faces said supporting structure,
the distance between said top edge and said contrast portion being such that, in said installed condition, an external action of pulling upwards, exerted on said loop, causes raising of said device and impact of said top edge against said supporting structure so as to prevent said loop from possibly getting twisted or wound to form a noose.

Description

[0001] The subject of the present invention is a safety device to be applied on the control cord or chain (in technical jargon "control loop") of a blind, shade, or curtain. In what follows, reference will specifically be made to a control chain, but it is clear that what is described is equally valid for a control cord and, in general, for any control loop of a blind or curtain, whatever its specific embodiment. In the condition where the blind is installed, the control chain is connected to the supporting structure of the blind or curtain itself and hangs with a portion that extends as far as an area that is easy to reach for a user. In particular, said hanging portion has two substantially parallel branches that are joined at the bottom to define a loop portion.

[0002] A cord or chain of this sort can constitute a real danger for children. It is, in fact, extremely easy to handle, since it can be wound and twisted in a wide range of ways, but precisely the fact that it can be handled easily means that a child playing with it can unintentionally get it wrapped round his or her neck, with the risk of getting strangled.

[0003] The object of the present invention is to provide a safety device designed to prevent the situation of danger described above from arising.

[0004] Said object is achieved via a safety device having the characteristics of Claim 1.

[0005] The claims form an integral part of the technical teaching provided herein in relation to the invention.

[0006] A safety device of this sort exerts an action of containment on the chain, substantially blocking it in its extended configuration and hence preventing it from possibly getting wound or twisted. In particular, the device described herein prevents the chain from possibly getting twisted or wound until it forms a closed loop like a noose, with which the child could possibly get strangled.

[0007] In the preferred embodiments, the safety device covers most of the chain, leaving exposed only one or more portions thereof to enable control of the chain by a user.

[0008] The invention will now be described, purely by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the annexed drawings, in which:

• Figure 1 is a perspective view of the safety device according to a preferred embodiment, applied on the control chain of a roller blind;
• Figures 2 and 3 illustrate respective details regarding the modalities of assembly of the device of Figure 1 on the control chain;
• Figures 4, 5, and 6 illustrate details of Figure 1;
• Figure 7 illustrates a condition of operation of the device;
• Figure 8 illustrates the detail of a further embodiment; and
• Figures 9 illustrated cross sections of the embodiment of Figure 8.

[0009] Illustrated in the ensuing description are various specific details aimed at an in-depth understanding of the embodiments. The embodiments can be provided without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components or materials, etc. In other cases, known structures, materials or operations are not illustrated or described in detail so that various aspects of the embodiment will not be obscured.

[0010] The references used herein are provided only for reasons of convenience and hence do not define the sphere of protection or the scope of the embodiments.

[0011] With reference to the figures, number 10 designates a safety device according to a preferred embodiment.

[0012] As may be seen in Figure 1, said safety device is to be hung on the control chain or cord C of a blind or curtain. In the example illustrated, the device is in particular applied to the control chain of a roller blind. However, as already mentioned previously, the device described herein can be applied on the control loop of any type of blind, shade or curtain, such as, for example, roller blinds, vertical blinds, pleated blinds, Austrian shades, skylight blinds, vertical blinds, etc.

[0013] As already mentioned previously, in the assembled condition of the blind, the control chain C has two vertical branches C', hanging from the supporting structure B, which extend substantially parallel to one another and are joined at the bottom to define a loop portion C".

[0014] The device 10 has the function of containing the hanging portion of the chain, blocking it in its extended configuration and hence preventing it from possibly getting wound or twisted.

[0015] In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated, the device 10 comprises a rigid containment structure 1, which is configured for resting on the chain, remaining hanging therefrom, and enabling sliding thereof with respect to the device during control of the blind.

[0016] The structure 1 can have any shape suited to the above purpose. For example, apart from the one illustrated in the drawings, said structure can have a tubular conformation, with a U-shaped development, and contain a substantially corresponding hanging portion of the chain. In another example, said structure can envisage a frame that does not cover and protect the chain but simply rests on the loop portion of the latter, and at the same time engages in a slidable way one or both of the branches of the chain. Obviously, the frame must be such as not to turn over or come away from the chain as a result of the mere use thereof. In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated, said structure can envisage a portion designed to rest on the loop portion of the chain, and a portion designed to engage, in a slidable way, at least one of the branches of the chain to prevent the structure from coming away from the chain and getting turned over as a result of the mere use thereof. In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated, said structure can envisage a portion designed to rest on the loop portion of the chain and such as to prevent the structure from coming away from the chain as a result of the mere use thereof, and a portion designed to engage in a slidable way at least one of the branches of the chain to prevent the structure from being turned over by the chain as a result of the mere use thereof.

[0017] In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated (see in this connection Figure 5), the structure 1 comprises a contrast portion 3 designed to rest on the loop portion, and a top edge 5 designed to face the supporting structure B in the condition where the device is installed.

[0018] The distance - considered in the direction of the length of the device - between the top edge 5 and the contrast portion 3 must be of a length such that, in the condition where the device is installed on the chain, an external action of pulling upwards, exerted on the chain, causes raising of the device and striking of its top edge against the supporting structure.

[0019] Figure 7 illustrates schematically said mode of operation. In particular, said figure illustrates how, when the chain is pulled upwards - which in general happens whenever there is an attempt to twist it or wind it -, the interaction between the loop portion of the chain and the contrast portion acting as fulcrum causes raising of the safety device until its top edge comes to strike against the supporting structure of the blind.

[0020] In said condition, the chain cannot be further pulled. By appropriately adjusting the distance between the top edge 5 and the contrast portion 3 with respect to the length of the hanging portion of the chain it is consequently possible to cause striking of the safety device against the supporting structure to occur when the part of cord pulled - which has shifted from its own ideal line of the normal extended configuration - is still so small as to render impossible any twisting or winding of the chain itself to form a noose.

[0021] In view of what has been said above, it is hence clear that the length of the safety device described herein, and specifically the distance between the top edge and the contrast portion, can hence vary at the discretion of the designer and by virtue of the production requirements, but must in any case be such as to produce the aforementioned impact with the supporting structure so as to prevent any attempt to wind or twist one or both of the branches of the chain. It is on the other hand clear that the greater the distance indicated above - and hence the length of the safety device with respect to the length of the chain - the sooner the safety device comes to strike against the supporting structure.

[0022] In various embodiments, as in the specific example illustrated in the figures, the structure of the device extends for a substantial part of the hanging portion of the chain, preferably until it comes into the immediate proximity of the supporting structure of the blind (see in this connection Figure 4).

[0023] In various particularly preferred embodiments, as in the one illustrated, the containment structure of the device comprises a casing 7 having the function of covering most of the portion of chain that is associated to the safety device. In various embodiments, said casing has at least one cut section or opening designed to expose small portions of the chain to enable control thereof by a user.

[0024] In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated in the figures, the casing comprises a first shell 11 having a generic sheath-like configuration. Said first shell has, in particular, two cut sections 9, which are symmetrical and opposed with respect to a central axis of the casing.

[0025] In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated in the figures, a second shell 13 is connected to the bottom portion of the first shell and is designed to cover the loop portion of the chain. Said second shell defines inside it the contrast portion 3 mentioned above. In various embodiments, the second shell defines a siphon-shaped duct designed to receive the loop portion C".

[0026] In particular, with reference to the embodiment illustrated, the second shell is divided into two half-shells 13A, of which one has, in its central portion, a portion in relief 13' with U-shaped profile, defining the contrast portion 3.

[0027] In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated in the figures, the top edge of the structure is defined by a mask 15, which is anchored to the top end of the casing and defines, at the top, a mouth with inclined walls designed to constitute a lead-in for insertion of the chain.

[0028] Figures 2 and 3 illustrate the operations necessary for assembling the device 10 on a control chain of the blind. Said operation envisages insertion of the chain through the mask and the casing, and, subsequently, closing of the two half-shells on the loop portion of the chain and at the same time fixing of the half-shells to the casing. It is clear that, at the moment when the two half-shells are closed and fixed to the casing, the contrast element must be located between the branches C' of the chain.

[0029] Figures 8 and 9 illustrate a further embodiment (the parts in common with the embodiments described above are designated by the same reference numbers), in which the sections 9 are engaged each by a gripping element 17 which projects on the outside of the casing 7 of the device and via which the user can control the chain without the need to gain access with his hands within said structure.

[0030] In Figure 8, a portion of the shell 11 has been sectioned purely for illustrative purposes. In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated, the element 17 has two arms 19 that can be opposed to one another, against an elastic action exerted by the same element 17 tending to move them away. In the condition in which the element 17 engages the section 9, said elastic action pushes the arms 19' against the opposed edges of the section 9, keeping the element 17 suspended as a result of the friction at the interface with said edges (see Figure 9A).

[0031] Whenever the user wants to control the chain C, he or she must close the arms 19 until the chain (see Figure 9B) is gripped. Then by causing the element 17 to slide downwards with respect to the section 9, the chain is pulled and actuated in the conventional way for controlling the blind.

[0032] To bring the element 17 back up, in the top part of the section 9, it is instead necessary to open the arms 19 - as much as is required to disengage the chain but not enough to bring the arms into engagement with the section 9 - and then cause said element to slide upwards. The operations indicated will be obviously repeated the number of times needed to complete the desired actuation. At the end of said operations, the user may release the element 17, which will return into engagement with the section 9 in the condition described above.

[0033] In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated, the element 17 is provided in a single piece with the two arms 19, which are connected to one another by an intermediate portion 21, which is in turn elastically deformable so as to exert the elastic action referred to above. As may be seen in Figures 8 and 9, in the assembled condition of the element 17, the portion 21 is located on the outside of the device so as to be gripped by the user without the need to insert his hand in the casing 7.

[0034] In various embodiments, as in the one illustrated, the arms 19 have spoon-shaped portions 19' so as to encompass the balls of the chain. It is, however, clear that in the case of applications in which the blind or curtain is provided with a control cord instead of a chain, instead of said spoon-shaped portions the arms 19 may have elements designed to pinch said cord. The safety device described above can be made of any rigid material. According to preferred embodiments, the safety device is made of plastic or metal material.

[0035] Furthermore, said device can be applied either on control chains or cords that are already installed or on control chains or cords that are still to be installed. Obviously, the configuration of the device may vary according to the cases in view of the type of assembly envisaged in order to wind the chain and, at the same time, set the contrast portion of the device between its branches. For example, in the case of chains that are already installed, the preferred embodiments of the device, provided with casing, may envisage removable structures, for example made up of half-shells, whereas in the case of control chains that are still to be installed, even structures or shells made of a single piece may be envisaged.

[0036] Finally, it should be pointed out that by "supporting structure" is here meant not only the structure proper that supports the cloth or other material of the blind or curtain but also any rigid element rigidly connected thereto, set between the latter and the safety device.

[0037] Of course, without prejudice to the principle of the invention, the details of construction and the embodiments may vary, even significantly, with respect to what is illustrated herein purely by way of non-limiting example, without thereby departing from the scope of the invention, as defined by the annexed claims.

Claims

1. A safety device to be applied on the control loop of a blind or curtain, said loop having two substantially vertical branches hanging from the supporting structure of the blind or curtain, which substantially extend parallel to one another and are joined at the bottom to define a loop portion,
said safety device having a rigid containment structure (1), configured for resting on said loop, remaining hanging therefrom and enabling sliding thereof, with respect to the device, during control of the blind,
said structure comprising a contrast portion (3), designed to rest on said loop portion, and a top edge (5), which, in the condition where the device is installed on the control loop, faces said supporting structure,
the distance between said top edge and said contrast portion being such that, in said installed condition, an external action of pulling upwards, exerted on said loop, causes raising of said device and impact of said top edge against said supporting structure so as to prevent said loop from possibly getting twisted or wound to form a noose.

2. The safety device according to Claim 1, wherein said containment structure comprises a casing (7) for covering at least one of said branches, said casing having at least one section cut to enable the user to access said at least one of said branches.

3. The safety device according to Claim 1, wherein said containment structure comprises a casing for covering said branches and said loop portion, said casing having at least one section cut to enable the user to access at least one of said branches.

4. The safety device according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein said casing comprises:

a first shell (11) for covering at least one of said branches, which has at least one section cut to enable the user to access said at least one of said branches; and

a second shell (13) for covering said loop portion, which is connected to the bottom end of the first shell and contains said contrast portion.

5. The safety device according to Claim 4, wherein said second shell is divided into two half-shells (13A) in a plane transverse to said contrast portion.

6. The safety device according to Claim 4 or Claim 5, characterized in that said second shell defines a siphon-shaped duct designed to receive said loop portion.

7. The safety device according to any one of Claims 2 to 6, wherein said casing defines at the bottom a siphon-shaped duct designed to receive said loop portion.

8. The safety device according to Claim 1, wherein said containment structure has a generic sheath-like configuration.

9. The safety device according to Claim 8, wherein said sheath-like structure has at least one section cut to enable the user to access at least one of said branches.

10. The safety device according to Claim 8 or Claim 9, wherein said containment structure is divided, according to a plane transverse thereto, into two half-shells that can be coupled together.

11. The safety device according to any one of Claims 2 to 7 and Claims 9 and 10, wherein said at least one cut section is engaged by a gripping element (17), which projects on the outside of said casing (7) and via which the user can control the chain without the need to gain access with his hands within said casing (7).

Drawing