Patent Application
20080164393
(a) Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a window covering support rack, and in particular to a window covering support rack that allows passage of covering hanger ring or hanger hook through intermediate support brackets of the window covering support rack.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
A conventional window covering set often comprise a piece of soft or flexible covering movably or non-movably supported on a support rack that is mounted to a wall above a window to be covered with the covering. The support rack comprises an elongate rod along which the covering is spread and hung and is selectively movable. The rod is supported, at opposite ends thereof, by brackets that are mounted to the wall. For rods of extended lengths, such as those being longer than 5 feet, one or more intermediate brackets are needed to ensure structural strength in supporting a long and thus heavy covering.
The bracket 12 comprises a base 121 and a support arm 122. The base 121 is mounted to a wall (not shown) and forms an open-ended cylinder 1211. The support arm 122 comprises an adjusting bar 1221 slidably fit into the cylinder 1211 of the base 121 and releasably secured thereto by a threaded fastener S1 for selectively, adjustably, and releasably retaining the support arm 122 to the base 121. Thus, the distance between the wall and the support arm 122 is adjustable. The support arm 122 forms a retention ring 1222, through which a bore 1223 is defined. The bore 1223 receives extension of the rod sections 111, 112 of the rod 11. The retention ring 1222 also forms an internally-threaded radially-extending hole 1224, which threadingly receives a threaded fastener S1 for engaging and releasably securing the rod sections 111, 112.
The hanger ring 13 is a circular ring to which a window covering clip 131 is attached. The clip 131 releasably secures a window covering to the hanger ring 13.
Also referring to
The conventional window covering support rack, although effective in soundly supporting a long rod 11 having a length exceeding five feet, suffers a major problem. The retention ring 1222 of the support arm 122 of the intermediate bracket 12 is a complete circle having no side opening, which becomes an obstacle to the movement of the hanger rings 13 when a user attempts to move the covering 2 to either end of the rod 11. Thus, it is not possible for the conventional window covering support rack to allow the covering 2 to be completely moved to one side for fully exposing the window.
In view of the above drawback of the conventional window covering support bracket 12, it is desired to have a window covering support rack that allows for passage of a window covering in uncovering and/or shading a window.
The primary purpose of the present invention is to provide a window covering support rack that overcomes the drawback that the conventional hanger ring that hangs a window covering on a rod is blocked by an intermediate bracket of the rod so that completely moving the window covering toward an end of the rod is in general not possible.
In an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a window covering support rack comprising a window covering support rod having opposite ends mounted to and supported by two end brackets that are mounted to a wall, and at least one intermediate bracket providing additional support to the rod. A plurality of hanger rings is fit over and movable along the rod. The intermediate bracket comprises an L-shaped plate having an end section mounted to the wall and a horizontally extending bottom support section extending from the end section and having a free end forming an arcuate recess for partially receiving and supporting the rod therein. A retention wall is formed on the bottom section of the intermediate bracket to stably retain the rod in the recess. Each hanger ring has a clip mounted thereto and depending therefrom for coupling a window covering, whereby the ring is securely retained on the rod by the weight of the window covering. The ring forms a side opening that is aligned to the bottom section of the intermediate bracket in a moving direction of the hanger ring along the rod so that the hanger ring is allowed to smoothly pass over the intermediate bracket to facilitate the use of the window covering.
In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a window covering support rack comprising two rods supported, at opposite ends thereof, by end brackets and an intermediate bracket providing an additional support to the rods. The intermediate bracket comprises a primary bracket member and a secondary bracket member. The primary bracket member comprises a lying U-shaped plate having an end section mounted to a wall, a bottom section forming a recess for partially receiving and supporting one of the rods and a retention wall for stably retaining the rod in the recess, and a top section forming a projection and an internally threaded hole. The secondary bracket member comprises a top section overlapping the top section of the primary bracket member and forming an elongate slot receiving the projection of the primary bracket member therein and aligned to the internally threaded hole to receive a threaded fastener to secure the secondary bracket member to the primary bracket member and a bottom section also forming a recess for partially receiving and supporting the other one of the rods therein and a retention wall stably retaining the rod in the recess. The rods carry two window coverings respectively.
The foregoing object and summary provide only a brief introduction to the present invention. To fully appreciate these and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself, all of which will become apparent to those skilled in the art, the following detailed description of the invention and the claims should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the specification and drawings identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar parts.
Many other advantages and features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example.
The following descriptions are of exemplary embodiments only, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the following description provides a convenient illustration for implementing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Various changes to the described embodiments may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements described without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.
With reference to the drawings and in particular to
The rod 3 can be a single elongate rod of a desired length or may be comprised of a plurality sections that are jointed together to form the rod 3. In the embodiments illustrated, a two-sectional rod 3 is taken as an example for explaining the principle of the present invention. The rod 3 thus comprises two rod sections 31, 32 of which one, for example the rod section 31, forms a bolt 311 at an inner end thereof, and the other one, for example the rod section 32, forms, at an inner end thereof opposing the inner end of the rod section 31, an internally-threaded hole 321 for threadingly engaging the bolt 311 of the rod section 31 thereby jointing the two rod sections 31, 32 together to form the rod 3.
The end bracket 4 comprises a base 41 and a support arm 42. The base 41 is mounted to a wall (not shown) and forms an open-ended cylinder 411. The support arm 42 comprises an adjusting bar 421 slidably fit into the cylinder 411 of the base 41. With the slidability of the adjusting bar 421 in the cylinder 411, the distance between the support arm 42 and the wall can be adjusted and the support arm 42 can be positioned with respect to the wall as desired. The support arm 42 is releasably secured to the cylinder 41 of the base 41 by a threaded fastener S for selectively, adjustably, and releasably retaining the support arm 42 to the base 41. The support arm 42 forms a retention ring 422, through which a bore 423 is defined. The bore 423 receives extension of the rod sections 31, 32 of the rod 3. The retention ring 422 also forms an internally-threaded radially-extending hole 424, which threadingly receives a threaded fastener S for engaging and releasably securing the rod sections 31, 32 to the retention ring 422.
The intermediate bracket 5 comprises a substantially L-shaped plate having a first, end limb mounted to the wall and a second, bottom limb extending from the first limb and having a free end forming a recessed retention portion 51, having an arcuate cross section serving to partially receive the rod 3 therein so as to provide additional support to the rod 3. The recessed retention portion 51 of the intermediate bracket 5 is delimited, at the outermost end of the second limb of the intermediate bracket 5, by a retention wall 52 that is extended substantially upwards, serving to stably retain the rod 3 within the recessed retention portion 51.
The hanger ring 6 comprises a circular ring having a side opening 61. A window covering clip 62 is attached to and depending from the hanger ring 6.
Also referring to
Also referring to
In the embodiment illustrated previously, the window covering 7 comprises a soft curtain that can be folded or pleated during its movement toward either end of the rod 3. The curtain can be replaced by a shade and
Referring to
The secondary bracket portion 92 comprises a lower portion that has a construction similar to the L-shaped bracket 5 of the previous embodiment, namely comprising an end limb and a bottom limb extending from the end limb, and the bottom limb forms a recessed retention portion 923 at a free end thereof and a retention wall 924 at the outermost position and delimiting the recessed retention portion 923. The secondary bracket portion 92, however, further comprises a top limb 921 extending from the end limb but in a direction opposite to the bottom limb and positionable on the top limb 911 of the primary bracket portion 91 in a partially overlapped manner. An elongate slot 922, extending in the direction of extension of the top limb 921, is defined in the top limb 921, having a length sufficient to cover the predetermined distance between the projection 912 and the internally threaded hole 913 of the primary bracket portion 91. The projection 912 is received in the slot 922 when the top limb 921 of the secondary bracket portion 92 is positioned on the top limb 911 of the primary bracket portion 91 and the hole 913 is aligned with the slot 922 to engage a threaded fastener S that extends through the slot 922 so as to secure the primary and secondary bracket portions 91, 92 together in a partially stacked manner.
Also referring
Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that a variety of modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention which is intended to be defined by the appended claims.
It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together may also find a useful application in other types of methods differing from the type described above.
While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claim, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.
