Patents Examined by Jeremy C Ramsey
  • Patent number: 10697234
    Abstract: A window blind includes top and bottom beams, and many slats disposed therebetween. The top beam has two opposite lateral holes. The window blind further includes a slat folding transmission device having a cord rolling member disposed in the top beam, and two opposite lift transmission cords passing through the lateral holes of the lateral plates of the top beam respectively. Two ends of each lift transmission cord are connected with the bottom beam and the cord rolling member respectively, so that the two lift transmission cords can pull the bottom beam simultaneously when being rolled by the cord rolling member, thereby moving the bottom beam upwardly to fold up the slats. Therefore, the slats of the window blind of the invention need no processing and keep complete in structure, thereby providing good effect of blocking out the light when being adjusted to the inclined condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2020
    Inventor: Chin-Fu Chen
  • Patent number: 10689903
    Abstract: A stacking panel covering for an architectural opening includes a headrail and a plurality of suspended from the headrail. The panels form an overlapped stack at one end of the headrail when the stacking panel covering is opened, and cover the architectural opening when the stacking panel covering is closed. The panels are piggybacked on those adjacent thereto, so that they stack, one behind the next, when the stacking panel covering is opened, and so that each pulls the next adjacent thereto as the stacking panel covering is being closed. The panels themselves may be planar, or convexly curved in a horizontal direction and substantially straight in a vertical direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2020
    Assignee: Hunter Douglas Inc.
    Inventor: Wendell B. Colson
  • Patent number: 10683689
    Abstract: A folding wall partition includes foldable panel assemblies. Each panel assembly includes an upper panel and a lower panel. The upper and lower panels extend substantially in a common vertical plane when in a deployed position, and extend laterally outwardly of the common vertical plane in a stacked relationship when in a stored position. A moving mechanism engages the panel assemblies to displace them between the stored and deployed positions. A cover assembly has cover panels. The cover panels extend in a first common horizontal plane when in the deployed position and are substantially coplanar with the ceiling to conceal a cavity. The cover panels extend in a second common horizontal plane higher than the first common horizontal plane and within the cavity when the cover panels are in the stored position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2020
    Assignee: SKYFOLD INC.
    Inventor: Mark McDonald
  • Patent number: 10662705
    Abstract: The invention is a track system for a retractable wall. The track system includes rigid outer guide tracks and flexible inner track inserts that are connected to the guide tracks by means of flanges located on both. The flexible inserts include a channel that engages with a side edge of a retractable wall, holding the wall in place. The flexible nature of the track inserts allows the inserts to bend, which in turn allows the retractable wall to flex when force is exerted on the retractable wall without breaking the tracks or tearing the wall. When excessive force is applied, the channel of the flexible insert, the walls of which are thicker than the rest of the flexible insert, bend open, so that the side edge of the retractable wall disengages from the channel by means of an opening in the channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2020
    Assignee: Hall Labs LLC
    Inventors: David R. Hall, Joe Fox, Andrew Priddis, Jackson Priddis
  • Patent number: 10648229
    Abstract: An architectural covering and a method of manufacturing the covering is provided. The panel may include multiple strips of material extending lengthwise across a width dimension of the panel. The strips of material may be overlapped and coupled to one another to define cells between adjacent strips of material. The panel may be retracted and extended across an architectural opening, and the strips of material may include a resilient support member to expand the cells as the panel is extended across the architectural opening. The panel may be manufactured by helically winding a continuous, elongate strip of material about a drum in an overlapped manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2020
    Assignee: HUNTER DOUGLAS INC.
    Inventors: Wendell B. Colson, Paul G. Swiszcz
  • Patent number: 10626670
    Abstract: A control apparatus for controlling rotation of a shaft about an axis includes a roller releasably and rotatably connected to a rear housing mount of a housing that is firmly secured to a wall, an operating cord looped on the roller, a front coupling member co-rotatably coupled with the shaft, and a rear coupling member releasably connected to the roller by a rearward resilient force of a resilient member and movable and non-rotatable relative to the front coupling member. The roller is moved, upon an excess downward pulling force, to a releasing position, where the rear coupling member is moved forwardly to release connection with the roller so as to permit removal of the roller from the housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2020
    Inventor: Ching-Hsiang Cheng
  • Patent number: 10619414
    Abstract: A mount for a roller blind. The roller blind has a roller tube securable to a structure between first and second end brackets. In one embodiment the mount comprises at least one yoke and at least one axle member. The yoke is securable to the first end bracket and has a generally horizontally oriented throat. The axle member is releasably securable to a first end of the roller tube with at least a portion retainable within the yoke's throat when the axle member is generally horizontal. The receipt of the said axle member within the throat hangs the first end of the roller tube from the first end bracket while permitting the roller tube to pivot about the first end bracket in a generally vertical plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2020
    Assignee: ZMC METAL COATING INC.
    Inventors: Philip Ng, Norman Wills
  • Patent number: 10619411
    Abstract: A light shielding structure for a vertical blind is disclosed, wherein the vertical blind includes a headrail and a plurality of slats, which are hanged under the headrail in a vertical manner, and can be controlled to be turned between a shielding position and a non-shielding position. The vertical blind includes at least one light shielding member, which is engaged to a bottom of the headrail, and can either be flipped up or naturally droop along with the turning of the slats. When the at least one light shielding member droops, gaps formed between the bottom of the headrail and a top of the slats are covered, which prevents light from leaking in therethrough.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2020
    Assignee: NIEN MADE ENTERPRISE CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Yu-Che Wen
  • Patent number: 10612299
    Abstract: A control device reduces an expansion speed of a covering material of a window covering system. The window covering system comprises the control device, the covering material and a weight member attached below the covering material to provide a weight force to the covering material. The control device comprises a driving module, a lifting module comprising a winding device configured to operate with the drive member and the covering material simultaneously, a damping module configured to operate with the winding device in only one direction for providing a damping force to the winding device selectively; wherein the damping force is provided to the winding device for reducing the expansion speed of the covering material when the winding device is rotated in the first direction; and wherein no damping force is provided to the winding device when the winding device is rotated in a second direction opposite to the first direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2020
    Assignee: Nien Made Enterprise Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Lin Chen, Keng-Hao Nien
  • Patent number: 10612300
    Abstract: A window blind includes a fixed rail and a plurality of slats hang below the fixed rail through a ladder tape. The slats are controlled by an output adjustment mechanism to change between a first state and a second state. In addition, an output clutch mechanism is provided to collect or to expand the window blind. Said output adjustment mechanism and said output clutch mechanism are both controlled by an input mechanism. Whereby, it requires only one single control module to adjust shielding of the slat assembly composed of the slats, and to expand or collect the slat assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2020
    Assignee: Nien Made Enterprise Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Lin Chen, Keng-Hao Nien
  • Patent number: 10597940
    Abstract: Motorized manoeuvring device (1) intended to manoeuvre a moving windable fabric screen (3), the motorized manoeuvring device comprising: an actuator (4), comprising a hollow housing (41) containing a gear motor, a mounting end-plate (7a), characterized in that the end-plate (7a) comprises a first support (11) extending from the end-plate along a first longitudinal axis (X-X?) and cooperating with the housing (41) of the actuator (4) and in that it comprises a second support (12) extending from the end-plate along a second axis distinct from the first (Ya-Ya?, Z-Z?) and in that the hollow housing, notably the tubular hollow housing, of the actuator, is closed by the first end-plate support.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 24, 2020
    Assignee: SOMFY SAS
    Inventors: Sébastien Lemaitre, Julien Peillex
  • Patent number: 10584529
    Abstract: The safety device for a chain of a shade. The invention proposes the development of a tamper-proof safety device configured for a chain of a shade, such as the roller type, which, when not being used, is fixed to the body of the chain, and when being used, the chain is free to slide in order to perform the raising and lowering operations of the roller shade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2020
    Assignee: Bandalux Industrial, S.A.
    Inventor: Emiliano Garcia Garcia
  • Patent number: 10576917
    Abstract: Various embodiments of an awning roller assembly are provided. The structure provides awning hardware (28) having a powered groove (52) extending through one or more hardware components. The powered groove includes at least one track (70, 72) having electrical conductors (84, 85) therein. An accessory base (54) is provided for connection with a plurality of powered accessories (32, 34, 36, 37), including but not limited to, lights, fans or audio-video equipment. The accessory base provides electrical connection between the powered groove and the accessory to provide improved function in the outdoor living space beneath and around the awning.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2020
    Assignee: Dometic Sweden AB
    Inventors: Brent Alan Taylor, Clayton Hendry Meyers, Kent A. Becker
  • Patent number: 10577861
    Abstract: A shade configured to be rolled up or down by a user includes a plurality of slats, a plurality of weaving cords which attach the plurality of slats together, at least one strap including a top end and a bottom end, the top end being attached to one of the plurality of slats at a back side of the shade and the bottom end being a free end including a connector. A method of using the shade includes rolling up the shade to a first rolled up position and securing the rolled up portion of the shade by wrapping the strap around the rolled up portion and securing the strap to a front side of the shade. A fastener may also be used to secure a rolled up portion of the shade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2020
    Assignee: Lewis Hyman, Inc.
    Inventor: Robert LeBlanc
  • Patent number: 10569112
    Abstract: An assembly for covering an opening in a structure. The assembly has a roller to be mounted to a portion of the structure defining a portion of the structure opening and a member disposed on the roller assembly. The member is operable between a retracted position where it is wound onto the roller assembly and an extended position where it is unwound from the roller assembly. The member includes first and second portions with mutually opposing edges in a closed position. A fastener releasably attaches the first and second panel portions to each other. The first and second panel portions are separable in response to an egress force to form an egress through the member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2020
    Assignee: McKeon Rolling Steel Door Company, Inc.
    Inventor: Andrew C. Lambridis
  • Patent number: 10556566
    Abstract: A cargo blind end cap assembly of a vehicle comprises an end cap to receive a cargo blind bar and a seat belt retainer to retain and release a seat belt tongue. The seat belt retainer is coupled to the end cap.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2020
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies LLC
    Inventor: Nick Theologou
  • Patent number: 10550635
    Abstract: A window covering includes a first rail and a plurality of non-moving elements arranged adjacent at least one spring motor positioned in the first rail. The non-moving elements contact at least one lift cord for routing of the lift cord through the first rail to increase friction incurred during motion of the lift cord(s) that takes place during height adjustment of window covering material. Non-moving members can also be positioned to contact at least one lift cord for routing of the lift cord through the first rail to increase friction incurred during motion of the lift cord(s) that takes place during height adjustment of window covering material. The non-moving elements and non-moving members can be positioned in the first rail such that they do not move relative to the first rail when the window covering is mounted and installed for use by a user to adjustably cover a window.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2020
    Assignee: Whole Space Industries LTD
    Inventor: Tzu-Yen Lin
  • Patent number: 10538961
    Abstract: A dual-use pole used in a non-cord window blind assembly is provided to have a pole shank and a pole head. The pole head has a flange and a driving block. The flange has an end surface located at an end of the pole shank. The driving block is located at an opposing end surface of the flange and it is used to connect and drive a blind slat tilt adjuster to further adjust the tilt angle of the blind slats.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2020
    Inventor: Chin-Fu Chen
  • Patent number: 10513875
    Abstract: An overhead door having a floating spring adjustment is presented. Tension is applied to a torsion spring while the door is in the open, minimal tension state. One end of the torsion spring is fixed to a spring tension trolley. The trolley translates within a trolley guide mounted to the building structure. The other end of the torsion spring is fixed to a shaft running through the torsion spring. This allows the torsion spring to change in length as the number of coils shrink and grow through door operation thereby eliminating the “snake-like” or serpentine appearance from an improper fixed torsion spring length.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 24, 2019
    Assignee: CornellCookson, LLC
    Inventors: Joseph L. Balay, Thomas Balay
  • Patent number: 10501984
    Abstract: A closure locking design is presented that is more resistant to a displacement/dislodgement force. A closure end strip is fixed to a closure end and received by a closure guide first section. A rotatable tube and hook assembly run vertically within a closure guide second section. When rotated to a locking position a hook member of the tube and hook assembly rotates through a slot cut in the guide and through a cutout in the closure end strip to restrictively engage the closure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2019
    Assignee: CornellCookson, LLC
    Inventors: Thomas Balay, Joseph L. Balay