TRACK RAIL FOR A SUNSHADE DEVICE

Abstract

In a sunshade device, a track rail includes two rail halves connected to each other to confine a rail groove and extending along a length direction. Each rail half has a groove-confining part, and an abutment part connected to the groove-confining part. The abutment part of each rail half has an abutment surface to abut against the abutment surface of the other rail half, an outer surface opposite to the abutment surface, and at least one aligning hole extending through the abutment and outer surfaces. The aligning holes of the abutment parts serve to align the abutment parts during assembly of the rail halves.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a sunshade device, more particularly to a track rail for a sunshade device.

2. Description of the Related Art

FIGS. 1 and 2 show a vehicle sunshade device 2 disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,188,659 B2. The vehicle sunshade device 2 includes a track rail 1 used to guide a sunshade cloth 21 to move to a scrolled position or a stretched position. The track rail 1 includes first and second rail parts 11, 12 that are formed by an extrusion process and that are interlocked with each other to confine a rail groove 13. The first rail part 11 has a first groove-defining part 111, an inclined slot-defining part 112, and a first wing 113. The inclined slot-defining part 112 has an insert slot 114. The second rail part 12 has a second groove-defining part 121 that cooperates with the first groove-defining part 111 to define the rail groove 13, a second wing 122 projecting in a direction opposite to the first wing 113, and an insert tab 123 insertable into the insert slot 114. The first and second rail parts 11 and 12 interlock with each other when the insert tab 123 is inserted into the insert slot 114.

Because the rail groove 13 is formed by the first and second rail parts 11 and 12 through the insertion of the insert tab 123 into the insert slot 114, dimensional and positioning errors in processing the first and second rail parts 11, 12 can significantly affect accuracy of the dimension and shape of the rail groove 13, and hence operational smoothness of the sunshade cloth 21 guided by the rail groove 13. In addition, because the insert tab 123 is inserted into the insert slot 114 in an inclined direction, different levels of insertion forces for the insert tab 123 can vary the depth of the insert tab 123 in the insert slot 114, which will affect the fit of the insert tab 123 and the level of precision of the rail groove 13. Therefore, accurate control is needed to process and assemble the first and second rail parts 11, 12, which increases difficulties in the manufacture of the track rail 1.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a track rail for a sunshade device, which can be fabricated easily and assembled firmly and quickly.

Accordingly, the present invention provide a track rail for a sunshade device, which comprises two rail halves that extend along a length direction and that connect each other to confine a rail groove, each of said rail halves having a groove-confining part extending in the length direction, and an abutment part extending in the length direction. The abutment part of each of the rail halves has an abutment surface to abut against the abutment surface of the other one of the rail halves, an outer surface opposite to the abutment surface, and at least one aligning hole extending through the abutment and outer surfaces. The aligning holes of the abutment parts are used to align the abutment parts during assembly of the rail halves.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 shows a track rail in the prior art;

FIG. 2 shows a conventional vehicle sunshade device employing the track rail of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a track rail according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the track rail of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 shows the track rail of FIG. 3 mounted on a mold of an ultrasonic processing machine; and

FIG. 6 shows a track rail according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, a track rail for a sunshade device (not shown) according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes two rail halves 3, which extend along a length direction of the track rail and which cooperate to confine a rail groove 4. The rail halves 3 are disposed symmetrically on two opposite sides of a plane of symmetry 5.

The rail groove 4 includes a rounded groove portion 41 that extends in the length direction of the track rail and that is centered on the plane of symmetry 5, and a narrowed groove portion 42 that extends in the length direction and that is narrower than the rounded groove portion 41. The narrowed groove portion 42 has one end connected to the rounded groove portion 41 and another end formed with an opening 421 extending in the length direction oppositely of the rounded groove portion 41. The rail groove 4 further has closed and open ends that are opposite to each other in the length direction of the track rail.

Each of the rail halves 3 has a groove-confining part 31 extending in the length direction, an abutment part 32 extending in the length direction and connected to the groove-confining part 31 in proximity to the rounded groove portion 41, and a wing part 33 projecting from the groove-confining part 31. The groove-confining part 31 has a concaved surface 311 of substantially semi-circular in cross section to bound a half of the rounded groove portion 41, and a flat surface 312 connected to the concaved surface 311 to bound a half of the narrowed groove portion 42. The flat surfaces 312 of the rail halves 3 are spaced apart from the plane of symmetry 5. The concaved surfaces 311 of the rail halves 3 cooperatively bound the rounded groove portion 41. The flat surfaces 312 of the rail halves 3 cooperatively bound the narrowed groove portion 42.

The abutment part 32 of each rail half 3 has an abutment surface 321 coinciding with the plane of symmetry 5, an outer surface 322 parallel and opposite to the abutment surface 321, and a plurality of aligning holes 323 extending through the abutment and outer surfaces 321, 322. The abutment surfaces 321 of the abutment parts 32 extend in the length direction and abut against each other along the plane of symmetry 5. The abutment parts 32 extend from the respective groove-confining parts 31 oppositely of the narrowed groove portion 42. The aligning holes 323 are used for aligning the abutment parts 32 of the rail halves 3.

The wing parts 33 of the rail halves 3 project from the respective groove-confining parts 31 in proximity to the opening 421 of the narrowed groove portion 42 and in opposite outward directions. The wing parts 33 are substantially perpendicular to the abutment surfaces 321 of the abutment parts 32.

The rail halves 3 may be fabricated by forming a plastic material, and may be assembled together by mounting the rail halves 3 on a mold 6 (FIG. 5) of an ultrasonic processing machine. The mold 6 has multiple positioning pins 61 to be inserted into the aligning holes 323 of the rail halves 3 and to position the rail halves 3 on the mold 6. Through the use of the positioning pins 61, the abutment parts 32 of the rail halves 3 can be aligned with each other and with the mold 6 and can be thermal-bonded to each other at accurate positions. Alternatively, fasteners, such as screws, may be attached to the aligning holes 323 to assemble the rail halves 3.

While the aligning holes 323 are aligned with each other in the abutment parts 32 of the rail halves 3 in the embodiment as described above, the invention should not be limited only to the embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the aligning holes 323 in the abutment part 32 of one of the rail halves 3 may be staggered with respect to the aligning holes 323 in the other rail half 3. The abutment part 32 of one of the rail halves 3 may be longer than the abutment part 32 of the other rail half 3. With the staggered arrangement of the aligning holes 323, the rail halves 3 can also be aligned with each other appropriately using the mold 6 for assembly of the rail halves 3 together.

The rail halves 3 according to the present invention can be assembled together accurately and conveniently by a bonding process. The rail halves 3 do not have any insertion connection part, which can lead to the problem of dimensional and positional deviation of the rail groove encountered in the prior art.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.

Claims

1. A track rail for a sunshade cloth, comprising:

two rail halves, which extend along a length direction and which connect to each other to confine a rail groove, each of said rail halves having a groove-confining part extending in said length direction, and an abutment part extending in said length direction, said abutment part of each of said rail halves having an abutment surface to abut against said abutment surface of the other one of said rail halves, an outer surface opposite to said abutment surface, and at least one aligning hole extending through said abutment and outer surfaces, said aligning holes of said abutment parts being used to align said abutment parts during assembly of said rail halves.

2. The guide rail of claim 1, wherein said rail groove includes a rounded groove portion extending in said length direction, and a narrowed groove portion narrower than said rounded groove portion and extending in said length direction, said narrowed groove portion having one end connected to said rounded groove portion and another end formed with an opening opposite to said rounded groove portion, said groove-confining parts of said rail halves having concaved surfaces cooperatively bounding said rounded groove portion, and flat surfaces cooperatively bounding said narrowed groove portion.

3. The guide rail of claim 2, wherein said rail halves are disposed on two opposite sides of a plane of symmetry, said rounded groove portion and said narrowed groove portion being centered on the plane of symmetry, said abutment surfaces of said abutment parts substantially coinciding with the plane of symmetry.

4. The guide rail of claim 3, wherein said rail halves further have wing parts that project outwardly and oppositely from respective said groove-confining parts in proximity to said opening of said narrowed groove portion, each of said wing parts projecting in a direction substantially perpendicular to said abutment surfaces.

5. The guide rail of claim 1, wherein said aligning holes in said abutment parts are aligned with each other.

6. The guide rail of claim 1, wherein said aligning holes in said abutment parts are staggered with respect to each other.