US2863164A - Curtain clip - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 9, `1958 o. s. s-cHEsvoLD CURTAIN CLIP Filed Dec. 12. 1955 IN1/Arron? CELA/vo cHsvoLo y.

BY Hl`5` ATTO RNEYS. HH @fe/5, K/.s cH, Fos Tex? 6C HA @fe/6 United States Patent" fce 2,863,164 Patented Dec. 9, `1958 CURTAIN CLIP Orland S. Schesvold, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to Curtition Corporation, Los Angeles, Calif., a corporation of California Application December 12, 1955, Serial No. 552,647

2 Claims. (Cl. 16-87.4)

This invention relates to curtain-supporting clips and, in particular, to a clip for supporting a folding or accordion-type curtain or door.

It is an object of the invention to provide a clip which may be used in conjunction with a plurality of similar clips to suspend a folding type curtain or door from an overhead support.

It is another object of the invention to provide a curtain clip which can be molded in one piece from a suitable material, such as nylon, and which can be attached to the curtain to be supported merely by insertion of the edge of the curtain into the clip. Another object of the invention is to provide a curtain clip which can be sus pended from an overhead track and which can be moved transversely and also rotated in the track.

It is another object of the invention to provide a clip -for supporting a prefabricated curtain, the clip having interior shoulders which are snapped into preformed grooves or slots in the curtain. A further object of the invention is to provide such a clip in which the interior shoulders have hat horizontal upper surfaces which engage corresponding surfaces in the grooves or slots in the curtain.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a curtain clip of the type described which is inexpensive to manufacture and simple to install and one which has an exceedingly long life, being capable of at least 70,000 cycles of operation.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novel combinations and arrangements of parts which will more fully appear in the course of the following description. The drawing merely shows and the description merely describes a preferred embodiment of the present invention in which the above stated objects have been achieved which is given by way of illustration or example.

In the drawing:

Fig. l is an isometric view of a preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a view showing a plurality of the clips of Fig. l supporting a folding curtain from an overhead track;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a bottom View of the embodiment of Fig. 1.

The clip of the invention is preferably molded as a single piece from a suitable ilexible material, such as nylon, although of course it could be fabricated from several pieces and be composed of various materials if desired. Opposing plate-like side members 11, 12 are joined at their upper edges by a central body portion 13. The side and bottom edges of the side members 11, 12 are tapered to provide a neat appearing junction between the clip and any material positioned between the side members.

A cylindrical shank 15 is centrally positioned on the central body portion 13 and extends upward therefrom, terminating in an enlarged button or head 16 which is frusto-conical in shape.

A shoulder 20 extends outward from the surface 21 of the side member 11 toward theopposing side member 12 with the outer edge 22 ofthe shoulder 2t) preferably contacting the surface 23 of the side member 12. A similar shoulder 25, horizontally aligned with the shoulder Z0, extends outward from the surface `23 toward the side member 11, also preferably with its outer edge 26 contacting the surface 21. The upper surfaces of the shoulders 20 and 25 are flat and lie in the same horizontal plane. The lower surfaces of the shoulders slope upward and outward from the adjoining side member.

When used to support a folding curtain, a plurality of the clips 1@ is suspended from an overhead track 30 (Figs. 2 and 3) which comprises a hollow rectangular beam 31 fastened to a header 32 by suitable means such as screws 33. Moldings 35, 36 may be installed on each side of the beam 31 in order to conceal it. An opening 37 in the lower side of the beam 31 extends for the length of the beam, the shank 15 of the clip 10 being a sliding tit in the opening 37. At one end of the beam 31, a larger opening 33 permits the head 16 of the clip to be inserted into the beam.

A plurality of horizontally disposed slots 4t) positioned near the upper edge of a folding curtain 41 permits a plurality of the clips 10 to be attached to the curtain for supporting the latter. A clip may be mounted on the curtain by positioning the upper edge of the curtain between the opposing side members of the clip and then exerting a light force on the clip toward the curtain. The upper edge of the curtain pushes against the sloping lower surfaces of the shoulders and springs the side members apart. When the curtain is moved to the position shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the opposing side members return to their normal spacing with the shoulders positioned within the slots and the curtain resting on their upper surfaces. Thus, the curtain is rmly supported by the clip which may slide and rotate in the opening in the overhead beam, permitting the curtain to bc moved at will. Each of the slots 40 in the curtain t1 of Fig. 4 is made slightly larger than the respective shoulders 218 and 25, leaving a web 42 between the slots to prevent sagging of the curtain. lf a stiff curtain material is utilized or if some sagging is not objectionable, the web could be omitted thereby making the slots 40 greater than the combined width of the two shoulders.

In Fig. 4, the curtain 41 is shown with a notch 43 in its upper edge above the slots 40. This notch provides clearance for the central body portion 13 of the clip thereby reducing the gap between the beam and the curtain.

Although an exemplary embodiment of the invention has been disclosed and discussed, it will be understood that other applications of the invention are possible and that the embodiment disclosed may be subjected to various changes, modifications and substitutions without necessarily departing from the spirit of the invention.

For example, the surfaces of the curtain which rest on the shoulder of the clip may be provided by a pair of opposing grooves which extend only part way into the curtain, rather than being an opening as` seen in Figs. 3 and 4. Then each shoulder would extend only part way across the space between the side members. Also, the shoulders could be` positioned opposite each other rather than being displaced horizontally, with each extending part way through the curtain, similar to the shoulders described in the preceding sentence.

l claim as my invention:

1. A clip for carrying a curtain or the like in an over head track, the curtain having preformed horizontally disposed support surfaces, the clip comprising: a pair of spaced, opposing, upstanding plates joined at their upper edges, each of said plates having a shoulder projecting outward from aside thereof toward the opposing plate', said shoulders being in horizontal alignment and being displaced horizontally from each other, said plates being capable of repeatedly exing away from each other for moving each of said shoulders away from the opposing plate to permit ythe curtain to be repeatedly inserted therebetween and removed therefrom, said shoulders being adapted to engage the support surfaces for supporting the curtain; and an upstanding shank attached to said plates at said juncture of their upper edges, said shank including a cylindrical section adjacent said juncture and lan enlarged section at the upper end of said shank remote from said juncture, said shank being slidably and rotatably engageable with the overhead track with said enlarged section retaining said clip in the overhead track.

2. In combination: a sheet of material for positioning in a vertical plate, said sheet being ilexible at least along spaced vertical axes, said sheet having a plurality of horizontally aligned openings adjacent the upper edge thereof; and a plurality of sheet supporting clips removably disposed along said upper edge, each of said clips having an inverted U-shaped body and means for supporting said body from an overhead track, with a portion of said sheet including atleast one of said openings positioned in the space between the arms of said U, each of the arms having a shoulder projecting horizontally therefrom toward the opposite arm across said space for entering one of said openings, said shoulders being in horizontal alignment.

References Cited in the lile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS OTHER REFERENCES Plastics Bulletin, volume 12, 1950, page 192. E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Wilmington, Delaware.

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