Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
CA 02568273 2006-11-16
UNIVERSAL WINDOW BLIND TRIMMER
This invention relates to a window blind trimmer and more specifically to a
universal
trimmer which is capable of trimming a wide variety of window blinds.
Window blinds are the most popular and economical means for dressing a window.
They
provide an ergonomical and pleasant covering for windows. Window blinds
commonly consist of
a plurality of horizontal slats mounted between a top head rail and a bottom
rail by a plurality of
vertical cords threaded through openings formed in the slats. Two of the cords
located adjacent to
the two sides of the blind commonly provide a pull cord adapted to a pulley
mechanism such that
they are operative for raising the slats and the bottom rail to bundle the
slats beneath and adjacent
to the top head rail so as to open the blind, or lowering the slats to
position evenly spaced from
one another horizontally over the window. The slats may also be turned
horizontally to either
close or open the spacing between them whereby to close or open respectively
the view through
the window. The slats are made in a variety of materials such as plastic,
wood, fabric, fiber
material, or metal. Similarly, the head rail and the bottom rail may also be
made in a variety of
plastic materials or metals.
Due to the variety of sizes of windows, window blinds are commonly produced in
several
standard sizes that conform with windows of some standard sizes. For non-
standard size
windows, a blind slightly larger then the window opening must be custom
trimmed by the vendor
or installer to fit the window. The vertical length of the blind is trimmed by
removing some of
the slats from a blind having a longer vertical length than the window
opening, while the width
of the blinds must be trimmed by cutting off two equal end portions of the
head rail, bottom rail
and slats from a width longer than the window opening so that the blind may
fit inside the
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window opening. The head rail and the bottom rail are commonly trimmed by
inserting
individually their ends to be cut into a die provided on a support frame. The
die has an openings
in the shape and size of the cross sectional shape and size of the head rail
and bottom rail and a
shear is activated either pneumatically, electrically, or manually to cut off
the selected end
portions. The slats may then be bundled together with their ends inserted and
mounted firmly
into the trimmer such that the selected end portions may be trimmed off with
an electric rotary
saw or pneumatic shear which are also mounted on the support frame.
Due to the wide variety of shapes and sizes and materials of the head rail and
bottom rail
as well as the slats in the variety of window blinds, it is necessary for the
vendor such as a
building supply store to equip with a plurality of trimming machines with each
machine
dedicated for cutting a different variety of blind. This requires a
considerable amount of floor
space at the vendor for installing and operating the plurality of trimming
machines whereas
vendor's floor space is always at a minimum in order the maximum amount of
floor space may
be used to accommodate a maximum amount of merchandise.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a window blind
trimming
machine which is operative for trimming window blinds having head rails,
bottom rails and slats
of a wide variety of shapes and sizes and made of a wide variety of materials.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a window blind
trimming machine
which is simple in structure and requires very little space for installation.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a window blind
trimming machine
which is easy to operate.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a window blind
trimming
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machine which may be installed in a truck for a window blind installer to use
on site for
trimming a window blinds of different shapes and sizes and made of a wide
variety of materials.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent
from the
following detailed description of the preferred embodiments thereof in
connection with the
accompanying drawings, in which
Figure 1 is a perspective top and front elevation view of the window blind
trimming
machine according to the present invention.
Figure 2 is an exploded perspective elevation view of the window blind
trimming
machine of the present invention showing the various component parts thereof.
Figure 3 is a perspective top and front elevation view of the mounting frame
thereof.
Figure 4 is a perspective top and rear elevation view of the mounting frame
thereof:
Figure 5 is an enlarged perspective rear elevation view of the interchangeable
die
assembly of the trimming machine of the present invention.
Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective front elevation view of the
interchangeable die
assembly of the trimming machine of the present invention.
Figure 7 is a perspective top and front elevation view of the trimming machine
operated
for cutting the head rail and bottom rail of the window blind.
Figure 8 is a perspective top and front elevation view of the trimming machine
operated
for cutting the slats of the window blind.
With reference to the drawings in which like reference numerals designate
corresponding
parts in the several views, the blind trimmer machine 10 of the present
invention has a main
mounting frame 11 consisting of a rectangular support base plate 12 which is
provided with
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mounting openings 13 at its four corners such that it may be securely mounted
with mounting
bolts on a work bench if required. A rectangular die holder plate 14 is
mounted vertically along a
rear edge 15 of the base plate 12 and extending perpendicularly upward
therefrom. The die
holder plate 14 has a recessed rectangular surface portion 16 formed in its
front portion such that
a step 17 is provided between its front portion and a rectangular rear raised
platform 18. The die
holder plate 14 may be mounted to the support base plate 12 with bolts 19
extending through
openings 20 and 21 formed in the support base plate 12 as best shown in Figure
2. A rectangular
slats receiving opening 22 is formed in the middle portion of the recessed
rectangular surface
portion 16. A circular opening 23 is formed in the rectangular rear raised
platform 18 of the die
holder plate 14. A rotatable shaft 24 having a short cylindrical portion 25
adapted for rotatably
mounted within the circular opening 23 of the rectangular raised platform 18
of the die holder
plate 14, and a circular outer portion 26 having a diameter larger than the
cylindrical portion 25
and positioned juxtaposed the die holder plate 14. An opening 27 is formed in
the side wall of the
circular outer portion 26. An elongated pivot handle 28 is mounted to the
circular outer portion
26 through the opening 27 such that it is operative for turning the rotatable
shaft 24 relative to the
die holder plate 14.
A generally reverse L-shaped double action cam arm 29 is mounted to the end of
the
cylindrical portion 25 of the rotatable shaft 24 with bolts 30, 31 and 32 and
it lies in abutment
with the surface of the rectangular rear portion 18 of the die holder plate
14. The double action
cam arm 29 has a generally rounded cam edge surface 33, and the mounting to
the rotatable shaft
24 is located adjacent to this rounded cam edge surface 33. The reverse L-
shaped end portion 34
is located distal to the mounting to the rotatable shaft 24.
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Two rectangular depressions 35 and 36 are formed in the recessed surface
portion 16 of
the die holder plate 14. The depression 35 is located above the slat receiving
opening 22 and the
depression 36 is located below the slat receiving opening 22 respectively. Two
vertical oval
shaped depressions 37 and 38 are formed in the depression 35 and similarly two
vertical oval
shaped depressions 39 and 40 are formed in the depression 36.
Two rectangular retainer plates 41 and 42 are mounted within the depressions
35 and 36
respectively. Two vertical key slots 43 and 44 are formed in the retainer
plates 41 and similarly
two vertical key slots 45 and 46 are formed in the retainer plate 42. Each one
of the key slots 43,
44, 45 and 46 has a rounded upper opening and a straight slot lower opening.
The key slots 45
and 46 are aligned with the oval depressions 37 and 38 respectively, similarly
the key slots 45
and 46 are aligned with the depressions 39 and 40 respectively.
A circular depression 47 is formed adjacent to the upper outer corner of
recessed surface
portion 16 of the die holder plate 14, and an opening 48 is formed in the rear
surface 49 of the die
holder plate 14. The opening 48 is in communication with the circular
depression 47 but has a
smaller diameter than the latter. A retractable rod 50 having the diameter
equal to that of the
opening 48 is slidable mounted within the opening 48. A knob 51 is mounted on
the rod 50 and
located juxtaposed to the rear surface 49 of the die holder plate 14. A spiral
compression spring
52 having a diameter equal to that of the circular opening 47 is mounted on
the free end 53 of the
rod 50 and located within the circular depression 47. A rotatable whee154 is
mounted at the free
end 53 of the retractable rod 50. The rotatable whee154 has a diameter and
length equal to the
diameter and depth of the circular depression 47 such that the retractable rod
50 may be operated
by pulling the knot 51 to retract the rotatable whee154 to lie flush within
the circular depression
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47.
An interchangeable die assembly 55 is removably mounted to the die holder
plate 14. The
die assembly 55 has a rectangular inner plate 56 having thickness and length
generally equal to
the depth and length of the recessed rectangular recessed portion 16 of the
die holder plate 14,
and an outer slider plate 57 having a main rectangular body portion 58 equal
in dimensions to the
inner plate 56 and a extension cam portion 59 extending outwards from its
lower rear corner
portion. The extension cam portion 59 has a sloping upper edge 60. Four
mounting openings 61,
62, 63 and 64 are formed in the inner plate 56 as best shown in Figure 2. Four
horizontal reverse
L-shaped guide slots 65, 66, 67 and 68 are formed in the outer slider plate
57. The inner plate 56
and the outer slider plate 57 are removably mounted together with four
retainer bolts 69, 70, 71
and 72 and four generally T-shaped cylindrical nuts 73, 74, 75 and 76
respectively. Each of the
retainer bolts 69, 70, 71 and 72 has a head portion 77, 78, 79 and 80
respectively formed at its
free end, a circular ring 81, 82, 83 and 84 formed in the middle portion of
its longitudinal body
and threaded end portion respectively. The body of the retainer bolts 69, 70,
71 and 72 has a
diameter equal to that of the mounting openings 61, 62, 63 and 64. The inner
plate 56 and the
outer slider plate 57 are removably mounted together with the threaded end
portion of the
retainer bolts 69, 70, 71 and 72 inserting through the mounting openings 61,
62, 63 and 64
respectively to engage with the T-shaped cylindrical nuts 73, 74, 75 and 76
inserting through the
horizontal reverse L-shaped guide slots 65, 66, 67 and 68 respectively. The
circular rings 81, 82,
83 and 84 cooperate with the T-shaped cylindrical nuts 73, 74, 75 and 76 to
mount the inner plate
56 and the outer slider plate 57. The outer slider plate 57 is slidable
relative to the inner plate 56
with the T-shaped nuts 73, 74, 75 and 76 slidable along the horizontal reverse
L-shaped guide
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slots 65, 66, 67 and 68 respectively. The head portions 77, 78, 79, 80 extend
outwards from the
rear surface of the inner plate 56 as best shown in Figure 5 and they are
slightly smaller than the
circular portion of the key slots 43, 44, 45 and 46 of the retainer plates 41
and 42. A bias spring
85 is mounted between the inner plate 56 and the outer slider plate 57. The
bias spring 85
maintains the inner plate 56 and the outer slider plate 57 at a normal mounted
condition with the
T-shaped cylindrical nuts 73, 74, 75 and 76 resting against the lower edge of
the reverse L-
shaped guide slots 65, 66, 67 and 68 respectively as best shown in Figure 6.
A rectangular slats receiving opening 86 is formed in the inner plate 56 and a
similar
rectangular slats receiving opening 87 is formed in the outer slider plate 57.
The two slats
receiving openings 86 and 87 are aligned with one another when the inner plate
56 and outer
slider plate 56 are in the mounted normal condition. A vertical cutting blade
88 is formed at the
left side edge of the slats receiving opening 87 of the outer slider plate 57.
A large reverse C-shaped opening 89 having the same shape and dimensions as
the cross
sectional shape and dimensions of a common window blind head rail and a
smaller reverse C-
shaped opening 90 having same shape and dimensions as the cross sectional
shape and
dimensions of a common window blind bottom rail are formed on the inner plate
56 and located
adjacent to the left and right side of the slats receiving opening 86. A
similar large reverse C-
shaped opening 91 and smaller reverse C-shaped opening 92 are formed in the
outer slider plate
57. The large reverse C-shaped openings 89 and 91 and the smaller reverse C-
shaped openings
90 and 92 are aligned with one another when the inner plate 56 and the outer
slider plate 57 are
in the mounted normal condition.
The interchangeable die assembly 55 may be removably mounted to the main
mounting
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frame 11 by first pulling the rotatably whee154 to lie within the circular
depression 47 of the
main mounting frame 11 such that the die assembly 55 may be pushed onto to the
main mounting
frame 11 with the head portions 77, 78, 79 and 80 engaging with the circular
portion of the key
slots 43, 44, 45 and 46 of the retainer plates 41 and 42 and then slidably
pushed downward along
the lower narrow portion of the key slots to securely mounting the die
assembly 55 to the main
mounting frame 11. At this mounted position, the rotatable whee154 will extend
outwards from
the circular depression 47 to engage with the top edge of the inner plate 56
to provide a latching
means for ascertaining the die assembly 55 being mounted securely to the main
mounting frame
11. The die assembly 55 may be removed from the main mounting frame 11 by
following the
reverse procedure by first pulling the rotatable wheel 54 within the circular
depression 47 and
then pulling the die assembly 55 upwards to slide the head portions 77, 78, 79
and 90 up to the
circular portion of the key slots 43, 44, 45 and 46 such that they may be
disengaged from the key
slots by pulling the die assembly 55 outwards away from the main mounting
frame 11.
The head rail and the bottom rail of the window blind may be trimmed by
inserting them
into the aligned large reverse C-shaped openings and smaller reverse C-shaped
openings of the
inner plate 56 and outer slider plate 57, and then pivoting the handle 28
forwards as shown in
Figure 7 such that the rounded cam edge surface 33 of the double action cam
arm 29 will engage
the right edge of the outer slider plate 57 to slide it forward relative to
the inner plate 56 to shear
off the selected end portions of the head rail and the bottom rail. The
selected end portions of the
slats of the window blind may be trimmed by bundling them together and
inserting the bundle
into the aligned slats receiving openings 22, 86 and 87 and then pivoting the
handle 28 rearwards
as shown in Figure 8 such that the lower L-shaped end portion 34 of the double
action cam arm
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29 will engage with the right edge of the outer slider plate 57 to push it
forward such that the
vertical cutting blade 88 will move forward to trim the bundled slats. After
the slats have been
trimmed the handle 28 may be pivoted back to the vertical normal position, the
outer slider plate
57 will be pulled back to the normal position by the bias spring 85.
A plurality of die assembly 55 having large reverse C-shaped opening, smaller
reverse C-
shaped opening, and slats receiving opening of different shapes and dimensions
may be provided
such that they be interchangeably mounted to the main mounting frame 11 for
trimming different
window blinds. Therefore, the single machine of the present invention may be
used for trimming
a wide variety of window blinds. Also, due to the simple construction, the
machine occupies a
minimum amount of space in the retail store or it may be carried in a mobile
truck for trimming
window blinds at the job site.
While the present invention has been shown and described in the preferred
embodiments
thereof, it will be apparent that various modifications can be made therein
without departing
from the spirit or essential attributes thereof, and it is desired therefore
that only such limitations
be placed thereon as are imposed by the appended claim.
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