One recent development in visual display and entertainment technology has been the flat-screen plasma television set. These devices offer superior picture quality to that of conventional television sets, yet they measure only a few inches in depth. As a result of their slim dimensions, they have the advantage of being suitable for mounting on walls or any vertical surface, and they have become increasingly popular in homes, offices and other establishments. However, articles of such contemporary or futuristic design can look inappropriate in certain, more traditionally furnished environments, but it would be time consuming and inconvenient to move a plasma screen television to and from its wall-mounted location in such environments each time it is to be used. Conversely, leaving it on display in a room of such mismatching style can be considered by some people to be detrimental to the aesthetic appeal of the room.

It is therefore the object of the present invention to provide a masking apparatus to conceal a wall mounted device such as a plasma screen television set when it is not in use, which solves or substantially alleviates the problems mentioned above.

According to the present invention therefore, there is provided a wall mountable masking apparatus comprising a decorative frame with a sheet of flexible material mounted therein, said sheet being moveably mounted in the frame by means operable to move said sheet from an extended position in which it is visible within the frame to another, retracted position in which, in use, an article located behind the frame is visible.

Preferably, the sheet is a blind mounted on a roller fitted to the frame.

In a preferred embodiment, the roller includes means which normally tensions the blind into its rolled up and retracted position.

Conveniently, the edge of the blind remote from the roller has means attached thereto, which are received in guide means in opposite sides of the frame. The means attached to the edge of the blind remote from the roller is preferably an elongate member.

In a preferred embodiment the guide means comprises an elongate runner on opposite sides of the frame, each runner having a longitudinal recess formed therein, each distal end of the elongate member being received in one of said recesses.

The means operable to move the blind preferably comprises a string, which extends between the roller and a spool mounted on the frame. In a preferred embodiment, a second string extends between the roller and the spool.

Conveniently, the means operable to move the sheet of flexible material is driven by an electric motor connected thereto. The means operable to move the blind is preferably driven by an electric motor located inside the spool and mechanically connected thereto.

In an alternative embodiment, the means operable to move the blind is driven by an electric motor located inside the roller and mechanically connected thereto In a preferred embodiment, the electric motor is operated by a signal receiver unit electrically connected thereto, controlled by a remote signal transmitter unit.

Alternatively, the electric motor is operated by a switch mounted on the frame. In a further alternative embodiment, the electric motor is operated by a timer electrically connected thereto.

The sheet of flexible material preferably has a picture or design printed thereon.

Alternatively the sheet of flexible material has a mirrored surface.

Conveniently, the frame has a releasable facia attached thereto.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a front perspective view of a masking apparatus of the invention with its moveable blind partly raised; Figure 2 is a schematic cross-section side view of a first embodiment of the apparatus in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a rear view of a masking apparatus shown in Figures 1 and 2 with the blind in its fully rolled up, raised position; and, Figure 4 is a rear view of the masking apparatus in Figure 3, with the blind in its normal fully lowered position; Figure 5 is a schematic cross-section side view of a second embodiment of the apparatus shown in Figure 1, with its blind partly raised; Figure 6 is a rear view of the masking apparatus shown in Figure 5.

Figure 1 shows a screen masking apparatus of the present invention, comprising a frame 1/21 with a blind 4/24 made of a flexible material moveably mounted therein which conceals a wall mounted flat screen plasma television set 2 located behind it.

The moveable blind 4/24 can be raised or lowered by means of a remote control signal transmitter 20/40 so that the flat screen plasma television set 2 is concealed when the blind 4/24 is in its fully lowered position, and is visible when the blind 4/24 is in its fully raised position.

Figure 2 shows a first embodiment of the apparatus of the invention in cross section and it can be seen that the frame 1 surrounds the flat screen plasma television set 2 mounted on wall 2a. The blind 4 is partially lowered and is part of a roller blind 3 system mounted by brackets 5 to the upper edge of the frame 1. The blind 4 can be raised and lowered by means described in detail hereafter, with reference to Figures 3 and 4.

The screen masking apparatus described above is shown in more detail in Figures 3 and 4. The roller blind 3 is rotatably mounted to the frame 1 by means of brackets 5. The roller blind 3 comprises a blind made from a sheet of flexible material 4 wound around a roller 3a. An elongate member such as a rod 7 is attached to edge 4a of the blind 4 remote from the roller 3a. The front surface of the blind 4 can have a picture or attractive design printed thereon, or a mirrored surface. The roller blind 3 also includes known tensioning means 6 inside the roller 3a, such as a torsion spring, which normally biases the roller blind 3 into a rolled-up, raised position. Guide means 8 are provided on each side edge 1c of the frame 1, and include an inwardly facing, longitudinal recess 9 formed therein. The rod 7 is dimensioned such that each distal end 7a thereof is received in the recess 9 of the respective guide means 8.

A spool 13 is rotatably mounted to the bottom edge of the frame 1 by means of brackets 14. A corner pulley 11 is mounted on the frame 1 adjacent each bottom corner la thereof, and two spool guide pulleys 12 are also attached to the bottom edge 1b of the frame 1. A pull-string 10 is attached to the rod 7 adjacent each distal end 7a thereof. Each string 10 extends from the rod 7, around a corner pulley 11 and spool guide pulley 12, its free end being attached to the spool 13 by means of string clamp 15.

In an alternative embodiment of the invention, only one draw-string 10 is provided, which extends from one distal end 7a of the rod 7, around one corner pulley 11, around one spool guide pulley 12, and around the spool 13 where it is held by string clamp 15. It then continues over the other spool guide pulley 12 and other corner pulley 11 and terminates on the other distal end 7a of the rod 7 to which it is secured.

An electrical transformer 16 is mounted to a bottom corner 1b of the frame 1, and has an input electrically connectable to a 240-volt domestic AC mains electricity supply 17. The output of the transformer 16 is electrically connected, via a signal receiver switch 19, to an electric motor 18, located inside and mechanically connected to the spool 13. The signal receiver switch 19 is mounted on the bottom

edge 1b of the frame 1 and is operated by a signal generated by remote control signal transmitter 20. The signal receiver switch 19 is able to receive two different signals from the transmitter 20, and accordingly can cause the motor 18 inside the spool 13 to rotate in either an'up'or a'down'mode.

In use, the screen masking apparatus is mounted on wall 2a over the flat-screen television set 2 (see Figures 1 and 2), such that when the blind is in its rolled-up, raised position, as shown in Figure 3, the flat screen plasma television set 2 is visible through the frame 1.

When the user has finished watching the television set 2, the masking apparatus is operated to lower the blind 4 from its raised position shown in Figure 3 to its lowered position shown in Figure 4, thereby concealing the television set 2 behind it. The remote control signal transmitter 20 sends a'down'signal that is detected by the signal receiver switch 19 which operates the motor 18. The motor 18 rotates the spool 13 and the strings 10 are wound around it, thus causing the bottom edge 4a of the blind 4 to be pulled downwardly against the tension of the torsion spring 6 in the roller 3a. This keeps the blind 4 taut and flat. As the blind 4 unrolls and lowers, its movement is laterally restrained by the distal ends 7a of the rod 7 sliding in their respective longitudinal recesses 9 in the guide means 8. When the blind 4 reaches its fully lowered position shown in Figure 4, the signal receiver switch 19 automatically stops the motor 18 and the blind 4 remains in said position. In this position, the television screen 2 behind the blind 4 is concealed from view and only the design, picture or mirrored surface of the blind is visible through the frame 1.

When the user wishes to use the television set 2 again, the procedure for extending the blind 4 described above, is reversed. The signal transmitter 20 is used to send an 'up'signal to the signal receiver switch 19. The motor 18 is thereby caused to rotate the spool 13 in the opposite direction to that of the blind 4 lowering process. This unwinds the pull-strings 10 from around the spool 13 and the rod 7 with the blind 4 attached to it is pulled up along side the frame edges 1c by the tension on the blind 4 created by the torsion spring 6 in the roller 3a. The spool 13 unwinds the strings 10 until the blind has reached its fully rolled up position as shown in Figure 3,

whereby the signal receiver switch 19 automatically stops the motor 18 and the television screen 2 located behind the masking apparatus is once again visible through the frame 1.

A second embodiment of the masking apparatus of the invention will now be described with reference to Figures 5 and 6.

Figure 5 shows the second embodiment of the apparatus in cross section and, as with the first embodiment described above, it can be seen that the frame 21 surrounds the flat screen plasma television set 2 mounted on wall 2a. The blind 24 is partially lowered and is part of a roller blind system 23 rotatably mounted by brackets 25 to the upper edge of the frame 21. The blind 24 can be raised and lowered by means described in detail hereafter, with reference to Figures 5 and 6.

The roller blind 23 comprises a blind made from a sheet of flexible material 24 wound around a roller 23a. A weighted elongate member such as a rod 27 is attached to edge 24a of the blind 24 remote from the roller 23a. The front surface of the blind 24 can have a picture or attractive design printed thereon, or a mirrored surface.

The second embodiment differs from the first in that there is no tensioning means inside the roller 23a. Instead, an electric motor 38 is provided inside the roller 23a, and is connectable to a 240-volt domestic AC mains electricity supply 37 via a transformer 36 and a signal receiver switch 39. In this second embodiment, , the signal receiver switch 39 is operated by a signal generated by a remote control signal transmitter 40. The signal receiver switch 39 is able to receive two different signals from the transmitter 40, and accordingly can cause the motor 38 inside the roller 23a rotate in either an'up'or a'down'mode The second embodiment does not have any of the spool 13, bracket 14, pulley 11/12, pull-string 10 or string-clamp 15 arrangement mounted to the bottom edge 1b of the frame 1 that the first embodiment has. Since the rotation of the roller 23a is controlled directly by the motor 38 within the roller 23a, the spool/string/pulley

arrangement is not necessary. However, in this second embodiment, the rod 27 is heavier than the rod 7 of the first embodiment so that gravity exerts a larger force on the rod 27 to keep the blind 24 under tension. This is necessary as the second embodiment does not have the torsion spring 6 inside the roller 3 to tension the blind 4.

Guide means 28 are provided on each side edge 21c of the frame 21, and include an inwardly facing, longitudinal recess 29 formed therein. The weighted rod 27 is dimensioned such that each distal end 27a thereof is received in the recess 29 of the respective guide means 28.

The second embodiment is used in the same way as the first embodiment described above. However, when the user has finished watching the television set 2, and uses the remote control signal transmitter 40 to send a'down'signal to the signal receiver switch 39, the motor 38 rotates the roller 23a directly, causing the bottom edge 24a of the blind 24 to be lowered downwardly, the blind 24 being kept taught by the gravitational force exerted on the bottom edge 24a by the weighted rod 27.

As with the first embodiment, the blind 24 is laterally restrained by the distal ends 27a of the rod 27 sliding in their respective longitudinal recesses 29 in the guide means 28. When the blind 24 reaches its fully lowered position, the signal receiver switch 39 automatically stops the motor 38 and the blind 24 remains in said position. In this position, the television screen 2 behind the blind 24 is concealed from view and only the design, picture or mirrored surface of the blind 24 is visible through the frame 21.

When the user wishes to use the television set 2 again, the procedure for extending the blind 24 described above, is reversed. The signal transmitter 40 is used to send an'up'signal to the signal receiver switch 39. The motor 38 is thereby caused to rotate the roller 23a in the opposite direction to that of the blind 24 lowering process, and winds the blind 24 around the roller 23a pulling the weighted rod 27 upwards against gravity until the blind 24 has reached its fully rolled up position, whereby the signal receiver switch 39 automatically stops the motor 38 and the

television screen 2 located behind the masking apparatus is once again visible through the frame 21.

It will be appreciated that the two embodiments described above are only examples of the present invention. In an alternative embodiment, the signal receiver switch 19/39 may be replaced with a manually operated 3-way switch mounted on the frame 1/21, which has an up', down'and an off'position for raising, lowering and halting movement of the blind 4/24. In a further embodiment of the invention, a timer switch can be included in place of the signal receiver switch 19/39, such that control of the lowering and raising of the blind 4/24 is pre-programmed. The function of this latter embodiment would be particularly useful if the screen masking apparatus is to be displayed in a store window, as the blind 4/24 can be set to raise and lower at pre-set intervals, for example every 10 seconds, to illustrate its operation to potential customers.

It will be apparent that the purpose of the present invention is to provide an aesthetically pleasing means to conceal functional apparatus, and so the appearance of the frame of 1/21 is very important. Accordingly, it is envisaged that the frame 1/21 can be of any number of styles and designs, chosen to best suit the décor of the environment in which the masking apparatus of the invention is to be used. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, means can be provided for releaseably attaching different fascias to the front of the frame 1/21 to suit differing styles of décor.