| JP11245666 | SLIDE DOOR OPENING AND CLOSING DEVICE FOR AUTOMOBILE |
| JP2000301947 | SLIDE DOOR DEVICE FOR VEHICLE |
| JP2004346483 | POWER SLIDE DEVICE FOR VEHICLE SLIDE DOOR |
Lance
Nicholson, Rowell
Andrew
Thierry
Rowell, Lance Nicholson Rowell Andrew Thierry
| 1. | A sheet member comprising a plurality of spaced substantially parallel pockets extending across the sheet member characterised in that at least one side of all of the pockets and at least part of all the regions of the sheet member between the pockets are made from a common sheet of material. |
| 2. | A sheet member according to claim 1 wherein the sheet of material is woven so that both sides of the pockets are produced during the weaving process. |
| 3. | A sheet member according to claim 2 wherein the sheet of material comprises woven cloth coated with plastics material». |
| 4. | A sheet member according to claim 1 comprising two sheets of plastics or plasticscoated material bonded together except at regions defining the pockets. |
| 5. | A sheet member according to claim 4 wherein one of the sheets comprises regions of two types, namely a first type through which adhesive can easily pass and second type through which adhesive cannot easily pass. |
| 6. | A sheet member according to. claim 4, wherein said one of the sheets is constructed in the manner of a mesh or woven sheet with regions of the first type having an open weave pattern and regions of the second type having a closeweave pattern. |
| 7. | A sheet member according to any of claims 4 to 6 wherein the sheets are adhered together with paste except at said regions defining the pockets. |
| 8. | '5. |
| 9. | A curtain for a curtainsided vehicle comprising a sheet member according to any preceding claim and a respective stiff web member in each of the pockets. |
| 10. | A curtain according to claim 8 having at one or 10 each end thereof an elongate supporting and/or tensioning member secured to the sheet member by wrapping an edge of the sheet member around a beading member, inserting the beading member together with the wrappedaround material into a groove of the elongate 15 member and deforming the grove so as to secure the sheet member to the elongate member. |
| 11. | A kit of parts for assembling a curtain according to claim 8 or 9 comprising a sheet member according to 20 any of claims 1 to 7, a plurality of buckle members, and means for fixing the roller members and the buckle members to the plastics sheet. |
The present invention relates to sheet material, especially of plastics or plastics-coated material, and more particularly to sheets for use in forming the curtains of curtain-sided vehicles.
Curtains for curtain-sided vehicles require strengthening in order to retain the load and resist wind forces etc. Such strengthening usually comprises a plurality of web members disposed at spacings along the curtain, each web member extending from the bottom of the curtain to the top. One way of securing the web members (usually of relatively stiff plastics material) to the ucurtain (usually of thinner plastics sheet material) is simply by welding the webs to the surface of the curtain. This is a time consuming process and welding machines are very expensive.
Another way of securing the web members to the curtain is to provide the curtain with respective pockets. Each curtain comprises a plurality of panels arranged end-to- end, the ends of adjacent panels overlapping. The end edges of the panels are then welded along a weld line to the adjacent panel, thus forming a pocket for a web between each pair of panels. Again, time-consuming and expensive welding operations are needed, and many sheet cutting operations need to be performed.
The present, invention seeks to provide a cheaper and simpler way of attaching the webs to the curtains.
According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a sheet member comprising a plurality of spaced substantially parallel pockets extending across the sheet member, characterised in that at least one side of all of the pockets and at least part of all the regions of the sheet member between the pockets are made from a common sheet of material:
An advantage of the above arrangement is that it is easily fabricated and the need is avoided for apparatus to weld together adjacent regions of the sheet member. The sheet member has a surface which is not interrupted by weld seams, so it is particularly suitable for the application of company liveries or advertising matter etc.
In a preferred embodiment the sheet of -material is woven so that both sides of the pockets are produced during the weaving process. An advantage of this arrangement is that the sheet member may be quickly fabricated by the manufacturer in a single operation. The sheet may be of woven plastics material or of woven cloth which is subsequently coated with plastics material.
in another preferred embodiment, the sheet member comprises two sheets of material bonded or laminated together except at regions defining the pockets. A continuous length of this sheet material, too, can be fabricated in a simple operation. The sheet material may be of plastics, which may be woven, or of woven cloth which is subsequently coated with plastics material.
The second layer preferably comprises regions of two types, namely a first t pe through which adhesive or laminant can easily pass and a second type through which
the adhesive or laminant cannot easily pass. The regions of the second type correspond to the positions of the pockets, so that the two layers are not bonded together in these regions. The second layer may be constructed in the manner of a mesh or woven sheet with regions of the first type having an open weave pattern and regions of the second type having a close-weave pattern. Thus the two layers may be placed together and then adhesive or laminant applied, e.g. by roller, to the back of the second layer. The adhesive or laminant passes through the first type of region but not through the second type of region. The adhesive or laminant is allowed to set and thus the layers are firmly secured together except at the pocket regions. The adhesive or laminant is preferably p.v.c. paste.
According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a curtain for a curtain-sided vehicle comprising a sheet member as defined above and comprising a respective relatively stiff web member in each of the pockets.
According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a kit of parts for assembling a curtain according to the preceding paragraph comprising a sheet member as set out above, a plurality of stiffening web members, a plurality of roller members, a plurality of buckle members, and means for fixing the roller members and the buckle members to the sheet member.
At the end of curtains for curtain-sided vehicles it is conventional to have a vertical rod arranged to be attached at its top and bottom to the frame of the vehicle for supporting and tensioning the curtain. At present the rod is secured to the curtain by turning the
end of the curtain back a short distance and welding the free edge to the curtain to define a pocket extending from the top to the bottom of the curtain for receiving the rod. The curtain material is then secured to the rod, e.g. by riveting. Thus again time-consuming and expensive welding and other assembly operations are necessary to manufacture the completed curtain.
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:
Fig.l is a schematic partial view of the inner surface of an end of a vehicle side curtain in accordance with the prior art;
Fig.2 is a similar view of a vehicle side curtain in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention during assembly;
Fig. 3- is an enlarged top view of an end of the curtain of Fig. 2 after a subsequent assembly step;
Fig. 4 is a top plan view on a reduced scale of a vehicle side- curtain in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention ?
Fig.5 shows the weave at parts of the curtain of Fig.4 which are of single thickness; and
Fig.6 shows the weave at each side of the pocket regions of the curtain of Fig.4.
Fig.l shows a. schematic view of a prior art curtain 10 of plastics sheet material^for a curtain-sided vehicle.
The curtain is 1.5 metres or 3.5 metres high and its
length corresponds to the length of the vehicle side. Because the sheet material is relatively thin it needs to be strengthened to withstand the loads and the wind, and to provide points of attachment for the top rollers 11 and tightening buckles 12 without tearing of the material. This is done at present by high frequency welding relatively thick p.v.c. webbing strips 15 to the back, i.e. inside of the curtain from the top to bottom at spaced positions corresponding to the spacing of the rollers and buckles, i.e. usually 2ft (61 cm) apart. This process is time-consuming and the industrial welding machines necessary are very expensive. The webbing straps may be 1 to 3 mm thick and 40 to 80 mm wide, for example.
Referring now to Fig.2, there is shown a curtain 20 in accordance with the present invention of the same size and shape as that of Fig.l. The curtain is formed of two layers of p.v.c polyester material, viz a front or outer layer 21 and a back or inner layer 22. The inner layer 22 is in the form of a mesh with first regions 23 of a relatively open mesh and second regions 24 with a closed mesh. Regions 24 are spaced by 2ft (61 cm) and have a width w slightly greater than the width of a strip of stiffening web. After placing layers 21 and 22 together adhesive is applied to the back layer 22 by means of a roller. The adhesive easily passes through the openings in regions 23, but does not pass through the layer in the regions 24. Thus when the adhesive sets, the layers 21 and 22 are bonded together to form a laminate at regions 23 but free to move slightly ' .apart from each other in regions 24.
The sheet is now conveniently transported to a separate site for completion of the remaining steps in the manufacture of the curtain. These comprise:
(i) inserting stiffening web strips 25 of the same size and shape as webs 15 into pockets 24; and then,
(ii) securing rollers 11 and buckles 12 to the inserted webs 25, e.g. by bolts 27 passing through the webs and through both layers 21, 22. This step also serves to fix webs 25 in position.
The above described curtain has several advantages. In particular the need for expensive welding apparatus is avoided. This permits the curtain to be supplied to a customer as a kit of parts. Although the lamination of the two layers 21, 22 will normally be effected by the manufacturer, the other steps (i.e. insertion of the webbing and attachment of the rollers and buckles) can easily be performed by the customer with common workshop tools. This provides much greater flexibility both in the time in which an order can be met and in providing from stock any desired combination of size, colour, type of roller, type of buckle etc.
The method of production and lamination of layers 21, 22 lends itself readily to automation.
The outer surface of the assembled curtain appears conventional and can be used as normal for company liveries. The sheet 21 is conveniently of the same material and thickness as the sheet material of conventional curtain 10; thus the second layer 2-2 also serves to provide extra tear strength. One continuous layer 21 and one continuous layer 22 are used per curtain; thus there is no need for end-to-end connection of adjacent panels.
Various modifications may be made to the above-described embodiment.
Although sheet 22 has been described as a mesh, any type of perforations may be used to form the regions 23. The adhesive, preferably a heat cured p.v.c. paste, may be applied to the back of layer 22 with a brush or a roller and this can be performed manually or by a machine, such as a spread coating type. In a further development layer 22 need have no openings at all; adhesive is simply applied to the regions 23 at the front of the layer 22 before it is placed against sheet 21; of course adhesive can alternatively or additionally be applied to the corresponding regions of the back surface of front layer 21.
Layer 22 need not be continuous along the length of the curtain provided there is a portion of a region 23 at each side of each ' pocket region 24. The layers 21, 22 may be attached by sewing or welding instead of adhesive, if desired.
In one preferred method, a sheet of standard 2 x 2 Panama base cloth is employed, to which is laminated a second sheet of material, which may also be of Panama base cloth. The second sheet is of open mesh material except at the pocket regions where it is tightly woven. When pvc material is applied to laminate together and to coat the sheets of cloth, the tight mesh prevents the pvc material sealing the sheets together.
To assist in folding of the curtain when it is opened, one or more additional pockets may be provided between each pair of adjacent pockets 24. Such additional â– pockets do not require a web.
It is conventional for vehicle side curtains to be secured at their ends by means of an aluminium or steel pole, 17 Fig.l, which is held at its ends in the vehicle
frame. The pole is normally secured to the curtain by turning the end of the curtain back on itself and welding the edge to create a pocket 18. To avoid the need for this welding procedure, the end of curtain 20 is preferably secured as follows.
Referring to Fig.3 there is shown the end of a curtain 20 and an extruded plastics member 30 to which it is to be attached. Member 30 comprises a tubular portion 31 and an integral second portion 32 which defines a luff groove. The end of curtain 20 is folded around a plastics beading member 33, which is then inserted into the luff groove. The portion 32 is then tightly crimped on to the . beading member with the curtain material wrapped therearound, thus forming the required connection. An advantage of this arrangement is that the assembly can be completed by the customer employing only normal workshop tools. Member 30 may be used instead of pole 17; alternatively a pole 17 may extend down the tubular portion 31. One or more pins may pass right through the walls of groove 32 to assist in the retention of curtain 20.
Fig.4 shows a second embodiment of the present invention in which a curtain 40 comprises a woven plastics sheet member 41 which is of single thickness except where pockets 45 are produced by appropriate automatic operations during the weaving process. This produces a continuous length of strong curtain material in a particularly convenient, simple and relatively inexpensive manner. The yarns used are 1100 D'Tex woven to form a 2 x 2 Panama base cloth, i.e. double yarns are woven, see Fig.5. At defined regions, the
2 x 2 Panama is separated to create two separate layers of 1 x 1 (i.e. single yarn layers. Fig.6) which are not interwoven, thus forming a pocket. a pvc coating is then applied. To avoid the two layers of cloth being
stuck together by the coating material in the pocket regions, the mesh of one or both layers in those regions is made sufficiently tight to prevent the passage of the coating material therethrough.