Curtain rails and awnings

Abstract

To provide curtain rails and awnings that prevent leaks and are easy to assemble. [Solution] A curtain rail 50 used in an awning having at least beams 70 connecting support columns, comprising a fixing part 10 attached to the beams 70, an upper part 12 protruding from the fixing part 10 to the outside of the awning, and a main body part 14 located below the upper part 12 and having a rail part 16 inside, wherein the fixing part 10, the upper part 12, and the main body part 14 are integrally molded.

Description

[[Technical Field]]

[0001] The present invention relates to a curtain rail used for an awning (for example, an awning that functions as a sunshade and rain shield), and an awning provided with the curtain rail. [[Background Art]]

[0002] Awnings used for sunshading and rain shielding are known, which are installed in service areas of expressways, commercial facilities exemplified by shopping centers, restaurants, and hotels, at locations where shops and vending machines are placed, as well as on terraces, passageways, and the like.

[0003] As an example, Patent Document 1 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2017-141649) discloses an awning including: a locking member provided on a sheet member stretched over a roof unit; and a locked portion provided on each of a plurality of support frames constituting the roof unit, to which the locking member is detachably fixed. [[Prior Art Documents]] [[Patent Documents]]

[0004] [[Patent Document 1]] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2017-141649 [[Summary of the Invention]] [[Problem to be Solved by the Invention]]

[0005] The awning disclosed in Patent Document 1 can also be used by providing a curtain to the beams connecting the support columns (particularly beams extending horizontally) to prevent rain from blowing in from the sides. Specifically, a curtain rail from which the curtain is suspended is attached to the side of the beam of the awning (see the example of a conventional curtain rail shown in Figure 6). However, in the above example, since the curtain rail and the means for fixing it to the beam are configured as separate components, there was a problem that rain would leak through the gap between them. In addition, because it is composed of multiple parts, there was a problem that assembly would be complicated when attaching it externally. In other words, there was a need for an external curtain rail that could prevent rain from leaking and could be easily assembled, and for an awning equipped with such a curtain rail. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances and aims to provide an external curtain rail that prevents water leakage and can be easily assembled, and an awning equipped with the curtain rail.

[0007] The present invention solves the above problem by a solution described below as one embodiment.

[0008] In other words, the curtain rail according to the present invention is a curtain rail used for an awning having at least a support column and a beam connecting the support columns, comprising a fixing portion attached to the beam, an upper portion protruding from the fixing portion to the outside of the awning, and a main body portion located below the upper portion and having a rail portion inside, wherein the fixing portion, the upper portion, and the main body portion are integrally molded.

[0009] Furthermore, it is preferable that the upper surface is inclined downward toward the outside of the awning. Moreover, it is preferable that the upper surface is inclined downward by 2° to 5° toward the outside of the awning.

[0010] Furthermore, the fixing portion preferably has a first fixing surface and a second fixing surface and is formed in a substantially L-shape in cross-section, with the first fixing surface attached to the side of the beam and the second fixing surface attached to the upper part of the beam.

[0011] Furthermore, it is preferable that pin holes are formed at the ends of the rail section for joining one curtain rail to another with a pin. Furthermore, it is preferable that the rail section is formed in two rows, with the pin holes formed at the bottom of each row, and a flat running section formed at the top of each row where the two tires of the curtain runner make contact with the ground.

[0012] Furthermore, it is preferable that a bracket portion is further formed at the lower part of the upper surface portion, between the fixing portion and the main body portion, and that a fixing plate for fixing one curtain rail to another curtain rail is attached to the upper surface of the bracket portion.

[0013] The awning according to the present invention is required to include one of the above-described curtain rails and a curtain provided on the curtain rail via a curtain runner. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a curtain rail and awning that prevent water leakage and can be easily assembled. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0015] [Figure 1] This is a schematic top perspective view of an awning in each embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a schematic upper perspective view of a curtain rail in each embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] This is a schematic cross-sectional view of a curtain rail in each embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] This is a schematic cross-sectional view of a curtain rail in each embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] It is a schematic cross-sectional view of a curtain rail according to each embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] It is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an example of a conventional externally mounted curtain rail. MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0016] Hereinafter, the curtain rail 50 and the awning 100 according to each embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic upper perspective view of the awning 100 according to each embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a schematic upper perspective view of the curtain rail 50 according to each embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the curtain rail 50 according to each embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the curtain rail 50 according to each embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the curtain rail 50 according to each embodiment of the present invention. In all the drawings for explaining each embodiment, members having the same function are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated description thereof may be omitted.

[0017] First, the awning 100 according to each embodiment will be described. For convenience of explanation, the vertical direction is defined as the up-down direction, and the horizontal direction is defined as the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0018] As shown in Fig. 1, the awning 100 according to each embodiment has at least support posts 60 and at least a beam 70 connecting between the support posts 60, 60, and at least one beam 70 is provided with a curtain rail 50 which will be described later. That is, the awning 100 has a plurality of beams 70 constituting a so-called roof unit for stretching a sheet to be described later, and a plurality of support posts 60 supporting the beams. Specifically, the awning 100 has four linear support posts 60 positioned in the up-down direction, and four linear beams 70 connected to the adjacent support posts 60, 60 in the front-rear or left-right direction and positioned in the front-rear direction or the left-right direction, but the number of the support posts 60 and the beams 70 is not limited thereto.

[0019] As another example, the awning 100 may be provided with another support post 60 between front-rear or left-right adjacent support posts 60, 60.

[0020] As an example, the support post 60 is made of a metal material (such as aluminum alloy) and formed as a rod-shaped member by a square pipe with a height of about 2 m.

[0021] Furthermore, the support post 60 may be provided with a pedestal at the lower end so that it can stand alone as a single unit, or may be buried underground.

[0022] As an example, the beam 70 is made of a metal material (such as aluminum alloy), and is formed as a rod-shaped member with a length of about 4 m to 5 m in which a square pipe portion to which a curtain rail 50 (to be described later) is attached and a guide portion directly below the square pipe portion are integrated. In the beam 70, the square pipe portion is formed over the entire length from one support post 60 to another adjacent support post 60, but the guide portion may be formed in a part directly below the square pipe portion.

[0023] Inside the roof unit constituted by each beam 70 (that is, within the closed region surrounded by each beam 70), a sheet for sunshade and rain protection (for example, a sheet formed of square or rectangular canvas material) is detachably provided (not shown). Specifically, the sheet is fixed to a rail formed at the lower part of the guide portion of the beam 70 by screwing or via a predetermined member (both are not shown). Furthermore, the sheet may be provided with a plurality of sheet support frames arranged in the front-rear or left-right direction.

[0024] Next, the curtain rail 50 in the first embodiment will be described in detail. As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the curtain rail 50 comprises a fixing part 10 attached to the beam 70, an upper part 12 protruding from the fixing part 10 to the outside of the awning 100, and a main body part 14 located below the upper part 12 and having a rail part 16 inside. The fixing part 10, the upper part 12, and the main body part 14 are integrally molded. Specifically, the curtain rail 50 is extruded in the longitudinal direction from a metal material (aluminum alloy), but is not limited to this. The length of the curtain rail 50 is approximately the same as that of the beam 70, but is not limited to this. By configuring the curtain rail 50 to be externally attached to the awning 100, it is possible to reduce the curtain overlap interference that occurs when the curtains 80 are directly attached to each beam 70. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 6, the conventional curtain rail 150 has a fixed part 110 and an upper part 112, bracket part 122, and main body part 114 that are provided as separate parts, which has led to the problem of rainwater entering through the gaps between them. In contrast, in this embodiment, since the curtain rail 50 is integrally molded, not only is it possible to prevent the water leakage that occurred in the conventional product, but the number of parts can also be reduced compared to the conventional product, thus reducing the complexity of assembly.

[0025] The fixing portion 10 has a flat plate portion that protrudes at least 10 cm upward from one end of the upper surface portion 12, and can be attached to at least the side portion 70A of the beam 70. Furthermore, the fixing portion 10 has a first fixing surface 10A and a second fixing surface 10B and is formed in a substantially L-shape in cross-section, and it is preferable that the first fixing surface 10A is attached to the side portion 70A of the beam 70, and the second fixing surface 10B is attached to the upper portion 70B of the beam 70. Specifically, the fixing portion 10 has a first fixing surface 10A as a flat plate portion that protrudes upward from one end of the upper surface portion 12, and a second fixing surface 10B as a flat plate portion that protrudes horizontally from the upper end of the first fixing surface 10A in the direction toward the beam 70 (rear direction in Figures 2 and 3). Furthermore, the height of the first fixing surface 10A is formed to be less than or equal to the height of the side portion 70A of the beam 70, and the difference is, for example, a few centimeters, but is not limited to this. The width of the second fixing surface 10B is formed to be less than or equal to the width of the upper portion 70B of the beam 70, and the difference is, for example, a few centimeters, but is not limited to this. In conventional curtain rails 150, the fixing portion 110 was attached only to the side of the beam 170. In contrast, by configuring the fixing portion 10 in this embodiment as described above, not only can the curtain rail 50 be securely attached to the beam 70 (i.e., the awning 100), but rainwater leakage from the gap between the curtain rail 50 and the beam 70 can also be prevented.

[0026] As shown in Figure 3, the first fixing surface 10A and the second fixing surface 10B are, for example, fastened with bolts 10C and 10D, but are not limited to this, and other fastening means can be used. When screw fastening is used as the fixing method for a curtain rail 50 having the first fixing surface 10A and the second fixing surface 10B, the number of bolts on the side of the curtain rail 50 that are visible to people can be reduced (i.e., screws can also be used on the top side of the curtain rail 50), which also has the visual effect of giving the curtain rail 50 (i.e., the awning 100) a neat and tidy appearance.

[0027] The upper surface portion 12 is formed as the upper wall surface of the main body portion 14. Furthermore, it is preferable that the upper surface portion 12 is inclined downward toward the outside of the awning 100 (forward in Figures 2 and 3). In addition, it is preferable that the upper surface portion 12 is inclined downward by 2° to 5° toward the outside of the awning 100 (i.e., the inclination angle θ1 in Figure 3 is inclined by 2° to 5°). In conventional curtain rails 150, the upper surface portion 112 was provided horizontally, which resulted in the problem of rainwater accumulating in the gap between the upper surface portion 112 or the fixing portion 110 and the upper surface portion 112. In contrast, by configuring the upper surface portion 12 of this embodiment as described above, rainwater can be drained by the inclination even in rainy weather, preventing rainwater from accumulating in the upper surface portion 12 or at the boundary between the upper surface portion 12 and the fixing portion 10, and guiding the rainwater toward the outside of the awning 100.

[0028] As a variation of the above-described fixing portion 10 and upper portion 12, the curtain rail 50 may have a second fixing surface 10B attached to the upper portion 70B of the beam 70, and the first fixing surface 10A and the upper portion 12 may be formed as a continuous flat plate portion.

[0029] The main body portion 14 is formed as a cylindrical body with the upper surface portion 12 as its upper wall surface (a cylindrical body with a slit formed on its lower wall surface that allows the curtain runner 90 to move laterally). In addition, a rail portion 16 is formed on the upper surface of the lower wall surface of the main body portion 14 (i.e., inside the main body portion 14) on which the tire 90A of the curtain runner 90 can run.

[0030] The curtain runner 90 has a pair of tires 90A, 90A and a runner body 90B to which each tire 90A, 90A is attached and which protrudes downward, but is not limited to this, as long as it allows the curtain 80 to be opened and closed relative to the curtain rail 50.

[0031] Approximately 5 to 10 curtain runners 90 are typically installed on a single curtain rail 50, but this is not limited to this configuration; they can be appropriately adjusted to match the curtain rail 50, awning 100, and curtain 80.

[0032] Furthermore, the curtain 80 is attached to the runner body 90B via connecting members 90C, which are exemplified as hooks or rings. The curtain 80 can be made of canvas material, similar to the sheet described above, but is not limited to this. Also, the curtain 80 is formed to cover one side of the awning when fully opened, but is not limited to this.

[0033] Preferably, pin holes 18 are formed at the ends of the rail section 16 (the left and right end faces in Figure 2) for joining one curtain rail 50 to another curtain rail 50 using pins (for example, knurled pins) 26. For example, the pin holes 18 are formed as round holes with a diameter of several mm to 2 cm. The pin holes 18 may also be formed as through holes during extrusion molding as shown in Figure 4, or as blind holes by drilling after extrusion molding. By making it possible to join multiple curtain rails 50 in this way, the curtain rails 50 can be divided into sections shorter than the length of the beam 70, thereby improving transportation and handling efficiency.

[0034] Preferably, the rail section 16 is formed in two rows, with a first pin hole 18A and a second pin hole 18B formed in each row, and a planar running section 20 is formed at the top of each row, on which the two tires of the curtain runner 90 make contact. More specifically, the rail section 16 has a first rail section 16A and a second rail section 16B, with a first pin hole 18A formed at the end of the first rail section 16A and a second pin hole 18B formed at the end of the second rail section 16B. Preferably, the tops of the first rail section 16A and the second rail section 16B have planar running sections 20. As a result, even when two curtain rails 50, 50 are joined together as shown in Figure 4, the running sections 20, 20 of the rail section 16, which are positioned by the pins (knurled pins) 26, do not create a step at the joint, so that the tires 90A, 90A of the curtain runner 90 can run smoothly over the joint.

[0035] As shown in Figure 3, an insertion hole 24 may be formed at the lower outer position of the main body 14, through which an intrusion prevention cover 82 can be inserted. In other words, the curtain rail 50 may further include an intrusion prevention cover 82. The intrusion prevention cover 82 has a main body 82A that covers the gap between the curtain rail 50 and the curtain 80, and a shaft 82B, with the shaft 82 being inserted through the insertion hole 24. With the above configuration, it is possible to prevent rainwater, dust, and dirt from entering through the gap between the curtain rail 50 and the curtain 80.

[0036] Preferably, the curtain rail 50 has a bracket portion 22 further formed between the fixing portion 10 and the main body portion 14 at the lower part of the upper surface portion 12. Specifically, as shown in Figure 3, the bracket portion 22 is integrally molded as a flat plate portion that connects the fixing portion 10 (first fixing surface 10A) from the rear side of the main body portion 14. This configuration can increase the rigidity of the curtain rail 50.

[0037] Preferably, a fixing plate 28 for fixing one curtain rail 50 to another curtain rail 50 is attached to the upper surface of the bracket portion 22. Specifically, as shown in Figure 5, the fixing plate 28 is attached to the bracket portion 22 of each curtain rail 50 by bolts 30, 30. By providing the fixing plate 28, the rigidity when multiple curtain rails 50 are joined together can be increased. In addition, since the fixing plate 28 is located in a position that is not visible to people during normal use, a visual effect is also created in which the curtain rails 50 (i.e., the awning 100) give a neat and tidy impression.

[0038] Each end of the curtain rail 50 (or each end of the entire rail if two or more curtain rails 50 are joined together) may be provided with a cap that covers at least the main body 14 (not shown). In addition, a stopper for the tire 90A of the curtain runner 90 may be provided at the end position of the rail section 16 (or the end position of the entire rail if two or more curtain rails 50 are joined together) (not shown).

[0039] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0040] 10 Fixed part 10A 1st fixed surface 10B 2nd fixed surface 12 Top part 14 Main body 16 Rail section 18 pin holes 20. Running section 22 Bracket section 26 pins (knurled pins) 28 Fixed plate 50 Curtain rail 80 Curtains 100 Awnings

Claims

1. A curtain rail used for an awning, having at least a support column and a beam connecting the support columns, It comprises a fixing part attached to the beam, an upper part protruding from the fixing part outward from the awning, and a main body part located below the upper part and having a rail part inside, The fixing portion, the upper portion, and the main body portion are integrally molded. A curtain rail featuring the following characteristics.

2. The upper portion is inclined downward toward the outside of the awning. A curtain rail according to claim 1, characterized by the following:

3. The upper portion is inclined downwards by 2° to 5° toward the outside of the awning. The curtain rail according to claim 2, characterized by the above.

4. The aforementioned fixing portion has a first fixing surface and a second fixing surface and is formed in a substantially L-shape in cross-section. The first fixed surface is attached to the side of the beam, The second fixing surface is attached to the upper part of the beam. A curtain rail according to claim 1, characterized by the following:

5. The end of the rail section has a pin hole formed therein for joining one curtain rail to another curtain rail with a pin. A curtain rail according to claim 1, characterized by the following:

6. The aforementioned rail section is formed in two rows, The pin holes are formed at the bottom of each of the aforementioned rows. At the top of each of the aforementioned rows, a flat running surface is formed where the two tires of the curtain runner make contact with the ground. The curtain rail according to claim 5, characterized by the following:

7. A bracket portion is further formed at the lower part of the upper surface portion, between the fixing portion and the main body portion. A fixing plate for securing one curtain rail to another is attached to the upper surface of the bracket portion. The curtain rail according to claim 5, characterized by the following:

8. A curtain rail according to any one of claims 1 to 7, and a curtain provided on the curtain rail via a curtain runner. An awning characterized by [feature].

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