Head rail-mounted actuator for window covering
First Claim
1. An actuator for rotating a hollow tube of a window covering configured as a roll-up shade, comprising:
- a collar configured for engaging the tube;
a collar coupling keyed to the collar;
a gear meshed with the collar coupling;
a reversible electric motor operably engaged with the collar coupling to move the collar coupling; and
a dc battery electrically connected to the motor.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A mini-blind actuator has a motor and a housing that holds the motor and a dc battery. The rotor of the motor is coupled to the baton of the mini-blind for rotating the baton and thereby opening or closing the slats of the mini-blind. Alternatively, the rotor is coupled to the tilt rod of the blind to rotate the tilt rod and thereby open or close the slats of the mini-blind. A control signal generator generates a control signal for completing the electrical circuit between the battery and the motor. The control signal can be generated in response to a predetermined amount of daylight or in response to a user-generated remote command signal. The actuator can be used to rotate the slats of horizontal or vertical blinds, or the sections of a pleated shade. Or, the actuator can be used to rotate the hollow rotatable tube of a roll-up shade.
116 Citations
36 Claims
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1. An actuator for rotating a hollow tube of a window covering configured as a roll-up shade, comprising:
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a collar configured for engaging the tube; a collar coupling keyed to the collar; a gear meshed with the collar coupling; a reversible electric motor operably engaged with the collar coupling to move the collar coupling; and a dc battery electrically connected to the motor. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A window covering with actuator, comprising:
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a roll up shade including a head rail, a tube rotatably disposed therein, and a shade-type window covering engaged with the tube for moving the window covering between a raised configuration and a lowered configuration when the tube is rotated; an electric motor in the head rail; a collar coupling operably engaged with the motor to engage the motor with the tube for rotating the tube; at least one primary dc battery connected to the motor in the head rail; a control signal generator for generating a control signal; and an electronic circuit electrically connected to the control signal generator and the battery for processing the control signal to cause the battery to energize the motor to move the tube, the electronic circuit having at least one of;
a pulse mode for energizing the motor in pulses, and a continuous mode for continuously energizing the motor. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A window covering with actuator, comprising:
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a shade including a head rail, a tube rotatably disposed therein, and a window covering engaged with the tube for moving the window covering between a raised configuration and a lowered configuration when the tube is rotated; an electric motor; a coupling operably engaged with the motor to engage the motor with the tube for rotating the tube; at least one dc battery, the at least one battery being the sole source of energy associated with the window covering; a control signal generator for generating a control signal; and an electronic circuit electrically connected to the control signal generator and the battery for processing the control signal to cause the at least one battery to energize the motor to move the tube, the electronic circuit having at least one of;
a pulse mode for energizing the motor in pulses, and a continuous mode for continuously energizing the motor. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26)
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27. A powered shade assembly, comprising:
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a shade including a head rail, a tube rotatably disposed therein, and a shade-type window covering engaged with the tube for moving the window covering between a raised configuration and a lowered configuration when the tube is rotated; an electric motor disposed in the head rail; a collar coupling operably engaged with the motor to engage the motor with the tube for rotating the tube; at least one dc battery, the at least one battery being the sole source of energy associated with the window covering, the at least one battery being disposable in the head rail; a control signal generator for generating a control signal; and an electronic circuit electrically connected to the control signal generator and the battery, the electronic circuit having an energized state for processing the control signal to cause the at least one battery to energize the motor to move the tube, the electronic circuit also having an idle state in which the at least one battery is not caused to energize the motor. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A powered shade assembly, comprising:
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a shade including a head rail, a rod rotatably disposed therein, and a window covering engaged with the rod for moving the window covering between a raised configuration and a lowered configuration when the rod is rotated; an electric motor disposed in the head rail; a coupling operably engaged with the motor to engage the motor with the rod for rotating the rod; at least one primary dc battery, the at least one battery being the sole source of energy associated with the window covering, the at least one battery being sufficiently small so as to be disposable in the head rail; a control signal generator for generating a control signal; and an electronic circuit electrically connected to the control signal generator and the battery, the electronic circuit having an energized state for processing the control signal to cause the at least one battery to energize the motor to move the rod. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36)
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Specification