AU2019201868B2 - Cutting module of cutting machine for window covering - Google Patents

Abstract

OF THE DISCLOSURE A cutting module adapted to trim a covering material of a window covering is disclosed, including a main body, a blade, and an elastic holding member. The main body has a first side, a second side, and a through hole communicating the first and the second sides, wherein the through hole can be passed through by the covering material. The blade is provided corresponding to the second side, and can be moved back and forth. The blade has a cutting edge, which passes over the through hole as the blade slides, whereby to cut off a part of the covering material beyond the second side. The elastic holding member is provided corresponding to the through hole to maintain the covering material at a predetermined position for cutting. When the covering material is located at the predetermined position, it does not contact at least a wall of the through hole. 4/14 CI

Description

4/14

CI CUTTING MODULE OF CUTTING MACHINE FOR WINDOW COVERING BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

10001] The present invention relates generally to window blinds, and more

particularly to a cutting module of a cutting machine for window blinds.

2. Description of Related Art

10002] Generally speaking, the window blinds displayed in home accessories

and furniture stores are manufactured by factories, which have limited

specifications, and therefore would not be ready to be installed for windows of all

kinds of sizes. Hence, consumers usually have to measure the windows before

purchasing window blinds for the windows. With the measurements, window

blinds of similar sizes can be selected out and trimmed to a suitable size. In this

way, the trimmed window blinds can be installed on the windows to cover the

windows appropriately.

10003] To achieve the above purpose, home accessories and furniture stores

are usually equipped with cutting machines, which can be operated by staffs to

trim window blinds. A conventional cutting machine 1 is illustrated in FIG. 1 to FIG.

3, which includes a platform 10, an operating module 20, and a cutting module 30.

The platform 10 is used to place a window blind which is going to be trimmed. The

operating module 20 includes a handle 22, and the cutting module 30 includes a

blade 32 and several through holes. In the current example, the cutting machine 1

can be used to trim horizontal window blinds, wherein one of the through holes

34 is adapted to let the slats of a window blind pass through, while the rest of the

through holes are adapted to be passed through by other components (i.e., the

headrail and the bottom rail) of the horizontal window blind. The motion of the

blade 32 and that of the handle 22 are correlated. In other words, by pulling the handle 22, the blade 32 can be moved in a predetermined direction, which is a lateral direction in the current example. With such design, by simply placing a window covering on the platform 10 with parts of the components thereof extending beyond the through holes, and then by operating the handle 22 to move the blade 32, the parts of the components of the window covering which go beyond the through holes can be cut off.

10004] In more details, while trimming the slats of a horizontal window blind,

the horizontal window blind has to be placed on the platform 10 first, and then

the slats thereof are neatly gathered to pass through the through hole 34. To

ensure the quality of cutting, each of the through holes 34 should match the

outline and size of the corresponding component of the window blind as closely as

possible, so that the components of the window blind would not crack, and would

not have rough edges after the cutting. Since the window blinds available on the

market have slats of various widths and sizes, more than one mold would be

provided along with the cutting machine, whereby the mold with a through hole

suitable for the size of the slats can be applied to provide better cuttings. Or, on

the premise not to change molds, the cutting machine could be provided with an

enlarged mold, which has multiple through holes of different sizes to match slats

of different sizes, or has a larger through hole which could allow larger slats to

pass through. However, it is inconvenient to change and replace molds.

Furthermore, the molds which are not in use may get lost, and there are

possibilities that the selection among multiple molds may go wrong, resulting in

inferior cuttings. On the other hand, enlarging the mold leads to a bulky cutting

machine, which occupies more room, hindering the arrangement of available

space and the convenience of operating the cutting machine. Therefore, the

above two solutions are not so feasible. If there is only one large through hole

provided, it would not be able to firmly hold slats of smaller sizes, which may cause some of the slats to slightly move as being pressed by the blade during the cutting process, producing uneven cuttings. In addition, the blade in a cutting machine is common to have symmetric chamfers, which can correspondingly cut out beautiful symmetric chamfers on the slats to provide an aesthetic feeling. But if the size of the through hole is too large for the slats, the slats may be placed at a bias position, or may slide during the cutting. As a result, the slats may not be cut evenly, or may only have a chamfer cut out on one side thereof, which would greatly reduce the quality of the finished products.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

10005] It would be desirable to provide a cutting module of a cutting machine

for window blinds in which said cutting module can hold the slat assemblies of

window blinds of different sizes at positions suitable for cutting.

10006] An aspect of the present invention provides a cutting module for

trimming a window blind, wherein the window blind includes a slat assembly. The

cutting module includes a main body, a blade, and an elastic holding member. The

main body has two opposite sides, which are a first side and a second side,

respectively. The main body further has a through hole communicating the first

side and the second side, wherein the through hole is adapted to be passed

through by the slat assembly of the window blind. The blade has a cutting edge,

wherein the blade is provided corresponding to the second side of the main body,

and is movable back and forth along a sliding path. The cutting edge passes over

the through hole as the blade slides, and therefore is adapted to cut off a part of

the slat assembly beyond the second side when the slat assembly passes through

the through hole. The elastic holding member is provided corresponding to the

through hole, and is adapted to exert an elastic force on the slat assembly when

the slat assembly passes through the through hole to be trimmed, whereby to position where the slat assembly does not contact at least a wall of the through hole.

[0007] With the design above, one single through hole would be capable of

maintaining slat assemblies of different sizes at the predetermined position, whereby

to ensure that slat assemblies could be evenly trimmed in spite of their various sizes,

and would not move as being pressed by the blade while being cut. In this way, the

outcome of the cutting process would be achieved as expected.

[0007A] According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a

cutting module of a cutting machine for trimming a window blind, wherein the window

blind comprises a slat assembly; comprising: a main body, wherein the main body has

two opposite sides, which are a first side and a second side, respectively; the main

body has a through hole communicating the first side and the second side, wherein the

through hole is adapted to be passed through by the slat assembly of the window blind;

a blade, which has a cutting edge, wherein the blade is provided corresponding to the

second side of the main body, and is movable back and forth along a sliding path; the

cutting edge has two corresponding chamfers, and passes over the through hole as the

blade slides, and therefore is adapted to cut off a part of the slat assembly beyond the

second side when the slat assembly passes through the through hole; and an elastic

holding member, which is provided corresponding to the through hole, and is adapted

to exert an elastic force on the slat assembly when the slat assembly passes through

the through hole to be trimmed, whereby to maintain the slat assembly at a centered

position in a direction perpendicular to the sliding path of the blade, so that the blade

is capable of cutting out two symmetric chamfers on the slat assembly .

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] The present invention will be best understood by referring to the

following detailed description of some illustrative embodiments in with the accompanying drawings, in which

10009] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a conventional cutting machine for

window coverings;

10010] FIG. 2 is an enlarged partial perspective view of the conventional

cutting machine shown in FIG. 1;

10011] FIG. 3 is another enlarged partial perspective view of the conventional

cutting machine shown in FIG. 1, showing the cutting module of the cutting

machine;

10012] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a cutting machine applied with the

cutting module of the first embodiment of the present invention;

10013] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the cutting module of the first

embodiment of the present invention;

10014] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the cutting module shown in FIG. 5

viewed from another angle;

10015] FIG. 7 is a front view of the cutting module shown in FIG. 5;

10016] FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the cutting module shown in FIG. 5 along

the 8-8 line;

10017] FIG. 9 is a schematic view, showing the condition when the cutting

module shown in FIG. 5 is in use;

10018] FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the cutting module along the 10-10 line in

FIG. 9,;

10019] FIG. 11 is similar to FIG. 10, but the size of the covering material of the

window covering which is being cut herein is different from that of the slat

assembly seen in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10;

10020] FIG. 12 is a sectional view of the cutting module of the second

embodiment of the present invention, which is viewed from the same angle as FIG.

8;

10021] FIG. 13 is a sectional view of the cutting module shown in FIG. 12,

showing the condition when the cutting module is in use as viewed from the same

angle as FIG. 10; and

10022] FIG. 14 is a sectional view of the cutting module of the third

embodiment of the present invention, which is viewed from the same angle as FIG.

8 and FIG. 12.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

10023] A cutting machine 2, which is applied with a cutting module 100 of a

first embodiment of the present invention, is illustrated in FIG. 4, wherein the

cutting machine 2 is adapted to trim window blinds, and also has, as the

conventional cutting machine mentioned above, a platform 40 and an operating

module 50, wherein the platform 40 is adapted to place a window blind which is

going to be trimmed, and the operating module 50 is adapted to be operated by a

user, bringing the cutting module 100 into action to trim the window blind.

However, the platform 40 and the operating module 50 are well-known

components, and therefore we are not going to describe their details herein.

10024] As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, which are perspective views of the

cutting module 100 of the first embodiment of the present invention seen from

different angles, the cutting module 100 includes a main body 110, a blade 120,

and an elastic holding member. For the ease of explanation, two opposite sides of

the main body 110 are respectively defined as a first side 112 and a second side

114, wherein the first side 112 faces the platform 40. The main body 110 is

provided with a plurality of through holes communicating the first side 112 and

the second side 114. Each of the through holes is adapted to be passed through by

different component of the to-be-trimmed window blind, respectively. More

specifically, the to-be-trimmed window blind should be placed on the platform 40,

with the components (i.e., a headrail, a slat assembly, and a bottom rail) of the window blind respectively passing through one of the through holes from the first side 112 of the main body 110 toward the second side 114 thereof. One of the through holes is referred by reference character 116, referring to the through hole corresponding to the slat assembly of the window blind.

10025] The blade 120 is provided corresponding to the second side 114 of the

main body 110, and is adapted to be driven by the operating module 50, moving

in a sliding and back-and-forth manner along a sliding path S, as shown in FIG. 6.

The blade 120 has a cutting edge 122, which would pass over the through hole

116 on the second side 114 of the main body 110 when the blade 120 moved

along the sliding path S, whereby a part of the slat assembly beyond the second

side 114 could be cut off. In practice, each of the through holes of the main body

110 could have a blade provided respectively, or more than one through hole

could share the same blade. In other words, the numbers of the blades and

through holes, and the correspondences therebetween, are not limited by the

exemplified embodiments described in the present invention. In the current

embodiment, the blade 120 is directly provided on the second side 114 of the

main body 110 in a movable manner, and the sliding path S thereof is in horizontal

directions. However, these features are not limitations of the present invention; in

other embodiments, the blade 120 could be provided at a position separated from

the main body 110, or the sliding path S could be in directions other than

horizontal ones, as long as the blade 120 could cut off the part of the slat

assembly beyond the second side 114 of the main body 110.

10026] As shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the elastic holding member is provided

corresponding to the through hole 116, and could maintain the to-be-trimmed slat

assembly at a predetermined position through its elasticity. In the current

embodiment, the elastic holding member includes two elastic plates 130 made of

silicone rubber. However, the material is not limited to silicone rubber; other elastic materials would be also possible for making the elastic plates 130. The elastic plates 130 are provided on the first side 112 of the main body 110, wherein one of the elastic plates 130 is located on an upper side of the through hole 116, and the other one of the elastic plates 130 is located on a lower side of the through hole 116. As shown in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, when the to-be-trimmed slat assembly passes through the through hole 116, the elastic plates 130 would be pressed by the slat assembly and deformed as being bent from the first side 112 of the main body 110 toward the second side 114 thereof. Since the elastic plates

130 are made of an elastic material, which is silicone rubber in the current

embodiment, said deformation could produce an elastic force exerting on the slat

assembly, whereby to maintain the slat asssembly at the predetermined position.

Of course, if the size of the slat assembly happens to match a distance between

the elastic plates 130, the slat assembly could be maintained at the

predetermined position without deforming the elastic plates 130. To be specific, a

shortest distance (i.e., a straight line distance) in a direction from the first side 112

toward the second side 114 between the top end of any one of the elastic plates

130 and the second side 114 of the main body 110 is defined as a first length Li,

and a depth of the through hole 116 communicating the first side 112 of the main

body 110 and the second side 114 thereof is defined as a second length L2. When

the elastic plates 130 are not deformed, the first length L would roughly equal

the second length L2 in the current embodiment. On the other hand, if the size of

the slat assembly is greater than the distance between the elastic plates 130, the

elastic plates 130 would be deformed. Since the deformation is rendered in the

form of bending toward the second side, the first length Li would be less than the

second length L2.

10027] It needs to be specified that, the predetermined position mentioned

herein refers to an appropriate location that the slat assembly can be evenly cut by the blade 120. More specifically, when the slat assembly is located at the appropriate location, it would be applied with the elastic force provided by the elastic plates 130, and would not contact at least a wall of the through hole 116.

In the current embodiment, the predetermined position is a centered position in a

vertical direction of the through hole 116, which is realized through the design

shown in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, wherein the elastic plates 130 are more protruded

than an upper wall 116a and a lower wall 116b of the through hole 116,

respectively. In this way, when the slat assembly passes through the through hole

116, it would not contact the upper wall 116a and the lower wall 116b of the

through hole 116. Furthermore, a segment of the slat assembly located in the

through hole 116 would be maintained at the centered position in the vertical

direction of the through hole 116. However, said predetermined position is not

necessary to be the centered position exemplified herein. In fact, the

predetermined position could be a centered position in any specific direction of

the through hole 116, wherein the vertical direction exemplified in the current

embodiment is just one possibility among various directions. Preferably, the

specific direction should be perpendicular to the sliding path S of the blade 120,

for such arrangement could provide good cutting results. Or, in practice, the form

and position of the elastic holding member could be designed based on the shape

and the sliding path of the blade 120, and according to the through hole 116 and

the specification of applicable slat assembly, such as providing the elastic holding

member only on one wall of the through hole 116 (e.g., the upper wall 116a).

With such design, when the slat assembly is located at the predetermined position,

it could contact one wall of the through hole 116 (e.g., the lower wall 116b), but

still not contact another wall of the through hole 116 (e.g., the upper wall 116a).

The objective and effect of the present invention could be achieved as long as the

slat assembly located at the predetermined position does not contact at least one wall of the through hole 116, and can be maintained at the predetermined position, for the slat assembly could be ensured to be evenly trimmed by the blade 120.

10028] In addition, to avoid the deformation of the elastic plates 130 from

affecting the cutting operation of the blade 120, no matter how large the slat

assembly which goes into the through hole 116 is, and no matter to what extent

the elastic plates 130 are therefore deformed, the top end of each of the elastic

plates 130 should not exceed the second side 114 of the main body 110, or the

top ends of the elastic plates 130 would be on the sliding path S of the blade 120,

which would hinder the smooth operation of the blade 120. Furthermore, if the

deformed elastic plates 130 got their top ends cut off by the blade 120, the effect

of maintaining a slat assembly at the predetermined position would be reduced

afterwards. Preferably, the top ends of the elastic plates 130 should keep

appropriated distances from the opening of the through hole 116 on the second

side 114 of the main body 110. In other words, the first length Li, which is, as

defined above, the shortest distance in the direction from the first side 112

toward the second side 114 between the top end of any of the elastic plates 130

and the second side 114, would never be a negative value, for the elastic plates

130 would not exceed the second side 114 even when deformed.

10029] In the current embodiment, the cutting edge 122 is further provided

with two symmetric chamfers 112a, 122b, which are adapted to leave

corresponding chamfers on the trimmed slat assembly. To achieve the best

cutting effect, when the to-be-trimmed slat assembly is located at the

aforementioned predetermined position, and when the blade 120 passes over the

through hole 116 along its sliding path S, the chamfers 122a, 122b of the cutting

edge 122 should be able to symmetrically cut out two corresponding chamfers on

the slat assembly. With the arrangement of the aforementioned elastic plates 130 and the through hole 116, the cutting module 100 would be compatible with slat assemblies of different sizes. More specifically, slat asemblies could be firmly maintained at the predetermined position in spite of their various sizes, for the elastic plates 130 could be correspondingly deformed in response to the size of the slat assembly passing through the through hole 116, whereby the segment of the slat assembly located in the through hole 116 could be supported by corresponding elasticity. In this way, it could be ensured that, when the blade 120 passes over the through hole 116, the slat assemblies of different sizes could be cut out two corresponding or qualified chamfers thereon. To better understand the concept, please refer to the usage scenario illustrated in FIG. 11, wherein a slat assembly of another window blind passes through the through hole 116 of the cutting module 100 of the present invention to be trimmed. The slat assembly is smaller than that is shown in FIG. 10, and therefore a deformation amount of the elastic plates 130 would be also less than that in the condition shown in FIG. 10.

However, for the aforementioned reasons, the elastic plates 130 could also

maintain the slat assembly in the usage scenario illustrated in FIG. 11 at the

predetermined position, i.e., the centered position in the vertical direction, so that

the slat assembly could be evenly cut by the chamfers 122a, 122b of the cutting

edge 122. Similarly, if the to-be-trimmed covering material of a slat assembly is

larger than that shown in FIG. 10, the elastic plates 130 would be deformed to a

greater extent correspondingly, and therefore would apply a greater elastic force

to the slat assembly whereby to maintain the slat assembly at the predetermined

position as well. In other words, the elastic holding member could enable the

cutting module 100 of the present invention to trim slat assemblies of different

sizes without needing to change molds. Furthermore, the cutting module 100

could provide good cutting effects.

10030] In addition, though in the aforementioned embodiment, the number

of the elastic plates 130 is two, and the elastic plates 130 are directly provided on

the first side 112 of the main body 110 and are respectively located on the upper

side and lower side of the through hole 116, the number and the locations of the

elastic plates are not limitations of the present invention. A cutting module 200 of

a second embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, of

which components are roughly the same as the cutting module 100 of the first

embodiment, and therefore we still use the same reference characters for the

components in the second embodiment. However, the differences between the

first and the second embodiments are that, elastic plates 230 of an elastic holding

member of the cutting module 200 of the present invention are provided inside a

through hole 216, though the number of the elastic plates 230 is also two. In

consideration of the aforementioned principle that the operation of the blade 120

should not be hindered, when the to-be-trimmed slat assembly of the window

blindpasses through the through hole 116 to deform the elastic plates 230, the

elastic plates 230 should not exceed the second side 114 of the main body 110 as

well, as shown in FIG. 13. Therefore, the first length Li (i.e., the shortest distance

in the direction from the first side 112 toward the second side 114 between a top

end of each of the elastic plates 230 and the second side 114) in the second

embodiment would not be a negative value, either. In addition, the first length Li

is, of course, less than the second length L2 (i.e., the depth of the through hole

116). Further, a cutting module 300 of a third embodiment of the present

invention is shown in FIG. 14, of which the components are also roughly the same

with those in the aforementioned embodiments, except that an elastic holding

member thereof only includes an elastic plate 330, which is provided on an upper

side of the through hole 116, and is on the first side 112 of the main body 110.

Though the current embodiment only has one elastic plate 330, good cutting effects could be also achieved by providing an appropriately designed blade. In other embodiments, the elastic holding member is not necessary to be provided on the main body 110, and could be a stand-alone component instead. In principle, the cutting module of the present invention would work as long as the elastic holding member could be ensured to maintain the to-be-trimmed slat assembly at the predetermined position where the slat assembly does not contact at least a wall of the through hole. The position of the elastic holding member, whether it is directly provided on the main body 110 or not, and other related features are not the limitations of the present invention.

10031] With the aforementioned designs of the cutting module, slat

assemblies of different sizes could be firmly maintained at the predetermined

position to be properly trimmed, without needing to change molds or have a

size-adjustable through hole. A slat assembly maintained at the predetermined

position would not slide though being pressed by the blade during the trimming

operation, and could be evenly trimmed. If the blade has symmetric chamfers, the

slat assembly could be also ensured to correspondingly have symmetric chamfers

after being cut, whereby to give an aesthetic feeling.

10032] It must be pointed out that the embodiments described above are

only some preferred embodiments of the present invention. All equivalent

structures which employ the concepts disclosed in this specification and the

appended claims should fall within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (12)

1. WHAT IS CLAIMED IS: 1. A cutting module of a cutting machine for trimming a window blind, wherein the window

   blind comprises a slat assembly; comprising:

   a main body, wherein the main body has two opposite sides, which are a first side and a

   second side, respectively, the main body having a through hole communicating the first side and

   the second side, wherein the through hole is adapted to be passed through by the slat assembly

   of the window blind;

   a blade, which has a cutting edge, wherein the blade is provided corresponding to the second

   side of the main body, and is movable back and forth along a sliding path, the cutting edge being

   adapted to pass over the through hole as the blade slides, and thereby cutting off a part of the

   slat assembly beyond the second side when the slat assembly passes through the through hole;

   and

   an elastic holding member, which is provided corresponding to the through hole, and is

   adapted to exert an elastic force on the slat assembly when the slat assembly passes through the

   through hole to be trimmed, whereby to maintain the slat assembly at a predetermined position

   where the slat assembly does not contact at least a wall of the through hole;

   wherein the elastic holding member has two elastic plates which are adapted to provide the

   elastic force to the slat assembly passing through the through hole by being deformed, whereby

   to maintain the slat assembly at the predetermined position;

   wherein the elastic plates are provided on the main body on corresponding sides of the

   through hole, respectively, to provide the elastic force on opposite sides of the slat assembly.
2. 2. The cutting module of claim 1, wherein the elastic holding member is provided on the

   main body, and is adapted to maintain the slat assembly passing through the through hole at the predetermined position.
3. 3. The cutting module of claim 1, wherein the cutting edge has two corresponding chamfers;

   when the elastic holding member maintains the slat assembly at the predetermined position, and

   when the blade slides and the cutting edge passes over the through hole, the chamfers of the

   cutting edge are adapted to cut out two corresponding chamfers on the slat assembly.
4. 4. The cutting module of claim 1, wherein the predetermined position of the slat assembly

   maintained by the elastic holding member refers to a centered position in a predetermined

   direction of the through hole.
5. 5. The cutting module of claim 4, wherein the predetermined direction is perpendicular to the

   sliding path of the blade.
6. 6. The cutting module of claim 1, wherein the elastic holding member is provided on the first

   side of the main body.
7. 7. The cutting module of claim 1, wherein the side on which one of the elastic plates is

   provided on the main body is an upper side of the through hole, while the side on which the

   other one of the elastic plates is provided is a lower side of the through hole.
8. 8. The cutting module of claim 1, wherein the elastic plates are deformed as being bent from

   the first side of the main body toward the second side thereof.
9. 9. The cutting module of claim 8, wherein, when the elastic plates are deformed, a top end of

   the at least one elastic plate does not exceed the second side of the main body through the

   through hole.
10. 10. The cutting module of claim 9, wherein a shortest distance between the top end of the

    elastic plates and the second side of the main body in a direction from the first side to the second

    side is defined as a first length, and a depth of the through hole communicating the first side and

    the second side of the main body is defined as a second length; and when the slat assembly

    passes through the through hole, the first length is less than or equal to the second length.
11. 11. The cutting module of claim 1, wherein the elastic plates are made of silicone rubber.
12. 12. A cutting module of a cutting machine for trimming a window blind, wherein the

    window blind comprises a slat assembly; comprising:

    a main body, wherein the main body has two opposite sides, which are a first side and a

    second side, respectively; the main body has a through hole communicating the first side and the

    second side, wherein the through hole is adapted to be passed through by the slat assembly of

    the window blind;

    a blade, which has a cutting edge, wherein the blade is provided corresponding to the

    second side of the main body, and is movable back and forth along a sliding path; the cutting edge

    has two corresponding chamfers, and passes over the through hole as the blade slides, and

    therefore is adapted to cut off a part of the slat assembly beyond the second side when the slat

    assembly passes through the through hole; and

    an elastic holding member, which is provided corresponding to the through hole, and is

    adapted to exert an elastic force on the slat assembly when the slat assembly passes through the

    through hole to be trimmed, whereby to maintain the slat assembly at a centered position in a

    direction perpendicular to the sliding path of the blade, so that the blade is capable of cutting two

    symmetric chamfers on the slat assembly.