Foldable Valance

Foldable valances have heretofore been made having a front panel and return panels with mitered corners and with hinges connecting the return panels to the front panel to allow the return panels to be folded to positions alongside the rear of the front panel for compact packaging and to reduce breakage during storage and shipment. The hingedly connected return panels were adapted to be manually moved into an erected position extending perpendicular to the front panel when the valances were installed. However, the hingedly connected return panels could move out of perpendicularity with the front panel during or after installation and this problem was aggravated when plastic hinges were used. The plastic hinges would take a set once the return panels were folded in overlying relation to the front panels for packaging and such that the plastic hinges would not return toward their original flat conditions sufficient to move and hold the return panels in a fully erect position extending perpendicular to the front panel. This left an objectionable gap at the mitered corner between the return panels and the front panel.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome the problems encountered with the prior art foldable valances, by providing a foldable valance having an improved one-piece plastic hinge arranged to hingedly connect the return panels to the front panels of the valance to allow folding for compact storage, and which hinges are arranged to maintain the return panel in an erected condition when the valance is installed.

Accordingly, there is provided a foldable valance including a front panel and return panels connected to the ends of the front panel by one-piece plastic hinges to allow folding of the return panels to positions alongside the front panel for compact packaging during storage and transportation, and which the plastic hinges have a tab integral therewith and which is bendable to an operative position for retaining the return panels in an erected condition extending perpendicular to the front panel when the valance is installed. The tabs are advantageously arranged to engage the ends of a header for a blind or curtain, when the valance is installed.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating assembly of the valance on a venetian blind header;

FIG. 2 is a top view illustrating assembly of the valance on a venetian blind header;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary top view of the valance in a folded condition;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a return panel in an erected condition;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a hinge in a normal flat condition; and

FIG. 6 is fragmentary perspective view illustrating the return panel in an erected condition and with a modified form of hinge.

Referring now more specifically to the accompanying drawings, there is disclosed a valance V for use with a header H for a horizontal or vertical blind designated generally by the numeral B. The header has a front wall 10 and end caps C at opposite ends, and the header is mounted on a supporting surface such as a wall or window casing either by securing the end caps thereto or by separate mounting brackets (not shown).

The valance V includes a front panel 15 and return panels 16 at opposite ends of the front panel. The front panel 15 has outer and inner faces and end edges 15a that are mitered or beveled at about 45.degree.. The return panels 16 also have outer and inner faces and an end edge 16a that is mitered to abut the associated end 15a of the front panel to form a closed corner when the return panel is in an erected condition as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4.

One-piece plastic hinges 21, formed of resilient plastic material such as polypropylene, are provided for hingedly connecting the return panels to the face panels to allow the return panels to be folded alongside the face panels as shown in FIG. 3, for compact packaging, storage and shipment of the valance. The hinges include first and second hinge plates 21a and 21b and an integral hinge portion 21c having a reduced thickness as compared to the plate portions, to facilitate bending of the plate portions relative to each other. The hinge is preferably molded with the plate portions 21a and 21b generally coplanar as shown in FIG. 5, and with the hinge portion 21c of reduced thickness formed by a relatively sharp groove or recess to provide a well defined hinge line between the plates. The hinge plates 21a and 21b are attached to the inner faces of the front and return panels at a location such that the flex line of the hinge is at the intersection of planes through the mitered ends 15a and 16a of the front and return panels and such that the mitered joint between the front and return panels is closed when the return panel is disposed substantially perpendicular to the front panel. The hinge plates may be attached to the front and end panels in any suitable manner, for example by pieces of double faced pressure sensitive adhesive tape designated 25a and 25b, or by adhesive or fasteners that extend through openings 21d in the plates.

The hinge portion 21c between the plate portions 21a and 21b of the plastic hinge will take a set when the return panel 16 is folded to extend alongside the rear of the front panel 15, for packaging, storage and shipment as shown in FIG. 3. When the return panel is thereafter manually moved to an erected position, the plastic hinge tends to move the return panel out of a fully erected position and such that there is a gap at the mitered corners between the front and return panels of the valance. In accordance with the present invention a tab 21e is formed integrally with one of the plate portions of the hinge and arranged so that it can be bent, at the time of installing the valance, to a position extending transverse to the associated plate portion to maintain the return panels in an erected condition. As best shown in FIG. 5, the tab 21e is molded integrally with the plate portion 21b at an edge thereof remote from the hinge portion 21c. The tab is initially disposed generally coplanar with the plate portion 21b and the tab can remain in this condition when the return panel is folded alongside the rear of the front panel as shown in FIG. 3. When installing the panels, the tab is adapted to be bent from its normal position shown in phantom in FIG. 4 to an operative position extending transverse to the hinge plate 21b as shown in solid lines in FIG. 4. The tab 21e is adapted to engage the end cap C or end brackets on the brackets on the header H, when the valance is installed, to yieldably press the end returns to their fully erected position.

Any suitable means may be provided for mounting the valance with the front and end panels of the valance extending along the front and ends of the header. In the embodiment illustrated, pads 31a and 31b of releasably interlocking hook and loop type fabric are attached to the rear face of the front panel and the front face of the header at locations to register with each other and hold the valance in position on the header. Alternatively, brackets can be provided for mounting the valance on the top of the header or on the supporting surface to which the header is attached. When installing the valance, the valance end panels are moved to their erected condition and the tabs are bent through somewhat more than 90.degree. from their normal position as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, so that the tabs are adapted to engage the end caps or brackets C when the valance is pressed rearwardly into position on the header and yieldably press the end panels to their fully erected condition.

A modified form of hinge is illustrated in FIG. 6 and like numerals are used to designate the same parts and like numerals followed by the postscript ' are used to designate modified parts. In this embodiment, the hinge 21' is formed with plate portions 21a' and 21b' that are connected along a reduced thickness hinge portion 21c'. A tab 21e' is formed integrally with one of the plate portions. The plate portions 21a', 21b' and tab 21e' are initially molded in a flattened condition from a resilient plastic such as polypropylene. Plate portions 21a' and 21b' are attached to the inner faces of the front and end panels, in the manner previously described in connection with FIGS. 1-5.

In the embodiment of FIG. 6, the tab 21e' is formed on one of the plate portions 21b' and is bendable, during installation of the valance, to a position extending diagonally between the plate portions with the distal end of the tab engaging a shoulder or keeper 33' on the other plate portion 21a', to maintain the return panel in an erected condition. The keeper 33' may, as shown in FIG. 6, comprise an opening in the panel 21a' that defines a shoulder for engaging the distal end of the tab or a rib 33a' on the rear of the plate portion, or both. When a rib such as 33a' is used, the other plate portion is advantageously formed with an opening 34' at a location to receive the rib when the return panel is folded on the front panel. The tab 21e' is resilient so that it can deflect if it engages a corner of the header end cap when the valance is pressed rearwardly onto the header in the manner shown in FIG. 1.

From the foregoing it is believed that the construction and use of the foldable valance will be readily understood. The hinge including the plate portions and tab can be economically molded in one piece in a generally flattened condition. When the plate portions of the hinge are attached to the front and return panels of the valance, the return panels can be folded to a position alongside the front panels as shown in FIG. 3 for compact packaging during storage and transportation. During installation, the return panels are moved to an erected condition and the tabs bent to a position extending transverse to the associated hinge plate, to engage the end cap or brackets C on the header as shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-5 or to engage a keeper on the other hinge plate as shown in FIG. 6. The tabs are adapted to be bent through somewhat more than 90.degree. from their normal position to extend from the associated hinge plate at an acute angle toward the other hinge plate and such that the tabs can cam over the end caps on the header when the valance is pressed rearwardly into position on the header. The tabs then yieldably hold the return panel in a fully erected condition, and with the miter joint between the front and return panels closed. In the embodiment of FIG. 6, the tabs on one end plate of the hinge are arranged to engage a keeper on the other end plate to hold the return panels of the valance in an erected condition.