Light Diffusing Roller Blind Assembly

Abstract

A roller blind assembly is described that is made at least in part with a laminate material that includes a roller blind screen and a non-woven backing material applied to the roller blind screen by pressure or heat. If an adhesive is used, the adhesive can be applied to the front side of the non-woven backing material, after which the front side of the non-woven backing material is then attached or bonded to the rear side of the roller blind screen to form the roller blind laminate material. When placed in an architectural opening, such as a window, the roller blind laminate material can reduce or diffuse the light transmission in a room to create a diffused, opaque, or shielded view to the outside while still providing a warm ambiance to an architectural structure or room.

1 . A roller blind assembly, comprising:
 a roller blind mounting system;   a rotating mandrel; and   a roller blind laminate material configured to retract and extend by winding and unwinding on the rotating mandrel, wherein the roller blind laminate material comprises a roller blind screen having an openness factor of from about 3% to about 20% that is laminated to a nonwoven backing material, and further wherein the non-woven backing material diffuses a view through the roller blind laminate material by an amount of from about 10% to about 70.   
     
     
         2 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the roller blind screen comprises a mesh, a monofilament fabric, or a perforated film. 
     
     
         3 . (canceled) 
     
     
         4 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the non-woven backing material comprises a hydroentangled material, a spunbond material, or a meltblown material. 
     
     
         5 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the non-woven backing material comprises natural fibers in an amount of from about 10% to about 30% by weight and synthetic fibers in an amount of from about 70% to about 90% by weight. 
     
     
         6 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 5 , wherein the natural fibers comprise wood pulp and the synthetic fibers comprise polyolefin or polyester fibers. 
     
     
         7 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the non-woven backing material has a basis weight of from about 5 g/m 2  to about 75 g/m 2 . 
     
     
         8 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the non-woven backing material has a thickness of from about 0.05 mm to about 0.50 mm. 
     
     
         9 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , further comprising an adhesive layer, wherein the adhesive layer comprises a paste dot layer, a glue web, or a glue film. 
     
     
         10 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 9 , wherein the adhesive layer is coated onto the non-woven backing material before the non-woven backing material is attached to the roller blind screen. 
     
     
         11 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 10 , wherein the adhesive layer is coated onto a front side of the non-woven backing material. 
     
     
         12 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 11 , wherein the adhesive is applied to the front side of the non-woven backing material in an amount of from about 2.5 g/m 2  to about 35 g/m 2 . 
     
     
         13 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the non-woven backing material is attached to the roller blind screen by contacting the front side of the non-woven backing material with a rear side of the roller blind screen, wherein heat and pressure are applied to the roller blind screen and the non-woven backing material to form the roller blind laminate material, and further wherein the adhesive is melted to attach the non-woven backing material to the roller blind screen. 
     
     
         14 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the adhesive comprises a thermoplastic powder and a water matrix. 
     
     
         15 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 14 , wherein the thermoplastic powder comprises a polyurethane, a polyolefin, a polyester, a copolyester, a polyvinyl chloride, a polyamide, or a copolymer thereof. 
     
     
         16 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 3 , wherein the roller blind screen has an openness factor of about 5%. 
     
     
         17 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 16 , wherein the light transmission through the roller blind laminate material is reduced by an amount of from about 10% to about 40% compared to the roller blind screen alone. 
     
     
         18 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the roller blind screen has an openness factor of about 10%. 
     
     
         19 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 18 , wherein the light transmission is reduced by an amount of from about 30% to about 70% compared to the roller blind screen alone. 
     
     
         20 . A roller blind assembly as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the light transmission through the roller blind screen is from about 10 to about 50 foot-candles, while the light transmission through the roller blind laminate material is from about 5 to about 40 foot-candles. 
     
     
         21 . A method of forming a roller blind assembly comprising a roller blind mounting system, a rotating mandrel, and a roller blind laminate material configured to retract and extend by winding and unwinding on the rotating mandrel, wherein the roller blind laminate material comprises a roller blind screen laminated to a non-woven backing material, and further wherein the non-woven backing material diffuses the view through the roller blind laminate material by an amount of from about 10% to about 70%, comprising:
 laminating the non-woven backing material to the roller blind screen to form the roller blind laminate material;   cutting the roller blind laminate material to a desired length and width;   attaching the roller blind laminate material onto the rotating mandrel; and   attaching the rotating mandrel to the roller blind mounting system.