Awning drop shade and attachment method

Abstract

An awning shade that attaches to a motorized retractable awning with a fail-safe removal mechanism that does not interfere with the safe operation of the awning because it automatically removes the drop shade from the awning when the powered awning retracts automatically. A combination of adhesive tapes and magnets is employed to install the shade fabric on the awning. Magnets embedded into the fabric are magnetically attached to corresponding external magnets, which, in turn, are attached to the extended end of the awning with the help of double-sided adhesive tapes. A pair of lanyards tether the installed drop shade to the ground and facilitate its fail-safe removal through magnetic detachment when the awning retracts automatically. Fabric pockets provided on the shading fabric allow insertion of a non-ferrous rod into them to lift the magnet-containing fabric above ground for placement on the extended end of the awning without a ladder.

I/We claim: 
     
         1 . A method of installing a drop shade on an extended end of a motorized retractable awning, the method comprising:
 attaching a first side of each of a plurality of first magnets to a corresponding one of a plurality of second magnets embedded within a shade fabric of the drop shade in a spaced-apart manner along the length of a top hem of the fabric;   applying a first adhesive side of each of a plurality of double-sided adhesive tapes to a second side of a corresponding one of the plurality of first magnets;   applying a second adhesive side of each of the plurality of double-sided adhesive tape to an end of a retractable awning, thereby attaching the shade fabric to the extended end of the awning; and   tethering each extreme end of an awning-attached shade fabric to the ground with a pair of substantially inelastic rope-like connectors.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein each tethered extreme end of the shade fabric is within the top hem of the shade fabric, and wherein the tethering includes:
 attaching one end of each rope-like connector to a corresponding extreme end of the shade fabric; and   securing the other end of each rope-like connector to the ground.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 sequentially performing each pair of said applying and said further applying steps using one double-sided adhesive tape at a time.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the shade fabric includes a plurality of fabric pockets, wherein each pocket is integrally formed in the shade fabric at a location of a corresponding one of the plurality of second magnets and over that side of the corresponding second magnet which is unattached to a respective first magnet, wherein the applying a second adhesive side comprises removably inserting a non-ferrous rod into each pocket to lift the shade fabric to apply the second adhesive side of each corresponding adhesive tape to the extended end of the awning. 
     
     
         5 . A method of installing a drop shade on an extended end of a motorized retractable awning, the method comprising:
 attaching an adhesive tape bearing a first plurality of rare earth magnets to an awning;   attaching a shading fabric comprising a second plurality of rare earth magnets to the first plurality of rare earth magnets; and   tethering at least one end of the shading fabric to the ground with at least one connector.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the tethering comprises attaching a pair of lanyards attached to the shading fabric to the ground. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the tethering is configured to facilitate a fail-safe removal through magnetic detachment of the second plurality of rare earth magnets from the first plurality of rare earth magnets when the awning retracts automatically. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the shading fabric comprises at least one fabric pocket. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising:
 inserting a non-ferrous rod into the at least one fabric pocket; and   lifting the shading fabric via the rod above ground for placement on the extended end of the awning without a ladder.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising removing the rod from the at least one fabric pocket. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the shading fabric has an open value. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the magnets are rare earth magnets. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the adhesive is a high-temperature adhesive tape. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the attaching the adhesive tape bearing the first plurality of rare earth magnets to the awning comprises attaching the adhesive tape bearing the first plurality of rare earth magnets to the awning, a first extended awning end, and a second extended awning end. 
     
     
         15 . A method of installing a drop shade on an extended end of a motorized retractable awning, the method comprising:
 attaching a high-temperature adhesive tape bearing a first plurality of rare earth magnets to an awning, a first extended awning end, and a second extended awning end;   attaching a shading fabric comprising at least one fabric pocket and a second plurality of rare earth magnets to the first plurality of rare earth magnets on the awning, the first extended awning end, and the second extended awning end;   inserting a non-ferrous rod into the at least one fabric pocket;   lifting the shading fabric via the rod above ground for placement on the awning without a ladder;   removing the rod from the at least one fabric pocket; and   tethering at least one end of the shading fabric to the ground with at least one connector.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the shading fabric has an open value. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the magnets are rare earth magnets. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the adhesive is a high-temperature adhesive tape. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the tethering comprises attaching a pair of lanyards attached to the shading fabric to the ground. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the tethering is configured to facilitate a fail-safe removal through magnetic detachment of the second plurality of rare earth magnets from the first plurality of rare earth magnets when the awning retracts automatically.