Replaceable curtain system

Abstract

A buckle assembly for suspending a curtain from a support includes upper and lower buckle parts. The upper buckle part has a support connector for attaching the upper buckle part to the support and first and second finger rests. The first and second finger rest extend outward, in opposite directions. The first and second finger rests are sized and shaped to be engaged by respective first and second fingers of one hand of a user. The lower buckle part is attached to the curtain and includes a thumb receptacle sized and shaped to receive a thumb of the user. One of the upper buckle part or the lower buckle part includes a buckle part connector that engages the other of the upper buckle part or the lower buckle part to couple the upper and lower buckle parts together.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A buckle assembly for suspending a curtain from a support, the buckle assembly comprising:
 an upper buckle part having a upper buckle part body and a support connector attached to the upper buckle part body and configured to attach the upper buckle part to the support, the upper buckle part having first and second finger rests, the first finger rest extending outward from a first side of the upper buckle part body and the second finger rest extending outward from a second side of the upper buckle part body, the first finger rest being sized and shaped to be engaged by a first finger of a user and the second finger rest being sized and shaped to be engaged by a second finger of the user; and   a lower buckle part having a lower buckle part body configured to be attached to the curtain, the lower buckle part body includes a thumb receptacle sized and shaped to receive a thumb of the user;   wherein one of the upper buckle part or the lower buckle part includes a buckle part connector configured to engage the other of the upper buckle part or the lower buckle part to couple the upper and lower buckle parts together.   
     
     
         2 . The buckle assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the buckle part connector comprises a snap-fit connector, the snap-fit connector configured to form a snap-fit connection with said other of the upper buckle part or the lower buckle part when the upper and lower buckle parts are squeezed together by the thumb, first finger and second finger of the user. 
     
     
         3 . The buckle assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second finger rests each includes a finger support surface configured to be engaged by the respective first and second fingers, each finger support surface being arcuate. 
     
     
         4 . The buckle assembly of  claim 3 , wherein each finger support surface is concave. 
     
     
         5 . The buckle assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second finger rests are symmetrical about an imaginary axis, the imaginary axis extending through the center of the thumb receptacle when the upper and lower buckle parts are coupled together. 
     
     
         6 . The buckle assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the lower buckle part includes the buckle part connector, the buckle part connector configured to engage the upper buckle part to couple the upper and lower buckle parts together. 
     
     
         7 . The buckle assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the support connector includes a post configured to be inserted into the support and at least one latch member supported by the post and configured to engage and form a latched connection with the support to attach the upper buckle part to the support. 
     
     
         8 . The buckle assembly of  claim 7 , wherein the at least one latch member includes first and second latch members. 
     
     
         9 . The buckle assembly of  claim 8 , wherein the post includes first and second spaced apart post segments, the first post segment supporting the first latch member and the second post segment supporting the second latch member. 
     
     
         10 . The buckle assembly of  claim 1 , in combination with the curtain. 
     
     
         11 . The combination of  claim 10 , further comprising a curtain connector attaching the curtain to the lower buckle part body. 
     
     
         12 . The combination of  claim 10 , in further combination with the support. 
     
     
         13 . A curtain assembly for being suspended from a plurality of upper buckle parts, the curtain assembly comprising:
 a curtain; and   a plurality of lower buckle parts attached to an upper edge margin of the curtain, each lower buckle part including a buckle part connector configured to engage one of the upper buckle parts to couple the plurality of lower buckle parts to the plurality of upper buckle parts, each lower buckle part including a thumb receptacle sized and shaped to receive and at least partially conform to a thumb of a user.   
     
     
         14 . The curtain assembly of  claim 13 , wherein the receptacle comprises a hole in the lower buckle part. 
     
     
         15 . The curtain assembly of  claim 14 , wherein at least an upper portion of the hole is rounded to conform to the shape of the thumb of the user. 
     
     
         16 . The curtain assembly of  claim 13 , in combination with a package containing the curtain and plurality of lower buckle parts, the curtain being in a folded configuration in the package such that the plurality of lower buckle parts are arranged in the same order as the order of the plurality of lower buckle parts on the curtain when the curtain is in an unfolded configuration. 
     
     
         17 . A method of installing a curtain system, the method comprising:
 supporting a lower buckle part by a thumb of one hand of a user;   grasping an upper buckle part with first and second fingers of the one hand of the user; and   connecting the upper and lower buckle parts together by squeezing the upper and lower buckle parts together with the thumb, first finger and second finger of the one hand of the user.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein supporting the lower buckle part includes inserting the thumb into a thumb receptacle of the lower buckle part. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein gripping the upper buckle part including placing the first finger on a first finger rest of the upper buckle part and placing the second finger on a second finger rest of the upper buckle part. 
     
     
         20 . A method of detaching a movable privacy curtain used to selectively enclose an area within a hospital room from a ceiling support in a hospital, the method comprising:
 reaching up to a buckle assembly interconnecting the curtain with the ceiling support, the buckle assembly including an upper buckle part and a lower buckle part, the upper buckle part attached to the support, the lower buckle part attached to the curtain, the upper and lower buckle parts coupled to one another;   squeezing first and second snap-fit elements of either the upper buckle part or the lower buckle part with a thumb and a finger of one hand of the user to release connection of the lower buckle part to detach a portion of the curtain from the ceiling support.