Multi-window sun shield

#1. Field of the Invention

#The present invention relates to sunshields, and particularly to a collapsible window shade apparatus capable of covering a plurality of windows.

#2. Art Background

#The objects and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art after reviewing the following detailed description and accompanying drawings, wherein:

#FIG. 1 is a perspective top view of an exemplary embodiment of a collapsible sunshield assembly of the invention.

#FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the collapsible sunshield assembly of FIG. 1 being folded about a center fold line with its flaps adjacent to each other.

#Referring to the drawings more particularly by reference numbers, FIG. 4 shows a collapsible sunshield assembly 10 of the present invention installed covering the windshield 12 and side windows 14 of an automobile 16. Sunshield 10 provides maximum protection against the transmission of sunlight and heat into the interior of the car, because sunshield 10 not only covers the windshield but also covers the side windows. In addition, the ability of sunshield 10 to cover the windshield and side windows provides a complete cover for visually concealing the contents of the passenger compartment. It should be noted, that although use of the sunshield assembly 10 in an automobile is shown and described, the present invention may be used to cover other windows. For example, assembly 10 may cover the window(s) of a commercial/residential building to shield the interior of the structure from sun and heat.

#As shown in FIG. 1, window shade apparatus 10 has a flexible fabric sheet 18, attached to a flexible frame 20. Flexible frame 20 is formed by two independent strips that are bent into a close loop and joined together by a clip or other fastening means. In addition, the strip is composed of a spring-like metal or plastic that can be readily twisted and folded without yielding material. In one embodiment of the present invention, flexible fabric frame 20 is constructed from steel wire, which is both flexible and strong.

#As mentioned before, flexible fabric sheet 18 covers flexible frame 20. Flexible fabric 18 includes center section 22 and flaps 24. The flaps 24 attach to the center section 22 along lines 27. Center section 22 has two layers in between which flexible frames 20 are positioned. More specifically, flexible frames 20 are placed adjacent to each other between the two layers of flexible fabric's center section 22 and are then affixed to center section 22 by sewing the two layers of center section 22 along the boundaries of flexible frames 20. It should be noted that in alternative embodiments of the present invention, flexible frames 20 could be attached to a one layer center section 22 by a hem strip that extends around the entire length of the frame. As mentioned before, flexible fabric sheet 18 also includes flaps 24 which extend at an angle from the center section 22. As shown in FIG. 4, these flaps are designed to cover the front side windows of the automobile. In addition, flaps 24 have tab 26 that can be used to affix the flap 24 such that a side window is shaded. More specifically, tab 26 can be placed on top of the glass as the window is rolled up until the tab is pinched between the window and the window well of a car or attached to the side window by suction cup attached to the tab. A suction cup may also be coupled directly to the flap 24 for attachment to the side window. Alternatively, the side flaps 24 may also be secured to the side windows by providing tabs 26 that are constructed of Velcro material, which allows the tabs 26 to be coupled to the front shoulder belts or any alternative attachment location above the side windows. The bottom of the shade is then supported by the door frame. The tabs 26 could also be elastic or a fabric webbing, possibly coupled to suction cups or any other conventional attachment device such as snaps and buckles.