Rear window roller blind system

A roller blind system for covering a rear window of a motor vehicle, the roller blind system comprising:

• a roller blind comprising a roller blind shaft rotatable about a main axis and a flexible surface structure wound on the roller blind shaft for movement between a storage state and an operating state, the flexible surface structure being at least partially unwound from the roller blind shaft in the operating state;
• a planar shelf arranged in a rear region of the motor vehicle, the planar shelf comprising a plurality of separate and non-integral parts, the plurality of separate and non-integral parts including a front shelf and a rear shelf, each of the front shelf and the rear shelf form part of the planar shelf, the front shelf being separate from the rear shelf, and the front shelf and the rear shelf being spaced from each other by a through-slot through which the surface structure is moved during transfer from the storage state into the operating state;
• and
• a vessel member connecting the front shelf to the rear shelf, the vessel member being connected to, but separate from and non-integral with, the front shelf and the rear shelf;
• the roller blind shaft being arranged inside the vessel member and rotatably supported by bearing blocks secured to or integral with the vessel member for allowing the roller blind shaft to rotate about the main axis;
• wherein the vessel member includes a vessel inner space, the vessel inner space having the roller blind shaft therein, the vessel inner space having a variable cross-sectional surface area with respect to an extent direction parallel to the main axis such that first wall sections of the vessel inner space at a first plane perpendicular to the extent direction are closer to the roller blind shaft than second wall sections of the vessel inner space at a second plane perpendicular to the extent direction;
• and
• wherein the vessel member has a plurality of cross section expansions in which the cross-sectional surface area of the vessel inner space is at least 30% greater than in adjacent regions of the vessel inner space.