All-terrain retail merchandising unit

Abstract

An all-terrain retail merchandising unit or kiosk that can be used outdoors and across grass and gravel for outdoor events. The all-terrain retail merchandising unit can include a chassis, pneumatic tires, and steering that can provide the all-terrain retail merchandising unit with mobility across grass, gravel, and any other uneven or non-flat surfaces. The all-terrain retail merchandising unit can be used inside facilities, moved across a campus, shifted from place-to-place during indoor or outdoor events, and loaded on trucks or trailers for away events.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may be more completely understood in consideration of the following detailed description of various embodiments of the invention in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an all-terrain retail merchandising unit in accordance with the present invention, wherein the ATK is depicted in a towing configuration;

FIG. 2 is a detail view of a canopy slide-bolt of the all-terrain retail merchandising unit of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a detail view of a left front corner of the chassis of the all-terrain retail merchandising unit of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the all-terrain retail merchandising unit of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the all-terrain retail merchandising unit of FIG. 1, wherein the ATK is depicted in deployed configuration;

FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the all-terrain retail merchandising unit of FIG. 5, depicting an upper bin in an open configuration;

FIG. 7 is a detail view of a slide lock of end doors of the all-terrain retail merchandising unit of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 8 is a detail view of a scrub brake and “kickstand” of the all-terrain retail merchandising unit of FIG. 1.

Claims

1. An all-terrain modular retail unit, comprising: a chassis having ground engaging wheels and four corners including two front corners and two rear corners;two supporting structures, each supporting structure coupled to the chassis substantially at two adjacent corners of the four corners and each supporting structure having two substantially upright members extending generally upwardly from the chassis corners;a roof structure coupled to and supported by the supporting structures;a canopy operably coupled to the supporting structures, the canopy being shiftable between an open position and a closed position about a hinged horizontal axis and being securable in both the open position or the closed position;a door hingedly coupled to one of the upright members and pivotable about a vertical axis substantially aligned with one of the rear corners, the door being shiftable between an open position and a closed position and being securable in the both the open position and the closed position; anda substantially horizontal counter supported by the supporting structures above the chassis and below the roof structure.

2. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 1, further comprising a substantially horizontal platform substantially covering the chassis, a substantially vertical rear panel coupled to and supported by the upright members extending from the rear corners, a substantially vertical side panel coupled to the supporting structures, and a front door hingedly coupled to a front edge of the platform for front access into the unit.

3. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 2, further comprising a storage rack extending substantially horizontally above the platform and below the counter.

4. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 3, further comprising a second front door hingedly coupled to the front edge of the storage rack, wherein the first front door extends substantially vertical from the platform to the storage rack, and the second front door extends substantially vertical from the storage rack to the counter.

5. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 2, further comprising a locking device adapted to secure the canopy panel and the front door in a closed position.

6. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 5, wherein the locking device comprises a loop positioned on a front edge of the counter, and a bolt positioned on the canopy panel and adapted to engage the loop.

7. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 1, wherein the chassis further comprises at least one kickstand positioned on a front corner of the chassis.

8. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 1, further comprising a steering mechanism coupled to at least some of the ground engaging wheels.

9. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 8, wherein the steering mechanism comprises a draw bar operably connected to a steering yoke and wherein the steering yoke is operably connected to an axle connecting two ground engaging wheels.

10. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 8, wherein the steering mechanism further comprises further comprises a brake assembly.

11. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 1, wherein the door comprises a locking mechanism.

12. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 11, wherein the locking mechanism comprises a captured plate with a finger-hole that can slide vertically into a metal housing, wherein the capture plate is adapted to engage a bracket positioned on an interior of all-terrain modular retail unit.

13. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 1, wherein the ground engaging wheels rise pneumatic tires.

14. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 1, further comprising a second door hingedly coupled to another of the upright members and pivotable about a vertical axis substantially aligned with the other rear corner, the door being shiftable between an open position and a closed position and being securable in the both the open position and the closed position.

15. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 14, wherein the doors support hardware for displaying merchandise.

16. The all-terrain modular retail unit of claim 1, wherein the all-terrain modular retail unit further comprises an electrical plug.

17. An all-terrain modular unit for storing, transporting, and displaying merchandise, the all-terrain modular unit comprising: a chassis having ground engaging wheels and four corners including two front corners and two rear corners;a body operably coupled to the chassis, the body defining an interior cavity created by: a bottom platform extending generally horizontally to substantially cover the chassis,a rear panel extending generally upwardly between the two rear corner,a roof structure,a canopy operably coupled to the roof structure, the canopy being shiftable between an open position and a closed position about a hinged horizontal axis substantially aligned with a front edge of the body, the canopy being securable in both the open position or the closed position,a door pivotable about a vertical axis substantially aligned with one of the rear corners, the door being shiftable between an open position and a closed position and being securable in the both the open position and the closed position; anda counter extending substantially horizontally within the interior cavity above the chassis and below the roof structure,wherein a portion of an interior surface of the door and at least a portion of an interior surface of the rear panel above the counter comprise merchandise display structures, so that the merchandise is visible when the door and the canopy are in an open position.

18. The all-terrain modular unit of claim 17, wherein the door is oriented to be substantially coplanar with the rear panel in the open position.

19. The all-terrain modular unit of claim 17, wherein an interior side of each of the door and the rear panel further comprise a plurality of substantially horizontal slots adapted to receive hardware for displaying merchandise.

20. The all-terrain modular unit of claim 19, wherein the hardware is selected from the group consisting of hooks, waterfall, baskets, or combinations thereof.

21. The all-terrain modular unit of claim 17, wherein the body further comprises a second door pivotable about a vertical axis substantially aligned with the other of the rear corners, the door being shiftable between an open position and a closed position and being securable in the both the open position and the closed position, and wherein the second door comprises a plurality substantially horizontal slots adapted to receive hardware for displaying merchandise.

22. The all-terrain modular unit of claim 21, wherein the hardware is selected from the group consisting of hooks, waterfall, baskets, or combinations thereof.

23. A method of increasing fundraising efficiency and success, comprising: stocking a mobile all terrain modular retail unit with merchandise;securing the merchandise within the retail unit by locking the unit;transporting the retail unit to a location populated by potential customers by moving the unit on a chassis with ground engaging wheels;fixing the retail unit in a location by applying a brake mechanism to the ground engaging wheels;unlocking a canopy and opening the canopy by pivoting the canopy about a horizontal axis from a generally vertical orientation to a generally horizontal orientation thereby exposing an interior of the retail unit including an interior surface of a rear panel and a countertop at least partially to view;unlocking a door and opening the door by pivoting the door about a vertical axis located adjacent to the rear panel until the door is oriented to be substantially coplanar with the rear panel thereby exposing an interior surface of the door to view;removing merchandise from within the retail unit;securing display hardware to the interior surface of the rear panel and/or the interior surface of the door;displaying the merchandise on the display hardware and/or on the countertop; andselling the merchandise to the potential customers.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein the method further comprises: engaging a kickstand positioned on a front corner of the chassis by rotating the kickstand from a substantially horizontal position to a substantially vertical position to contact a surface.

25. The method according to claim 23, wherein the method further comprises: unlocking a bin door located below the canopy and opening the bin door by pivoting the bin door downwardly about a horizontal axis from a generally vertical orientation to a generally horizontal orientation thereby providing access to an interior of a storage compartment located below the countertop.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein the method further comprises: locking the bin door in an open position; anddisplaying the merchandise on an interior surface of the bin door.