Patent Application
20160324339
The disclosure relates to alignment devices and more particularly pertains to a new alignment device for facilitating neat and straight alignment of commercial products on a shelf in a market.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a handle having a first end and a second end. An elongated shaft is coupled to and extends from the handle. A bend is positioned in the shaft defining a first section and a second section of the shaft. The first section defines a right angle with the second section wherein the shaft is configured for aligning products on a commercial shelf by abutting the products against the first section of the shaft.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A shaft 24 is coupled to and extends from the second end 16 of the handle 12. The shaft 24 is elongated and thinner than the handle 12. A bend 26 is positioned in the shaft 24 defining a first section 28 of the shaft 24 extending from the handle 12 and a second section 30 of the shaft 24 extending from the bend 26 away from the handle 12. The first section 28 defines a right angle with the second section 30 wherein the shaft 24 is configured for aligning products 34 on a commercial shelf 36 by abutting the products 34 against the first section 28 of the shaft 24. The products 34 are further gatherable and urgeable towards a front 38 of the commercial shelf 36 by urging the second section 30 against a rearmost one of the products 34 and pulling on the handle 12 to move the products 34 forward towards the front 38.
A distal portion 40 of the second section 30 of the shaft 24 relative to the bend 26 is flattened extending away from the bend 26 similar to a tip of a conventional screw driver. Thus, a tip 42 of the second section 30 is configured for facilitating placement of the second section 30 behind a row of the products 34 on the commercial shelf 36 or between a desired pair of the products 34. The distal portion 40 of the second section 30 of the shaft 24 has a pair of opposite faces 44. The opposite faces 44 are flat, planar, and tapered wherein the distal portion 40 is configured for facilitating insertion of the tip 42 behind a selectable one of the products 34 on the commercial shelf 36. The distal portion 40 of the second section 30 of the shaft 24 has a pair of lateral sides 46. Each of the lateral sides 46 is convexly arcuate preventing snagging when the second section 30 is disengaged from the products 34 on the commercial shelf 36.
The first section 28 of the shaft 24 may have a length between 45 and 75 centimeters. The second section 30 of the shaft 24 may have a length between 5 and 15 centimeters. The shaft 24 may have a diameter between 0.5 and 1.0 centimeters.
In use, the device 10 is carried by a person while inspecting the positioning of the products 34 on commercial shelves 36. As needed, the shaft 24 is positioned to extend between laterally adjacent rows and the second section 30 of the shaft 24 is positioned to extend behind one of the products 34 within a row to be straightened. The handle 12 is manipulated to position the products 34 against the first section 28 to align the products 34 into a straight line. The handle 12 is pulled to move the aligned products 34 to the front 38 of the commercial shelf 36.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
