Patent Application
20160278541
The present invention is directed to trays for the display of merchandise, particularly in supermarkets and other large stores. The invention is especially suitable for, but not necessarily limited to, merchandise display trays of the type that are mounted in cantilever fashion, for example as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,210,367, and which are provided with spring-operated pusher paddles that constantly urge the displayed merchandise forwardly as products are removed by customers from the front of the display.
When loading or reloading product display trays of the type referred to above, the spring-loaded pusher paddle must be held in a retracted position while new product items are loaded into the tray. To enable store personnel to have both hands available for loading of product, it is typical to provide a means for mechanically locking the paddle in a fully retracted position while the loading operations are taking place. A variety of arrangements and mechanisms have been proposed for accomplishing this. One such mechanism is reflected in British patent publication 2290077, in which a vertically movable latch element is mounted on the back of a spring-urged pusher paddle. When the paddle is moved to a retracted position, the latch is depressed so that it engages the track and retains the paddle in position while products are loaded into the tray. When the tray is fully loaded, a push against the paddle in a backward direction releases the latch, which returns to an elevated position allowing the paddle to move forwardly to advance the product column.
European patent EP 0986980 illustrates a basic arrangement in which the base portion of a pusher paddle is provided with a hook engageable with a recess provided in the back portion of the track. When the paddle is retracted for loading of the tray, the entire paddle is tilted backwards to press the hook into the recess and the lock the paddle. The paddle is later released by pressing it backward and tilting it forward to release the hook.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,931,156 illustrates an arrangement similar to that of the British publication 2 290 077 in that a vertically movable latch element is mounted to the back of the pusher paddle. The latch can be depressed when the paddle is in a retracted position, in order to lock the paddle during reloading operations. When reloading is completed, the paddle is pressed rearwardly (either manually or as a result of being pressed backward after becoming fully loaded with packages) causing release of a latch spring and thus allowing the tray to move forwardly under the action of the paddle spring.
US patent publication 2012/0211450, owned by the assignee of this application, Trion Industries, Inc., illustrates an arrangement in which a locking element is positioned against the back face of a flexible and tiltable pusher paddle. During normal operations, the paddle is in an upright position, in which the locking element is ineffective. For reloading operations, the paddle is pushed to the back of the tray, and its geometry is such that it tilts forwardly when in its rearward or reload position. In a forwardly tilted position of the paddle, the locking element grips guide rods forming the base of the tray and retains the paddle in a retracted position. When the paddle is tilted back to an upright position, either manually or by the loading of a final product package into a substantially full tray, the lock automatically releases and allows the paddle to move forwardly under the action of its spring.
US patent publication 2013/0112634 discloses a mechanism in which a U-shaped locking element is inserted through slots in the face of the pusher and has locking elements extending to the rear that automatically engage the tray and lock the pusher when the pusher is moved to a retracted position. Rearward pressure on a portion of the locking element exposed in front of the pusher releases the locking elements and allows the paddle to be pushed forwardly by its spring. This arrangement has the disadvantage of automatically locking the paddle in a retracted position anytime it is moved to the rear of the base. When this happens without the store clerk noticing, the paddle may remain in its locked, retracted position and not function to push the product column to the front as intended.
All of the above devices function at some level to allow a spring operated pusher paddle to be locked in a retracted position for reloading operations. However, all of them suffer from certain shortcomings, either from an operating standpoint or from extra cost and complication in the manufacture.
The present invention provides a novel and improved form of product display tray including a product pusher of relatively rigid construction which is biased in a forward direction by a coiled strip spring. The coiled strip spring is arranged in a known manner, with a coiled body portion thereof being positioned behind and bearing forwardly upon the product pusher, and a strip portion thereof extending forwardly in the tray and being anchored at the front of the tray. The new tray includes a novel and improved locking mechanism functioning in combination with the spring-driven pusher to accommodate manual locking of the pusher in a retracted position for reloading of the tray, along with either automatic or manual release of the pusher when reloading has been completed.
The mechanism of the invention includes a locking element that is pivotally secured at the rear of the front panel of the paddle. The locking element has a portion, which can be referred to as an actuating arm, extending upwardly from the pivot axis directly behind the upright front panel, and a second portion, which can be referred to as a locking leg, extending rearwardly from the pivot axis. In accordance with a feature of the invention, the upwardly extending actuating arm of the locking element is interposed between the coiled body of the strip spring and the back of the pusher paddle. Accordingly, in the device of the present invention, the locking element is constantly urged by the coiled spring body into a position in which the rearwardly extending locking leg is held in an elevated position where it cannot make locking engagement with the base of the tray.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the front panel of the pusher paddle has an opening which provides access to the actuating arm of the locking element. When the pusher paddle is in a retracted position, and the operator desires to actuate the locking device to hold the pusher in a retracted position, the operator can manually access the actuating arm through the panel opening. By pressing rearwardly on the accessible portion of the actuating arm, the operator can pivot the locking element into a position in which the locking leg engages the base of the tray and secures the paddle in a retracted position. Releasing the paddle, when desired, involves merely pushing rearwardly on the upright panel, either manually or by loading of a final package onto the tray. As soon as the pusher paddle is moved slightly to the rear, the pressure of the coiled spring body on the actuating arm causes the locking element to immediately pivot in a release direction and free the paddle for forward movement.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, a product display tray is provided with a unique design of a rigid pusher paddle. The pusher paddle is designed and constructed to be guided and supported by a plurality (typically four) spaced apart and parallel guide rods that extend longitudinally over the length of the tray to accommodate movement of the pusher paddle between front and back limit positions. Typically, the structure of the tray includes front and back transversely disposed base elements that support the front and back ends of the guide rods. Desirably, the configuration of the pusher paddle is such that it can be assembled with or removed from the guide rods without requiring removal of a base element in order to provide access to the ends of the rods. At the same time, and because of the spring forces applied to the rigid pusher paddle, it is important to assure that the pusher paddle remains assembled with the guide rods unless intentionally removed. To this end, the pusher paddle of the invention incorporates improved guide sleeves that slidably engage the rods and at least certain ones of which include special internal detent projections that require snap-on, snap-off assembly and disassembly, assuring that the pusher paddle will remain attached at all times to the guide rods unless intentionally removed.
The arrangement of the invention is functionally optimal, in that positive action of the operator is required in order to lock the paddle in a retracted position. At the same time, the mechanism of the invention is highly simplified in nature and enables the paddle return spring to serve in the additional capacity of controlling operations of the locking element.
For a more complete understanding of the above and other features and advantages of the invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, and to the accompanying drawings.
Referring to the drawings, the reference numeral 20 designates generally a product display tray such as used extensively in supermarkets and other stores. The illustrated tray assembly advantageously, but not necessarily, is of a type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,210,367, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference. In the illustrated tray assembly, the tray base 21, formed of longitudinally extending, parallel guide rods, is supported in cantilever fashion by laterally spaced apart side wall panels 22, 23. The sidewall panels include notches 24 at the back that engage and are supported by a rectangular mounting bar (not shown). Transversely disposed support rods 25, 26 are mounted at front and back end portions of the respective side wall panels 22, 23. These support rods slidably engage front and back base members 27, 28 such that the base members are supported by the sidewall panels 22, 23 while enabling lateral adjustment of the sidewall panels to accommodate packages of different sizes.
Desirably, the front and back base members 27, 28 extend slightly below the bottom edges of the sidewall panels 22, 23, such that the trays may be directly supported on shelves where desired. Mostly, however, the trays are supported in cantilever fashion.
In the illustrated form of tray, the tray base 21 is comprised of the front and back base members 27, 28 and a plurality of longitudinally extending guide rods 29-32 that are supported at their front and back ends by the base members 27, 28. Crossbars (not shown) extend underneath the guide rods adjacent each end and are welded thereto to form a rigid guide rod structure. The crossbars are received in transverse grooves in the base members 27, 28, preferably by a snap-in attachment, such that the base members and guide rods form a rigid, coherent structure. The outermost guide rods 29, 32 have upwardly bent portions 29a, 32a at their forward ends which mount a front barrier plate 33. In an illustrative but non-limiting example, the guide rods 29-32 may have a diameter of approximately 3/16 inch.
A pusher paddle 34, details of which are shown in
With reference to
For engagement with the inner rods 30, 31 of the base, the paddle 34 is provided with intermediate guide sleeves 46, 47 positioned symmetrically on opposite sides of the center line of the paddle 34. The guide sleeves 46, 47 are of a generally downwardly opening, U-shaped form and are angled divergently at an angle of approximately 30° from the vertical. Preferably, the intermediate guide sleeves 46, 47 are of a length equal to the width of the base panel 40 (e.g., in the above illustrative example, approximately 0.7 inch). At their upper ends, the guide sleeves 46, 47 are of semi-cylindrical form, with their respective axes located at a common level with the axes of the outer guide sleeves 42, 43.
In order to mount the paddle 34 on the guide rods 29-32, the paddle is placed on a mid portion of the guide rods, and both the inner pair of rods 30, 31 and the outer pair 29, 32 are deflected outwardly a short distance to allow the rods to enter the bottom openings of the inner guide sleeves 46, 47 and the side openings of the outer guide sleeves 42, 43. When the guide rods are released from their deflected positions, they can be fully received in the recesses and be seated in the semi-cylindrical closed ends thereof. The four guide sleeves are of the size to closely receive the respective guide rods 29-32, while allowing free sliding movement of the paddle on the rods. In the illustrated and representative tray, the guide rods 29-32 may have a diameter of approximately 3/16 of an inch. However, it will be understood that the rod diameter may vary with the length of the tray and the anticipated weight of the products to be supported thereon. In all cases, the guide sleeves will be correspondingly sized to slide freely on the guide rods while effectively guiding the paddle 34 in its movements thereon.
In accordance with an aspect of the invention, the downwardly opening inner guide sleeves 46, 47 are formed with detent projections 48, 49 which are positioned a short distance in from the open ends of the guide sleeves and serve to partially constrict portions of the guide sleeves in the manner to require forcible snap-in, snap-out assembly and disassembly of the inner guide rods 30, 31 with the pusher 34. The detent projections, which may extend fully or partially along the length of the recesses 46, 47, may constrict the recesses by, for example, 30%. Preferably, the exposed surfaces of the detent projections are disposed at inclined angles to the sides of the recesses. The arrangement is such the guide rods 30, 31 may be partially received in the recesses before encountering the detent projections. The rods must then be forcibly pressed into the recesses in order to deflect the projections and the recess sidewalls enough to allow passage of the guide rods. Likewise, in order to detach the inner guide rods 30, 31 from the paddle 34, the guide rods must be forcibly pressed outward in order to displace and clear the detent projections 48, 49. The described arrangement enables the paddle to resist the tilting action of the spring 35 and also allows the tray and paddle to be roughly handled by store personnel and customers without concern that the paddle will separate from the guide rods. This is accomplished in the present invention without the requirement of using pins, screws or other devices, achieving equivalent functionality without the extra cost and assembly time associated with the use of separate fastening devices.
Effective retention of the sliding pusher paddle 34 on the guide rods is an important consideration, because considerable spring force is acting on the paddle, and it can become a potentially harmful projectile if it accidentally becomes detached from the guide rods.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a novel and improved arrangement is provided for locking the pusher paddle 34 in a fully retracted position, against the action of the coiled spring 35, to accommodate reloading of the tray when necessary. The locking arrangement includes a locking lever 50, shown in
Flanges 60, 61 extend inwardly a short distance from forward edges 62 of the side plates 53, 54 and are engaged by the coiled body 36 of the spring 35 such that the spring at all times applies a forward pressure on the actuating arm 51 of the locking lever 50, urging it to pivot toward an upright or “release” position. In the normal or release position of the locking lever, the forward edges 62 of the side plates bear against the back surface of the pusher paddle 34 such that the spring acts through the locking lever to urge the paddle in a forward direction.
As shown in
In the arrangement of the invention, when a store clerk moves the paddle 34 to a retracted position for reloading, he or she must intentionally lock the paddle by pressing the locking lever panel 59 rearwardly to pivot the locking lever rearwardly to the position shown in
Desirably, the pusher paddle 34 is provided with a stop element 67 which projects rearwardly from a position directly above the access opening 63 and is formed with a downwardly projecting flange 68 positioned to engage upper back portions of the actuating panel 59 of the locking lever 50, when the lever is displaced rearwardly a predetermined distance relative to the paddle 34. When the flange 68 is engaged by the panel 59, the hooks 64 are positioned at a proper level to be received in the slot 65 of the base cover.
When a reloading operation has been completed, the pusher paddle 34 is released by displacing it rearwardly until the hooks 64 disengage from the slot 65. As soon as the hooks are disengaged, the locking lever 50 is automatically pivoted forwardly by the action of the spring body 36 against the flanges 60, 61 of the locking lever. Frequently, but not necessarily, the pusher paddle is displaced rearwardly upon placement of the final package into the tray. Otherwise, the operator manually displaces the paddle to release the lock.
In a modified form of the locking lever 50, shown in
The mechanisms of the invention are advantageous in requiring intentional operator action to lock the pusher paddle in a retracted position. However, unlike with prior art devices, the desired functions of the locking mechanism do not require a special spring but are accomplished by an advantageous placement of the locking lever so that the force of the coiled strip spring, which is provided to impart forward biasing to the pusher paddle, can be harnessed to also provide rotational bias to the locking lever in a release direction. This is accomplished in the described embodiment by pivotally mounting the locking lever adjacent the bottom of the pusher paddle, with the coiled body of the spring pressing forward on an upwardly extending actuating arm of the lever. The spring acts to provide forward bias to the actuating arm of the locking lever and also acts through the locking lever to provide forward bias to the pusher paddle. Locking of the pusher paddle in a retracted position for reloading of the tray requires both that the pusher paddle be moved to a retracted position and additionally that the actuating arm of the locking lever be manually pressed backward, through the access opening 63 in the pusher paddle.
The mechanism of the invention also provides improvements in the manner in which the pusher paddle is mounted on its guide rods. In an arrangement including at least four guide rods, the base of the pusher paddle is provided with outwardly opening, horizontally disposed U-shaped guide sleeves for the reception of the outermost guide rods. A pair of inner guide rods is received in downwardly divergently opening U-shaped guide sleeves, each of which is formed with an internal detent projection requiring forcible snap-in and snap-out assembly and disassembly. The guide sleeves are elongated relative to the diameter of the rods, providing stability to resist tilting forces imparted by the coiled spring and or by store personnel moving the paddle. Additionally, at least certain of the guide sleeves, including the outermost sleeves are further elongated in their upper portions, providing additional stability to resist rearward forces, as when moving the pusher paddle to a reload position, at the back of the tray.
It should be understood, of course, that the specific embodiments of the invention herein illustrated and described are intended to be representative only, as certain changes may be made therein without departing from the clear teachings of the disclosure. Accordingly, reference should be made to the following appended claims in determining the full scope of the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 14080196 | Nov 2013 | US |
| Child | 15179278 | US |
