The present disclosure relates generally to product shelf displays.
This section provides background information related to the present disclosure and is not necessarily prior art.
Products in a commercial setting, such as a store, may be displayed in a variety of ways. For example, a series of shelving units may be used to stock and display the products. The products may be arranged in columns and rows, with products of the same type arranged in a column behind one another and products of different types arranged in a row next to each other. When the first product in a column is selected and removed from the shelf, the second product in the column may be moved to the first product's position to occupy the void left by the removal of the first product.
This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.
One aspect of the disclosure provides a product pusher assembly. The product pusher assembly includes a front rail, a base member, and a pusher. The front rail includes a first lower surface and a second lower surface spaced from the first lower surface. The base member is adjustably coupled to the front rail. The base member includes a first upper surface configured to engage the first lower surface. The pusher is coupled to the base member. The pusher includes a second upper surface configured to engage the second lower surface.
Implementations of the disclosure may include one or more of the following optional features. In some implementations, the engagement of the second lower surface and the second upper surface inhibits rotation of the base member relative to the front rail.
In some implementations, the front rail includes a channel defined by a first wall and a second wall opposite the first wall. The base member may be partially disposed in the channel. The first wall may include a ledge disposed on a surface of the first wall facing the channel. The ledge may have the first lower surface. The second wall may include a lip disposed on a surface of the second wall facing away from the channel. The lip may have the second lower surface.
In some implementations, the base member includes a first catch disposed in the channel. The first catch may have the first upper surface.
In some implementations, the pusher includes a second catch disposed outside of the channel. The second catch may include the second upper surface.
In some implementations, the base member includes a slot configured to receive the second wall of the front rail.
In some implementations, the product pusher assembly includes a biasing member coupled to the base member and engaged with the pusher. The biasing member may bias the pusher toward the front rail. The biasing member may be a flat coil spring.
In some implementations, the base member includes a slot. The pusher may be slidably engaged with the slot.
In some implementations, the front rail includes a plurality of teeth. The base member may include a tooth projection configured to engage the plurality of teeth.
Another aspect of the disclosure provides a product pusher assembly. The product pusher assembly includes a front rail, a base member, and a pusher. The front rail may have a channel defined by a first wall and a second wall opposite the first wall. The first wall may have a ledge disposed on a surface of the first wall facing the channel, and the ledge may have a first lower surface. The second wall may have a lip disposed on a surface of the second wall facing away from the channel, and the lip may have a second lower surface. The base member may have a first catch disposed in the channel, and the first catch may have a first upper surface configured to engage the first lower surface. The pusher may be coupled to the base member and may have a second catch disposed outside of the channel. The second catch may have a second upper surface configured to engage the second lower surface.
This aspect may include one or more of the following optional features. In some implementations, the engagement of the second lower surface and the second upper surface inhibits rotation of the base member relative to the front rail.
In some implementations, the base member includes a slot configured to receive the second wall of the front rail.
In some implementations, the product pusher assembly includes a biasing member coupled to the base member and engaged with the pusher. The biasing member may bias the pusher toward the front rail. The biasing member may be a flat coil spring. The biasing member may include an aperture, and the base member may include a stem configured to engage the aperture.
In some implementations, the base member includes a slot. The pusher may be slidably engaged with the slot.
In some implementations, the channel extends in a first direction. The pusher may be slidable along a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction.
In some implementations, the front rail includes a plurality of teeth. The base member may include a tooth projection configured to engage the plurality of teeth.
Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected configurations and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the drawings.
Example configurations will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Example configurations are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those of ordinary skill in the art. Specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, to provide a thorough understanding of configurations of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that specific details need not be employed, that example configurations may be embodied in many different forms, and that the specific details and the example configurations should not be construed to limit the scope of the disclosure.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular exemplary configurations only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular articles “a,” “an,” and “the” may be intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “including,” and “having,” are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein are not to be construed as necessarily requiring their performance in the particular order discussed or illustrated, unless specifically identified as an order of performance. Additional or alternative steps may be employed.
When an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “engaged to,” “connected to,” “attached to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly on, engaged, connected, attached, or coupled to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on,” “directly engaged to,” “directly connected to,” “directly attached to,” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there may be no intervening elements or layers present. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted in a like fashion (e.g., “between” versus “directly between,” “adjacent” versus “directly adjacent,” etc.). As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
The terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections. These elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms may be only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Terms such as “first,” “second,” and other numerical terms do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the example configurations.
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The first wall 34 and the ledge 76 may be formed of a unitary construction, i.e., formed as a single body. As another example, the first wall 34 and the ledge 76 may be formed separately, and the ledge 76 may be affixed to the first wall 34 in any suitable manner, such as, for example, via mechanical fasteners, welding, adhesive, etc. The first wall 34 may have any suitable level of transparency, for example, the first wall 34 may be completely transparent, partially transparent, partially opaque, or completely opaque.
The second wall 36 may include an interior surface 78 and an exterior surface 80 opposite the interior surface 78. For example, the interior surface 78 may face the channel 38 and the exterior surface 80 may face away from the channel 38. The second wall 36 may include a lip 82 disposed on, and extending from, the exterior surface 80. For example, the lip 82 may extend away from the channel 38. The lip 82 may include the second lower surface 106 and an upper surface 108 opposite the second lower surface 106. The lip 82 is shown as having a generally triangular cross-section, however, it should be understood that the ledge 76 may have any suitable cross-section, such as, for example, a rectangular cross-section, an elliptical cross-section, a hook-shaped cross-section, etc. The second wall 36 and the lip 82 may be formed of a unitary construction, i.e., formed as a single body. As another example, the second wall 36 and the lip 82 may be formed separately, and the lip 82 may be affixed to the second wall 36 in any suitable manner, such as, for example, via mechanical fasteners, welding, adhesive, etc.
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The base member 24 may include a tooth projection 64 disposed on the front surface 88 of the wall slot 44. For example, the tooth projection 64 may be disposed in the wall slot 44. The tooth projection 64 may be configured to engage the plurality of teeth 40 of the front rail 22. For example, adjacent teeth 40 may define a gap therebetween, and the tooth projection 64 may engage one of the gaps. As another example, the tooth projection 64 may include a gap, and the gap may receive one of the teeth 40.
The base member 24 may include a flex member 56 defined by a first aperture 58 (e.g., through-hole). The first aperture 58 may be generally U-shaped or shaped in any suitable manner. The flex member 56 and the first aperture 58 may be arranged in a manner to allow the flex member 56 to move relative to a remaining portion of the base 120 (i.e., move into the first aperture 58).
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The lower portion 68 may include a main body 100 having a width W100, a top surface 114, and side surfaces 116. The entry slot 54 may receive the main body 100. One of the side surfaces 116 may face the first body surface 46 and the other of the side surfaces 116 may face the second body surface 48. The body channel 50 may receive the main body 100. For example, the width W50 of the body channel 50 may be greater than the width W100 of the main body 100. The top surface 114 may face an underside of the base 120. The lower portion 68 may include an elongate member 98 disposed on the top surface of the main body 100. The elongate member 98 may be configured to engage the pusher slot 52. That is, the width W52 of the pusher slot 52 may be greater than a width of the elongate member 98. The pusher 26 may be slidably engaged with the pusher slot 52. For example, the elongate member 98 may slide along the pusher slot 52 and the upper base 92 may slide along the base 120. For example, the channel 38 may extend in a first direction and the pusher 26 may be slidable along a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction.
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The upper portion 66 and the lower portion 68 may be formed of a unitary construction, i.e., formed as a single body. As another example, the upper portion 66 and the lower portion 68 may be formed separately, and the lower portion 68 may be affixed to the upper portion 66 in any suitable manner, such as, for example, via mechanical fasteners, welding, adhesive, etc. The pusher 26 may be formed of any suitable material, such as, for example, a plastic, a metal, a composite, etc.
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The biasing member 28 may bias the pusher 26 toward the front rail 22. For example, a plurality of products (not shown) may be situated on the base member 24 between the pusher 26 and the front rail 22. The biasing member 28 may exert a force on the pusher 26 toward the front rail 22, and the plurality of products may exert an opposing force on the pusher 26. The biasing member 28 may be any suitable biasing member, such as, for example, a flat coil spring, a pulley, a member exhibiting elastic properties, etc. The biasing member 28 may be formed of any suitable material, such as, for example, a plastic, a metal, a composite, a rubber, etc.
In light of the foregoing structural description, the operation of the product pusher assembly 20 will now be described. The shelf assembly 18 may be placed on a shelf in a commercial setting, such as a store, with the front rail 22 facing toward a location where a prospective consumer would be situated. The pusher 26 may be slid away from the front rail 22, and a plurality of products (not shown) may be placed in a column on the base member 24 between the pusher 26 and the front rail 22. The biasing member 28 may exert a force on the pusher 26 toward the front rail 22 and the plurality of products may exert an opposing force on the pusher 26. This may be accomplished by the front rail 22 exerting a force on a first product in the column, the force being transmitted through each of the products, including the last product in the column (i.e., the product adjacent the pusher 26), and to the pusher 26. Upon removal of the first product in the column, there would no longer be a product abutting the front rail 22, thus, the front rail 22 would not be exerting a force on the column of products. Because the biasing member 28 biases the pusher 26 toward the front rail 22, the pusher 26 may push the products and the products may slide toward the front rail 22 until the new first product in the column abuts the front rail 22 and the front rail 22 exerts a force on the new first product. Upon removal of all of the products from the pusher assembly 20, the second catch 110 may be disposed within the wall slot 44 such that the second upper surface 112 faces the second lower surface 106. Engagement of the second upper surface 112 with the second lower surface 106 can prevent movement of the pusher 26 relative to the front rail 22, and thus prevent movement of the base member 24 relative to the front rail 22.
The shelf assembly 18 may be modified to accommodate products of different sizes (e.g., widths). For example, the product pusher assembly 20 may be moved to modify a distance between adjacent side walls 122. A force may be exerted on the tooth projection 64 (e.g., via contact with one of the teeth 40), and the force may be transmitted to the flex member 56. In response, the flex member 56 may flex toward the first aperture 58. The first aperture 58 may allow the flex member 56 to move toward the first wall 34 of the front rail 22. As a result, the tooth projection 64 may be allowed to move toward the first wall 34 of the front rail 22. This arrangement may allow the tooth projection 64 to disengage with one of the teeth 40 and engage with another of the teeth 40, thus, increasing or decreasing a distance between adjacent side walls 122. This result may be accomplished by an operator moving the base member 24 along the front rail 22. That is, the front rail 22 may extend in a first direction and the base member 24 may extend in a second direction generally perpendicular to the first direction, and the tooth projection 64 may disengage one of the teeth 40 and engage with another of the teeth 40 by the base member 24 moving along the first direction.
The foregoing description has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual elements or features of a particular configuration are generally not limited to that particular configuration, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected configuration, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.
This U.S. patent application is a continuation of, and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 from, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/153,331, filed on Oct. 5, 2018, the disclosure of which is considered part of the disclosure of this application and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 16153331 | Oct 2018 | US |
Child | 16885817 | US |