BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Technical Field
This invention relates to retail store fixtures, and, more specifically, to a bagging station that couples to a shopping cart.
State of the Art
A bagging station is a fixture located in a retail store that holds a stack of shopping bags, often plastic shopping bags, and dispenses these bags as they are filled with products a customer has purchased. The shopping bags are held in a manner and position such that it is easy and convenient for a person to open one bag at a time, place purchased items in the bag, and then remove the bag and the enclosed products from the bagging station. Bagging stations have traditionally been located at checkout stations where customers pay for their products, because that is where the products have traditionally been transferred from a shopping cart to the shopping bags. With the advent of electronic purchasing and self-checkout, however, customers are now able to pay for and bag their products as they shop, and these actions can occur at locations other than at checkout stations. There is a need for bagging stations at locations in retail stores besides the checkout station.
Accordingly, what is needed is a bagging station that can be mounted in a shopping cart, so that customers can bag their purchases as they shop.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows a shopping cart bagging station coupled to a shopping cart;
FIG. 2 shows a front perspective view of a shopping cart bagging station;
FIG. 3 shows a rear perspective view of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is an exploded side view of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2;
FIG. 5 is a top view of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2;
FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of the components of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2;
FIG. 7 shows a front perspective view of a center piece of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2;
FIG. 8 shows a rear perspective view of the center piece of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2;
FIG. 9 shows a front view of the center piece of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2;
FIG. 10 shows a side view of the center piece of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2;
FIG. 11 shows a front perspective view of a handle arm assembly of the shopping cart bagging station of FIG. 2; and
FIG. 12 illustrates a method of forming a shopping cart bagging station.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
Disclosed herein are embodiments of an invention related to retail store fixtures, and, more specifically, to a bagging station that couples to a shopping cart. The disclosed shopping cart bagging station can be used by customers to bag their purchases as they shop. The disclosed shopping cart bagging station includes a center piece, a first and a second handle arm assembly, and at least one cart coupling hook. The center piece includes a bag holder hook that at least one shopping bag hangs from. The first and the second handle arm assembly each include a handle holder arm that the arms of the at least one shopping bag hangs from. The first and the second handle arm assemblies slidingly insert into a hollow body of the center piece and are adjustably coupled to the center piece. The at least one cart coupler hook is coupled to the hollow body and are used to couple the shopping cart bagging station to a shopping cart. The bag holder hook and the handle holder arms hold a plurality of shopping bags, and dispense the shopping bags one at a time as products are placed in a shopping bag. The bagging station is coupled to the shopping cart so the bagging station can be easily used by a customer to bag their purchases as they shop. The shopping cart bagging station is coupled to a shopping cart by hanging the one or more cart coupler hooks on a side of the shopping cart. The shopping cart bagging station can be mounted in various locations on a shopping cart, making it easy and convenient for a customer to carry and load a plurality of shopping bags as they shop. The shopping cart bagging station can be hung in many different locations on a shopping cart, and is easily moved from one location to another one on the shopping cart. The disclosed shopping cart bagging station provides a means for a customer to load purchases into bags as they shop, instead of having to bag their purchases at a checkout station.
Disclosed herein is a shopping cart bagging station that includes a hollow body and a bag holder hook coupled to the hollow body. The bag holder hook is a means to hold a plurality of shopping bags. The shopping cart bagging station also includes a means to hold a first shopping bag handle, and a means to hold a second shopping bag handle. The means to hold the first and the second shopping bag handles are coupled to the hollow body. The shopping cart bagging station also includes a means to adjust a distance between the means to hold the first shopping bag handle and the means to hold the second shopping bag handle. The shopping cart bagging station also includes a means to couple the hollow body to a shopping cart. In some embodiments, the means to couple the hollow body to the shopping cart includes a first and a second cart coupler hook. In some embodiments, the shopping cart bagging station includes a means to adjust a second distance between the means to hold the first shopping bag handle and the bag holder hook. In some embodiments, the shopping cart bagging station includes a means to adjust a third distance between the means to hold the second shopping bag handle and the bag holder hook. The adjustability of the bagging station makes the bagging station easy to adjust to different size shopping bags, different sized shopping carts, and different mounting configurations. The means to hold a first and a second shopping bag handle and the means to adjust a distance between the means to hold the first and the second shopping bag handles can take many different forms, some examples of which are shown and described in this document. The examples shown and described are not meant to be limiting, and many other variations are possible in light of the teachings in this document.
FIG. 1 through FIG. 6 show an embodiment of a shopping cart bagging station 110. Shopping cart bagging station 110 includes a center piece 112, a first handle arm assembly 174, a second handle arm assembly 176, and a shopping cart coupler assembly 178, as shown in the figures. FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of shopping cart bagging station 110 coupled to a side 120 of a shopping cart 118. A plurality of shopping bags 154 is hung from shopping cart bagging station 110. FIG. 2 shows a front perspective view of shopping cart bagging station 110. FIG. 3 shows a rear perspective view of shopping cart bagging station 110. FIG. 4 shows a side exploded view of shopping cart bagging station 110. FIG. 5 shows a top view of shopping cart bagging station 110. FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of the components of shopping cart bagging station 110.
Shopping cart bagging station 110 is coupled to shopping cart 118 so that shopping cart bagging station 110 can be used to bag items while shopping. Shopping cart bagging station 110 is coupled to shopping cart 118 with shopping cart coupler assembly 178 (FIG. 2 and FIG. 3), which, in the embodiment shown in the figures, includes a first cart coupling hook 114 and a second cart coupling hook 116. First and second cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 are used to hang shopping cart bagging station 110 from shopping cart 118, as shown in FIG. 1. With cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 coupling bagging station 110 to shopping cart 118, bagging station 110 can be used by a customer to dispense bags as needed while the customer shops. A plurality of shopping bags 154 is hung from a bag holder hook 148 of shopping cart bagging station, as shown in FIG. 1. Handles of plurality of shopping bags 154 are hung from first and second handler holder arms 150 and 152, as shown in FIG. 1. When the customer wishes to fill a bag, one of the stack of shopping bags is pulled open and filled with items. First and second handle holder arms 150 and 152 hold the open bag and the items in the bag. When the bag is full, it is pulled off of shopping cart bagging station 110, and a next bag is opened if there are further items to be bagged. The customer can bag items as they shop instead of visiting a checkout station to pay for and bag their items.
Center piece 112 includes bag holder hook 148 that holds plurality of shopping bags 154. First handle holder arm assembly 174 includes first handle holder arm 150 that a shopping bag handle can be hung from. Second handle holder arm assembly 176 includes second handle holder arm 152 to hang a second shopping bag handle from. First and second handle holder arm assemblies 174 and 176 each adjustably and slidingly couple to center piece 112 so that bagging station 110 can be adjusted in size for different size shopping bags and different size shopping carts.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 through FIG. 6, center piece 112 and first and second handle holder arm assembly 174 and 176 are a means to dispense shopping bags. First handle holder arm assembly 174 with first handle holder arm 150 is a means to hold a first shopping bag handle. Second handle holder arm assembly 176 with second handle holder arm 152 is a means to hold a second shopping bag handle. In this embodiment, center piece 112 with bag holder hook 148 is a means to hold plurality of shopping bags 154, and first and second handle holder arm assemblies 174 and 176 with first and second handle holder arms 150 and 152 are means to hold shopping bag handles.
Center piece 112 is shown in detail in FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 9, and FIG. 10. FIG. 7 shows a front perspective view of center piece 112. FIG. 8 shows a rear perspective view of center piece 112. FIG. 9 shows a front view of center piece 112, and FIG. 10 shows a side view of center piece 112.
Center piece 112 includes a hollow body 122 surrounding a cavity 106 (cavity 106 best seen in FIG. 10). Hollow body 122 has a front side 124 and a rear side 126. Front side 124 and rear side 126 define cavity 106 therebetween. Front side 124 has a front surface 123. Rear side 126 has a rear surface 127, see FIG. 10, for example. Hollow body 122 has a first slot opening 160 extending through front side 124 of hollow body 122 from front surface 123 to cavity 106, as best seen in FIG. 2, FIG. 6 and FIG. 7. Hollow body 122 also has a second slot opening 162 extending through rear side 126 of hollow body 122 from rear surface 127 to cavity 106, as best seen in FIG. 3 and FIG. 8. Center piece 112 has a hollow body first end 128 with a first opening 170 into hollow body 122 (FIG. 7). Center piece 112 also has a hollow body second end 130 opposing first end 128. Second end 130 has an opening 172 into hollow body 123 (FIG. 8 and FIG. 10). Center piece 112 includes bag holder hook 148 coupled to front surface 123 of hollow body 122. Hollow body 122 in this embodiment has a cross-section in the shape of a compressed hollow cylinder, as best seen in FIG. 10. This oval-shaped cross section is advantageous for receiving first and second handle arm assemblies 174 and 176, as explained herein.
First and second handle arm assemblies 174 and 176 adjustably couple to hollow body 122 of center piece 112. First handle arm assembly 174 includes a first handle arm plate 180 and first handle holder arm 150 coupled to a first handle arm plate distal end 182 of first handle arm plate 180, see FIG. 6 for example. First handle holder arm 150 is hook-shaped to hang a shopping bag handle from. First handle holder arm 150 is coupled to a first handle arm plate front surface 181, and faces a hollow body top edge 129. First handle holder arm 150 facing hollow body top edge 129 means the hook of first handle holder arm 150 bends upwards facing top edge 129. Having first handle holder arm 150 face hollow body top edge 129 allows first handle holder arm 150 to hold the handles of one or more shopping bags without the shopping bag handles falling off.
First handle arm assembly 174 also includes a first handle arm plate hole 186 at a first handle arm plate proximal end 184 of first handle arm plate 180, as shown in FIG. 6. First handle arm plate proximal end 184 extends into hollow body 122 through first opening 170 to adjustably couple first handle arm assembly 174 to center piece 112 and to hollow body 122. First handle arm plate distal end 182 opposes first handle arm plate proximal end 184. First handle arm assembly 174 is removeably and adjustably coupled to hollow body 122 by inserting first handle arm plate proximal end 184 into hollow body 122 through first opening 170 (FIG. 5, FIG. 6 and FIG. 7), as shown in FIG. 2 through FIG. 6. First handle arm plate 180 slides into and out of hollow body 122 along a center piece longitudinal axis 113 (FIG. 5) to adjust a distance 100 between first handle holder arm 150 and bag holder hook 148, as shown in FIG. 5. Center piece longitudinal axis 113 extends longitudinally along center piece 112 from hollow body first end 128 to hollow body second end 130, as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 9. Adjusting distance 100 allows bagging station 110 to adjust to different size shopping bags and different size shopping carts. A coupler 198 is used to adjustably couple first handle arm assembly 174 to hollow body 122. Coupler 198 is used to fix first handle arm assembly 174 in place in hollow body 122. Coupler 198 is a threaded butterfly bolt in this embodiment, but can be other types of bolts, threaded couplers, or another type of coupler. Coupler 198 extends through first slot opening 160 (FIG. 2, FIG. 6 and FIG. 7), through first handle arm plate hole 186 (FIG. 6), and through second slot opening 162 (FIG. 3 and FIG. 8) as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5. Tightening a nut 197 on threads of coupler 198 fixes first handle arm plate 180 in hollow body 122. First slot opening 160 has a first slot length 161 and extends along center piece longitudinal axis 113 (FIG. 9). Second slot opening 162 has a second slot length 163 and also extends along center piece longitudinal axis 113 (FIG. 5 and FIG. 8). Coupler 198 sliding along first and second slot openings 160 and 162 slides first handle arm assembly 174 in and out of hollow body 122 along center piece longitudinal axis 113. With nut 197 loose on coupler 198, coupler 198 slides along first and second slot openings 160 and 162, which allows first handle arm assembly 174 to slide into and out of hollow body 122 to adjust distance 100. Tightening nut 197 fixes first handle arm assembly 174 in place.
Similarly, second handle arm assembly 176 includes a second handle arm plate 190 and second handle holder arm 152 coupled to a second handle arm plate distal end 192 of first handle arm plate 190. Second handle holder arm 152 is coupled to a second handle arm plate front surface 191 and faces hollow body top edge 129. Having second handle holder arm 152 face hollow body top edge 129 allows second handle arm 152 to hold handles of one or more shopping bags without the handles sliding off of second handle holder arm 152.
Second handle arm assembly 176 also includes a second handle arm plate hole 196 at a second handle arm plate proximal end 194 of second handle arm plate 190, as shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 6 and FIG. 11. FIG. 11 shows a front perspective view of second handle arm assembly 176. Second handle arm plate proximal end 194 extends into hollow body 122 through second opening 172 to adjustably couple second handle arm assembly 176 to center piece 112 and to hollow body 122. Second handle arm plate distal end 192 opposes second handle arm plate proximal end 194. Second handle arm assembly 176 is removeably and adjustably coupled to hollow body 122 by inserting second handle arm plate proximal end 194 of second handle arm plate 190 into hollow body 122 through second opening 172 (FIG. 5 and FIG. 8), as shown in FIG. 2 through FIG. 6. Second handle arm plate 190 slides into and out of hollow body 122 along center piece longitudinal axis 113 to adjust a distance 102 between second handle holder arm 152 and bag holder hook 148, as shown in FIG. 5. Adjusting distance 102 allows bagging station 110 to adjust to different size shopping bags and different size shopping carts. A coupler 199 is used to adjustably and removeably couple second handle arm assembly 176 to hollow body 122. Coupler 199 is used to fix second handle arm assembly 176 in place in hollow body 122. Coupler 199 is a threaded butterfly bolt in this embodiment, but this is not meant to be limiting. Coupler 199 extends through first slot opening 160 (FIG. 6 and FIG. 7), through second handle arm plate hole 186 (FIG. 6 and FIG. 11), and through second slot opening 162 (FIG. 8) as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5. Tightening a nut 195 on threads of coupler 199 fixes second handle arm plate 190 in hollow body 122. Coupler 198 sliding along first and second slot openings 160 and 162 slides second handle arm assembly 176 in and out of hollow body 122 along center piece longitudinal axis 113. With nut 195 loose on coupler 199, coupler 199 slides along first and second slot openings 160 and 162, which allows second handle arm assembly 176 to slide into and out of hollow body 122 to adjust distance 102. Tightening nut 195 fixes second handle arm assembly 176 in place.
Thus, both first and second handle arm assemblies 174 and 176 slidingly couple to hollow body 122 such that distances 100 and 102 are adjustable. Once distance 100 and 102 are adjusted as desired, couplers 198 and 199 are tightened using nuts 195 and 197 to fix distance 100 and 102. Adjusting distance 100 and 102 also adjusts a distance 104 between first and second handle holder arms 150 and 152, as shown in FIG. 5. Thus, first and second handle holder arm assemblies 174 and 176 are both adjustably coupled to hollow body 122 such that distance 104 between first handle holder arm 150 and second handle holder arm assembly 152 is adjustable, as shown in FIG. 5.
Slot openings 160 and 162 in hollow body 122 and couplers 198 and 199 provide adjustability and options for mounting shopping cart bagging station 110 to different positions in shopping cart 118. Slot openings 160 and 162, together with first and second handle arm assemblies 174 and 176, are a means to adjust distance 104 between first and second handle holder arms 150 and 152. Slot openings 160 and 162, together with first and second handle arm assemblies 174 and 176, are also a means to adjust distance 100 between first handle holder arm 150 and bag holder hook 148, and a means to adjust distance 102 between second handle holder arm 152 and bag holder hook 148. It is to be understood that couplers other than bolt couplers 198 and 199 are used in some embodiments of shopping cart bagging station 110.
Shopping cart coupler assembly 178 couples bagging station 110 to shopping cart 118. Shopping cart coupler assembly 178 is a means to couple center piece 112 and hollow body 122 to shopping cart 118. Shopping cart coupler assembly 178 in the embodiment shown in the figures includes first cart coupling hook 114 and second cart coupling hook 116, as best seen in FIG. 3. First and second cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 are hook-shaped protrusions coupled to, and extending from, rear surface 127 of rear side 126 of hollow body 122. First and second cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 extend from rear surface 127 of rear side 126 (FIG. 8) and face a hollow body bottom edge 131. First and second cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 facing hollow body bottom edge 131 means the hook shapes bend towards hollow body bottom edge 131 so that first and second cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 can hang on shopping cart 118 to couple shopping cart bagging station 110 to shopping cart 118. First and second cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 hook onto, or hang on, a rod of shopping cart 118. First and second cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 can hook to a rod of shopping cart 118 in many different locations on shopping cart 118 so that a customer can couple bagging station 110 to a location on shopping cart 118 that is convenient for them.
In the embodiment shown in the figures, shopping cart coupler assembly 178 also includes a first post 136 and a second post 138, see FIG. 8. First and second posts 136 and 138 are straight elongate protrusions from rear surface 127 that extend perpendicular to rear surface 127. First post 136 extends from rear surface 127 near first cart coupling hook 114. Second post 138 extends from rear surface 127 near second cart coupling hook 116. First and second posts 136 and 138 help bagging station 110 couple to shopping cart 118, and, in some embodiments, help keep hollow body 122 aligned parallel to side 120 of shopping cart 118. It is to be understood that shopping cart coupler assembly 178 can take many other forms for specific shopping carts and/or mounting configurations of bagging station 110.
With cart coupling hooks 114 and 116 coupling bagging station 110 to shopping cart 118, bagging station 110 can be used by a customer to dispense bags as needed while the customer shops. Shopping cart bagging station 110 can be coupled to many positions within shopping cart 118. FIG. 1 shows shopping cart bagging station 110 coupled to a front side 120 of shopping cart 118, but this is not mean to be limiting. Shopping cart bagging station 110 can be coupled to the interior or exterior of shopping cart 118. Shopping cart bagging station 110 can be coupled to the front, sides, rear, edges, or bottom of shopping cart 118. In some embodiments, the shopping cart will take a form other than shopping cart 118, and the means to couple bagging station 110 to the shopping cart will take another form consistent with the form of the shopping cart.
FIG. 12 illustrates a method 600 of forming a shopping cart bagging station. Method 600 includes an act 610 of coupling a bag holder hook to a hollow body. The hollow body includes a hollow body having a front side and a rear side, a hollow body first end having a first opening in the hollow body, and a hollow body second end having a second opening in the hollow body.
Method 600 also includes an act 620 of coupling a first and a second cart coupling hook to a rear side of the hollow body. The first and the second cart coupling hook face a hollow body bottom edge.
Method 600 also includes an act 630 of adjustably coupling a first handle arm assembly to the hollow body. The first handle arm assembly includes a first handle holder arm. The first handle holder arm extends from a hollow body rear surface and faces a bottom edge of the hollow body. In some embodiments, act 630 of adjustably coupling the first handle arm assembly to the hollow body includes sliding a first handle arm plate proximal end through the first opening. The first handle arm assembly slides into and out of the hollow body to adjust a distance between the first handle holder arm and the bag holder hook.
Method 600 also includes an act 640 of adjustably coupling a second handle arm assembly to the hollow body. The second handle arm assembly includes a second handle holder arm. The second handle holder arm extends from the hollow body rear surface and faces the bottom edge of the hollow body. In some embodiments, act 640 of adjustably coupling the second handle arm assembly to the hollow body includes sliding a second handle arm plate proximal end through the second opening. The second handle arm assembly slides into and out of the hollow body to adjust a distance between the second handle holder arm and the bag holder hook. A distance between the first handle holder arm and the second handle holder arm is adjustable by sliding the first and the second handle arm assemblies into and out of the hollow body
In some embodiments, method 600 includes coupling the first handle holder arm to a first handle arm plate distal end. In some embodiments, method 600 includes coupling the second handle holder arm to a second handle arm plate distal end.
The embodiments and examples set forth herein were presented in order to best explain the present invention and its practical application and to thereby enable those of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention. However, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the foregoing description and examples have been presented for the purposes of illustration and example only. The description as set forth is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the teachings above.
Patent Application
20180049564
