AU2019100660A4

AU2019100660A4 - Shelving with a display support strip

Info

Publication number: AU2019100660A4
Application number: AU2019100660A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Peter Ronald Fuller
Original assignee: FULLER FAMILY HOLDINGS Pty Ltd
Current assignee: FULLER FAMILY HOLDINGS Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2017-06-22
Filing date: 2019-06-18
Publication date: 2019-07-25
Anticipated expiration: 2026-06-22
Also published as: AU2019100660B4; AU2019100606A4; AU2019100606B4; AU2018204559A1; AU2019204920A1

Abstract

(Figure 5B) In shelving, a clip-on display strip 47 for a vertical rail in a wire shelf arrangement 48, the shelf has a front rail 49 including a vertical front face 50 which lays up against the back of panel 15 of the strip 47 when the strip 47 is clipped in place on the rail. The rail 49 has a rear edge formation 51 located behind the front face 50. The strip 47 has a clip structure comprising a top clip section 52 and a bottom clip section 53, the top clip section 52 comprises an upper flange 54 and return flange 55 forming a channel 56 which locates over an upper marginal edge section 57 of the rail 49. The bottom clip section 53 comprises a flange, in this case a curved flange 58 which clips over edge formation 51, the bottom clip section has an upturn 59 and terminates in a return flange 60 used to aid capture of the rail edge and to aid release by finger action. In this case there is also an outward flange 61 provided so that the termination is T-shaped in order to further aid in unclipping. The curved flange has two curved sections 62 and 63 and provides for two clip on locations so that the strip is dual purpose but the inner curve 63 is not used in this example and of this particular shelving. 63 58 62 53

Description

Shelving with a Display Support Strip

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] THIS INVENTION relates to a shelving with a display support strip and in particular but not limited to a display support strip for point of sale display of prices, signs or the like near to products being sold.

BACKGROUND [0002] Customers in store like to be able to see what products cost. Products are often stacked on shelves or hung together on a rack or hook. Shop owners like to display the unit price near the product stack. It is usual to use a plastic strip of the type where a printed card displaying unit prices is inserted into the strip. In addition to price a shop owner might want to display other information, for example, the shop owner might want to provide a SALE sign nearby or some other offer to attract customers to that particular product.

[0003] Australian Design Registration No. 314822 (“the ‘822 Design”) registered in 2007 is an example of such a strip. In this strip there is a back panel and a front panel joined along a bottom edge by a living hinge. The back panel is secured to a surface using an adhesive strip. There is a small outward flange at the top of the back panel. The living hinge is biased so that the front panel sits hard up against the back panel over mating surfaces of the panels with this mating of the panels terminating at an outward bend of the front panel just below the outward flange on the back panel. The outward bend of the front panel extends to a downward flange which is inwardly inclined toward the front panel and forming between the flange and the front panel a downward facing channel with a narrow entrance. This channel has a back wall and an inside wall facing the front panel. This wall has two spaced flexible gripping ribs facing back into the channel and they extend along the same side of the channel. These ribs have edges that are close to the front wall and are used to grip a sheet pushed upward along the front wall and into the channel. The sheet displaces the ribs backward and the ribs grip the sheet to resist its removal. In addition to this, the front panel is transparent and by a user pulling the top of the front panel, it may be pulled forward so the panels may be separated and a display strip inserted between the panels. Upon release ofthe front panel the living hinge acts to sandwich the

2019100660 18 Jun 2019 display strip between the panels.

[0004] US Patent Application Publication No. US2005/01666438 (“the ‘438 Patent Application”) of 4 August 2005 describes a similar strip in Figures 5 though 11 but having a back panel that falls short of the outward bend in the front panel such that the front panel overlays the whole of the back panel. The bend in the front panel also extends to a return which with the front wall forms a channel with a downward opening but in this case the return is not inwardly inclined toward the front wall as in the ‘822 Design but rather is parallel to it. The channel also employs a back wall and a wall facing the front wall. Backwardly directed gripping ribs are in the channel but unlike the ‘822 Design these are on opposite sides, one projecting from the front wall and the other projecting from the wall facing the front wall. These ribs are offset within the channel with the rib on the front wall being further into the channel than the other rib. The ribs overlap but due to them being offset a sheet may pass between them and push them apart which in turn causes them to resist removal of the sheet. Unlike the ‘822 Design which uses the front wall to guide a sheet to the gap between the front wall and the ribs, the ‘438 Patent Application use a ramp in the front wall to direct a sheet to the gap between the ribs. Since the back wall is completely covered by the front wall, the disposition of the channel, the ribs and the arrangement of the bend and the return means that the bend serves as a tab used manually to enable a user to easily pull the front wall away for insertion of a label between the two walls.

[0005] The strip of the ‘822 Design uses an adhesive strip to fix it to a surface. It may thus be fitted to any surface. The strip of the ‘438 Patent Application uses clip near the living hinge so it may be pushed onto a rail from below to clip it into position. The clip has a first part starting from just above the living hinge, this part extends up, outside and above a second part, each part has a lead-in for a lower edge of a rail so that it slides on the rail, the lower edge of the rail slides between the parts and is locked between them. Thus in the ‘438 Patent Application the strip is only secured at the bottom.

[0006] While these types of arrangement have been around for many years and they do work quite well and there is nothing really wrong with them, the present invention arises with the object of providing a useful alternative to the prior art by having a clip on strip which may be securely fitted top and bottom with the back and front faces overlaying a vertical rail.

2019100660 18 Jun 2019

OUTLINE [0007] In one aspect there is provided a display strip having a display face and a rear mounting clip arrangement, the clip arrangement having at least one rail clip adapted to engage a rail to secure the data strip to the rail. Preferably the strip includes a top clip section and a bottom clip section, the top clip section being positionable atop a rail and the bottom clip section extending under the rail. Preferably, the sections are resiliently biassed to a closed position about the rail. Typically, the bottom clip section has a manually operable release so that the strip may be unclipped from the rail.

[0008] In one preferred form the strip has more than one rail position settable to alter the relative inclination of the strip to the rail. The rail position may be provided by one or more channels extending along the strip adjacent to the bottom clip section. The channels may be formed as a W-shape in profile.

[0009] In one aspect therefore the present invention resides in a strip for supporting a display sheet, the strip having an axially extending sheet lead-in and at least two axially extending gripping projections aligned with the lead-in so that a sheet may be directed between the projections and gripped thereby. The gripping projections may include a gripping surface. They may be formed from a rubberised or similar material while the rest of the strip is extruded from a plastic, typically a clear plastic, so that the gripping projections are both flexible but also have a surface gripping characteristic so that they do provide a frictional grip with a sheet to resist its removal. The grip is sufficient so that the sheet can be removed but will not fall out. In profile the gripping projections may appear as teeth, the teeth may be offset and inwardly directed or reverse directed or barb-like but rounded or elliptical. Thus ease of insertion and resistance to removal also arises from the reverse direction of the teeth.

[0010] Preferably, the strip is integrally formed as an axially extending top section of an axially extending display window panel. In a preferred form the display window panel is a front panel of a strip also having a back panel. The front panel may be hinged to the back panel by an axially extending hinge. The hinge may be a living hinge. The panels may be biased together and having an axially extending opening opposite the hinge. The hinge may be configured to provide the bias. In this regard the hinge may have an axially extending forward projecting bulge. There

2019100660 18 Jun 2019 may be a gap between the panels. The front panel may be manually movable to widen the gap for insertion of a price ticket or the like between the panels, the ticket being viewable through the front panel.

[0011] Preferably, the front panel includes an axially extending projection adjacent the opening to facilitate a user applying a digit, typically a finger, to the projection in order to widen the gap between the strips.

[0012] Preferably, the top section comprises an upper part of the front panel, an outwardly projecting main flange and a return flange projecting downwardly from the main flange, the top section, main flange and return flange together forming a downwardly open channel, the channel having inside walls comprising an inner side wall of the return flange, an underside wall of the main flange and an inner side wall of the upper section of the front panel, the gripping projections being located in the channel on each of the inner side walls, the lead-in being located just below the channel on the front panel. Preferably, the lead-in comprises an axially extending ramp adapted to guide a sheet into the channel and between the teeth. The teeth may be offset with one tooth nearer the ramp. There may be more than two teeth.

[0013] Preferably, the axially extending projection used to facilitate a user applying a digit, projects from or adjacent a juncture between the main flange and the return flange. Typically, the axially extending projection projects above a terminal upper edge of the back panel. More preferably, it projects just above the upper edge of the back panel.

[0014] The back panel may comprise any suitable mounting so that the strip may be used. In one form the mounting is a simple adhesive strip. In another form the mounting is an axially extending hand insertable clip that may be clipped over a rail or onto an edge support such as a panel. In this regard the clip is usually biased to a closed position and may include a clip lead-in or mouth. The lead-in or mouth may be resiliency expandable.

[0015] In another form the mount may include a deformable panel or a panel resiliency coupled or hinged to the back panel that may deform into a connector bracket. The connector bracket may be a rigid mounting used as an intermediate fitting. The bracket may be an axially extending channel-like rail. In one form it may have a curved mounting channel that the

2019100660 18 Jun 2019 mounting panel may be clipped into. The mounting channel may have parallel spaced grooves or opposed parallel cutbacks or undercuts that may receive opposite parallel edges of the back panel mount.

[0016] The back panel may be rotatably coupled to the mounting panel by a flexible coupling. There may be one or more stops to block or set the rotation to a limit in order to set the front panel at a predetermined position relative to the mount. The stop may be an axially extending flange projecting from the back panel on its side opposite the front panel. The flange may have an angled terminal flange section. The stop flange may be near to a midpoint on the back panel. Preferably, it is between about a midpoint of the back panel and a level near the upper section of the front panel.

[0017] In one preferred embodiment of the present invention to a clip-on vertical display strip there is provided in shelving having a substantially straight front rail, the front rail having a top edge and a front vertical face in a plane of the rail, the strip being a narrow display strip clipped to the rail, the strip having top and bottom edges, a front panel and a back panel, the panels being joined along a living hinge running along the strip at or adjacent the bottom edge of the strip, the front panel overlaying the back panel and there being a sheet insertion gap between the panels running along the strip at or adjacent the top edge of the strip, the strip being clipped onto the rail to, in use, hold a replaceable sheet sandwiched between the panels, the display strip overlaying the front vertical face of the rail and being removably clipped into position to cover the front vertical face of the rail, the display strip having a top clip section at or adjacent the top edge of the strip and a bottom clip section at or adjacent the bottom edge of the strip, the top clip section being in register with the top edge of the rail and the bottom clip section being in register with the rail at a location behind the the front vertical face. In one example of this embodiment the strip may further include gripping projections provided adjacent the top edge of the strip to hold a sheet hanging down in front of the front panel of the strip. In another example of this embodiment the front panel may have a projection extending along an upper edge of the front panel and spaced forward of the back panel to facilitate a user locating a finger on or behind the projection and pulling the front panel in a direction away from the back panel, thus the gap between panels may be widened so that a ticket or card may be fitted between them. In a still further example of this embodiment the bottom clip section may extend from the strip below the rail, in contact with the rail and behind the rail. In still another example of this

2019100660 18 Jun 2019 embodiment the bottom clip section may have a flange to aid release of the bottom clip section by finger action.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0018] In order that the present invention may be more readily understood and be put into practical effect reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings and wherein:

Figure 1 is an enlarged profile through a strip according to the invention for vertical mounting with an adhesive backing;

Figure 2 shows a strip according to one embodiment which may be fitted to a front vertical face in shelving;

Figures 3 and 4 are enlarged profiles of clip on strips for vertical shelving rails; Figures 5A and 5B are drawings illustrating strips fitted to wire shelving; and Figure 6 is a perspective view of the strip used in Figure 5.

METHOD OF PERFORMANCE [0019] Referring to the drawings and initially to Figure 1 there is illustrated in enlarged profile a strip 10 for supporting a display sheet 11 shown in phantom, the strip is extruded so the features shown in profile extend along the strip. The strip has an axially extending sheet lead-in in the form of a ramp 12 and two gripping projections or teeth 13 and 14 aligned with the ramp 12 so that the sheet 11 slides between the gripping teeth 13 and 14 and is held in place by them.

[0020] The strip is a co-extrusion where the gripping projections 13 and 14 are formed from a rubberised or similar material while the rest of the strip is extruded from a rigid or semi-rigid plastic, typically a clear plastic, so that the teeth 13 and 14 are both flexible but may also have a surface gripping characteristic so that they do provide a frictional grip with the sheet 11 to resist its removal. The grip is sufficient so that the sheet can be removed but will not fall out. The resistance to the sheet is not too much so that it can not be inserted and so that various different sheets of different thickness and material may be used. Ease of insertion and resistance to removal also arises from the inward direction of the teeth. The teeth encourage insertion but resist removal. It will be further appreciated that by the teeth being offset that pulling on the

2019100660 18 Jun 2019 sheet will tend to close the teeth together further gripping the sheet.

[0021] The strip 10 includes a back panel 15 carrying a surface mount in the form of double sided adhesive strip 16 to enable the strip to be mounted on a vertical front surface of a shelf. There is a front panel 17 having a hinge comprising hinge 18 which is configured to bias the front and rear panels into a closed position as illustrated in Figure 1. The front panel 17 has a top section formed by a flange 19 and a return flange 20 which together with the upper section 21 of the front panel form a downwardly open channel 22 which together constitutes a sheet feed in and sheet holding upper end portion 23 of the panel 17 which receives and holds the sheet 11 as illustrated. The channel has opposed inner walls 24 and 25 and these have co-extruded therewith the teeth 13 and 14 which are offset and angled into the channel 22. The ramp 12 terminates adjacent or just below the channel 22. The outer tooth being the first tooth encountered by the sheet 11 is offset toward the ramp 12.

[0022] The back panel has an upper section 26 which has a flange 27 and between the two panels there is an opening or gap 28 and the panels may be separated by a user locating a finger on projection 29 and pulling in the direction of the arrow 30, thus the gap between panels may be widened so that a ticket or card may be fitted between them.

[0023] Referring to the other figures, these all use the same upper end portion 23 but different mounting arrangements but all mount to a vertical surface. Some are of different widths. For example, the embodiment of Figure 1 is 25mm - 35mm wide (the embodiment of Figure 1 is also illustrated in perspective in Figure 6 and nearer to actual size) while that of Figure 4 is 80mm 90mm wide. Figure 2 illustrates another strip 31 which in all material respects includes the same front panel 17 and upper end 23 where like numerals illustrate like features, the only distinction here being at the upper end 32 of the rear panel 15 there is a mounting strip 33 which is set at an angle 34 to the panel 15 and this mounting strip 33 has an adhesive pad 35 thus enabling the panel 17 to be effectively set at an angle to vertical while still being mounted on a vertical surface.

[0024] Referring to Figure 3 like numerals illustrate like features and as can be seen the only variation here is that there is a rail mounting clip 37 comprising an entry 38 and a circular axially extending rail cavity 39 so that the strip may be simply clipped over a rail by reason of the profile

2019100660 18 Jun 2019 being resiliently biased in the direction of the arrow 40 as it is clipped onto a rail (not shown) and where the rail may have a vertical face which fits against panel 15 similar to Figures 4 and 5.

[0025] Figure 4 illustrates another strip 41 which utilises a resilient clip 42 and a resilient connection 43 which in conjunction with a stop 44 may adopt the orientation illustrated in Figure 4 relative to an upstanding panel 45 on a shelving arrangement 46.

[0026] Figures 5A and 5B illustrates a clip-on strip 47 for L-shaped vertical faced rails in wire shelving and like numerals are used to illustrate like features, in these embodiments a wire shelf arrangement 48 has a front rail 49 including a vertical front face 50 which lays up against the back of panel 15 when the strip 47 is clipped in place. In this case the rail 49 has rear edge 51 located behind the front face 50. The strip 47 has a clip structure comprising a top clip section 52 and a bottom clip section 53, the top clip section 52 comprises an upper flange 54 and return flange 55 forming a channel 56 which locates over an upper marginal edge section 57 of the rail 49. The bottom clip section 53 comprises a flange, in this case a curved flange 58 which clips over edge 51, the bottom clip section has an upturn 59 and terminates in a return flange 60 used to aid capture of the rail edge and to aid release by finger action. In this case there is also an outward flange 61 provided so that the termination is T-shaped in order to further aid in unclipping. The curved flange has two curved sections 62 and 63 and provides for two clip on locations so that the strip is dual purpose but the inner curve 63 is not used in this example and of this particular shelving.

[0027] It will be appreciated from the foregoing that the invention makes provision for applying the strip to a vertical surface including a vertical front surface in shelving. It will also be appreciated that the clip on embodiments may vary according to the shelving front rail and may employ a single or two part clips.

Contribution to the working of the shelving

1. Claim 1 - The top and bottom clip sections ensure that the strip is secured to the shelving at both edges of the front rail and by being so secured the operation of a user pulling the front panel for insertion of a display sheet is facilitated;

2. Claim 2 - gripping projections provide for an extra display sheet in front of the shelving;

2019100660 18 Jun 2019

3. Claim 3 - the finger projection facilitates a user separating the panels;

4. Claim 4 - the bottom clip fits below and behind the rail thus holding the bottom of the strip to the rail; and

5. Claim 5 - the flange aids release of the bottom clip section by finger action.

[0028] Whilst the above has been given by way of illustrative example many variations and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the broad ambit and scope of the invention as set out in the appended claims. Note that the claims are directed to a clip-on strip so the adhesive backed strips are disclaimed apart from those features that are claimed which are held in common. Please note the words comprising, having, including, and the like are all used in the non-exhaustive sense insofar as these words are used, the invention as described and claimed requires at least the integer or integers claimed but could include additional features.

Claims

1. In shelving having a substantially straight front rail, the front rail having a top edge and a front vertical face in a plane of the rail, a narrow display strip clipped to the rail, the strip having top and bottom edges, a front panel and a back panel, the panels being joined along a living hinge running along the strip at or adjacent the bottom edge of the strip, the front panel overlaying the back panel and there being a sheet insertion gap between the panels running along the strip at or adjacent the top edge of the strip, the strip being clipped onto the rail to, in use, hold a replaceable sheet sandwiched between the panels, the display strip overlaying the front vertical face of the rail and being removably clipped into position to cover the front vertical face of the rail, the display strip having a top clip section at or adjacent the top edge of the strip and a bottom clip section at or adjacent the bottom edge of the strip, the top clip section being in register with the top edge of the rail and the bottom clip section being in register with the rail at a location behind the front vertical face.

2. In shelving according to claim 1, the strip further including gripping projections provided adjacent the top edge of the strip to hold a sheet hanging down in front of the front panel of the strip.

3. In shelving according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the front panel has a projection extending along an upper edge of the front panel and spaced forward of the back panel to facilitate a user locating a finger on or behind the projection and pulling the front panel in a direction away from the back panel, thus the gap between panels may be widened so that a ticket or card may be fitted between them.

4. In shelving according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the bottom clip section extends from the strip below the rail, in contact with the rail and behind the rail.

5. In shelving according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the bottom clip section has a flange to aid release of the bottom clip section by finger action.