US20010020604A1 - Shelf assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

A shelf assembly for organizing and merchandising a plurality of products. The shelf assembly comprises a shelf having a bottom, plurality of dividers extending from front to back, a pair of dividers and the bottom forming a track in which a column of products are arranged. A front member pivotal about a stop, or pivotally engaged with the dividers, prevents the forwardmost product within the column from falling off the front of the shelf. The pivotal front members enable product to be pulled forwardly off the shelf, minimizing the spacing necessary between adjacent shelves.

Description

RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER APPLICATIONS
• This application is a division of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/574,076 entitled “Shelf Assembly” filed May 18, 2000 which application is fully incorporated herein. Application Ser. No. 09/574,076 is a continuation application of application Ser. No. 09/168,647 entitled “Shelf Assembly” filed Oct. 8, 1998 which application is fully incorporated herein. Application Ser. No. 09/168,647 claims priority to U.S. provisional patent application serial No. 60/062,020 filed Oct. 10, 1997 entitled “Shelf Insert”, which is fully incorporated by reference herein.[0001]
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
• This invention relates to display racks for supporting and displaying a plurality of products. More particularly, this invention relates to a shelf assembly adapted to be used in a display rack for organizing and merchandising a plurality of products.[0002]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
• Merchants commonly display their products in shelved structures. In order to provide product at the front of the shelves, the shelves are commonly sloped downwardly so that gravity forces the product to the forward edge of the shelves where it is easily accessible to consumers. The angle of the shelf determines the amount of force gravity will have on the product so that the product moves forward.[0003]
• Such inclined shelves are commonly divided into a plurality of tracks or channels parallel to the side edges of the shelves with dividers so that the product is displayed in orderly columns extending from back to front of the shelf. The tracks or channels are defined by the bottom of the shelf and a plurality of dividers extending upwardly from the shelf bottom. The dividers may be integrally formed with the shelf or separately formed and movable along the shelf bottom. Additionally, the dividers may be integrally formed in a shelf insert, such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,614,288 issued to the assignee of the present application. Arranging the products in columns enables the merchant to display different products in different columns without multiple products being located in the same track or column.[0004]
• Plastic inserts such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,614,288 may be placed on a planar shelf in order to provide the shelf with means to divide the product into different columns for display purposes. These plastic inserts are typically of unitary construction and are commonly made of extruded or molded plastic. Dividers are an integral part of the insert and divide the insert into a plurality of tracks, a pair of dividers and the bottom of the insert defining a track. A plurality of stops or bumpers found at the front of the shelf insert are fixed to pairs of dividers at the front of the dividers in order to prevent product from falling off the front edge of the shelf. Once the forwardmost bottle is removed from the track, the remaining bottles within the track slide forwardly until the frontmost bottle contacts the bumper stop.[0005]
• U.S. Pat. No. 5,351,838 discloses a shelf insert having a front wall shaped so as to form a plurality of inverted arches defining a plurality of openings therebetween. The front wall acts as a bumper stop for holding and retaining products positioned within the tracks or channels formed by the dividers and bottom of the shelf insert. The front wall prevents product from falling off the front of the shelf. A stop member may be inserted into slots cut in the upper portions of the front wall in order to further prevent product from passing through the openings in the front wall of the insert.[0006]
• U.S. Pat. No. 5,645,176 discloses a one-piece elongate channel of unitary construction formed in a single plastic molding operation. A plurality of such elongate channels may be connected to each other and secured to a shelf in order to create a plurality of tracks extending front to back on the shelf, each track being defined by a pair of upstanding sidewalls and a bottom member. At the front of the sidewalls, a front member spaced above the bottom of the track connects the sidewalls and acts as a bumper stop preventing the forwardmost product in a column of products from falling off the shelf. This front member is sufficiently narrow in construction so as to define with the sidewalls and bottom of the track a generally rectangular aperture through which a substantial portion of the front or lead article in the channel may be viewed by a potential customer. Although this patent does disclose an aperture through which a consumer may view a portion of the forwardmost product in a track, the customer may not always see the label due to rotation of the products as they move down the track. In addition, the customer must lift the forwardmost product in the column over the bumper stop or pivot the forwardmost product over the top of the bumper stop while pushing all of the other products in the column rearwardly in order to remove the forwardmost product.[0007]
• Gravity feed shelves may be used in refrigerated units such as coolers and non-refrigerated display racks. Typically, non-refrigerated display racks display larger bottles of product, such as two liter bottles, and are located along the sides of aisles in stores. Coolers or refrigerated units typically display smaller bottles of product, such as twenty-ounce bottles and are located near the checkout counter or register of a grocery or convenience store.[0008]
• In both non-refrigerated and refrigerated display racks, a finite amount of vertical space is available for shelving. The more shelves can be placed within this finite area, the better from a merchant's standpoint because the merchant can display more product. In addition, the more shelves within the area, the less frequently the merchant needs to restock the display rack. Therefore, merchants desire display racks having the maximum possible number of shelves which are able to fit within a defined area.[0009]
• Until the present invention, adjacent shelves generally were spaced vertically apart from one another by a distance equivalent to or greater than the height of the product being displayed plus the distance between the bottom of the shelf and the bumper stop, because when a consumer wanted to remove the forwardmost product located within a track on the shelf, he or she generally would lift the forwardmost product up over a bumper stop at the front of the track. Therefore, adjacent shelves generally were separated vertically from one another a sufficient distance so as to enable customers to remove the forwardmost products within the tracks by lifting the product vertically. The area between adjacent shelves required for customers to remove product is wasted space because it does not hold or store product. Thus, any type of shelf or shelf insert with immobile fixed bumper stops generally required a vertical spacing between shelves of at least the height of the product being displayed plus the height between the bottom of the shelf and the bumper stop at the front of each track. Such self spacing is undesirable because it decreases the packout or volume of product being displayed within a confined area.[0010]
• Another difficulty with shelves or shelf inserts having fixed bumper stops is that as product slides down the shelf in the tracks, the product may twist about a vertical axis, inherently causing the labels on the bottles to turn. Therefore, once the forwardmost product contacts the bumper stop, the label of the forwardmost product is facing sideways or rearwards rather than forwardly. Consequently, the consumer has to twist the forwardmost product in a track in order to read its label in order to determine whether the product is the particular product the consumer wants.[0011]
• In addition, product located on the upper shelves of a shelved structure such as, for example, a non-refrigerated display rack is difficult for some customers to remove because in order to remove the forwardmost product within a track, the product generally was lifted vertically over the fixed bumper stop located at the front of the track. Product located on the uppermost shelf of a display rack was difficult for a consumer whose reach is equal to or less than the height of the uppermost shelf of the display rack. Therefore, the height of a display rack in which merchants may display their products was limited to approximately the height of the reach of the consumers.[0012]
• The present invention increases the height at which uppermost shelves of a display rack which contain product may be located because customers no longer must lift the product vertically above a fixed stop located at the front of the tracks of the shelf. The uppermost shelf of a display rack may be placed higher than heretofore possible because customers may pull product forwardly about a lower pivot axis rather than lifting product vertically up over a bumper stop.[0013]
• It has therefore been one objective of the present invention to provide a shelf assembly divided into a plurality of tracks, each track having a pivotal front member.[0014]
• It has been a further objective of the present invention to provide a shelf assembly which has a plurality of pivotal front members enabling product to be more easily removed by pulling product forwardly rather than lifting product upwardly or pulling the top of a product over the top of a fixed bumper stop.[0015]
• It has been a further objective of the present invention to provide a shelf assembly which reduces the vertical distance between adjacent shelves necessary to remove products from intermediate shelves.[0016]
• It has been a further objective of the present invention to provide a shelf assembly having a pivotal front member at the front of a track which is adapted to display different product identifying elements.[0017]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
• The invention of this application which accomplishes these objectives comprises a display rack to which are attached a plurality of shelf assemblies. Each shelf assembly functions to organize and merchandise a plurality of products arranged in columns extending from front to back of the shelf. The shelf assembly comprises a shelf having a bottom, a plurality of dividers and at least one front member movable relative to the dividers.[0018]
• The dividers are spaced apart from one another and extend from front to back of the shelf so that a pair of the dividers and the bottom of the shelf define a track which supports a plurality of products arranged in a column. The forwardmost product within the column abuts against the front member. The front member prevents the products within the track from falling off the front of the shelf. The front member is pivotal about a horizontal axis so that a forwardmost product within a track may be removed by pulling the forwardmost product forwardly rather than lifting the forwardmost product over a fixed non-pivotal bumper stop as has been necessary before the present invention.[0019]
• The dividers may be generally planar dividers or any other form of divider. The dividers extend from front to back on the shelf and may be movable relative to the shelf bottom or fixedly secured to the shelf bottom. Alternatively, the dividers may be part of a unitary one-piece shelf insert, such as is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,614,288.[0020]
• If planar dividers are utilized in accordance with the present invention, each divider may have one or more holes which pass through the divider at the front of the divider. The holes are sized so as to receive a portion of one of the pivotal front members so the front member may pivot relative to the dividers. Alternatively, the dividers may have one or more receptacles integrally formed in the dividers. These receptacles are sized so as to receive a portion of one of the front members. When the front member is engaged with the receptacles formed in the dividers, the front member may pivot about a horizontal axis so that a consumer may remove a forwardmost product from a track by pulling the forwardmost product forwardly. In this embodiment, projections extending outwardly from the front member define the horizontal axis about which the front member pivots.[0021]
• The front member is generally arcuate and is adapted to receive a beverage container, such as a bottle or can. Additionally, the front member is adapted to receive and display different product identifying elements. The front member may be one ply of plastic, or alternatively, two plies of plastic between which a product identifying element may be inserted in order to identify product within the track behind the pivotal front member.[0022]
• In another embodiment of the present invention, the shelf assembly is divided into a plurality of tracks, each track having a fixed stop which acts as a bumper at the front of the track. The stop is fixedly secured to a pair of adjacent dividers. In this embodiment, the front member is pivotally secured to the stop rather than being pivotally secured to the dividers. Consequently, the front member pivots with respect to the fixed stop. The stop itself does not pivot relative to the dividers. Rather, the front member pivots about an axis defined by portions of the stop. In this embodiment, the forwardmost product within a track may still be removed by pulling rather than lifting the forwardmost product within the track. However, the forwardmost product must slide over the stop fixedly secured to the dividers at the front of the track. The stop may be a wire, a piece of plastic or any other structure about which the front member may pivot. The front member may be engaged with the stop any number of ways. One type of front member has a pair of openings therethrough which are adapted to receive the stop, enabling the front member to pivot about the stop. This embodiment is most often used with a wire grid structure, although is not necessarily so limited.[0023]
• With either embodiment, the forwardmost product of a column of products may be removed from a track by pulling on the top of the product (i.e., the neck of a bottle) to pivot the forwardmost product about a pivot axis lower than the top of the bumper stop rather than lifting the product or pivoting the product over the top of a fixed bumper stop located at the front of the track. Thus with the present invention, adjacent shelves may be placed closer together than has heretofore been possible, increasing the packout or number of shelves which may be used within a limited space. Consequently, the present invention enables a merchant to store and display more product in a limited area. In addition, the pivotal front members located at the front of the shelf of the present invention enable customers to easily remove product and to easily identify products within the different tracks of the shelf. These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily apparent from the following description of the drawings.[0024]
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
• FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the display rack of the present invention illustrated with two shelves, each shelf being divided into a plurality of tracks for supporting different products, each track having a pivotal front member located at the front of the track.[0025]
• FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of a portion of the display rack of FIG. 1 showing the forwardmost bottle in a track being pulled forwardly off the shelf.[0026]
• FIG. 3 is a perspective view of one embodiment of shelf assembly of the present invention having wire dividers, a fixed stop secured to the wire dividers at the front of the dividers, and a plurality of front members pivotally secured to the fixed stop.[0027]
• FIG. 4 is a perspective view of another embodiment of shelf assembly having a plurality of product holders located on a planar shelf, each product holder having a pivotal front member.[0028]
• FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a shelf insert made in accordance with the present invention, the shelf insert having a plurality of pivotal front members pivotally engaged with dividers at the front of the insert.[0029]
• FIG. 6 is a partially disassembled view of one embodiment of front member having projections adapted to be engaged with receptacles integrally formed in the dividers.[0030]
• FIG. 7 is a view taken along the line[0031]7-7 of FIG. 6.
• FIG. 8 is a partially disassembled view of an embodiment of front member having openings therein adapted to engage a fixed wire stop located at the front of the shelf.[0032]
• FIG. 8A is a view of the encircled[0033]area8A of FIG. 8.
• FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of front member.[0034]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
• Referring the drawings, and particularly to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a[0035]display rack10. Thedisplay rack10 comprises abase12 and aback member14 extending between twovertical posts16. As illustrated, each of theposts16 have a plurality ofslots18 therein adapted to receive projections (not shown) of ashelf assembly20. Although two shelf assemblies are illustrated in FIG. 1, any number of shelf assemblies may be utilized in accordance with the present invention. Although only one type ofbase12 and one type of back14 are illustrated, others well-known in the industry may be used as well to support the shelf assemblies of the present invention.
• One embodiment of[0036]shelf assembly20 of the present invention comprises ashelf22 having a bottom24 and a plurality ofdividers26 extending from aback edge28 of theshelf22 to afront edge30 of the shelf. A pair of thedividers26 and the bottom24 of theshelf22 define atrack32. Thetrack32 supports a plurality ofproducts34 arranged in a column extending front to back. Within each column of products is aforwardmost product34a, a secondforwardmost product34b, and a third mostforwardmost product34c, etc., depending upon how many bottles are in the column (see FIGS. 1 and 2). Although thedividers26 are illustrated as being planar dividers, the dividers may take on alternative configurations as well.
• The[0037]shelves22 are declined so that thefront edge30 of theshelf22 is below theback edge28 of theshelf22 so that gravity feeds the products in the columns forwardly. This is best illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. The angle of inclination of the shelf determines the amount of force gravity will have on the product in order to push the product forwardly. Due to the inclination of the shelves, the product slides forwardly on the shelf until the forwardmost product in the column abuts against a bumper stop or other structure located at the front of the shelf preventing product from falling off theforward edge30 of the shelf. If only one product is remaining in a track, that product will be located at the front of the track due to the inclination of the shelf (see top shelf of FIG. 1).
• In accordance with the present invention, at the front of each track is a[0038]front member40 which is movable relative to the dividers. More particularly, thefront member40 is pivotal about a horizontal axis, the horizontal axis being located above the bottom of the shelf (see axis A₁in FIG.1). Eachfront member40 functions to prevent product from falling off the front of the shelf. Additionally, because thefront member40 may pivot about a horizontal axis, theforwardmost product34aof a column of products with a track may be pulled forwardly in order to be removed.
• Before the present invention fixed, immobile bumper stops, often pieces of wire, were placed at the front of the tracks on a shelf in order to prevent product from falling off the front of the shelf. When a customer desired to remove the forwardmost product of a column of products located within a track, the customer had to raise the forwardmost product upwardly so that the bottom of the product passed over the bumper stop. This required sufficient spacing between shelves. More particularly, shelves had to be vertically spaced from one another so that a significant gap existed between the top of the products located on one shelf and the bottom of the shelf immediately above it. Thus, the number of shelves that could fit within a fixed area was limited and the requisite space between shelves was wasted, i.e., it held no product.[0039]
• The invention of the present application enables shelves to be placed closer together so that the bottom of one shelf may be located immediately above the top of the products resting on the shelf immediately below it (see FIG. 2). There is no wasted space between shelves. Therefore, a greater number of shelves may be located within a fixed area than has heretofore been possible.[0040]
• As best illustrated in FIG. 2, because each front member of the present invention is pivotal about a horizontal axis, a consumer may remove the[0041]forwardmost product34aof a column of products by pulling the top of the forwardmost product forwardly in the direction ofarrow36. Once the top of theforwardmost product34ahas been pulled forwardly, theforwardmost product34amay then be pulled upwardly in the direction of arrow38 in order to be removed from the track of the shelf assembly. The other products in the column may then slide forwardly in the track until the nextforwardmost product34babuts the pivotal front member.
• The[0042]pivotal front member40 may take on numerous forms in accordance with the present invention. One embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 1, in which thefront member40 is pivotally secured to a pair ofadjacent dividers26 and is pivotal about a horizontal axis A₁. In this embodiment thefront member40 comprises an arcuate piece42 and a single piece ofwire44. The arcuate piece42 has atop edge46,bottom edge48 and side edges50aand50b.The arcuate piece42 and the piece ofwire44 may be separate pieces as illustrated in FIG. 1, which may be glued or otherwise secured to one another so as to create aunitary front member40. The arcuate piece42 may havecutouts52, which are sized so as to receive in a snap-fit manner the piece ofwire44. Alternatively, the piece ofwire44 and the arcuate member42 may be one piece, integrally formed with one another. Other embodiments offront member40 such as those illustrated and described in the remainder of this document may be used as well.
• In this embodiment, the ends of each piece of[0043]wire44 extend throughholes54 located at the front of thedividers26 so as to enable thefront member40 to pivot about an axis A₁defined by the aligned ends of thewire44. Thus thefront member40 is pivotally engaged with a pair of adjacent dividers. As illustrated in FIG. 1, aforwardmost product34aof a column of products within atrack32 may be pulled forwardly in the direction ofarrow56 in order to remove theforwardmost product34afrom the track without theforwardmost product34acontacting the shelf immediately above it.
• Turning now to FIG. 3, an alternative embodiment of shelf assembly is illustrated. This embodiment is illustrated in more detail in FIGS. 8 and 8A. This embodiment of[0044]shelf assembly20acomprises ashelf22ahaving a generally planar shelf bottom24a.This embodiment of shelf assembly also has a plurality ofwire dividers58 extending from the back of the shelf forwardly to the front of the shelf. Eachwire divider58 has a generally inverted U-shape and may be secured to the shelf bottom24ain any number of ways, including that disclosed in applicant's own U.S. Pat. No. 5,119,945. Eachdivider wire58 has a generally verticalfront portion60, a generally verticalrear portion62 and amiddle portion64 connecting the front and rear portions. Extending between thewire dividers58 is aback connector wire66 and awire stop68. The wire dividers58 function in the same manner as theplanar dividers26 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. A pair ofwire dividers58 and the shelf bottom24 define atrack32a.As best illustrated in FIG. 8, thewire stop68 is welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the upper front corners of thewire dividers58.
• As best illustrated in FIG. 8, this embodiment of shelf assembly further comprises a[0045]front member74 located at the front of each track. Eachfront member74 has atop edge76,bottom edge78 and a pair of opposed side edges80a,80b.Thefront member74 is generally arcuate and adapted to receive a forwardmost product such as a beverage container. Thefront member74 has a concaveinner surface82 and a convexouter surface84, and is adapted to receive a product identifying element86 (see FIG. 5). Theproduct identifying element86 may be a card, a label or any other element which identifies the product located in the track behind the pivotal front member. Further, as described in more detail below, thefront member74 may hold and display theproduct identifying element86 any number of ways.
• As illustrated in FIG. 8, the[0046]wire stop68 has a plurality of alignedstraight portions70 and a plurality ofcurved portions72 located between thestraight portions70. Thestraight portions70 of thewire stop68 define a horizontal axis A₂. The wire dividers58 are welded or otherwise secured to thestraight portions70 of thewire stop68. Although one form ofwire stop68 is illustrated, others may be used as well in accordance with the present invention.
• As best illustrated in FIG. 8A, the[0047]front member74 has a pair ofcutout portions88a,88b, each cutout portion including acircular opening90a,90b, respectively. Thecutout portions88a,88benable thewire stop68 to be snapped into theopenings90a,90bso as to enable thefront member74 to pivot about the wire stop. Thefront member74 is moved in the direction ofarrows75 before the wire stop68 passes throughcutout portions88a,88bintoopenings90a,90b.Once thewire stop68 is inopenings90a,90b, thefront member74 may pivot about an axis A₂defined by thestraight portions70 of the wire stop.
• With the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 3, 8 and[0048]8A, when a user wants to remove a forwardmost product of a column of products within a track, the user pulls the top of the forwardmost product in thetrack32ain direction of arrow91 (see FIG. 3), causing thefront member74 to rotate about the axis A₂defined by thestraight portions70 of the wire stop. The top of thefront member74 moves forwardly, while the bottom edge of thefront member74 moves rearwardly. Theforwardmost product34athen passes over the top of thearcuate portion72 of thewire stop68 before theforwardmost product34ais entirely removed.
• FIG. 4 illustrates another embodiment of[0049]shelf assembly20cin accordance with the practice of the present invention. This embodiment of shelf assembly also utilizes ashelf22chaving a generally planar bottom24con which are placed a plurality of parallel generallyU-shaped product holders92. Theshelf22cmay have an upwardly turned lip (not shown) so as to prevent theproduct holders92 from falling off the shelf. Eachproduct holder92 comprises a bottom94 and a pair ofsidewall dividers96a,96b, which extend upwardly from the bottom94 forming a generally U-shaped or channel-shapedproduct holder92. Theproduct holder92 has afront edge98 and arear edge99. The distance between thefront edge98 and therear edge99 defines the longitudinal dimension of the product holder. Theproduct holder92 may be made of plastic, metal or any other material. Additionally, theproduct holder92 may be coated with a second material to increase the slipperiness of theproduct holder92. The twosidewall dividers96a,96band the bottom94 of theproduct holder92 form a track extending from back to front of the shelf adapted to receive a variety ofproducts34 arranged in a column (only one of which is shown in FIG. 4). A pivotally movablefront member100 is located at the front of each product holder.
• FIG. 4 illustrates one type of[0050]front member100 havingprojections102 extending outwardly from thebody103 of thefront member100 and engagingholes104 formed in the sidewall dividers so as to make thefront member100 pivotal about an axis A₃defined by the projections. This embodiment of front member is similar to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1. Theprojections102 may be pieces of wire, plastic or any other material, and may be integrally formed with the arcuate portion orbody103 of the front member, or may be separately formed and attached. Although not illustrated in FIG. 4, a fixed stop may be secured to thesidewall dividers96a,96bof theproduct holder92 which does not rotate with the front member100 (like the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 3, 8 and8A). A front member likefront member74 illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 8A would then be secured to the fixed stop which would pivot about a horizontal axis defined by the stop.
• Turning now to FIG. 5, there is illustrated a[0051]shelf insert106 which is adapted to be placed on a generally planar shelf, such as that illustrated in FIG. 4. Theshelf insert106 comprises a bottom108, a pair of outermost sidewalls110 (only one shown) extending upwardly from the outward edges of the bottom108 and aback wall112. Parallel thesidewalls110 are a plurality ofinternal dividers114 extending forwardly from the back wall. A pair of dividers and the bottom of the shelf insert define atrack116 containing a column ofproducts34 arranged in a linear fashion front to back. Theforwardmost product34awithin a column of products is prevented from falling off the front of the shelf by a pivotalfront member118. Thefront member118 is capable of pivoting about a horizontal axis A₄so as to enable theforwardmost product34awithin a column of products to be removed by pulling theforwardmost product34aforwardly rather than lifting it upwardly. Thefront member118 may be pivotally secured to a pair of dividers any number of ways mentioned hereinabove. For example, a pair of projections extending outwardly from the front member may be inserted into holes in the dividers. Additionally, a fixed stop may be secured to adjacent dividers and the front member pivot about the fixed stop as was described above and illustrated in FIGS. 3, 8 and8A.
• FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative structure which may be used in order to secure a pivotal[0052]front member120 to a pair ofadjacent dividers121 in order to prevent product from falling off the front of the shelf. In this embodiment eachdivider121 has a pair ofreceptacles122a(illustrated in solid lines) and122b(illustrated in dashed lines) integrally formed with the divider. Alternatively, thesereceptacles122aand122bmay be separately formed from the dividers and secured to the dividers in the proper location. One of thereceptacles122ais located on one side of the divider (to the right as illustrated in FIG. 6), while the other receptacle122bis located on the opposite side of the divider (to the left as illustrated in FIG. 6). Eachreceptacle122a,122bhas anopen portion124a,124b, respectively, which enables a portion of thefront member120 to slide down into engagement with the receptacle.
• The pivotal[0053]front member120 has a pair ofprojections126a,126bextending outwardly from thefront member120. Eachprojection126a,126bhas ashank128a,128band anend portion130a,130bwhich is generally circular. In order to pivotally engage thefront member120 with a pair ofdividers121, and more particularly thereceptacles122a,122bof the dividers, theprojections126a,126bare moved downwardly in the direction ofarrows132 until theend portions130a,130bofprojections126a,126bpass through theopenings124a,124bin the receptacles. Once so engaged, thefront member120 will pivot about an axis defined by theshanks128a,128bof theprojections126a,126b.
• As illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7 the[0054]shanks128a,128bof thefront member120 may be connected together with aconnector134, which may be wire or a piece of plastic or any other material. Below and generally parallel theconnector134 is abumper136, illustrated in dashed lines in FIG. 6 but shown as a solid member in FIG. 7. The purpose of thebumper136 is to provide an even surface with theconnector134 so that when theforwardmost product34amoves forwardly and contacts the front member, the forwardmost product will not pivot aboutconnector134, but instead contact an even surface, thereby stabilizing the forwardmost product while the forwardmost product is engaged with the concave inner surface of the front member.
• The pivotal front member of the present invention may take on numerous configurations, and this application is not intended to limit the configuration of the pivotal front member. For example, the[0055]projections126a,126bof thefront member120 may take on alternative configurations other than the configuration illustrated in FIG. 6.
• FIG. 6 illustrates one configuration of[0056]front member120 which is adapted to receive and display different product identifying elements so as to identify product within a track. Oftentimes as product moves down a track toward the front of the track the product may rotate, causing the label on the product to move into a position in which it is not easily visible by the consumer. Therefore, the consumer has to grab the forwardmost product and rotate it in order to identify the product. The present invention incorporates a front member adapted to receive and display different product identifying elements so that all the product within a specific track may be easily identified by the customer by simply looking at the pivotal front member. The customer need not turn the forwardmost product of a column of products in order to identify product within the track.
• One embodiment of front member which accomplishes these objectives is illustrated in FIG. 6. The generally arcuate[0057]front member120 has anupper lip140, alower lip142 and twoopposed side lips144a,144b, all of which help retain a product identifying element on the outer surface of the front member where a consumer may easily view the product identifying element. A product label or piece of cardboard, for example, identifying a particular product may be inserted between the upper and lower and two side lips. The lips hold the product identifying element in place until it is to be removed and replaced. This structure enables different product identifying elements to be easily inserted and removed if the merchant desires to change product within the track behind the front member. Other structures not illustrated may be used to retain a product identifying element with a pivotal front member such as, for example, that illustrated in FIG. 9.
• FIG. 9 illustrates an alternative form of[0058]front member146 which comprises simply two plies of material, anouter ply148 and aninner ply150. Between the inner and outer plies is anarrow space152 into which a product identifying element may be inserted. Preferably, the material of the front member is clear plastic or any other type of material through which the product identifying element may be seen. Other forms of front member (not illustrated) which are adapted to hold and display different product identifying elements so that the product identifying elements may be changed as product is changed within a track may also be utilized in accordance with the present invention.
• With the invention of the present application, one shelf may be placed immediately above an adjacent lower shelf because a forwardmost product in a track on the lower shelf may be removed by pulling the forwardmost product forwardly rather than lifting the forwardmost product vertically. Therefore, more shelves may placed within a finite area than heretofore possible, increasing the number of products which may be displayed within that area and reducing the frequency of restocking the shelves.[0059]
• While we have described several preferred embodiments of the shelf assembly of the present invention, persons skilled in the art will appreciate changes and modifications which may be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit of the invention of this application. For example, other structures of pivotal front members may be pivotally secured to dividers at the front of a shelf assembly. Therefore, we intend to be limited only by the scope of the following appended claims.[0060]

Claims (19)

We claim:

1. A shelf assembly for organizing and merchandising a plurality of products, said shelf assembly comprising:

a generally inclined gravity feed shelf,

a plurality of wire dividers extending from front to back on said shelf, an adjacent pair of said wire dividers and said shelf defining a track, said track supporting a plurality of products arranged in a column, and

a front stop member supported by said pair of dividers, said front stop member being pivotal about a horizontal axis and adapted to abut a forwardmost one of said products in said column, said horizontal axis being positioned such that as said forwardmost one of said products is removed from said track by pulling a top portion of said forwardmost one of said products over said front member, said front member is caused to pivot about said horizontal axis and move a top edge of said front member forwardly so as to enable said forwardmost one of said products to be moved forwardly over said front stop member.

2. The shelf assembly of

claim 1

wherein said front member is arcuate.

3. The shelf assembly of

claim 1

wherein said front member is caused to return to its original position upon a product behind said forwardmost one of said products sliding forwardly on said shelf and contacting said front member.

4. A shelf assembly for organizing and merchandising a plurality of products, said shelf assembly comprising:

a generally inclined gravity feed shelf,

a plurality of wire dividers extending from front to back on said shelf, an adjacent pair of said wire dividers and said shelf defining a track, said track supporting a plurality of products arranged in a column, and

a front member pivotal about a horizontal axis, said front member preventing product from falling off a front edge of said shelf, whereby upon a forwardmost product in said column of products being pulled over said front member, top and bottom edges of said front member are caused to rotate about said horizontal axis.

5. The shelf assembly of

claim 4

wherein said top edge of said front member rotates in front of said horizontal axis when said forwardmost one of said products is removed from said track.

6. The shelf assembly of

claim 4

wherein said front member has at least one lip so as to retain a product identifying element.

7. The shelf assembly of

claim 4

wherein said bottom edge of said front member rotates behind said horizontal axis when said forwardmost one of said products is removed from said track.

8. A shelf assembly comprising:

a generally inclined gravity feed shelf,

a plurality of dividers,

a stop extending between an adjacent pair of said dividers at a front of said shelf, said adjacent pair of dividers, said stop and said shelf defining a track for supporting a plurality of products arranged in a column; and

a front member supported above said shelf at the front of said shelf, said front member being pivotal about a horizontal axis and having top and bottom edges located respectively above and below said horizontal axis such that upon a forwardmost one of said products being pulled over said stop, said front member is caused to pivot about said horizontal axis, said in the course thereof, said bottom edge of said front member is moved rearwardly in said track and said top edge of said front member is moved forwardly.

9. The shelf assembly of

claim 8

wherein said dividers are wires.

10. The shelf assembly of

claim 8

wherein said front member has at least one lip so as to retain a product identifying element.

11. The shelf assembly of

claim 8

wherein said front member has two opposed side lips to retain a product identifying element on an outer surface of said front member.

12. The shelf assembly of

claim 8

wherein said front member has a pair of cutout portions adapted to receive said wire stop.

13. The shelf assembly of

claim 8

wherein said front member has a concave inner surface and a convex outer surface.

14. A shelf assembly comprising:

a generally inclined gravity feed shelf,

a plurality of wire dividers extending from front to back on said shelf,

a stop secured to an adjacent pair of said wire dividers at a front of said shelf, an adjacent pair of said wire dividers, said stop and said shelf defining a track for supporting a plurality of products arranged in a column between the pair of adjacent wire dividers; and

at least one front member pivotally secured to said stop such that upon forwardmost product within a column of products being removed by pulling said forwardmost product over said stop, said front member is caused to pivot about a horizontal axis.

15. The shelf assembly of

claim 14

wherein said stop is a wire.

16. A shelf assembly comprising:

a plurality of wire dividers extending from front to back,

a wire stop secured to an adjacent pair of said wire dividers,

a front member having top and bottom edges and being pivotally engaged with said wire stop such that as a forwardmost product within a column of products is removed by pulling a top portion of said forwardmost product over said wire stop, said front member is caused to rotate about a horizontal axis such that said top edge of said front member moves forwardly.

17. The shelf assembly of

claim 16

wherein said front member has a pair of cutout portions adapted to receive said wire stop.

18. The shelf assembly of

claim 16

wherein said horizontal axis is defined by a portion of said wire stop.

19. The shelf assembly of

claim 16

wherein front member has an upper lip, a lower lip and two opposed side lips to retain a product identifying element.

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