Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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MODULAR MERCHANDISING DISPLAY SYSTEM
TECHNICAL FIELD
[001] This invention relates to a display system, and more specifically to a
merchandising display
system having modular sections comprising display pallets.
BACKGROUND
[002] Retail merchandising often involves displaying products on racks,
shelves, or other
merchandisers. Consumers who view the display of products can better
appreciate the selection and
features of the products available from a retailer. For some products, such as
household fixtures
such as faucets, or electronic devices such as cameras and mobile phones, or
other products such as
footwear, consumers prefer to interact with the products outside of the
package. For this reason,
some retailers display certain products without packaging, while maintaining
packaged inventory
separately.
[003] Efficient use of space is important for a retailer. However, one problem
retailers face when
displaying products for consumers to interact with is the space efficiency of
the display. For the
consumer to interact with the products, the products are frequently positioned
in a prime shelf space,
and arranged with a low density on the shelves so the products are not crowded
and confusing to the
consumer. Some current product displays are inefficient in how they use floor
space. Another
problem with some current product display systems is that they are not readily
re-configurable to
new product arrangements. Further, in some stores featuring higher priced
goods, consumers prefer
an elegant, lighted display that is uncluttered and easy to interact with.
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[004] There remains a need in the art for a merchandising display system that
overcomes one or
more of these problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[005] The present invention overcomes at least one disadvantage of the prior
art by providing a
merchandising display system comprising a first module comprising a cabinet
having a front and a
back; at least one door having a front door display, each door being moveable
between a closed
position and an opened position; and at least one auxiliary display, wherein
the auxiliary displays are
selected from the group consisting of an interior cabinet display and a rear
door display; and a
second module comprising a spacer display positioned adjacent to the cabinet
and set back from the
front of the cabinet; wherein the opened position of at least one of said
doors occupies a space in
front of the spacer display; and wherein the closed position of the at least
one door at least partially
covers the front of the cabinet.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[006] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of one embodiment of a modular
merchandising display
system of the present invention;
[007] FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of a cabinet module of the present
invention;
[008] FIG. 3 is a top view of the cabinet module of FIG. 2;
[009] FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view through section 4-4 in FIG. 3;
[010] FIG. 5 is a partial view showing a section of a door of the cabinet
module indicated by detail
in FIG. 4;
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[011] FIG. 6 is a partial view showing a leveler of the cabinet module
indicated by detail 6 in FIG.
4;
[012] FIG. 7 is a front elevational view of a spacer module of the present
invention;
[013] FIG. 8 is a top view of the spacer module of FIG. 7;
[014] FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view through section 9-9 in FIG. 8;
[015] FIG. 10 is a front elevational view of a fixed panel module of the
present invention;
[016] FIG. 11 is a top view of the fixed panel module of FIG. 10;
[017] FIG. 12 is a cross sectional view through section 12-12 in FIG. 11;
[018] FIG. 13 is a front elevational view of a slat wall module of the present
invention;
[019] FIG. 14 is a top view of a second embodiment of a modular merchandising
display system of
the present invention;
[020] FIG. 15 is a front elevational view of the merchandising display system
of FIG. 14;
[021] FIG. 16 is a rear elevational view of the merchandising display system
of FIG. 14.
[022] FIG. 17 is a side elevational view of an alternate embodiment of a
pallet support of the
present invention; and
[023] FIG. 18 is a front elevational view of the pallet support of FIG. 17.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[024] Referring now to FIG. 1, one embodiment of a modular merchandising
display system 10 is
shown. FIG. 1 illustrates a merchandiser having one cabinet module 20 and two
spacer modules 30.
The cabinet module 20 as shown in FIGS. 1-4 comprises a cabinet 32 and two
display doors 34,
shown as a left door 35 and a right door 36. In other embodiments, the cabinet
module may have
one display door 34, or no display doors 34. The display doors 34 move from a
closed position 37 to
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an opened position 38 to provide access to the cabinet interior 40. The
cabinet interior 40 may
comprise an interior cabinet display for merchandising products. Alternately,
cabinet interior 40
may comprise a storage area for product inventory. In the embodiment of FIG.
2, the cabinet interior
40 has an interior cabinet display comprising slat wall paneling 42. Slat wall
paneling 42 is well
known in the art, exemplified by U.S. Patent 3,235,218 to Graham, and U.S.
Patent 4,591,058 to
Amstutz, et al.
[025] Hinges 44 rotatably attach the display doors 34 to the cabinet 32. In
the embodiment of
FIGS. 1-3, the doors 34 rotate approximately 180 degrees between the closed
position 37 and the
opened position 38.
[026] Doors 34 include merchandising and display features. In the embodiment
of FIGS. 1-4,
doors 34 comprise at least one recessed cavity 48 comprising one or more
pallets 50. In this
embodiment, the doors 34 comprise a door front 52, a door back 54, a door
first side 56 and a door
hinge side 58, and a door top 60 and a door bottom 62.
[027] The door front 52 may comprise a front door display, comprising one or
more recessed
cavities 48 and pallets 50. The door back 54 may comprise a rear door display
including slat wall
paneling 42 as illustrated in FIGS. 1-2. It is contemplated that the front
door display and the rear
door display may comprise one or more recessed cavities 48 and one or more
pallets 50 alone or in
combination with areas of slat wall paneling 42 and other merchandising
attachments in various
arrangements to accommodate different merchandising plans.
[028] The spacer modules 30 are adjacent to the cabinet module 20. As
illustrated in FIG. 1, the
front of the spacer modules 30 is set back from the front of the cabinet to
create a space for the doors
34 to open. In this embodiment, the front of the spacer modules is set back
from the front of the
cabinet 32 by a distance A, shown in FIG. 1. The thickness of the door is
shown as distance B in
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FIG. 1. The distance A is greater than the distance B for the door 34 to open
approximately 180
degrees.
[029] One embodiment of the spacer module 30 is shown in FIGS. 7-9. In this
embodiment, the
spacer module 30 is wider than the door 34 so that the doors 34 may rotate
open within the space in
front of the spacer module 30. The spacer modules 30 may comprise at least one
recessed cavity 48
comprising one or more pallets 50. It is contemplated that the spacer modules
30 may comprise slat
wall paneling 42. In other embodiments, the spacer modules 30 may include one
or more recessed
cavities 48 comprising one or more pallets 50 in combination with areas of
slat wall paneling 42 and
other merchandising attachments in various arrangements.
[030] Another module in the merchandising system is a fixed module 70. Fixed
module 70
provides additional merchandising area. In the embodiment of FIGS. 10-12, the
fixed module 70
may comprise at least one recessed cavity 48 comprising one or more pallets
50. It is contemplated
that the fixed modules 70 may comprise slat wall paneling 42. In other
embodiments, the fixed
modules 70 may include one or more recessed cavities 48 comprising one or more
pallets 50 in
combination with areas of slat wall paneling 42 and/or other merchandising
attachments in various
arrangements.
[031] Yet another module in the merchandising system is a slat wall panel
module 80, as
illustrated in FIG. 13. The slat wall panel module 80 comprises slat wall
paneling 42.
[032] Referring now to FIG. 5, a pallet 50 may be positioned within the
recessed cavity 48 on a
pallet support 84. In this embodiment, pallet 50 may be a flat shelf and
support 84 may comprise a
hollow box-shaped cross-section. However, it is contemplated that the pallet
50 and corresponding
support 84 may comprise other merchandising shapes and configurations. As
defined here, the pallet
50 used in this specification and in the appended claims may comprise a bin,
drawer, shelf, rack, rod,
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hanger, clip, a rotating, folding, or articulating merchandiser, or any
unitary product-displaying
merchandiser. The pallets 50 may comprise one or more apertures and
protrusions for attaching a
product to the pallets 50. The pallets 50 may also comprise one or more or
apertures and protrusions
to accommodate various merchandising requirements such as product nesting,
orientation, or
presentation.
[033] The pallet support 84 holds the pallet 50 in its position on the
display. In some
embodiments, support 84 may comprise cross-sectional shapes other than a box
section to
accommodate the corresponding pallet 50 configurations. Pallet 50 and
corresponding support 84
are used as defined here in the cabinet modules 20, the spacer modules 30, and
the fixed modules 70.
[034] The pallets 50 may be secured in place by fasteners, latches, or other
physical restraints. It is
also contemplated that the pallets 50 be removable. In removable embodiments,
the pallets 50 may
be unsecured, or may be secured by one or more releasable fasteners such as
latches, hooks, or other
releasable closures. Having removable pallets 50 may simplify restocking the
products, or
reconfiguring the merchandising arrangement. Further, in some displays the
pallet 50 may be
configured for the consumer to remove the pallet for easier product inspection
or selection.
[035] In an alternate embodiment, pallets 50 are merchandised on the slat wall
paneling 42 by
adapting the corresponding support 84 to hang from the slat wall paneling 42.
In FIGS. 17-18, the
pallet 50 is supported by pallet support 184. The support 184 comprises
bracket 186, where bracket
186 has a shape suitable for engaging the slat wall panel 42.
[036] In some embodiments of the merchandising system 10, supports 84 may
comprise means for
lighting that is positioned for illuminating adjacent products. Means for
lighting may comprise a
fiber-optic lighting system, or may comprise a fluorescent, incandescent,
light emitting diode, inert
gas lighting, or other lighting system.
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[037] In the embodiment of FIG. 5, the support 84 comprises a support front 86
and a support
bottom 88. This embodiment of support 84 comprises a hollow section, through
which passes one or
more optical fiber cables 90. An optical fiber cable 90 passes through an
aperture 92 to illuminate
the product below. In other embodiments, support bottom 88 maybe transparent
or translucent, and
the optical fiber cables 90 direct light through support bottom 88. It is
contemplated that support 84
may house an incandescent or fluorescent light bulb. It is also contemplated
that the support 84 may
not include the support bottom 88 to accommodate physical or lighting
constraints.
[038] The optical fiber cables 90 extend from each aperture 92 to a light
generator 94. The light
generator 94 may be installed on the top of the cabinet 32, as shown in FIG.
3. It is contemplated
that the light generator 94 could be located in any convenient position within
the merchandising
system. The optical fiber cables 90 may be concealed behind a panel or in a
raceway along an edge
of the modules.
[039] As indicated in FIG. 4, a door switch 96 may be used to activate and de-
activate the means
for lighting. When the doors 34 are closed, the means for lighting that
illuminates the inside of the
cabinet 32 may be turned off to save electricity. In one embodiment, this is
accomplished by using a
second light generator 98 to illuminate the interior of the cabinet. In this
embodiment, when door
switch 96 closes, the second light generator 98 turns off, while light
generator 94 continues to
illuminate the exterior displays. It is contemplated that other controls may
be employed to control
the location, duration, and intensity of the lighting. Other lighting controls
are well known in the art.
[040] In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the hinges 44 are shown as piano-style
hinges. In other
embodiments, different hinge styles may be used. Alternately, the doors 34 may
slide open into the
space in front of the spacer module.
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[041] It is contemplated that the doors 34 may be heavy when loaded with
products. In the
embodiment of FIGS. 1-3, the doors 34 may include wheels 104. The wheels 104
are affixed to the
door bottom 62, and transfer a portion of the door weight to the floor. The
wheels 104 make the
cabinet module more stable when the unit is fully loaded.
[042] The merchandising modules may include one or more levelers 106 so that
the merchandising
system can be level when installed on an uneven floor. The levelers 106 may be
positioned on
bottom corners of the cabinet 32, the spacer module 30, and the fixed module
70. It is contemplated
that some modules may use four or more levelers 106, and some modules may use
less than four
levelers 106. In the embodiment of FIG. 6, the leveler 106 comprises a foot
114 connected to a
threaded rod 116, where the threaded rod passes through a threaded hole in a
fixed plate 118. Other
mechanical levelers are known in the art.
[043] Various merchandising configurations can be achieved by joining a
plurality of cabinet
modules 20 and spacer modules 30, with one or more spacer modules 30
separating each pair of
cabinet modules 20. Fixed modules 70 and slat wall panel modules 80 may be
integrated, as shown
by modular merchandising display system 110 in FIGS. 14-16. Alternately, one
or more fixed
modules 70 and slat wall panel modules 80 may be positioned between cabinet
modules 20, or
adjacent to one or more cabinet modules 20. It will be apparent to one skilled
in the art that a
multitude of combinations are available by varying the module selection and
arrangement. It is
contemplated that some assembled modular merchandising displays will only face
one direction,
suitable for placement against a wall or other fixture. The embodiment of FIG.
1 comprises modules
that face in one direction. Other assembled modular merchandising displays may
comprise elements
facing two or more directions, suitable for placement where consumers can walk
around the
merchandiser. The embodiment of FIG. 14 comprises modules that face two
directions.
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