Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Title: FAUCET DISPLAY UNIT AND METHOD
OF FORMING SHELF FOR USE WITH SAME
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to shelving units
and merchandisers for the retail display of faucets.
RACR~-~OUND OF T~ INVENTION
Faucets, such as watertaps and showerheads, are
typically displayed at a retail setting on stands that
allow a customer to see the faucets in their final
assembled form.
One problem faced by retailers when displaying
faucets is the amount of space occupied by the display.
The fixed cost per square foot of retail space tends to be
high and it is important for retailers to optimize the
amount of products displayed in a given space. The
display stands that are currently available for displaying
faucets do not readily allow for such space optimization.
Often, customized display stands are supplied by the
individual faucet manufacturers or distributors for
displaying their own line of faucets. Such customized
display stands are not designed with the retailer's space
optimization requirements foremost in mind. Also, such
stands are not adapted to display the faucets of more than
one manufacturer or distributor.
What is needed is a faucet display device that
permits a retailer to optimize the number of faucets
displayed in a given retail space. The display device
would be sufficiently versatile to display a range of
styles of faucets from different manufacturers or
distributors, and would be available in a range of sizes.
The display device would permit the display of product
information adjacent to each faucet displayed. Also, the
display device would be inexpensive to produce and simple
to install to conventional retail fixtures.
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENl'ION
In one aspect the invention provides a faucet display unit
comprising:
a shelf having a display surface with first and second edges;
a plurality of apertures defined in said display surface for
facilitating the attachment of a plurality of faucets to said shelf, each of said
apertures being adapted to recei~e a portion of a faucet;
at least one clip adapted to engage an opening in a shelf
support structure; and
an attachment track extending along said first edge of said
shelf, said attachment track including a pair of opposing flanges adapted to
slidably support said clip, said flanges having faces that are oriented to
engage said clip to position said display surface in a downward slope from
said first edge to said second edge relative to said support structure.
In another aspect, the invention provides a faucet display
unit comprising:
a shelf having a display surface with first and second edges;
a plurality of apertures defined in said display surface for
facilitating the attachment of a plurality of faucets to said shelf, each of said
apertures being adapted to receive a portion of a faucet; and
at least one aperture cover removably mounted to said
shelf, said aperture cover defining a non-apertured surface, for completely
covering from view one or more of said apertures that are otherwise visible
on said display surface; and
means for attaching said shelf to a support structure.
Advantageously, the plurality of apertures defined in the
display surface permits faucets to be arranged on the shelf in a way that
optimizes the amount of product displayed per linear foot of wall space. In
further aspects, the covering means and information display means permit
the retailer to customize the shelf according to his own particular display
requirements. The method of formation of the shelf by extrusion enables
the shelf to be cost-effectively manufactured in a variety of desired lengths.
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BRIEF DESCRIPIlON OF THE DRAWINGS
For a better understanding of the present invention, and to
show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, referellce will now be
made, by way of
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example, to the accompanying drawings. The drawings show
a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which:
Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a first
embodiment of a faucet display unit having two rows of
apertures in accordance with the present invention;
Figure 2 shows an exploded perspective view of
the faucet display unit of Figure l;
Figure 3 shows a sectional view of the faucet
display unit of Figure 2 taken along lines 3-3;
Figure 4 shows a partial perspective view of the
first embodiment of faucet display unit having a single
row of apertures in accordance with the present invention;
Figure 5 shows a partial rear perspective view
of a second embodiment of a faucet display unit in
accordance with the present invention; and
Figure 6 is a sectional view of the second
embodiment of display unit of Figure 5 as taken along
lines 6-6, said view further showing faucets mounted to
the unit.
DETATT.~n DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
A faucet display unit in accordance with the
present invention is shown generally at 10 in Figures 1 to
6. A first embodiment of the display unit 10 is shown in
Figures 1-4. The first embodiment is particularly suited
for displaying a plurality of faucets 14, such as counter-
mounted water taps, that would be mounted on a horizontal
surface. A second embodiment of the display unit 10 is
shown in Figures 5-6. The second embodiment is
particularly suited for displaying a plurality of faucets
14, such as showerheads and wall-mounted watertaps, that
would be mounted on a vertical surface. For convenience,
the same reference numerals are used to refer to similar
functioning elements of both embodiments.
Referring to Figure 1, the display unit 10 is
depicted attached to a support structure 12 such as a
pegboard wall or a slot wall commonly used in retail
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settings. Alternatively, the display unit 10 can be
attached to a free standing support structure such as a
pedestal or the like (not shown).
The display unit 10 includes a shelf 16 having
a display surface 18 for displaying the faucets 14. The
display surface 18 has a first edge 20 and a second edge
22. As will be explained further below, the shelf 16 is
formed as a one piece extruded unit.
A plurality of apertures 24 are defined in the
display surface 18. Each aperture 24 is sized to
accommodate a wide variety of faucet styles and sizes. In
the preferred embodiment, the apertures 24 have a diameter
of approximately 1.5 inches which is sufficient to
facilitate the display of most sizes of commercially
available faucets 14.
Preferably, the apertures 24 are arranged in two
rows 26 that extend parallel to the first edge 20 of the
display surface 18. Alternative arrangements of apertures
24 may of course be provided, such as a single row of
apertures 24 (as shown in Figure 4), or three or more rows
of apertures 24. The arrangement of apertures 24 selected
depends upon factors such as the depth of the display
surface 18 (the distance between the first edge 20 and the
second edge 22), the size of the faucets 14 being
displayed, and the preferred relative arrangement of
faucets 14 on the shelf 16.
The apertures 24 are preferably spaced at four-
inch intervals measured from the aperture centres. This
corresponds to the standard sizing of watertaps in North
America whose elements (e.g. hot and cold water handles,
spout, etc.) are spaced at four-inch intervals.
As shown in Figure 1, the faucets 14 are secured
to the display surface 18 in generally the same way that
they would be fitted to a countertop, a bathroom wall, or
other surface during regular installation. In other
words, a pipe connector 28 extending from the faucet 14 is
inserted through aperture 24 and a corresponding locking
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nut 30 or the like is tightened to secure the faucet 14 to
the shelf 16.
The display unit 10 is adapted to be attached to
the support structure 12 te.g. wall) along its first edge
20. A rear attachment member 32 is integrally connected
to the first edge 20 to facilitate such attachment. As
shown in Figure 3, the rear attachment member 32 includes
a pair of opposing flanges 34 that together define an
attachment track 36 for slidably supporting wall
attachment means such as clips 38 shown in figure 2. The
clips 38 are known in the art for attaching items to peg
board walls or slot walls. The clips 38 have prongs 40
adapted to fit into a slot or corresponding openings 41 in
the wall 12. The clips 38 further include a tab 42
adapted to slidably fit into the track 36. The clips 38
may thus be slidably adjusted along the track 36 to
provide a balanced support for the shelf 16 on the wall
12.
In the first embodiment of the display unit 10
depicted in Figures 1-4, the shelf 16 is preferably
attached to the support structure 12 in such a way that
the display surface 18 is oriented in a downward slope
from its first edge 20 to its second edge 22. In this
way, the full area of the display surface 18 may be seen
by customers. This is preferred when the faucets 14 are
arranged on several rows 26 so that customers may see all
of the faucets, including those located at the rear of the
shelf. Also, the sloping display surface 18 permits
information materials to be placed adjacent to each faucet
14 and still be seen by a customer.
Referring more specifically to the attachment
track 36 of the first embodiment, it can be seen that the
flanges 34 have faces 44 that engage the tab 42 when the
shelf 16 is attached to the support structure 12. As
shown in Figures 3 and 4, the faces 44 are parallel to
each other and are oriented at an acute angle A relative
to the display surface 18. As a result, when the shelf 16
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is attached to a vertical support structure 12, the
display surface will extend in a downward slope at the
acute angle A relative to the support structure 12. The
angle A of the sloping display surface is preferably about
75~. It will be appreciated that alternative acute angles
may be chosen depending on such factors as the intended
display height of the shelf (i.e. what an average height
customer might be expected to see), the depth of the
display surface 18 from first edge 20 to second edge 22,
and the number of rows 26 of apertures defined in the
display surface 18. It will be noted that the profile of
the attachment track 36 (as shown in Figure 3) is selected
to align the clips 38 at a suitable angle to facilitate
easy mounting of the shelf 16 to the support structure 12.
A support 50 is attached to each of the ends 52
of the shelf 16 to improve the rigidity of the display
unit 10. The supports 50 may be attached with any
suitable attachment means such as glue, welds, rivets,
plugs or the like. In the preferred embodiments, screws
54 are used. The screws 54 extend through openings 56
defined in the support 50, and are received in
corresponding bores 58 defined in the shelf 16 and exposed
at the ends 52, as shown in Figure 3. The bores 58 have
a smaller internal diameter than the diameter of the
external thread of the screws 54 so that the screws 54
will tap into, and hold securely within, the bores 58.
Additional rigidity is provided to the display
unit 10 by the optional insertion of stiffening braces 57
into corresponding brace tracks 59 defined on the
underside of the shelf 16. The stiffening braces 57 are
formed from sheet metal, or from any other material that
is suitably rigid to restrict deflection of the shelf 16
caused by the weight of the faucets 14. As shown in
Figure 3, the brace tracks 59 are formed from an L-shaped
flange 59a, for slidably receiving one edge of the
stiffening brace 57, and a post 59b, for abuttably
supporting the other edge of the stiffening brace 57.
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Alternatively, the brace tracks 59 could be formed from
opposing pairs of L-shaped flanges 59a.
The shelf 16 also includes a series of display
tracks 60 for facilitating the removable attachment of
cards 62, also known as "tickets", contAining product
information to the shelf 16. The display tracks 60 are
defined by pairs of flanged strips 64 having either an L-
shaped cross-section or a T-shaped cross-section. The
cards 62 are slidably inserted into the display tracks 60
where desired. As shown in Figure 2, the display tracks
60 may be arranged to permit the cards 62 to cover unused
apertures to improve the appearance of the display unit
10. Other means for covering the apertures 24 may be used
instead, for instance plugs (not shown) may be adapted to
fit into the apertures 24.
In the first embodiment shown in Figures 1-4, a
further display track 60 is located on a front display
skirt 66 that extends downwardly from the second edge 22
of the display surface 18. The skirt 66 is oriented at an
obtuse angle O relative to the display surface 18 so that
it will be generally vertical when the shelf 16 is
attached to the support structure. Accordingly, angle O
will generally be related to angle A. In the preferred
embodiment angle O is 105~ (with angle A being 75~).
Referring to Figures 5-6, a second embodiment of
the display unit is shown. As previously indicated, the
second embodiment is particularly suited for displaying
showerheads and wall-mounted taps that would be mounted on
a vertical surface.
It will be seen that the second embodiment of
display unit 10 includes many of the same elements as the
first embodiment. In certain cases, the orientation of
the elements differs from the orientation in the first
embodiment. This is due to the display surface 18 being
adapted to extend generally vertically. Accordingly, the
rear attachment member 32 is located on an upper arm 70
extending rearwardly from the display surface 18. Also,
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the faces 44 of the flanges 34 of the attachment track 36
are oriented parallel to the display surface 18 to
facilitate attachment to the support surface 12 with the
display surface 18 oriented vertically.
The apertures 24 are arranged in two rows 26.
One of the rows 26 is located on an upper side of the
display surface 18, preferably between the first edge 20
and the rearwardly extending upper arm 70. The faucets 14
attached to the upper row 26 of apertures 24 may therefore
rely upon the torsional support provided by the abutment
of the upper arm 70 and attachment member 32 against the
support structure 12. The other row 26 of apertures 24
extends along a lower side of the display surface 18.
Supports (not shown) attached to the ends 52 of the shelf
16 improve the rigidity of the display unit 10 and in
particular support the lower row 26 of apertures.
Additional support is provided by the stiffening braces 57
which may be inserted in the corresponding brace tracks 59
as shown. It will be noted that a second arm 72 extends
rearwardly from the lower portion of the shelf 16 to
support part of the brace track 59 as well as to define
openings 58 for the support screws 54. The second arm 72
also provides torsional support for the lower row of
faucets 14 by abutment against the support structure 12.
Lastly, it will be noted that the stiffening brace 57a
depicted in Figures S and 6, provides a mounting surface
for securing the faucets to.
A lip 74 is defined along the first edge 20 of
the display surface 18 to facilitate vertical stacking of
display units 10 in a modular format. It will also be
noted that the display track 60 is defined on the display
surface 18 by flanges 64 for receiving display cards 62.
Referring to both embodiments as shown in
Figures 3 and 6, it may be seen that the shelf 16 is
formed as a one-piece unit. The shelves may be formed
from a semi-sold metal or plastic by extrusion. A die for
forming an extruded shelf as shown in figures 3 or 6 would
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have a die opening resembling the section of the shelves
16 as depicted in the respective Figures. The extrusion
would thus define the rear attachment member, display
surface, and (for the first embodiment) display skirt of
the shelf 16. Also, the extrusion would define the
attachment track, brace tracks, display tracks, and screw
openings of the shelf. The shelf 16 may thus be formed
relatively inexpensively to any length desired. Once the
extruded shelf is formed and cooled, the apertures 24 are
cut into the display surface 18 in the locations desired.
It is to be understood that what has been
described is a preferred embodiment to the invention. If
the invention nonetheless is susceptible to certain
changes and alternative embodiments fully comprehended by
the spirit of the invention as described above, and the
scope of the claims set out below.
