Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02858671 2014-08-08
SHELF TRAYS
BACKGROUND
[0001]
Many grocery store goods are shipped in boxes and/or on pallets. At the
store, the goods must be removed from the boxes and or pallets and placed on a
shelf for
selection by the customers. Moving the goods to the shelves requires
additional effort and
expense.
SUMMARY
[0002]
Several embodiments of shelving systems are disclosed in which goods can
be shipped to a store and may be ready to display. Customers may select goods
from the
shelving systems directly. When the goods are depleted, the shelving system
may be
disassembled into a more compact state for efficient storage and shipping back
to the warehouse
or supplier.
[0003]
In one embodiment, a tray having side walls extending upward from a base
may be stacked with spacers comprising side walls, but no base. This provides
increased space
for accommodating goods in the trays and provides increased accessibility for
customers to view
and remove goods from the trays.
[0004]
In another embodiment, a bin has a base and side walls extending upward
from the base. Side flanges project outward from upper edges of the side
walls. Elongated
supports connect to the underside of the side flanges.
[0005]
In another embodiment, a plurality of walls extend upward from a deck. A
plurality of support surfaces are formed on the walls. An elongated support
extends upward of
1
CA 02858671 2014-08-08
the deck spaced away from the walls. A tray is stacked on the support surfaces
and the elongated
support.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0006] Figure 1 is a perspective view of a shelving system according
to a first
embodiment.
[0007] Figure 2 is a bottom perspective view of the shelving system of
Figure 1.
[0008] Figure 3 is a front view of the shelving system of Figure 1.
[0009] Figure 4 is an exterior perspective view of one of the spacers
of Figure 1.
[0010] Figure 5 is an interior perspective view of the spacer of
Figure 4.
[0011] Figure 6 is a perspective view of a shelving system according
to a second
embodiment with one shelving unit.
[0012] Figure 7 is a rear perspective view of the shelving system of
Figure 6.
[0013] Figure 8 is an exploded view of the shelving system of Figure
6.
[0014] Figure 9 is a rear view of the shelving system of Figure 8.
[0015] Figure 10 shows the shelving system of Figure 6 with a second
bin stacked on
the first bin.
[0016] Figure 11 is a perspective view of a shelving system according
to a third
embodiment.
[0017] Figure 12 shows the shelving system of Figure 11 without the
trays.
[0018] Figures 13 and 14 are exploded views of the shelving system of
Figure 11
with one shelving unit.
2
CA 02858671 2014-08-08
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0019] Collapsible shelving according to a first embodiment is shown
in Figures 1.
Figure 1 illustrates two known plastic trays, in particular, plastic bakery
trays 10 stacked with
spacers 42. This can quickly provide shelving in a store with improved
visibility and access to
the goods for the customer.
[0020] As is known, each tray 10 includes a base 12 and side walls 14
extending
upward from side edges of the base 12. A front wall 16 extends upward from a
front edge of the
base 12. A rear wall 18 extends upward from a rear edge of the base 12. The
front wall 16 and
rear wall 18 are significantly shorter than the side walls 14. Stacking feet
20 and a center
projection 22 project outward from a lower portion of each side wall 14. The
stacking feet 20
include a downward projection 28 at an outer edge thereof Complementary low
stacking
recesses 24 and high stacking recesses 26 are formed at an upper edge of each
side wall 14, such
that the tray 10 can stack at two different heights on an identical tray in
either the aligned or the
180 orientation. A center receptacle 30 is defined on each side wall for
receiving the center
projection 22 of the tray 10 stacked thereon. A rail 32 projects upward along
the length of each
side wall 14. The rail 32 is aligned just inward of the downward projections
28 of the feet 20.
Again, trays 10 of the type shown in Figure 1 are known and other types of
trays could also be
used.
[0021] As shown the trays 10 can be used in combination with spacers
42 stacked in-
between to form temporary shelving. Each spacer 42 is inserted between a side
wall 14 of an
upper tray 10 and a side wall 14 of a lower tray 10 to provide greater
distance between the bases
12 of the two trays 10. The trays 10 then provide increased visibility and
accessibility to items in
3
CA 02858671 2014-08-08
the trays 10. Alternatively, the trays 10 can then accommodate larger (or
more) goods. The
spacers 42 in this example generally comprising a single wall which are
generally structurally
identical (but they only need to be complementary) to the side walls 14 of the
trays 10 without
the intervening front and rear walls 16, 18 or base 12. The spacer may be
injection-molded as a
single piece of plastic.
[0022] Optionally, one or more rails (not shown) could be added to
interconnect
upper ends of the spacers 42. Alternatively, or additionally, one or two lower
rails may extend
across between the lower ends of the spacers 42 at the front and/or rear of
the spacer.
Alternatively, something comparable to one of the front or rear wall of the
tray 10 could connect
the spacers, providing accessibility only through the other side of the trays
10. In that case, the
two spacers and the single wall could be integrally molded as a single piece.
[0023] Figure 2 is a bottom perspective view of the trays 10 and
spacers 42 of Figure
1. Figure 3 is a front view of the trays 10 and spacers 42 of Figure 1.
[0024] Figure 4 is an outer perspective view of one of the spacers 42.
The spacer 42
includes guide feet 50 and a center projection 52 identical or at least
compatible with the guide
feet 50 and center projection 22 of the tray 10 of Figure 1. The stacking feet
50 each include a
downward projection 58 at an outer edge thereof. A rail 62 extends the length
of the upper edge
of the spacer 42. The rail 62 is aligned just inward of the downward
projections 58 of the feet
50.
[0025] Figure 5 is an inner perspective view of the spacer 42. The
spacer 42 may
also include low stacking recesses 54 and high stacking recesses 56 for
providing multiple
4
CA 02858671 2014-08-08
stacking height capability with the trays 10, but alternatively a single
height could be provided.
Flanges 64 may project inward from each end of the spacer 42 for stability.
[0026] Referring again to Figure 1, it should be understood that
several more spacers
and trays 10 would be stacked thereon to create a set of shelving. In this
manner, goods can be
shipped to a store in the trays 10. Several such stacks of trays 10 and
spacers 42 could be loaded
onto a pallet and shipped to a store. At the store, customers could view and
select goods from
the shelves (the trays 10) on the pallet. When empty, the spacers 42 can be
placed in the trays 10
and the trays 10 can be cross-stacked with one another to minimize volume in
returning the
empty trays 10 for reuse to the warehouse.
[0027] Figure 6-9 illustrate a shelving system 110 according to a
second embodiment.
Referring to Figures 6 and 7, a pallet 80 includes an upper deck 82 and a
plurality of feet or
columns 84 supporting the upper deck 82 above the floor. Several shelving
units (one shown)
each including a platform 112, elongated supports 118 and bin 120, can be
stacked on the pallet
deck 82. For example, each shelving unit can occupy one quarter of the pallet
deck 82.
[0028] The platform 112 may be secured to the deck 82 by connectors
extending
through the platform 112 and into the deck 82 (such as screws 117 through
holes in the base 116
of the platform 112 screwed into the deck 82 of the pallet 80, as shown in
Figures 8 and 9). The
platform 112 includes a raised perimeter 114 having apertures 115 formed at
each corner. A
base surface 116 (Figure 8) is defined within the perimeter 114 of the
platform 112. A plurality
of elongated supports 118, in this example cylindrical tubes 118, are inserted
into the apertures
115 in the corners of the perimeter 114.
CA 02858671 2014-08-08
, .
[0029] The tubes 118 support a bin 120. The bin 120 includes a base
121 and side
walls 122 extending up from side edges of the base 121. In this embodiment,
the side walls 122
extend upward from adjacent side edges of the base, but alternatively could be
from opposed side
edges of the base 121, or from three edges of the base 121. Collars 123
project outward
proximate upper edges of the side walls 122 and receive the tubes 118, which
extend through the
collars 123 at some distance above the bin 120. Side flanges 125 may project
inward from the
side walls 122 partially across the front opening to the bin 120. The bin 120
may include short
front wall 124, leaving large openings at the front of the bin 120 for product
accessibility.
[0030] As shown in Figures 8 and 9, a bracket 130 having apertures 132
can be
placed on the bin 120 for additional support of the tubes 118. Referring to
Figure 10, additional
bins 120 can be stacked on top of the bin 120 by extending the tubes 118
through the collars 123.
The bracket 130 prevents the upper bin 120 from sliding down into a nesting
position with the
lower bin 120. Several layers of such bins 120 create a set of shelves in each
quadrant of the
pallet deck 82.
[0031] With such arrangement, goods can be loaded into the bins 120 on
the pallet 80
and shipped to a store. The pallet 80 and bins 120 can be placed on the store
floor where
customers can remove products from the bins through the front opening (at each
corner). When
empty, the shelving can be disassembled and the empty bins 120 can be nested
within one
another, i.e., with the base 121 of each bin 120 received between the side
walls 122 of the bin
120 below. The tubes 118 are also disassembled to occupy less volume. The
disassembled
shelving can then be returned to the warehouse or distribution facility for
reassembly and reuse.
6
CA 02858671 2014-08-08
,
Everything in this embodiment can be formed of plastic, including the pallet
80 (which is
known), the platform 112, the bin 120 and the tubes 118 (extruded).
[0032] A shelving system 210 according to a third embodiment is
shown in Figures
11-14. The shelving system 210 includes four quarter-pallet shelving units
212, each having
perpendicular vertical walls 214 extending outward from a center. The walls
214 are secured to
a base of each shelving unit 212. The shelving unites 212 are secured to the
deck 82 of a pallet
80, dividing the pallet deck 82 into four (not-necessarily equal) areas.
Partial shelves 218
connect adjacent surfaces of adjacent walls 214 and provide support surfaces.
An elongated
support, such as a post or pole 220, extends upward from the corner of the
base 222. The pole
220 includes a plurality of vertically spaced support surfaces 224. The pole
220 may be
retractable (e.g., telescoping) or may be formed in connectable sections.
Trays, such as plastic
tray 10A (or tray 10 of Figure 1), can be stacked on the shelves 218 and
supported by the support
surfaces 224 on the pole 220 to form a temporary shelving unit. Upper portions
230 of the wall
214 can carry ads or information about the products in the trays 10A.
[0033] Again, goods can be shipped to a store in the trays 10A on
the pallet 80. At
the store, customers can remove goods from the trays 10A for purchase. When
empty, the trays
10A can be stacked and the walls 214 can be folded together and laid flat. The
poles 220 can be
removed. The disassembled shelving unit can be shipped back to the warehouse
or distribution
facility for reuse.
[0034] In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes and
jurisprudence,
exemplary configurations described above are considered to represent a
preferred embodiment of
7
CA 02858671 2014-08-08
. ,
,
the invention. However, it should be noted that the invention can be practiced
otherwise than as
specifically illustrated and described without departing from its spirit or
scope.
8
