Shelf box-type modular element and display

Abstract

A shelf box-type modular elements for stacking and presenting two-dimensional piece goods in a substantially vertical orientation, which elements can be introduced into a rack or frame. The modular elements are trays that are parallel-piped in at least their ends zones, with an angle (&agr;, &bgr;, &ggr;) smaller 90°, that remain open towards the top and that have a low-cut portion on the front wall. The front wall can also be transparent. A display consisting of a rack or frame includes at least one vertical compartment, open towards the front, and having trays introduced individually one on top of the other. The lateral walls and the intermediate walls of the vertical compartment(s) are provided with elements fro introducing and fixing the trays at an angle. The elements are arranged in such a manner that the front wall and the lateral walls of the trays extend in a substantially vertical orientation.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates to rack box-like modular elements for approximately vertical stacking and presentation of flat unit goods, which elements can be introduced into a stand or a frame. The invention further concerns a display of a stand or frame with at least one vertical chamber which is open at the front, a lid and a base, which chamber is filled with trays stacked individually above each other.

[0002] Recently for flat unit goods greater efforts have been made not only to transport, store and present these in a sales frame, but also to bring these to the customers' attention by simultaneous representative and systematic displays. At the same time, by simple additional measures, these displays are suitable for transport of the flat unit goods.

[0003] Chocolate bars as an example of flat unit goods are usually presented in a product outer, the bars being arranged horizontally or vertically in compartments. In both cases the customer selects the product he desires according to his needs. So the individual stacks vary greatly in height and depth. To retain an overall positive impression for the customer, the shop staff must constantly refill and re-arrange the display, which is associated with considerable extra cost. In particular for a large distributor, previously there have been no satisfactory displays which meet all requirements in the optimum manner.

[0004] U.S. Pat. No. 5,322,172 discloses a foldable display with also foldable trays to hold flat unit goods. The trays are formed rectangular in the x, y and z directions and have a cut- out at the front. When goods are removed, the remainder must be moved forward manually.

[0005] It is an object of the present invention to improve the transport, presentation, removal and forward movement of flat unit goods while retaining at least the same cost efficiency. These flat unit goods are stacked and presented approximately vertically in rack box-like modular elements, where the individual elements can be inserted in a rack or a frame.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] Wherein, with regard to the modular elements. The foregoing object is achieved according to the invention trays are formed parallelepipedic at least in the edge area, with at least one angle less than 90□, remain open at the top, have a cut-out at the front and/or at least this front wall is formed transparent. Special and refined embodiments of the trays are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0007] Rack box-like modular elements known as trays, which can be pushed, suspended or placed in a stand or frame, have been known for some time. These known trays are however always cuboid. The possibility of attractive or even striking presentation is normally lost.

[0008] A parallelepiped—a basic geometric concept—is a three-dimensional body bordered on all sides by parallelograms, where at least one parallelogram is not a rectangle or square. In the case of the present invention at least the base surface is formed as a non-rectangular parallelogram. Preferably however the side surfaces, front and rear walls are also not rectangular or square.

[0009] The base surface of the parallelepipedic tray is usually designed flat, corresponding to the stacked flat unit goods. If these goods do not however have a flat support surface or a straight support edge, the base surface of the tray can be formed accordingly. For example, with flat cans stacked upright, the base surface of the tray in the middle area can be formed correspondingly in a cylinder casing shape. Evidently this is advantageous in comparison with a flat base as the tray in this case requires no special guide bars or similar. Furthermore, if the goods do not extend over the entire width of the tray, a recessed guide groove in the tray base is advantageous.

[0010] The flat unit goods held in the tray must automatically slip forward even on a relatively slight slope of the tray. In other words the base surface of the tray must be as smooth as possible and have a low co-efficient of friction. If this is not given by the tray material, the base surface is coated accordingly. Evidently, if the tray base surface is shaped product-specific, automatic slipping must also be possible geometrically.

[0011] In principle the trays must be made from a sufficiently rigid material, where the expert takes into account the weight, dimensions, form and slip ability of the goods to be stacked. The trays can for example be:

[0012] punched and folded from corrugated cardboard,

[0013] punched and folded from metal sheet, or

[0014] formed as a plastic injection moulding.

[0015] The production naturally also takes into account economic and ecological criteria. For non-flat tray bases in particular or exclusively the plastic injection moulding is recommended, where disposal is also taken into account.

[0016] According to an important refinement of the invention, in particular the paired mirror image or plane symmetrical design of the trays is recommended. After fitting the trays in a display, the faces of the trays form a zig-zag surface which is more clearly visible from all oblique positions than a flat surface.

[0017] Evidently the essentially parallelepipedic trays according to the present invention are not suitable for placing in a conventional rack or stand.

[0018] With regard to the display, the object is achieved according to the invention in that the side and intermediate walls of the vertical chambers have means for the oblique insertion and fixing of the trays, which means are arranged such that the front wall and side surfaces of the trays run approximately vertical, where the base surface in relation to the horizontal has a forward tilt angle (&bgr;′) corresponding to the angle (90°-&bgr;) and a side tilt angle (&ggr;′) corresponding to the angle (90°-&ggr;). Special and refined embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0019] The means for oblique insertion and fixing of the trays are thus dependent for their position on the tray geometry. Except in the special case of rectangular or square tray faces, these need not only be tilted forwards for slipping, but also tilted to the side so that all side walls of the trays are aligned approximately vertically. The term “vertical” here includes a deviation from the vertical of maximum 5°, preferably maximum 2°. The alignment as close as possible to the vertical of all side surfaces of the essentially parallelepipedic trays in the display has a practical reason, as otherwise the stands or frames would have to be designed more complicated and less user- and customer-friendly.

[0020] The number and arrangement of the vertical chambers in the displays is in principle arbitrary and is determined by practical and visual factors. In the most common case the chambers are arranged next to each other so that alternating pairs of plane-symmetrical trays form with their front walls a zig-zag surface. For production reasons the trays should have one or at most a few standard dimensions and the displays adapted accordingly. The displays in turn should preferably be dimensioned so that in total in relation to their base surface they have the dimensions of standard pallets, or for smaller embodiments a half or quarter thereof. The stand or frame can also be formed so that on the front and rear a zig-zag face of the displays can be formed which is clearly visible.

[0021] For transport of the displays, as known only a cover, i.e. an adapted hood, need be applied down to the base or beyond and fixed with strapping.

[0022] The displays according to the invention with trays according to the invention are suitable for the transport, stacking, presentation and removal of flat unit goods of all types, for example chocolate bars, compact discs, books and at least semi-rigid bags.

[0023] As well as the always desirable excellent presentation of the goods with visual effect of the total display, the invention has the following advantages:

[0024] Due to the oblique position of the tray face in the display, more space is obtained so that for the given space available, more flat products can be presented next to each other. An optimum front view is achieved by the alternating arrangement of trays forming a zig-zag surface which gives an optimum viewing angle from any aspect.

[0025] The geometry according to the invention allows, on removal of the front product, automatic movement forwards thanks to gravity. The movement always takes place in a stable position, tipping of the goods to the rear is excluded thanks to the tray geometry.

[0026] An unchanged presentation of the products is possible in particular of a brand or trademark, during the collection period in the retail store.

[0027] The display can be designed in many ways, for example in rows with the front, with the front and rear, semi-cylindrical or fully cylindrical. In all embodiments an extraordinarily high stability can be achieved.

[0028] When the display is half sold-out, partial or full trays can be replaced in modular fashion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] The invention is now described in more detail with reference to embodiment examples shown in the drawing which are also the subject of the dependent claims. These show diagrammatically:

[0030] FIG. 1 a perspective view of a tray,

[0031] FIG. 2 a base form punched from corrugated cardboard for a mirror-image design of the tray in FIG. 1 for folding,

[0032] FIG. 3 a perspective view of a display with trays,

[0033] FIG. 4 a view of a centre support of a display,

[0034] FIG. 5 a view of an unfolded side supporting wall of a display,

[0035] FIG. 6 a view of an unfolded long intermediate wall,

[0036] FIG. 7 a view of an unfolded short intermediate wall,

[0037] FIG. 8 a top view onto a plug connection, and

[0038] FIG. 9 a double plug connection of the side wall of the display.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] A tray 10 shown in FIG. 1 consists of rigid corrugated cardboard shown flat in FIG. 2.

[0040] The parallelogram structure of the parallelepipedic tray 10 is given a stable form by four glued tabs 12, 14.

[0041] The base or base surface 16 is designed as a parallelogram with at the front an angle &agr; of 60 to 85°, preferably 65 to 75°, most suitably around 70°. The figures relate to the old division with 360° as the full scope. Punched out of the base surface 16 is an arc-shaped recess 18 and four locking lugs 20, the latter running in the plane of two parallel side walls 22 which are also formed as parallelograms. The side walls have an angle &bgr; &ggr;. A closed rear wall 24 and a front wall 26 also run parallel and are also formed as parallelograms and tilted at an angle &ggr; &bgr;. Of the front wall 26 at the front there remain two cut-outs in the area of side walls 22.

[0042] It is clear that the tray 10 has the base form of a parallelepiped with parallelogram surfaces all round. In contrast to angle &bgr; which lies in the same angle range as angle &agr;, where the two angles can be the same or different, angle &ggr; lies in the range of 70 to 90°, preferably 75 to 80°, suitably around 80°, always in relation to the horizontal.

[0043] FIG. 3 shows a display 30 with trays 10 installed in five chambers 32. Although shown in only one tray, all trays 10 are filled with vertically arranged flat unit goods 34.

[0044] The trays 10 are installed in the stand or frame 36 of the display 30 so that the base 16 is inclined forwards at an angle &bgr;′ i.e. 90°-&bgr;, and in the direction of one side supporting wall 38 at an angle &ggr;′ i.e. 90°-&ggr; (see also FIG. 1). The side walls 22, the rear wall 24 and the front wall 26 of the trays 10 are inserted in the display 30 arranged approximately vertically.

[0045] The following details are evident from FIG. 3 which is drawn without lid and without base.

[0046] The display 30 is open on both sides, trays 10 can therefore also be introduced from behind.

[0047] Chambers 32a and 32b, and chambers 32c and 32d have alternately a long intermediate wall 42 and a short intermediate wall 44. The length of these intermediate walls 42, 44 is adapted to the trays 10. Thus the face of the display forms a zig-zag surface indicated by line 46. It has already been stated that thanks to this measure the face of the display 30 or the face 26 available and hence the unit goods 34 are more visible from all angles.

[0048] In the side walls 38 and all intermediate walls 42, 44 are made punched slots 40 which determine the said position of trays 10. For the side walls 38, double plug connections 48 (FIG. 9), and for intermediate walls 42, 44 plug connections 50 (FIG. 8) are guided through these punched slots and engaged with the locking lugs 20 (FIG. 1) of the trays 10. The trays 10 thus act in a manner of cross braces and give the entire display 30 an excellent stability.

[0049] FIG. 4 shows a centre support 52 which is not visible in FIG. 3, this like the side walls 38 and intermediate walls 42, 44 comprises a solid, rigid corrugated cardboard panel. The punched slots 58 shown in FIG. 4 in the centre support 52 are aligned vertically and serve to hold the locking lugs 54 of the intermediate walls 42, 44 (FIG. 6, 7). The locking lugs 56 of the centre support 52 in turn are suspended in vertical punched slots 58 of the side walls 38 (FIG. 5) of the display. Finally, from the centre support 52, upper and lower grooves 60, 62 are formed to hold locking elements of the lid 54 and base 56 indicated merely in dotted lines.

[0050] FIG. 5 shows an unfolded side wall 38 of the display 30 (FIG. 3). The two side lugs are folded along the two fold lines 68, shown in double lines, and glued together. Thus the punched slots 48, 58 lie precisely over each other. As stated the punched slots 40 hold the double plug connection 48 (FIG. 3), the punched slots 58 hold the locking lugs 56 of the centre support 52 (FIG. 4). All punched slots 40 are also arranged at an angle &bgr;′ on both the front and the rear. The angle &bgr;′(90°-&bgr;) defines the slope forward of the base 16 of all trays 10.

[0051] The long intermediate wall 42 can also be folded along the fold line 68 shown in double lines and glued, as shown in FIG. 6, and with its punched grooves 40 has the tilt angle &bgr;′ of the base 16 of the tray 10. After folding the punched slots 60 lie precisely over each other. The locking lugs 54 as stated are inserted in the vertical slots 58 of the centre support 52. Distance a1 from the top edge 70 determines the level of all punched slots 40, which always have the same spacing.

[0052] The short intermediate wall 44 according to FIG. 7 differs from FIG. 6 in width, as its name indicates. The distance a2 from the top punched slot 40 from the upper edge 72 is also slightly less than the distance a1 of the long intermediate wall 42. This gives the tilt &ggr;′ (90°-&ggr;) of the base 16 of the tray 10 in the direction of a side wall 22. As stated above, due to the inclines &bgr;′ and &ggr;′ of the base surface 16, side walls 22, rear wall 24 and front wall 26 are arranged approximately vertical in display 30 (FIG. 3).

[0053] FIG. 8 shows a plug connection 50 according to FIG. 3 in detail. The two edges 74 which are arranged spaced apart each have an opening 76 and a connecting web 78. The flat plug connections 50 with their edges 74 are pushed through a punched slot 40 of an intermediate wall 42, 44 until the web 78 makes contact. When the trays 10 are inserted in a vertical chamber 32, the locking lugs 20 (FIG. 1) are pushed into the space of opening 76 formed by an intermediate wall 42, 44 shown as a dotted line and an edge 74, until the base 16 of a tray 10 lies on the flat plug connection 50. The locking lugs 20 guarantee an automatic, solid locking which also increases the stability of the entire display 30 (FIG. 3).

[0054] Finally, FIG. 9 shows in detail a double plug connection 48 evident in FIG. 3. The four edges 74 with the openings 76 are then bent at right angles on the same side. The two edge pairs 74 arranged with spacing b are pushed into the corresponding punched slots 40 of the side wall 38 where distance b corresponds to one module height.

[0055] The double plug connection 48 which is visible from the outside in the side walls 38 can be coated with a decorative cover plate, not shown, which further improves the stability, protects against damage and/or contains appropriate advertising information.

[0056] The side wall 38 of the display 30 is indicated merely in dotted lines, on insertion of trays 10 locking lugs 20 are pressed into the intermediate space of the side wall 38 and edge 74, leading to further stabilising locking.

Claims

1: Rack box-like module elements for approximately vertical stacking and presentation of flat unit goods (34), which elements can be introduced into a stand or frame (36), wherein the module elements have trays (10) which are parallelepipedic at least in the edge area, with at least one angle (&agr;, &bgr;, &ggr;) less than 90°, the trays are open at the top and have a cut-out (28) at the front (26) and/or are transparent at the front.

2: Trays (10) according to claim 1, wherein the angle (&agr;) of the edge of the base (16) of the trays (10) and the tilt angle (&bgr;) of the face and rear wall amount to 60 to 85°, and the angle (&ggr;) of their side walls (22) in each case is 70-90° in relation to the horizontal.

3: Trays (10) according to claim 1 wherein the trays include a base and at least two locking lugs (20) project downwards from the base in the area of the side walls (22).

4: Trays (10) according to claim 2, wherein the face (16) is formed at a distance from the side walls (22), with a groove.

5: Trays (10) according to claim 4, wherein the base (16) has a low co-efficient of friction.

6: Trays (10) according to claim 1, wherein the cut-out (28) is shaped to be product-specific.

7: Trays (10) according to wherein the tray is one of (1) punched out of corrugated cardboard and folded, (2) punched from metal sheet and edged, and (3) formed as a plastic injection moulding.

8: Trays (10) according to claim 1, wherein the trays are formed in pairs in two mirror image variants.

9: Display (30) as a stand or frame (36) with at least one vertical chamber (32) which is open at the front, a lid (64) and a base (66), which chamber (32) is filled with trays (10) according to claim 1 inserted individually above each other, wherein the side walls (38) and the intermediate walls (42, 44) of the vertical chamber(s) (32) have means for the oblique insertion and fixing of the trays (10), said means being arranged such that the front wall (26) and the side surfaces (22) of the trays run approximately vertical, where the base surface in relation to the horizontal has a forward tilt angle (&bgr;′) corresponding to the angle (90°-&bgr;) and a side tilt angle (&ggr;′) corresponding to the angle (90°-&ggr;).

10: Display (30) according to claim 9, wherein adjacent vertical chambers (32a, 32b, 32c, 32d, 32e) contain alternating plane-symmetrical different trays (10), which lie on each other in pairs in a mirror image and form a zig-zag front (46).

11: Display (30) according to claim 11, wherein the stand (36) consists of folded corrugated cardboard panels and the side walls (38), intermediate walls (42, 44) and centre support (52) are connected together and with the lid or base by way of plug connections (48, 50).

12: Display (30) according to claim 12, wherein the plug connections (48, 50) are also means for oblique insertion and fixing of the trays (10).

13: Display (30) according to claim 13, wherein the side walls (38) are designed to receive advertising.

14: Display (30) according to claim 14, wherein the display for it is covered with a cover drawn down to the base and stabilised with strapping.

15 (cancelled):

16: Display (30) according to claim 2, wherein angle (&bgr;) is 65 to 75° and angle (&ggr;) is 75 to 85°.