Abstract: A rack for storing and presenting, for serial dispensing, a plurality of bottles suspended from a suspension location at an elevation in the rack in a line essentially parallel to the rack and through a dispensing station, the rack being inclined upwardly away from the dispensing station for biasing the bottles into the dispensing station by the force of gravity, a gate at the dispensing station having gate members including engagement surfaces for engaging the forwardmost bottle, placed in the dispensing station, at stabilizing locations below the elevation of the suspension location and spaced downwardly a vertical distance from the elevation of the suspension location, and above the elevation of the suspension location and spaced upwardly a vertical distance from the elevation of the suspension location sufficient to maintain the forwardmost bottle in an essentially vertical orientation, stabilized against the force of gravity, including the forward force of the remaining bottles suspended along the line b

Abstract: A plastic hinge is attached to selected substrates by adhesion between the plastic hinge and the substrates to effect a hinged connection between the substrates and includes a hinge member of a synthetic polymeric material having desired hinge characteristics, a mounting member of a material capable of adhesion to a corresponding selected substrate, and mechanical interlocking elements mechanically securing together the hinge member and a corresponding mounting member such that the plastic hinge is secured to each selected substrate by adhesion between each mounting member and a corresponding selected substrate.

Abstract: An articulated gravity feed module includes a curved chute for holding items for sale, the chute having a curved bottom wall with a radius of curvature decreasing from a rear portion to a front portion, and side walls connected with the bottom wall; a mounting assembly mounting the chute to a wall; a hopper for supplying items to the chute, the hopper including an elongated enclosure having an open upper end for restocking the items and an open lower end which is always open to the chute for depositing items on the chute, the elongated enclosure being formed by a rear wall, a front wall and interconnecting side walls, the rear wall having a lower portion with a radius of curvature similar to that of the rear portion of the bottom wall of the chute so that the lower portion of the rear wall rides along the rear portion of the bottom wall of the chute; pivot pins pivotally securing the hopper to the chute at a position above the chute, such that the hopper is pivotable between an upright dispensing position adj

Abstract: An overhead pack dispensing apparatus includes a plurality of trays holding an extensive inventory of packs in an array of altitudinal stacks of packs with the lowermost pack of each stack in a field of lateral rows and longitudinal columns, the apparatus including a control system responsive to the selection of at least one pack, and a carriage carrying pickers for actuation by the control system to traverse the field and carry a picker for location beneath the selected pack such that a picker is located beneath at least one selected pack, enabling the selected pack to be picked from a stack and delivered by the carriage to a dispensing location.

Abstract: A sign holder includes a frame secured to a clevis journaled on a bracket for attachment to a price channel at the edge of a display shelf for projecting the frame, and a sign carried in the frame, laterally from the shelf edge into a display position of the sign, the clevis including an integral camming surface and a resiliently flexible arm for allowing swinging of the frame relative to the bracket out of the display position of the sign in response to collisions with the sign when the frame is in the display position of the sign, the establishing a biasing force tending to return the frame to and maintain the frame in the display position of the sign.