Product Dispenser Assembly

Abstract

A system of retail store fixtures having downwardly mounted spring feeding pusher devices for pushing products toward the front of shelves. In one embodiment, the pusher devices extend downward from shelves and push products in open tray type of bulk product shipment containers on a lower shelf forward toward the consumer. In another embodiment, the pushers and product trays are in a self-contained module for placement on shelves.

Description

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/391,797, filed Feb. 24, 2009, entitled “PRODUCT DISPENSER ASSEMBLY AND CARTRIDGE FOR HOLDING PRODUCT”, which claimed the benefit under 35 USC §119(e) of Provisional Application No. 61/031,090, filed Feb. 25, 2008, entitled “PRODUCT DISPENSER AND CARTRIDGE FOR HOLDING PRODUCT”. The aforementioned applications are hereby incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of retail packaging and displays and, more particularly, to a retail product holding and feeding mechanism into which an open tray containing a plurality of packaged products is installed, the product in the tray being delivered toward a shopper, while the tray remains stationary at the shelf location.

2. Description of Related Art

There are a number of types of product displays; however, one of the basic product displays consists of traditional shelves on which individual products are placed. This arrangement is found in most retail stores, including clothing stores and in particular, in grocery stores. Often, the products are arranged and loaded for bulk shipment into shrink wrapped, open shipper trays, (other types of bulk packed shipment cartons are used, but are not germain to the instant invention) that are currently sized, designed and packed considering only operational and pallet size parameters and using package counts (usually based on dozens in English countries).

FIGS. 10a through 10f show various designs for shipping trays 400, as are commonly used in the marketplace for shipping products 50 in bulk. Each of these packs includes stacked product 50 that is arranged in rows and columns and each pack has a front edge that permits the product to be removed from the pack but at the same time restrains forward movement of the tray. This arrangement is equally applicable to cans stacked two-high (FIGS. 10a-10e) or three high (FIG. 10f). Cans can be in one row (FIG. 10b), two rows (FIGS. 10a, 10c, 10d or 10f) or three rows (FIG. 10e), or even more.

The shipping trays are typically wrapped in plastic 55 to retain the products 50 during shipment. FIG. 10a shows a simple shipping tray 400 with equal height, relatively low sides and ends. The ends 410 of each tray may also be made taller, with a cut down area 520 relative to the sidewalls in order to facilitate removal of product and make the product easier to see. This is shown in FIGS. 10b-10f.

Currently such trays are displayed mainly in two ways:

• • First; they are unwrapped from their shrink film and placed as is on a shelf or other supporting display structure of some sort.
  • Second; the products are individually removed from the tray and placed individually on a shelf or other supporting display structure.

In both instances, no provision is made, nor can one be made without additional device(s) for the automatic front facing (or forwardly feeding) of the products toward shoppers for easy selection and removal of products while shopping.

This is a very time consuming task and requires manual labor in which a store stocker, after removing the tray shrink wrapping or similar covering, then individually removes the packaged products and places them on the store shelves. The product is arranged in rows and columns and stacked on top of one another. It also occurs, especially in warehouse or club type stores, that the trays are unwrapped and placed, wholly as is and with the products in place, upon the existing, ordinary store shelves for shoppers to individually select products therefrom that they wish to purchase. In both arrangements, the products have no integral way or mechanism of being automatically forwardly fed toward the front of the shelves for a more attractive “front-faced” appearance, or toward shoppers for their improved viewing and product selecting.

Another associated disadvantage of this arrangement is that the stocker must continuously and manually “front-face” the stock so that it remains neatly displayed and readily available for shoppers. This is a time consuming task, and if delayed, the shelves develop an unkempt appearance. Further, if this front-facing process is neglected, product packages often become located so far to the rear of the trays and/or shelves that they appear to be out-of-stock or are unreachable, thereby reducing potential sales thereof.

Spring loaded push members are known to the art, such as at cosmetic counters and in cosmetic displays. Where such pushers have been used, the individual products are removed from bulk shipment packaging and then loaded one at a time into individual feed rows, with each feed row having a spring loaded push member extending either upward from the floor thereof or outwardly from the sidewalls thereof.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a system of retail store fixtures having downwardly mounted spring feeding pusher devices for pushing products toward the front of shelves. In one embodiment, the pusher devices extend downward from shelves and push products in open tray type of bulk product shipment containers on a lower shelf forward toward the consumer. In another embodiment, the pushers and product trays are in a self-contained module for placement on shelves.

Unlike conventional tray on shelf arrangements, the guiding and feeding mechanisms of the present invention are configured so that, while the tray remains stationary on the shelf the individual product units are advanced forward within the tray to a front faced and dispensing location near the front edge of the shelf. This reduces stocking complexity and the time involved in the stocking process, creates a continuously and automatically neat, front-faced products condition and makes finding and selection of products easier for shoppers.

When such system is installed at retail stores and integrated together into retail operations and handling, it reduces handling time, labor and hence costs and increases efficiencies and sales effectiveness for packaged consumer goods sold at retail stores. Individual package handling at retail, currently required to stock and arrange inventory of products on shelves for display and sale to shoppers, will be significantly reduced, thus significantly reducing shelf management and restocking time, labor and the associated costs in the supply chain and at retail.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the product dispenser of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view, partially broken away, of a shelf incorporating the invention.

FIG. 3 is a side exploded view of the invention.

FIG. 4 is the same view as FIG. 3, with the parts assembled.

FIGS. 5a and 5b show two methods of affixing adjustable row dividers as may be used with the invention.

FIGS. 6a and 6b are rear views of the pusher plates of the invention, showing two different sizes of plates.

FIGS. 7a and 7c are perspective and side views, respectively, showing attachment of an add-on plate to the pusher of the invention.

FIG. 7b is a front view of the pusher shown in FIG. 7a.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the invention in a self-contained module embodiment.

FIGS. 9a and 9b are perspective views of the embodiment of FIG. 8 with product trays, in configurations for two different tray widths.

FIGS. 10a to 10f show prior art shipper trays in various configurations.

FIGS. 11a to 11d show various arrangements of store fixtures on which the invention may be used.

FIG. 12 shows a perspective view of the pusher of the invention in use with a bulk shipper tray modified for use with non-nesting or non-stacking packages.

FIG. 13 shows a side view of the invention in use with the modified tray of FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 shows a variation on the tray of FIG. 12, using a transparent front wall.

FIG. 15 shows how the system of the invention can be used in a first-in first-out (FIFO) stocking method.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 shows a dispenser 300 according to the first embodiment of the invention, in which the invention is incorporated into a store gondola or fixture 310. This may be a pre-existing fixture which currently holds the pre-existing, ordinary store shelving, or might be specially supplied for the invention. If the pre-existing fixture is used, the ordinary shelves would be replaced with the support platforms 320 of this invention. The support surface 320 can be a planar platform that includes a top surface 322 and an opposing bottom surface 324. The platform 320 is constructed so that a biased product feed mechanism 330 is disposed therein and is configured to controllably advance the product as it is removed by consumers.

The system of the invention may be used on level shelving, as shown in FIG. 1. However, it will be understood that the feed mechanism 330 of the invention also allows the invention to be used in other arrangements, as shown in FIGS. 11a-11d. Specifically, the invention can be used with a fixture 550 with level shelves 551, or with downward sloping shelves 553 shown in FIG. 11b, which allows a shopper 552 better sight lines to the tops of products. Also, the system can be used with upward sloping shelves 554 as shown in FIG. 11c, which are especially useful on bottom shelves to allow the shopper 552 to more easily see the fronts of the products. Or, as shown in FIG. 11d, a mixture of downwardly sloping upper shelves 553 and upwardly sloping lower shelves 554 can be used within the teachings of the invention.

The downward angle of shelves 553 not only assists viewing and selection of products on upper shelves, but, when used throughout the assembly, it assists the feeding action aided by gravity, which makes it possible to use less powerful springs, which further makes it easier for shoppers to remove and even replace products from/to the trays.

More specifically, the feed mechanism 330 includes a bias member 340 that is associated with the platform 320 and is coupled to a pusher plate 350. For example, the biased feed mechanism can be in the form of a spring assisted pusher plate module that includes the pusher plate 350. The bottom surface 324 is tracked, slotted or channeled along a linear support 325 to accept installation and movement of the spring assisted pusher plate module across the support. For example, the tracks can be in the form of slots and ribs; can be “I” shaped or “H” shaped; or can be “T” shaped or “L” shaped; or any similar cross-section that creates a channeling matrix. The bias member 340 can be in the form of a coil spring (variously referred to as coiled, flat, band or negator constant force spring) that has a one end 342 fixedly attached to the platform 320 and another end is coupled to the pusher plate 350 such that in a rest position, the biasing force of the spring applies a force to the pusher plate 350 and drives the pusher plate 350 to a front edge 321 of the platform 320. Other bias force mechanisms are possible within the teachings of the invention, such as other kinds of springs, elastic cords, etc.

The feed mechanism 330 is inverted, such that it extends downwardly from the underside of a shelf (support) member above, and is thus included in the ceiling of a separate support member, as opposed to the floor or sidewalls of the displaying support member. Thus, the pusher plate 350 extends downwardly from the bottom surface 324 of an upper platform toward the top surface of the underlying platform 320 and is designed to engage product as described below.

Each platform 320 can include a number of adjustable dividers 380. In particular, the top surface of platform 320 receives a plurality of position adjustable row dividers 380 to organize and separate a plurality of trays 400. These dividers 380 are inserted into guide channels formed in the platform which permit transverse (side-to-side) movement and positioning of the dividers 380 along the top surface of platform 320. This permits different sized (e.g., different widths) trays 400 to be loaded into the dispenser 300. The dividers 380 divide and separate one product tray from another product tray.

FIGS. 5a and 5b show two alternate embodiments of the row dividers 380. In both figures, the rear lip 510 of the row divider 380 clips around the rear 411 of the shelf 320. The embodiments of FIGS. 5a and 5b differ in the arrangement of the front element 505 of the divider 380. In FIG. 5a, the front element is in the form of a clip 502 which slides and locks over lip 501 along the front of the shelf 320. In FIG. 5b the front element is a locking tab 503 which snaps into a mating slot 504 along the front of the shelf. In both embodiments, the divider 380 is free to slide sideways along the shelf 320, while being constrained from being easily removed.

As shown in FIG. 1, the shrink wrapping or other protective covering having been removed, the product filled bulk shipper tray 400 is inserted and held upon the shelf between two guiding row dividers 380. The filled tray 400 and products 50 therein drive the pusher plate 350 rearward toward a rear of the dispenser 300. During this loading process the coiled, flat spring 340 which drives the pusher plate 350 extends along its track, storing energy, and creates tension upon the pusher plate 350. That stored energy causes the pusher plate 350 to press forwardly against the product packages 50 within the tray 400, causing them to feed forwardly within the tray when product packages at the front of the tray are removed. The pusher plate 350 moves within the track 324, 325 so that it can be moved in a smooth, controlled manner.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a stop wall 321 located along the front edge of the platform 320 serves to stop and limit forward movement of the tray 400 when the pusher plate 350 applies a force to the product contained therein. Additionally it is possible to design row dividers with right angle walls at their front edge which also serve as the tray stop walls. It will be appreciated that a variety of different stop wall and row divider design combinations can be devised which perform the functions of dividing the plurality trays, one from another, and of preventing the trays from being ejected off of the platform and onto the floor below by the pushers.

As shown in FIG. 14, stop wall 563 may also be taller if it is manufactured from a clear material, so as not to obstruct a shopper's view of the products in the tray. In either design, this wall should not be sufficiently tall to obstruct easy selection and removal of products by shoppers.

To prevent the pusher 350 from ejecting the individual product packages 50 out of the tray 400 and onto the floor, the tray should have a front wall extending upwardly, preferably a distance equal to approximately one-half to two-thirds of the height of one product package therein. If the products 50 are of the kind which nest or stack into each other, for example canned goods where the bottom of a can fits within an upper lip of a can below it, the lower level packages will keep the upper-level packages from sliding out the front of the tray if the invention is used on an inclined shelf as shown in FIGS. 11b and 11d. Packages which do not nest or stack, however, would pose a problem on downwardly tilted shelves because they will slide out of the tray 400.

FIGS. 12-14 show a tray modification which can be used for product packages 50 which do not nest or stack into each other, to permit use in such downwardly tilted shelves. The illustrated design of bulk shipper tray 560 in FIGS. 12-14, which has the required low rear wall 562 to clear the pusher plate 350, but also has a tall front wall 561, would permit such non-stacking packages to be stocked on a downwardly angled shelf with the invention, since the higher front wall 561 would retain the products in the tray.

The benefits of such would be:

• • Downwardly angled shelves enable the use of weaker biasing springs, because they are gravity assisted, which makes it easier for shoppers to select and return packages.
  • Downwardly tilted shelves make it easier to see and access products in such a “bin type” tray, especially on the lower shelves

As shown in FIG. 14, shows how such a tray 560 may be designed to overcome the obvious viewing impediment created by the higher front tray wall 561 shown in FIG. 12. In that figure a tray 560 with a transparent front lip 564 is shown which would permit viewing the product. Similarly, a transparent panel 564 of acetate or similar for example, could be tabbed (or attached in any other known method of assembly) into a tray 560 having a low front lip as shown in FIGS. 10c, 10e or 10f, thereby converting the tray into a “Bin Type” Tray 560 as shown in FIG. 14 and simultaneously providing improved products visibility.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the tray 400 includes a body 410 that includes opposing side walls 412 and opposing end walls 414 that extend between the side walls 412. As seen, the side walls 412 have a height that is much greater than a height of the ends 414 since the product is removed by the consumer through one end 414. The higher side walls 412 permit the product to be stacked within the tray body 410 and hold the products securely during transport. The number of layers and the number of rows of product within the tray body 410 will vary depending upon the particular product and packaging and display specifications. For example, the illustrated embodiment has three layers of cans 50 stacked on top of one another. The front end wall 414, facing shoppers, is just high enough that the bottom row is prevented from moving; however, the top portions of the bottom rows of cans are located above the top edge of the front end wall 414, thereby permitting the cans to be easily removed. However, the height of the stop wall 321 is great enough that the tray 400 will not simply jump the stop wall 390 when the biasing force is applied. The end wall 414 abuts against the stop wall 390.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 6a and 6b, an empty tray 400 can be simply lifted over the stop wall 321 and removed since the rear end wall 414 of tray 400 is just low enough to slide underneath the bottom edge of the pusher plate 350 to permit removal of the tray 400. Conversely, to load a full tray, the tray 400 is angled and inserted above the stop wall 321, and the pusher plate 350 locates behind the rearmost stack of product.

Both front and rear end walls 414 are preferably sized to satisfy the following specifications: high enough to prevent product units from inadvertently jumping the end wall; low enough to conveniently expose the tops of the bottom rows of products for shoppers; and low enough to clear the bottom edge of the pusher plate such that the biasing force applied by the pusher plate acts only upon all stacks, rows and columns of products, but not upon the tray tray.

More specifically, as can be seen in FIGS. 6a and 6b the design and sizing of the end walls 414 of the tray trays effectively provide a “notch” allowing clearance for the pusher plate through the sidewalls of the tray and providing forcible contract between it and the product stacks. As mentioned above, the bottom of the pusher plate 350 reaches the top portion of the bottom stack of the product and the bottom edge of the pusher plate 350 is disposed just over the end wall 414.

Since the pusher plate 350 is initially closer to the stop wall 321, the insertion of the filed tray 400 causes the pusher plate 350 to be driven rearward under the applied force of the filled tray 400. In the fully inserted position of the tray 400, the pusher plate 350 clears the top of the tray rear end wall 414 and applies a forward force to the product and as product is removed from the front of the tray 400 and in particular, when one column of product is removed, the spring biasing force of the feed mechanism causes the columns and rows of the product to advance forward. As more and more columns and rows of product are removed, the remaining product is continually advanced forward toward the stop wall 321. While the product feeds forward, the tray 410 remains stationary.

It will be appreciated that, since the product units 50 are being advanced forward by the biasing force of the spring loaded pusher plate rather than rolling or by other gravitational force, the product displayed and dispensed in this embodiment is not limited to being cans which roll but can also be in the form of variously shaped packages.

As shown in FIGS. 6a and 6b, left-to-right slidably adjustable row dividers 380 mounted within some type of channeling system and affixed to the top surface of said supporting shelf (structure) 320 and left-to-right slidably adjustable pusher modules 350 mounted within some type of channeling system and affixed hanging downwardly from the underside of said support shelf (structure) having been positioned to capture and position the tray and centered behind the products in the trays (respectively); the products will now be pushed forwardly within the trays towards a shopper.

The vertical spacing of the shelves and the vertical height and spacing of the pusher plates and pusher modules must be such that the bottommost edges of the pusher 51 plates, after assembly and installation of the trays will clear the topmost edge 52 of the lip of the tray rear wall 414 and push directly against only the product packages 50. Similarly, the side edges 54 of the pushers 350 need to clear the side edges 53 of the tray rear wall 414.

FIGS. 7a-7c show how the height and width of the pusher may be varied within the teachings of the invention. Such feature may be accomplished by a number of methods. In the design shown in FIGS. 7a-7c, a standard minimum sized pusher plate 530 is always in position on the spring feed module. A variety of taller and/or wider add-on plates 532 can be provided which increase the pusher's acting surface either downwardly or wider or both. The add-on plates 532 can be connected to the pusher 530, as shown, by having mating pieces 531 and 533 of hook-and-loop fastener material such as Velcro® on the pusher 530 and add-on plate 532, respectively. A tab 535 may be provided on the pusher 530 to fit into a slot 534 on plate 532, to ensure centering and prevent side-to-side movement when the fastener 531 on the pusher 530 is adhered to the fastener 533 on the plate 532. It will be understood by one skilled in the art that other means of attaching the add-on plates 532, such as tabs and slots or sliding tracks, or snaps, or other fastening means known to the art are possible within the teachings of the invention. Such add-on plates can quickly and easily be used at the store to customize pushers to fit and work with a wide variety of bulk shipper trays.

FIG. 3 shows an exploded diagram of a side-view of the first embodiment, and FIG. 4 shows the same view with the invention assembled. Those reference numbers in these figures which are the same as discussed above with respect to FIG. 1 will not be discussed separately here.

As can be seen in these drawings, the support platform 320 of the invention can be equipped with hooks 590 to hang the support platform from a standard shelf track. A transparent cover 591 may be provided, so that shelf labels can be affixed to the front of the support platform if desired.

In some instances and with some tray designs, it will be desirable and possible to restock a new filled tray before the old tray is empty, thus making it easier to avoid out-of-stocks while a particular facing is waiting to be refilled. The system of the invention can also be used with a First-in-First-Out (FIFO) stocking method. FIFO is most important for date coded products which have freshness expiration dates.

FIG. 15 shows both reloading before the old tray was completely empty and how older stock can be placed in front of the newer stock making dated stock FIFO rotation both possible and easier.

Often grocery shelves 320 are 18″ to 24″ deep (front to rear) but many Bulk Packed SKU trays 410 will be shorter than that, often in the 12″ range, and the individual product packages 50 therein will be significantly smaller even than that. If you load such a shorter tray 410 into a deeper shelf, as illustrated on the uppermost shelf 600 of FIG. 15, there is an unused space at the rear of the shelf. As can be seen on that shelf 600, when a displayed tray of products empties down to the last few product packages, but is not yet completely empty, then the following steps can be followed to accomplish the FIFO and Early Reloading process.

• 601—Remove the nearly empty tray 610 and products therein together from the display and set aside temporarily.
• 602—Reload the display with a new pre-packed bulk tray of products 613. Manually remove the last few remaining product packages 611 from the nearly empty tray, which was earlier set aside. Manually push the full tray 613 rearward far enough to create the empty/unused space at the front of the shelf instead of at its rear. Place the older products from the nearly empty tray 612 directly on the shelf in front of the new full tray 613. The pusher 350 will press forwardly against the entire full tray 613 as a unit, thereby forwardly feeding the individual products 612 placed in front of it toward the front edge stop wall 321.
• 603—When the last of the loose products 612 in front of the tray is finally removed from the shelf, the pusher 350 will now push the entire tray 613 into its frontmost position 615 contacting the shelf stopwall 321 and will begin forwardly feeding the products therein normally.

Note that this will only work when the bulk shipper trays are shorter than the store shelf depth by at least (or more than) the front to back dimension of one row of products therein, plus an additional amount for the pusher. Also, sufficient space will have to be allowed between shelves to allow a shopper to insert their entire hand down into the tray to fish out the bottom layer products.

The system will also work with a second embodiment, shown in FIGS. 8 and 9a-9b, wherein the trays 410 are inserted into and enclosed within individually, size-dedicated stand-alone modules 500. Such a system can be simply and easily installed upon the top surface of any existing store gondola shelving.

FIGS. 8 and 9b show a perspective view of a single enclosed housing module 500 with a single feed mechanism. A single spring-biased pusher plate 350 is disposed within the housing 500 and advances the product 50 forward into the open area 540 from which a consumer may select the product. The tray is held within the enclosure by stop wall 541, which serves the same function as the stop wall 321 in the shelf embodiment. Similarly, the side walls of the enclosure serve the same function as the row dividers 380 of the shelf embodiment. As with the previous embodiment, the pusher plate 350 is disposed extending downward from track 325 and is spring-biased to the front of the module 500.

The module 500 may also have a surface 570 for indicia, such as advertising, product information, promotional information, etc. The modules 500 can sit on plain platforms or countertops or could contain a mounting detail for wall hanging. As with the other embodiments, the tray 410 is intended to remain in place within the module 500 during use.

It will be appreciated that all of the trays disclosed herein can be manufactured from 100% recycled/recyclable stock and/or cellulosic based resins (non-petroleum).

The following additional features are realized in the dispensers and trays according to the present invention: (1) orientation during packing of individual product packages inside the SKU cartons according to how they will feed and be automatically front faced for viewing by shoppers; (2) tearable, perforated panels in tray cartons which, when removed, create openings through which individual product packages feed forwardly within and in a manner according to the dispensers of the present invention; (3) appropriately located printed or labeled panels on the trays, which when displayed at retail in the display(s) of this system, inform shoppers in a dedicated way, each tray to its specific dispenser, of product identity and other information required to locate specific product types and make an informed selection/purchase decision; and (4) across entire brands, types and/or categories of products (all canned pet food for example) a matrix plurality of tray carton accepting display devices which automatically feed & front face product packages for viewing by shoppers, are stocked and restocked with product inventory in the store aisles by the insertion of an entire bulk tray without handling of individual product packages.

The main improvement and benefit of these designs, in either embodiment, is that an entire bulk shipper carton or tray, pre-packed with products from the point of manufacture and/or distribution can be loaded by a stocker in a single motion onto either an existing store shelf, or a custom designed shelf, both of which then have an integral means of both attractively displaying and presenting the products for purchase by automatically front facing or forwardly feeding the individual product packages toward the shoppers, while the bulk shipper tray/carton remains within the display housing. This will simultaneously improve the shopping experience for shoppers and greatly reduce stocking time for retailers, a combination which does not currently exist.

Accordingly, it is to be understood that the embodiments of the invention herein described are merely illustrative of the application of the principles of the invention. Reference herein to details of the illustrated embodiments is not intended to limit the scope of the claims, which themselves recite those features regarded as essential to the invention.

Claims

1. A product dispenser assembly for dispensing products contained in shipping trays having a front wall, a back wall and side walls, the assembly comprising:

a) a support platform, having an upper surface for supporting at least one shipping tray, a lower surface, a front edge, a rear and a depth between the front edge and the rear which is at least as long as a length between the front wall and the back wall of a shipping tray;

b) a stop wall located at the front edge of the support platform;

c) a plurality of row dividers extending across the support platform, for aligning shipping trays on the support platform;

d) a feed mechanism supported above the upper surface of the support platform, comprising: i) a pusher plate depending downward from the feed mechanism toward the upper surface of the support platform, the pusher plate being moveble along a linear support from a rearward position adjacent to the rear of the support platform to a forward position adjacent to the front edge of the support platform, the pusher plate having a length short enough such that the pusher plate does not contact the back wall of a support tray on the support platform but long enough that the pusher plate contacts the products in the shipping tray; and ii) a bias mechanism for biasing the pusher plate along the linear support from the rearward position toward the forward position;

such that when a shipping tray bearing products is placed upon the support platform between the row dividers, pushing the pusher plate toward its rearward position against the bias mechanism, the products in the shipping tray are pushed toward the front wall of the tray by the pusher plate.

2. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the support platform is a shelf.

3. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the row dividers are movable along a length of the support platform to accommodate shipping trays of differing widths.

4. The product dispenser of claim 3, in which the row dividers have a rearward end which clips over the rear of the support platform and a forward end slidably supported adjacent the front edge of the support platform.

5. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the bias mechanism comprises a coil spring.

6. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the stop wall is mounted upon the front edge of the support platform.

7. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the stop wall is formed into a forward end of the row dividers.

8. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the stop wall is formed of transparent material.

9. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which there are a plurality of support platforms vertically spaced apart, and the feed mechanism is mounted upon a lower surface of a support platform.

10. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the dispenser further comprises an enclosed housing module having a roof upon which the feed mechanism is mounted, in which the row dividers form side walls for the housing module and the support platform forms a floor for the housing module.

11. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the pusher plate comprises a minimum-sized plate coupled to the feed mechanism and an add-on plate removably attached to the minimum-sized pusher plate, such that the minimum-sized pusher plate is sized to fit shipping trays having minimum clearances for the pusher, and the add-on plate has a width and height sized to fit other-sized shipping trays.

12. The product dispenser of claim 12, in which the add-on plate is attached to the minimum-sized pusher plate using mating pieces of hook-and-loop fastener material.

13. The product dispenser of claim 1, in which the linear support of the feed mechanism further comprises a track on which the pusher plate rides.

14. A product dispenser shelf assembly for dispensing products contained in a plurality shipping trays having a front wall, a back wall and side walls, the assembly comprising:

a) a plurality of support platforms vertically spaced apart, each having an upper surface for supporting at least one shipping tray, a lower surface, a front edge, a rear and a depth between the front edge and the rear which is at least as long as a length between the front wall and the back wall of a shipping tray;

b) a stop wall located at the front edge of the support platforms;

c) a plurality of row dividers extending across the support platforms, for aligning shipping trays on the support platform;

d) a plurality of feed mechanisms mounted upon the lower surface of at least one of the support platforms, above the upper surface of the next-lower support platform, comprising: i) a pusher plate depending downward from the feed mechanism toward the upper surface of the support platform, the pusher plate being moveble along a linear support from a rearward position adjacent to the rear of the support platform to a forward position adjacent to the front edge of the support platform, the pusher plate having a length short enough such that the pusher plate does not contact the back wall of a support tray on the support platform but long enough that the pusher plate contacts the products in the shipping tray; and ii) a bias mechanism for biasing the pusher plate along the linear support from the rearward position toward the forward position;

such that when a shipping tray bearing products is placed upon the support platform between the row dividers, pushing the pusher plate toward its rearward position against the bias mechanism, the the products in the shipping tray are pushed toward the front wall of the tray by the pusher plate.

15. The shelf assembly of claim 14, in which the row dividers are movable along a length of the support platform to accommodate shipping trays of differing widths.

16. The shelf assembly of claim 15, in which the row dividers have a rearward end which clips over the rear of the support platform and a forward end slidably supported adjacent the front edge of the support platform.

17. The shelf assembly of claim 14, in which the bias mechanism comprises a coil spring.

18. The shelf assembly of claim 14, in which the stop wall is mounted upon the front edge of the support platform.

19. The shelf assembly of claim 14, in which the stop wall is formed into a forward end of the row dividers.

20. The shelf assembly of claim 14, in which the stop wall is formed of transparent material.

21. The shelf assembly of claim 14, in which the pusher plate comprises a minimum-sized plate coupled to the feed mechanism and an add-on plate removably attached to the minimum-sized pusher plate, such that the minimum-sized pusher plate is sized to fit shipping trays having minimum clearances for the pusher, and the add-on plate has a width and height sized to fit other-sized shipping trays.

22. The shelf assembly of claim 21, in which the add-on plate is attached to the minimum-sized pusher plate using mating pieces of hook-and-loop fastener material.

23. The shelf assembly of claim 14, in which the support platforms comprise generally horizontal planar shelves.

24. The shelf assembly of claim 23, in which at least one of the shelves slopes downward from the rear to the front edge.

25. A method of dispensing products contained in shipping trays having a front wall, a back wall and side walls, comprising the steps of:

a) mounting a feed mechanism above an upper surface of a support platform, the feed mechanism comprising a pusher plate depending downward from the feed mechanism toward the upper surface of the support platform, the pusher plate being moveble along a linear support from a rearward position adjacent to the rear of the support platform to a forward position adjacent to the front edge of the support platform, the pusher plate having a length short enough such that the pusher plate does not contact the back wall of a support tray on the support platform but long enough that the pusher plate contacts the products in the shipping tray; and a bias mechanism for biasing the pusher plate along the linear support from the rearward position toward the forward position;

b) placing a shipping tray on the support platform, pushing the pusher plate toward its rearward position against the bias mechanism, so that the products in the shipping tray are pushed toward the front wall of the tray by the pusher plate;

c) lowering the front wall of the shipping tray behind a stop wall located at a front edge of the support platform, such that the shipping tray is retained on the support platform as the products are pushed within the tray.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising, when a shipping tray is partially full, the steps of:

a) removing the partially full shipping tray from the support platform;

b) placing a full shipping tray on the support platform, pushing the pusher plate fully toward its rearward position against the bias mechanism, so that the products in the shipping tray are pushed toward the front wall of the tray by the pusher plate;

c) holding the full shipping tray in the fully rearward position, leaving a space between the front wall of the tray and the stop wall on the support platform;

d) placing the products from the partially full shipping tray between the front wall of the full shipping tray and the stop wall; and

e) releasing the full shipping tray, so that the tray is moved forward by the pusher against the products located between the front wall and the stop wall.