Title: Merchandise display unit

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1. A display unit comprising a headboard; a footboard; at least two vertically disposed standards, with multiple regularly spaced openings, to which the headboard and footboard are attached by keys; at least one display panel with a top edge, a bottom edge and a forward face, which panel is slideably mounted to travel sideways within the confines of the headboard and footboard with its forward face always lying in a transverse vertical plane; panel top guide means for each display panel which mount separately in said headboard; and panel bottom guide and support means for each display panel which mount separately in said footboard; the improvement comprising means to slideably adjust individual panel top guide means and associated panel bottom guide and support means in a direction normal to the forward face of the display panel associated with said panel top guide means and said panel bottom guide and support means, whereby said display panel can be positioned with its forward face in any transverse vertical plane lying within its limits of travel, defined by the confines of the headboard and footboard.

2. The display unit of claim 1, said headboard having a forward member and left and right side members, and each side member having an outside wall, a middle wall, and an inside wall which is pierced by a horizontal slot, said walls defining inside and outside channels parallel to said slot and perpendicular to a transverse vertical plane.

3. The display unit of claim 2, and further comprising one pair of left and right locking plates slideably mounted in the inside channel of said left and right headboard side members and attached to the opposite ends of each panel top guide means to allow sliding adjustment of said top guide means.

4. The display unit of claim 2 in which the inside wall of each member has inner and outer faces; a locking plate resting against said outer face and having a threaded hole adjacent to the slot in said inside wall; a top mounting bracket with vertical and horizontal members attached by its horizontal member to each end of each panel top guide means; the vertical member of said bracket resting against said inner face; said vertical member having an unthreaded opening adjacent to the slot in said inner wall and aligned with the threaded hole in the locking plate; and a locking screw passing through the unthreaded opening in the vertical member of the top mounting bracket, then through the slot in the inside wall of the side member, then into the threaded hole in the locking plate; whereby advancement of the locking screw into the threaded hole of the locking plate causes the locking plate to bear against the outer face of the inner wall of each side member and causes the vertical members of said bracket to bear against the inner face of said inner wall so that the end of the panel guide means is temporarily locked in place.

5. The display unit of claim 4, in which said locking screw passes through a resilient bumper having a countersunk hole before passing through said vertical slot, whereby the impact of display panels which have traveled to the end of said panel top guide means in cushioned.

6. The display unit in claim 4, in which the unthreaded opening in the vertical member of each top mounting bracket is a vertically disposed slot, whereby vertical adjustment of the top panel guide means can be accomplished by loosening the locking screws, moving the left and right mounting brackets up or down, then advancing the locking screws or down, then advancing the locking screws to lock the top panel guide means in place.

7. The display unit of claim 2, and further comprising at least one dentate portion on each key which is inserted into an opening in one said vertical standard and locked thereto, and key bodies which are slideably received in the respective outside channels of said left and right side members to lock the headboard to the vertically disposed standards.

8. The display unit of claim 7 in which said keys each have at least one fixed dentate portion, at least one movable dentate portion, and means to lock the movable portion to the key body, whereby said keys may be locked to a vertical standard with multiple perforations by inserting the fixed and movable dentate portions through corresponding openings in the vertical standards, by moving the movable dentate portion with respect to the fixed dentate portion, and by locking the mocable dentate portion to the key body.

9. The display unit of claim 7 and further comprising setscrew mount with a threaded hole in said keys through which a setscrew is advanced to bear against the vertical standard to lock said keys in place.

10. The display unit of claim 2, in which said left and right side members are extruded bodies.

11. The display unit of claim 10, in which the left, right, and forward members of the headboard are all formed from a unitary extruded body.

12. The display unit of claim 1 in which said footboard has a forward member; left and right members each having an outside wall, a middle wall, and an inside wall which is pierced by a horizontal slot, said walls defining inside and outside channels parallel to said slot and perpendicular to a transverse vertical plane.

13. The device of claim 12, and further comprising one pair of left and right locking plates slideably mounted in the inside channels of said left and right footboard side members and attached to the opposite ends of each panel bottom guide and support means, to allow sliding adjustment of said panel bottom guide and support means.

14. The display unit of claim 13, in which the inside wall of each side member has inner and outer faces; a locking plate resting agasinst said outer face and having a threaded hole adjacent to the slot in said inside wall; a bottom mounting bracket with vertical and horizontal members attached by its horizontal member to each end of the panel bottom guide and support means; the vertical member of said bracket resting against said inner face; said vertical member having an unthreaded perforation adjacent to the slot perforating said inner wall and being aligned with the threaded hole in the locking plate; and a locking screw passing through the unthreaded perforation in the vertical member of the bottom mounting bracket, then through the slot in the inside wall of the side member, then into the threaded hole in the locking plate; whereby advancement of the locking screw into the threaded hole of the locking plate causes the locking plate to bear against the outer face of the inner wall of each side member and causes the vertical member of said bracket to bear against the inner face of said inner wall so that the end of the panel bottom guide and support means is temporarily locked in place.

15. The display unit of claim 14, in which said locking screw first passes through a resilient bumper with a countersunk hole, whereby the impact of display panels which have traveled to the end of the panel bottom guide and support means is cushioned.

16. The device in claim 12, in which each key has at least one dentate portion to be inserted into a perforation in one said vertical standard and locked thereto, and in which the key bodies are slideably received in the respective outside channels of said left and right side members to lock the footboard to the vertically disposed standards.

17. The display unit of claim 16, in which said left and right side members are extruded bodies.

18. The display unit of claim 16, in which the left, right, and forward members of the footboard are all formed from a unitary extruded body.

19. The display unit of claim 1, in which said top panel guide means is a channel with a cross-sectional shape resembling an inverted "U", dimensioned to receive the top edge of the display panel.

20. The display unit of claim 1, in which said bottom panel guide and support means consists of a transverse ball bearing carrier guide having a concave upward-facing central track; a ball bearing carrier which rides transversely over said central track; a multiplicity of ball bearings mounted in a transverse horizontal line along the ball bearing carrier; and a panel shoe having a lower edge that rides over said ball bearings and having a upward-facing channel adapted to receive the bottom edge of said display panel.

21. A rack of one or more movable display units comprising:

(A) an upper frame structure having a pair of spaced upper forwardly horizontally extending side pieces;

(B) upper attaching means connected to said upper side pieces for securing the rear end portion of said upper side pieces to a rear vertical support structure, said upper side pieces including lockable adjusting means for progressively changing the length thereof;

(C) a lower frame structure having a pair of spaced lower forwardly horizontally extending side pieces, and said lower side pieces including lockable adjusting means for progressively changing the length thereof;

(D) lower attaching means connected to said lower side pieces for securing the rear end portions thereof to said vertical support structure below said upper frame structure;

(E) at least one movable display unit for removably supporting merchandise on the front thereof and each having a width which is much less than the width of the rack and one other display unit positioned behind said at least one movable display unit;

(F) upper guide means for guiding the motion of the top portion of each movable display unit to a predetermined path parallel to the front of the rack;

(G) upper coupling means attached to said side pieces of said upper frame structure for connecting said upper guide means to said upper side pieces of said upper frame structure;

(H) lower guide means for guiding the motion of the bottom portion of a display unit in a predetermined path parallel to the front of the rack; and

(I) lower coupling means attached to said lower side pieces of said lower frame structure for receiving and positioning the ends of said lower guide means at fixed distances from said vertical support structure.

22. A rack of sliding display units comprising: a rear vertical frame structure; an upper frame structure; a lower frame structure; said upper and lower frame structures each including a pair of horizontal side pieces on opposite sides of the rack, said side pieces extending forwardly from said rear vertical frame structure, each side piece being adjustable in length to vary the depth of the rack, the front portions of said side pieces being unconnected by any vertical member extending therebetween; at least two movable display units for removably supporting merchandise on the front thereof and each having a width which is much less than the width of the rack; upper guide means for each movable display unit for guiding the top portion of the same in a predetermined path parallel to the front of the rack where access to a desired display unit is obtained by moving each movable display unit in front of the desired unit to one side thereof; lower guide means for guiding the bottom portion of each movable display unit in a predetermined path corresponding to that followed by the upper portion of the same; a separate coupling means for receiving each end of the upper and lower guide means, each coupling means being carried by the adjacent adjustable length side piece of the adjacent frame structure and being separately horizontally and lockably adjustable in position thereon in a front to rear direction of the rack, so that the position of the guide means received by each coupling means and each associated display unit guided thereby is adjustable in position in a front to rear direction on the rack to accomodate merchandise of different sizes carried thereby; and a base for the rack below said lower frame structure and carrying all the weight of said display units, at least said upper frame structure carrying none of the weight of the display units.

Other info:

Inventors: Winn, Ronald R. (Galesville, WI, US)

Application Number: 720922
Filing Date: 1976-09-07
Publication_date: 1979-10-16
Assignee: Kempler; Ernest (Chicago, IL)
Primary Class(es): 211/162 211/175, 211/208, 248/243
Other Classes:
US Patent Ref:

1693980	Dec, 1928	Gale	312/132.
2547368	Apr, 1951	Booth	211/46.
3353684	Nov, 1967	Chesley	108/106.
3750893	Aug, 1973	Kempler	211/162.
3883004	May, 1975	Slaga	211/162.
3912086	Oct, 1975	DE Bruyn	211/162.

Other Refs:
Primary Examiner: Holko, Thomas J.
Assistant Examiner:
Attorney: Wheeler, Morsell, House & Fuller