WO2001065981A1

WO2001065981A1 - Displacing arrangement

Info

Publication number: WO2001065981A1
Application number: PCT/FI2001/000234
Authority: WO
Inventors: Veijo Makkonen
Original assignee: Man-Metalli Oy
Priority date: 2000-03-09
Filing date: 2001-03-09
Publication date: 2001-09-13
Also published as: FI20000543A0; FI20000543A; FI108843B; AU4657001A

Abstract

The present invention pertains to a conveying arrangement to be used at a place of sales or display of items, wherein at said place there is a shelf-like frame structure having space for items or products for sale or display which are conveyed towards the front portion of the shelf by means of a push spring arrangement. At least one push spring having an attachment position, which can be selected freely at will in the side-ways direction of the shelf, and pushing said items or products such, that they slide along the upper side of the spring towards the front edge of the shelf, can at the push spring arrangement be attached to the front portion of the shelf.

Description

Displacing arrangement

The object of the present invention is a conveying arrangement and a push spring device for the conveying of items at a place of sales or display according to the preambles of the claims 1 and 16.

In shops and department stores shelves or planar bases are generally used for displaying products for sale. In case the goods is packed in a package, e.g. a box, a can, a bottle, or the like, having a reasonably stable form, slanted shelves with a gravity powered conveying system can be used, such that the goods is prevented from dropping off by a stop at the front part of the shelf. Frequently, however, horizontal shelves have to be used for the purpose of selling products of this nature. An empty spot will then, however, appear m the place of a product item having been removed off the front part of the shelf, and the shelf will no longer have a representative and "selling" appearance. Push spring operated arrangements have been devised, whereby goods remaining even on a horizontal shelf will be conveyed automatically to tne front edge of the shelf by spring force. Push spring arrangements are known, where a subframe is positioned on top cf a shelf, a push spring structure being supported at the front portion of the frame. The subframe respectively is attached to the shelf, and the ends of division plates are provided with stops for preventing the goods from falling off. There are also units to be placed on top of a shelf, each having several push spring units as well as any necessary support structures .

U.S. Patent No. 3308961 discloses a push spring arrangement, wherein a push spring is attached to the front portion of a separate guide tube system. The spring is integrated in the guide tube structure, which is rather cumbersome to dismount and relocate from one shelf to another. A push element is permanently mounted to the tubes, along which the element will be pushed by the spring. The system is based on permanent tube structures mounted to rails, which, in turn, are mounted to a planar base. The publication WO 9115141 correspondingly discloses a push spring system wherein the position of a spring is fixed and where a guide rail is utilized for the guiding of the spring. Said invention is also an integrated part of a shelf structure. In the publication EP 0956794 there is a push spring arrangement fixed to a side- wall being permanently included in a structure. A push spring arrangement disclosed in the publication SE 511720 is also permanently fixed to a sidewall and it is further attached to a certain guide rail .

In the solutions according to prior art there is the disadvantage, that the arrangements are applicable only for products of a certain size and often also that more powerful or less powerful springs would be needed as the type of goods vary, and hence the weights of the goods, while it is hardly ever possible to change springs or to add another spring. In case push spring arrangements with subframes are used, the width or narrowness of the subframe might cause considerable problems in adapting the place of sales or display to fit goods of a different size. The pieces of goods might also tilt sideways, if the subframe rails underneath the producs are narrow in relation to the breadth of the pieces of goods. Thus there is a need for subframes of several different widths to choose from to suit each case, which is cumbersome and expensive. The object of the present invention is to provide a conveying arrangement for moving items at a place of sales or display, the arrangement being particularly adapted for use in connection with horizontal planar bases or shelves. The arrangement is preferably adjustable such, that it enables such conveying arrangements to be made for products of various breadths in the sideways direction of the shelf, which arrangements can easily be adjusted at will. A further object is to provide a conveying arrangement easily adaptable for various shelf depths. A still further object is for the arrangement to be fast in use and economical to acquire and maintain for various possibilities. There is no separate guidance in the push means disclosed in the present invention, but in a frame structure separate guidance can be used if necessary. The push means is completely loose and movable and it is easily replaceable if need be. It is also readily and rapidly removable e.g. to be cleaned.

The object of the present invention is achieved by a conveying arrangement according to the present invention presented in claim 1 and by means of a push spring device presented in claim 16, to be used at a place of sales and/or display of items, which place includes a planar base/shelf- like frame structure, and in which place there is space for items or products for sale and/or on display. A push spring arrangement is used to convey the items or products towards the front portion of the planar base. According to the present invention the push spring device is free in relation to a frame structure and it is operative without any guide rails or other guiding means. The push spring device is attached to the frame structure just by a spring, which makes it particularly easily adaptable to various structures. The planar base in question is preferably smooth, having the push spring extending on top of it and along its surface such, that the lower surface of the spring is supported on the top surface of the planar base. Thus the planar base supports the spring, but also preferably the products sliding along the top surface of the spring, as they slide towards the front edge of the planar base. In the push spring arrangement according to the present invention, one or more push spring devices can be attached to the front portion of a shelf or planar base, the attachment position in the sideways direction of the shelf of which device preferably can be selected completely at will and which device pushes said items or products sliding them along the top surface of the spring towards the front edge of the shelf or planar base. Thus a spot can be selected along the sideways direction of the shelf, where the push spring arrangement efficiently and most suitably will push the wanted pieces of goods centrally in relation to the pieces of goods regardless of the width of the goods. Since the spring is remarkably thin, usually of a thickness of just 0.1 - 0.3 mm, the pieces of goods, as they are located on top of the spring, do not tilt sideways at all by ocular observation.

In the sideways direction of the shelf the attachment point of said push spring preferably can be steplessly selected, whereby the push force location always can be selected centrally in relation to the goods to be pushed, which is the most usual case and results in stable and trouble-free operation. The push spring is attached to the front edge of the planar base just by the front portion of the spring, whereby all the rest of the push spring device is completely free in relation to the rest of the structure. This enables the push spring device to be extremely easily moved from one place to another. A push spring according to the present invention operates unguided, and thus its position is freely selectable. Of course, having a frame structure with structures guiding the spring will not impede the operation of the spring, but in general the arrangement according to the present invention operates perfectly well without any guidance by means of a frame structure.

Since the parts of a conveying arrangement according to the present invention are quite narrow in the sideways direction of the shelf, two or more push spring device can be assigned, if necessary, for pushing one and the same item or product.

A separate push spring device according to the present invention may comprise just a plain push spring or an element including a push spring. In some cases it is to be recommended having a product being pushed by the push spring through an intermediate push element. The pushing of rather high products will usually necessitate the use of a push element if, on account of the size of the plain spring, the center of attack of pushing is located too low down in relation to the product .

When the structure of the push element is boxlike and the push spring is adapted to fit inside the boxlike part, a neat and sturdy structure for the push spring device is achieved. The push element including the push spring inside it, or a fully separate push spring without a push element, travels towards the front edge of the smooth planar base without any kind of guiding rail or support structure straight along the surface of the planar base, i.e. without any kind of separate guidance or control device. No such separate guiding rail or support structure is needed in this push spring arrangement, but the push spring device rather travels unguided along the surface towards the front edge of the planar base . The planar base supports the whole push spring device, as it slides along the surface of the planar base towards the front edge of the planar base.

It is being recommended, for the push surface of the push element to fit the form of the item or product to be pushed. When the form of the push surface of the push element is selected to be an essentially vertical rectangle, a push surface fitting quite a few products is achieved.

An additional element, that fits the form of the item or product to be pushed, can preferably be added to the push element, whereby the conveying arrangement becomes quite versatile, since cylindrical items, for example, such as many bottles and cans, can be pushed reliably and without failure by means of a concave push surface .

There is often a need to separate items or products adjacent in the sideways direction of the shelf from each other by means of mainly plate-like or wire-like divisions. Thus adjacent files of products cannot interfere with each other in any way, even if considerably more goods is being removed from one file in relation to the other file.

The divisions are preferably movable in the sideways direction of the shelf, whereby an effectively operating place of sales or display suitable for a large number of products of different sizes can be obtained by means of the conveying arrangement according to the present invention. The conveying arrangement according to the present invention also becomes very flexible and versatile. The divisions are further preferably even steplessly adjustable in the sideways direction of the shelf, whereby the conveying arrangement is applicable to items of practically any size that on the whole are intended to be displayed at such places of display or sales.

The present invention is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein

Fig. 1 shows a schematic view of a spring used in the conveying arrangement according to the present invention, the spring having two-sided adhesive tape as a means of attachment,

Fig. 2 shows a schematic partial section of a shelf, on top of which there is mounted a conveying arrangement according to the present invention,

Fig. 3 shows a schematic view of a conveying arrangement according to the present invention, wherein the spring is mounted in a pushing enclosure,

Fig. 4 shows a schematic partial section of a conveying arrangement according to the present invention used in connection with a board-like shelf and a front stop, and

Fig. 5a, Fig. 5b, and Fig. 5b' show schematic views of typical accessory elements to be used as a fashioned push surface employed in connection with the regular push surface for some types of items to be pushed.

The loose spring indicated by the numeral 1 in Fig. 1 can be a plane spiral spring, a so-called constant force spring, or the like. At the end of the spring there is an attachment arrangement, which is indicated in Fig. 1 by a piece of two- sided adhesive tape 2, or the like, attached near the end of the spring. The material of the spring as well as its thickness and breadth and the spring coil diameter is selected to suit each case. Generally, m shop use the thickness of the spring is 0.1 - 0.5 mm and the breadth 8 - 20 mm, but there may be requirements for using other dimensions.

Fig. 2 shows a conveying arrangement according to Fig. 1, wherein the spring 1 attached to the front portion of a shelf is pushing items 3', 3' ', 3' ' ' etc. towards the front edge 5 of the shelf 4 against a stop 6, which can be, for example, a plate-like part and made of a transparent material to provide visibility. The piece of two-sided adhesive tape 2 is attached to the shelf 4 near the end of the spring 1. The spring is attached to the front edge of the planar base just at the front portion of the spring, whereby the rest of the spring and the pushing enclosure together are free in relation to the rest of the structure.

Fig. 3 shows the spring 1 positioned inside a box 7 operating as an unattached push element, the box 7 being designed such, that the push surface in contact with the items 3', 3' etc. to be pushed is the one indicated by the numeral 8. The push surface 8 can be, for example, rectangular in shape and of a height and breadth fitting the items to be pushed. The center of gravity of the box 7 is preferably as far back as possible in relation to the push surface 8 for the box 7 to remain stable in its position m any situation. In other words, the force exerted by the spring preferably should be directed such, that the point of application of the moment at the box 7 is as far back as possible m relation to the push surface 8. Then the box 7 remains stable in its position and will not fall over or start rolling.

Fig. 4 shows a preferable structure, where a stop 6 is placed in a groove 10, formed out of plate, in the front edge of a shelf part 9, together with a support element 11, to which the end of the spring 1 can be attached, e.g. by means of a barb 12 stamped out of the support element 11 into a hole 13 near the end of the spring 1. In this structure the support element 11 is very securely fixed in the groove 10 by the stop 6 and the barb 12 and the hole 13 provide the spring with a good attachment to the support element 11. It is to be noted that the support element 11 can be moved in the groove 10 to a suitable spot such, that the spring 1 will be applied to the item to be conveyed at a desired point, preferably in the center, if just one spring 1 is being used. The structure according to Fig. 4 can be used, for example, in such cases, where a modern shelf element provided with a conveying arrangement should be mounted on top of an ordinary shelf board, the shelf element being provided with e.g. a stop 6 for supporting the goods and where, for example, price information can be attached in connection with it. It is to be noted that the depth of the new shelf element can exceed the depth of the existing shelf, and chus the amount of goods can be greater than before, the shelf assembly still comprising, however, a modern push spring arrangement.

Fig. 5a shows one additional element 14 to be recommended for use, for example, for pushing cylindrical bottles, cans, or similar goods by means of a conveying arrangement according to the present invention. A trough shaped upper portion 15 is designed to fit against the side of a bottle or a can, and a shaft portion 16 can be attached to the push surface 8 of the box 7 by means of, for example, two-sided adhesive tape 2 or some other means, e.g. by mechanical insertion into a hole provided in the box 7 (not shown) .

Fig. 5b shows another additional element 14' to be recommended, the upper portion 15' of which is intended to fit against the item to be pushed and the shaft portion 16' of which is attachable to the box 7 in the same manner as shown in Fig. 5a.

Fig. 5c shows a third additional element 14' ' to be recommended, being intended for tall goods. Since the shaft portion 16' ' extends high up, the same box 7 can be used in connection with many different additional elements 14, 14', 14'', etc. for conveying even considerably different items to be pushed, by means of the conveying arrangement according to the present invention.

Fig. 6 shows a conventional division 17 to be used in cooperation with the present invention, the division having a plate-like structure. A hook 18 at the back portion can be placed over a back edge (not shown) of a shelf 4. The sides of the division 17 can also be, for example, of a conventional wire design (not shown) . The object of the division 17 is mutual isolation of adjacent files of goods, to prevent malfunctioning to be caused by using neighboring files of goods. To ensure reliable operation, the length of the division 17 should be nearly equal to the maximum length of a file of goods in the direction of the depth of the shelf 4. The present invention is not limited to the embodiment presented above, but rather a multitude of variations can be derived without departing from the scope of the presented claims .

Claims

1. A conveying arrangement to be used at a place of sales or display of items or products, said place comprising a frame structure of the nature of a planar base providing space for said items or products, which are being moved towards the front portion of the planar base by a push spring arrangement, characterized in, that said push spring system comprises at least one push spring device, which is free in relation to the frame structure and unguided, and which is attached to the planar base only through a push spring, the push spring device being adapted in said conveying arrangement for pushing said items or products by sliding them towards the front edge of the planar base.

2. Conveying arrangement according to claim 1, characterized in, that the point of attachment of said push spring is in the front portion of said planar base the location of said point being selectable in the direction of the width of the planar base, and that said items or products are pushed along the top surface of said push spring on top of said planar base .

3. Conveying arrangement according to claim 2, characterized in, that the point of attachment of said push spring is steplessly selectable in the direction of the width of the planar base.

4. Conveying arrangement according to claim 1, characterized in, that two or more push spring devices can be allocated for the pushing of one and the same item or product .

5. Conveying arrangement according to claim 1, 2, 3, or 4 , characterized in, that said push spring device comprises a loose push spring.

6. Conveying arrangement according to claim 1, 2, 3, or 4 , characterized in, that said push spring device includes a push element, which can be inserted between the spring and the item or product to be pushed.

7. Conveying arrangement according to claim 6, characterized in, that said push element is of a box-like structure, the push spring being arranged to fit inside the box-like part .

8. Conveying arrangement according to claim 6 or 7 , characterized in, that a push surface of the push element fits the form of the item or product to be pushed.

9. Conveying arrangement according to claim 6 or 7 , characterized in, that an additional element fitting the item or product to be pushed can be mounted to the push element .

10. Conveying arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in, that items or products adjacent to each other in the direction of the width of the planar base can be mutually separated by means of essentially plate-like or wire-like divisions.

11. Conveying arrangement according to claim 10, characterized in, that said divisions can be moved in the direction of the width of the planar base.

12. Conveying arrangement according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in, that said divisions can be steplessly moved in the direction of the width of the planar base.

13. Conveying arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in, that the lower surface of said push spring is adapted to being supported by the upper surface of the planar base.

14. Conveying arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in, that the said push spring device is adapted for unguided movement on the top surface of the planar base towards the front edge of the planar base.

15. Conveying arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in, that there is a piece attached at the end of the push spring for securing the spring to the front edge of the planar base or to a groove in the front edge of the planar base.

16. A push spring device to be used in a conveying arrangement for items or products, characterized in, that the push spring device is free in relation to a frame structure and is unguided, and that it can be attached to the front portion of the frame structure of the nature of a planar base by means of just a push spring included in said device, in the conveying arrangement said push spring being adapted to push said items or products by sliding them towards the front edge of the planar base.

17. Push spring device according to claim 16, characterized in, that said push spring device comprises a push element, which can be inserted between the spring and the item or product to be pushed.

18. Push spring device according to claim 17, characterized in, that the structure of the push element is box-like and the push spring being arranged to fit inside the box-like part .

19. Push spring device according to claim 17 or 18, characterized in, that the push surface of the push element fits the form of the item or product to be pushed.

20. Push spring device according to claim 17 or 18, characterized in, that an additional element fitting the form of the item or product to be pushed can be mounted to the push element .

21. Push spring device according to any one of the claims 16-20, characterized in, that there is a piece attached at the end of the push spring for securing the spring to the front edge of the planar base or into a groove in the front edge of the planar base .