Molded display rack with snap-in retainer and hinged mold insert tool
AssigneeHallmark Cards, Incorporated
InventorsBrian Lee Wegstein, Phil James Davis
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention relates to a display unit for displaying various flat or flat-packaged articles, such as greeting cards, magazines, brochures, and the like. The display unit includes a molded backboard having a plurality of walls joined to one another by a plurality of horizontal channels and a snap-in retainer for holding the displayed articles which is easily inserted into and removed from the channel of the backboard. Additionally, the present invention relates to a method of making such a molded backboard and a mold insert tool for use in forming the channel of the backboard.
Claims19
A display unit for storing and displaying articles comprising
- a backboard having a front surface and a rear surface, said front surface having at least two walls joined by an undercut channel extending horizontally along at least some predetermined width of the display unit, and
- a retainer for maintaining said articles in the display unit comprising a bracket including first and second extensions such that said retainer may be directly inserted into said undercut channel.
A mold insert for forming an undercut channel in a molded article, wherein the mold insert can assume both a triangular configuration during molding suitable for molding an undercut channel and wherein said mold insert shifts to a release position upon withdrawal of said molded article.
A method of vacuum forming a molded article having an undercut channel, said method comprising:
- providing a mold containing a mold insert, wherein the mold insert assumes a triangular configuration during molding suitable for molding an undercut channel and wherein said mold insert shifts to a release position upon withdrawal of said molded article;
- placing a thermoplastic blank sheet into said mold;
- molding said thermoplastic sheet to form said molded article having an undercut channel;
- and
- removing said molded article from said mold, wherein during said removal, said mold insert shifts into a release configuration, allowing the molded backboard to be released from the mold.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.