Product Management Display System with Trackless Pusher Mechanism
AssigneeRTC Industries, Inc.
InventorStephen N. Hardy
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A product management display system for merchandising product on a shelf includes using a trackless pusher mechanism that travels along a surface on which product is placed and one or more dividers for separating product into rows. The one or more dividers may be engaged to a front rail in two different conditions, locked and unlocked. In a locked condition, the relationship between the divider and the front rail resists alteration in any direction with respect to each other. In the unlocked condition, the dividers may be freely slid laterally along the front rail, while remaining perpendicular to the front rail. The one or more dividers may lock to the front rail through the use of corresponding teeth, resilient surfaces, a locking tab, a locking bar and/or a cam.
Claims12
A merchandise display system comprising:
- a front rail;
- at least one divider configured to attach to the front rail, the at least one divider including
- a barrier configured to engage the front rail, a divider wall extending in a direction perpendicular to the front rail, a divider floor perpendicular to the divider wall, wherein the divider floor is configured to hold product;
- and
- a resilient tab coupled to the divider, the resilient tab configured to move between a first position and a second position,
- wherein the at least one divider is fixed in a lateral direction parallel to the front rail when the resilient tab is in the first position,
- wherein the at least one divider is movable in the lateral direction parallel to the front rail when the resilient tab is in the second position.
A merchandise display system comprising:
- a front rail, the front rail comprising a first projection and a second projection;
- and
- at least one divider configured to attach to the front rail, the at least one divider comprising a divider wall and a divider floor perpendicular to the divider wall, the at least one divider further comprising a recess and a third projection,
- wherein at least one of the second projection or the third projection is a movable projection that is movable between a first position and a second position,
- wherein the at least one divider is (a) movable in a lateral direction parallel to the front rail and (b) secured in a direction perpendicular to the front rail when the first projection of the front rail is engaged with the recess of the divider and the movable projection is in the first position, and
- wherein the at least one divider is (a) immovable in the lateral direction parallel to the front rail and (b) secured in the direction perpendicular to the front rail when the first projection of the front rail is engaged with the recess of the divider and the movable projection is in the second position.
A merchandise display system comprising:
- a front rail, the front rail comprising at least one first projection and at least one second projection, the at least one second projection of the front rail configured to move between a first position and a second position;
- and
- at least one divider configured to attach to the front rail, the at least one divider comprising a divider wall and a divider floor perpendicular to the divider wall, the at least one divider further comprising at least one recess,
- wherein the at least one divider is (a) movable in a lateral direction parallel to the front rail and (b) secured in a direction perpendicular to the front rail when the at least one first projection of the front rail is engaged with the at least one recess of the divider and the at least one second projection of the front rail is in the first position, and
- wherein the at least one divider is (a) fixed in the lateral direction parallel to the front rail and (b) secured in the direction perpendicular to the front rail when the at least one first projection of the front rail is engaged with the at least one recess of the divider and the at least one second projection of the front rail is in the second position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.