Open framework merchandise display system

An open framework merchandise display system comprising:

• (a) a plurality of trusses, each of which comprises:
• (i) three parallel tubes;
• and
• (ii) a plurality of cross members which are arranged in trios along the tubes, each member of the trio joining a pair of tubes, each truss having a cross section which is the same as that of any other truss and has the shape of the isosceles triangle formed by joining two adjacent corners of a square with the midpoint of the side of the square opposite those corners;
• (b) a plurality of junction plates, each of which comprises:
• (i) a plate;
• (ii) three rods which protrude perpendicularly from one face of the plate and are so sized and situated as to penetrate the tubes of a truss;
• and
• (iii) a post which is in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped, protrudes perpendicularly from the face of the plate opposite the rods, has an axis which intersect the center of the square from which the cross section of the truss was formed, has sides which are parallel to the sides of the square, has a hole through it, the axis of which is parallel both to the plate and to a pair of the sides of the post, and intersects the axis of the post;
• and has a slot through it, whose center plane is determined by the axis of the hole and the axis of the post, and which extends toward, but not to, the hole from the end of the post opposite the plate;
• (c) a plurality of junction flanges, each of which comprises:
• (i) a first horizontal plate which contains sixteen holes which each have a diameter approximately equal to that of a junction plate post hole, and are arranged in two concentric regular octagons which have parallel sides and have radii which differ by a distance approximately equal to the distance between the slot the hole of a junction plate post;
• and
• (ii) a second horizontal plate which has sixteen holes opposite the holes in the first horizontal plate, of equal diameter, and is above the first horizontal plate by a distance which is approximately equal to the distance between opposite sides of a junction plate post;
• (iii) eight rods which each have a diameter approximately equal to the thickness of a junction plate post slot, are perpendicular to, and join, the inner octagon of holes in the horizontal plates;
• (iv) a first vertical plate which is joined to the bottom of the first horizontal plate, offset from the center of the octagons, and includes a pair of holes which have diameters equal to those of a junction plate post hole are on a vertical line which intersects the point on the first vertical plate which is closest to the center of the octagons, and are separated by a distance approximately equal to the distance between the slot and the hole of a junction plate post;
• (v) a second vertical plate which is also joined to the bottom of the first horizontal plate, offset from the center of the octagons by an equal distance, but opposite direction, as the first vertical plate, is parallel to the first vertical plate, is separated from the first vertical plate by a distance approximately equal to the distance between opposite sides of a junction plate post, and includes a pair of holes opposite to, and of the same diameter as, the holes in the first vertical plate;
• (d) a multiplicity of means for fastening the junction plates to the junction flange, the diameters of which are approximately equal to those of the junction plate post holes;
• (e) one or more means for displaying merchandise;
• and
• (f) one or more means for attaching each display means to a truss, each attaching means comprising either a single attaching member or a spaced pair of parallel attaching members, the spacing being fixed and equal to the length of the side of the square from which the cross section of the truss was formed;
• whereby each vertical truss supports a junction plate oriented vertically, which in turn supports the bottom of a junction flange, the sides of which in turn support one or more junction plates oriented horizontally, each of which in turn supports a horizontal truss;
• whereby, at any increment of 45 degrees, a horizontal truss may be joined to a junction flange and an attaching means, parallel to and generally below the horizontal truss, with a single attaching member, may be used to attach the display means to the vertical truss;
• and
• whereby, at any increment of 90 degrees, the vertical truss further provides a pair of truss tubes to which an attaching means, parallel to and generally below the horizontal truss, with a spaced parallel pair of attaching members, may be used to attach the display means to the vertical truss without changing their spacing or parallelism.