Shopping cart bottom shelf monitor
OwnerSteven Salvatore Bitondo, Steven Michael Bitondoinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention includes a pivoting floor member coupled to the bottom shelf of a shopping cart. The floor member is pivotally arranged so that it assumes a first position when nothing is placed upon it and a second position when any object having more than a predetermined weight is placed upon it. The floor member is mechanically coupled to a mechanical indicator which assumes a first indicating position when the floor member is in its first position and a second indicating position when the floor member is in its second position. The indicator may be a rod and sleeve arrangement and the rod may include indicia such as one or more colored stripes.
Claims14
A shopping cart, comprising:
- a frame;
- a plurality of wheels mounted to said frame;
- a basket mounted to said frame above said wheels;
- a bottom shelf located between said basket and said wheels, said bottom shelf comprising,
- a floor member pivotally mounted relative to said frame, said floor member being pivotally movable from a first position to a second position,
- a mechanical indicator coupled to said floor member, said indicator being mechanically movable from a first indicating position when said floor member is in said first position to a second indicating position when said floor member is in said second position, wherein
- said mechanical indicator is completely operated by gravity without the need for a spring or similar biasing member.
An assembly retrofittable on site onto an existing shopping cart, said assembly comprising:
- a pivotable shelf movable from a first position to a second position;
- and
- a mechanical indicator coupled to said shelf, said indicator being mechanically movable from a first indicating position when said shelf is in said first position to a second indicating position when said shelf is in said second position.
An assembly retrofittable on site to an existing shopping cart, the shopping cart having a frame and a basket connected to the frame, said assembly comprising:
- a pivotable shelf movable from a first position to a second position;
- a mechanical indicator coupled to said shelf, said indicator being mechanically movable from a first indicating position when said shelf is in said first position to a second indicating position when said shelf is in said second position,
- said indicator including a sleeve and a rod movable through said sleeve solely with the aid of gravity and requiring no spring or similar biasing device, said sleeve being directly mountable to the frame rather than the basket,
- said assembly consisting of no more than seven parts, none of which is a spring or similar biasing device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.