Abstract:
A sales display unit ( 11 ) primarily for dispensing cooled drinks and comprising a housing ( 13 ) with refrigeration means therein, having an opening ( 18 ), an automatic feed system ( 21 ) located within the housing and on which goods ( 12 ) ate stored. The feed system ( 21 ) transports goods to the opening ( 18 ) where stop means ( 42 ) arrests the goods at or adjacent said opening ( 18 ) where said goods are accessible from without the housing.

Description:
FIELD  
         [0001]    This invention relates to sales display units and in particular to point-of-sale display units which may be used to display and dispense items for impulse sales in a retail or catering environment.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Display units are often used in shops or other commercial premises to display and dispense a particular line, or lines of goods which may often be produced by a single manufacturer. In particular, display units may be used in retail, restaurants, or canteen environments near to the points of sale, or payment to tempt customers to buy goods, particularly drinks and confectionary, on impulse whilst paying for other goods.  
         STATEMENTS OF INVENTION  
         [0003]    According to the invention there is provided a sales display unit comprising a housing with cooling means therein, an opening, an automatic feed system located within the housing and on which goods are stored, the feed system transporting goods to said opening, stop means arresting said goods at or adjacent said opening where said goods are accessible from without the housing.  
           [0004]    The cooling means is preferably a built-in refrigeration unit.  
           [0005]    Preferably, the housing is primarily used for the storage and sale of drinks packaged in bottles and/or cans.  
           [0006]    Preferably, the feed system comprises a moveable flexible elongate belt, chain or band which herein after will be referred to as a band, preferably a flat section spiral spring, and the goods are moved by abutment means attached to the band. The abutment means is preferably a hook shape to accomodate the curved exterior of a can or bottle.  
           [0007]    The, or each, band may be associated with a carrier having a channel along which the goods are transported, the band being located in the base of the channel.  
           [0008]    Preferably, each band has only a single abutment means attached thereto and in use containers of pre-packaged goods are arranged in a linear array along the band with adjacent containers being in contact one with another, and the abutment means contacting a container at the end of said linear array so that the feed system can move the array of containers along the channel towards the opening.  
           [0009]    When, the or each carrier is arranged so that the respective channel is oriented along a substantially vertical axis and it is enclosed on its open side by removable cover means, for example an open mesh wire cover or cage, or a transparent cover which allows the transported goods to be viewed.  
           [0010]    Each carrier comprises two longitudinally extending parts each forming a sidewall of the channel and a respective side portion of the base thereof, the base side portions having mutually contacting edges having grooves therein which house and guide the band. Each carrier may have cooling means cooperating therewith so that the goods are cooled through contact with the carrier Preferably the carrier is formed from a thermally conductive material e.g. aluminium, the cooling means include cooling ducts formed integrally within said carrier.  
           [0011]    The stop means have a detent to prevent goods from being ejected through the opening by the feed system. Preferably, the stop means and detent are formed integrally with the or each carrier and extend transversely of the respective channel.  
           [0012]    The unit may include a plurality of substantially vertical carriers arranged in tandem and/or side-by side in the housing with the front carriers being covered by a single removable cover, preferably a transparent cover. The cover and housing may be decorated with advertising or company logos. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]    The invention will be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:  
         [0014]    FIG. 1  is an isometric part cut-away view of a sales display unit according to the present invention,  
         [0015]    FIG. 2  is front elevation of the unit of FIG. 1 ,  
         [0016]    FIG. 3  is a sectional view taken on the line  111 - 111  of FIG. 2 ,  
         [0017]    FIG. 4  is part sectioned isometric view of a carrier as is used in the unit in FIG. 1 ,  
         [0018]    FIG. 5  is an enlarged detail from FIG. 4  showing the feed spring and lifting cradle, and  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 6 is an isometric part cut away view of a second embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0020]    With reference to FIG. 1, there is shown a sales display and dispensing unit  11  for drinks which in this example are packaged in bottles  12 . The unit  11  may be free standing or built into a display wall.  
         [0021]    The unit  11  has a housing  13  which includes a plinth  14 , side walls  15 , removable front cover  16 , and main wall  17  which extend between the two side walls at the rear and top portion of the housing. In the assembled condition, there is an opening  18  in the front top of the housing  13  giving access to the interior of the unit  11 .  
         [0022]    The housing  13  as shown has a curved contoured front but other shaped housing can be used within the spirit of the invention.  
         [0023]    Containers  12  of pre-packaged goods e.g. soft drinks in bottles, are stored within the housing  13  on an automatic feed system  21  which transports the goods towards the opening  18  so that customers may remove the goods through the opening for purchase.  
         [0024]    The feed and storage system  21  comprises a plurality of carriers  22 , preferably four carriers  22  which are arranged side-by-side in the housing. The carriers  22  are similar to each other so that only one carrier will be described in detail to give an understanding of the Invention.  
         [0025]    Each carrier  22  has an open channel  23  along which the bottles  12  are guided and transported. The channel  23  is humped and each carrier is formed from two parts  24 , 25  which are separated by a longitudinal split  26  which runs along the base of the channel  23 . The carrier  22  is oriented so that the channel  23  which is humped extend along a substantially vertical axis. The inner part  24  (that is inner with respect to the housing sidewall  15 ) has an inverted “T” cross-section the leg of which forms a side wall  27  between two channels  23 A &amp;  23 B, and the head of which forms one side portion  28  of the base of a respective channel. The side portions  28  each have a longitudinal edge  29  extending the length of the part  24 . The outer part  25  has an “L” shaped cross-section, forming the outer sidewall  31  of the channel  23 B and the other side portion  32  of the base of the channel  23 B. The side portion  32  has a longitudinal edge  33  thereon extending the length of the part  25 . The edges  29 , 33  have recesses and grooves  34  therein so that when the two parts  24 , 25  are assembled, with the edges  29 , 33  in abutment at the split  26 , the recesses and grooves form a longitudinally extending slot  35  and passageway  34 .  
         [0026]    The pre-packaged goods  12  are transported along the channel  23  in the carrier  22  by a cradle  36 , in this case shaped as a hook, which is moved along the slot  35  by a moveable band  37 . The band  37  is accommodated in the passageway  34  and is preferably a flat section spiral spring forming part of a constant force spiral spring assembly  38  which is attached to the rear of the carrier  22 . The spring assembly  38  is primed by hand and the carrier may be held in a detent (not shown). Bottles  12  are placed transversely into the channel  22  side by side with the cradle  36  acting directly against the adjacent end bottle when released to move the array of bottles along the channel.  
         [0027]    The spring assembly  38  may also be primed by means of motors attached to the free end of the spring  37  by flexible connections such as chains or belts.  
         [0028]    The cradle  36  may be fixed to other devices such as chains, or belts which may be moved by motors e.g. hydraulic, pneumatic or electrically operated motors as alternatives to the spring operated system.  
         [0029]    The carrier parts  24 , 25  may be formed from a thermally conductive material e.g. aluminium, and have cooling channels or passageways  41  formed their so that coolant can be passed through the carriers  22  for cooling containers in contact with the carrier. The coolant is provided by a refrigeration unit  43  in the housing.  
         [0030]    The upper portion of the carrier  22  has a stop means  42  which halts the movement of the bottles. The stop means  42  is an abutment located in proximity to the opening  18  and which extend across the upper end of the channel  23 . The stop means  42  has a slight undercut thereon forming a detent to hold an adjacent bottle within the channel  23  under the load exerted by the spring assembly  38 . A recess  43  is provided in the upper portion of each side portion  28  of the carrier to provide a clearance around a mid-portion of a bottle to assist removal from the housing.  
         [0031]    The channels  23  of the four carriers may be covered a open mesh cage  44 , see FIG. 6, to hold the bottles in place, and/or by the shaped front cover  16 . Both also act as a guide for movement of the bottles.  
         [0032]    As a bottle  12  is removed from the top portion of each carrier.  22 , the spring assembly  38  automatically propels the array of bottles upward until the next bottle contacts the stop means  42 . When the carries  22  are empty, the unit can be re-filled by removing the front cover  16  and then either priming and filling the carriers  22  in situ, or removing the carriers  22  en-block for filling on the site or at a remote location.  
         [0033]    In an alterative construction, shown in FIG. 6, the carriers  22  can be made independent of each other, by for example forming each carrier from two “L” section parts, and arranged differently e.g. behind each other instead of side-by-side, or in combinations of two.  
         [0034]    The housing  13  includes a refrigeration unit  43  located within the housing  13  behind the carriers  22  for cooling the drinks stored in the unit. The refrigeration unit  43  may be located in the bottom of the housing  13  on the plinth  14  and may cool by circulation of cold air within the unit or by passing coolant through the carriers.