Abstract:
A portable assembly for shop-at-home services includes a rigid substrate with a plurality of flooring samples of the same style removably arranged on the rigid substrate. The rigid substrate includes an upper left corner and a lower right corner. The plurality of flooring samples are positioned to create a visible impression that the flooring samples are permanently attached to the rigid substrate. The portable assembly includes a plurality of indicia, a respective one adjacent each of the samples and indicating a price for the respective sample. The prices are arranged in descending order from the upper left corner to the lower right corner. The plurality of indicia are permanently attached to the rigid substrate, such that the price of the sample located in the upper left corner is the highest and the price of the sample located in the lower right corner is the lowest.

Description:
COPYRIGHT 
       [0001]    A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to shop-at-home catalogs, and more particularly, to shop-at-home catalogs of flooring samples that provide upfront pricing. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    Shop-at-home catalogs, such as catalogs of carpet samples, tile samples and the like, have been used for many years. Generally, companies send a customer representative to a customer home after receiving a request by the customer. The customer representative brings a catalog containing a variety of flooring samples, such as carpet samples, as requested by the customer. Such catalogs do not display pricing for such samples. On the contrary, companies keep pricing secret, such that the price to an individual customer is determined after or during a first home visit. The method of calculating the price is not disclosed to the customer; moreover, the price for the same flooring generally differs from customer to customer. Additionally, the selection may differ from customer to customer, such that certain customers are shown only the more expensive flooring options based on a variety of factors, including demographics. Thus, customers have no assurance that the price of the goods they are purchasing actually reflects the quality of the goods or that the price they are being offered is the same price that is offered to other customers. 
         [0004]    In the shop-at-home industry, there is an unfulfilled need to provide a wide selection of samples and upfront pricing for such samples, such that the pricing does not differ from customer to customer. Customers need assurance that they are provided with honest and reasonable pricing that reflects the quality of the goods they are purchasing. These and other unfulfilled needs are addressed by the present disclosure. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    Some aspects disclosed herein relate to a portable assembly for shop-at-home services including a rigid substrate with a plurality of flooring samples removably arranged or affixed thereon. The rigid substrate includes an upper left corner and a lower right corner. The plurality of flooring samples are positioned to create a visible impression that the flooring samples are permanently attached to the rigid substrate. The portable assembly includes a plurality of indicia, a respective one adjacent each of the samples and indicating a price for the respective sample. The prices are arranged in descending order from the upper left corner to the lower right corner. The plurality of indicia are permanently attached to the rigid substrate, such that the price of the sample located in the upper left corner is the highest and the price of the sample located in the lower right corner is the lowest. 
         [0006]    Another aspect disclosed herein relates to a portable assembly for shop-at-home services including two or more rigid substrates arranged in a folder. Each one of the two or more rigid substrates includes an upper left corner and a lower right corner. A plurality of flooring samples of one style are removably arranged on each one of the two or more rigid substrates and are positioned to create a visible impression that the flooring samples are permanently attached to each one of the two or more rigid substrates. Each one of the two or more rigid substrates includes a plurality of indicia positioned a respective one adjacent each of the samples and indicating a price for the respective sample. The prices are arranged in descending order from the upper left corner to the lower right corner, the plurality of indicia being permanently attached to each one of the two or more rigid substrates, such that the price of the sample located in the upper left corner is the highest out of the plurality of indicia and the price of the sample located in the lower right corner is the lowest out of the plurality of indicia. The indicia are configured to provide assurance to a shop-at-home customer that the price associated with each of the samples is the actual price of the samples and does not vary from one shop-at-home customer to another. 
         [0007]    Yet another aspect disclosed herein relates to a portable assembly for shop-at-home services including a rigid substrate. The rigid substrate includes an upper left corner and a lower right corner. A plurality of flooring samples of the same style are arranged on the rigid substrate and are permanently attached thereto. The portable assembly includes a plurality of indicia, a respective one adjacent each of the samples and indicating a price for the respective sample. The prices are arranged in descending order from the upper left corner to the lower right corner. The plurality of indicia are permanently attached to the rigid substrate, such that the price of the sample located in the upper left corner is the highest and the price of the sample located in the lower right corner is the lowest. 
         [0008]    The foregoing and additional aspects and implementations of the present disclosure will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of various embodiments and/or aspects, which is made with reference to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided next. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a board assembly for shop-at-home services; 
           [0010]      FIG. 1A  is perspective exploded view of the two samples located in the upper-left corner of the board assembly shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0011]      FIG. 1B  is a perspective view of a board assembly for shop-at-home services; 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a board assembly for shop-at-home services; 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a folder containing several board assemblies for shop-at-home services; 
           [0014]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of an architectural folder including several board assemblies for shop-at-home services. 
       
    
    
       [0015]    While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0016]    While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail preferred embodiments of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broad aspect of the invention to the embodiments illustrated. 
         [0017]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a board assembly  100  according to the present disclosure. The board assembly  100  may be made of any durable rigid or semi-rigid material, such as plastic, metal, wood, binder&#39;s board, and others. The board assembly  100  includes an array of samples  102  arranged thereon. The samples  102  may be any type of flooring samples, including carpet, hardwood, tile, linoleum, laminate, and others. The samples  102  may also be any samples that are generally used in the shop-at-home industry, including drapes, leather, textiles, and others. The samples  102  may be arranged on the board assembly  100  in a number of configurations. The samples  102  may be arranged, for example in a 3 rows×4 columns arrangement as shown in  FIG. 1 . Alternatively, the samples  402  may be arranged as shown on board  426  of  FIG. 4 . The samples  102  may be arranged in any suitable arrangement that may be used in shop-at-home catalogs. 
         [0018]    The board assembly  100  includes a top section  106 , a bottom section  108 , a right section  110 , and a left section  112 . Each sample  102  includes a price indicium  104  associated therewith. The price indicia  104  are permanently attached to the board  100 , or can be removable from the board  100  but have a visual impression of being permanently affixed to the board  100 . The price indicia  104  may be attached to the board  100  by any suitable means. Sample  102  located in a top-left corner  116  has the highest price indicium  104  associated therewith as compared to all the samples arranged on the board  100 . Thus, no other sample  102  has a higher price indicium  104  associated therewith than the sample  102  located in the top-left corner  116 . Sample  114  located in a bottom-right corner  118  has a lowest price indicium  104  associated therewith out of all the samples  102  shown on the board  100 . The prices here are in U.S. dollars, but of course any other currency can be used depending on geographic locale. 
         [0019]      FIG. 1A  is a perspective exploded view of the sample  102  located in the top-left corner  116  and the sample  120  located directly to the right of the sample  102  located in the top-left corner  116 . Price indicium “8.65” is associated with the sample  102  located in the top-left corner  116  and price indicium “8.55” is associated with the sample  120 . Alternatively, price indicia  104  for adjoining samples  102  located in the top-left corner  116  and sample  120  located directly to the right of it may be identical. Price indicia  104  decrease from left to right and from top to bottom. In an alternative embodiment, the cost to the shop-at-home services provider associated with the sample  102  located in the top-left corner  116  represents the highest cost to the shop-at-home services provider out of all the samples  102  located on the board  100 . Similarly, in an alternative embodiment, the cost to the shop-at-home services provider associated with the sample  114  located in the bottom-right corner  118  represents the lowest cost to the shop-at-home services provider out of all the samples  102  located on the board  100 . Thus, the samples  102  may be arranged on the board  100  in a descending order from the top-left corner  116  to the bottom-right corner  118  with respect to both the cost to the customer and to the shop-at-home service provider. Generally, purchasers tend to think that the items in a top-left corner  116  have the highest price and those in the lower-right corner have the lowest price, so their eyes and brains will naturally evaluate the relative quality and expense of the samples in the same manner that they are presented. 
         [0020]    Referring now to  FIG. 1B , in another aspect of the present disclosure, the samples  102  and the price indicia  104  associated therewith may be permanently attached to a substrate  122 . The substrate  122  may be the same as or different from the material from which the substrate  100  is constructed. The substrate  122  may be constructed out of plastic, metal wood, book binder&#39;s material, or any other suitable material. The substrate  122  may be permanently attached to the board assembly  100  by any acceptable means. In another aspect, the substrate  122  may be removably attached to the board assembly  100  by any suitable means, including, but not limited to, a pair of magnets  115  and  113  and Velcro® fasteners  115  and  113 . 
         [0021]    Referring now to  FIG. 2 , samples  202  arranged on the board assembly  200  may include samples of the same or similar styles. Table 1 below includes examples of different carpet companies and some carpet styles carried by those companies. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
             
               
               
               
             
           
               
                 TABLE 1 
               
             
             
               
                   
               
               
                 Sample List of Carpet Companies and Styles 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 CARPET COMPANY 
                 STYLE 
               
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 American Berber 
                 Invincible 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Glen Hollow 
               
               
                   
                 Beaulieu 
                 Baytown 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Elevations 
               
               
                   
                 Dixie 
                 North Oaks 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Ristow 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Wishing Tree 
               
               
                   
                 Godfrey Hirst 
                 Soho II 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Glen Abbey 
               
               
                   
                 Kraus 
                 Castle Rock III 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Textra Plus III 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Woodbine 
               
               
                   
                 Lexmark 
                 London 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Lexington 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Love Story 
               
               
                   
                 Mohawk 
                 Casa Grande 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Serenity Beach 
               
               
                   
                   
                 American Dream 
               
               
                   
                 Royalty 
                 Sheer Desire 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Sweet Dream 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Palace Square 
               
               
                   
                 Southwind 
                 Capri 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Monte Cristo 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Waterford 
               
               
                   
                 Shaw 
                 Casual Chic 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Ballerina 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Crystal Visions 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Del Mar 
               
               
                   
                   
                 XV640 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0022]    As shown in Table 1 above, the Carpet Company Godfrey Hirst carries “Soho II” and “Glen Abbey” styles. Each style typically includes a variety of samples in different colors and of different quality, and, thus of different price. Thus, there may be “Soho II” style carpet that costs about $8 per square foot and there may be lower-priced “Soho II” style that costs about $5 per square foot. The board assembly  200  includes samples  202  that have similar styles or patterns, but different quality. The sample  202  located in the top-left corner  216  has the highest price indicium  204  associated therewith and the highest quality out all of the samples  202  located on the board  200 . The sample  214  located in the bottom-right corner  218  has the lowest price indicium  204  associated therewith and the lowest quality for samples of that style as compared to all the other samples  202  arranged on the board  200 . 
         [0023]    Alternatively, a single board assembly may include only samples from the same manufacturer arranged thereon. The most expensive sample is located in the top-left corner and the least expensive sample is located in the bottom-right corner. 
         [0024]    Referring now to  FIG. 3 , a folder  300  including a board assembly  322  and a board assembly  324  is shown. The folder  300  may contain  2  or more board assemblies  322  and  324 . The sample  302  located in the top-left corner  316  has the highest price out of all the samples arranged on the board assembly  322 . The sample  314  located in the lower-right corner  316  has the lowest price indicium  304  associated therewith out of all the samples  302  located on the board assembly  322 . The board assemblies  322  and  324  may be arranged such that the price indicium associated with the sample  318  located in the lower-right corner  318  of the board assembly  322  is higher than or the same as the price indicium  304 ′ associated with the sample  302 ′ located in the top-left corner  316 ′ of the board assembly  324 . The price indicium  304 ′ associated with the sample  314 ′ located in the lower-right corner  318 ′ of the board assembly  324  is the lowest price indicium  304 ′ present on board assembly  324 . 
         [0025]      FIG. 3  shows a folder  300  including two board assemblies  322  and  324 . The folder  300  may include two or more board assemblies. For example, the folder  300  may be a binder including multiple pages of board assemblies. If the folder  300  includes multiple board assemblies, the sample located in the top-left corner of the board assembly located on the first page of the folder  300  may have the highest price indicium associated therewith as compared to all the other samples in the folder  300 . The sample located in the bottom-right corner of the board assembly located on the last page of the folder  300  may have the lowest price indicium associated therewith as compared to all the other samples in the folder  300 . 
         [0026]    In another aspect of the present disclosure, the board assemblies  322  and  324  may be arranged such that the price indicium  304 ′ associated with the sample  302 ′ located in the top-left corner  316 ′ of the board assembly  324  is independent of the price indicium  304  associated with the sample  314  located in the lower-right corner  318  of the board assembly  322 . For example, the folder may include one board assembly  322  including prices for the “North Oaks” style of carpet from Dixie a second board assembly  324  including prices for the “Ristow” style of carpet from Dixie. The prices for the highest-quality samples for both the “North Oaks” and the “Ristow” carpet styles may be about the same, for example, about $9 per square foot. Similarly, the prices for the lowest-quality samples for both styles may be about the same. Thus, the prices on the two boards  322  and  324  may be independent of each other. 
         [0027]    In another aspect of the present disclosure, each board assembly  322 ,  324  includes samples of the same style, but of different quality. In such an arrangement, the price indicia associated with samples on one board assembly are independent of the price indicia associated with samples on another board assembly. In other words, the price indicium associated with the sample located in the top-left corner of one board is independent of the price indicium associated with any sample located on another board. 
         [0028]    Referring now to  FIG. 4 , an architectural folder  400  including several board assemblies (e.g.,  422 ,  424 ,  426 ) is shown. The several board assemblies are configured to fold onto each other. The price indicium  404  are arranged such that the price indicium  404  associated with the sample  402  located in the top-left corner  416  of the board assembly  422  is the highest price indicium  404  out of all the samples arranged in the architectural folder  400 . The price indicium  404  associated with the sample  414  located in the bottom-right corner  418  of the board assembly  424  is the lowest price indicium  404  out of all the samples arranged in the folder  400 . 
         [0029]    While particular embodiments and applications of the present disclosure have been illustrated and described, it is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the precise construction and compositions disclosed herein and that various modifications, changes, and variations can be apparent from the foregoing descriptions without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.