Abstract:
An adaptable retail merchandise product display system is particularly suited for display and storage of printed media in planar or roll form. The system includes display cassettes supported in tiers in a cabinet or rack; adjustable roll trays which accommodate rolled merchandise in various roll widths and also supported in tiers in a cabinet or rack; a fin to support merchandise displays and with integral storage compartments; and display spinners having a central vertical axis and radially extended attachment points between which display media extends in a concave form to maximize displayed surface area. The various aspects of the adaptable display can be combined in different arrangements according to the type of merchandise and the retail environment.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention pertains generally to merchandise display and related hardware for displaying products in a retail environment and more particularly, to retail product display systems which are selectively configurable to display cylindrical objects such as wallpaper, wrapping paper or greeting card products in interchangeable arrangements.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Prior art wallpaper sample books have been typically used by retailers to allow consumers to view a plethora of wallpaper samples. The books are large and difficult to handle, and the wallpaper samples can be viewed only by opening the book on a large table. Several tables of book stands are required for each store. Another disadvantage to this method is that only a few samples can be displayed at any given time, and it requires the time-consuming effort and patience of the consumer to thumb through the sample books. Another disadvantage to this method is that the consumer cannot retain a sample for their personal use and instead must borrow the sample book in order to effectively coordinate colors. Further, the consumer requires the assistance of a sales clerk to order the wallpaper.  
           [0003]    More recently, a do-it-yourself concept in marketing wallpaper has resulted in the display of wallpaper samples and wallpaper rolls such as that shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,121,718, 4,175,807 and 5,031,781. Many prior art display racks have the disadvantage of providing the display of only a fixed width of wallpaper. Rolls of wallpaper vary in width and size which will result in a waste of space when used in the prior art display racks. Thus for example, it is not generally feasible to display wallpaper rolls on display racks adjacent matching border rolls because of the huge disparity in widths. Another disadvantage to the prior art display racks is that they generally do not provide for the display of more than one type of wallpaper in a row. Further, the prior art display racks generally do not provide for an easily accessible and removable sample adjacent the wallpaper roll.  
           [0004]    It is often desirable to display just the wallpaper samples in a large array in an easily retrievable and aesthetically-pleasing manner. The wallpaper sample displays of the prior art are disadvantageous in that they require the customer to hunt and retrieve the desired sample after viewing a large static display of samples.  
         SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION  
         [0005]    The present invention overcomes these and other disadvantages of the prior art, while providing a wallpaper roll assembly which can accommodate wallpaper rolls of varying widths in a single row or even in adjacent rows. The invention also provides for the storage and display of several rolls of wallpaper of varying widths contained within in its own independent adjustable width carrier. Further it is desirable to provide for an easily accessible sample adjacent the displayed wallpaper roll. The present invention further provides a space-efficient display of samples.  
           [0006]    The invention provides in one aspect a display system for storing merchandise such as wallpaper samples or greetings cards comprising one or more vertical display columns comprised of opposed sidewalls with each sidewall having a bracket affixed thereto. Each of the brackets have aligned terraced slots for receiving one or more cassettes with each of the cassettes comprising one or more compartments for receiving merchandise.  
           [0007]    The invention provides in another aspect a display system for storing and displaying cylindrical articles comprising a plurality of roll trays for supporting cylindrical objects arranged in one or more vertical columns and affixed to a frame. Each of the roll trays have a front portion comprised of a transparent material sufficient for viewing an exterior surface of the cylindrical objects.  
           [0008]    The invention provides in yet another aspect a display system for storing and displaying cylindrical articles comprising a plurality of roll trays for supporting cylindrical objects arranged in one or more vertical columns and affixed to a frame. Each of the roll trays have means for supporting cylindrical articles in one or more adjustable width bins.  
           [0009]    The invention provides in still another aspect a tray for supporting two or more types of cylindrical objects of the same or differing widths comprising a first and second pair of support trays slidably mounted on a panel having a track comprised of spaced teeth with grooves therebetween. Each of the support trays have a resilient flap with a ratchet member being positionable in said grooves.  
           [0010]    The invention provides in still another aspect a fin assembly for displaying and storing wallpaper samples and the like, the assembly comprising a pivotally mounted elongate mounting panel having a first side and a second side. Each side has an outer display compartment for displaying samples and an interior compartment having one or more pockets for storing consumer samples.  
           [0011]    The invention provides in still another aspect a carousel display spinner comprising a plurality of rigid panels arranged to extend radially outward from a vertical axis. A flexible panel is affixed to adjacent radial ends of the rigid panels forming a wide area concave display surface and with all of the panels being rotatably mounted upon a base.  
           [0012]    These and other aspects of the invention are herein described in particularized detail with reference to the accompanying Figures. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES  
       [0013]    In the accompanying Figures:  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a wall paper cassette cabinet constructed in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the wall paper cassette cabinet of FIG. 1, shown with the cassettes removed;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the cassette of the cassette cabinet as shown in FIG. 1;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view in the direction  4 - 4  of FIG. 1 showing the cassette mounted in the cabinet;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 5 is a front view of a second embodiment of a roll display cabinet constructed in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 6 is a side view of the roll display cabinet as shown in FIG. 5;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of the roll display cabinet as shown in FIG. 5;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 8 is a perspective exploded view of a fixed-width roll tray as shown in FIG. 5;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an adjustable roll tray and mounting brackets of the present invention as shown in FIG. 5;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view in the direction  10 - 10  of FIG. 9 of a section of the roll tray and cabinet configured in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view in the direction  11 - 11  of FIG. 9 of a section of the roll tray and cabinet configured in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 12 is a greatly enlarged cross-sectional view in the direction  12 - 12  of FIG. 11;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a roll cabinet shown in combination with a carousel constructed in accordance with the present invention; and  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 14 is a top view of the carousel as shown in FIG. 13. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0028]    Referring now to the drawings and in particular to FIG. 1, a cassette display cabinet is shown generally at  10  and which is suitable for, but not limited to, displaying generally planar objects, such as for example, greeting cards, wrapping paper, other printed media, material samples such as wallpaper samples. The display system  10  is comprised of a frame  20  and a plurality of sample cassettes  30  which are arranged in a terraced manner. The frame  20  is made of a pair of opposed sidewalls  22  having a lower portion  24  which gradually tapers from the bottom  26  to the mid-section  27  of the frame  20 . Alternatively, the opposed sidewalls  22  may gradually taper upwardly the entire vertical dimension of the display  110 . The frame  20  may also contain a header  40  which may optionally contain a partially concealed fluorescent light (not shown) located behind a front panel  44  which may optionally have advertising indicia (Not shown). The merchandise display frame  20  may be dimensioned at any desired width and vertical extent in order to fit within and optimize a product display area in a store. FIG. 1 represents only one possible combination of the frame, array of columns and vertical support wall. Other similar hardware can be used to form a merchandise display wall in accordance with the invention.  
         [0029]    The cassette display cabinet  10  as shown in FIG. 1 further contains an open front section  46  for displaying two terraced columns  48 ,  48 ′ of cartridges  30 , although one or more columns may be used. If two or more columns  48  are utilized, the frame  20  further contains an intermediate support wall  28  interdisposed between the adjoining columns. A back wall  50  interconnects the side walls  22  and the intermediate support walls  28  by any suitable fastening method such as screws in conjunction with support brackets or other suitable means well known in the art.  
         [0030]    Each vertical column  48  has two wallpaper cassette support brackets  60  which are made of metal or woodland are affixed to the adjacent wall  22 , 28  with any suitable method such as fasteners and mounting brackets (not shown). As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the wallpaper cassette support brackets  60  are preferably made of a single metal strip which has been formed in the shape of a series of l-shaped slots  62  arranged in a terraced configuration. A first and second cassette support brackets  60  has aligned L-shaped slots  62  to receive and hold a wallpaper sample cassette  30 .  
         [0031]    The wallpaper sample cassette  30  as shown in FIG. 3 is made of an outer plastic or metal backing  32  having upper and lower retaining clips  38  into which outer flanges  36  of a clear plastic cover  34  snap fit therein. The cover  34  has optional openings  33  for allowing consumers to touch the exterior surface of the wallpaper sample  35  as well as facilitate removal and installation of the adjustment clip  80  from the cassette  30 . The clear plastic cover  34  has outer flanges  36  which are slidably mounted underneath upper and lower retaining clips  38  of the outer backing  32 . The clear plastic cover  34  additionally comprises cutouts  37  for facilitating easy removal of the sample  35  from the cassette  30 . The sample cassette  30  is divided into two or more compartments  39  formed by spacers  41  for containing and displaying a wallpaper sample  35 . The outer backing  32  comprises one or more slots  70  for receiving an adjustment clip  80 , which provides for the adjustment of wallpaper samples of varying heights. The adjustment clip  80  is utilized to vary the vertical height of the compartment  39  such that samples of varying widths may be easily retrieved. The adjustment clip  80  comprises a distal end  82  having a first and second member which cooperate to form a clip  84  for retention about the slot  70  of the cassette  30 . The opposing end of the adjustment clip  80  cooperates with the cassette outer backing  32  to form a L-shaped support shelf  86  for retaining the samples  35  within the compartment  39 . The adjustment clips  80  allow the depth of the compartment  39  to be varied in order to display samples of varying dimensions with the same vertical height in a consistent esthetically pleasing manner.  
         [0032]    As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of sample cassettes  30  are mountable and removable within a column of the display system  10 . Each cassette  30  is slidably insertable into the aligned L-shaped slots of the support brackets  60 .  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 5 illustrates a second embodiment of the invention with a combined wallpaper sample and wallpaper roll display system  100 . The roll display cabinet  100  has a base  122 , a header  124  and opposed side frames  126  mounted therebetween with an open frontal display area  128 . The header  124  may optionally contain a partially concealed fluorescent light (not shown) located behind a front panel  132  which may also have advertising indicia (not shown). Side and rear aesthetically pleasing wood or plastic panels  134  may be mounted on the side frames  126 . The display area  128  may be further divided into one or more columns by a pair of adjacent intermediate support frames  130 . The column width may be varied in order to display different widths of cylindrical rolls. Within each display column a plurality of roll bins are mounted as shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 5 illustrates two types of roll trays or bins: an adjustable width roll tray  140  and a fixed width sample pocket tray  160 .  
         [0034]    As best shown in FIGS. 6, 7 and  8 , the fixed width roll tray  160  contains a left and right roll tray bracket  162 ,  164  respectively, which cooperate together to form a bin for supporting and displaying cylindrical rolls  166  such as wall paper and wrapping paper. Each roll tray bracket  162 , 164  has a planar bottom wall  168  and side wall  170  joined together such that the walls are perpendicular with respect to each other. Each left and right roll tray bracket  162 , 164  has a front section  180  which is preferably made of a hard clear plastic sufficient for viewing and displaying the cylindrical roll. The front section  180  is attached to the walls  168 , 170  via any conventional means known in the art. Preferably, the front section  180  has a rectangular slot  182  located on an exterior surface for receiving a mounting bracket  172  located therein. The bottom wall  168  further comprises a retaining flap or hook  174  for reception of a planar surface  184  of the front section  180 . The front section  180  further comprises a pocket  190  for storing a plurality of merchandise samples or displaying advertising or pricing information.  
         [0035]    As shown in FIG. 6, each roll tray bracket  162 , 164  is mounted in an angled manner utilizing the brackets  172  positioned within slots of the frame  126 . Thus the roll tray brackets are aligned and angled such that a plurality of wallpaper brackets cooperate to form a plurality of vertically-spaced wallpaper roll trays or bins that are tilted forward to facilitate removal of the rolls by consumers from the trays.  
         [0036]    The display system  100  may additionally contain an adjustable width roll tray  140  as best shown in FIG. 9, which is especially suited for displaying border wallpaper rolls which have a much shorter width and come in non-standard sizes than regular wallpaper. The wallpaper tray  140  may comprise only a single bin of wallpaper rolls, or may comprise two or more bins of border rolls, with each bin having an adjustable width. The adjustable wallpaper tray  140  comprises one or more left support trays  142  and a matching right support tray  144 . The left and right support trays  142 , 144  are identical mechanically except for being the mirror image of each other, and which cooperate to define a wallpaper or border support tray. The support trays  142 ,  144  may be comprised of any suitable plastic or metal material, and preferably, a clear hard plastic. Each of the support trays  142 ,  144  are slidably mounted upon a panel  200  having a track  202  of spaced grooves  204  and teeth  205 . The panel  200  further comprises angled edges  210  for being slidably received in the hooked ends  146  of the support trays  142 , 144 , as best shown in FIG. 10. Each support tray  142 , 144  comprises a planar tray  146  having curved ends  148  with a resilient flap  150  having a ratchet member  152  on the underside for being positionable in the grooves  204  between the teeth  205 . A small clearance between the angled surface  210  and the hooked end is desired in order to facilitate the sliding motion of the support tray along the grooved track. The desired when the support tray is lifted slightly in order to disengage the ratchet member  152  from the teeth. The clearance must not be too great in order to retain the ratchet member  152  within the groove between adjacent teeth when the support tray has been adjusted to the desired location. The support trays  142 , 144  mounted upon the ends of the panel  200  may be fixed into position by insertion of plastic push-in fasteners  220  into holes  222  of the support tray  142 , 144  and the panel holes (not shown) of the panel  200 .  
         [0037]    Left and right hand mounting brackets  232 ,  234  are utilized to mount the wallpaper tray  140  into the frame  126  of the display  100 . The angled mounting brackets each have a cutout  236  for inserting the panel  200  therein. The side brackets  238  are then mounted and secured into frame  126  slots of the display  100 .  
         [0038]    As shown in FIGS. 5, 6 and  12 , the roll display cabinet  100  may additionally comprise a rotatable fin assembly  250  comprising a vertical display of wallpaper samples  35  with wallpaper samples  37  for consumer&#39;s use located behind the display sample in pockets  254  and  256 . The advantage to using a rotatable fin assembly in conjunction with a series of wallpaper trays is that the consumer may quickly view and rotate the fin assembly  250  to view the desired samples and then easily retrieve the co-located desired wallpaper rolls and sample swatches. The fin assembly  250  comprises two elongate mounting panel  252  mounted back-to back as shown in FIG. 12 in order to have a double-sided display. The assembled panels  252  are pivotally mounted via a pair of brackets  258  onto the roll display cabinet  100 . Each panel  252  further comprises a series of stepped spacers  260  mounted thereon. A plurality of sample separator clips  270  are mounted in between spacers  260  as explained in more detail below.  
         [0039]    The sample clip  270  is comprised of any suitable material and is preferably comprised of a hard clear plastic. The clip  270  further comprises an inner compartment  272  and an outer compartment  274  for housing wallpaper samples. The sample clip  270  is mounted onto the panel  260  by friction pins  276  located on the exterior of the inner compartment  272  which are inserted into holes in the middle step  278  of spacer  260 .  
         [0040]    A display wallpaper sample  35  or combination of samples such as a border and matching wallpaper sample are housed within the first compartment behind a clear plastic cover which is inserted into the outer compartment  274 . The clear cover  280  is held in place by flanges  282  and the resilient member  284  which pushes the sample  35  and cover  280  against the flanges  282 . The wallpaper samples  37  for consumer&#39;s use are located behind the display sample  37  in the pockets  254  and  256  formed by the sample clip  270 . Further, the wallpaper rolls which correspond with the wallpaper samples are located next to the fin assembly for ease of retrieval by the consumer.  
         [0041]    [0041]FIGS. 13 and 14 illustrate another embodiment of the invention containing a carousel  300  shown in combination with a wallpaper roll display rack. The carousel  300  may also be utilized separate from the wallpaper display rack. The carousel  300  is utilized to display a series of wallpaper samples or wallpaper borders. The carousel  300  comprises a plurality of rigid panels  302  arranged to extend radially outward from a vertical axis  304  and forming a center hole for receiving a pole mounted upon a base  310 . The carousel  300  is thus rotatable about the vertical axis  304 . The distal edge  312  of each panel  302  further comprising flanges  314  having tabbed ends for retaining a flexible display panel  320  slidably received therein. When the display panels  320  are installed within the flanges  314 , a concave mounting display surface is formed for mounting a plurality of wallpaper samples thereon. Because the mounting display surface is preferably concave, a greater amount of wallpaper surface area may be displayed.  
         [0042]    Although described with reference to certain preferred and alternate embodiments, certain modifications and variations of the general principles of the invention which may be apparent to those of skill in the art are all within the scope of the invention as defined by the accompanying claims and equivalents thereto. For example, although shown in certain embodiments, the individual aspects of the system of the invention; such as the cassettes, the cassette display cabinet, the fixed and adjustable roll displays, the roll display cabinet, the fin assembly and the carousel, can be combined in any manner to provide different displays adaptable to any type of retail environment. Thus, the invention provides a highly adaptable product display system which is not limited to the particular combinations drawn herein. Furthermore, the proportions, dimensions and relative sizes of the combined display elements may be selectively varied in accordance with the invention.