Display rack for displaying rolls of material and method of dispensing material therefrom

An apparatus and method for displaying and dispensing rolls of material are provided. The apparatus preferably has a carrier including a plurality of carrier units. Each carrier unit preferably includes a substantially rectangular frame pivotally mounted about a vertical axis extending substantially along a corresponding one of the vertical sides of the frame. The respective vertical axes of the carrier units are mounted in spaced relation to adjacent vertical axes along the carrier. The plurality of carrier units preferably are pivotably movable from a normal inward closed position wherein only a portion of each but one of the endmost carrier units is exposed to an outward open position wherein each carrier unit is fully exposed. A plurality of opposing vertical rows of cooperating roll supports positioned along opposing vertical sides of the frame of each carrier unit and adapted to support a plurality of correspondingly spaced horizontally disposed rolls of material.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to an apparatus for displaying rolls of 
material and distributing material therefrom and a method for displaying 
rolls of material and distributing material therefrom. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
Materials such as fabrics and wallpaper, for example, are commonly 
displayed in retail stores in the rolled form in which they are provided 
by the producer. Because these rolls are often quite sizable, however, the 
display of the rolls can require a great amount of store floor space. 
Therefore, the number of rolls of material which have been able to be 
displayed by a store has been limited greatly due to space constraints of 
the store. 
Conventionally, rolls of fabric are displayed on A-frame racks. The racks 
include a plurality of rods mounted horizontally thereon and a roll of 
fabric is placed on each rod in order to be mounted on the rack. The rolls 
are mounted one above the other in a vertically spaced relationship. While 
this method of display allows a good view of the fabric, this requires a 
great deal of space since the height of the racks is limited due to 
visibility requirements of the consumers and the width must be such that 
the wide rolls of fabric can be accommodated. For example, rolls of fabric 
typically are provided in standard widths of 54 and 60 inches wide; 
therefore the display of the rolls can be extremely space consuming. The 
distribution of fabric material from these racks requires that the clerk 
remove the fabric roll from the rack and carry it to a cutting table, 
where the fabric is measured, and cut to the desired length. The roll must 
then be remounted onto the rack by the clerk. 
This material distribution method, however, can represent significant 
problems. For example, the removal of the roll can be difficult and even 
dangerous for the clerk, particularly if the roll is mounted near the top 
of the rack, because of the roll weight and size. Because the clerks must 
be able to reach the top rolls and remove them from the rack, the height 
of the rack is extremely limited. In addition, the necessity for cutting 
tables results in the waste of valuable store floor space. Further, the 
excess handling of the fabric rolls often results in the fabric or other 
rolled goods becoming soiled and therefore unsalable. 
Another common technique of displaying fabric is in bolt form wherein the 
fabrics conventionally are folded in half, then wrapped around a 
rectangular cardboard support. The bolts of fabric are then typically 
placed side-by-side in a vertical position in a rack. This technique, 
however, fails to provide good visibility of the fabrics, and the fabrics 
can become damaged when the bolts are placed in and removed from the 
racks. In addition, because the customers themselves often remove and 
replace the bolts, it can be difficult to maintain the fabrics in a 
selected arrangement or even in the desired rack. In order to distribute 
the fabric, the bolts are lifted out of the frame and carried to a cutting 
table where the fabric is then unrolled, measured and cut to the desired 
length. Because this can be physically taxing to the store clerks, the 
risk of injury is increased. Further, the necessity for having 
periodically spaced cutting tables represents a great waste of floor space 
for the store. 
Neither the rack nor the bolt method of displaying rolls of material such 
as fabric discussed above provides an aesthetically pleasing means of 
fabric display. First of all, because the same types of materials are 
commonly grouped together in order that the variety of colors in which 
they are available may be displayed, customers must wander up and down the 
aisles between the racks to search for materials which complement each 
other. Because the racks tend to be so space-consuming, as discussed 
above, this can represent a significant path of travel for the customer. 
In addition, the conventional material display arrangements fail to 
provide any guidance for the consumer as to which materials work well 
together from a design perspective. 
A further problem with the typical fabric display methods and apparatus is 
the failure to provide an easy way for the customer to obtain a swatch of 
the fabric. Typically, when a customer sees a roll of fabric that the 
customer likes, either the customer or the store clerk cuts a piece from 
the roll or bolt. This results in an uneven cut edge on the roll of 
fabric. As a result, when a customer later wishes to purchase some of that 
fabric, the clerk is forced to trim the fabric to provide a straight edge 
in order to provide the customer with the full length of fabric to be 
purchased. This can result in a significant expense which must be borne by 
the store, particularly since some fabrics tend to be extremely expensive. 
Thus, a need exists for an apparatus and method for displaying and 
dispensing material from rolls which provide good visibility of the 
material and easy dispensing of such, without requiring a large amount of 
store floor space. In addition, a need exists for an apparatus and method 
for displaying materials where coordinated materials can be displayed 
together so as to provide design guidance to the consumer and an 
aesthetically pleasing display of the materials. 
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus 
and method for displaying a plurality of rolls of material while 
minimizing the amount of store space needed to display such materials. 
It is also an object of the invention to provide an apparatus and method 
for displaying rolls of material wherein a large number of different 
materials may be viewed at one time. 
It is a further object of the invention to provide an apparatus and method 
for dispensing rolls of material readily and easily without requiring 
removal of the rolls from the display apparatus. 
It is another object of the invention to provide an apparatus and method 
for displaying rolls of material in a coordinated and aesthetically 
appealing arrangement. 
These and other objects are accomplished by providing an apparatus in the 
form of a carrier or display rack having a plurality of carrier units, 
each of which includes a substantially rectangular frame which is 
pivotable about a vertical axis extending substantially along a vertically 
extending side thereof. The plurality of carrier units preferably are 
pivotably movable from a normal inward closed position wherein only a 
portion of each but one of the endmost carrier units is exposed to an 
outward open position wherein each carrier unit is fully exposed. Each of 
the carrier units includes a plurality of pairs of cooperating roll 
supports positioned along the vertical sides thereof. The roll supports 
are adapted to support a plurality of rolls of material so that each roll 
extends across the width of the carrier unit frame, and the rolls are 
vertically spaced apart from each other. 
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a lower carrier unit support is 
attached to the floor of a showroom, preferably spaced slightly from and 
extending parallel to a wall thereof. A cooperating upper carrier unit 
support is attached to a wall of the showroom and extends horizontally and 
outwardly therefrom, preferably in a common plane with the lower carrier 
unit support, in order to form a carrier for the carrier units. A 
plurality of the carrier units are then mounted to the upper and lower 
carrier unit supports so that each carrier unit is pivotable about a 
vertical axis extending substantially along one of its vertically 
extending sides, with the vertical axes of the individual carrier units 
being spaced from one another along the upper and lower carrier unit 
supports. 
The substantially rectangular frame of each carrier unit preferably has a 
widthwise dimension defining the outward extent of the carrier unit from 
its pivotable mounting. The spacing between vertical axes of adjacent 
carrier units along the upper and lower carrier unit supports is 
preferably less than the widthwise dimension of the carrier unit frames. 
In this way, the carrier units overlap when they are positioned at an 
angle other than a 90.degree. angle with the plane extending along the 
upper and lower carrier unit supports, i.e. the plane formed by their 
respective vertical axes of pivot. When the carrier units are positioned 
at such angles of other than 90.degree., only a portion of the rectangular 
face of each carrier unit is exposed due to the fact that the overlapping 
adjacent carrier unit covers the other rest of the overlapped carrier 
unit's rectangular face. Because the rolls of material extend across the 
frame width and are thus displayed across the rectangular face of the 
frame, only a portion of each of the rolls carried by the carrier unit is 
exposed. Further, the spacing between the pivotable mountings of each of 
the carrier units can be preselected in order to provide the optimal 
amount of exposure and overlap of each of the carrier units. Because of 
the ability of these carrier units to overlap, a particularly attractive 
arrangement of rolls of material can be made in a limited amount of space. 
In addition, the spaced pivotable mountings of the individual carrier 
units allow each carrier unit to be pivoted outwardly, similar to the 
turning of pages in a book, to thereby enable the entire width of the 
rolls carried thereon to be viewed and dispensed. 
As an additional advantage, the display apparatus of the present invention 
includes a cutting device which can be removably mounted as the individual 
carrier unit frames. The cutting device includes a means for measuring a 
length of material as it is removed from any of the rolls carried by the 
carrier unit and cut, thereby obviating the need for the clerk to remove 
the rolls from the rack for cutting. Furthermore, this apparatus obviates 
the need for cutting tables in the store, thus saving valuable floor 
space. 
The present invention also includes methods for displaying rolls of 
material and methods for dispensing rolls of material. A method of 
displaying rolls of material preferably includes providing a substantially 
rectangular frame pivotally mounted along one side thereof on a vertical 
axis and mounting in vertically spaced relation on the frame a plurality 
of horizontally extending rolls of material with the mounting being such 
as to permit unwinding of the material from the rolls. 
A method for displaying rolls of material is also provided which preferably 
includes mounting a plurality of substantially rectangular frames such 
that each frame is pivotable about its own vertical axis of pivot which 
extends substantially along a vertical side of the frame, said axes being 
spaced apart from each other along a common horizontal plane and mounting 
on each frame a plurality of horizontally extending rolls of material. 
Further, a method for displaying and/or dispensing rolls of material is 
provided which also preferably includes providing a substantially 
rectangular frame having rolls of material horizontally mounted thereon, 
providing a measuring device mounted to the frame and positioned to 
receive the material from the rolls, and feeding material from a roll to 
the measuring device for measurement thereof. This method preferably also 
includes measuring the material as the material is fed to the measuring 
device and winding the material onto a roll as the material is being 
measured.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with 
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of 
the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many 
different forms and should not be construed as limited to the illustrated 
embodiments set forth herein; rather, these illustrated embodiments are 
provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete and will 
fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like 
numbers refer to like elements throughout, and prime numbers represent a 
modified embodiment of a previously designated element. 
FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art A-frame-type apparatus 10 for rolled 
materials with pluralality rolls of material being supported one above the 
other in racks 10a, 10b, 10c and 10d. As shown, the rolls may be rolls of 
fabric R supported on front and back sides of the display apparatus 10. 
Each rack, however, requires floor space equivalent to at least the width 
of the rolls to be supported. Because the rolls must be removed for the 
material thereon to be cut, the rack height is undesirably limited to a 
height easily reachable by the store employees. In addition, when rolls of 
material are to be provided on the front and back sides of the display 
apparatus 10, walkways need to be provided on both sides of the apparatus. 
Therefore, this apparatus 10 requires a large amount of showroom floor 
space to display only a minimal number of rolls of material. Further, and 
as discussed above, this type of display apparatus 10 necessitates the 
provision of separate cutting tables to which the rolls of material may be 
removed for cutting. This requirement for the provision of cutting tables 
also represents an additional demand on showroom floor space. 
FIGS. 2-6 illustrate a display apparatus 15 according to the present 
invention. The display apparatus 15 includes a carrier 12 which preferably 
includes a plurality of carrier units 14 and means for supporting the 
carrier units in the desired position. Each carrier unit 14 includes a 
frame 16 which is preferably substantially rectangular so as to include 
two vertically extending sides 16a and 16b and upper and lower 
horizontally extending sides 16c and 16d. 
Each frame 16 is mounted so as to be pivotable about a vertical axis 20 
which extends substantially along one of its vertically extending sides 
16a. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the frames 16 are 
pivotably mounted by way of a carrier support preferably having upper and 
lower carrier unit supports 22 and 24, respectively thereof. The upper 
carrier unit support 22 is desirably attached to a wall W of the showroom 
so as to extend horizontally along the wall W and outwardly therefrom. The 
lower carrier unit 24 is desirably attached to extend horizontally along 
the floor F. It is noted, however, that these carrier unit supports 22, 24 
could be attached along any means of support, for example, the lower 
carrier unit could extend from the wall W and/or the upper carrier unit 22 
could extend from the ceiling of the showroom. The carrier unit supports 
22, 24 are preferably located within a common plane, with the carrier 
units 14 being spaced therealong so that the individual carrier units 14 
can pivot or swing through at least about a 30.degree. angle, and 
preferably approaching a 180.degree. angle, as will be discussed further 
herein. 
The carrier unit frames 16 of the carrier 12 include a defined face 30 
which is the area which is surrounded by the frame 16, and the frames 16 
define a widthwise extent which is desirably similar to the length of the 
rolls, such as rolls of fabric, wallpaper, tile, carpets, or other sheet 
material, to be carried thereon. The widthwise extent of the frame 16 is 
desirably greater than the distance between the pivotable mountings of 
adjacent carrier units 14. As a result, when adjacent carrier units 14 are 
pivoted in the same or a similar direction, individual carrier units 
overlap their respective adjacent carrier units 14, which are in the 
direction of pivot. Similarly, when adjacent carrier units 14 are pivoted 
in the opposite direction, the previously overlapped carrier unit overlaps 
the carrier unit 14 which was previously the overlapping carrier unit 14. 
The frames 16 include cooperating pairs of roll supports along vertically 
extending sides 16a and 16b. The roll supports 18 which are provided on 
the frame 16 are adapted to support a plurality of rolls of material 32 to 
display and maintain them within the face 30 defined by the frame 16. The 
roll supports 18 are adapted to support the rolls 28 so that they extend 
horizontally across the frame and the rolls are vertically spaced one 
above another. As previously discussed, when adjacent carrier unit frames 
16 are pivoted in the same or a similar direction, carrier units 14 
overlap their respective adjacent carrier units in the direction of pivot 
to cover a portion of the face 30 thereof. When the carrier units 14 
include rolls of material 28 mounted thereon, the result is that only an 
end portion of each of the rolls is exposed. This results in a display 
which allows for the viewing of many different materials at once. 
This feature has the advantage of enabling the selective arrangement of a 
large number of rolls of material 20 to form a particularly coordinated 
and aesthetically pleasing array of materials. For example, when the 
display apparatus is to be used for the display and dispensing of fabrics 
for home furnishings, an interior designer can preselect and arrange the 
fabric rolls along the apparatus so that each carrier unit 14 features 
rolls of fabrics which all coordinate with each other, i.e., by color, 
pattern, textures, and the like. As a result, a consumer can view the 
entire display, then move to the portion thereof which carries a color in 
which he or she is interested. In order to get full exposure of the rolls 
in which he or she is interested, the customer needs only to pivot the 
carrier unit 14 containing those rolls of material 28 in which he or she 
is interested in a direction opposite that of its overlapping adjacent 
unit to obtain full exposure thereof in the manner shown in FIG. 4. 
Because the fabrics have been pre-coordinated by the designer and 
displayed together, the consumer is no longer forced to look through all 
of the fabrics in the store in search of colors, patterns and textures 
which can be used together in an aesthetically pleasing manner. Although 
discussed most particularly with reference to fabrics, it is noted that 
the apparatus of the instant invention can be used with any sheet-like 
materials which can be provided in roll form, including but not limited to 
carpet, wallpaper, paper, cloth, and linoleum, for example. 
As shown in FIG. 3, carriers 12 may be arranged along opposing walls W, W' 
of a showroom, in order that consumers can get an initial viewing of all 
the available materials immediately upon entering the store. Depending on 
the store dimensions, this may require the use of several or many carriers 
12, which can be made to be modular in order that a store can configure 
the display apparatus 15 to suit the structure of its particular showroom. 
In a preferred form of the invention as shown in FIG. 3, one of the 
carrier units has been modified to form a swatch unit 34 to accommodate 
smaller material samples rather than complete rolls of material. In a 
preferred form, this swatch unit 34 includes on one face means for 
displaying and supporting large swatch units S of the materials which are 
included on the remainder of the carrier, such as those shown in FIGS. 
21-27 and described further herein. The other face of the swatch unit 34 
desirably includes means for supporting small swatches M of material, 
i.e., memos of fabric or other material, which may be taken with the 
consumer, as will be discussed further herein with respect to FIGS. 28-30. 
This swatch unit 34 can be used to form a table of contents or directory 
of the carrier for use by the customer, store, clerks, or other personnel 
by including smaller pieces of the various materials and an indication on 
the smaller pieces of the position on the carrier 12 where the full roll R 
of material can be located. Furthermore, by providing smaller samples 
which can be easily removed from the apparatus, a consumer can carry the 
smaller pieces around to compare with other goods or material rolls which 
are remote from that of the sample. These swatches may be in the same 
order as the rolls of material and thus form a guide for the rolls 
contained on the other carrier units. Alternatively this swatch unit could 
be used to display the samples in a different order in order to show a 
variety of ways in which the various fabrics or materials displayed can be 
coordinated. Alternatively, the swatches could be arranged alphabetically 
by manufacturer, for example. 
The carrier units are each pivotable about their mountings and thus each 
can be pivoted from one side to another to allow full viewing of its face 
30 and adjacent carrier units. As noted above, however, the individual 
carrier units are desirably spaced so that a portion of the defined face 
30 of each of the carrier units 14 is readily visible when the carrier 
units are positioned in their inward closed position, despite the 
overlapping of an adjacent carrier. This enables a consumer to initially 
determine which carrier unit 14 contains fabric in which he or she may be 
interested while viewing the display apparatus as a whole. The consumer 
can then pivot adjacent carrier units away from the one containing the 
selected material in order that full viewing can be had of the carrier 
unit containing the materials which he or she desires to view more 
closely. These materials can then be readily unrolled by a customer or 
clerk for viewing of a large piece thereof and for cutting a desired 
length of the material in the manner illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 6. 
Alternatively, the customer can begin with the swatch unit 34 and select 
materials therefrom, then determine the location of the complete fabric 
rolls and proceed to the roll for further inspection and/or cutting of the 
material. 
To cut material from one of the rolls 28, a person unrolls it in the manner 
shown in FIG. 4, then feeds it into a cutting device such as that shown in 
FIGS. 35 and 36. The cutting device 120 includes a pair of hooked arm 
portions 126 which hook around pins 55 which extend outwardly from the 
vertical frame elements 16a and 16b. Cooperating leg portions 128 bear 
against the front of frame 16 and cooperate therewith to support the 
cutting device 120 in an outwardly extending position. The cutting device 
120 desirably includes a measuring device 124, which measures the length 
of material fed through the cutting device. The cutting device 120 
includes a plurality of spaced elongate bars 130, which extend 
substantially the width of the frame, and a handle 122, with one of the 
bars 130a being pivotable toward another of the bars 130b, which is 
stationary within the cutting device, in response to a turning motion of 
the handle. Therefore, once the material is fed into the space between the 
pivotable bar 130a and a stationary bar 130b, the handle 122 is turned, 
thereby causing the pivotable bar to move toward the stationary bar and 
capture the material end therebetween. As the person continues to turn the 
handle 122, the material is wound into roll form. When the measuring 
device indicates that the desired amount of material has been wound, the 
person guides a bladed implement such as a pair of scissors through 
opening 129 in the cutting device, thereby providing a straight cut edge 
on the material. Because the cutting device 120 mounts readily on the 
frame 16, the material can be cut while it is still on the roll which is 
still secured to the frame. Material from any of the rolls on the frame 
can be readily measured and cut without requiring the lifting or removal 
of the rolls and the need for cutting tables is thus eliminated. 
Typical organizations of display apparatus of the present invention as they 
could be arranged in a store are shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6. In this 
particular example, left and right hand versions of wall mounted display 
apparatus are displayed in opposing relationship along opposite walls W, 
W' of the store. In addition, a free standing display carrier 36 of the 
present invention is shown as it is centered between the right and left 
hand wall mounted units. In addition, a supplemental swatch display 38 is 
shown along the back wall of the store. As the figure illustrates, this 
arrangement makes a tremendous visual impact due to the orderly way in 
which the carrier units 14 carrying the rolls of material 32 cascade along 
the walls and direct the consumer's eye into and toward the rear of the 
store. This is of particular advantage because stores must often go to 
great lengths to draw the customer's attention onto the store, and the 
display apparatus inherently performs this function. 
AS shown from the overhead view of the display apparatus in FIG. 6, the 
freestanding carrier 36 as well as the wall mounted carriers can be 
supplied in modular form, as indicated by the dotted lines. This enables 
the display apparatus to be shipped in smaller pieces, as discussed 
further herein, and for the apparatus to be readily structured to 
accommodate individual store configurations as well as particular goods to 
be displayed. 
FIGS. 7, 8, 13, and 14 depict preferred constructions of a carrier 12 
according to the present invention. The vertically extending frame 
elements 16a', 16b, and 16a", 16b" and the horizontally extending frame 
elements 16c', 16d', 16c", and 16d" are assembled together to form 
substantially rectangular frames in the manner shown in FIGS. 8 and 14. In 
a preferred construction of this invention the frame elements are 
constructed so as to matingly fit together. For example, the horizontal 
elements 16c' and 16d' can have reduced diameter end portions which are 
received within the ends of the vertically extending frame elements 16a' 
and 16b, which are bent at right angles to receive elements 16c' and 16d'. 
These frame elements can then be secured together by way of a nut and bolt 
combination as shown at 38 and 40 respectively. These elements, however, 
could be secured together through other conventional means such as 
crimping, gluing or soldering, as would be appreciated by one skilled in 
the art. 
Alternatively, frame elements 16c" and 16d" could be bent at right angles 
to receive reduced diameter end portions of frame elements 16a and 16b, as 
shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 13 and 14. As a further alternative, two 
frame elements 16e and 16f, each of which is shaped to form half of a 
rectangle, can be joined by brackets 39 which can be attached thereto by 
nuts and bolts 38 and 40, as illustrated in FIG. 18. By providing the 
frame as a plurality of pieces which can be easily assembled together, the 
display apparatus can be supplied in kit form, and the apparatus can be 
custom configured to accommodate the particular location where it is to be 
used and the particular goods it will be used to display. 
The vertically extending frame elements 16a and 16b are preferably provided 
with roll supports 18. The roll supports 18 are adapted to receive and 
support rolls of material 28. 
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the carrier unit 14 is provided 
with a plurality of rods 42 which are adapted to be supported by the roll 
supports 18. In a particular preferred embodiment of the invention, the 
roll supports 18 comprise openings in the vertically extending frame 
elements 16a and 16b. As shown in FIG. 9, the rods 42 can have shoulders 
41 spaced inwardly slightly from each of the respective, rod end portions. 
In addition, the rods 42 can include bulbs 43 on the respective rod ends, 
to assist in maintaining the rods within the roll supports 18, 
particularly when the roll supports are in the form of openings in the 
frame 16. In this way, a first end of the rod 42 can be placed in a roll 
support 18 such as the openings along the vertically extending frame 
elements 16a and 16b. In this embodiment the frame elements 16a and 16b 
have sufficient internal space so that when one end portion of the rod 42 
is inserted into a first opening and pushed inwardly therein, the rod can 
then be pivoted and the other end placed in the corresponding opening of 
the other vertically extending frame element to thereby secure the rod in 
a horizontal position within the carrier unit frame 16. The shoulders 41 
of the rod 42 can be provided as separate shaped end portions 44 which are 
inserted within a hollow rod 42. Rod 42 is then crimped to secure the 
shaped end portions 44 therein, thereby forming a rod structure with 
shouldered end portions. Alternatively, the shaped portions could also be 
made integrally with the rod itself, such as by molding or crimping the 
rod. In addition, it is noted that the roll supports 18 of the present 
invention are not limited to the shaped rod and opening combination 
discussed above, but could be other combination rod and support means such 
as U-shaped members (not shown) as would be recognized by one having 
ordinary skill in the art. Further, the roll supports 18 could be adapted 
to support the rolls of material directly or the cardboard tubes on which 
many rolled materials are conventionally provided, though the use of a rod 
is particularly preferred because it enables the material contained on the 
rolls to be dispensed with particular ease. 
In order to secure the carrier units 14 to the wall and floor, upper and 
lower carrier unit supports 22 and 24 can be provided. The arrangement and 
configuration of the carrier 12 and the mounting of the carrier units 14 
was developed for structural support and strength to reduce the 
possibility of damage to a supporting wall and/or floor during use over an 
extensive time period. Upper carrier unit 22 is preferably provided in the 
form of a hollow bar which includes a plurality of spaced openings 46 
therein. The frame includes a rod 48 which extends upwardly from the 
vertically extending frame element 16a. This rod is threadingly received 
by one the openings 46 in the upper carrier unit support 22 to support the 
upper end of the carrier unit 14. The upper carrier unit support 22 can be 
fixed to the wall W, preferably in spaced relationship therefrom, by a 
plurality of brackets 50. The brackets can be secured to the carrier unit 
support 22 and the wall, as shown for example in FIGS. 7 and 11, by nails 
or screws 49, adhesive, welding or the like. Alternatively, the brackets 
50 can have loops 52 formed about an upper surface in the manner shown in 
FIG. 7, with carrier unit support 22 being threaded through this loop 52. 
In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the upper carrier unit 
support 22 is formed as one continuous unit having an L-shaped cross 
section throughout, as shown for example in FIGS. 13 and 15. In this 
embodiment of the invention, the need for separate brackets is dispensed 
with, and upper carrier unit support 22 itself can be attached directly to 
the carrier unit frame 14 and the wall 26. Spaced openings are desirably 
provided along the upper carrier unit support 22 in order that it may be 
secured to the wall 26 by nails or screws 49 or the like. In the 
embodiments shown in FIGS. 7, 11, 12, 13 and 15, a rod 48 extending 
upwardly from the carrier unit 14 may be threadingly received in one of 
the openings 46 and secured thereto by threading the rod into a nut and 
washer combination 51. 
Lower carrier unit support 24 is desirably provided in the form of a track 
extending along the floor 28. The track desirably includes openings 54 
therein which are spaced apart from each other. The track is desirably 
provided in the form of a hollow tube. The lower carrier unit support 24 
is attached to the floor in the same manner discussed above with respect 
to the upper carrier unit support. Carrier unit 14 is desirably provided 
with a rod 56 which extends downwardly from the carrier unit along the 
axis of pivot thereof in the manner as shown in FIGS. 10 and 16. The rod 
56 is sized to be received in the openings 54 within the lower carrier 
unit support 24. The openings 46 and 54 on the upper and lower carrier 
units 22 and 24 respectively are preferably spaced apart the same 
distance. When these units are mounted to the wall and floor, they are 
preferably attached such that the openings 46 and 54 are in substantial 
alignment, to form cooperating opening pairs. In this way, a frame 16 
having rod elements 48 and 56 inserted in the openings 46 and 54 
respectively is supported such that the frame extends vertically and is 
pivotable about a vertical axis 20 which extends substantially along a 
vertically extending side thereof. 
In order to further support the frame 16, the carrier unit 14 is also 
desirably provided with a wheel 58. Wheel 58 is preferably positioned so 
as to be located underneath and proximate the opposite vertically 
extending frame element from that which is pivotally mounted. The wheel is 
sized to cooperate with lower carrier unit 24 to maintain the frame 16 so 
that it extends horizontally in a level manner. 
In a preferred embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 16, a portion of 
the corner of the substantially rectangular frame 16 is indented and a 
wheel 58 is placed within the indentation 59. In this way, a larger wheel 
can be utilized, which we have found better supports the weight of the 
frame 16 when the rolls of material 28 are placed thereon and enables the 
carrier unit to be pivoted more easily. However, as one having ordinary 
skill in the art would readily appreciate, the lower carrier unit support 
24 could be made larger in order that the bottom frame element 16d is 
spaced at a greater distance from the floor, thus enabling the use of a 
large wheel without necessitating the provision of an indentation 59 in 
the frame 16. 
It is noted that means other than a wheel can be used to support the weight 
of the outward extent of the frames in order to relieve some of the stress 
from the upper carrier unit support 22, such as casters (not shown) and 
the like. For example, suspension systems such as those shown in FIGS. 31 
and 32 which utilize a series of guidewires 100 to support the outwardly 
extending frame end can be used. In the suspension systems illustrated, 
each carrier unit 14 has a guidewire 100 assigned thereto. Each of the 
guidewires 100 has a first of its ends attached to a support located above 
the carrier unit 14, and preferably in line with the pivotable mounting of 
the respective frame 16. The guidewire end could be attached directly to a 
wall W or to support poles which are attached to and supported by upper 
carrier unit supports 22 and 22', which correspond to those illustrated in 
FIGS. 7 and 13. Opposite ends of the guidewires 100 are secured to the 
upper horizontally extending frame element 16c in any conventional manner 
so that the second guidewire ends are spaced outwardly from the first 
ends. For example, the second end may be secured to the frame 16 about the 
upper outward corner thereof (as shown in FIG. 32) or spaced somewhat 
inwardly of the upper outward corner (as shown in FIG. 31). Further, the 
wire may extend in a straight line path (as shown in FIG. 31), or may 
extend around a pivot bar 108 (as shown in FIG. 32) which extends 
outwardly from the frame upper horizontal side 16c to a position 
substantially above the upper outward frame corner. Additionally, 
connectors 110 may be provided adjacent the wire ends in order to allow 
for adjustability of the guidewire length. 
As discussed above, a modified carrier unit in the form of swatch unit 34 
can be provided. The frame of the swatch unit is made in substantially the 
same manner as the frame 16 for the carrier units 14 designed to hold the 
rolls of material 28. However, instead of providing roll supports 18, the 
frame 16g is provided with a plurality of horizontally and/or vertically 
extending supports 60 and 62 respectively. These vertical and horizontal 
supports 60 and 62 are adapted to receive and maintain a plurality of 
swatches of material. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the 
swatch unit 34 includes a frame 16g defining first and second planar faces 
64a and 64b as shown for example in FIG. 19. A plurality of horizontal 
supports are provided on the first planar face 64a. In a preferred form of 
the invention, these horizontal supports 60 include a plurality of spaced 
apart hooks 66 extending outwardly from the planar face 64a. These hooks 
66 are adapted to receive and support a plurality of material swatches 
thereon. The hooks 66 are spaced apart to a sufficient extent that 
material swatches of a significant size can be hung therefrom. As shown in 
FIG. 20, the hooks 66 are desirably configured from a shaped piece of 
metal or the like. The hook desirably is bent along a first right angle 
near one of its ends, and is bent along a second angle such that the hook 
extends out in a direction substantially perpendicular to a plane formed 
by the portion of the hook forming the first right angle. Outwardly 
extending channels 68 are provided on said horizontal support 60, which 
are sized to receive the first angled portion of a hook 66. The hook 66 is 
then inserted into one of said channels 68 to form outwardly extending 
hooks from which material swatches can be hung. Due to the configuration 
of the hooks, they can be pivoted about an axis extending along the 
portion thereof which is contained within the channels 68. 
The second planar face 64b of the swatch unit desirably includes a 
plurality of vertical supports 62 which are spaced apart along the face. 
These supports can comprise strips of metal, for example. The supports 
desirably include a plurality of outwardly extending channels 96 which are 
sized to readily receive the end portions of hooks 92 slidingly therein. 
The hooks 92 desirably comprise angled metal wires having upturned end 
portions, which assists in keeping swatches which are placed on the hooks 
from sliding off of the hooks. 
In a preferred form of the invention, the swatch unit 34 includes 
hook-carrying horizontal supports 60 on one of its planar faces 64a and 
hook carrying vertical supports 62 on the other of its planar faces 64b. 
The hooks 92 on the second planar face 64b are desirably arranged so as to 
be closer together than the hooks 66 on the other of its faces 64a. In 
this way, large swatch units 72 can be mounted on the hooks 66 which are 
spaced to a greater extent and smaller swatches 74 can be displayed on the 
hooks 92 which are spaced more closely together, because they require a 
smaller amount of space. The horizontal and vertical supports 60 and 62 
can be secured to the frame in any conventional manner, and may include 
spacers 94 therebetween to secure the swatch unit elements together in a 
stable and secure manner. 
As shown in FIGS. 21-27, swatch assemblies 72 can be prefabricated to 
include a plurality of large size swatches of materials. The swatch 
assemblies include a first plurality of large swatches 76, which are 
substantially the same shape. These swatches 76, shown generally at A, B, 
C, D, E, F and G, are stacked on top of each other, as shown in FIG. 22. A 
second plurality of material swatches 78 is provided, as shown at H, I, J, 
K, L, M and N. The second plurality of swatches is generally about half as 
wide as the large swatches 76, and are of staggered lengths in order that 
the topmost swatch N is shortest and the bottommost swatch H is the 
longest. In this way, a portion of each of the swatches H-N can be seen 
when the swatches are stacked one on top of the other. The smaller 
swatches 78 are then positioned on top of the larger swatches 76 so that 
two of their sides are in alignment, and first corners of all the swatches 
are in alignment. A binding 80 is then secured over the top of the smaller 
swatches 78 and the portion of the larger swatches 76 lying underneath the 
smaller swatches. The binding 80 is folded loosely thereover and the 
binding edges are secured by securing means such as staples 84. Because 
the binding 80 is folded loosely about the fabric swatches A-N, a channel 
82 is formed therein. 
Corresponding fasteners 86 and 88 are attached to opposite uppermost 
corners of the stack of swatches, in order that the stack may be folded 
longitudinally and attached to itself to secure this folded-over position 
to form a large swatch assembly 72. The large swatch assembly 72 can then 
be secured on a swatch unit 34 of the display apparatus by sliding the 
channel 82 of the large swatch assembly 72 over a hook 66 of the swatch 
unit. In operation, a consumer can remove a large swatch assembly 72 from 
the hook 66 and then separate the mating fasteners 86 and 88 to examine 
the swatches A-N. In a preferred method of the invention, the swatches A-G 
comprise the same materials as those of H-N. In this way, the smaller 
swatches H-N can be examined while they are hanging on the swatch unit 34, 
then when one desires to examine a larger piece of that material he need 
only remove the swatch assembly 72 from the hook 66 of the swatch unit 34 
and unfold the assembly in the manner discussed above. Small swatch 
assemblies can also be provided to enable a customer to retain small 
samples of desired materials which can be removed from the store. 
Customarily, small swatches are obtained by a clerk or consumer snipping a 
swatch of fabric from the roll of material itself. In addition to being 
time-consuming and messy, this can result in a loss of significant 
quantities of material, since the clerk must then cut the material on the 
roll further to provide an even edge when a customer decides to purchase 
material from that roll. Therefore, the provision of prefabricated 
removable swatches represents a significant cost-saving and tidy means of 
swatch provision. A preferred prefabricated small swatch assembly 74 is 
illustrated in FIGS. 28-30, and includes a small material swatch 74c, a 
swatch carrier 74b, and a label 74a which bears information about the 
material swatch 74c such as fiber content, manufacturing construction, 
care/cleaning instructions and price. A plurality of the small swatch 
assemblies 74 can be hung on hooks 92 of the swatch unit 34 by threading 
the hook through a hole 75 in the swatch carrier 74b. 
As previously mentioned, the display apparatus of the invention can be 
provided in freestanding form, as shown generally at 90 in FIGS. 33 and 
34. The freestanding carriers comprise a center support 92 and 92' such as 
a cubic support frame. Carrier unit frames 16 previously discussed with 
respect to the wall-mounted units are pivotally mounted to the center 
support 92 so that the frames are pivotally mounted along a vertical axis 
which extends substantially along a vertical side thereof. The carriers 90 
desirably include a plurality of carrier unit frames 16, with the frames 
being provided on opposite sides of center support 92, 92' so as to extend 
outwardly therefrom. Each side of the center support 92 desirably includes 
a plurality of carrier unit frames 16, which have their axes of pivot 
horizontally spaced a distance less than the width of the frames, in order 
that adjacent carrier units can overlap when they are pivoted about their 
respective axes of pivot. The freestanding carriers 90 can also be secured 
to the floor for added stability using brackets or bars 94, 95 
respectively, they may be formed to have sufficient weight so that their 
position is maintained without the need for supplemental fasteners. The 
freestanding carriers 90 can also have a modular form as illustrated for 
positioning a plurality of the freestanding carriers closely adjacent each 
other. 
Additionally, as illustrated in FIGS. 1-36, the present invention also 
includes methods for displaying rolls of material and methods for 
dispensing rolls of material. A method of displaying rolls of material 
preferably includes providing a substantially rectangular frame pivotally 
mounted along one side thereof on a vertical axis and mounting in 
vertically spaced relation on the frame a plurality of horizontally 
extending rolls of material with the mounting being such as to permit 
unwinding of the material from the rolls. 
A method for displaying rolls of material according to the present 
invention may also include providing a first substantially rectangular 
frame pivotally mounted along one side thereof on a vertical axis, 
providing a second substantially rectangular frame pivotally mounted along 
one side thereof on a vertical axis so that the first and second frames 
are horizontally spaced at a distance which is less than each of the 
respective widthwise dimensions of the first and second frames, thereby 
enabling the frames to overlap when they are pivoted about their vertical 
axes, and mounting in vertically spaced relation on each of the frames a 
plurality of horizontally extending rolls of material with the mounting 
being such as to permit unwinding of the material from the rolls. 
A method for displaying rolls of material is also provided which preferably 
includes mounting a plurality of substantially rectangular frames such 
that each frame is pivotable about its own vertical axis of pivot which 
extends substantially along a vertical side of the frame, said axes being 
spaced apart from each other along a common horizontal plane and mounting 
on each frame a plurality of horizontally extending rolls of material. 
Further, a method for displaying and/or dispensing rolls of material is 
provided which also preferably includes providing a substantially 
rectangular frame having rolls of material horizontally mounted thereon, 
providing a measuring device mounted to the frame and positioned to 
receive the material from the rolls, and feeding material from a roll to 
the measuring device for measurement thereof. This method preferably also 
includes measuring the material as the material is fed to the measuring 
device and winding the material onto a roll as the material is being 
measured. 
In the drawings and the specification, there have been disclosed typical 
preferred embodiments of the invention and, although specific terms are 
employed, the terms are used in a descriptive sense only and not for 
purpose of limitation. The invention has been described in considerable 
detail with specific reference to various illustrated embodiments. It will 
be apparent, however, that various modifications and changes can be made 
within the spirit and scope of the invention as described in the foregoing 
specification and defined in the appended claims.