Display stand with three-sided base having partial rear wall

A display stand including a three-sided base formed from a single blank of sheet material and having a partial rear wall. The base comprises a front wall and a pair of side walls, with an upper section of the front wall and a forward segment of each of the side walls being above a generally horizontal cut. The upper section and both forward segments are pivoted rearwardly along vertical fold lines to form the partial rear wall. A rectangular merchandise container is supported by a lower section of the front wall and by the rear wall.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to display stands for point of purchase 
display for merchandise in a shipping container. 
Various kinds of display stands for display of merchandise at the point of 
sale are known in the prior art. However, each of these display stands 
suffers from one or more disadvantages making it less than completely 
suitable for its intended purpose. 
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a display 
stand having a folding base formed from a single blank of sheet material 
and including a front wall, a pair of side walls, and a partial rear wall. 
It is a related object of the present invention to provide the display 
stand base with interlock means to maintain a rearwardly folded forward 
segment of each side wall in locking engagement with a fixed rear panel of 
each side wall. 
Another object of the invention is to provide means for stabilizing a 
rectangular merchandise container suoported on the display stand base. 
Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will become 
apparent to persons skilled in the art from the following specification, 
taken in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
A complete display stand 10 of the invention in assembled form is 
illustrated in FIG. 1. The display stand 10 includes a base 11, a 
rectangular merchandise container 12 supported by the base 11, and a 
header card 13 extending upwardly of the container 12. For clarity of 
illustration articles of merchandise usually held in the container 12 have 
been removed. 
The display stand base 11 is formed from a single pre-cut and pre-scored 
blank 15 of sheet cardboard, shown in FIG. 7. The blank 15 includes a 
front wall 16, a pair of side walls 17, 18 joined to the front wall 16 at 
lateral marginal limits thereof, and a pair of wing flaps 19, 20 joined to 
lateral marginal limits of the side walls 17, 18. Each juncture of the 
front wall 16 with the side walls 17, 18 is defined by a pre-scored 
vertical fold line 21, 22. Junctures between lateral limits of the side 
walls 17, 18 with the wing flaps 19, 20 are likewise defined by pre-scored 
lateral fold lines 23, 24. Upper portions of the wing flaps 19, 20 are 
separated from the side walls 17, 18 by through slits 25, 26 extending 
inwardly and downwardly a short distance from lateral edges of the flaps 
19, 20. 
A horizontal cut 27 is made through the full lateral expanse of the front 
wall 16 and laterally through portions of the side walls 17, 18. This 
horizontal cut 27 divides the front wall 16 into a lower section 16a and 
an upper section 16b. The cut 27 also divides the side walls 17, 18 into 
fixed segments 17a, 18a and pivotal forward segments 17b, 18b. The pivotal 
forward segments 17b, 18b are rearward continuations of the upper section 
16b of the front wall 16, and are joined to the upper section 16b along 
respective vertical fold lines 21, 22. 
A pre-scored vertical hinge line 29, 30 extends upwardly of each lateral 
limit of the horizontal cut 27 to upper terminal edges of the side walls 
17, 18. These hinge lines 29, 30 divide portions of the side walls 17, 18 
above the cut 27 into forward segments 17b, 18b and rear panels 17c, 18c. 
Generally semicircular slits 32, 33 having upper and lower termini on the 
hinge lines 29, 30 extend into the forward segments 17b, 18b. 
Referring now to FIGS. 2-6, the display stand base 11 is constructed from a 
blank 15 by folding side walls 17, 18 rearwardly of the front wall 16 
along vertical fold lines 21, 22 to form a three-sided structure. Forward 
segments 17b, 18b of the side walls 17, 18 are pivoted rearwardly along 
vertical hinge lines 29, 30 to convert the upper section 16b of the front 
wall 16 into a partial rear wall 16b. Pre-scored vertical fold lines 21, 
22 are between the rear wall 16b and forward segments 17b, 18b of the side 
walls 17, 18. The forward segments 17b, 18b extend forwardly of the rear 
wall 16b along these fold lines 21, 22. 
The wing flaps 19, 20 are bent inwardly of the side walls 17, 18 along 
vertical fold lines 23, 24, as shown in FIGS. 4-6. An upper portion of 
each flap 19, 20 comprises a wing tab 19a, 20a for interlocking forward 
segments 17b, 18b with contiguous fixed rear panels 17c, 18c of the side 
walls 17, 18. Each wing tab 19a, 19b projects inwardly of the side walls 
17, 18 above the level of the horizontal cut 17. The wing tabs 19a, 19b 
define upwardly opening, vertical slots or slot means 37, 38 in a zone of 
juncture with the side walls 17, 18, as shown in FIG. 5. Each slot 37, 38 
receives downwardly presented free edge portions of the forward segments 
17b, 18b, thereby maintaining them in locking engagement with the fixed 
panels 17c, 18c. Rear edge portions of the wing tabs 19a, 19b abut 
resiliently against the rear wall 16b. The interlocking relationship of 
the wing tabs 19a, 19b with the side walls 17, 18 constitutes interlock 
means for stabilizing the base 11 against inadvertent collapse. 
A generally rectangular, forwardly open merchandise container 12 is 
supported by the base 11. The container 12 is positioned interiorly of the 
side walls 17, 18 with lateral walls 41, 42 of the container 12 abutting 
against the rearwardly folded forward segments 17b, 18b. A bottom wall 43 
of the container 12 rests against an upper edge portion of the rear wall 
16b of the base 11, and an anterior wall 44 abuts against a top edge 
portion of the fixed lower section 16a of the front wall. A top wall (not 
shown) has been removed to expose face portions of articles held in the 
container 12. 
The container 12 also has a posterior wall 45 joined to the bottom wall 43 
and lateral walls 41, 42. The posterior wall 45 defines a pair of 
parallel, generally coterminous vertical cuts 49, 50 spaced inwardly of 
the lateral walls 41, 42. In the preferred embodiment shown, the header 
card 13 is formed integrally with the posterior wall 45 and is joined 
thereto along a hinge line 55 extending horizontally between lower termini 
of the cuts 49, 50. The header card 13 constitutes a central portion of 
the posterior wall 45, being folded downwardly and posteriorly along the 
horizontal hinge line 55. Optionally, the header card may be formed as an 
auxiliary structure fastened to and supported by the posterior wall 45. 
When the header card is a separate structure, a portion of the posterior 
wall may be used to stiffen and to support the header card. 
The side walls 17, 18 are both provided with stabilizer flaps 57, 58 
integrally formed with and extending forwardly of the fixed rear panels 
17c, 18c. The flaps 57, 58 each have a generally semicircular front edge 
32, 33 projecting forwardly of the hinge line 29, 30. Respective upper and 
lower termini of the front edges 32, 33 are on the hinge lines 29, 30. By 
extending the side walls 17, 18 forwardly of the hinge lines 29, 30, the 
stabilizer flaps 57, 58 stabilize the merchandise container 12 against 
inadvertent tipping or tilting. 
While the foregoing description of my invention has been made with respect 
to a preferred embodiment, persons skilled in the art will understand that 
numerous changes, modifications, and alterations may be made therein 
without departing from the spirit and scope of the following claims.