Modular marker display stand

A modular stand which includes a pair of geometrically shaped end wall members and an article supporting member positioned therebetween. The end wall members include dovetail tongue and grooves which allow them to be connected to one another. A cylindrical holder is positioned on both sides of each end wall member for engaging the ends of the article supporting member. The ends of the article supporting member are configured to matingly engage and connect with a corresponding cylindrical holder formed in the side of the end wall members. The article supporting member can engage the end wall members so as to be selectively positionable at a plurality of angles, thereby allowing the articles supported therein to be displayed at a selected angle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to a modular stand or rack system for 
displaying a plurality of articles, such as markers, pens, and pencils. 
More particularly, the invention is directed to new and useful improvements 
in display stands used by businesses to display articles for sale and used 
by artists and draftsmen for storing and conveniently displaying during 
use any number of markers in their work area. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
Prior Art devices used for displaying markers at the retail point of 
purchase are usually large, thereby requiring a large portion of retail 
space. These systems usually have poor visual as well as physical access 
to the complete marker or article as they usually consist of a plurality 
of compartments, thereby making it difficult for a purchaser to make a 
selection. 
Consequently, the need occurred for a modular display system which allows 
for easy visual and physical access for articles and can be configured to 
fit into just about any allotted amount of retail space. 
A modular display system will also allow artists to work more efficiently. 
Artists purchase markers either singly or in sets which have multiple 
shades of a single color. As the number of their markers and marker sets 
grows, so must their display stands. In order to ensure maximum visibility 
and use of all markers, artists need adequate and expandable marker 
display stands. The modular display system of this invention was developed 
to meet this need. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The preferred embodiment of the invention relates to a modular stand for 
displaying a plurality of marking pens comprising a plurality of modular 
units. Each modular unit includes a pair of end wall members with an 
article supporting member connected therebetween. The article supporting 
member may have a plurality of recesses for holding the ends of the 
markers to be displayed or may have recesses such as a tray well for 
holding numerous objects in one well. 
It is an object of this invention to provide a display stand which can 
conveniently and attractively display a large number of articles in a 
limited amount of space. 
It is another object of the present invention to provide a display stand 
which can be assembled to vertically display a plurality of markers and 
can grow in both horizontal and vertical planes. That is, the modular 
stand shall have end wall members that allow assembly in a side-to-side 
relationship, a front-to-back relationship, and an up-and-down 
relationship. 
A further object is to provide a novel connection means which allows the 
upper surface of the article supporting member to be selectively locked 
and positioned at a plurality of angles, thus permitting rows of objects 
to be displayed, while allowing each row to be displayed without physical 
or visual obstruction. 
Still a further object of the invention is to provide a modular stand which 
is sturdy and can be assembled easily and quickly for supporting an 
indefinite amount of markers in an organized fashion. 
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more 
apparent upon reference to the following specification and drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
The modular display stand of the present invention is shown assembled in a 
variety of configurations in FIGS. 1 through 4. Each modular unit 10 
comprises a pair of end wall members 20 and an article supporting member 
40. 
The end wall members 20 are identical and an enlarged view is shown in FIG. 
10. The end wall members are generally rectangular and include short edges 
11 and long edges 12. Each end wall member 20 includes at least one tongue 
21 and at least one groove 22 on opposing edges to allow the end wall 
members 20 to be connected together in a dovetail fashion, as seen in 
FIGS. 1-4. The tongue and groove could be located on any opposing edges of 
an end wall member 20 to allow for interconnecting in a plurality of 
directions (i.e., up and down, front to back). 
Female connection means 23, located on both sides of the end wall member 
20, include an outer cylindrical wall 24 having a plurality of retaining 
tabs 25, 26, and 27. Retaining tab 26 also functions as an aligning means 
for aiding in the attachment of the article supporting member 40 to the 
end wall member 20. 
Enclosed within the outer cylindrical wall 24 is a stop 28 having angles 
walls for limiting the range of travel of the article supporting member 40 
in both clockwise and counterclockwise directions. 
The article supporting member 40 will be described with reference to FIGS. 
5 through 7. The upper surface 42 includes a plurality of article 
retaining recesses 44 which are in the form of cup-shaped holders 45 as 
shown in FIG. 7. These holders 45 function to retain the cap of individual 
markers 60, while preventing the markers 60 from jamming and providing 
easy removal of the markers. The article supporting member 40 also 
includes a front face 41. 
The article supporting member may come in numerous different shapes and 
sizes depending upon the articles which are going to be displayed. FIG. 11 
shows an article supporting member 40' which is in the form of a sectioned 
tray. The article supporting member 40' includes recesses 44' and can hold 
objects as well as a variety of different objects. 
At the ends of the article supporting member 40 or 40' are male connection 
means 43. The male connection means 43 are in the form of semicircular 
discs 49, which have an aligning cutout 46 at approximately the midpoint 
of its circular circumference 48. 
The end wall members 20 and the article supporting member 40 are attached 
together by female connection means 23 and male connection means 43. 
Aligning cutout 46 and aligning tab 26 cooperate to properly position 
member 20 relative to member 40, as shown in FIG. 8. Once in proper 
position, the semi-circular disc 49 of the male connection means 43 can 
enter the outer cylindrical wall 24 of the female connection means 23. The 
semi-circular disc 49 may then be turned clockwise or counterclockwise 
until its straight edge 47 abuts against stop 28 as shown in FIG. 9. The 
male connection means 43 is retained within the female connection means 23 
by either tabs 26 and 27 or tabs 25 and 26 depending on the direction 
turned. 
FIGS. 12 and 13 show a tray 50 which is adapted to be held in recesses 44 
by projections 54. Tray 50 can be attached at any location on the modular 
stand, thereby allowing the user to custom build a stand which best suits 
his or her needs. 
The tray 50 includes a bottom wall 51 and side walls 52 and 53 which are 
connected together to form a well for holding objects. On one of the side 
walls 53 there is a lip 55 which extends outward a sufficient distance to 
allow projections 54 to be spaced from side wall 53. Thus, side wall 53 
can cooperate with front wall 41 of the article supporting member 40 to 
securely position tray 50. 
One unique feature of the device is shown in FIG. 2. The connection means 
23 and 43 function such that the article supporting member 40 may be 
rotated and held such that the markers held in the upper article 
supporting member may be seen with an unobstructed view. The user now has 
a clear view as well as no physical obstruction when reaching for a marker 
in the upper row. 
The modular feature of the invention allows the display stand to be built 
in at least two planes. As shown in FIG. 1, and the end wall members 20 
may be dovetail connected to rise vertically. In FIG. 3, the stand is 
connected together so as to expand vertically and horizontally. As stated 
earlier, the end wall members 20 include a female connection means 23 on 
both of its sides, thereby allowing an article supporting member 40 to be 
attached on both sides, thus sharing a common end wall member, making it a 
center wall. 
Another feature of the invention is that the article supporting member may 
be rotated counter clockwise until it contacts stop 28. At this point, the 
upper surface 42 is parallel to the short edges 11 of the end wall member 
20. The modular stand may now be turned on its back, that is to rest on a 
short edge, to support an object vertically (see FIG. 4), and the modular 
stand is now able to expand in a third front to back plane. 
Therefore, when one's marker set expands so can one's display stand. For 
example, if all shades of red markers are to be kept on the first row and 
the artist has more red markers than recesses on a single article 
supporting member 40, all he needs to do is add another article supporting 
member 40 and an end wall 20 and his display stand will grow horizontally. 
While various preferred embodiments have been shown and described, it will 
be understood that there is no intent to limit the invention by such 
disclosure, but rather, is intended to cover all modifications and 
alternate constructions falling within the spirit and scope of the 
invention as defined in the appended claims.