Abstract:
A sign holder assembly formed by a support member attachable to a supporting surface such as a merchandise-receiving shelf, and a sign carried by the support member. The support member includes a backing member and a hingedly secured, latchable, cover. A cruciform-shaped slit extends through the cover and the sign includes one or more bendable tabs inserted through the slits to be captured in a pocket formed when the cover is latched so as to support a flag generally perpendicularly to the supporting surface. The assembly may be secured to the shelf by “push pins” or the like and an attaching element may integrally incorporate the push pins, may include slots through which the push pins may be engaged in the shelf apertures, may be relatively thin so the push pins may pierce the same, or may include any combination of one or more such securing elements. The sign holder may also be formed with a rearwardly carried angular element adapted to be captured in the label-receiving pocket of a label holder and may be provided with an extension on the angular element enabling the sign holder assembly to be engaged in a C-channel.

Description:
This is a complete application claiming benefit of provisional application Ser. No. 60/435,820 filed Dec. 24, 2002 and provisional application Ser. No. 60/478,834 filed Jun. 17, 2003. 

   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   This invention relates to merchandising aids, and relates more particularly to a sign holder to be secured to the front edge of a merchandising shelf. The sign holder is adapted to carry a “flag” or sign displaying special information to the consumer regarding products on the shelf, such as identifying a “sale” item or the like. 
   2. Discussion of the Related Art 
   Shelves with “C-channels” along the front edge are commonly found in merchandise outlets such as supermarkets, pharmacies and the like, the C-channel being formed with spaced upper and lower opposed lips to provide a convenient means for mounting many different kinds of fit-in articles, such as labels, signs or sign holder which provide information relating to the merchandise displayed on the shelf. Adhesive-backed labels can be secured directly to a supporting surface, such as the side of a warehouse shelf, or even directly on the surface of a C-channel. However, removing such adhesive-backed labels is time consuming and difficult, leaving an unsightly residue build-up. For many applications, therefore, non-adhesive paper or plastic labels are preferred since they can easily be replaced if they become damaged or the product information changes. While such non-adhesive labels can sometimes simply be fitted directly between the lips of the C-channel, more commonly, label holders are provided which have a back or body panel attached in some fashion to the supporting surface, with a transparent cover member flexibly secured along one mating edge to the body panel to define between the front surface of the body panel and the rear surface of the cover member a pocket for removable reception of one or more such information-containing labels: 
   Label holders are generally provided in elongated sections, perhaps 4′ or more in width, and may be secured by adhesive strips or the like to any supporting surface such as the side of a shelving or warehouse unit. However, most applications for such label holders are directly on the front flange or in the C-channel of the front edge of a product display shelf. Various prior art embodiments of such label holders can be seen in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,713,899, 5,458,307, 5,488,793, 5,515,632, 5,682,698, 5,899,011 and 6,105,295, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein in their entireties by reference. 
   Some merchandising shelves do not have integral C-channels and have only a downwardly depending or downwardly and forwardly angled front edge or lip terminating in a rearwardly-directed lower flange. Attachment of a label holder to a merchandise shelf devoid of an integral C-channel is problematic. While label holders can be adhesively secured to the depending lip on shelves of this nature, moving or replacing such elements, as with the adhesively-backed labels themselves, is difficult, time consuming and leaves an unsightly residue that is resistant to cleaning. Attempts to avoid the adhesive attachment with various elements fixing the lower portion of the label holder to or around the rearwardly extending flange on the bottom of the shelf have been generally unsuccessful because they cannot retain the body panel in position against the front edge of the shelf when the cover member is tipped forwardly to insert or remove a label from the pocket. Several types of merchandising aids designed to accommodate shelves devoid of C-channels are seen in copending, commonly assigned, application Ser. No. 10/222,775 filed Aug. 19, 2002 (the &#39;775 application) and Ser. No. 10/639,470 filed Aug. 13, 2003 (the &#39;470 application), the disclosures of which are incorporated herein in their entireties by reference. 
   Oftentimes, in addition to the information provided by the product labels, it is desired to highlight certain information about a particular product or group of products by displaying an enlarged “flag” or sign on the shelf, depending from the portion of the shelf carrying such products, or extending into the aisle at such a location. Different forms of “sign holders” are also well known in the merchandising art, examples of which can be seen in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,488,793, as well as commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,485,575, 4,531,313, 4,625,441, 4,704,813, 4,917,342, 4,995,182, 5,682,698, and 6,163,996, the subject matters of which are also incorporated herein in their entireties by reference. 
   Separate sign holders can simply be positioned on the shelf itself, or juxtaposed to the shelf in the aisle. Yet, such an arrangement may not be stable, can waste valuable product display space, and can even cause damage to consumers. For that reason, as seen in some of the aforementioned patents, such sign holders may be designed to be supported partially or entirely in a C-channel overlying the label holders. 
   While constructions of this nature are convenient in some respects, significant difficulties are encountered when it is necessary to insert new labels-or to remove or replace labels already carried in the underlying label holder. In order to access the label holder pocket, any and all sign holders secured in front of and, therefore, overlying the label holder must first be removed, and subsequently replaced. This is time consuming, labor intensive, and obviously inefficient, particularly when using elongated label holders that may have multiple sign holders engaged along their length. 
   Moreover, in some instances, or in respect of some portions of an extended product shelf, it may be desirable to support labels or signs of different configurations on the same merchandising aid, avoiding the need to remove or replace a label or sign holder whenever the nature of the goods, or the information to be presented with respect to the goods, is changed. Merchandising aids in the form of a combination label/sign holder wherein labels can be selectively inserted and removed from the label holder pocket without removing any of the sign holders associated with related products are seen in copending, commonly assigned, U.S. Pat. No. 6,568,112 (the &#39;112 patent), the disclosure of which is also incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. The sign holder of the &#39;112 patent is carried by, and moves with, the cover member avoiding interfering with access to the label holder pocket by providing the front surface of the cover member of the label holder with a pair of sign holder-receiving lip members which can snappingly receive edge portions of a resilient plastic or metal sign holder such as seen in aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,488,793, or the engaging portions of a depending sign holder of the type seen in aforementioned U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,682,698 and 6,163,996, or other such commercially available sign holders. 
   While, as noted above, sign holders adapted to be supported partially or entirely in a C-channel overlying the label holders engaged therein, such devices often fail to securely hold the flag or sign, particularly when the sign holder is of the type designed to project the flag into an aisle, perpendicular to the front edge of the merchandising shelf, so that information can be presented on both sides of the flag attracting the attention of passers-by moving in either direction in the aisle. Moreover, prior art sign holders of the type described generally require the presence of a C-channel or the like at the front edge of a merchandising shelf for support, and can only be carried by a merchandising shelf devoid of a C-channel adhesively, with the attendant disadvantages noted above in the event the sign holder is to be moved or replaced. 
   Regardless of the nature of the merchandising shelf, whether it includes a C-channel or not, and whether it is fitted with a label holder and/or a combination label/sign holder such as seen in the &#39;112 patent, it would be desirable to have a simple and inexpensive sign or “flag” holder adapted to be carried directly by a shelf with or without a C-channel and/or by a C-channel integral with the merchandise shelf front edge and/or by the sign holder portion of a combination label/sign holder secured to the merchandise shelf. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   It is a primary object of this invention to provide a sign holder that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, requiring little or no skill to securely position or readily re-position wherever desired, and adapted to display special information regarding products on a merchandising shelf to consumers passing in either direction along an aisle in front of the shelf. 
   A further object of this invention is to provide a sign holder of the type described formed of two elements, a support member to be attached directly to the merchandising shelf, a C-channel integral with the merchandising shelf, a label holder carried by the merchandising shelf, or a combination label/sign holder carried by the shelf, and the flag or sign itself. Consistent with this objective, one embodiment of the sign holder includes a support member having portions adapted for engaging in selected apertures commonly formed in the supporting surface of a shelf to secure the support member, and thus the sign holder, to the shelf in a manner similar to that disclosed in the &#39;775 or the &#39;470 application. Another embodiment of the sign holder includes a support member particularly designed for engagement in the lips of a C-channel, whether the same is integrally formed on the front edge of a merchandise shelf or carried by the cover of a combination label/sign holder of the type seen in the &#39;112 patent. A still further embodiment of the sign holder of this invention includes an angular support element adapted to engage within the pocket formed behind the transparent cover of the type of label holder designed for capturing non-adhesive labels, with the same angular element being engageable directly in a C-channel or the sign-holding elements of a combination label/sign holder such as seen in the &#39;112 patent. 
   Another object of this invention is to provide a sign holder including a molded support member which includes complementary portions interconnected by an integral hinge, with through-slits defined in one of the portions to receive a tab or tabs carried by the flag, with the tab or tabs folded at a right angle with respect to the plane of the flag, following which the complementary portions of the sign member may be snapped together to capture the flag in a pocket formed between them. 
   A still further object of this invention is to provide several embodiments of sign support members, each of which is adapted to carry a sign or flag which may be a simple sheet-like solid element preprinted or carrying adhesive labels on opposed surfaces to provide desired information to the consumer, or may be formed of transparent hinged elements defining a pocket for receiving paper labels or the like to convey such information. 
   Other and further objects of the instant invention will become apparent from the ensuing description and claims read in conjunction with the attached drawings. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. 
       FIG. 1  is a partial perspective view of a merchandising shelf carrying one embodiment of a sign holder according to the instant inventive concepts; 
       FIG. 1A  is a view similar to  FIG. 1 , but showing a slightly modified form of the sign holder support member; 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the support member of the sign holder of  FIG. 1  illustrating the manner in which it is folded to form a pocket for securing portions of a flag or sign during assembly. 
       FIG. 3  is a bottom plan view of the sign holder support member of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 3A  is a fragmentary bottom plan view of the rear portion of a modified sign holder support including one integral “push pin” and a slot for insertion of a discrete “push pin” of the type seen in  FIG. 1A ; 
       FIG. 3B  is a view similar to  FIG. 3A  showing an embodiment with two slots for reception of discrete “push pins”; 
       FIG. 4  is a side elevational view of the sign holder support of  FIG. 3 ; 
       FIG. 5  is an enlarged fragmentary view of the locking flange portion of the support member encircled in  FIG. 4 ; 
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a flag or sign to be carried by the support member of the sign holder of this invention; 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a merchandising shelf carrying an alternate form of sign holder according to the instant inventive concepts; 
       FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the support member of the sign holder embodiment of  FIG. 7 ; 
       FIG. 9  is a perspective view of a modified sign holder support member similar to  FIG. 8 , but having a preferred latching mechanism; 
       FIG. 9A  is an enlarged fragmentary side view of the latching member of the sign holder support member of  FIG. 9 ; 
       FIG. 9B  is a fragmentary perspective view of a further modified latching mechanism according to the invention; 
       FIG. 10  is a perspective view of an alternate form of a flag or sign carrying member which may be used with a sign holder support member according to any of the embodiments of this invention; 
       FIG. 11  is a perspective view of a merchandise shelf carrying another modified sign holder according to the instant inventive concepts; 
       FIG. 12  illustrates the manner in which the slanted or angular support element of the sign holder support member of  FIG. 11  can be positioned behind the window of a label holder to secure the sign holder in position; 
       FIG. 13  shows the manner in which the tab of a flag or sign of the type seen in  FIG. 6  is inserted through the cross-slits in the cover element of the support member prior to lockingly engaging the same therein; 
       FIG. 14  is a partial perspective view of a slightly modified sign holder support member carried by a conventional label holder prior to engagement of the sign therewith; 
       FIG. 15  is a side elevational view of the sign holder support member of  FIG. 14 ; 
       FIG. 16  is an enlarged fragmentary detailed view of the latch portion of the sign holder support member encircled in  FIG. 15 ; 
       FIG. 17  is a perspective view showing the sign holder support member of  FIG. 14  carrying a sign and engaged in the pockets formed by the sign-holder lips of a combination label/sign holder of the type seen in the &#39;112 patent; 
       FIG. 18  is a view similar to  FIG. 14 , but showing the sign holder support member engaged in the pockets of the sign-holder lips of the combination label/sign holder in the manner of  FIG. 17 ; and 
       FIG. 19  is a view similar to  FIG. 15  of yet another modified sign holder support member with the elements reversed so that the hinge is below, rather than above, the latch. 
   

   Like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views of the drawings. 
   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to  FIGS. 1–6 , one embodiment of a sign holder according to this invention is designated generally by the reference numeral  20  in  FIG. 1  and is seen to comprise a support member  25  and a flag or sign  30  carried thereby. The sign holder  20  in  FIG. 1  is illustrated as supported on a shelf  35  having an upper, generally horizontally extending, surface  36  with a plurality of apertures  38  defined therethrough, a downwardly and forwardly depending front edge  39  and a rearwardly extending lower flange  40 . In  FIG. 1 , the shelf  35  is illustrated as devoid of an integral C-channel, with a combination label/sign holder  50  of the type discussed generally in the &#39;726 application, adhesively secured or the like to the front edge  39 . 
   It is to be understood that the sign holder  20  of  FIG. 1  can be used with a shelf having an integral C-channel formed along its front edge or with a shelf devoid of a C-channel. In the latter event, while the sign holder  20  may be used effectively when the front edge  39  of the shelf  35  is provided with a combination label/sign holder such as shown at  50 , the use of a sign holder of the type shown at  20  in  FIG. 1  would preclude the advantageous operation of the combination label/sign holder  50  discussed in the &#39;726 application wherein the cover  52  of a combination label/sign holder such as illustrated at  50  can independently carry one or more sign holders and be tipped forwardly to remove or insert a new label without removing the sign holders. Therefore, the embodiment of  FIGS. 7–9  discussed below is more effectively used with a combination label/sign holder of this nature. 
   The sign holder support member  25  is an integrally molded member formed of any conventional polymeric material, such as a semi-opaque polypropylene, and includes a generally planar rear portion  60  which may be formed with one or more integrally molded fasteners such as the “push pin” member  62  adapted to be snappingly engaged in the apertures  38  of the shelf  35  to secure the support member  25  to the shelf  35 . 
   At the forward end of the planar portion  60 , an integral hinge  64  secures elements  66 ,  68  which are pivotally interconnected to each other at  70 , with a locking flange  72  adapted to resiliently secure the terminal edge portions  68 ′ of the element  68  when the same is rotated about the hinge  70  in the direction of the arrow  74  in  FIG. 2 . The element  66  is provided with cruciform-shaped through-slits  76  which communicates the front face of the element  66  with a pocket  78  formed between the rear surfaces of the elements  66  and  68  when the edge portions  68 ′ of the element  68  is snappingly engaged in the locking flange  72 . 
   The flag or sign  30  in the preferred embodiment seen in  FIG. 6 , includes a tab  32  along one edge as seen in  FIG. 6 . The flag  30  can be formed of any conventional plastic material as well, and can be pre-printed or adhesively carry labels on one or both faces to attract the attention of passers-by to the merchandise (not shown) carried on the upper surface  36  of the shelf  35 . 
   In use, the tab  32  of the flag  30  is folded 90° along a line  33  which may be weakened during manufacture, to the dotted line position  32 ′ seen in  FIG. 6 , and inserted into through the slits  76  formed in the element  66  of the support member  25 , the element  68  then being folded about the hinge  70  and its edges  68 ′ resiliently captured by the flange  72  to lock the flag  30  in position. The integral fastener  62  can then be snappingly engaged in one of the apertures  38  in the shelf  35  and the weight of the flag  30  will cause the forward portions of the sign holder support member  25  to pivot about the hinge  64  and rest against the front edge  39  of the shelf  35  or a C-channel or label holder or combination label/sign holder such as shown at  50  carried by the front edge  39  of the shelf  35  in the manner seen in  FIG. 1 . 
   At any time, the entire sign holder assembly  20  can be readily removed and positioned in another location. Alternatively, the sign  30  can be removed and replaced with a sign carrying other information in an obvious manner. 
   In  FIG. 1A , the modified embodiment of the sign holder support member is designated  25 ′ and is identical with the sign holder support member  25  of the embodiment of  FIGS. 1–6 , except that the planar portion  60 ′ is a very thin plastic film element formed of a material such as polyvinyl chloride, perhaps on the order of about 0.005″ in thickness, and preferably transparent so that the openings  38  of the shelf  35  can be viewed through the film such as disclosed in the &#39;470 application. With such a construction, the film  60 ′ can be easily penetrated by conventional discrete plastic or other such spring-type fasteners, dart clips or push pins  62 ′ to secure the support member  25 ′ to the shelf  35 . 
   As seen in dotted lines at  62   a  in  FIGS. 3 and 4  an additional integral “push pin” can be molded into the planar portion  60  to be engaged in a second aperture  38  in the shelf  39  to preclude rotation of the label holder support member  25  which could occur with only a single point of engagement in the surface  36  of the shelf  39 . 
   Alternatively, as seen in  FIG. 3A , the planar portion  60 ′ can be provided with an integral push pin  62  and an elongated through-slot  63  adapted to adjustably receive a discrete push pin such as shown at  62 ′ in  FIG. 1A . Moreover, as seen in  FIG. 3B , two spaced elongated slots  63  and  63   a  may be formed in the planar portion  60 ″ to provide even greater flexibility in positioning discrete “push pins” in the apertures  38  of the shelf  39 . 
   Referring now to  FIGS. 7 and 8 , a modified sign holder according to this invention, particularly adapted for use in a C-channel integrally formed with a front edge of a shelf or forming part of a combination label/sign holder attached to the shelf, is seen at  80  as comprising a support member  85  and a sign carrying member  90 . In this instance, the sign holder support member  85  is a molded element comprising a pair of spring-like end portions  100 ,  102 , interconnected by a intermediate portion  104  hingedly secured at  106  to an element  108  having cruciform-shaped through-slits  110 , the edges  108 ′ of the element  108  being engageable in a locking flange  112  when the element  108  is rotated about the hinge  106  in the direction of the arrow  114 . The edge portions  100 ′,  102 ′ of the support member  85  can be snappingly engaged in the upper and lower sign holder lips  52 ,  54  of the combination label/sign holder  50 , or comparable lips of an integral C-channel on the front edge  39  of the shelf  35  (not shown). 
     FIGS. 9 and 9A  show a modified sign holder support member in which parts similar to those of the embodiment of  FIGS. 7 and 8  are designated by the same reference characters followed by the suffix “a”. In the support member  85   a , the locking flange  112   a  includes a perpendicularly extending short leg portion  112   a ′ with an upwardly extending angular terminus  113  defining a vertically extending shoulder  113   a . The angular surface  113 ′ of the terminus  113  facilitates sliding the lower edges  108   a ′ of the element  108   a  into locking engagement behind the shoulder  113   a  and affords a more robust and secure locking engagement between these elements. 
   Although a sign carrying element such as shown at  30  in  FIG. 6  can be secured to the sign holder support member  85  or  85   a  in a manner similar to that shown in  FIGS. 1–6 , a sign-carrying member such as illustrated at  90  in  FIG. 10  can be formed with a pair of face elements  92 ,  94 , each carrying an integral flap  96 ,  98 , foldable at 90° in opposite outwardly extending directions for insertion into the through-slits  110  or  110   a  in an obvious manner. A sign-carrying member of this nature will preferably be formed of a transparent plastics material, either extruded with an integral hinge at  93  or folded from a sheet material so that the face elements  92 ,  94  can be folded toward each other to capture a paper label or sign  99  therebetween. 
   Preferably, the support member incorporates a split locking flange as seen in  FIG. 9B , providing a space  120  between the portions  112   b  and  112   b ′ to accommodate the edges  92 ′ and  94 ′ of a sign-carrying member such as seen at  90  in  FIG. 10  when the sign holder support member is latched with a sign captured thereby. 
   For most purposes, a flag such as seen at  30  in  FIG. 6  and a sign holder support member such as seen at  85  in  FIG. 7  or  85 ′ in  FIG. 9  will be a preferred combination, although for special applications, particularly when a shelf is devoid of a C-channel, a sign holder support member such as seen at  25  or  25 ′ will be more appropriate and, in specific instances when a paper sign or label is to be displayed, a sign-carrying member of the type seen at  85  or  85   a  can be used with either embodiment of support member. 
   Referring now to  FIGS. 11–13 , yet another modified sign holder according to this invention is designated generally by the reference numeral  150  and is seen to comprise a support member  155  and a flag or sign, illustratively shown as the flag or sign  30  of  FIG. 6 , although, obviously, a sign of the type seen at  90  in  FIG. 10  could readily be substituted therefor. The sign holder  150  is illustrated in  FIGS. 11–13  as supported on a shelf such as the shelf  35  seen in  FIG. 1 . In this instance, however, a simple label holder  160  having a backing member  162  is carried by the front lip  39  of the shelf  35  in any conventional manner, with a transparent cover member  164  hingedly secured thereto at their lower edges  166  to form a pocket  168  therebetween adapted to receive non-adhesive labels of the type illustrated at  170  in  FIG. 11 . 
   The sign holder support member  155  includes a relatively thin angular element  175  secured to, or integral with, a top element  176  which extends generally horizontally in use and which in turn is secured to, or integral with, a rear element  178  which extends generally vertically in use, perpendicularly to the plane of the flag  30  in the assembled sign holder  150 . As in the previous embodiments, an integral hinge  180  interconnects the rear element  178  to a cover element  182  with a pair of cross-slits  184 ,  186  adapted to receive the foldable tab  32  of the flag  35  as seen in  FIG. 13 . A locking flange  188  resiliently secures the terminal edge portions  182 ′ of the cover  182  when the same is rotated about the hinge  180  in the direction of the arrow  190 . A split or detent  189  in the locking flange  188  accommodates the edge portion  30 ′ of the flag  30  in the assembled relationship of the flag holder  150 , if necessary. 
   As can be seen in  FIG. 12 , the sign holder support member  155  of the embodiment of  FIGS. 11-13  can be used by inserting the angular member  175  over the top edge  164 ′ of the cover member  164  of the label holder  160  to be captured in the pocket  168  of the label holder  160  when the cover member  164  returns to its closed position as seen in  FIG. 11 . 
   When engaging the flag receiver sections  178 ,  182 , they are pressed toward the outside of the window or cover  164  of the label holder  160  and are kept in a generally vertical position by a spacer element  192  which extends perpendicularly from the back of the rear element  178 . As seen in  FIGS. 14–16 , wherein parts similar to the embodiment of  FIGS. 11–13  are designated by the same reference numerals followed by the suffix “a”, the spacer element  192   a  may be moved downwardly relative to the rear element  178   a  to engage the cover member  164  of the label holder  160  at a lower position. 
   Referring now to  FIGS. 17 and 18 , an alternate use of the sign holder support member  155   a  is illustrated, in this instance, in association with a combination label/sign holder  200  of the type seen in  FIGS. 1–6  and the &#39;112 patent. With such a construction, rather than engaging the angular element  175   a  in the pocket  202  between the cover  204  and backing element  206  of the combination label/sign holder  200 , it is engaged in the pockets formed behind the upper and lower sign-holder lips  208 ,  210 , respectively, of the cover  204 . More specifically, the lower edge  175   a ′ of the angular element  175   a  is engaged in the pocket formed by the lower sign-holding lip  210  in the direction of the arrow  179  and an extension  177   a  of the angular element  175   a  is engaged in the pocket formed by the upper sign-holding lip  208  of the combination label/sign holder  200  in the direction of the arrow  181 . 
   Although not illustrated, the sign holder support member  155  could be similarly engaged directly in the upper and lower lips of a C-channel formed integrally along the front edge of a merchandising shelf. 
   The length of the angular element  175   a , including the extension  177   a , is designed so that the extension  177   a  will not interfere with the capture of the angular element  175   a  in the pocket  168  of a label holder of the type seen at  160  in  FIGS. 11–13 , while providing this additional extension  177   a  facilitates engaging the label holder support member  155   a  in the upper lip of a C-channel, whether the same is integrally formed with the merchandising shelf or on the cover of a combination label/sign holder of the type seen in the &#39;112 patent. 
   Additionally, it is to be understood that, although the sign holder support member of this invention can be designed with the locking flange at the top and the hinge at the bottom of the rear element as seen at  188  and  180 , respectively, in  FIGS. 11–13 , this design can be reversed without departing from the instant inventive concepts as seen in  FIG. 19 , wherein parts similar to the embodiments of  FIGS. 11–13  are designated by the same reference numerals followed by the suffix “b”. In this embodiment, it can be seen that the locking flange  188   b  is below the hinge  180   b  to capture the edge portions  182   b ′ of the cover member  182   b  when the cover member  182   b  is pivoted downwardly as seen by the arrow  190   b  in an obvious manner. 
   Once again, although not every combination has been illustrated in the drawings, it is to be understood that the various modifications disclosed herein can be used, where practical, with different forms of sign, with different shelf configurations, including those with and without integral C-channels, and different forms of label holder, including combination label/sign holders of the type seen in the &#39;112 patent. 
   From the foregoing, it will be seen that there is herein provided alternative embodiments of a unique sign holder, simple and inexpensive to manufacture, easy to use, and readily adaptable to securely engage flags or signs of different types with a variety of shelf constructions. 
   The foregoing descriptions and drawings should be considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. As noted, the invention may be configured in a variety of shapes and sizes and is not limited by the dimensions of the preferred embodiment. Numerous applications of the present invention will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, it is not desired to limit the invention to the preferred embodiments or the exact construction and operation shown and described. Rather, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to falling within the scope of the invention.