Abstract:
An product display assembly allows for the presentation of a sample product for sale. A support bracket and a product carrier extends from the support bracket and is adapted to hold a plurality of product containers which can be placed onto and removed from the product carrier via a distal end of the product carrier. A support arm extends from the support bracket and supports a sample product holder that is movable between a first position wherein the sample product holder is located in front of the distal end of the product carrier and a second position wherein the sample product holder is moved away from the distal end of the product carrier. A spring is provided for biasing the sample product holder into the first position.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    The present Application for Patent claims priority to Provisional Application No. 62/103,306 entitled “Display Assembly for Electronic Device Case” and filed Jan. 14, 2015. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    The present disclosure relates generally to retail product displays, and more particularly, to hanger type retail displays from which product packages are mounted one behind another to allow easy removal of the product packages by the consumer. Such displays are typically coupled to a vertically extending back wall such as a peg board wall of a gondola or a back wall of a gondola having horizontal rails to which the hanger type retail display can be connected. 
         [0003]    Prior art hanger type retail displays typically have a hanger arm from which the product packages are hung. Consumers will often pull the product off of the hanger arm to look at the product more closely before purchasing it. Unfortunately, they do not always return the product back on the correct hanger arm. In addition, they sometimes remove the product from the package to get a better look at and tactile feel of the product. This often results in damage to the packaging or the product itself. 
         [0004]    It would be desirable to provide the consumer with a convenient sample or mock up of the product in front of the hanger arm so that he/she can examine the product more closely without actually removing the product from the packages on the hanger arm. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0005]    To that end, the present invention provides a product display which includes a support bracket and a hanger arm extending from the support bracket and adapted to hold a plurality of product packages which can be placed onto and removed from the hanger arm via a distal end of the hanger arm. The display further includes a sample product assembly including at least one support arm extending from the support bracket and supporting a sample product carrier that is movable between a first position wherein the sample product carrier is located in front of the distal end of the hanger arm and a second position wherein the sample product carrier is remote from the distal and of the hanger arm and product packages can be easily removed from the hanger arm. A spring means is provided for biasing the sample product assembly into the first position. 
         [0006]    The present invention also provides a product display which includes a back wall, a product carrier extending from the back wall and adapted to hold a plurality of product containers which can be placed onto and removed from the product carrier via a distal end of the product carrier. A support arm extends from the back wall and supports a sample product holder that is movable between a first position wherein the sample product holder is located in front of the distal end of the product carrier and a second position wherein the sample product holder is moved away from the distal end of the product carrier. The hanger type display further includes spring means for biasing the sample product holder into the first position. 
         [0007]    The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of examples according to the disclosure in order that the detailed description that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages will be described hereinafter. The conception and specific examples disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present disclosure. Such equivalent constructions do not depart from the scope of the appended claims. Characteristics of the concepts disclosed herein, both their organization and method of operation, together with associated advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. Each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only, and not as a definition of the limits of the invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]      FIG. 1  shows a presently preferred embodiment of a product display assembly in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure; 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  shows the product display assembly of  FIG. 1  holding a plurality of product containers. 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  is a deconstructed view showing pieces of the sample product assembly forming part of the product display assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0011]    Referring now to the drawings wherein like numbers indicate like elements,  FIGS. 1-3  depict a presently preferred embodiment of a hanger type display assembly  10  having a hanger arm  12  from which a plurality of product packages  14  can be hung. The product packages  14  have support tabs  16  ( FIG. 2 ) which connect the product packages  14  to the hanger arm  12 . In this manner, the product packages  14  can easily be placed on and removed from the hanger arm  12  via the distal end thereof. 
         [0012]    The hanger arm  12  is preferably fixedly coupled to a support bracket  18  which, in the disclosed embodiment, is coupled to a pair of rails  20 ,  22  forming a part of a support wall (not shown). While support bracket  18  is shown as being coupled to the rails  20 ,  22 , it can be coupled in any other manner to the support wall. For example, and without limitation, if the support wall is a pegboard wall, hooks on the back of the bracket can be placed through the holes in the pegboard. The invention is not limited to any particular structure for connecting the hanger arm and the remaining elements of the display assembly to the support wall. 
         [0013]    In the preferred embodiment, a signage support  24 , located above the hanger arm, is also coupled to the support bracket  18 . The signage support  24  can support any signage relevant to the products being displayed, such as pricing information, product model numbers, etc. 
         [0014]    In order to avoid the need to remove one of the product packages  14  from the hanger arm  12  when the consumer wants a better view the product, a sample product assembly  26  is provided to display a sample of the product in front of the distal end of the hanger arm  12 . The assembly includes two main components—a sample product carrier  28  and a support bracket  30  which are hingedly coupled together so that the sample product carrier  28 , and with it the sample product  32 , are moveable between a first position ( FIG. 1 ) wherein the sample product carrier  28  (and the sample product  32  contained therein) is located in front of the distal end of the hanger arm  12  and a second position ( FIG. 2 ) wherein the sample product carrier  28  extends parallel to the hanger arm  12  and the consumer can easily remove the product packages  14  there from. A torsion spring  84 , described further below, biases the sample product carrier  28  into the first position so that the consumer must rotate the sample product carrier  28  into the second position in order to remove the product packages  14  from the support arm  12 . 
         [0015]    The sample product carrier  28  is preferably a C-shaped structure which fixedly holds a sample product  32 , for example a smart phone protective case, between two of the arms of the C. While this is the preferred shape, the product carrier is not so limited and can take any other desired open or closed shape. 
         [0016]    The manner in which the sample product carrier  28  is coupled to the support bracket  30  is best shown in  FIG. 3 . The support bracket  30  preferably includes a single wire  62  that has been bent into a trapezoidal shape with a space  64  located between opposite ends of the wire  62 . A rear central portion of the wire  62  is preferably fixedly coupled to the support bracket  18  so as to form two support arms  68  and  70  extending from the support bracket  18 . While these support arms are preferable formed from a single wire, separate wires can be used. Additionally, a single support arm can be provided. The distal most portions of the support bracket  30  form upper and lower pivot arms  72  and  74  to which the sample product carrier  28  is hingedly attached. 
         [0017]    In the preferred embodiment, the sample product carrier  28  includes a rear shell  36  ( FIG. 3 ) having male fittings  38  formed on its inner surface and a front shell  34  having corresponding female fitting (not shown) formed on its inner surface to allow the shells to be properly aligned when they are placed together. Product fasteners  40  are provided to hold the sample product  32  in the sample product carrier  28 . Each fastener  40  includes a tongue  44  which is inserted into a corresponding slit  46  formed in opposite ends of the sample product  32  (only one such slit is shown in the drawings). 
         [0018]    After the tongues  44  have been inserted into the slits a rivet (not shown) is placed through the holes  48  located at the distal end of the fasteners  40  to rivet the two ends together. The sample product  32  is then connected to the product carrier  28  by placing holes  52  in the fasteners  40  into respective bosses  50  (only one of which is shown in the drawings) formed on the inside of rear shell  36 . Subsequently, the front and rear shells are placed together and sonically welded in place. 
         [0019]    Before the front and rear shells  36 ,  38  are joined together, the upper and lower pivot arms  72 ,  74  are respectively placed into upper and lower hooks  76  and  80  formed on the rear shell  36 . When the front shell  34  is placed on the rear shell, the upper and lower pivot arms  72 ,  74  will be hingedly captured between the upper and lower hooks  76  and  80  and a corresponding pair of upper and lower hooks  78 ,  82  formed on the front shell  34 . When the front and rear shells are sonically welded together, the sample product carrier will be securely, pivotally coupled to the support bracket  30 . 
         [0020]    Before the front and rear shells are sonically welded together, a spring  84  is inserted onto the upper and lower pivot arms  72  and  74  via the space  64  between the upper and lower pivot arms and first and second arms  86  and  92  of the spring are placed in a opening  88  in the vertical plate  90  and an opening  94  in the rear shell  36 , respectively. In the preferred embodiment a single torsion spring is used. However, the invention is not so limited. Other types of springs can be used including, without limitation, leaf springs, compression springs, tension springs, constant load springs and variable springs. They can be made of metal, plastic or any other suitable material. In addition, rather than using a single spring, a spring system comprising more than one spring may be employed. 
         [0021]    After the arm  92  of the torsion spring  84  has been placed in the opening  94 , the holes  42  of the product fasteners  40  have been placed in the bosses  50  and the upper and lower pivot arms  72 ,  74  have been engaged with the hooks  76 - 80 , the front and rear shells  34 ,  36  are sonically welded together. At this point, the sample product  32  will be permanently coupled to the sample product carrier  28  and the sample product carrier  28  will be pivotally connected the support bracket  30  and biased into the first position shown in  FIG. 1  by the torsion spring  84 . In this position the consumer may inspect and touch the sample product  32  without removing any of the product packages from the hanger arm  12  and without removing any of the products from the product packages  14 . When a consumer wants to purchase the product, she can manually rotate the sample product carrier into the second position shown in  FIG. 2  against the biasing force of the torsion spring  84 . She can then slide the product package  14  off the hanger arm  12 . 
         [0022]    In order to prevent over rotation of the sample product carrier  28 , an abutment  96  is provided on one side of the front shell  36 . If the consumer attempts to rotate the sample product carrier  28  more than 90 degrees, the abutment  96  prevents further rotation of the sample product carrier. When the consumer releases the sample product carrier  28 , the torsion spring returns the sample product carrier  28  to the first position. 
         [0023]    In the preferred embodiment, the front shell  34  has a recess  52  in which a graphic strip  56  can be inserted. A similar recess (not shown) is formed on the back of rear shell  36  for receiving a second graphic strip  58 . The graphic strips can include information about the product including its brand and/or logo, color or pattern schemes or any other information/design appropriate for the product being displayed. 
         [0024]    In the preferred embodiment, a case graphic  60  (e.g., a picture of a smart phone) is fitted within an opening in the sample product  32 . A similar case graphic can be added to the back side of the sample product  32 . 
         [0025]    In the preferred embodiment, all of the elements are coupled to a single support bracket  26 . However, more than one support bracket can be used. Indeed, each of the hanger arm  12 , the signage support  24  and the support bracket (and the individual elements thereof) can be separately connected to the support wall. 
         [0026]    The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language claims.