Abstract:
A goods display hook which enables salespersons to quickly and easily get information on the empty state of the goods display hooks. In a goods display hook comprising a main body engageable with a horizontally extending bar assembled in a goods display furniture and an arm including a base end supported by the main body and a goods hanging section extending from the base end section, the goods display hook further comprises a bias means for urging the arm in the direction that the goods hanging section tilts upwardly, the goods hanging section of the arm having a lamp at a free end thereof, the main body having a power source for the lamp, a switch device for the lamp and a shaft providing the arm with a pivotal movement, wherein the switch device is actuated by the arm to turn on the lamp when all the goods hung on the arm are removed which causes a pivotal movement of the arm in the direction that the goods hanging section tilts upwardly by the action of the bias means.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a hook for displaying goods that comprises a main body attachable to a horizontal rod and the like, such as a cross-rail, bar or horizontal frame of a display furniture placed in a store or shop for displaying goods, the hook having an arm including a base end section connected to the main body and a goods hanging section extending from the base end. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART 
     Display furniture is in widespread use these days in stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores that do not need face-to-face selling activities. Typical types of display furniture may be designed to have cross-rails, bars or a grid wires assembled to a rectangular outer frame formed in a vertical plane. 
     A hook for displaying goods comprises a main body made of metal or synthetic resin and a goods hanging arm (hereinafter referred to as “arm”). The main body is formed so as to be engageable with a horizontally extending rod such as a cross-rail, bar or horizontal wire. The arm is designed so that its base end section is connected to the main body, and its goods hanging section is formed to extend perpendicularly to the vertical plane of the display furniture, so that various kinds of goods can be hung on the arm for display. 
     Conventional goods display hooks include those proposed in Patent documents 1 and 2, stated below. Goods are contained in a package having a hole or hook section for being hung. Shoppers draw out or remove the package containing goods from the arm of the goods display hooks to buy or for picking up to check it. 
     [Patent document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-236975 
     [Patent document 2] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-78578 
     When all the goods hung on an arm have been removed, the goods assigned to that arm are replenished. It is advantageous for sales promotion to enable prompt replenishment as soon as all the goods on a display hook have been sold out. For that purpose, at present, it is necessary for salespersons to always look about the display furniture for the goods that have been sold out from the arm of the goods display hook. This may sometimes help in finding a so-called “hot-selling product”. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Problems for the Invention to Solve 
     Generally, the stores have such a tendency to closely arrange a lot of display hooks on the cross-rails or bars of a display furniture on purpose to display as many goods as possible to improve sales efficiency. This makes it rather difficult for salespersons to locate the empty arms of display hooks when they are looking round display furniture under the care of them for replenishment. 
     The present invention has been made considering this problem to help salespersons to make easier locating and identifying empty arms among many display hooks closely arranged on the display furniture. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a display hook enabling salespersons to quickly and easily get information on the empty arms of the display hooks on the display furniture. 
     To solve the above-mentioned problem, the present invention provides a goods display hook comprising a main body engageable with a horizontally extending bar assembled in display furniture; an arm including a base end section pivotally connected to the main body and a goods hanging section extending from the base end section; and a bias means for urging the arm in the direction that the goods hanging section tilts upwardly, the goods hanging section of the arm having a lamp at the tip end thereof, the main body having a power source for the lamp, a switch device for the lamp and a shaft providing the arm with pivotal movement, wherein the switch device of the lamp is actuated by the arm to turn on the lamp when all the goods hung on the goods hanging section of the arm are removed and thus the arm is pivotally moved in the direction that the goods hanging section tilts upwardly by the action of the bias means. 
     The bias means is a spring element or a weight. 
     The switch device has a button retractably projecting from a housing of the switch device, the button being disposed in a range of the pivotal movement of the arm so that the switch is turned on, when the switch button is pressed by an acting portion of the base end section of the arm, or released from the pressure by the arm. 
     The switch device is a micro switch comprising a main unit housed in a switch housing and operating elements including a button and a lever provided on the housing, the lever having one end connected to the housing and the other end contacting the base end section of the arm, wherein the micro switch is designed to turn on the lamp either when the other end of the lever is pressed by the base end section of the arm to push the button or when the other end of the lever is released thereby releasing the button. 
     The main body of the display hook has a bar holding section designed for engaging with the cross-rail or bar assembled in the display furniture and an arm supporting section, the holding section having front and rear hanging walls to define a space for holding the cross-rail or bar of the display furniture between the walls, the arm supporting section having upright side walls for supporting the shaft therebetween about which the base end section of the arm being pivotally moved. 
     The holding section of the main body of the display hook supports the power source and a switch for the power source. 
     For the lamp, an LED lamp is used. 
     Technical Advantages of the Invention 
     In the display hook according to the present invention, when goods are hanging on the goods hanging section, the arm is prevented from moving up at the goods hanging section due to the load of the goods, and when all the goods hung on the arm are removed, the arm is pivotally moved by the action of the bias means such that the goods hanging section tilts upwardly and the base end section acts on the operating elements of the switch device to turn on the lamp. The lamp turned on makes it quicker and easier for salespersons to find an empty goods display hook. 
     The arm according to the present invention can pivotally move in the upward direction at a goods hanging section as soon as all the goods hung on the are removed due to the resilience of the spring element or the load of the weight. 
     The operating elements of the switch device are designed and disposed such that the pivotal movement of the arm in the upward direction at the goods hanging section can ensure the lighting of the lamp at the tip end of the goods hanging section of the arm. 
     The adoption of the micro switch ensures operation of the switch device, as well as downsizing of the main body of the goods display hook. 
     The main body of the goods display hook is designed to have a simple structure so as to be produced by an integral molding at low cost. 
     The power source for the lamp and the switch for the power source are attached to the holding section of the main body to ensure the stable engagement with the cross-rail or bar of the goods display furniture by the weight of the power source and power switch. The power switch can achieve saving of the power source. 
     An LED used for the lamp ensures a long service life of the lamp. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a goods display hook according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a plan view of the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-section view along the line A-A in  FIG. 2  and shows the state where goods are hung in the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-section view along the line A-A in  FIG. 2  and shows the state where goods are all removed in the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 5  is an electric circuit diagram of the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 6  is a cross-section view of a second embodiment of the present invention and shows the state where goods are all removed. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     A first embodiment of a goods display hook according to the present invention is described below referring to  FIGS. 1-5  of the accompanying drawings. 
     A goods display hook  1  shown in  FIG. 1  comprises a main body  3  and a goods hanging arm (hereinafter referred to as “arm”)  4 . The arm  4  has a goods hanging section  41 , a free end  41 ′ of which is slightly bent upward to prevent goods from dropping off and has an LED lamp  5  at a tip thereof. 
     The main body  3  is adapted to engage with a crossrail  2  drawn by a double-dotted imaginary line in the formed of a rectangular pipe which is assembled in a goods display furniture (not shown). As shown in  FIG. 3 , the main body  3  includes a bar holding section  30  which is comprised of a base plate  31  positioned on the top surface  21  of the crossrail  2  and front and rear hanging walls  32  and  32 ′ extending downwardly along the front and rear surface  22 ,  23  of the crossrail  2  from the front and rear end of the base plate  31 . The crossrail  2  is held in a space  33  defined by the base plate  31 , front and real hanging walls  32 ,  32 ′ of the bar holding section  30  of the main body  3 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , an arm supporting section  6  is formed above the bar holding section  30  of the main body  3 . The arm supporting section  6  comprises a pair of upright side walls  61 ,  61  which are upwardly extending from the top surface of the base plate  31  of the bar holding section  30  to define a space  66  being open toward the top, front and back. A shaft  7  is connected between the upright walls  61 ,  61 . A base end section  42  of the arm  4  is housed in the open space  66  and pivotally connected to the side walls  61 ,  61  through the shaft  7  (See  FIG. 1 ). 
     The arm supporting section  6  further has an upright front short wall  34  serving as a stopper against the downward pivotal movement of the arm about the shaft  7 . When goods are hung on the goods hanging section  41  of the arm  4 , the arm  4  is held substantially in a horizontal position while resting on the upper end of the short wail  34 , and prevented from tilting down. 
     A recess  36  is formed on the surface of the base plate  31  adjacent to the short wall  34 . The recess  36  and the short wall  34  define the housing of a coil spring  8 . The coil spring  8  is provided beneath the arm  4  at a position between a portion pivotally connected by the shaft  7  to the arm supporting section  6  of the main body  3  and the goods hanging section  41  of the arm  4  for urging to the arm  4  such that the goods hanging section  41  pivotally moves upwardly about the shaft  7 . Other types of spring elements such as a flat spring may be used instead of the coil spring  8 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3 , a micro switch  9  is fixed to one of the side walls  61  at a position above the base end section  42  of the arm  4 . A switch button  92  projects the underside of a housing  91  of the micro switch  9 . A switch lever  93  having one end connected to the underside of the housing  91  and the other end  931  freely extending toward and coming into contact with the upper surface of an end  422  of the base end section  42  of the arm  4  which is on the opposite side of the shaft  7  to the goods hanging section  41 . The micro switch  9  is provided on the top surface of the housing  91  with electric terminals  94  which are connected through lead lines not shown to a terminal of the LED lamp  5  attached to the free end  41 ′ of the goods hanging section  41  of the arm  4  and to a terminal of a battery  10 ′ described later (See  FIG. 5 ). 
     The embodiment described has the micro switch  9  disposed above the arm  4  on one side of the shaft  7  and the coil spring  8  disposed below the arm  4  on the other side of the shaft. The mounting layout of these elements will however not be restricted to this arrangement. The positions of the micro switch  9  and the coil spring  8  may be reversed with respect to the arm  4  and/or shaft  7 , or both the micro switch  9  and the coil spring  8  may be arranged on the same side with respect to the arm  4  and/or shaft  7 . 
     The main body  3  is provided on the outer surface of the rear hanging wall  32 ′ with a power source box  10  containing a battery  10 ′. The power source box  10  has a terminal of the battery  10 ′ (not shown) on the upper surface thereof. A power switch  11  is disposed on the top surface of the power source box  10  and has a terminal (not shown) at the underside of its housing for electrical connection with the terminal of the battery  10 ′ and the terminal  94  of the micro switch  9 . 
     In this embodiment, the main body  3  has the bar holding section  30  engageable with the crossrail  2  of the goods display hook and the upright side walls  61 ,  61  constituting the arm supporting section  6  is made of synthetic resin and formed integrally with the bar holding section  30  of the main body  3 . However, the bar holding section  30  may be designed to be engageable with a horizontally extending material in the form of a bar, rod or wire other than the crossrail. Likely, the arm supporting section  6  may be made of metal and may be formed separately from the bar holding section  30  of the main body  3 . 
     Further, in the embodiment described above, an LED lamp is used for excellence in illuminance, a little power consumption, long service life as a light source, but other type of lamp including fluorescent lamp may be used. Lamps with different colors including red, blue, yellow and green may be used for the goods display hooks according to the present invention to classify the goods to be hung on the hook by the different colors. This would help salespersons to find sold-out goods easily by glancing at the color of the lamp associated with the sold-out goods. 
     Then, a typical example of operation of the first embodiment according to the present invention will be explained referring to  FIGS. 3 ,  4  and  5 . 
     In the state as shown in  FIG. 3  where goods  12  are hung on the arm  4 , the goods hanging section  41  of the arm  4  keeps a horizontal position while resting on the top surface of the short upright wall  34  serving as a stopper against the load of the goods  12  overcoming the resilient force of the coil spring  8 . In this state, the end  422  of the base end section  42  of the arm  4  contacts and presses the free end  931  of the switch lever  93  upward which in turn presses the switch button  92  at the intermediate portion of the lever. 
     As apparent from the above, the button  92  and the lever  93  constitute an operating means of the micro switch  9  while the end  422  of the base end section  42  serves as an actuating means acting on the operating means of the micro switch  9 . 
       FIG. 5  shows an electric circuit of the goods display hook  1  in the state as shown in  FIG. 3  where goods  12  are hung on the goods hanging portion  41  of the arm  4  and the switch button  92  is pressed. In this state, as apparent from  FIG. 5 , the micro switch  9  is kept off. Accordingly, as long as goods  12  are hung on the goods hanging section  41  and the switch button  92  is pressed, the micro switch  9  is not actuated even though the power source switch  11  is on, to thereby prevent the voltage of the battery  10 ′ from being applied to the LED lamp  5  which is kept turned off. By changing the positional relationship between the micro switch  9  and the arm  4 , the electric circuit may be configured such that the micro switch  9  is actuated when the arm  4  is released from a load of goods hung thereon. 
       FIG. 4  shows the goods display hook  1  in the state where goods  12  are all removed from the goods hanging section  41  and there is no load on the arm  4 . The coil spring  8  pushes up the portion of the arm  4  between the pivoted portion  423  by the shaft  7  and the goods hanging section  41 , thereby pivotally moving the goods hanging section  41  of the arm  4  upward, in the counterclockwise direction B in the figure. At this time, since the opposite end  422  of the arm  4  is moved downward to release the force applied to the free end  931  of the lever  93  which in turn releases the pressure on the switch button  92 . 
     In the state as shown in  FIG. 4 , the electric circuit is configured so as to turn on the micro switch  9 . If the power switch  11  is on, the voltage of the battery  10 ′ is applied to the LED lamp  5  to turn on the lamp. 
     Since the lit LED lamp  5  associated with the goods display hook having no goods hung on the arm can be easily found among many goods display hooks arranged on the display furniture, it is possible to replenish the hook with goods as soon as and just after the goods have been sold-out. The LED lamp  5  can be set to remain lit unless the hook is replenish with goods for smooth replenishment. In the case where there is no stock for missing goods, the power source switch can be switched off to prevent power distribution to the LED lamp  5  until replenishment with goods becomes possible. When the goods are delivered, switching on the power supply switch  11  and hanging the goods on the arm  4  presses the switch button  92  to prevent power distribution to the LED lamp  5 , thereby turning off the LED lamp  5 . 
     A second embodiment of a goods display hook according to the present invention is described, referring to  FIG. 6 , in which a weight is used instead of the spring element  8  of the first embodiment.  FIG. 6  shows a cross-section view in the state where the hook is empty. 
     In the second embodiment, a weight  8 ′ is attached to the lower surface of the base end section  42  of the arm  4  including an end  422 ′. The weight  8 ′ is formed separately from the base end section  42  of the embodiment, but it may be formed integrally with the arm, and may be made of metal or synthetic resin. 
     An operation of the second embodiment of a goods display hook according to the present invention is described herein after almost the same as the first embodiment. 
     Namely, as shown in  FIG. 6 , there is no load of the goods  12  applied to the goods hanging section  41  of the arm  4 . The end  422 ′ of the base end section  42  of the arm  4  tilts down by the load of the weight  8 ′. This movement of the arm  4  releases the force applied to the free end  931  of the switch lever  93  which in turn releases the pressure applied to the switch button  92 , thereby actuating the micro switch  9  to turn on the LED lamp  5 . 
     The operation of the second embodiment in the state where goods  12  are hung on the hanging section  41  of the arm  4  is the same as that of the first embodiment and therefore omitted.