Patent Publication Number: US-6659278-B1

Title: Retail display hang tag device

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Scope of Invention 
     This invention relates generally to hanging devices for display, and more particularly to a retail display hang tag device for supporting and displaying a fluid dispenser of the type having a container filled or fillable with a fluid and a dispensing closure with a removable protective cap. 
     2. Prior Art 
     The retail display of products is a substantial factor in marketing success. Where products can be easily viewed from an economical hanging arrangement for customers to quickly see and discern the usefulness or utility of the product being displayed, sales will typically be greater. 
     The displaying of a fluid applicator of the type shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,641,233 and 5,857,796 either filled or fillable with a fluid such as a tile grout sealant is currently unimaginative and ineffective. Typically, such fluid containers are stacked upright on a shelf or placed into boxes or packages for similar stacking arrangements. Because of this retail stacking limitation, a potential customer will have more difficulty in discerning the contents and utility of such a product. 
     It is also likely that a casual potential customer browsing shelves or even a customer aware of and searching for the product being sought will actually have difficulty finding the location of the product being sought when it is either stacked by itself or in packaging or containers. Retail items which can be easily hung from display wires or hooks and are easily viewable by retail customers, will almost certainly enjoy better marketing success. Moreover, maintaining the dispensing closure tightly sealed to the container and keeping the removable cap covering the dispensing portion of the closure in place is not offered by current hanging display methods. 
     The present invention provides a retail display hang tag device for supportively displaying a fluid applicator of the type having a container which is filled or fillable with a fluid to be dispensed from a dispensing closure with a removable protective cap. The device is also easily and economically manufacturable as a unit in a generally flat configuration with bendable portions for attachment to the fluid applicator which not only supports the fluid applicator in an upright orientation attached to a conventional display hanger or hook, but also prevents the inadvertent removal of the dispensing closure&#39;s protective cap from the dispensing closure. The preferred embodiment further contains a prong for preventing inadvertent rotation of the container and its display indicia from a full forwardly facing orientation when the hang tag device is placed onto hanger hooks. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention is directed to a retail display hang tag device for supportively displaying a fluid applicator of the type having a container and a fluid dispensing closure with a protective cap. The hang tag includes an elongated panel having an upper portion, a lower portion and a central portion extending therebetween. The upper portion has an aperture sized for supportive engagement with a retail display hanger or hook. A second aperture of the lower portion closely fits over the neck of the container and is flexibly bendable about the first line of weakness. The central portion includes a ring which is bendably deformable about a second transverse line of weakness which is parallel to the first line of weakness. The ring snugly fits over the cap as it is deformed out of the plane of the device about the second line of weakness. The hang tag is attachable to the fluid applicator with the cap within the third aperture and the neck within the second aperture with the lower portion and the ring in their in-use position. A prong formed at the lower end of the central portion engages with grooves in the cap for best retail viewing. 
     It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a retail display hang tag device which will supportively display a fluid applicator of the type having a container filled with, or fillable with, a fluid for dispensing through a dispensing closure with a removable protective cap. 
     It is another object of this invention to provide an economical retail display hang tag device which is readily attachable to a fluid applicator and which also maintains the important printed retail indicia attached to the hanger in a forwardly facing easily readable orientation. 
    
    
     In accordance with these and other objects which will become apparent hereinafter, the instant invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of the invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a side elevation partially broken view of the invention shown in FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the invention of FIG. 1 in its in-use position attached to and supporting a fluid applicator. 
     FIG. 3A is an enlargement of the anti-rotation interengagement between the device and the base of the fluid applicator. 
     FIG. 4 is a front elevation view of FIG.  3 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, the invention is there shown generally at numeral  10  and includes an elongated generally flat molded plastic panel  12  formed as a single unit. The panel  12  is generally rectangular in configuration and defines an upper portion  13  having a first aperture  14  sized to supportively receive a conventional display hook or hanger shown in phantom by example at H in FIG. 3. A strengthening rib or bead  34  extends around the perimeter of the central and upper portions  16  and  13 . 
     The central portion  16  of the panel  12  provides a surface for additional retail display indicia and also includes a ring  18  formed therethrough, the ring  18  being attached to the central portion  16  by tab  20  which is thinner than the central portion  16 , the discontinuity in material thickness forming a line of weakness  30  which delineates the central portion  16  from tab  20  attached to the ring  18 . Ring  18  defines a second aperture  22  which is sized to snugly fit over a removable protective cap F shown in FIG.  3  and better described herebelow. The cap F is normally held in its protective position over the fluid dispensing portion such as bristles (not shown) of fluid dispensing closure G by friction engagement on valve portion E. 
     A lower portion  24  of the panel  12  is hingedly connected along a transverse line of weakness  26 , the lower portion  24  defining a second aperture  28  formed therethrough which is sized to fit around the neck N of a container B as seen in FIGS. 3 and 4. Both of the lines of weakness  30  and  26  are parallel to one another and oriented transversely to a length of panel  12 . 
     The device  10  also includes a molded pointed prong  32  which is positioned along a longitudinal centerline of panel  12  at the lower end of the central portion  16  and immediately adjacent the line of weakness  26 . The purpose and function of the prong  26  will be described herebelow. 
     Referring additionally to FIGS. 3,  3 A and  4 , the device  10  is structured for supportive interengagement with, and detail display of, a fluid applicator shown generally at A which includes a container B having an open upper neck portion N which is threadably engagable into a base C of a central valved portion E of the dispensing closure G. A removable tapered cap F fits atop and is frictionally held on the brush valve portion E to protectively conceal the fluid dispensing portion (not shown) of the fluid applicator A. 
     By pivoting the ring  18  of the central portion  16  in the direction of arrow  36  and positioning it snugly over the cap F, and by pivoting the lower portion  24  in the direction of arrow  38  and positioning it over the neck N of the bottle B and threadably engaging the base C onto the neck N as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the device  10  will supportively display the printed indicia or product description J printed onto the front surface of the container B when hung from a hanger H attached to a wall W or other vertical surface through aperture  14 . 
     Prong  32  as best seen in FIG. 3A, automatically engages into one of the longitudinal grooves D typically formed into the base C for greater tightening of the base C onto the threaded neck N of the bottle B. By this interengagement of prong  32  into one of the grooves D, proper orientation of the product description information J will be maintained in an outwardly facing position for better consumer viewing when the device  10  supportively retains the fluid applicator A on a hanger H. Should reorientation of the bottle B be necessary with respect to the device  10  before being hung onto a hanger H, the prong  32  will resiliently deflect with respect to the grooves D to allow for easy readjustment to achieve a proper rotational orientation of the bottle B before hanging the entire arrangement for display as seen in FIGS. 3 and 4. 
     Sequence of Attachment 
     The device  10  is manufactured of molded plastic in the flat as best seen in FIGS. 1 and 2. To supportively attach the fluid applicator A (either with or without fluid within the container B), the base C is removed from threaded engagement with neck N and the cap F is then inserted into the ring  18  after it has been deformably moved into a generally orthogonal orientation in the direction of arrow  36  about the hinge or line of weakness  30  with respect to the central portion  16 . Thereafter, the neck N of bottle B is inserted through the aperture  28  of the lower portion  24  after or as the lower portion  24  has been deflected or deformed in the direction of arrow  38  also into a generally orthogonal orientation with respect to the main portion  16 . The final assembly attachment step is to again threadably engage the neck N of the bottle B into its base C with the lower portion  24  positioned around the base of the neck N. Note that, when ring  18  and lower portion  24  are deformed into the in-use position orthogonal to the central portion  16 , the centers of apertures  22  and  28  are concentric with the longitudinal axis L of the fluid applicator A and its container B as seen in FIGS. 3 and 4. Note further that the longitudinal spacing between the apertures  22  and  28  is established to maintain a resilient retaining force exerted on cap F. Only by again removing the base C from the container B may the device  10  be disengaged from the fluid applicator. 
     As will be now more clearly understood, prong  32  being positioned immediately adjacent the line of weakness  26 , will automatically engage into one of the grooves D of base C due to the close proximity between prong  32  and the line of weakness  26  as the lower portion  24  is deformed in the direction of arrow  38  in FIG.  3 . 
     While the instant invention has been shown and described herein in what are conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is recognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention, which is therefore not to be limited to the details disclosed herein, but is to be afforded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent apparatus and articles.