Patent Publication Number: US-2007108083-A1

Title: Tray with fronting member, associated displays and methods

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD  
      The present application relates to trays for holding and displaying product and more particularly to a tray with fronting member.  
     BACKGROUND  
      In a retail store, such as a grocery or supercenter, product displays serve various purposes. One purpose may be to display products. Another purpose may be to allow a customer to pick products from the display. Often, products are displayed on shelves with some of the product located nearer the customer and some product located farther from the customer. In some instances, it is desirable to reposition product nearer to the customer to make it easier for the customer to grasp the product and remove the product from the shelf. This repositioning of products nearer to the customer to facilitate customer viewing and picking can be cumbersome. To aid in repositioning, shelf displays have been proposed that have a pusher that can be used to push product toward the front of a display shelf after product is removed.  
     SUMMARY  
      In an aspect, a method of shipping product within a tray from a first location to a second location remote from the first location is provided. The method includes placing the product in the tray at the first location. The tray includes a bottom upon which the product rests and a fronting member slidably connected to the tray. The fronting member of the tray is moveable relative to the bottom to move the product placed in the tray along the bottom toward a front of the tray. The tray is transported with the product placed therein to the second location.  
      In another aspect, a tray for transporting and displaying a product at a retail location for customer selection is provided. The tray includes a bottom having a first end and a second end and a slide region along which the product can slide between the first end and the second end. A fronting member is slidable relative to the bottom. The fronting member has a front and a back where the front of the fronting member is configured for use in grasping the fronting member and moving the back of the fronting member toward the first end of the bottom. The back of the fronting member spans the slide region and is configured to engage products disposed on the bottom for moving products along the slide region toward the first end of the bottom. The tray is configured to be repeatedly cycled between a filling operation at a facility remote from the retail location and a displaying operation at the retail location where the product is displayed for customer selection.  
      In another aspect, a display for displaying a product for customer selection at a retail location is provided. The display includes a plurality of stacked trays carrying product, each tray comprising a bottom and a fronting member. The fronting member of the trays is configured to move relative to the bottom to move the product along the bottom toward an end of the bottom.  
      In another aspect, a method of building a display at a retail location is provided. The method includes positioning a first tray filled with products on the display. The first tray includes a first bottom along which the products can slide and a first fronting member having a first front configured for use in manually grasping the first fronting member and a first back capable of engaging the products disposed on the first bottom to move the products along the first bottom in response to manually pulling the first front. A second tray filled with products is stacked on top of the first tray. The second tray includes a second bottom along which the products can slide and a second fronting member having a second front configured for use in manually grasping the second fronting member and a second back capable of engaging the products disposed on the second bottom to move the products along the second bottom in response to manually pulling the second front.  
      The details of one or more embodiments are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a partial, perspective view of an embodiment of a display for a retail store;  
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of an embodiment of a tray for use in building the display of  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 2A  is a section view along line A-A of  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 3  is a front view of trays of  FIG. 2  being stacked;  
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the tray of  FIG. 2  with product;  
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a display with an embodiment of a tray having a fronting member in a storage position;  
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the display of  FIG. 5  with the fronting member pulled toward a customer;  
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the display of  FIG. 5  with the fronting member back in the storage position with product moved forward in the tray;  
       FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the display of  FIG. 5  with an upper tray removed from the stack;  
       FIG. 9  is a flow diagram of a method of shipping product for display at a retail store using the tray of  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 10  is a perspective view of a shipping unit including the tray of  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 11  is a diagrammatic top view of an embodiment of a stacking pattern for forming a shipping unit using the tray of  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 12  is a diagrammatic top view of another embodiment of a stacking pattern for forming a shipping unit using the tray of  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 13  is a diagrammatic top view of another embodiment of a stacking pattern for forming a shipping unit using the tray of  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 14  is a diagrammatic top view of another embodiment of a stacking pattern for forming a shipping unit using the tray of  FIG. 2 ; and  
       FIG. 15  illustrates an embodiment of a supply chain process utilizing the tray of  FIG. 2 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
      Referring to  FIG. 1 , a partial view of a display  10  for use in, for example, a dairy cooler at a retail location (e.g., a grocery store, supermarket, club store, convenient store, gas station, supercenter, etc.) includes shelves  12  and stacks  14   a ,  14   b ,  14   c  and  14   d  of trays  16  each carrying containers  18  of dairy product such as ice cream, cottage cheese, yogurt, sour cream, dips, milk, canned goods, bagged goods, etc. Various sizes and shapes can be carried by the trays  16  such as, six ounce or eight ounce containers of yogurt, as examples. Trays  16   a  disposed on top of the stacks  14   a ,  14   b ,  14   c ,  14   d  are supported upon trays  16   b  disposed thereunder. Trays  16   a  expose the containers  18  located therein for customer selection and removal from the display  10 . With particular reference to the upper tray  16   a  in stack  14   c , each tray  16  includes a fronting member  20  that can be used to reposition product  18  carried by the respective tray  16  by pushing the product  18  from a rearward display location toward a forward display location. Fronting member  20  can reduce the amount of work necessary to reposition or face the product  18  in the tray  16 .  
      Referring now to  FIG. 2 , the tray  16  includes a bottom  22  and fronting member  20  that is slidable relative to the bottom  22 . Bottom  22  includes a relatively elongated central portion that extends between a front end  26  and a rear end  28 . Bumper or lip  34  is located at the front end  26 . The bumper  34  includes laterally extending section  35  having a height less than that of sidewalls  38  and  40 .  
      Bottom  22  includes a slide region  52  along which product can slide. The slide region  52  can be sized to accommodate one or more rows of product extending between front and rear ends  26  and  28 . In some implementations, additional slide regions can be situated in each tray  16 . For purposes of illustration, in an alternative embodiment, two slide regions  52   a  and  52   b  may be included that are separated by guide members  56  (shown by dotted lines). Guide members  56 , which in the illustrated example are formed as raised extensions of the bottom  22 , extend longitudinally along the length of the bottom  22  as rails that separate the first slide region  52   a  and the second slide region  52   b . Guide members  56  can assure separation of the rows of product and guide product within their respective slide regions  52   a  and  52   b  as the products are moved. In some embodiments, there may be more than two slide regions  52 , less than two slide regions, and more or less than two associated guide members  56 . In some instances, a single guide member  56  separates the slide regions  52  and  54 . Tray  16  may also accommodate stacked product situated in multiple, stacked layers.  
      Referring also to  FIG. 2A , sidewalls  38  and  40  include contoured portions  41  and  42  that are shaped and sized to accommodate the shape of a preselected product. In the illustrated embodiment, the contoured portions  41 ,  42  are slanted inwardly toward a centerline of the tray  16 . By contouring the sidewalls  38  and  40 , excessive tilting and jostling of product can be inhibited which can maintain product in their upright, standing positions as the product are moved during a sliding operation.  
      Fronting member  20  moves relative to and generally along the bottom  22  and includes an assembly of a front  44 , a back  46  and connecting members  48  and  50  extending from the front  44  to the back  46  and slidably disposed within respective tracks  27  and  29 . Back  46  spans across the slide region  52  (or multiple slide regions), which allows the back  46  to engage the one or more rows of product located at the slide region  52 . To facilitate grasping of the front  44 , the front includes grasping structure  58 . The grasping structure  58  facilitates grasping of the fronting member  20  to push and/or pull the fronting member in the direction of arrow  25 . In some embodiments, the front  44  may engage the bumper  34  (e.g., using interlocking structure such as a rib and groove connection) to releasably lock the fronting member  20  in place (e.g., in the position illustrated by  FIG. 2  with the front  44  in a retracted position).  
      Referring particularly to  FIG. 2A , the bottom  22  and fronting member  20  include cooperating interlocking structure generally indicated as  53  that inhibits independent vertical movement of the fronting member  20  relative to the bottom  22 , but allows for movement of the fronting member  20  relative to the bottom  22  generally in a plane parallel to the bottom  22 . Fronting member  20  includes the connecting members  48  and  50  which are slidably received within respective tracks  27  and  29  formed by and extending along the bottom  22 .  
      The cooperating interlocking structure  53  allows the fronting member  20  to slide relative to the bottom  22  in opposite directions, for example, by grasping front  44  and pulling front  44  outwardly from the bottom  22 , or by pushing the front inwardly toward the bottom  22 . Stops, detents, notches, hooks, etc. (see track  27  end  45  of  FIG. 2 ) can be used to prevent pulling the fronting member  20  entirely from the tracks  27  and  29  of the bottom  22 . This can inhibit separation of the fronting member  20  from the bottom  22 .  
      Referring to  FIG. 3 , tray  16  includes nesting structure  74  that enable the trays  16   a ,  16   b  to nest with each other with product  18  disposed therein. Upper tray  16   a  includes a shoulder  76  that can engage a top ledge  78  of lower tray  16   b . A central portion  80  of upper tray  16   a  can extend into a containing portion of the lower tray  16   b . The nesting structure  74  can help to anchor the tray  16  at a position on a display as the fronting member  20  is being pulled to reposition product  18  located therein using back  46 .  
      Referring now to  FIG. 4 , the tray  16  can be sized and shaped to accommodate any number of a given product  18 . For purposes of illustration, product containers  82  are substantially frustoconical in the shape of cups or buckets, however, they can be other shapes and/or sizes. In some embodiments, the size of tray  16  will be at least somewhat dependent on the size and shape of the display to be built using the tray  16 . As shown, the tray  16  is sized to accommodate one dozen yogurt containers  82 . The yogurt containers  82  are aligned side-by-side in two rows  84  and  86  of six containers  82  with each row  84 ,  86  of containers being situated at slide region  52 . Height H of the containers  82  is less than height h of the sidewalls  38  and  40  to allow an upper tray to nest with the tray as described with reference to  FIG. 3  and support at least a portion of the weight of the upper tray.  
       FIGS. 5-8  illustrate trays  16   a  and  16   b  in use as part of a display  120 . Display  120  includes a shelf  121 , a stack  124  of trays  16 , a front  122  closest to the customer and a rear  125  farthest from the customer. Referring to  FIG. 5 , the first two containers  82  of yogurt are removed from the upper tray  16   a . The next two containers  82   a  and  82   b  are then closest to the front  122  and are the next containers which are within relatively easy reach by the customer. Because the containers  82   a  and  82   b  are farther removed from the front  122  of the display  120  than the already removed containers, more effort on the part of the customer may be required to reach and pick the containers  82   a  and  82   b  from the tray  16   a . Referring to  FIG. 6 , fronting member  20  can be grasped and pulled toward the customer in the direction of arrow  127  relative to the bottom  22 . This is done by grasping the front  44  of the fronting member  20  and pulling the fronting member  20  toward the customer. This pulling action moves the back (not shown) of the fronting member  20  toward the front  122  of the display. As the back moves, it engages the rearmost containers  82   c  and  82   d  and pushes the remaining containers toward the front  122  of the display  120  until the front most containers  82   a  and  82   b  abut bumper  34 . Referring to  FIG. 7 , once the containers  82  are moved, the fronting member  20  can be moved back to its original position in the direction of arrow  126 . This can be repeated until all product has been removed from the upper tray  16   a . Referring to  FIG. 8 , the empty tray  16   a  (not shown) has been removed from the display  120  to expose the lower tray  16   b  and the containers  82  disposed therein. In some embodiments, lower tray  16   b  may be stacked upon another tray  16  (not shown) on shelf  121  during a restocking operation.  
      Tray  16  has a durable construction accomplished, at least in part, by use of durable plastic materials and robust interlocking structure  53  that slidably connects the fronting member  20  and the bottom  22 . This durable construction along with the use of relatively lightweight plastics enables the tray  16  to be reusable and/or returnable. A “reusable” tray  16  is a tray that, once filled and emptied of product, can be refilled and re-emptied of product repeatedly. The tray  16  is “returnable” in that the tray can be repeatedly transported to a refill location remote from the retail location for refilling with product and used in transporting or shipping the product back to the retail location or to a different retail location from the refill location without altering components of the tray  16  to alter the tray&#39;s operation. For example, a returnable tray  16 , as formed, is configured for both displaying of product and shipping of product without any need for a subsequent step of tearing, breaking, etc. of any component of the tray to reconfigure the tray from a shipping mode to a display mode. Suitable materials for forming the tray  16  including the bottom  22  and the facing member  20  may include polyethylene (e.g., high density polyethylene), polypropylene, polybutene, poly-vinylchloride, polyalkylene-therephtalate, akrylnitril-butadiene-styrenecopolymer, polyamide, polycarbonate and the like. The components of the tray  16  may be suitably manufactured by injection molding, vacuum molding, blow molding, press molding or combinations thereof. In some instances, materials may be added to the thermoplastic material in order to improve or change material properties. For example, ethyl-vinyl-acetate or rubber beads can be incorporated which will make the material more ductile and impact resistant. Glass fiber, carbon fiber, steel fiber or aramide fiber can be incorporated, which may make the material more rigid, less inclined to cold flow, but can make the material more brittle. Reinforcement bars may also be included.  
      Referring now to  FIG. 9 , a method  90  of shipping product to a retail location from a location remote from the retail location includes providing  92  multiple empty trays  16  at a filling facility, each tray  16  having a fronting member  20 , for example, as described above. A filling facility is a location where trays  16  are filled with product containers, such as at a production facility or a warehouse, as examples. In order to ensure sanitary conditions, optionally the trays  16  can be washed. The trays  16  may have been sent previously from a retail location and may have been subjected to a washing operation where the tray  16  is cleaned prior to being provided at the filling facility. In some embodiments, the tray  16  is washed at the filling facility, at the retail location and/or at an intermediate location. The trays  16  are filled at step  94  with product, such as with containers  82  of yogurt, at the filling facility (see  FIG. 4  for an example of a tray  16  filled with containers  82  of yogurt). Filling of the trays  16  may be automated, manual or a combination thereof. At a stacking step  96 , trays  16  are stacked one on top of another. The stacking of trays  16  may also be automated, manual or a combination thereof. In some instances where the trays  16  include nesting structure  74 , the trays  16  nest with trays  16  located thereunder to form the stack of trays. In some embodiments, the trays  16  may be stacked on a transport aid, such as a pallet for ease of transport. In certain embodiments, once the trays  16  are stacked, the trays  16  may be wrapped in a plastic film, such as a plastic shrink wrap to facilitate transport and to provide a protective barrier between the containers  82  and the environment. The stacked trays  16  are loaded onto a shipping vehicle at step  97 , such as a truck, airplane, ship and/or other transport device, and then, at transportation step  98 , the stacked trays  16  are transported to a location remote (e.g., an intermediate storage location such as a warehouse, retail location, etc.) from the filling facility. In some embodiments, the stacked trays  16  may be shipped in a controlled environment, such as a refrigerated environment for containers  82 . The controlled environment may be selected based on product type.  
      Once the trays  16  have arrived at the retail location, the trays  16  may be stored (e.g., in a refrigerated environment) for a limited time and/or used to build or maintain a display at step  100 . Once the tray  16  is placed on the display, customers may select product from one or more of the trays  16 . When a tray  16  is emptied, the tray  16  is removed from the stack at a removal step  102  exposing containers  82  thereunder for customer selection. The emptied tray  16  is later returned to the filling facility at a return step  104  for refilling and the cycle repeats. In some embodiments, emptied trays  16  may be stacked (e.g., on a pallet) to be returned to the filling facility as a group of trays  16 .  
      It may be advantageous to build a shipping unit that includes several of the trays  16  and containers  82 . Trays  16  of the shipping unit can be moved as a unit, for example, during transport between the retail location and the filling facility. In some embodiments, it may be desirable to build a shipping unit of multiple, different products having differing size and shape product containers. This may be referred to as a mixed shipping unit in that a mix (e.g., two or more) of different types of product containers are shipped together as a unit. In some instances, the containers of product selected for the shipping unit may be chosen based on their display proximity at the retail location. For example, trays  16  of containers  82  of yogurt may be shipped as a unit with crates of containers of milk because the containers of milk and yogurt are displayed in relatively close proximity in a dairy department at the retail location. Numerous other mixed shipping unit examples are contemplated.  
      Referring to  FIG. 10 , an exemplary shipping unit  110  includes both a group  112  of crates  114  (e.g., plastic milk crates) and a group  116  of trays  16  stacked thereon. As shown, the shipping unit  110  may be a pallet  120  (shown in partial view by dotted lines). The trays  16  have a length L that is sized to span a depth D of the crates  114 . This can allow for stacking of trays  16  upon either open top crates, such as those used for transporting milk containers, juice, etc. In the illustrated embodiment, the shipping unit  110  includes trays  16  filled with containers  82  of yogurt and crates  114  filled with containers of milk (e.g., one and/or one-half gallons of milk). Plastic wrap (illustrated by line  118 ) may be used to further secure the trays  16  to the crates  114 . In some embodiments, the trays  16  and/or crates  114  may include mating structure for mating the bottom trays  16  with the crates  114 . Straps or any other suitable securing member can be used to further secure the trays  16  to the crates  114 .  
       FIGS. 11-14  illustrate various, examplary tray  16  stacking patterns for forming a shipping unit.  FIGS. 11 and 12  include trays  16  that are stacked, for example, on a pallet (e.g., a 40 inch by 40 inch pallet). The trays  16  of each of  FIGS. 11 and 12  have the same orientation.  FIGS. 13 and 14  include trays  16  having differing orientations that are stacked, for example, on a pallet (e.g., a 40 inch by 48 inch pallet).  
      The trays  16  enable one-touch store replenishment of product in that relatively large numbers of product can be loaded into the trays at a filling facility and the filled trays can be used to build and replenish a display at the retail location. When a tray  16  is emptied, a store clerk or other employee can simply replace the emptied tray with a tray filled with product as opposed to his or her refilling the emptied tray at the display in stages, for example, by bringing product to the emptied tray at the display. Such one-touch store replenishment using trays  16 , can reduce restocking time and improve stocking efficiency.  
      The trays  16 , while allowing for repositioning of product using fronting members  20 , can also be used as shipping containers and can be returnable and/or reusable, as noted above. The tray&#39;s nesting structure  74  can be used for alignment of stacked trays  16 , which can improve safety by inhibiting sliding between adjacent trays  16  and allowing for relatively high stacks of trays to be formed, for example, for shipping. The nesting structures also allow the stacked trays  16  to be anchored at a location on the display, e.g., during a repositioning operation where the fronting member  20  is manually pulled and product is moved toward the customer.  
      A number of detailed embodiments have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made. For example, in some embodiments, the tray  16  and/or an associated display may include structure (e.g., a strap, a clip, a clamp, etc.) for anchoring or connecting the tray  16  directly to the display or display shelf to inhibit movement of the tray relative to the display. Referring to  FIG. 15 , the trays  16  described above can be used in transporting product along a supply chain as well as for displaying the product carried by the trays.  FIG. 15  includes various exemplary steps and locations along an exemplary supply chain process  130 . More or less steps and locations may be included in the process  130 . At a tray  16  washing facility, trays  16  may be washed, wrapped and stored for future tray picking according to a customer order. The washed, empty trays  16  may be transported to a manufacturing plant. At the manufacturing plant, the empty, washed trays  16  may be staged, filled and stacked, for example, as a shipping unit. The filled trays  16  may be sent to a supplier distribution center (DC). At the supplier DC, the filled trays  16  may be stored until an order is received. The filled trays  16  may be picked according to an order and transported to a retailer DC. At the retailer DC, the filled trays  16  may be stored until an order is received. The filled trays  16  may be picked according to an order and transported to a retail location (e.g., a retail store). At the retail location, the filled trays  16  may be stored and used to replenish a display formed using the trays  16 . Empty trays  16  may be removed from the display, stacked and transported to the retailer DC where the trays are staged and transported to the tote washing facility. In some embodiments, the tote washing facility is integrated with one or more of the other facilities. The supplier DC may be integrated with the manufacturing plant or may be bypassed (i.e., direct to retailer). In some embodiments, the filled trays  16  may go directly from the supplier to the retail location bypassing the retailer DC. Empty trays  16  may go directly from the retail location to the tote washing facility. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.