US-12622533-B1 - Retail merchandise tray

US12622533B1US 12622533 B1US12622533 B1US 12622533B1US-12622533-B1

Abstract

A retail merchandise tray is provided. The retail merchandise tray includes a frame, a pusher that slides along the frame, at least one divider, and at least one baffle plate extension slidable relative to the divider and the frame.

Inventors

Thomas O. Nagel

Assignees

Thomas O. Nagel

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20250218

Claims (14)

1 . A retail merchandise tray for storing products therein, comprising: a frame having a first side, a second side opposite the first side, and a merchandise support surface for supporting merchandise, the frame having a first outermost extent and a second outermost extent; a pusher mounted to the frame and movable along the frame parallel to a first axis; a first divider assembly mounted to the frame, the first divider assembly movable relative to the frame parallel to a second axis perpendicular to the first axis, the first divider assembly including: a first divider wall positioned adjacent the first side of the frame, the first divider wall includes a generally planar first upright portion and a first projection portion that extends generally perpendicular to the first upright portion, the first projection portion extending inward from the first upright portion towards the second side, the first projection portion defining a first innermost extent of the first divider wall; first and second wire supports connecting the first divider wall to the frame; the first and second wire supports are configured to slide relative to the frame such that a position of the first divider wall relative to the frame parallel to the second axis may be adjusted between a first position and a second position, wherein in the first position, the first divider wall is closer to the frame than in the second position, the first and second wire supports being spaced apart parallel to the first axis; a second divider assembly mounted to the frame, the second divider assembly movable relative to the frame parallel to the second axis, the second divider assembly including: a second divider wall positioned adjacent the second side of the frame, the second divider wall includes a generally planar second upright portion and a second projection portion that extends generally perpendicular to the second upright portion, the second projection portion extending inward from the second upright portion towards the first side, the second projection portion defining an innermost extent of the second divider wall; third and fourth wire supports connecting the second divider wall to the frame; the third and fourth wire supports are configured to slide relative to the frame so that a position of the second divider wall relative to the frame parallel to the second axis may be adjusted between a third position and a fourth position; wherein in the third position, the second divider wall is closer to the frame than in the fourth position; the third and fourth wire supports being spaced apart parallel to the first axis; wherein the first outermost extent of the frame is spaced from the second outermost extent of the frame parallel to the second axis; wherein the first divider wall is configured to be positioned relative to the frame so that the first projection portion of the first divider wall extends inward beyond the first outermost extent with the first innermost extent of the first projection portion being positioned between the first outermost extent and the second outermost extent of the frame; and wherein the second divider wall is configured to be positioned relative to the frame so that the second projection portion of the second divider wall extends inward beyond the second outermost extent with the second innermost extent of the second projection portion being positioned between the first outermost extent and the second outermost extent of the frame; wherein when the first divider assembly is in the second position and the second divider assembly is in the fourth position, the first projection portion of the first divider wall is positioned outward of the first outermost extent of the frame and the second projection portion of the second divider wall is positioned outward of the second outermost extent of the frame.
2 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein: the first side of the frame extends parallel to the first axis between a first end and a second end, the first, second, third, and fourth wire supports being positioned between the first end and second end of the first side, a length of the first side is greater than a distance between the first and second wire supports; and the second side of the frame extends parallel to the first axis between a third end and fourth end, the first, second, third, and fourth wire supports being positioned between the third end and the fourth end of the second side, a length of the second side is greater than a distance between the third and fourth wire supports.
3 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein the first and second divider walls are formed from plastic.
4 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein: the first wire support extends between a first end connected to the first divider wall and a second end; when the first divider assembly is in the first position and the second divider assembly is in the third position, the second end of the first wire support extends into a first pocket region formed in the second divider wall.
5 . The tray of claim 4 , wherein: the third wire support extends between a third end connected to the second divider wall and a fourth end; and when the first divider assembly is in the first position and the second divider assembly is in the third position, the fourth end of the second wire support extends into a second pocket region formed in the first divider wall.
6 . The tray of claim 5 , wherein: the frame includes a first load bearing member, a second load bearing member, and a support structure configured for supporting merchandise thereon; the first load bearing member is adjacent the first side of the frame and the second load bearing member is adjacent the second side of the frame; and when the first divider assembly is in the first position, the first wire support extends through a first passageway formed in the first load bearing member and a second passageway formed in the second load bearing member.
7 . The tray of claim 6 , wherein the support structure is a wire support structure including a pair of longitudinal members and a lateral member, the lateral member extends generally perpendicular to the longitudinal members and generally parallel to the second axis.
8 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein the first projection portion of the first divider wall is spaced vertically from the first outermost extent of the first side of the frame such that the innermost extent of the first projection portion would not engage the first outermost extent of the frame if the first divider wall is slid along a full extent permitted by the configuration of the first divider assembly, first wire support and the frame.
9 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein: the frame includes a first load bearing member, a second load bearing member, and a support structure configured for supporting merchandise thereon; the first load bearing member is adjacent the first side of the frame and the second load bearing member is adjacent the second side of the frame; and when the first divider assembly is in the first position, the first wire support extends through a passageway formed in the first load bearing member and a passageway formed in the second load bearing member.
10 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein: the first projection portion is provided by a flange portion that is vertically offset from the first and second wire supports; and the second projection portion is provided by a flange portion that is vertically offset from the third and fourth wire supports.
11 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein: when the first divider assembly is in the first position and the second divider assembly is in the third position, the first innermost extent is spaced from the second innermost extent a first distance parallel to the second axis; and the first outermost extent is spaced from the second outermost extent a second distance parallel to the second axis, the second distance being greater than the first distance.
12 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein: when the first divider assembly is in the first position and the second divider assembly is in the third position, the first wire support extends into a first concave pocket region formed in the second divider wall and the third wire support extends into a second concave pocket region formed in the first divider wall wherein: the frame includes a first load bearing member, a second load bearing member, and a support structure configured for supporting merchandise thereon, the first load bearing member having a first outer face that faces away from the second load bearing member and the second load bearing member having a second outer face that faces away from the first load bearing member; the first load bearing member is adjacent the first side of the frame and the second load bearing member is adjacent the second side of the frame; when the first divider assembly is in the first position, the first wire support extends through a first aperture formed in the first load bearing member and a second aperture formed in the second load bearing member such that the first wire support extends outward beyond second outer face of the second load bearing member parallel to the second axis; the first load bearing member including a first mounting opening; the second load bearing member including a second mounting opening; the first wire support is slidable relative to the frame such that the first divider wall may abut a face of the first load bearing member that faces away from the second load bearing member; the second wire support is slidable relative to the frame such that the second divider wall may abut a face of the second load bearing member that faces away from the first load bearing member.
13 . The tray of claim 12 , wherein the first and second divider walls are formed from plastic.
14 . The tray of claim 12 , wherein: the first wire support extends between a first end connected to the first divider wall and a second end; and when the first divider assembly is in the first position and the second divider assembly is in the third position, the second end of the first wire support extends into the first concave pocket region formed in the second divider wall.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS This patent application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/498,793, filed Oct. 31, 2023, which is now pending, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/090,118, filed Dec. 28, 2022, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 11,832,738, issued Dec. 5, 2023, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/697,378, filed Mar. 17, 2022, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 11,564,507, issued Jan. 31, 2023, which is a is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/173,889, filed Feb. 11, 2021, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 11,350,769, issued Jun. 7, 2022, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/888,092, filed May 29, 2020, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 10,952,547, issued Mar. 23, 2021, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/803,566, filed Feb. 27, 2020, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 10,709,263, issued Jul. 14, 2020, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/582,681, filed Sep. 25, 2019, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 10,617,228, issued Apr. 14, 2020, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/954,868, filed Apr. 17, 2018, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 10,492,627, issued Dec. 3, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/829,623, filed Dec. 1, 2017, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 10,034,557, issued Jul. 31, 2018, the entire teachings and disclosure of each are incorporated herein by reference thereto. FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention generally relates to retail merchandise displays, and more particularly to self-facing retail merchandise displays used for biasing retail merchandise forward. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Self-facing retail merchandise displays are generally known in the art. Once such display is the pusher system. A conventional pusher system incorporates one or more pusher paddles or pusher bodies that ride along a respective elongated track. A spring is connected between the pusher body and a leading edge of the track. The spring acts to bias the pusher body forward along the track towards the leading edge thereof. A user can retract the pusher body away from the leading edge of the track and position items of retail merchandise in a linear row on top of the track and between the leading edge of the track and the pusher body. The biasing force provided by the spring and exerted upon the pusher body serves to bias the linear row of retail merchandise forward to ultimately “front face” the merchandise. That is, when a customer removes the leading most item of merchandise from the linear row of merchandise, the pusher body will be drawn forward by the spring to index the row of merchandise forward so that the next item of merchandise in the row is positioned proximate the leading edge of the track in an aesthetically pleasing manner. Such automatic front facing eliminates the necessity for retail store employees to manually face the merchandise, and thus ultimately reduces the cost of labor of the retailer. The aforementioned pusher systems have been utilized in various retail display environments. One example is a retail shelf. Typically, a plurality of pusher bodies and their corresponding tracks are arranged in a side by side manner along the shelf. Each pusher body and its corresponding track are separated by dividers to maintain a plurality of generally straight rows of merchandise that run from the front to the back of the shelf. Such a familiar configuration can be found in many retail stores for selling hygiene items such as deodorant, as one example. In another configuration, the pusher system may be embodied as a stand-alone pusher tray. These trays may include means for mounting the tray as a cantilevered extension from another structure, such as a bar. These trays may also be situated directly on a retail shelf. Further, these trays may include side barriers which are adjustable so as to accommodate merchandise of differing widths. Examples of these trays may be readily seen at U.S. Pat. Nos. 9,254,049, 9,241,583, 8,720,702, each of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. The invention relates to improvements in the above described pusher systems, more particularly, the above described pusher trays. These and other advantages of the invention, as well as additional inventive features, will be apparent from the description of the invention provided herein. BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one aspect, the invention provides a retail merchandise tray which incorporates an easily installed wire support structure. A retail merchandise tray according to this aspect has the advantage of not requiring any welding process for affixing the wire support structure to the remainder of the tray. An embodiment according to this aspect includes a pair of opposed load bearing members and a front stop mounted to the pair of load bearing members. This embodiment of a retail merchandise tray also inclu