US3251476A - Merchandise display having perpetual inventory control - Google Patents

Description

y 7, 1966 H. L. HANSON 3,251,476

MECHANDISE DISPLAY HAVING PERPETUAL INVENTORY.CONTROL Filed May 20, 1965 \E I la-Q E 5" w Q l6 INVENTOR HENRY L. HANSON |4\ 4 a F 5 y, g /20 ATTORNEY United States Patent C) 3,251,476 MERCHANDISE DISPLAY HAVING PERPETUAL INVENTORY CONTROL Henry Lloyd Hanson, 25 Union St., Worcester, Mass. Filed May 20, 1965, Ser. No. 457,297 2 Claims. (Cl. 21157) This application is a continuation-in-part of my prior application Serial No. 344,286 filed February 12, 1964.

This invention relates to a new and improved mere chandising display and cooperating sets or series of cards mounting merchandise thereon. Each set or series of cards is provided with means to support the same in superposed condition, so that only the front card is visible, and each card is'easily detached from the set even though it may not be visible.

Each merchandise mounting card is provided with a tab extending from an edge thereof and each card bearing merchandise of the same character has the tab in the same position, but every card bearing merchandise of a different characteristic has its tab in a different position at an edge of the card.

Therefore it will be seen that the customer can see at a glance the item he desires as no tab is obscured except by a tag of like indication, and each piece of merchandise in a set is provided with an indicia tab having its own individual location so that the customer can abstract the wanted card without even seeing it as the card itself of course may be obscured by other cards in front of it,

whereas its tab cannot be obscured.

Furthermore when the piece of merchandise has been sold, it is quite clear from a casual inspection that when a certain tab is missing, it means that the particular item has been sold and it can be quickly and easily replaced by a clerk. The tabs may have appearing thereon numbers, letters, pictorial representations, colors, shades of colors, etc., to show the characteristic of the goods on the respective cards.

The cards are mounted on a display mount which has indicated thereon representations of the individual tabs in the same position that the tabs appear at the front of the display. Thus the store clerk need not even know what it is that is missing, all he has to do is look at the representation of the tab on the display and go to the stockroom to get the same thing, so that it is seen that these series of goods can be kept up-to-date and filled with the least possible trouble.

This invention is particularly adapted to the display, sale and inventory control of relatively small items and particularly those items which are ordinarily sold in different sizes, colors, shades, or dimensions, such as but not limited to gun patches, cleaning brushes, screws and nails, drills, taps, dies, blades of any description, cosmetic articles, and similar articles which are customarily sold by the piece or small set, but in which the pieces or sets vary in some characteristic. This type of merchandise in the past has always required a great deal of display space but with this invention such space is greatly condensed while no identificationis obscured.

The invention also contemplates the use of other conveniences such as punched holes in the cards mounting the various objects so that where a tap or drill is being displayed and sold, the hole will be of a size showing the hole which can be tapped or the hole that will be drilled.

' Also there can be a second hole provided which shows the size of a rod which a certain die will thread and these holes can of course be related to other sizes and characteristics of the various merchandise which may be mounted upon the cards.

The invention further relates to arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and more particularly set forth in the appended claims.

3,251,476 Patented May 17, 1966 Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in front elevation illustrating the invention with all of the cards in place, parts being broken away;

FIG. 2 is a view in front elevation of the supporting plate alone, without any of the merchandise thereon;

' FIG. 3 is a view in side elevation of the plate of FIG. 2, and

FIG. 4 shows a card only.

In illustrating one example of the invention, there is provided as shown in the drawings herein, a plate 10. This plate is preferably made of some kind of sheet metal, plastic or the like and it is mounted on a frame comprising members 14, 16 connected by cross wires at 18 and 20 on which the metal plate 10 is conveniently mounted as by bending the ends and securing the same over the respective upper and lower wires 18 and 20 as shown for instance at 22 in FIG. 3. The construction at the upper end of the plate 10 is similar but is obscured by the side wire support member 14. Any other construction can be used, even a perforated panel-board or a blank wall, but.

another cross wire 24 and on this there are mounted a pair of forwardly extending pegs 26 which extend through holes in the sheet 10 for a purpose to be described.

Painted on the plate or wall or otherwise applied thereto is a series of size or other indicia 28, These may be notations such as tool size or other characteristic, or shades of lipstick and other cosmetics, etc. Such information as may be needed to explain what the goods are may be used. The prices for the respective goods may also appear on the plate 10 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

Referring to FIG. 4 it will be seen that each card comprises a flat member usually of cardboard as indicated at 30. In the example shown there is a drill 32 mounted on it and there is a hole in the card at 34 which is the exact size of the diameter of the drill, to indicate size to the user, eliminating the necessity of removing the tool from the card.

Each card is provided with a tab which is indicated at 36. These tabs are arranged along the edges of the cards and the unique feature is that each tab is arranged in a different position as shown in FIG. 1, for each different characteristic of the goods that is provided in each series. Each tab bears indicia exactly like the underlying indicia 28 on the plate 10. 7

Thus it will be seen that with a series of cards mounted on the plate 10 or other support, the customer is enabled to grasp the tab showing what he wants, without disturbing any of the other cards, and he merely removes the card in this way, leaving the tab-space blank, except for the indicia 28 on the plate.'

At the same time the stock clerk will see at a glance which tab is missing, i.e., which indication at 28 appears. If some or any of these appear, then of course he knows that the respective card is missing and he can then go back to the stockroom, get the right carded goods, and apply the cards to the plate again,

It is also clear that there is no need for the cards to be provided in any particular order. Whenever a card is abstracted, the stock clerk may merely apply the replacement to the front of the pack, and the tab on the card will of course then overlie the corresponding indicia 28.

Each card may be conveniently provided with a hole or holes at 38 to receive the pegs 26 and each hole is provided with a restricted portion at 40 which is slightly smaller than the respective rod 26 so that the cards are applied to the rod merely by thrusting them upwardly until the rods seat in the holes 38 and the cards are just as easily abstracted by a downward pull on the respective tab.

The wires 14 may be provided with the offsets at the upper ends thereof as indicated at 42 for the purpose of hanging the Whole device on an apertured panel board 44.

Having thus described my invention and the advantages thereof, I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claims, but what I claim is:

1. A merchandise display comprising a plate, a row of separate indicia markings on said plate, and means to support a series of card-like merchandise holding members on said display in conjunction with said plate,

a series of superposed cards, an article on each card, each article having a difierence from the articles on certain of the other cards, said cards being supported by the card supporting means on said plate in superposed condition so that only one card at a time is exposed, all of the other cards being generally parallel and racked behind the exposed card,

a tab on each card, indicia on each tab, each tab being located in a different position along the edge of its respective card, the tabs being aligned in a row directly superposed over the row of indicia marks on said plate, each tab corresponding to the indicia 4, on the plate under it, so that the indicia on the plate indicates the merchandise on the respective card under which the respective tab is arranged, so that the indicia on the plate Will identify any removed card.

2. The merchandise display of claim 1 wherein the card supporting means comprises a rod together with a notch in the top edge of each card, said notch having an inwardly located enlargement to receive the card supporting rod and a restricted portion slightly less than the diameter of the rod so that any card is easily abstracted simply by pulling it down and thus moving the restricted portion of the notch downwardly past the respective rod.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,785,988 1-2/1930 Sutcliffe 211 57 2,258,535 10/1941 Buranelli 20678 2,260,086 10/1941 Matter 211 69 2,563,959 8/1951 Puckett 20678 2,771,076 11/1956 Peter 12916.8X 2,969,793 1/1961 Furrer 129 16.8 X 3,189,185 6/1965 Grasso 211 59 CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner.

W. D. LOULAN, Assistant Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. A MERCHANDISE DISPLAY COMPRISING A PLATE, A ROW OF SEPARATE INDICIA MARKINGS ON SAID PLATE, AND MEANS TO SUPPORT A SERIES OF CARD-LIKE MERCHANDISE HOLDING MEMBERS ON SAID DISPLAY IN CONJUNCTION WITH SAID PLATE, A SERIES OF SUPERPOSED CARDS, AN ARTICLE ON EACH CARD, EACH ARTICLE HAVING A DIFFERENCE FROM THE ARTICLES ON CERTAIN OF THE OTHER CARDS, SAID CARDS BEING SUPPORTED BY THE CARD SUPPORTING MEANS ON SAID PLATE IN SUPERPOSED CONDITION SO THAT ONLY ONE CARD AT A TIME IS EXPOSED, ALL OF THE OTHER CARDS, BEING GENERALLY PARALLEL AND RACKED BEHIND THE EXPOSED CARD, A TAB ON EACH CARD, INDICIA ON EACH TAB, EACH TAB BEING LOCATED IN A DIFFERENT POSITION ALONG THE EDGE OF ITS RESPECTIVE CARD, THE TABS BEING ALIGNED IN A ROW DIRECTLY SUPERPOSED OVER THE ROW OF INDICIA MARKS ON SAID PLATE, EACH TAB CORRESPONDING TO THE INDICIA ON THE PLATE UNDER IT, SO THAT THE INDICIA ON THE PLATE INDICATES THE MERCHANDISE ON THE RESPECTIVE CARD UNDER WHICH THE RESPECTIVE TAB IS ARRANGED, SO THAT THE INDICIA ON THE PLATE WILL IDENTIFY ANY REMOVED CARD.

Images