PRODUCT SAMPLE DISPLAY SYSTEM AND METHOD

Abstract

A product sample display structure holding multiple vertical shafts, each vertical shaft supporting a wing support bracket that may be positioned at a selected vertical location on the shaft. Vertically adjusting the wing support brackets allows the structure to hold wings of varying heights or from different manufacturers. A display board clamp includes a block having perpendicular slots offset from the midline of the blocks

Claims

1. A display system for product display wings with height-adjustable wing support brackets comprising: a display structure holding multiple vertical shafts; each vertical shaft having a wing support bracket that may be positioned at selected vertical locations on one or more of the shafts.

2. The display system of claim 1 wherein: the wing support brackets are positionable to hold: the bottom of a product display wing; the top of a product display wing; or both the bottom and top of a product display wing.

3. The display system of claim 1 wherein: the wing support brackets are vertically adjustable via: a threaded nuts on the vertical shafts; or a clamp.

4. The display system of claim 1 further comprising multiple wing support brackets on one or more of the vertical shafts.

5. The display system of claim 1 wherein at least one of the wing support brackets comprises an outer edge, an inner edge and first and second side edges, the inner edge comprising a first notch and one of the side edges comprising a notch.

6. A display system for product display wings with parallel vertical shafts in a curved configuration and with wing stops comprising: a display structure holding multiple vertical shafts, with the shafts being in a vertically curved arrangement; at least one product display wing mounted from the one of the vertical shafts; a stop limiting the angle (from neutral) that the at least one product display wing can pivot.

7. The display system of claim 6 wherein the vertically curved arrangement of the vertical shafts is a partial or full circle.

8. The display system of claim 7 further comprising: a base and a support ring that are fully enclosed or partial (separable halves/quarters) to allow reconfiguration as desired to a full, half, or quarter circle.

9. The display system of claim 6 wherein the display structure is positionable around or adjacent to a building support column to support the display structure.

10. The display system of claim 6 further comprising wing support brackets positionable at various heights on the vertical shafts holding display wings having different heights.

11. A display system that biases product display wings toward a neutral position comprising: a display structure holding multiple adjacent product display wings, with a mechanism biasing the product display wings toward the neutral position if the wing frame is less than 15 degrees form the neutral position; toward an open position if the wing frame is more than 15 degrees from the neutral position.

12. The display system of claim 11 wherein the product display wings are in a curved orientation.

13. The display system of claim 11 further comprising: a base and a support ring that are fully enclosed or partial (separable halves/quarters) to allow reconfiguration as desired to a full, half, or quarter circle.

14. The display system of claim 11 wherein the display structure may be positioned around or adjacent to a building support column to support the display structure.

15. The display system of claim 11 further comprising: a plurality of stops to limit the extent to which the wing frames are openable.

16. A product display system with a central hole/space to be attached to a building support column, and with product display wings on opposing sides comprising: a display system with at least two sides having wing support brackets; a display frame with a central hole/space, attachable to a building support column.

17. A display system with battery-operated overhead lights comprising: a display structure holding multiple product display wings in a vertical orientation along a line; multiple groups of adjacent wings comprising different styles of a building material; multiple sets of battery-operated lights, each set shining a different color of light on the groups.

18. A display system having displays with QR Codes for each sample integrated with an information provision system comprising: a display structure holding multiple product display wings, each such wing displaying at least one product; for each display wing, a displayed wing-product location identifier; for each displayed product, a displayed product identifier, a wing-product location identifier and a displayed QR code; a database associating each displayed QR code with information about the product displayed; a hardware and software system operable to: display information associated with a scanned-in QR Code; accept quoting/ordering information about a product; generate pricing information for the product quoted/ordered.

19. The display system of claim 18 wherein the display structure is comprised of multiple vertical shafts, each holding at least one product display wing.

20. The display system of claim 19 wherein each vertical shaft comprises at least one wing support bracket that may be positioned at a selected vertical locations on the shaft.

21. The display system of claim 19 further comprising a means for adjusting the height of each product display wing.

22. The display system of claim 18 wherein the hardware comprises a smartphone.

23. The display system of claim 18 wherein the software system further includes software for placing an order for a product.

24. The display system of claim 18 wherein the display on the wing showing the sample identifier does not include price information.

25. The display system of claim 18 wherein the database includes information for a product regarding: price; availability status; backorder status; discontinued status; similar products.

26. The display system of claim 18 wherein the software system further comprises: a database having identifiers for multiple store locations; a means for receiving geolocation information from the hardware used to input quoting/ordering information; a means for quoting pricing information based on the received geolocation information.

27. A display system for product display wings with a non-neutral position holding mechanism comprising: a display frame holding a plurality of pivotable product display wings, whereby each wing is held in place by a wing support bracket, and is pivotable on a vertical axis between a neutral position in which the display wing does not abut or contact any adjacent display wing and a displayed position; a holding means on the wing support bracket for holding a display wing in its displayed position.

28. The display system of claim 27 wherein the holding means is a magnet.

29. The display system of claim 28 wherein the magnet is affixed to the wing support bracket and the display wings are comprised of a material attracted by the magnet.

30. A product display system for holding multiple product display wings comprising: a frame holding multiple vertical shafts a plurality of wing support brackets, each wing support bracket comprising means for mounting the bracket on at least one of the vertical shafts means for holding a plurality of product display wings means for holding each wing support brackets at a selected height on at least one of the vertical shafts.

31. The product display system of claim 30 wherein: each wing support bracket comprises at least one notch sized to partially surround at least one of the shafts; and the means for holding a plurality of product display wings comprises a plurality of holes in the bracket sized to receive product display wings.

32. The product display system of claim 31 wherein: each the adjustable wing support comprises an outer edge, an inner edge and first and second side edges, the inner edge comprising a first notch and one of the side edges comprising a notch.

33. The product display system of claim 30 wherein the adjustable wing support brackets hold the tops of display wings.

34. The product display system of claim 30 wherein the adjustable wing support brackets hold the bottoms of display wings.

35. The product display system of claim 30 wherein the shafts are threaded, and the vertical position of the adjustable wing support bracket on eash shaft is adjustable by rotating a not on the shaft.

36. The product display system of claim 30 wherein the vertical shaft are configured in an arc.

37. The product display system of claim 30 further comprising a base, a top and an intermediate support structure.

38. The product display system of claim 37 wherein each shaft is secured to the base, the top and the intermediate support structure.

39. The product display system of claim 37 wherein the intermediate support structure further comprises holes for holding a display wing.

40. A building product sample display comprising: a base, a top and an intermediate support a plurality of vertical shafts having upper and lower ends, each lower end connected to the base, and each upper end connected to the top, and the intermediate support structurally engaging the shafts; a plurality of product display wing brackets; a plurality of display wings supported by the display wing support surfaces; wherein the vertical shafts are arranged in a vertically arcuate orientation.

41. The building product display system of claim 40 wherein at least some of the display wing supports surfaces are in either the base or the top.

42. The building product display system of claim 40 wherein some of the product display wings have a first height, and some of the product display wings have a second height that is different from the first height.

43. The building product display system of claim 40 wherein at least some of the display wing support surfaces project from and are secured to at least some of the vertical shafts.

44. A display board system comprising: A plurality of display board support structures, each such structure supporting a display board wherein at least one such display board is held by at least one clamp comprising: right and left clamp arms, each arm having a first end and a second end, the ends being joined together and the arms being flexible towards each other, a tightening mechanism of forcing the arms towards each other, first and second compressible blocks, each comprising: a front side and a back side, first and second slots extending from the font side to the back side and being perpendicular to each other, the first slot being offset from a first midline of the block by a first distances, and the second slot being offset from a second midline of the block by a second distance that is different than the first distance; wherein the right clamp arm is positioned within one of the slots of the first compressible block, and the left clamp arm is positioned within one of the slots of the second compressible block.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] FIG. 1 shows a representative prior art display system holding triple-height display boards in which six display boards (three on each side) are on each wing. Thus, pivoting one wing moves six display boards.

[0025] FIG. 2 shows a representative prior art display system holding upper and lower sets of display boards in which two display boards (one on each side) are on each wing. An upper wing may pivot independently the wing below it.

[0026] FIG. 3 shows a display system with multiple vertical shafts in a circular orientation and height-adjustable wing support brackets on different vertical shafts to display wings of varying heights.

[0027] FIG. 4 shows a display wing support bracket having holes or notches to attach it to vertical shafts at a desired height, and, a variety of holes or pegs to receive pivotable display wings.

[0028] FIG. 5 shows the top and central support structures of a semi-circular display system, and how display wing support brackets may be mounted on either vertical shafts or the central support structure.

[0029] FIG. 6 shows the lower part of a semi-circular display system, and how notches in display wing support brackets may be mounted on or removed from vertical shafts.

[0030] FIG. 7 a partially populated display system in which a tall wing is held by a wing support bracket at one height, and how other wing support brackets may be positioned at different heights.

[0031] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of clamp for holding a wing or display board having a channel for mounting onto a peg.

[0032] FIG. 9 is perspective view a compressive block have two perpendicular slots that are each offset from the midline of the block by a different amount. The slots may be fitted over the arms of the clamp in FIG. 8.

[0033] FIG. 10 is a top cross sectional view of a clamp of FIG. 8 having mounted on each arm a block as shown in FIG. 9 to hold thin display board.

[0034] FIG. 11 is a top cross sectional view of a clamp of FIG. 8 having mounted on each arm a block as shown in FIG. 9 to hold thick display board.

[0035] FIG. 12 is a perspective view of clamp for holding a wing or display board having a peg mounting onto a hole in a support bracket.

[0036] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a small display wing support bracket sized to hold a single wing or display board.

[0037] FIG. 14 is a partial top cross-section view of the bottom part of a display wing mounted on display wing support bracket with two spring arms that bias display wing toward a neutral position.

[0038] FIG. 15 is a partial top cross-section view of the bottom part of a display wing mounted on display wing support bracket with two spring arms, in which the wing is pivoted to a non-neutral position and held by a magnet mounted on the bracket, and in which the magnet also acts as a stop.

[0039] FIG. 16 shows a representative display board having a QR code.

[0040] FIG. 17 is a first exemplar of the information displayed using the QR code, hardware, and software system.

[0041] FIG. 18 is a second exemplar of the information displayed using the QR code, hardware, and software system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0042] As shown in FIG. 3, disclosed is a display frame comprising multiple vertical shafts 145 that extend between a bottom support base 31, a top support 32, and an optional central support 33. In one embodiment, the vertical shafts are arranged in a circular or arcuate orientation.

[0043] Wing support brackets 40 are mounted on the shafts, and can be positioned at any vertical point along the shafts 145. This allows the system to hold display wings 35, 36, 37 of different heights, which may be from different manufacturers. This allows the display system to be much more versatile than existing systems which typically only accommodate display wings that are the same height, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

[0044] The wing support brackets 40 may be at the top, at the bottom, or at the top and bottom of the wing frames. The wing support brackets are vertically positioned on threaded shafts having nuts to set the height. The top 32, bottom 31 and central 33 supports may also serve as wing support brackets. In lieu of nuts on the shafts to hold wing support brackets, clamps may be attached to the vertical shafts to set the position of the wing support brackets. Multiple wing support brackets may be positioned on a single shaft. These improvements allow wings of different heights, for instance from different manufacturers 35, 36, 37, to be held on the same display structure. They further allow groupings of wings by type (e.g., type of floor), subtype (e.g., material), color, manufacturer, etc., as exemplified in FIG. 3.

[0045] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a small display wing support bracket 131 sized to hold a single wing or display board 132. The support bracket 131 may either have a notch or hole that receives vertical shaft 145. The wing or display board 132 may pivot on support bracket 131, either by virtue of hole in support bracket 131 that receives a peg extending from display board 132, or a peg in support bracket 131 that is inserted into a hole in display board 132. Support bracket 131 is positioned at a desired vertical location on vertical shaft 145 and is held in place by washers and nuts above and below the bracket.

[0046] As shown in FIG. 4, To facilitate positioning the wing support brackets on the shafts, the brackets have holes 44 or notches 45 that engage the vertical shafts. If holes 44 are used, they need to be placed over the shafts as the display system is being constructed. Thus, it is preferable to use notches 45 instead. Notches 45 allow the wing support bracket to be mounted on the vertical shafts after the display system has been constructed; i.e., after the vertical shafts are mounted to the bottom support base and the top support. FIG. 4 shows a top view of such a wing support bracket 40 that has both notches 43 and holes 44. Regardless of which option is used, wing support bracket 40 may be securely mounted to vertical shafts at a desired height by nuts and bolts positioned immediately above and below the wing support bracket 40.

[0047] In the display system shown in FIG. 3, the notched display support brackets as shown in FIG. 4 are used. The display support bracket shown in FIG. 4 has an outer row of holes 41 and an inner row of holes 42. Each of these holes can hold a display wing. A retailer may choose to use the holes 41 in an outer row for displays that are not deep (or wide), and holes 42 in an inner row for displays that are deeper. For example, in FIG. 3, the displays 301 are not as deep as the displays 302. This selection allows the outer edges 303 and 304 of the display wings to be closer together.

[0048] FIG. 5 shows a display system with the display wings removed, to shown how the wing support brackets may be mounted on the vertical shafts at various places.

[0049] FIG. 6 is another view showing how a wing support bracket having a notch as shown in FIG. 6 may be pivoted to abut the vertical shafts, then secured in place using nuts on washers mounted on the vertical shafts.

[0050] Display wings from some manufacturers have a peg that extends downward from the lower back of the display to fit into a hole in the display system, and/or a peg that extends upward from the upper back of the display to fit into a hole in the display system. Display systems from other manufacturers have a displays with holes at the bottom and top of the back that receive pegs extending from the display system. Both configurations allow the display to pivot along its back edge so a consumer may view both sides of a selected display. The present system permits either system to be used. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the wing support brackets are provided with holes sized to receive pegs from display wings that have pegs. If a display wing instead has holes, the equivalent of a peg may be formed in the display support bracket by bolting a short threaded bolt to one of the holes in the in wing support bracket.

[0051] FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of a display system. In this version a display support bracket holds the bottom of a display wing, and the top of the display wing is held by the top support. Other display wing brackets are mounted on the threaded shafts and can be at different heights to accommodate display wings of different heights.

[0052] Sample display wings from manufacturers typically include a board, and a structure for mounting the board to the display system. Structures for mounting may include a channel along the back edge of the board that has receives pegs extending from a display, or pegs extending from the top and bottom of the board that fit into holes in a display. Moreover, boards from different manufacturers may be of different widths. The different types and sizes of structures used by different providers of the boards, and the different thicknesses of the boards, complicate the ability to provide a display that can hold boards of any manufacturer. Presently disclosed is a clamp system designed to hold display boards from any manufacturer, including boards of different thicknesses.

[0053] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a clamp 80 having left and right arms, 81, 82 each of which has a first end and a second end which are joined at channel 83. This allows the arms to flex toward each other. Clamp 80 also includes a tightening mechanism such as threaded bolt 84 which may be tightened to compress arms 81, 82 toward each other. The clamp system also includes two compressible blocks as shown in FIG. 9. Each block 90, which may be comprised of rubber, has two perpendicular slots, 91 and 92, each of which is sized to accommodate an arm 81, 82 of clamp 80. The slots extend from the front side of the block to the back side. Significantly, the slots may have distances from their parallel sides that are different, in other words, they are offset from the midlines 93, 94 of the block. Thus, by selecting the orientation of the block when placing it over an arm 81 or 82 of clamp 80, it is possible to select the size of the gap between the blocks.

[0054] As shown in FIG. 9, vertical slot 91 is slightly offset (to the right) of vertical midline 93, and horizontal slot 92 is offset (below) horizontal midline 94. For example, the distance A between the left side of the block and the vertical slot may be ? inch, and the distance B between the vertical slot and the right side of the block may ? inch. Similarly, the distance C between the top of block and horizontal slot 92 may be ? inch, and the distance D between horizontal slot 92 and the bottom of the block may be ? inch. In one embodiment, the inside distance between clamp arms 81 and 82 may be 1? inch. Thus, by selecting which slot of the block to use and which side will be inside the clamp arms, the gap between the insides of the block may be any where from ? inch to ? inch.

[0055] These variations are shown, for example, in FIGS. 10 and 11 which are top cross section views of clamp 80 having a block on each arm 81 and 82. In FIG. 10, blocks are positioned so that a ? inch portion of each block is between the clamp arms, and a ? inch portion is on the outer side of each clamp arm. This allows the clamp to securely hold a board 83 that is ? inch thick. In FIG. 11, blocks are positioned so that a ? inch portion of each block is between the clamp arms, and a ? inch portion is on the outer side of each clamp arm. This allows the clamp to securely hold a board 110 that is ? inch thick.

[0056] Blocks are preferably comprised slightly compressive material such as rubber or nylon. By tightening bolt 84 after the blocks are mounted on the arms and the board is positioned between them, the display board is securely held by the clamp and may be mounted in the display system. In the clamp version shown in FIGS. 8, 10 and 11, channel 83 may be inserted into a peg extending from the display system to allow the board to pivot about the peg. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 12, in lieu of channel 83, the clamp may comprise a peg 120 sized to fit into a mating hole in the display system to hold the board.

[0057] Another aspect of the present invention is a system that biases the display wings toward a neutral position. A display structure, not necessarily in a curved configuration, holding multiple pivotable wings may be made whereby each wing is positionable in a neutral position in which the wing does not abut or contact any adjacent wing. The structure would further include a means biasing each wing toward its neutral position. This permits easier viewing of a portion of each wing because adjacent wings are not abutting, which allows viewing of each wing. It also reduces the amount of force required to fully open and display a desired wing when all wings are in their neutral position because adjacent wings will not need to be moved as a user begins to move the desired wing to a displayed position.

[0058] One option for a spring system used to bias each display frame towards a neutral position is shown in FIGS. 14 and 15. FIG. 14 is a partial top cross-section view of the bottom part of a display wing 140 mounted on display wing support bracket or surface 141. Washer 143 and nut 144 hold the bracket or surface at a selected vertical position on threaded shaft 145. As shown in FIG. 14, the washer and nut also hold a spring having two arms 146 and 147 which bias display wing 140 towards a neutral position, such as extending radially outward from the center of the display system. A consumer may pivot a display wing to one side to view it as shown in FIG. 15. In this instance, one of the arms 147 is deflected in the direction of the movement. The position of the display wing can be held in this position by means such as a magnet as described below. When the display wing moved from this open position toward the neutral position shown in FIG. 14, arm 147 of spring will return the display wing 140 to its neutral position.

[0059] The display wing support bracket or surface 141 may also be provided with left magnet 148 and right magnet 149, which also act as stops that limit the extent to which the display wing 140 may be pivoted from its neutral position. When display wing 140 is pivoted to the position shown in FIG. 15, right magnet limits the pivoting and also holds the display wing 140 in the pivoted position by magnetic force. When the consumer is finished viewing the display wing, he or she simply slightly pushes it toward the neutral position with enough force to overcome the magnet force, and the spring arms 146 or 147 will return the display wing to the neutral position. Spring arms 146 and 147 may be comprised of any suitable material that is flexible yet maintains consistent shape, such stainless steel.

[0060] Another option is using a small detent in the wing support bracket with a small bulb on the wing frame that fits within the detent and is removable with a small amount of force.

[0061] When the vertical shafts are positioned in a non-linear or curved configuration, the viewing area of the wings is greater than in the prior art. As shown in FIG. 3, the adjacent wing frames/display boards 35, 36, 37 are able to open to an angle of approximately 150? if so desired. However, it may also be desired to have wing stops that limit the extent to which the wing frames may open. This would be helpful if multiple customers were looking at the same display at the same time in different sections. Therefore, the neighboring wings would not be collapsed on one another making it more difficult to view the desired wing.

[0062] FIG. 3 shows a display system including a round base plate 38 and round inner support plate 31. These may be a full or partial oval or circle with the base and support rings being full or cut to allow reconfiguration as desired to full, half, or quarter barrel configurations. The ability to use partial oval or circle base and support rings allows the display system to be positioned around and/or adjacent to a building support column to support the display structure. Connecting the display frame to an existing support column increases the stability and allows the product to have a lighter and smaller base as the column will be able to absorb some of the weight and/or force of the display.

[0063] The display boards may also bear a sticker having a QR code, barrel identifiers, wing identifiers, and sample identifiers as shown in FIG. 16. When a customer scans the QR code using a QR code reader, like a smartphone, the hardware will connect with the software and provide related information to the customer as shown in FIGS. 17 and 18. That information can include price, availability status, backorder status, discontinued status, and similar products amongst any other information programmed into the database that communicates with the software. A customer may also receive a quote or place an order through a webpage or app displayed in response scanning the QR code.

[0064] The QR system may also include a database having identifiers for multiple store locations. One embodiment of the system further includes a means for receiving geolocation information from the hardware used to input quoting or ordering information and a means for quoting pricing information based on the received geolocation information. Once a QR code is scanned, the seller or dealer may also receive information about the customer, such as which codes they have scanned and therefore which types of flooring they may be interested in.

[0065] Other options for allowing the wing frame to be held open at a stopping point include a small detent in the wing support bracket with a corresponding notch on the wing frame, similarly corresponding Velcro pieces, or any other suitable means that would allow for stopping and releasing the wing frame with minimal force.

[0066] While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the foregoing drawings and description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood that only illustrative embodiments thereof have been show and described and that all changes and modifications that are within the scope of the following claims are desired to be protected.

[0067] All references cited in this specification are incorporated herein by reference to the extent that they supplement, explain, provide a background for or teach methodology or techniques employed herein.