Unibody frame presentation device and method

Abstract

Disclosed is a spectacle frame presentation device for presenting spectacle frames in a predetermined number of presentation positions in a presentation environment, such as in a shop or at a fair. The device is suitable for an attractive presentation and easy removability of the spectacle frame. The device includes a column body wherein the column body has an elongate form and in a position of use has a relatively narrow front aspect relative to a relatively wide side aspect; and a predetermined number of recesses, such as cut-away portions, for forming respective presentation positions therein. The recesses are preferably formed as side portions cut out of the column body. The column body is a uni-body, preferably formed by means of manufacturing processes for forming an internal space. Also disclosed is a lock-in assembly and a method for manufacturing the spectacle frame presentation device.

Claims

1. A spectacle frame presentation device for presenting spectacle frames in a predetermined number of presentation positions in a presentation environment wherein the device is suitable for presentation and removability of the spectacle frame, the device comprising: a column body wherein the column body has an elongate form and, in a position of use, a narrow front aspect and a wide side aspect, a predetermined number of recesses for forming respective presentation positions therein, wherein the recesses are formed as cut-away portions that are cut out of the column body; and a lock-in assembly for locking the spectacle frame in the recesses, wherein the lock-in assembly comprises a movable lock-in member movable from a closed position to an opened position via intermediate positions forming a path of movement and wherein at any position the lock-in member is arranged inside an internal space of the elongate body, wherein the lock-in member is fully withdrawn in the internal space of the elongate body of the frame in the opened position, wherein the column body is a uni-body formed by means of manufacturing processes for forming the internal space, and wherein the spectacle frame is supportable within the recesses of the uni-body such that, when supported, a bridge of the spectacle is placed in the recess of the uni-body with two glass holding portions of the spectacle extending sideways of the uni-body.

2. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the internal space is defined as being arranged within circumscribed lines in any aspect of the elongate body.

3. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the column member is formed by means of an extrusion process from a metal material or a plastic material.

4. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the recesses are manufactured by means of milling, sawing, or cutting.

5. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the column body forms substantially a rectangle or an oval in top view.

6. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a rear side attaching member embodied as a channel or groove.

7. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the column body comprises coupling means for coupling to a control assembly.

8. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a control assembly, wherein the control assembly is suitable for manual operation or for motorized operation of the spectacle frame presentation device.

9. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 8, wherein drive means integrated into the control assembly are arranged outside the column body for driving a lock-in assembly.

10. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the uni-body is formed by means of welding and/or gluing two elongate body parts to each other.

11. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 8, wherein displacing coupling means of a lower or upper lock-in assembly are connectable to the control assembly.

12. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising damping means for damping a movement in the path of movement.

13. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising releasable cylinder lock holding means.

14. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a lock-in assembly fixation member for fixing a lock-in assembly relative to a respective recess.

15. The spectacle frame presentation device as claimed in claim 14, further comprising a spectacle frame support member arrangeable relative to a recess, wherein the spectacle frame support member is integrated with the lock-in assembly fixation member.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Further advantages, features and details of the present invention will be described in greater detail hereinbelow on the basis of one or more preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying figures. Similar, though not necessarily identical, components of different preferred embodiments are designated with the same reference numerals. With the object of limiting the number of views different aspects of different preferred embodiments are shown combined.

(2) FIG. 1 shows a partially cut-away isometric view of a first preferred embodiment according to the present invention with a manual control.

(3) FIG. 2 shows a partially cut-away isometric view of a further preferred embodiment according to the present invention with a motor control.

(4) FIG. 3 shows a partially cut-away isometric view of a further preferred embodiment according to the present invention.

(5) FIG. 4 shows a partially cut-away side view of the preferred embodiment according to FIG. 2.

(6) FIG. 5A-D show four views of the embodiment according to FIG. 2 at different stages of movement of the lock-in member.

(7) FIG. 6A-B show two views of the preferred embodiment according to FIG. 1 in partially cut-away state.

(8) FIG. 7A-C show three views of a preferred embodiment of a lock-in assembly according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(9) A first preferred embodiment (FIG. 1) according to the present invention relates to a spectacle frame presentation device 1. This comprises a column body 4 provided with a recesses 3 for receiving spectacle frames (not shown). Arranged for each recess 3 on the rear side of the column body is a sidepiece support 72 for supporting the sidepieces of the spectacle frames to be presented. Arranged on the underside of column body 4 is a control assembly which, depending on the preferred embodiment, is a manually operated assembly (FIG. 1) or a motor-operated assembly (FIG. 2). The control assemblies are described in greater detail hereinbelow. Arrangeable in the column body is an array of lock-in assemblies 11 which are described in greater detail with reference to FIG. 7.

(10) The column body is manufactured by means of an extrusion which realizes an inner space enclosed by walls 6, 7, 9. Realized on walls 7, 8 in the inner space is a guide edge 92 for the purpose of guiding and/or positioning a lock-in assembly or an array thereof. A mounting channel is realized on the rear side of column body 4 by means of wall extensions 7, 8 and edges or wall parts 17, 18 extending substantially perpendicularly thereof. This mounting channel serves for mounting of sidepiece supports 72.

(11) FIG. 4 shows a modified arrangement of an array of a number of lock-in assemblies 11 with omission of the column body. The mounting channel also functions for the purpose of fixing the control assembly by means of a mounting block 51 comprising a screw opening and a screw 52. This mounting method functions for both the manual and the motor variant. A further point of attachment of the control assembly is by means of a screw in screw openings 53 in wall 8, the screw extending in mounting opening 47.

(12) FIG. 5 shows three situations of the lock-in assemblies in combination with the motor variant of the control assembly. FIG. 5A shows a closed position of the lock-in assembly. FIG. 5B shows an intermediate position between the closed position and the opened position. FIG. 5C shows an opened position of the lock-in assembly. FIG. 5D shows another view of the situation of FIG. 5A.

(13) A drive member 40 for driving the lower lock-in assembly is shown in Fig. A, D while being omitted in FIG. 5B and FIG. 5C. This drive member serves to couple the spindle 54 to the lower lock-in assembly. Drive member 40 comprises for this purpose a frame 43, a coupling opening 41 on the upper side thereof and a spindle coupling block 42 provided internally with thread. Motor 55, which is mounted on printed circuit board 64, is coupled to the spindle by means of a gear assembly 56, 57. The motor is also provided with a transmission 66.

(14) Frame 43 is provided with an actuator arm 61 which extends through a slot 59 of printed circuit board 64. Sensors 62, 63 for the purpose of controlling the motor are provided at the ends of slot 59. The distance between the locations of the sensors corresponds to the distance the lock-in members 5 move.

(15) Lock-in assembly 11 (FIG. 5, 7 in greater detail) comprises a frame, i.e. a frame part 13, and a displacing member, i.e. a moving part 12. Frame part 13 serves for the purpose of arranging lock-in assembly 11 in column body 4. The frame part comprises a vertical element 121 with supports 123, 123 extending therefrom for supporting a lower side of a substantially C-shaped frame element 122. Situated on the upper side of vertical element 121 are substantially horizontally arranged supports 124, 124 for forming a connection to substantially the upper side of the substantially C-shaped frame element 122.

(16) The substantially C-shaped frame element 122 has two lock-in member guide openings 129, 129 arranged respectively on the lower side and the upper side. The strength of a locking is realized by the lock-in member 5 engaging in the closed situation on both the lower guide opening 129 and the upper guide opening 129. The locking is further improved in that the lock-in member engages in the closed situation on guide openings 99, 99 of fixation element 15.

(17) Provided for co-action with the lock-in assembly fixation member 15 are coupling slots 128, 128 which co-act with coupling protrusions 92 thereof. Also provided are guide grooves 91, 91 for co-action with guide edges 92 arranged on the inner side of walls 7, 8 of the column body.

(18) Vertical element 121, a vertical part of the C-shaped element, supports 123, 123, 124, 124 form in top view a guide channel for a vertical element 134 of the moving part 12. This vertical element 134 has a stop 139 protrusion which for the purpose of assembly can be moved or pressed aside by means of a bridge 138. This stop protrusion 139 co-acts with stop spaces 131, 131 of supports 123, 124.

(19) The moving part 12 also comprises an arm 135 which is horizontal during use and has a mounting block 136 with an opening 137 for holding lock-in member 5. The moving part comprises a coupling protrusion 132 at the bottom and a coupling opening 133 at the top. A coupling protrusion 132 of a moving part arranged higher in the column body co-acts when assembled with a coupling opening 133 of an adjacent moving part arranged in lower position. Coupling protrusion 132 of the lower moving part in a column body co-acts with opening 132 of drive member 40. It is envisaged in alternative manner that a coupling opening 133 can co-act with a drive assembly arranged above the column.

(20) The control assemblies arranged on the underside of the column each have an outer housing 53 and a frame 40 arranged inside this outer housing. This frame serves to support the components of the control assemblies and for coupling thereof to column body 4 by means of the described means 51, 51 and opening 47. The outer housing is slidable forward off the frame 55 and has for this purpose an open rear side not visible during use. A fixation bolt 51 co-acting with an opening (not shown) in the underside of the outer housing serves for fixation of the outer housing.

(21) FIG. 6A shows frame 55 for the hand-operated variant which has a cylinder housing 42 for placing therein of the cylinder lock 23 with a cylinder housing 32. This cylinder housing has a rotation-limiting protrusion 26 on the underside thereof for co-action with a rotation-limiting slot 26 on the underside of cylinder housing 42 of the frame. Arranged substantially close to the rear side of cylinder housing 42 are two throughfeed channels 27 for placing therethrough fixation parts 43, 43 of a mounting spring 31. When mounting spring 31 is arranged with fixation parts 43, 43 in throughfeed channels 27, the cylinder lock can be placed and immediately fixed by sliding the cylinder housing in the cylinder housing. During this operation the chamfered spring-displacing surfaces 28 urge the fixation parts 43, 43 of the spring outward, wherein fixation parts 43, 43, when slid further, snap into the respective slots of the cylinder housing to complete the mounting of the cylinder locks. The cylinder locks can then only be removed after removal of the outer housing and after the fixation parts 43, 43 held under bias have been urged apart mechanically. Hereby realized is that cylinders can be easily placed and can be replaced or exchanged as required.

(22) The control assembly according to FIG. 6 also comprises a drive member 40 for driving the lock-in assembly by means of coupling to protrusion 132 of the lower moving part 12 by means of opening 41. Drive member 40 is connected for this purpose to handle 44 by means of a coupling frame 45. When the key of the cylinder lock is rotated the cylinder actuator 48 is retracted, whereby drive member 40 can move freely up and downward. Push spring 46 then pushes frame part 44 downward in the direction of arrow A, whereby the lock-in assemblies open and each respective lock-in member moves downward. This movement is braked by the rotating decelerating assembly 49 which is coupled by means of a gear wheel to a linear toothing (not shown) on drive member 40. When handle 46 is moved manually upward, the assembly moves in the direction of arrow A and the spring is once again placed under bias.

(23) Control assembly according to the present invention comprising a placing position for a cylinder lock comprising preferably engaging means for a fixing member such as a clamping spring, a fixing member arrangeable relative to the placing position for the cylinder lock, wherein the control assembly is suitable for mountably receiving the cylinder lock by means of a slide-in operation, wherein during the slide-in operation the fixing member is brought into engagement with the engaging means of the cylinder lock.

(24) Control assembly as above wherein the fixing member is arranged under bias and wherein during placing of the cylinder lock the fixing member gives way counter to the bias under the influence of the engaging means, and more preferably engages in snap-fixed manner on the engaging means under the influence of the bias.

(25) Within the understanding of the skilled person and in the context of the present invention a uni-body is a fused unit which cannot be separated into individual mountable components.

(26) The present invention has been described in the foregoing on the basis of several preferred embodiments. Different aspects of different embodiments are deemed described in combination with each other, wherein all combinations which can be deemed by a skilled person in the field as falling within the scope of the invention on the basis of reading of this document are included. These preferred embodiments are not limitative for the scope of protection of this document. The rights sought are defined in the appended claims.