AU2009230777A1

AU2009230777A1 - Support structure for display unit

Info

Publication number: AU2009230777A1
Application number: AU2009230777A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Glenn Bevan; Robert Owen Metcalfe
Original assignee: DEMODEKS Pty Ltd
Current assignee: DEMODEKS Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2009-10-27
Filing date: 2009-10-27
Publication date: 2011-05-12
Also published as: WO2011050406A1

Description

P/00/011 Regulation 3.2 AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 ORIGINAL COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: "SUPPORT STRUCTURE FOR DISPLAY UNIT" The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: 1 SUPPORT STRUCTURE FOR DISPLAY UNIT This invention relates to a support structure for a display unit that can be used as a wall mounting structure or as a freestanding shelf support 5 structure. Hitherto display units useful for retail shopping were marketed under the PRAESTEGAARD trade mark and obtainable from Denmark. These display units incorporated a facade of panels attached to a support frame 10 where each panel was horizontally orientated and there were elongate slots located between adjacent panels. The support frame comprised a plurality of uprights and there were also provided a multiplicity of shelf supports which each comprised one elongate section of L-shaped bent aluminium sheet and another elongate section of substantially S-shaped bent aluminium sheet 15 which were adjacent to each other and separated therefrom and welded to each of the uprights. There was also provided shelves or shelf ancillary structure which extended between each of the elongate slots. However, it was found in practice that the PRAESTEGAARD display 20 units as described above was bulky and cumbersome in relation to installation because of the necessity of moving each of the welded support frames to a desired location and then attaching each of the support frames to an adjacent wall. It was also extremely difficult to utilize the PRAESTEGAARD display units to cater for varying or different requirements 25 required by the user or customer and thus, the PRAESTEGAARD system was not versatile in operation. Reference also may be made to US Patent 7,386,960, which refers to a modular supporting structure intended to support juxtaposed panels to 30 form a modular partition wall which has a plurality of upright spacers or components which are interconnected by a lower cross member, a plurality of intermediate cross-members and an upper cross-member. Each upright 2 spacer interconnected a pair of adjacent cross-members and only one joining element interconnected each intermediate cross-member to a pair of lower and upper upright spacers. However, it was considered that this modular structure was unduly complicated in requiring a plurality of components or 5 spacers forming each upright. US Patent 6,240,687 described a modular office system having a pair of uprights and at least a pair of cross beams wherein an upper cross beam was of a different shape to a bottom cross beam so that each of the cross 10 beams was not interchangeable. Each cross beam also included a triangular gusset welded thereto to improve the connection between each of the cross beams and an adjacent upright. The fact that each of the top and bottom cross-members were not interchangeable reduced the modular effectiveness of this office system and the use of welded gussets increased the cost of 15 manufacture. It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a support structure suitable as a display unit which at least reduces the disadvantages of the prior art discussed above. 20 The invention therefore in one aspect includes a support structure for a display unit which has at least one pair of uprights which are unitary in nature and a top rail and a bottom rail wherein: (i) each of the top and bottom rails have a similar cross 25 section and are therefore interchangeable; and (ii) each of the top and bottom rails are releasably attached to an adjacent upright in a similar manner whereby either end of the top and bottom rail may be attached to 30 the same upright.

3 There also may be provided one or more horizontal intermediate rails which also may be adjustably mounted to each upright in a plurality of spaced locations along each upright. 5 Thus in one embodiment, the support structure of the invention may comprise a light box in its simplest form having a pair of uprights and a top and bottom rail. However, more preferably there is provided at least one intermediate horizontal rail or a multiplicity of intermediate horizontal rails extending between each upright. 10 Preferably each intermediate horizontal rail has one or more surfaces for engagement with an adjacent panel in abutting relationship. There also may be provided a shelf support member or shelf which is releasably attachable to an adjacent horizontal intermediate rail. 15 Each upright may have a plurality of spaced mounting locations in the form of slots located along the length thereof and in this regard each intermediate horizontal rail may be provided with one or more mounting hooks that extend into adjoining slots when required. 20 However, in a variation of the above each spaced mounting location may comprise a plug or socket locatable or mountable in a corresponding socket or plug located at each end of the or each intermediate horizontal rail. 25 Preferably the or of each of the intermediate horizontal rails have end brackets which are attached to an adjacent end of the intermediate horizontal rail and which are mountable in each of the spaced mounting locations along each upright. Such end brackets may be attached to an adjoining end of the intermediate horizontal rail(s) by appropriate fasteners. 30 In another embodiment there may be provided one or more wall mounting assemblies which include a wall mounting bracket directly 4 attachable to an adjacent wall and an upright attachment bracket attachable to an adjacent upright in one of the spaced mounting locations. This arrangement is preferred for the purpose of versatility and adjustability but a single or unitary wall mounting bracket may be used if necessary. 5 Reference may now be made to a preferred embodiment of the invention as shown in the attached drawings wherein: FIG 1 is an exploded perspective view of a support structure of the invention; 10 FIG 2 is an exploded view of am assembled support structure as shown in FIG 1; FIG 3 is a perspective view of detail "A" shown in FIG 1; FIG 4 is a perspective view of detail "B" shown in FIG 1; FIG 5 is a perspective view of detail "C" shown in FIG 1; 15 FIG 6 is a perspective view of detail "D" shown in FIG 1; FIG 7 is a perspective view of detail "E" shown in FIG 1; FIG 8 is a perspective view of detail "F" shown in FIG 1; FIG 9 is a sectional view corresponding to detail "F" shown in FIG 8; FIG 10 is a sectional view of one embodiment referring to 20 incorporation of a shelf to a horizontal rail of the support structure shown in FIG 1; FIG 11 is a sectional view of an embodiment different to that shown in FIG 10 which corresponds to incorporation of an adaptor extrusion to a horizontal rail; 25 FIGS 12 - 13 show another alternative embodiment to the embodiments shown in FIGS 10 or 11; and FIG 14 is a sectional view of another embodiment similar to that shown in FIG 11. 30 In Figure 1, there is provided support structure 10 in exploded perspective view which includes opposed uprights 9 and 9A top and bottom rails 12 and 13 respectively, intermediate horizontal rails 14, 15, 16, 17 and 5 18 and wall bracket assemblies 8 which each include a wall engagement bracket 19 and upright attachment bracket 20. It will be appreciated that each upright 9 and 9A is integral or unitary in nature, i.e. it is formed from one piece. Each intermediate rail 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 are also provided 5 with end brackets 21 and 22 which are connected to slots 23 in each upright 9 and 9A as described hereinafter. The bottom rail 13 is also provided with a pair of feet 24 which height adjustably support structure 10 as described hereinafter to cater for uneven support on floor surfaces. There is also provided front panels 25 which may be attached to keyhole slots 26 in each 10 of rails 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 by appropriate fasteners (not shown) attached to a rear surface of each panel 25. It will be appreciated that each panel 25 is suspended only from a top edge 27 therefore leaving an elongate slot 29 between a bottom edge 28 of each panel 25 and an adjacent top edge 27 as shown in FIG 2. FIG 2 also shows three uprights 9, 9A and 9B 15 each supporting a double array of panels 25. In FIG 3 there is shown how a top rail 12 may be attached to an adjacent upright 9A. Thus, there are provided fasteners in the form of bolts or screws 30 which extend through aligned attachment apertures 31 and 32 20 in each upright 9 and 9A and which engage with mating grooves 33 and 34 in top rail 12 which is shown as an aluminium extrusion having opposed longitudinal formations 35 and 36. In FIG 4 there is shown rail 14 and adjacent end bracket 22 having 25 hooks 37 each having a recess 38 which is engaged in an adjacent slot 23 in an adjacent upright 9. Thus, hook 38 extends through slot 23 and a bottom edge 39 is received in recess 38. There are also provided fasteners 40 which as shown in FIG 5 having regard to detail C engage with channels or grooves 41 and 42 in horizontal rail 14. Groove 42 is part of elongate 30 upstanding lower rib 43 and there are also provided abutment surfaces 44 and 45 and engagement rib 46 which is formed by converging webs 47 and 49.

6 FIG 6 shows wall bracket assembly 8 each having a wall engagement bracket 19 and upright attachment bracket 20. Wall engagement bracket 19 has a wall abutment plate 50 having attachment slots 51 and 52 for insertion 5 of fasteners (not shown) therethrough for attachment to a wall (not shown). The wall attachment bracket 19 also has plate 53 located normal to plate 50 which has attachment aperture 54 for insertion of a screw 55 and nut 56. There is also provided upright attachment bracket 20 which has an elongate slot 57 for engagement by screw 55 so that plate 53 may be adjustably 10 retained in engagement with wall attachment bracket 19. Wall attachment bracket 19 is also provided with hooks 37 and recesses 38 for engagement slots 23 as described above. The upright attachment bracket is also provided with flanges 58 and 59. 15 FIG 7 shows both brackets 19 and 20 assembled together by screw 55 and nut 56 prior to attachment to slots 23 in upright 9A. In FIGS 8 - 9 there is shown a foot 24 having a moulded and enlarged base 60 and a screw threaded part 61 of shank 62 wherein screw threaded 20 part 61 may extend through opposed grooves 35 and 36 wherein captive nut 63 may be retained in either of grooves 35 or 36 to engage with screw threaded part 61. This is also shown in FIG 9 wherein apertures 64 and 65 may be punched to allow for passage of screw threaded part 61. 25 In FIG 10 there is shown a cross-sectional view of any one of rails 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 and it will be noted that rail 14 (for example) is provided with engagement rib 46 formed by converging webs 48 and 49 as described above in FIG 5. Engagement rib 46 and part of the adjacent surfaces of webs 48 and 49 function as a retainer for a shelf support component 30 exemplified by shelf base extrusion 69 which is provided with recess 67 which engages with rib 46 in abutting relationship. Recess 67 is formed by angled end flange 68 of shelf base extrusion 69 which has shelf 70 attached 7 thereto. Also rail 14 is provided with panel abutment surfaces 44 and 45 shown abutting adjoining panels 25. In FIG 11, rail 14 is also provided with opposed inturned flanges 71 5 and 72 which may engage with adapter extrusion 73 as shown wherein each flange 71 and 72 engages with corresponding longitudinal formations 74 and 75 of extrusion 73. Recess 76 in adaptor extrusion 73 may engage with a shelf having a corresponding engagement rib. There also instead of a shelf may be provided a wall hanger or hooks in recess 76 for supporting various 10 articles. In FIG 12 there is shown another rail 14A which functions as a panel support component having downwardly extending rib 77 which engages with flange 78 and an adjacent surface 81 of web 79 of shelf support component 15 80 when fully assembled. FIG 13 shows rail 14A being moved into engagement with component 80 before achieving the position shown in FIG 12. 20 FIG 14 shows a similar view to FIG 11 with the exception that opposed inturned flanges 71 and 72 engage with corresponding longitudinal formations 71A and 71 B. A shelf (not shown) having a shape corresponding to longitudinal ribs 74 and recess 76 may therefore be supported by extrusion 73. 25 Advantages of the of the invention shown in the preferred embodiments in FIGS 1 - 3 include the following: (i) The support structure 10 of the invention may be used as a wall structure or a free standing shelf support structure and is 30 thus modular and versatile. When used as a wall structure the support structure 10 may simulate existing or conventional wall structures such as those shown in FIG 2 which have a facade 8 of a plurality of panels attached to a suitable support structure which also have slots located between adjacent panels. Such conventional display systems or shop fittings are described at www.praesteqaardsystem.com. 5 (ii) The support system 10 of the invention is advantageous over the PRAESTEGAARD system in that it provides more flexibility with the positioning of horizontal shelves as well as sizes of panels. 10 (iii) The support system 10 avoids welding of frames and saves on the cost of materials by use of horizontal rails 14 or 14A which can be knocked down or dismantled for storage, transport and assembly. 15 (iv) Each upright 9 or 9A may be constructed from aluminium extrusions with integral screw fixing details to allow it to be assembled to adjacent horizontal rails 14, 15, 16, 17 or 18 without welding. Uprights 9 and 9A may be identical left and 20 right and can be pre-punched with slots and screw holes that are multifunctional. The top and bottom rails 12 and 13 may also be identical and have the screw flute detail for fixing to uprights 9 and 9A. Each top and bottom rail 12 and 13 also has integral channels 35 and 36 that allows a captive nut 63 to 25 be captured along its length so that a screw thread part 61 of foot 24 can be used for adjusting support structure 10 to account for uneven floors. The screw thread part 61 may have a socket head or screw driver recess to allow quick installation with a drill driver. 30 (v) The function of slots 23 is to allow horizontal rails 14 - 18 to be fixed to the uprights 9 and 9A using hooks 37 which are 9 incorporated into steel brackets 20 or 22 that may be constructed from punched or laser cut and folded plate and screw fixed to each end of horizontal rails 14 - 18. The left and right steel brackets 22 and 21 are not identical and this 5 allows any one of horizontal rail 14 - 18 to be introduced into a partly assembled structure 10, by angling the bracket 22 fully into the slot 23 of upright 9, bringing the rail into line with the frame 10 and then withdrawing the bracket 21 rearwardly to enter the slots 23 on the other upright 9A and dropping the 10 hooks 37 into place. (vi) The slots 23 allow a wall bracket assembly 8 to be fitted to the uprights 9 and 9A which is adjustable to allow the frames to be plumbed and aligned with adjoining frames. 10. There are 15 various positions in the frame for attaching bracket assembly 8 allowing the installer to avoid electrical fittings or protruding wall features on the existing wall. (vii) Any one of the horizontal rails 14 - 18 may be constructed 20 from aluminium extrusion and has a key hole 26 punched in the ends to facilitate attachment of the panels 25 that have protruding screw heads (not shown)on the reverse side of the panel 25 lining up with the key hole 26. The key hole 26 is positioned at different distances from each end of the 25 horizontal rails 14 - 18 to position them at identical distances from the uprights 9 and 9A. (viii) Any one of the horizontal rails 14 - 18 can be positioned anywhere on the upright 9 or 9A where there is a matching slot 30 23. A wall assembly usually requires a top and bottom rail but may also have one centre rail or alternatively, could have a large number of horizontal rails that is only determined by the 10 available slots. In addition, the horizontal rails 14 - 18 can face inwardly (e.g. towards a wall) or could be rotated 180 degrees to face outwardly due to the symmetrical nature of the slots 23 and fixing brackets 21 and 22. This has the 5 advantage of being able to create a double sided wall with a single set of uprights if the rails 14 - 18 are offset from each other and the panels 25 are also offset on either side of the wall. 10 (ix) The horizontal rails 14 - 18 may have a one piece extruded construction so tolerance between an upper section formed partly by surface 44 and lower section formed partly by surface 44 can be controlled. This is important for the fitting of accessories including the shelf base extrusion 69 and the slat 15 wall adaptor 73. The shelf base extrusion 69 is multifunctional and can be adapted for TV support brackets or to support a shelf 70 as shown. (x) The horizontal rails 14 - 18 may be provided with an internal 20 recess (not shown) that allows the tracking and management of power cords for electrical accessories. A hole can be punched in the back of the rail that allows an exit point for electrical cables. 25 In another arrangement, the invention may include within its scope a support structure for a display unit which has at least one pair of uprights which are unitary in nature and at least one horizontal rail which can be attached in a number of spaced mounting locations located on each upright wherein the horizontal rail is attachable at either end to a common upright 30 and there is also provided a pair of end brackets wherein each bracket is mountable in one of a plurality of spaced mounting locations along each upright and there are also provided fasteners which extend through an 11 aperture in an adjacent end bracket and a co-aligned socket or channel in an adjoining end of said at least one horizontal rail.

Claims

1. A support structure for a display unit which has (i) at least one pair of uprights which are unitary in nature and (ii) a top rail and bottom rail 5 wherein (i) each of the top and bottom rails have a similar cross section and are therefore interchangeable and (ii) each of the top and bottom rails are releasably attached to an adjacent upright in a similar manner wherein either end of the top and bottom rails may be attached to the same upright. 10

2. A support structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein there are further provided one or more horizontal intermediate rails which also may be adjustably mounted at each end to one or a plurality of spaced mounting locations on each upright. 15

3. A support structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein each horizontal rail is of similar cross-section and is therefore interchangeable with either end of each horizontal rail being attachable to the same mounting location. 20

4. A support structure as claimed in claim 2 or 3 wherein each horizontal intermediate rail has one or more surfaces which can be used for attachment of a panel in abutting relationship with said surface(s). 25

5. A support structure as claimed in claims 2, 3 or 4 also including a shelf or shelf support structure which is attached to an adjacent horizontal intermediate rail.

6. A support structure as claimed in claim 5, wherein each rail includes 30 an abutment rib for location of said shelf or shelf support structure which engages with a corresponding part of the shelf or shelf support structure in abutting relationship. 13

7. A support structure as claimed in claim 6, wherein the shelf support structure instead of supporting a shelf supports other means for supporting articles which include hangers or other forms of article 5 carriers.

8. A support structure as claimed in any one of claims 1 - 7 wherein the spaced mounting locations are elongate slots located in a side surface of each upright. 10

9. A support structure as claimed in claim 8, wherein each horizontal intermediate rail has one or more hooks at each end wherein the or each hook engages in a respective slot. 15

10. A support structure as claimed in claim 9, wherein each horizontal intermediate rail has an end bracket releasably attached to an adjacent end wherein each end bracket incorporates said one or more hooks. 20

11. A support structure as claimed in any one of claims 1 - 10, wherein there is provided a wall mounting assembly for attaching the support structure to an adjacent wall.

12. A support structure as claimed in claim 11, wherein the wall mounting 25 assembly has a wall attachment bracket and an upright attachment bracket adjustably attached to each other.

13. A support structure as claimed in any one of claims 2 - 12, wherein the upright attachment bracket is releasably attached to an adjacent 30 end of a respective horizontal intermediate rail.

14. A support structure as claimed in any one of claims 1 - 13, wherein 14 the top and bottom rail each include one or more integral channels or sockets for attachment of adjacent fasteners which also extend through aligned openings in an adjacent upright. 5

15. A support structure as claimed in any one of claims 2 - 14, wherein the or each horizontal intermediate rail includes one or more integral channels or sockets for attachment of adjacent fasteners which also extend through aligned openings in an adjacent upright. 10

16. A support structure for a display unit which has at least one pair of uprights which are unitary in nature and at least one horizontal rail which can be attached in a number of spaced mounting locations, located on each upright wherein the horizontal rail is attachable at either end to a common upright and there is also provided a pair of 15 end brackets wherein each bracket is mountable in one of a plurality of spaced mounting locations along each upright and there are also provided fasteners which extend through an aperture in an adjacent end bracket and a co-aligned socket or channel in an adjoining end of said at least one horizontal rail. 20

17. A support structure for a display unit as claimed in claim 16, wherein there is a plurality of interchangeable horizontal rails attached to each upright. 25

18. A support structure as claimed in claim 16 or 17 further including a top and bottom rail wherein (i) each of the top and bottom rails have a similar cross-section and are therefore interchangeable and (ii) each of the top and bottom rails are releasably attached to an adjacent upright in a similar manner wherein either end of the top and bottom 30 rails may be attached to the same upright.