EP1602097B1

EP1602097B1 - Holder for an electronic shelf label

Info

Publication number: EP1602097B1
Application number: EP04718469A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Björn Nilsson
Original assignee: Pricer AB
Current assignee: Pricer AB
Priority date: 2003-03-07
Filing date: 2004-03-08
Publication date: 2009-11-11
Anticipated expiration: 2024-03-08
Also published as: WO2004079698A1; DE602004024039D1; SE0300656D0; ATE448536T1; EP1602097A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for attaching an ESL to a shelf rail profile, comprising a holder member for carrying an ESL. There is also a securing member, attached to or integrated with said holder member, and adapted to cooperate with said shelf rail profile in an interlocking engagement, to maintain said holder member in a desired position on said shelf rail.

Description

The present invention relates to a holder for attaching an Electronic Shelf Label (ESL) to shelves having non flat shelf rails or shelf rails that do not fit the ESL as is.

Background of the invention

In today's retail environment it has become frequent to use ESL's, Electronic Shelf Labels, or electronic price labels preferably. Also so called "shelf talkers" are frequently used in such retail environments, whereby the shelf talkers comprise parts that is transparent and parts containing messages, like commercial message "SALE" or advertising for products. These devices are supplementary to prize labels.
The shelf rail profile in current and new designs of shelves for retail environments is often non flat, i.e. exhibits a curved surface (convex). An ESL of today is preferably made in a non flexible material. The flat non flexible ESL does not fit into or onto the curved shelf rail profile. In GB-A-2 249 854 there is described a shelf talker designed to hold such an ESL and attach it within a shelf rail profile. In other designs the shelf rail profile indeed is flat, but the ESL does not fit into the shelf anyway because the ESL is not designed and adapted to fit that profile in the first place. Thus, at least for the cases described above there is a need for means and methods of fitting an ESL to a shelf.

Summary of the Invention

The present invention solves the above outlined problem of attaching an ESL to a curved shelf rail, by the device as defined in claim 1. In an embodiment the ESL is detachable from the holder or the ESL is integrated with the holder. The holder is essentially flat and flexible. The rail profile is provided with a recess, whereby the securing member is a rim fitting in said recess of said rail profile. Suitably the holder is a shelf talker. The holder can be provided with locking hooks for securing the ESL in place on the backside of the holder. The holder preferably comprises a transparent portion provided to expose the ESL through the holder. There can be provided an opening in the holder adapted to keep an ESL in place by close fit. The ESL can be attached to the holder by glue or tape.
Thus, use can be made of a shelf rail talker that is adapted or designed with an ESL holder. Several embodiments are possible, including:

hooks in one part and corresponding holes in the other part.
Separate part (spring) that keeps the both parts together.
Glue or tape.
Magnetic fittings
A hole is made in the shelf talker that is arranged so that the ESL can be fitted within the hole.
Plastic melt together (using ultrasound or other glue method)

Hooks and springs can be of plastic or metallic material. The ESL holder can be either non-removable or removable.
If the ESL holder is removable then a special tool might be needed in order to remove the ESL, in order to prevent unauthorized tampering.
The fittings between ESL rail profile and ESL talker is preferably removable and also here a special tool might be needed in order to release the talker from the shelf rail profile.
In one embodiment the shelf talker and the ESL are built as one complete unit, i.e. the adaption of ESL and shelf talker is done already in the production of the product.

Brief Description of the drawings

Fig. 1a shows a shelf rail talker adapted with fittings for ESL.
Fig. 2 shows one embodiment of the shelf rail talker used for a flat shelf rail profile.
Fig. 3 shows another embodiment of the shelf rail talker used for a flat shelf rail profile.
Fig. 4 shows a shelf rail with one example of ESL holder using plastic hooks on the shelf talker.
Fig. 5 shows a shelf talker from frontside.
Fig. 6 shows a shelf rail talker adapted with fittings for ESL. The fitting in this case is a hole in the shelf talker into which the ESL fits.
Fig. 7 shows an ESL with flexible ESL part where at least the display part can be mounted on the rounded shelf rail profile. In one embodiment the shelf rail talker and the ESL is manufactured as one unit.
Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a shelf with a convex shelf rail and a shelf talker embodying a holder means according to the invention.
Fig. 9 is an embodiment not according to the invention wherein the ESL is integrated with an attachment means such that no separate shelf talker is needed.

Detailed Description of the invention

The invention is applicable to a shelf talker product such that it can be made with or provided with an ESL holder adapter, where ESL can be a wireless ESL. The holder adapter can be provided such that the ESL is non removable from the shelf talker when it is fitted to the shelf talker. On the other hand, it can also be designed to allow the ESL to be removable from the shelf talker when it is fitted to the shelf talker. The adapter can be designed such that a special tool is needed for removing the ESL from the shelf talker. Attachment of the ESL can be made by using hooks or springs, or by using glue or tape, as well as by magnetic fittings. In one embodiment, the ESL fitted to the shelf talker in a hole in the shelf talker.
An ESL can be made in flexible material that contains the necessary parts for fitting ESL directly to a non-flat shelf rail profile.
Fig. 1 shows a convex shelf rail profile (1) and a shelf rail talker (2) fitting to said profile. On the back side of the talker, an ESL (3) is attached. In order that the message of the ESL display be visible, there is a window (5) provided in the talker (see Fig. 8).
Figs. 2 and 3 illustrate flat rail profiles having an ESL attached in a similar manner as in Fig. 1.
In Fig. 4 there is shown one embodiment of the attachment means for the ESL, namely a hook member that locks the ESL in position from two sides (upper edge and lower edge, respectively; of course the hooks could equally well be provided on the vertical edges).
Fig. 5 illustrates schematically the shelf talker seen from the customer side, i.e. the front side.
The message part (6) can be used for messages. In one embodiment the message is printed directly on the shelf talker (commercial message and/or company logotype for example). In another example the message is printed on paper label that is mounted between the message part and the shelf rail profile, this requires the message part to be transparent. In a third embodiment the message is printed directly on the shelf rail profile. The paper label is not needed then. This also requires the message part of the shelf talker to be transparent.
The ESL holder part (7) must also be transparent at least above the ESL display surface, to make the ESL display visible to the customer. In another embodiment the ESL holder part of the shelf talker is a hole, and the ESL is mounted within the hole, as shown in Fig. 6.
In another embodiment the ESL is manufactured in such a way that at least part of the ESL is flexible (4), as shown in Fig. 7, namely the actual active display part (shown in dotted line in Fig. 7). In this way the active display itself can accommodate to the curved surface of a shelf rail profile. Such flexibility is achievable by manufacturing the active display in accordance with any of a number of different currently available technologies, such as LCD's, OLED's (Organic Light Emitting Diode), EPD's (ElectroPhoretic Display), electrochromic displays, cholosteric displays, just to mention a few.

Claims

A shelf talker (2) and Electronic Shelf Label (ESL) (3) assembly, comprising
an essentially non-flexible Electronic Shelf Label (ESL) (3);

a shelf talker member (2) for carrying said Electronic Shelf Label;

a securing member, attached to or integrated with said shelf talker member, and adapted to cooperate in an interlocking engagement with a shelf rail profile (1) having a convex surface and a recess in said convex surface, to maintain said shelf talker member in a desired position on said shelf rail;

said shelf talker member (2) being essentially flat and flexible so as to be able to adapt to the convex surface of said shelf rail profile;

said interlocking engagement being achievable by means of a rim provided on said shelf talker member (2), said rim fitting in said recess in said convex surface of said shelf rail profile (1), such that the ESL (3) is suspended from the recess of the shelf rail profile (1) via said shelf talker (2).
The device as claimed in claim 1, therein the ESL (3) is detachable from the shelf talker.
The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ESL (3) is integrated with the shelf talker.
The device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the holder is provided with locking hooks for securing the ESL (3) in place on the backside of the shelf talker.
The device as claimed in claim 1, comprising a transparent portion (5) provided to expose the ESL (3) through the shelf talker.
The device as claimed in claim 2, wherein there is provided an opening in the shelf talker adapted to keep an ESL (3) in place by close fit.
The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ESL (3) is attached to the shelf talker by glue or tape.
The device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the ESL (3) comprises a flexible active display (8), which can accommodate to a curved surface of a shelf rail profile.
The device as claimed in claim 8, wherein said flexible active display (8) is selected from the group consisting of an LCD, an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode), an EPD (ElectroPhoretic Display), an electrochromic display, and a cholosteric display.
The device as claimed in any of claims 8 or 9, wherein the ESL (3) and the shelf talker member are integrated in a unitary structure.