GB2128011A

GB2128011A - Information display unit

Info

Publication number: GB2128011A
Application number: GB08325828A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Miles Bozeat
Original assignee: PD VISUAL MARKETING LONDON
Current assignee: PD VISUAL MARKETING LONDON
Priority date: 1982-10-01
Filing date: 1983-09-27
Publication date: 1984-04-18
Also published as: GB8325828D0

Abstract

An information display unit for a menu at a restaurant has a number of elongate carriers 12 vertically stacked in generally horizontal attitudes. Each carrier is open at its front to allow display of information contained on information strips 14 coiled at both ends and has formed on its upper wall a generally Y-shaped projection 27 running the length of the carrier and a complementary recess formed on the underside. The Y-shaped projection of one carrier slidingly engages in the corresponding recess of the adjacent carrier to lock the two together. This arrangement enables a number of carriers to be stacked one on top of another to provide a substantially rigid and self-supporting structure yet allowing quick and easy disassembly of the carriers. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Information display unit The present invention relates to an information display unit.

Display units which are sometimes known as point of sale devices are used to display information such as the price of goods in a retail outlet or a menu in a restaurant.

Ideally the information on display should be readily changeable and the units themselves should be easily assembled and capable of withstanding rough handling.

The present invention seeks to provide an improved form of information display unit.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a plurality of information strips each of which has thereon a series of characters or the like, and a plurality of carriers on which said strips are supported so as to be slidably adjustable relative to the carriers for selected display of the characters on said strips, and wherein each carrier is adapted to engage each adjacent carrier so as to provide a substantially rigid, self-supporting structure.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention each carrier is substantially elongate in form and the carriers are arranged to be vertically stacked in generally horizontal attitudes.

The present invention is further described hereinafter, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a carrier and an information strip of a display unit according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a perspective exploded view of a display unit according to the present invention; Figure 2a is a section in the line 2a-2a of Figure 2; Figure 3 is a side elevation of three stacked modified forms of carriers; Figures 4a and 4b are respectively front and side elevations of an end plug for the carriers of Figure 3; Figure 5 is a side elevation of a clip used to clip together the end edges of two carriers of Figure 3; Figure 6 is a perspective view of a top member of the unit; and Figure 7 is a vertical section on the line 7-7 of Figure 6.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the preferred form of display unit has a number of vertically stacked elongate carriers 12, each of which supports a number of selfcoiling information strips 14 (only one of which is shown in the drawings) in side by side relationship. Each strip is made from a material which has a tendency to form coils at its opposite ends and is provided with a series of characters on its outer surface.

Each carrier 12 is of generally rectangular crosssection and has a top and bottom wall 16 and 18 and a rear wall 20. A front wall for the carrier is omitted to provide a display opening area 22. The interior of the carrier is divided into two generally sized cavities 24 and 26 by a substantially "T"-shaped partitioning rib 28 on the rear wall 20 of the carrier, the rib extending the full length or substantially the full length of the carrier. Each of the cavities thus provided receives one of the coiled ends of each information strip 14 with the free end of the "T"shaped rib 28 providing support for the intermediate portion of the strip 1 which is displayed at the front of the carrier 12.The characters displayed by each self-coiling strip 14 can be easily adjusted merely by applying finger pressure to the non-coiled portion of the strip and moving that portion towards one or other of the coiled portions.

Interconnection of the carriers 12 is effected in a simple manner by providing each carrier 12 with two pairs of axially extending flanges 27a, 27b and 29a, 29b respectively at the upper and lower end regions of the rear wall 20. The flanges 27a, 27b are arranged substantially at right angles to one another and at 45O to the plane of the top wall 16, the flanges being raised slightly above the top wall 16 on the rear wall 20 which projects slightly above the upper surface of the top wall 16.The lower end region of the rear wall 20 which joins the bottom wall 18 lies at an angle of substantially 45O to the vertical plane of the major portion of the rear wall 20 and the flange 29b projects from this end region at substantially 90 away from the cavity 26. The second flange 29a extends at right angles from a further wall 20a which branches from the rearwall 20 at its juncture with its angled end region and extends to form a substantially rectangular open cavity with the flanges 29a and 29b into which the flanges 27a and 27b so that a pair of flanges 27a, 27b on a further carrier can slidably engage with the flanges 29a and 29b in the rectangular cavity to secure the two carriers in vertical array with their display areas facing in the same direction.This arrangement enables a number of carriers to be stacked one on top of another to provide a substantially rigid and selfsupporting structure.

Although the angles of the various flanges have been described as 90 and 45" angles it will be appreciated that the flanges may be at any suitable angles to one another provided that the pairs of flanges 27a, 27b and 29a, 29b are suitably dimensioned and positioned on the respective carrier walls so that they can engage one another in the required manner.

Each carrier 12 is provided with parallel top and bottom grooves at its front to receive opaque or transparent boards 30 which can be slid into the grooves to blank off any carrier that is not being used or to protect information leaving it visible. Each carrier also has a pair of top and bottom grooves 31 adjacent its rear wall 20 where the boards can be stored when not in use.

To prevent information strips 14 inadvertently being slid out of the carriers and also as an additional aid to securing the carriers together the display unit is provided with carrier end pieces 32. Each end piece is generally rectangular in shape and has a number of rectangular projections 34 which frictionally engage in the grooves 31 at the carrier ends.

Finally, a top piece 38 is provided to facilitate mounting of the display unit on a wall or the like as well as a bottom piece 39. In addition, the top and bottom pieces may also carry more permanent advertising literature. The top and bottom pieces are secured to the uppermost and lowermost carriers 12 by flanges which engage with the corresponding flanges 27a, 27b and 29a, 29b of the carriers.

Figures 3 to 7 show various components of a modified form of display system according to the present invention.

In these drawings components which perform the same or similar functions to those in Figures 1 and 2 are given the same reference numbers.

Figure 3 shows three stacked carriers 12 which differ from the carrier shown in Figure 1 in the detailed manner of their interconnection. Each carrier 12 is provided with a pair of axially extending lipped flanges 27, 29 on each of the carrier bottom and top walls, the lipped flanges preferably being L-shaped as seen in Figure 3. The pairs of flanges are suitably dimensioned and positioned on the respective carrier walls, one pair with their lips facing one another and the other pair with their lips facing away from one another, so that a pair of flanges on one carrier slidably engages with a complementary pair of flanges on an adjacent carrier to secure the two carriers in vertical array with their display areas facing in the same direction.

Each carrier 12 is also provided with parallel top and bottom grooves at its front and rear to receive opaque or transparent boards 30 in the same manner as the carrier shown in Figure 1. The carrier end piece 32 shown in Figure 4a and 4b has a number of projections 35 which frictionally engage between the top and bottom walls 16, 18 at the carrier ends. Barbed edge clips 36 (Figure 5) clip over adjacent walls 16, 18 of adjacent carriers, serving as a further additional aid to securing the carriers together.

The top piece 38 shown in Figures 6 and 7 is secured to the uppermost carrier 12 by means of a depending flange 40 which has a number of upwardly and downwardly projecting hook-shaped lugs 42 which engage in the upper and lower grooves at the rear of the uppermost carrier 12, engagement conveniently being effected by sliding the uppermost carrier onto the lugs from one side of the top piece 38.

The constituent parts of the units are preferably made of plastics material and may conveniently be injection moulded, although any suitable material may be used.

Claims

1. An information display unit comprising a plurality of carriers for supporting a plurality of information strips, each of which has thereon a series of characters or the like, so as to enable said strips to be slidably adjustable relative to the carriers for selected display of the characters on said strips, and wherein each carrier is adapted to engage each adjacent carrier so as to provide a substantially rigid, self-supporting structure.

2. An information display unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein each carrier is substantially elongate in form and the carriers are arranged to be stacked vertically in generally horizontal attitudes.

3. An information display unit as claimed in claim 1 or 2 wherein each carrier has upper and lower connecting means co-operable respectively with the lower and upper connecting means of adjacent carriers so as to inhibit lateral movement of the carriers relative to one another.

4. An information display unit as claimed in claim 3 wherein said connecting means inhibit laterial movement of the carriers towards and away from one another and allow sliding movement of the carriers one relative to the other.

5. An information display unit as claimed in claim 3 or 4 when appendent to claim 2 wherein said connecting means allow sliding movement of the carriers relative to one another along their longitudinal axes.

6. An information display unit as claimed in claim 4 or 5 wherein said upper and lower connecting means comprise a respective recess means and projection means wherein each recess means on one carrier is slidably engageable with a co-operating projection means on an adjacent carrier to inhibit relative lateral movement of said carriers.

7. An information display unit as claimed in claim 6 wherein each said recess means is formed byat least one projecting flange of a carrier and each said projection means is formed by at least one further co-operating projecting flange of a carrier.

8. An information display unit as claimed in claim 7 wherein each recess means is in the form of an elongate cavity formed by two parallel flanges projecting laterally towards one another and each projection means is formed by two parallel flanges projecting laterally away from one another.

9. An information display unit as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8 wherein each carrier is elongate and generally rectangular in cross section, having an opening along one side for display of said characters, wherein the interior of each carrier is partitioned into two cavities by a partition means extending substantially parallel with the carrier axis, and extending towards said opening, and wherein each cavity is arranged to receive a respective coiled end of each information strip.

10. An information display unit substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings.

11. An information display unit substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 3 to 7 of the accompanying drawings.