GB2226173A - Display means - Google Patents

Abstract

A display means is provided which comprises a substrate having a plurality of channels formed in it substantially parallel to one another. Each channel is fitted with a channel member which has a pair of outwardly directed edge flanges disposed a short distance from the substrate so that a recess is formed between each flange and the substrate. A plurality of replaceable strips are positioned on the substrate between respective channels, their longitudinal edges being engaged in respective pairs of the recesses formed between the flanges and the substrate.

Description

DISPLAY MEANS This invention relates to display means of the kind presenting a surface having embedded therein channel members which open towards the front of the surface and which can supportingly receive articles to be displayed.

Display means are known which consist of alloy channels which are embedded in sheets of dense fibreboard or chipboard. The board is first reamed out into longitudinal parallel grooves of the same section as the channel members which are then pushed in from the side and slid along into position. The angles of the channel side walls are re-entrant so that the channels are firmly shape-locked in place.

The density of the chipboard combined with the rigidity of the alloy channels enables the channels to withstand the large moment forces of articles located in the channels. For example, if the board is fixed to a wall, suspension devices for a plurality of garments may be locatingly engaged in the channels.

Such boards are widely used in the wholesale and retail fashion trade for displaying large numbers of garments depending from such suspension devices.

There are however a number of disadvantages in this arrangement, as follows: (1) The dense board is expensive and is very heavy. Whilst great substance is needed to withstand the moment applied to the channels by sets of garments, if the application was such that large moments would not arise in practice, the expense of providing boards in this particular configuration would not be justified.

(2) The weight of the boards does not lend the display means to transportability.

(3) For aesthetic purposes it is necessary to paint the front surface of the chipboard or, for a more durable finish, to cover it with plastic laminate. This means that once the display means has been manufactured it is costly and time consuming to change its colour, if that is required. In other words without a great deal of expense there is little flexibility of decoration applied to the board.

It is an object of the invention in its essential and preferred forms to provide a display means which does not suffer from these defects. According to the invention there is provided display means comprising a plurality of channel members embedded parallelwise in a substrate, each channel having a pair of outwardly directed edge flanges disposed a short distance from said substrate and defining therewith respective recesses, and a plurality of replaceable strips lying between respective channel members, the longitudinal edges of said strips being captively engaged in respective said recesses.

Thus in accordance with the invention it is possible to change the colour of or indeed the graphics upon the spaces between the channel members simply by removing the existing set of strips and replacing by another. The strips may be slipped out longitudinally or, if they are made of pliable material, may simply be snapped out and replaced by new strips snapped into the recesses.

The substrate may be of fibreboard, chipboard or similar rigid material as in the prior art. The boards may be of substantial size extending across and fixed to a whole wall area in display premises. The strips may be plain or patterned in colour, or indeed may have graphics imprinted upon them so as to make up from a multiplicity of individual strips a complete picture, for example, life-size human figures wearing the articles of clothing to be displayed.

In a preferred embodiment however, the substrate is formed of lightweight plastics material such as for example foamed polystyrene or foamed polyurethane. In this embodiment the said strips, which may be of plastics such as for example acrylic plastics or of metal such as for example aluminium alloy, serve the additional purpose of protecting the otherwise susceptible plastics substrate. As the substrate would otherwise be vulnerable to damage, this feature actually enables the substrate to be made of lightweight plastics material and this has a number of advantages.

Firstly, there is a considerable saving as to cost. A large scale display means similar to that described above can be fixed to a wall (the fasteners need no great strength) and the cost is a fraction of chipboard or the like.

The additional advantage is that being lightweight, the display means can be in the form of a display board which is readily transportable. This enables a board measuring some 4' x 3' to weigh a few pounds rather than several tens of pounds as in the prior art.

Clearly the strength of the plastics substrate is such that the channel members will not bear the moment forces hitherto applied to chipboard displays, but they will certainly bear, for example, holders for pamphlets and brochures, cards or any other items of stationery or relatively light smallwares.

Being a susceptible material, the foamed plastics substrate needs edge protection. In a preferred form of the invention this is achieved by forming longitudinal grooves juxtaposed to the edges of the display board in which are received inwardly directed flanges of a profile strip which embraces the edge of the plastics. The or each profile strip parallel to the said channel members will itself preferably have a flange disposed a short distance from said substrate and defining therewith a recess adapted to receive a said replaceable strip.

In order that the invention may be readily understood an embodiment thereof will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a display means according to the invention in the form of a board; Fig. 2 is an enlarged scrap cross-sectional view of a top of the board; Fig. 3 is an enlarged scrap perspective view of a lower corner of the board, and Fig. 4 is a scrap perspective view of part of the board showing a holder clipped into the channel members.

In the drawings there is shown a substrate 1 which is formed of foamed polyurethane and has fixing holes 2 wherethrough wall fasteners may be passed.

The substrate is formed with a plurality of elongate grooves 3 in which are received sufficiently closely as to be embedded channel members 4 which maybe formed of extruded aluminium or plastics material.

Each channel 4 is formed with a pair of outwardly directed edge flanges 5 which are disposed a short distance from said substrate 1 and defined therewith respective recesses 6 in which are captively engaged the longitudinal edges of a respective plurality of replaceable strips 7.

The strips 7 maybe colored or not as the case may be or may be printed with graphics, a preferred form of which consists of a large scale design formed by a plurality of components on individual strips.

It will be noted that the angle presented by the side walls 8 of the channel members (Fig. 2) to the substrate is re-entrant which prevents the channel members being removed. The channel members themselves are used for mounting articles to the display board and one means of achieving this is shown in Fig. 4. A brochure holder 9 has a front wall 10, side walls il and a rear wall 12 which is formed with shaped tabs 13 which supportingly engage in the uppermost channel member 4. The holder also has a base wall 14 which is formed with a tab 15 which locatingly engages in the lower channel member 4.

The edges of the display board are completed and protected by respective profiled frame strips 16 which are formed with inwardly directed flanges 17 locatingly engaging in grooves 18 formed on the back and front of the substrate 1 juxtaposed and parallel to the edges thereof. In addition the frame members have a further flange 19 which is disposed a short distance from the substrate 1 and defines therewith a recess for receiving the lower edge of the bottom-most strip 7 and the upper edge of the uppermost strip 7.

In Fig. 1 the central strips 7 are shown partially withdrawn from the display board, permitted to do so by the removal of the righthand frame member 16. Subject to the flexibility of the strips however it may not be necessary to remove the frame member 16, but instead these strips can be deformed so as to be released from their engaging recesses 6.

It will thus be seen that the invention provides a display means preferably in the form of a display board which can be manufactured at less expense than the prior art and whose appearance can be readily changed by replacement of the strips 7 to suit any change in surround decor or to provide different promotional graphics.

Claims (10)

CLAIMS:

1. Display means comprising a lightweight substrate having therein a plurality of channels substantially parallel to one another, each of said channels being provided with a respective channel member fitted therein, said channel member being adapted to support articles to be displayed.

2. Display means according to claim 1 further having a plurality of replaceable strips affixed to the substrate between respective channels.

3. Display means according to claim 2 wherein each of said channel members has outwardly directed flanges disposed a short distance from the substrate and arranged to define respective recesses therewith, said recesses being arranged to engage respective longitudinal edges of the strips.

4. Display means comprising a substrate having embedded therein a plurality of channel members substantially parallel to one another, each channel member having a pair of outwardly directed edge flanges disposed a short distance from said substrate and defining therewith respective recesses, and a plurality of replaceable strips lying between respective channel members, the longitudinal edges of said strips being captively engaged in respective pairs of said recesses.

5. Display means according to any one of claims 2 to 4 wherein said replaceable strips are made from a material sufficiently sturdy to provide protection for the substrate from damage.

6. Display means according to any preceding claim wherein at least one of the substrate edges is enclosed by a profile edge strip.

7. Display means according to claim 6 when dependent on any one of claims 2 to 5 having a profile edge strip parallel to said channel members, said profile edge strip being provided with a flange disposed a short distance from the substrate and forming a recess therewith, said recess being arranged to receive a longitudinal edge of a replaceable strip.

8. Display means comprising a lightweight plastics substrate having therein a plurality of substantially parallel channels adapted to support articles for display.

9. Display means according to claim 8 wherein each of said channels is provided with a channel member fitted therein to define a recess for receiving said articles for display.

10. Display means substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.