MXPA00003525A - Shelf assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

A shelf assembly (20) for organizing and merchandising a plurality of products (34). The shelf assembly (20) comprises a shelf (22) having a bottom (24), plurality of dividers (26) extending from front to back, a pair of dividers (26) and the bottom (24) forming a track (32) in which a column of products (34) are arranged. A front member (40) pivotal about a stop (68), or pivotally engaged with the dividers (26), prevents the forwardmost product (34a) within the column from falling off the front of the shelf (22). The pivotal front members (40) enable product (34) to be pulled forwardly off the shelf (22), minimizing the spacing necessary between adjacent shelves.

Description

ASSEMBLY OF ANAQUEL Field of the Invention This invention relates to display stands for supporting and displaying a plurality of products. More particularly, this invention relates to a shelf assembly for use in a display stand for organizing and marketing a plurality of products.

Background of the Invention Traders commonly exhibit their products in structures with shelves. To place the product on the front of the shelves, the shelves are commonly tilted down so that gravity forces the product towards the front edge of the shelves, where it is easily accessible to consumers. The angle of the shelf determines the amount of gravity that will be on the product, so that the product moves forward. Such inclined shelves are commonly divided into a plurality of rails or channels parallel to the side edges of the shelves with dividers, so that the product is displayed in ordered columns, extending from the rear to the front of the shelf. The rails or channels are defined by the bottom of the shelf and a plurality of dividers extending up from the bottom of the shelf. The dividers can be integrally formed with the shelf or formed separately and can move along the bottom of the shelf. Additionally, the dividers can be integrally formed in a shelf insert, such as that described in US Patent No. 5,614,288 issued to the beneficiary of the present application. Arranging products in columns allows the merchant to display different products in different columns without multiple products being located in the same lane or column. Plastic inserts such as that described in U.S. Patent No. 5,614,288 can be placed on a flat shelf to provide the shelf with means to divide the product into different columns for display purposes. These plastic inserts are typically of unitary construction and are commonly made of extruded or molded plastic. The dividers are an integral part of the insert and divide the insert into a plurality of lanes, a pair of dividers and the bottom of the insert define a lane. A plurality of stops or bumpers found on the front of the shelf insert are fixed to pairs of dividers on the front of the dividers to prevent product from falling off the front edge of the shelf. Once the bottle that is further ahead is removed from the lane, the remaining bottles in the lane slide forward until the bottle later comes into contact with the bumper stop. U.S. Patent No. 5,531,838 discloses a shelf insert having a front wall formed to form a plurality of inverted arcs defining a plurality of openings therein. The front wall acts as a bumper stop to hold and hold the products placed within the rails or channels formed by the dividers and the bottom of the shelf insert. The front wall prevents the product from falling off the front of the shelf. A stop member may be inserted into slots cut in the upper portions of the front wall to further prevent the product from passing through the openings in the front wall of the insert. U.S. Patent No. 5,645,176 discloses an elongated channel of a piece of unitary construction, formed in a single plastic molding operation. A plurality of such elongated channels can be connected together and secured to a shelf to create a plurality of rails that extend from front to back on the shelf, each rail is defined by a pair of vertical side walls and a lower member. At the front of the side walls, a front member separated above the bottom of the rail connects the side walls and acts as a bumper stop which prevents the product that is further ahead in a product column from falling off the shelf. This front member is of sufficiently narrow construction to define with the side walls and the bottom of the rail a generally rectangular opening, through which a substantial portion of the front or front article in the channel can be seen by a potential consumer. Although this patent does not disclose an opening through which a consumer can see a portion of the product that is further along in a lane, the user may not always see the label during the rotation of the products, since they move down the lane. In addition, the consumer must lift the product that is further up the column on the bumper stop or rotate the product that is later on top of the bumper stop while pushing all other products on the column back to remove the product which is later. Gravity-fed shelves can be used in refrigerated units such as chilled and uncooled display stands. Typically, uncooled display stands display larger product bottles, such as two-liter bottles, and are located along the sides of islands in warehouses. Chiller or chiller units typically display smaller bottles of products, such as twenty-one-ounce bottles (595.35 g) and they are located near the counter or exit verification register of a convenient store or miscellany. On both uncooled and refrigerated display stands, a finite amount of vertical space is available for the shelves. The more shelves can be placed within this finite area, the better from a merchant's point of view, because the merchant can display more products. In addition, to more shelves within the area, the merchant needs to replenish the display support less frequently. Therefore, merchants want display shelves that have a maximum possible number of shelves that can be placed within a defined area. Until the present invention, the adjacent shelves were generally vertically spaced apart from each other a distance equivalent to or greater than the height of the product being exhibited, plus the distance between the bottom of the shelf and the bumper stop, because when a consumer wanted to remove the product later located within a rail or shelf, he or she would generally lift the product further forward over the bumper stop at the front of the rail. Therefore, the adjacent shelves were generally vertically spaced one from the other a sufficient distance to allow the customers to later remove the products within the rails, lifting the product vertically. The area between the adjacent shelves required for customers to remove product wasted space because it did not hold or store the product. In this way, any type of shelf or shelf insert with fixed, immobile bumper stops generally required a vertical separation between the shelves of at least the height of the product being exhibited, plus the height of the bottom of the shelf and the bumper stop in the front of each lane. Such separation or spacing of the shelf is undesirable because it decreases the packing volume of the product that is being displayed within a limited area. Another difficulty with shelves or shelf inserts that have fixed bumper stops is that when the product slides down the shelf in the rails, the product can be twisted about a vertical axis, inherently causing the labels on the bottles to rotate. Therefore, once the product from later on comes in contact with the bumper stop, the product label from later on is oriented sideways or backwards instead of forward. Consequently, the consumer has to flip the product down a lane to read its label to determine if the product is the particular product that the consumer wants. In addition, with the product located on the upper shelves of a shelf structure such as, for example, a non-refrigerated display stand, it is difficult for some customers to remove it because to remove the product later in a lane, the The product was usually lifted vertically over the fixed bumper stop located at the front of the rail. The product located in the uppermost part of the shelf of a display stand was difficult to reach by a consumer whose height was equal to or less than the height of the uppermost shelf of the display stand. Therefore, the height of a display stand in which merchants can display their products was limited to approximately the height of reach of consumers. The present invention increases the height at which the uppermost shelves of a display stand containing product can be located because the customers no longer have to lift the product vertically above a fixed stop located in the front in the rails of the product. shelf. The uppermost shelf of a stand of a display stand can be placed higher than was possible until now because customers can pull a product forward around a lower pivot axis, instead of lifting the product vertically on a bumper stop. Therefore, an object of the present invention has been to provide a shelf assembly divided into a plurality of rails, each rail having a rotating front member. A further object of the present invention has been to provide a shelf assembly having a plurality of rotating front members that allow the product to be moved more easily by pulling the product forward instead of lifting the product upward or pulling the top of the product. a product on the top of a fixed bumper stop. A further object of the present invention has been to provide a shelf assembly that reduces the vertical distance between the adjacent shelves necessary to remove the products from intermediate shelves. A further object of the present invention has been to provide a shelf assembly having a rotating front member on the front of a rail, which is adapted to exhibit different elements identifying the product.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The invention of this application that meets those objectives, comprises a display support to which a plurality of shelf assemblies are attached. Each shelf assembly functions to organize and market a plurality of products arranged in columns extending from front to back. The shelf assembly comprises a shelf having a bottom, a plurality of divisions and at least one front member that moves relative to the dividers. The dividers are separated from each other and extend from front to back of the shelf, so that a pair of the dividers and the bottom of the shelf define a rail, which supports a plurality of products arranged in a column. The product from later inside the column comes into contact with the front member. The front member prevents products inside the rail from falling off the front of the shelf. The front member rotates around a horizontal axis, so that the product from later inside a rail can be removed by pulling the product forward forwards, instead of lifting the product later on a non-rotating bumper stop, as had been necessary before the present invention. Dividers can be generally flat divisors or any other form of divisor. The dividers extend from front to back on the shelf and can be moved relative to the bottom of the shelf or be fixed securely to the bottom of the shelf. Alternatively, the dividers can be part of a unitary, one-piece shelf insert, as described in U.S. Patent No. 5,614,288.

If flat dividers are used according to the present invention, each divider may have one or more holes, which pass through the divider at the front of the divider. The holes are sized to receive a portion of one of the rotating front members, so that the front member can rotate relative to the dividers. Alternatively, the dividers may have one or more receptacles integrally formed in the dividers. These receptacles are sized to receive a portion of one of the front members. When the front member engages the receptacles formed in the dividers, the front member can rotate about a horizontal axis, so that a consumer can remove one product in front of a rail by pulling the product forward further forward. In this embodiment, the projections extending outward from the front member define the horizontal axis around which the front member rotates. The front member is generally arched and is adapted to receive a beverage container, such as a bottle or can. Additionally, the front member is adapted to receive and display elements that identify different products. The front member may be a plastic fold, or alternatively, two plastic folds between which an item identifying a product may be inserted to identify the product within the lane behind the rotating front member. In another embodiment of the present invention, the shelf assembly is divided into a plurality of rails, each rail having a fixed stop, which acts as a bumper at the front of the rail. The stop is fixedly secured to a pair of adjacent dividers. In this embodiment, the front member is rotatably secured to the stop, instead of being rotatably secured to the dividers. Accordingly, "the front member rotates with respect to the fixed stop." The stop itself does not rotate relative to the dividers, instead the front member rotates about an axis defined by portions of the stop. later in a lane can still be removed by pulling, instead of lifting the product later in the lane., the product must later slide over the fixed stop fixed to the dividers on the front of the rail. The stop can be a wire, a piece of plastic or any other structure around which the front member can rotate. The front member can be engaged with the stop in any number of ways. A type of front member has a pair of openings therethrough, which are adapted to receive the stop, allowing the front member to rotate around the stop. This mode is most often used with a wire mesh structure, although not necessarily limited to it. With any mode, the product in front of a column of products can be removed from a rail by pulling on the top of the product (ie the neck of a bottle) to rotate the product later around an axis of turn lower than the stop of the bumper stop, instead of lifting the product by turning the product over the stop of a fixed bumper stop, located at the front of the rail. Thus, with the present invention, adjacent shelves can be placed closer than what has been possible up to now, increasing the packaging or number of shelves that can be used within a limited space. Accordingly, the present invention allows a merchant to store and display more product in a limited area. In addition, the rotating front members located on the front of the shelf of the present invention allow customers to easily remove the product and easily identify products within the different shelf rails. These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily apparent from the following description of the drawings.ou.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a perspective view of the display stand of the present invention illustrated with two shelves, each shelf being divided into a plurality of rails to support different products, each rail having a rotating front member located in the front part of the lane. Figure 2 is a side elevational view of a portion of the display support of Figure 1 showing the bottle later in a rail being pulled forward of the shelf. Figure 3 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the shelf assembly of the present invention having wire dividers, a fixed stop secured to the wire dividers at the front of the dividers, and a plurality of secured front members of rotating way to the fixed stop. Figure 4 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the shelf assembly having a plurality of product fasteners located on a flat shelf, each product fastener having a rotary front member. Figure 5 is a perspective view of a shelf insert made in accordance with the present invention, the shelf insert having a plurality of rotating front members rotatably coupled with the dividers on the front of the insert. Figure 6 is a partially disassembled view of an embodiment of the front member having projections adapted to engage with receptacles integrally formed in the dividers. "Figure 7 is a view taken along line 7-7 of Figure 6. Figure 8 is a partially disassembled view of an embodiment of the front member having openings therein, adapted to be coupled to a wire stop Fixed located on the front of the shelf Figure 8A is a view of the circumscribed area 8A of Figure 8. Figure 9 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the front member Detailed description of the drawings Referring to the drawings, and in particular to Figure 1, there is illustrated an exhibition stand 10. The display stand 10 comprises a base 12 and a rear member 14 extending between two vertical posts 16. As illustrated, each of the posts 16 has a plurality of slots 18 therein adapted to receive projections (not shown) of a shelf assembly 20. Although two shelf assemblies are illustrated in Figure 1, any number of shelf assemblies may be used. the one according to the present invention. Although only one type of base 12 and one type of back 14 are illustrated, others well known in the industry can be used to support the shelf assemblies of the present invention. A "rack mounting mode 20" of the present invention comprises a shelf 22 having a bottom 24 and a plurality of dividers 26 extending from a rear edge 28 of the shelf 22 to a front edge 30 of the shelf. 26 and the bottom 24 of the shelf 22 define a rail 32. The rail 32 supports a plurality of products 34 arranged in a column extending from front to back Within each product column is a product later on 34a, a second product later 34b, a third product still further 34c, etc., depending on how many bottles are in the column (See Figures 1 and 2).

Although the dividers 26 were illustrated as planar dividers, the divisors can take alternative configurations as well. The shelves 22 are inclined so that the front edge 30 of the shelf 22 is below the rear edge 28 of the shelf 22, so that gravity feeds the products in the forward columns. This is best illustrated in Figures 1 and 2. The angle of inclination of the shelf determines the amount of force of gravity that will be on the product to push the product forward. Due to the inclination of the shelves, the product slides forward on the shelf until the product later in the column comes into contact with a bumper stop or other structure located on the front of the shelf that prevents the product from falling off the front edge 30 of the shelf. If only one product remains in a lane, that product will be located in the front of the lane due to the tilt of the shelf (See shelf with stop in Figure 1). According to the present invention, at the front of each rail there is a front member 40, which moves relative to the dividers. More particularly, the front member 40 rotates about a horizontal axis, the horizontal axis is located above the bottom of the shelf (see axis Ai in Figure 1). Each front member 40 operates to prevent the product from falling off the front of the shelf. Additionally, because the front member 40 can rotate about a horizontal axis, the later product 34a of a product column with a rail can be pulled forward to be removed. Prior to the present invention, stationary, fixed bumper stops, often pieces of wire, were placed in the front of the rails on a shelf, to prevent the product from falling off the front of the shelf. When a customer wanted to remove the product later from a column of products located within a lane, the customer had to lift the product from upwards to the top, so that the bottom of the product passed over the bumper stop. This required a sufficient separation between the shelves. More particularly, the shelves had to be separated vertically from one another, so that there would be significant space between the top of the products located on a shelf and the bottom of the shelf immediately above them. In this way, the number of shelves that could be placed within a fixed area was limited and the space needed between the shelves was wasted, that is, it did not contain any product. The invention of the present application allows the shelves to be placed closer together, so that the bottom of a shelf can be located immediately above the top of the products that rest on the shelf immediately above them (see Figure 2). There is no wasted space between the shelves. Therefore, a greater number of shelves can be located within a fixed area than has been possible until now. As best illustrated in Figure 2, because each front member of the present invention rotates about a horizontal axis, a consumer can remove the product from later 34a of a product column by pulling the top of the product over forward forward in the direction of the arrow 36. Once the top of the product from later on 34a has been pulled forward, the product from later on 34a can then be pulled upwards in the direction of the arrow 38 to be removed from the shelf mount rail. The other products in the column can slide forward of the rail until the next following product 34b comes into contact with the rotating front member.

The rotary front member 40 can take many forms, in accordance with the present invention. One embodiment is illustrated in Figure 1, in which the front member 40 is rotatably secured to a pair of adjacent dividers 26 and rotates about a horizontal axis Ai. In this embodiment, the front member 40 comprises an arcuate piece 42 and a single piece of wire 44. The arcuate piece 42 has an upper edge 46, a lower edge 48 and side edges 50a and 50b. The arcuate piece 42 and the piece of wire 44 may be separate pieces, as illustrated in Figure 1, which may be glued or otherwise secured to each other to create a unitary front member 40. The arcuate piece 42 may have cuts 52, which are dimensioned to receive the piece of wire 44 under pressure. Alternatively, the piece of wire 44 and the arcuate member 42 can be a piece, formed integrally with one another. Other modalities of the front member 40 may also be used, such as those illustrated and described in the remainder of this document. In this embodiment, the ends of each piece of wire 44 extend through holes 54 located in the front part of the dividers 26 to allow the front member 40 to rotate about an axis Ai, defined by the aligned ends of the wire 44. In this way, the front member 44 is rotatably coupled with a pair of adjacent dividers. As illustrated in Figure 1, a later product 34a of a product column within a rail 32 can be pulled forward in the direction of arrow 56 to remove the product 34a later from the rail without the product from later 34a comes in contact with the shelf immediately above it. Turning now to Figure 3, an alternative embodiment of the shelf assembly is illustrated therein. This modality is illustrated in greater detail in Figures 8 and 8A. This rack mounting method 20a comprises a shelf 22a having a generally flat shelf bottom 24a. This rack mounting mode also has a plurality of wire dividers 58 that extend from the back of the shelf forward to the front of the shelf. Each wire divider 58 has a generally inverted U-shape and can be secured to the bottom of the shelf 24a in any number of ways, including that described in U.S. Patent No. 5,119,945 owned by the applicant. Each divider wire 58 has a generally vertical front portion 60, a generally vertical back portion 62 and a middle portion 64 connecting the front and back portions. Extending between the wire dividers 58 is a rear connector wire 66 and a wire stop 68. The wire splitters 58 operate in the same manner as the flat dividers 26 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. A pair of wire splitters 58 and the bottom of the shelf 24 define a rail 32a. As best illustrated in Figure 8, the wire stop 68 is welded or otherwise secured to the upper front corners of the wire dividers 58. As best illustrated in Figure 8, this embodiment of The shelf further comprises a front member 74 located at the front of each rail. Each front member 74 has an upper edge 76, a lower edge 78 and a pair of opposite side edges 80a, 80b. The front member 74 is generally arched and is adapted to receive a later product such as a beverage container. The front member 74 has a concave inner surface 82 and a convex external surface 84, and is adapted to receive an element identifying a product 86 (see Figure 5). The element identifying the product 86 can be a card, a label or any other element identifying the product located in the lane behind the rotating front member. further, as described in more detail below, the front member 74 can retain and display the item identifying the product 86 in any of a number of ways. As illustrated in Figure 8, the wire stop 68 has a plurality of aligned straight portions 70 and a plurality of curved portions 72 located between the straight portions 70. The straight portions 70 of the wire stop 68 define a horizontal axis A2. The wire splitters 58 are welded or otherwise secured to the straight portions 70 of the wire stop 68. Although one shape of the wire stop 68 is illustrated, others may be used, also in accordance with the present invention. As best illustrated in Figure 8A, the front member 74 has a pair of cut portions 88a, 88b, each cut portion includes a circular opening 90a, 90b, respectively. The cut portions 88a, 88b allow the wire stop 68 to be pressed into the openings 90a, 90b, to allow the front member 74 to rotate around the wire stop. The front member 74 moves in the direction of the arrows 75 before the wire stop 68 passes through the cut portions 88a, 88b in the openings 90a, 90b. Once the wire stop 68 is in the openings 90a, 90b, the front member 74 can rotate about an axis A2 defined by the straight portions 70a of the wire stop. With the embodiment illustrated in Figures 3, 8 and 8A, when a user wishes to remove a product from a product column later in a lane, the user pulls the upper part of the product further down the lane 32a in the direction from the 91 arrow (see Figure 3), causing the front member 74 to rotate about the axis A2 defined by the straight portions 70 of the wire stop. The upper part of the front member 74 moves forward, while the lower edge of the front member 74 moves backward. The product from later on 34a then passes over the upper part of the arcuate portion 72 of the wire stop 68, before the later product 34a is completely removed. Figure 4 illustrates another embodiment of shelf mount 20c in accordance with the practice of the present invention. This mode of shelf mounting also utilizes a shelf 22c having a generally flat bottom 24c on which a plurality of generally parallel U-shaped product fasteners 92 are placed. The shelf 22c may have a lip bent upwardly. (not shown) to prevent product holders 92 from falling off the shelf. Each product fastener 92 comprises a bottom 92 and a pair of side wall dividers 96a, 96b, which extend upwardly from the bottom 94 to form a U-shaped or channel-shaped product fastener 92. The fastener product 92 has a front edge 98 and a trailing edge 99. The distance between the front edge 98 and the trailing edge 99 defines the longitudinal dimension of the product fastener. The product holder 92"can be made of plastic, metal or any other material Additionally, the product holder 92 can be coated with a second material to increase the sliding capacity of the product holder 92. The side wall dividers 96a , 96b and the bottom 94 of the product holder 92 form a rail extending back and forth from the shelf, adapted to receive a variety of products 34 arranged in a column (only one of which is shown in Figure 4). The rotatingly moving front member 100 is located on the front of each product holder.

Figure 4 illustrates a type of front member 100 having projections 102 extending outwardly of body 103 of front member 100 and engaging holes 104 formed in the side wall dividers, to cause front member 100 to rotate around of the A3 axis defined by the projections. This embodiment of the front member is similar to the embodiment illustrated in Figure 1. The projections 102 may be pieces of wire, plastic or any other material, and may be formed integrally with the arched portion or the body 103 of the front member, or may be formed and join separately. Although not illustrated in Figure 4, "a fixed stop on the sidewall dividers 96a, 96b of the product fastener 92 that does not rotate with the front member 100 (as with the embodiment illustrated in Figures 3, can be secured). 8 and 8A.) A front member similar to the front member 74 illustrated in Figures 8 and 8A would then be secured to the fixed stop, which would rotate about a horizontal axis defined by the stop. illustrates a shelf insert 106, which is adapted to be placed on a generally flat shelf, such as that illustrated in Figure 4. The shelf insert 106 comprises a bottom 108, a pair of outermost sidewalls 110 ( only one is shown) extending upwards from the edges of the bottom 108 and a rear wall 112. Parallel to the side walls 110 are a plurality of internal dividers 114 extending forward from the wall later. A pair of dividers and the bottom of the shelf insert define a rail 116 that contains a column of products 34 arranged in a line from back to front. The product of later 34a within a product column is prevented from falling from a front part of the shelf, by means of a front member 118. The front member 118 is capable of rotating about a horizontal axis A4 to allow the product from later on 34a within a product column is removed by pulling the product forward 34a forward instead of lifting it. The front member 118 can be rotatably secured to a pair of dividers in any number of ways mentioned hereinabove. For example, a pair of projections extending outward from the front member can be inserted into the holes in the dividers. Additionally, a fixed stop can be secured to the adjacent dividers and the front member rotated about the fixed stop as described above and illustrated in Figures 3, 8 and 8A.

Figure 6 illustrates an alternative structure that can be used to secure the rotary front member 120 to a pair of adjacent dividers 121, to prevent the product from falling off the front of the shelf. In this embodiment, each divider 121 has a pair of receptacles 122a (illustrated in solid lines) and 122b (illustrated in shaded lines) formed integrally with the divider. Alternatively, these receptacles 122a and 122b can be formed separately from the dividers and secured to the dividers in the proper place. One of the receptacles 122a is located on one side of the divider (on the right as illustrated in Figure 6), while the other receptacle 122b is located on the opposite side of the divider (on the left as illustrated in Figure 6).

Each receptacle 122a, 122b has an open portion 124a, 124b, respectively, which allows a portion of the front member 120 to slide downwardly (toward coupling with the receptacle.) The rotating front member 120 has a pair of projections 126a, 126b, extending outwardly from the front member 120. Each projection 126a, 126b has a stem 128a, 128b and a final portion. 130a, 130b which is generally circular. To rotatably couple the front member 120 with a pair of splitters 121, and more particularly the receptacles 122a, 122b of the dividers, the projections 126a, 126b move downward in the direction of the arrow 132, until the final portions 130a, 130b of the projections 126a, 126b pass through the openings 124a, 124b in the receptacles. Once so coupled, the front member 120 will rotate about an axis defined by the shafts 128a, 128b of the projections 126a, 126b. As illustrated in Figures 6 and 7, the shafts or pins 128a, 128b of the front member 120 can be connected to a connector 134, which can be a wire or a piece of plastic or any other material. Beneath and generally parallel to the connector 130 is a bumper 136, illustrated in dashed lines in Figure 6, but shown as a solid member in Figure 7. The purpose of the bumper 136 is to provide a uniform surface with the connector 134, so that when the product from later on 34a moves forward and comes in contact with the front member, the product from later on does not rotate around the connector 134, but comes into contact with a uniform surface, thereby stabilizing the product thereafter while the product from later on is coupled with the concave inner surface of the front member. The rotary front member of the present invention can take numerous configurations, and this application is not intended to be limited to the configuration of the rotary front member. For example, the projections 126a, 126b of the front member 120 may take other alternative configurations different from the configuration illustrated in Figure 6. Figure 6 illustrates a configuration of the front member 120, which is adapted to receive and display different identifying elements. to a product to identify the product within a lane. Sometimes, when the product moves down a lane, towards the front of the lane, the product can rotate, causing the label on the product to move to a position in which it is not easily visible by the consumer. Therefore, the consumer has to hold the product from later on and rotate it to identify the product. The present invention incorporates a front member adapted to receive and display different elements that identify a product, so that all products within a specific rail can be easily identified by the customer simply by looking at the rotating front member. The customer does not need to rotate the product later in a product column to identify the product within the lane. A modality of the frontal member that meets those objectives is illustrated in Figure 6. The generally arched frontal member 120 has a lip * upper 140, a lower lip 142 and two opposite side lips 144a, 144b, all of which help to retain an element that identifies a product on the outer surface of a front member, where the consumer can easily see the element that identifies the product. The label or piece of cardboard of a product, for example, which identifies a particular product, can be inserted between the upper and lower lips and the two lateral lips. The lips maintain the element that identifies the product in its place until it is removed and replaced. This structure allows the elements that identify different products to be inserted and removed easily if the merchant wants to change the rail product behind the front member. Other structures not illustrated can be used to retain the element identifying a product with a rotating front member such as, for example, that illustrated in Figure 9.

Figure 9 illustrates an alternative form of the front member 146 which simply comprises two folds of material, an outer fold 148 and an inner fold 150. Between the internal and external folds there is a narrow space 152, into which an element that can be inserted can be inserted. identify a product. Preferably, the material of the front member is transparent plastic or any other type of material, through which the element identifying the product can be observed. Other forms of front members (not shown) that are adapted to hold and display different elements identifying a product can also be used, so that the elements identifying the product can be changed when the product is changed within a rail, according to the present invention. With the invention of the present application, a shelf can be placed immediately above an adjacent lower shelf, because a product in the most frontal part of a rail on the lower shelf can be removed by pulling the product forward further forward , instead of lifting the product from later vertically. Therefore, more shelves can be placed within a finite area than was possible until now, increasing the number of products that can be displayed within that area and reducing the frequency of replenishment of the shelves. Although we have described several preferred embodiments of the shelf assembly of the present invention, those skilled in the art will appreciate that changes and modifications can be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit of the invention of this application. For example, other rotary front member structures may be rotatably secured to the dividers on the front of a "shelf" assembly, Therefore, we intend to be limited only by the scope of the following appended claims. in relation to this date, the best method known by the applicant to carry out the aforementioned invention, is the conventional one for the manufacture of the objects to which it relates.

Claims (42)

1. CLAIMS Having described the invention as above, the content of the following claims is claimed as property. 1. A shelf assembly for organizing and marketing a plurality of products, the shelf assembly is characterized in that it comprises: a shelf having a bottom, a plurality of dividers extending from front to back, a pair of the dividers and the bottom define a rail, the rail supports a plurality of products arranged in a column, and at least one front member rotates about a horizontal axis and functions to prevent the product from falling from the front of the shelf assembly. The shelf assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the front member is adapted to receive a beverage container. 3. The shelf assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the front member is adapted to receive and display different elements that identify a product. 4. A shelf assembly for organizing and marketing a plurality of products, the shelf assembly is characterized in that it comprises: a shelf having a bottom, a plurality of dividers extending from front to back, a pair of the dividers and the bottom define a rail, the rail supports a plurality of products arranged in a column, and a front member rotatably secured to the pair of dividers, the front member rotates about a horizontal axis and works to prevent the product from falling off the part front of the shelf mount. The shelf assembly according to claim 4, characterized in that the front member is adapted to receive a beverage container. 6. The shelf assembly according to claim 4, characterized in that the front member has at least one lip for retaining an element that identifies a product. The shelf assembly according to claim 4, characterized in that the horizontal axis is located above the bottom of the shelf. 8. A shelf assembly, characterized in that it comprises: a shelf having a bottom, a plurality of dividers, a pair of dividers and the bottom of the shelf define a rail for supporting a plurality of products arranged in a column between the pair of dividers; and a front member rotatably coupled with the pair of dividers, whereby the front member can rotate about a horizontal axis to remove a product from more in front of the product column. 9. The shelf assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the dividers are flat. 10. The shelf assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the front member is generally arched. 11: The shelf assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the dividers are movable. The shelf assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the dividers have holes therethrough, adapted to receive a portion of the front member. 13. The shelf assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the bottom of the shelf and the dividers are part of a shelf insert. The shelf assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the front member has received wires within holes in the dividers. 15. The shelf assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the front member is adapted to receive and present different elements that identify a product. 16. A shelf assembly, characterized in that it comprises: a plurality of wire dividers extending from front to back, a stop secured to a pair of the wire dividers, at least one front member rotatably secured to the stop , so that the product from later on within a product column can be removed by rotating the front member about a horizontal axis and pulling the product forward further forward. 17. The shelf assembly in accordance with claim 16, characterized in that the stop is a wire. 18. A shelf assembly, characterized in that it comprises: a plurality of dividers extending from front to back, a stop secured in the dividers, at least one front member rotatably secured to the stop, so the product from later inside A product column can be removed by rotating the front member around a horizontal axis and pulling the product forward forwards. 19. The shelf assembly according to claim 18, characterized in that the dividers are wires. 20. The shelf assembly according to claim 18, characterized in that the horizontal axis is defined by a portion of the stop. 21"The shelf assembly according to claim 18, characterized in that the front member is adapted to receive an element that identifies a product 22. The shelf assembly according to claim 18, characterized in that the stop is a wire 23. A shelf assembly, characterized in that it comprises: a pair of dividers extending from front to back, a front member rotatably coupled with the pair of dividers, the front member operates to prevent the product located between the dividers move forward. 24. The shelf assembly according to claim 23, characterized in that the front member rotates about a horizontal axis. 25. The shelf assembly according to claim 23, characterized in that the front member is arched. 26. The shelf assembly according to claim 23, characterized in that the front member has projections adapted to couple the receptacles formed in the dividers. 27. A plurality of shelf mounts, each shelf assembly is characterized in that it comprises a bottom and a plurality of dividers, a pair of such dividers and the bottom define a rail for supporting a plurality of products arranged in a column between the pair of dividers; and a front member rotatably secured to the dividers, whereby the front member can rotate about a horizontal axis to remove the product from further to the product column, the shelf mounts are vertically spaced, so that the The product needs to be lifted to be removed. 28. A shelf insert, characterized in that it comprises: a bottom and a plurality of dividers, a pair of the dividers and the bottom define a rail to support a plurality of products arranged in a column extending from back to front, each rail it has a rotating front member coupled with the dividers in the front of the rail. 29. The shelf insert according to claim 28, characterized in that the rotating front member is adapted to receive removable elements that identify a product. 30. The shelf insert according to claim 28, characterized in that the rotating front member has projections coupled with receptacles integrally formed in the dividers. 31. A shelf insert to be placed on a shelf, the shelf insert is characterized in that it comprises a plurality of parallel rails, each rail extends from front to back and has a rotating front member at the front of the rail, the member The revolving front works to stop the product from moving forward in the rail and allows the product later in the rail to be removed by pulling the product forward forwards. 32. A plastic shelf insert, characterized in that it comprises: a rear member, two side dividers and a plurality of parallel internal dividers, dividing the shelf insert into a plurality of parallel rails, each rail having a front member in the front part of the rail, the front member is capable of rotating about a horizontal axis. 33. A plastic shelf insert to be placed on a shelf, the shelf insert is characterized in that it comprises: A plurality of dividers capable of separating a plurality of products into columns, stop means located at the front of the shelf insert , the butt-members are able to rotate about a horizontal axis. 34. The plastic shelf insert according to claim 33, characterized in that the stop means are adapted to display the label of a product. 35. A display stand to organize and market a plurality of products, the display stand comprises: at least one shelf assembly, the shelf assembly has a bottom, a plurality of dividers, a pair of the dividers and the bottom define a rail, the rail supports a plurality of products arranged in a column, and a front member that moves relative to the dividers, the front member rotates about a horizontal axis and functions to prevent the product from falling off the front of the shelf mount 36. The display holder according to claim 35, characterized in that the front member is adapted to receive a beverage container. 37. The display support according to claim 35, characterized in that the front member is adapted to receive and display different elements that identify a product. 38. A display stand adapted to exhibit a plurality of products, the display stand is characterized in that it comprises: at least one shelf assembly, the shelf assembly comprises a shelf bottom, a plurality of dividers, a pair of dividers and the bottom of the shelf define a rail to support a plurality of products arranged in a column; and a front member rotatably coupled with the pair of dividers, whereby the front member can rotate about a horizontal axis to remove the product from the front of the product column. 39. The display support according to claim 38, characterized in that the dividers are flat. 40. The display stand according to claim 38, characterized in that the dividers are adapted to receive a portion of the front member. 41. The display support according to claim 38, characterized in that the front member is adapted to receive and display different elements that identify a product. 42. A characterized display stand, because it comprises at least one shelf assembly, the shelf assembly comprises a plurality of dividers extending from back to front, a stop secured to a pair of dividers, at least one front member secured to rotating way to the top, so that the product of later within a column of products can be removed by rotating the front member about a horizontal axis and pulling the product forward further forward.