WO2017059428A1

WO2017059428A1 - Merchandising display tray

Info

Publication number: WO2017059428A1
Application number: PCT/US2016/055172
Authority: WO
Inventors: Melisa Resanovic; Jason Wheatley
Original assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
Priority date: 2015-10-01
Filing date: 2016-10-03
Publication date: 2017-04-06
Also published as: AU2015101430A4; AU2022200221A1; AU2016331297A1

Abstract

There is provided a merchandising display tray of elongate form for displaying product for sale, the tray being open at its upper side for removal of product and having a forward compartment and a rear compartment separated by a dividing wall, the forward compartment having an inner base which inclines downwardly from its rear end to its forward end to permit product within the forward compartment to migrate under the effects of gravity towards its forward end, and the inner base being removable to permit items to be packed against a substantially horizontal permanent floor of the tray.

Description

MERCHANDISING DISPLAY TRAY

PRIORITY CLAIM

[0001] This international patent application claims priority to and the benefit of Australian Patent Application No. 2015101430, which was filed on October 1, 2015, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The invention relates to merchandising display trays, particularly those for displaying both loose and packaged small items of hardware.

BACKGROUND

[0003] Small hardware items are typically displayed on shelves of hardware stores, either as loose items in trays or stacked in packs. Where there is an option to purchase either loose or packed items, the tray may comprise a rear compartment, which can be slid out from the main body of the tray and is configured to fit stacked packed items, with the front compartment being used for displaying loose items only. Although this allows flexibility in displaying different purchasing options, they are not entirely practical, as they are difficult and time consuming to assemble, particularly since often over one hundred trays may need to be installed for a given hardware store. The bases of these trays are inclined, which is generally beneficial for the purpose of clearly displaying the loose items, but this imposes limitations on being able to stack packages of hardware items, and is also limiting where the tray is being used to store larger loose products.

[0004] There is a need for a simple and effective display tray that allows unobstructed product visibility for both the loose and packaged products simultaneously.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0005] According to the present invention, there is provided a display tray of elongate form for displaying product for sale, the tray being open at its upper side for removal of product and having a forward compartment and a rear compartment separated by a dividing wall, the forward compartment having an inner base which inclines downwardly from its rear end to its forward end to permit product within the forward compartment to migrate under the effects of gravity towards its forward end, and the inner base being removable to permit items to be packed against a substantially horizontal permanent floor of the tray.

[0006] In a preferred embodiment the tray is erected by folding a blank and inserting the inner base, the blank providing opposed sidewalls of the tray, a rear wall of the tray, a front wall of the tray, the dividing wall, and the permanent floor of the forward and rear compartments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of non-limiting example only with reference to the accompanying figure, in which:

[0008] Figure 1 is an exploded view of a merchandising display tray according to a preferred embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] With reference to the accompanying drawing, the tray is of elongate form having a forward compartment 2 and a rear compartment 4 separated by a vertical dividing wall 6. The tray has a permanent floor 7, and the forward compartment 2 has a removable inner base 8 which inclines downwardly from the rear end of that compartment to the front end. The tray is intended to be mounted on display shelving or racking with its forward end at the front of the shelving or racking so that the contents of the tray are accessible by the customers. Downwards inclination of the removable inner base 8 of the forward compartment towards the front end of the tray has the effect of causing product within the tray to migrate towards the front of the tray under the effect of gravity, whereby as the tray empties, the remaining product will tend to move towards the front of the tray, which ensures that product is always within the front section, providing better shelf presentation and ease of access for the customer. One particular use of the tray is for storing and displaying hinges although it is equally suitable for a wide range of other small hardware products and similar. The rear compartment 4 also serve to store and display products which could be the same as those in the forward compartment but in different pack sizes or possibly different products cross-merchandised with those in the forward compartment.

[0010] With the removable inner base 8 positioned within the forward compartment 2, the forward compartment may be used to display loose items while the rear compartment holds flat stacked packages of items. It will be appreciated that upon removal of the inner base, larger loose items may be accommodated in the forward compartment. Alternatively, the forward compartment may also accommodate flat packed items when the inner base is removed.

[0011] The tray is assembled from a flat blank preferably of a robust moulded plastic. Accordingly the trays can be shipped to stores in low-volume and flat form to be erected onsite.

[0012] The front end of the tray includes a vertical wall at the forward end of the forward compartment and a downwardly-curved forward portion extending from the upper edge of that vertical wall. The curvature is incorporated during the moulding of the blank. The curved surface is provided to effectively display a label that catches the light and stands out clearly in an aisle shelf.

[0013] Preferably, the upper surface of the opposed sidewalls, particularly in the region of the forward compartment, are generally inclined surfaces, such that the height of the forward compartment varies from a lower height at the front end to a higher height towards the rear.

[0014] The portion of the opposed sidewalls at the rear end of the merchandising display tray in the region of rear compartment preferably includes a cut-out 12 for easy removal of packaged items from the rear compartment.

[0015] Advantageously, the dividing wall 6 includes a tab 13 for placing a label for the product.

Claims

CLAIM

1. A merchandising display tray of elongate form for displaying product for sale, the tray being open at its upper side for removal of product and having a forward compartment and a rear compartment separated by a dividing wall, the forward compartment having an inner base which inclines downwardly from its rear end to its forward end to permit product within the forward compartment to migrate under the effects of gravity towards its forward end, and the inner base being removable to permit items to be packed against a substantially horizontal permanent floor of the tray.