Display hook

Abstract

 A display hook for displaying merchandise for sale comprises an arm 1 for supporting a row of products, the arm being laterally stepped at the forward end to prevent more than one product package being removed from the display hook at a time. The rear end of the arm has a latch arrangement 15 for detachable connection to a support bracket so that the display hook can be removed for restocking the products.

Description

[0001] This invention is concerned with display racks for holding and displaying merchandise, such as in retail outlets. More particularly the invention is concerned with a display hook for supporting a row of product packages for self selection by customers.

[0002] It is common for articles to be packaged for sale in packets consisting of a backing card and a front covering of clear plastic through which the article(s) contained in the pack are visible, such packets being known as bubble packs and blister packs. The backing card is generally provided with a horizontal slot adjacent its upper edge to enable it to be suspended from a display hook in the form of an elongate arm of sufficient length to support several packs placed in a row one behind the other. The arm is supported in a cantilever manner from a rigid structure to which it is securely attached, a front end of the arm being free to allow customers to remove packs when selected for purchase, and to allow staff to replenish depleted stocks. Display hooks of this form have been found to provide an effective and convenient way of displaying and presenting items for sale to customers. However, there has been found a problem in that a whole row of products can be easily and rapidly removed, such as by a dishonest person, and as a consequence there is a need for a display hook which can help deter pilfering on such a scale.

[0003] The present invention aims to satisfy this need and resides in display hook comprising an elongate arm for supporting a row of packs to be removed in turn by movement longitudinally of the arm to a free forward end thereof, wherein the arm is provided with means adjacent the forward end to obstruct continuous longitudinal movement of a pack to the forward end and to constrain the pack to be displaced transversely of the longitudinal direction before it can be removed from the arm.

[0004] The obstruction means is preferably formed to enable packs to be manoeuvred past the obstruction means, and hence removed from the display hook, only one at a time. In this way any attempt to remove several packs simultaneously from the display will be thwarted. To facilitate restocking of the display hooks, it is conveniently mounted to the supporting structure by a releasable connection allowing the display hook to be released and restocked from the rear end. This has the additional advantage that the goods are presented in date order. In a presently preferred embodiment the rear end of the support arm is adapted for a releasable snap-fit connection to a support bracket. More precisely, the support arm is bifurcated to define an integral resilient latch for engagement with a slotted mounting bracket to which it is detachably connected.

[0005] The obstruction means can conveniently be arranged to demand lateral movement of a pack during removal from the display hook and this can be achieved by providing the side edges of the support arm with stepped sections adjacent the forward end of the arm. Alternatively, a major surface, e.g. the upper surface, of the support arm can be provided with a projection requiring the pack to be manoeuvred past the projection by aligning a recess with it.

[0006] The invention will be fully understood from the following detailed description of an embodiment, reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which:-

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a display hook with mounting bracket.

Figure 2 is a side elevation showing the display hook mounted to the bracket;

Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the display hook being released from the mounting bracket.

Figure 4 is a plan view illustrating the mounting hook and bracket;

Figure 5 shows a modified display hook in partial plan view;

Figure 6 is a perspective view showing another modification of the display hook together with a support assembly for the hook;

Figure 7 is a side view of the display hook and support assembly of Figure 6.

Figure 8 is a perspective view of an alternative form of support bracket for use with the display hook of Figure 6;

Figure 9 shows the bracket of Figure 8 in side view and with the rear end portion of a display hook and with a support panel; and

Figure 10 shows the completed assembly of Figure 9.

[0007] The display hook and bracket assembly of Figures 1 and 4 is intended for packs with backing cards having horizontal slots with substantially semicircular notches midway along their upper edges. The display hook comprises an elongated arm 1 of generally flat form and having a width slightly less than the length of the slots in the packs. The arm includes a mounting section at its rear end, a storage section forming most of the arm length, an obstruction section, and an upwardly inclined ramp section at the forward end. Hinged to the forward end is a flap 2 which may carry information, e.g. the price, relating to the packs carried on the display hook, in a manner known per se. Extending along the centre of the upper surface of the main storage section is a rail 3, which is integral with the arm and of complementary cross-section to the semi-circular notch of the slots provided in the backing cards of the packs to be displayed. The side edges of the arm are parallel along the storage section. At the obstruction section one side edge is formed with a rectangular recess 5 and the other side edges is provided with a lateral projection 6 of corresponding shape. Also, the rail 3 is interrupted at the obstruction section and a short rail segment 8 is provided with a laterally offset from the rail 3 in the direction towards the projection 6. The rail segment 8 is spaced from the adjacent portions of the rail 3 by short distances to define slits wide enough to allow only one backing card to pass through at a time, as will become clear.

[0008] The support arm is, in use, carried by a mounting bracket 10 with an inverted U-shaped for embracing a horizontal member 11 of a frame, the bracket having front and rear legs which project downwardly below the frame member 11. The front leg of the bracket has an opening 12 of corresponding cross-section to the storage section of the support arm so that the arm is a sliding fit in the opening. A similar opening 13 is formed in the rear leg but has a length a little shorter than the width of the support arm. Also, the opening 13 of the rear leg need not be shaped to accept the rail 3, and the rail may terminate short of the rear end of the support arm for abutting the rear leg to provide a stop for limiting insertion of the support arm into the bracket. The mounting section of the support arm is bifurcated due to a longitudinal slot 14 which defines a resilient latch finger 15 at one side of the arm. The latch finger has a notch 16, and a similar notch 17 is provided in the other edge of the side arm for the mounting section to latch releasably with the rear leg of the mounting bracket. The end portion of the support arm is tapered to facilitate an automatic snap engagement of the latch as the mounting section of the arm is pushed into and through the opening of the bracket in the direction of the arrow A in Figure 1. When it is desired to remove the support arm for loading packs onto the support arm from its rear end the latch is disengaged as illustrated in Figure 3 and depicted by the arrow B in Figure 4, and the support arm is pulled from the bracket in the direction indicated by arrow C. After restocking with packs the support arm is remounted to the bracket as described above.

[0009] When a customer wishes to remove a pack it is pulled towards the free end of the display hook. However, the obstruction section will prevent it being drawn directly longitudinally from the forward end of the display arm and due to the recess 5, projection 6 and rail segment 8, the pack must be manoeuvred laterally, forwardly a short distance and then laterally again, but in the opposite direction, before it can be withdrawn from the display hook. The obstruction section occupies only a short length of the display arm and is formed so that only one pack at a time can be manoeuvred through the non-linear path which it defines, and in this way rapid removal of several packs at the same time is prevented.

[0010] It will be appreciated that modifications are possible without departing from the inventive concept. In Figure 5 for example there is shown a display hook in which the support arm has a single lateral step at the obstruction section. As in the first embodiment sufficient spacing is provided between the rail 3 and rail segment 8 to allow the backing card to pass through for re-alignment of its notch with the rail segment, but to permit only one backing card to pass through at a time.

[0011] In the display hook assembly of Figures 6 and 7 the forward end of the arm of the display hook may be exactly as described above in relation to Figures 1 to 5. As in the previous embodiments the rear end of the arm has a tapered portion, but instead of a single latch finger a pair of symmetrical latch fingers 15 are formed at the opposite sides of the arm by respective longitudinal slots 14. The display arm is intended for releasable connection to a moulded bracket 20 having a front wall 21 with an opening 22 of complementary shape to the cross-section of the main part of the display hook arm 1. The bracket includes a rear wall 23 to which the front wall is connected by four legs 24, and which is provided an opening 25 which is narrower than the opening 22 so that when the rear end of the display hook arm is pushed into the opening 25, the latch fingers 15 are cammed inwardly until the rear wall is aligned with the notches 16 in the latch fingers and the latch fingers spring out to lock the display hook to the bracket. When it is required to detach the display hook, such as for restocking, the latch fingers 15 can be squeezed together because they protrude between the legs 24, to disengage the latch fingers from the rear wall 23 and thereby allow the arm 1 to be pulled out of the bracket 20. The bracket is adapted to be mounted on a structural panel 28 which is made in accordance with the invention described in our copending British patent application No. 9604668.5. and which has grooves 29 of equal shape formed on opposite sides of the panel, the grooves having re-entrant side walls 30. Behind the rear wall 23 the bracket has a support block 32 with an upwardly projecting flange 33 for engagement behind the undercut re-entrant portion of the upper side wall of a panel groove 19, and a relatively short downwardly directed flange 34 for engaging behind the undercut re-entrant portion of the lowerside wall of the same groove. The short lower flange allows the bracket to be snapped into the groove 19 of the panel 28 by first inserting the upper flange 33 and then rotating the bracket to press the lower flange 34 into place as shown in the drawings. The lower flange can be carried by a resilient tongue 35 which can flex to facilitate the attachment of the bracket to the panel, the flanged being held in the locking position by the rear end of the display hook arm when it is inserted into the bracket.

[0012] Figures 8 to 10 show a modified assembly in which the display hook can be identical to that of Figure 6. The bracket 20 has a rear wall 23 with a slot 25 for latching engagement with the rear end of the display hook arm in the same manner as described in relation to Figures 6 and 7. Projecting rearwardly of the wall 23 is an integral L-shaped flange 36 which is shaped and dimensioned for engagement in a T-slot 37 formed in a channel member 38 of a support panel. During assembly, the flange 36 of the bracket is introduced into the channel member 38 and raised so that the upright portion of the flange is engaged in the upper limb of the T-slot. The display arm 1 is then introduced into the bracket 20 and pushed home so that it is latched to the rear wall of the bracket. The rear end portion of the display hook arm projects beyond the wall 23 and into the mouth of the T-shot so that the bracket is locked against disengagement from the channel as may be seen in Figure 10.

Claims

1. A display hook comprising an elongate arm for supporting a row of packs to be removed in turn by movement longitudinally of the arm to a free forward end thereof, and means adjacent the forward end of the arm to obstruct continuous longitudinal movement of a pack to the forward end and to constrain the pack to be displaced transversely of the longitudinal direction before it can be removed from the arm.

2. A display hook according to claim 1, wherein the obstruction means is arranged to allow only one pack at a time to be manoeuvred past the obstruction means.

3. A display hook according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the obstruction means comprises a laterally stepped arm section.

4. A display hook according to claim 1,2 or 3, wherein the obstruction means comprises a recess in one longitudinal edge of the arm and a projection extending from an opposite longitudinal edge and directed away from the recess.

5. A display hook according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the arm has a surface with a projection extending therealong, the obstruction means comprising a laterally displaced segment of the projection separated longitudinally from the projection behind the segment by a slot.

6. A display hook according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the arm has a surface with a recliner projection extending therealong, the obstruction means comprising a laterally displaced segment of the projection separated longitudinally from the projection behind and in front of the segment by slots.

7. A display hook according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the arm is provided at the rear end thereof with means for releasable snap-fit connection to a support bracket.

8. A display hook according to claim 7, wherein the arm comprises a resilient latch finger.

9. A display hook according to claim 8, wherein the rear end of the arm is slotted to define an integral resilient latch finger.

10. A display hook according to claim 7,8 or 9, in combination with a support bracket having a slot in which the rear end of the support arm is engagable, the support arm being notched for locking engagement with the edge of the slot.

11. A display hook according to claim 10, wherein the support arm has notches in opposed edges thereof for locking engagement with the edge of the slot in the support bracket.

12. A display hook according to claim 11, wherein the notches are formed in respective latch fingers.

13. A display hook according to any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein the bracket is adapted for releasable mounting on a support panel having a longitudinal groove with undercut side walls, the mounting bracket having protrusions for engaging in the side wall undercuts.

14. A display hook according to any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein the bracket has a projection for engagement in a support member defining a slot having a mouth, and the support arm is arranged to protrude into the slot mouth for locking the projection against disengagement from the slot.

Drawing