Slide Through Shelf

• US 20100065523A1
• Filed: 09/15/2008
• Published: 03/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Southern Imperial Incorporated (FFR DSI Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Southern Imperial Incorporated (FFR DSI Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Northrup, Robert L. JR., Bennett, Richard A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,162,158 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 211/90.20
• CPC Class Codes: A47F 5/005 Partitions therefore horizontally adjustable A47B57/58; constructional details of drawers A47B88/90
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49826 Assembling or joining

Abstract

A slide through shelf is provided. A slide through shelf is illustrated mounted to a vertical retail wall. A slide through shelf as disclosed allows a user to selectably position the slide through shelf s supports in an infinite number of configurations. The slide through shelf may be quickly assembled to accommodate different types of loading and may be adjusted to provide customized product partitioning.

Claims

1. An adjustable shelf for retail merchandise comprising:

a shelf; and

a plurality of support members, wherein the shelf passes through an opening of each of the plurality of support members, the plurality of support members selectably positionable along a length of the shelf and relative to one another.

2. The adjustable shelf of claim 1 wherein the opening is adapted to receive a corresponding profile of the shelf and provide in combination with the shelf an interference fit when loaded with retail merchandise due to flexure in the shelf when loaded with retail merchandise such that the shelf is prevented from displacement relative to each of the plurality of support members along a longitudinal axis of the shelf, said shelf having a slip fit receipt within the opening of the plurality of support members when the shelf is free of retail merchandise whereby each of the plurality of support members may be adjusted relative to one another along the longitudinal axis of the shelf.

3. The adjustable shelf of claim 2 wherein the shelf is constrained to a single axial degree of freedom along the longitudinal axis of the shelf when the shelf is received by the plurality of support members.

4. The adjustable shelf of claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of support members is connected to a vertical retail wall.

5. The adjustable shelf of claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of support members provides a means for separating retail merchandise contained on the shelf.

6. The adjustable shelf of claim 1 wherein a profile of the shelf perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the shelf is entirely surrounded by the opening of the plurality of support members and is constrained to a single axial degree of freedom along the longitudinal axis of the shelf when the shelf is received by the plurality of support members.

7. The adjustable shelf of claim 6 wherein the shelf and support members are made from a transparent material and wherein the shelf has a length of between about six inches to about one hundred twenty inches, a width of between about two inches to about twenty four inches, and the plurality of support members extend transversely away from the backing wall a length of between about four inches to about twenty six inches.

8. The adjustable shelf of claim 1 wherein the opening of each support member includes an opening top edge, an opening bottom edge spaced apart from and opposed to the opening top edge and a pair of opening lateral edges spaced apart from one another extending transverse to the opening top and bottom edges, and wherein the profile of the shelf substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the shelf has shelf top and bottom edges that are spaced apart from one another and a pair of shelf lateral edges that are spaced apart from one another and extend transverse to one another, the shelf top edge contact the opening top edge, the shelf bottom edge contacting the opening bottom edge and one of the pair of shelf lateral edges contacting one of the opening lateral edges and the other one of the shelf lateral edges contacting the other one of the opening lateral edges thereby constraining movement of the shelf substantially only along the longitudinal axis of the shelf.

9. The adjustable shelf of claim 1, wherein the opening is U-shaped and the profile of the shelf has a corresponding U-shape substantially providing movement of the shelf relative to the support members along only a single degree of freedom.

10. A retail shelving and divider system comprising:

a vertical retail wall having a plurality of apertures or slots;

a shelf; and

a plurality of support members mounted to the apertures or slots, wherein the shelf is mounted to each of the plurality of support members such that two adjacent support members in combination with the shelf and the vertical retail wall define a retail merchandise region adapted to receive retail merchandise.

11. The retail shelving and divider system of claim 10 wherein each of the plurality of support members includes a backing wall, a support wall integral with the backing wall and extending generally transverse therefrom, a mounting flange integral with the backing wall and disposed of above the backing wall, and an opening extending through the support wall, whereby the opening is adapted to receive a corresponding profile of the shelf, the shelf being generally transverse to the support walls when mounted thereto.

12. The retail shelving and divider system of claim 11 wherein the opening constrains the shelf to a single axial degree of freedom along a longitudinal axis of the shelf when the shelf is received by the plurality of support members.

13. The retail shelving and divider system of claim 11 wherein the support wall provides a means for dividing and separating retail merchandise contained in adjacent retail merchandise regions.

14. The retail shelving and divider system of claim 11 wherein the vertical retail wall is a slatwall, the mounting flange of each of the plurality of the support members mounting to a channel of the slatwall.

15. The retail shelving and divider system of claim 10 wherein the shelf and the plurality of support members are made from a transparent material and the shelf has a length of between about six inches to about one hundred twenty inches, a width of about two inches to about twenty four inches, the bottom wall of the opening has a length of between about two inches to twenty four inches, and the support wall extends transversely away from the backing wall a length of between about four inches to about twenty six inches.

16. The retail shelving and divider system of claim 11, wherein each opening is generally U-shaped and the shelf has a profile that has a corresponding U-shape sized relative to each opening for a slip fit through the opening.

17. A method for assembling a slide through shelf comprising the steps of:

selecting a plurality of support members; and

sliding a shelf through an opening of each of the plurality of support members thereby fixing the location of the shelf relative to the support members along two degrees of freedom.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising the step of mounting each of the support members onto a vertical retail wall.

19. The method of claim 17 further comprising the step of adjusting the support members to correspond to retail merchandise region sizes.

20. The method of claim 17 further comprising the step of determining an appropriate number of support members to define the plurality of support members based on a load to be carried by the shelf when loaded with retail merchandise.