WO2012123771A1

WO2012123771A1 - Magnetic display holder

Info

Publication number: WO2012123771A1
Application number: PCT/IB2011/000564
Authority: WO
Inventors: Pier Luigi BRONZONI
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2011-03-16
Filing date: 2011-03-16
Publication date: 2012-09-20
Anticipated expiration: 2013-09-16

Abstract

A display holder (10) comprises a first part (3) fixed to the ceiling and provided with a pair of magnets,- and a second part (4) which retains a display and engages said first part by a second pair of magnets provided thereon. An operator can disengage the second part from first part by simply clamping a pair of protrusions each connected to a slider supporting one second magnet, thus detaching first magnets from second magnets and pulling it down, replace the display with a new one and, reengage the second part to the fixed first part.

Description

MAGNETIC DISPLAY HOLDER

The present invention relates to a display holder, and more particularly to a demountable display holder as advertisement support.

Display holders currently adopted in supermarkets, malls and the like are generally constituted by a metallic rod having a rectangular or circular cross section and provided with a hollow along its longitudinal axis; inside the hollow a set of rollers made of plastic or aluminium are housed and arranged in opposed relation to one another in order to retain a display edge. It is to be envisioned that such rod is hung at an height from the floor typically ranging from a minimum of 2,80 m to 3,20 m and it is also fixed to the ceiling through a pair of steel cables having a variable length; for such reason both installation and removal of a display from the supporting rod become complicated and also dangerous operations. As it is conceivable the whole installing or removing operation is executed by one operator necessarily on ladder and another operator on the floor. Due to this issue often display holder is either not adopted or inadequately fixed, for example, by tape. Moreover the aforesaid opposed roller mechanism, while retaining display, makes its replacement more difficult, especially at this height. A wrong exhibition of display affects advertisement for special offers or advertising campaigns for the public.

Main object of the present invention is therefore to provide a display holder able to noticeably simplify replacement of the display, operation which can be executed by only one operator on the floor thus not requiring any ladder.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a display holder in which every kind of mechanical and electrical devices such as cables, winches, rotors has been eliminated.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a cost effective display holder both in terms of use and manufacturing. These and other advantages of the display holder according to the present invention will be clear from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment taken with reference to the annexed drawings, in which:

fig. 1 is a front view of a preferred embodiment of display holder according to the present invention in its showing position;

fig. 2 is a front view of the embodiment in fig. 1 in its display replacement position; fig. 3 is a cross sectional view of the fixed part in fig. 1;

fig. 4 is a cross sectional view of the dismountable part in fig. 1 ;

fig. 5 is an exploded front view of the dismountable part in fig. 1;

fig. 6 is a front view of an alternative embodiment according to the present invention in its showing position;

fig. 6a is a top view of an enlarged detail of fig. 6;

fig. 7 is a front view of embodiment in fig. 6 in its display replacement position; and fig. 7a is a top view of an enlarged detail of fig. 7.

With reference now to fig. 1, a display holder 10 is shown fixed by a pair of steel cables 1 to the ceiling, the cables being in turn hooked to a corresponding pair of eyelets 2 formed on a top surface of said display holder 10. Fig. 1 also shows an example display 5 retained by the display holder 10 in its showing position. In fig. 2 there is shown the display holder 10 in its display replacement position in which a fixed part 3 and a dismountable part 4 can be separated in order to allow for replacing display 5.

As shown in fig. 3, said fixed part 3, which during display replacement remains fixed to the ceiling, has an hollow portion and a pair of magnets 6 provided therein; preferably the magnets 6 are arranged at each ends of the fixed portion.

Turning now to figs. 4 and 5, the dismountable part 4 has a bottom triangular cross section and a hollow - running along the whole longitudinal axis of part 4 - in which the upper edge of the display 5 can be inserted and held in place; on the top of said part 4 there are formed a longitudinal' slot 8 having on one of its shoulder two pairs of through-holes 9 each pair being symmetrically disposed in respect of the middle portion of the part 4. A pair of magnets 7 is provided to match positions of magnets 6 of the fixed part 3 once in showing position. Each of said magnets 7 is fixed to a first end of a slider 11, the other end of which has a protruding portion 12 and is connected to a first end of a spring 13; each slider 11 is also provided at one lateral face thereof with a guide 14 having approximatively the same length of the slider 11. According to such configuration, in the top slot 8 of part 4 there are housed sliders 11 and the spring 13 which connects the ends of said sliders having said protrusions 12; in each through-hole 9 of each of said pairs formed on part 4 a pin 15 is inserted in order to engage lateral guide 14 of each slider 11, thus avoiding it to exiting housing slot 8 under spring pushing action. The spring 13 can be selected so as to maintain a compressed condition even when sliders 11 are in thei respective outermost position, that is when magnets 7 match positions of magnets 6, respectively.

Therefore interacting magnetic field between each pair of magnets 6 and 7, respectively, provides the necessary supporting force for hanging the dismountable part 4 at fixed part 3. Fig. 2 also shows in the middle portion of the part 4 the pair of protruding portions 12 each integral with each slider 11 , said pair being engageable by a clamp 16 formed at one end of a rod 17; in this manner the operator on the floor, handling said rod 17 at the other end thereof, is able to clamp pair of protruding portions 12 and compress spring 13 thus causing sliders 11 to move towards each other and laterally detach magnets 7 from magnets 6. In this manner operator can remove part 4 from part 3 without any need of exerting a pulling action.

Referring to figs. 6 to 7, there is shown an alternative embodiment of the display holder 10 in which dismounting of the part 4 from the fixed part 3 occurs by moving sliders 1 apart from each other and separating- magnets 7 from magnets 6 against the returning action of the spring 13. Said spring 13 is therefore dimensioned so as to be in rest condition when magnets 7 match position of magnets 6 and in elongated condition when sliders 11— supporting magnets: 7— are moved apart from each other. A device 18 is suitably placed between said sliders 11 at the spring 13 and provided with a plate 19 having slots 18a and 18b orthogonal in respect of each other and a spacing bar 20 engaging alternatively said slots 18a and 18b. In the showing position of the display holder 10 said spacing bar 20 engages the slot 18a in order to allow the spring 13 for reaching its rest condition whilst during dismount of the part 4 from fixed part 3 it can be engaged in the slot 18b thus forcing sliders 11 to move apart from each other and the magnets 7 to be out of alignment in respect of magnets 6. Switching of the spacing bar 20 from engagements provided by each slot 18a and 18b is achieved with a tip 21 at end of the rod 17, said tip 21 being able to mate a hole 20a formed on said spacing bar 20.

In an alternative embodiment according to the present invention, slot 8 on the top of the dismountable part 4 can be replaced by a rail (not shown) and sliders 11 housed in said slot 8 by runners (not shown) slideably constrained to said rail. For example, said rail may have a conventional dovetail cross section and the runners a complementary engageable. cross section allowing only a lateral movement of the runners in respect of the rail.

It is envisioned that several modifications and variations can be applied to the display holder according to the present invention relating, for example, the number and position of the magnets adopted, or shape of the fixed and dismountable parts, or even the material the holder is made of, all such modifications and variations obvious for those skilled in the art and therefore falling within the scope of the present invention as claimed below.

Claims

. A display holder (10) particularly suitable for advertisements hung at fixed structure comprising:

(i) a part (3) fixed at said structure,

(ii) a dismountable part (4) magnetically engageable with said fixed part (4), c h a r a c t e ri z e d b y th e fa c t th a t said fixed part (3) is provided with at least one first magnet (6), said dismountable part (4) is provided with a hollow in which an edge of said display can be inserted and held in place and with at least one second magnet (7) slideable from a first position matching position of said at least one first magnet (6) to a position outside the magnetic field of said at least one first magnet (6).

2. The display holder ( 0) according to claim 1, in which said at least one second magnet (7) is fixed on a slider (11) linearly constrained over said dismountable part (4), said slider (11) being biased towards said magnet matching position by elastic means (13).

3. The display holder (10) according to claim 2, in which said elastic means ( 3) is a linear spring connected to one end of said slider (11), said end being provided with protrusion (12).

4. The display holder (10) according to claim 2, in which said elastic means (13) is a linear spring connected to one end of said slider (11), said end being displaceable in two different positions provided by a spacing bar (20) rotatably fixed to a plate (19) fixed at said dismountable part (4).

5. The display holder ( 0) according to claim 3, comprising a pair of first magnets (6) each placed at each end of said fixed part (3) and a pai of sliders (11) each having one second magnet (5), said spring (13) being interposed between said pair of sliders (11).

6. The display holder (10) according to claim 1, in which said dismountable part (4) has a hollow triangular cross section open at one apex thereof for insertion of said display.

7. The display holder (10) according to one or more preceding claims, in which at least one eyelet (2) is formed on said fixed part (3), said eyelet; (2) being fixed to upper fixed structure, preferably by a steel cable (1).

8. The display holde (10) according to one or more preceding claims, in which said fixed part (3) or said dismountable part (4) are made of plastic material.

9. The display holder (10) according to one or more preceding claims, i which said fixed part (3) or said dismountable part (4) are made of metallic material.

10. The display holder (10) according to one or more preceding claims, in which said fixed part (3) or said dismountable part (4) are made of wood.