Semi-automatic assembly display hutch

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10568439-B2
Application number	US-201815982007-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 17, 2018
Priority date	May 17, 2018
Publication date	Feb 25, 2020
Grant date	Feb 25, 2020

Abstract

A display hutch that may be shipped flat, then semi-automatically constructed by pushing downward and rearward on a rear shelf panel, then pushing downward and rearward on each of a plurality of front shelf panels.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A display hutch comprising:
a rear wall extending vertically from a base to a top edge and horizontally from one rear vertical edge to another rear vertical edge;
two side walls, each side wall extending forward from a rear vertical edge to a front vertical edge;
a plurality of front panels, each front panel extending laterally between the two side walls and hingedly attached to each side wall along the front vertical edges, the front panels defining a front façade;
the rear wall, the side walls and the front panels defining a hutch body having an interior;
a rear support substantially disposed within the interior; and
a plurality of shelves, each shelf comprising a front shelf panel and a rear shelf panel, the front shelf panel affixed to the rear shelf panel to form a load bearing surface;
a plurality of inner lip panels, each attached to a front panel along a first fold line, each inner lip panel extending downwardly from the first fold line;
each front shelf panel hingedly attached to an inner lip panel along a shelf front fold line, each front shelf panel extending horizontally rearward from the shelf front fold line; and
a rear attachment panel hingedly connected to each rear shelf panel along a rear attachment panel fold line, each rear attachment panel attached to the rear support, the rear support interposed between the rear attachment panels and the rear wall, wherein:
each front panel extends above the load bearing surface of the shelf to which it is directly connected by an inner lip panel to form a lip to help keep products on the shelf.

2. The hutch of claim 1 , wherein:
the rear shelf panels are operably connected to each other so that they are moveable in unison from a first position in which the rear shelf panels are vertically oriented to a second position in which the rear shelf panels are horizontally oriented.

3. The hutch of claim 2 , wherein:
in the second position the rear shelf panels are orthogonal to the rear support.

4. The hutch of claim 1 , wherein:
the rear wall, the side walls, the front panels, the front shelf panels, the rear shelf panels and the rear attachment panels are formed from a first blank; and
the rear support is formed from a second blank.

5. The hutch of claim 1 further comprising:
a plurality of intermediate horizontal panels, each hingedly attached to a rear shelf panel along an rear shelf panel fold line; and
an half panel foldably connected to the rear wall and extending forward from the rear wall to a line between the rear wall and the front façade, the half panel attached to the intermediate horizontal panels along the a series of co-linear intermediate fold lines.

6. The hutch of claim 2 wherein:
when the shelves are in the second position the rear support is adjacent the rear wall.

7. The hutch of claim 1 further comprising:
a tab attached to each front shelf panel along a tab fold line; and
each rear shelf panel defines a slot configured to receive a tab.

8. The hutch of claim 1 further comprising:
a glue panel foldably connected to the intermediate horizontal panels along intermediate vertical fold lines, the glue panel being adhered to a side wall.

9. The hutch of claim 2 wherein:
each front shelf panel is separately movable between a vertical orientation and a horizontal orientation.

10. A method of constructing a hutch comprising the steps of:
providing a display hutch comprising a rear wall having two rear vertical edges 20 , a side wall foldably attached to each rear vertical edge 20 and having a front vertical edge, a plurality of front panels, each front panel hingedly attached to both side walls, a plurality of shelves, each shelf comprising a front shelf panel affixed to a rear shelf panel to form a load bearing surface, each front shelf panel hingedly attached to a front panel, each rear shelf panel hingedly attached to an intermediate horizontal panel along an rear shelf panel fold line, a rear attachment panel hingedly connected to each rear shelf panel, and a rear support attached to each rear attachment panel, a plurality of inner lip panels, each inner lip panel attached to a front panel along a first fold line, wherein each front panel extends above the load bearing surface of the shelf to which it is directly connected by an inner lip panel to form a lip to help keep products on the shelf;
rotating the rear shelf panels in unison by rotating one of the rear shelf panels around an rear shelf panel fold line until all of the rear shelf panels are in a horizontal orientation and the rear support abuts the rear wall; and
individually moving each front shelf panel rearward and downward until each front shelf panel is in a horizontal orientation.

11. The method of claim 10 comprising the further step of:
inserting a tab extending from each front shelf panel into a slot defined by each rear shelf panel to lock the front and rear shelf panels together.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein:
the rotating in unison step comprises rotating a topmost rear shelf panel.

Assignees

• Sonoco Dev Inc

Inventors

• Bersamin Glen

Classifications

• A47F5/116 Primary

  Shelving racks · CPC title

• A47F3/004 Primary

  adjustable, foldable or easily dismountable · CPC title

• A47B43/00

  Cabinets, racks or shelf units, characterised by features enabling folding of the cabinet or the like · CPC title