Advertising Sheet Carrier

Abstract

A resilient card has upper and lower margins spaced to fit snugly into the upper and lower flanges of a price tag channel in a merchandising center. It serves to support a pack of detachable advertising sheets. Its mid portion is anchored to the channel by a strip of pressure sensitive adhesive which prevents the card from flexing sufficiently to permit its anchored margins to escape from the flanges.

Description

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

It has been quite common to mount packs of advertising sheets on supporting cards which are mounted adhesively on the edges of display shelves. In general, the support for the cards and the pack of sheets has been provided in whole or in part by adhesive connection to the shelf or price tag channel. Such adhesive connections tend to yield progressively over a period of time. The instant device is regarded as an improvement because it relies primarily on the stiffness of the card itself to provide the support.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A resiliently flexible card on which a pack of advertising sheets is mounted can be flexed for insertion behind the flanges of a price tag channel and has means for adhesive connection with the channel. The dimensions preclude insertion or removal of the card without flexing it to bring its margins closer together than the clearance between flanges. The adhesive has the primary or sole function of holding the card against flexion. Reliance is placed on the stiffness of the card to provide the necessary support for the pack. In normal use, the adhesive is not subject to tension but resists solely an outward flexion as distinguished from a bias exerted vertically.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view in front elevation of a card and pack embodying the invention, portions of an adjacent pack being fragmentarily illustrated.

FIG. 2 is a view in side elevation of the card and pack illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a view fragmentarily showing a shelf and price tag channel in vertical section with a card and pack illustrated in side elevation, the card being shown flexed for its attachment to the channel.

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 showing the completed attachment of the card to the channel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It is conventional to mount a price tag channel 6 on the front edge 8 of a shelf 10. The channel 6 usually comprises a convoluted central web 12 and marginal flanges 14 and 16 which are folded toward each other.

A relatively stiff but thin and resiliently flexible card 20 is adhesively attached to a pasteboard back 22 for the pack 24 of advertising sheets 26, these being connected with each other and with the back 22 by a layer 28 of glue.

Such cards have commonly been joined by a pressure-sensitive adhesive either directly to the shelf or to the price tag channel 6. Since the price tag channel usually has a transversely convoluted wall 12, the adhesive is usually coextensive with the card or the like which carries the pack of sheets. If the weight of the pack of sheets is sustained solely by such adhesive, the adhesive tends to yield over a period of time and cannot, therefore, be depended upon to provide continued support.

According to the present invention, the supporting card 20 has upper and lower marginal edges 30 and 32 which are so spaced as to fit snugly into the respective flanges 14 and 16 as shown in FIG. 4. The lower edge 32 may be made coextensive with the length of card 20 but in the preferred construction the lower marginal edges 32 are provided by one or more tabs 34, three being illustrated in FIG. 1. These tabs may optionally have hinge portions 35 connecting them with the rest of the card.

The spacing of the upper and lower edges exceeds the clearance between flanges 14 and 16 of the price tag channel. Consequently, in order to engage edges 30 and 32 in the flanges 14 and 16, it is necessary to flex the card or the tabs in the manner shown in FIG. 3. When the card and/or tabs is flexed, the edges will pass between the flanges 14 and 16. When the card and/or tabs is flattened out as indicated in FIG. 4, the edges are securely locked in flanges 14 and 16. All weight will then be supported by tabs 34.

The invention contemplates that the card and tabs will be anchored in this flattened condition. For this purpose, a strip of pressure-sensitive adhesive is provided at 36 on the back of the card 20. As shown in FIG. 2, this is covered by a protective strip 38 which can be pulled off to expose the adhesive before the device is mounted. As will clearly appear from comparison of FIGS. 3 and 4, the flattening of the card after the protective strip 38 has been moved will cause the pressure-sensitive adhesive strip 36 to adhere to the price tag channel 6.

The adhesive is not biased by the weight of the pack of sheets 24, such weight being sustained entirely by that portion by the lower margins 30 of tabs 25, or such other portions of card 20 as have lower margins engaged in flange 14. The sole function of the adhesive is to resist an outward flexing movement of the card 20 which might bring about the release of margins 30 and 32 from the flanges of the price tag channel. Under these conditions, the adhesive is not under tension and remains effective indefinitely and the card provides adequate support for the pack of sheets until all have been used.

At that time, manual flexing tension exerted on the card will readily withdraw it from the channel 6, leaving the channel open for insertion of a price tag or the supporting card for a substitute pack of sheets.

As indicated in FIG. 1, devices embodying the invention can be made in long series and subsequently severed into individual units A and B by transverse severance as at 40.

Claims

I claim:

1. In the combination of a display device and a support channel having spaced opposing flanges, the improvement in which said device comprises a supporting card of resiliently flexible material with upper and lower margins receivable between said flanges when flexed to reduce the space between said margins, the said margins being normally spaced farther apart than the clearance between said flanges and hence not adapted to pass between said flanges when said card is unflexed, and adhesive means between said margins for connecting to said channel a part of said card between its said margins for holding said card against flexing in a direction for release from said channel, the unflexed card having sufficient stiffness to support said device from the flange engaging its said lower margin and to substantially free the adhesive connection from the weight of the device.

2. A device according to claim 1 in which the card has at least one integral downwardly projecting tab with its free lower end providing its said lower margin.

3. A device according to claim 2 in which the device comprises a pack of sheets connected with the card to derive support therefrom.

4. A device according to claim 2 in which the card has a plurality of tabs with flange engageable supportig lower margins.

5. A display device adapted for mounting on a price channel having spaced opposing flanges, said device comprising a supporting card of resiliently flexible material with upper and lower margins receivable between said flanges when flexed to reduce the space between said margins, the said margins being normally spaced farther apart than the clearance between said flanges and hence not adapted to pass between said flanges when said card is unflexed, and adhesive means between said margins for connecting to said channel a part of said card between its said margins for holding said card against flexing in a direction for release from said channel, the unflexed card having sufficient stiffness to support said device from the flange engaging its said lower margin, said card having at least one integral downwardly projecting tab with its lower end providing its said lower margin, said device comprising a pack of sheets connected with the card to derive support therefrom, the lower margin of said tab being free for engagement in the channel, the pack of sheets having a backing element connected with said card independently of said tab.

6. A device according to claim 5 in which the tab is integrally connected at its upper portions to the card and has its side and bottom end portions severed from said card along lines within the card area, the backing element being connected with the card below the lower margin of said tab.

7. A device according to claim 1 in which the adhesive means comprises a strip of pressure-sensitive adhesive extending across the card and provided with a removable protective strip.

8. A device according to claim 7 which comprises a severed section of an elongated assemblage of a plurality of like devices on which said adhesive strip and protective strip extend substantially continuously.

9. The combination with a price tag channel having a central generally vertical web and upper and lower flanges spaced by said web, of a display device having a resiliently flexible supporting card provided with upper and lower margins engageable behind said flanges and spaced more widely than the clearance between said flanges and adapted to pass between said flanges for insertion and removal only when said card is flexed, said card having an intermediate adhesive portion in adhesive connection with the web of said channel, such connection resisting the flexing of the card and the card being sufficiently stiff to support the device when unflexed, the said connection being substantially free of the weight of said device.