Shelf for a goods rack

Abstract

The invention relates to a shelf for a goods rack, with a grid body which has a plurality of grid bars arranged sequentially next to one another to form intermediate spaces, which are connected to one another via support elements, and with at least one console element, wherein the console element has connecting sections for coupling the console element to a vertically supporting structure, the console element has recesses which are matched to the geometry of the grid body so that sections of the support elements can be inserted into the recesses, the grid bars are arranged parallel to one another and in the coupling region of the console element to the grid body an omission zone is provided by omitting a grid bar or by increasing the spacing of adjacent grid bars and the console element partially dips into an envelope region of the grid bars which is thus kept free of a grid bar.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a shelf base for a merchandise rack, comprising a grid body having a plurality of spaced-apart grid bars forming intermediate spaces, which are interconnected via support elements, and at least one bracket element having connecting sections for coupling the bracket element to a vertically supporting structure. The bracket element has recesses that are matched to the geometry of the grid body such that sections of the support elements can be inserted into the recesses of the bracket element. The grid bars are arranged parallel to one another with equal spacing and extend in a grid bar envelope in the shape of a flat rectangular cuboid.

[0002] A shelf of the above-mentioned type is known from EP 2 389 836 B1. The coupling of the grid body to the console element occurs by engaging complementary geometries, and the grid body is pivoted into the complementary geometries of the console element.

[0003] From EP 2 389 838 B1 a shelf of the above-mentioned type is also known, wherein the brackets are attached to the lattice body in the side area thereof and end sections of the support elements engage in cutouts of the brackets.

[0004] Another prior art is known from US 6 024 333 A. This document also discloses a shelf with corresponding console elements with recesses, which allows for simplified insertion of the shelf onto the console elements.

[0005] The invention is based on the object of demonstrating solutions by means of which it is possible to create a shelf which offers advantages over previous designs from a manufacturing point of view as well as in the context of its use in a shelving system.

[0006] This object is achieved according to the invention by a shelf for a goods rack, comprising: - a lattice body comprising a plurality of lattice bars arranged sequentially next to one another, forming intermediate spaces, which are connected to one another via girder elements, and - at least one console element, wherein - the console element has connecting sections for coupling the console element to a vertically supporting structure, - the console element has recesses that are adapted to the geometry of the lattice body so that sections of the beam elements can be inserted into the recesses, - the grid bars are arranged parallel to each other and an omission zone is provided in the coupling area of ​​the console element to the grid body by omitting the grid bar or by extending the spacing of adjacent grid bars and - the console element partially extends into an area of ​​the envelope surrounding the bars which is kept free of a lattice bar.

[0007] This advantageously makes it possible to create a shelf in which the respective bracket element replaces a lattice bar in its connection area to the lattice body, and its upper edge assumes the supporting function of the substituted lattice bar. This results in a gain in installation space for the bracket element, which allows the height of the bracket element to be increased by the height of a lattice bar, thereby achieving an increase in strength. Furthermore, the formation of gaps between the lattice bar and the bracket element is avoided.

[0008] It is also possible to insert the console element between the divisions.

[0009] The shelf base is preferably designed so that the enclosure of the bars has a substantially flat, cuboid shape. The bars are arranged adjacently within this enclosure, equally spaced. The upper side of the enclosure defines a product support level. The upper edge of the console element extends to this product support level.

[0010] Overall, according to a particular aspect of the present invention, the shelf base is designed in such a way that the engagement of a console element on the grid body occurs at a position at which, in accordance with the division of the other grid bars, a grid bar would in principle be positioned, and the supporting function of this grid bar is taken over by an upper edge region of the console element in that this upper edge region of the console element projects from below, passing through the envelope, to the upper side, i.e. the top side of the envelope. The console element and the grid body are thus designed to be coordinated with one another in such a way that, when the two structures are joined, an upper edge of the console element is flush with an upper product support level defined by the grid bars.

[0011] The bracket element is preferably cut from sheet metal. The wall thickness or strength of this sheet metal preferably corresponds to the thickness or diameter of the grid bars. The bracket element can also be manufactured as a formed part or as a folded or double-walled component. The bracket element can also be manufactured as a bent wire part.

[0012] The shelf is preferably supported by two bracket elements. These bracket elements are preferably located in the area of ​​the left and right side ends of the shelf or in an intermediate area between the side ends and the so-called Bessel points. Preferably, additional bars, for example, six to ten, in particular nine bars, are provided between the brackets and the side ends of the grid body, so that the respective bracket element does not directly form the side end of the shelf.

[0013] The bracket elements can be designed to support the shelf in an orientation in which the product support plane defined by the envelope of the bars is horizontal. The bracket elements can also be designed so that the shelf is inclined, so that, in particular, the front transverse edge of the shelf runs horizontally at a height that is below the height of the rear end edge of the envelope enclosing the bars.

[0014] It can also prove advantageous to have the front edge higher than the back edge of the shelf. This is called a "pre-rise."

[0015] The orientation of the shelf can be determined, in particular, by the orientation in which the respective bracket element is attached to a supporting structure, in particular a vertical stand. The bracket element is preferably attached to the vertical stand by means of retaining geometries through which the bracket element engages or engages with the vertical stand.

[0016] The shelf is further preferably designed such that the bars of the grid body are connected by a front cross bar, wherein the cross bar is attached to the bars from below and is preferably welded to them.

[0017] The shelf base is further preferably designed such that the support elements are made of a flat material. The support elements and the grid bars are preferably welded together. The flat material strip can be prepared during production to provide small, trough-like support recesses for contacting the grid bars. These support recesses also contain small projections, which, during a pressure welding process, provide the material for forming the press connection point. The support recesses can be prepared by punching or cutting, and the small material overhang for forming the weld point can be formed by forming.The design of the overhang in the recess is preferably such that during the pressure welding no material is pressed into the angular area between the respective rod and the wall of the console element and thus a flat weld joint is formed without, or without a material bead bulging out significantly to the side of the weld.

[0018] In a more advanced version, two or more front crossbars are used. These can be arranged in a conventional manner or, depending on the requirements of the floor, on the bars of the lattice body.

[0019] The engagement of the grid body with the bracket element preferably occurs with temporary elastic deformation of the grid body, in particular a section of a support beam element, and / or slight elastic bending of the grid bars. In the locked state, sections of the support beam elements can then be seated in recesses of the respective bracket element and, in this position, prevented from moving out by lugs, stops, or projections in the area of ​​the recess.

[0020] The shape and position of the recesses in the console element can be adapted to the geometry of the grid body in such a way that the engagement of the grid body with the console element takes place in conjunction with a pivoting movement, whereby shortly before the joining state is achieved, structures of the grid base and structures of the console are displaced against each other by elastic deformation and move back when the joining position is achieved, resulting in an overall blocking or locking in this state.

[0021] The shelf can be designed in such a way that weighing processes can be carried out on it. For this purpose, measuring elements or sensors can be provided in particular on the consoles, which generate signals indicative of the weight or a change in weight of the goods placed on the shelf. Several sensors can be connected to the consoles or the grid floor so that the removal position of a product and, if applicable, its weight can be determined by means of combined signal evaluation. The shelf can thus form a component of a detection system by means of which the presence of goods on a shelf or the removal and removal location of a product from the shelf can be detected using sensors.

[0022] Further details and features of the invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawing. It shows: Fig. 1 a perspective view of a shelf according to the invention with two console elements integrated therein, wherein the console elements ultimately substitute for two grid bars of the grid body and fill their space; Fig. 2 a perspective view exclusively of the grid body of the shelf according to the invention according to Fig. 1 without console elements and thus without visible lattice bar releases; Fig. 3 a perspective view of a console element of the shelf according to the invention according to Fig. 1; Fig. 4 a perspective view of the support element of a shelf according to the invention with recesses formed thereon which engage in recesses of the corresponding console element; Fig. 5 a side view of the shelf in a state with the grid body not yet fully pivoted into the console element.

[0023] The representation according to Fig. 1 shows a shelf R according to the invention for a merchandise rack. This consists of a lattice body 3 having a plurality of lattice bars 4 arranged sequentially next to one another, forming intermediate spaces Z, which are connected to one another via support elements 5. Furthermore, the shelf comprises a first bracket element 1 and a second bracket element 2, wherein both bracket elements 1, 2 have connecting sections 1a, 2a for coupling the bracket element 1, 2 to a vertically supporting structure (not shown here).

[0024] Furthermore, each of the console elements has 1, 2 recesses (cf. Fig. 3 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e) which are matched to the geometry of the lattice body 3 so that sections of the downstand elements 5 can be inserted into the recesses. The lattice bars 4 are arranged parallel to one another, and in the coupling area of ​​the respective console element 1, 2 to the lattice body 3, an omission zone F is provided by omitting one lattice bar 4 or by increasing the spacing between adjacent lattice bars 4. The respective console element 1, 2 partially extends into an envelope area of ​​the lattice bars 4 which is thus kept free of a lattice bar 4.

[0025] The envelope defined by the entirety of the lattice bars 4 has a substantially flat, cuboidal shape. The lattice bars 4 are arranged adjacently with equal spacing.

[0026] As can be seen from the illustration Fig. 2, the engagement of a console element with the grid body 3 occurs at a position at which, according to the pitch of the grid bars 4, a grid bar 4 would be positioned, and the supporting function of this missing grid bar 4 is taken over by an upper edge region of the console element 1, 2, in that this upper edge region projects from below to the upper side, passing through the envelope of the grid bars 4. The console element 1, 2 and the grid body 3 are designed to be coordinated with one another in such a way that, when the two structures are joined, an upper edge of the console element 1, 2 is flush with an upper product support level defined by the grid bars 4.

[0027] The lattice bars 4 of the lattice body 3 are connected by a front crossbar 6, which is attached to the lattice bars 4 from below. The downstand elements 5 are made of a flat material. The downstand elements 5 and the lattice bars 4 are welded together.

[0028] In the embodiment shown here, the bars 4a, 4b adjacent to the clearance zone are also shortened. This creates a space through which a vertical post of the shelf support can extend. The bracket element 1 is fixed to this vertical post at a desired height.

[0029] The representation according to Fig. Figure 3 illustrates the structure and design of a console element 1, 2. Recesses 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e are visible on this console element 1, in which the support beam elements 5 are seated when the grid body 3 is joined to the console element 1. This illustration also shows the connecting section 1a of the console element 1, by means of which the console element 1 can be locked to a vertical post. In this exemplary embodiment, the connecting section 1a comprises an upper hook section 11, which is subjected to tensile stress in the assembled position, and a lower insertion section 12, which is subjected to compressive stress in the assembled position. The console element 1 can be mounted in the corresponding shelf without tools. It is possible to first assemble the console elements 1, 2 without a grid shelf and then add the grid shelves. Preferably, however, the console elements 1, 2 are first mounted to the grid shelf and the unit thus created is then suspended from the shelf upright.

[0030] The representation according to Fig. 4 shows a beam element 5. This consists of a flat material, in particular a rolled steel profile. Small recesses 5a, 5b are formed on the beam element 5. These recesses 5a, 5b form walls that generate a stop function and, in particular, determine the lateral position of the respective console element 1, 2 in the free space F provided by the omission of a lattice bar 4. In addition, lugs can also engage in this recess 5a, which engage in the recesses 1b, 1c, 1d of the console element 1 (cf. Fig. 3) are trained.

[0031] As can be seen from the illustration Fig. 5, the engagement of the grid body 3 with the console element 1 occurs in conjunction with a pivoting movement M, wherein shortly before the joining state is achieved, structures of the grid base and structures of the console 1 are displaced against each other by elastic deformation and, upon reaching the joining position, move back and cause a locking in this position. The engagement of the grid body 3 with the console element 1 occurs under temporary elastic deformation of the grid body 3, in particular of a section of a girder element and / or slight elastic bending of the grid bars 4. First, the three left-hand girder elements 5' visible in this illustration dip into the recesses 1c, 1d, 1e and the lugs formed at the top of the recesses 1c, 1d, 1e dip into the recesses 5a (cf. Fig.4) of the down-beam elements 5. Now, the down-beam element on the right in this illustration rests against the material of the console element 1 in the area surrounding the recess 1e. When the grid body 3 is loaded, the grid bars 4 bend slightly, and the down-beam element 5 snaps into the recess 1e. In this state, the grid body 3 is secured to the console element 1. Particularly with regard to the coupling of the grid body 3 to the console element, the disclosure content of the aforementioned documents EP 2 389 838 B1 and EP 2 389 836 B1 is fully incorporated into the present description of the invention.

[0032] In the previously described embodiment, the grid bars 4 are arranged at equal spacing from one another, and only in the area where a bracket element engages the grid body is a window left open, in which no grid bar 4 is provided. The inventive concept can also be implemented in such a way that the bracket element penetrates into a space between two grid bars and extends from below to the level where the goods are displayed. The support elements can also be made from a round material or from two parallel round material bars.

[0033] The console elements here are manufactured as cut or stamped parts from a sheet material. They can also be manufactured as bent wire parts or as double-walled components, especially with a closed U-shaped cross-section.

[0034] Particularly when arranging the brackets in the grid body 3 while maintaining the spacing of the grid bars 4, it is possible to integrate the brackets 1, 2 visually unobtrusively into the shelf base, resulting in an attractive appearance. An upper edge area of ​​the bracket element, in the assembled position of the bracket element, thus extends into the grid base at a location that would otherwise be occupied by a grid bar 4. The bracket element 1 thus replaces a grid bar and utilizes the installation space thus freed up, thereby increasing its strength. List of reference symbols R shelf Z spaces F Omission zone, free space M Swing-in movement 1 console, (first) console element 2 Console, (second) console element 1a, 2a connecting sections 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e recess, cutout 3 lattice bodies 4, 4a, 4b lattice bar 5.5' beam element 5a, 5b (small) recesses 6 front cross bar 11 Hook section 12 Insert section

Claims

[1] Shelf (R) for a goods rack, with: - a lattice body (3) which has a plurality of lattice bars (4, 4a, 4b) arranged sequentially next to one another to form intermediate spaces (Z), which are connected to one another via support elements (5, 5'), and - at least one console element (1, 2), wherein - the console element (1, 2) has connecting sections (1a, 2a) for coupling the console element (1, 2) to a vertically supporting structure, - the console element (1, 2) has recesses (1b, 1c, 1d, 1e) which are adapted to the geometry of the lattice body (3) so that sections of the beam elements (5, 5') can be inserted into the recesses (5a, 5b), - the grid bars (4, 4a, 4b) are arranged parallel to one another and an omission zone (F) is provided in a coupling area of ​​the console element (1, 2) to the grid body (3) by omitting a grid bar (4, 4a, 4b) or by extending the spacing of adjacent grid bars (4, 4a, 4b) and - the console element (1, 2) partially extends into an envelope area of ​​the lattice bars (4, 4a, 4b) kept free by a lattice bar (4, 4a, 4b), wherein the grid bars (4, 4a, 4b) are arranged adjacently with the same pitch, wherein the engagement of a console element (1, 2) on the grid body (3) takes place at a position at which a grid bar (4, 4a, 4b) would be positioned according to the division of the grid bars (4, 4a, 4b) and the supporting function of this grid bar (4, 4a, 4b) is taken over by an upper edge region of the console element (1, 2), in that this upper edge region projects from below to the upper side of the envelope, and wherein the console element (1, 2) and the grid body (3) are designed to be matched to one another in such a way that, when the two structures are joined, an upper edge of the console element (1, 2) is flush with an upper product support level defined by the grid bars (4, 4a, 4b). [2] Shelf according to claim 1, characterized by that the envelope of the lattice bars (4, 4a, 4b) has essentially a flat cuboid shape. [3] Shelf according to at least one of claims 1 to 2, characterized by that the grid bars (4, 4a, 4b) of the grid body (3) are connected by a front cross bar (6), wherein the cross bar (6) is attached to the grid bars (4, 4a, 4b) from below. [4] Shelf according to at least one of claims 1 to 3, characterized by that the support elements (5, 5') are made of a flat material and / or that the support elements (5, 5') and the grid bars (4, 4a, 4b) are welded together. [5] Shelf according to at least one of claims 1 to 4, characterized by that the engagement of the grid body (3) with the console element (1, 2) is effected by temporary elastic deformation of the grid body (3), in particular of a section of a support element (5, 5') and / or slight elastic bending of the grid bars (4, 4a, 4b). [6] Shelf according to at least one of claims 1 to 5, characterized bythat the engagement of the grid body (3) with the console element (1, 2) takes place in conjunction with a pivoting movement, wherein shortly before the joining state is achieved, structures of the grid base and structures of the console (1, 2) are displaced against each other by elastic deformation and move back when the joining position is reached and cause a blocking in this position.

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