Plastic Display Frame with Hingeable Clamping Rails
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing display frames for advertising and pricing systems are costly to produce and assemble, and the frequent replacement of advertising and pricing material is wasteful and expensive due to the need for frequent updates.
Innovation Solution
A display frame made from plastics material with a planar body and spaced flanges for receiving inserts, featuring a reliable clamping system with hingeable clamping-rails and spring-biased cam formations for secure attachment of graphic and pricing inserts, allowing for easy replacement and reuse of graphic materials.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional display frames are used with replaceable advertising material, then the ability to update pricing and advertising information is achieved, but the cost of production and assembly becomes significant
Solution Approach 1:
The frame is divided into a stationary body and separate hingeable clamping-rails that can be independently manufactured and assembled. The body includes peripheral sidewalls with slots, while the clamping-rails have lug formations that locate through these slots, allowing modular production and reducing manufacturing complexity and cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamping-rails serve multiple functions: they clamp the transparent screen to the body, provide a mechanism for inserting and removing pricing inserts, and can be opened to allow replacement of advertising material. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, simplifying manufacture.
2Reliability
If traditional display frames with secure clamping systems are used, then reliable attachment of graphic material is achieved, but the complexity of the frame structure increases
Solution Approach 1:
The clamping-rails are made hingeable rather than fixed, allowing them to move between closed (clamping) and open (replacement) positions. This dynamic capability provides reliable attachment during use while simplifying the replacement process, effectively reducing operational complexity without sacrificing reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring-biased cam formation automatically engages with the lug formation when the clamping-rail is closed, providing self-locking and reliable attachment without requiring additional fasteners or complex mechanisms. The spring bias ensures consistent clamping force while the cam geometry provides mechanical advantage.
3Adaptability or versatility
If frequent replacement of advertising and pricing material is performed, then updated information is displayed, but waste and replacement costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The frame design allows pricing inserts to be easily removed and reused for different products or pricing periods, while the transparent screen and advertising material can be retained and reused with different pricing inserts. This recovering of components reduces waste compared to disposable solutions.
Solution Approach 2:
The transparent screen is pre-mounted to the frame body, and the clamping-rails are pre-positioned with spring biases. This preliminary setup allows pricing inserts to be quickly swapped without requiring complete disassembly, reducing the time and material waste associated with frequent updates.
4Ease of operation
If hingeable clamping-rails with spring-biased cam formations are used, then easy replacement of inserts is achieved, but the manufacturing complexity of the clamping mechanism increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spring bias and cam formation are combined into a single integrated component rather than separate parts. This merging simplifies the manufacturing process by reducing the number of components that need to be produced and assembled, while still providing the hingeable, spring-biased clamping action for easy insert replacement.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a cost-effective, durable display frame that simplifies the attachment and replacement of graphic and pricing materials, reducing waste and production costs while maintaining structural integrity and flexibility for various applications.
Implementation Method 1
a spring biased cam formation which supports the second flanges in a position corresponding to a closed condition of the respective clamping-rails and provides an interference path for the second flanges as the respective clamping-rails are moved from the closed condition towards an open condition
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a display frame for graphic advertising material that is suited for use with a pricing system. The frame has a flat body which is traversed by parallel lipped channels that releasably receive inserts. The frame is moulded from plastics material with webs of the channels provided by connectors. The inserts are configured to display pricing in a manner that allows variation and these allow for pricing changes to be made while the same graphic material is maintained on the display frame. The graphic material may also be provided by inserts and removably secured in the channels. In a preferred embodiment, the frame has movable clamping-rails along outer edges. The clamping-rails are resiliently biased into a closed condition by clips with resiliently deformable cam formations to retain a suitably sized poster and/or transparent screen against the front side of the frame. The clamping-rails and clips for biasing the rails are also moulded from plastics material.