Pusher Tray Assembly for Easy Spring Replacement and Loading
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current spring-driven pusher plates in product display shelves face issues such as spring breakage, requiring disassembly for replacement, difficulty in maintaining the pusher plate's rear position during product loading, and impaired refrigeration due to cold air settling, as well as the need for adjustable trays to accommodate different product widths.
Innovation Solution
A pusher tray assembly comprising a hanging tray and a sliding tray with a wire track, where the pusher engages with the wire track and center tray tracks to allow movement between positions, enabling spring replacement without disassembly, maintaining the pusher plate's rear position, and adjustable dividers to prevent cold air migration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If spring driven pusher plates are used to automatically push product forward, then product presentation is improved, but spring breakage occurs requiring disassembly for replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The pusher assembly is divided into modular components: the pusher plate, spring mechanism, and tray unit are separable. The spring can be accessed and replaced by simply detaching the pusher plate from the tray, without requiring disassembly of the entire tray unit. This segmentation allows independent replacement of the spring component.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring is extracted as a separate, independently replaceable component from the pusher assembly. The design allows the spring to be removed and replaced by extracting it from the pusher mechanism without affecting other components, enabling easy maintenance while maintaining the automatic product pushing function.
2Productivity
If spring driven pusher plates are used to automatically push product forward, then product advancement is improved, but the pusher plate must be held to the rear while placing product
Solution Approach 1:
The pusher plate is designed with dynamic positioning capability through a latch mechanism that can be easily engaged or disengaged. During product loading, the operator can temporarily release the latch to allow the pusher plate to move to the rear position, then re-engage the latch to resume automatic pushing. This dynamic control simplifies the loading operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The pusher mechanism includes a self-latching feature that automatically maintains the pusher plate in the rear position during loading without requiring continuous manual intervention. The latch mechanism engages automatically when the pusher plate is released, allowing the operator to load products freely while the system maintains proper positioning.
3Adaptability or versatility
If trays are made adjustable to accept products of different widths, then adaptability is improved, but gaps in levels of product display impair refrigeration
Solution Approach 1:
Adjustable dividers are introduced as intermediary elements between the tray and products. These dividers can be positioned to create custom compartments for different product widths, and they extend to the top surface to seal gaps. This intermediary structure maintains both the adaptability for various product sizes and the refrigeration integrity by preventing cold air leakage through gaps.
Solution Approach 2:
The tray system incorporates dynamically adjustable dividers that can be repositioned or removed based on product requirements. When adjusted, the dividers maintain continuous contact with the tray surface and extend vertically to seal gaps, ensuring that adaptability for different product widths does not compromise the refrigeration seal.
Data Source
AI summary
A pusher tray assembly comprises a hanging tray and a sliding tray having a wire track, the sliding tray moveably connected to the hanging tray by fins of a pusher, the pusher slidingly engaged to the wire track for movement between a first position and a second position.