Automated Folding Store Shelf That Pushes Products Up to the Customer

The problem

Unattended stores - micro-markets in offices, campus shops, night-time convenience corners - cut labor, but they still rely on ordinary open shelving. Staff must keep the front of every shelf filled, and the store has little control over what is taken until checkout. According to the patent, many unmanned stores settle purchases only by radio-frequency scanning at a checkout point, and the patent sets out to give such stores a shelf and a system that make the operation more rational.

The solution

The patent combines a folding shelf with a small product-handling mechanism:

1. A shelf assembly (1) has a vertical panel frame (6) in the middle and two base frames (5) hinged to its lower edge, one on each side.
2. On each side, a bottom placing device (2) and a first (3) and/or second placing device (4) above it carry the goods.
3. Each placing device is made of three L-shaped folding tiers (14, 15, 16) hinged one to the next, the top one hinged to the central panel. A folding traction push rod (17) on the base frame folds the tiers out or back.
4. Behind the upper tiers, a pushing screw (22) moves a goods tray (23) along a hidden transverse channel.
5. Under each tier’s delivery opening (21), a lift cylinder (24) with three push rods (25) raises the tray up through the opening; a fan-shaped spring flap (26) on a torsion spring closes the opening again.
6. A control unit connects gravity and infrared sensors on the shelf with staff, merchant and customer terminals, a scanning gun and a camera at the settlement point.

Who it is for

• Retail fixture manufacturers that supply micro-market and unattended-store operators and want a shelf that does more than hold products.
• Unattended store and micro-market operators looking for shelving that presents stock automatically and reports what moved.
• Retail technology integrators building cashier-less stores who need a mechanical shelf platform to pair with their own vision and checkout software.
• University and lab programs in retail automation looking for a working demonstration fixture.

How it works

The main parts

How stock reaches the shelf surface

1. Fold out - the push rods unfold the tiers into steps on both sides of the central panel.
2. Load - staff load goods trays into the hidden channels behind the tiers.
3. Feed - the pushing screws move the next tray to the point under a delivery opening.
4. Present - the lift cylinder raises the tray through the opening; the spring flap swings aside and closes again when the tray is gone.
5. Report - gravity and infrared sensors register changes and pass them to the control unit, which links to scanning and checkout.

Applications

Office and campus micro-markets

Unattended snack and drink shelves in offices and dormitories, where the shelf keeps the front stocked between refills.

Night-time and remote convenience stores

Small stores running without staff at night can keep reserve stock inside the fixture instead of on open shelves.

Cashier-less store pilots

Technology companies testing checkout-free stores can pair the sensor-equipped shelf with their own camera and app systems.

Pharmacy and personal-care counters

Small, high-value items can be held in the fixture and presented one tray at a time.

Retail automation training

Colleges teaching retail technology or mechatronics can use the shelf as a lab project combining mechanics, sensors and control.

Where it is less suitable

• Large-format supermarkets - the mechanism adds cost per meter that standard gondola shelving does not have.
• Bulky or irregular products - trays and openings suit uniform packaged goods, not produce or large boxes.
• Stores without technical support - screws, cylinders and sensors need periodic maintenance.