The present invention relates to a steel wire member for display or fixing purposes and to a display system comprising such a steel wire member.

Background of the invention.

Display systems comprising wire members, e. g. in the forms of hooks or clips, are known in the art.

For example, FR-A1-2 596 630 and JP-A-2002/078578 disclose a display system where a wire hook is releasably attached to a wire net consisting of horizontal wires and vertical wires welded together.

These display systems offer a lot of advantages since the wire hooks can be attached at various places on the wire net. Having regard, however, to the dense structure of the wire net, the display system lacks some transparency, i. e. when installed just after a shop window, the merchandise shown on the display system is clearly visible but all merchandise installed at the back of the display system lacks the required visibility.

The problem is even worse in display systems where the wire hooks are releasably attached in a pegboard or perforated panel, such as disclosed in US-A-3,640, 497. Here the visibility through the display system is even non existent.

Summary of the invention.

It is an object of the present invention to avoid the drawbacks of the prior art.

It is another object of the present invention to increase the visibility through display systems.

It is a further object of the present invention to increase the flexibility of display systems.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a steel wire member for display purposes. The steel wire member comprises a left leg and a right leg. The left leg is connected to the right leg by a rounded center bending, which is also called the"nose".

The left leg has a left middle part and a left end. The right leg has a

right middle part and a right end. The left end is in a left U-shape or V-shape and comprises a left upper part and a left under part. The right end is in a right U-shape or a V-shape and comprises a right upper part and a right under part. The left upper part and the right upper part define a plane. The left under part and the right under part leave this plane.

Due to the left end and right end being in a U-shape or V-shape, the steel wire member can be clamped in tension members, which run, for example, in a vertical direction. Although wires in a horizontal direction are not excluded, there is no need for wires to run in horizontal direction.

If horizontal wires are provided nonetheless and if these horizontal wires are fixed in one or another way to the vertical wires, e. g. by means of welding, a higher clamping force of the steel wire member is possible resulting in higher possible loads on the steel wire member.

The left leg of the steel wire member may be parallel or not to the right leg of the steel wire member.

In a first embodiment of the steel wire member the left upper part comprises a first notch at its right side and the right upper part comprises a second notch at its left side. The first notch and the second notch are adapted to releasably fix the steel wire member respectively to a first and a second tension member.

The left under part further preferably comprises a third notch at its left side and the right under part further preferably comprises a fourth notch at its right side. The third and fourth notch are adapted to releasably fix the steel wire member respectively to the first and the second tension member.

In a second embodiment of the steel wire member the notches are located atjust the other side as in the first embodiment.

In other words, the left upper part comprises a first notch at its left side and the right upper part comprises a second notch at its right

side. The left under part further preferably comprises a third notch at its right side and the right under part further preferably comprises a fourth notch at its left side.

The various notches facilitate the fixing of the steel wire members to the tension members.

Other notches may be provided next to the described ones. This allows the steel wire member to take various positions, e. g. with an upward or downward inclined position of the plane.

In a preferable embodiment of the first aspect of the invention, the steel wire member is a flat wire. The left middle part is substantially perpendicular to the above-mentioned plane. The left leg is twisted over more than 30°, e. g. about 90°, between the left middle part and the left end. The right middle part is substantially perpendicular to the mentioned plane. The right leg is twisted over more than 30°, e. g. 90°, between the right middle part and the right end.

In comparison with a round wire, it is easier to make notches in a flat wire. Furthermore, due to the twisting of the flat wire and due to the left middle part and the right middle part being perpendicular to the plane, the wire member exercises a directed springy force, which facilitates the fixing to the tension members.

Next to a flat wire, other forms of cross-section are possible, for example, a wire re with a rectangular cross-section or a wire with a square cross-section According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a display system, which comprises two or more tension members and further comprises one or more steel wire members according to the first aspect of the invention. The steel wire members are releasably fixed to said tension members.

In an embodiment of the display system the tension members run substantially parallel to each other, for example, the tension members run substantially vertical.

As already mentioned, there is no need anymore for other members running in another direction as the tension members. As a result, the display system is less dense than a wire net and has more transparency.

The wire member according to the invention can not only function for displaying merchandise but can also fix or attach objects to tension members or to a grid, e. g. fixing a feeding device or a drinking box to a wire cage.

Brief description of the drawings.

The invention will now be described into more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein -FIGURE 1 shows a first embodiment of a wire member according to the first aspect of the invention; -FIGURE 2 shows a second embodiment of a wire member according to the first aspect of the invention; -FIGURE 3 shows a display system according to the second aspect of the invention.

Description of the preferred embodiments of the invention.

FIGURE 1 shows a first embodiment of a wire member 10 according to the first aspect of the present invention. The wire member comprises a left leg 12 and a right leg 14. The left leg 12 is connected to the right leg by means of a rounded center bending 16, also called the"nose", where merchandise can be fixed or be hung in order to be displayed. The left leg 12 has a left middle part 18 and a left end 20. Similarly the right leg 14 has a right middle part 22 and a right end 24. The left end 20 is U-shaped resulting in a left upper part 26 and a left under part 28. Similarly the right end 24 is U- shaped resulting in a right upper part 30 and a right under part 32.

The wire member 10 is a flat wire and has been twisted twice, a first time over about 90° between the left middle part 18 and the left end 20 and a second time between the right middle part 22 and the right end 24.

On the one hand, the radius of curvature of the U-shapes or V-shapes must not be too small in order to prevent the steel wire from breaking. On the other hand, the radius of curvature of the U-shapes or V-shapes must not be too great in order not to loose a gripping power to the tension members.

The left upper part 26 is provided with a first notch 34 at the right side and the left under part 28 is provided with a third notch 38 at the left side. The right upper part 30 is provided with a second notch 36 at the left side and the right under part 32 is provided with a fourth notch 40 at the right side.

The function of the first, second, third and fourth notch is to facilitate the fixing of the wire member 10 to tension members.

The wire member 10 can be made out of a high-carbon steel or out of a stainless steel. As a result the wire member can function as a spring. When pushed together to a certain extent, i. e. the left leg 12 in the right direction and the right leg in the left direction without plastically deforming, the wire member will try to regain its original shape. This springy force also facilitates the fixing of the wire member 10 to tension members in a display system.

Examples of dimensions of a wire member are : -7. 2 mm x 1. 0 mm ;<BR> 4. 0 mm x 2. 0 mm.

More generally, as a matter of example, the wire width may vary from 2.0 mm to 10.0 mm, and the wire thickness may vary from 0.2 mm to 2. 5 mm.

The wire member 10 may be colored, e. g. by providing the wire member 10 with a colored lacquer or by coating the wire member with a colored polymer such as polyvinylchloride, polyester or polyamide. For example, the colors may indicate the allowed load on the wire members.

FIGURE 2 shows a second embodiment of a wire member 10 according to the first aspect of the present invention. The difference with the first embodiment of FIGURE 1 is only that the notches are now present at the opposite sides. More particularly, the left upper part 26 is provided with a first notch 42 at the left side and the left under part 28 is provided with a third notch 46 at the left side. The right upper part 30 is provided with a second notch 44 at the left side and the right under part 48 is provided with a fourth notch 40 at the right side.

As an alternative embodiment of the wire member 10, the nose or rounded center bending 16 may be lifted upwards, leaving the mentioned plane, in order to facilitate the supporting of merchandise to be displayed.

FIGURE 3 shows a display system comprising a number of parallel running tension members 50,52, 54 and 56. A wire member 10 is releasably fixed to tension members 50 and 56 at the level of the first notch 34, the second notch 36, the third notch 38 (fourth notch 40 not shown).

The tension members 50,52, 54,56 can be wires put under tension or tensioned ropes. These wires or ropes can be made of steel such as high-carbon steel or stainless steel. They can be tensioned inside a frame (not shown) by any known means. This frame can be metallic or out of a synthetic material.

As with the wire member 10, the tension members 50,52, 54 and 56 may also be colored, e. g. by means of a lacquer or by means of a colored polymer.

An esthetic alternative is to provide the tension members with a bright-galvanized coating.

The tension members 50,52, 54,56 generally run parallel to each other, e. g. vertically. However, obliquely running tension members are also possible.