US 6,231,205 · Granted 2001-05-15
The Patent Behind Glowing Store Shelves That Light Themselves Up
Imagine a shelf unit where the vertical posts are secretly wired with electricity, and whenever you slide a shelf into place, it automatically connects to the power and turns on the lights underneath. No separate wiring needed—the shelf itself becomes part of the circuit.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a display shelving system where vertical support posts contain internal electrical conductors at different voltage levels (positive and negative). When a shelf is inserted into these posts, its built-in supports make contact with the conductors, completing a circuit that powers integrated light fixtures on the shelf's underside. What's protected is this specific method of embedding power distribution inside the frame so shelves self-illuminate upon installation.
Why it matters
This patent solves a real design problem in retail and museum displays: how to light multiple shelves without visible wiring, bulky external cables, or the expense of hiring electricians to run conduit behind every shelf. By making the vertical posts themselves into power delivery systems, the inventor created a self-contained, modular shelving unit that's cleaner, faster to assemble, and easier to reconfigure than traditional lit display cases.
Real-world use
When you walk past an illuminated retail display case in a jewelry store or electronics shop and notice each shelf glows from underneath without visible cords, there's a good chance those shelves are using this self-powering design.
Original USPTO abstract
A display case is provided having vertical members with internal conductors. The conductors are coupled to a source of low voltage electrical power such that adjacent vertical members are of differing electrical polarity. Shelf supports are designed to make electrical contact with the internal conductors when engaged in a vertical member. A light fixture, disposed on the underside of a shelf is electrically coupled to the shelf supports thereby completing an electrical circuit for energizing the light fixture.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 6,231,205
- Filing date
- 1998-10-23
- Grant date
- 2001-05-15
- Assignee
- Powerwall, Inc.
- Inventor(s)
- SLESINGER BRUCE M., COLLOM THOMAS L.
- CPC class
- H01R25/145
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