# How Sylvan Goldman Invented the Modern Grocery Shopping Cart

> A 1940 patent for a folding metal frame designed to hold two wire baskets, enabling shoppers to carry more items than their arms could hold.

- **Patent:** US 2196914
- **Original title:** Folding basket carriage for self-service stores
- **Owner:** Individual
- **Granted:** 1940
- **Status:** Public domain (expired)
- **Times cited:** 15
- **Field:** consumer_electronics, mechanical

## What it does

The invention describes a wheeled carriage with a collapsible frame designed to hold two standard wire shopping baskets. It uses a hinged metal structure that allows the basket supports to fold flat when not in use, saving floor space in stores. The design includes a handle for pushing and a set of wheels to distribute the weight of heavy groceries, effectively moving the burden from the shopper's arms to the floor.

## What it does NOT cover

- Does not cover the single-basket nested design found in modern grocery stores.
- Does not cover plastic shopping carts or carts with integrated child seats.
- Does not cover motorized or automated shopping cart systems.

## The clever bit

The innovation was not just the basket, but the folding frame mechanism that allowed stores to store dozens of carts in a small footprint when the shop was closed.

## Real-world examples

1. Early 1940s grocery store carts
2. Folding wire-frame shopping trolleys

## Why it matters

This invention transformed the retail industry by allowing customers to purchase significantly more goods per trip. It is widely credited with enabling the rise of the modern self-service supermarket by removing the physical limit of how much a shopper could carry by hand.

## Frequently asked questions

### What does How Sylvan Goldman Invented the Modern Grocery Shopping Cart cover?

A 1940 patent for a folding metal frame designed to hold two wire baskets, enabling shoppers to carry more items than their arms could hold.

### Who owns patent US 2196914?

Individual owns this patent, granted in 1940.

### When does this patent expire?

This patent has expired and is now in the public domain — anyone can use the invention freely.

### What is patent US 2196914 cited by?

This patent has been cited by 15 later patents that build on its ideas.

### What problem does this patent solve?

This invention transformed the retail industry by allowing customers to purchase significantly more goods per trip. It is widely credited with enabling the rise of the modern self-service supermarket by removing the physical limit of how much a shopper could carry by hand.

### What does this patent NOT cover?

Does not cover the single-basket nested design found in modern grocery stores.

**Full plain-English explainer:** https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/2196914/shopping-cart-goldman

**Original patent:** https://patents.google.com/patent/US2196914

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_Source: PatentBrief — https://patentbrief.org. Patent facts are from public records; the plain-English explanation is PatentBrief's._


## Related patents

Semantically similar inventions in the PatentBrief corpus:

- [How Clarence Saunders Invented the Modern Self-Service Grocery Store](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/1242872/self-service-grocery-store-saunders) — A 1917 patent for a store layout that allowed customers to walk through aisles and pick their own goods, replacing the traditional over-the-counter service model.
- [How a Spring-Loaded Pocket Dispenser Works](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/2620061/pez-dispenser) — A 1949 mechanical design for a pocket-sized container that uses a spring to push items like pills or candies to the top for easy access.
- [How James Plimpton Invented the Modern Roller Skate](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/37305/roller-skates-plimpton) — A 19th-century invention that introduced pivoting wheels to roller skates, allowing users to steer by leaning their bodies.
- [How George Nissen Invented the Modern Trampoline](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/2370990/trampoline-nissen) — The 1945 patent for a 'tumbling device' that introduced the modern trampoline, using a flexible canvas bed stretched over a frame with springs to allow for high-bouncing acrobatics.
- [How the Modern Disposable Paper Cup Was Invented](https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/1032557/dixie-cup-disposable-paper-cup) — A 1908 patent for a sanitary, single-use paper cup designed to prevent the spread of germs from shared public drinking vessels.