Panel for Constructing a Floor or Wall Covering

Abstract

The invention relates to a panel for constructing a floor or wall covering and to a method for manufacturing such panel. The panel according to the present invention comprises at least one substantially flat support element comprising an upper surface, a lower surface, a first pair of opposed side edges and a second pair of opposed side edges, in combination with at least one decorative top layer which is affixed to the upper surface of the support element. The support element comprises wood fibers and at least one binder.

Claims

1.-61. (canceled)

62. Panel for constructing a floor or wall covering, comprising: at least one substantially flat support element comprising: an upper surface, a lower surface, a first pair of opposed side edges and a second pair of opposed side edges, wherein the support element is waterproof and, wherein the waterproof support element is at least partially made of a composite material, which composite material comprises: at least one binder selected from the group consisting of: a thermosetting binder, and a mineral binder, in particular gypsum, clay or cement; natural particles, in particular natural fibers, dispersed in said binder, wherein at least one type of natural particles is chosen from the group consisting of: plant particles, wood particles, and animal particles; and less than 20% by weight of thermoplastic material, and at least one decorative top layer which is affixed, either directly or indirectly, to the upper surface of the support element, wherein the top layer is at least partially made of at least one material chosen from the group consisting of: ceramic, stone, concrete, mineral porcelain, glass, mosaic, granite, limestone and marble.

63. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the composite material is free of thermoplastic material.

64. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the binder is a thermosetting polymer binder chosen from the group consisting of: an epoxy resin, an acrylic resin, a polyurethane resin and a phenolic resin.

65. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the binder is a phenol-formaldehyde resin having a formaldehyde to phenol ratio which is at least 1.

66. Panel according to claim 62, wherein the composite material comprises a mineral binder comprising gypsum.

67. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the natural particles, in particular natural fibers, are at least partially encapsulated by said binder.

68. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the natural particles comprises plant particles comprising bamboo particles, hemp particles, grass particles, and/or seagrass particles.

69. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the natural particles comprises plant particles comprising at least 60% by weight of cellulose.

70. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the natural particles comprises plant particles comprising cellulose having a cellulose crystallinity of at least 80% by weight of the total amount of cellulose.

71. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the natural particles comprises plant particles comprising less than 10% by weight of lignin.

72. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the natural particles comprises plant particles comprising wood flour and/or wood fibers and/or leather particles.

73. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the composite material comprises between 1% and 60%, in particular between 2% and 40%, by weight of natural particles.

74. Panel according claim 62, wherein the support element has a density of at least 1000 kg/m3, preferably at least 1100 kg/m3, more preferably at least 1200 kg/m3 and most preferably at least 1300 kg/m3.

75. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the support element consists of a single material layer.

76. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the support element has a thickness between 2 and 12 mm, preferably between 2 and 10 mm, more preferably between 2 and 6 mm.

77. A panel according to claim 62, wherein at least one pair of opposed side edges is provided with interconnecting coupling profiles for interconnecting adjacent panels, wherein the panel comprises, at a first pair of opposed side edges, a first and a second coupling profile, wherein the first coupling profile and the second coupling profile are configured such that the first and second coupling profiles of two identical panels can be coupled to each other by means of a vertical movement, and wherein the panel comprises, at a second pair of opposed edges, a third coupling profile and a fourth coupling profile, wherein the third coupling profile and the fourth coupling profile are configured such that the third and fourth coupling profiles of two identical panels can be coupled to each other by means of a turning movement.

78. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the support element is larger than the decorative top layer, and wherein the coupling profiles are situated at a distance from the top layer.

79. A panel according to claim 62, wherein the support element and the top layer are mutually affixed via a hot melt adhesive layer.

80. A panel according claim 62, wherein the panel comprises at least one reinforcing layer embedded in said support element, wherein the reinforcing layer is preferably a glass-fiber layer.

81. A method of manufacturing a panel for constructing a floor or wall covering, in particular a panel according to claim 62, comprising the steps: a) providing a quantity of cellulose particles, b) mixing of the natural particles with at least one binder, c) hot pressing of the mixture of natural particles and binder at a temperature of at least 120 degrees Celsius, such that a substantially flat support element having a density of at least 1000 kg/m3 is obtained, and d) attaching at least one decorative top layer to the support element.

Description

[0183] The invention will be further elucidated based upon the following non-limitative figures. Herein shows:

[0184] FIG. 1 an exploded perspective view of a panel according to the present invention;

[0185] FIGS. 2a and 2b cross sectional view of panels according to the present invention;

[0186] Within these figures, similar reference signs correspond to similar or equivalent features or elements.

[0187] FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of a panel 1 according to the present invention. The panel is configured for constructing a floor or wall covering, and comprised a substantially flat support element 2 which comprises an upper surface 3, a lower surface 4, a first pair of opposed side edges 5a, 5b and a second pair of opposed side edges 7a, 7b. Further a decorative top layer 6 is configured to be affixed to the upper surface 3 of the support element 6. The support element 2 comprises wood fibers and/or plant fibers, and at least one binder has a density of at least 1000 kg/m3. In the shown embodiment, a backing layer 9 is attached to the lower surface 4 of the support element. It is to be understood that, in other embodiments, the support element 2 may assume various shapes, different from the shown rectangular shape. For example, the support element 2 may have diamond or square shape. In further embodiments, the support element 2 may be a polygon with a number of sides greater than four. Also in this case the opposed side edges 5a, 5b, 7a, 7b are consecutive one to the other and alternate in sequence to each other. Typically, the support element 2 has a thickness between 2 and 12 millimeters, preferably between 2 and 10 millimeters. In the shown embodiment, the support element 2 is provided with interconnecting coupling means 10. The coupling means 10 are in the shown embodiment a combination of a female coupling part 11 and a male counter coupling part 12. The support element 2 and the top layer 6 can be mutually affixed via an adhesive layer (not shown).

[0188] FIGS. 2a and 2b show a cross sectional view of panels 1 according to the present invention. It can be seen that two adjacent panels 1 can be interconnected via the coupling means 10. The thickness Ht of the top layer 6 is larger than the thickness Hs of the support element 2. It can be seen that the top layer 6 does not protrudes outside the perimeter of the upper surface 3 of the support element 2. FIG. 2b shows an embodiment, wherein, in an assembled condition, the adjacent panels 1 are arranged such that a predetermined distance D is defined between the side surfaces 8 of the top layers 6. The distance D can for example be between 0 and 4 millimeters, and preferably between 1 and 2.5 millimeters. Once the floor or wall covering is provided, it is possible to seal the distance D between two adjacent panels, for example with sealing means. This can for example be done with resins for joints which are typically used in the construction industry such as water-based resins, epoxy and/or cement resins.

[0189] The above-described inventive concepts are illustrated by several illustrative embodiments. It is conceivable that individual inventive concepts may be applied without, in so doing, also applying other details of the described example. It is not necessary to elaborate on examples of all conceivable combinations of the above-described inventive concepts, as a person skilled in the art will understand numerous inventive concepts can be (re)combined in order to arrive at a specific application.

[0190] It will be apparent that the invention is not limited to the working examples shown and described herein, but that numerous variants are possible within the scope of the attached claims that will be obvious to a person skilled in the art.

[0191] When it is referred to a ‘panel’, also the term ‘tile’ or ‘prefabricated element’ could be used. The verb “comprise” and conjugations thereof used in this patent publication are understood to mean not only “comprise”, but are also understood to mean the phrases “contain”, “substantially consist of”, “formed by”, “is” and conjugations thereof, and vice versa.