Method and apparatus for positioning heating elements

Abstract

An underlayment system is provided that includes a plurality of protrusions that extend from a common base member. The protrusions and base member can include an opening therethrough that allows for subsequent layers of material, such as adhesive, to interact and bond to each other. The protrusions are arranged in such a way to contain a wire, string, or heating element, within a receiving area. The arrangement of the protrusions allow for routing of the wire, string, or heating element in a variety of angles, bends, and other routing layouts.

Claims

1. A floor underlayment comprising: a base having a bottom side and a top side; and a plurality of protrusions extending above the top side, the plurality of protrusions including a protrusion comprising: a contact surface having a variable width; a rounded outer wall extending from the contact surface to the top side of the base and sloping underneath the contact surface; and a rounded inner wall sloping continuously away from the contact surface to the top side of the base, wherein the contact surface connects the rounded outer wall to the rounded inner wall.

2. The floor underlayment of claim 1, wherein the rounded inner wall faces a rounded inner wall of another protrusion of the plurality of protrusions.

3. The floor underlayment of claim 1, wherein the rounded outer wall and the rounded inner wall are rounded in a horizontal plane.

4. The floor underlayment of claim 1, wherein the rounded outer wall and the rounded inner wall are rounded in the same direction.

5. The floor underlayment of claim 1, wherein the plurality of protrusions are equally spaced along a first linear direction and a second linear direction perpendicular to the first linear direction to form a matrix of protrusions.

6. The floor underlayment of claim 1, wherein the underlayment is configured to receive, adjacent the rounded inner wall and adjacent the rounded outer wall, at least one of adhesive, epoxy, grout, cement, glue, and plastic.

7. The floor underlayment of claim 1, further comprising a pad layer attached to the bottom side of the base.

8. The floor underlayment of claim 7, wherein the pad layer comprises a sound dampening material.

9. The floor underlayment of claim 7, wherein the pad layer comprises a heat reflective material.

10. The floor underlayment of claim 7, wherein a first side of the pad layer is attached to the bottom side of the base, and a second side of the pad layer opposite the first side comprises adhesive for affixing the pad layer to a surface.

11. An underlayment comprising: a base material having a bottom side and a top side; and a plurality of routing hubs extending from the top side of the base material, the plurality of routing hubs including a routing hub comprising: a contact surface having a variable width; a rounded outer wall extending from the contact surface to the top side of the base material and sloping underneath the contact surface; and a rounded inner wall curved in the same direction as the rounded outer wall and sloping continuously away from the contact surface to the top side of the base material, wherein the contact surface connects the rounded outer wall to the rounded inner wall.

12. The underlayment of claim 11, wherein the rounded inner wall and the rounded outer wall are curved in a horizontal plane.

13. The underlayment of claim 11, wherein the rounded outer wall has a larger radius of curvature than the rounded inner wall.

14. The underlayment of claim 11, further comprising a heating element in contact with the rounded outer wall.

15. The underlayment of claim 11, further comprising a pad layer attached to the bottom side of the base material, the pad layer comprising an insulative material.

16. An underlayment comprising: a pad layer; a base having a top side and a bottom side, the bottom side in contact with the pad layer; and a matrix of routing hubs extending from the top side away from the pad layer, the matrix of routing hubs including a routing hub comprising: a contact surface; a sloping outer wall extending from the contact surface to the top side of the base, the sloping outer wall extending underneath the contact surface; an inner wall sloping continuously from the contact surface to the top side of the base and away from the sloping outer wall; and wherein the base, the sloping outer wall, the contact surface, and the inner wall form a continuous surface, and further wherein a base thickness of the base is approximately equal to a wall thickness of the sloping outer wall.

17. The underlayment of claim 16, wherein the inner wall is curved in a horizontal plane.

18. The underlayment of claim 16, wherein the sloping outer wall has a variable slope.

19. The underlayment of claim 16, wherein the pad layer comprises an anti-fracture membrane.

20. The underlayment of claim 16, wherein the inner wall at least partially defines a volume for receiving at least one of adhesive, epoxy, grout, cement, glue, and plastic.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The accompanying drawings are incorporated into and form a part of the specification to illustrate several examples of the present disclosure. These drawings, together with the description, explain the principles of the disclosure. The drawings simply illustrate preferred and alternative examples of how the disclosure can be made and used and are not to be construed as limiting the disclosure to only the illustrated and described examples. Further features and advantages will become apparent from the following, more detailed, description of the various aspects, embodiments, and configurations of the disclosure, as illustrated by the drawings referenced below.

(2) FIG. 1 shows a plan view of an underlayment section in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;

(3) FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of an area of the underlayment taken along line A-A shown in FIG. 1;

(4) FIG. 3 shows a detail cross-sectional view of an area of the underlayment in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;

(5) FIG. 4 shows a detail plan view of a routing hub of the underlayment in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;

(6) FIG. 5 shows a plan view of routing hubs of an underlayment in accordance with a first embodiment of the present disclosure;

(7) FIG. 6 shows a plan view of routing hubs of an underlayment in accordance with a second embodiment of the present disclosure;

(8) FIG. 7 shows a detail cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of the routing hubs taken along line D-D shown in FIG. 6; and

(9) FIG. 8 shows a detail cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of the routing hubs taken along line D-D shown in FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(10) Before any embodiments of the disclosure are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The disclosure is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of including, comprising, or having and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items.

(11) FIG. 1 shows a plan view of an underlayment section 1 in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. The underlayment section 1 includes a number of routing hubs 2, comprising four protrusions 2a arranged in an equally-spaced circular array about an array axis 2b, in a matrix configuration. The matrix is configured in the form of an eight row by twelve column matrix of routing hubs 2. The matrix provides heating element receiving cavities 3 in the X-direction, Y-direction, and in directions approximately 45 degrees to the X-direction and/or the Y-direction. A sample routing 4 of the heating element 5 is shown in FIG. 1. In particular, the heating element section 5 shown runs along the Y-direction between the first and second columns of routing hubs 2, proceeds around the routing hub 2 in the first row and second column (2, 8) and along the negative Y-direction between the second and third columns to the (3, 1) routing hub 2, proceeds along the Y-direction between the third and fourth columns until about the (3, 4) routing hub 2, and then proceeds diagonally through the heating element receiving cavities 3 in the (4, 5), (5, 6), (6, 7), and (7, 8) routing hubs 2, and so on.

(12) FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of an area of the underlayment 1 taken along line A-A. In some embodiments, one or more of the protrusions 2a can extend from the base material surface 6 to a contact surface 7. The contact surface 7 may be configured to support tile, flooring, or other material. The distance from the base material 6 to the contact surface 7 is called the protrusion height 7a. The thickness of the base material 6 is called the base thickness 6a. In some embodiments, the protrusions 2a may be formed from the base material 6, and as such, may have a wall thickness approximately equal to that of the base thickness 6a.

(13) FIG. 3 shows a detail cross-sectional view of an area of the underlayment 1 in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. In one embodiment, the areas adjacent to each protrusion 2a can form a heating element receiving cavity 3. Each heating element receiving cavity 3 can include an interference fit 8, or contained area, to hold a heating element 5 or wire in place. In some cases, the heating element 5 may be inserted into the heating element receiving cavity 3 with a predetermined amount of force required to part (e.g., elastically deform, plastically deform, flex, and/or deflect, etc.) at least one of the receiving surfaces 9 of the cavity. In one embodiment, when the heating element 5 is inserted into the heating element receiving cavity 3 the at least one of the receiving surfaces 9 may return to an original position thereby closing the heating element receiving cavity 3 and containing the heating element 5.

(14) FIG. 4 shows a detail plan view of a routing hub 2 of the underlayment 1 in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. The heating element receiving cavities 3 are shown disposed between protrusions 2a and/or routing hubs 2. In some embodiments, one or more of the heating element receiving cavities 3 can be configured differently from another heating element receiving cavity 3. For instance, several heating element receiving cavities 3 may be configured to provide a frictional fit for holding a heating element 5, while other heating element receiving cavities 3 may be configured to merely contain a heating element 5. In any event, the underlayment 1 can include one or more configurations of heating element receiving cavity 3.

(15) FIG. 5 shows a plan view of routing hubs 2 of an underlayment 1 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present disclosure. As described above, the protrusions 2a, base material 6, and/or other features of the underlayment 1 may include a number of cutouts 10, or holes. In some embodiments, the cutouts 10 can extend at least partially into the protrusion 2a, base material 6, and/or the underlayment 1. In some embodiments, the cutouts 10 are shown as extending at least partially into at least one side of at least one protrusion 2a.

(16) FIG. 6 shows a plan view of routing hubs 2 of an underlayment 1 in accordance with a second embodiment of the present disclosure. The underlayment 1 section includes a number of routing hubs 2, comprising four protrusions 2a arranged in an equally-spaced circular array about an array axis 2b, in a matrix configuration. A sample routing 4 of the heating element 5 is shown in FIG. 6. In particular, the heating element section 5 shown runs along the Y-direction of the first column of routing hubs 2, proceeds around the routing hub 2 in the second row and first column (1, 2) and along the negative Y-direction between the first and second columns, and then proceeds diagonally through the heating element receiving cavity 3 in the (2, 1) routing hub 2.

(17) FIG. 7 shows a detail cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of the routing hubs 2 taken along line D-D shown in FIG. 6. As shown, the heating element receiving cavity 3 in FIG. 7 includes arcuate receiving surfaces 9. The arcuate receiving surfaces 9 may be configured as concave, curvilinear, arched, and/or other shape configured to receive the heating element 5. In some cases, at least one of the arcuate receiving surfaces 9 of the routing hubs may be configured to contact the heating element receiving cavity 3. The contact may provide a frictional force that retains the heating element 5 in the underlayment 1. In some embodiments, the arcuate receiving surfaces 9 may contain the heating elements 5 in the heating element receiving cavity 5 without frictional contact.

(18) Additionally or alternatively, the underlayment 1 may include a pad layer 11. The pad layer 11 may include a sound dampening material, heat reflective material, insulative material, porous substrate, vapor barrier, waterproof material, energy reflective material, etc., and/or combinations thereof. Examples of pad layers 11 can include, but are in no way limited to, foil, cork, rubber, plastic, concrete, wood, organic materials, inorganic materials, composites, compounds, etc., and/or combinations thereof. The pad layer 11 may be attached to the base material 6 via adhesive, thermal bonding, welding, mechanical attachment, etc., and/or combinations thereof. As can be appreciated, the pad layer 11 may include adhesive on the side opposite the base material 6 side for affixing to a surface, such as a subfloor, floor, etc. In one embodiment, the pad layer 11 may be configured to receive adhesive for affixing to a surface. It should be appreciated that any of the underlayment 1 embodiments as disclosed may include such a pad layer 11. In some embodiments, there may be additional pad layers 11, one above another (e.g., a stack of two, three, four, five, or more pad layers 11) for strengthening and controlling anti-fracture. This enables isolation of cracks in a substrate from traveling to the tile layer.

(19) FIG. 8 shows a detail cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of the routing hubs 2 taken along line D-D shown in FIG. 6. As shown, the heating element receiving cavity 3 in FIG. 8 includes angular receiving surfaces 9. The angular receiving surfaces 9 may be configured as a draft angle 9a, a dovetail, a V shape, or other channel shape configured to receive the heating element 5. In some cases, at least one of the angular receiving surfaces 9 of the routing hubs 2 may be configured to contact the heating element receiving cavity 3. The contact may provide a frictional force that retains the heating element 5 in the underlayment 1. In some embodiments, the angular receiving surfaces 9 may contain the heating elements 5 in the heating element receiving cavity 5 without frictional contact.

(20) The exemplary systems and methods of this disclosure have been described in relation to electronic shot placement detecting systems and methods. However, to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the present disclosure, the preceding description omits a number of known structures and devices. This omission is not to be construed as a limitation of the scopes of the claims. Specific details are set forth to provide an understanding of the present disclosure. It should, however, be appreciated that the present disclosure may be practiced in a variety of ways beyond the specific detail set forth herein.

(21) While the flowcharts have been discussed and illustrated in relation to a particular sequence of events, it should be appreciated that changes, additions, and omissions to this sequence can occur without materially affecting the operation of the disclosed embodiments, configuration, and aspects.

(22) A number of variations and modifications of the disclosure can be used. It would be possible to provide for some features of the disclosure without providing others.

(23) The present disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations, includes components, methods, processes, systems and/or apparatus substantially as depicted and described herein, including various aspects, embodiments, configurations embodiments, subcombinations, and/or subsets thereof. Those of skill in the art will understand how to make and use the disclosed aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations after understanding the present disclosure. The present disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations, includes providing devices and processes in the absence of items not depicted and/or described herein or in various aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations hereof, including in the absence of such items as may have been used in previous devices or processes, e.g., for improving performance, achieving ease and/or reducing cost of implementation.

(24) The foregoing discussion has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. The foregoing is not intended to limit the disclosure to the form or forms disclosed herein. In the foregoing Detailed Description for example, various features of the disclosure are grouped together in one or more aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. The features of the aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations of the disclosure may be combined in alternate aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations other than those discussed above. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claims require more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive aspects lie in less than all features of a single foregoing disclosed aspect, embodiment, and/or configuration. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated into this Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate preferred embodiment of the disclosure.

(25) Moreover, though the description has included description of one or more aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations and certain variations and modifications, other variations, combinations, and modifications are within the scope of the disclosure, e.g., as may be within the skill and knowledge of those in the art, after understanding the present disclosure. It is intended to obtain rights which include alternative aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations to the extent permitted, including alternate, interchangeable and/or equivalent structures, functions, ranges or steps to those claimed, whether or not such alternate, interchangeable and/or equivalent structures, functions, ranges or steps are disclosed herein, and without intending to publicly dedicate any patentable subject matter.