Method of using interlocking mat with integral ramp

Abstract

The present invention is generally directed to an interlocking modular mat or tile and method of use. The mat comprises a severable core structure with a ramp around its periphery and a connected outer structure. The outer structure surrounding the inner core structure is partitioned into side and corner panels also having ramps internally disposed therein. The novel features of the mat allows it to be cut along several locations to expose the internal ramp structure within each panel, providing a assembled mat system with a secure border around the entire mat. A method of constructing an array of the novel mat panel members involving cutting to expose the internal ramped structure is also disclosed to provide a flooring surface.

Claims

1. A method of assembling a plurality of interlocking modular mats into a mat system with a ramped border around its periphery, each interlocking modular mat comprising, an inner core structure and an outer panel structure attached to the periphery of said inner core structure; wherein, said inner core structure is generally planar, comprising upper and lower surfaces and a peripheral edge, the peripheral edge including at least one side surface portion, said at least one side surface portion of said inner core structure being tapered to form a ramp; wherein, said outer panel structure is spaced apart from said inner core structure by an attachment structure which is integral to both said inner core structure and said outer panel structure, at least one channel in said mat and adjacent to a peripheral edge of said inner core structure, the at least one channel acting as a guide for separation of the inner core structure from one or more portions of the outer panel structure by cutting of the attachment structure, and interlocking members affixed adjacent to a perimeter of each interlocking modular mat to attach adjacent interlocking modular mats together, the method comprising the steps of: interlocking the plurality of interlocking modular mats together, and cutting at least a portion of the attachment structure of at least one of the interlocking modular mats to expose the ramp of the at least one side surface portion of said inner core structure on the cut interlocking modular mat forming a ramped peripheral edge along at least a portion of the peripheral edge of the inner core structure of the cut interlocking modular mat.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said channels extend in straight lines along the edges of said inner core structure and into said outer panel structure, thereby partitioning said outer panel structure into side panels and corner panels, with the attachment structure between each side edge of each side panel and a corner panel side edge facing the side edge of the side panel, the cutting further comprising cutting the attachment structure between at least one of the side panels and at least one of the corner panels of said outer panel structure.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1A illustrates a top surface of an upper portion of a mat or tile according to the present invention

(2) FIG. 1B is a perspective view of FIG. 1A, showing the upper portion of the mat in an embodiment of the invention.

(3) FIG. 1C is a perspective view of an underside or lower portion of the mat structure of FIG. 1A.

(4) FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view of along the line I-I of FIG. 1A.

(5) FIG. 2B is an enlarged perspective view of a mid-portion of the mat of FIG. 1B along lines II-II.

(6) FIG. 2C is an enlarged view of section B of the mat of FIG. 2B.

(7) FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the underside of the mat section of FIG. 2B.

(8) FIG. 4A illustrates a top view of a section of a system of interconnecting mats after selected portions of outer panel members have been removed to expose selected internal ramp structures bordering the mat system.

(9) FIG. 4B illustrates an underside view of FIG. 4A.

(10) FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B show an alternative embodiment, wherein the attachment structure that links the inner core structure and outer panel structure is not continuous.

(11) FIG. 6 shows an alternative attachment structure for the mat.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(12) For the purposes of this disclosure, the word tile is used synonymously with the term mat. The terms, mat or tile, for the purposes of this disclosure, also are also referred to as mat or tile, panels, members, units or structures. The terms mat system or tile system, mat assembly, tile assembly are meant to define an assembly of mats or tiles to provide a covering over a floor or ground

(13) FIG. 1A illustrates a top surface of an upper portion of mat 1 according to the present invention. Mat 1 is substantially planar and is designed to support traffic, provide a traction surface on the upper portion exposed to foot traffic and allow ventilation and drainage of liquids through the assembled mat system.

(14) Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the mat 1 comprises an inner core structure 2, and an outer panel structure A, highlighted in the shaded area, surrounding inner core structure 2.

(15) FIGS. 1A and 1B also illustrate traction surfaces 6 in a pattern of ridges or elevations to increase friction on the surface, in this case, the top surface of an upper portion, of the mat inner core structure 2. However, these ridges and various top surface designs are optional, and are not known to be critical. In embodiments of the present invention, the top surface of the mat, particularly the inner core structure 2, may comprise a friction promoting surface coated thereon, as well as or in place of ridges and/or apertures 7.

(16) The top surface of mat 1, particularly the inner core structure 2, may comprise any number of patterns of holes or apertures 7 to allow the passage of air or a liquid. These mat or tiles are also suitable for wet working environments. Further, as mentioned above, apertures 7 also serve to provide a degree of slip resistance to complement traction surfaces 6. Although apertures 7 are depict apertures of the present invention, it is to be understood that any suitable shaped or sized aperture could also be used, inasmuch it serves to provide the requisite drainage, traction and structural integrity of the mat and assembled mat system.

(17) FIG. 1C depicts the underside of mat 1. Shown in FIG. 1C are support legs 8, which extend between the upper portion and lower portions of mat 1. Note that in a preferred embodiment, support legs 8 are provided on the underside of the entire mat 1 in both the inner core and outer panel structures. Legs 8 support load on the surface of the mat, distributing loads from the upper to lower portions of the mat 1, and ultimately to the flooring or ground upon which the mat rests.

(18) The support legs 8 are exemplified by knoblike, peg like, conical, truncated conical members. However, any conventional supporting shaped structures can be used in place of those mentioned above.

(19) Also, FIG. 1A shows a series of outwardly projecting female connectors 9, which interconnect with complementary male connectors 10 of FIG. 1C, located on the underside of mat 1. Male connectors 10 and female connectors 9 serve to interlock adjacent mats to form a mat system.

(20) The term male refers to knob, pin or peg-type components. The term female refers to the components that have a socket or lug-type compartment that is sized and spaced to accommodate the male component. The male and female components are complimentary to one another in the sense that the male components may be securely inserted into the female components in a way that provides a mechanism for holding adjacent tiles to one another. As described herein, male components may be used to assist in providing vertical support to the mat, whether coupled to a female component of an adjacent tile or not. Typically, all male components provide some type of vertical support to the mat.

(21) Referring to FIGS. 1B and 1C, included in the mat 1 are side panels 4 and corners panels 5, At least one set of outer female connectors 9 are connected to and preferably projecting away from the mat along at least a portion of the peripheral edges of the side panels 4 or corner panels 5 are provided. The female connectors 9 each has a side thickness less than the mat thickness and are substantially flush with the bottom of the mat so as to create a step upon which a corresponding male connector of complementary thickness rests so as to result in an interlocked mat system of substantially equal thickness. When designating adjacent side or corner panels, the prime designator is used to more easily identify the specific panels being identified.

(22) Complimentary male connectors 10 are provided and they project below a top surface of the side panels 4 and corner panels 5. Further, each male connector 10 is along an edge of the mat opposite to the side of the mat having a corresponding female connector. The male connectors 10 are adapted to engage recesses of the female connectors 9 of an adjacent mat and the recesses of each female connector are adapted to receive inner male connectors of an adjacent mat to link one or more adjacent mats together.

(23) An embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1B or 1C depict female connectors located on two adjacent sides of the mat, and male connectors symmetrically located on the remaining adjacent sides (FIG. 1C). However, it is important to recognize that the novelty of the invention does not rely on the manner in which panels are interlocked. For example, while preferred, the female connector locations do not have to be on two adjacent sides of the mat. For example, the female connector locations can alternate with the male connector locations in any desired pattern. Any conventional manner of interlocking techniques can be applied to interlock adjoining mats to the extent they cooperates with the novel ramp exposure design provided by the mat of the present invention.

(24) A key feature of the present invention is a ramp structure 20, which comprises a pair of ramped surfaces 11 and 13 and is depicted in FIG. 2A as a cross section of mat 1 along line I-I of FIG. 1A. Ramp surfaces 11 and 13 surround the inner core structure 2 and form a tapered profile from the upper portion of mat 1 to the lower portion of mat 1. This tapered ramp structure 20 is preferably molded into the mat 1 to form a peripheral edge or a number of discrete of sides of the inner core structure 2. The peripheral edge or sides of the inner core structure 2 are connected to the outer panel structure A (shaded area A in FIG. 1A) by an attachment structure 14, which effectively bridges the ramped surface 11 and 13 of the inner core structure 2, with the side panels 4 and 4, see FIG. 2A.

(25) FIG. 1B, depicts a perspective top view an upper portion of rectangular mat 1, illustrating four side panels 4, and four corner panels 5, comprising the outer panel structure A and surrounding inner core structure 2. The side panels 4 and corner panels 5, in the outer panel structure A are defined by channels 3, which can also be characterized as troughs or grooves and can be molded into the upper and lower portions of the mat forming said attachment structure 14. FIG. 1B illustrates four channels 3 molded into the upper portion of the mat 1 with the mat being rectangular in shape.

(26) Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, in a preferred embodiment, the profile of the ramped side structure of inner core structure 2 extends in straight lines along the channels 3 of the inner core structure 2 to delineate the side panes. The channels 3 continue to extend to the periphery of the edge of the mat 1, thereby effectively forming the side panels 4 and corner panels 5. With reference to FIG. 2A, the ramped structure as surfaces 11 and 13 is thereby formed on side panels 4 and side panel 4 adjacent to inner core structure 2.

(27) Ramped surfaces 11 and 13 are disposed on the sides of the side panels 4 which face corner pieces 5. With reference to FIG. 2B, an attachment structure 14 bridges and connects the ramped surfaces 11 and 13 of side panels 4 with corner panels 5.

(28) Referring to FIGS. 2B and 2C, channels 3 and 3 (see FIG. 2C) are molded into the upper and lower portions of the mat, respectively, which form said attachment structure 14. Channel 3, which dips below the top surface of the mat, forms one portion of attachment means 14 bridging a ramped surface 11 of the inner core structure 2 with adjacent side panel 4.

(29) In FIG. 3, an underside of the mat of FIG. 2B illustrates the second channel 3 situated between ramp surface 13 and a bottom surface of either side panel 19 or corner panel 19, for example. Second channel 3 forms another portion of attachment structure 14.

(30) FIG. 2C further illustrates the width W.sub.1 of upper channel 3 and depth D.sub.1 of upper channel 3 measured from the top of the upper portion of mat 1. Further, depth D.sub.2 is a measure of the thickness of the attachment structure 14, connecting side panel 4 to corner panel 5 and also connecting the inner core structure 2 to opposing side panels 4. Finally, depth D.sub.3 is representative of the overall mat thickness. Upper channel W.sub.1 minimum widths are chosen to accommodate the dimension of an edge of a knife, blade or other cutting tool used to sever selected panels from the mat 1. Maximum widths are generally dictated by the slope of ramped surfaces 11 and 13 and depths D.sub.1 and overall thickness D.sub.3 of mat 1. Channel depth D.sub.1 is dictated by the selected upper channel width W.sub.1 and slope of ramped surfaces 11 and 13. The thickness D.sub.2 of the attachment structures 14 is optimized to allow easy and accurate cuts through attachment structure 14 and along ramped surfaces 11 and 13. Smaller thicknesses D.sub.2 facilitate cutting and accuracy of cuts along ramped surfaces 11 and 13. Larger D.sub.2 thicknesses, in comparison, offer a more rigid attachment between the inner core structure 2 and the side panels 4, and between the side panels 4 and corner panels 5. Larger mat thicknesses D.sub.3 require larger attachment structure thicknesses D.sub.2 to support the side panels to the inner core structure 2, for example. For the purposes of this invention, the overall mat thickness D.sub.3 is from about 0.1 inches to 1.0 inches, more preferably, from 0.1 to 2.0 inches. The attachment structure D2 thickness ranges from 0.1 to 0.2 inches, preferably 0.05 to 0.5 inches. Channel widths W.sub.1 preferably range from 0.1 to 1.0 inches.

(31) Of course, one of ordinary skill in the art would be able to determine optimum values of D.sub.2 for a particular mat material, given a desired target mat thickness D.sub.3 and selected slope along ramped surfaces 11 and 13.

(32) It is also possible that the bridge attachment structure 14 in FIGS. 2B and 2A, respectively, can be discontinuous when viewed from the upper portion of the mat panel. Put another way, the attachment structure 14 would be continuous and an opening would be provided in the channel 3 such that the ramp surface (the ramp surfaces 11 and 13 are interrupted by the attachment structure until the channel is severed to form the complete ramp border for the mat) would be continuous from the top to the bottom of the mat. FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate this embodiment. FIG. 5A shows a section of a channel 3 between a side portion of the inner core structure 2 and a side panel 4. Opening 3b are formed to create spaced apart tab segments 3a, which form the attachment structure to link the inner core structure 2 to the side panel 4. The spacing of the tab segments 3a can vary with the proviso that there should not be too many openings 3b so as to comprise the integrity of the attachment structure linking the inner core structure 2 to the side panels 4. The openings could also be used between the side panels and corner panels if so desired.

(33) A typical tile of the present invention may be manufactured by injection or compression molding, and typically comprise a thermoplastic material such as flexible thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU), or semi-rigid polyvinyl chloride or theuuoplastic elastomer. Additionally a thermosetting plastic such as rubber may be used. Basically any material that is semi-rigid, semi-flexible, or elastomeric (e.g., flexible PVC, thermoplastic elastomers) that are capable of being injection molded can be used. Additionally, thermosetting rubbers and thermosetting elastomers capable of being compression molded can be used. Alternatively, the side and corner panels could be linked to the inner core structure using an adhesive technique, which would still maintain the integrity of the attachment structure and its link between the inner core structure and the side and corner panels and provide an alternative method of making the mat to molding.

(34) The plastic or rubber material should exhibit some degree of conformability so as to provide comfortable footing and mating of the tiles. Additionally, the material should exhibit a reasonable degree of structural integrity so as to support personnel and light industrial traffic. One of ordinary skill in the art can chose a material based on many desired characteristics of the resulting tile. For example, a material may be that is resistant to oils, greases, weak solvents, and chemicals typical of an industrial environment. A material may be chosen to exhibit a reasonably high coefficient of friction so as to reduce the risk of slipping. Additionally, embodiments of the present invention may also be conditioned to withstand inclement weather or other harsh environments, heavy traffic, and to resist damage when exposed to harsh chemicals.

(35) In this invention, a further requirement is that the selected mat or tile material be soft enough to be easily severed or cut by a knife or blade or other cutting implement to facilitate removal of the mat elements to expose desired ramp borders in the final mat system or assembly. This requirement therefore defines which of the material or formulations of the materials can be preferably used.

(36) Since the attachment structure 14 is integral and therefore preferably formulated with the same materials as both the internal core and outer panel structures, it is important that the materials used to form the mat panels, preferably by molding operations, be soft enough to allow cutting operations, preferably with a hand operated cutting tool. Mat compositions which provide cushioning with few exceptions are amenable to being cut with a knife or blade. It is preferred to use thermoplastic for the mat composition, satisfying structural requirements above and are easily cut using a knife or blade. However, any conventional thermoplastic or thermosetting polymer material meeting the mat requirements earlier above with the proviso that the Shore Hardness of the formed mat is in the range of from 50 to 95A to facilitate cutting of the mats to expose a ramped border around the periphery of the assembled mat system.

(37) While FIG. 2A shows the attachment structure between the ramp surfaces 11 and 13, the attachment structure could be formed so that it is flush with a top surface of the mat so that there would be only one ramp surface 13 instead of two ramps surfaces 11 and 13, see FIG. 6, wherein the attachment structure 14 would be severed along line 23 to separate the panel 25 from the inner core structure 27. This embodiment does not provide the channel 3 on the top surface of the mat embodiment shown in FIG. 1b for cutting through the attachment structure and would require the mat to be ideally cut from the bottom. Alternatively, the mat surface could be molded with some indicator, e.g., a raised protrusion or slight indent so that the cut could be made through attachment structure 14 from the top. An example of such a protrusion is shown as 29 in FIG. 6.

(38) In yet another embodiment, the mat would be made so that the underside of the corner panel or side panel could extend so that it is aligned with the underside of the inner core structure. In this embodiment, the channel would extend upwardly with the one ramp surface still existing and be more like a slit than the v-shape depicted in the drawings when the underside of the side panel or corner panel does not extend so as to align with the bottom of the mat. With the underside of the corner panels and side panels extending to the bottom of the overall mat, the channel could be formed from the top surface and the attachment structure would be at the bottom of the mat rather than at the top as shown in FIG. 6.

(39) Another aspect of the invention is a method of constructing the novel mat of the present invention into a mat assembly or mat system having a ramped border.

(40) First, the mats of the present invention are interconnected on adjacent sides to form a desired pattern. Either during or after assembly, internal core, side or corner panels to be simply cut out of the mat along any of the channels to expose the desired ramp surface around the periphery or border of the mat system.

(41) Referring to FIG. 1B, cutting along channels 3, situated in the upper mat portion, for example, severs the attachment structure 14 which bridges the inner core structure 2 with side panels 4 and/or attachment structure 14 bridging the side panels 4 and corner panels 5. Cutting away the side or corner panels from the mat 1, preferably along edge 16 of cutting channel 3 (See FIG. 2C), thereby exposes the ramped surfaces 11 and 13 of the inner core structure 2 and sides panels 4, thereby creating a ramped border around the edge of a mat system. Alternatively, the mat side and corner panels can be cut from the underside of the mat, if so desired.

(42) FIG. 4A shows an example of a cutting, wherein only a portion of the entire mat system is illustrated. This Figure illustrates the connection of 8 mats with corner panels and side panels removed to expose a ramped border along lines C.

(43) FIG. 4B shows an underside of a portion of the completed mat system of FIG. 4A and which also illustrates the interconnection of adjacent mats according to the present invention.

(44) As such, an invention has been disclosed in terms of preferred embodiments thereof which fulfills each and every one of the objects of the present invention as set forth above and provides a new and improved interlocking modular mat with an integral ramp feature and method of use.

(45) Of course, various changes, modifications and alterations from the teachings of the present invention may be contemplated by those skilled in the art without departing from the intended spirit and scope thereof. It is intended that the present invention only be limited by the terms of the appended claim.