Abstract
A tile assembly for supporting vehicles can include a base and a frame attachable to the base and surrounding a portion of the base. A support mat system for supporting vehicles can include a first tile assembly, the first tile assembly comprising a base and a frame attachable to the base and surrounding a portion of the base; and a second tile assembly, a portion of an outer perimeter of the first tile assembly attached to a portion of an outer perimeter of the second tile assembly.
Claims
1. A tile assembly for supporting vehicles, the tile assembly comprising: a base; and a frame attachable to the base and surrounding a portion of the base.
2. The tile assembly of claim 1, wherein the tile assembly defines an outer perimeter defining a plurality of keys and a plurality of keyholes.
3. The tile assembly of claim 2, wherein each key and each keyhole are defined by both the base and the frame.
4. The tile assembly of claim 2, wherein the plurality of keys and the plurality of keyholes are arranged in an alternating pattern around the outer perimeter of the tile assembly.
5. The tile assembly of claim 2, wherein each key defines a pair of wings extending from lateral sides of each key.
6. The tile assembly of claim 1, wherein the frame defines a hexagonal inner perimeter defining straight edges.
7. The tile assembly of claim 6, wherein the base defines a top surface defining a hexagonal outer edge that is complementary to the hexagonal inner perimeter of the frame.
8. The tile assembly of claim 1, wherein the frame defines a plurality of pins extending downward, and wherein the base defines a plurality of pinholes sized to receive the plurality of pins.
9. The tile assembly of claim 1, wherein the base defines a plurality of alternating tabs and grooves along an outer bottom perimeter of the base, and wherein each tab is configured to engage a respective groove of an adjacent base of a tile assembly.
10. The tile assembly of claim 1, wherein the base defines a plurality of straight support ribs and a plurality of cylindrical supports, the cylindrical supports arranged between ends of the straight ribs.
11. The tile assembly of claim 10, wherein the base defines a base top surface defining a plurality of grooves 226 vertically aligned with the plurality of straight support ribs.
12. The tile assembly of claim 1, wherein the base defines a base top surface and the frame defines a frame top surface, and wherein the base top surface and the frame top surface are coplanar.
13. The tile assembly of claim 12, wherein the base comprises an outer attachment portion defining a smaller height than the base top surface, and wherein the frame is positioned on the outer attachment portion.
14. A support mat system for supporting vehicles, the support mat system comprising: a first tile assembly, the first tile assembly comprising a base and a frame attachable to the base and surrounding a portion of the base; and a second tile assembly, a portion of an outer perimeter of the first tile assembly attached to a portion of an outer perimeter of the second tile assembly.
15. The support mat system of claim 14, wherein the outer perimeter of the first tile assembly comprises a key and the outer perimeter of the second tile assembly comprises a keyhole, and wherein the key of the first tile assembly engages the keyhole of the second tile assembly to attach the first tile assembly to the second tile assembly.
16. The support mat system of claim 15, wherein the outer perimeter of the second tile assembly comprises a key and the outer perimeter of the first tile assembly comprises a keyhole, and wherein the key of the second tile assembly engages the keyhole of the first tile assembly to attach the first tile assembly to the second tile assembly.
17. The support mat system of claim 14, further comprising a third tile assembly, a portion of an outer perimeter of the third tile assembly attached to a portion of the outer perimeter of the first tile assembly and a portion of the outer perimeter of the second tile assembly.
18. The support mat system of claim 14, wherein the first tile assembly and the second tile assembly each define a substantially hexagonal shape.
19. A method of assembling a support mat system, the method comprising: attaching a first frame to a first base to form a first tile assembly, the first frame surrounding a portion of the first base, the first tile assembly defining a key; attaching a second frame to a second base to form a second tile assembly, the second frame surrounding a portion of the second base, the second tile assembly defining a keyhole; and inserting the key into the keyhole to attach the first tile assembly to the second tile assembly.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein the key is a first key, the keyhole is a first keyhole, the first tile assembly defines a second keyhole, and the second tile assembly defines a second key, the method further comprising: attaching a third frame to a third base to form a third tile assembly, the third frame surrounding a portion of the third base, the third tile assembly defining a third key and a third keyhole; and inserting the third key into the second keyhole and inserting the second key into the third keyhole to attach the third tile assembly to the first tile assembly and the second tile assembly.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate several aspects of the disclosure and, together with the description, explain various principles of the disclosure. The drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. Corresponding features and components throughout the figures may be designated by matching reference characters for the sake of consistency and clarity.
[0011] FIG. 1 is a top view of a plurality of tile assemblies of a support mat system attached to each other in accordance with various aspects of the current disclosure.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a one of the tile assemblies of FIG. 1.
[0013] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a base of the tile assembly of FIG. 2.
[0014] FIG. 4 is a side view of a base of the tile assembly of FIG. 2.
[0015] FIG. 5 is a side view of a base of the tile assembly of FIG. 2.
[0016] FIG. 6 is a detail view of a portion of a perimeter of the base of FIG. 3 taken from detail 6 in FIG. 5.
[0017] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an adjacent key and keyhole of the base of FIG. 3.
[0018] FIG. 8 is a top perspective view of a frame of the tile assembly of FIG. 2.
[0019] FIG. 9 is a bottom perspective view of the frame of FIG. 8.
[0020] FIG. 10 is a detail view of a portion of the frame of FIG. 8 taken from detail 10 in FIG. 9.
[0021] FIG. 11 is a bottom view of the tile assembly of FIG. 2.
[0022] FIG. 12 is a bottom perspective view of the tile assembly of FIG. 2.
[0023] FIG. 13 is a detail view of a portion of the tile assembly of FIG. 2 taken from detail 13 in FIG. 12.
[0024] FIG. 14 is a sectional view of the tile assembly of FIG. 2 taken from line 14-14 in FIG. 11.
[0025] FIG. 15 is a perspective exploded view of the tile assembly of FIG. 2 prior to attachment of the frame with the base.
[0026] FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a first tile assembly of the plurality of tile assemblies of FIG. 1 prior to attachment to a second tile assembly and a third tile assembly of the plurality of tile assemblies of FIG. 1.
[0027] FIG. 17 a top perspective view of the plurality of tile assemblies of FIG. 1 attached together with additional tile assemblies.
[0028] FIG. 18 is a perspective view of a fully assembled support mat system in accordance with various aspects of the current disclosure.
[0029] FIG. 19 is a perspective view of another fully assembled support mat system in accordance with various aspects of the current disclosure, assembled in a showroom with several vehicles supported on the support mat system.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0030] The present disclosure can be understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description, examples, drawings, and claims, and their previous and following description. However, before the present devices, systems, and/or methods are disclosed and described, it is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the specific devices, systems, and/or methods disclosed unless otherwise specified, as such can, of course, vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular aspects only and is not intended to be limiting.
[0031] The following description is provided as an enabling teaching of the present devices, systems, and/or methods in their best, currently known aspect. To this end, those skilled in the relevant art will recognize and appreciate that many changes can be made to the various aspects described herein while still obtaining the beneficial results of the present disclosure. It will also be apparent that some of the desired benefits of the present disclosure can be obtained by selecting some of the features of the present disclosure without utilizing other features. Accordingly, those who work in the art will recognize that many modifications and adaptations to the present disclosure are possible and can even be desirable in certain circumstances and are a part of the present disclosure. Thus, the following description is provided as illustrative of the principles of the present disclosure and not in limitation thereof.
[0032] As used throughout, the singular forms a, an, and the include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to a quantity of one of a particular element can comprise two or more such elements unless the context indicates otherwise. In addition, any of the elements described herein can be a first such element, a second such element, and so forth (e.g., a first widget and a second widget, even if only a widget is referenced).
[0033] Ranges can be expressed herein as from about one particular value and/or to about another particular value. When such a range is expressed, another aspect comprises from the one particular value and/or to the other particular value. Similarly, when values are expressed as approximations, by use of the antecedent about or substantially, it will be understood that the particular value forms another aspect. It will be further understood that the endpoints of each of the ranges are significant both in relation to the other endpoint and independently of the other endpoint.
[0034] For purposes of the current disclosure, a material property or dimension measuring about X or substantially X on a particular measurement scale measures within a range between X plus an industry-standard upper tolerance for the specified measurement and X minus an industry-standard lower tolerance for the specified measurement. Because tolerances can vary between different materials, processes, and between different models, the tolerance for a particular measurement of a particular component can fall within a range of tolerances.
[0035] As used herein, the terms optional or optionally mean that the subsequently described event or circumstance may or may not occur, and that the description comprises instances where said event or circumstance occurs and instances where it does not.
[0036] The word or as used herein means any one member of a particular list and also comprises any combination of members of that list. The phrase at least one of A and B as used herein means only A, only B, or both A and B; while the phrase one of A and B means A or B.
[0037] As used herein, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise, the term monolithic in the description of a component means that the component is formed as a singular component that constitutes a single material without joints or seams. Unless otherwise specified herein, any structure disclosed in the drawings or in the written description can be monolithic whether or not such an explicit description of the structure is included herein. In one aspect, a tile assembly for supporting vehicles and associated methods, systems, devices, and various apparatuses are disclosed herein. In one aspect, the tile assembly can comprise a base and a frame attachable to the base and surrounding a portion of the base. One aspect of a portion of a support mat system 100 is disclosed and described in FIG. 1. The support mat system 100 can comprise a plurality of tile assemblies 110 attached to each other along outer perimeters 111 of each tile assembly 110. Each tile assembly 100 can comprise a base 120 and a frame 130 attached to the base 120. The base 120 can define a base top surface 122 and the frame can define a frame top surface 132 that can be coplanar with the base top surface 122. As shown, each tile assembly 110 can define a plurality of sides 112. In some aspects, as shown, each tile assembly 110 can define six sides 112a, b, c, d, e, f, such that each tile assembly 110 defines a substantially hexagonal shape and can attach to up to six separate and adjacent tile assemblies 110 at a respective side 112 of each tile assembly 110.
[0038] FIG. 2 shows a tile assembly 110. As shown, the frame 130 can be positioned over and on an outer attachment portion 220 of the base 120. The outer perimeter 111 of each tile assembly 110 can define a plurality of keys 222 and keyholes 224. In the current aspect, the keys 222 and keyholes 224 can be defined in an alternating pattern around the outer perimeter 111 of the tile assembly 110, with two keys 222 and two keyholes 224 defined on each side 112, although different numbers and patterns of keys 222 and keyholes 224 can be present in other aspects. In the current aspect, the base 120 and frame 130 can, in combination, define each key 222 and each keyhole 224, with the outer attachment portion 220 of the base 120 defining a lower portion of each key 222 and each keyhole 224, and the frame 130 defining an upper portion of each key 222 and each keyhole 224.
[0039] As shown in FIG. 2, the base top surface 122 can define a plurality of grooves 226. In some aspects, the grooves 226 arranged in a triangular pattern across the base top surface 122. Further, the base top surface 122 can define an outer edge 228 which, in the current aspects, is hexagonal, defining six straight portions of equal length. Likewise, in the current aspect, the frame top surface 132 can define an inner edge 232 that is complementary to the outer edge 228 of the base top surface 122 and thereby hexagonal in the current aspect. In various aspects, the frame top surface 132 can define a different color than the base top surface 122, such as by the frame 130 being formed from a material with a different color than the base 120. Once assembled into a support mat system 100, such as shown in FIG. 1, attachment of the tile assemblies 110 by attachment of keys 222 and keyholes 224 of adjacent tile assemblies 110 with frames 130 that define frame top surfaces 132 with the same colors can act to blend or hide the outer perimeter 111 of each tile assembly 110, thereby allowing the outer edge 228 of the base top surface 122 of each tile assembly 110 to stand out visually. In the current aspect, this configuration provides a support mat system 100 with a hexagonal color pattern, while maintaining attachments between tile assemblies 110.
[0040] As shown in FIG. 3, the outer attachment portion 220 of the base 120 can be a portion of the base 120 with a smaller height than the base top surface 122 between the outer edge 228 of the base top surface 122 and an outer perimeter 320 of the base 120. The outer attachment portion 220 can comprise a plurality of keys 322 and keyholes 324, as shown. Further, the outer attachment portion 220 can define a plurality of pinholes 328 extending through the outer attachment portion 220. In the current aspect, the outer attachment portion 220 can define alternating sets of three and four pinholes 328 between each keyhole 324, though any number of pinholes 328 can be present in other aspects. The base 120 can also define a shoulder 326 between the base top surface 122 and the outer attachment portion 220. As shown in FIG. 4, the shoulder 326 can be angled relative to a vertical direction such that the base 120 tapers inward from the outer attachment portion 220 to the base top surface 122.
[0041] FIG. 5 shows a top view of the base 120, illustrating the triangular pattern of grooves 226 in the base top surface 122 and the hexagonal shape of the outer edge 228. As shown in FIG. 5, spaces 526 are present between ends of the grooves 226 in the triangular pattern. In the current aspect, the grooves 226 can function to make the base top surface 122 resistant to slippage of tires, such as wet tires, on the tile assembly 110, compared with a smooth base top surface 122.
[0042] As shown in FIG. 6, each key 322 can comprise a neck 622 connecting the key 322 to the rest of the outer attachment portion 220. Each key 322 can also comprise a pair of wings 623a, b extending from lateral sides of each key 322, thereby forming a portion wider than the neck 622. Each keyhole 324 can likewise comprise a pair of lateral grooves 624a, b configured to engage the wings 623a, b of a complementary key 322 of an adjacent tile assembly 110, thereby preventing the key 322 from being laterally removed from the keyhole 324. In addition, in some aspects, the keys 322 and keyholes 324 can define a plurality of flat sidewalls, and the straight edges formed by the flat sidewalls can provide further resistance to lateral movement of the tile assemblies 100 away from each other. In other aspects, the keys 322 and keyholes 324 can define different shapes as desired that can facilitate attachment and prevent lateral movement of the keys 322 within the keyholes 324. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, each pinhole 328 can be hexagonal in some aspects.
[0043] As shown in FIG. 7, the base 120 can define a bottom 720. Each key 322 can define a tab 722 proximate to the bottom 720, which can be formed with an outward-extending rib 723. The tab 722 can be formed by a pair of slots 721a, b extending upward from the bottom 720 on the key 322. Further, each keyhole 324 can define a groove 724 extending upward from the bottom 720. Each tab 722 can thereby engage a corresponding groove 724 by engagement of the rib 723 of the tab 722 clicking into the groove 724 when a key 322 is inserted into a keyhole 324, thereby resisting separation of each key 322 from each keyhole 324 and preventing the tile assemblies 110 from being unintentionally separated from each other. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the outer perimeter 320 of the base 120 can define a plurality of drain notches 726 along the bottom 720, which can allow drainage from beneath the base 120 and prevent fluid buildup from forming underneath the tile assemblies 110, as well as preventing air buildup and/or suction effect with the floor underneath the base 120.
[0044] As shown in FIG. 8, the frame 130 can comprise a plurality of keys 832 and keyholes 834. In the current aspects, the keys 832 and keyholes 834 can be similarly shaped as the keys 322 and keyholes 324, respectively, of the base 120. As shown in FIG. 9, the frame 130 can define a bottom 930. The bottom 930 can define a plurality of downward-extending pins 932. In some aspects, the bottom 930 can define alternating sets of three and four pins 932 between each keyhole 834, though any number of pins 932 can be present in other aspects. The pinholes 932 are positioned and arranged to be inserted into the pinholes 328 to attach the base 120 to the frame 130, and the pinholes 328 are sized to tightly grip the pins 932, such as with an interference fit, to prevent removal of the pins 932 from the pinholes 328, thereby preventing removal of the frame 130 from the base 120. In other aspects, the pinholes 328 can be sized to allow easier removal of the pins 932 and thereby allow easier replacement of frames 130 on bases 120. As shown in FIG. 10, the pins 932 can define tapered ends 1032 to allow easier insertion of the pins 932 into the pinholes 328.
[0045] The bottom 720 of the base 120 of the tile assembly 110 is shown in FIGS. 11 and 12. As shown in FIG. 11, the base 120 can comprise a plurality of straight support ribs 1110 and a plurality of cylindrical supports 1120. In the current aspects, the support ribs 1110 can be arranged in a triangular pattern across the bottom 720 of the base 120, and the cylindrical supports 1120 can be arranged between ends of the support ribs 1110. Each support rib 1110 can be vertically aligned with each groove 226 (shown in FIG. 2) defined in the base top surface 122. In some aspects, when the base 120 is molded and is cooling, grooves 226 can form naturally above each support rib 1110 as the material forming the support ribs 1110 cool, solidify, and contract, pulling material downward from the base top surface 122. By arranging the support ribs 1110 in a pattern, this formation of grooves 1110 can be controlled to arrange the grooves 226 in a visually appealing pattern. Further, the cylindrical supports 1120 can space the ends of the support ribs 1110 away from each other, preventing indentations or dimples from forming at intersections between 1110 ribs due to this same cooling and contracting during formation. In addition, the cylindrical supports 1120 provide significant strengthening of the base 120, allowing the base 120 and thereby the tile assembly 110 to support larger loads, such as heavier vehicles.
[0046] As shown in FIG. 13, the support ribs 1110 and the cylindrical supports 1120 can define additional drainage notches 726, such that drainage and air escape is allowed across the entire bottom 720 of the base 120. FIG. 14 shows the pin 932 of the frame 130 extending through the pinhole 328 of the base 120.
[0047] FIG. 14 also shows that the inner edge 232 of the frame 130 can define a sloped surface that is complementary to the shoulder 326 of the base 120.
[0048] As shown in FIG. 15, a first step of attaching the frame 130 and the base 120 together to form a tile assembly 110 can comprise aligning the frame 130 over the base 120 such that the pins 932 are aligned over the pinholes 328 and then lowering the frame 130 onto the base 120 so that the pins 932 are inserted into the pinholes 328 and the inner edge 232 of the frame 130 engages the outer edge 228 of the base top surface 122. This allows assembly of the base 120 and frame 130 without adhesives, welding, or other additional fastening or attaching mechanisms. In other aspects, pins 932 and pinholes 328 may not be present and the frame 130 and base 120 can be attached to each other by engagement of the outer edge 228 and inner edge 232 and/or by welds, adhesives, or other attachment mechanisms.
[0049] After attaching the frame 130 to the base 120, the keys 832 of the frame 130 and the keys 322 of the base 120 form the keys 222 of the tile assembly 110, and the keyholes 834 of the frame 130 and the keyholes 324 of the base 120 form the keyholes 224 of the tile assembly 110, as shown in FIG. 16. In other aspects, the base 120 may not comprise keys 322 and/or keyholes 324 and the frame only comprises keys 832 and keyholes 834 to form the keys 222 and keyholes 224, respective, or vice versa.
[0050] After attaching the frame 130 to the base 120, the tile assembly 110 can be attached to other tile assemblies 110 by aligning the keys 222 and keyholes 224 of the tile assembly 110 over the respective keyholes 224 and keys 222 of adjacent tile assemblies 110, and then lowering the tile assembly 110 until the keys 222 and keyholes 224 are fully engaged with each other and the tabs 722 of the base 120 engage grooves 724 of adjacent bases 120, forming the support mat system 100, as shown in FIG. 17.
[0051] As shown in FIG. 18, the support mat system 100 can further comprise edge ramps 1810 at lateral edges of the support mat system 100, such as in aspects in which the support mat system 100 is set up on a showroom or trade show floor in open space and away from any walls. The ramps 1810 can allow for a vehicle to be easily and smoothly driven up onto the support mat system 100. The ramps 1810 can be formed in segments, such as lateral segments 1812 and corner segments 1814, and each segment can comprise keys and keyholes similar to the tile assemblies 110 to allow attachment of the ramps 1810 to the tile assemblies 110. Further, tile assemblies 110 at edges of the support mat system 100 can define portions of edge tile assemblies 1820 that are bisected to allow for attachment of the edge tile assemblies 1820 to other tile assemblies 110 and to the ramps 1810. The edge tile assemblies 1820 can thereby define half-hexagon shapes. In some aspects, as shown, the edge tile assemblies 1820 can be bisected from midpoints of the sides of the hexagon, as shown by edge tile assemblies 1820a, and/or can be bisected from intersections of the sides of the hexagon, as shown by edge tile assemblies 1820b. In some aspects, the bisected edge tile assemblies 1820a, b can define keys and keyholes that can engage keys and keyholes on the ramps 1810.
[0052] As shown in FIG. 19, the support mat system 100 can be installed in a garage 1900 such that the support mat system 100 extends all the way to walls 1910 of the garage 1900. In some aspects, the support mat system 100 can extend to the walls 1910 with no ramps 1810 and slight gaps, such as less than a quarter inch, between the walls 1910 and the support mat system 100, to allow for slight movement and/or expansion/contraction of the support mat system under load from vehicles 1920 and in different temperature conditions. In some aspects, an edge of the support mat system 100 can comprise a ramp 1810 at one location, such as at a garage door entrance to the garage 1900 in which vehicles 1920 can be driven in and out of, and remaining edges of the support mat system 100 would not comprise ramps 1810. In some aspects, the edges without ramps 1810, as well as the ramps 1810 themselves, can be cut to fit in the garage 1900 during installation, such as with box cutters, knives, saws, and the like.
[0053] Components of the support mat system 100, such as each base 120, frame 130, and ramp 1810, can be monolithically formed from resilient, sturdy material, such as polypropylene or other plastics, rubbers, or other materials as desired. Polypropylene components can be injection-molded or 3D-printed, for example and without limitation, and can be formed in different colors as desired to show the hexagonal shapes of the tile assemblies 110.
[0054] The hexagonal shapes of the tile assemblies 110 also can distribute lateral forces, such as by vehicle movement, between three or more tile assemblies 110, as compared to square tile assemblies 110, which may only distribute lateral forces between one or, at most, two adjacent tile assemblies 110. This distribution of forces provides additional resistance to lateral movement of the tile assemblies 110 relative to each other, prevent gaps from forming between tile assemblies.
[0055] One should note that conditional language, such as, among others, can, could, might, or may, unless expressly stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain aspects include, while other aspects do not include, certain features, elements, and/or steps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements and/or steps are in any way required for one or more particular aspects or that one or more particular aspects necessarily comprise logic for deciding, with or without user input or prompting, whether these features, elements and/or steps are included or are to be performed in any particular aspect.
[0056] It should be emphasized that the above-described aspects are merely possible examples of implementations, merely set forth for a clear understanding of the principles of the present disclosure. Many variations and modifications may be made to the above-described aspect(s) without departing substantially from the spirit and principles of the present disclosure. Further, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover any combinations and sub-combinations of all elements, features, and aspects discussed above. All such modifications and variations are intended to be included within the scope of the present disclosure, and all possible claims to individual aspects or combinations of elements or steps are intended to be supported by the present disclosure.
