Floor panel for producing a covering

• US 10,287,779 B2
• Filed: 02/27/2018
• Issued: 05/14/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gerflor SAS
• Original Assignee: Gerflor SAS
• Inventors: Ceysson, Olivier, Chammas, Bertrand
• Primary Examiner(s): Figueroa, Adriana
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fonseca, Jessie T
• Application Number:
  US15/906,851
• Publication Number:
  US 20180187423A1
• Time in Patent Office: 441 Days
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 15/02038 characterised by tongue and groove connections between neighbouring flooring elements
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 15/105 of organic plastics with or without reinforcements or filling materials
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/013 with snap action of the edge connectors
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/0138 by moving the sheets, plates or panels perpendicular to the main plane
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/0146 with snap action of the edge connectors
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/023 with a continuous tongue or groove
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/03 Undercut connections, e.g. using undercut tongues or grooves
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/04 Other details of tongues or grooves
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/042 with grooves positioned on the rear-side of the panel
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/043 with tongues and grooves being formed by projecting or recessed parts of the panel layers

Abstract

A floor panel includes male and female coupling means that are formed by at least one proximal groove that opens onto a lower face or upper face, respectively, of the panel and by a distal flexible tongue that extends from the end of the edge of the panel towards the lower face or upper face, respectively. The tongue has a proximal wall inclined at an angle with respect to a vertical plane towards the bottom and the outside of the panel and towards the top and the outside of the panel, respectively. The tongue of at least one of the male coupling means or female coupling means has a distal wall that includes, at least, a protrusion or a notch that is able to engage with a notch or a protrusion formed in or on a proximal wall of the proximal groove of the corresponding female coupling means or male coupling means so as to form an end stop, avoiding vertical movement of a panel with respect to an adjacent panel. The flexible tongue of the female coupling means comprises a chamfered part that forms an angle of between 2° and 20° with respect to the main plane of the panel.

Claims

1. A male and female coupling means of a floor panel having the form of a plank and/or tile and being made of a plastic material for producing a floor covering, comprising:

the male coupling means being formed of at least one proximal groove intended to open onto a lower horizonal plane co-planar with a lower face of the panel and of a flexible distal tongue intended to extend from one end of one edge of the panel towards the lower horizontal plane co-planar with the lower face of said panel,

the female coupling means being formed of at least one proximal groove intended to open onto an upper horizontal plane co-planar with an upper face of the panel and of a flexible distal tongue intended to extend from one end of an opposite edge of the panel, towards the upper horizontal plane co-planar with the upper face of said panel,

the flexible distal tongue of the male coupling means has a proximal wall inclined at an angle β

with respect to a vertical plane towards the bottom of the panel and towards the outside of the panel,

the flexible distal tongue of the female coupling means has a proximal wall inclined at an angle α

with respect to a vertical plane towards the top of the panel and towards the outside of the panel,

the flexible distal tongue of at least one of the male coupling means or female coupling means has a distal wall comprising, at least, a protrusion or a notch that is able to engage with a notch or a protrusion formed in or on a proximal wall of at least one proximal groove of the corresponding female coupling means or male coupling means of an adjacent panel so as to form an end stop, avoiding vertical movement of the panel with respect to the adjacent panel, wherein

the flexible distal tongue of the female coupling means comprises a chamfered part intended to form an angle of between 2° and

20°

with respect to the lower horizontal plane co-planar with the lower face of the panel, said chamfered part giving rise to a reduction in a clipping force and to a deformation of the flexible distal tongue such that it is easier to assemble two adjacent panels, and wherein

the distal wall of the flexible distal tongue of the female coupling means comprises an upper part inclined at an angle of between 1° and

20°

with respect to a vertical plane, and a lower part inclined at an angle of between 1° and

20°

with respect to a vertical plane, the upper part and the lower part extend parallel on either side of the protrusion or of the notch, and wherein

the proximal wall of the proximal groove of the male coupling means comprises an upper part inclined at an angle of between 1° and

20°

with respect to a vertical plane, and a lower part inclined at an angle of between 1° and

20°

with respect to a vertical plane, the upper part and the lower part extend parallel on either side of the notch or of the protrusion.

2. The male and female coupling means according to claim 1, wherein the angles α

and β

are between 1° and

45°

.

3. The male and female coupling means according to claim 2, wherein angle α

is equal to angle β

.

4. The male and female coupling means according to claim 2 wherein the angles α

and β

are between 5° and

15°

.

5. The male and female coupling means according to claim 1, wherein the chamfered part forms an angle of 10°

with respect to the lower horizontal plane co-planar with the lower face of the panel.

6. The male and female coupling means according to claim 1, wherein the distal wall of the flexible distal tongue of the female coupling and proximal wall of the proximal groove of the male coupling are parallel.

7. The male and female coupling means according to claim 6, wherein the distal walls of the flexible distal tongues of the male coupling means and female coupling means comprise, respectively, a protrusion and a notch that are able to engage with a notch and a protrusion, respectively, formed in or on the proximal walls of the proximal grooves of the corresponding female coupling means and male coupling means so as to form an end stop, avoiding vertical movement of a panel with respect to an adjacent panel on which the corresponding female coupling means and male coupling are disposed.

8. The male and female coupling means according to claim 1 wherein:

the distal wall of the flexible distal tongue of the male coupling means comprises an upper part inclined at an angle of between 1° and

20°

with respect to a vertical plane, and a lower part inclined at an angle of between 1° and

20°

with respect to a vertical plane, the upper part and the lower part extend parallel on either side of the protrusion or of the notch, and wherein

the proximal wall of the proximal groove of the female coupling means comprise each an upper part inclined at an angle of between 1° and

20°

with respect to a vertical plane, and a lower part inclined at an angle of between 1° and

20°

with respect to a vertical plane, the upper part and the lower part extend parallel on either side of the notch or of the protrusion.