PANEL

• US 20130309441A1
• Filed: 01/25/2012
• Published: 11/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Akzenta Paneele + Profile GmbH
• Original Assignee: Akzenta Paneele + Profile GmbH
• Inventors: Hannig, Hans-Juergen
• Granted Patent: US 9,695,851 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 428/100
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 15/02038 characterised by tongue and groove connections between neighbouring flooring elements
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 15/102 of fibrous or chipped materials, e.g. bonded with synthetic resins
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 15/105 of organic plastics with or without reinforcements or filling materials
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/0146 with snap action of the edge connectors
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/0153 by rotating the sheets, plates or panels around an axis which is parallel to the abutting edges, possibly combined with a sliding movement
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/0176 with snap action of the edge connectors
• CPC Class Codes: E04F 2201/03 Undercut connections, e.g. using undercut tongues or grooves
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 5/0056 by moving the sheets, plates or panels or the interlocking key perpendicular to the main plane
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 5/008 by a rotating or sliding and rotating movement
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49826 Assembling or joining
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24017 Hook or barb

Abstract

The invention relates to a panel including an upper side, an underside, a basic body, complementary locking means, which are provided in pairs on mutually opposite panel edges, and at least one paid of locking means having a receiving hook and an arresting hook. The receiving hook has a hook periphery and a receiving recess. The arresting hook has an arresting recess, an arresting shoulder, a transverse-joint surface and a vertically acting arresting contour. The receiving hook has a transverse-joint surface and a form-fitting contour. The arresting hook also has a horizontal locking surface on its arresting shoulder. The receiving hook also has a horizontal locking surface in the receiving recess.

Claims

1. A panel including a top side, an underside, a body, complementary locking means provided in pairs at mutually opposite panel edges, at least one pair of locking means with hook profiles, namely a receiving hook and in opposite relationship thereto an arresting hook, wherein the receiving hook has arranged remote from the body a hook edge and arranged nearer to the body a receiving recess, wherein the receiving recess is open towards the top side, the arresting hook is provided with an arresting recess arranged nearer to the body and open to the underside and has an arresting step arranged remote from the body and which fits in a vertical joining direction into the receiving recess of the receiving hook, the arresting hook has a transverse joining surface remote from the body and also remote from the body a vertically acting arresting contour, the receiving hook has nearer to the body a transverse joining surface and also nearer to the body a positively locking contour which fits together in positively locking relationship with the arresting contour, that is remote from the body, of the arresting hook so that locking can be implemented perpendicularly to the plane of mounted panels, the arresting hook has arranged nearer to the body a horizontal locking surface at its arresting step, the receiving hook has arranged remote from the body a horizontal locking surface in the receiving recess, formed at the receiving hook is a receiving opening through which the arresting step can be inserted substantially in the joining direction into the receiving recess, wherein the arresting step and the receiving opening are of such a configuration that the step end during a joining movement initially fits without elastic deformation of the hook profiles into the receiving opening, to such an extent that the horizontal locking surface of the arresting hook makes contact with a part of its surface with the horizontal locking surface of the receiving hook.

2. A panel according to claim 1, wherein the underside of the receiving hook is disposed in a plane identical to the plane of the underside of the panel.

3. A panel according to claim 1, wherein the arresting contour and the positively locking contour form an upper latching means, wherein the arresting contour has a female latching element or a male latching element and wherein the positively locking contour has a female latching element or male latching element complementary to the arresting contour.

4. A panel according to claim 1, wherein the hook edge of the receiving hook and the arresting recess of the arresting hook form a lower latching means, wherein provided remote from the body at the hook edge of the receiving hook is a female latching element or a male latching element, and wherein the arresting recess has near the body a female latching element or a male latching element complementary thereto.

5. A panel according to claim 4, wherein each female latching element has a latching surface which is directed towards the top side or underside of the panel, each male latching element has a complementary latching surface directed towards the respective other side of the panel, and the latching surface of the female latching element together with the latching surface of the male latching element in the locked condition of two panels counteract a movement of locked panels away from each other perpendicularly to the panel plane.

6. A panel according to claim 5, wherein the latching surface of the female latching element is in contact with the latching surface of the male latching element in the locked condition of two panels.

7. A panel according to claim 5, wherein a gap is provided between the latching surface of the female latching element and the latching surface of the associated male latching element in the locked condition of two panels.

8. A panel according to claim 4, wherein during the joining movement firstly the upper latching means and then the lower latching means are completely joined together.

9. A panel according to claim 1, wherein the arresting hook and/or the receiving hook has a flexural region.

10. A panel according to claim 9, wherein the flexural region is in the form of a flexural leg,

11. A panel according to claim 1, wherein the horizontal locking surfaces of the hook profiles are inclined through an angle of 0°

to 25°

relative to the surface normal of the top side and in the locked condition of two panels are arranged in substantially mutually parallel relationship.

12. A panel according to claim 1, wherein remote from the body the hook edge has an inclined sliding surface,

13. A panel according to claim 1, wherein on its side remote from the body the arresting step has an inclined sliding surface.

14. A panel according to claim 1, wherein there are provided a pair of pivotal profile portions, namely a groove profile portion with undercut configuration of a groove wall and a tongue profile portion with undercut configuration of a tongue underside.

15. A panel according to claim 1, wherein there is provided a decorative layer at the top side.

16. A panel according to claim 1, wherein provided at the top side is a transparent cover layer through which the body or the decorative layer is visible.

17. A panel according to claim 1, wherein provided at its underside is a backing layer.

18. A panel according to claim 1, wherein the body at least partially comprises a wood material.

19. A panel according to claim 1, wherein the at least partially comprises a plastic material.

20. A method of simultaneously locking a new quadrangular panel provided with two longitudinal edges and two transverse edges to a previous panel row already assembled from identical panels and to an identical panel already assembled in the same panel row, wherein a first longitudinal edge is connected to the previous panel row in positively locking relationship by pivoting the new panel into the plane of the assembled panels, wherein at the same time a first transverse edge of the new panel is brought by a scissor-like movement into positively locking engagement with a second transverse edge of the assembled panel in the same panel row, wherein the first transverse edge of the panels respectively has a first transverse joining surface and the second transverse edge of the panels respectively has a second transverse joining surface, wherein the first transverse joining surface is brought into contact at that end which is towards the first longitudinal edge with the second transverse joining surface of the assembled panel in the same panel row, wherein the positively locking connection of the longitudinal edge and the transverse edge of the new panel is produced by a longitudinal join gap and a transverse join gap being produced between the new panel and the previous panel row, the wedge tip of the transverse join gap points in the direction of the previous panel row and the wedge tip of the longitudinal join gap points in the direction of the free second transverse edge of the new panel, and the new panel is finally pivoted into the plane of the assembled panels, wherein the positively locking engagement of the transverse edges and longitudinal edges is completely brought together and the wedge-shaped join gaps are removed.

21. A method according to claim 20, wherein the longitudinal join gap is produced by the new panel being temporarily brought out of its parallel orientation with the previous panel row and the wedge tip of the longitudinal join gap being produced at the remote end of the first longitudinal edge of the new panel.

22. A method according to claim 20, wherein the longitudinal join gap is produced by the new panel being temporarily brought out of its flat form by being curved out of its plane in the direction of its top side.