Edge Profiles for Industrial Floor Panels

Interconnecting tongue and groove wood panels or boards are well known and widely used in the construction industry. These panels are commonly constructed from plywood, particleboard, waferboard, strandboard or other composite wood product materials. Tongue and groove composite wood panels are particularly well suited for installation on a joist framing assembly for subflooring because the interlocking edges of the panels reduce vertical offset between adjacent panels, thereby providing a smoother structural sub-floor. In addition, the load carrying transfer along the interconnected edges prevents relative movement between adjacent panel edges as persons walk along the floor, thereby reducing floor squeaking. Typically, carpet, tile or hardwood is installed over a structural sub-floor to provide a finished floor surface.

While tongue and groove composite wood panels are generally very useful, such composite panels commonly swell and expand due to the absorption of moisture by the panel. This expansion causes the interconnected edges of the adjacent wood panels to press tightly against one another creating stress along the panel edges. As a result, the interconnected wood panels begin to buckle and bow. In addition, the stress along the panel edges can cause undesirable popping, cracking, or squeaking when persons step upon or near the joints.

Accordingly, there is a need in the building industry for tongue and groove panels that reduce unwanted stress along the interconnected panel edges during panel expansion, while continuing to reduce vertical offset and provide effective load carrying transfer along the length of the tongue and groove joint.

One implementation of the present disclosure is a panel having a first longitudinal edge and a second longitudinal edge parallel to the first longitudinal edge, the panel including: a groove formed along said first longitudinal edge, said groove having two sides and a floor transverse thereto; a tongue formed along said second longitudinal edge, said tongue having an upper side wall and a lower side wall and a head extending outward from said second longitudinal edge to a distal end, thereby forming a juncture between the side walls of the tongue and the second longitudinal edge; and a shoulder located at the juncture of said lower side wall and the second longitudinal edge. The upper portion of the second longitudinal edge and an outer surface of the shoulder lie in a second plane that is parallel to a first plane that includes the first longitudinal edge, and a lower portion of the second longitudinal edge lies in a third plane that is parallel to and spaced inwardly of the second plane relative to the distal end of the tongue. A width of the tongue between the upper portion of the second longitudinal edge and the distal end of the tongue is less than a width of the groove as defined between the first plane and the floor of the groove.

In some implementations, the shoulder is compressible.

In some implementations, the tongue continues uninterrupted along an entire length of the second longitudinal edge.

In some implementations, the panel is a composite wood panel.

In some implementations, the groove is a first groove and the tongue is a first tongue, and the panel includes a second groove defined along a first lateral edge of the panel and a second tongue extending from and along a second lateral edge of the panel.

In some implementations, a first aperture is defined between the distal end of the tongue and the floor of the groove.

In some implementations, the first aperture is further defined (i) between the upper side wall of the groove and the upper side wall of the tongue and (ii) between the lower side wall of the groove and the lower side wall of the tongue.

In some implementations, a second aperture is defined between the third plane including the lower portion of the second longitudinal edge and the first plane including the lower portion of the first longitudinal edge.

In some implementations, the width of the second aperture is between 1/32 and ¼ inches.

In some implementations, the tongue is complementary to the groove.

Another implementation of the present disclosure is a panel system including: a first panel having a groove formed along a first longitudinal edge, said groove having two sides and a floor transverse thereto; and a second panel having (i) a tongue formed along a second longitudinal edge, said tongue having two side walls and a head extending outward from said second longitudinal edge to a distal end, thereby forming a juncture between the side walls of the tongue and the second longitudinal edge, and (ii) a shoulder located at the juncture between a side wall of the tongue and a lower portion of the second longitudinal edge. Upon engaging the first and second panels to form a tongue and groove joint, an upper portion of the second longitudinal edge and an outer surface of the shoulder lie in a second plane that is parallel to a first plane that includes the first longitudinal edge, and the lower portion of the second longitudinal edge lies in a third plane that is parallel to and spaced inwardly of the second plane relative to the distal end of the tongue. A width of the tongue between the upper portion of the second longitudinal edge and the distal end of the tongue is less than a width of the groove as defined between the first plane and the floor of the groove.

In some implementations, the shoulder is compressible.

In some implementations, the tongue continues uninterrupted along an entire length of the second longitudinal edge.

In some implementations, the first panel is a composite wood panel.

In some implementations, the groove is a first groove and the tongue is a first tongue, and the first panel includes a second groove defined along a first lateral edge of the first panel and a second tongue extending from and along a second lateral edge of the first panel.

In some implementations, a first aperture is defined between the distal end of the tongue and the floor of the groove.

In some implementations, the first aperture is further defined (i) between the upper side wall of the groove and the upper side wall of the tongue and (ii) between the lower side wall of the groove and the lower side wall of the tongue.

In some implementations, a second aperture is defined between the third plane including the lower portion of the second longitudinal edge and the first plane including the lower portion of the first longitudinal edge.

In some implementations, the width of the second aperture is between 1/32 and ¼ inches.

In some implementations, the tongue is complementary to the groove.

Additional advantages are set forth in part in the description that follows or may be learned by practice. The advantages are realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive, as claimed.

Various objects, aspects, features, and advantages of the disclosure become more apparent and better understood by referring to the detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters identify corresponding elements throughout. In the drawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical, functionally similar, and/or structurally similar elements.

illustrates a cross-sectional profile of tongue and groove composite wood panels assembled together, according to the prior art, which may be used in the assembly of flooring and sub-flooring. Tongue and groove wood panels such as shown inmay also be utilized as wall boards, decks, roofing, countertops, or any other suitable surface wherein the wood panels employed are subject to undesired swelling or expansion, which may create pressure or stress along interconnected panel joints.illustrates the cross-sectional profile of a tongue and groove joint, approved by the American Plywood Association, currently utilized in flooring and sub-flooring assembly.

Referring to, a board or panel of woodis provided with a rectangular grooveon one side edge and a complementary second board or panelis provided with a rectangular section tongue, having disproportionate upper and lower side walls,, on a second side edge facing the groove. The tongue is formed such that the lower side wallis of a length shorter than the upper side wall. Thus, when the boards or panelsandare connected to form a tongue and groove joint, the edge of panelbelow the groove, and the edge of panelbelow the tongue, abut each other to form a tight bottom joint. A first apertureis formed between the partially engaged tongue and groove and a second apertureis formed between the side edges of panelandabove the tongue and groove joint.

As used herein, “upper” refers to the outward facing surface when the panel is installed, and “lower” refers to the inward facing surface when the panel is installed. For example, the upper surface of a flooring panel is the surface that faces away from the floor joists supporting the flooring panel, and the lower surface of the flooring panel is the surface that faces toward the floor joists supporting the flooring panel. Similarly, an upper surface of a wall panel is the surface facing away from the wall framing, and the lower surface of the wall panel is the surface facing toward the wall framing.

When such interconnected boards or panels are subjected to moisture, the boards or panels tend to expand. Since the boards or panels are substantially rigidly interconnected by the tight bottom joint, there is no opportunity to reduce the resulting stress along the joint and consequently the boards or panels tend to buckle or bow. In addition, the stress along the joint can result in cracking and squeaking along the edges of the interconnected boards or panels when persons walk or step along or near the joint. Additionally, the gap or apertureformed between the panels,creates a discontinuous upper surface of the flooring system. The resulting flooring system including a plurality of panels is not completely flat, due to this gap, which may lead to issues for some applications (e.g., industrial or commercial flooring applications).

The tongue and groove joints of this disclosure overcome these deficiencies in the prior art by providing an area for panel expansion below the engaged tongue and groove joint, along with a flat surface above the engaged tongue and groove joint, without compromising the strength and utility of the tongue and groove intersection.

illustrates a cross-sectional profile of a tongue and groove joint formed by engaging similar tongue and groove panels, according to one implementation. Each board or panel,is provided with a groovealong a first longitudinal edgeand a tonguealong a second longitudinal edge. Each of the first longitudinal edgeand the second longitudinal edgeincludes an upper and lower portion of the longitudinal edges,on either side of the grooveor the tongue, respectively. Although the tongueand grooveinare shown having beveled edges, in other implementations the tongue and groove may have other complementary profiles (e.g., rounded, tapered, or rectangular).

The groovehas an upper side wall, a lower side wall, and a floortransverse thereto. The tonguehas an upper side wall, a lower side wall, and a headextending outward from the second longitudinal edgeto a distal end, thereby forming a juncture between the side walls,of the tongueand the second longitudinal edge. The tonguemay extend uninterrupted along the entire length of the second longitudinal edge, or in the alternative, the tongue may be segmented to allow for water to pass in between adjacent tongue segments. A shoulderis disposed at the junction between the lower side wallof the tongueand the lower portion of the second longitudinal edge. Similar to the tongue, the shouldermay extend uninterrupted along the entire length of the second longitudinal edge, or in the alternative, the shoulder may be segmented to allow for water to pass in between adjacent shoulder segments.

The upper portion of the second longitudinal edgeand an outer surfaceof the shoulderlie in a second plane that is parallel to a first plane that includes the first longitudinal edge. The lower portion of the second longitudinal edge(i.e., below the shoulder) lies a third plane that is parallel to and spaced inwardly of the second plane relative to the distal end of the tongue. A width of the tonguebetween the upper portion of the second longitudinal edgeand the distal end of the tongueis less than a width of the grooveas defined between the first plane and the floorof the groove. For example, as shown in, in a specific example implementation, the width of the tongue is 0.313 inches and the width of the groove is 0.375 inches.

When two panels,are installed together, the first longitudinal edgeand grooveof the first panelface the second longitudinal edgeand tongueof the second panel, and the tongueis engaged with the groove.

The shoulderabuts the lower portion of the first longitudinal edge, which prevents the tonguefrom being completely introduced into the complementary groove. As a result, a first apertureis formed between the headat the distal end of the tongueand the floorof the groove. Due to the dimensional difference between the tongueand the grooveand where each is defined along the height of the respective longitudinal edge,, the first apertureis further defined (i) between the upper side wallof grooveand the upper side wallof the tongueand (ii) between the lower side wallof the grooveand the lower side wallof the tongue. For example, as shown in, the height of the exemplary tongue is 0.200 inches and the height of the exemplary groove is 0.240 inches. The first apertureformed around the surfaces of the grooveand tonguedefines a space, and this space can, for example, be used for retaining applied adhesive (e.g., wood glue or other industrial flooring adhesives) during installation.

A second apertureis formed between the lower portions of the first longitudinal edgeand the second longitudinal edgeof the adjacent panels,below the engaged tongueand groove(i.e., between the third plane and the first plane that includes the first longitudinal edge). The second aperturemay have a width between the first and second longitudinal edges,of, for example, between 1/32″ and ¼″ (e.g., between 1/16″ and ⅛″). However, a smaller or larger aperture may be utilized depending on the composition of the panels and the expected exposure to moisture. In this way, the edges of the complementary panels,do not form a tight joint along the lower panel edge, and the apertureallows for expansion of the interconnected panels,. Moreover, the resulting tongue and groove joint provides effective load carrying transfer along the length of the joint and reduces vertical offset between the interconnected panels,.

Notably, a corresponding aperture is not present on the upper side of the first and second longitudinal edges,. Instead, the upper portions of the first and second longitudinal edges,, which lie in the first and second planes, directly abut each other to form a continuous or substantially continuous upper surfaceof the engaged panels,. In other words, the adjacent upper surfaces of the paneland the panelabut each other in the same plane (or substantially the same plane) to form a continuous upper surface. The upper surfacebetween the complementary panels,allows for a flat, even, and/or continuous floor surface across a plurality of installed panels.

The shoulderis formed so that it is relatively weak, compared with the overall strength of the first longitudinal edgeto which the shoulderabuts. However, in some implementations, the shoulder and the first longitudinal edge have a similar strength, but the smaller contact area on the shoulder results in a stress concentration at the shoulder. As a result, the shoulderpartially deforms or compresses as a result of the force applied by the first longitudinal edgewhen the panels,expand. In this way, the interconnected panels,may expand slightly, allowing the panels,to absorb moisture without bowing or cracking along the edges,of the panels,. The expansion of the panels,may continue until the edges,of the complementary panels,come into contact or until the shoulderis unable to deform any further. In some implementations, the shoulder is sized and shaped so that, should expansion of the interconnected panels occur, the shoulder may compress under the pressure of the expansion without visible damage or modification at the panel surface. Further, the shoulder may be of any shape or form and may be provided at any convenient place along the longitudinal edge from which the tongue extends. In general, the shoulder acts as a spacer to create an aperture between the longitudinal edges of the interconnected panels and an aperture between the head of the tongue and the floor of the groove. The size of the aperture created may depend on the needs of the user and may be adjusted by the size and shape of the shoulder, or in the alternative, the size and shape of the complementary tongue and groove.

illustrates the cross-sectional profile according towith exemplary dimensions for various elements of the tongue and groove joint. The dimensions shown are all in inches. In other implementations, the shape, dimensions, and orientation of the panels and tongue and groove joints described herein may be adjusted based on the functional requirements of the application (e.g., in a flooring, a wall, or countertop application).

In some implementations, the tongue and groove joints disclosed herein may be utilized along the lateral edge of two complementary panels, either in the alternative or in addition to tongue and groove joints utilized on the longitudinal edge of the panel, wherein the lateral edge refers to an edge of the panel substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal edge. Together, two longitudinal edges and two lateral edges spaced therebetween may form a rectangular panel. In implementations in which the panel is square, any two edges that are opposite and spaced apart from each other may be designated the longitudinal edges, and the other two edges that are opposite and spaced apart from each other are the lateral edges. Accordingly, a panel may have a tongue along a first longitudinal edge and a first lateral edge complementing a groove along the second longitudinal edge and a second lateral edge. As a result, complementary boards may be interconnected with tongue and groove joints along all four edges of the panels. In this way, interconnected panels may swell along both their length (i.e., a direction along a longitudinal edge) and width (i.e., a direction along a lateral edge), without undesired stress and pressure along the panel edges. For example,is a perspective view of an alternative implementation in which a tongueis shown along a first longitudinal edge and a grooveis shown along a second lateral edge. Although not shown in, a groove runs along a second longitudinal edge and a tongue runs along a first lateral edge. Optionally, tongue and groove joints may be placed, or be absent, along any of the four edges of the panels, in any order or fashion, as needed by the user.

The panels described above in relation tocan be composite wood panels. For example, in some implementations, composite wood panels are manufactured from lignocellulosic wood composites comprising multiple wood parts (e.g., wood (or other lignocellulosic material) strands, flakes, particle chips dust, etc.) bonded together with a thermoset binder resin and wax, according to various implementations. In particular, in some implementations, the composite wood panels are made from oriented strand board (OSB). In other implementations, the panels described above in relation tocan be manufactured with any interconnecting wood or other lignocellulosic material, such as plywood or solid wood products, to form strong tongue and groove joints, which allow for subsequent expansion of the interconnected wood panels, without the detrimental effects resulting from stress along the interconnected panel edges. And, in yet other implementations, the panels described above in relation tocomprise other suitable materials such as metal, plastic, or composite materials having sufficient strength and stiffness properties to form a tongue and groove joint (e.g., in a flooring, a wall, or countertop application).

The construction and arrangement of the systems and methods as shown in the various implementations are illustrative only. Although only a few implementations have been described in detail in this disclosure, many modifications are possible (e.g., variations in sizes, dimensions, structures, shapes, and proportions of the various elements, values of parameters, mounting arrangements, use of materials, colors, orientations, etc.). For example, the position of elements may be reversed or otherwise varied, and the nature or number of discrete elements or positions may be altered or varied. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present disclosure. The order or sequence of any process or method steps may be varied or re-sequenced according to alternative implementations. Other substitutions, modifications, changes, and omissions may be made in the design, operating conditions, and arrangement of the implementations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

It is to be understood that the methods and systems are not limited to specific synthetic methods, specific components, or to particular compositions. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular implementations only and is not intended to be limiting.

As used in the specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Ranges may be expressed herein as from “about” one particular value, and/or to “about” another particular value. When such a range is expressed, another implementation includes 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,” it is understood that the particular value forms another implementation. It is 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.

“Optional” or “optionally” means that the subsequently described event or circumstance may or may not occur, and that the description includes instances where said event or circumstance occurs and instances where it does not. Throughout the description and claims of this specification, the word “comprise” and variations of the word, such as “comprising” and “comprises,” means “including but not limited to,” and is not intended to exclude, for example, other additives, components, integers or steps. “Exemplary” means “an example of” and is not intended to convey an indication of a preferred or ideal implementation. “Such as” is not used in a restrictive sense, but for explanatory purposes.

Disclosed are components that can be used to perform the disclosed methods and systems. These and other components are disclosed herein, and it is understood that when combinations, subsets, interactions, groups, etc. of these components are disclosed that while specific reference of each various individual and collective combinations and permutation of these may not be explicitly disclosed, each is specifically contemplated and described herein, for all methods and systems. This principle applies to all aspects of this application including, but not limited to, steps in disclosed methods. Thus, if there are a variety of additional steps that can be performed it is understood that each of these additional steps can be performed with any specific implementation or combination of implementations of the disclosed methods.