EP0100323A1

EP0100323A1 - Removable decorative floor mat for swimming pools

Info

Publication number: EP0100323A1
Application number: EP19830900329
Authority: EP
Inventors: Francis Stephen Fountain
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1982-01-25
Filing date: 1983-01-24
Publication date: 1984-02-15
Also published as: WO1983002552A1

Abstract

Un tapis de sol décoratif amovible pour une piscine est produit à partir d'une feuille de PVC (4) ayant une épaisseur comprise entre 0,75 mm et 2 mm et ayant un dessous (6) avec un relief (7) et une face supérieure lisse (5) sur laquelle est imprimé un motif (3) en utilisant une encre PVC ou ultraviolette, la feuille étant découpée suivant un pourtour prédéterminé (8).A removable decorative floor mat for a swimming pool is produced from a PVC sheet (4) having a thickness between 0.75 mm and 2 mm and having a bottom (6) with a relief (7) and a face smooth upper (5) on which a pattern (3) is printed using PVC or ultraviolet ink, the sheet being cut along a predetermined periphery (8).

Description

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"REMOVABLE DECORATIVE FLOOR MAT FOR SWIMMING POOLS" This invention relates to the field of decorative floor designs.

BACKGROUND ART The decoration of floors to be trodden by mankind i almost every conceivable environment has long been a human aspiration and many diverse designs have been created eithe by permanent inclusion in the floor construction or by removable mat, carpet or the like. In some rare instances decorative designs have been incorporated in the floors of swimming pools but they require to be either incorporated i the construction or applied when the .pool is empty. Many pool owners would welcome the addition of a fanciful design to the bottom of their pools but are not prepared to suffer the inconvenience and expense of emptying the pool to achieve this.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION It is a principal object of the invention to create means which will provide swimming pool owners with a facility for the ready addition and removal at will of floor designs to their pools.

According to one general form the invention consists of a method of producing a decorative floor mat for a swimming pool and comprises selecting a sheet of P.V.C. sheeting having one rough face and of a thickness from

0.75mm to 2mm and being acid or chlorine resistant, applying a motif by silk screen printing to the face of said sheeting opposite said rough face using P.V.C. or Ultraviolet ink, and cutting said sheet to a predetermined outline. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a decorative swimming pool mat produced according to the present invention; and Fig. 2 is a perspective of a mat showing the form of sheeting material used.

BEST MODE OF CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A decorative mat' produced in accordance with the invention, to be satisfactory, must meet the following _/-_cr !. requirements.

(1) It must be easy to apply through a body of water to a swimming pool floor,

(2) It must remain in position on the floor despite turbulence in the water and the scuffing of feet thereon,

(3) It must not slip on the floor when the weight of a bather is applied acutely to the mat.

(4) Both the mat and applied design must be substantially immune to deterioration in chlorinated water, and •_\ (5) It is capable of easy removable from the pool. From many experiments carried out I have found that P.V.C. sheeting that is from 0.75mm to 2mm thick settles well under its own weight through the water of the pool and conforms readily to the pool floor while it remains undisturbed by water turbulence and can be readily removed by hand. Below 0.75mm thickness, however, the sheeting can float off the floor if the return jet of filtered water to the pool is directed thereon. Also, slipping of the mat on the floor is avoided when its underside is rough, such as with an embossed textured grain, suede finish or the like. P.V.C. sheeting has been found immune to excessive deterioration due to the effects of acid and chlorine in the water and by the use of P.V.C, or Ultraviolet, ink durability of the printed design is achieved as well as convenience in their use with silk screen printing techniques.

According to a preferred embodiment of this invention the decorative mat is prepared from a length of P.V.C. sheeting which is approximately 1mm thick. Although reasonable results have been obtained with sheeting down to a thickness of 0.75mm, the thickness may be increased considerably while still achieving satisfactory results. However, beyond a thickness of about 2mm it becomes uneconomical as no additional advantage accrues. Firstly, a rectangular piece is cut from the bulk sheeting of a predetermined dimension to suit the intended design to be applied. One such/design. 3 is depicted in Fig. 1 and is applied upon a generally rectangular panel 4 of P.V.C. sheet. Fig. 2 shows the construction of the sheet forming the panel 4. An upper surface 5 has a smooth finish, the thickness A is approximately 1mm and the undersurface 6 has an embossed pattern 7 which is approximately 0.25mm deep.

The design 3 is applied to the panel 4 preferably by silk screening process by which different colours are applied.by successive applications of a specially formulated blend of ink. In one form an acrylic mitrocellulose ink, or other P.V.C. ink, is used, but good results have been ob-tained by the use of an Ultraviolet ink. One advantage of the latter is that it drys only under mercury vapour or U.V. lamp driers. However, with the use of the former inks forced ai heat drying, occupying 30 seconds, is employed between application stages. A high gloss acrylic mitrocellulose in which has been found suitable is the ink sold under the trade name "POLYSCREEN" by Commonwealth Inks and Coatings Pty. Ltd. After completion of printing of the design 3 upo the panel 4 the latter is trimmed around line 8 to reduce the panel 4 to a size more closely approximating the outline of the design 3, while avoiding any narrow-waisted portions which might detract from adequate seating of the mat upon the pool floor.

Whereas a preferred embodiment has been described in the foregoing passages it should be understood that other forms and modifications are possible within the scope of this invention. It will be noted that as the decorative mat of this invention does not adhere to the pool floor, but is kept in position by overlying water pressure, it may be readily removed whenever cleaning is desired.

OMPI

Claims

1. A method of producing a decorative floor mat for a swimming pool, comprising selecting a sheet of P.V.C. sheeting having one rough face and being of a thickness of from 0.75mm to 2mm and being acid and chlorine resistant, applying a printed motif to the face of said sheeting opposite said rough face using P.V.C. or Ultraviolet ink, and cutting said sheet to a predetermined outline-

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the sheet is cut from a bulk supply of P.V.C. sheeting and is larger than the dimensions of the motif.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the P.V.C. sheeting is substantially 1mm thick and its rough face is embossed to a depth of substantially 0.25mm.

4. The method of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ink used for printing of the motif is a high gloss acrylic mitrocellulose ink sold under the trade name

"POLYSCREEN".

5. The method of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the face of said sheeting opposite said rough face is substantially smooth.

6. A method of producing a decorative floor mat for a swimming pool substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

7. A decorative floor mat for a swimming pool produced by the method of any one of the preceding claims.