ES2422866T3 - Locking systems for a floor covering - Google Patents

Abstract

A locking system for mechanically joining floor boards (1, 1 '), in whose locking system the attached floorboards have a horizontal plane (HP) that is parallel to the floor surface and a vertical plane (VP) that is perpendicular to the horizontal plane, whose locking system has mechanically cooperating block means for vertical joining in parallel to the vertical plane and horizontal joining in parallel to the horizontal plane of a first and second connecting edges (4a, 4b), said system of Locking is configured to be tilted together, the vertical locking means comprises a tongue (10) that cooperates with a tongue groove (9), and the horizontal locking means comprises a strip (6) provided with a locking element (8) with a blocking surface (15) cooperating with a blocking slot (12), said strip (6) protruding beyond the first or second connecting edges (4a, 4b), in which the first (4a) and the second (4b) edges of u They have upper (18, 19) and lower (16, 17) joining edge portions located between the tongue (10) and the ground surface (31), the upper joining edge portions (18, 19) being located closer to the surface (31) of the floor than the lower connecting edge portions (16, 17), and in whose locking system, when the floor boards (1, 1 ') are joined and pressed together, the portion (18) of the upper connecting edge of the first connecting edge (4a) overlaps with a lower connecting edge portion (16) of the second connecting edge (4b).

Description

Locking systems for a floor covering

5 Field of the invention

The invention relates, in general, to the technical field of floorboards. The invention relates on the one hand to a locking system for floor boards that can be mechanically joined. More specifically, the invention relates above all to locking systems that allow the placement of floating floors on large continuous surfaces and the placement of floor boards that show considerable changes in shape after installation.

Scope

The present invention is particularly suitable for use on floating wooden floors and laminate floors, such as solid wood floors, parquet floors, floors with a plywood surface, laminate floors with a high pressure laminate surface layer or of direct laminate and the like.

Therefore, the following description of the prior art, the problems of known systems, as well as the objects and features of the invention, will be directed, by way of non-limiting examples, mainly to this field of application. However, it should be emphasized that the invention can be used in any type of floor boards that are designed for joining according to different patterns by means of a mechanical locking system. Thus, the invention can also be applied to floors that are adhered or nailed to a subfloor or subfloors that have a core and a plastic, linoleum, cork surface, a varnished fiberglass surface, and

25 similar.

Definition of some terms

In the following text, the visible surface of the installed floor board is called the "front side", while the opposite side of the floor board that faces the subfloor is called the "back side". "Floor surface" means the main outer flat part of the floor board, which is opposite the back side and which is located in a single plane. Bevels, grooves and similar decorative features are parts of the front side but are not parts of the floor surface. "Laminated floor" means a floor that has a surface, consisting of paper impregnated with melanin, which has been compressed under pressure and heat. "Horizontal plane" refers to a

35 plane extending parallel to the outside of the floor surface. "Vertical plane" refers to a plane perpendicular to the horizontal plane.

The outer parts of the floor board at the edge of the floor board between the front side and the back side are called the "joining edge". "Binding edge portion" means a part of the joining edge of the floor board. "Union" or "blocking system" means a cooperative connection means, which interconnects the floorboards horizontally and / or vertically. "Mechanical locking system" means that the joint can occur without glue. In many cases, mechanical locking systems can also be joined by glue. “Vertical block” means a block parallel to the vertical plane. As a rule, the vertical lock consists of a tongue, which cooperates with a tongue groove. "Horizontal lock" means a lock

45 parallel to the horizontal plane. "Joint opening" means a groove that is defined by two joining edges of two joined floor boards and that is open from the front side. "Bonding strike" means the minimum distance between two joint edge portions of the two floorboards joined within an area, which is defined by the front side and the upper part of the tongue near the front side. "Open joint strike" means a union strike that is open to the front side. “Visible union strike” means a union strike that is visible to the naked eye from the front side for a person walking on the ground, or a union strike, which is greater than the general requirements for union strikes established by the industry for various types of soils. "Continuous floating floor surface" means a floor surface that is installed in a piece without expansion joints.

55 Background of the invention

Laminate and traditional parquet floors are normally installed floatingly on an existing subfloor. The joining edges of the floor boards are joined to form a floor surface, and the entire floor surface can move relative to the subsoil. As the floorboards shrink or swell in connection with the relative humidity RH that varies during the year, the entire surface of the soil will change shape.

Floating floors of this type are usually joined by glued tongue and groove joints. During placement, the boards are joined horizontally to each other, an protruding tongue located along the joining edge of a board that is being inserted into a tongue groove located along the joining edge of an adjacent board is inserted . The tongue and groove joint positions and locks the boards vertically

floor and glue horizontally blocks the boards. The same procedure is used on both the long side and the short side, and the boards are usually placed in parallel rows, long side against long side and short side against short side.

5 In addition to such traditional floating floors, which are joined by glued tongue and groove joints, in recent years floor boards have been developed that do not require the use of glue but, instead, are mechanically joined by so-called systems Mechanical locking These systems comprise a locking means that locks the boards horizontally and vertically mechanically without glue. The vertical locking means is generally formed by a tongue that cooperates with a tongue groove. The horizontal locking means consists of a blocking element that cooperates with a blocking slot. The blocking element may be formed by a strip that extends from the bottom of the tongue groove or may be formed on the tongue. Mechanical locking systems can be formed by machining the core of the board. Alternatively, parts of the locking system such as the tongue and / or the strip may be made of a different material, which is integrated with the board, i.e.

15 attached to the floor board during its manufacture in the factory.

The floor boards can be mechanically joined by various combinations of inclination, snap fit, vertical change of position such as the so-called vertical folding and insertion along the joining edge. All of these installation procedures, except vertical folding, require that one side of the floor board, the long side or the short side, can be moved in the locked position. Numerous locking systems on the market are manufactured with a small play between the locking element and the locking slot for easy movement. The intention is to produce floorboards that can move and, at the same time, are connected to each other by means of a fitting that is as tight as possible. Often a very small displacement set, for example 0.01-0.05 mm, is sufficient to significantly reduce friction between the fibers

25 wood According to the European Standard EN 13329 of laminated floor coverings, the joint openings between the floor boards must be an average of 0.15 mm and the maximum level in a floor must be: 0.20 mm. The goal of all floating floor manufacturers is to reduce joint openings as much as possible. Some floors are even produced with a pre-tension through which the strip of the blocking element, in the locked position, is bent backwards, towards the subsoil, and by which the blocking element and the blocking groove press the panels strongly with each other. Such floors are difficult to install.

Wood and laminate floors are also attached to the subfloor by gluing or nailing. Said bonding / nailing counteracts the movements caused by moisture and holds the floorboards together. The movement of the floorboards is produced from the center of each floorboard. Swelling and contraction

35 may occur merely because respective floor boards, and not the entire floor surface, change shape.

Floor boards that are attached by gluing / nailing to the subfloor do not require any locking system at all. However, they can have traditional tongue and groove joints that facilitate vertical positioning. They can also have mechanical locking systems, which block and position the floorboards vertically and / or horizontally during placement.

Previous technique and problems of the same

45 The advantage of a floating floor is that a change in shape produced by different degrees of relative humidity, RH, can occur hidden under the base boards and floor boards, even if they swell and shrink, they can still be attached without binding strikes visible. Installation can be carried out quickly and easily, especially if mechanical locking systems are used, and the floor can be raised and placed again in a different place. The problem is that, as a rule, the continuous soil surface should be limited even in cases where the soil consists of relatively stable floorboards, such as laminate floors with a conglomerate fiber core or wooden floors composed of Carious layers with different fiber directions. The reason is that, as a rule, these soils of stable dimensions undergo a change of dimensions, approximately 0.1%, corresponding to approximately 1 mm per meter, when the RH varies between 25% in winter and 85% in summer. For example, for a distance of ten meters, such soil will shrink and swell 10

55 mm approximately. A large floor area should be divided into smaller surfaces with expansion strips, for example, every ten or fifteen meters. Without such division, there is a risk that when the floor shrinks, it changes shape, and therefore is no longer covered by the base boards. In addition, the load on the blocking system will be high since when a large continuous surface moves, high loads must be transferred. The load will be particularly large in the steps between different rooms.

In accordance with the code of practice established by the European Producers of Laminated Floor Coverings (EPLF), on expansion surfaces larger than 12 m, expansion joint profiles must be installed in the direction of the length of the individual floor covering tables , and on surfaces larger than 8 m in the width direction. Such profiles must also be installed in the door passages located between 65 rooms. Producers of floating floors with wooden surfaces use similar installation guide lines. Expansion joint profiles are usually an aluminum or plastic section

fixed to the floor surface located between two separate floor units. They store dirt, have an unwanted appearance and are quite expensive. Due to these limitations on maximum floor surfaces, laminated floor coverings have only reached a small percentage of the market in commercial applications such as hotels, airports, and large commercial areas.

5 Unstable soils, such as homogeneous wood floors, may still have major changes in shape. The main factors that affect the change in the shape of homogeneous wood floors are the direction of the fibers and the type of wood. A homogeneous oak floor is very stable along the fiber direction, that is in the longitudinal direction of the floor board. In the transverse direction, the movement can be 3%, corresponding to 30 mm per meter or more, as the RH varies during the year. Other types of wood have even greater shape changes. As a rule, floor boards that have large changes in shape cannot be installed floating. Even if such installation were possible, the continuous floor surface should be significantly restricted.

15 The advantage of bonding / nailing to the subfloor is that large continuous floor surfaces can be provided without expansion joint profiles and that the ground can withstand large loads. An additional advantage is that the floorboards do not require any vertical and horizontal system, and that they can be installed according to advanced patterns, for example with long sides attached to short sides. However, this installation procedure that involves the subsoil has a number of considerable disadvantages. The main drawback is that, as the floor boards shrink, a visible bonding strike appears between the boards. The bonding gap can be relatively large, especially when the floorboards are made of moisture-sensitive wood materials. Homogeneous wooden floors that are nailed to a subfloor may have 3-5 mm joint strikes. The distance between the boards can be unevenly distributed with several small strikes and some large strikes, and these strikes are not always

25 parallels Therefore, the union strike may vary along the floor board. Large bonding strikes contain a large amount of dirt, which penetrates down to the tongue and prevents floorboards from adopting their original position when swollen. Installation procedures require time, and in many cases the subfloor must be adjusted to allow bonding / nailing to the subfloor.

Therefore, it would be a great advantage if it were possible to provide a floating floor without the above drawbacks, in particular a floating floor that:

a) can consist of a large continuous surface without expansion joint profiles,

35 b) may consist of moisture-sensitive floorboards, which have large changes in dimensions as the RH varies during the year.

Other known locking systems are disclosed in US 2003/0154681 A and DE 10224540 A.

Summary of the invention

The present invention relates to locking systems that allow floating floors to be installed on large continuous floor surfaces and with floor boards that have large changes in dimensions as the relative humidity (RH) changes.

An object of the invention is to provide blocking systems, which allow considerable movement between the floorboards, without large and deep junctions that store dirt, and / or in which open junctions can be excluded. Such locking systems are particularly suitable for moisture sensitive materials, such as wood, but also when large floating floors are installed using wide and / or long floorboards.

In the description, the terms long side and short side are used to facilitate understanding. According to the invention, the boards can also be square, or alternatively square and rectangular, and optionally have different patterns and angles between opposite sides.

55 It should be emphasized in particular that the combinations of floorboards, locking systems and placement patterns that appear in this description are only examples of suitable embodiments. A large number of alternatives are conceivable. All locking systems can be used separately on long sides and / or short sides and also in various combinations of long sides and short sides. Locking systems that have horizontal and vertical locking means are joined by inclination. The geometries of the locking systems and of the horizontal and vertical locking means can be formed by machining the edges of the floor board or with independent materials that are formed, or alternatively machined, before joining them to the joining edge portion of the board of soil.

The present invention comprises a locking system for mechanically joining the floorboards as defined in claim 1.

In accordance with several preferred embodiments of the present invention, it is advantageous if the floor consists of quite small floor boards and many joints, which can compensate for swelling and shrinking. Production tolerances should be quite small, since they are generally required

5 well defined sets and joining openings to produce a high quality floor in accordance with the invention.

However, floor boards are difficult to produce with the required tolerance, since they tend to spin out of control during machining. The main reason why small floorboards are more difficult to produce than large floorboards is that a large floorboard has a much larger area, which is in contact with a chain and a belt and during the mechanization of the edges of the floorboards. This large contact area keeps the floor boards fixed to the chain by means of the belt so that they cannot move or rotate in relation to the direction of travel, which may be the case when the contact area is small.

15 The production of floor boards is carried out essentially in such a way that a set of tools and a rough floor board move with respect to each other. A set of tools preferably consists of one or more milling tools that are arranged and sized to machine a locking system in a manner known to those skilled in the art.

The most commonly used equipment is a double or single spiky machine, in which a chain and a belt are used to move the floor board with great precision along a well-defined direction of advance. In many applications pressure chocks and support units are used together with the chain and belt, mainly to avoid vertical deviations. The horizontal deviation of the floor board is only avoided by the chain and the belt.

25 The problem is that, in many applications, this is not enough, especially when the panels are small.

Brief description of the drawings

Figures 1a-1b show floor boards with locking system.

Figures 2a-2f show locking systems and placement patterns.

35 Figures 3a-3e show locking systems.

Figures 4a-4c show locking systems.

Figures 5a-5d show attached floor boards and check procedures.

Figures 6a-6e show locking systems.

Figures 7a-7e show locking systems that are not in accordance with the invention.

Figures 8a-8f show locking systems that are not in accordance with the invention.

Figures 9a-9d show locking systems.

Figures 10a-10d show production equipment that is not in accordance with the invention.

Figures 11a-11d show production equipment that is not in accordance with the invention.

Figures 12a-12c show a locking system.

Figures 1a-b illustrate floor boards that are of a first type A and a second type B according to the invention and whose long sides 4a and 4b, in this embodiment, have a length that is 3 times the length of short sides 5a, 5b. The long sides 4a, 4b of the floorboards have vertical and horizontal connection means, and the short sides 5a, 5b of the floorboards have a horizontal connection means. In this embodiment, the two types are identical except for the location of the blocking means that is reversed. The locking means allow the long side 4a to be joined to the long side 4b at least by an inward inclination, and the long side 4a to the short side 5a by an inward inclination, and also the short side 5b to the long side 4b by a vertical movement. In this embodiment, the union of both the long sides 4a, 4b and the short sides 5a, 5b according to a spiky pattern, or in parallel rows, can be carried out simply with an angular movement along the long sides 4a, 4b The long sides 4a, 4b of the floor boards have connection means

65 which, in this embodiment, consist of a strip 6, a tongue groove 9 and a tongue 10. The short sides 5a also have a strip 6 and a tongue groove 9, while the short sides 5b have no tongue 10.

There may be a plurality of variants. The two types of floor boards do not need to be of the same format and the locking means can also have different shapes, as long as, as mentioned above, they can be joined with the long side against the short side. The connection means can be made of the same material, or of different materials, or made of the same material but with different

5 properties of the material. For example, the connection means may be made of plastic or metal. They can also be manufactured with the same material as the floor board, but be subjected to a treatment to modify their properties, such as impregnation or similar. The short sides 5b can have a tongue and then the floor boards can be joined as in the prior art with a diamond pattern, by different combinations of angular movement and lace movements. Short sides may also have an independent flexible tongue, which moves horizontally during locking.

Figure 2a shows the connection means of two floor boards 1, 1 ’that are joined together. In this embodiment, the floor boards have a laminate surface layer 31, a core 30 of, for example, HDF, which is softer and more compressible than the surface layer 31, and a compensation layer 32. The vertical lock 15 D1 consists of a tongue groove 9, which cooperates with a tongue 10. The horizontal lock D2 consists of a strip 6 with a locking element 8, cooperating with a locking groove 12. This locking system can be joined by tilting inward along the upper joining edges. It can also be modified in such a way that it can be locked by horizontal snapping. The blocking element 8 and the blocking slot 12 have cooperating blocking surfaces 15, 14. The floor boards may adopt, when joined and pressed together in the horizontal direction D2, a position in which there is a play 20 between the locking surfaces 15, 14. Figure 2b shows that when the floor boards are separated in the opposite direction, and when the locking surfaces 15, 14 are in total contact and are pressed together, a joint strike 21 appears on the front side between the edges of Union. According to the invention, the play between the locking surfaces 14, 15 is defined as being equal to the displacement of the upper connecting edges 25 when these edges are pressed and separated from each other, as described above. This game in the locking system is the maximum movement of the ground that occurs when pressing and separating the floorboards with a pressure and a tensile force adapted to the resistance of the edge portions and the locking system. According to this definition, floorboards with hard layers or surface edges that, when pressed together, are only marginally compressed, will have a play that is essentially equal to or slightly greater than the bonding strike. Flooring boards with softer edges will have a game that will be considerably larger than the union strike. According to this definition, the game is always greater than or equal to the union strike. The game and the union strike can be, for example, 0.05-0.10 mm. Joining strokes of approximately 0.1 mm are considered acceptable. They are difficult to see and normal dirt particles are too large to penetrate the blocking system through such small strokes of

35 union. In some applications, joint strikes of up to 0.20 mm may be accepted, with a clearance of for example 0.25 mm, especially if the sets and joint strokes are measured when a considerable pressure and tensile force is used . This maximum bonding strike will occur in extreme conditions only when the humidity is too low, for example below 20% and when the load on the ground is very high. Under normal conditions and applications, the union of such ground may be 0.10 mm or less.

Figure 2b shows a current laminate floor with floor boards 1.2 * 0.2 m in size, which are installed in parallel rows. Such laminate floor shrinks and swells approximately 1 mm per meter. If the locking system has a clearance of approximately 0.1 mm, the five joints in the transverse direction D2 B will allow swelling and shrinkage of 5 * 0.1 = 0.5 mm per meter. This only compensates for half of the

45 maximum swelling or shrinkage of 1 mm. In the longitudinal direction D2 A, there is only one junction for every 1.2 m, which allows a movement of 0.1 mm. The play 20 and the connecting strike 21 of the blocking system will thus only marginally contribute to reducing the shrinkage and swelling of the ground in the direction D2 parallel to the long sides. In order to reduce the ground movement to half of the movement that normally occurs on a ground without play 20 and without a union strike 21, it is necessary to increase the clearance 20 to 0.6 mm, and this results in a union strike 21 too Big on the short side.

Figure 2c shows floor boards with, for example, a core 30 of conglomerate fiber, such as HDF, and a layer of laminate or plywood surface, which has a maximum change in dimensions of approximately 0.1%, that is 1 mm per meter. The floor boards are installed in parallel rows. In this embodiment, they are narrow and short with a size of, for example, 0.5 * 0.08 m. If the game is 0.1 mm, 12 floor boards with their 12 joints on a floor length of one meter will allow a movement in the transverse direction D2 B of 1.2 mm, which is more than the maximum change in dimensions of the ground. Therefore all movement will occur because the floorboards move with respect to each other, and the exterior dimensions of the floor may be left unchanged. In the longitudinal direction D2 A, the two short-sided joints can only compensate for the movement of 0.2 mm per meter. In a room that is, for example, 10 m wide and 40 m long, the installation can be properly produced, unlike in the present recommended installation principles, with the long sides of the floor boards parallel to the direction of room width and perpendicular to the length direction of it. In accordance with this preferred embodiment, a large continuous floating floor surface can be provided in this manner, without visible large binding strokes 65, by narrow floor boards having a locking system with play and which are joined in parallel rows perpendicular to the direction of length of the soil surface. The locking system,

the floor boards and the installation pattern according to the invention must be adjusted so that a floor surface of 1 * 1 m can expand and tighten approximately 1 mm or more in at least one direction without damaging the locking system or the floor boards. A mechanical locking system of a floating floor that is installed in the frame of a home must have a mechanical locking system that supports a

5 tensile or compressive load corresponding to at least 200 kg per meter of floor length. More specifically, the previous change of shape should preferably be possible without visible binding strikes when the previous floor surface is subjected to a 200 kg compressive or tensile load in any direction, and when the floor boards are in some Normal relative humidity conditions of approximately 45%.

The resistance of a mechanical locking system is of great importance on large continuous floating floor surfaces. Such large continuous surfaces are defined as a floor surface with a length and / or width that exceeds 12 m. Very large continuous surfaces are defined as floor surfaces with a length and / or width exceeding 20 m. There is a risk that there will be little union strikes

15 acceptable, or that the floorboards are separated by sliding, if the mechanical locking system is not strong enough on a large floating floor. Floor boards of stable dimensions, such as laminate floors, showing average joint strikes exceeding 0.2 mm, when a tensile load of 200 kg / m is applied, are generally not suitable for use in a large floating floor of high quality. The invention may be used to install continuous floating floors with a length and / or width that exceed 20 m or even 40 m. In principle there are no limitations. According to the invention, continuous floating floors with an area of 10,000 m2 or more may be installed.

Such novel types of floating floors in which most of the flotation movement, at least in one direction, occurs between the floorboards and in the mechanical locking system, are called from

25 this time Semi-floating floors.

Figure 5d illustrates a suitable check procedure to ensure that the floorboards are sufficiently mobile in the joined state and that the locking system is sufficiently strong for use on a large continuous surface of floating floor in which the floor is a Semi-floating soil. In this example, 9 samples have been joined with 10 joints and with a length L of 100 mm (10% of 1 meter) along their respective long sides to correspond to a floor length TL of approximately 1 meter. The number of joints, in this example 10 joints, is called Nj. The boards are subjected to a compressive and tensile load using a force F corresponding to 20 Kg, which is 10% of 200 Kg. The change in length of the floor length TL should be measured, from this moment called L TL . The average game, from this moment called AP or ground movement by union, is defined as AP = L TL / Nj. If for example L TL = 1.5 mm, then the average set AP = 1.5 / 10 = 0.15 mm. This check procedure will also measure the changes in the size of the floor board. In most floorboards, such changes in size are extremely small compared to the game. As mentioned above, due to the compression of the upper edges and eventually some very small changes in the floorboard itself, the average joint strike will always be smaller than the average AP set. This means that to ensure that the ground movement is sufficient (L TL) and that the average union strikes 21 do not exceed the maximum stipulated levels, only L TL should be measured and controlled, given that L TL / Nj will always be greater or equal than strike 21 of average union. The size of the true average joint strike 21 on the ground, when the tensile force F is applied, can however be measured directly, for example, with a set of gauges or with a microscope, and the true joint strike can be calculated. average = AAJG. The difference between AP and AAJG is defined as floor board flexibility = FF (FF = AP-AAJG). On a laminate floor, L TL should preferably exceed 1 mm. A smaller or greater force F may be used to design floorboards, installation patterns and locking systems, which may be used as semi-floating floors. In some applications, for example in a home with normal humidity conditions, a force F of 100 kg per meter may be sufficient. On very large floating floors a force F of 250 - 300 kg or more may be used. Mechanical locking systems may be designed with a blocking force of 1000 kg or more. The binding gap in such locking systems may be limited to 0.2 mm even when a force F of 400-500 kg is applied. The recoil effect caused by the blocking element 8, the blocking surfaces 15, 14 and the blocking strip 6 can be measured by increasing and decreasing the

55 force F by stages of, for example, 10 kg. The recoil effect is high if L TL is essentially the same when F increases from 0 to 100 kg (= L TL1) than when F increases from 0 to 200 kg and then decreases again to 100 kg (= L TL2). A mechanical locking system with a high recoil effect is advantageous on a semi-floating floor. Preferably, L TL1 should be at least 75% of L TL2. In some applications, even 50% may be sufficient.

Figure 2d shows floor boards, according to Figure 2c, which are installed according to a diamond pattern. This installation procedure results in 7 joints per meter of extension in both directions D2 A and D2 B of the floor. A set of 0.14 mm can then completely eliminate a swelling and a shrinkage of 0.1% since 7 joints result in a total mobility of 7 * 0.14 = 1.0 mm.

65 Figure 2e shows a floor area in m2 of the floor boards described above, installed according to a spike pattern with the long side against the short side and showing the position of the floor boards when, for example, they have been swollen to its maximum dimensions in summer. Figure 2f shows the position of the floorboards when, for example, they have shrunk in winter. The locking system with the inherent play then results in a connecting gap 21 between all the joining edges of the floor boards. Dice

5 that the floor boards are installed according to a spike pattern, the play of the long sides will help to reduce the changes in soil dimension in all directions. Figure 2f also shows that the critical direction is the diagonal directions D2 C and D2 D of the ground, in which the joint strokes 7 must be adjusted to support a shrinkage over a distance of 1.4 m. This can be used to determine the optimal direction of placement on a large floor. In this example, a union strike of 0.02 mm will completely eliminate ground movement in all directions. This will allow securing the outer portions of a floating floor to the subfloor, for example, by gluing, which will prevent the floor from leaving the base boards when shrinking. The invention also allows securing partitions to an installed floating floor, which can reduce the installation time.

15 Practical experiments show that a floor can be manufactured with a plywood or laminated surface and with a panel core based on fiberglass, for example high quality HDF and stable dimensions, so that it is dimensionally stable and has a change in maximum dimension in home environments approximately 0.5 - 1.0 mm per meter. Such semi-floating floors can be installed in spaces of unlimited size, and the maximum clearance can be limited to approximately 0.1 mm, also in cases where the floorboards have a width of preferably approximately 120 mm. Of course, even smaller floorboards, for example 0.4 * 0.06 m, are even more favorable and can form large surfaces even when they are made of materials that are less stable in shape. According to a first embodiment, the invention therefore suggests a new type of semi-floating floor in which the individual floor boards can move and in which it is not necessary to change the exterior dimensions of the floor.

25 This can be done through optimal use of the size of the boards, the mobility of the locking system that uses a small game and a small joint strike, and the installation pattern of the floorboards. According to the invention, a suitable combination of game, joint strike, floor board size, installation pattern and direction of placement of the floor boards can therefore be used to totally or partially eliminate the movements of a floating floor . Continuous floating floors can be installed much larger than is currently possible, and the maximum ground movement can be reduced to approximately 10 mm applicable to current technology, or completely eliminated. All this is possible with a union strike that in practice is not visible and that is not different, regardless of the penetration of moisture and dirt, to traditional floating floor boards with a width of 0.2 m, which are joined in parallel rows by pretension or with a very small displacement game that does not grant enough

35 mobility. By way of non-limiting example, it can be mentioned that the play 20 and the connecting gap 21, on floors of stable dimensions, should preferably be 0.1-0.2 mm.

An especially preferred embodiment according to the invention is a semi-floating floor with the following characteristics: The surface layer is laminated or plywood, the core of the floor board is a wood-based board such as MDF or HDF, the change L TL on the floor length is at least 1.0 mm when a force F of 100 kg / m is used, the change L TL on the floor length is at least 1.5 mm when a force F of 200 kg is used / m, the average joint strikes do not exceed 0.15 mm when the force F is 100 kg / m and do not exceed 0.20 mm when the force F is 200 kg / m.

45 The function and bonding quality of such semi-floating floor boards will be similar to traditional floating floor boards when the humidity conditions are normal and the size of the floor surface is within the generally recommended limits. In extreme weather conditions or when installed on a much larger continuous floor surface, such semi-floating floor board will be superior to traditional floor boards. Other combinations of force F, change in length L TL of the ground and strike 21 may be used to design a semi-floating floor for various applications.

Figure 3a shows a second embodiment, which can be used to counteract problems caused by movements due to moisture in floating floors. In this embodiment, the floor board has a direct rolling surface 32 and an HDF core. Under the laminated surface, a layer 33 is located, which consists of wood fibers impregnated with melamine. This layer is formed when the surface layer is laminated on HDF and when the melamine penetrates the core and joins the surface layer to the HDF core. The HDF core 30 is softer and more compressible than the laminate surface 31 and the melamine layer 3. According to the invention, the surface layer 31 of laminate can be removed and, where appropriate, also parts of, or all of, the melamine layer 33 located below the surface layer, such that a groove is formed decorative 133 in the form of a hollow joint opening JO 1. This joint opening resembles a large joint gap in homogeneous wood floors. The groove 133 can only be made on a joint edge, and can be colored, coated or impregnated so that the bonding gap is less visible. Such decorative grooves or joining openings may, for example, have a width JO 1 of 1-3 mm and a depth of 0.2-0.5 mm. In some application, the width of JO 1 may preferably be quite small, approximately 0.5-1.0 mm. When the floor boards 1, 1 ’are pressed together, the upper edges 16, 17 of the joint can be compressed. Such compression may be 0.1 mm in the HDF. Said compression possibility may replace the aforementioned game and may allow movement without a union strike. The chemical processing mentioned above can also change the properties of the joint edge portion and help improve the chances of compression. Of course, the first and second embodiments can be combined. With a set of 0.1 mm and a possibility of compression of 0.1 5 mm, a total movement of 0.2 mm can be provided, with a joint clearance of only 0.1 mm. The compression is also used between the active blocking surfaces 15, 14 of the blocking element 8 and the blocking groove 12. Under normal weather conditions, the separation of the floorboards is avoided when the blocking surfaces 14, 15 are in contact with each other and substantial compression does not occur. When subjected to an additional tensile load in extreme weather conditions, for example when the RH falls below 25%, the blocking surfaces will be compressed. This compression is facilitated if the contact surface CS of the blocking surfaces 14, 15 is small. It is advantageous if this contact surface CS, for a normal floor thickness of 8-15 mm, is approximately 1 mm or less. With this technique floor boards can be manufactured with a play and a union gap of approximately 0.1 mm. In extreme weather conditions, when the RH falls below 25% and exceeds 80%, the compression of the edges

15 upper joining and locking surfaces can allow a movement of for example 0.3 mm. The prior art can be applied to many different types of floors, for example floors with a high pressure laminate surface, wood, plywood and plastic and similar materials. The technique is particularly suitable for floor boards in which it is possible to increase the compression of the upper joining edges by eliminating part of the upper connecting edge portion 16 and / or 17.

Figure 3b illustrates a third embodiment. Figures 3c and 3d are enlargements of the joining edges of Figure 3b. The floor board 1 'has, in an area of the joining edge that is defined by the upper portions of the tongue 10 and the groove 9 and the floor surface 31, a portion 18 of the upper joining edge and a portion 17 of lower joining edge, and the floor board 1 has, in a corresponding area, an upper joining edge portion 19 and a lower joining edge portion 16. When the floor boards 1, 1 'are pressed together, the lower joining edge portions 16, 17 come into contact with each other. This is shown in figure 3d. The upper joint edge portions 18, 19 are separated from each other, and an upper joint edge portion 18 of a floor board 1 'overlaps the lower joint edge portion 16 of the other floor board 1. In this mutual compressed position, the locking system has a play 20 of, for example, 0.2 mm between the locking surfaces 14, 15. If the overlap in this mutual compressed position is 0.2 mm, the boards can, when pulled in opposite directions, separate 0.2 mm from each other without a visible strike from the surface. This embodiment will not have an open joint strike because the joint strike will be covered by the upper overlapping edge portion 18. This is shown in Figure 3c. It is advantageous if the blocking element 8 and the blocking groove 12 are such that the possible separation, that is the game, is slightly smaller than the overlap. Preferably there should be a small overlap, for example 0.05 mm, at the joint even when the floorboards are separated and a tensile force F is applied to the joint. This overlap will prevent moisture from entering the joint. The joining edges will be more resistant since the lower edge portion 16 will support the upper edge portion 18. Decorative groove 133 can be very shallow and all dirt collected in the groove can be easily removed by a vacuum during normal cleaning. No dirt or moisture can penetrate into the locking system, nor descend to the tongue 12. Of course, this technique involving overlapping portions of the joining edge can be combined with the other two embodiments on the same side, or on the sides Long and short For example, the long side may have a locking system according to the first embodiment and the short side according to the second. For example, the visible and open junction gap can be 0.1 mm, compression 0.1 mm and overlap 0.1 mm. It will then be possible for all floor boards to move 0.3 mm, and this considerable movement can be combined with a small open and visible joint strike and with a limited horizontal extent of the overlapping edge portion 18 that does not It must be a weakening of the joint edge. This is due to the fact that the overlapping edge portion 18 is very small and is also made of the strongest part of the floor board, which consists of the laminated surface, and wood fibers impregnated with melamine. Such a locking system, which in this way can enable considerable movement without visible binding strikes, can be used in all the applications described above. Additionally, the locking system is especially suitable for use on wide floor boards, on short sides, when floor boards are installed in parallel and similar rows, that is to say in all applications that require high mobility of the locking system. to counteract the change in soil dimensions. It can also be used on the short sides of the boards

55 of floor, constituting a FR frame, or frieze, around a floor installed according to a pin pattern according to Figure 5c. In this embodiment, shown in Figs. 3b-3d, the vertical extent of the overlapping edge portion, that is the depth GD of the joint opening, is less than 0.1 times the thickness T of the floor. An especially preferred embodiment according to the invention is a semi-floating floor with the following characteristics: The surface layer is laminated or plywood, the core of the floor board is a wood-based board such as MDF or HDF, the thickness T of the ground is 6 - 9 mm and the OL overlap is less than the average AP clearance when a force F of 100 kg / m is used. As an example, it can be mentioned that the depth GD of the joint opening may be 0.2-0.5 mm (= 0.02 * T - 0.08T). The OL overlap may be 0.1-0.3 mm (= 0.01 * T - 0.05 * T) on the long sides. The OL overlap of the short sides may be equal to or greater than the overlap of the long sides.

65 Figure 3e shows an embodiment in which the joint opening JO 1 is very small or non-existent when the floor boards are pressed together. When the floor boards are separated, a JO 1 opening will be produced. This joint opening will be substantially the same size as the average AP set. For example, the decorative groove may be colored with some suitable design that matches the surface of the floor and the game will not produce an open binding strike. A very small OL overlap of only about 0.1 mm

5 (0.01 * T-0.02 * T) and a slightly lower average AP set may offer sufficient ground movement and this can be combined with a high quality moisture resistant joint. The game will also facilitate locking, unlocking and scrolling in the locked position. Such overlap edge portions may be used in all known mechanical locking systems to improve the function of the mechanical locking system.

Figures 4a and 4b show how a locking system can be designed to allow a floating installation of floorboards consisting of a moisture sensitive material. In this embodiment, the floor board is made of homogeneous wood.

Figure 4a shows the locking system in a state subjected to tensile loading, and Figure 4b shows the

15 locking system in the compressed state. For the floor to have an attractive appearance, the relative sizes of the joint openings should not differ much from each other. To ensure that the visible joint openings do not differ much while the ground is moving, the smaller JO 2 joint opening must be larger than half of the larger JO 1 joint opening. Additionally, the depth GD should preferably be less than 0.5 * TT, with TT being the distance between the floor surface and the upper parts of the tongue / groove. In case there is no tongue, GD must be less than 0.2 times the thickness T of the floor. This facilitates the cleaning of the joint opening. It is also advantageous if JO 1 is approximately 1-5 mm, which corresponds to the normal strokes of homogeneous wood floors. In accordance with the invention, the overlapping edge portion should preferably be located near the floor surface. This allows a shallow joint opening while a vertical blockage can be achieved using a tongue 10 and a groove 9 that are

25 placed essentially in the central parts of the floor board between the front side and the back side, where the core 30 has good stability. An alternative way of providing a shallow joint opening, which allows movement, is illustrated in Figure 4c. The upper part of the tongue 10 has been raised towards the floor surface. The problem with this solution is that the upper joint edge portion 18 located above the tongue 10 will be too weak. The joining edge portion 18 may crack or deform easily.

Figures 5a and 5b illustrate the long side connection of three floor boards 1, 1 'and 1' 'of floor with a width W. Figure 5a shows the floor boards when the RH is low, and Figure 5b shows them when HR is high. To resemble homogeneous soils, preferably wide floor boards should have a few strokes of

35 union wider than narrow. JO 2 must be suitably at least 1% of the width W of the floor. Therefore the smallest joint opening of floor boards having a width of 100 mm, will be at least 1 mm. The corresponding joint openings of panels of, for example, 200 mm wide, must be at least 2 mm. Of course, other combinations may also be used, especially on wooden floors with special requirements due to different types of wood and different weather conditions.

Figure 6a shows a wooden floor consisting of several layers of wood. The floor board may consist, for example, of a top layer of high quality wood, such as oak, which constitutes the decorative surface layer 31. The core 30 may consist, for example, of plywood, which is formed by other types of wood or by corresponding types of wood but of different quality. Alternatively, the

45 core may consist of wood lamellae. As a rule, the upper layer 31 has a different fiber direction than the lower layer. In this embodiment, the overlapping edges 18 and 19 are formed in the upper layer. The advantage is that the visible joint opening JO 1 will consist of the same type of wood and the same fiber direction as the surface layer 31, and the appearance will be identical to that of the homogeneous wooden floor.

Figures 6b and 6c illustrate an embodiment in which there is a small play 22 between the overlapping edge portions 16, 18, which facilitates the horizontal movement of the locking system. Figure 6c shows the joint by means of an inclination movement and with the upper joint edge portions 18, 19 in mutual contact. The play 20 between the blocking surface 15 of the blocking element 8 and the blocking groove 12 significantly facilitates the connection by tilting inwards, especially on wooden floors that do not always

55 be straight.

In the previously preferred embodiments, the overlapping portion 18 is made on the side of the tongue, that is on the joining edge having a tongue 10. This overlapping portion 18 can also be made on the side of the groove. , that is to say on the joining edge having a groove 9. Figures 6d and 6e illustrate such an embodiment. In Figure 6d, the boards are pressed together in their inner position, and in Figure 6e they have been pulled to their outer position.

Figures 7a-7b illustrate the advantage that the upper connecting edge 18, which overlaps the lower edge 16, is located on the tongue side 4a. The groove side 4b can then be joined by a vertical movement 65 with a side 4a, which has no tongue, according to Figure 7b. Such locking system is especially suitable on the short side. Figure 7c shows such a locking system in the joined and compressed state. The figures

7d and 7e illustrate how the horizontal locking means can be manufactured, for example in the form of a strip 6 and a blocking element 8 and also of an upper and lower connecting portion 19, 16, simply with a TO tool having a HT axis of the tool horizontally operational and therefore can form the entire joint edge. Said tool can be mounted, for example, on a circular saw, and can be made

5 a high quality joint system using a guide bar. The tool can also saw the floor board 1. In the outer portion 24 of the strip 6 only a partial division is made. The final division is done by breaking the floor board. This reduces the risk of the TO tool being damaged by contacting a subfloor of, for example, concrete. This technique can be used to produce a FR frame or frieze on a floor that, for example, is installed according to a spike pattern according to Figure 5c. The tool can also be used to make a traditional type locking system without overlapping edge portions.

Figures 8a-8f illustrate different examples. Figures 8a-8c illustrate locking systems in which the horizontal lock consists of a tongue 10 with a locking element 8 cooperating with a locking slot 12 made in a slot 9, which is defined by an upper flange 23, and in which the blocking slot 12 is

15 positioned on the upper flange 23. The groove also has a lower flange 24 that can be removed to allow attachment by vertical movement. Figure 8d shows a locking system with a separate strip 6, which is manufactured, for example, from an aluminum foil. Figure 8e illustrates a locking system having a separate strip 6 that can be manufactured with a material based on conglomerate fiber or with plastic, metal and similar materials.

Figure 8f shows a locking system that can be joined by a horizontal fitting action. The tongue 10 has a groove 9 ’that allows it to bend and bring together its upper and lower parts, with the blocking elements 8, 8’, by horizontally moving the connecting edges 4a and 4b towards each other. In this example, the upper and lower flanges 23, 24 of the groove 9 need not be resilient.

Figures 9a-9d illustrate alternative embodiments of the invention. When the boards are pulled in opposite directions, the separation of cooperating locking surfaces 14 and 15 is avoided. When the boards are pressed together, various alternative parts of the locking system can be used to define the interior position. In Fig. 9a, the inner position of the outer part of the blocking element 8 and the blocking slot 10 is determined. According to Figure 9b, the outer part of the tongue 10 and the groove 9 cooperate. According to Figure 9c, the front and bottom of the tongue 10 cooperates with the groove 9. According to Figure 9d, a locking element 10 'of the bottom of the tongue 10 cooperates with an element 9' of strip locking 6. It is obvious that various other parts of the locking system can be used in accordance with these principles to define the interior position of the floorboards.

Figure 10a shows production equipment and production procedures that are not in accordance with the invention. The spike machine ET has a chain 40 and a belt 41 that move the floor board 1, in a forward direction FD, with respect to a set of tools that in this example has five tools 51, 52, 53, 54 and 55 and pressure shoes 42. The spike machine may also have two chains and two straps. Figure 10b is an enlargement of the first tool station. The first tool 51 of the tool assembly forms a guide surface 12, which in this example is a groove and which is formed primarily as the locking groove 12 of the locking system. Of course other grooves may be formed preferably in that part of the floor board in which the mechanical locking system will be formed. The pressure shoe 42 ’has a guide device 43’ that cooperates with slot 12 and prevents

45 deviations from the direction of advance FD and in a plane parallel to the horizontal plane. Figure 10c shows the spike machine viewed from the forward direction when the floor board has exceeded the first tool 51. In this example, the lock slot 12 is used as a guide surface for the guide device 43, which It is attached to the pressure shoe 42. Figure 10d shows that the same slot 12 can be used as a guiding surface in all tool stations. Figure 10d shows how the tongue could be formed with a tool 54. The machining of a particular part of the floor board 1 can take place when said part is guided, at the same time, by the guide device 43. Figure 11 shows another example in which the guiding device is attached within the pressure shoe. The disadvantage is that the board will have a slot on the back side. Figure 11b shows another example in which one or both outer edges of the floor board are used as a guide surface for the guide device 43, 43 ’. In this example, the spike machine

55 has 44, 44 ’support units that cooperate with the 42, 42’ pressure shoes. Alternatively, the guide device may be attached to these support units 44, 44 ’. Figures 11c and 11d show how a floor board can be produced in two stages. The tongue side 10 is formed in step one. In step 2 (fig. 11d) the same guide groove 12 is used when the groove side 9 is formed. This spike machine will be very flexible. The advantage is that floor boards can be produced with different widths, smaller or larger than the width of the chain.

Figures 12a-12c show a preferred embodiment that guarantees the installation of a semi-floating floor in the normal position, which is preferably a position in which the actual joint strike will be approximately 50% of the maximum joint strike. If, for example, all floor boards are installed with edges 16, 17 in

65 contact, problems may arise around the walls when the floorboards swell to their maximum size. In accordance with the invention, the locking element and the locking groove may be formed such that, during installation, the floorboards are automatically guided in the optimum position. Figure 12c shows that in this embodiment the blocking element 8 has a blocking surface with a pronounced blocking angle LA, close to 90 degrees with the horizontal plane. This blocking angle LA is greater than the angle of the tangent line TL to the circle C, which has its center at the upper joining edges. Figure 12 shows that said connecting geometry, during inclination, will push the floor board 4a towards the floor board 4b and place it in the preferred position mentioned above, with a play between the blocking element 8 and the groove 12 of blocking and a union strike between the upper edges 16, 17.

Claims (6)

1.- A locking system for mechanically joining floor boards (1, 1 '), in whose locking system the joined floorboards have a horizontal plane (HP) that is parallel to the floor surface and a vertical plane 5 (VP) which is perpendicular to the horizontal plane, whose locking system has mechanically cooperating locking means for vertical joining parallel to the vertical plane and horizontal joining parallel to the horizontal plane of a first and second edges (4a, 4b ), said locking system is configured to be tilted together, the vertical locking means comprises a tongue (10) cooperating with a tongue groove (9), and the horizontal locking means comprises a strip (6) provided with a blocking element (8) with a blocking surface (15) cooperating with a blocking slot (12), said strip (6) protrudes beyond the first or second connecting edges (4a, 4b) , in which the first (4th) and the next node (4b) joining edges have upper (18, 19) and lower (16, 17) joining portions between the tongue (10) and the floor surface (31), the portions (18, 19) of upper joining edge closer to the surface (31) of the ground than the lower joining edge portions (16, 17), and in whose locking system, when 15 the floor boards (1, 1 ') are joined and pressed together, the upper connecting edge portion (18) of the first connecting edge (4a) overlaps with a lower connecting edge portion (16) of the second connecting edge (4b). 2. A locking system as claimed in claim 1, in which the floor boards (1, 1 ') are joined and pressed together, leaving the two portions (18, 19) of upper joining edge separated from each other. 3. A locking system as claimed in claims 1 or 2, in which an OL overlap is produced when the floor boards (1, 1 ’) are subjected to a tensile load F. 4. A locking system as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that a 25 OL overlap is produced when the tensile load F is 100 kg / m at the joint edge. 5. A locking system as claimed in any one of claims 1-4, in which there is an average AP clearance of at least 0.1 mm when the floorboards are subjected to a tensile load of 200 kg / m in an HP horizontal plane. 6. A locking system as claimed in any one of claims 1-5, wherein the portion (18) upper overlapping edge of overlap is formed near the surface (31) of the floor and has a lower part, which is positioned closer to the floor surface (31) than the upper part of the tongue (10 ). 7. A locking system as claimed in claim 6, wherein the minimum joint opening (JO 2) is greater than half of the maximum joint opening (JO 1). 8. A locking system as claimed in any one of claims 1-7, wherein the layer (31) of surface is made of wood, and in which the upper joint edge portion (18) of overlap is formed in this wear layer. 9. A locking system as claimed in any one of claims 1-8, wherein the floor boards have a laminate surface layer (31) and a core (30) of a fiber-based material conglomerate, and in which the upper overlapping edge portion (18) is formed in this layer of 45 surface and in the upper portions of the core near the surface layer, and in which the vertical extent (GD) of the overlap portion is less than 0.1 times the thickness (T) of the soil.