GB2085942A - Flooring - Google Patents

Abstract

Flooring for an animal house or pen is provided by means of one or more plastics plates 1 having a grid of holes 3, and having on one face 2 strengthening ribs 4, 5 integral or non-integral with the face. The edges of the plate may be provided with male and female connecting means, for connecting a series of the plates together. The ribs may be reinforced with metal and a non slip surface provided. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Flooring The present invention relates to flooring for use in an animal house or pen. The flooring can be used to support an animal above a catchpit channel which can collect excrement and other wastes which pass through holes in the flooring. The precise dimensions of the flooring will depend on the type of animal it is to support.

Floorings previously used have consisted of thin-walled iron frames having a U-shaped profile. Longitudinally-shaped holes are then cut from such a frame, the magnitude and frequency of such holes depending on the type of animal to be supported. Such frames may be zinc plated to protect them from corrosion. An alternative type of frame that has been used consists of welded rails provided with a protective non-slip covering layer. It is also known to cover catchpit channels by means of gratings, bars or profiled materials made of, for example, plastic or wood pails or concrete lintels.

The type of frames and coverings that we have mentioned have the disadvantage of laborious and expensive manufacture. Furthermore, iron, concrete and soaked wood frames are heavy, can be slippery when wet, and as concerns their mechanics they can be greatly weared off. Wooden frames also have the disadvantage that they are difficult to clean after becoming wet. Iron frames may be zinc plated to prevent corrosion but these materials have a life of only about 3-4 years, since a small damage to the protective coating causes corrosion of the main material. Also, the surface of the frame tends to be relatively smooth and this causes the animals to slip.

The particular construction, shape, distribution and arrangement of the holes in the flooring will depend upon the techniques of manufacture, but the final product does not generally comply with the requirements of, for example, cattle breeders.

The thermal and electrical conductivity of the flooring must also be considered. The flooring must be protected against dangerous voltages, and because of the conductivity to the underlying channels, the channels must themselves be heated.

These disadvantages can be overcome by the invention, which consists in a plastics, preferably polypropylene, plate, suitable for use as flooring, having a grid of holes, and having on one face stregthening ribs integral or non-integral with the face. The ribs are preferably arranged in a substantially square grid, and supporting elements are preferably provided on opposing sides of the plate.

The holes in the plate may be of any suitable size and shape and arranged in any suitable pattern, but we prefer that they are oval or kidney shaped and arranged in a square diagonal or dendritic grid. The size and number of holes should be such that the plate can support the reievant animal, while excrement or other waste materials can pass through the holes. The upper surface of the plate may be produced having a non-slip patterned surface.

The shape of the holes in vertical crosssection may vary, but we prefer that the lower opening is at least as large as the upper opening: this means that the holes should either be cylindrical, or conical, tapering upwards. This arrangement facilitates the passage of material downwards through the holes into the catchpit channels.

The particular arrangement of supporting ribs is not critical so long as the plate is sufficiently strong to support the weight that it has to bear. Optionally, girders can be built into the ribs. Such added girders are preferably made of steel. The overall size of each piece of flooring can be chosen depending on individual circumstances, but it will be generally of such a size that several pieces of flooring will be connected together to produce each house or pen floor, For the connection together of pieces of flooring pins and eyes may be provided along the sides of the flooring, generally along the longer sides. Other types of fixings may be provided, such as male and female projections for forming interlocking dove-tail joints.

The new flooring has, compared with known types of flooring, a greater resistance to chemical influences, to excrement, to disinfectants, and cannot easily be corroded. The flooring can have very limited thermal conductivity, and it is therefore possible to provide a warm environment for the animals without heating up unnecessary materials. Such flooring is therefore useful during breeding of animals, where warmth is required. Animal houses employing the new flooring can be run at a smaller energy cost.

The construction of the new flooring enables more progressive production techniques to be used which mean that the flooring can be produced in a single operation and is better adapted to the needs of the animal that it has to support. The flooring is comparatively light, it may be produced originally in any desired colour, and is easily cleaned and disinfected. The holes may be provided in any desired configuration and size which can allow an easy passage of waste materials, for example by treading through. Improved connection between individual units of flooring can be achieved, which reduces the possibility of lodgement of waste material between the units.

The invention will now be further illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The drawings show plan views and side and end elevations of pieces of flooring having vatious shaped apertures.

Figure 1 shows a simple piece of flooring in plan and side and end elevation.

Figure 2 shows a similar piece of flooring but having steel girders to strengthen the ribs.

Side locking means can be seen in Figure 3, for joining two pieces of flooring together.

Figure 4 shows in more detail a plan and a vertical cross-section of a hole.

Figure 5 shows a front and plan view on an enlarged scale of a surface having a non-slip arrangement.

Finally, Figure 6 shows various arrangements of holes.

The flooring consists of a floor plate 1 that is stiffened by means of supporting ribs 4 and transverse ribs 5. Also shown are supporting elements 6 that serve to bed the flooring into an adjacent catchpit channel (not shown). The floor plate 1 is provided with sagging holes 3 which allow the passage of excrement and other waste materials that result from stabling animals. The upper circumference 11 is smaller than the lower cicumference 1 2 in the embodiment shown, since this aids passage of material downwards. The holes 3 therefore have an oval shape which is downwardly symetrically broadened to enable easy passage of slurried or dissolved wastes by, for example treading through.

Another embodiment of the flooring may be provided with inserted, pressed in, or pressure die-cast steel girders 7-see Fig. 2. The steel girders are preferably provided in the longitudinal ribs 4 where the flooring is intended to support heavier animals and where it is desirable to prevent flexing of the flooring.

In a further embodiment, the marginal longitudinal ribs 4 on the outer side walls are provided with supporting projections 9 and with supporting eyes 8, as shown in Fig 73.

These mutually corresponding projections and eyes are provided alternating along the longitudinal ribs of flooring units to be joined together. In this way, a large floor area can be produced from smaller flooring units. The corresponding projections 9 and eyes 10 fit together preferably to decrease any flexing of adjacent units of flooring in order to produce a larger rigid structure.

The upper side 2 of the flooring 1 may be provided with a non-slip coating, covering layer or pattern 1 3. In the drawings this feature 1 3 is a grate arrangement. If the upper surface 2 does not have the additional feature 13, the holes themselves may, by virtue of their size, shape and density, render the flooring non-slip. Preferably the oval or kidney shaped holes 3 do not overlap either with the longitudinal or with the transverse ribs either diagonally or parallel to the supporting ribs 4, 5 or in combination of these fundamental arrangements.

The invention may be used as flooring for the rearing of small animals such as poultry, or for breeding larger animals such as cattle or pigs. The invention is not, of course, only useful during breeding times, but may be used during longer-term husbandry of animals. The floor of an animal house or pen may be composed entirely of the new flooring units, or the new flooring units may provide only a part of the overall floor area. Also, multi-storey animal houses, stables or styes can be constructed using the new flooring. As mentioned above, the new flooring is especially useful during breeding time since it facilitates the maintenance of warm surroundings for the young animals.

In addition to the use of the new flooring in animal houses and pens, it can also be used as flooring in other applications such as workshops and plants, where it is necessary or desirable to remove fluid or solid waste materials from the floor. The new floor may therefore be especially useful in workshops and plants where it is not necessary for large weights to be supported.

Claims (12)

1. A plastics plate, suitable for use as flooring, having a grid of holes, and having on one face strengthening ribs integral or nonintegral with the face.

2. A plate according to claim 1, in which the ribs are arranged in a substantially square grid.

3. A plate according to claim 1 or claim 2, having supporting elements running along opposed edges of the plate.

4. A plate according to any one of claims 1, 2 and 3, in which the holes are oval or kidney shaped.

5. A plate according to any one of the preceeding claims, in which the holes are arranged in a diagonal, parallel or dendritic grid.

6. A plate according to any one of the preceeding claims, in which each hole is cylindrical or broadens towards the face of the plate bearing the ribs.

7. A plate according to any one of the preceding claims, in which at least one rib is strengthened by means of a steel girder.

8. A plate according to any one of the preceding claims, having along at least one of its edges male and female connecting means, for connection to female and male connecting means respectively of a second like plate.

9. A plate according to claim 8, in which the male and female connecting means are pins and eyes respectively, or together form a dove-tail joint.

10. A plate according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the face opposite to the face bearing the ribs has a non-slip surface.

11. A polypropylene plate according to any one of the preceding claims.

1 2. A plate according to claim 1, substan tally as herein described with reference to any one of the accompanying drawings.

1 3. A floor which comprises at least two plates according to any one of the preceding claims, attached together.

1 4. An animal house or pen having a floor according to claim 13, or a floor comprising a plate according to any one of claims 1 to

1 2.

1 5. A floor framing for animal production, characterised in that it consists of a floor plate 1 made of plastic that is provided with a needful number of sagging holes 3 where at the same time on the lower side of the floor plate 1 is formed a supporting construction that consists at least of two longitudinal ribs 4 and of transverse ribs 5 and on the ends of the opposite couple of flank sides of the floor plate 1 are created supporting elements 6 for the situation of the framing in the catchpit channel.