US2701890A - Floor mat - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 15, 1955 IN V EN TOR. #7005 J} Arr-malty;

United States Patent FLOOR MAT Dudley W. Moor, Jr., Toledo, Ohio, assignor to American Mat Corporation, Toledo, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application November 22, 1950, Serial No. 197,003

The terminal portion of the term of the patent extending beyond February 11, 1966, has been disclaimed 1 Claim. (Cl. 15-215) This invention relates to floor mats and more particularly to floor mats of the type commonly used on floors in heavily travelled locations and frequently fabricated from resilient materials such as rubber, reinforced rubber, artificial or synthetic materials and the like.

This invention has for its principal object the provision of a floor mat which permits effective drainage of water from its upper surface to the floor on which the mat rests and then along the floor beneath the mat to its edges where it can evaporate or can be otherwise removed.

An equally important object of this invention is to provide a floor mat having an under surface so designed as to resist movement of the floor mat along an inclined floor regardless of the direction of incline relative to the position of the mat thereon.

These and more specific objects and advantages will be apparent from the drawings in which:

Fig. l is a fragmentary view in perspective of a portion of a mat embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary bottom view of a mat embodying the invention; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken substantially on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

A mat embodying the invention consists of a generally flat body on the upper surface of which are formed a plurality of groups of upwardly extending spaced ribs 11. The ribs 11 may be formed as shown in Fig. 1 in small groups, for example, in grougs of three and between each group of ribs 11 there may e located spaced webs 12 and flat projections 13 thus givin the that an irregular broken upper surface. In the em odimeut of the mat shown in Fig. 1 the projections 13 are longitudinally spaced from the webs 12 thus providing openings 14 between the upper and lower surfaces of the mat through which water and dirt can be carried to prevent the accumulation of such substances on the upper surface of the mat. The particular relative sizes of the ribs 11, webs 12, surfaces 13 and openings 14 and their relative locations are not at all critical and are dictated solely by considerations of design and wearing ability of the mat.

The under surface of the mat body 10 has a plurality of relatively closely spaced raised ribs 15 which extend over the entire under surface of the body 10 being interrupted, of course, by the openings 14 leading through the body 10. It should be noted that the ribs 15 extend diagonally with respect to the ribs 11 on the upper surface of the mat. This is essential and constitutes the crux of the instant invention. The provision of the diagonally 2,701,890 Patented Feb. 15, 1955 extending ribs 15 produces the result that no matter whether the mat is placed with the upper ribs 11 extending transversely of an inclined surface or longitudinally thereof, the diagonal ribs 15 extend at least generally across or transversely of the surface and thus resist the sliding action of the mat on the surface resulting from people walking on the mat. Furthermore, with the u per ribs 11 extending either along or across the incline surface, the lower ribs 15, since they extend diagonally, effectively direct the flow of water under the mat to the edges of the mat and the flexing movement of the material from which the mat is constructed under the pressures created by the feet of persons walking on the mat acts to "wipe the water along the channels formed by the under ribs 15 to the edges of the mat body 10 where it can be more easily cleaned away.

Thus a mat embodying the invention can be used on any inclined surface without fear of water being trapped beneath the mat where it may become stagnant or where its presence may cause the mat to rot at a higher rate than would normally take place and furthermore the diagonal under ribs 15 greatly increase the tenacity with which a mat embodying the invention clings on an inclined surface, tending to prevent its sliding along such surface and substantially eliminating the necessity for frequently moving the mat back up the surface. These two considerations are particularly important where the mat is of large size and is used, for example, on a large ramp exposed to heavy traffic. Similarly, however, the diagonal bottom ribs 15 are of importance in smaller mats because they increase the friction between the mat and the surface and help retain the mat in place even against sharp sudden pressures, whether in the direction ogorliransverse to the direction of extension of the upper 1! s Having described my invention, I claim:

A floor mat having an integral, unitary, resilient body, a plurality of upwardly projecting, parallel continuous ridges on its upper surface, said ridges extending across said body from side to side parallel to one of its major edges and being arranged in spaced groups each consisting of several ridges, there being a plurality of generally rectilinearly arranged spaced drainage openings extending through said body in the spaces between said groups of ridges, from one surface of said body to the other, and a plurality of downwardly projecting parallel ridges on the lower surface of said body extending across said body diagonally to the edges of said body and to said upper ridges, some of said lower ridges at least being interrupted by the drainage openings in said body.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Moor, Jr. Feb. 12, 1952 Chaffee Feb. 16, 1858 MacLellan et al. 5 May 24, 1881 Yates Mar. 5, 1912

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