Patent ID: 6182410
Filing Date: 2001-02-06
Classification: E04F,Y10T

Abstract:
An edge lock for use in a flooring system having a plurality of floor panels, the edge lock for mechanically and releasably locking together adjacent edges of pairs of adjacent floor panels during assembly of the flooring system and when said adjacent floor panels are laying flat on a subfloor with upper corner portions of said adjacent edges being mutually spaced apart, said edge lock comprising:locking means for forming a first mechanical connection for locking said adjacent edges to each other in a vertical direction, and for forming a second mechanical connection for locking said adjacent edges to each other in a horizontal direction at right angles to said edges, said locking means including:(i) a locking groove extending parallel to and spaced from a first one of the adjacent edges of one of the adjacent floor panels and being open at a rear side of said one adjacent floor panel, and(ii) a flexible and resilient locking strip integrated with another of the adjacent floor panels, said locking strip extending throughout substantially an entire length of an edge of the another adjacent floor panel, said locking strip being provided with a locking element projecting from the locking strip,said locking means being constructed so as to operate as a one-way snap lock in said horizontal direction during the assembly of said flooring system when displacing said adjacent edges towards each other by resiliently urging the flexible locking strip downwards until the upper corner portions of said adjacent edges have been brought into complete engagement with each other and the locking element thereby snaps into the locking groove to prevent drifting apart of said adjacent edges, andsaid locking means also being constructed so as to enable said adjacent panels, while they are mechanically connected to each other by said first and second mechanical connections, to be turned in relation to each other about said upper corner portions of their locked-together edges in an angular direction so as to move the locking element out of the locking groove in order to unlock said one-way snap lock.