Reversible mat

Reversible quadrangular mats of similar construction are provided, defining a grille section on one face and a flat section on the opposite face, and interlocking edgewise joints to edgewisely releasably interlock the mats in coplanar fashion. These joints include thicknesswise grooves made at the peripheral side edge sections of each mat, defining two upturned edgewise lips in two adjacent grooves and two downturned edgewise lips in the two other grooves. The mats are made from a semi-flexible material. One side lip of a first mat is frictionally engageable into one side groove of a second mat, for their interconnection.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to flexible mats to be used mainly as floor 
carpets/grilles. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
Drawbacks of prior art flexible mats are that when they become worn out, 
they have to be completely replaced, often at great expense when the mat 
has a large area; also, they usually have only a single useful surface; 
and they are not usually easily and efficiently securable to each other in 
coplanar fashion. 
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
The goal of the invention is to provide means to easily interconnect a 
number of mats, in a releasable and coplanar fashion. 
A supplemental goal is to provide such mats being of reversible nature, 
i.e. which can be used with one or the other of their main faces facing 
upwardly. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
In accordance with the inventive concept, there is disclosed in 
combination, at least two reversible quadrangular mats of similar 
construction each defining a grille section on one face and a flat section 
on the opposite face, and means to edgewisely releasably interlock said 
mats in coplanar fashion; wherein said interlocking means defines a 
lengthwise groove, made at the peripheral section of at least one side 
edge section of each mat, each said groove defining a corresponding 
edgewise lip member, a lip member from one mat being engageable into the 
groove of the other mat, said mats being made from a semi-flexible 
material. 
Preferably, said grille section is removable from said mat so as to define 
a large quadrangular grille section-receiving recess made into each said 
mat. 
Advantageously, said semi-flexible material of the lip members is chosen 
from the group comprising: vinyl, elastomeric materials, and urethane. 
Profitably, in each mat, said peripheral groove is made thicknesswisely of 
the four peripheral side edge sections of the mats, with two adjacent 
grooves being made on said one face thereof and the two others on said 
opposite face, said lip members being at the exterior edge of said 
grooves, said lip members and said grooves being cross-sectionally square 
for frictional releasable interengagement of a lip member from a first mat 
with a groove from a second mat. 
In alternate embodiments, said lips and grooves are cross-sectionally 
semi-circular or preferably dovetailed for releasable interengagement, 
taking apart two mats being then more difficult. It is envisioned that 
said flat face section of each mat includes a plurality of spaced, water 
droplet-like, wear-resistant, circular, thin projections. 
Preferably, said peripheral grooves and lip members extend on the four 
sides of each mat, the adjacent lip members defining free ends which are 
spaced from each other so as to constitute square corner free cavities in 
said grooves. 
Advantageously, at least one ramp is provided, said ramp being 
thicknesswisely tapering and having at its thickest edge section a said 
groove and a said lip member for edgewise engagement with a corresponding 
groove or lip member from one mat. 
Advantageously, the lip members and grooves of two adjacent side edge 
sections of each mat project beyond the side edges of said grille section, 
and the other lip members and grooves from same mat project beyond the 
side edges of said main face section.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Mat 10 is substantially quadrangular and made from an elastomeric material, 
such as rubber, vinyl, urethane, and the like elastomeric materials, and 
forms a quadrangular figure in plan view. Mat 10 defines two opposite main 
faces 12, 14. Face 12 is substantially flat and may include a plurality of 
wear-resistant, water droplet-like, spaced, circular, thin projections 16. 
Face 14 defines an integral grille 18. 
Mat 10 may be used in a large variety of decorative and/or utilitarian 
settings: on the ground in front of houses, restaurants; at the peripheral 
section of icerinks of arenas; for boardwalks, streets, overpasses, public 
buildings, hallways, the workplace, in a basement; for the industry: 
liners for sandblasting machines, chutes; and generally speaking, on any 
floor, wall or ceiling but most profitably on floors. 
In accordance with the invention, the reversible mat 10 is to be used 
cooperatively with other mats 10, i.e. with at least one and preferably 
several mats, being edgewisely interconnected in coplanar fashion as 
suggested in FIG. 1 and as illustrated in FIG. 6. The reversible mats 10 
are interconnected by a releasable interlocking joint assembly 22, 
consisting of a peripheral groove made thicknesswise of the four side 
edges of each quadrangular mat 10 to define four groove sections 24a to 
24d. The two adjacent groove sections 24a and 24b include a thin edgewise 
downturned lip or flange 26a, 26b, while the other two groove sections 24c 
and 24d include a similar thin edgewise lip or flange 28c, 28d, but which 
is upturned. The free ends of each flange 26, 28, extend short of each 
other so as to define two diagonally opposed flat corners 30. Moreover, 
grooves 24a, 24b and associated lips 26a, 26b project beyond the 
corresponding side edges 12a, 12b of the mat flat face 12, while grooves 
24c, 24d and associated lips 28c, 28d project beyond the corresponding 
side edges 14c, 14d of mat main face 14 (see FIGS. 7 and 3 respectively). 
It is also envisioned, as suggested in FIG. 1, that side ramps 11 be 
mounted to those mats 10 on the periphery of a large assembly of a 
plurality of interconnected mats. The side ramps 11 would be 
thicknesswisely tapering, so as to define a small slope, and their 
thickest side edge section would include a groove 24 and an edgewise lip 
28 similar to those of the mats 10. The lip 28 of the ramp 11 would engage 
one groove 24 of a peripheral mat, so as to interconnect the ramp and this 
mat. Thus, access to the mats 10 would be facilitated by the ramps 11. 
Hence, when two mats 10 are edgewisely connected, (or one mat 10 and one 
ramp 11) lip 26a or 28c of one side edge section of one mat is forcibly 
engaged into the corresponding peripheral thicknesswise groove 24a or 24c 
of the other mat. Since the mats are made from an elastomeric material, 
the mouth of the groove 24a or 24c yieldingly partially opens when the lip 
26a or 28c extends thereinto, and then closes to bring the lip in 
frictional contact with the groove walls. Thus, these edge sections are 
frictionally interlocked wherein the two mats are coplanar. This 
frictional interlocking is releasable, by forcibly spreading apart, e.g. 
manually, the two legs of the corresponding peripheral groove sections. 
As shown in FIGS. 3-5, grille section 18 includes a plurality of parallel 
equally spaced lengthwise grooves 32, of square cross-section. The free 
ends of the grooves are upwardly outwardly tapering, as shown at 32a in 
FIG. 4. 
FIGS. 2 and 8 show a second and preferred embodiment including a removable 
carpet/grille section, 21, which defines four straight edges 34, while the 
mat frame proper, 33, defines a quadrangular recess 20 bounded by four 
thin straight walls 36 proximate to grooves 24a-24d and edgewisely 
frictionally engageable by the side edges 34 of the reversible 
carpet/grille 21. Carpet/grille 21 preferably has main faces 12 and 14 
similar to the main faces of mat 10 of FIG. 1. 
As shown in FIG. 8, the mat frame 33 is provided with interlocking lip and 
grooves 28c and 24c as in the first embodiment. 
In FIG. 9, another mat 10'" similarly includes on at least one side edge 
section thereof at 47 a downturned lip 46, of substantially semi-circular 
cross-section, and on at least one other side edge section thereof, a 
cross-sectionally semi-circular lengthwise groove 48 whose mouth is 
slightly downwardly recessed, for frictional releasably engagement by the 
semi-circular lips of other mats 10'". 
The leg of side edge section 47 joining lip 46 to the main body of mat 
10'", defines a flat underface, 47a, while lip 46 extends short of the 
level of the opposite main face of the mat. Groove 48 is bounded by an 
exterior side flange 49a and an interior side flange 49b: flange 49a is 
not as high as flange 49b, so that flange 49a snugly engage leg 47 to 
accommodate same at underface 47a, while flange 49b will act as a seat for 
the exterior side edge face of leg 47 including rounded lip 46. 
The interlocking system of FIG. 9 can be applied to frame 33 of FIGS. 2 and 
8 or to the unitary mat 10 of FIGS. 1 and 5. 
Of course, variations in the shape of lips and mating grooves made 
thicknesswisely of the peripheral grooves of the mat's side edge sections, 
should be considered well within the scope of this invention. Such a 
preferred variation is shown in FIG. 10 wherein each mat 10' has 
interlocking lips 46a and 60 which are of dovetailed cross-section. 
Obviously, the embodiments of FIGS. 9 and 10 are more difficult to take 
apart and therefore accidental release of adjacent mats is prevented.