Patent Publication Number: US-2004048035-A1

Title: Recyclable floor mats, methods and systems for recycling floor mats

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] The present invention relates generally to floor mats, and more particularly to recyclable floor mats, and methods and systems for recycling floor mats.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002] Car dealers typically provide vehicle floor mats with the purchase of a new car. After awhile, the vehicle floor mats may become worn and are replaced with new vehicle floor mats which typically can be purchased at an automobile parts store or a car dealer. Car owners often discard worn out vehicle floor mats in the trash.  
       [0003] An attempt has been made at providing recyclable vehicle floor mats having an upper carpet layer and a black bottom layer by selecting material from a common chemical family. This allows use of worn out recyclable vehicle floor mats as feedstock for forming new vehicle floor mats without requiring separation of the mat components.  
       [0004] There is a need for further recyclable floor mats, and further methods and systems for recycling floor mats.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0005] The present invention provides, in a first aspect, a recyclable floor mat which includes a layer of recyclable material, and indicia, disposed on the layer, identifying that the floor mat is recyclable.  
       [0006] The present invention provides, in a second aspect, a floor mat which includes a layer comprising an upper portion and a lower portion, and wherein at least one of the upper portion and the lower portion comprises recycled material and the upper portion being different from the lower portion.  
       [0007] The present invention provides, in a third aspect, a method for enabling recycling of floor mats in which the method includes obtaining a used floor mat, and providing an item of value in consideration for the used floor mat.  
       [0008] The present invention provides, in a fourth aspect, a method for recycling vehicle floor mats in which the method includes obtaining a used vehicle floor mat having indicia identifying that the vehicle floor mat is recyclable, and providing an item of value in consideration for the used vehicle floor mat.  
       [0009] The present invention provides, in a fifth aspect, a system for enabling recycling of floor mats. The system includes means for obtaining a used floor mat and means for providing an item of value in consideration for the used floor mat.  
       [0010] The present invention provides, in a sixth aspect, a system for enabling recycling of vehicle floor mats. The system includes means for obtaining a used vehicle floor mat and means for providing an item of value in consideration for the used vehicle floor mat.  
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
     [0011] The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. The invention, however, may be understood by reference to the following detailed description of the following embodiments and the accompanying drawings in which:  
     [0012]FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system for collecting and recycling vehicle floor mats in accordance with the present invention;  
     [0013]FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a method for enabling recycling of vehicle floor mats;  
     [0014]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a recyclable vehicle floor mat in accordance with the present invention;  
     [0015]FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of a recyclable vehicle floor mat in accordance with the present invention;  
     [0016]FIG. 5 is another partial cross-sectional view of a recyclable vehicle floor mat in accordance with the present invention;  
     [0017]FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view of a recyclable vehicle floor mat in accordance with the present invention;  
     [0018]FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a recyclable floor mat in accordance with the present invention; and  
     [0019]FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a method for enabling recycling of floor mats.  
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
     [0020]FIG. 1 illustrates a system  10  for collecting and recycling vehicle floor mats in accordance with the present invention. In one embodiment, system  10  generally includes car dealers  12  (only one of which is shown in FIG. 1), a parts distribution center  13 , a recycle center  14 , and a vehicle floor mat manufacturer  15 . It will be appreciated that the system can incorporate more than one parts distribution center, recycle center, or vehicle floor mat manufacturer.  
     [0021] For example, the system allows car owners to return used recyclable vehicle floor mats to a car dealer. The collected used recyclable vehicle floor mats received by the various car dealers  12  are transferred to the car dealer&#39;s parts distribution center  13 . Parts distribution center  13  then transfers the used recyclable vehicle floor mats to recycle center  14 . Alternatively, the car dealers may transfer the collected used recycled vehicle floor mats to the recycle center.  
     [0022] Recycle center  14  may process, grind and/or melt, the used recyclable vehicle floor mats, preferably without the need for any component separation, to produce a fluff or form pellets or other forms which may be shipped to vehicle floor mat manufacture  15  for incorporation into new floor mats. New manufactured vehicle floor mats incorporating used recycled vehicle floor mats may be shipped from vehicle floor mat manufacturer  15  to car manufactures  16 , car dealers  12 , parts distribution center  13 , or even back to the car owner.  
     [0023] As shown in FIG. 2, a method  20  for enabling recycling of vehicle floor mats may include, at  22 , the car owner returning used vehicle floor mats, and at  24 , the car owner receiving an item of value. For example, the car owner may return the used vehicle floor mats to a car dealer (as shown in FIG.  1 ). Alternatively, the car owner may ship the used recyclable vehicle floor mats to a parts distribution center, to a recycle center, or to a vehicle floor mat manufacturer.  
     [0024] Upon purchase of a car, the car owner may be provided with instructions, e.g., in the owners manual or other information, regarding the recyclable vehicle floor mats, and the method of collecting and recycling of worn out recyclable vehicle floor mats. The car owner may also be provided with a listing of places for returning or mailing the recyclable floor mats once they are worn out.  
     [0025] The item of value provided as an incentive and/or consideration for return of the used recyclable floor mat may be money, an offer or incentive for new products, a credit toward new recyclable vehicle floor mats, a discount on a new car, a car related product, credit toward a purchase of a car related product, or other item or items of value.  
     [0026] For example, where a car owner returns the used vehicle floor mats to a car dealer, the car dealer is able to show the car owner the models of automobiles and offer a discount on the purchase of a new car. Where the car owner ships or mails the used recyclable floor mats to, e.g., a parts distribution center, a recycle center, or a vehicle floor mat manufacturer, the car owner may receive a credit or coupon for an item or items of value.  
     [0027]FIG. 3 illustrates a recyclable vehicle floor mat  30 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the vehicle floor may have various other shapes or configurations than that illustrated in FIG. 3. In addition, the bottom surface of the recyclable vehicle floor mat may include downwardly-extending nibs (as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5) and/or other structure(s) to engage a carpeted vehicle floor board.  
     [0028] Generally, the recyclable vehicle floor mat includes a top face or layer  32  and a bottom backing or layer  34  attached to the top layer  32 . For example, the recyclable vehicle floor mat may be formed from chemically compatible materials such as a polypropylene carpet material and a thermoplastic olefin backing material. It will be appreciated that other materials may be suitably employed. To aid in the collection and sorting of the recyclable vehicle floor mats, the recyclable vehicle floor mats may be provided with indicia for readily identifying to customers that the vehicle floor mats are recyclable and, to car dealers, for example, that the vehicle floor mats may be recycled according to the above described and illustrated collection and recycling process. Indicia  36  and  38  may include tags, labels, or logos disposed on the top layer or the bottom layer, respectively, of the recyclable vehicle floor mat.  
     [0029] The indicia may also be a bottom surface  35  of bottom layer  34  being provided with a color other than the conventional color black for vehicle floor mats. As shown in FIG. 4, a recyclable vehicle floor  40  mat may include the entire bottom backing  44  of recyclable vehicle floor mat  40  being formed of a green colored material. As shown in FIG. 5, in manufacturing a recyclable vehicle floor mat  50 , a bottom layer  54  of recyclable floor mat  50  may be coextruded with an upper portion  53 , e.g., about 80-percent of the thickness of bottom layer  54 , and a lower portion  55  of bottom layer  54 , e.g., about 20 percent of the thickness of the bottom layer; the latter portion  55  being a green colored material. Alternatively, the upper portion may comprises 10-percent to 50-percent of the bottom layer. It will be appreciated that the bottom layer may be formed of two or more layers. In addition, the recyclable floor mat of the present invention may include a single layer having incorporated therein recycled material and/or means or indicia for identifying that the floor mat is recyclable.  
     [0030] In addition, the bottom surface may include other suitable indicia, e.g., colored stripes, colored portions, etc., for readily identifying that the vehicle floor mat is recyclable and may be processed according to the above described and illustrated collection and recycling process.  
     [0031] Where recyclable vehicle floor mats are manufactured using used recycled vehicle floor mats as described above, the vehicle floor mat manufacturer may use, e.g., about 20-percent to about 30-percent of the recycled material in new recyclable vehicle floor mats. As shown in FIG. 5, where the regind is used for new vehicle floor mats, the regrind may be used in at least one of upper portion  53  and lower portion  55  of bottom layer. For example, the regrind may be used in upper portion  53  of bottom layer  54 , and lower portion  55  may be formed from a virgin material. Using recycled material for a portion of the virgin materials normally used in the manufacture of new vehicle floor mats may reduce the cost of forming the new recyclable vehicle floor mats. The vehicle floor mat manufacture process may recycle trim or scrap, e.g., the carpeted upper layer and the bottom backing layer, and include the recycled trim or scrap into the recyclable vehicle floor mats. Recycling the trim or scrap eliminates the need and cost for disposing of the trim or scrap.  
     [0032] The manufacturing process of recyclable vehicle floor mats or other products may incorporate the recycling of products having materials with different melting temperatures. The recycling of used vehicle floor mats, trim, or other recycled products may include, for example, a nylon carpet having a TPO (thermoplastic olefin) backing. The process may includes grinding the used vehicle floor mats, trim, or other recycled products, heating the ground used vehicle floor mats, trim, or other recycled product to 350 degrees Fahrenheit to melt the TPO backing while not melting the nylon fiber yarn which has a 550-degree Fahrenheit melting point, and using the recycled material in new vehicle floor mats or other products. In other words, the process may reclaim the nylon fibers and use the fibers for strengthening new recyclable vehicle floor mats or other products.  
     [0033]FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a floor mat having a carpet layer  62 , a bottom layer  64 , and a laminate layer  61  which bonds the carpet layer to the bottom layer. The carpet layer may be a nylon or polyester carpet layer, and the bottom layer may be polyurethane foam. The laminate layer may include recycled fibers  67  such as nylon fibers as described above. In addition, the laminate layer may be mixed with TPO, EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer), EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate), polyethylene, or copolymers of polyethylene with octene, butene, or hexene. The floor mat may also include a bottom green surface or indicia for indicating that the floor mat is recyclable. From the present description, it will be appreciated that the recycled fiber material described above may also be used in the forming of the bottom layers shown in FIGS.  3 - 5 .  
     [0034] While the vehicle floor mat described above includes a carpeted upper layer and a bottom backing layer, the recyclable floor mat of the present invention may be formed of a single layer having recycled material. For example, the single layer may comprises a thermoplastic layer.  
     [0035] While FIG. 1 illustrates a generally closed loop recycling process incorporating car dealers and car manufacturers, it is also possible to supply recycled vehicle floor mats, e.g., the fluff or pellets, to manufacturers of other products  17 .  
     [0036] It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the vehicle floor mats may be used in the passenger compartment of the vehicle, as well as in the trunk and in other locations of the vehicle. The vehicle may include automobiles, trucks, sports utility vehicles, and other vehicles. In addition, the present invention can also include other types of floor mats, e.g., welcome mats placed in front of a door to a residence or a business, and floor mats placed in a residence or a business. While reference is made to a car owner in the recycling process, it will be appreciated that the recycling process is also directed to others, for example, a leasee of a vehicle, a relative of a car owner, and other users, consumers, middlemen, organizations, and persons.  
     [0037] In addition, the above described system may also allow the return of other types of floor mats such as floor mats used in and outside homes and offices. FIG. 7 illustrates such a recyclable floor mat  70 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the floor mat may have various other shapes or configurations than that illustrated in FIG. 7. Floor mat  70  may be formed of a single layer of recyclable material or two or more layers of recyclable material. To aid in the collection and sorting of the recyclable floor mats, recyclable floor mat  70  may be provided with indicia for readily identifying to customers that the floor mat is recyclable. Indicia  76  and  78  may include tags, labels, or logos disposed on the top or the bottom, respectively, of the recyclable floor mat. In addition, the bottom surface of the floor mat may be provided with a color such as described above in connection with the recyclable vehicle floor mat. In the manufacture of floor mat  70 , a manufacturer may also use recycled material as described above in connection with the recyclable vehicle floor mat.  
     [0038] As shown in FIG. 8, a method  80  for enabling recycling of floor mats may include, at  82 , the customer returning a used recyclable floor mat, and at  84 , the customer receiving an item of value. For example, the customer may return the used floor mats to a car dealer or parts distribution center (as shown in FIG. 1), or to a retailer such as where the customer purchased the floor mat, or the customer may ship the used recyclable floor mats to a floor mat manufacturer. Upon purchase of the recyclable floor mat, the customer may be provided with instructions regarding the recyclable floor mat, and the method of collecting and recycling of worn out recyclable floor mats.  
     [0039] While the invention has been described in detail herein in accordance with certain embodiments thereof, many modifications and changes therein may be effected by those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and changes as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.