Patent Publication Number: US-2022213912-A1

Title: Wedge-shaped tongue groove

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application claims the benefit of Swedish Application No. 2150005-3, filed on Jan. 7, 2021. The entire contents of Swedish Application No. 2150005-3 are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. 
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to panels configured to be locked together with a mechanical locking device. The panels may be panels that may be assembled and locked together to obtain a furniture product, such as a bookshelf, a cupboard, a wardrobe, a box, a drawer or a furniture component and may thereafter be dismantled. The mechanical locking device may comprise a flexible tongue. 
     TECHNICAL BACKGROUND 
     A furniture product provided with a mechanical locking device is known in the art, as evidenced by WO2015/038059. The furniture products earlier described comprise a first panel connected perpendicular to a second panel by a mechanical locking device comprising a flexible tongue in an insertion groove. 
     The above description of various known aspects is the applicant&#39;s characterization of such, and is not an admission that any of the above description is considered as prior art. 
     Embodiments of the present disclosure address a need to provide panels that can be assembled and dismantled, having an improved stiffness and strength of the mechanical locking device. 
     SUMMARY 
     It is an object of certain aspects of the present disclosure to provide an improvement over the above described techniques and known art. A specific objective is to improve assembling of panels, such as furniture panels, locked together by a mechanical locking device. The panels may be a part of a furniture product, such as a furniture component, a drawer, a cupboard, a bookshelf, a wardrobe, a kitchen fixture, or a box. 
     A further object of at least certain aspects of the present disclosure is to facilitate assembling of panels configured to be assembled with a locking device that is easy to use and install and which reduces the risk of damaging the panels during production thereof. 
     A further object of at least certain aspects of the present disclosure is to facilitate assembling of panels configured to be assembled without the need of using any tools. 
     A further object of at least certain aspects of the present disclosure is to facilitate assembling of panels configured to be assembled with a locking device that is easy to use and install and which reduces the risk of incorrect installation thereof. 
     A further object of at least certain aspects of the present disclosure is to facilitate assembling of panels configured to be assembled in a more stable and aesthetic way. 
     At least some of these and other objects and advantages that will be apparent from the description have been achieved by a set comprising a first panel, a second panel and a mechanical locking device for locking the first panel to the second panel, wherein the first panel comprises a first edge surface and a first panel surface and the second panel comprises a second edge surface and a second panel surface, the mechanical locking device comprises an insertion groove at the first edge surface, wherein the insertion groove has a first displacement surface and an opposite second displacement surface, a bottom surface and a depth direction, wherein the insertion groove comprises a flexible tongue, and an edge tongue comprising a tongue groove, wherein the flexible tongue is configured to cooperate with the tongue groove for locking of the first panel to the second panel, and characterized in that the first and the second displacement surface of the insertion groove are converging. 
     According to an aspect an angle between the first and the second displacement surface of the insertion groove is more than about 0° to about 5°, preferably more than about 0° to about 3°, more preferably about 1° to about 2°. 
     According to an aspect an angle between a main plane of the insertion groove and the first displacement surface of the insertion groove is about 0° to about 5°, preferably about 0° to about 3°, more preferably about 1° to about 2°. The main plane of the insertion groove is oriented along a longitudinal direction of the insertion groove. 
     According to an aspect the second displacement surface of the insertion groove is essentially parallel with the main plane of the insertion groove. 
     According to an aspect an angle between the first displacement surface of the insertion groove and a first side surface of the first panel is about 45° to about 90°, preferably about 45° to about 70°, more preferably about 60° to about 65°. 
     According to an aspect an angle between the second displacement surface and a second side surface of the first panel is about 90° to about 135°, preferably about 110° to about 125°, more preferably about 115° to about 120°. 
     According to an aspect the flexible tongue comprises a first locking surface and a second locking surface, the first locking surface is configured to cooperate with the tongue groove for locking of the first panel to the second panel in a first direction when the flexible tongue is positioned in the insertion groove in a first orientation, and the second locking surface of the flexible tongue is configured to cooperate with the tongue groove for a locking of the first panel to the second panel in a first direction when the flexible tongue is positioned in the insertion groove in a second orientation. 
     According to an aspect the first locking surface and the second locking surface is essentially symmetrically positioned on the flexible tongue. 
     According to an aspect the first direction for locking of the first panel to the second panel is perpendicular to the first panel surface. 
     According to an aspect the bottom surface is extending between the first displacement surface and the opposite second displacement surface. 
     According to an aspect the core of the first panel and/or of the second panel may be a wood-based core, preferably made of MDF, HDF, OSB, WPC, plywood or particleboard. The core may also be a plastic core comprising thermosetting plastic or thermoplastic e.g. vinyl, PVC, PU or PET. The plastic core may comprise fillers. 
     According to an aspect the first panel and/or the second panel may also be of solid wood. 
     According to an aspect the first panel and/or the second panel may be provided with a decorative layer, such as a foil or a veneer, on one or more surfaces. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       These and other aspects, features and advantages of which embodiments of the disclosure are capable of, will be apparent and elucidated from the following description of embodiments and aspects of the present disclosure, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which 
         FIG. 1  shows a side view of an exemplary embodiment of the first panel. 
         FIG. 2  shows a side view of an exemplary embodiment of the first panel, where a flexible tongue is positioned in the tongue groove. 
         FIGS. 3-4  show a side view of an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure during assembling. 
         FIG. 5  shows a view of an exemplary embodiment of a tool used for producing the insertion groove. 
         FIG. 6A  shows a side view of an exemplary embodiment of the first panel when the tool is producing the insertion groove, and  FIG. 6B  shows an enlargement of the encircled area indicated in  FIG. 6A . The tool is positioned in the end position, producing also the bottom surface of the insertion groove. 
         FIG. 7A  shows a side view of an exemplary embodiment of the first panel when the tool has produced the insertion groove and the tool is being retracted, i.e. the tool does no longer extend all the way down to the bottom surface of the insertion groove. 
         FIG. 7B  shows an enlargement of the encircled area indicated in  FIG. 7A , where it can be seen that the tool does not interact with both the first displacement surface and the opposite second displacement surface at the same time when the tool is being retracted. 
         FIGS. 8A-8C  show different exemplary embodiments of the first and second panel according to the disclosure. 
         FIG. 9  shows an exemplary embodiment of a set of panels according to the disclosure in an assembled state. 
         FIG. 10  shows a 3D-view of an exemplary embodiment of a set of panels according to the disclosure in an assembled state. 
         FIGS. 11A-11C and 12  show different views of a flexible tongue according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Specific embodiments of the disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. This disclosure may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. The terminology used in the detailed description of the embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure. In the drawings, like numbers refer to like elements. 
     The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular aspects of the disclosure only, and is not intended to limit the disclosure. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. 
     It should be noted that the word “comprising” does not necessarily exclude the presence of other elements or steps than those listed and the words “a” or “an” preceding an element do not exclude the presence of a plurality of such elements. It should further be noted that any reference signs do not limit the scope of the claims, that the example aspects may be implemented at least in part by means of both hardware and software, and that several “means”, “units” or “devices” may be represented by the same item of hardware. 
     When the word “about” is used in this specification in connection with a numerical value, it is intended that the associated numerical value include a tolerance of +/−10% around the stated numerical value. 
     The different aspects, alternatives and embodiments of the disclosure disclosed herein can be combined with one or more of the other aspects, alternatives and embodiments described herein. Two or more aspects can be combined. 
     A first embodiment of the disclosure is shown e.g. in  FIGS. 3-4  including a set comprising a first panel  1 , a second panel  2  and a mechanical locking device for locking the first panel  1  to the second panel  2 . The first panel  1  comprises a first edge surface  11  and a first panel surface  12  and the second panel  2  comprises a second edge surface  21  and a second panel surface  22 . The mechanical locking device comprises an insertion groove  3  at the first edge surface  11 , wherein the insertion groove  3  has a first displacement surface  30  and an opposite second displacement surface  31 , a bottom surface  32  and a depth direction D. The insertion groove  3  comprises a flexible tongue  4 . The mechanical locking device further comprises an edge tongue comprising a tongue groove  5 , wherein the flexible tongue  4  is configured to cooperate with the tongue groove  5  for locking of the first panel  1  to the second panel  2 . The first and the second displacement surface  30 , 31  of the insertion groove  3  are converging, e.g., so as to result in a wedge-shaped insertion groove. This can result in an improved assembling of the first panel  1  and the second panel  2  since the converging first and the second displacement surface  30 , 31  may prevent the flexible tongue  4  from being pinched in the insertion grove  3 . Furthermore, this can result in an improved stiffness and strength of the mechanical locking device. For example, in illustrative embodiments, the flexible tongue  4  and the tongue groove  5  are configured such that the flexible tongue  4 , when inserted in the tongue groove  5 , contacts, under compressive pressure, both the first and second displacement surfaces  30 ,  31  along only a portion of the longitudinal extent of the insertion groove  3 , and contacts only one of the first and second displacement surfaces  30 ,  31  at another portion of the longitudinal extent of the insertion groove  3  that is closer to the opening thereof (or contacts both surfaces  30 ,  31 , but with less compressive pressure). 
     The first panel is shown in detail in  FIGS. 1-2 . 
     The first panel  1  and the second panel  2  are preferably panels for a furniture product and may be a part of a frame of a furniture product. 
     For a furniture product, the set is preferably configured for locking the first panel  1  to the second panel  2  with the first panel surface  12  perpendicular or essentially perpendicular to the second panel surface  22 . 
     An angle α between the first and the second displacement surface  30 , 31  of the insertion groove  3  may be more than about 0° to about 5°, preferably more than about 0° to about 3°, more preferably about 1° to about 2°. 
     An angle β between a main plane M of the insertion groove  3  and the first displacement surface  30  of the insertion groove  3  may be about 0° to about 5°, or about 0° to about 3°, or about 1° to about 2° or about 0.1° to about 1°, or about 0.5°. 
     The angle β between a main plane M of the insertion groove  3  and the first displacement surface  30  of the insertion groove  3  may be greater than about 0.1. 
     The second displacement surface  31  of the insertion groove  3  may be essentially parallel with the main plane M of the insertion groove  3 . According to this embodiment, only the first displacement surface  30  diverges from the main plane M of the insertion groove  3 . 
     An angle γ between the first displacement surface  30  of the insertion groove  3  and a first side surface  13  of the first panel  1  may be about 45 ° to about 90 °, preferably about 45 ° to about 70 °, more preferably about 60 ° to about 65 °. The first side surface  13  is a surface of the first panel  1  that is immediately adjacent to, and located below, the insertion groove  3 . 
     An angle δ between the second displacement surface  31  and a second side surface  14  of the first panel  1  may be about 90 ° to about 135 °, preferably about 110 ° to about 125 °, more preferably about 115 ° to about 120 °. The second side surface  14  is a surface of the first panel  1  that is immediately adjacent to, and located above, the insertion groove  3 . 
     The bottom surface  32  may extend between the first displacement surface  31  and the opposite second displacement surface  32 . 
       FIGS. 3-4  show a view during assembling of a furniture product of an aspect of the disclosure. The second panel  2  may be assembled by displacing the second panel  2  relative the first panel  1  in a direction which is perpendicular to the first panel surface  12  which is shown in  FIG. 3 . The mechanical locking device may be configured to automatically lock the first panel  1  to the second panel  2  when the first panel  1  and the second panel  2  is in a locked position and the flexible tongue extends into the tongue groove  5  of the second panel which is shown in  FIG. 4 . 
       FIGS. 8A-8C  shows different embodiments of the first and second panel  1 ,  2  of the present disclosure. The panel  1 ″ of  FIG. 8A  comprises two second edge surfaces  21 , the panel  1 ′ of  FIG. 8B  comprises two first edge surfaces  11 , while the panel  1  of  FIG. 8C  comprises one first edge surface  11  and one second edge surface  21 . 
     Two panels  1 ″ according to  FIG. 8A  can e.g. be used together with two panels  1 ′ according to  FIG. 8B  for assembly of a box, while e.g. four panels  1  according to  FIG. 8C  can be used for assembly of a box. Alternatively, one panel  1 ″ according to  FIG. 8A , one panel  1 ′ according to  FIG. 8B , and two panels  1  according to  FIG. 8D  can be used for assembly of a furniture product, such as a box. 
       FIG. 9  shows a set of four panels  1  as shown in  FIG. 8C  in a locked position, creating a box  61 . 
       FIG. 10  shows a 3D view of four panels  1  according to the present disclosure in a locked position creating a furniture product  62 . The mechanical locking device is not visible when the panels are assembled, giving a very aesthetic result. 
     For the different embodiments of the present disclosure described above, the first panel  1  and the second panel  2  are preferably panels for a furniture product and may be a part of a frame of a furniture product. 
     For a furniture product, the set is preferably configured for locking the first panel  1  to the second panel  2  with the first panel surface  12  perpendicular or essentially perpendicular to a second panel surface  22 . 
       FIGS. 11A-11C and 12  show different views of a flexible tongue  4  according to an embodiment.  FIG. 11A  is a top-view,  FIG. 11B  a side view,  FIG. 11C  a bottom view and  FIG. 12  show a crosscut of the flexible tongue  4  at a position C indicated in  FIG. 11A . The flexible tongue  4  may comprise a first locking surface  101  and a second locking surface  102 . The first locking surface  101  may be configured to cooperate with the tongue groove  5  for locking of the first panel  1  to the second panel  2  in a first direction when the flexible tongue  4  is positioned in the insertion groove  3  in a first orientation. The second locking surface  102  of the flexible tongue  4  may be configured to cooperate with the tongue groove  5  for a locking of the first panel  1  to the second panel  2  in a first direction when the flexible tongue  4  is positioned in the insertion groove  3  in a second orientation. 
     The first locking surface  101  and the second locking surface  102  may be essentially symmetrically positioned on the flexible tongue  4 , as seen in  FIG. 12 . 
     The first direction for locking of the first panel  1  to the second panel  2  may be perpendicular to the first panel surface  12 . 
     The flexible tongue  4  may comprise a flexible material to enable compression and a displacement of the flexible tongue  4  in the insertion groove  3  during assembling and disassembling. 
     The flexible tongue  4  may comprise an element which is flexible to enable compression and a displacement of the flexible tongue  4  in the insertion groove  3  during assembling and another element which is less flexible in order to improve the locking strength. 
     The flexible tongue  4  may be arranged at the bottom surface  32  of the insertion groove  3 . 
     The flexible tongue  4  may be arranged between the tongue groove  5  and the bottom surface  32  of the insertion groove  3  in the locked position. 
     The insertion groove  3  and the tongue groove  5  may be formed by mechanical cutting, such as milling or sawing.  FIG. 5  shows a view of an embodiment of a tool T that may be used for producing the insertion groove  3  of the first panel  1 . 
       FIG. 6A  shows a side view of an embodiment of the first panel  1  when the tool T is producing the insertion groove.  FIG. 6B  shows an enlargement of the encircled area indicated in  FIG. 6A . The tool T is positioned in the end position, thus producing also the final bottom surface  32  of the insertion groove  3 . 
       FIG. 7A  shows a side view of an embodiment of the first panel  1  when the tool T has produced the insertion groove  3  and is being retracted, i.e. the tool T no longer extends all the way down to the bottom surface  32  of the insertion groove  3 .  FIG. 7B  shows an enlargement of the encircled area indicated in  FIG. 7A , where the tool T no longer interacts with the first displacement surface  30  when the tool T is being retracted. There may be a distance  63  between the tool T and the first displacement surface  30  when the tool T is partly in the insertion groove  3  and is being retracted. This can minimize the risk of the first displacement surface  30  being damaged by the tool T when the tool T is retracted after the forming of the insertion groove  3 . 
     The tool T may be configured to no longer interact with the second displacement surface  31  when the tool T is being retracted by virtue of a distance between the tool T and the second displacement surface. 
     The tool T may be configured to no longer interact with the first displacement surface  30  and second displacement surface  31  when the tool T is being retracted by virtue of the distance  63  between the tool T and the first displacement surface  31 . 
     A damaged displacement surface may have the effect that the flexible tongue  4  is pinched in the insertion grove  3 , e.g., during assembling of the first panel  1  and the second panel  2  or when the flexible tongue  4  is inserted into the insertion grove  3 . 
     A damaged displacement surface may also have the result of loose fragment in the locking device which may have the effect that the locking strength is diminished or that the first panel  1  and the second panel  2  are prevented from being displaced to the locked position. 
     The tool T works in the same direction as the depth direction D. The rotational axis of the tool T may be perpendicular to the main plane M/depth direction D. 
     The core of the first panel  1  and/or of the second panel  2  may be a wood-based core, preferably made of MDF, HDF, OSB, WPC, plywood or particleboard. The core may also be a plastic core comprising thermosetting plastic or thermoplastic e.g. vinyl, PVC, PU or PET. The plastic core may comprise fillers. 
     The first panel  1  and/or the second panel  2  may also be of solid wood. 
     The first panel  1  and/or the second panel  2  may be provided with a decorative layer, such as a foil or a veneer, on one or more surfaces.