Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US8092036?dq=6,654,957
Timestamp: 2017-02-23 23:45:30
Document Index: 570312929

Matched Legal Cases: ['art.\n2', 'art.\n7', 'art.\n13', 'art.\n18', 'art.\n24', 'art.\n29', 'art.\n35']

Patent US8092036 - Floor light - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign inPatentsThe present invention relates to a floor panel and a flooring with a preferably continuous and unbroken front face, which is at least partially light transmitting and which has a light pattern/sign at the front face....http://www.google.com/patents/US8092036?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US8092036 - Floor lightAdvanced Patent SearchTry the new Google Patents, with machine-classified Google Scholar results, and Japanese and South Korean patents.Publication numberUS8092036 B2Publication typeGrantApplication numberUS 11/822,708Publication dateJan 10, 2012Filing dateJul 9, 2007Priority dateJan 11, 2006Fee statusPaidAlso published asUS8021014, US20070159814, US20080005981Publication number11822708, 822708, US 8092036 B2, US 8092036B2, US-B2-8092036, US8092036 B2, US8092036B2InventorsJan JacobssonOriginal AssigneeValinge Innovation AbExport CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (31), Referenced by (4), Classifications (23), Legal Events (3) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetFloor light
US 8092036 B2Abstract
1. A floor panel comprising a front face and a rear face, the floor panel is at least partly light transmitting and includes a light transmitting part,
wherein the front face comprises a resin impregnated laminate paper sheet, wherein the front face is continuous and unbroken over the entire light transmitting part,
wherein the rear face includes an aperture extending through the rear face to a bottom and wherein the resin impregnated laminate paper sheet is continuous and unbroken over and beyond the aperture,
wherein the light transmitting part is between the bottom of the aperture and the front face of the floor panel and the light transmitting part is substantially only the resin impregnated laminate paper sheet, and
wherein the floor panel is produced by a method comprising grinding or milling the aperture at the rear face of the light transmitting part.
2. A method to produce a light transmitting floor panel, the floor panel comprising a front face, a rear face and a wood based core, which front face comprises a resin impregnated laminate sheet,
the method comprising grinding or milling an aperture in a wood material forming the wood based core at the rear face of a light transmitting part to a bottom, the aperture extending vertically a predetermined distance within the wood based core from the rear face towards the front face,
wherein the light transmitting part is substantially only the resin impregnated laminate sheet.
3. The method as claimed in claim 2, the method further comprising disposing a light source into the aperture.
4. The method as claimed in claim 3, the method further comprising filling the aperture with a light transmitting filler, the light transmitting filler being separate and distinct from the means light source.
5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the core comprises HDF, MDF or particleboard.
6. The method as claimed in claim 5, wherein the floor panel transmits light through the light transmitting part of a thickness, wherein the thickness of the light transmitting part is adapted to the power of the light source in the aperture of the floor panel, facilitating light to transmit through the light transmitting part.
7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the light transmitting part consists of the resin impregnated laminate sheet.
8. The method as claimed in claim 2, the method further comprising forming a mechanical locking system at an edge of the floor panel.
9. The method as claimed in claim 2, the method further comprising attaching an under layer to the rear face.
10. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet defines the front face, and wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet comprises paper.
11. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet defines the front face, and wherein the grinding or milling of the aperture comprises grinding or milling the wood based core under the resin impregnated laminate sheet.
12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet defining the front face is continuous over an entirety of the light transmitting part.
13. A method to produce a light transmitting floor panel, the floor panel comprising a front face, a rear face and a wood based core, which front face comprises separate surface layer of a resin impregnated laminate sheet,
wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet defines the front face,
wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet is directly connected to the core.
14. The method as claimed in claim 13, the method further comprising disposing a light source into the aperture.
15. The method as claimed in claim 14, the method further comprising filling the aperture with a light transmitting filler, the light transmitting filler being separate and distinct from the light source.
16. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the core comprises HDF, MDF or particleboard.
17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the floor panel transmits light through the light transmitting part of a thickness, wherein the thickness of the light transmitting part is adapted to the power of the light source in the aperture of the floor panel, facilitating light to transmit through the light transmitting part.
18. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the light transmitting part consists of the resin impregnated laminate sheet.
19. The method as claimed in claim 13, the method further comprising forming a mechanical locking system at an edge of the floor panel.
20. The method as claimed in claim 13, the method further comprising attaching an under layer to the rear face.
21. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet defines the front face, and wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet comprises paper.
22. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet defines the front face, and wherein the grinding or milling of the aperture comprises grinding or milling the wood based core under the resin impregnated laminate sheet.
23. The method as claimed in claim 22, wherein the resin impregnated laminate sheet defining the front face is continuous over an entirety of the light transmitting part.
24. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the wood material defines the front face, and wherein the grinding or milling of the aperture comprises grinding or milling the wood based core under the wood material.
25. A method to produce a light transmitting floor panel, the floor panel comprising a front face and a rear face, the floor panel being substantially of solid wood and comprises a light transmitting part,
the method comprising grinding or milling an aperture in the solid wood at the rear face of a light transmitting part to a bottom, the aperture extending vertically a predetermined distance within the solid wood from the rear face towards the front face,
wherein the front face is continuous and unbroken through the entire light transmitting part and is continuous and unbroken over and beyond the aperture.
26. The method as claimed in claim 25, the method further comprising disposing a light source into the aperture.
27. The method as claimed in claim 26, the method further comprising filling the aperture with a light transmitting filler, the light transmitting filler being separate and distinct from the light source.
28. The method as claimed in claim 27, wherein the floor panel transmits light through the light transmitting part of a thickness, wherein the thickness of the light transmitting part is adapted to the power of the light source in the aperture of the floor panel, facilitating light to transmit through the light transmitting part.
29. The method as claimed in claim 25, the method further comprising forming a mechanical locking system at an edge of the floor panel.
30. A method to produce a light transmitting floor panel, the floor panel comprising a front face, a rear face and a wood based core, which front face comprises a wood veneer,
wherein the light transmitting part is substantially only the wood veneer.
31. The method as claimed in claim 30, the method further comprising disposing a light source into the aperture.
32. The method as claimed in claim 31, the method further comprising filling the aperture with a light transmitting filler, the light transmitting filler being separate and distinct from the light source.
33. The method as claimed in claim 32, wherein the core comprises HDF, MDF or particleboard.
34. The method as claimed in claim 33, wherein the floor panel transmits light through the light transmitting part of a thickness, wherein the thickness of the light transmitting part is adapted to the power of the light source in the aperture of the floor panel, facilitating light to transmit through the light transmitting part.
35. The method as claimed in claim 34, wherein the light transmitting part consists of the resin impregnated laminate sheet.
36. The method as claimed in claim 30, the method further comprising forming a mechanical locking system at an edge of the floor panel.
37. The method as claimed in claim 30, the method further comprising attaching an under layer to the rear face.
38. The method as claimed in claim 30, wherein the wood veneer defining the front face is continuous over the light transmitting part. Description
Laminate flooring usually comprises a core of a 6-9 mm fibreboard, a 0.2-0.8 mm thick upper decorative surface layer of laminate, preferably comprising sheet material impregnated with thermosetting resins and a 0.1-0.6 mm thick lower balancing layer of laminate, plastic, paper or like material. The surface layer provides appearance and durability to the floorboards; and preferably contains at least one layer imprinted with a pattern, for example a wood pattern printed on a paper layer. The core provides stability, and the balancing layer keeps the board plane when the relative humidity (RH) varies during the year. The floorboards are generally laid floating, i.e. without gluing, on an existing subfloor.
Preferably, a mechanical locking system is formed at least at two opposite edges of the floor panel, which facilitates the joining of a similar floor panel or a normal floor panel, which is not partly light-transmitting. Mechanical locking system joined by angling are for instance known from WO 94/26999, which is especially advantageous at the long sides of a rectangular floor, and another locking system especially advantageous at the short sides, particularly when combined with an angling locking system like the one described in WO 94/26999, are described in PCT/SE2005/001 586, owner Valinge Innovation AB. Other shapes of floor panels are also possible. One advantage in providing an illuminated floor panel with a mechanical locking system is that when you want or need to change an illuminated floor panel, due to failure of lighting means or a desire to have another light sign/symbol, it is simple to disassemble such floor panels and to change the illuminated panels. The above mentioned combination of locking systems make it possible to join floorpanels by several methods, preferably with a single action method where the long edge is installed with angling and the short edge, which is provided with a flexible tongue, with vertical folding. This combination is also very easy to disassemble. Other mechanical locking system are also known, and possible to use, which are joined by Angling-Angling, Angling-Snapping or Snapping-Snapping. Floorboards with a mechanical locking system are generally laid floating, i.e. without gluing, on an existing subfloor.
Evidently it is also possible to use a tongue and a groove joint; usually combined with gluing or nailing or other fastening means.
According to second embodiment of the second aspect, the whole surface layer is light transmitting and the light pattern at the front surface is formed by the lighting means solely. Another possibility is that there is a second layer between the surface layer and the core, which is partly light transmitting, or the attaching means has various light transmitting properties-forming the light pattern at the front surface.
Preferably—the flooring is joined on a sub-floor comprising a lighting means mounted in e.g. an aperture or recess of the sub-floor.
Preferably a mechanical locking system 6, 6′ is formed at least at two opposite edges 5 a, 5 b or 4 a, 4 b. The most preferred mechanical locking system comprising a flexible tongue, which results in a very simple assemble and disassemble operation, facilitating the change of the floor panel with the light sign. The floor panel 1 in FIG. 2 is joined along a first edge 5 b to a to a second edge of an adjacent floor panel 1′, with a mechanical locking system 6′ comprising a flexible tongue 10, by vertical folding, and along a third edge 4 b to the fourth edge 4 a of another adjacent floor panel 1″, with a mechanical locking system 6, by angling. The whole panel 1 is joined in a single action. Other known mechanical locking systems for floor panels are also possible to use.
One alternative is to attach the lighting means into the aperture and connect it with a conductor 39 and via the conductor control the lighting means by a control unit C. A battery cell B and a receiver R is also possible to connect via the conductor. A second alternative is to mount the lighting means and a battery cell in the same aperture, together with preferably a receiver R and a control unit C. The conductor is preferably attached into a recess of the floor panel and covered with a filler, e.g. resin. One example of a lighting-means is a light emitting diode and another example is fibre optic. If fibre optic: is used, the conductor is a fibre optic cable.
In a second embodiment, see FIG. 4 c, the whole surface layer 33 is light transmitting. The pattern or sign at the font face is in this embodiment formed by the formation of the lighting means 36. Is it also possible to form the light pattern or the sign at the front face by an additional layer between the surface layer and the core or by the attaching means used for attaching the surface layer to the core. The additional layer could be punched or could have a printed pattern, which is at least partly visible from the front face. In this case, the additional layer and the attaching means has light-transmitting properties, which varies over the front surface. The design of the whole floor panel could be changed if the surface is light transmitting. The appearance of several panels in a floor could for example be varied over time by changing the light intensity in individual floor panes. This will create a new design element which could be very attractive in for example show rooms, shops etc.
A third aspect of the invention; represented in FIG. 3 d, is a partly light-transmitting floor panel, comprising a body 38 of solid wood, an aperture, a lighting means 36, and a transmitting layer 32″ between the bottom of the aperture and the front face. The aperture is preferably, at least partly, filled with a filler. The features-described above for the first aspect and related to the mechanical locking, the lighting means, the battery cell, the receiver and the control unit are applicable also to a floor panel according to the third aspect. FIG. 4 a shows that it is also possible to mount a floor panel according to the first and third aspect on a sub-floor comprising a lighting means.
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