Patent ID: 7861483

Claim:
A panel, in particular a floor panel, which, on a longitudinal and/or transverse edge, has a tongue respectively projecting beyond the relevant longitudinal and/or transverse edge and having substantially parallel tongue surfaces and, on the opposite longitudinal and/or transverse edge, a groove corresponding to the tongue of an adjacent panel, surrounded by lateral panel sections and having substantially parallel groove flanks; in order to lock two adjacent panels plugged into each other, at least one projecting locking element being provided on at least one tongue surface, in some regions, and a depression or depressions assigned to the locking element being provided in each case in the region of the panel section corresponding to the respective locking element in the panels connected to each other, characterized in that the region of the tongue bearing the locking element and/or at least one of the regions of the tongue and the panel sections which are in contact as the tongue is inserted into the groove, before the locking element latches into the depression, in each case has a defined area of greater elastically than the respective elasticity of the locking element.