Patent ID: 7340865

Claim:
A flat, interlockable tile of substantially resilient material comprising: a central portion having top and bottom surfaces and elongated support edges of substantially rectangular cross-sectional shape having a longitudinal inner edge joined to said central portion; a free outer edge interlock structure on each of said support edges for providing interlocking connections with other substantially identical tiles; a series of first and second sets of adjacent male interlocks formed with respective walls that project perpendicularly from respective ones of said support edges in longitudinally spaced-apart relationships; wherein the second set of male interlocks has an elongated wall with laterally spaced-apart inner and outer sidewalls projecting from their corresponding support edge and extending longitudinally and transversely therealong to provide a succession of second wall traversals of its corresponding support edge, wherein a section of the outer sidewall of said wall of said second male interlock extends opposite a first male interlock of its corresponding interlock sets, whereby the outer sidewall section forms an open ended channel with said first male interlock of a size and shape for mating with inverted ones of other second male interlocks, and wherein the successive traversals of the support edge by the inner sidewall of said second male interlock provide an interior wall portion for an open-ended cavity of a size and shape to mate with inverted ones of other first male interlocks, wherein said channel has a pair of transversely diverging channel sections joined to form a continuous channel of substantially U cross-sectional shape around part of said first male interlock, wherein said outer sidewall of each of said second male interlocks is curved whereby its traversal of its respective support edge has an alternating configuration in plan view, wherein the wall of each of said second male interlocks of said first and second sets of interlocks comprises: a projecting rib of substantially rectangular cross-section, wherein, said inner and outer sidewalls thereof are formed on the rib in substantially parallel relationship to one another, wherein each male interlock of a first set comprises a multi-sided lug having a planar free end surface substantially parallel to the plane of said central portion of the tile, and wherein said lug has three sides joined together to form substantially triangular configuration in plan view.