Patent ID: 7040068

Claim:
A floor covering panel comprising: a laminated hard floor panel having a wood-based core material selected from the group consisting of High Density Fibreboard (HDF) and Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF), said panel comprising a first pair and a second pair of opposed side edges, and upper and under sides; said panel further comprising coupling parts being integrally made in one piece with said core material and located at both of the pairs of side edges, said coupling parts comprising a tongue, a groove and integrated locking elements, said tongue, groove and locking elements when coupled along adjacent side edges of two ones of said panel cooperating to establish a mechanical lock preventing relative movement between the coupled parts in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the panel as well as in a direction perpendicular to the side edges and parallel to a plane including the panels; said coupling parts of at least one pair of opposite side edges having a form enabling coupling of the coupling parts by shifting them laterally towards each other with the panels located substantially in the same plane to couple the coupling parts of said one pair of side edges; and wherein the coupling parts of said one pair of side edges define a snap-together coupling providing a snap-action during coupling of two panels obtained by shifting them laterally towards each other, said snap-action involving an elastic deformation of the groove and being delivered substantially entirely by said core material; and wherein said groove of said coupling parts includes a lower lip, and wherein said snap-action involves an elastic deformation of said lower lip.