Claims
- 1. A composite flooring system for van-type vehicular trailers, said flooring comprising:a plurality of wood boards, each wood board having a length, width, and thickness and formed of a plurality of solid wood components, each component having a length and a width substantially less than the length and width of the board, respectively, said components arranged substantially parallel to the length of the board and joined to one another in a unitary arrangement, said wood board having a wood top surface and a bottom surface; and a water impervious layer continuously bonded to said bottom surface of each board by a substantially continuous adhesive bond.
- 2. The composite flooring system of claim 1, wherein the water impervious layer comprises a layer of fiber reinforced polymer bonded to said bottom surface.
- 3. The composite flooring system of claim 2, wherein about 70% to 90% of the fibers of the fiber reinforced polymer extend in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal length of the boards of the composite flooring system.
- 4. The composite flooring system of claim 2, wherein said wood is a hardwood selected from the group consisting of ash, yellow-poplar, elm, oak, maple, birch and beech, and the fibers are glass fibers, carbon fibers, or mixtures thereof.
- 5. The composite flooring system of claim 2, wherein said fiber reinforced polymer layer comprises rovings of continuous fibers impregnated by a polymeric resin.
- 6. The composite flooring system of claim 2, wherein said fiber reinforced polymer layer comprises one or more strand mat impregnated by a polymeric resin.
- 7. The composite flooring system of claim 2, wherein about 70 to 90% of said continuous fibers extend in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal length of the boards of the trailer floor.
- 8. The composite flooring system of claim 2, wherein the polymer of the fiber reinforced polymer is selected from polymers of the group consisting of vinyl ester, polyester, epoxy, phenolic, polypropylene, and polyamide polymers.
- 9. The composite flooring system of claim 2, wherein the fiber reinforced polymer comprises a combination of continuous rovings and one or more fabrics of reinforcing fibers impregnated by a polymeric resin.
- 10. The composite flooring system of claim 2, wherein said fiber reinforced polymer comprises one or more fabrics of reinforcing fibers which fabric is selected from the group consisting of woven rovings, stitched fabrics and knitted fabrics.
- 11. In a hardwood composite flooring system for van-type vehicular trailers, said flooring comprising:a plurality of hardwood boards, each hardwood board having a length, width, and thickness and formed of a plurality of solid hardwood components, each component having a length and a width substantially less than the length and width of the board, respectively, said components arranged substantially parallel to the length of the board and joined to one another in a unitary arrangement, said hardwood board having a hardwood top surface and a bottom surface and a layer of reinforcement continuously bonded to the said bottom surface of each board by a substantially continuous adhesive bond; the improvement thereby, in one or more of the features of strength, weight saving and water protection of the flooring.
- 12. The composite flooring system of claim 11, wherein said layer of reinforcement is a layer of fiber reinforced polymer.
- 13. The composite flooring system of claim 11, wherein about 70% to 90% of the fibers of the fiber reinforced polymer extend in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal length of the boards of the composite flooring system.
- 14. The composite hardwood flooring system of claim 12 wherein the wood is selected from the group consisting of ash, yellow-poplar, elm, oak, maple, birch and beech, and the fibers are glass fibers, carbon fibers or mixtures thereof.
- 15. The composite hardwood flooring system of claim 12, wherein the polymer of the fiber reinforced polymer is selected from the polymers of the group consisting of vinyl ester, polyester, epoxy, phenolic, polypropylene, and polyamide polymers.
- 16. The composite hardwood flooring system of claim 12, wherein the fiber reinforced polymer comprises a combination of continuous rovings and one or more fabrics of reinforcing fibers impregnated by a polymeric resin.
- 17. The composite hardwood flooring system of claim 12, wherein said fiber reinforced polymer layer comprises rovings of continuous fibers impregnated by a polymeric resin.
- 18. The composite hardwood flooring system of claim 12, wherein said fiber reinforced polymer layer comprises one or more strand mats impregnated with a polymeric resin.
- 19. The composite hardwood flooring system of claim 12, wherein said fiber reinforced polymer comprises one or more fabrics of reinforcing fibers which fabric is selected from the group consisting of woven rovings, stitched fabrics and knitted fabrics.
- 20. A composite van-type vehicular trailer flooring system formed from a plurality of wood boards, the vehicular trailer floor having a longitudinal length and a lateral width, said composite vehicular trailer flooring system comprising:a plurality of wood boards forming a trailer floor having an upper wood surface and a bottom surface for extending for the lateral width of the vehicular trailer floor; each of the wood boards having a plurality of wood components arranged substantially parallel to the longitudinal length of the trailer floor, said components joined to one another by an adhesive and by coupling portions; and each of the plurality of wood boards of said composite wood flooring system further comprising a planar polymer layer formed of a fiber reinforced polymer substantially continuously bonded to said bottom surface of each of the plurality of wood boards of said trailer floor, wherein about 70% to 90% of the fibers of said fiber reinforced polymer extend in a direction substantially parallel to a longitudinal length of the boards of the trailer floor.
- 21. In a hardwood van-type vehicular trailer flooring system having a hardwood upper surface, the vehicular trailer floor having a longitudinal length and a lateral width, and further comprising:a plurality of hardwood boards forming a trailer floor having an upper hardwood surface and a bottom surface for extending for the lateral width of the vehicular trailer floor; and each of the hardwood boards of said composite wood flooring system having a plurality of hardwood components arranged substantially parallel to the longitudinal length of the trailer floor, said components joined to one another by an adhesive and by coupling portions; and the improvement comprising the compositing of each of the said hardwood boards with a substantially planar polymer layer formed of a fiber reinforced polymer by means of a substantially continuous bond to said bottom surface of each of the plurality of hardwood boards of said trailer floor, and about 70% to 90% of the fibers of said fiber reinforced polymer extend in a direction substantially parallel to a longitudinal length of the boards of the trailer floor.
RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/294,476, U.S. Pat. No. 6,183,824 filed Apr. 20, 1999, which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/484,364 U.S. Pat. No. 5,928,735 filed Jun. 7, 1995.
US Referenced Citations (56)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
06280375 |
Oct 1994 |
JP |
Non-Patent Literature Citations (2)
Entry |
“Prestressed FRP Sheets As External Reinforcement of Wood Members” by Thanasis C. Triantafillou and Nikola Deskovic; Journal of Structural Engineering, vol. 118. No. 5, May 1992, pp. 1270-1284. |
“A Feasibility Study For Strengthening Timber Beams With Fibreglass” By F.H. Theakston; Canadian Agricultural Engineering, Jan. 1965, pp.17-19. |
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
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Parent |
09/294476 |
Apr 1999 |
US |
Child |
09/732416 |
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US |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
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08/484364 |
Jun 1995 |
US |
Child |
09/294476 |
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US |