Not Applicable
Not Applicable
1. Field of Invention
This invention pertains to a floor and a method for manufacturing and installing the floor. More particularly, this invention pertains to the fabrication of a hardwood floor manufactured at a remote location and the integration of the hardwood floor into an existing structure.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hardwood flooring is a desired amenity for many homes and offices, not only for its aesthetic value, but also for its durability and maintenance characteristics. Hardwood floors are typically installed one plank at a time by nailing, stapling, or gluing each plank to a sub-flooring. The chore of securing each plank to the sub-floor with nails, staples, or glue makes the installation of hardwood floors very tedious and time consuming. Additionally, installing a hardwood floor as described results in a substantially permanent installment. Consequently, if a reason to remove the floor arises, the task would be difficult if not impossible.
A conventional solution to providing a non-permanent hardwood floor is to install a floating floor. A floating floor is not nailed, stapled, glued, or secured to the sub-flooring in any manner. Therefore, in order to stabilize the planks of a floating floor and to maintain the expected solidity of a floor, the planks of a floating floor are typically glued to one another, and the floating floor simply rests on top of the sub-flooring. This solution is limited in that each hardwood plank must be individually installed and secured to adjacent planks. Additionally, when a force that includes a component that is parallel to the surface of the sub-flooring is imposed on the floating floor, such as the force imposed by an individual walking on the floor, the entire floor slips on the sub-flooring and moves from its designed position.
An attempt to provide an easy-to-install hardwood floor that is not a permanent installment and is not subject to slipping on sub-flooring under typical forces is given in U.S. Pat. No. 5,941,047 issued to Johansson. The Johansson patent teaches a floor that utilizes two friction layers. A first friction layer is disposed at the sub-flooring at the desired location of the hardwood floor. A second friction layer is disposed on the bottom of each plank of the hardwood floor. A film is provided to conceal the first friction layer from the second friction layer such that each plank is able to be maneuvered into its desired position. Once the planks are in their desired positions, the film is removed from the first friction layer and the second friction layer such that the first friction layer and the second friction layer are mechanically engaged to the extent that the floating floor does not slip on the sub-flooring. Although this type of conventional floor does not slip on the sub-flooring, it is limited in that it requires the installation of a friction layer at the sub-flooring and that each plank must be installed individually.
Another attempt to provide an easy-to-install hardwood floor that is not subject to slipping on sub-flooring under typical forces is given in U.S. Pat. No. 1,626,117 issued to T. B. Munroe. The Munroe patent teaches a hardwood floor whereby complete hardwood floors, or sections thereof, are manufactured by securing hardwood planks to a fibrous board. The hardwood floors are manufactured at a remote factory and are transported to the desired location of the hardwood floor. The hardwood floors are installed by dropping the fibrous board carrying the hardwood planks onto the desired location of sub-flooring and securing the fibrous board to the sub-flooring using nails, screws, or glue. This type of hardwood floor is limited in that it must be secured to the sub-flooring by way of nails, staples, or glue. This makes the hardwood floor substantially permanent and complicates the installation process.
In accordance with various features of the present invention there is provided a floor apparatus for providing a hardwood floor that is prefabricated at a remote location and installed with substantially more ease and efficiency than conventional hardwood floors. The floor apparatus includes a rigid board to which planks of hardwood are secured in an aesthetic manner. A non-slip pad is also secured to the rigid board, but at the face opposite that of the hardwood planks. The non-slip pad includes a frictional characteristic that prevents the floor apparatus from sliding on a surface, such as a sub-flooring, in response to force components parallel to the sub-flooring. The floor apparatus is installed by simply placing the floor apparatus on a sub-flooring such that the non-slip pad mechanically engages the sub-flooring. Additional post installation steps are typically taken to promote an aesthetic integration of the floor apparatus with the existing floor, such as trimming and tucking surrounding carpet to provide a fluid transition from the floor apparatus to the surrounding carpet. The fluid transition also eliminates jagged flooring that potentially causes individuals to trip.
The above-mentioned features of the invention will become more clearly understood from the following detailed description of the invention read together with the drawings in which:
One embodiment of a floor apparatus for providing a hardwood floor that is prefabricated at a remote location and installed with substantially more ease and efficiency than conventional hardwood floors and constructed in accordance with the various features of the present invention is illustrated generally at 10 in
A layer of hardwood 14 is disposed on the top side of the rigid board 12 in an aesthetic manner. In the illustrated embodiment, the hardwood 14 is a engineered plank hardwood, and each plank of the hardwood is secured to the rigid board 12 by way of a wood glue. Those skilled in the art will recognize that other ways of securing the hardwood 14 to the rigid board 12 may be used without departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention and that different types of hardwood may be used without departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention.
A non-slip pad 16 is secured to the bottom side of the rigid board 12 by way of an adhesive, the bottom side of the rigid board 12 being opposite the top side of the rigid board 12. The non-slip pad 16 of the illustrated embodiment is a laminate pad, however, those skilled in the art will recognize that other materials may be used for the non-slip pad 16 without departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention. Those skilled in the art will also recognize that the non-slip pad 16 may be secured to the rigid board 12 by a way other than adhesive without departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention. The non-slip pad 16 includes a compositional characteristic that promotes a high frictional force between the non-slip pad 16 and any surface it engages. Consequently, when the non-slip pad 16 of the floor apparatus 10 is placed in mechanical contact with a surface such as a sub-flooring, the floor apparatus 10 remains stationary even under the influence of force components with directions parallel to the surface on which the floor apparatus 10 is disposed.
The floor apparatus 10 is typically prefabricated in that it is manufactured prior to installation at a remote location with respect to the desired location of the hardwood floor. At the time of fabrication, or anytime prior to the installation of the floor apparatus 10, the floor apparatus 10 is cut to a tailored shape and size such that the floor apparatus 10 cooperates with the corresponding desired location for the floor apparatus 10. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the floor apparatus 10 may be tailor cut prior to the fabrication of the floor apparatus 10 by cutting each individual component of the floor apparatus 10 prior to combining the components.
Because the floor apparatus 10 is prefabricated, installation of the floor apparatus 10 is minimal.
In the illustrated embodiment, the floor apparatus 10 is abutted to the corner of a room such that the carpet 18 borders two edges of the floor apparatus 10. Because of this, tack strips 22 are disposed at the sub-flooring 20 such that they are geometrically parallel to the edges of the floor apparatus 10 that are bordered by the carpet 18. The tack strips 22 are positioned a substantially small distance from the floor apparatus 10, about 0.25 inches. The carpet 18 is secured to the tack strips 22 in a conventional manner and then trimmed such that a substantially small portion of the carpet 18 extends past the track strips 22 in the direction of the floor apparatus 10. The extending carpet is tucked between the tack strip 22 and the floor apparatus 10 such that there is a fluid transition from the carpet 18 to the floor apparatus 10, as illustrated in
Those skilled in the art will recognize that some locations in which the floor apparatus 10 is installed do not include carpet. Further, those skilled in the art will recognize that there are many floor types in which the floor apparatus 10 is integrated. In view of this, those skilled in the art will recognize that the previously discussed steps involving the alteration of the existing carpet 18 are not applicable in all embodiments of the present invention.
From the foregoing description, those skilled in the art will recognize that an apparatus for providing a hardwood floor to an existing structure offering advantages over the prior art has been provided. The apparatus provides a prefabricated hardwood floor that is manufactured at a remote location and transported to the desired location of the floor for installation. Further, the apparatus provides a minimal installation process that does not require the use of nails, screws, glue, or other securing mechanisms.
While the present invention has been illustrated by description of several embodiments and while the illustrative embodiments have been described in considerable detail, it is not the intention of the applicant to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. The invention in its broader aspects is therefore not limited to the specific details, representative apparatus and methods, and illustrative examples shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of applicant's general inventive concept.