Patent Application
20180010344
This invention relates to flooring products and in particular to interlocking planks or plates assemblable to form a deck, stage or floor.
Flooring assemblies temporarily constructed for a particularized purpose, including decks and stages. Installation of permanent decking can be labor intensive, sometimes requiring footings to be dug or other construction. Traditional decks and flooring are fixed in place and cannot be relocated but through destructive means. Although modular decking kits having attachable members are known in the art, they are often fabricated from wooden or polymeric members which may warp, splinter, or rot. Most modular flooring comprises subgrade, joists, beams or framing to form a larger deck. These members are not easily secured, transported and detached. Maintenance may be required to protect wooden decking from the elements and seal the surface from moisture. Variations in temperature and humidity cause them to expand and contract, which loosens the metal connection hardware. Lumber used in constructing traditional decking is also susceptible to deterioration by mildew, mold, and infestation.
In many instances, modular decking is not efficient or easily assembled in the construction of a decking. Modular decking components do not effectively interlock, break easily, and are too heavy and cumbersome to be efficiently portable. What is needed in the art is a multipurpose, lightweight decking, which does not warp with heat and moisture, which is light, and which can be easily assembled to withstand inclement weather, harsh environments, heavy foot traffic, and is resilient when exposed to harsh cleaning chemicals.
From the foregoing discussion, it should be apparent that a need exists for a modular extruded aluminum deck assembly. Beneficially, such an apparatus would overcome many of the difficulties and concerns expressed above, by providing a lightweight, easily assemblable and disassemblable product.
The present invention has been developed in response to the problems and needs in the art that have not yet been fully solved by currently available apparati and methods. Accordingly, the present invention has been developed to provide a modular extruded aluminum deck assembly, the deck assembly comprising: a plurality of square panels having a planar top surface, each panel comprising: a laterally-protruding male interlocking member, wherein the male interlocking member comprises a concave outrigging flange; a female receptacle for receiving the male interlocking member, the female receptacle defining a hollow interior recess with a partially open top end, the female receptacle comprising a concave cantilevered flange for mating with the concave outrigging flange of an adjacent square panel; a foot depending beneath the planar top surface for engaging a ground surface; and a textured top surface.
The male interlocking member may comprise a cantilevered lip extending laterally partially across the concave outrigging flange for abutting a top edge of a male interlocking member.
The female receptacle may comprise a lower ground-engaging member having a planar bottom surface and an inclined bottom surface angling upwards, the ground-engaging member and concave outrigging flange defining the hollow interior recess.
These features and advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter
In order that the advantages of the invention will be readily understood, a more particular description of the invention briefly described above will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments that are illustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be considered to be limiting of its scope, the invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings.
Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment,” “in an embodiment,” and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment.
Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics of the invention may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the invention. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that the invention may be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, and so forth. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of the invention.
The male outrigging flange 108 comprises a cantilever 208 jutting laterally from the planar top surface 102 partially across the concave member 206. The concave member 206 comprises a top edge 210 which abuts the underside of a concave cantilevered flange 202 on an adjacent decking plate 100.
The female receptacle 106 comprises a concave cantilevered flange 202 having a top edge 212 for abutting the underside of the cantilever 208 of an adjacent decking plate 100, the female receptacle 106 horizontally opposed to the male outrigging flange 108. The female receptacle 106 defines a hollow interior recess 204 for receiving the male outrigging flange 108. The female receptacle 106 comprises a lower, ground-engaging member 214 having an inclined surface. The female receptacle 106 also comprises a foot 216.
The underside of the concave cantilevered flange 202 substantially contours the topside of the male outrigging flange 108 enabling and facilitated mating therebetween. The male outrigging flange 108 and female receptacle 106 interlock together at the plate 100 periphery.
As shown, the male outrigging flange 108 mates with the female receptacle 106.
The foot 300 comprises a downwardly protruding rib having two laterally protruding flanges 304a-b. The laterally protruding flanges 304a-b distribute weight on the top surface 102 more evening on a ground surface beneath the top surface 102.
In this alternative embodiment, the concave cantilevered flange 202 in disposed beneath the top surface 102.
As referenced in
The plates 100 are configured to interlock with additional plates 100 to form the decking, staging or flooring. In some embodiments, the decking may include a floor decking, a wall, a patio, or a boat deck. The plates 100 may have a generally flat, square shape.
During installation of a deck assembly, the area where the installation will take place is preferably level. Where minor discrepancies occur, the plates 100 rotate and/or flex slightly as needed.
Additional fastening components, such as screws or bolts, may pass through the adjacent plates and anchors may be placed on the ground to further stabilize the decking assembly. The assembly may be disassembled through by lifting and pulling apart the plates 100.
The attached drawing and description provide a modular extruded aluminum assembly. The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62358511 | Jul 2016 | US |
