Mechanical locking system for building panels
AssigneeVälinge Innovation AB
InventorsNiclas Håkansson, Darko Pervan
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Panels are shown which are provided with a mechanical locking system allowing perpendicular connection with a snap action. A set of panels including a first and a second panel, an edge of the second panel is insertable into a groove of the first panel, when the panels are arranged essential perpendicular to each other, to obtain a mechanical connection between the first and the second panel, when the second panel is displaced essentially perpendicularly to the first panel.
Claims18
A set of furniture components provided with a mechanical locking system for locking a first panel and a second panel essentially perpendicularly to each other,
- the mechanical locking system comprising:
- a groove provided in the first panel;
- an edge of the second panel;
- an insertion groove provided in the groove of the first panel or in the edge of the second panel;
- a tongue groove provided in the edge of the second panel or in the groove of the first panel;
- and
- a separate and flexible tongue provided in the insertion groove,
- wherein the edge of the second panel is configured to be inserted into the groove of the first panel for locking the panels to each other in a direction perpendicular to a main plane of the second panel,
- wherein the separate and flexible tongue is configured to cooperate with the tongue groove for locking the panels to each other in a direction perpendicular to the main plane of the first panel,
- wherein the insertion groove, the tongue groove, and the separate and flexible tongue are arranged and configured such that displacing the second panel essentially perpendicularly to the first panel causes the flexible tongue to be linearly displaced inwardly towards a bottom of the insertion groove and outwardly into the tongue groove during locking, and
- wherein the edge of the second panel or a portion of the groove of the first panel comprise(s) a separate material.
A method of locking a first and a second panel, the method comprising inserting an edge of the second panel into a groove of the first panel, when the panels are arranged essential perpendicular to each other, to obtain a mechanical connection between the first and the second panel, the method comprising displacing the second panel essentially perpendicularly to the first panel,
- wherein:
- the edge comprises a separate and flexible tongue and the groove comprises a tongue groove, or the edge comprises a tongue groove and the groove comprises a separate and flexible tongue;
- the separate and flexible tongue is insertable into the tongue groove for connecting the panels to each other in a first direction, which is parallel to a main plane of the first panel;
- the edge of the second panel is configured to cooperate with the groove of the first panel for connecting the panels to each other in a second direction, which is parallel to a main plane of the second panel;
- a length direction of the separate and flexible tongue extends parallel with the edge and/or groove;
- the groove comprises an opening, two side walls and a bottom;
- the separate and flexible tongue is arranged in an insertion groove;
- the separate and flexible tongue has an inner part mounted in the insertion groove and an outer part extending outside an opening of the insertion groove;
- and
- the displacing of the second panel essentially perpendicularly to the first panel causes the flexible tongue to be linearly displaced inwardly towards a bottom of the insertion groove and outwardly into the tongue groove during locking.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.