Method and apparatus for forming patterns in flat, plastic floor coverings
OwnerStephen Shannoninventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for forming patterns in a flat, plastic material, such as, for example sheet vinyl, linoleum, and other flat sheet floor covering. The apparatus comprises a router die and trimmer base affixed to a router machine. The router die is comprised of two guiding members, a first guiding member that directs the router blade between an edge of a pattern and an edge of an overlay. A second guiding member follows the blade after the groove is cut.
Claims22
A pattern grooving machine for cutting non-linear grooves in a flat, plastic floor covering, the machine comprising
- a power router adapted to receive a rotatable router blade,
- a trimmer base affixed to the router, the trimmer base having an opening through which the router blade extends when in use,
- a base plate affixed to the trimmer base, the base plate comprising
- a central opening,
- a first guide member disposed to one side of the central opening,
- a second guide member disposed to another side of the central opening, and
- at least one pair of rollers disposed to each side of said base plate.
A router die, comprising a base plate having a central opening, said base plate adapted to support a first guide member disposed to one side of said opening, and a second guide member disposed to another side of said opening, the size of said second guide member being greater than that of said first guide member.
A method for forming decorative patterns in floor coverings, the method comprising the steps of
- placing a template having a desired pattern on the floor,
- covering the template with a layer of floor covering material so as to cause an outline of the pattern to be formed in the covering layer,
- scribing a first line in the covering layer corresponding to the desired pattern,
- cutting through the covering layer along the first scribe line and removing the floor covering material that overlaps the template,
- scribing a second line in the remaining covering layer corresponding to the desired pattern and removing the floor covering material between the first and second scribe lines to create a gap between an edge of the template and an edge of the floor covering material,
- guiding a router die along the created gap to create a widened and smooth groove,
- removing the floor covering material from creating the widened and smoothed groove,
- filling the widened and smoothed groove with a plastic material to enhance the desired pattern with a decorative effect.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.