Floor mat assembly
Assignee3M Innovative Properties Company
InventorsMing Xiang Yuan, Zhi Yong Dai
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A sectional floor mat system of floor mats and edging sections or pieces that are removably engaged with the floor mats. The floor mat system includes at least one mat and sufficient edging to border at least one of the side edges of the at least one mat. In many embodiments, there is sufficient edging to border all side edges of the at least one mat, when multiple mats, if present, and connected together. The edging pieces of the invention, and other variations thereof, when combined with mats, provide a floor covering system that is easy for the user to set-up, disassemble as needed, and inhibit tripping on the edges of mats.
Claims19
A floor mat system, comprising:
- at least one floor mat having a side edge, the side edge having a first engagement element;
- and
- an edging section having a transition portion with a variable thickness and an engagement portion, the engagement portion comprising a side edge and a second engagement element, the second engagement element configured to releaseably engage with the first engagement element;
- wherein one of the first and second engagement elements is a hooking element projecting outwardly from the corresponding side edge, and further wherein relative to a line bi-secting the hooking element perpendicular to the corresponding side edge, the hooking element is non-symmetrical;
- a second edging section comprising a third engagement element configured to releaseably engage with a fourth engagement element of the floor mat;
- wherein the second and third engagement elements are different;
- and further wherein the second and third engagement elements are hooking elements.
A floor mat system comprising:
- at least one floor mat having a side edge, the side edge having a first engagement element;
- and
- an edging section having a transition portion with a variable thickness and an engagement portion, the engagement portion comprising a side edge and a second engagement element, the second engagement element configured to releaseably engage with the first engagement element;
- wherein:
- one of the first and second engagement elements is a hooking element projecting outwardly from the corresponding side edge, and further wherein relative to a line bi-secting the hooking element perpendicular to the corresponding side edge, the hooking element is non-symmetrical;
- the side edge of the floor mat is a first floor mat side edge and the first engagement element projects from the first floor mat side edge;
- the floor mat defines a second floor mat side edge extending orthogonally from the first floor mat side edge such that the first and second floor mat side edges form a point of intersection, the floor mat further including a third engagement element projecting from the second floor mat side edge;
- each of the first and second floor mat side edges defines a length in extension from the point of intersection to a corresponding opposing end opposite the point of intersection;
- and
- a shape of the first engagement element in a direction from the opposing end of the first floor mat side edge to the point of intersection differs from a shape of the third engagement element in a direction from the point of intersection to the opposing end of the second floor mat side edge.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.