Panel suitable for assembling a waterproof floor or wall covering, method of producing a panel
AssigneeChampion Link International Corporation
InventorsThomas Luc Martine Baert, Anthony Drevet, Tom Van Poyer
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Abstract
Panel suitable for assembling a waterproof floor or wall covering by interconnecting a plurality of said panels with each other, wherein the panel has a substantially planar top surface, and a substantially planar bottom surface, at least four substantially linear side edges comprising at least one pair of opposite side edges which are provided with interconnecting coupling means for interconnecting one panel within another, the panel having a sandwich structure which comprises a central layer basically composed of a thermoplastic material, a rigid top layer and a rigid bottom layer.
Claims14
A panel suitable for assembling a waterproof floor or wall covering by interconnecting a plurality of said panels with each other,
- wherein the panel has a substantially planar top surface, and a substantially planar bottom surface, at least four substantially linear side edges comprising at least one pair of opposite side edges which are provided with interconnecting coupling means for interconnecting one panel within another, comprising two pairs of opposite side edges which are provided with interconnecting coupling means
- the panel having a sandwich structure which comprises a flexible central layer basically composed of a thermoplastic material, a rigid top layer and a rigid bottom layer,
- wherein the panel is rigid and has a thickness of 8 mm or smaller, and
- wherein the rigid top layer comprises two plies of cellulose-based layer and a cured resin, wherein the cellulose-based layer of both plies each contain fibers oriented in a main direction, wherein the main direction of the cellulose-based layer of one ply differs from the main direction of the cellulose-based layer of the other ply.
A method of producing an interconnectable panel, for a waterproof floor or wall covering, comprising the steps of:
- a) providing a central layer basically composed of a thermoplastic material,
- b) curing a top layer comprising two plies of a cellulose-based layer impregnated with a cured resin under a pressure of 10 to 18 MPa,
- c) curing a bottom layer comprising at least one ply of cellulose-based layer impregnated with resin, and
- d) adhering the cured bottom layer on the bottom side of the central layer, and adhering the cured top layer on the top side of the central layer to create a rigid interconnectable panel,
- wherein the cellulose-based layer of both plies each contain fibers oriented in a main direction, wherein the main direction of the cellulose-based layer of one ply differs from the main direction of the cellulose-based layer of the other ply.
The method according to 11, wherein at least two plies of the top layer contain a cellulose-based layer which is impregnated with at least 70 to 130 wt. % resin.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.