Thin Laminate Flooring Panels with Interlocking Locking Profiles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional laminate flooring products face challenges in achieving environmental friendliness while maintaining performance characteristics such as durability, wear-resistance, and sound-damping capacity, as they tend to be thicker, leading to increased material usage, transportation costs, and environmental impact.
Innovation Solution
A laminate flooring product with a thickness of less than 4 mm, comprising multiple layers including a design layer, a backing layer, and a wear layer, designed for interlocking capabilities, utilizing recycled materials and optimized layer structures to reduce weight and material usage while maintaining performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the thickness of laminate flooring panels is increased to improve durability and sound-damping capacity, then performance properties are enhanced, but material usage and transportation costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The flooring panel is divided into multiple functional layers including a core layer, a wear layer, and a backing layer. Each layer is optimized independently to provide specific functions (structural integrity, wear resistance, sound damping) while minimizing overall material usage. The core layer uses recycled materials with optimized density distribution to achieve maximum strength-to-weight ratio.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite material structures combining different materials with complementary properties. The core layer uses recycled polymer composites with enhanced mechanical properties, while the wear layer uses cross-linked polyolefin compounds with superior wear and impact resistance. This composite approach allows thin panels to achieve the durability of thicker conventional panels.
2Reliability
If the thickness of laminate flooring panels is increased to improve durability and sound-damping capacity, then performance properties are enhanced, but transportation weight and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes material parameters including density, molecular weight distribution, and cross-linking density to achieve maximum strength at minimum weight. The core layer uses recycled materials with controlled density (0.5-0.9 g/cm³) and the wear layer uses compounds with optimized tensile strength and impact resistance per unit weight, enabling thin panels to match the durability of thicker conventional flooring.
3Reliability
If the thickness of laminate flooring panels is increased to improve sound-damping capacity, then acoustic performance is enhanced, but environmental impact increases
Solution Approach 1:
The core layer incorporates porous structures and air pockets within the recycled polymer matrix that provide excellent sound-damping capacity. These porous features absorb acoustic energy while adding minimal weight and thickness. The controlled porosity (30-70% void volume) allows thin panels to achieve superior acoustic performance compared to solid conventional flooring.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent recovers and reuses post-consumer and post-industrial recycled materials (HDPE, LDPE, PP, PVC) that would otherwise be discarded in landfills. By transforming waste materials into high-performance flooring components, the invention reduces environmental impact while maintaining durability and acoustic properties through optimized material composition and structure.
4Reliability
If conventional laminate flooring structures are used to ensure durability, then wear-resistance is maintained, but interlocking strength may be compromised in thinner panels
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from traditional groove-and-tongue interlocking at the surface to a multi-dimensional interlocking system. The core layer incorporates integrated locking profiles that engage in multiple directions (vertical, horizontal, and angular), distributing mechanical stresses throughout the panel structure. This dimensional approach to interlocking compensates for reduced panel thickness and enhances both interlocking strength and wear resistance.
Data Source
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AI summary
An article of manufacture which comprises a laminate flooring product, having at least one edge provided with one or more elements making it capable of interlocking with a reciprocally configured flooring product, and having a thickness of less than 4mm, which product includes a plurality of component layers, a first one of said layers being a design layer, a second one being a backing layer, and a third one being a wear layer, said second and third layers being arranged respectively proximate opposite surfaces of said first layer; and a method of making said article of manufacture.