ANTI-SKID FLOOR COVERING

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to floor covering. More specifically, the

present invention relates to anti-skid or anti-slip floor covering that resist movement, which is intended to prevent slippage and protect from falling,

where such floor covering is also washable, ventilated and is capable of absorbing and releasing humidity.

Background

Numerous types of floor coverings, e.g., carpets, mats and rugs, are

provided by the current textile industry for both aesthetic and safety purposes. In particular, persons walking or standing on smooth, bare or moist floors are prone to hazardous slippage and falling over, resulting in

injuries, breaking of bones and up to the point of life danger. The problem

of slippage on such smooth floors is addressed by covering them with mats,

carpets or rugs that increase friction with both the floor, on the one hand,

and the person walking or standing on them, on the other hand. Such covering isolates the person standing or walking on it from the smooth floor, and prevents the covering from moving when walked upon.

Different types and designs of anti-skid floor coverings are offered in the

prior art, all essentially made entirely of a top face fabric and a bottom face synthetic material, where the bottom face is a continuous one, covering the entire back side of the top face fabric.

Composite fabrics with discontinuous bottom face are disclosed in US

3,914,487, where the synthetic bottom face is thermoplastic foam heat-

bonded to a stretchable or non-stretchable top fabric.

US 6,866,916 discloses a slip resistant floor synthetic mat that is made of a press mold recessed bottom face bonded to an upper flat face.

However, the bonding of the synthetic bottom face to the top face, in such composite fabrics and mats, is not an endurable one, quickly wearing out

and either degrades or detaches from the top face with time and upon use.

WO 2006/005625 discloses a removable carpet-protecting lining designed for inhibiting slippage on carpets. The lining is attached to the back side of the carpet and is designed in needles shape and is thermally compressed.

To date, none of the floor covering, contemplated or available on the market, offers the advantageous combination of anti-skid discontinuous

bottom face, which is durable even under harsh conditions of washing, particularly machine washing, and is chemical proof, and has a breathing top face fabric that allows proper ventilation and drying of moisture

absorbed in the floor covering.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide composite floor covering that increases friction with bare or moist floors thus preventing

slippage or falling.

It is another object of the present invention to provide ventilated composite floor covering that is capable of absorbing and releasing humidity.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a washable floor

covering that has improved resistance to degradation under multiple washings.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a process for

making anti-skid or anti-slip, ventilated floor covering that is chemical

resistant, washable and has improved resistance to degradation under multiple washings.

This and other objects of the present invention shall become clear as the

description proceeds.

Summary of the invention

The present invention provides anti-slip or anti-skid floor covering that increases friction with smooth, bare or moist floors and that is resistant to

movement when walked on or stepped upon.

In one aspect, the present invention provides anti-skid floor covering

comprising a breathing fabric top face and a discontinuous bottom face,

wherein the discontinuous bottom face is prepared from liquid plasticized synthetic thermoplastic polymer material that infiltrates the top face upon

application to the top face, said plasticized thermoplastic polymer is dried, foamed and vulcanized in the preparation of the discontinuous bottom face.

In one aspect, the present invention provides a composite floor covering

that is composed of a top face made of pile yarns interwoven to a fabric backing and a discontinuous bottom face made of synthetic material.

In another aspect of the present invention, composite floor covering is provided that is washable and where the combination of its top face with

its synthetic discontinuous bottom face imparts it an improved rigidity

and resistance to degradation upon multiple washing.

In one particular embodiment of the present invention, the floor covering

is resistant to degradation even after 100 cycles of washings, in particular,

where such washing may be machine washing or washing carried out in

harsh conditions.

In still another aspect of the present invention, a composite floor covering

is provided comprising a breathing fabric that is capable of ventilating out humidity.

In still another aspect of the present invention a composite floor covering

with a bottom face is provided, that is resistant to detergents and does not

react upon contact with such detergents, thereby preventing staining of the floor and covering.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the top face of the floor

covering is made of piles that are interwoven into a primary backing

fabric, where both the piles and backing may be made of natural fibers of a

breathing material or a composition of natural and synthetic fibers. In

particular embodiment of the present invention, such natural and

synthetic materials may be cotton and polyester, respectively.

In one aspect of the present invention the anti-skid or anti-slip bottom face of the floor covering is made of a synthetic material, preferably the

synthetic material is PVC (polyvinylchloride).

In still another aspect of the present invention, the synthetic material for the bottom face is a thermoplastic polymer, where such polymer is provided as plasticized polymer as low flow rate liquid. Upon application

of such plasticized thermoplastic polymer on the back side of the top face, it is further dried, foamed and vulcanized.

In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the anti-skid bottom face of the floor covering is made of PVC (polyvinylchloride) that is

spread over the back side of the top face in a discontinuous pattern.

In one particular embodiment of the present invention, the PVC used for the bottom face is plasticized PVC, where such plasticized PVC is applied

on the top face back side as a low flow rate liquid, which is further dried foamed and vulcanized.

In one aspect of the present invention, the floor covering is resistant to

degradation at elevated temperatures, in particular, when such floor

covering is applied to heated floors.

In another aspect of the present invention, the synthetic anti-skid bottom face infiltrates the top face, thereby imparting the top face an improved

rigidity. However, the discontinuous pattern in which the bottom face is

employed results in only local infiltration at those points or areas where it is applied and allows proper ventilation and fast drying of the covering top face.

In still another aspect of the present invention, the bottom face of the floor

covering is resistant to detergents, thus avoiding any reaction with such

materials and, as a result, prevents staining of both the floor and the covering.

In one particular embodiment of the present invention, the floor covering is intended for use in bath and rest room.

In still another aspect of the present invention a process for making composite anti-skid or anti-slip floor covering is provided, where the combination of the top face and the bottom face of the covering is carried

out at room temperature without requiring hot melting of the synthetic

bottom face. Preferably, a low flow rate liquid plasticized thermoplastic

polymer, in particular PVC polymer, at room temperature is applied in the process of making the backing of the floor covering on the back side of the top layer.

One aspect the present invention provides a process for making anti-skid

floor covering comprising a breathing fabric top face and a discontinuous bottom face, wherein said discontinuous bottom face is prepared from

liquid plasticized synthetic thermoplastic polymer material that infiltrates said top face upon application to said top face, said process comprising: a) applying low flow rate plasticized thermoplastic polymer at room

temperature in a discontinuous pattern to the back side of a top face; and

b) drying, foaming and vulcanizing the thermoplastic polymer bottom

face.

In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the liquid

plasticized thermoplastic polymer is PVC (polyvinylchloride).

Floor covering comprising various combinations top and bottom faces may be produced without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Preferred examples of a process of making such floor coverings will now be described in greater detail.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic side view of a floor covering of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a floor covering of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a schematic top view of the bottom face back side of a floor covering of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a schematic top view of the bottom face back side of a floor covering and means of application thereof.

Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments

Fig. 1 is a schematic non-limitative representation of the basic components of a floor covering of the present invention. The top face (1) is composed of

a primary backing (2) and yarns (3) interwoven into that backing (2), thus creating a floor covering carpet, mat or rug and imparting it a soft texture.

Both backing (2) and yarns (3) are made of a breathing material, in particular a material made of natural fibers or a composition of natural and synthetic fibers. In one specific example, the backing (2) and/or yarns

(3) may be made of cotton fibers, or a composition of cotton and synthetic

fibers. In one particular embodiment of the present invention, the synthetic fibers are polyester fibers. The rectangular discrete protrusions

(4) shown at the bottom are a side view of the bottom discontinuous face of

the floor covering that impart the floor covering its anti-skid properties.

Unlike the different types of bonding of a bottom face to the top face of known floor coverings, the discontinuous bottom face (4) of the present invention infiltrates the primary backing (2) of the top face (1), thereby

strongly locking the two faces, one to the other and at the same time, imparting an improved rigidity to the top face (1) at those areas or points

of infiltration. In turn, such improved rigidity enhances markedly the durability of the floor covering under multiple washings, particularly

where the washing may be machine washing and/or such that is carried out in harsh conditions.

It should be noted that the improved qualities of the anti-skid floor covering of the present invention, as durability under washing, resistance

to chemicals and improved rigidity, arise from the application of liquid plasticized synthetic thermoplastic polymer material in the preparation of

the anti-skid bottom face of the floor covering. Unlike other methods in the

prior art as heat-bonding between a mat, carpet or rug and an anti-skid

bottom face, the use of such liquid plasticized polymer allows it to infiltrate the mat, carpet or rug upon application of the polymer in its

liquid state. Then the polymer is passed through drying, foaming and vulcanizing thereby locking it in place in a solid form.

- li lt should also be noted that synthetic polymers are commonly found as

solids at room temperature. In particular, polymers used for anti-skidding are employed in their solid state to floor coverings. However, the use of a synthetic thermoplastic polymer in a liquid state at room temperature in

the preparation of anti-skid floor coverings and its infiltrating to the top face of the floor covering, further followed by drying, foaming and

vulcanizing, imparts the floor covering a combination of improved

qualities. Such qualities are the improved rigidity of the floor covering at those places where the polymer wraps the fabric, and therefore its durability under harsh conditions as washing in washing machine. Since

the polymer is applied in a discontinuous pattern, this durability is combined with a breathing fabric of which the floor covering is made, that

allows it to properly ventilate humidity.

Additionally, the foaming and vulcanization of the liquid plasticized

polymer imparts it improved resistance both at elevated temperatures and

to various chemicals, particularly to detergents.

In one most preferred embodiment of the present invention, room

temperature liquid plasticized thermoplastic PVC (polyvinylchloride) is

employed in preparing anti-skid floor coverings. It is well known in the art that PVC is solid at room temperature, and its application as a liquid at

room temperature is not the common situation. Therefore, combining two

basic steps in a process for preparing anti-skid floor coverings, that is employing liquid plasticized PVC that infiltrates the fabric top face of the

floor covering, and then drying, foaming and vulcanizing it, strongly locks the PVC to the fabric top face and imparts the floor covering its improved qualities. That is, an improved rigidity, better durability under multiple washings and resistance at elevated temperatures and to different

chemicals, particularly to detergents. Furthermore, since the polymer is applied in a discontinuous pattern, this durability is combined with a breathing fabric of which the floor covering is made, that allows it to

properly ventilate humidity.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a schematic non-limitative illustration of a floor covering of the present invention. For illustrative purposes only, the

yarns (3) are shown to cover only partially the top area of the primary backing (2). The rectangular protrusions (4) at the back side of the

primary backing represent the bottom face of the floor covering. The perspective view in Fig. 2 demonstrates how the discontinuous bottom face

is evenly spread all over the area of the top face back side, thereby

allowing balanced spreading thereof and increased friction with the floor.

Fig. 3 is a schematic top view of a non-limitative pattern of the

discontinuous bottom face of a floor covering of the present invention. The wavy lines (4A) represent stripes that form the anti-skid bottom face. The

stripes are evenly spread over the back side of the primary backing (2) and increase friction with the floor, thus preventing movement of the floor

covering when stepped on or walked upon.

Fig. 4 is a schematic illustration of another non-limitative dots pattern (4B) of the anti-skid bottom face of the floor covering, and a schematic

non-limitative illustration of the means of spreading this dots pattern over

the back side of the primary backing (2). As with the wavy pattern (4A) in Fig. 3, the dots pattern (4B) is evenly spread over the back side of the

primary backing, and the properties of anti-skidding, improved rigidity and durability under washing are essentially the same for both patterns.

The means (5) for spreading the anti-skid dots (4B) over the backing (2) is

a hollow drum having multiple holes (6) on its outer surface, from which

the bottom face anti-skid material is let out thereby forming the dots pattern on the backing.

It should be understood that various different patterns of the anti-skid bottom face, and accordingly various different means having different

templates for forming such patterns, are equally applicable to the floor

coverings of the present invention.

Example

A mat made of a cotton fabric backing and cotton/polyester yarns,

interwoven into the backing, is laid flat with its back side facing upwards. PLASTIFOAM 0301 low flow rate liquid plasticized PVC at room temperature, is poured into a rolling perforated drum, the perforation

being of a wavy pattern. The drum is rolled over the mat's back side letting out the plasticized PVC onto the mat through the perforation thus

forming a wavy pattern of the plasticized PVC on the mat. The liquid plasticized PVC then infiltrates the mat's backing. The mat is then introduced into an oven which is heated to a temperature of 190 ⁰ C for a

period of 3-4 minutes, dried, foamed and vulcanized in the oven, thus

forming a synthetic bottom face of the mat. Finally, the mat is taken out of the oven and allowed to cool to room temperature.

It should be appreciated that while the examples and embodiments of the present invention are only exemplary for the practice of the invention,

those of skill in the art, in light of the present disclosure, will recognize

that numerous modifications can be made without departing from the

spirit and intended scope of the invention.