Sports halls are usually intended for multipurpose use. They must therefore be able to house a number of different activities or events. Besides a host of different sports, <BR> <BR> activities, these halls may be used for, e. g. , trade fairs, meetings, concerts, exhibitions, gala balls and ordinary teaching use etc.

However, it is in particular the use of the halls for sports activities which makes great demands on the quality of the floor. For instance, the floor must meet specific requirements as regards properties such as elasticity and surface friction in order to afford the players optimum protection against accidental injury and to optimise the conditions of use. Special sports floors have therefore been developed, as a rule made of parquet or a suitable synthetic covering material laid upon, e. g. , an underlying concrete floor. Special floors of this kind are relatively expensive to install and maintain.

The use of such floors for sports activities also calls for certain markings which vary according to the particular activity to be performed. Examples of different court markings include handball, basketball, tennis, volleyball, indoor bandy, squash and badminton. The many courts should also be marked using various different standard colours. For example, recommended colours determined by sports associations are signal yellow for handball courts, signal red for basketball, purple for volleyball, black for badminton and white for tennis.

The marking is done by applying paint and/or coloured tape. All courts for the intended activities are normally marked when the floor is installed. This is done in a certain order so that the markings of lowest priority are applied first, and the markings of highest priority last. This means to say that usually the handball court markings are applied last and consequently this court will be the topmost of the marked courts. When the marking is completed, an appropriate number of top coats of a suitable varnish are

applied. The result is a relatively"motley"pattern which is hardly likely to be characterised as particularly beautiful. In addition, it may be confusing for players and referees or umpires as well as spectators. When the hall is not used for typical sports purposes, the markings have no purpose and should for aesthetic and other reasons preferably have been got rid of.

If the hall is to be used for major events, for example televised championships, national matches, tournaments or the like, it is often required that unwanted markings should be removed and that the court should only be marked with the relevant markings for the activity in question and, if applicable, sponsorship or advertising signs or the like. The unwanted markings must then be removed either physically or mechanically or by covering the floor or court with a cover. The necessary markings must then be provided. The physical removal, in particular, and the subsequent application of markings are very expensive operations. For example, the total court markings for a handball court consist of 255 running metres, basketball about 220 running metres (3 or 4 training courts in addition to the match court), volleyball 81 running metres per court, tennis 146 running metres and badminton 100 running metres per court.

The use of covers or substitute covering is not an optimal solution either as such coverings do not incorporate and/or satisfy the same quality requirements as the original sports floor. Deficiencies as regards surface elasticity, point elasticity and antislip properties are well-known causes of ligament and strain injuries among players. Both associations and players have therefore been very critical of such a solution.

Thus, the known sports floors and methods of marking such floors have a number of drawbacks, and the object of the invention is to eliminate these.

The object is achieved by a sports floor and a method as disclosed in the preamble of respective patent claims 1 and 7, and which are characterised by the characteristic features disclosed in the claims.

Advantageous embodiments of the invention are set forth in the dependent patent claims.

The invention will now be described with reference to the drawing which is a schematic view of a hall with a sports floor which has been marked using the method according to the invention.

In the drawing the reference numeral 1 denotes the actual sports floor. The court markings are indicated by the reference numerals 2 and 3, connecting cables by 4 and a display or control panel by the reference numeral 5.

The invention is based on the application of the court markings using paint or tape in the same way as is done today. However, the paint and/or the tape is transparent or of the same colour as the wood in the case of a parquet floor, or as the synthetic floor covering, so that it is virtually invisible. However, a substance is added to the paint which becomes luminous when activated, for example, by a low voltage current. The tape is a special tape of a type that can also be activated, for example, by low voltage current. The technique is known per se from so-called electroluminescent lighting. In this connection, reference can be made to the product ELumin which is supplied by ELumin Limited, Unit R, Trecenydd Business Park, Caerphilly, South Wales, Great Britain. The EL lamps are flexible, flat, slim, cool light sources which can be given complex shapes in order to illuminate different kinds of displays, and the normal areas of application of this product are given as ranging from mobile telephones and computers-architectural purposes and advertising-to dashboards or instruments panels for vehicles and aircraft.

Naturally, the invention is not limited to the aforementioned product, as any suitable product that functions according to a similar principle-activation and light emission- may of course be used.

The colour of the emitted light can be selected as required, but a colour which provides good contrast, and consequently clear markings, is preferred.

All the court patterns or markings are arranged as separate circuits comprising the respective markings 2 and 3 and the cables 4, and the individual circuits can be activated by pushing an appropriate switch on the display 5. There may, for example, be a switch for a handball court, one for volleyball etc. All the courts may be marked using the same colour, preferably that which gives the best marking, as only the court markings required will be visible when switched on or activated. Alternatively, the different markings can be given different colours.

If desired, it is of course also possible to install advertising, various logos, symbols or the like, which can be activated as required.