Interlocking floor system

Abstract

A modular floor system includes a plurality of interconnected, uniform and elongated floor sections. Each floor section includes a wear layer, an upper subfloor panel, a lower subfloor panel and a plurality of parallel spacers sandwiched between the upper and lower subfloor panels. The spacers extend horizontally outwardly from three sides of the sections, including both longitudinal sides and one transverse side, but are recessed on the remaining transverse side. The parallel spacers extend into the recesses of adjacently located floor sections, alongside the corresponding spacers of those floor sections, along the longitudinal sides. At the transverse sides, each section has a spacer that extends into an adjacently located section in the same row and also receives a spacer from an adjacently located section in the same row. The sections have hardware connections at only two corners. The modular floor system of the invention is structurally rigid and uniform in appearance, but has lower installation, handling and manufacturing costs. Also, the uniform floor sections may be installed from the center of the floor.

1 . A modular floor comprising: 
 a plurality of alike, elongated floor sections, the floor sections arranged end-to-end in parallel rows to cover the base, each of the sections further comprising:    a wear layer including first and second longitudinal sides;    an upper layer below the wear layer;    a lower layer below the upper layer; and    a plurality of spacers residing between the upper and lower layers and oriented transverse to the first and second longitudinal sides, the plurality of spacers extending outwardly horizontally from the first and second longitudinal sides of the section and having one spacer extending outwardly beyond a transverse side, the outwardly extending spacers extending into recesses defined by an adjacently located floor section, with a transverse side having a recess defined by the spacers.    
   
   
       2 . The modular floor of  claim 1  wherein for each of the sides the wear layer comprises floorboards extending along to the section.  
   
   
       3 . The modular floor of  claim 1  further comprising connectors at two opposite corners  
   
   
       4 . The modular floor system of  claim 1  wherein the spacers traverse the entire widths between the longitudinal sides.  
   
   
       5 . The modular floor system of  claim 1  wherein the parallel rows of floor sections are secured in a staggered configuration.  
   
   
       6 . The modular floor system of  claim 1  wherein the sections are about 2 feet by 8 feet.  
   
   
       7 . The modular floor of  claim 1  wherein each section has ten spacers.