Locking engineered wood flooring

Abstract

A plywood laminate having dimensional stability and resistance to warping and delamination is formed from a plurality of higher quality plies and a plurality of lower quality plies. The higher quality plies may be of hardwood and the lower quality plies may be of softwood or lower quality hardwoods, or the higher quality plies may have a veneer grade of better than ANSI/HPVA HP-1-2000 veneer grade C and the lower quality plies may have a veneer grade of no greater than ANSI/HPVA HP-1-2000 veneer grade C. The exposed plies are of the higher quality. In most embodiments, at least two adjacent interior plies are of the lower quality. In those embodiments having a tongue and groove or click-lock edge configuration, the tongue comprises portions of at least two plies and at least one of the plies is a higher quality ply.

1 . A decorative plywood laminate comprising a plurality of plies, at least one edge configuration of the plywood laminate being selected from the group consisting of a tongue configuration and a groove configuration, wherein the edge configuration when mated with the edge configuration of a second decorative plywood laminate forms a locking connection that prevents substantial separation the mated decorative plywood laminates in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the mated decorative plywood laminates and in a direction parallel to the plane of the mated decorative plywood laminates and perpendicular to the mated edges of the mated decorative plywood laminates, the edge configuration including a projection, the thickness of the projection being greater than the thickness of each of the plies forming the decorative plywood laminate.  
   
   
       2 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 1 , wherein the locking connection is a tongue and groove and the projection is a tongue.  
   
   
       3 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 2 , wherein the locking tongue and groove forms a click-lock connection.  
   
   
       4 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 1 , wherein the projection comprises a portion of at least one higher quality ply.  
   
   
       5 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 4 , wherein the projection comprises a portion of at least one lower quality ply and a portion of at least one higher quality ply.  
   
   
       6 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 1 , further comprising a decorative wood ply that is exposed to view.  
   
   
       7 . A decorative plywood laminate floor comprising a plurality of the decorative plywood laminates of  claim 1 .  
   
   
       8 . A decorative plywood laminate comprising a plurality of plies, at least one edge configuration of the plywood laminate being selected from the group consisting of a tongue configuration and a groove configuration, wherein the edge configuration when mated with the edge configuration of a second decorative plywood laminate forms a locking connection that prevents substantial separation the mated decorative plywood laminates in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the mated decorative plywood laminates and in a direction parallel to the plane of the mated decorative plywood laminates and perpendicular to the mated edges of the mated decorative plywood laminates, the edge configuration including a projection, the projection having an upper surface and a lower surface spaced from the upper surface, at least one adhesive layer being interposed between the upper surface and the lower surface of the projection.  
   
   
       9 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 8 , wherein the locking connection is a tongue and groove and the projection is a tongue.  
   
   
       10 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 9 , wherein the locking tongue and groove forms a click-lock connection.  
   
   
       11 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 8 , wherein the projection comprises a portion of at least one higher quality ply.  
   
   
       12 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 11 , wherein the projection comprises a portion of at least one lower quality ply and a portion of at least one higher quality ply.  
   
   
       13 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 8 , further comprising a decorative wood ply that is exposed to view.  
   
   
       14 . A decorative plywood laminate floor comprising a plurality of the decorative plywood laminates of  claim 8 .  
   
   
       15 . A decorative plywood laminate comprising a plurality of plies, at least one edge configuration of the plywood laminate being selected from the group consisting of a tongue configuration and a groove configuration, wherein the edge configuration when mated with the edge configuration of a second decorative plywood laminate forms a locking connection that prevents substantial separation the mated decorative plywood laminates in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the mated decorative plywood laminates and in a direction parallel to the plane of the mated decorative plywood laminates and perpendicular to the mated edges of the mated decorative plywood laminates, the edge configuration including a projection, the projection comprising portions of at least three plies.  
   
   
       16 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 15 , wherein the locking connection is a tongue and groove and the projection is a tongue.  
   
   
       17 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 16 , wherein the locking tongue and groove forms a click-lock connection.  
   
   
       18 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 15 , wherein the projection comprises a portion of at least one higher quality ply.  
   
   
       19 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 18 , wherein the projection comprises a portion of at least one lower quality ply and a portion of at least one higher quality ply.  
   
   
       20 . The decorative plywood laminate of  claim 15 , further comprising a decorative wood ply that is exposed to view.  
   
   
       21 . A decorative plywood laminate floor comprising a plurality of the decorative plywood laminates of  claim 15.