US 6,216,409 · Granted 2001-04-17
The Snap-Together Floor Panel That Changed How Homes Lock Together
Imagine puzzle pieces that not only slide together but also click and lock with a hidden mechanical grip. This patent describes how the grooves and tongues on cladding panels (used for floors, walls, and cladding) can lock together using tiny raised bumps and matching recesses, so when you install them, they stay put without nails or glue.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a cladding panel system where the tongue (the protruding edge) has a second raised portion on its underside, and the matching groove has a complementary recess on top. When panels are turned relative to each other during installation, these raised portions and recesses inter-engage to create a mechanical clip that locks the tongue firmly into the groove. What's protected here is this specific geometry of the locking mechanism itself.
Why it matters
This patent matters because it solves a real installation problem: how to make flooring and wall panels that lock together securely without visible fasteners or adhesive. The mechanical clip design allows for quick, tool-free assembly while maintaining a tight, stable joint. This kind of innovation became foundational to modern click-lock flooring and modular cladding systems, which are now standard in both residential and commercial construction.
Real-world use
When you install modern laminate or vinyl click-lock flooring in your home, the way those planks snap together and stay locked is likely using a mechanism very similar to what this patent describes.
Original USPTO abstract
In cross section, the tongue of a cladding panel has on its bottom face and the bottom lip of the groove has on its top face, respectively, a second raised portion projecting downward and a complementary second recess shaped so that the second raised portion of the tongue on one panel inter-engages with the second recess of the groove of an adjacent panel when one panel is turned relative to the other, to form second element of clipping the tongue into the groove.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 6,216,409
- Filing date
- 1999-01-25
- Grant date
- 2001-04-17
- Assignee
- Valerie Roy / Alain Roy
- Inventor(s)
- ROY VALERIE, ROY ALAIN
- CPC class
- E04F13/08
Want to file your own patent?
If you're designing your own home-improvement product or flooring system, use our free scanner to check whether your locking mechanism might overlap with existing patents before you prototype.
Free patentability scan