US 6,647,690 · Granted 2003-11-18
The Click-Lock Flooring Patent That Made Installing Hardwood DIY-Friendly
This patent describes a floor board system where planks lock together both horizontally and vertically using snap-fit lips and grooves, like puzzle pieces. Instead of nailing boards down individually, you simply click adjacent planks together—the geometry itself prevents them from shifting or lifting up. It's the engineering behind floating floors.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a floor board design featuring lower joining lips on two opposite edges and upper joining lips on the remaining two edges. These lips have vertical surfaces that interlock when boards are pushed together horizontally, plus snap-fit heels and recesses that prevent vertical separation. What's protected here is the specific geometric arrangement of these interlocking edges and the locking mechanism that holds adjacent boards in place without fasteners.
Why it matters
This patent represents a shift in how residential flooring is installed. By engineering boards to lock together mechanically, manufacturers could market flooring as 'floating' or 'click-lock'—meaning homeowners and installers no longer needed nails, glue, or professional expertise to lay down large floor areas. This made high-end-looking flooring accessible to DIYers and reduced installation time and labor costs significantly.
Real-world use
Every time someone installs laminate or engineered hardwood flooring as a weekend DIY project, snapping planks together as they move across the room, they're using the locking mechanism this patent describes.
Original USPTO abstract
Flooring material including floor boards ( 1 ) with an essentially square, rectangular or rhomboidal shape. The floor boards ( 1 ) are provided with edges ( 2 ), a horizontal lower side ( 5 ) and a horizontal decorative upper surface ( 3 ). The floor boards ( 1 ) are provided with lower joining lips ( 10 ) at two adjacent edges ( 2 ) while the two remaining edges ( 2 ) are provided with upper joining lips ( 20 ). The lower joining lips ( 10 ) are provided essentially vertical lower lip surfaces 911 ) arranged parallel to the closest edge ( 2 ). The lower lip surfaces ( 11 ) are intended to interact with mainly vertical upper lip surfaces ( 21 ) arranged on the upper joining lips ( 20 ). Two joined adjacent floor boards ( 1 ) are hereby locked together in a horizontal direction. The joining lips ( 10 and 20 respectively) are furthermore provided with one or more heels ( 31 ) intended to snap join with recesses ( 32 ) adapted thereto which, by being provided with essentially horizontal locking surfaces, limits vertical movement between two joined adjacent floor boards ( 1 ).
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 6,647,690
- Filing date
- 1999-09-27
- Grant date
- 2003-11-18
- Assignee
- Pergo (Europe) Ab
- Inventor(s)
- MARTENSSON GORAN
- CPC class
- E04F15/02
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