CA1314379C

CA1314379C - Carpet backing and installation system

Info

Publication number: CA1314379C
Application number: CA000583254A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Joseph R. Pacione
Original assignee: TAC-FAST SYSTEMS CANADA LIMITED
Current assignee: TAC-FAST SYSTEMS CANADA Ltd
Priority date: 1987-12-23
Filing date: 1988-11-16
Publication date: 1993-03-16
Anticipated expiration: 2010-03-16
Also published as: FI885369A0; NO885502D0; RU2060026C1; CN1034482A; FI114222B; HK1006270A1; DE3888135D1; EP0321978B1; US4822658B1; JPH01280419A; FI885369A; AU2693688A; CN1031034C; BR8806784A; FI972354A0; DK172698B1; DK717988A; MX165780B; NO885502L; KR890010334A

Abstract

ABSTRACT

A novel carpet construction provides a secondary backing layer adhered to the primary backing layer in which the carpet pile is secured. The secondary backing layer incorporates a layer of downwardly depending loops which can serve as a resilient undersurface, in the manner of an underpad, and also to secure the laminated carpet structure to the floor. A hooked tape construction used in combination with the subject carpet has a plurality of upwardly extending hooks to engage the looped layer of the carpet, and an adherent under surface, for making adhesive contact with the floor surface. The carpet construction can include a foam interlayer sandwiched between the primary and the secondary backing layers.
The hooked tape can be laid as a perimeter attachment surface, or in intermediate locations also.

Description

131~37q This invention relates to a new ~arpet formulation and in particular to z new carpet backing for use in combination with a new installation device, and to a novel carpet installation ~ystem.

At the present time, mo~t mass produced carpets are either of tufted or woven construction.

Tufted carpets are made by needling pile yarns.

into a supporting pre-woven or non-woven fabric, called the primary backing. the woven fabric can be of jute or polypropylene, and the non-woven abric is usually of polypropylene.

After-the pile tufts have been ~eedled into the primary backing, they are bonded to the primary backing, usually by way of a bonding agent, such as latex or other suitable adhesive material. It is common practice to add a secondary backing of woven or spun-bondPd man-made fabrics or of jute, which is adhered, by pressing the backing ontothe latex while ' ` ' : . ;

~ 3 1 ~379 still tacky. This form of co~struction is referred to as ~tufted~ carpet which is usually installed upon an underpad, the tuft~d carpet generally having little or no inherent trsad resiliancy of it~ own.

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The installation technique most commonly utilized with such a carpet is referred to as the Wtackless~ or ~smooth-eage~ fcrm of installation because of the absence of any visible fasteners, thus presenting a carpet having a ~smooth edge~ appearance without carpet tacks.

, This system was originated in 1938 by the Roberts Company. ~in this method, ~trips of plywood of approximately 1/4~ thickness, by lJ-1~2~ width and in four foot lengths are installed around the perimeter of the room or the area to be carpeted. The strips are available either without nails or with pre-started nail~ and can be either glued or nailed to the floor.
The strips have two staggered rows of steel pins, projecting points uppermost and inclined laterally at an angle of 60 for installation outwardly înclined towards the wall.

With this system of installation, the carpet is placed in its appro~imate position on the floor and .. . ...

_ 3 _ 131~37q is stretched by means ~f the ~ af a power ~trstcher or knee kicker. Stretching i~ ~is ~ystern i~
essential to co~p~Dsate ~or ~ sion and to takç out or prevent wrinkles o~ ~uckle~ ch will otherwi~e develop in use, ~hi~h a~ uns~h~y a~d also present a tripping hazard an~ ~n s~ort~ ~e life of the carpet by undue wear of ~uch wrinkle~ p~r~ions.

In using the tackle~. ~tallation system, the carpet must possess a su~ ~nt degree of resilience in order that it c~n~s~retch resiliently on installation. Str~tch is imp~ a~ to provide adequate residual tension in t~ c~rpet and on the steel pins at the p~rim~t~r of ~ carpet to ensure ~ that the pins retain their gr~ ~æd hold the ~arpet -~ adequately secured~
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In order t~ a~hiev~ ~æ~uate anchoring of a carpet, it is necessary ~at t~ steel pins grip into the secondary backing of the c~pet. Thus, the secondary backing and th~ bon~ ~ætween the primary and secondary backing mu~t ~ su~ tial and suiciently rigid to provide a~ adequate ~strate for the pins to grip and to preYent the c~rp2~ ~om moving of he pins and coming loose ~som the ~loor.

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1 3 1 ~37~

The rigidity require~ of tufted carpets to afford the requisite pin holding characteristics make them hard to handle especially as the lates often has a filler or hardener, ~ommonly referred to as ~clay~, mi~ed with it to add mass and ~tiffness, and provide a heavy carpet with adeguate dimensional stability. The provision o such dimensional stability and an effective lates bond have apparently been found to be necessary to ensure that such carpet can be properly installed using the existing conventional tackless system without sub~ecting the carpet to the risk of being distorted, ripped apart or in some way unacceptably damaged. For these reasons a heavy basis weight secondary backing material is used.

This type of carpet also requires the prior installation of an underpad up to the edge of the tackless strip, but, more importantly, it is hard to handle because not only is it too stiff and lacking in maneuverability, but also it is very heavy. Under colder conditions, the carpet back becomes progressively stiffer, harder an~ less workable.
Since the carpet is commonly manufactured in w;dths of 12 feet and frequently in lengths of one hundred feet, ;~ there is required a considerable amount of physical labour to carry pieces of the carpet about and to lay them correctly in the proper position.

In addition, the stretching of ~;uch a rigid carpet is a highly labour-intensive, skilled and difficult affair which involves the use of a power stretcher or knee kicker. Both require e~pertise to operate and it i~ possible to damage the c:arpet during this stretching process by either inserting the teeth too deeply into the carpet so that they grip and rip th~ underpad below the carpet, or by inserting the teeth too shallowly so that they scrape the primary backing off the carpet secondary backing, and rip or damage it. When the carpet is cold, it is difficult to get correct penetration of the teeth of the knee gripper into the carpet in order to properly stretch it.

The foam backed type of carpet, as it is called, has a primary backing and a layer of foam or urethane bonded directly to the primary backing.
However, such foam-backed carpet cannot be installed by the tackless method because the foam backing is not sufficiently strong to hold the pins o the tackless - strips. Simply, the foam or urethane would rip and not hold if it were stretched onto the pins of a tackless installation.

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1 31 ~379 Accordingly, foam-~acked carpet products have been installed by ~ementin~ them down over the entire backing ~urface. Car~et installed by such procedures is often dificult to remove. The adhes;ve holds the foam; and when ~empts are made to remove it, a delamination may occur in which the foa~ remains on the floor and the primary backing comes up. The resulting foam and adhesive is difficult to removeO

Also, the foam is liable to disintegrate, causing considerable difEiculties. Sometimes in residential areas, foam-back~d carpet is installed-as a ~loose-lay", being only held down by the re-installation of a quart~r-round trim or by use of double sided adhesive tape.

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Both loose-lay a~d double-sided adhesive tape do not generally hold 3uch carpet down sufficiently, especially on heavy traffic areas or areas where heavy $urnit~re is moved.

While foam-bac~ed carpet has the advantags that it does not require an underpad and can usually ; be more readily installed, its installation techniques : are not considered to be totally satisfactory ~ecause 13~a37~

of the previously mentioned problems with gluing an~
taping.

A third type of caxpet is a woYen carpet in which the backing and the yarn are woven directly together. This type of carpet is usually installed in accordance with the same tackless ~ethod as the tufted carpet construction previously mentioned and suffers from some of the same drawbacks.

The present invention attempts to improve on both the construction and method o~ installation of tufted and woven carpets and the stru~ture and method -.
of installation o foam-backed carpet by providing a for~. of laminated carpet in combination with a new carpet anchoring product and a method of application thereo to a floor.

The laminated carpet can be manufactured of tufted yarn onto a primary backing in the conventional manner. However, a secondary backing is provided consisting preferably of a layer of polypropylene or other suitable man-made fiber in which a series of fine projecting strands or loops are needled. The secondary backing is positioned so that the strands or loops estend downwardly away from the pile of the 1 31 ~379 carpet. The secondary backing is then laminated to the primary backing, being bonded hy means of late~ or other suitable adhesive to the back ~urf~ce o the primary backing, such that the ~trands or loops of the secondary backing estend downwardly and the yarn of the pile extends upwardly. The secondary backing can be lightweight as there is no requirement for great tearin~ stren~th a~ large stretching forces are not required in laying the carpet. However, heavier or lighter backings may be used dependipg on the situation.

With this construction, the downwardly projecting loops add additional tread resiliency to the carpet as well as providin~ a method of affi~ing the carpet to the ~loor, as will be seen later. At the same time, owing to the characteristics of the carpet anchoring ~ystem, the undue rigidity of the carpet is no longer essential and a lighter, more fle~ible, construction results. Thus, in one e~ample of the invention, the primary and secondary backing are attached together by the use of late~ or an equivalent. However, because the means of installation of the carpet do not require the same rigidity, ~clay" does not have to be mi~ed with the late~ to make the tufted carpet rigid, as is often 1 3 1 `/1 37q g considered necessary in the case of the pr.es0nt tufted carpet.

In an alternative ~mbodiment, ~ ~oam or urethane layer, with an appropriate bonding agent, if required, is placed between the orementioned primary and secondary backings. With the bonding agent, the foam can act both as an adhesive and as a layer to provide resiliency and stabilization to the carpet.
The secondary backing is attached to the foam and has downwardly e~tending loops or strands in accordance with $he inYention. This structure enables foam carpet to be installed in accordance with the method disclosed below.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided a laminated carpet having enhanced stability in comparison with the former foam backed carp~ting and having less weight and greater flexi~ility than the former tufted carpet while, in the preferred embodiment, possessing tread resiliency as a conse~uence of the provision of a layer of downwardly e~tending loops or strands to form the undersurface thereof. The subject carpet further enables the use of an intermediate foam layer if preferred located between the carpet primary backing , ~, ., ~ .

131llt379 layer wherein the pile is secured and the secondary backing layer ~y which the anchor loops or ~trands are attached. In this laminated carpet the primary backing is ~en~rally unchanged. ~ome changes in primary backin~ basis weiyht may be favourably affected, in view Df the totally changed nature of the laminated carpet.

Polypropylene in woven and non-woven form ; and having a low basis weight is considered suitable for the secondary backing layer. The bonding agent requires little or no clay ballasting, leading to a more resilient ana lighter laminated construction.

The present invent~on further provides in combination with the subject carpet an anchor system having, in the preferred e~bodiment, upstanding hook portions secured thereto for en~aging the loops of the carpet in anchoring engagement. The anchor substrate preferably is coated with a contact adhesive on its face remote from the hook portions, having a peelable barrier paper adhering thereto in protective, removable relation. The upper face of the anchor system can also hav~ a hookless area on which an adhesive can be coated to affi~ a protective peelable :

1 3 ~ ~379 barrier on the upper face to prevent premature engagement of the hooks with the loops.

The anchor system generally is provided in trip form, having a wi~th of one inch or greater, for jointing.

A heavy duty e~truded plastic anchor strip to provide a more rigid ~ystem may incorporate foam in the adhesive system in order to facilitate installation on certain types of floors having uneven surfaces. Owing to the generally low profile of the strip and the fact that the hook portions penetrate upwardly in entering relation with the loops of the carpet, th~ presence of the anchor means beneath the carpet is comparatively inconspicuous particularly when compared with the relative thickness of the prior art nailing strips. This makes the anchor system substantially unnotlceable, and permits the anchor strip to be used in carpet stab liz;ng relation in areas additional to the carpet borders. Thus, the ~20 anchor strips can be used in stabilizing relation with ;~the carpet in high trafflc areas in the middle of a room or at carpet ~oints.

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-1 3 1 ~379 The nature of the hook portions, being formed in plastic, such as nylon filament to proYide somewhat of a hook effect in cooperation with the ~trand or loop filaments of the carpet affords a break-free ~apability by ~hich the carpet can be pulled upwardly when re~uired clear of the anchor without damaging the hooks, the loops or the carpet.

The number of hooks per square inch of the anchor strip can be varied in accordance with the desired characteristics, both of the anchor and the looped carpet. It will be appreciated that this invention provides a great many ad~antages over the prior art, both in regard to the prevlously listed ~arpet characteristics, the capability of minimizing ; or dispensing with an underfelt or under pad, the provision of a resiliant loop or strand layer over the : ~oam so as to protect the foa~ frQm damage and deterioration experienced with many foams and the capability to achieve the characteristics of a foam underpad as an interlayer with reduced likelihood of deterioration and no dang~r o~ undesired adhesion to the underlying floor surface.

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It will also be appreciated that the hook elements could be installed on the secondary backing 1 31 ar379 of the carpet and the loop elements on the anchor system~ but with the presently designed hooks, this w~uld not ~ive the benefit~ of resiliency ~ssociated with the loops since the presently ~esi~ned hoo~s are relatively harder and more brittle.

The subject anchor strip can be nailed to underlying floor surfaces if required. Generally, however, it is adhered by way of its own adhesive, pressure sensitive backing which lends itself to widespread utilization in a variety of environments.
By simply peeling off the protective paper covering and pressing the adherent back surface thus e~posed on to the aYailable floor surface, the anchor type can ba easily laid as required.

With the system used with this invention, conventional carpet joining by the use of hot melt tape, glue or nails would not be required. Thus no electricity or hot melt iron would be re~uired on the site. Since the hot melt system will not be used, there would be no possibility of burning the top sidP
of the carpet or spilling adhesive or glue.

An appropriately sized width of tape incorporating the anchor system (in the preferred ;. ,. ... , ,........... I

, .~.

embodiment-hooks) will be attached to the floor at either end or along its entire lengkh. In the preferred embodiment, the upstanding hooks are protected by a peelable paper barrier until ~uch time as fastening is required. The carpet is positioned along the seam. Aq fastening is required, in accordance with standard installation procedures, the paper barrier is removed and the carpet attached.
Seams can be opened or closed at will as many times as needed for seam adjustment or restretching. If the tape is only fastened at the ends, the carpet is not therefore attached to the floor at the seams, and the seams are free to move as required during stretching.

The present inve~tion further provides a system for attachin~ the laminated carpet to a floor area. The carpet having one portion of the anchorage combination incorporated into the carpet having anchorage elements facing downwardly to be positioned over a surface area having a complementary portion of the anchorage combination secured thereto with the anchorage elements facing upwardly. The carpet is khen moved downwardly to bring the complementary anchorage components into mutual engaging relation to anchor the carpet.

1 3 1 ~37q In most instances the floor-attached portion of the anchorage combination comprises a tap~ of limited width and shallow depth having an adhesive underside port;on wh;ch i~ brought into a~hering relation with the adjo;ning floor ~urface.

In the ca~e of certain uneven floor surfaces, the tape having hook elements e~tending upwardly thereof can be provided with a spongy resilient adhesive coated undersurface to achieve adhesion to the floor surface.

Certain embodiments of the invention are described reference being made to the accompanying drawings wherein:

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Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a first laminated carpet embodiment in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 i~ a general view o an anchor tape in accordance with the present invention, and Figure 3 is a view, similar to Figure 1, of a laminated carpet embodiment incorporating a foam layer therewith.

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131~379 Figure 4 is a prespective view of one ar~a of a room with the anchor tape installed prior to installation of carpetO
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~ eferring to the drawings, the two illustra~ed laminated carpet embodiments 10 and 40 ~Figures 1 and 3~
comprise a primary backing layer 12 into which is ~ewn a level loop pilP 14. It will be understood that alternative pile formation, such as cut pile, plush, random shear, cut and loop, multi-level loop, and sthers, are substantially equally well suited to the present laminated construction.
The loop pile 14 may be made of any presently used fibres such as nylon, acrylilon, antron (all trade marks for various man-made fibres) or natural fibres.

~' A secondary backing layer 16 has a layer of 10DPS
18 needled into it, generalIy covering the whole of the back area of the carpet 10. It is preferable that t~e loops be applied to the entire undersurface to provide ~ uniform resiliency, ease of manufacture and convenience of - installation.

A binding layer 20 o late~ serves to join the ; 20 primary backing layer 12 to the secondary backing layer 16. In the Figure 3 embodiment a foam layer 40, generally between 5 oz to 40 ~z, is laminated between primary backing layer 12 and secondary backing layer 16.

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The primary layer 12 and the seconaary layer 16 will usually be of polypropylene or nylon.

Referring to Figure 2, the anchoring means is illustrated as a tape 22 having an upper ~ubstrate 24 with a plurality of plastic hook portions 25 of suitable hooked profile upstanding therefrom. A contact ~dhesive layer 28 and protective strippable cover 30 provide a means to attach the tape to a floor when the cover is removed. A
protective strippable cover on the hooks (not shown) is a preferred option to be attached to an exposed hookless area by contact adhesive along one or both edges of the upper face to prevent, during installation, prematur~ attachment of the hooks to the loops covering the back area of the carpet.

As previously mentioned, the position of the hooks and loops can be reversed, so that the hooks are on the underside of the carpet. However, this is not preferred because the loops, as presently shown, provide greater resiliency to the carpet than hooks.

1 977b/1-1 9 : ;: :

Claims

1. A laminated carpet system for use in wall-to-wall installation in a location by cutting and fitting of the carpet to fit the contours of the location on-site and for attachment to a floor without a separate underpad comprising:
(i) a primary backing layer having pile element means substantially covering a first side of the primary backing, (ii) a secondary backing layer having loop element means substantially covering a first side of the secondary backing, (iii) means for securing the secondary backing layer to the primary backing so that the pile element means and loop means are exposed on abutting faces of the carpet, (iv) hook means on a first side of a separate or separable strip-like piece having means on a second opposite side for on-site attachment to the floor to attach such hook means to at least a portion of the loop element means on the secondary backing by engagement of the hook means into the loop means to hold such carpet to a floor;
(v) wherein, the carpet lamination is substantially free of stiffener so as not to require stretching in wall-to-wall applications by the use of mechanical devices.

2. A laminated carpet system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means for securing the secondary backing layer to the primary backing includes an adhesive coated along substantially the entire surface of the second side of the primary backing to seal the pile element means into the primary backing.

3. A laminated carpet system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means for securing the secondary backing layer to the primary backing include a foam layer interposed between the primary backing layer and the secondary backing layer having adhesive and resilient cushioning properties.

4. The carpet system of claim 3 in which the foam layer is latex.

5. The carpet system of claim 1 in which the hook means are supplied separately as a tape of relatively narrow width.

6. The carpet system of claim 5 in which the on-site attachment means for the hook means is a pressure sensitive adhesive.

7. The carpet system of claim 6 in which the pressure sensitive adhesive on the hook means is coated with a release paper which prevents adhesion and which can be peeled and removed to enable the hook means to be attached to a floor.

8. The carpet system of claim 7 in which the hook means is further provided with cover hook means on the first side of the hook means so as to prevent premature attachment to the loop means.

9. The carpet system of claim 8 in which the first side of the hook means contains a hookless area and the hook cover means comprises a release paper attached to this area by a pressure sensitive peelable adhesive in which the paper extends over the hook means to prevent premature engagement of the hooks with the loops.

10. The carpet system of claim 3 in which the hook means are supplied separately as a tape of relatively narrow width.

11. The carpet system of claim 10 in which the on site attachment means for the hook means is a pressure sensitive adhesive.

12. The carpet system of claim 11 in which the pressure sensitive adhesive on the hook means is coated with a release paper which prevents adhesion and which can be peeled and removed to enable the hook means to be attached to a floor.

13. The carpet system of claim 12 in which the hook means is further provided with cover hook means on the first side of the hook means so as to prevent premature attachment to the loop means.

14. The carpet system of claim 13 in which the first side of the hook means contains a hookless area and the hook cover means comprises a release paper attached to this area by pressure sensitive peelable adhesive and in which the paper extends over the hook means to prevent premature attachment of the hooks with the loops.

15. A laminated carpet system for use in wall-to-wall installation in a location by cutting and fitting of the carpet to fit the contours of the location on-site and for attachment to a floor without a separate underpad comprising:

(i) a primary backing having pile substantially covering a first side of the primary backing, (ii) a secondary backing having one part of a hook and loop attachment system substantially covering a first side of the primary backing, (iii) adhesive means coated along substantially the entire surface of the second side of the primary backing to seal the pile into the primary backing and to attach the primary and secondary backing to each other, (iv) a separate second part of a hook and loop attachment system on a top side of a strip-like piece having pressure sensitive adhesive means on a bottom side for on-site attachment to the floor, (v) wherein the carpet lamination is substantially free of stiffener so as not to require stretching in wall-to-wall applications by the use of mechanical devices or tools.

16. A carpet laying system for laying a laminated wall-to-wall carpet substantially free of stiffening, having loops as a first part of an anchorage hook and loop combination integrally sewn into the entire back of the carpet, and the second portion of the hook and loop anchorage system comprising a tape detached from the carpet having an adhesive underside protected by a removable covering for securing the strips to the floor, and a top side having hooks protected by a detachable covering, comprising the steps of:
(a) positioning the carpet in a room and cutting and fitting the carpet to the contours of the location on-site, (b) folding back a portion of the carpet to expose a portion of the floor substantially at least along the edges and seams, (c) removing the removeable covering from the adhesive underside of the tape and attaching such tape to the floor, (d) manually stretching the carpeting into a desired overlapping position over the tape, (e) removing the detachable covering from the hooks and placing the carpet downwardly onto the loops to engage the hook and loop anchorage system, (f) repeating steps (b), (c), (d) and (e) as required to attach the carpet to the floor without mechanical stretching.
1977b/20-25