Structural flooring panel and floor structure incorporating the same

Abstract

A structural flooring panel comprises an upper sheet, a lower sheet and a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs between the sheets. The ribs are laterally spaced to define at least one longitudinally extending, internal channel within the panel.

1 . A structural flooring panel comprising:
 an upper sheet;   a lower sheet; and   a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs between the sheets, the ribs being laterally spaced to define at least one longitudinally extending, internal channel within the panel.   
     
     
         2 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 1 , wherein said ribs define a plurality of longitudinally extending, internal channels within the panel. 
     
     
         3 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 2 , wherein said internal channels are generally parallel. 
     
     
         4 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 3 , wherein said internal channels extend generally the length of said panel. 
     
     
         5 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 4 , further comprising at least one passage through at least one of said ribs to bring adjacent internal channels into fluid communication. 
     
     
         6 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 5 , comprising at least one passage through a plurality of ribs. 
     
     
         7 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 6 , wherein the passages provided through the ribs are staggered. 
     
     
         8 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 4 , further comprising at least one passage through at least one of said upper and lower sheets, said at least one passage being in fluid communication with an internal channel. 
     
     
         9 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 8 , comprising passages through at least one of said upper and lower sheets, each passage being in fluid communication with a respective one of said internal channels. 
     
     
         10 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 3 , wherein each of said upper and lower sheets is formed of one of oriented strand board, plywood, fiberboard, particle-board, concrete sheet and magnesium-based sheet. 
     
     
         11 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 3 , wherein at least one of said ribs comprises:
 a pair of rib sheets; and   insulation between the rib sheets, each of the rib sheets being bonded to an opposite side of the insulation.   
     
     
         12 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 11 , wherein the rib sheets of the at least one rib are oriented so that the planes of their major surfaces are generally perpendicular to the planes of the major surfaces of the upper and lower sheets. 
     
     
         13 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 3 , wherein each of said ribs comprises:
 a pair of rib sheets; and   insulation between the rib sheets, each of the rib sheets being bonded to an opposite side of the insulation.   
     
     
         14 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 13 , wherein the rib sheets of each rib are oriented so that the planes of their major surfaces are generally perpendicular to the planes of the major surfaces of the upper and lower sheets. 
     
     
         15 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 3 , wherein at least one rib comprises a slab of insulation, and a rib sheet bonded to one side of the insulation. 
     
     
         16 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 15 , wherein the rib sheet of the at least one rib is oriented so that the plane of its major surface is generally perpendicular to the planes of the major surfaces of the upper and lower sheets. 
     
     
         17 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 3 , wherein each rib comprises a slab of insulation, and a rib sheet bonded to one side of the insulation. 
     
     
         18 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 17 , wherein the rib sheet of each rib is oriented so that the plane of its major surface is generally perpendicular to the planes of the major surfaces of the upper and lower sheets. 
     
     
         19 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 13 , wherein each of said rib sheets is formed of one of oriented strand board, particle-board, plywood and fiberboard. 
     
     
         20 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 19  wherein said insulation is formed of one of expanded polystyrene, honeycomb cardboard, extruded polystyrene and polyurethane. 
     
     
         21 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 17 , wherein each of said rib sheets is formed of one of oriented strand board, particle-board, plywood and fiberboard. 
     
     
         22 . A structural flooring panel according to  claim 21  wherein said insulation is formed of one of expanded polystyrene, honeycomb cardboard, extruded polystyrene and polyurethane. 
     
     
         23 . A floor structure comprising a plurality of abutting structural flooring panels according to  claim 2 . 
     
     
         24 . A floor structure according to  claim 23  wherein said abutting structural flooring panels are arranged side-by-side and end-to-end. 
     
     
         25 . A floor structure according to  claim 24 , wherein the internal channels of end-to-end structural flooring panels are axially aligned. 
     
     
         26 . A floor structure according to  claim 24 , wherein the internal channels of end-to-end structural flooring panels are axially offset. 
     
     
         27 . A floor structure according to  claim 24 , wherein abutting structural flooring panels carry mating formations.