Mat for free exercise and the like

Claim 2

A mat for free exercise or the like comprising an cover having a top and bottom of flexible sheet material, said top providing a substantially unbroken mat top surface and said bottom including a plurality of adjacent strips of said material in substantially abutting side-by-side relation extending lengthwise of said mat to each of two end edges thereof, said strips being secured transversely thereacross to said top to provide a plurality of open-ended sleeves of substantially uniform thickness and a first set of mat fold axes disposed between adjacent ones of said strips, each of said first set of axes extending substantially the full length of said mat between said end edges, and shock absorbing material disposed in said sleeves, said material being insertable into or removable from said sleeves through said open ends thereof upon folding of said mat about successive ones of said first set of fold axes.

Claim 3

The mat of claim 1 wherein said top also comprises strips of said material disposed between said end edges in abutting side-by-side relation above and parallel to respective ones of said bottom strips, adjacent ones of said top strips being secured to each other to form said first set of fold axes.

Claim 4

The mat of claim 2 wherein adjacent ones of said top strips include a pair of flaps formed from said top strips, said flaps being disposed in generally face-to-face relation below said first set of fold axes and closing said sleeve open ends.

Claim 5

The mat of claim 3 including means releasably connecting said flaps and said bottom strips.

Claim 6

The mat of claim 3 wherein said shock absorbing material in each of said sleeves constitutes one or more integral blocks of said material.

Claim 7

The mat of claim 1 wherein said strips when secured to said top as aforesaid provide a second set of mat fold axes parallel to each other between adjacent ones of said sleeves, said second set of axes extending to each of two side edges of said mat transversely of said first set of axes to divide said mat into a plurality of discrete mat sections of substantially equal thickness formed by said sleeves and shock absorbing material and disposed in adjacent rows formed by said first set of fold axes, the respective lengths of said mat sections being defined by respective ones of said second set of fold axes, each of said rows comprising at least one set, Sa, of said mat sections extending lengthwise of said mat from one of said end edges, said set Sa comprising m successive mat sections Sa1 . . . Sam inwardly from said mat end edge in which Sa3, Sa5, Sa7 . . . Sa(m-1) have lengths respectively substantially equal to T, 2T, 3T . . . 1/2 (m-2)T and the remainder Sa1, Sa2, Sa4, Sa6 . . . Sa(m-2), Sam have lengths respectively substantially equal to La, La, La, La + T . . . La + 1/2 (m-6)T, La + 1/2 (m-4)T, where La is substantially the length of Sa, T is substantially the thickness of said sections, and m is an even integer greater than 3.

Claim 8

The mat of claim 6 wherein each of said rows includes a second set, Sb, of said mat sections extending lengthwise of said mat from the other of said end edges, said sets Sa and Sb extending inwardly toward each other from said end edges and having an inter section Sc therebetween, said set Sb comprising n successive mat sections Sb1 . . . Sbn inwardly from said other end edge in which Sb3, Sb5, Sb7 . . . Sb(n-1) have lengths respectively substantially equal to T, 2T, 3T . . . 1/2 (n-2)T and the remaindeR of Sb1, Sb2, Sb4, Sb6 . . . Sb(n-2), Sbn have lengths respectively substantially equal to Lb, Lb, Lb, Lb + T . . . Lb + 1/2 (n-6)T, Lb + 1/2 (n-4)T, and Sc has a length substantially equal to 1/2 (m + n)T, where Lb is substantially the length of Sb, and n is an even integer greater than 3.

Claim 9

The mat of claim 7 in which m equals n.

Claim 10

The mat of claim 7 in which La equals Lb.

Claim 11

The mat of claim 9 in which m equals n.

Claim 12

The mat of claim 9 in which m and n each equals 10.

Claim 13

The mat of claim 9 in which m and n each equals 6.

Claim 14

The mat of claim 7 wherein said shock absorbing material in each of said sleeves constitutes one or more integral blocks of said material each having a thickness substantially equal to T.

Claim 15

The mat of claim 13 including releasable means retaining said blocks in said sleeves, said means being disposed at said sleeve open ends and connecting said bottom strips to said top.

Claim 16

The mat of claim 6 on a floor in its fully folded condition about said second set of fold axes in which all of said sections Sa1, Sa2, Sa4, Sa6 . . . Sa(m-2), Sam are disposed one above the other in face-to-face stacked relation substantially parallel to the floor with said sections Sa3, Sa5, Sa7 . . . Sa(m-1) disposed generally vertically at the ends thereof, in combination with a drag sheet of flexible material disposed between said folded mat and the floor and having a friction reducing undersurface, the width of said sheet extending widthwise of said mat and having a length sufficient to permit one end thereof to be folded over said folded mat and joined to the other end of said sheet to envelope said folded mat, and manual pull means along said sheet.

Claim 17

The mat of claim 7 on a floor in its fully folded condition about said second set of fold axes in which all of said sections Sa1, Sa2, Sa4, Sa6 . . . Sa(m-2), Sam and Sb1, Sb2, Sb4, Sb6 . . . Sb(n-2), Sbn are disposed one above the other in face-to-face stacked relation substantially parallel to the floor with said sections Sa3, Sa5, Sa7 . . . Sa(m-1), Sb3, Sb5, Sb7 . . . Sb(n-1) and Sc disposed generally vertically at the ends thereof, in combination with a drag sheet of flexible material disposed between said folded mat and the floor and having a friction reducing undersurface, said sheet extending widthwise of said mat and having a length sufficient to permit one end thereof to be folded over said folded mat and joined to the other end of said sheet to envelope said folded mat, and manual pull means along said sheet.