US4964751A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Duckboard
Assignee: Handbury Ltd
•
Filing: 1988-04-08
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Granted: 1990-10-23
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Expires: 2008-04-08
Abstract
Abstract A duckboard comprising a succession of treads (11) linked so as to rest, in use, in generally parallel non-co-axial corresponding-end-alignment along the ground or other surface on which the board is placed: and characterized by the features, firstly that the board is flexible enough to be rolled end-to-end; secondly, that it is light enough to be relatively portable; and thirdly, that the means (12) linking the treads (11) are resilient enough and/or rigid enough to tend to maintain the parallelism and the end-alignment of the treads (11) in use.
Inventors
- 👤 Christopher C. Rope
- 👤 Pamela A. Rope
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-06 11:15
CPC Classifications
E; E01; E01C; E01C9/00; E01C9/08; E01C9/086
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 16
Claim 1
Independent Claim
190 words
A duckboard comprising a plurality of elongate tread members substantially rectangular in plan, and including a ground engaging surface and a non-ground engaging surface, said tread members each having connection means adjacent the ends of opposing side edges of the non-ground engaging surfaces, a plurality of connecting strips for connecting pairs of tread members, said strips being flexible along their thin dimension and rigid along their width, means on the ends of each strip for removably securing the same to said connection means on adjacent tread members to hold a plurality of said tread members in parallel fixed relation and spaced apart by the length of said strips and with the ends of said tread members being aligned, whereby, in use, the treads rest on a surface on which the board is placed with the non-ground engaging surfaces of the treads maintained substantially parallel and uniformly spaced by said strips, said duckboard having sufficient flexibility to be rolled end-to-end, being light enough to be hand carried, and the length of the duckboard being readily extended or shortened in situ by the addition or removal of tread members and connecting strips.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
190 words
A duckboard comprising a plurality of elongate tread members substantially rectangular in plan, and including a ground engaging surface and a non-ground engaging surface, said tread members each having connection means adjacent the ends of opposing side edges of the non-ground engaging surfaces, a plurality of connecting strips for connecting pairs of tread members, said strips being flexible along their thin dimension and rigid along their width, means on the ends of each strip for removably securing the same to said connection means on adjacent tread members to hold a plurality of said tread members in parallel fixed relation and spaced apart by the length of said strips and with the ends of said tread members being aligned, whereby, in use, the treads rest on a surface on which the board is placed with the non-ground engaging surfaces of the treads maintained substantially parallel and uniformly spaced by said strips, said duckboard having sufficient flexibility to be rolled end-to-end, being light enough to be hand carried, and the length of the duckboard being readily extended or shortened in situ by the addition or removal of tread members and connecting strips.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
21 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which said tread members are of a light-weight molded or formed thermoplastic material.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
24 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 2, in which said tread members have a molded or formed thermoplastic shell filled with cellular plastic material.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
20 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which said tread members are substantially rectangular in cross-section with rounded ends.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
18 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which the ground-engaging surface of said tread members is ribbed.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
18 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which the non-ground-engaging surface of said tread members is coarse.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
22 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which said tread members are corrugated, with squared corrugations, providing a ribbed, ground-engaging surface.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
35 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which said tread members have connection means on opposing end edges of the non-ground engaging surface for connection in side-to-side relation by some of said connecting strips.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
59 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which said tread members are corrugated, with square corrugations, providing a ribbed, ground-engaging surface, and said tread members have a rectangular recesses on opposing side and end edges of the non-ground engaging surface of said corrugations for connection both in parallel and in side-to-side relation by some or said connecting strips.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
28 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which at least one of said tread members has a tapered aperture therethrough and a tapered ground-penetrating peg positioned therein.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
32 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which said strip-securing means comprises a snap-fitting member on the end of each strip and a snap recess in each of said rectangular recesses.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
52 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 11, in which said snap-fitting member comprises a snap-in ball supported on said connecting strip by a stalk, and each snap recesses includes a bore through which the snap-in ball passes, in which the cross-section of the stalk is smaller than the cross-section of said bore.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
23 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 12, in which said stalk has a length which is longer than the depth of said bore.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
24 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 12, in which said bored is a tapered hole to tend to retain said snap-in ball in place.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
73 words
A duckboard in accordance with claim 1, in which said tread members each having rectangular recesses adjacent the ends of opposing side edges of the non-ground engaging surfaces constituting said connection means, securing means on the ends of each strip securing the same in said rectangular recesses of adjacent tread members to hold a plurality of said tread members in parallel, fixed spaced relation with the ends of said tread members being aligned.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1993-10-22 | 1994-04-23 | 1994-10-23 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1997-10-22 | 1998-04-23 | 1998-10-23 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2001-10-22 | 2002-04-23 | 2002-10-23 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |