Reinforced plastic pallets

Claim 1

A reinforced plastic pallet comprising: a) an upper deck formed of a plastic material having a first coefficient of thermal expansion, the upper deck having an upper surface, a lower surface, a front edge, a back edge substantially parallel to the front edge, first and second side edges which are substantially parallel to one another and a plurality of legs extending substantially perpendicularly downward from the lower surface; b) a lower deck formed of a plastic material having substantially the first coefficient of thermal expansion, the lower deck having an upper surface, a lower surface, a front edge, a back edge substantially parallel to the front edge, first and second side edges which are substantially parallel to one another and a plurality of sockets sized and positioned to mate with the legs extending from the upper deck; the lower deck further including a plurality of channels formed in its upper surface; and c) a plurality of reinforcing elements having a second coefficient of thermal expansion different from the first degree of expansion, wherein each channel contains a reinforcing element, and further wherein at least one reinforcing element is capable of lateral movement within its channel independent of and relative to the upper and lower decks due to the different first and second coefficients of thermal expansion to minimize stress forces on the pallet.