Recoiling energy absorbing system

1. A recoiling energy absorbing system comprising

an impact-receiving outer shell that is exposed to percussive impact, the outer shell being selected from the group consisting of floors, walls or ceilings above or surrounding a playing surface, an ice rink, a hockey arena, a roller blading rink, a gymnasium, a basketball court, a tennis court, a wall, a racquetball or squash court, a soccer field, a football or hockey or lacrosse field, a baseball field, artificial turf, a military blast mat, industrial flooring for industrial, retail or domestic home use, and an automotive application,

a single absorbing layer positioned between the outer shell and a continuous planar lower reaction surface, the layer having

one or more thermoplastic formed energy absorbing modules, at least some of the modules being provided with a connection means,

one or more frustoconical energy absorbing units that extend from an upper basal layer that lies laterally between and separates adjacent energy-absorbing units and is juxtaposed with the outer shell, at least some of the one or more energy absorbing units being provided with

a flexible curvilinear wall that extends from the upper basal layer convergingly away from the outer shell towards a lower basal layer that defines an end of the associated frustoconical energy absorbing unit and is juxtaposed with the continuous planar lower reaction surface so that in response to normally oriented or oblique impacting forces substantially an entire portion of the lower basal layer remains in contact with the lower reaction surface, each lower basal layer being the terminal end of the curvilinear flexible wall;

the one or more energy absorbing units at least partially absorbing energy generated by an impacting object by the flexible wall bending inwardly or outwardly without rupture and recoiling non-destructively after impact to or towards an undeflected configuration.

2. The recoiling energy absorbing system of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the upper basal layer and the lower basal layer is provided with a plurality of apertures (X) for drainage that lie respectively in the planes of the upper basal layer and the lower basal layer, where 1≦X≦1000.

3. The recoiling energy absorbing system of claim 1 , wherein at least one flexible wall has a number (Y) of breaches comprising slits or slots or combinations thereof there within, where 1≦Y≦1000, the breaches being defined in an intermediate position of the associated wall or substantially entirely between an upper and lower periphery thereof.

4. An energy absorbing subfloor system comprising:

a single energy absorbing layer disposed between a continuous planar lower reaction surface and an upper impact-receiving surface, the energy absorbing layer having

a number (N) of aligned, interconnected lower basal layers adjacent to the planar lower reaction surface so that in response to oblique or normally oriented impacting forces the lower basal layers remain in contact with the continuous lower reaction surface, each lower basal layer being the terminal end of a frustoconical energy absorbing unit having a curvilinear flexible wall that rises divergingly outwardly from the lower basal layer towards the upper impact-receiving surface;

each energy absorbing unit lying between a lower basal layer and the upper impact-receiving surface, each energy absorbing unit having

an upper platform that lies between and laterally separates adjacent energy-absorbing units for supporting the upper impact surface, and

wherein one or more of the energy absorbing units at least partially absorb energy generated by an object impacting the upper impact-receiving surface by the flexible wall bending to a deflected position and recoiling after impact to an undeflected position.

5. The energy absorbing subfloor system of claim 4 , wherein at least one of the upper platform and lower basal layer defines an irrigation aperture that lies in the plane of at least one of the upper platform and lower basal layer.

6. The energy absorbing subfloor system of claim 4 , wherein N is greater than 1.