Patent Application
20170320552
N/A
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for use on a boat to cause the boat to generate a taller wake. More particularly, the apparatus of the present invention can be installed on virtually any standard outboard or inboard/outboard sterndrive motor boat to cause the motor boat to produce a surf wake.
Wakesurfing, or surfing on the wake produced by a boat, has recently become a popular sport. While wakesurfing, the rider trails behind the boat riding the wake without being pulled directly by the boat. Because the rider is not pulled by the boat, he or she must typically be in close proximity to the boat (typically between 8 and 10 feet from the boat) where the wake is sufficiently steep to propel the rider forward.
Because the rider is so close to the boat, it is typically not recommended to wakesurf behind an outboard or an inboard/outboard boat since the propeller on such boats is exposed. However, various propeller guards have been created to prevent the rider from coming in contact with the propeller. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,098,321 and 6,159,062. Propeller shields have also been developed to provide additional safety and protection from unintended contact with the propeller. An example of a propeller shield that can be employed on an outboard or an inboard/outboard boat is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,257,121 (the '121 Patent).
Propeller shield 10 includes a shield member 15 that is shaped and sized to overlap a propeller guard 25 that extends around propeller 100. Therefore, shield member 15 will contact propeller guard 25 to prevent propeller shield 10 from contacting propeller 100. Shield member 15 can include a number of openings 30 which will allow some water to flow through shield member 15 so that propeller shield 10 will only pivot upwardly when the boat moves at a sufficient speed in the forward direction. Openings 30 can also minimize the impact of having propeller shield 10 overtop propeller 100 when the boat is moving in reverse.
In
The combination of propeller shield 10 and propeller guard 25 can substantially eliminate the likelihood that a rider will come in contact with propeller 100. Accordingly, by employing propeller shield 10 in conjunction with propeller guard 25, an outboard boat can potentially be used for wakesurfing. However, even with a propeller shield to protect the rider from the propeller, many motor boats will still not be suitable for wakesurfing—at least without modifications.
To produce a suitable wake, it is desirable to have as much weight as possible towards the rear of the boat. Also, because only one side of the wake will be surfed, it is also desirable to weight one side of the boat more than the other so that the boat will ride somewhat on its side thereby producing a larger wake on that side. Various techniques have been employed to weight typical motor boats to cause them to produce suitable wakes. However, these techniques can be expensive and/or dangerous. In particular, because the boat is heavily weighted at the rear on one side, the weighted side will sit lower in the water than the rest of the boat. A weighted boat will therefore be much more likely to take on water and even sink or overturn.
Therefore, to be able to wakesurf in a safe manner, it is typically required to invest in a specialized boat that is specifically configured to produce a surfable wake. However, few if any options exist for modifying a standard outboard or inboard/outboard sterndrive motor boat to safely produce a surfable wake.
The present invention extends generally to a boat propeller apparatus that can be coupled to virtually any motor boat to cause the boat to safely and efficiently produce a surfable wake. The boat propeller apparatus of the present invention can be configured to mount to the boat's motor (or to another structure of the boat) in a way that causes the apparatus to be positioned and secured behind but spaced from the propeller while the boat is moving forward. The apparatus will therefore be in the path of the propelled water and will function to divert the propelled water in such a way as to create a larger/taller wake than would otherwise be produced by the boat.
The boat propeller apparatus of the present invention can also function as a propeller shield and be used in conjunction with a propeller guard. When the propeller apparatus is used in conjunction with a propeller guard, the propeller guard can funnel water towards the apparatus thereby increasing the amount of water that is diverted around the apparatus and enhancing the size of the wake.
In one embodiment, a propeller apparatus for enhancing the size of the wake produced by a motor boat can comprise a propeller shield that is sized and shaped to cover a distal face of a boat propeller; a connection mechanism that couples the propeller shield to the boat via a pivoting connection thereby allowing the propeller shield to pivot between a shielded position in which the propeller shield covers the distal face of the boat propeller and a raised position in which the propeller shield rides at or on the surface of the water; wings which extend outwardly from opposing sides of the propeller shield; and a connecting member for retaining the propeller shield in a plow position, the plow position being between the shielded position and the raised position such that propeller shield remains behind and substantially inline with the propeller.
In another embodiment, a propeller apparatus for enhancing the size of the wake produced by a motor boat can comprise: a propeller guard that is configured to extend around a boat propeller; a propeller shield that is sized and shaped to overlap the propeller guard; a connection mechanism that couples the propeller shield to the boat via a pivoting connection thereby allowing the propeller shield to pivot between a shielded position in which the propeller shield is adjacent the propeller guard and a raised position in which the propeller shield rides at or on the surface of the water; wings which extend outwardly from opposing sides of the propeller shield; and a connecting member for retaining the propeller shield in a plow position, the plow position being between the shielded position and the raised position such that propeller shield remains behind and substantially inline with the propeller.
In another embodiment, a propeller apparatus for enhancing the size of the wake produced by a motor boat can comprise: a propeller shield that is sized and shaped to cover a distal face of a boat propeller; a connection mechanism that couples the propeller shield to the boat via a pivoting connection thereby allowing the propeller shield to pivot between a shielded position in which the propeller shield covers the distal face of the boat propeller and a raised position in which the propeller shield rides at or on the surface of the water; wings which extend outwardly from opposing sides of the propeller shield; and a connecting member that is configured to selectively limit the upward pivoting of the propeller shield to thereby retain the propeller shield in a plow position in which the propeller shield is spaced from but inline with the propeller.
These features and advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter.
In order that the manner in which the above-recited and other features and advantages of the invention are obtained and will be readily understood, a more particular description of the invention briefly described above will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof that are illustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be considered to be limiting of its scope, the invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings in which:
Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment,” “in an embodiment,” and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment.
Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics of the invention may be combined in any suitable manner and in one or more embodiments. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided, such as examples of suitable propeller shields, components, materials, apparatus, processes, methods, etc., to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the invention. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that the invention may be practiced without one or more of the specific details or methods, or with other methods, components, characteristics, materials, and so forth. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of the invention.
The embodiments of the present invention will be best understood by reference to the drawings, wherein like parts are designated by like numerals throughout. It will be readily understood that the components of the present invention, as generally described and illustrated in the Figures herein, could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following more detailed description of the embodiments of the propeller apparatus as represented in
In normal operation, propeller apparatus 210 can be allowed to freely pivot between the lowered and raised positions shown in
In addition to functioning as a propeller shield, propeller apparatus 210 can also function as a wake enhancer to enable virtually any type of outboard or inboard/outboard sterndrive motor boat to produce a surfable wake. To enhance the wake, propeller apparatus 210 can be maintained in a lowered (or “plow”) position while the boat moves forward such that propeller shield 215 remains substantially behind propeller 100. Therefore, water passing through propeller 100 will be directed against propeller shield 215. Propeller shield 215 can include openings, including a larger central opening 230a and a number of smaller openings 230b around central opening 230a, which will allow some water to pass through propeller shield 215.
Propeller apparatus 210 includes wings 250a and 250b which extend outwardly and rearwardly from propeller shield 215. Wings 250a and 250b provide a surface area for diverting water around propeller apparatus 210 as the boat moves in a forward direction. The outward and rearward shape of wings 250a and 250b can facilitate the diversion or redirection of the water without unduly increasing drag. Although the physics behind the invention are not fully understood at this time, it is believed that by positioning propeller apparatus 210 directly behind propeller 100 with wings 250a and 250b extending outwardly beyond propeller 100, a similar effect is achieved as if the boat had been weighted to cause it to sit lower in the water. As mentioned above, in conventional wake surf boats, the lower the rear of the boat sits in the water, the higher the wake that will be produced. However, the propeller apparatus of the present invention has been found to produce a taller or higher wake (such as is shown in
Because a large amount of force will be applied against wings 250a and 250b while the boat is moving, a reinforcing bar 251 may be coupled to and extend between wings 250a and 250b. Reinforcing bar 251 can restrict any relative rearward movement of wings 250a and 250b with respect to propeller shield 215. As mentioned above, reinforcing bar 220a can be coupled to and extend between the parallel bars of connection mechanism 220 to provide additional reinforcement to connection mechanism 220 when propeller apparatus 210 is used in the plow position to enhance the wake.
As described above, propeller apparatus 210 can be configured to function as a propeller shield that pivots upwardly to ride on or at the surface of the water when it is not desired to enhance the wake. In contrast, once it is desired to enhance the wake, propeller apparatus 210 can be prevented from pivoting fully upwardly so that propeller shield 215 remains substantially behind propeller 100. Various mechanisms can be employed to secure propeller shield 215 in this “plow” position.
As shown in
The length of connecting member 254 that extends between connecting structures 253 and 255 can be configured to ensure that propeller shield 215 will remain behind (or inline with) propeller 100 even when the boat is moving forward at higher speeds. In other words, connecting member 254 can have a length that causes propeller shield 215 to remain in the plow position during forward movement of the boat.
By retaining propeller shield 215 in this plow position, water propelled by propeller 100 will be directed against and around propeller shield 215 and wings 250a and 250b resulting in the creation of a taller or higher wake. Allowing propeller shield 215 to pivot slightly (e.g., between 5 and 10 inches at the connecting structure 253) into the plow position can ensure that propeller apparatus 210 does not produce too much drag. As is best seen in
Accordingly, propeller apparatus 210 can be selectively used as only a propeller shield or as both a propeller shield and a wake enhancer by simply coupling connecting member 254 between connecting structures 253 and 255 when it is desired to enhance the wake. Of course, the use of connecting member 254 is only one example of how propeller shield 215 can be retained in the plow position. Other mechanisms may equally be employed. For example, connection mechanism 220 could be coupled to motor 200 or another portion of the boat via a hydraulic or other type of actuator that would allow propeller shield 215 to be retained in the plow position when desired. Alternatively, an adjustable structure may be positionable above connection mechanism 220 to limit the extent to which propeller apparatus can pivot upwardly. It is noted, however, that a primary benefit of coupling connecting member 254 between bracket 225a and reinforcing member 252 is that propeller shield 215 will be restrained at the location where the rearward force will be greatest (i.e., at the bottom edge of propeller shield 215). Therefore, connecting member 254 will facilitate reinforcing and retaining propeller shield 215 at this location (e.g., to minimize the likelihood that propeller shield 215 will become bent). It is also noted that the use of reinforcing bar 251 will reinforce wings 250a and 250b at their edges where the rearward force will be greatest.
It is further noted that, in some embodiments, propeller apparatus 210 could be used without propeller guard 225 (e.g., in conjunction with other structural or mechanical features that would prevent propeller shield 215 from contacting propeller 100). However, combining propeller guard 225 with propeller apparatus 210 has proven to increase the enhancement of the wake caused by propeller apparatus 210. It is believed that this is due to propeller guard 225 funneling water towards propeller shield 215 to thereby increase the amount of water that is diverted around wings 250a and 250b.
While specific embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described, numerous modifications come to mind without significantly departing from the spirit of the invention, and the scope of protection is only limited by the scope of the accompanying claims and not by any of the aforementioned embodiments or examples.
