Patent Application
20060070567
This invention relates to the sport of water skiing, and more specifically to storage systems for water ski equipment.
A variety of ski locking devices have been proposed in the past; most for use on snow skis. One set of these proposed devices are those that lock two skis together in such a way as to make them difficult to carry, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,598,561. Another set of proposed devices require a bracket to be placed on the ski for purposes of locking, for example, U.S. patents U.S. Pat. No. 4,057,984 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,231,586. When one has spent a large amount on the purchase of a water ski, it may not be desirable to make such drastic modifications. A third set of proposed devices are those which are carriers for a single pair of skis, with a locking attachment, generally a cable to lock it to some structure. Examples of these systems are U.S. patents U.S. Pat. No. 3,990,655 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,312,532. Further inventions make use of the ski pole as a key part of the system, such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,762. All of the above, though they accomplish the goal of locking skis, are quite different from the present invention in both method of locking, portability of locked skis, and quantity of skis that can be handled.
U.S. patents U.S. Pat. No. 4,438,878 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,720,031 are more similar to the present invention in that they describe systems to lock multiple pairs of skis. However, these are both systems specifically for carrying skis on top of automobiles. Their construction features and locking mechanisms are designed to accommodate snow skis and automotive mounting only.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,494,805 describes a system which locks skis to a fixed locker building. However, it describes individual locks for each pair of skis, rather than a single locking mechanism to lock multiple sets of skis.
Both U.S. Pat. No. 4,494,805 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,720,031 handle pairs of skis in a back-to-back fashion, which is unsuitable for water-ski use, as the fin protruding from the bottom of the water-ski interferes with handling the skis in this manner. Furthermore, water-skis are often not purchased or used in pairs, as slalom water-skiers prefer to ski with a single ski.
The ski locking mechanisms noted above are not readily adapted for water ski use, due to the different physical characteristics of the water ski from the snow ski, and due to differing patterns of usage.
A particular segment of the water skiing population uses a boat which is left on the water for the entire water ski season, with the boat typically stored on a boat lift with a canopy covering the lift and boat to protect the boat from the weather. For these water skiers, there are currently limited options for storage of water skis when not in use.
It is preferred to have the water skis stored near the boat, to avoid the labor of carrying them to the boat when they are needed. However, skis left on the floor of a boat obstruct movement around the boat, and so are often not desired in the boat when they are not going to be used. Further, a boat lift on a lake is generally very vulnerable to theft of loose items. Water skis are easily carried and can have a significant value, so they are potential theft targets, and it is preferred to keep them locked up.
Some skis may be stored within locking compartments within the boat. While this option provides the advantage of having the skis stored at their point of use, it is limited in that the skis are stored in a closed chamber, where there is a danger of the skis not properly drying after use. Further, boats have limited locking storage space, and many boats have no locking storage space, so many skiers have a need to store more skis than will fit within the locking storage space within the boat.
Another popular solution is to locate a locking storage building near the lake for storage of water sports equipment. While this offers welcome security, procurement of such a structure is a significant expense. Further steps must be taken to control humidity within such a building to prevent growth of mold and mildew on the water sports equipment. Additionally, the water skis must still be carried to the boat when they are needed.
The cost and humidity issues of the solution above lead many to store their water skis in their houses or garages, which provides a secure and dry environment for storage, but presents the greatest inconvenience for usage. A water skiing family might have two sizes of children's skis, a set of adult combo skis, and one or more slalom skis, which requires a fair amount of work to transport to the boat.
Storage lockers are commercially available. Some of these are constructed of a steel mesh which would allow objects within to dry. However, to acquire enough space to contain 7 or 8 skis would require a very large, and very heavy, locker. Finding room for this on the dock could be a problem. Further, it is not as convenient as having the skis available right inside of the boat lift.
The present invention, as described in the following sections, addresses some of the storage needs and issues identified above.
Some of the shortcomings of the prior art are addressed in the present invention, which relates to an apparatus for locking storage of water skis which is suitable for installation beneath a boat lift canopy. A variation on this apparatus is suitable for locking storage of other boating equipment, such as life jackets and tow ropes.
The locking feature of the present invention is accomplished through means of a third transverse member, called a locking bar, as shown in
The present invention allows water skis to be stored inside of the boat lift, removing the problem of carrying skis to and from the boat. The skis are in open air, where they will properly dry, preventing mildew problems. Further, the skis can be securely locked to guard against theft. This locking is accomplished with a very simple mechanism which does not require any modification to the skis, and which can accommodate virtually any ski on the market.
A single transverse member may be modified to utilize a locking mechanism at one end. In this form, the present invention may be used to store other boating equipment, as illustrated in
These advantages and others are more fully described in the following detailed description of the invention.
A key goal of this invention is to provide locking storage within a boat lift, to allow for both ease of accessibility and an open-air atmosphere conducive to allowing skis and equipment to dry after use. For this reason, the first portion of the description concerns the location of the device relative to the boat and boat lift.
To further establish the positioning of the ski storage rack,
Now that the ski rack position has been established, a more detailed description of the hardware features follows.
To this point in the description, mounting details of the ski rack within the boat lift have not been described. There are many possible methods of mounting this ski rack within a boat lift which are well known to those skilled in the art. This section will describe the preferred embodiment, though many variations are anticipated by this invention.
Boat lift canopies are generally made of a canvas-like material, and are supported by a framework of ribs. A front elevation view of this rib framework is shown in
Referring now to
The preceding text is a detailed description of the locking water ski storage rack. A variation on this invention may be used as a locking equipment rack. This equipment rack may be similarly placed within a boat lift canopy to achieve the same benefits of convenient access, air drying, and theft prevention. It has the limitation of locking only equipment which has a sizeable and permanent hole, as described in the following paragraphs.
A single transverse member of the water ski storage rack may be modified slightly to allow locking storage of certain types of boating equipment.
The lock 1102 may be removed for loading and unloading equipment. Once loading is completed, fastening lock 1102 both raises the equipment up under the canopy, and secures it against theft.
This invention has been described herein in considerable detail in order to comply with the patent statutes and to provide those skilled in the art with the information needed to apply the novel principles and to construct and use such specialized components as are required. However, it is to be understood that the invention can be carried out by specifically different equipment and devices, and that various modifications, both as to the equipment and operating procedures, can be accomplished without departing from the scope of the invention itself.
