Patent Application
20200031430
The present disclosure generally relates to water vessels, and more particularly, to a multiple hull folding boat design.
A variety of collapsible boats exist in the marketplace today. These boats function in a manner similar to boats of rigid construction but can be reduced in size to be portable and facilitate transportation or storage when not in use. There are three primary types of collapsible folding boats; of course, there are a wide range of variations within each type, and also overlap between the various types. One type of collapsible boat can be inflated with air from a flat state to a fully-inflated state. These types of boats can be made of various materials and have one or more air chambers their primary means to provide on-the-water flotation and stability. Another type of collapsible boat can be assembled from one or more rigid pieces, which when placed together, form an entire floatable and stable boat. Yet another type of collapsible boat can be unfolded from a flattened state to form a safe and stable floatable boat. With the right accessories or attachments, all three types of boats can be used as rowboat, sailboat or motorboat.
The present application provides a new type of collapsible boat: a multiple hull folding boat design. The boat design disclosed herein includes multiple folding hulls combined in such a way to form a floatable and stable boat for use on water. The disclosed boat design can include a combination of inflatable, rigid and folding components to be used in its assembly.
In one aspect, the disclosed portable multiple hull folding boat design can be separated to form individual collapsible folding boats. These collapsible folding boats can also include a combination of inflatable, rigid and folding components in their assembly.
In another aspect, the disclosed portable multiple hull folding boat design can include a floor assembly constructed to provide a dry surface as the floor of the boat. In addition, one or more longitudinal seats can be provided to allow lateral seating for fishing and other activities on the boat.
The features and advantages of the disclosed portable multiple hull folding boat design will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the description of the embodiments that follows.
The present disclosure, in accordance with one or more various embodiments, is described in detail with reference to the following figures. The drawings are provided for purposes of illustration only and merely depict exemplary embodiments of the disclosure. These drawings are provided to facilitate the reader's understanding of the disclosure and should not be considered limiting of the breadth, scope, size, or applicability of the disclosure. It should be noted that for clarity and ease of illustration these drawings are not necessarily made to scale.
The following description is presented to enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to make and use embodiments described herein. Descriptions of specific devices, techniques, and applications are provided only as examples. Various modifications to the examples described herein will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other examples and applications without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example illustration.” Any aspect or design described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects or designs. The embodiments shown are for illustrative purposes only; other implementations are envisioned and within the scope of this disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the examples described herein and shown but is to be accorded the scope consistent with the claims.
As presented in the disclosed figures, the portable multiple hull folding boat includes two or more hulls that are held in fixed position relative to each other, either by being directly attached or fastened together, or spaced apart and held in place through use of structural members. The multiple hulls can be held in position with similar or dissimilar orientations, as can be desired to achieve desired stability, performance or other characteristics.
In embodiments using direct connection of two or more hulls, the hulls can be connected together along a certain length approximately in the center of the boat, as measured front to back. In other embodiments, the hulls can be attached further forward or backward, with varying length of attachment or even multiple points or lengths of attachment.
In embodiments using two or more hulls spaced apart. multiple structural members can be used to hold the hulls open and in place. The structural members used can vary in number, size, shape or orientation and are limited only by what can be necessary to maintain the hulls in the open position and in their desired placement. The structural members can be constructed in any size or shape, and of any material sufficiently rigid and strong enough to achieve and maintain the shape of the boat in the open position.
Attachment of multiple hulls together can be via direct attachment of the hulls at one or more points, or via the use of structural members at one or more points on the hulls. The structural members can be attached to the hulls in any way that can be desired, using separate bolt-and-nut arrangements, snap-in or tie-down configurations, through-hull insertions or any other means by which the structural members can be attached to the hulls. The structural members can themselves also serve as seats to persons in the boat.
In other embodiments, a combination of direct attachment of the hulls and the use of structural members can be used to provide the desired boat stability and performance in the open position.
The hulls can be similar or dissimilar in shape, size and construction. The hulls can be constructed of a rigid material, such as metal, wood or any other suitable material with the sufficient flexibility as necessary to allow opening and closing of the boat, or they can be made of a semi-rigid or more flexible material such as plastic or other synthetic or natural material having sufficient flexibility as necessary to allow opening and closing of the boat. In other embodiments, the hulls can be constructed of a rigid or of a semi-rigid or flexible material, wherein the hulls are foldable and/or attachable and detachable through a hinge mechanism.
In the disclosed figures. the hulls are shown as opening in a v-shaped configuration opening from the bottom outwards. An outward folding to open the hull can be facilitated by a longitudinal connection of two sides of hull material along the bottom of the hull shape or can be made possible by a material that is foldable at or near the bottom of the hull. The disclosed portable multiple hull folding boat is not limited to the use of a v-shaped or even the joining of only two pieces of material to form the individual hulls. It is envisioned that the hull can also be made of three or more pieces and provide an open or closed position in other shapes as afforded by the individual hull designs.
The hulls forming the portable multiple hull folding boat can also be split into separate collapsible folding boats, facilitated either by stable hull design to allow individual floatation, or by the use of one or more pontoons or flotation devices attached to the hull to afford the necessary stability for use as an individual boat.
Propulsion of the portable multiple hull folding boat across the surface of the water can be accomplished just as it would be for any other type of boat. For example, oarlocks can be provided to facilitate rowing of the boat, or an outboard motor can be attached to one or more of the structural members to facilitate powered movement of the boat, or a sailing mast can be added to use wind power for movement of the boat.
Accordingly,
In some embodiments, the two or more hulls can be detachable from each other for easy carrying and transportation. Attachment and detachment of the hulls may be by any mechanism known in the art including but not limited to snaps, clips, bolts, or other fasteners and mechanisms.
In the disclosed embodiments, the seats can be arranged in either a latitudinal or longitudinal configuration, or combination of both. Any number of latitudinal or longitudinal seats can be used, for example, each independently may be absent, or present in a combination of 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 seats.
The V-shaped portable multiple hull folding boat as depicted in the disclosed figures facilitates the addition of protected and/or enclosed storage spaces, especially in the forward and rear portions of the hull. For example, a vertical member to fit the vertical outline of the open hull near either end of the boat can form a vertical barrier, which when attached to a horizontal member shaped to fit in the space forward or rearward of that vertical barrier, can form a closed space that will resist splashing of water into that space.
In the embodiments shown, the floor inserted into the bottom section of the hulls provide an essentially horizontal surface along all or part of the boat. This floor can be constructed of any combination of inflatable, semi-rigid or rigid material. Additionally, one or more floatation members or other structural elements can be used to provide support or storage when placed beneath the floor.
While the inventive features have been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those in the art that the foregoing and other changes may be made therein without departing from the sprit and the scope of the disclosure. Likewise, the various diagrams may depict an example architectural or other configuration for the disclosure, which is done to aid in understanding the features and functionality that can be included in the disclosure. The disclosure is not restricted to the illustrated example architectures or configurations but can be implemented using a variety of alternative architectures and configurations. Additionally, although the disclosure is described above in terms of various exemplary embodiments and implementations, it should be understood that the various features and functionality described in one or more of the individual embodiments are not limited in their applicability to the particular embodiment with which they are described. They instead can be applied alone or in some combination, to one or more of the other embodiments of the disclosure, whether or not such embodiments are described, and whether or not such features are presented as being a part of a described embodiment. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present disclosure should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments.
