Patent Application
20140261145
The subject invention relates to telescoping ladders capable of being removably attached to boats and also collapsible for storage.
Telescoping boat ladders, in general, are well known in the field. Telescoping side rails allow such ladders to be stored compactly on a boat, where space is a premium, and extend to allow passengers to climb on and off the boat. The side rails are generally formed with rungs connecting laterally spaced rails that are progressively larger as they are oriented from the bottom rung. The rails are collapsible into one another.
Despite incorporating telescoping side rails, extendable boat ladders often remain cumbersome to store, require permanent attachment to boats, or do not provide secure footing for users as they move from the interior of the boat onto the rungs of the ladder. It would be desirable to provide a boat ladder that features telescoping side rails, incorporates a means for increasing user stability, and easily and removably attaches to the boat.
The object of this invention is to overcome disadvantages of the known prior art by providing a telescoping boat ladder that incorporates a means for providing a stable tread at the top of the ladder, that easily and removably attaches to a boat using the boat's pre-existing hand rails, and that folds compactly for storage. The design allows for the ladder to be used on either side of the boat, which is an advantage over permanently installed ladders as conditions are not always ideal for entering and exiting on both sides of a boat.
Preferred embodiments of this invention are sufficiently rigid that they do not require support at the bottom of the extended ladder. In a preferred embodiment, the invention also does not require a stand off to keep the ladder in a vertical orientation to allow space behind the ladder rungs for a user's toes.
These and other objects, features, and advantages are accomplished according to the subject invention by providing a telescoping ladder that may be deployed across the bow or gunwale of a boat and that incorporates a top platform. The ladder assembly is formed with telescoping ladder sections able to be collapsed into a stored position with the rungs adjacent each other. The ladder assembly is mounted to a base assembly, which comprises a platform, a means for engagement with a boat hand rail, and a means for providing a maximum angle at which the ladder assembly may be deployed. Other components may also be incorporated.
As may be seen in an embodiment of the present invention depicted in
In the embodiment of the present invention depicted in
The base assembly 20 comprises two side sections 22, 22′, and a base rung 28. Side sections 22, 22′, are parallel to one another and are connected at their respective lower ends to base rung 28. In one embodiment, as shown in
The base assembly 20 is hingedly connected to the ladder assembly 40. In the preferred embodiment, as most clearly shown in
The base assembly 20 further comprises a top platform 30. The top platform 30 is connected to the side sections 22, 22′, and is dimensioned and manufactured such that it can support the weight of a user climbing into and out of a boat. The top platform 30 may further comprise a tread 32 to decrease the incidence of slipping by users of the ladder 10. It is contemplated that one side of the top platform 30 will lie snugly against the top of the boat's bow or gunwale 110 and will be made of a material that will not damage the boat body, such as fiberglass, rubber, or plastic, or if made of a material or formed in a manner that otherwise would be likely to damage the boat, that the top platform 30 will further comprise padding on the side opposite the tread 32, in the location that will engage the boat body. An example of the inventive ladder with its top platform 30 resting against a boat gunwale 110 can be seen in
The base assembly 20 further comprises a connector 24 for engaging the ladder 10 to a boat rail. In the depicted embodiment, the connector 24 is a channel connector, comprising a structure extending the full distance between the side sections 22, 22′, of the base assembly 20, formed as a substantially rigid channel having holding tabs 25, 25′, which in the depicted embodiment are the sides of the channel. When in use, the connector 24 engages with the boat handrail 120, and is prevented from sliding off that rail by the holding tabs 25, 25′. A partial view of a boat 100 with an embodiment of the inventive ladder engaged to a boat hand rail 120, as preferred, is shown in
Although the connector 24 preferably is formed as a channel with holding tabs comprising the sides thereof and extending for substantially the full length thereof, it is not necessary that the holding tabs extend the full length of channel connector 24 on either or both sides, and there could be different numbers and sizes of holding tabs. Alternatively, other connectors such as a crossbar running between side sections 22, 22′, and with hooks or carabiners attached thereto could be used.
The side sections 22, 22′, and various components of the top platform 30 may be manufactured as one piece or separately. As shown in
At their bottom ends, the side sections 22, 22′, are connected by hinge bolts 26, 26′, to a base rung 28. The hinge bolts 26, 26′, connect the base assembly 20 to the ladder assembly 40 such that a user may cause the side rails 42, 42′, to fold to lie adjacent to the side sections 22, 22′, or to open away from the base assembly 20.
The base assembly 20 also further comprises a means for providing a maximum angle at which the ladder assembly 40 may be opened away from the base assembly 20. In the embodiment depicted as shown in detail in
The ladder assembly 40 comprises a conventional design in that the side rails 42, 42′, are each comprised of a plurality of segments with increasingly smaller diameter, each of which is telescopically received within the segment above it. A plurality of rungs 44, 46, 48, span the corresponding side rail segments and are formed to collapse into a position in which the rungs 44, 46, 48, are positioned adjacent one another as depicted in
The inventive boat ladder 10 is highly compact when fully collapsed as shown in
The inventive ladder 10 may be made with various additional features. One such feature may be handrails, which may collapse or fold into ladder to maintain its compact size when collapsed. The ladder 10 may also comprise a means to secure the ladder rungs 44, 46, 48, such as tie downs or a locking mechanism, so that they may not be deployed unintentionally. A bungee ball cord 60, which would serve this purpose, is shown in
The structural components of the inventive ladder 10 should preferably be manufactured from one or more materials that are substantially rigid, will withstand repeated exposure to water, and are strong enough to withstand the weight of anticipated users, typically several hundred pounds. The main structural components of boat ladders are typically made of stainless steel for its durability and light weight, and this would be an appropriate material for the principal structural components of the inventive ladder 10, such as the side sections 22, 22′, top section 23, base rung 28, and ladder assembly 40, as well. Aluminum is another option.
The foregoing details are exemplary only. Other modifications or additions that might be contemplated by those of skill in the art are within the scope of this invention, and are not limited by the examples illustrated herein.
