Patent Application
20080202852
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The present invention relates to a boat ladder, and more particularly to a boat ladder which may be secured to a boat and moved between a stowed, out-of-the-way position and a usable position which swimmers may use to assist in getting on the boat.
Pleasure watercraft are well known for use in fishing, skiing, waterboarding, and other water activities, as well as simple leisurely travel on waterways, whether for the sheer fun of being in the outdoors in that environment or to reach areas where they can enjoy swimming without the usual crowds found on beaches.
In many of these activities, persons on the boat may intentionally or unintentionally leave the boat and go into the water. When that occurs, it is desirable to have a ladder available to the person in the water which they can use to help them get back into the boat, understanding that this often occurs at water depths which do not allow the person to stand while they are trying to get into the boat.
Many such ladder structures have been provided to provide this convenience. Some ladder structures permanently or temporarily are secured to the side of the boat and project outwardly from the boat hull. In those cases, the ladder may be subject to damage if, for example, bumped against a pier, or may require more expensive manufacture to ensure that it is protected from such damage. Removable ladders allow that risk to be avoided, but can occupy space in the limited boat cabin area when not in use. Further, if a person leaves the boat without remembering to (or being able to) deploy such removable ladders, the person in the water may be required to attempt to get back into the boat without the benefit of any ladder.
The present invention is directed toward overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.
In one aspect of the present invention, a stowable ladder for a boat deck is provided, including a base plate securable to the underside of a boat, a rotary plate secured for pivoting about an axis relative to the base plate, the axis being generally vertical when the base plate is secured to a boat underside, a bracket on the underside of the rotary plate, and a swim ladder secured to the bracket. The ladder is movable relative to the bracket between a stowed position generally parallel to the rotary plate and a usable position depending downwardly therefrom in a generally vertical position.
In one form of this aspect of the present invention, a latch is provided for securing the rotary plate relative to the base plate whereby the ladder in the stowed position extends generally transverse to the keel of the boat when secured thereto. In a further form, the rotary plate pivots between about 60° to 120° relative to the base plate when moving between the stowed position and the usable position, and in a still further form the rotary plate pivots about 110° relative to the base plate when moving between the stowed position and the usable position. In a still further form, at least one curved slot is in the rotary plate, wherein the slot is centered at a selected radius from the axis and extends about 60° to 120° around the axis, and a pin is fixed to the base plate at the selected radius from the axis, with the pin extending into the curved slot.
In another form of this aspect of the present invention, the rotary plate pivots between about 60° to 120° relative to the base plate when moving between the stowed position and the usable position, and in a further form the rotary plate pivots about 110° relative to the base plate when moving between the stowed position and the usable position. In a still further form, at least one curved slot is in the rotary plate, wherein the slot is centered at a selected radius from the axis and extends about 60° to 120° around the axis, and a pin is fixed to the base plate at the selected radius from the axis, with the pin extending into the curved slot.
In still another form of this aspect of the present invention, the bracket defines a track substantially parallel to the rotary plate, and the swim ladder on one end is secured to slide in the track. In a still further form, the ladder one end is pivotable relative to the track, and a cross support is adapted to support the ladder in its stowed position with the ladder one end at one end of the track, wherein the ladder is substantially clear of the cross support when the ladder one end is at the other end of the track allowing the ladder to pivot downwardly to the usable position.
In yet another form of this aspect of the present invention, an angled plate is adapted to engage the ladder adjacent the rotary plate when the ladder is in the usable position whereby the ladder is in a generally vertical position but tilted toward the boat at its upper end.
In another aspect of the present invention, a stowable ladder for a boat deck is provided, including a base plate securable to the underside of a boat, a rotary plate secured for pivoting about an axis relative to the base plate (with the axis being generally vertical when the base plate is secured to a boat underside), and a bracket on the underside of the rotary plate defining a track substantially parallel to the rotary plate. A swim ladder has one end slidably secured to the track and pivotable relative to the track, with the ladder being movable relative to the bracket between a stowed position generally parallel to the rotary plate and a usable position depending downwardly therefrom in a generally vertical position. A cross support is adapted to support the ladder in its stowed position with the ladder one end at one end of the track, wherein the ladder is clear of the cross support when the ladder one end is at the other end of the track allowing the ladder to pivot downwardly to the usable position. An angled plate is adapted to engage the ladder adjacent the rotary plate when the ladder is in the usable position whereby the ladder is in a generally vertical position but tilted toward the boat at its upper end.
In one form of this aspect of the present invention, the rotary plate pivots between about 60° to 120° relative to the base plate when moving between the stowed position and the usable position. In a further form, at least one curved slot is in the rotary plate, wherein the slot is centered at a selected radius from the axis and extends about 60° to 120° around the axis, and a pin is fixed to the base plate at the selected radius from the axis, which pin extends into the curved slot. In another further form, a latch is provided for securing the rotary plate relative to the base plate whereby the ladder in the stowed position extends generally transverse to the keel of the boat when secured thereto.
A stowable ladder 10 usable, for example, with a boat is variously illustrated in the Figures.
The ladder 10 includes a base 12 adapted to be secured to the underside of a boat, such as the underside of a boat swim deck 16 (illustrated in phantom in
A swim ladder 20 includes a center rail 24 pivotably secured on one end to the base 12 as described in greater detail herein. Appropriately spaced rungs 26 extend from opposite sides of the center rail 24, which rungs 26 allow a swimmer to climb up out of the water and into the boat. Suitable rails or other structures (not shown) may also be provided above the ladder 10 on the boat which a swimmer climbing the swim ladder 20 may grasp to steady themselves as their feet reach the top rungs 26 of the swim ladder 20 (in which position swimmers will, of course, be unable to steady themselves by grasping the ladder rungs 26 with their hands).
As best illustrated in
When secured to a boat underside, the base plate 30 has a generally horizontal orientation and the pivot axis is generally vertical.
In one advantageous embodiment, the rotary plate 40 may include a curved or arcuate slot 42 centered on the pivot axis, with a suitable bolt 44 extending through the slot 42 and secured to the base plate 30. The bolt 44 may advantageously also include a washer 46 between its head and the rotary plate 40, and the bolt 44 is not tightened against the rotary plate 40 so that when the rotary plate 40 is pivoted, its arcuate slot 42 moves past the bolt 44, with the bolt 44 serving as a stop to limit the amount of rotation of the rotary plate 40 relative to the base plate 30. The arcuate slot 42 may extend about 60° to 120° around the pivot axis, with the pivoting through a range of about 110° being advantageously permitted in one embodiment.
A bracket 50 used to connect the swim ladder 20 to the base 12 extends from the underside of the rotary plate 40.
An advantageous bracket 50 is illustrated in the embodiment shown in the Figures, and includes a pair of parallel bracket plates 54 extending down from the rotary plate 40 (in a generally vertical orientation when secured to the bottom of a swim deck as previously described). The plates 54 each include parallel (generally horizontal) slots 56, and on one end include downwardly extending flanges 58 which are connected by a brace plate 60 which is generally vertical but advantageously may be angled slightly relative to vertical such as shown in the Figures.
The center rail 40 of the swim ladder 20 is secured on one end to the bracket 50 such that, as described in greater detail below, it is movable relative to the bracket 50 and rotary plate 40 between a stowed position generally parallel to the rotary plate 40 and a usable position depending downwardly from the rotary plate 40 in a generally vertical position.
Specifically, in the illustrated embodiment, the upper end of the swim ladder 20 includes a transverse opening 64. A pivot bolt 68 extends. The bolts 64 also extends through the slots 56 and the transverse opening 64 and is suitably secured in that position, for example, by a locking nut 70 as shown. It should thus be appreciated that the upper end of the swim ladder 20 is pivotable relative to the bracket 50, and also may slide horizontally as guided by the bolt 68 in the bracket slots 56. Suitable washers 74 may be provided with the bolt 68 to assist in preventing binding of the bolt 68 during such motion.
Deployment of the swim ladder 20 to a usable position for swimming (as illustrated in
When moved from the usable position to a stowed position, the swim ladder 20 is first pivoted up around the bolt 68 to a generally horizontal position, and then moved longitudinally (relative to the center rail 24) to slide the bolt 68 connection to the other end of the bracket slots 56, as illustrated in
A suitable securing structure, such as a notch in the slot 56, or a detent structure, may also be provided to keep the swim ladder 20 from freely sliding horizontally back toward its usable position when intended to be stowed.
From the intermediate position of
A latch 80 is also provided for releasably securing the rotary plate 40 relative to the base plate 30, with the swim ladder 20 releasably securable in the stowed position so as to extend generally transverse to the keel of the boat when secured thereto as previously mentioned, and the swim ladder 20 releasably securable in the usable position so as to tilt outwardly from the boat swim deck or the like as illustrated in
The latch 80 of the embodiment illustrated in
One end 90 of the lever arm 86 projects outwardly beyond the base plate 30 so that a person looking down past the base plate 30 would be able to see the lever end 90. A locking pin 92 is pivotally secured to the opposite end 94 of the lever arms 88, and includes a tension spring 96 which is anchored at opposite ends to the lever arm 86 and the rotary plate 40. The other (upper) end of the locking pin 92 passes through an opening 98 in the rotary plate 40. In its normal configuration, the tension spring 96 serves to pull the locking pin 92 and attached lever end 94 up (toward the rotary plate 40) and, when in either the usable or the stowed position, the locking pin 92 will be aligned with and extend into an opening 100 or 102 in the base plate 30. Thus, when in the usable position, the rotary plate 40 is releasably fixed against rotation by the extension of the locking pin 92 into the opening 100 as shown in
From the usable position, the swim ladder 20 can thus be pivoted up and slid in as illustrated from
It should thus be appreciated that the ladder 10 of the present invention may be easily installed with a boat and readily used by the boat owner. The ladder 10 not only provides convenient and easy access to a boat for someone in the water. In fact, even if in the stowed position, a person in the water could easily deploy the ladder 10 to change to the usable position. Moreover, it should be particularly appreciated that the ladder 10 will be stowed completely out of the way when not used (without occupying limited storage space inside the boat), while at the same time always being ready for use if needed (thereby avoiding a possible problem for a person who dives from the boat to take a swim without remembering to first deploy a ladder to use in getting back in the boat).
Still other aspects, objects, and advantages of the present invention can be obtained from a study of the specification, the drawings, and the appended claims. It should be understood, however, that the present invention could be used in alternate forms where less than all of the objects and advantages of the present invention and preferred embodiment as described above would be obtained.
