Hydraulic and earth engineering – Marine vessel portage – launching – or removing – Rail mounted carrier
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-13
2002-08-13
Shackelford, Heather (Department: 3673)
Hydraulic and earth engineering
Marine vessel portage, launching, or removing
Rail mounted carrier
C405S003000, C414S137100, C414S141600, C414S141700, C212S095000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06431791
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns a hoisting machine for the simultaneous transport to and from land and water of a number of boats.
Presently boats are put in or pulled out of water with the aid of special cranes installed in harbours or along canals placed near the sea or lake shores, into which said navigable canals issue.
Said hoisting machines usually consist of a crane which moves one boat at a time. Said machines are not planned to be used for emergencies, i.e. by rapidly hoisting boats and transferring them from water to land or vice versa. At the same time they are used to operate in harbours or along the containment walls of navigable canals.
There also exist locations with miles and miles of coast with no ports or canals or other facilities such as means which can lift boats and put them in water or pull them up on land.
For these reasons in those stretches of coast, boat users employ slides and rollers, thanks to which the difficulties encountered in transferring boats are reduced at least for small sized ones. Said lack of facilities which inhibits the presence of small fleets or fishing boats and also inhibits the development of tourism in those areas along said stretches of coast could be solved by building harbours and piers. However, this solution involves very high costs in terms of investment and maintenance. At the same time said structures, even if of small dimensions, alter considerably the landscape of the surrounding coastal area by modifying it irreversibly.
The environmental changes, even when funds should be available, are a valid reason to stop from carrying out along the coast structures that would increase the number of fishing days a year, and the touristic and nautical development of the area.
On the other hand, small structures that would not interfere with the currents along shores, do not supply sufficient shelter for boats in case of sudden change of weather conditions and do not allow the known means, that can be installed in these structures, to bring the boats to shore in very short time, in particular when in peak tourist periods.
The first problem encountered on coasts which are not equipped with harbours is that of placing in the water a number of boats in a short time to give the users the opportunity of using their boats, on good fishing days or to go cruising, as much as possible, which consequently helps the development of activities in connection with the sea and tourism.
A second problem which is also very important is to be able to pull the boats ashore when the weather changes rapidly for the worse, to avoid damages and dangerous situations for the people on board.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The aim of the present invention is to create a fixed structure, that will not alter the natural course of the currents along the shore, and a device which operates on said structure which can simultaneously and rapidly place in the water and transport to shore several boats, in order to solve the two problems mentioned above.
The invention that has supplied the solution to said problems consists in the combination of a fixed structure, shaped like a pier and equipped on its upper part with a slide guide, whose length extends from land to the point at sea where the depth is sufficient for the boats it transports to float, with a trolley which runs along said pier, and with at least two arms placed transversally to the said pier, supplied with hoisting devices and adequate means that are used to harness the boats, and also having a sliding counterweight saddle on said arms which are also equipped with indicating means which indicate the horizontal position of the arms, and/or of the different degrees of stress applied on the tie rod that connects the transversal arms to a central tower, with which the movement of the sliding counterweight is commanded, and having controls and means with which the hoisting devices and the other motorized parts of the machine are commanded.
Such an invention is particularly advantageous in that it allows the trolley which slides along the pier to pick up several boats from land, to lift them and then, moving along the slide guide on the pier, move them to a distance from shore where the depth of the water is sufficient for the boats to float, then to deposit them on the water, freeing them from the harnessing means, to move up and back on land to transport another group or to remain in a stand by position waiting to recover the boats from the water.
The lifting of the boats from the water operates in the same exact way: the boats are harnessed and hoisted from the water, then when the sliding trolley on the pier is transferred on land, the boats are lowered directly to assigned spots or onto a loading/unloading area to allow their owners to take them to the assigned spots or to take them away leaving the area free for the next lot of boats to be lifted from the water.
The invention is particularly advantageous because it allows the transportation of several boats into the water simultaneously and in a very short time to give the users of said boats the opportunity to get the most out of their day; in the same way the invention is also advantageous for the inverse operation. This second operation is very important when it is necessary to carry it out rapidly both when it is the end of a day or because the weather changes for the worse and should the boats not be collected they could risk being damaged by the conditions of the rough seas and the danger for the people on board is easily imaginable. Another advantage obtained with this invention is due to the fact that the pier and the slide guide on it do not alter the environment, do not modify the natural flow of water currents and therefore they do not determine any corrosion of the shore in the area around the pier.
Another advantage is the rapid dismantling of the hoisting structure, at least for routine maintenance in specifically equipped places, to ensure that safety requirements are guaranteed in time, even if it is exposed to salt water when the structure is installed on the sea.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3252589 (1966-05-01), Keene et al.
patent: 3287921 (1966-11-01), Wilson et al.
patent: 3381826 (1968-05-01), Durand
patent: 3409153 (1968-11-01), Stearn et al.
patent: 3994401 (1976-11-01), Tax et al.
patent: 4039086 (1977-08-01), Ray
patent: 4067446 (1978-01-01), Ray
patent: 4113112 (1978-09-01), Ray
patent: 4363411 (1982-12-01), Blair et al.
patent: 4953488 (1990-09-01), Heidtmann
Lagman Frederick L.
Shackelford Heather
Young & Thompson
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