Ships – Centerboards – Pivoted
Patent
1985-11-13
1987-05-26
Basinger, Sherman D.
Ships
Centerboards
Pivoted
441 79, B63B 4100
Patent
active
046676155
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
DESCRIPTION
This invention relates to sailboards comprising a centerboard, which is pivoted in a centerboard box and is adjustable, e.g., by operation with a foot, from the top of the sailboard.
Various embodiments of such sail boards are known (see, e.g., German Patent Specification No. 26 59 297 and Published German Application No. 30 27 624). Compared with other known sailboards they have the special advantage that the centerboard can readily be moved to any desired angular position by means of the foot while the sailboard is sailing, and the centerboard will subsequently remain in position.
Those known embodiments, in which humps are provided at the head of the centerboard, are undesirable and dangerous because the humps protrude to a large extent above the top of the sailboard so that they disturb the maneuvers of the surfer and may be a cause of an injury to the surfer when he falls on the sailboard.
Known embodiments in which adjusting devices engage the head of the centerboard are liable to be deranged owing to the presence of such devices and cannot be made at low cost. It is believed that this is the reason why they have not yet been accepted in practice.
For this reason, it is an object of the invention so to improve and design a sailboard which is of the kind concerned that the means for adjusting the centerboard are simple and inexpensive, and will virtually not hinder the maneuvers of the surfer and will not involve a risk of injury.
This is acccomplished in accordance with the present invention. Regardless of the angular position of the centerboard, the extent to which the actuating element protrudes above the top of the sailboard will not change so that there is no risk of injury or an obstruction to the surfer at any time. The latching ensures that the centerboard will reliably be held in its adjusted angular position.
In a sailboard which is provided in the side walls of the centerboard box with bearings for two stub axles, which constitute the pivot of the centerboard, it has been found to be desirable to provide an arrangement in which the bearings support the stub axles (4) in their upper portions, the latch openings are provided in the upper edge portion of the centerboard box, and the slider is held at its seat by a tension spring so that the latching member is releasably locked in a latch opening. The stress of the tension spring is so selected that the stub axles will be held in the bearings by an adequate force in all positions of the centerboard.
The bearings are suitably disposed in the lower portion of the centerboard box so that the tension spring has an adequate length. The stub axles are also suitably disposed in the lower forward edge portion of the centerboard.
In accordance with a further feature of the invention, the side walls of the centerboard box are provided with grooves for guiding the stub axles and said grooves extend approximately transversely to the top and bottom edges of the centerboard box and are adjoined by the laterally offset bearings, which are downwardly open. In that case the centerboard can simply be inserted into the centerboard box from above and it is then sufficient to push the stub axles into the bearings and to lock the slider at the edges of the centerboard box. The slider may be U-shaped and may straddle to top of the centerboard and may have legs which are longitudinally slidably guided in lateral grooves provided in the head of the centerboard. Cam-like lateral projections serving as a latching member may be provided, which are disposed adjacent to the top end of the slider and are adapted to snap into the detent opening of the centerboard box.
The tension spring may consist of elastic strips, which are provided at the legs of the slider and are secured at their other ends in grooves provided on the side faces of the centerboard.
The latch openings are suitably distributed over a range which approximately corresponds to a pivotal movement of the centerboard through an angle of 90.degree..
The bearings may be disposed in front of the guidin
REFERENCES:
patent: 2466006 (1949-04-01), Danko
Avila Stephen P.
Basinger Sherman D.
LandOfFree
Sailboard centerboard does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Sailboard centerboard, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Sailboard centerboard will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-696596