Ships – Towing or pushing – Towing by means of cable
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-12
2001-02-06
Avila, Stephen (Department: 3617)
Ships
Towing or pushing
Towing by means of cable
C114S246000, C114S162000, C441S066000, C441S067000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06182594
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to the field of water sports, and more specifically to watercraft of the type towed behind a boat or other vessel.
2. Description of the Related Art
A fun water sport is to be towed behind a boat on an innertube, that is also known as a ski biscuit. A rider sits in the innertube, which is attached to a speeding boat by a towline, and thus gets pulled wherever the boat goes.
A problem with this sport is that the rider lacks control over where the innertube goes. Every time the boat turns, the innertube tends to continue in its original direction, unless pulled in a different direction. A large body of water is required to make turns safely at high-speed. If such is not the case, the innertube might approach the shore, or undesirable debris. In addition, this sport remains unchallenging compared to similar water sports, where the rider can steer.
There has been some interest in making steerable innertubes. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,819,680, a steerable towcraft is taught. The floating device is triangular, which does not make it exactly a ski biscuit. The rider can pull on a steering line with respect to the towline, which rotates the floating device. A fin that is fixedly attached to the underside of the floating device converts the rotation into changed direction.
A problem in this invention is that steering can be performed only when there is active towing by the boat, i.e. with the towline being taut. When the towline is slack, there is no steering control. Plus, it is not adaptable to existing ski biscuits.
Moreover, as per U.S. Pat. No. 5,899,782 to Martin, a flotation device is provided that can be towed behind a speeding boat, and can change direction. The rider pulls on handle with respect to the taut towline, which rotates the flotation device with respect to the direction that it is being pulled. Again, a fin-like apparatus provided under the flotation device converts this rotation into a changed direction of motion for the flotation device.
This invention has the same problem of lack of steering control when the towline is not taut. In addition, the handle may fall into the water, in which case the rider loses control.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes these problems and limitations of the prior art.
Generally, the present invention provides an innertube accessory that facilitates towing an innertube by a boat. The accessory is a device that includes a shell for receiving the innertube, that is also suitable for being towed by the boat. While the innertube provides flotation, a rider of the innertube can also steer the device. The rider steers by operating a rudder of the device, that controls pivoting of a rudder fin relative to the shell.
The rudder is operated independently of the towline, and cannot fall into the water, which makes the device of the invention safer to use. The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment which proceeds with reference to the drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3581328 (1971-06-01), Smith
patent: 4213413 (1980-07-01), Courtney
patent: 5076189 (1991-12-01), Jones
patent: 5247898 (1993-09-01), Thornlimb
patent: 5462001 (1995-10-01), Lemelson
patent: 5819680 (1998-10-01), Haller et al.
patent: 5899782 (1999-05-01), Martin
Avila Stephen
Marger Johnson & Johnson, P.C.
LandOfFree
Towable innertube accessory with rudder does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Towable innertube accessory with rudder, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Towable innertube accessory with rudder will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2561787