U.S. patent number 3,604,440 [Application Number 04/847,066] was granted by the patent office on 1971-09-14 for boat canopy.
Invention is credited to Benjiman L. Wilson.
United States Patent |
3,604,440 |
Wilson |
September 14, 1971 |
BOAT CANOPY
Abstract
Mounted along the gunwales of a boat are opposite pairs of
socket members each pair being arranged to receive, in clamping
relation, the two ends of a flexible rod arched into an inverted
U-shape. A plurality of such arches supports a windowed canopy
provided with fasteners removably securing the canopy to the
gunwales and the arches, thereby affording shelter to the
occupants.
Inventors: |
Wilson; Benjiman L.
(Sacramento, CA) |
Family
ID: |
25299661 |
Appl.
No.: |
04/847,066 |
Filed: |
August 4, 1969 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
114/361; 135/125;
114/364; D12/318 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B63B
17/02 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B63B
17/00 (20060101); B63B 17/02 (20060101); B63b
017/02 () |
Field of
Search: |
;9/1T,1R
;135/6,5,15CF |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Buchler; Milton
Assistant Examiner: Yee; F. K.
Claims
I claim:
1. A boat canopy assembly, comprising:
a. a plurality of resilient rods flexed from a normally straight
condition to form transverse arches longitudinally spaced from each
other and spanning the gunwales of a boat;
b. opposed pairs of socket means mounted on said gunwales for
releasably connecting the ends of said rods to said gunwales in
vertically adjustable relation thereto;
c. the disposition of said socket means being such as to normally
maintain said arches in generally vertical transverse planes except
for a rearmost arch normally disposed at a rearward inclination on
the order of 60.degree.; and
d. a flexible cover detachably connected directly to said rods and
said gunwales, including at least one connection at one end thereof
to the forward end of the said boat and a second connection at the
other end thereof a point intermediate the ends of the said
rearmost arch, the longitudinal dimension of said cover being
shorter than the normal cover distance between said one connection
and said point on said rearmost arch, and said rearmost arch being
flexed toward a vertical position in order to effect said second
connection when in installed condition, whereby the resilience of
said rearmost arch causes said canopy to be maintained is a taut
condition.
2. A boat canopy assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said socket
means are provided with clamping members for releasably gripping
the end portions of said rods.
3. A boat canopy assembly as defined in claim 1 including a
plurality of connectors disposed along the lower margin of said
cover for releasably interconnection with a corresponding set of
connectors mounted on said gunwales.
4. A boat canopy assembly as defined in claim 3 wherein a plurality
of said connectors are mounted at the forward end of said cover to
establish said one connection.
Description
The invention relates to improvements in canopies for small
boats.
It is an object of the invention to provide a boat canopy which can
readily be installed and disassembled with a minimum of effort and
experience.
It is another object of the invention to provide a boat canopy
which is conveniently and compactly stored when not in use.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a boat canopy
which is relatively economical, yet is efficient, long-lived and
affords good visibility.
It is still a further object of the invention to provide a boat
canopy which is taut and which therefore minimizes flapping and
other objectionable noises characteristic of previously used
canopies.
It is yet a further object of the invention to provide a boat
canopy possessing components which can be utilized to hold a
fishing pole holder when the canopy is not in use.
It is another object of the invention to provide a generally
improved boat canopy.
Other objects, together with the foregoing, are attained in the
embodiment described in the following description and shown in the
accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a rear perspective of a small boat showing the arched
rods positioned in their respective sockets mounted along the
gunwale, preparatory to installing the canopy cover;
FIG. 2 is a side elevational view showing the canopy in fully
installed position;
FIG. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view, to an enlarged scale,
showing a typical J-clip mounted on the canopy cover and in
removable engagement with an arched rod, the plane of the section
being indicated by the line 3--3 in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view, to an enlarged scale,
showing a typical snap fastener mounted along the bottom edge of
the canopy and being in mutual engagement with a corresponding snap
member permanently mounted on the gunwale, the plane of the section
being indicated by the line 4--4 in FIG. 2; and,
FIG. 5 is a front elevational view, to an enlarged scale, of a
typical adjustable socket member mounted on the inner edge of the
gunwale, the socket being capable of clamping either the end of an
arched rod or a fishing pole holder, the view being taken in the
direction of the arrows 5--5 in FIG. 1.
While the boat canopy of the invention is susceptible of numerous
physical embodiments, depending upon the environment and
requirements of use, substantial numbers of the herein shown and
described embodiment have been made, tested and used, and all have
performed in an eminently satisfactory manner.
The device of the invention, generally designated by the reference
numeral 12, finds especial utility in providing temporary shelter
from wind, rain and sun to occupants of a small boat 13 comprising
the customary bow 14, stern 15, or transom, hull 16 and gunwale 17.
Transverse seats are also ordinarily installed, but are not shown
herein in order to disclose certain details of the canopy-mounting
structure located on the hull.
Included in this mounting structure is a plurality of opposite
pairs of sockets 21, or sleeves, each mounted, as by welding, on a
corresponding bracket plate 22 secured by fasteners 23 to the
vertical inner edge 24 of the gunwale 17 (see FIGS. 1 and 5).
In the small boat depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, a total of three pairs
of sockets is utilized, the socket pairs being spaced approximately
equidistantly in a fore-and-aft direction.
The forward two socket pairs 21 are mounted vertically whereas each
of the aftermost pair 31 of sockets is tilted so that its axis is
inclined rearwardly and upwardly at an angle of approximately
60.degree. (see FIG. 2), for the purpose of maintaining tautness in
a fore-and-aft direction, as will subsequently be explained in more
detail.
Each of the sockets 21 and 31 is dimensioned so as to receive, with
some snugness, the end portion 33 of a rod 34 capable of being
resiliently flexed into an arcuate configuration, as appears most
clearly in FIG. 1.
When not in use, the flexible rods 34 assume their linear shape and
can conveniently be lodged in supporting brackets 36 mounted along
both sides of the hull 16 (see FIG. 1) just below the gunwale. FIG.
2 shows, in broken line, the location of one (or more) of the rods
34 when they are stowed away. The rods flex, when stowed, so as to
conform to the curvature of the hull.
When the canopy is to be erected, the rods 34 are removed from
their brackets 36 and the rod ends 33 are inserted through the
corresponding one of the sockets. The rods 34 are secured in place
in the sockets by a thumbscrew 41 in threaded engagement with a nut
42 welded on the exposed side of the socket, the hole in the nut 42
being in registry with an opening drilled in the underlying wall of
the socket. By rotating the thumbscrew 41 in the proper direction
the underlying portion of the rod 34 is clamped.
As the first step in the installation, all three of the rods are
mounted so as to appear as in FIG. 1.
At this juncture, the canopy 50, or canopy cover, is unfolded and,
after being oriented in a fore-and-aft direction, is lowered onto
the three inverted U-shaped arches, or bows, formed by the flexed
rods 34.
The forward two arches 51 and 52 are vertical, as shown, whereas
the after arch 53 is inclined rearwardly and upwardly at
approximately 60.degree. in the vicinity of the gunwale, as
determined by the angle of the socket 31. As appears most clearly
in FIG. 2, however, the upper one-third to one-half of the after
arch 53 tends toward the vertical as a result of the forward
tension placed on the canopy in pulling it forwardly in order to
effect tautness. It will be clear from the drawings that this
action results from the fact that the longitudinal dimensions of
the cover is shorter than the normal cover distance between its
connection at the forward end of the boat and the upper portion of
the rearmost arch when the latter is in its relaxed condition. The
after rod 53, in other words, serves as a spring-biasing member
keeping the canopy taut in its fully erected position.
The lower margin of the canopy is conveniently provided with
conventional fasteners 56 arranged to form a snap type of
connection. More specifically, as appears most clearly in FIG. 4, a
male button 57 is screwed into the gunwale 17 and receives a female
connector 58 mounted on a washer 59 encompassed tightly within the
recurved fold 61 of the lower margin 62 of the canopy 50.
While attaching has frequently been utilized in the past to affix
the female connecting members 58 and 59 to the canopy, it has been
found that present-day high strength adhesives are preferably in
many installations, owing to cost and other factors. The use of an
adhesive in the interfacial areas of the canopy 50 and the members
58 and 59 in FIG. 4, for example, serves very adequately to provide
a strong, moisture-resistant mounting.
The outwardly projecting tab portion 64 to cover 50 serves as a
convenient finger grip when it is desired to separate the two
complementing portions 57 and 58 of the snap fastener 56.
It is to be noted that the male portions of the snap fasteners 56
are located at suitable intervals along the top of the gunwale 17,
with at least three being located on the forward end 14 of the
gunwale to afford a secure forward anchoring point capable not only
of resisting the dislodging efforts of a strong wind, but also the
considerable tautening force exerted by the flexed aftermost arch
53, in the manner previously described and illustrated in FIG.
2.
The canopy 50 is provided with a plurality of transparent window
panels 71, 72 and 73 to afford good visibility to the occupants;
and in addition to being supported by the arched rods 51, 52 and
53, the canopy is also detachably affixed to the rods by a
plurality of appropriately located fastenings, conveniently
designed as J-clips 76 (see FIG. 3).
As before, the J-clips 76 are adhesively secured to the recurved
hem 77 of the canopy cover 50, the hem itself being glued to the
cover 50.
The J-clip 76 is of spring steel material and includes a shank
portion 81 to provide adequate surface area for the adhesive bond
and a hook portion 82 with an outwardly curved mouth 83 to receive
and guide the rod 53 through the throat 84 and into the hook
82.
The J-clips are aligned in a fore-and-aft direction on the inner
face of the canopy and are suitably located and oriented so as to
equalize the forces of the arches in supporting and restraining the
engaged canopy.
Greatest tautness is achieved by first positioning the arches in
their respective sockets so that the canopy is not especially taut
when it is first being arranged and is snap-fastened into position
along the gunwale. After the canopy's lower margin is secured, the
socket pairs are temporarily loosened and the arched rods are
lifted upwardly into upwardly abutting and firmly supporting
relation with respect to the overlying canopy, concurrently
manipulating the canopy and the adjacent J-clips so that the canopy
is firmly interengaged with the subjacent arch. This procedure is
followed from for-to-aft until the aftermost arch 53 is tightly
engaged and tautly stretched as appears in FIG. 2. Note that the
after end 86 of the canopy hem 77 is substantially vertical (see
FIG. 2) even though the aftermost arch 53 has a tension curve in
it.
As will be appreciated, the height, length and window arrangement
of the canopy is susceptible of many different treatments. It is
believed, however, that the utilization of flexed arches, or bows,
not only affords a desirable tautness of installation in a
fore-and-aft direction, but also in radial or transverse planes.
Furthermore, the flexible rods can quickly and easily be removed
from their sockets and compactly stowed away, even by unskilled and
inexperienced persons.
It can therefore be seen that I have provided a boat canopy which
is not only efficient, but which can also be used by persons of
substantially all age groups and degrees of mechanical
competence.
* * * * *