Boat Seat Holder Assembly

Abstract

A boat seat holder assembly including a pair of bracket plates, and a swivel plate seat mounting assembly interconnecting the bracket plates. The bracket plates include a forward plate having a substantially monoplanar main plate portion having apertures therethrough, and having a turned over flange at the forward edge thereof defining with the main plate portion an angle of less than 60.degree.. A second or rear bracket plate has a substantially monoplanar main plate portion having apertures therethrough, and having a first flange portion bent from and extending at a right angle to, said main plate portion. The flange portion has at its free edge, a turned out, finger grip portion. The front and rear bracket plates cooperate in fitting across the permanent seat of a boat and gripping such seat. The swivel plate assembly supports a swiveling fisherman's chair or seat for accommodating a fisherman sitting in the boat.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to fishing equipment and accessories and more particularly, to a structure for mounting a fisherman's swivel seat on the stationary athwartships seat of a boat.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Brief Description of the Prior Art

Various types of seats and chair structures have been used in fishing boats for the comfort of the fisherman while fishing, and particularly to permit the fisherman to easily swivel from side to side to have access to the waters on either side of the boat. Frequently, too, the seat may swivel through 360.degree. to permit the fisherman to fish either ahead of or astern of the boat.

Some difficulty has previously been experienced in providing a seat which can be quickly mounted and demounted on the stationary athwartships seats provided on various types of boats. Moreover, the stationary or permanent seat structures which are provided in boats vary in size and structure so that a universal mounting arrangement for mounting a swiveling seat or chair on the permanent seat in the boat has not been provided.

Also, in some types of detachable seat mounting structures which have theretofore been provided, bolts or screws are extended through the brackets of such structures into the permanent seats located in the boats, with the result that watertight compartments provided under these seats for buoyancy have been penetrated and the integrity of such flotation compartments has been destroyed.

Brief Description of the Present Invention

Broadly described, the present invention is a seat holder assembly for mounting on the permanent athwartships seats of boats, with such holder including a pair of spaced brackets which are detachably interconnected by a swivel plate assembly adapted for securement ot a swiveling chair or seat adapted for use by the fisherman.

The seat holder assembly comprises a pair of bracket plates having means interconnecting the bracket plates for supporting a fishing seat. The forward bracket plate has a turned back flange portion which is bent at an angle of 60.degree. or less to the main portion of the forward bracket plate. The rear bracket plate has a flange portion extending at about 90.degree. to the main portion of the plate, and an angled finger grip flange projects at an angle to the finger grip flange. A swivel plate assembly is preferably used to interconnect the forward and rear bracket plates and support the fishing seat.

The seat holder assembly is used by hooking the flange portion of the forward bracket over the forward side of the permanent athwartship seat of a boat, and forcing the flange portion of the rear bracket plate down along the back side of the latter seat. The frictional engagement of the described flange portions with the boat seat retains the seat holder assembly firmly in position on the permanent athwartship seat of the boat. It is released by pulling upwardly on the angled finger grip flange.

An object of the invention is to provide a fishing seat holder assembly which is adjustable to fit the permanent seats of various sizes and types of fishing boats.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a seat holder assembly which can be quickly and easily mounted on the permanent athwartship seat of a boat to support a swiveling fishing seat thereon.

Another object of the invention is to provide a fishing seat holder which can be used to stably support a fishing seat in a boat without passing screws, bolts or nails into structural members of the boat.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a fishing seat holder assembly which is simple and economical in construction, but which is rugged and durable.

Additional objects and advantages will become apparent as the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of the boat seat holder assembly of the invention showing the holder as it appears when mounted atop a permanent athwartship seat provided in a boat. The permanent seat in the boat is shown in cross section.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the boat seat holder of the invention as it appears when viewed from above. The boat seat holder is illustrated in dashed lines, and a fisherman's seat over the boat seat holder assembly, as well as the permanent seat of the boat, are shown in full lines.

FIG. 3 is a bottom plan view of the boat seat holder assembly of the invention with a fisherman's seat mounted thereon, and showing in broken lines, the position of the permanent, athwartship seat of the boat as it appears in relation to the seat holder assembly and fisherman's seat.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4--4 of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PERFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

Referring initially to FIG. 1 of the drawings, an athwartship permanent seat of the type which extends from side to side of a fishing boat, such as a john boat, is shown in FIG. 1 and is designated generally by reference numeral 10. The particular type of seat illustrated includes a forward panel 12, a rear panel 14 and a top panel 16. These panels define a watertight enclosure which, in many instances, is filled with a foamed synthetic resin 18 or a similar buoyant material. The top panel 16 overhangs the forward panel 12 to provide a horizontally projecting flange 20.

The seat holder assembly of the invention includes a forward bracket plate, designated generally by reference numeral 22, a rear bracket plate, designated generally by reference numeral 24, and a swivel plate assembly designated generally by reference numeral 26. Supported on the swivel plate assembly 26 is a fishing chair or seat 28. The relationship of the seat holder assembly to the seat 28, the athwartship permanent seat of the boat 10, and the boat in which it is mounted (designated generally by reference numeral 30) is illustrated in FIG. 2 of the drawings.

As will be perceptible in referring to FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings, the front bracket plate 22 includes a main, substantially monoplanar, horizontally extending portion 22a which has a pair of bolt apertures 32 formed therethrough. The front plate 22 further includes a turned back, downwardly projecting flange portion 22b which defines an angle of less than 60.degree. with the main plate portion 22a.

The rear bracket plate 24 includes a main plate portion 24a which extends substantially horizontally, and is of substantially monoplanar configuration. The main plate portion 24a of the rear plate 24 includes a plurality of bolt apertures 34 which are aligned fore and aft in the plate, and are provided for a purpose hereinafter described. At the rear edge of the main plate portion 24a, a down turned, seat-engaging flange portion 24b is provided and extends substantially normal to the main plate portion 24a. At the lower edge of the flange portion 24b, a finger grip flange 24c is provided, and is bent outwardly at an angle with respect to the flange portion 24b.

Interconnecting the forward bracket plate 22 and the rear bracket plate 24 is the swivel plate assembly 26. The swivel plate assembly 26 includes a lower plate 36 and an upper plate 38. These plates are pivotally interconnected by a pivot bolt or rivet 40 extended through apertures in the center of each of the plates, and the upper and lower plates 36 and 38 cooperatively define bearing races which confine ball bearings 42 as illustrated in FIG. 4. The swivel plate assembly 26 is illustrated as secured to the fishing seat 28 by a plurality of bolts 44 extended upwardly into the seat, and is secured to the forward bracket plate 22 by a pair of bolts 46 passed through the bolt apertures 32 in the main plate portion 22a. The swivel plate assembly 26 is further secured to the rear bracket plate 24 by a pair of bolts 48 extended through the rearmost bolt apertures 34 in the main plate portion 24a of the rear plate 24.

Operation

The seat holder assembly of the invention can be used for mounting various types of fishing chairs or seats on the permanent athwartship seats utilized in various types of fishing boats. The seat holder assembly is particularly well adapted for use upon the seats of john boats, or boats of similar construction.

In using the seat holder assembly of the invention, the forward bracket plate 22 and rear bracket plate 24 are first adjusted in their spacing from each other so that, when the flange 22b is hooked under the flange 20 of the permanent seat 10 as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings, the down turned flange portion 24b of the rear plate 24 will then bear against the top edge of the permanent seat 10 where the rear panel 14 intersects the top panel 16. When the bracket plates 22 and 24 are so spaced with respect to each other, the fishing seat 28, with the swivel plate assembly 26 attached thereto, is then rested atop the forward plate 28 and rear plate 24 so that the bolt holes formed through the lower plate 36 of the swivel plate assembly are aligned with the bolt apertures 32 formed in the forward plate 22, and one set of the bolt apertures 34 formed in the rear plates 24. Bolts are then extended through the aligned apertures in the lower plate 36 of the swivel plate assembly 26 and the registering apertures through the forward plate 22 and rear plate 24. With the swivel plate assembly 26 secured in this position, the boat seat assembly is then ready for usage.

When a fisherman seats himself in the fishing seat 28, this results in the rear plate 24 being sprung slightly in the sense that the downwardly depending flange portion 24b is biased rearwardly so that it can slip down along the rear panel 14 of the permanent seat 10 to the position illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawings. The downwardly depending flange portion 24b is now loaded in resilient deformation and cooperates with the flange portion 22b of the forward plate 22 in gripping the permanent athwartship seat 10 of the boat. When the seat is in this position, it will not spring upwardly from this position even though the fisherman stands, and his weight is removed from the fishing seat 28. It will be apparent that the aligned bolt apertures 34 in the rear plate 24 make possible the adjustment of the assembly to accommodate the athwartship seats of various types and sizes which are found in fishing boats, and also allows varying sizes of fisherman's seats to be secured in the described position.

Although a preferred embodiment of the invention has been herein described and depicted, it will be understood that various changes and modifications in the described and illustrated structure can be effected without departure from the basic principles of the invention. Changes and innovations of this type are therefore deemed to be circumscribed by the spirit and scope of the invention, except as the same may be necessarily limited by the apended claims or reasonable equivalents thereof.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A fishing seat structure for mounting a fishing seat movably on a permanent athwartships seat extending from beam to beam of a boat, with said athwartships seat including a rear, vertically extending panel and a top panel, said fishing seat structure comprising:

a forward bracket plate adapted for placement at the forward side of said athwartships seat with a portion resting flatly on said top panel thereof, said forward bracket plate including:

a substantially monoplanar main portion having bolt apertures therethrough and adapted to rest flatly on the top panel of said athwartships seat; and

a flange portion bent with respect to said monoplanar main portion to form an angle therewith not exceeding 60.degree. whereby said flange portion can engage the forward side of said athwartships seat;

a rear bracket plate horizontally spaced from said forward bracket plate and including:

a substantially monoplanar main plate portion having bolt apertures therethrough and adapted for resting flatly on the top panel of said athwartships seat; and

a flange portion extending substantially normal to the main plate portion of said rear bracket plate for extending downwardly in juxtaposition to the rear panel of said athwartships seat, said last mentioned flange portion having a finger gripping portion bent outwardly from a plane extending substantially normal to the main plate portion of said rear bracket plate so as to extend at an angle to the main plane of said flange portion, and to facilitate extending the fingers under the flange portion of said rear bracket plate for lifting the rear bracket plate and structure attached thereto upwardly with respect to said athwartships seat;

a lower swivel plate connected to said forward bracket plate and said rear bracket plate and bridging across the horizontal space between said forward and rear bracket plates, said lower swivel plate being spaced above said top panel of said athwartships seat by the passage of said forward bracket plate and rear bracket plate therebeneath;

bolts extending through the bolt apertures in said forward bracket plate and said rear bracket plate and securing said lower swivel plate thereto;

an upper swivel plate positioned directly above said lower swivel plate, said upper and lower swivel plates being grooved at registering locations to define, in cooperative association, an annular bearing race concentrically surrounding a pivotal axis extending vertically through said upper and lower swivel plates at a location to pass through the space horizontally separating said forward bracket plate from said rear bracket plate;

bearings in said annular bearing race to facilitate relative movement of said upper swivel plate with respect to said lower swivel plate about said vertical pivotal axis;

a pivot bolt pivotally interconnecting said lower swivel plate and said upper swivel plate and being coaxially aligned with the axis of pivotation disposed concentrically within said annular bearing race, said pivot bolt terminating at a level higher than said forward bracket plate and said rear bracket plate, and in the space horizontally separating said forward bracket plate from said rear bracket plate whereby said pivot bolt is (a) adapted to clear the top panel of said athwartships seat when said boat seat structure is mounted on said athwartships seat, and is (b) accessible by exposure in the space between said forward bracket plate and rear bracket plate when said boat seat structure is removed from said athwartships seat; and

a fishing chair mounted on the upper side of said upper swivel plate and having a surface secured to, and in contact with, said upper swivel plate which is limited in area to the area of the upper surface of said upper swivel plate.