HK1186160A - Improvement to boats having inflatable planking - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a semi-rigid boat, including a rigid hull (11) provided, at the bridge thereof (6), with two types of holders for the inflatable tube(s): a gutter-shaped holder for receiving, at the bow and/or at the stern, a section (13, 14) of tube (12) having a circular cross-section; and a planking wall-shaped holder (16) that extends between the bow and the stern, which is provided so as to engage with an inflatable section-shaped structure (15) having a D-shaped cross-section that extends longitudinally between said sections (13, 14). The section (15) of inflatable tube having a D-shaped cross-section is attached to the bottom portion and to the top portion of the planking wall (16).

Description

Improved ship with inflatable hull plates

Object of the Invention

The present invention relates to semi-rigid boats, i.e. boats having a hull of rigid material and an upper side wall (also referred to herein as a hull plate) consisting of one or more inflatable tubes.

Description of the Prior Art and problems

Semi-rigid vessels combine the advantages of inflatable vessels and vessels with rigid hulls.

The cylindrical tube forming the upper side wall has a circular cross-section when inflated and the diameter of the cylindrical tube is about 50-60cm, which provides very good buoyancy. The midship cross section of such vessels is very large and the weight and volume are relatively modest when the duct is deflated. The stability of such a vessel gives passengers a sense of security and safety. Furthermore, the rigid hull is protected by the presence of the inflatable tubes extending from the bow to the stern.

However, this combination of a rigid hull and inflatable tubes has disadvantages relating to the presence of inflatable tubes.

These tubes overlap with the portion of the rigid hull corresponding to the deck of the vessel. The effective usable area on the deck is correspondingly reduced.

The ratio between the available surface area and the area pertaining to the perimeter of the ship is not as good as in a ship with a rigid hull.

Advantages of the solution according to the invention

The present invention proposes an arrangement of such a vessel which substantially improves the ratio between the available surface area and the area pertaining to the perimeter of the vessel, which allows for an increase in the available space within the vessel. This makes it more convenient to move on board, or allows the installation of additional equipment (such as a seat), or allows improved accessibility to the motor, or the possibility of installing a larger motor for a ship having an in-ship motor.

The invention proposes an arrangement which hardly affects the buoyancy or safety characteristics of such a ship and which maintains the characteristics relating to the impact resistance of the ship at the bow and stern, even at the sides.

Disclosure of Invention

The vessel of the invention comprises a rigid hull associated with one or more inflatable tubes acting as upper side walls, characterized in that said rigid hull comprises at its deck two types of retainers for these tubes:

a trough-shaped holder for receiving a portion of the pipe having a circular cross-section at the bow and/or the stern, said holder being located substantially at the level of the deck and cooperating with the longitudinal portion of the cylindrical outer layer of said bow and/or stern portion,

a holder in the form of an upper side wall section extending between the bow and the stern, arranged to cooperate with a structure in the form of an inflatable tube section extending longitudinally between the bow and the stern section, the holder being in the form of a wall section extending to a height substantially corresponding to the diameter of the bow and/or stern section and the lateral position of the holder being such that the outer face of the holder is located substantially in the vertical mid-plane of the bow and stern sections.

In the present invention, the inflatable tube sections associated with the upper side wall sections have a D-shaped cross-section with the flat face abutting against the outer face of the upper side wall sections and the curved face being located as an extension of the outer portions of the bow and stern portions.

Still according to the invention, portions having a D-shaped cross-section are attached to the lower and upper portions of the upper side wall section.

Advantageously, the lower part of the portion having a D-shaped cross-section comprises a tether, which is threaded into a slot in the rigid hull, said slot being arranged in the lower part of the upper side wall section.

In this case the tether in the lower part of the section with D-shaped cross-section is an extension of the tether of the bow and/or stern section and the slot receiving the tether extends over the entire length of the rigid hull.

Advantageously, the upper part of the portion with a D-shaped cross-section comprises a strip of fabric, which is either slid into the rail or fixed to the upper part of the upper side wall section by means of bolts, between which bolts and the strip a metal strip is placed.

It is also advantageous for the portion with a D-shaped cross section to extend between the bow and the stern over a length corresponding to at least half the length of the ship, and for the major part of this length to be arranged on the stern side.

In another arrangement of the invention, the section with a D-shaped cross-section comprises a single inflatable tube delimited by a fabric attached to the upper side wall section and by a fabric forming, in the inflated state, a circular arc which is an extension of the bow and stern sections.

In a variant embodiment of the invention, the portion with D-shaped cross-section comprises at least two inflatable volumes, one of which comprises a substantially vertical inner portion containing an inflatable volume of waterproof cloth or fabric with two parallel faces which, in the inflated condition, form a tube with a substantially elongated rectangular cross-section, said tube attaching and fixing its inner face to the outside of said upper side wall section, and the other of said volumes, the outer portion, comprises an inflatable tube with D-shaped cross-section, said inflatable tube fixing and attaching its flat face to the outside of the two parallel faces of the inner portion, i.e. to the outside of the inner inflatable tube.

Additionally or alternatively, the one or more inflatable tubes are assembled with their upper and lower portions with the upper side wall section by a flexible corner attachment, preferably made of waterproof fabric or cloth and bonded directly to the upper side wall section.

Drawings

In the following description, the invention is described in sufficient detail to enable its practice in a clear and complete manner. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the left half of a conventional semi-rigid boat;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the right half of the semi-rigid boat in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a transverse cross-sectional view of a pipe having a circular cross-section arranged at the bow or stern of the vessel;

fig. 4a and 4b are transverse cross-sectional views of variants of inflatable tube sections with a D-shaped cross-section according to the invention: FIG. 4a shows a single inflatable tube having a D-shaped cross-section attached to, and inflating, the wall section of the upper side wall, FIG. 4b shows an inner inflatable tube having a rectangular cross-section attached to, said upper side wall section, and an outer inflatable tube having a D-shaped cross-section attached by its flat face to the outer flat face of the inner tube;

FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of a tube according to the present invention, which serves as an upper sidewall;

FIG. 6 shows a system for assembling a tube to a semi-rigid hull at a cylindrical portion of the tube;

figure 7 shows the attachment of the lower part of a pipe with a D-shaped cross-section on a rigid hull; and

fig. 8 shows the attachment of the upper part of a tube with a D-shaped cross-section to a wall segment serving as an upper side wall.

Detailed Description

The boat or boat represented in the schematic view in fig. 1 is a semi-plan view comprising a rigid hull 1 and an upper side wall in the form of an inflatable tube 2. The tube may comprise a plurality of individually inflatable compartments.

The inflatable tube 2 extends between a bow 3 and a stern 4 and is circular in cross-section for the entire length of the upper side wall. The pipe 2 is presented in fig. 3 at the edge of the deck 6 on a holder 5, the holder 5 having the form of a trough extending vertically along the rigid hull 1.

The holder 5 has an arc-shaped cross-section to hold a portion of the cylindrical envelope of the tube 2, in particular a longitudinal strip along the lower part of said tube. The tube 2 includes a tether 7 extending along its length, as shown in fig. 6, at the intersection of the surface edge of the retainer 5 and the edge 9, the tether 7 engages and cooperates with a guide rail 8 disposed along the outer edge 9 of the rigid hull 1. The pipe 2 may also be attached to other edges of the holder 5, in particular to the inner edge 10 located near the deck 6 of the vessel, by suitable means.

Figure 2 shows the vessel of the invention in a semi-plan view. The vessel comprises a rigid hull 11 and a tube 12, the cross-section of the tube 12 varying between the bow 3 and the stern 4. The tube 12 comprises a succession of portions:

a front portion 13 at the bow 3, having a circular cross-section as shown in figure 3,

a rear portion 14, at the stern 4, also with a circular section and with a diameter slightly greater than or equal to that of the front portion 13,

a section 15 between the fore 13 and aft 14, having a D-shaped cross-section, said section 15 pressing along the periphery of the rigid hull 11 at the edge 9 against a wall section 16 extending upwards from the deck 6, the deck 6 and the edge 9 and the holder 5 being similar to those in the hull 1 of fig. 1.

The section 15 extends for a length corresponding to at least half of the total length of the boat, for example, and is positioned substantially towards the rear, i.e. towards the stern of the boat, for example in the region of the deck 6 that accommodates the seats.

The section 15 may comprise a tether 17 in its lower part, as shown in fig. 7, said tether 17 being provided, for example, as an extension of the tether 7 and being arranged on the sections 13 and 14, thereby ensuring continuity with the sections 13 and 14, similar to the tether of the vessel in fig. 1. Similarly, the groove 18 arranged on the edge 9 of the hull 11 and in the lower part of the outer face 19 of the wall section 16 may extend and be continuous with the groove 8 (similar to the groove of the vessel in fig. 1) and be arranged in the stern and bow of said hull 11.

In the upper part of the wall section 16, the section 15 may comprise a complementary band 20, the band 20 forming an angular bracket, said band 20 being assembled at the upper end of the wall section 16 by means of screws 21, between said band 20 and screws 21 for example a metal strip 22 being interposed.

The section 15 may comprise a single volume (volume) as shown in fig. 4a, or may comprise a plurality of separately inflatable volumes as shown in fig. 4 b.

In fig. 4a, the section 15 with D-shaped cross-section comprises a single inflatable tube with D-shaped cross-section, whose substantially vertical flat face is directly attached and fixed, for example by gluing, to the outer face 19 of the upper side wall section 16, while its curved face is an extension of the outer part of the front 13 and rear 14 portions of the tube 12.

In fig. 4b, one of the two inflatable volumes comprises an inner substantially vertical portion having a height H defined by²P-fabrics, i.e. inflatable volumes of water-repellent fabric with two parallel faces, and the other of the two inflatable volumesI.e., the outer portion) includes a float having a D-shaped profile. Thus, an inner inflatable tube 26 is obtained, which inner inflatable tube 26 has in inflated condition the shape of a substantially parallelepiped, the transverse cross-section of which is in the form of a substantially vertically elongated rectangle with rounded corners, which inner inflatable tube 26 directly attaches, for example by gluing, the faces constituting the inner faces of the two parallel faces of the waterproof cloth or fabric delimiting the inflatable tube 26 to the outer face 19 of the upper side wall section 16, while the outer portion comprises an outer tube 25, which outer tube 25 has in inflated condition a D-shaped transverse cross-section, which outer tube 25 directly attaches or fixes its substantially vertical flat face to the outer surface of the inner inflatable tube 26, i.e. the faces constituting the outer surface thereof against the two parallel faces of the waterproof cloth or fabric of this tube 26.

In other words, the inflatable float section 15 having a D-shaped cross-section is a float comprising two inflatable tubes, one of which is an outer tube 25 having a D-shaped cross-section, the outer tube 25 attaching its flat face to an inner tube 26, the inner tube 26 having a substantially rectangular cross-section elongated in the vertical direction, the inner tube 26 itself attaching its flat inner face to the outer face 19 of the upper side wall section 16.

The embodiment according to fig. 4b with two inflatable tubes 25 and 26 forming a section 15 with a D-shaped cross-section provides the advantage of improving the impact resistance and safety of the vessel. If the outer pipe 25 is torn or accidentally deflated, the inner pipe 26 remains and the inner pipe 26 continues to provide reduced buoyancy sufficient to keep the boat afloat.

Fig. 5 shows the general appearance of the tube 12 of the present invention. The tube is presented in a stereoscopic half view. The figure shows a section 13 with a circular cross section arranged at the bow 3 and a section 14 with a circular cross section arranged at the stern 4, as well as a section 15 with a D-shaped cross section connecting the sections 13 and 14, between the sections 13 and 14.

In the lower part of the tube 12, there can also be seen a tether 7 for the sections 13 and 14 and a tether 17 for the section 15, which form a single tether extending over the entire length of these three parts.

The upper part of the section 15 comprises a strap 20, by means of which strap 20 the section 15 can be attached to the upper part of the upper side wall section 16 of the rigid hull 1.

Instead of attaching the lower part of the section 15 with D-shaped cross-section in the groove 18 by means of the tether 17 and attaching the strap 20 on the upper end of the section 15 to the upper side wall section 16 by means of the screw 21 (with a metal strip placed in the strap 20 and the screw 21), as a variant, the section 15 with D-shaped cross-section and comprising one or more inflatable tubes may be attached at its upper end and its lower end to the upper side wall section 16 by means of a flexible angle attachment of cloth or fabric, which may be glued directly to this upper side wall section 16.

This type of vessel has a significant increase in spaciousness compared to figure 1, as shown in figure 2. In fig. 2 the half width L11 of the deck 6 at the section 15 is larger than the half width L1 of the deck 6 in fig. 1, and the proportion of the surface area in this area is 30% to 40% larger for the vessel according to the invention.

Claims (10)

1. Vessel comprising a rigid hull (11) associated with one or more inflatable tubes (12) acting as an upper side wall, characterized in that said rigid hull (11) comprises at its deck (6) two types of retainers for said tubes:

a trough-shaped holder (5) for receiving sections (13, 14) of pipe (12) with a circular cross-section at the bow (3) and/or the stern (4), said trough-shaped holder (5) being located substantially at the level of the deck (6) and cooperating with the longitudinal portion of the cylindrical outer layer of the pipe section,

a holder in the form of an upper side wall section (16) extending between the bow (3) and the stern (4), arranged to cooperate with a structure in the form of an inflatable tube section (15) extending longitudinally between the bow (3) and stern (4) tube sections (13, 14), the holder in the form of an upper side wall section (16) having the form of a wall section (16) extending to a height substantially corresponding to the diameter of the bow (3) and/or stern (4) sections (13, 14), and the lateral position of the holder in the form of an upper side wall section (16) being such that the outer face (19) of the holder is located substantially in the vertical mid-plane of the bow and stern sections (13, 14).

2. A ship as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the inflatable tube sections (15) associated with the upper side wall sections (16) have a D-shaped cross section with a flat face abutting against an outer face (19) of the upper side wall sections (16) and a curved face being positioned as an extension of the outer portions of the bow and stern sections (13, 14).

3. A boat according to claim 2, characterized in that the section (15) of the inflatable tube with D-shaped section is attached to the lower and upper part of the upper side wall section (16).

4. A boat according to claim 3, characterized in that the lower part of the inflatable tube section (15) with D-shaped cross-section comprises a tether (17), said tether (17) being screwed into a slot (18) in the rigid hull (1), said slot (18) being arranged in the lower part of the upper side wall section (16).

5. A boat according to claim 4, characterized in that the tethers (17) located in the lower part of the inflatable tube sections (15) having a D-shaped cross-section are extensions of the tethers (7) of the bow and/or stern sections (13, 14), and the grooves receiving the tethers extend over the entire length of the rigid hull (1).

6. A boat according to any one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the upper part of the inflatable tube section (15) with D-shaped section comprises a strap (20) made of fabric, said strap (20) being slid into a track or fixed to the upper part of the upper side wall section (16) by means of bolts, between which a metal strip (22) is placed.

7. A boat according to any one of claims 2 to 6, characterized in that an inflatable tube section (15) with a D-shaped cross-section extends between the bow (3) and the stern (4) for a length corresponding to at least half the length of the boat, and the major part of this length is arranged on the stern side.

8. A boat according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the inflatable tube section (15) with D-shaped section comprises a single inflatable tube delimited by fabric attached to the upper side wall section (16) and by fabric forming, in the inflated condition, an arc of a circle, which is an extension of the bow and stern tube sections (13, 14).

9. A boat according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the inflatable tube section (15) with D-shaped section comprises at least two inflatable volumes, one of which comprises a substantially vertical inner portion containing an inflatable volume made of waterproof cloth or fabric with two parallel faces which, in the inflated condition, form a tube (26) with a substantially elongated rectangular section, said tube (26) having its inner face attached and fixed to the outer face (19) of the upper side wall section (16), and the other, outer, of said volumes comprises an inflatable tube (25) with D-shaped section, said inflatable tube (25) having its flat face fixed and attached to the outer face of the inner inflatable tube (26).

10. A boat according to any one of claims 1 to 3 and 7 to 9, characterized in that one or more inflatable tubes are assembled with the upper side wall section (16) by means of angle attachments directly glued to the upper side wall section (16) at their upper and lower portions.