Abstract: A drive system for a boat having a hull with an inboard motor and two spaced drive units mounted in the hull, including a dual drive package having a housing with first and second output shafts mounted in bearings in the housing and an input shaft mounted in bearings in the housing between the output shafts, first and second drive chain sprockets mounted on and spaced axially along the input shaft, a third drive chain sprocket mounted on the first output shaft, a fourth drive chain sprocket mounted on the second output shaft, a first drive chain coupling the first and third sprockets, a second drive chain coupling the second and fourth sprockets, and arrangements for connecting the input shaft to the motor and each of the output shafts to a respective drive unit. The drive system may further include first and second torque limiters for connecting between the respective drive units.

Abstract: Water jet propulsion unit for watercraft having a pump and stators arranged upstream and downstream of the pump for eliminating turbulence in the entering water and in the water jet generated by the pump, having coaxially arranged nozzles which are associated with the respective stator and are supported so as to be displaceable axially independently of one another, and having a switchable gear unit for driving the pump in the clockwise or counterclockwise direction in order to change the direction of motion of the watercraft, the water jet propulsion unit being supported at the watercraft so as to be swivelable by .+-.90.degree. approximately vertically to the axis of rotation of the pump rotor.

Abstract: An apparatus for use in forward facing rowing of a boat having oars mounted ahead of the oarsman and having a seat fixedly secured in the boat is disclosed. The apparatus comprises an inboard support assembly and an outboard support assembly. The outboard support assembly is connected to boat oars for pivotal movement of the oars with respect to the outboard support assembly in at least horizontal and vertical planes, and also allows rotational movement of the oars with respect to the outboard support assembly. The inboard support assembly is comprised of a mounting bracket slidably secured within the boat, as well as a first elongate support and a second elongate support, both of which are pivotally attached to the mounting bracket for horizontal movement of the first elongate support and the second elongate support.

Abstract: A high performance boat stabilized through the use of foam stabilizing members is provided. The boat has a rigid, planing hull including a transom, and a pair of curved sides extending forward from the transom to form a bow. A bottom is joined to the sides forming a chine. The foam stabilizing members are mounted on the sides of the hull above the chine and extend from the transom along the length of the boat. The sides of the boat also include an upper and lower flange extending outwardly from the sides of the boat adjacent to the upper and lower edges of the stabilizing members at the location where the stabilizing members attach to the sides of the hull. The lower flange helps to ensure that water is not forced in between the sides of the boat and the stabilizing members, thus preventing possible damage to the boat.

Abstract: An outboard motor support for preventing damage from inadvertent pivoting of the motor during trailering is provided which includes a pair of spring-loaded locking pins for convenient placement and removal. The support is attached to the motor and boat without making modifications thereto and handles are affixed to the spring-loaded locking pins for easy manipulation. Two embodiments of the outboard motor support are provided to accommodate the different popular types of outboard motors.

Abstract: A system for mooring oil transport, production, and drilling vessels in sea ice in the Arctic. The mooring system combines a submerged buoyant element structurally connected, for vertical movement, to an anchor structure on the seabed, and is designed to anchor a vessel equipped with a mooring system including a device for evacuating seawater from the mooring area between the hull of the vessel and the mooring element. The system can also be used without a vertically slidable mooring element, so that the vessel is directly fixed to the anchor structure using the device for evacuating seawater.

Abstract: A device to capture, contain and collect hydrocarbon fuels such as gasoline and diesel before they can be spilled or leaked from the ventilation valve or fuel intake port of the fuel tank of a vessel and on to the surface of the water during fueling operations at marine fueling facilities. The device is formed as a low-profile box with a floor section and upright wall sections having stratified layers of a textile material and a solidifying polymer enclosed within a outer envelope of textile material. A seamed area at the center of the device with slits in the textile material allows the device to circumscribe the annular conduit of a device passing through the seamed area. The device is positioned to surround the external ventilation valve of the fuel tank of the vessel. Excess fuel that is expelled through the ventilation valve when the capacity of the fuel tank is reached during the fueling operation is captured and absorbed by the device.

Abstract: Hull for a high speed boat, comprising a V-shaped hull bottom and channels extending in the longitudinal direction of the hull, arranged below the waterline of the hull and adapted for ballasting with water, comprising two channels (1, 2) being arranged near the hull bottom, as structural parts of the hull below the waterline of the hull, symmetrically to the centre axis of the boat, the front portions of the channels (1, 2) being connected with air apertures (4) arranged above the waterline, the channels (1, 2) comprising substantially open outlets (3) below the waterline in the stern of the boat, such that the channels are completely or partly filled with water when the boat is stationary or moved slowly, however, filled with air when the hull planes.

Abstract: Disclosed is a construction applicable to stern drive and outboard types of power boat propulsion units for enhancing the performance normally provided by the customary trim/tilt capabilities designed into the units. At a critical juncture in the trim/tilt operation, the present device automatically "kicks in" and by intercepting only a predetermined portion of the propeller backwash provides an almost immediate stern up/bow down result without noticeable speed retardation. The device lends itself either to kit form or to factory installation.

Abstract: A high speed ship is disclosed which includes a hull structure having a bow portion and a stern portion with the hull being normally supported above the surface of the water when in operation. A forward strut depends from the bow portion of the hull structure and is subtended by a first transverse displacement foil. A pair of midship struts depend from the hull structure aft of the forward strut; the aft struts are subtended by a second transverse displacement foil extending laterally between and connected to each of said struts. The second transverse displacement foil has a beam equal to or greater than its length and provides 70% or more of the major buoyancy for the ship during operation to maintain the hull above the surface of the water during operation. The forward foil provides less than 30% of the buoyancy of the vessel and has a beam less than the spacing between the aft struts.

Abstract: The apparatus of the invention offers a new sports activity, somewhere between roller-blading and waverunning, by incorporating a pair of boots on a pair of boards, and powering the combination by a pair of centrifugal clutch motors of rating not exceeding 5.0 horsepower, with a pair of throttled controls respectively coupled forwardly from the motors to extend to a position and height where they can be held and adjusted by a user in varying the horsepower delivered to the boards. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the apparatus is intended for use in a water environment, although by adding wheels to the underside of the boards, the apparatus can be modified for land use.

Abstract: A hydraulic tilt and trim mechanism for a marine outboard drive wherein the trim cylinder is provided with a valve element that is positioned responsive and which defines a fluid lock when the piston is in a trimmed down position for providing hydraulic resistance to further trim-down operations so as to minimize noise and wear. A mechanical stop is also provided within the trim cylinder.

Abstract: A gas cartridge introduced into the housing of the invention is punctured by a pin moved by an arm designed to show through a window whether the cartridge is full or empty. A pulling on a tab rotates the arm to action, in puncturing the cartridge and a spring then locks the visual display in position. The pin is provided with a cone-shaped head which prevents any re-arming of the arm from changing the display to show that the cartridge is full, when in fact the cartridge has been spent.

Abstract: A collapsible boat whose lateral hull walls are retractable to reduce the width of the boat is provided. Port side and starboard side lateral hull walls are pivotally connected along their lower edges to the central hull section of the boat. When extended, the lateral hull walls form a sloping hull wall extending upward and outward from the bottom of the central hull section. When retracted, the lateral hull walls pivot inward to reduce the width of the boat. Port side and starboard side braces are pivotally connected to the upper lateral edges of the central hull section for movement between an engaged position and a retracted position. In the engaged position, the braces connect to the lateral hull walls to keep them in their extended position. In the retracted position, the braces are pivoted inward to allow the hull walls to retract.

Abstract: A floatable aquatic vehicle for receiving and suspending an individual in a seated, floating configuration in water. The vehicle includes a support frame having an egg-like configuration. The egg-like configuration of the frame is a continuously arcuate enclosure having a large radius of curvature at a first side and a smaller radius of curvature at an opposing second side, the first and second sides being joined together. The vehicle also includes a flexible cover for encasing a buoyant float and a central opening for receiving the individual. The frame is coupled to the flexible cover so that the frame supports the cover at the opening.

Abstract: The present invention is a skeg cover which may be fitted onto either a damaged skeg or a new skeg to prevent shaft, gear, or propeller damage. The present invention is constructed such that it is inexpensive and may be quickly and easily installed by a boat owner.

Abstract: An improved thrust director unit is provided for discharging a directionally adjustable water jet flow from the hull of a marine vessel to generate a thrust reaction force for close-quarter maneuvering and/or propulsion of the vessel. The unit comprises a thruster housing having an outlet through which the jet flow is discharged, wherein the outlet is defined by diverging fore and aft walls to permit angularly forward or rearward jet flow discharge for vessel propulsion. At least two deflector vanes are movable together within the housing outlet and cooperate therewith to define a directionally adjustable discharge flow path for selective jet flow discharge in a sideward direction to produce a sideward thrust, or in a forwardly or rearwardly angled direction to respectively produce a reverse or forward propulsion thrust. In the sideward thrust position, the discharge flow path has a nondiverging cross section and is isolated from the diverging fore-aft walls of the housing outlet.

Abstract: Anchor fluke comprising a bottom side and an upper side and a longitudinal plane of symmetry, the upper side being defined by two convexly bent faces, formed by faces ascending in a convex manner from the sharp front edge in a symmetrical fashion relative to the longitudinal plane of symmetry twoards the rear and sidewards upto an apex line, by surfaces connecting smoothly thereonto in that location and descending in a symmetrical and convex fashion rearwards and towards the sides.

Abstract: The present invention is a hands free dive flag connector comprising a retractable lanyard dispenser releasably attached to dive gear on a scuba diver. Complementary hook and loop materials are attached to the dive gear and the retractable lanyard dispenser to form a releasable connection between the diver and the hands free dive flag connector. A lanyard is retractably wound on a spool in the retractable lanyard dispenser and attached to the spool at a dispenser end. A spring in the retractable lanyard dispenser maintains tension on the lanyard between the diver and the dive flag attached to the lanyard. A lanyard connecter is attached to the second end of the lanyard adjacent to an extended lanyard portion extending from the lanyard dispenser. The lanyard connecter attaches to the dive flag.

Abstract: A device for spherical ship's tanks (1), especially for liquid natural gas, comprising discharge pipes and filling pipes (3, 4 respectively) which extend vertically and centrally in the tank (1). The upper part of the pipes (3, 4) is attached to the tank and they extend down to the bottom (11) of the tank (1), being suspended in the tank, and the bottom part being passed slidably into respective muffs (15), which are permanently connected to the tank bottom (1). Between the pipes (3, 4) there extend cross-members (5, 6), these together with the pipes (3, 4) forming a truss beam.