Abstract: A boat steering with an anti-theft lock, comprising a steering housing having a rotatably journalled steering shaft and a panel attachment intended to be attached to an instrument panel and surrounding the shaft. The steering housing and panel attachment are connected to each other by means of a nut arranged concentric with the shaft. The panel attachment is provided with locking means having a lock bolt which, in the locking position, engages in a notch in the shaft thereby preventing turning of the shaft, the arrangement of the locking cylinder being such that removal of the nut for separation of the steering housing from the panel attachment is prevented.

Abstract: A vessel for transport of a floating buoyant cargo such as barges, lighters, and pontoons, wherein the cargo is partially supported in the vessel by its own buoyancy. The hull has an imperforate bottom shell with rigid submarine cargo-supporting and hull-reinforcing structure, a bow, a stern, side walls providing a series of buoyancy compartments, and a hollow enclosed interior including a cargo hold. Water can be introduced into or expelled from the buoyancy compartments to adjust the draft, trim, and list of the vessel. The cargo-supporting and hull-reinforcing structure has openings communicating with the hold and providing a bottom chamber that is always flooded during the voyage but can be pumped out for maintenance and repair. A series of water conduits pass to the ocean at intervals along the length of the hold, each conduit being located (when the vessel is level) at all points above the top of the bottom chamber.

Abstract: An extensible telescoping pole device for aid in mooring boats to mooring posts, docks and other objects. It includes a hollow main tubular base section with an attached handle which may be floatable to sustain the pole device if dropped into the water, and has one or more extension tubes which fit one into the other telescopically for extension in length. An outer loop portion which may be annular in shape, is carried on the end of the outermost extension tube to fit over a mooring post for bringing the boat carefully and slowly up to the dock for tying up. The entire device may be made of lightweight metal, or strong plastic tubing, and retractable for easy storage.

Abstract: A hollow, flexible, two-sided, substantially C-shaped open ring which, when deflated, can readily be distorted for easy application in surrounding relation with respect to a length of dredge pipe, including strap means for temporarily securing the ring in place, and which when subsequently inflated, assumes a substantially circular cross-sectional shape and constricts radially to securely embrace the peripheral wall of the pipe for use in the flotation thereof.

Abstract: A water ski binding having a foot piece and a heel piece which is attached to a mounting plate slidable along the water ski, the mounting plate consisting of a support member for the heel piece and separate latch members connected to the support member and having latch teeth which engage ratchet teeth on the guides for the mounting plate, the latching members being located rearwardly of the heel support member and being connected to the rear portion of the support member by springs located at the outside edges of the mounting plate.

Abstract: A pair of elongated ski-like members are secured in parallel spaced-apart relation to the rearward end portion of the bottom surface of a boat hull for supporting the bottom surface adjacent the surface of the water during a predetermined rate of acceleration.

Abstract: Ship having heat insulating compartments built into the framework of the ship has successive first sealing, first insulating, second sealing and second insulating barriers forming the compartment wall. The second sealing barrier is held to the hull of the ship by a fastener passing through the second insulating barrier. This fastener comprises an elongated stud welded to the hull of the ship, a head carried by the stud and a member fixed to the second insulating barrier and fastened to the head. The arrangement is such as to permit relative movement between the second insulating barrier and the hull substantially parallel to the hull.

Abstract: A boat auxiliary motor support, comprising a base, a bracket and two levers between which is mounted a control system comprising one cylinder, one piston and one hollow piston rod containing a control rod free to slide axially. The interior of the cylinder is divided up by a floating piston into a chamber filled with gas and forming a gas sprint and two chambers filled with oil and separated by the piston. The control rod rests against a valve mounted in the piston, that allows the oil to flow from one chamber to the other through a duct. A control system is mounted at the free end of the control rod to open the valve.

Abstract: A load-clamping apparatus wherein the loaded and unloaded condition of the clamping arms (respecting their contacting an external body) is automatically sensed, and used to determine the type of fluid connections which exist at any given moment between fluid motors that move the arms. With the arms moving toward one another, so long as the movement of neither arm is hindered by an external body, a series connection exists between the motors producing relatively high-speed low-power relative movement between the arms. When such hindering occurs, a parallel connection is produced which results, during clamping, in lower-speed higher-power relative movement between the arms.One embodiment of the invention takes the form of apparatus capable simply of producing relative movement between clamping arms toward and away from one another to clamp and release a load. Another embodiment enables this action, plus reversible, common-direction side-shifting of the arms.

Abstract: A portable submerged structure uses fluid pressure to extend a plurality of lexible conduits until the conduits become rigid. In such a rigid configuration the flexible conduits provide a rigid support which is independent of any further moorings or other conventional structure used to obtain rigidity. The invention discloses the use of an open form of independent conduits as well as conduits which are joined to provide a closed geometric figure. A packaging and deploying system using a fluid released container is also disclosed.

Abstract: A boat hull including a center depending keel fin is provided and the keel fin includes an upstanding rear edge portion having a horizontally rearwardly opening transverse recess formed therein. An upstanding main fin extending generally longitudinally of the hull is oscillatably supported in the forward portion of the keel fin recess for angular displacement about an upstanding axis spaced forward of the horizontal longitudinal center of the main fin and an upstanding front-to-rear extending servo fin is oscillatably supported from the rear portion of the main fin for angular displacement relative thereto about an upstanding axis. The interior of the hull includes heel sensing drive structure operatively connected between the hull and the servo fin for displacing the latter to starboard relative to the main fin in response to starboard heeling of the hull and displacing the servo fin to port relative to the main fin in response to heeling of the hull to port.

Abstract: A catamaran vessel has a central longitudinal axis and is provided with a pair of elongated hulls located at opposite sides of its axis and each provided with a bulbous forefoot which is inclined to the longitudinal axis of the vessel. A hydrofoil connects the forefeet and has in a plan view an arrowhead-shaped configuration whose tip may point forwardly or rearwardly with respect to the direction of movement of the vessel.

Abstract: A remote interconnection of a first undersea vehicle tethered to a second dersea vehicle is assured by mating assemblies carried on both vehicles. The tethering cable extends through a prod assembly carried on the tethered vehicle and functions mainly to deploy and retrieve the tethered vehicle. During the connection of the two vehicles the cable serves to draw the prod assembly into a latching assembly carried on the second undersea vehicle. Several pawls are cammed into an annular groove on the prod assembly and a pair of opposing helical springs mechanically interact to lock the pawls in place. The coaction of the springs' working on a collar on the prod assembly and a sleeve on the latching assembly makes accidental disengagement nearly impossible until hydraulic actuators assist the force produced by the sleeve spring to overcome the force exerted by the collar spring to release the pawls.

Abstract: Parasail launching and retrieving apparatus adapted to be mounted on a vehicle such as a boat having a tower for supporting a rotatable and pivoted main boom and outrigger boom. The outrigger boom supports the parachute when not in flight and the main boom has a line extending along its full length, one end being connected to a powered winch and the other end having a harness for supporting a person desiring to engage in the sport of parasailing. Upon the person being connected to the harness and the boat moving forwardly at a sufficient speed to permit the billowing of the parachute, the line is payed out and the parachute becomes airborne carrying the parasailor. When it is time to retrieve the parachute the winch is energized to reel in the line as the boat speed is progressively decreased until the parachute is in close proximity to the boat. Then the outrigger boom is extended to engage the canopy of the parachute while the person is deposited in the boat and he is then unhooked from the harness.

Abstract: An apparatus for damping vertical movement of a semi-submersible vessel having a small waterplane area, whose buoyancy is provided substantially completely by submerged pontoon means and which includes at least one submerged damper plate having valves or similar flow controllers therein for providing substantially greater resistance to upward movement of the plate than downward movement. The damper plate is supported deep beneath the semi-submersible vessel by flexible, tensioned support elements such as chains or cables, at a depth beneath the water surface in the semi-submerged condition of the vessel, at which depth the amplitude of subsurface wave motion is less than the maximum heave amplitude which would be experienced by the semi-submersible vessel alone under identical sea conditions. The area of the damper plate is several times larger than the waterplane area of the vessel.

Abstract: Boat stay fastening having a main body extending through the mast and having a hollow cap at each end, the interior of each cap having a spherical surface in which resides a ball adapted to be attached to a stay.

Abstract: A steering device which is particularly suitable for the automatic steering of a sailboat on a preselected heading relative to the apparent wind incorporates a hydrodynamic servo device. An oar member which forms the hydrodynamic servo is mounted in a support housing and positioned in the water behind the boat for both rotational and pendulous motion. Also mounted in the support housing and positioned in the water behind the boat for solely rotational motion is a rudder member which is coupled to the oar member to provide a rotational input thereto in response to steering control signals. These steering control signals may be provided by a dual axis wind vane which generates an output when the heading of a sailboat relative to the apparent wind changes. When the oar member is rotatably driven from its neutral position (i.e., the position where the sidewise hydrodynamic forces balance each other out), the water force pendulously drives this member substantially sidewise.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a marine propulsion device including a member adapted to be attached to a boat hull, a propulsion assembly pivotally connected to the member for vertical swinging movement, a hydraulic cylinder-piston assembly connected between the member and the propulsion assembly and including a cylinder having opposed first and second ends, a first sealed reservoir adapted to contain pressure fluid, a valve for introducing pressurized gas into the reservoir, a second sealed reservoir, a pressure relief valve communicating with the second reservoir, and a control valve structure comprising first, second, and third valves having a common actuator movable between first, second and third positions, which first valve communicates between the first end of the cylinder and the first reservoir and is open when the actuator is in the first position and is closed when the actuator is in the second and third positions, which second valve communicates between the first reservoir and the first end of the cylinder a

Abstract: A retriever device for locating a submerged object comprises a base member axially threaded with left hand threads, a spool positionable upon the base member and internally axially threaded with left hand threads, a screw member having contiguous right and left hand threads and holding the spool and the base member in secure position against the object, a retaining member mounted on the base member and including a transverse partition with an axial opening, a float member secured to the retaining member by a water-soluble adhesive means, and including attachment means for a line, and a line attached to the float to secure the float to the spool, and passing through the axial opening of the retaining member in order to be windable around the spool. The device of this invention is also intended to include a gas-generating tablet positionable upon the flat upper surface of the partition of the retaining member.

Abstract: A boat which becomes a wheeled trailer by use of attachable wheels and an attachable tow rod. The boat is fitted with female fittings which engage mating male members fitted on the attachable tow rod and attachable wheel assemblies, with one such female fitting mounted on the bow to engage the tow rod and two such female fittings mounted on each side panel of the boat to engage a wheel assembly.