Water-swung hammock
A water-swung hammock is provided that requires no measure of human or mechanical effort to swing back and forth, thereby increasing a hammock's relaxation characteristics and enabling enjoyment of a hammock on the water. The water-swung hammock includes a floatable body for supporting a main body frame. The floatable body includes a generally flat central portion and raised ends so as to form a sled that is capable of supporting a user. The water-swung hammock further includes a swingable sheet for supporting the user and a support for swingable suspension of the swingable sheet relative to the main body frame. The water-swung hammock further includes a water-swinging pendular assembly coupled to the main body frame for receiving water movement and thereby imparting motive power to the swingable sheet.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/582,541 filed Jun. 25, 2004 and is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/464,355, filed Jun. 17, 2003, currently pending. Both Application Ser. No. 60/582,541 and Ser. No. 10/464,355 are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONa. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to the field of body supporting structures, and more particularly to a water-swung hammock for use on lakes, oceans and other water environments.
b. Description of Related Art
Hammock existence has been documented for roughly one thousand years with an estimated number of present day users at 100 million worldwide. The structure of a hammock is defined as a swingable sheet of material suspended between two attachment points adapted to support a user for the purpose of swinging and relaxation. However, to swing back and forth in a hammock one must employ a measure of human or mechanical effort for motive power.
The present invention provides an apparatus that requires no measure of human or mechanical effort to swing back and forth, adding a new dimension of water responsiveness to a hammock thereby enhancing a hammock's relaxation characteristics to greatly increase the enjoyment obtained therefrom.
As discovered with the first prototype, which can be viewed by logging onto www.waterhammocks.com, a water-swung hammock operates best with a sufficient amount of floatation means to stabilize the frame, while at the same time having a floatation means to provide a measure of impact absorption to achieve stabilization in more active waters.
In U.S. Pat. No. D 370,956 issued Jun. 18, 1996 a water hammock is presented as a sheet immersed in water.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,186,667 issued Feb. 16, 1993 a floating hammock is presented as a floating article immersed in water.
These disclosures operate outside the fundamental characteristics of a free-swinging sheet known to define a hammock, likewise, they do not operate on water as aquatic hammocks or on-land as hammocks, nor are they interchangeable with other brands of hammocks, improve upon a hammock, or expand upon the existing hammock market.
A water-swung hammock can be used on-land if desired, is interchangeable with other brands of hammocks, improves upon a hammock and thereby expands upon the existing hammock market while at the same time defining a new class of hammocks.
While personal floatation devices, floating articles and inflatable mattresses as in the aforementioned patents present interest in the hammock market, these floatation means are configured for use in a specific manner and do not relate to the present invention in any way.
OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGESTherefore, one main objective of the present invention is to provide a water-swung hammock that floats on a body of water.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a water-swung hammock that swings by the natural movement of water.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a fully integrated, simple to use, easily assembled, reliable water-swung hammock capable of being carried and stored easily, and of being used in a variety of ways for relaxation, diving off and storage of items, and having effective, efficient, and reliable means for the attachment of components and auxiliary equipment.
Attachment of components and auxiliary equipment may include without limitation, adaptable shade canopies, gas or electric powered engines, sails or kites, utility compartments, secured attachments for towing and tying off, straps for towing and tying off, a ladder, an anchor and line, a pillow rest, a cushioned swingable sheet, a cushioned staging platform, non-slip decking for a staging platform, foot straps for a staging platform, removable staging platform, interchangeable hammocks with or without spreader bars, smaller water-swung hammocks for juniors, single seated water-swung hammocks or larger sized water-swung hammocks for more lounging space, frame members to permit shortening and lengthening of length and width main body frame and supports, anti-roll lines for a swingable sheet, additional floatation, a pulley system to lower a water-swung hammock without a staging platform into the water for cooling off, climbing off, climbing on and raising the hammock.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a system in an affordable, cost-effective form.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a system in an easily dismantled, easily stored and transportable form.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a system with effective, efficient and reliable attachments for components and auxiliary equipment, which are neither too flexible nor too inflexible.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a detachable frame for a water-swung hammock which is durable, effective, efficient and may be quickly, easily, and reliably assembled or broken down for storage.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a swingable sheet for a detachable frame for a water-swung hammock which is durable, effective, efficient and may be quickly, easily, and reliably assembled or broken down for storage.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a staging platform of non-skid material for a detachable frame for a water-swung hammock which are durable, effective, efficient and may be quickly, easily, and reliably assembled or broken down for storage.
It is a further object of the invention to provide leg supports for a detachable frame for a water-swung-hammock which are durable, effective, efficient and may be quickly, easily, and reliably assembled or broken down for storage.
It is a further object of the invention to provide inflatable supports for a water-swung hammock which are durable, effective, efficient and may be quickly, easily, and reliably assembled or broken down for storage.
It is a further object of the invention to provide floatable supports attachments, staging platform attachments, leg support attachments, frame support attachments, swingable suspension attachments, water-swingable attachments and swingable sheet attachments for a water-swung hammock which are durable, effective, efficient and may be quickly, easily, and reliably assembled or broken down for storage.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a water-swung hammock and components for a water-swung hammock, which can be assembled and dismantled quickly, with a minimum of tools, or without any tools.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a water-swung hammock which can be used or adapted for a variety of purposes, including but not limited to: a swimming platform, a flotation device, a tow-float, or a “boat ” or “water” trailer for transporting equipment or supplies.
It is a further object of the invention to provide floatable supports, leg supports, frame supports and staging platform and swingable sheet of a water-swung hammock of sufficient width or beam to allow stable operation.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-swung hammock for use in cold and hot, rough and calm weather environments.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-swung hammock adapted for use on-land.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-swung hammock for staying dry and optionally as a platform for getting wet.
These and such other objects of the invention as will become evident from the disclosure below are met by the invention disclosed herein.
SUMMARY OF INVENTIONThe present invention achieves the aforementioned exemplary objects by providing a water-swung hammock being an aquatic relaxation apparatus and including a floatable body comprising a sled-shaped hull design. The water-swung hammock may include a floatable body for supporting a main body frame. The floatable body may include a generally flat central portion and raised ends so as to form a sled that is capable of supporting a user, a swingable sheet for supporting the user and including a support for swingable suspension of the swingable sheet relative to the main body frame, and a water-swinging pendular assembly coupled to the main body frame for receiving water movement and thereby imparting motive power to the swingable sheet of the water-swung hammock. The floatable body may include at least one support for securing the main body frame to the floatable body. The main body frame may be disposed within the floatable body. The bottom of the floatable body may include a ridge for assisting with directional travel of the water-swung hammock. A fin may be detachably coupled to a bottom of the floatable body for assisting with directional travel of the water-swung hammock. The main body frame may include a plurality of elongated members and formed members, the formed members coupling the elongated members to form the main body frame. The swingable sheet may be coupled to a pair of rigid elongated members at respective opposite ends thereof, the elongated members are adjustably attachable with the swingable sheet to maintain the swingable sheet in an open shape. The water-swinging pendular assembly may include a pair of adjustable cords attachable at first ends thereof to the main body frame and at second ends thereof to the swingable sheet. The main body frame may be formed of a one-piece structure.
The water-swung hammock may also include a floatable body for supporting a main body frame. The floatable body may include a generally flat central portion and raised ends so as to form a sled that is capable of supporting a user and wherein the main body frame comprises an overhead bar extending from a first end of the floatable body to a second end of the floatable body, a swingable sheet for supporting the user and including a support for swingable suspension of the swingable sheet relative to the main body frame, and a water-swinging pendular assembly coupled to the main body frame for receiving water movement and thereby imparting motive power to the swingable sheet of the water-swung hammock. For the water-swung hammock described above, the floatable body may include at least one support for securing the main body frame to the floatable body. A bottom of the floatable body may include a ridge for assisting with directional travel of the water-swung hammock. A fin may be detachably coupled to a bottom of the floatable body for assisting with directional travel of the water-swung hammock. The water-swinging pendular assembly may include adjustable cords attachable at first end thereof to the main body frame and at second end thereof to the swingable sheet. The swingable sheet may be coupled to an elongated member and the elongated member may be coupled to the pendular assembly. The swingable sheet may be adjustably attachable to the elongated member to maintain the swingable sheet in an open shape.
The invention yet further provides a water-swung hammock including a floatable body including a main body frame, a swingable sheet for supporting a user, the swingable sheet being pivotally suspended relative to the main body frame, and a pendular assembly coupled to the main body frame and to the swingable sheet for receiving water movement and thereby imparting motive power to the swingable sheet. The main body frame may be coupled to the floatable body. The main body frame may be integrally formed with the floatable body. The floatable body may include a flat central portion and raised end portions so as to form a sled.
These and additional features, advantages, and embodiments of the invention may be set forth or apparent from consideration of the following detailed description, drawings, and claims. Moreover, it is to be understood that both the foregoing summary of the invention and the following detailed description are exemplary and intended to provide further explanation without limiting the scope of the invention as claimed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSThe accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention and together with the detail description serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings:
Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate like and corresponding parts throughout the several views,
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Although only an exemplary embodiment of the invention has been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible without materially departing from the scope of the present invention.
One such alternative embodiment may include a floatable body means adapted to support a swingable sheet horizontally associated to the floatable body means and including means for attachment adapted to support a user and water-swinging pendular means associated with the floatable body means and adapted to receive water movement for motive power for the water-swung hammock.
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Water-swung hammock 300 may generally include a main body frame 334 that is provided for attachment of a hammock. Referring to
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As described above, water-swung hammocks may include water-swung hammock swings and seats, water-swung hammock beds, and/or water-swung hammock platforms. The frames for water-swung hammocks may be rigid, semi-rigid, or inflatable, and the water-swung hammocks may be attached at one or more horizontal or vertical suspension points.
Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to those particular embodiments, and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.
Claims
1. A water-swung hammock comprising:
- a floatable body for supporting a main body frame, wherein said floatable body includes a generally flat central portion and raised ends so as to form a sled that is capable of supporting a user;
- a swingable sheet for supporting the user and including a support for swingable suspension of said swingable sheet relative to said main body frame; and
- a water-swinging pendular assembly coupled to said main body frame for receiving water movement and thereby imparting motive power to said swingable sheet of said water-swung hammock.
2. The water-swung hammock according to claim 1, wherein said floatable body includes at least one support for securing said main body frame to said floatable body.
3. The water-swung hammock according to claim 1, wherein said main body frame is disposed within said floatable body.
4. The water-swung hammock according to claim 1, wherein a bottom of said floatable body includes a ridge for assisting with directional travel of said water-swung hammock.
5. The water-swung hammock according to claim 1, wherein a fin is detachably coupled to a bottom of said floatable body for assisting with directional travel of said water-swung hammock.
6. The water-swung hammock according to claim 1, wherein said main body frame includes a plurality of elongated members and formed members, said formed members coupling said elongated members to form said main body frame.
7. The water-swung hammock according to claim 1, wherein said swingable sheet is coupled to a pair of rigid elongated members at respective opposite ends thereof, said elongated members are adjustably attachable with said swingable sheet to maintain said swingable sheet in an open shape.
8. The water-swung hammock according to claim 1, wherein said water-swinging pendular assembly includes a pair of adjustable cords attachable at first ends thereof to said main body frame and at second ends thereof to said swingable sheet.
9. The water-swung hammock according to claim 1, wherein said main body frame is formed of a one-piece structure.
10. A water-swung hammock comprising:
- a floatable body for supporting a main body frame, wherein said floatable body includes a generally flat central portion and raised ends so as to form a sled that is capable of supporting a user and wherein said main body frame comprises an overhead bar extending from a first end of said floatable body to a second end of said floatable body;
- a swingable sheet for supporting the user and including a support for swingable suspension of said swingable sheet relative to said main body frame; and
- a water-swinging pendular assembly coupled to said main body frame for receiving water movement and thereby imparting motive power to said swingable sheet of said water-swung hammock.
11. A water-swung hammock according to claim 10, wherein said floatable body includes at least one support for securing said main body frame to said floatable body,
12. The water-swung hammock according to claim 10, wherein a bottom of said floatable body includes a ridge for assisting with directional travel of said water-swung hammock.
13. The water-swung hammock according to claim 10, wherein a fin is detachably coupled to a bottom of said floatable body for assisting with directional travel of said water-swung hammock.
14. The water-swung hammock according to claim 10, wherein said water-swinging pendular assembly includes adjustable cords attachable at first end thereof to said main body frame and at second end thereof to said swingable sheet.
15. The water-swung hammock according to claim 10, wherein said swingable sheet is coupled to an elongated member and said elongated member is coupled to said pendular assembly.
16. The water-swung hammock according to claim 15, wherein said swingable sheet is adjustably attachable to said elongated member to maintain said swingable sheet in an open shape.
17. A water-swung hammock comprising:
- a floatable body including a main body frame;
- a swingable sheet for supporting a user, said swingable sheet being pivotally suspended relative to said main body frame; and
- a pendular assembly coupled to said main body frame and to said swingable sheet for receiving water movement and thereby imparting motive power to said swingable sheet.
18. The water-swung hammock according to claim 17, wherein said main body frame is coupled to said floatable body.
19. The water-swung hammock according to claim 17, wherein said main body frame is integrally formed with said floatable body.
20. The water-swung hammock according to claim 17, wherein said floatable body includes a flat central portion and raised end portions so as to form a sled.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 3, 2005
Publication Date: Nov 17, 2005
Inventor: Peter Boyd (Antioch, CA)
Application Number: 11/144,334