GB2270283A

GB2270283A - Sailboard conversion seat

Info

Publication number: GB2270283A
Application number: GB9318413A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Oliver John Morris Granger
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1992-09-07
Filing date: 1993-09-06
Publication date: 1994-03-09
Also published as: GB9318413D0

Abstract

A seat adapted for attachment to an empty daggerboard casing of a sailboard having a removable daggerboard, and which enables the sailboard to be paddled by a person in both the kayak sitting position and the open canoe kneeling position comprises a formed supporting seat shaped to support the behind of a person in the kneeling position and to support the small of the back of the person when in the sitting position. The seat comprises an extended rigid tongue (3, Fig. 1) with compressible sides for attachment of the seat to the empty daggerboard casing. Cushioning skirting (Fig. 2) may be provided which may be folded to act as knee and foot pads in the kneeling position or as a buttock cushion in the sitting position. The skirting may be stored rolled up in a recess (2, Fig. 1) in the seat. <IMAGE>

Description

SAILBOARD This invention relates to an adaptor seat for using a sailboard as a paddle craft.

Sailboards have become a very popular marine craft with numerous makes and designs in use today. There are two basic design types : longboards and shortboards.

Longboards differ from shortboards not only in length and volume but also in the use of a daggerboard. All longboards have a daggerboard and shortboards do not. Within the field of paddle craft, there are two main types: Canoes and Kayaks. A canoeist uses a single blade and paddles in a kneeling position. A kayak is paddled in a sitting position with a two bladed paddle.

It is a common sight to see people paddle longboards using a two bladed paddle. This gives extra use to the sailboard. Some people have added a conversion seat to their sailboards to add comfort and a number of patents for these devices have been filed.

The problem of converting a sailboard is not a difficult problem to solve but producing a product that will convert any make of sailboard is far more difficult. This is due to the enormous number of different designs of boards in use. Along with the different designs come different fittings. Some boards have foot straps, some mastfoot tracks, others mast foot wells of various shapes, and some have retractable daggerboards rather than fixed. The problem is further complicated by the difference in the size of users and the need for simplicity of design, and ease of use and manufacture. A conversion seat needs to fit all types of longboard, work for any size of user, be easily fitted, small and buoyant while still giving real functional advantage.

In the past conversion seats have fallen short of these design criteria. They either fit only a certain design of board, or they are overly complicated or they are too expensive. Some offer no real functional advantage and it has usually been a combination of all of these faults.

The approach is to identify from all the different types of boards the common features to all of them. There is the distinction between long and shortboards. Longboards have a daggerboard shortboards do not. There is little point in the shortboard conversion because they tend to sink without forward motion and so would make poor paddle craft. All longboards have daggerboards and these are always removable.

With the daggerboard removed there is a rectangular slot through the board. The precise dimensions and nature of this slot will vary across the different designs of sailboard.

According to the present invention there is provided a sailboard conversion seat, that attaches into the empty daggerboard casing of any make of sailboard with a removable daggerboard and enables the sailboard to be paddled in both the Kayak sitting position and the Open Canoe kneeling position, comprising a formed supporting seat shaped to support the behind in the kneeling position and support the small of the back in the sitting position with extended rigid tongue with compressible sides for attachment of the seat to the empty daggerboard casing.

Preferably the seat would be accompanied by a dual functional cushioning skirting that would act as knee and foot pads in the kneeling position and buttock cushion in the sitting position.

Preferably this skirting would allow the pads to fold in on themselves and would then roll up.

Preferably the rolled up skirting would be stored in the seat body itself, in side a circular storage container. This storage container would contain the skirting when not in use and act as a place to store items when on the water.

Preferably the seat body, compressible sides and the pads of the skirting would be made of low density closed celled foam.

Preferably this foam would be Polyethylene , Polypropylene or Rubber. The foam needs to be closed celled, light weight and have a good compression set to allow expansion after compression.

A specific embodiment of this invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which : Figure 1 shows in perspective, the shaped seat 1 with storage container 2 with extended rigid tongue 3 and compressible sides 4.

Figure 2 illustrates the removed storage container 5 with folded and rolled up cushioning skirting 6. Unrolled skirting 7 and unfolded skirting 8 showing cushioning pads 9 attached to base sheet material 10.

Figure 3 shows sailboard with daggerboard removed and seat inserted into empty daggerboard casing with the user sitting in the Open Canoe kneeling position. The seat supports the buttocks and slopes forward to promote a strong arched back paddling position. The knees and feet are on the fully unfolded cushioning pads.

Fig 4 shows the seat turned round with the user sitting on the board in the Kayak position. This time the vertical face of the seat acts as a back rest and has a slight curve to centre the users back on the board and add to comfort supporting the small of the back. The cushioning pads have been folded inwards and now give comfort to the users buttocks.

Fig 5 shows a first angle projection drawing to scale of the main body of the conversion seat.

In figure 1 the rigid tongue with compressible sides is designed so that the length of the tongue is short enough to fit in the smallest daggerboard casing and the width of the compressible sides are designed to be wider than the widest daggerboard casing with the rigid centre thinner than the thinnest daggerboard casing. With this arrangement the extended rigid tongue 3 with compressible sides 4 will squeeze into any shape or size of empty daggerboard casing. This enables the seat to function on any make of sailboard with a removable daggerboard. The operation of fitting the seat is simply the removal of the daggerboard and insertion of the rigid tongue 3 with compressible sides 4.

In fig 3 and fig 4 the two paddling positions are shown. In fig 3 the kneeling position will work for any size of user.

The shorter the user the greater the comfort and the greater the stability.The sitting position offers the greatest stability to the user. In both positions the seat offers comfort to any size of user through the use of body angles rather than body lengths.

The precise dimensions fig 5 of the seat are crucial to optimise comfort, universality and stability. If the seat was made using a moulding process then all the angles could be soften to give a rounded finish but the fundamental shape would need to be kept.

The position of the tongue 3 with compressible sides 4 needs to be in the position shown in fig 1 and fig 5 so as to enable the seat to be placed forward in the kneeling position and allow the opposite end of the seat to act as a counter lever in the sitting position. Additionally the rigid section of the tongue 3 needs to encircle the storage container 5 to give additional strength to the structure.

Claims

1. A sailboard conversion seat which is for attaching into an empty daggerboard casing of a sailboard having a removable daggerboard, and which enables the sailboard to be paddled by a person in both the kayak sitting position and the open canoe kneeling position, the seat being such that it is a formed supporting seat which is shaped to support the behind of the person when the person is in the kneeling position and to support the small of the back when the person is in the sitting position, and which seat comprises an extended rigid tongue with compressible sides for attachment of the seat to the empty daggerboard casing.

2. A seat according to claim 1 and including a dual functional cushion skirting that acts as knee and foot pads in the kneeling position and a buttock cushion in the sitting position.

3. A seat according to claim 2 in which the skirting is such as to allow the pads to fold in on themselves, and in which the skirting is then able to be rolled up.

4. A seat according to claim 3 in which the skirting when rolled up is such as to be able to be stored in a body of the seat itself.

5. A seat according to claim 4 in which the rolled up skirting is storable inside a circular storage container.

6. A seat according to any one of the preceding claims in which the seat has a seat body, compressible sides and skirting pads, all made of low density closed celled foam.

7. A seat according to claim 6 in which the foam is polyethylene, polypropylene or rubber.

8. A sailboard conversion seat substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.