US1323732A

US1323732A - Surf-boat

Info

Publication number: US1323732A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1919-12-02
Anticipated expiration: 1936-12-02

Description

A. A. ALLEN SURF BOAT.

, APPLICATION man NOV. 29, 1918.

Patented Dec. 2,1919.

i /Ki ALTON A. ALLEN, OF FALL RIVER, MASSACHUSETTS.

SURF-BOAT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 2, 1919.

Application filed November 29, 1918. 'erial No. 264,589.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALTON A; ALLEN, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Fall River, in the county of Bristol and State of Massachusetts have invented new and useful Improvements in Surf-Boats, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a boat adapted to be used by bathers in floating or swin ming or riding waves and the object of the invention is to provide a boat of this character which is light and buoyant, which can be. easily and substantially constructe which is adapted comfortably to support a bather either partially or wholly in swimming or floating, which is adapted to skim over the water with a minimum of resistance, which can be used in any one of a number of positions so as to minimize the inconvenience of turning the boat properly to position same relatively to the bat-her, which will remain water-tight with little or no calkin'g, which will have little tendency to stick to the sand when left on the beach, and which has any one of the aforesaid characteristics or any two or more of the aforesaid characteristics in combination.

The invention consists primarily in a buoyant body peculiarly shaped to adapt itself to assist a bather in swimniingor floating. The upper surface of the body is sloped downwardly toward one end to permit a bat-her to lie face downwardly on the said end with his legs extending beyond the end and the body ispreferably made sufficiently narrow to permit the bather when lying in said position to use his arms on opposite sides of the boat in swimming. The lower surface of the body is slopedupwardly toward the opposite end to cause the boat to skim over the water. with less resistance. In order' to adapt the boat to be used in any position, with either end foremost and with either side up, the upper surface is sloped downwardly in the aforesaid manner at both ends and the lower surface is sloped upwardly in the aforesaid manner at both ends, preferably so that the upper and lower surfaces substantially meet at an edge at both ends and so that the boat is symmetrical with respect to its central horizontal plane. The sloping portions of the said surfaces may be either curved or flat and they may extend either a part or all of the to the center of the boat, but

they are preferably curved and they prefcrably extend substantially to the center of the boat so that the upper and lower surfaces of the boat respectively curve upwardly and downwardly substantially continuously from one end to the other. In this way the upper and lower walls of the boat may be applied to theframe more easily and tightly when constructing the boat in the particular manner hereinafter described, and the boat has less tendency to stick to the sand when left on the beach owing to the fact that the curved wall resting on the sand contacts with the sand only throughout a limited area. This is of particular importance when the sand is wet inasmuch as a flat body resting on wet sand sticks tightly to the sand due to the fact that the water rises in the sand and fills the spaces between the particles of sand and the body.

In a more specific aspect the invention comprises a hollow body having its upper and lower walls (shaped in the aforesaid manner) closed at the sides and ends to form a substantially water-tight compartment therein. The upper and lower walls are preferably formed of transverse boards fitted tightly together and secured to side and end members as will hereinafter be described more in detail.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the preferredembodiment of my invention, 3

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the boat;

Fig. 2' is a plan view'of the boat, constructed as hereinafter described;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the boat;

Fig. 4 is a vertical horizontal section on line 4-4 of Fig. 2;.and

Fig. 5 is a perspective View of the frame of, the boat, one end of the frame being broken away.

7 As illustrated in Fig. 1, my improved boat is preferably considerably longer than wide and considerably wider than thick. As above stated the upper and lower surfaces 1 are preferably curved longitudinally of the boat so as to meet at the ends 2 and 3 which are preferably rounded both about hori- Zontal axes and at the corners. As illustrated the transverse elements of the top and bottom surfaces are preferably straight so as to minimize the tendency ofthe boat to tip laterally. The sides 4 are preferably fiat as illustrated although this particular shape of the sides is not essential.

, tending between the ends ofthe side members are end members com arisin outerv a b V port1ons7 and inner portions 8. The outer portions 7 overlap the ends of the side members andthe inner portions 8 eXtend in wardly into the space between the ends of the side members. The inner portions 8 of the end members fit against the'inner sides surfaces of the side members.

. the boat.

of the side members at their opposite ends and are tapered-longitudinally of the side members so that their upper and lower surfaces are flush with the upper and lower The outer and inner portions of the end members are defined from each other by shoulders 9 disposed substantially in the planes of the ends of the side members. The depth 'of'the shoulders 9 is made equal to the thickness of the upper and lower walls of the boat. The outer portions 7 of the'end members are also tapered longitudinally of the boat so that the upper and lower surfaces of the portions 7 are substantially continuous with I the outer surface of the walls of the boat.

The portions. 7 of the end members are;

rounded at their outer edges and are also rounded at their ends. The upper and lower walls of the boat are preferably formed of transverse boards 19 fitted tightly together and secured at their opposite ends to the side members 5. As illustrated in Fig. l the boards 10 lapover the inner portions 8" of the end members and fit against the shoulders 9 of the end members. Owing to the tapered shape of the inner portions 8 of the end members they are h ld in position by theboards 10 when the boards 10 are merely secured to the side members. Howerer, in order totie the parts together more securely the boards overlapping the unner portions 8 of the end. members arealso preferably secured directly to the portions 8. I

In order to drain from the interiorof the boat any water which may leak thereinto I preferably provide an opening 11 at one corner ofthe side members at one corner of It will of course be understood that the opening 11 is normally plugged and that water is drained from the boat by re moving the plug and tipping the boat so that the. water will run to the corner in which the opening 11 is provided.

In using my'improved boat the bather rests his body on one end of'the boat face downwardly with his legs extending beyond the end of the boat and with his arms either resting on the boat or extending into the water on oppositesides of the boat; Owing the bather and owing to the rounded ends and corners there is little danger of injury. It will be understood that the boat is ap to the curved contour of the uppersurface' 7' of the boat it afiords a eomfortable rest for proximately as long as the average bather and that when resting on the boat" in the'f aforesaid manner the bathers head is in the central'region of the boat. Thus the for-v ward end of the boat will be tipped up and owing to the curvature of the'low'er surface of the beat it can be propelled over the water with a minimum ofresistance. By curving the upper and lower surfaces ofthe' boat at both ends the bather may resthis body on the boat in the aforesaid manner in any one of four positions of the boat via, at either end of the boat and with either side of'the boat uppermost. In approaching the boat, therefore, it is never necessary to turn it over or turn it end for end. The boat is preferably made suflieiently buoyant. to support the entire weight of the bather so that-he may, if he desires, sit or lie upon the boat. Owing to the peculiar construe tion of the end members and their unique having side' member's vertically tapered I from their central region toward each end, end members uniting the ends of said slde members so as to'form a substantially rectangular frame, and straight sheathing menr bers extending transversely of said frame'on each face thereof and lncl'osing'sald frame.

Signed by. me at Fall River, 'Massachu V setts, this 25th dayof-November,1918;

ALTON ALLEN.