Rudderless steering method and device for ship

Abstract

A rudderless steering vessel has a hull, a deck, a rotating column disposed through the deck. A handle is connected to the rod, wherein the rod is connected to the top end of the rotating column and can be manually rotated. A water spraying propeller is arranged at the bottom end of the rotating stand column.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to a vessel, and more specifically, to a vessel steering system and method that does not require a rudder. Background Technology

[0002] Typically, boats are propelled by motors, sails, or manually by oars. All of these known methods of propulsion also require a rudder to steer the boat.

[0003] A new, safer, and easier-to-manage method of ship steering may be needed.

[0004] All cited patents, applications, and documents are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Furthermore, if a definition or use of a term in a cited document (which is incorporated herein by reference) is inconsistent with or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition provided herein shall prevail, and the definition of that term in the cited document shall not apply. The disclosed embodiments may be intended to satisfy one or more of the above-described requirements. While these embodiments may eliminate one or more of the above-described requirements, it should be understood that certain aspects of the embodiments may not necessarily eliminate them. Attached Figure Description

[0005] It should be noted that the accompanying drawings may be simplified and not necessarily drawn to scale. For the purposes of this disclosure, directional terms such as top, bottom, left, right, up, down, above, above, below, rear, front, far end, and near end are used for convenience and clarity only, and these terms are referenced in the accompanying drawings. Such directional terms should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments in any way.

[0006] Figure 1 This is a side view of a vessel having an embodiment of a rudderless steering system according to one aspect of this disclosure;

[0007] Figure 2 It is based on one aspect of this disclosure, Figure 1 Front view of the steering system without steering wheel;

[0008] Figure 3 This is another front view of a steering system without steering according to one aspect of this disclosure;

[0009] Figure 4 This is another side view of another embodiment of a rudderless steering system mounted on a ship, according to one aspect of this disclosure;

[0010] Figure 5 This is a partial enlarged view of the rotating column of a rudderless steering system according to one aspect of this disclosure;

[0011] Figure 6This is a cross-sectional view of a rotating column for a rudderless steering system according to one aspect of this disclosure;

[0012] Figure 7 This is a detailed view of the seat and support base of a rudderless steering system according to one aspect of this disclosure;

[0013] Figure 8 This is a general view of the manner in which the controller handle of a rudderless steering system rotates, according to one aspect of this disclosure;

[0014] Figure 9 This is a partial view of a contemplated controller handle according to one aspect of this disclosure.

[0015] The following list of component numbers in the drawings can serve as a useful guide when referring to the components in the drawings: 100 catamarans 102 Hull Deck 104 106 Frontend 108 Backend 120 seats 122 Seat backrest 124 Seat support 126 Support base 127 Through Hole 130 Waterjet Propulsion 134 nozzles 140 Pivot 142 Fragile Pivot 150 Rotating Column 154 Lower arm 158 Fastening Plate 170 Controller Handle 172 triggers 176 Horizontal section 177 Fasteners 178 Remote portion 179 Proximal end Detailed Implementation

[0016] The inventors have discovered a new method and system for maneuvering ships. This new method and system can be applied to various types of ships, whether single-hull or multi-hull.

[0017] In most of the accompanying drawings, a catamaran is shown for illustrative purposes, but the invention is not limited thereto.

[0018] Figure 1 The basic architecture of a steering system without steering according to one of the disclosed embodiments is generally described. Figure 1The image shows a vessel with a hull (102) and a deck (104). The deck has a bow and a stern. At the aft end of the deck, the steering mechanism is arranged through deck 104 and is long enough to reach below the waterline. Although Figure 1 The device is shown to be located at the stern of the vessel, but it is envisioned that the device could be located anywhere on deck 104, including but not limited to the fore and midships of deck 104.

[0019] Please continue reading now. Figure 1 The device further includes a water jet propulsion unit 130, a seat 120, and a rotating column 150. Furthermore, in this embodiment, a person can sit on the seat 120 and lean against the seat back. 122. In addition, seat 120 is connected to support base 126, which is supported by seat pillar 124. In addition, a controller handle 170 is provided on the steering device, allowing the user to control the direction of the vessel by manipulating the controller handle 170.

[0020] Furthermore, a rotating column 150 is located at the center of the seat support 124, allowing the user to change the boat's direction by rotating this column. It should be noted that the rotating column 150 is connected to the lower arm 154. The lower arm 154 is connected through to the water jet propulsion unit 130 and is not rotatable; therefore, the user can control the boat by rotating the rotating column 150, and correspondingly, the water jet propulsion unit 130 and the lower arm 154 will also rotate accordingly.

[0021] As previously mentioned, a handle 170 may be provided at the top of the rotating column 150. The handle 170 allows the user to manually rotate the vessel about an axis perpendicular to the plane of the deck 104.

[0022] As previously mentioned, a waterjet propulsion unit 130 may be provided at the bottom end of the lower arm 154. The waterjet propulsion unit 130 may be a turbine-driven waterjet propulsion unit without exposed propeller blades. It may be the type of waterjet propulsion unit commonly found on personal jet skis (JETSKI) and electric surfboards. Furthermore, this waterjet propulsion unit 130... It can be powered by electricity or fuel. In this case, the water jet propulsion unit 130 has a nozzle 134 at its rear end.

[0023] Please refer to the following: Figure 2 It provides a front view of the envisioned system and shows the handle lever with a distal portion 178 and a horizontal portion 176. The controller handle 170 is located at the distal portion 178, while the horizontal portion 176 is connected to the top of the rotating column 150, as shown... Figure 7As shown. The horizontal portion 176 and the distal portion 178 of the handle lever may have curvature, thereby allowing the user to push the handle 170 and thus rotate the rotating column 150.

[0024] Please continue to refer to this. Figure 2 The rotating column 150 and the lower arm 154 are connected together by a pivot 140. In addition, the pivot 140 has a breakable pivot 142 that breaks when the lower arm 154 encounters an obstacle.

[0025] Now for reference Figure 3 This diagram shows a rotated view of the water jet propulsion unit 130 and the handle 170. Here, the user has rotated it counterclockwise (from...). Figure 8 (As shown in the top-down view) Push the handle forward. Figure 3 In, with Figure 2 Compared to its current position, the water jet propulsion unit 130 has rotated approximately 45 degrees.

[0026] More specifically, the controller handle 170 contains a trigger 172, which activates when the user pulls the trigger. At 172, the throttle opening of the water jet propulsion unit 130 will increase.

[0027] exist Figure 4 In the enlarged side view shown, a seat can be provided for a user above the seat pillar 124. The user can sit on the seat 120, and his / her hands will grasp the handle 170, pushing and pulling the handle 170 forward and backward. The forward and backward directions are actually the directions of rotation relative to the longitudinal axis of the pillar (see...). Figure 8 ).

[0028] As for the support base 126, from the side view (see...) Figure 4 and Figure 5 It can have an arc shape. It should be noted that the support base 126 does not rotate with the rotating column 150. In other words, the position and orientation of the support base 126 remain unchanged during operation. (Review) Figure 5 The support base 126 can be a metal bracket with a top plate 128 and a bottom plate 129, connected by an arc-shaped member 125. Note that the top plate 128 has four through holes 127, and the bottom plate 129 also has four through holes, allowing bolts to be inserted directly downwards from the top into these holes. The arc shape of the support base 126 can serve as a shock-absorbing suspension for the seat 120.

[0029] Figure 6 Provided Figure 5 Sectional view of mid-section AA. Here, fastening plate 158 secures seat support 124. The seat support 124 is fixed to deck 104. Inside the seat support 124 is a rotating column 150. It should be noted that the seat support 124 remains stationary during operation and does not rotate at all. A lower arm 154 is attached to the bottom end of the rotating column 150. From a top view, the lower arm 154 consists of two parallel flat plates. As described elsewhere in this specification, the lower arm 154 is pivotally fixed to the rotating column via a pivot 140.

[0030] Now for reference Figure 7 The figure shows the seat 120 and its related components in detail. Here, the seat 120 is connected to the support base 126. The seat 120 can be connected to the support base 126 via fasteners (not shown). These fasteners can be inserted into through holes 127 and into the bottom of the seat 120. The bottom of the seat 120 has receiving holes (not shown) to receive these fasteners. In one embodiment, these fasteners can be screws. In another embodiment, these fasteners can be bolts.

[0031] More specifically, the support base 126 is directly connected to the seat pillar 124, and the seat 120 is connected to the support base 126. Furthermore, the pivot 140 is equipped with a breakable pivot 142, which can break under stress. It should be noted that two fastening plates 158 are placed on the seat pillar 124, which secure the seat pillar 124 and the deck 104 together. Additionally, when the vessel collides with an obstacle, the breakable pivot 142 will break, and the user can replace the breakable pivot 142 so that the vessel can continue to operate normally.

[0032] It should be noted that the lower arm 154 is connected to the rotating column 150 via a pivot 140, and the breakable pivot 142 is part of the pivot 140. When the vessel hits an obstacle, the breakable pivot 142 will break first, and the user can then replace the breakable pivot 142 instead of replacing the entire pivot 140, thereby minimizing the vessel's functional impairment.

[0033] The controller handle 170 has an outer contour and an inner contour, forming a hollow structure. More specifically, the inner contour forms a trigger 172, on which the user can place their finger and pull to increase the throttle opening. During operation, the user can push the handle forward (i.e., from a top view, move the handle counterclockwise around the column), causing the waterjet propeller 130 to turn to the port side, and its nozzles 134 to turn to the starboard side, as... Figure 3As shown in the middle diagram. If the waterjet propulsion unit 130 is actively propelling, this action will cause the vessel to turn to starboard. Conversely, the user can pull the handle back (i.e., from a top view, move the handle clockwise around the column), causing the waterjet propulsion unit 130 to move to a position where its nozzles 134 are pointing to port. If the waterjet propulsion unit 130 is actively propelling, this action will cause the vessel to turn to port.

[0034] To reverse the boat, the user does not need to reverse the turbine in the waterjet propulsion unit 130. Instead, the user simply rotates the handle to rotate the waterjet propulsion unit 130 180 degrees.

[0035] It should be noted that, due to the use of the water jet propulsion unit 130, there will be no exposed propeller, thereby preventing or minimizing the harm that exposed propellers would typically cause to humans and animals in the water.

[0036] In embodiments where the waterjet propulsion 130 is electrically driven, the power source (e.g., a battery pack) can be located on the deck 104 or anywhere on the vessel.

[0037] In another embodiment, Figure 8 The handle 170 can be detached from the distal end of the handle bar 178, allowing the user to pull the trigger 172 from a position away from the seat 120.

Claims

1. A rudderless steering watercraft comprising a hull and a deck; a post, wherein the post is disposed through the deck; a handle, wherein the handle is disposed at a top end of the post and is manually rotatable; a water jet propeller, wherein the propeller is disposed at a bottom end of the post.

2. The rudderless steering watercraft of claim 1, wherein the post is disposed at a front, middle or rear end of the watercraft.

3. The rudderless steering watercraft of claim 1, wherein the post has a curvature portion on which a user can place a hand and rotate the post.

4. The rudderless steering watercraft of claim 1, wherein a seat is provided above the post on which a user can sit and grasp the handle and push or pull in a forward or rearward direction relative to a longitudinal axis of the post.

5. The rudderless steering watercraft of claim 1, wherein the post is fitted with a safety device that allows the post to continue to function when it encounters an obstacle.

6. The rudderless steering watercraft of claim 5, wherein the safety device further comprises: an upper post and a lower post; the upper post is pivotably connected to the lower post by a pivot.

7. The rudderless steering watercraft of claim 6, wherein the safety device further comprises: a breakable pivot disposed below the pivot; wherein the pivot holds the lower post in a locked, non-pivotable position relative to the upper post.

8. The rudderless steering watercraft of claim 7, wherein the breakable pivot is breakable when subjected to force.

9. The rudderless steering watercraft of claim 8, wherein the breakable pivot breaks when the lower post and / or the water jet propeller encounters an obstacle, thereby allowing the lower post to pivot.

10. A catamaran characterized in that, further comprising the rudderless steering watercraft of any one of claims 1-9.

Images