Fixed seat rowing frame, with sliding rowlocks arm, fully inflatable

Abstract

Fixed seat rowing frame with sliding rowlocks arm, easily transportable and simple to assemble, being composed of two sections, one fixed (10) and the other sliding (30), both inflatable and mainly composed of high pressure drop-stitch type boards and which can be made either in a kit version to be applied to existing boats such as SUP boards or inflatable kayaks, or in a version that can be used directly in the water for rowing thanks to two inflatable floats fixed under the base of the frame and composed of two boards, also inflatable high pressure drop-stitch type, placed edgewise, to make said floats long and thin.

Description

[0001]FIXED SEAT ROWING FRAME, WITH SLIDING ROWLOCKS ARM, FULLYINFLATABLE DESCRIPTION TECHNICAL FIELDThe technical field of the present invention relates to equipment forrowing in water for leisure and outdoor physical activity, in particular both kits for transforming existing hulls such as kayaks and SUP boards into rowing vessels, and boats made for rowing in water for the same non- competitive purposes. BACKGROUND ART Rowing in water, using two oars and involving leg thrust in the movement, is a complete and psychologically satisfying motor activity, for this reason, in addition to competitive rowing boats, there are also boats made for outdoor motor activity and leisure. Among these, in addition to those made with a sliding seat, there are also versions made with a fixed seat and sliding oarlock structure, this version, not admitted in official rowing competitions but which has the undoubted advantage of making the boatless subject to pitching during rowing, since the weight of the rower isnot subject to translation back and forth. In recent years, kits have also been made, often in the fixed seat and sliding rigger version, to be able to row even on small portable boats or also on kayaks and SUP boards. Inparticular, the advantage of avoiding pitching due to the longitudinaltranslation of the rower's weight, which generates resistance toadvancement, is much more appreciable in shorter boats. In general, the benefits deriving from the possibility of rowing in calm lake, sea or river waters are often offset by the disadvantages due to the poor portabilityof this type of boat, their cost and their complexity, compared to themuch simpler and more widespread kayaks or SUP boards, which among other things, in their inflatable versions, represent the maximum in terms of comfort and portability. And it is to respond, at least in part, to theseneeds that the kits mentioned above were created, these are rowingframes made of rigid materials, often in aluminum tubes or profiles,composed, in the sliding rigger version, of a fixed part supporting theseat, on which a second structure slides, which extends laterally to theright and left up to the supports for the oarlocks. With this type of kit, asalready mentioned, it is possible to row even on small boats such askayaks or SUP boards, but these are additional structures that have acertain bulk, weight and complexity that should not be underestimated, even if they are made partly foldable or to be assembled. This does notderive so much from the bulk of the oars which, even if long, can bemade to be dismantled into several parts and in light material such asaluminum or even carbon fiber, but from the structure of the slidingrigger itself which in any case must be robust and large given the distance at which the oarlocks must be mounted in rowing. All this constitutes a limitation and a brake on the spread of this type of equipment, especially when compared to the boats to which they should be applied, especially when talking about inflatable kayaks or SUP boards which are light, and once deflated fit in a bag. DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION The purpose of this invention is to provide a movable rowing frame, witha fixed seat and a sliding oarlocks support arm which is light, easily transportable and simple to install as the boats to which it can be applied, such as kayaks or inflatable SUP boards. It is a frame composed of twoparts, a fixed part that supports the seat, on which a second part slides,which extends laterally to the right and left up to the oarlock supports.Both parts are inflatable at high pressure, so the frame structure isentirely inflatable like the boats to which it is applied and thereforerepresents an absolute novelty in this sector. Another object of the present invention is to provide an inflatable rowing frame that does not need to be installed on an existing vessel in order to be used, but which in another version already comprises two narrow and thin high-pressure floats welded or glued underneath it to form a single, stable, light and fast, fully inflatable vessel for rowing and rowing in any body of water, being easily transportable and simple to install. Existing rowing equipment and frames are all made of strong and rigidmaterials, whether wood, steel or aluminum, this is because they arestructures that must transfer the muscular force applied to the oars,through the rowlocks and their supports to the rest of the boat togenerate the thrust for advancement; therefore, talking about "inflatable" for these equipment may seem inappropriate. However, the application of the so-called drop-stitch technology, in which the inflatable boards are joined by hundreds, if not thousands of filaments, allows the creation ofinflatable boards that retain their shape at high pressure and haveconsiderable rigidity, such as to be able to transfer the forces generated during rowing from the rowlock supports to the rest of the boat.The inflatable frame we are talking about consists, in brief, of a basemade up of a rectangular drop-stitch high-pressure inflatable board,arranged horizontally on which, near one of the two short sides, a small board, also inflatable, is attached, which acts as a fixed seat. On the rest of the upper surface of the board, are installed low-friction linear sliding guides on which another board slides, also inflatable at high pressure, not rectangular in shape, but rather in an inverted U or V shape seen from the seat, arranged transversely, and protruding laterally both to the right and left with respect to the base, and on which are fixed, one near the right edge and the other near the left edge, the two rigid supports that hold the oarlocks. In the “rowing kit” version, straps and / or hooks are attached to the boardthat acts as a base to mount it on inflatable SUP boards or inflatablekayaks; in the “inflatable rowing catamaran” version, under the boardthat acts as a base, near the two long sides, two parallel floats are welded or glued. These floats consist of two high-pressure drop-stitch inflatable boards, with the particularity of being arranged edgewise, so as to give longitudinal rigidity to the structure even under the weight of the rower, and at the same time offering minimal resistance to advancement as the hulls are thin and long. This version can also include, in addition to the base that connects the floats, one or more connecting sections betweenthe inflatable floats, always consisting of drop-stitch inflatable boardsarranged horizontally and fixed to the floats, in order to stiffen thestructure, and / or to transport other people. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will be better understood with the help of the descriptionof embodiments of realisation provided by way of example and notlimitation, illustrated by the following figures, not necessarily to scale, of which: - Fig.1 shows an embodiment of the rowing frame seen from above.- Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of the same embodiment of themovable rowing frame. - Fig.3 shows a section of the rowing frame seen from the front in whichthe internal filaments of the drop-stitch fabric are schematized in thecomplete embodiment with floats fixed under the frame. - Fig.4 shows the same embodiment of the rowing frame complete with floats seen from above. - Fig. 5 shows a perspective view of this last embodiment of the rowing frame complete with floats. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONThe rowing frame, with fixed seat and sliding rowlock arm, entirelyinflatable, object of the present invention, as claimed, comprises, in eachembodiment thereof, two sections, the first of which is fixed and thesecond, comprising the rowlock arm, which is sliding.The first section constitutes the base of the frame, and comprises arectangular inflatable horizontal board 10, high pressure, drop-stitchtype, or also called double wall, of the type usually used to makeinflatable surfboards or SUP (Stand Up Paddle), positioned longitudinally. On this board, a second smaller inflatable horizontal board 20 is fixed, which acts as a seat for the rower; this latter board, placed above the base board and fixed near one of its short sides, can also be made with drop-stitch technology, or not, since it does not necessarily have to be inflated at high pressure, having only the function of a seat, and is glued or welded above the base board 10. The second, sliding section has the purpose of supporting the oarlockswhich will move alternately forwards and backwards during rowing, insolidarity with the position of the rower's feet, stretching and bending the legs.Said second section, therefore, comprises the rowlock-carrying arm,constituted by a high pressure inflatable board 30, made with drop-stitch technology, placed transversally with respect to the base of the frame and protruding laterally in equal measure both to the right and to the left with respect to the base, and on which are fixed, one near the right edge and the other near the left edge the two rigid supports 35 which hold the rowlocks. The width of this board is such as to ensure the necessary spacing of the rowlocks with respect to the position of the rower, and its shape is not rectangular, since during rowing, the position of the rowlocks must always be significantly further back towards the rower than the position of the feet. A shape of the rowlock-carrying board / arm that allows this can be an inverted U, seen from the position of the rower, or, as shown in the drawings, an inverted V. As mentioned, the rowlock supports 35 will be made of rigid, seawater- resistant material such as aluminum alloy or other suitable material and fixed to the inflatable fabric through strips of glued or welded fabric or in another way provided that they are firmly attached in their position on the board 30. The rowlock supports 35 as well as the rowlocks shown in the drawings are represented for purely indicative purposes as they may have different shapes and forms without thereby departing from the relevant scope of protection, as defined in the attached claims. In the embodiment described here and shown in the drawings, the cross- board 30 supporting the oarlock supports rests on a smaller, rectangular,drop-stitch inflatable high-pressure board 40 fixed, glued or welded,under the central part of said cross-board. In figures 1, 2, 4, and 5 the inflation valves 15 of each board are also indicated, but of course the position of the valves can vary. However, no valve is shown for the board 40 supporting the transversal board 30, thisis because the two boards can be conveniently made communicatingthrough holes placed on the surfaces glued or welded together so that by inflating the larger board the smaller board is automatically pressurized as well.The drawings show a pair of footrests 45 placed close together andparallel to each other, fixed, glued or welded, on the edges of the two boards 3040 described above. These footrests, preferably made of semi- rigid material and each equipped with a retention band of soft material, are positioned with a certain angle of inclination given by the fact that the underlying board 40 protrudes inwards by a few centimetres so as tomake the position of the feet ergonomic and have the purpose ofallowing the entire second section to slide forwards and backwards in solidarity with the position of the feet during rowing. The sliding system of the second section on the first one can be made in various ways, as long as materials resistant to corrosion by sea water are used; for example, but not limited to, trolleys with wheels can be used, or systems that use supports that move on linear sliding guides through low-friction plastic materials, such as PTFE or the like. Finally, the slidingguides themselves can be fixed on the boards in a movable way, they cantherefore be secured to the inflatable fabric with hooks and / or ringsand / or straps, and removed before folding the frame once deflated.By way of example but not limited to, the supports may consist ofsegments of aluminum or resin profile with a C-shaped section on theinternal walls of which are fixed laminates of polytetrafluoroethylene(PTFE) or other low-friction materials, so that said supports can slideeasily on linear sliding guides composed for example of aluminium orresin profiles or other rigid or semi-rigid material as long as it is resistant to sea water, and the guides may also have low-friction coatings. In practice it may be convenient for the sliding guides, mounted on the upper surface of the fixed section of the frame, to be movable, while the supports that slide on the guides, being shorter, can also remain fixedunderneath the inflatable board 40 which supports the entire slidingsection, and folded together with the sliding section once deflated. The inflatable frame, in this movable version fig.1 and 2, will be equippedwith straps, hooks, and / or quick release attachments to allow it to befixed onto SUP or surf or windsurf boards, inflatable kayaks or other smallboats where possible, to allow them to be used with oars and in amanner similar to rowing, with the advantage of the portability and ease of assembly of an inflatable structure, and therefore the advantage will be even greater when the frame is applied to small boats which are also inflatable. In another version fig. 3, 4 and 5, also claimed, however, the frame willnot need to be applied to existing vessels, in fact it can be used directly inthe water thanks to two parallel floats, each also made up of a high-pressure inflatable board, of the drop-stitch type, and permanently fixed on the lower surface of the inflatable board which constitutes the base of the frame. The two boards, which constitute the floats, are placed edge-on, in the sense that the thickness of the board constitutes the width of the float and the width of the board constitutes the height of the float, in fact, as is schematized in fig. 3, which represents a frontal section of the frame in this version, the internal filaments of the double-walled drop-stitch fabricare vertical in the horizontal boards 10 30 and 40, while they arehorizontal in the floats 50. The advantage of this configuration is on the one hand the longitudinal rigidity of the entire structure, which will not tend to bend under the weight of the rower, and on the other hand the long and thin hulls have less friction to the advantage of speed and also directionality. As can be seen in fig.4 and 5, a portion of the upper surface of the floats will be fixed to the lower surface of the board constituting the base or first fixed section of the frame, this fixing will involve gluing or weldingthe surfaces in contact, furthermore, in order to prevent a partialdetachment of the surfaces, given that the boards are inflated at highpressure, the joints, as can be seen in fig. 3, can be reinforced withflexible angle bracket 55, made of plasticized fabric, glued or weldedalong the entire length of the joint with the board placed above, thisnaturally means that the latter protrudes by a few centimetres both to the right and to the left, as can be seen in the figure. In addition to the base of the frame, which acts as a connection betweenthe two floats, even if not shown in the drawings, other connectingsections between the two floats can also be made, always made of high- pressure inflatable drop-stitch boards, placed horizontally and fixed, like the base of the frame, above a portion of the upper side of the floats, in order to stiffen the structure, especially if the floats are particularly longand protrude a lot from the frame. Furthermore, these connectingsections can also be designed to accommodate other people, in addition to the rower.

Claims

AMENDED CLAIMS received by the International Bureau on 19 September 2025 (19.09.2025)1. Fixed seat rowing frame with sliding rowlocks arm CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT OF being made up of two sections, both inflatable, and a sliding system connecting the two sections: a first fixed section including a high- pressure drop-stitch type inflatable board (10) of rectangular shape arranged horizontally and an inflatable seat (20) fixed above said board near one of the short sides; a second sliding section including two footrests and an inflatable high-pressure drop-stitch type board (30) of similar shape, when viewed from above and from the rower's side, to an inverted U or V, arranged on said board transversely to the fixed section, and protruding laterally both to the right and to the left with respect to the latter section, and comprising two rigid supports (35) fixed on the upper surface of the board, one near the right edge and the other near the left edge, each suitable for supporting an oarlock.

2. Fixed seat rowing frame with sliding rowlocks arm according to claim 1 CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT that the sliding system connecting the two sections comprises supports sliding on linear sliding guides, and that between said supports and said guides there are low friction plastic materials.

3. Fixed seat rowing frame with sliding rowlocks arm according to any one of claims 1 to 2 CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT that the two footrests (45) included in the second sliding section comprise retention brackets of soft material, and are fixed on the edge of the board (30) included in said section, in a central position, to allow the whole section to slide back and forth in solidarity with the feet when bending or stretching the legs during rowing.

4. Fixed seat rowing frame with sliding rowlocks arm according to any one of claims 1 to 3 CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT of including a system of attachments and / or straps fixed to the drop-stitch board of the first fixed section, enabling the entire frame to be quickly assembled and disassembled on an inflatable SUP board or on an inflatable sit-on-top kayak, so as to be able to economically convert said small vessels into a boat suitable for rowing, while remaining entirely inflatable and therefore easily transportable.

5. Fixed seat rowing frame with sliding rowlocks arm according to any one of claims 1 to 3 CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT that it can be used directly in the water even without being mounted on an existing boat, having, the rectangular drop-stitch type board (10) constituting the base of the first section, two parallel floats (50) below it, each float fixed to a portion of the lower surface of said board near each long edge and each float consisting of a high pressure drop-stitch inflatable board placed edgewise, meaning that the thickness of the board constitutes the width of the float and the width of the board constitutes the height of the float, each board comprising a left side lateral planar surface and a right side lateral planar surface held together by multiple horizontally arranged filaments and by a perimeter closure band.

6. Fixed seat rowing frame with sliding rowlocks arm according to claim 5 CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT of including, in addition to the drop-stitch board of the first section, connecting the floats, also one or more additional connecting sections between the inflatable floats, and said sections being made up of inflatable drop-stitch type boards arranged horizontally and fixed on an upper portion of said floats, for the purposeof stiffening the structure and / or of accommodating other people in addition to the rower.[0001][0002]Statement under Article 19(1)[0003]Reference is made to the International Search Report and Written Opinion of the International Searching Authority, in which the examiner considered all six claims of the application to be new and inventive, and only raised one observation about claim 1 regarding the requirement of Article 6 PCT (clarity).[0004]To overcome this observation, claim 1 was amended to include features present on page 7 of the description (sliding system) and in the original claim 3 (footrests) that are essential to the definition and operation of the invention.[0005]The features present in claim 2 (linear sliding guides) instead describe details of a type of sliding system.[0006]Claims 2 and 3 were subsequently amended to better fit claim 1 as amended.[0007]No new matter has been added by the amendments in the international application as filed.

Images