Trolling Assembly Shield Mechanism for Debris Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Trolling methods face inefficiencies due to entanglement of fishing lines with water-borne debris and turbulence caused by the boat's wake, which reduces fishing time and success rates, especially when trying to catch game fish like wahoo at high speeds.
Innovation Solution
A trolling assembly with adjustable positioning assemblies and a shield mechanism that protects the fishing line from debris and maintains it at a predetermined depth, allowing high-speed trolling without entanglement and maintaining lure action, using standard monofilament line.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If trolling is conducted at high speeds to catch game fish, then productivity increases, but water-borne debris becomes entangled in the fishing line more frequently
Solution Approach 1:
A debris shield assembly acts as an intermediary barrier between the fishing line and water-borne debris. The shield includes a leading edge positioned ahead of the fishing line to deflect debris away, and a trailing edge that prevents debris from contacting the line during high-speed trolling operations
Solution Approach 2:
The harmful factor of debris entanglement is extracted from the system by physically removing the path of contact between debris and fishing line through the shield assembly, allowing high-speed trolling to proceed without debris interference
2Stability of the object's composition
If the boat speed is reduced to minimize wake turbulence, then lure movement stability improves, but productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The shield assembly serves as a mediator that allows the boat to maintain higher speeds by blocking turbulence and debris from reaching the fishing line and lure, thereby maintaining lure stability without sacrificing productivity
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a downrigger is used to suspend the fishing line beneath the surface, then debris entanglement is reduced, but the ability to catch surface-feeding game fish is limited
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of moving the fishing line to a different depth dimension (as with downriggers), the shield assembly operates in the horizontal plane to deflect debris away from the line, allowing the line to remain at surface-level depths where game fish feed
4Stability of the object's composition
If outriggers are used to position fishing lines laterally, then wake turbulence impact is reduced, but debris entanglement remains a problem
Solution Approach 1:
The trolling system is segmented into distinct functional components: the positioning assembly (outrigger) that handles lateral placement and wake avoidance, and the shield assembly that specifically addresses debris entanglement protection, allowing each component to specialize in its respective function
Data Source
AI summary
A trolling assembly structured to protect at least a portion of a fishing line from water-borne debris while trolling in a body of water from a boat includes a first positioning assembly attached to the boat and being adjustable to facilitate positioning the portion of the fishing line in a first predetermined spaced relation to the boat, and a second positioning assembly interconnected to the first positioning assembly and being positionable to facilitate positioning the portion of the fishing line in a second predetermined spaced relation to the boat. The trolling assembly also includes a shield assembly, interconnected to the second positioning assembly, which is structured to releasably retain the portion of the fishing line below a surface of the body of water while trolling, and to protect at least the portion of the fishing line from water-borne debris while trolling.