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US 12,415,393 B2Granted
Amphibian
AssigneeGibbs Technologies Limited
InventorsAlan Timothy Gibbs, Simon James Longdill, Matthew Watson Houston
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An amphibian includes a planing hull, first and second sides, at least one retractable wheel, at least one prime mover, at least one steerable wheel which is connected to a steering control device operable by a driver to steer the amphibian, wherein the steering control device includes at least one of handlebars, a steering wheel, and steering levers, and is positioned to be grasped by an operator while operating the amphibian and wherein the steering control device is moveable between at least two distinct laterally spaced positions across a width of the amphibian between a center line and the respective sides of the planing hull.
Claims22
An amphibian operable on land and on water, comprising:
- a planing hull having a longitudinally-extending center line, a first side and a second side opposite the first side;
- at least one retractable wheel, the at least one retractable wheel being retractable from a protracted land engaging position when the amphibian is operated on land to a retracted position when the amphibian is operated on water;
- at least one prime mover for providing power to drive, directly or indirectly, the amphibian on either one or both of land and water;
- at least one steerable wheel mechanically connected directly or indirectly to a steering control device operable by a driver to steer the amphibian, wherein the at least one steerable wheel and the steering control device operable by the driver remain connected throughout use in both the land and the marine modes such that there is no steering disconnect required during a change between land and marine modes, and wherein the steering control device includes at least one of handlebars, a steering wheel, and steering levers, and wherein the steering control device is positioned to be grasped by the driver while operating the amphibian;
- and
- wherein the steering control device operable by the driver is moveable between at least two distinct laterally spaced positions across a width or beam of the amphibian including between a first position and a third position or between a second position and the third position, wherein the first position is located between the longitudinally-extending center line and the first side of the planing hull such that a majority of the steering control device is located between the longitudinally-extending center line and the first side of the planing hull, the second position is located between the longitudinally-extending center line and the second side of the planing hull such that a majority of the steering control device is located between the longitudinally-extending center line and the second side of the planing hull, and the third position is located centrally of the first and second sides of the planing hull such that at least a part of the steering control device is located along the longitudinally-extending center line.
3 more elements
An amphibian operable on land and on water, comprising:
- a planing hull;
- at least one retractable wheel, the at least one retractable wheel being retractable from a protracted land engaging position when the amphibian is operated on land to a retracted position when the amphibian is operated on water;
- at least one prime mover for providing power to drive, directly or indirectly, the amphibian on either one or both of land and water;
- a seating arrangement having a first seating position for a driver of the amphibian, a second seating position for the driver of the amphibian that is entirely laterally offset from the first seating position, and a third seating position for the operator of the amphibian between the first and second seating positions;
- at least one steerable wheel mechanically connected directly or indirectly to a steering control device operable by a driver to steer the amphibian, wherein the at least one steerable wheel and the steering control device operable by the driver remain connected throughout use in both the land and the marine modes such that there is no steering disconnect required during a change between land and marine modes;
- and
- wherein the steering control device operable by the driver is moveable between at least two distinct laterally spaced positions across a width or beam of the amphibian including between a first position and a third position or between a second position and a third position, where the first position is laterally aligned with the first seating position, the second position is laterally aligned with the second seating position, and the third position is laterally aligned with the third seating position.
4 more elements
An amphibian operable on land and on water, comprising:
- a planing hull;
- at least one retractable wheel, the at least one retractable wheel being retractable from a protracted land engaging position when the amphibian is operated on land to a retracted position when the amphibian is operated on water;
- at least one prime mover for providing power to drive, directly or indirectly, the amphibian on either one or both of land and water;
- at least one steerable wheel mechanically connected directly or indirectly to a steering control device operable by a driver to steer the amphibian, wherein the at least one steerable wheel and the steering control device operable by the driver remain connected throughout use in both the land and the marine modes such that there is no steering disconnect required during a change between land and marine modes, and wherein the steering control device is positioned to be grasped by the driver while operating the amphibian;
- and
- wherein the steering control device operable by the driver is slidably moveable between at least two distinct laterally spaced positions across a width or beam of the amphibian, wherein the at least two distinct laterally spaced positions are substantially offset from one another during operation of the steering control device and comprise i) a center driving position of the amphibian and a right hand driving position of the amphibian, or ii) the center driving position of the amphibian and a left hand driving position of the amphibian.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.