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US 4,047,492 AGranted
Sailing device
OwnerMarlene J. Browninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Portable apparatus for propelling a person floating in water. A person floating naturally face-up in the water can position herself over a floatable support member positioned in such a manner that a mast mounted on the support member extends upwardly between her legs. To provide propulsion, a sail is attached to the mast such that its position in azimuth can be controlled by the person. Whenever desired, the sail can be removed, the mast telescoped to a shortened length, and the support member folded enabling the apparatus to be easily transportable.
Claims3
Apparatus for propelling the body of a person floating in the water comprising:
- a floatable support member having a substantially continuous planar surface over which the person's legs are positioned in the water and having a centrally located bore extending therethrough;
- a mast releasably mounted on said member and extending upwardly from said planar surface between the person's legs and achieving a normally upright relationship with the surface of the water only when the person's legs are positioned upon said planar surface, said mast being collapsible and including a plurality of interconnected hollow segments, each successive segment capable of nesting within its larger neighboring segment, and resilient detent means associated with each pair of adjacent segments for maintaining said pair in an extended relationship such that said mast is movable between a fully extended position in which each adjacent pair of neighboring segments assumes an extended relationship, and a fully retracted position in which each segment is nested within its larger neighboring segment, each successive segment further having a pair of holes at diametrically opposite positions;
- means mounting said mast on said support member including a stud integral and coaxial with said mast and extending from the base thereof, said stud receivable in and through the bore in said support member, and a fastener threadedly engageable with said stud;
- a sail having a head, a tack, and a clew, said head and said tack releasably attached to said mast at spaced apart locations, respectively, and movable in azimuth adjacent the clew by the person about an axis defined by said mast to appropriate positions to catch the wind;
- fasteners attached to said sail at said head and said tack and receivable through the pair of holes of said segments at spaced apart locations to thereby releasably attach said sail to said mast;
- and
- control means attached to said clew for aiding the person in moving said sail in azimuth relative to said mast.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.