Supported membrane planer for SES seals
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
InventorsAlexander Malakhoff, Sydney Davis
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A seal structure for an air cushion vessel includes an inflatable bag secd to the hull and a plurality of juxtaposed, interconnected planer members maintained in operative position beneath the bag by a plurality of support straps. Each planer member includes a transversely reinforced shell portion and a flexible, resilient membrane secured to the longitudinal edge portions of the shell portion to form a flexible planing surface for the seal structure. The planer members may have tapered aft end portions and curved planing surfaces to provide a gradual change of the interface between the planer members and the water.
Claims11
A seal structure for an air cushion marine vessel of the type having a hull with spaced, depending sidewalls for forming a plenum chamber therebetween, comprising:
- a flexible bag secured to the hull and positioned between the sidewalls to form an expansible chamber and said bag being resiliently responsive to fluid pressure changes exerted thereon;
- a plurality of elongated, juxtaposed planer members positioned between the spaced sidewalls in cooperative relationship with said bag for substantially closing-off the space between an end of the hull and the water surface;
- each said planer member comprising an elongated shell portion having spaced longitudinal edge portions and a flexible membrane portion secured to said longitudinal edge portions to form a planing surface;
- means for interconnecting said planer members along their adjacent longitudinal edge portions;
- and
- means for supporting said planer members in cooperative relationship with said bag so that the opposite end portions of said planer members are supported for fore and aft movements with respect to the hull of the vessel.
A planer member for a seal structure of juxtaposed interconnected planer members for sealing one end portion of a plenum chamber defined beneath a marine air cushion vessel having a hull with depending sidewalls, comprises:
- an elongated shell portion having spaced longitudinal edge portions and a longitudinal central portion;
- and
- a flexible, resilient membrane connected to said longitudinal edge portions and spaced from said longitudinal central portion to form a flexible planing surface means for cushioning wave impact loads applied thereto and for distributing such loads to said longitudinal edge portions of said shell portion.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.