Apparatus for transferring buoyancy in a nautical vessel

In a nautical vessel extending fore and aft and having a hull the improvement comprising:

• support means coupled to said hull and projecting laterally outwardly therebeneath on opposite sides thereof
• a pair of hollow bulbs carried by said support means beneath said hull and on opposite sides thereof,
• means for dividing each of said bulbs fore and aft into inboard and outboard mutually fluid tight compartments,
• means for defining a passageway between said inboard compartments,
• means for defining a separate passageway between said outboard compartments,
• a first fluid filling said outboard compartments and said passageway therebetween,
• a second fluid having a specific gravity different than that of said first fluid and filling said inboard compartments and said passageway therebetween,
• fluid transfer means for concurrently increasing the volume of said inboard compartment of a one of said bulbs while decreasing the volume of said inboard compartment of the other of said bulbs and increasing the volume of said outboard compartment of said other of said bulbs while decreasing the volume of said outboard compartment of said one of said bulbs.

In a floating nautical vessel having a hull symmetrical about a fore and aft plane the improvement comprising:

• hollow container support means coupled to said hull and extending laterally therebeneath on both sides thereof,
• a pair of hollow containers carried by said container support means beneath and on opposite sides of said hull,
• fluid tight dividing means in each of said containers that divide each of said containers in a fore and aft direction and which define an inboard cavity and an outboard cavity in each container,
• rigid, hollow coupling means disposed for reciprocal movement within said hollow support means and defining an internal flow passageway therewithin in open communication between both of said outboard cavities and an external flow passageway outside of said coupling means and within said hollow support means, wherein said inboard cavities are in open communication with each other through said external flow passageway, and said inboard cavities and said external flow passageway are sealed in fluid tight isolation from said outboard cavities and said internal flow passageway,
• a first fluid that fills said outboard cavities and said internal passageway,
• a second fluid that fills said inboard cavities and said external passageway and which has a different specific gravity than that of said first fluid,
• inclination sensing means connected to said hollow coupling means to move said hollow coupling means laterally toward one of said containers in response to heeling of said hull in a first lateral direction and laterally toward the other of said containers in response to heeling of said hull in an opposite lateral direction, thereby adjusting the volumes of said cavities to force said fluids in opposite directions through their respective passageways so that they exert a righting moment on said hull.

Apparatus for reducing the extent of heel of a nautical vessel having a hull extending in a force and aft direction comprising:

• supports coupled to and extending laterally beneath said hull on opposite sides thereof,
• hollow enclosed, confining bulbs both capable of being alternatively windward and leeward bulbs, depending upon wind direction relative to said hull, located on said supports,
• means defining a passage between said bulbs,
• a buoyant fluid enclosed and confined within said bulbs and said passage therebetween,
• fluid transfer means to operable to selectively shift a portion of said buoyant fluid from a windward one of said bulbs to the other leeward one of said bulbs, while isolating said buoyant fluid within said bulbs and said passage therebetween.