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US 5,325,804 AGranted
Fuel-efficient watercraft with improved speed, stability, and safety characteristics
OwnerRichard T. Schneiderinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A watercraft mounted on submarine hulls is taught which is capable of moving faster than a displacement vessel of the same length, while consuming equal or less fuel than would such a displacement vessel. The watercraft also has improved safety and stability characteristics, including the capability of operation in a raft configuration as well as the capability of beaching or parking in shallow water such that wave action does not affect the cabin occupants.
Claims17
A watercraft having improved performance capabilities comprising
- a cabin, having a top surface and a bottom surface;
- a plurality of elongate hulls, having a bow end and a stern end and comprising a void space, each of said hulls further comprising a flow tube extending lengthwise through the hull and having a bow-end opening and a stern-end opening arranged such that water passes through said flow tube continuously while said watercraft is moving forward under normal operating conditions with each of said hulls submerged;
- means for flooding said void space with water and for removing the water as desired;
- a plurality of stanchions which connect said hulls to said cabin such that in normal operating mode the bottom surface of said cabin is operationally disposed above the surface of the water, and said hulls being sufficiently separated such that the watercraft's center of gravity remains positioned between the center of buoyancy of said hulls when one of said hulls is on the water's surface, another is submerged, and said cabin is in contact with the water's surface, said stanchions not contributing significantly to the buoyancy of the watercraft as a whole;
- and
- means for propulsion.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.