Control for jet powered watercraft
AssigneeYamaha Hatsudoki Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsNoboru Kobayashi, Tomoyoshi Koyanagi
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A watercraft powered by a pair of jet propulsion units each having reverse thrust buckets that are controlled by pedals positioned in the operator's compartment. The pedal control is such that both reverse thrust buckets can be operated by a single foot of the operator for reverse thrust operation and braking or so that each pedal may be operated independently for abrupt turning maneuvers. An interlock system is provided so that the engines for the jet propulsion units cannot be started unless the reverse thrust buckets are in their neutral positions and a detent mechanism is provided for holding the pedals and the reverse thrust bucket in this neutral condition.
Claims13
A jet propulsion system for a watercraft having a discharge nozzle for discharging water under pressure for propelling the watercraft, a reverse thrust bucket positioned contiguous to said discharge nozzle and supported for movement between a forward thrust position wherein a forward thrust is exerted on the watercraft and a reverse thrust position wherein a reverse thrust is exerted on the watercraft, a pedal positioned in the watercraft in a position for operation by an operator's foot and moveable between an extending forward drive position and a depressed reverse drive position upon an operator depressing said pedal with the operator's foot, means for connecting said pedal only to said reverse thrust bucket for operating said reverse thrust bucket between its positions in response to movement of said pedal and means for biasing said system for maintaining said reverse thrust bucket and said pedal normally to their forward thrust positions for maintaining a forward drive when no foot pressure is applied to depress said pedal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.