Shock-absorbing steering system for personal watercraft
AssigneeMardikian 1991 Irrevocable Trust
InventorAlbert Mardikian
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An improved steering assembly for personal watercraft governs the positioning of a steering nozzle through a cable affixed to a steering shaft attached to handlebars gripped by the rider/operator of the watercraft. The steering shaft is mounted to the hull in a retainer member relative to which it is rotatable. The handlebars are shielded from the shocks and bumps occurring while the watercraft travels on rough water by a shock absorber that is mounted between the retainer member and the handlebars. The improved steering assembly significantly increases riding comfort and reduces operator fatigue.
Claims22
An improved steering assembly for a personal watercraft which includes a deck and a steering cable, the improved steering assembly comprising:
- a first member adapted to be fixedly attached to the deck;
- a steering shaft rotatably mounted to the first member and adapted to be attached to the steering cable;
- handlebar means attached to the steering shaft and adapted to be gripped by a human operator of the personal watercraft and for turning the steering shaft, and
- shock absorbing means interposed between the first member and the handlebar means, for absorbing at least a portion of the force generated between the handlebar means and the first member, said shock absorbing means allowing the handlebar means to undergo up and down motion relative to the deck when the personal watercraft travels on water.
An improved steering assembly for a personal watercraft which includes a deck and a steering cable, the improved steering assembly comprising:
- a bearing retainer member adapted to be fixedly attached to the deck;
- a bearing affixed within the bearing retainer member;
- a steering shaft mounted to rotate within the bearing and capable of limited up and down motion within the bearing relative to the bearing retainer member and relative to the deck, said steering shaft being adapted to be attached to the steering cable;
- handlebar means attached to the steering shaft and adapted to be gripped by a human operator of the personal watercraft and for turning the steering shaft, and
- shock absorbing means interposed between the bearing retainer member and the handlebar means, for absorbing at least a portion of the force generated between the handlebar means and the bearing retainer member said shock absorbing means allowing the limited up and down motion of the steering shaft when the personal watereraft travels on water.
An improved steering assembly for a personal watercraft which includes a deck and a steering cable, the improved steering assembly comprising:
- a bearing retainer member adapted to be fixedly attached to the deck;
- a bearing affixed within the bearing retainer member;
- a steering shaft mounted to rotate within the bearing and adapted to be mounted to the steering cable;
- handlebar means attached to the steering shaft and adapted to be gripped by a human operator of the personal watercraft and for turning the steering shaft, and
- shock absorbing means interposed between the steering shaft and the handlebar means, for absorbing at least a portion of the force generated between the handlebar means and the steering shaft when the personal watercraft travels on water and the steering shaft moves up and down relative to the handlebar means.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.