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US 9,027,493 B2Granted
Sail bearing
AssigneeWichard
InventorVernon Hultzer
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A bearing for a sail furling apparatus includes a spherical body having a longitudinal axis and containing a cylindrical longitudinal through-opening for receiving a cable of the furling apparatus. The body is freely rotatable on the cable and protects the furled sail from abrasive contact with the cable. The body contains a plurality of spaced longitudinal channels in the outer surface to define a plurality of spaced flutes to further space the furled sail from the cable and to facilitate smooth furling and unfurling of the sail.
Claims9
Apparatus for furling and unfurling a sail, comprising
- (a) a cable;
- (b) upper and lower fittings connected with upper and lower ends of said cable, respectively, each fitting being connected with a corner of a sail;
- (c) at least one bearing mounted on said cable between said upper and lower fittings, said bearing having a spherical configuration and being free for rotation relative to said cable;
- and
- (d) a swivel connected with said lower fitting, said swivel being driven in a first direction for rotating said cable to furl the sail on said bearing without contacting said cable, said swivel being released to allow said cable to rotate in a direction opposite said first direction to unfurl the sail.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.