Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
1 3 6~
SPECIFICATION
It has been known for fishing near the bottom of
a lake to employ a downrigger system wherein a relativel~
strong trilling line is played out from a rear of the boat
and having a heavy weight attached thereto so that it
descends substantially vertically to the bottom even during
trolling motion. A fishing line is releasably attached
to the weight so that when a fish strikes, the fishing line
is released from the weight and the fisherman can play
the fish without interference from the downrigger weight.
With such systems it is difficult to maintain the
end of the trolling line with the weight near the bottom
of the lake since the depth changes as the boat troll~s.
To be effecti~e, the fishing lure should follow
the contour of the bottom since the fish hold around
structure formations on the bottom.
It is an object of the illvention to provide an
zutomatic trolling system which will automatically adjust
a height of the weight of a downrigger system or the
fishing bait or lure in conformance with changes in bottom
contour.
It i5 a further object of the invention to provide
an automatic trolling system which will return a downrigger
line tQ the surface while the fisherman is fighting the
fish.
It is a further object of the invention to provide
an automatic trolling system which will maintain a given
spacin~ of the end of the trolling line from the bottom and
store said spacing so that the end of the trolling line
can be returned thereto after temporarily raising the line.
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~.
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According to the invention, an automatic trolling
depth controlLer is provided for a fishing boat wherein a
sonar depth indicating means is positioned on the boat and
has a sonar transducer connected thereto. A trolling line
plays out from a position on the boat and a reversible motor
connects to raise and lower the txolling line. A depth con-
trol unit is connected to drive the motor to raise and lower
the trolling line in response to depth indicating signals of
the depth indicating means so as to automatically maintain
the end of the trolling line at a substantially given constant
spacing from the bottom despite variations in lake depth as a
fishing boat trolls. The depth controlling means includes
means for selectively automatically raising the trolling line
by a momentary initial operator command during automatic oper-
ation so that the end of the trolling line is returned auto-
matically to the surface without operator control during the
raising and then upon subsequent operator momentary command
automatically lowers the end of the trolling line back to the
given spacing without operator control during lowering.
ON THE DRAWINGS
.
FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating a ~ishing boat
with a downrigger system utilizing the automatic trolling
depth control system of the invention;
FIG. ~ is a front view of a depth control unit por-
tion of the invention;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the automatic
depth control system of the invention;
FIG. ~ is a schematic diagram illustrating down-
rigger depth counter and display circuitry of the depth
control unit;
F`IG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a
lJ~S~8
direction control counter ~nd direction control comparator
circuitry of the depth control unit; and
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a
main control portion of the depth control unit.
A fishing boat equipped with a trolling depth
control system of the invention is generally illustrated
at 10 in FIG. 1. The boat 11 has a sonar unit 12 prefer-
ably positioned at a front of the boat. Attached to the
sonar unit is a sonar transducer 13 which projects a sonar
radiation pattern 24 resulting in reflections 8 from a
bottom 22 of the lake.
Preferably at a rear of the fishing boat 11 a
downrigger system 14 is employed in which a downrigger
line 16 is played out in substantially vertical fashion
towards a bottom of the lake as a result of a heavy weight
17 at the bottom end thereof which maintains the down-
rigger line in a substantially vertical configuration
during trolling. A downrigger rlsel 15 raises and lowers
the downrigger line 16 in known manner. A fishing line
18 releasably connects at the weight 17 such that when a
fish strikes, the fishing line is pulled free of the
downrigger line to permit the fisherman to play the fish
without influence from the downrigger line. With the
invention it is also possible to employ a fishing line
with a weight which positions the fishing line near the
bottom 22.
Attached to the downrigger reel 15 is a reversible
DC motor 9. Also, a reel sensor 19 is positioned at the
reel which detects passage of a magnet 20 on a rotary
portion of the reel.
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Y ~ 6~
A depth control unit 21 connects with the sonar
unit 12 and is responsive to depth indicating signals
resulting from the r~flections 8 through the water 23
which indicate the depth of the bottom 22.
Preferably the sonar unit 12 and/or the trans-
ducer 13 is mounted forwardly of the downriqger line 16
and the weight 17 so that the bottom depth can be deter-
mined at a point in time prior to passage by the weight
17 so as to compensate for raising and lowering time of
the downrigger line 16.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, the depth control unit
21 has a line depth display 25 with a units display 25a
and a tens display25b so as to permit measuring depth
up to 99 feet. An off-manual-auto three-position function
switch 26 is provided together with a set switch 27, a
reset switch 28 and a raise-neutral-lower switch 29.
As shown in FIG, 3, the sonar transducer 13
connects to an ultrasonic transceiver 30O The sonar
transd~lcer is a device well known in the art and in the
pre~erred embodiment a Radar Sonics, Inc. device was
employed. The ultrasonic transceiver is preferably
embodied by National Semiconductor integrated circuit
No. LMI812. Signals representative of the time of the
emission of a sonic wave and the subsequent time of
reception of a reflected sonic wave are provided by the
ultrasonic trar.sceiver to the 0 to 99 counter 31, well
known in the art and is similar to the counters 57 and 58
described hereafter in relation to the downrigger depth
counter. The counter 31 counts the pulses of an oscil-
lator 32 between the outgoing and incoming ultrasonic
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I ~ ~Sl ~ ~
waves. The resultin~ BCD output is transmitted to the
depth control unit 21 as a BCD "tens" data information
and as a BCD "units" data information. A display decoder
33 well known in the art displays the "tens" and "units"
data on the units display 37a and the tens display 37b
of the display panel 37 which ultimately illustrates
depth of the lake bottom. The decoder 33 may include
integrated circuit type National Semiconductor or Fair-
child 4511.
Any sonar unit having a BCD output for units and
tens may be employed for sonar unit 12 in the invention.
The depth control unit 21 shown in FI~. 3 connects
with a reel sensor 19 preferably comprised of a reed
pick-up switch 42 which is activated each time a magnet
20 on reel 15 passes the reed switch. Typically given
a reel periphery of one foot, one pluse will then be
emitted per foot of trolling linle played out.
Reed sensor 19 connects to a debounce circuit
35, to a downrigger depth counter circuit 36, and display
decoder 55 and to a direction control counter 40. Display
decoder 56 drives display 25 having a units display 25a
and a tens display 25b.
An "at surface" decoder 38 receives information
from the downrigger depth counter and connects an output
signal to the main control 39.
The BCD output data of depth finder unit 12
is fed to a direction control counter 40 and a direction
control comparator 41. The set switch ?7 connects with
counter 40. The output of the direction control comparator
feeds the main control unit 39. The main control unit
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also controls the ~notor 9 and receives instructions from
the auto/~anual switch 26, the reset switch 28 and the
reel in/reel out or raise and lower switch 29.
Circuitry for the preferred embodiment of the
invention for the circuit blocks discussed above in
the depth control unit 21 will be explained hereafter
together with the functional description of the depth
controlling system of the invention.
At the outset, it is noted that in one alternate
embodiment of the invention, a plurality of trolling
lines may be employed in which case a plurality of depth
control units 21 would be provided for each trolling line
and reel assembly. A common depth finder sonar unit 12
would then feed depth in~ormation to each of the depth
control units 21.
Referring now to the conl:rols illustrated in
FIGS. 2 and 3, a functioning of l:he trolling depth control
system of the invention will be described. After attaching
the baited fish hook or lure to the downrigger weight, the
function switch 26 is switched from the o~f position to
the manual position. The operator then actuates switch
29 from the neutral or off position to the "lower`' position
until the downrigger weight is at the surface of the water.
The operator then pushes the reset button 28 which then
stores or sets the water level as the reference point for
the trolling line to be played out. Thereafter, the
operator again actuates button 29 to lowex the downrigger
trolling line~ Preferably during this operation the boat
is station~ry and the operator notes the current depth
beneath the boat such as 92 feet. Desiring to fish four
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feet off the bottom~ the operator continues to lower the
trolling line until the digital display 25 indicates
eighty-eight feet. Assuming a vertical trolling line,
the weight would then be four feet off the bottom, Of
course during trolling the trolling line may not be per-
fectly vertical but may have some angle depending on
trolling speed and the amount of weight attached through
the downrigger line. In any event, based on experience
the operator of the system can take such angle into
account. It has been found that ~Jith slight deviations
from vertical, that the error is insignificant. Of course
if greater angles of the trolling line are employed, then
the operator from experience would play out somewhat
greater than eighty-eight feet of line in order to achieve
a four foot spacing rom the bottom.
Thereafter, the operator pushes the set button
27 which then stores the desired four foot spacing which
is to be automatically maintained in an automatic mode of
the unit to be described now.
To initiate automatic operation, the fisherman
now switches function switch 26 to the "auto" mode and
the weight will substantially maintain the four foot
spacing regardless of depth variations. Due to the
inertia of the system, of course, time is required to
raise or lower the weight during the automatic mode and
consequesntly some negligible deviations from the stored
spacing may occur.
~ hen a fish strikes the lure, the operator of the
system may momentarily push switch 29 to the "RAISE"
position while the unit is in the automatic mode. The
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`t ~ 16~ ~ 8
unit will then automatically raise the weight to the
level of the surfac~ and then stop the reel motor,
Thereafter, the fisherman may rebait the hook and re-
attach the fishing line to the downrigger weight. The
fisherman then pushes the reset button 28 and the weight
will automatically return to the previously established
four foot spacing abo~e the bottom.
If the user decides to manually operate the
downrigger system, he may switch the function switch 26
to the manual mode and then utilize switch 29 to raise
and lower the downrigger weight. If he then desires to
return to the automatic mode and the previously established
~our foot spacing, he simply switches back to the auto
mode and the weight will automatically return to the
four foot spacing position above the lake bottom.
If it is desired to select a new automatic
spacing distance the operator switches the function switch
26 to the manual mode and actuates the switch 29 to raise
or lower the weight to the new desired level such as
eighty-six feet for a six foot spacin~. ~e again hits
the set button 27 and returns to the automatic mode.
Specific circuitry for the depth control unit
21 in the preferred embodiment will now be generally
described. Since the schematic diagrams of FIGS. 4,5
and 6 clearly show all appropriate connections to allow
one skilled in the art to build a depth control unit,
a detailed description of each connecting wire will not
be presented in view of the detailed drawings.
As shown in FIG. 4, the reed pick-up switch 42
receives B+ from resistor 43 and feeds signals through
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capacitor 44 to 49, Signetics integrated cirCuit NE555V.
This input also has a resi~tor 45 and a capacitor 46
thereat. Components a sociated with integrated circuit
49 are the capacitoxs 50, 52, 47 and resistors 48 and 51.
The output from integrated circuit 49 is fed to transistor
54 through resistor 53 fed with B~ through resistor 55.
This inverted output is presented to the downrigger
depth counter 36 comprised of an integrated circuit 57
for units and an integrated circuit 58 for tens data
generation. These integrated circuits are preferably
Fairchild 4510 types. The units date 60 and the tens data
59 are then fed to decoders 61 and 62 preferably formed
of Fairchild 4511 integrated circuits. A units display
25a connects to decoder 61 and a tens display 25b con-
nects to decoder 62.
The "at surface'l decoder 38 receives the units
data 60 and the tens data 59 and processes the data with
~OR gates 63a and 63b whose outputs are combined at the
AND ~ate 64.
FIG. 5 shows the direction control counter 40
and the direction control comparator 41. The direction
control counter 40 has integrated circuits 66 and 67
prefexably formed of Fairchild 4150's. A counter 66
receiyes an input from the debounce circuit 35 and the
25 set button 27 connects between counter 66 and 67. The
up/down inputs of the two counters 66 and 67 connect
to the motor direction control output of gate 102, The
counter outputs at 70 and 71 connect to respective
dlgital comparators 72 and 73 preferably formed of
30 Fairchild integrated circuit 40085. All four of the
_g_
above described integrated circuits receive the BCD
units data 68 and the BCD tens data 69. The digital
comparator 73 outputs the motor raise and motor lower
control signals.
Finally, the main control unit 39 construction
is illustrated in FIG. 6. A battery power source 74
connects through fuse 71 to the function switch 26 which
feeds B+. This two section switch has sections 26a and
26b with section 26b manual position connecting with a
resistor 77 to B~ and also the collector of transistor
76 driven at its base by a resistor 78 receiving signals
from NOR gates 98 and 114. The set switch 27 drives
the input of NOR gate 98.
The raise and lower switch 29 feeds B+ either to
15 xesistor 83 and AND gates 85 and 94 or resistor 84 and
AND gate 95.
The reset switch 28 connects the output o~
transistor 81 connecting at its base to B~ to N~ND gate
82 and NOR gate 98.
The output from digital comparator 73 i5 connected
to AND gate 96 and AND gate 97 as shown. Also the "at
surface" decoder output at gate 64 connect~ to NOR gate
~9 .
The specific connection pattern ~or the following
25 logic gates can ~e discerned from FIG. 6: gates 85, 86,
87, 88, 89, 90, 96, 97, gl, 92, 9~, 94, ~5 , 100, 101, 1~2,
103, and 99.
Two motor control relays kl and k2 are provided
having diodes 108 and 109 across their coils and driven
30 by transistors 105 and 107. The switch contacts illustra-
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1 1 6 ~
ted as kl' and k2' are connectecl as shown in FIG. 6 to
control the reversible motor 9 in either direction.
Although various minor modifications may be
suggested by those versed in the art, it should be under-
stood that we wish to embody within the scope of the patentwarranted hereon, all such embodiments as reasonably and
properly come within the scope of our contribution to
the art.
