Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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STERN PLATFORM EQUIPPED WITH RECREATION OPENINGS
Field of application
[001] The present invention belongs to the field of mechanical and
nautical engineering, as well as architecture, more specifically of
reservoirs,
tanks, swimming pools, bathtubs, and the like intended for use on vessels.
Introduction
[002] The present invention relates to a stern platform equipped with
recreation openings, comprising at least one gate provided with at least one
removable and/or foldable element, wherein the removable and/or foldable
elements form backrests and/or headrests and/or support means and/or
containment barriers in the form of an open, partially open or closed
reservoir,
the recreation opening being further equipped with bottom support and/or
footrests to support the feet.
Background
[003] Stern platforms, whether submersible or not, are widely used on
vessels for various purposes, including assisting in the entry to and exit
from
water, forming small platforms for bathing, using cooking appliances,
assisting in
launching, collecting or lifting accessories, diving tanks and even other
smaller
vessels, among other applications.
[004] As swimming pools and other recreational and leisure elements are
also highly appreciated on vessels, especially speedboats, yachts, and the
like,
there are several devices and systems that form reservoirs to be filled with
water.
[005] These devices can be inflatable or fixed, but they are always part of
an additional device that either requires a relatively high effort to assemble
and/or requires complex moving and concealing systems.
[006] In addition, the devices described above are almost always
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complemented with backrests or supports and even furniture to provide a little
more comfort to users during recreation.
Prior Art
[007] Examples of solutions of this nature are described, for example, by
the patent document BR112017027857 of title "boat with a movable stern hatch,
having a submersible stern platform", which discloses, according to the
abstract,
a boat comprising a hull provided with a rear stern hatch, located in
correspondence with a stern internal compartment of the said hull, suitable
for
opening and closing a respective opening of said compartment, said hatch
having
a body with opposite sides, located in correspondence with side walls of said
compartment, and an upper edge and a lower edge, and said hull having a stern
platform which is movable and submersible. Instead of being provided with
direct connections to the hull, the hatch is connected to the stern platform
in
order to reach, after the opening, a submerged position in the water where the
boat is located, at the time when said platform submerges in said water.
[008] The solution proposed by BR112017027857 is ingenious and
interesting, as it provides a submersible bow platform with direct access to
the
interior of the boat; however, it does not provide a platform with additional
recreation options such as an opening with a gate and neither backrests nor
bottom support to support the feet.
[009] Another relevant prior art document is patent document
US7162969 which reveals a platform seated on the stern of a boat hull and
which
can be lowered by motor drive means using guides on an incline to descend into
the water, which exposes steps to allow a swimmer to climb up out of the water
onto the main boat deck. This solution, although ingenious, also does not
provide
an opening with a gate that allows leisure and recreation activities on the
platform.
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[010] US 2018/0354589 discloses a swim platform for attachment to a
boat that includes a rearwardly tapered inflatable body including a top
surface
capable of supporting a standing person, an outer perimeter including a
forward
wall, an aft wall, and a port sidewall extending between the forward wall all
and
the aft wall. This swim platform can be left in the water while the boat is in
motion. This proposal offers a recreation option; however, it is external to
the
boat, demands a certain effort to be used, and even when deflated it takes up
considerable space on the vessel.
[011] Patent document EP0253745 refers to an attached service system
connected to a ship, which has a floating part that comprises a platform
element
intended to be horizontal in the active position, mounted on a float
articulated
to the platform element so as to be relatively movable with respect to the
platform element under the effect of the sea's movement, the platform element
being connected to the ship by a connecting-link device forming at least one
articulated parallelogram in a vertical plane. This solution applies, in
particular,
to a swimming pool or transshipment platform, but it has the same
disadvantages as the solution described above, in particular the fact that it
occupies precious space on the vessel and involves a complex and expensive
system of articulations and drives.
[012] As can be inferred from the previous descriptions, there is room for
a stern platform equipped with recreation openings capable of overcoming the
deficiencies of the prior art described above, in particular that provides an
recreation opening with at least one hatch provided with at least one
removable
and/or foldable element, in which the removable and/or foldable elements form
backrests and/or headrests and/or support means and/or containment barriers
in the form of an open, partially open or closed reservoir, the recreation
opening
being further equipped with bottom support and/or footrests to support the
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feet.
Objects of the Invention
[013] The object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide a stern
platform, in accordance with the features of independent claim 1 of the
accompanying set of claims.
[014] Additional features and details of these features are defined by
claims 2 to 7 of the accompanying set of claims.
Brief description of the drawings
[015] For better understanding and visualization of the object of the
present invention, it will now be described with reference to the accompanying
drawings, representing the technical effect obtained by exemplary
embodiments without limiting the scope of the present invention, in which:
Figure 1 shows a partial perspective view of a vessel provided with a
platform according to the invention, showing a recreation opening closed by a
removable element and single-jointed foldable elements (left opening) and an
open recreation opening without the removable element and with the foldable
elements folded (right opening);
Figure 2 shows a partial perspective view of a vessel provided with a
platform according to the invention, showing a recreation opening closed by
double-jointed foldable elements (left opening) and an open recreation opening
with the double-jointed foldable elements doubly folded (right opening);
Figure 3 shows a partial perspective view of a vessel provided with a
platform according to the invention, showing a recreation opening closed by a
removable element and single-jointed foldable elements (left opening) and an
open recreation opening without the removable element and with the foldable
elements folded (right opening);
Figure 4 shows a partial perspective view of a vessel provided with a
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platform according to the invention, showing a recreation opening closed by
double-jointed foldable elements (left opening), an open recreation opening
with the double-jointed foldable elements singly folded (center opening) and
an
open recreation opening with the double-jointed foldable elements doubly
folded (right opening);
Figure 5 shows a partial perspective view of a vessel provided with a
platform according to the invention, showing a recreation opening closed by
double-jointed recreation elements (left opening), an open opening with the
double-jointed recreation elements singly folded (center opening) and an open
recreation opening with the double-jointed foldable elements doubly folded
(right opening);
Figure 6 shows a partial perspective view of a vessel provided with a
platform according to the invention, showing a recreation opening closed by
single- and double-jointed foldable elements (left opening), an open
recreation
opening with the single-jointed foldable elements folded and the double-
jointed
foldable elements singly folded (center opening) and an open recreation
opening
with the single-jointed foldable elements singly folded and the double-jointed
foldable elements doubly folded (right opening);
Figure 7 shows a partial perspective view of a vessel provided with a
platform according to the invention, showing a recreation opening closed by
single- and double-jointed foldable elements (left opening), an open
recreation
opening with the single-jointed foldable elements folded and the double-
jointed
foldable elements singly folded (center opening) and an open recreation
opening
with the single-jointed foldable elements singly folded and the double-jointed
foldable elements doubly folded (right opening), forming an open reservoir.
Detailed Description of the Invention
[016] A stern platform (100), or simply platform (100), according to the
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invention comprises an opening (150) arranged in any position on the platform
(100), comprising at least one gate (200) provided with at least one removable
element (210) and/or at least one foldable element (220).
[017] The openings (150) and gates (200), as well as their removable (210)
and foldable (220) elements can have any shape, including, but not by way of
limitation, polygonal, round, oval, oblong, and the like.
[018] The removable elements (210) are covers that can be provided
separately, forming by themselves a gate (200), or be provided as part of a
group
of combined removable elements (210) or, further, forming a set of elements
together with one or more foldable elements (220).
[019] The foldable elements (220), in turn, can have only one joint or have
more than one joint forming two or more sheets (221) that can be folded
depending on the degree of freedom of their pivoting structure.
[020] Both the removable elements (210) and the foldable elements (220)
may contain upholstery or other special surfaces (222), forming backrests
and/or
headrests and/or support means.
[021] In particular, the foldable elements (220) can also form containment
barriers in the form of an open, partially open or closed reservoir, and the
recreation opening (150) can further have bottom support (not shown) and/or
footrests (not shown) to support the feet.
[022] The removable element (210) of the invention is a suitable closing
element that acts as a gate, which can be fitted and hoisted manually (Figures
6
and 7) and/or slid and concealed into niches, that is divided into one or more
parts and/or as a single piece and/or a combination of these alternatives, in
any
configuration and construction suitable for opening and closing or concealing
the
opening (150).
[023] Once the removable element (210) is removed, a huge range of
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possibilities for use and activities opens up, also for accessories,
significantly
expanding the possibilities of using a platform (100) of the type discussed
herein,
since the foldable elements (220), which reversibly cover the openings (150),
can
be singly or doubly folded, together or separately.
[024] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the gate (200) does not
have a removable element (210), but only one or more foldable elements (220),
with one or more joints.
[025] It should be noted that all elements of the platform (100) according
to the invention can be located in any position, order, or alignment.
[026] It should be noted that the platform (100) can also comprise
complementary elements such as covers, drains, grids, screens or a combination
of these options, according to the desired application.
[027] The movement and/or handling of the removable (210) and foldable
(220) elements is possible by means of any suitable traction device. Suitable
traction devices include, but are not limited to, manual traction, gears,
spindles,
levers, ratchets, and the like, electric, hydraulic or pneumatic motors,
gravitational systems, capillary and/or communicating vessel systems and any
other suitable for the vessel and the conditions of use and application, alone
or
possibly in combination.
[028] Whether hollow, solid or combined, the elements (210, 220) of the
gate (200) can have built-in piping and wiring, enabling the direct internal
or
indirect external installation of pumps and nozzles for hydromassage,
lighting,
massagers, heating, cooling, etc.
[029] It should be noted that, depending on the intended application, the
platform elements may need seals between their contact and/or sliding walls
and surfaces.
Further benefits and descriptions
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[030] The person skilled in the art will understand that the platform (100)
according to the invention solves several problems of the prior art, providing
a
stern platform provided with recreation openings capable of overcoming the
above-described deficiencies of the prior art.
Conclusion
[031] The present invention, therefore, provides a platform (100) which,
together with the aforementioned dimensions and features, provides new and
inventive solutions to the prior art problems of stern platforms (100) and the
like.
Final remarks
[032] It will be easily understood by those skilled in the art that
modifications can be made to the present invention without departing from the
concepts set out in the description above. Such modifications should be
considered as comprised by the scope of the present invention. Consequently,
the particular embodiments previously described in detail are merely
illustrative
and exemplary, and not limitative in terms of the scope of the present
invention,
to which the full extent of the accompanying claims should be given, in
addition
to all and any equivalents thereof.
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