Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Watercraft
The present invention relates to a watercraft comprising an at least partly
elastic,
preferably inflatable float with a casing, in particular a casing which
surrounds an
inner region, wherein the watercraft has a base, an energy storage device, and
a
drive device which is secured to the base and comprises a drive unit that is
located
in the water during operation, the flow of water produced by the drive unit
during
operation being controllable by means of a controller.
Subject matter of the type in question is known, for example, from US
4,021,873. For
removal of the drive device, for example for maintenance purposes, said drive
device has to be separated from the battery and the motor mount. If, for
example
because of a collision with an underwater obstacle, for example in the
vicinity of the
shore, the force transmitted in this case to the motor shaft should no longer
be
absorbed by damping arranged between deck and motor mount, both the drive unit
and the motor mount may be damaged. The motor mount can be exchanged only
with an increased outlay.
It is the object of the present invention to improve the subject matter
according to the
preamble of claim 1 for maintenance and installation purposes.
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The object is achieved by the subject matter as claimed in claim 1.
Advantageous
refinements of the invention can be gathered from the dependent claims, which
refer
back thereto, and from the following description.
According to the invention, provision is made to releasably secure the drive
device to
the base as a module comprising the energy storage device, which is designed
as
part of the module, such that the module can be removed as a structural unit.
If, during operation in particular of a plurality of watercraft according to
the invention,
for example in the manner of a bumper car, the drive device or other parts of
the
module should be damaged, it or they can be exchanged comparatively rapidly
such
that further operation with a replacement module is immediately possible.
It is obvious that the module as a structural unit can be removed as a whole
to the
extent that the essential parts thereof can be removed together, with possible
securing means, for example screws, clamping means or the like, being
releasable
or removable optionally in advance. In particular, it involves parts of the
module that
are connected directly or indirectly to a frame. According to the invention,
the drive
device comprises in particular a drive unit and optionally at least parts of
the control
device, for example units for generating control signals for the drive unit.
The base of the device according to the invention delimits an inner region and
is
arranged on the casing or on the casing body, which is formed by the casing,
or is
formed integrally with said casing or casing body. The base and casing or
casing
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body preferably together form the float, i.e. the part of same that is
required for the
buoyancy of the watercraft. In particular, the watercraft is formed by an
elastic and
inflated or inflatable casing body. Alternatively or additionally, the float
can also be at
least partly formed from a floatable foam.
For simple fixing to the base, the module is preferably provided with an upper
base
profile body configured for this purpose. In particular, the latter has at
least one
contact surface for the base. The base profile body is formed in particular
integrally
and can be integrally formed with further parts of the module. Specifically in
a variant
in which the base is inflatable, such a base profile body leads to good
transmission
of the accelerations generated by the drive device to the rest of the
watercraft. The
base profile body has in particular surfaces which can be supported on an ¨ as
viewed in top view ¨ edge of the recess of the base, i.e. the surface normals
thereof
have at least components in the propulsion direction and consequently parallel
to the
water surface during operation. Furthermore, possible parts of the structural
unit or
of the module can be fixed directly or indirectly to one another by means of
the base
profile body and/or by means of a frame fastened to the latter.
In order to supply the drive unit with driving energy and/or control signals
and/or in
order to transmit a steering force, the base profile body preferably has at
least one
recess through which possible control means, energy supply means and/or force
transmission means can be guided.
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The module is preferably secured, and in particular clamped, to the base by
means
of two base profile bodies. In particular, an upper base profile body is at
least
partially arranged here on the upper side of the base, with respect to a
customary
arrangement of the watercraft on an underlying surface or the water, and the
further
base profile body is at least partially arranged on the lower side of the
base. By the
respective base profile bodies partially engaging over or engaging under the
base,
said base profile bodies can be, for example, screwed to each other and
thereby
secured clamping the base between them. At the same time, the region located
above the base is thereby sealed better.
For the purposes of the invention, an upper base profile body is an object
fitting onto
and/or partly for guiding parts of the drive train into a recess of the base
and which
can be arranged or is arranged in said recess and with the aid of which the
module
can be fixed as a whole to the base. In particular, the at least one or the
preferably
two base profile bodies are held in a clamping manner on the base.
The base which is arranged in particular on the inside of the casing (in a top
view) is
preferably inflatable and is provided in particular with inner connecting
elements
which, spaced apart from the edge of the base, connect the top side and base
inner
side of the base to each other. The connecting elements, for example in the
form of
connecting fibers, make the inflated base particularly dimensionally stable,
and
therefore the entire weight of the module can be readily supported thereon.
The
edge of the base is understood as meaning the outer contour of the base in a
top
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view. The connecting elements are now found between the edge regions of the
base
in the top view.
In particular, the base and/or the casing body is or are formed from a multi-
layered
wall material, for example in the form of PVC layers, with the innermost
layers of the
upper side and lower side of the base each being connected to the connecting
elements. The high degree of rigidity of the base means that forces introduced
therein are readily distributed as far as the casing body.
In particular, the base is arranged at the lower end of the casing body,
wherein a
lower side of the base at a height and/or below a lower edge of the casing
body can
lie in the water during operation.
To reduce the depth, in a further exemplary embodiment of the invention, the
watercraft can be provided with a recess, which is at least partially filled
with water
during operation, in the base, into which recess the drive unit can be
introduced. For
this purpose, parts of the module or of the drive unit or the drive device are
movable
(height-adjustable) relative to the rest of the module. Depending on the size
of the
recess in the base or retraction state of the drive unit, the latter can
nevertheless still
be used for propulsion in the water, for example in the vicinity of the shore
or beach,
without the drive unit being damaged.
Alternatively or additionally, protrusions or webs that protect the drive unit
can be
provided on the lower side of the base and/or the casing body.
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The drive unit is preferably movable by means of a holding device. The latter
serves
for transmitting possible control forces to the drive unit and is part of the
drive device
and therefore also part of the module. In a simple case, it can be formed by a
rod
which is guided through the base and on which a drive unit is arranged and
which is
mounted in the module. In order to supply a drive unit, which has a motor,
with
energy, such a rod or shaft can be hollow and can contain corresponding
cables. An
advantage of a drive unit which is located in the water and has an integrated
motor is
that it can be directly cooled in the water.
As an alternative to an in particular manually actuable rod, the holding
device can
have a joint unit which is movable by one or more electronically controllable
actuators and by means of which the drive unit can be aligned below the base
in the
water.
In particular in a design of a holding device with a handlebar, equally also
by means
of a part of the holding device that is preferably in the form of a rod or
shaft,
according to a development according to the invention the drive unit is
arranged
height-adjustably in a guide of the module. Such a guide can be realized by a
frame
which is fixed on the base profile body of the module and at the upper end of
which
the holding device is connected to a control means in the form of a steering
wheel.
To fix the holding device at different heights, said holding device, which is
preferably
in the form of a shaft, can be provided with projections or recesses which
correspond
to a possible securing element, for example a locking lever.
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The energy storage device is formed in particular by means of a receptacle as
an
exchangeable part of the module. Such a receptacle can be realized, for
example,
by means of a push frame or folding frame which receives the energy storage
device. Alternatively or additionally, the energy storage device, for example
a
battery, can be clamped to the frame.
The energy storage device is formed with its longest longitudinal extent in
particular
parallel to a longitudinal center axis of the module, and therefore the module
takes
up as little area as possible in the interior.
For the design of the watercraft for a type of bumper car on the water, it is
provided
with a completely encompassing and elastic impact zone which is formed in
particular by the elastic casing of the watercraft.
In order for all of the people in the watercraft ¨ preferably up to 6 adults
each
weighing 75 kg can sit on the casing body of the watercraft and position their
legs in
the interior, to be able to have access to a controller, the drive unit, and
in particular
also the drive device, is arranged centrally, specifically in the center of
the
watercraft, in a top view. It is furthermore advantageous if the casing has an
at least
substantially, in particular completely polygonal or round outer contour. It
goes
without saying that here in turn the outer contour is meant in a top view or
bottom
view. "At least substantially" means that the basic contour of the casing body
is
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polygonal or round in top view, with possible loops, grab handles, valves,
cables or
the like not being taken into consideration.
According to a further advantageous refinement of the invention, the control
device
has at least one sensor unit, which is designed for receiving an input signal
for
controlling the drive unit. Furthermore, the control device has a control unit
for
generating a control signal to the drive unit. Said control unit can also
already be
arranged in the drive unit and processes the control signal, which is
generated by
the sensor unit, for the purpose of transmission to the (optionally further)
drive unit.
In a simple case, said sensor unit can be a potentiometer, with which a
pushing
speed status of an adjustment device is received by an operator. The
adjustment
device can be designed, for example, similarly to a motorcycle handgrip with a
throttle cable. In more complex variants, the sensor unit can have, for
example, a
gyroscope and/or a wireless or wired controller which generates input signals
leading to the thrust power and alignment of the drive unit or of the flow of
water
produced by the latter. For example, in a variant of the watercraft designed
to be
used together in groups, a series of people in the watercraft can each obtain
their
own hand controller for generating control signals. Said control signals are
then
formed in the control unit into an overall control signal which controls the
drive unit.
The drive device is preferably provided with a joint unit designed for manual
actuation. In particular, the steering unit is arranged on the holding device,
for
example in the form of a steering wheel or handlebar, and therefore the drive
unit
and the steering unit are mechanically coupled.
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According to an advantageous development of the invention, the drive device
can
have a dead man's switch, and therefore, in the event that an operator falls
overboard, the watercraft does not unintentionally travel further, but rather
the drive
unit obtains a stop signal and in particular the supply of power between
battery unit
and drive unit is interrupted.
For safe and interference-free operation, the drive unit is preferably
provided with an
impeller which is arranged in a flow duct and is driven in particular by an
internal
rotor motor.
Further advantages and details of the invention can be gathered from the
description
below of the figures. In a schematic illustration:
fig. 1: shows an object according to the invention in a perspective
illustration,
fig. 2: shows the object according to fig. 1 in a further perspective
illustration,
fig. 3: shows the object according to fig. 1 in a rear view,
fig. 4: shows the object according to fig. 3 along the section A-A,
fig. 5: shows the object according to fig. 1 in a top view,
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fig. 6: shows the object according to fig. 1 in a view from below.
Individual technical features of the exemplary embodiments described below can
also be combined with previously described exemplary embodiments and with the
features of the independent claim and any other claims to form subject matter
according to the invention. If expedient, functionally identically acting
elements are
provided with identical reference numbers.
A watercraft according to the invention is provided with an inflatable casing
1 which
has a polygonal outer contour in the top view according to fig. 5. A base 2
downwardly delimits an inner region likewise surrounded by the casing. A drive
device comprises a drive unit 4 which is located in the water during operation
and
the energy of which originates from an energy storage device 6 (cf. figs. 1
and 2).
The drive unit is designed as a jet drive with an impeller 10 located in a
flow duct
(fig. 4). A control device has a steering unit which is designed for manual
actuation
and is in the form of a steering wheel 12 which is connected to a holding
device in
the form of a shaft 14. Said shaft 14, on the one hand, constitutes a
handlebar on
which the drive unit 4 is arranged and, on the other hand, after release of a
locking
lever 15, only partially illustrated, the shaft can be moved in the directions
indicated
by the double arrow 16 in fig. 4. In a variant in which there is no filter
basket 16, the
drive unit can then be at least partly introduced into the recess 18 of the
base 2 in
order to reduce the depth of the watercraft.
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After release of a lower base profile body 20, the drive device together with
the drive
unit 4 and the control device can be pulled upward out of the base 2 in the
form of a
structural unit. While the upper base profile body the energy storage device 1
and
the drive device with the drive unit and control means necessary for this
purpose and
the control device are arranged on an upper base profile body 22 formed upward
in
the manner of a plate. For this purpose, the module has a frame 24 to which
the
energy storage device 6 is releasably fixed. Said frame 24 at the same time
forms a
guide for the shaft 14 and is screwed here to the upper base profile body 22.
A
control unit 26 which regulates the flow of energy to the drive unit 4 is
likewise fixed
to the upper base profile body 22.
The two base profile bodies 20 and 22 have profiles 28 which are adapted to a
curvature of the edge of the base 2 such that, when the two base profile
bodies 20
and 22 are clamped in relation to each other, a tight fit of the two base
profile bodies
20 and 22 and an enlarged contact surface on the base are realized. By this
means,
the forces which arise transversely with respect to the double arrow 16 and
act on
the shaft 14 by means of the drive are transmitted better into the base.
The shaft 14 as part of the holding device can likewise be considered to be
part of
the control device.
The energy storage device 6 is aligned with its longitudinal axis parallel to
the shaft
and arranged upright on the frame 24 such that little area of the base or of
the
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interior is required for the module. The space available to operators is thus
increased.
Instead of the illustrated arrangement eccentrically, the drive unit can also
be
arranged centrally ¨ indicated by the dashed line 30 illustrated in fig. 5.
The base 2
and casing 1 can be securely closed by means of valves 32 after they have been
inflated. Optionally, a drain valve 34 can ensure that water which has
accumulated in
the interior after operation can be drained.
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