Patent ID: 9199712
Filing Date: 2015-12-01
Classification: B63H

Abstract:
1. A motor command input device for a watercraft, comprising: an input unit, the input unit having a base structure configured to be affixed to a watercraft at a location nonadjacent to a motor, the input unit also having an input lever, the input lever having a first end and a second opposite end, the input lever pivotably attached to the base structure by a pivot pin located between the first and second opposite ends, the first end configured for receiving steering input commands from an operator through a tiller arm, the second end being configured for transmitting steering input commands to a guide pin acting within a guide slot on the base structure, a guide tube support structure aligned with the base structure of the input unit and configured to be affixed to a watercraft at a location nonadjacent to a motor, a guide tube, the guide tube attached on a first end to the base structure of the input unit and attached on a second end to the guide tube support structure, the guide tube aligned with the guide slot of the input lever; and a push-pull cable assembly attached on a first end, through the guide tube, to the guide pin and operatively connected on the second end to the motor, the push-pull cable assembly configured to transmit input commands from the movement of the tiller arm such that the motor pivots about a generally vertical steering axis corresponding to steering input commands received from the operator.