Lightweight, flexible holder for scuba tanks and the like

A holder for SCUBA tanks or other similar cylindrical articles for storing such tanks along the deck of a boat or the like is molded from a unitary sheet having at least one concavity extending from the upper surface interiorly between the lateral sides, the sheet being sufficiently flexible that the weight of a SCUBA tank stored within the concavity causes flexure of the sheet so that the concavity rests on the supporting surface.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention is a lightweight, flexible holder for SCUBA tanks and 
the like, which is portable and may be easily placed upon a boat deck or 
similar supporting surface to permit SCUBA tanks to be easily stored, and 
prevented from rolling about the supporting surface. 
There are a number of portable stacking holders for cylindrical storage 
containers described in the prior art. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 
3,786,932 Smith describes a plastic drill core tray having a plurality of 
longitudinally extending channels disposed in side-by-side relationship, 
in order to store drilling cores. A similar drilling core holding 
arrangement is described by Guenard in U.S. Pat. No. 3,581,929. In 
Canadian Pat. No. 972,302, there is described a foam plastic core tray 
having individual flutes, each of which is arc-shaped to accommodate a 
cylindrical core sample, and in which the tray is described as being 
fabricated from plastic. 
Other prior art of interest includes the following: U.S. Pat. No. 3,926,321 
to Trebilcock (a stacking aid for cylindrical containers including a 
substantially rectangular framework having spaced openings to receive an 
arcuate portion of the cylindrical container, to prevent movement); U.S. 
Pat. No. 3,019,916 to Malcher (a portable drum rack which is symmetrical 
to a center horizontal plane, and is adapted to support a pair of drums in 
a stackable fashion); British Patent Specification No. 1,580,032 to 
Partington (double sided spacer used between layers of stacked casks or 
drums); and French Pat. No. 2,432,953 to Charlin (cradle for a gas bottle 
includes notched profiled wedged elements which are collapsible for easy 
storage and for use in a car boot). 
There is a need for a low cost, lightweight and flexible holder for SCUBA 
tanks and the like, which may be used to prevent SCUBA tanks from rolling 
about the deck of a boat or similar supporting surface. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention comprises a holder for SCUBA tanks or other similar 
cylindrical articles for storing those tanks along the deck of a boat or 
the like, and is fabricated from a unitary sheet molded into a 
configuration having an upper surface, dependent peripheral sides 
extending lateral to the upper surface, and at least one concavity 
extending from the upper surface interiorally between the lateral sides. 
The sheet has sufficient flexibility that the weight of a SCUBA tank or 
other articles stored within the concavity causes flexure of the sheet so 
that the concavity rests on any supporting surface upon which the holder 
is placed. 
Suitably, the unitary sheet is molded from a high impact plastic which is 
translucent, and is relatively impervious to corrosion and ultra violet 
radiation. It is also preferred that the sheet comprise at least two 
concavities, each of which is dimensioned to receive a single SCUBA tank, 
so that the weight of both SCUBA tanks are such that the bottom of the 
concavities engage the supporting surface when the tanks are stored. To 
facilitate holding the tanks in place, the unitary molded sheet preferably 
has plural ribs molded into the periphery of each concavity with the ribs 
extending downwardly and engageable with the supporting surface. The ribs 
extend generally parallel with each other and generally normal to the 
axial direction of the cylindrical concavities. 
It is also preferred that the molded sheet be fabricated in a unitary 
manner with a peripheral flange extending laterally from the extremity of 
the dependent peripheral sides, the flange extending outwardly and 
generally parallel with both the upper surface of the holder and with the 
supporting surface upon which the holder rests. 
In general, the concavities have a dimension less than the dimension of the 
depending sides, so that the concavity does not engage the supporting 
surface unless the SCUBA tanks or other articles are positioned within the 
concavities, to thereby cause flexure of the depending sides and 
engagement of the bottom surface of the concavity with the supporting 
surface, thereby further achieving the desired rigidity against sliding 
across the supporting surface. It will be understood, however, that the 
use of relatively thin gauge plastic material for the molded sheet permits 
the holder to be extremely lightweight and portable, while the degree of 
flexure achieved with the holder effectuates the engagement of the 
concavities with the supporting surface when loaded with the weight of the 
SCUBA tanks, thereby effectively relying upon the weight of the SCUBA 
tanks to achieve the necessary rigidity to prevent undesirable sliding 
across the support surface, i.e., a boat deck, when the boat is in heavy 
seas or is underway. To facilitate the desired flexure of the holder, as 
described above, it is also desirable that the peripheral sides be 
slightly tapered outwardly from the upper surface toward the peripheral 
flange.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
A preferred embodiment of the lightweight, flexible holder for SCUBA tanks 
and the like in accordance with the present invention will now be 
described with reference to FIGS. 1-4. 
Noting FIGS. 1 and 3, the holder, referred to generally by the reference 
numeral 10, comprises a unitary sheet molded from a high-impact plastic 
which is preferably translucent and relatively impervious to corrosion and 
ultra violet radiation. A suitable plastic material is LEXAN. The molded 
plastic sheet includes an upper surface 12 defined by a central surface 
rib 14, peripheral surface ribs 16 and 18 and end ribs 20 and 22. The 
sheet is molded so as to have peripheral, depending sides, including sides 
24, 26 and 27 (the fourth side is not shown in FIG. 1, but opposes side 
24). The sides 24, 26 and 27 extend lateral to the upper surface and 
include a pair of concavities 30, 32 extending from the upper surface 
interiorly between the lateral sides 26, 27. As is shown in FIG. 3, the 
concavities 30, 32 are shorter than the lateral sides 26, 27 so as to 
define a gap between bottom surfaces of the concavities 30, 32 and a 
supporting surface S when there are no SCUBA tanks or similar heavy 
articles loaded within the concavities. 
As is further shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the holder includes a peripheral 
flange surrounding and extending generally normal to the extremities of 
the peripheral sides 24, 26 and 27, the flange 28 lying generally in a 
plane parallel with the upper surface defined by surface ribs 14, 16, 18, 
20 and 22 and with the flange adapted to lie parallel and along the 
supporting surface S upon which the holder 10 is placed. As is illustrated 
in FIG. 3, the peripheral sides 24, 26 and 27 are tapered slightly 
outwardly from the upper surface toward the peripheral flange 28. Each of 
the concavities 30, 32 includes plural ribs 34 molded into the periphery 
of the concavity, such that the ribs are engageable with the supporting 
surface S. Preferably, the ribs 34 extend generally parallel with each 
other and generally normal to the axial direction of the cylindrical 
cavities 30, 32. 
In accordance with the present invention the sheet is of a gauge and 
material so as to impart sufficient flexibility when the weight of a SCUBA 
tank or other article is stored within the concavities 30, 32 so as to 
cause flexure of the sheet so that the concavity rests on the supporting 
surface S upon which the holder 10 is placed, as is described below with 
reference to FIGS. 2 and 4. 
Noting FIG. 2, a pair of SCUBA tanks 36 and 38 are respectively placed in 
the concavities 30 and 32. As is shown in FIG. 4, the weight of the SCUBA 
tanks 30, 36 causes inward flexure of the respective lateral sides 27, 26 
and the inner surface rib 14 such that the bottom of each concavity 30, 32 
rests upon the supporting surface S. Accordingly, when so loaded with the 
SCUBA tanks 36 and 38, a greater surface area of the holder 10 is 
engagement with the supporting surface S, thereby causing the entire 
arrangement to have increased drag against sliding. 
It will thus be understood by those skilled in the art that the holder 10 
provides an extremely lightweight, flexible arrangement for storing SCUBA 
tanks and similar heavy articles, which may be easily transported and yet 
upon being loaded, provides sufficient strength against sliding. It will 
of course be understood that holes may be drilled into the plastic sheet 
of the holder 10 to permit holding straps and similar additional 
mechanisms to be used as desired.