Deck platform extension for boats

A removable deck platform is attached to the stern transom of a boat for extending the effective deck space of the boat rearwardly. Hinges are used to removably attach the deck platform to the transom. Triangular support braces attached to the bottom of the deck platform extend downwardly from the platform and rest against the transom when the platform is in place. A railing extends upwardly around the outer periphery of the platform, and the effective useful length of the boat is enhanced by attaching two rearwardly facing swivel chairs to the upper edge of the stern of the boat.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
With increases in the amount of leisure time available to them, more and 
more people are purchasing power boats for recreational purposes. These 
power boats range in size from small dingys with outboard motors to 
relatively large boats having inboard engines and capable of sleeping 
several persons. Boats of intermediate sizes are used for a variety of 
purposes, such as joy-riding, water skiing and fishing. Of the boats in 
the intermediate size classes, many are designed for specialized purposes, 
such as water skiing or fishing. Others, however, are designed for general 
use, which results in compromises of the features which are most desirable 
for a particular use such as water skiing or fishing. 
Many recreational boats ranging in size from approximately 18 feet to 30 
feet using inboard engines, large outboard engines, or what have become 
known as inboard/outboard engines and drive units presently are being 
manufactured. Most of these boats are well suited for pleasure boating or 
sightseeing and are fairly well adaptable for water skiing. Generally, 
however, it is difficult to fish from such boats. 
Specialized fishing boats have been made in which the seating arrangements 
are such that two rearwardly facing swivel chairs are used; however, 
seating which otherwise could be provided around the sides and stern of 
such boats is eliminated. As a consequence, if a boat is outfitted for 
fishing purposes, it does not adapt readily to sightseeing or pleasure 
cruising. 
Furthermore, it often is desirable to provide increased deck space for a 
pleasure boat which can be used to effectively increase the length of a 
boat of a given length; so that (for example) a boat owner of a 20-foot 
boat may increase the deck space to the equivalent of a 22-foot boat 
without incurring the expense otherwise necessary to buy a larger boat. In 
addition, it is desirable to provide some means for increasing the 
effective length or deck space of a boat when desired, but which may be 
quickly and easily removed whenever the additional deck space is not 
desired. 
Extensions have been proposed for mounting on the transom of boats for use 
as platforms or steps to assist water skiers or swimmers in entering the 
boat from the water. Other removable platforms have been proposed for use 
with fishing boats for the storage of nets and other gear on the stern of 
the boat but, in effect, outside the boat; so that the water and other 
debris carried by the nets does not enter the boat. In addition, such 
platform extensions for this purpose free the interior space of the boat 
for other uses. Thus, a small boat effectively is made larger. 
For general purpose pleasure boats, it is desirable to provide some means 
for readily adapting them for fishing or water skiing while still 
retaining the interior seating arrangements commonly used when the boat is 
used for sightseeing or pleasure riding. In addition, it is desirable to 
extend the effective useful length of a boat in an economical fashion and 
to quickly and easily adapt it to increased seating capacity of a flexible 
nature. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a deck extension 
for a boat. 
It is another object of this invention to provide an improved removable 
deck extension for attachment to the hull of a boat. 
It is an additional object of this invention to provide an improved 
removable deck attachment for the transom of a boat used in conjunction 
with additional seats mounted on the upper edge of the stern of the boat 
to create an improved seating arrangement. 
It is yet another object of this invention to modify a pleasure boat to one 
particularly adapted for fishing or the like by the addition of a 
removable rear deck attached to the transom and a deck chair mounted on 
the stern of the boat just above the transom and facing rearwardly. 
It is still another object of this invention to provide an improved 
removable rear deck structure for a boat for use in conjunction with 
rearwardly facing deck chairs mounted on the stern just above the transom 
and using the removable deck as a foot rest to increase the different uses 
to which the boat readily may be adapted. 
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of this invention, a removable 
deck platform having a width which is less than its length, is removably 
attached to the hull of a boat below the upper edge of the hull. A railing 
is attached to the upper side of the deck platform and extends around at 
least a major part of the periphery of the platform. 
In a more specific embodiment, a pair of swivel deck chairs are mounted to 
the stern of the boat just above the transom so that when a person sits in 
one of the chairs, his feet rest upon the platform which is removably 
attached to the transom.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
Referring now to the drawings, the same reference numbers are used 
throughout the different figures to designate the same or similar 
components. 
In FIG. 1, the stern portion of a typical power boat 10 (either inboard or 
inboard/outboard) of a medium size, for example, 18 feet to 30 feet, is 
illustrated in a partially broken-away form. The stern of the boat 10 
terminates in a transom 11 and this transom is of relatively substantial 
construction to provide structural strength and support for the 
inboard/outboard engine components and the like. The upper portion of the 
stern above the transom 11 has a relatively narrow ledge 12, typically 6 
inches to 10 inches wide. Normally, the stern portion of boats of this 
type, namely power pleasure boats, is fitted with a forward facing seat 
along the stern portion and/or facing seats on each side of the hull of 
the boat 10 in the stern area. The central and bow portions of the boat 10 
are capable of having any number of configurations which are not important 
to an understanding of this invention since it can be used with boats of 
many different types. 
To the otherwise conventional boat 10, a removable deck platform 15 has 
been added extending substantially all the way across the stern of the 
boat and located a few inches (approximately 6 to 10 inches) below the top 
edge 12 of the stern. The deck 15 is removably attached to the hull of the 
boat on the transom 11 by means of three hinges 17, 18 and 19, each having 
one portion 21 secured to the transom 11 and a mating portion 22 secured 
to the underside of the deck 15. Each of these hinges is held together in 
a conventional manner by a hinge pin 25; so that when the two portions of 
the hinge 21 and 22 are aligned with one another and secured together with 
the pin 25, the deck 15 is securely attached to the transom of the boat. 
As shown most clearly in FIG. 2, a pair of reinforcing support members are 
used to support the deck 15 in a horizontal position extending outwardly 
from the transom 11 of the boat. Each of these support members preferably 
is formed of a first U-shaped channel member 26 of aluminum or other 
suitable material attached to the underside of the deck 15 by suitable 
fasteners, such as bolts or rivets. A downwardly extending channel member 
27, similar to the channel member 26, is rigidly attached to each of the 
channel members 26 at a junction point 28; and in addition, the two 
channel members 26 and 27 of each support member are connected together by 
a support rod 29 to form a strong triangular support as shown most clearly 
in FIG. 2. The angle at the point 28 is made to compensate for the slope 
of the transom 11 for the boat on which the platform 15 is to be attached 
and may vary for different boats having differently sloped transoms. 
When the hinge pins 25 of the hinges 17, 18 and 19 are in place, the weight 
of the deck 15 and its associated supports causes it to bear downwardly 
through the support rods 29 against the members 27 which, in turn, place 
the force on the transom 11 of the boat. This is a very stable deck 
extension for the boat but one which is readily removable if it is not 
desired or whenever the boat is to be stored. 
To increase the versatility of the deck 15 and also, to significantly 
increase the safety of using such a deck, a railing is attached to the 
upper surface of the deck around the major portion of its outer periphery. 
As shown most clearly in FIG. 1, this railing typically includes spaced 
upright posts 32 interconnected by horizontal tubular railing bars 33. The 
posts 32 and the bars 33 preferably are made of aluminum or other suitable 
material of the type commonly used in boat construction. 
As shown in FIG. 1, the railing does not extend all of the way to the edge 
of the deck 15 which is attached to the transom 11 of the boat. Instead, a 
small space of approximately one foot is left between the end post 32 and 
the transom of the boat 11. This space permits use of the platform 15 as a 
means of leaving the boat and entering the water by swimmers and also 
provides a place where persons in the water can pull themselves up onto 
the platform 15 and enter the boat. It is possible that in some uses of a 
boat with the platform 15 attached to it, a detachable ladder could be 
extended from the platform 15 at this space on either end where there is 
no railing. If this type of access to and from the platform 15 is not 
desired, the railing could extend all of the way to the edge of the 
platform 15 which is attached to the transom 11 of the boat. In either 
event, the railing typically has a height of approximately 2 to 3 feet. 
In conjunction with the deck 15, the boat 10 as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 
further is modified by adding a pair of swivel or rotating chairs 35 of 
the type commonly employed in fishing boats. Normally, chairs such as the 
chairs 35 are located forward of the stern of the boat inside the hull 
enclosure and are mounted to the floor of the boat in the stern region. If 
chairs, such as the chairs 35, are so located, generally no other seating 
arrangement is possible in this portion of the boat since the chairs 
occupy the central area at the stern. These chairs are typically used in 
fishing boats. 
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, however, the chairs 35 are mounted on the upper 
portion 12 of the stern of the boat. This is a generally heavily 
reinforced area in boats commonly manufactured today and is easily capable 
of supporting the weight of the chairs 35. The chairs 35 also each are 
modified to eliminate the post which generally extends from the base 
member 38 of the chair to the bottom of the chair 39. Thus, the chairs 35 
are mounted close to the surface 12 at the stern of the boat. 
When the chairs 35 are placed in the position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the 
upper surface of the deck 15 is located approximately 8 to 10 inches below 
the surface 12. This, then, provides a normal distance between the upper 
surface of the seat of the chairs 35 and the deck 15, so that a person 
sitting in one of the chairs 35 may place his feet on the deck 15 in a 
normal fashion. Anytime that a person wishes to get up from a chair 35, he 
merely stands on the deck 15, and the railing 32, 33 provides a safety 
support in the event it is needed for that purpose. It is to be understood 
that two chairs 35 are located on the rear of the boat, but only one has 
been shown in FIG. 1 to avoid cluttering of the drawing. The swivel plate 
38 which is attached to the surface 12 of the stern of the boat is shown 
for both chairs in FIGS. 1 and 3; and in FIG. 3, both of the chairs are 
shown in dotted line outline form so that their relationship to the stern 
of the boat and the deck 15 may be readily ascertained. 
FIG. 9 is a detailed view, partially in cross-section, of the transom at 
the stern of the boat showing the manner of mounting the base 38 of the 
chair 35 on the stern surface 12. Extending downwardly from the bottom 39 
of the chair is a shaft 40, which passes through a circular opening or 
hole 41 in the base 38. The shaft 40 terminates in a wider portion 42 
which rests on the top of the base member 38 and permits the chair 35 to 
be pivoted in any direction as desired. Other chair constructions and 
other means of attaching them to the stern of the boat on the surface 12 
may be used. The construction shown in FIG. 9 is merely illustrative of 
one type of construction which could be employed. Also, if the swivel 
feature of the chair 35 is not desired, a chair which is not capable of 
such swivelling or turning may be used. Ideally, a structure such as that 
shown in FIG. 9 is used; so that when the chair is not desired, it simply 
may be lifted out of the hole 41 and removed from the boat. The 
installation and removal of a chair with this type of construction is 
simple and can be accomplished in a minimum length of time. 
FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 show a modification of the support members used to support 
the deck 15 in place of the rigid support members 26, 27 and 29, which 
have been described previously. Whenever a deck is built to fit a 
particular boat, the structure shown in FIG. 2 most likely will be 
employed, since it is a rigid structure with maximum strength and 
rigidity. However, if the deck 15 is to be used with different makes or 
types of boats, the angle formed between the strut members 26 and 27 shown 
in FIG. 2 may not be proper for boats having a slope at the transom 11 
which differs from the one for which the particular strut member 
illustrated in FIG. 2 is made. 
As a consequence, to obtain a more universal application of the deck 15 to 
different makes, types and sizes of boats, a support structure of FIGS. 6, 
7 and 8, having a telescoping diagonal support rod comprised of a pair of 
telescoping sections 50 and 51 may be used. The telescoping support 
section may be of any suitable configuration, and the one shown in these 
figures is typical. In the illustrated telescoping support section, the 
internal member 51 has a number of spaced holes 53 located at regular 
intervals along its length. The outer member 50 has a similar aligned pair 
of spaced holes 54 in it, and a key 55 is passed through the holes 54 in 
the member 50 and the set of holes 53 in the member 51 which adjust the 
angle of the support to be such that the deck 15 is held in a horizontal 
relationship as illustrated in FIG. 2. 
When a telescoping support member 50, 51 is used, the members 50 and 51 are 
pivotally mounted on shafts 56 and 57 to the corresponding support members 
26 and 27 instead of being permanently welded or fastened to these members 
as described previously in conjunction with the embodiment shown in FIG. 
2. Similarly, the members 26 and 27 must be connected to each other at the 
point 28 by a pivotal or hinge connection to permit angular movement 
between them as shown in FIG. 8 to adjust the angle as needed. Telescoping 
support connectors of the type illustrated in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 are 
available in a number of different forms, but the one illustrated is 
readily adaptable for the purpose of supporting the deck 15 and is 
relatively inexpensive. 
To minimize the possibility of marring the finish on the transom 11 of the 
boat, a pad 59 also may be attached to the support member 27 to rest 
against the transom of the boat 11. 
It can be seen that use of the deck 15 requires minimum alteration to the 
transom 11 of the boat 10. It only is necessary to attach the hinge 
members 21 to the transom at the location desired for the deck to obtain 
the desired vertical height from the top of the deck 15 to the seat of the 
chair 35. It is not necessary to use any additional fastening means 
through the members 27 since the weight of the deck, itself, is sufficient 
to hold the deck against the boat transom because of the locations of the 
hinges 17, 18 and 19 relative to the support members 26 and 27. 
It is apparent that the deck platform member and chairs 35 installed in the 
manner described above and shown in the drawings substantially increases 
the versatility of the boat with which they are used and increases the 
effective length of the boat with a minimum of effort and expense. Anytime 
that the boat owner does not wish to use the deck 15, it can be quickly 
and easily removed along with the chairs 35. It should be noted that while 
the most convenient location for the deck 15 and chairs is believed to be 
on the stern of the boat, other locations on the hull could be used, if 
desired.