Boat ramp

A portable landing ramp for boats which can be positioned manually has a walking plank having a first end secured to the boat by chains which support that end beneath the boat deck and thus reduce the angle of plank inclination, while a second plank end has foldable legs which are unfolded to extend to land to support the second end above the water, reduce the angle of inclination of the ramp, and add lateral stability to the ramp. A folding parallelogram hand rail assembly has braces in the upright position which support a pair of hand rails parallel with the plank to provide guidance while walking on the plank. The rear braces of the assembly are offset to position the first plank end away from the boat, and the chains extend around the outside of the rear braces to engage them and thereby reduce lateral movement of the plank. The chains and the assembly can be folded into channels in the plank and latched so that either hand rail can serve as a carrying handle for the ramp. The chain is secured to the boat by low profile clips which align the principal lines of force exerted through the chain with the strongest part of the clip.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
This invention pertains to ramps used to allow human ingress and egress to 
and from a boat to land, and is more particularly concerned with a 
portable ramp for such purposes having components which can be folded into 
the ramp plank and easily carried, and unfolded so that it can be mounted 
to the boat and near the land to provide ramp stability and safety during 
ingress and egress. In the prior art, ramps have been positioned to allow 
people to walk from a boat to the land and vice versa. Some of these ramps 
have legs which extend from a plank to provide ramp support, and others 
have hand rails which extend from the plank to provide grasping to allow 
passengers to maintain their balance. However, there has existed a need in 
the art for a ramp having a plank which can be positioned near a boat in a 
fashion to keep the boat end of the plank away from the boat so that it 
will not jar against it and to support the plank in a manner to reduce the 
angle of inclination of the plank. When the angle of inclination is too 
steep, a passenger walking on the plank can stumble or lose balance and 
fall into the water. There has also existed a need in the art to attach 
the ramp to the boat so that it will be securely held but free to move or 
articulate as the boat moves on the waves. 
There has furthermore been a need in the prior art to have a portable ramp 
which can be carried by grasping a hand hold which serves another function 
other than being a hand hold. There has furthermore been a need for a 
compact ramp operable by a single person and of convenient shape for 
storage purposes. It is also desirable to make a plank which has 
formations which can be used for functions other than passenger support. 
The present invention supplies the aforementioned needs in the prior art. 
The ramp of the present invention has a walking plank which has its boat 
end secured to the boat by chains so that the boat end is supported 
beneath the level of the deck while the land end of the plank is supported 
by outwardly extending legs which rest on the bank and provide a wider 
base for the plank. The supporting of the boat end beneath the deck and 
the raising of the land end above the land decreases the angle of 
inclination of the walking plank relative to the boat and to the land, 
thus making ingress and egress over the plank safer and more convenient 
for the passengers. The suspension of the boat end beneath the deck 
provides a convenient step for the passengers to ascend from the plank to 
the boat deck. 
The invention further comprises a parallelogram-shaped hand rail assembly 
which includes a pair of hand rails which in the unfolded position are 
parallel to the plank and supported by braces extending from the plank to 
the end of the rails. The rear braces extend from the boat end of the 
plank and curve to their connections to the end of the hand rails so that 
the curvature positions the boat end of the plank away from the boat to 
prevent plank instability by bouncing and rubbing against the boat stern 
or side. The ramp is made quite narrow for light-weight in handling and 
storage; however, the pivot axes of the braces are canted so that while 
the braces stow along the outside of the ramp, when they are extended, 
they move outward giving adequate hip clearance for users of the ramp. The 
curvature of the rails permits the upper end of the rails to clear the 
boat railing. 
The chains extend from the exterior sides of the plank around the outsides 
of the rear brace to trap the braces when the chains are secured to the 
boat, and by such engagement provide lateral support to prevent the plank 
from turning sideways and wobbling. The rounded end at the ramp on the 
land and the mechanics of the chain/ramp attachment minimizes the digging 
in of the ramp into the land or sand when the boat moves or turns. The 
mechanics of the chain/ramp attachment refers to the tilting of the ramp 
so as to raise one side of the ramp and permit it to plane over the sand. 
The chains are engaged to the boat by low profile pivotal clips which by 
their pivotal action allow the clip to maintain alignment with the 
direction of chain extension as the chains are moved by the waves which 
move the boat. 
The parallelogram hand rail is unfolded until the supports engage in 
U-shaped retainers and when such engagement occurs a single person can 
easily maneuver the ramp by placing his foot against the boat end of the 
plank and by grasping the hand rails. 
The present invention is portable and easy to operate. When the ramp is to 
be disengaged and returned to the boat the upper end of the ramp is placed 
on the boat and the chains are disengaged from the deck latches and are 
placed within channels formed unitary with the plank. Then the 
parallelogram rail arrangement is folded in parallelogram fashion so that 
the components of the assembly also lie within the channels and are held 
therein by hooks extending from the plank so that the hand rail can be 
grasped to carry the ramp. The support legs also fold beneath the ramp 
into cavities within the plank so that they do not project from the ramp. 
THe various structural members are therefore foldable into light-weight 
compact and easily portable shape which a single person can maneuver with 
ease. The present invention thus provides improvements in safety, 
convenience, and structural ultization long needed in the art.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
The ramp generally depicted as 20 is shown in FIG. 1 in a setting with a 
boat 21, water 22 and land 23. The ramp has the purpose of providing safe 
passage from the boat to the land, the land being considered as the 
landing base for purpose of this description. The end of the ramp near the 
boat in FIG. 1 will hereinafter be referred to as the boat end or near 
end, and the end near land as the land end or front end. The ramp 20 
generally comprises a longitudinal plank 25, a boat end support assembly 
28 located near the boat end of the ramp, and a landing base support 
assembly 30 positioned near the land end of the ramp. The ramp 20 further 
comprises a pair of parallelogram hand rail assemblies 34 located on 
either side of the plank. The plank 25 has cavities for receiving support 
assembly 28, the land support assemblies 30, and the rail assemblies 34 
can be latched to the plank by hooks 36 to permit the entire ramp 20 to be 
carried by grasping a hand rail. 
More specifically the plank 25 has a principle longitudinal beam 40 which 
extends for the greater length of the ramp. The long beam 40, which can be 
aluminum is a unitary sheet crimped symetrically so as to provide a 
central longitudinal U-groove 41, a pair of top flat sections 42, and side 
legs 43, which slant inwardly towards the center of the plank. The legs 43 
extend downwardly into feet forming longitudinal channels 46 which receive 
the folded support assembly 28 and the rail assembly 34 as will be 
described. A longitudinal top cover sheet 52 of light weight aluminum is 
secured to the top flat sections 42 by a plurality of rivets 53, (FIG. 3) 
and covers the central groove 41 to prevent one from stepping in the 
groove while walking on the plank. Mounted on top of the plank is a carp 
58, which is secured to the top of flat sections 42 and cover sheet 52 by 
adhesive cement and by rivets to provide traction for those walking on the 
plank. Sections of the carpet with its tufting are shown in FIGS. 6-11, 
and 13, and the ends of the carpet are secured to the plank in a manner to 
be described. 
At the land end of the plank 25 is an end piece 66. As seen specifically in 
FIGS. 4 and 7, piece 66 has a curved U shaped section 68 with a lower 
horizontal leg 69 and an upper horizontal leg 70. Leg 69 extends into a 
vertical back flange 72. Flang 72 extends upwardly into a horizontal 
flange 74 which passes flush above the horizontal leg 70. Rivets 78 pass 
through carpet 58 and secure flange 74 to the upper horizontal leg 70 and 
to the sections 42 of long beam 40. Extending rearwardly from vertical 
flange 72 of end piece 66 are two vertical side flanges 82 which are 
secured to the inside of the plank legs 43 by rivets 86. Extending 
outwardly from the bottom U leg 69 are a pair of flat flanges 90 which are 
slanted so that they lie flat against the bottom of channels 46 to which 
they are secured by rivets 92 as seen in FIG. 4. The front end of central 
plank groove 41 has laterally extending flanges 96 which lie flush against 
the rear side of flange 72 and are secured thereto by rivets 98. The 
rivets 86, 92 and 98 thus secure the end piece 66 firmly to long beam 40. 
The front edge of carpet 58 is wedged between the top sections 42 and the 
upper U leg 70 and held therein by riveting these two elements together. 
Plank 25 has a pair of reinforcing angles 104 which extend over 
approximately the center half of the plank. As seen in FIGS. 5 and 8, the 
angles 104 are shaped so that their legs fit flush against the insides of 
the long beam top sections 42 and legs 43. 
Near the middle of long beam 40 a cross tube 108 having a slight V bend 
extends laterally through conforming bores in the side walls of central 
groove 41, so that the ends of the tube 108 fit flush against the inside 
of legs 43, as seen in FIG. 5. Secured to the tops of long beam sections 
42 directly above the ends of tube 108 are a pair of flat support plates 
111, each of which have U-shaped slots 113 for receiving braces of the 
rail assembly as will be described. Rivets 116 extend through the upper 
walls of tube 108, through the tops of angles 104, through top sections 42 
and support plates 111 to firmly secure those members together on both 
sides of the plank. 
Beneath tube 108 are tube support brackets 120, each of which has a 
laterally extending arm 122 secured to the underside of tube 108 by rivets 
126, and a downwardly extending side 128 which fits flush against the 
inside of leg 43 and is secured thereto by a rivet 128, as well as by a 
bolt 131. Bolts 131, as seen in FIG. 5, cross channels 46 and act to 
secure brace rods of the rail assembly as will be described. 
At the rear end of long beam 40, a C-shaped channel beam 135 (FIG. 13) with 
upper and lower flanges 137 and 139 respectively, has its upper flange 137 
positioned flush against the top sides of beam sections 42. C Beam 135 has 
at its side ends forwardly extending flanges 142, as seen in FIGS. 9 and 
11, which are slanted so as to fit flush against the inside of long beam 
legs 43 to which they are firmly secured by rivets 145. 
Located at the rear corners of long beam 40 above the top sides of sections 
42 are flat support plates 147 which are similar to support plates 111, 
and which also have U slots 150. A rear pair of rivets 152 extend through 
each support plate 147, the upper flanges 137, and sections 42, to firmly 
secure those members, and a front pair of rivets 154 secure each plate 147 
to its respective top section 42. As seen in FIG. 13, the carpet 58 
extends rearwardly around the outside of C beam 135 and folds under and 
then over bottom flange 139 to which it is secured as by adhesive or 
riveting. 
The boat end support assembly 28 comprises a pair of link chains 158 which 
have their lower links secured in the plank channels 46 by bolts 160 (FIG. 
11) which extend through the links and the legs 43 across the channels 46. 
Each chain 158 extends through a flexible transparent plastic sheath 162. 
The top ends of the chains 158 are secured to low profile pivotal clips 
164 which can be of steel, and are mounted on the deck 168 of boat 21 by 
bolts 171. Each clip 164 comprises bottom and top parallel flat sections 
173 and 175 joined by a flat diagonal middle section 177. The top clip 
section 175 each have slotted openings which allow passage of a chain link 
for insertion within the center of the clip openings. The chains are held 
within the clip openings by flat spring latches 178 which can be of steel. 
Latches 178 have flat sections that correspond in contour to the flat 
sections 173, 175 and 177 of the clips 164 so that the latches can fit 
flush against the underside of the clips. The latches are shaped as shown 
in hidden lines in FIG. 12, so that the smaller ends of the latches extend 
across the side of the clip openings while the larger end of the latches 
are secured to the underside of clip section 173 by a spot weld located to 
the right of bolt 171 in FIG. 12. The small end of the latches 178 can be 
forced down by one link of the chain to the position shown in phantom 
lines as 178' in FIG. 9, to allow passage of the chain link into the 
center of the clip opening and then the latch springs back to block the 
opening to hold the chain link therein. The bolt 171 extend through the 
clips 164 and latches 178 to pivotally attach them to the deck, which 
allows the clips to pivot and maintain alignment with the chain as the 
lines of force of the chains change with movement of the ramp relative to 
the boat. 
The chains 158 have a width that permits them to fit snugly within the 
plank channels 46 when they are disengaged from the clip 164. The chains 
158, being secured to the clips 164 and to the plank 25, permit the plank 
to be suspended a selected distance beneath the boat deck, the distance 
being dependent upon which chain links are selected to be engaged to the 
clips. 
Each of the two hand rails assemlies 34 comprises a cylindrical hand rail 
tube 180, shown in the extended position in FIG. 1 substantially parallel 
to the plank, and rear and front cylindrical brace tubes 182 and 184, 
respectively, which support the ends of the hand tube 180. 
The rear brace tubes 182 are bent as seen in FIGS. 1, 2 and 13 to form 
shorter lower segments 186 and longer upper segments 188. The bottoms of 
the rear braces are pivotlly secured within the ramp side channels 46 by 
bolts 190 (FIG. 9) which pass through lower segments 186 and the sides of 
channels 46. At the upper end of rear brace segments 188 (FIG. 2) U-shaped 
brakets 192 have their two legs pivotally secured to the upper end of 
segments 188 as by a loose rivet 194 (FIG. 2) which passes through those 
legs and the top of tube 188, while the hand rails 180 fit snugly inside 
the curved portion of the brackets 192 and are firmly secured thereto. 
Flexible plastic bumper sleeves 199 fit around the rear braces and act to 
prevent the marring of the boat by the braces. They also serve to increase 
the friction of the rear braces against the boat, and thusly increase the 
lateral stability of the ramp. 
The front braces 184 are straight tubes, and have their lower ends secured 
within the plank channels 46, by the bolts 131, as seen in FIG. 5, so that 
the braces 184 can pivot within the channels 46. The upper ends of the 
front braces 184 are also pivotally secured to the front ends of the hand 
rails 180 by U brackets 200 (FIGS 1 and 6) whose curved portions fit 
snugly around the hand rails 180 and are firmly secured to the hand rails 
by bolts 202 which extend through the brackets 200 and the hand rails 18. 
The legs of the U brackets 200 are pivotally secured to the upper ends of 
braces 184 by loose rivets 204 extending through the legs of the brackets 
and through the upper ends of braces 184. 
The ends of the hand rails 180 are covered by plastic caps 206. (FIG. 1) 
There is sufficient clearance between the bottoms of the braces 182 and 184 
and the bottoms of the channels 46 to allow a full pivotal movement of the 
braces from the lowered position shown in FIG. 2 in solid lines to the 
upright position shown in FIG. 1. There is also sufficient clearance 
between the tops of the braces 182 and 184 and the hand rails 180 to 
permit pivotal movement of the braces relative to the hand rails for 
extension from the lower to the raised position, FIG. 6 illustrates such 
clearance for a front brace. 
Each hand rail 180 has a latching hole 211 in its top side. The latching 
hooks 36 are secured to the top sections 42 and the support angles 104 on 
either side of the ramp by rivets 213 so that the prongs 215 of the hooks 
36 can extend into the holes 211 (FIG. 8) when the hand rail is in the 
lowered position, to hold the rail in that position for carrying the ramp. 
Means are also provided to lock the handrail assemblies when they are in 
the upright position. The lower segments 186 of the rear braces have pivot 
latches 217 (FIG. 9) which latch the rear braces 182 to the rear part of 
the plank. See FIGS. 9, 10 and 13. Each latch 217 comprises a U-shaped 
member 219 which has its two legs pivotally secured to the lower brace 
segment 186 by a bolt 221. A metal tube 224 is snugly secured against the 
curved interior side of the U member by rivets 226. The tube 224 has a 
notch 228 in its lower wall. When the hand rail assemblies are raised to 
the upright position, the rear braces 182 are upright and the latches 217 
pivot counterclockwise (as viewed looking at FIG. 9) so that the notches 
228 fit against the rear edges of the rear support plates 147 (FIG. 9) to 
resist forwrd movement of the rear braces 182 and lock the assemblies 34 
in the upright position. Each latch 217 can be disengaged from this locked 
position by pivoting the latch 217 upward and bolt 221 by the hand to 
disengage the notch 228 from the support plate 147. 
When the hand rail assemblies are in the upright position as shown in FIG. 
1 the chains 158 pass around the outside of the rear braces 182 and the 
chain cover sheathes 162 restrain the plastic brace sleeves 199 from 
lateral movement of the ramp thus improving ramp stability. 
The landing base support assembly 30 comprises a pair of legs 235 located 
at the front of the ramp, the legs are shown in the extended position in 
FIG. 1, while FIG. 4 shows one leg in the extended position and the other 
leg folded within the plank. Each leg 235 comprises a cylindrical thigh 
tube 237 with a shoe 239 at its lower end. To secure the legs to the plank 
25, a butterfly bracket 241, (FIGS. 4 and 6) has its midsection secured to 
the bottom of plank long beam groove 41 by a pair of rivets 244. The upper 
ends of the thigh tubes 237 are pivotally secured to the end flaps of the 
butterfly bracket by curved bolts 247 which extend through those flaps and 
through long beam sections 42, sleeves 249, and the upper ends of the legs 
237. On the interior sides of the long beam legs 43 at the front end of 
the plank are lock plates 253 (FIGS. 4 and 6) which each have a upper flat 
triangular segment 255 secured by three rivets to each long beam leg 43, 
and a lower inwardly extending triangular shaped toe 259. The thigh tubes 
237 each have lock holes 261 which receive the toes 259 to lock the legs 
in the extended support position, as seen for the extended leg 235 in FIG. 
4. 
The shoes 239 each have a triangular shaped sole segment 265 and a 
triangular shaped heel segment 267 that is bent angularly from the sole 
265. The shoes 239 are each secured to thighs 237 by a pair of rivets 269. 
The components of the plank 25, the hand rail assemblies 34, the end base 
support assembly 30, and the boat and support assembly 28 are preferably 
of light weight aluminum or aluminum alloy except where otherwise 
indicated. 
Operation 
The ramp 20, being of light weight, can be operated by an individual to be 
placed in the dismounting position. For purposes of demonstration the ramp 
20 is initially in the folded position shown in FIG. 2, with the boat 
support assembly chains folded into the long beam channels 46, the hand 
rails assemblies 34 down and locked in position, and the legs 235 folded 
beneath the plank. The operator may first turn the plank 25 upside down 
and grasp each of the legs 235 and move it upward out of the confines of 
the long beam side leg 43 and the wall of the longitudinal groove 41, and 
then pivot the leg 235 about its connecting bolt 247 until the leg is in 
position for insertion of the toe 259 within the thigh lockhold 261, as 
shown for the leg on the left side of FIG. 4. Each leg 235 is moved to 
this extended locked position, and then the ramp 20 can be turned top side 
up with the legs either extending over the edge of the boat, supported on 
the boat deck, or placed on the landing base. 
Next, the hand rail assemblies 34 can be erected. This is done for each 
hand rail assembly by pressing downward on the hand rail 180 to disengage 
the latch prong 215 from the latchhole 211 (FIG. 8) and then moving the 
hand rail 180 slightly outward so that it is no longer underneath latch 
36. The handrail 180 is then lifted upward and as it is moved upward it 
pivots about its connections to the rear and front braces 182 and 184 and 
pivotally lifts those braces upwards about their pivotal connections to 
the plank. The assembly 34 maintains a parallelogram appearance as it is 
lifted. The assembly 34 is lifted until the rear brace 182 and front brace 
184 simultaneously engage the U slots 113 and 150 of their support plates 
147 and 111 respectively, such engagement resisting further rearward 
movement of the braces. When the rear brace 182 is fully extended within 
its support plate 147 the pivot latch 217 has flipped downward so that the 
notch 228 engages the rear edge of plate 147 to lock the hand rail 
assembly as previously described. Each assembly 34 is raised to this 
locked position, and the U slots 113 and 150, which are slightly wider 
than the braces, provide lateral support for the braces. 
Next, the operator can grasp with each hand one of the hand rails 180 and 
press his foot against the back side of the C beam 135 at the rear of the 
plank. The operator can then lift the hand rails 180 and press the sole of 
his foot against C beam 135 to lift the ramp upwards, keeping the front 
end of the ramp slanted upward relative to the rear end. With the ramp so 
elevated the operator can swing the ramp to the position desired near the 
pivot clips 164 and rest the ramp on the deck, or rest the front of the 
ramp on land if desired. The operator can then remove each of the chains 
158 from the plank channels 46 and insert the desired chain link into the 
clip 164 opening by pressing the spring latch 178 downward to the position 
shown in phantom lines in FIG. 9, and then inserting the link through the 
side of the clip opening into the center of the opening to the position 
shown in FIG. 12, and then releasing the spring latch 178 so that it 
springs back to the position shown in solid lines in FIG. 9. Each chain 
158 is so engaged to its respective clip 164 to support the rear end of 
the plank 25 at the desired level beneath the deck. The ramp 20 is then 
moved by grasping the hand rails and placing the foot against the rear of 
the plank as aforesaid, the legs 235, (if not previously placed on the 
land) are placed on the land so that their shoes 239 are on the land as 
shown in FIG. 1. The ramp 20 in the FIG. 1 position has the chain sheathes 
162 extended around the outside of the rear braces 182 in frictional 
engagement with the brace sleeves 199 to resist lateral movement of the 
plank 25. The rail assemblies 34, because of the slanted nature of the 
long beam side legs 43, tilt outwardly away from the plank so that the 
width between the hand rails 180 is greater than the width of the plank 
25, and the width between the front and rear braces 184 and 182 increases 
from the bottom to the top of the braces. This upwardly extending taper of 
the rail assemblies 34 permits greater room for passage in the area of the 
hips of the passengers and thus allows a greater width of passage than 
provided by the width of the plank. 
The chains 158, being flexible permit the boat to move on the waves without 
rigidly jarring the ramp. The chains allow the angle of inclination of the 
plank 25 to be controlled according to the chain link selected to be 
secured to the clips 164, and the location of the plank beneath the boat 
deck provides a convenient step from the plank to the deck. The angle of 
inclination of the plank can therefore be adjusted according to the 
relationship of the landing base to the boat to avoid too steep of an 
angle. 
The offset lower segments 186 of the rear braces 182 place the end of the 
plank 25 away from the boat to keep the plank from bumping against the 
boat. 
The landing base legs 235 extend outwardly from the plank 25 thus providing 
a broad base for support and improvement in the stability of the landing 
end of the plank. 
If the plank 25 is moved by the waves or by a person, the pivot clips 164 
pivot with movement of the chains 158 so that the clips maintain alignment 
with the forces exerted through the chains and utilization of the maximum 
strength of the clips 164 is realized. The chains 158 also support the 
plank 125 in a fashion so that if the boat is moved the plank 25 will tilt 
upward toward the direction of plank movement. The ramp 20 can also be 
used without extending the legs, in which case the bottom of the front end 
of the plank 25 rests on the landing base to support the front of the ramp 
so that the legs 235 will tilt in a direction that will prevent them from 
digging into the landing base. 
After the ramp has been used, it may be returned to its folded position by 
disengaging the legs 235 from the latches 253 and folding the legs 235 
back into the underside of the plank. This may be done on the landing base 
if desired. The plank 25 can be lifted back onto the boat by grasping the 
hand rails 180 as aforesaid and lifting the plank upwards until the 
operator's foot can be pressed against the rear of the plank so that the 
plank can be moved to the position desired on the boat. When the ramp is 
placed in a stable position on the boat, the chains 158 can be disengaged 
from the clips 164, and the chains can be layed lengthwise in the long 
beam side channels 46. The hand rail assemblies 34 can then be folded by 
disengaging the notches 228 of latches 217 from the support plates 147 and 
pivoting the assemblies 34 forward and downward towards the plank. The 
rails 180 are moved around and under the latches 36 so that the latch 
pronges 215 can extend into the rail latch holes 211 as shown in FIG. 8. 
This is done for each hand rail assembly and when the hand rails 180 are 
so locked the entire ramp can be carried by grasping either one of the 
hand rails 180 by a single hand and lifting it and the ramp upward so that 
the ramp extends sideways. 
Thus there has been provded a novel ramp which is easy to operate, provides 
stability in operation, and adjustability in use, but is compact and 
portable.