Watercraft storage system

A system for moving watercraft for storage inside a dry stack watercraft storage facility. The system includes a frame assembly, a cradle assembly and a rack assembly which closely interact with each other to precisely and securely position and protect watercraft stored inside the facility. The cradle assembly lifts a watercraft from the watercraft's center of gravity to position in the rack assembly. The rack assembly supports the watercraft through a pair of cantilever beams, and further includes a pair of cable guides used to guide the cradle assembly in the placement of the watercraft on the cantilever beams and to reduce the sway present during the positioning of the watercraft. The frame assembly supports and protects the other assemblies.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates generally to a watercraft storage system. 
More particularly, this invention pertains to a dry stack watercraft 
storage system that uses a cradle assembly integrally with a rack assembly 
for depositing and retrieving watercraft within a protective housing. 
Those skilled in the design and operation of dry watercraft storage systems 
recognize the need for implementing safer and more efficient dry 
watercraft storage systems. The present invention is a solution to this 
need in that a better storage system is built by integrating a standard 
bridge-crane loading system with a stack-rack system of storing boats. 
Many of the previous designs of dry boat storage use rack fork-lift 
systems that have limited stacking capabilities. At heights of over 40 
feet, these systems become dangerous and unstable. Therefore, they are 
typically limited to stacking no more than four boats. Furthermore, they 
require a concrete ramp system, or a pre-lift conveyor or hoist system, 
which are impractical or even impossible to employ on bodies of water with 
high amounts of fluctuation. Other designs, like that disclosed in U.S. 
Pat. No. 4,070,979, use a fork-lift and have a higher stacking area, yet 
they require some type of elevating device such as a telescopic mast to be 
installed to position boats, and in addition to the elevating device, they 
require an added module to rotate the boat 180 degrees. Further 
disadvantages of using fork-lift systems include their expense, frequent 
breakdowns, and need for highly skilled operators in order to function 
properly. 
Another design for boat storage is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,385,458, 
which lifts boats via an overhead hoist mechanism and slings. While this 
design provides for lifting boats without a fork-lift, the usefulness of 
this design is limited due to the minimal level of stacking available with 
the required honeycomb-type storage stack (no more than three boats 
stacked) as well as the difficulty of positioning the slings around the 
boat. 
What is needed, then, and is not found in the prior art, is a safe and 
efficient system for the dry storage of boats that is available at a 
reasonable cost for consumers of dry storage systems. The present 
invention satisfies that long felt need in a new, novel and unobvious 
manner. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention is a dry stack watercraft storage system ("the 
storage system") created for storing and retrieving watercraft from a 
region of water. The storage system generally comprises a frame assembly, 
a rack assembly, and a cradle assembly. The frame assembly generally 
includes a pair of walls comprising crossed beams and pylons that serves 
as the shell of the storage system. The frame assembly also includes a 
series of support columns that stand parallel to the wall and provide 
support and protection of watercraft stowed in the storage system. The 
frame assembly further serves as a skeleton for wall skin, which can be a 
material of the builder's choice. The wall skin is attached directly to 
the exterior of the wall of beams and pylons to provide an external 
protection for the storage system. 
The two sides of the frame assembly are joined together via a roof and a 
trolley bridge. The roof joins the walls, and the trolley bridge joins the 
support columns. The trolley bridge serves as the support for a trolley, 
and is comprised of two beams that extend between the support columns. The 
trolley is a standard bridge-crane trolley that is common to the 
manufacturing industry, and it controls movement of the watercraft within 
the storage system with three electric motors--a trolley motor for lateral 
movement of the cradle assembly, a cradle-lift motor that drives four 
winch cable lifts that provide vertical movement of the watercraft, and a 
bridge motor for longitudinal movement of the watercraft. The trolley is 
therefore able to move the watercraft from the center of the storage 
system into a specific module of the rack assembly. 
The cradle assembly also includes at least four bumper assemblies that are 
used prevent the watercraft from leaving the cradle assembly during 
loading operations. Each bumper assembly has a bumper arm that extends 
diagonally down from the cradle beam towards the end of the cradle beam. 
The bumper arm is also joined to the cradle beam by a bumper spring, and 
at the end of the bumper arm is a bumper that extends upward and out 
towards the guide support runners. A roller is further connected to the 
top of the bumper. The bumper assembly is designed to allow a watercraft 
easy access on to the cradle assembly by allowing the bumper to be pushed 
down when a watercraft enters the cradle assembly and then returning to 
the original position once the watercraft is in the cradle assembly to 
keep the watercraft secured on top of the cradle assembly. 
The rack assembly comprises a series of modules on the wall of the frame 
assembly for the placement of individual watercraft. The rack assembly 
includes a pair of padded cantilever beams, braces, and cable guides. The 
cantilever beams are firmly attached to the frame assembly and can be 
reinforced by the braces. The cantilever beams are configured to support a 
watercraft that is positioned on top of them. The distance between the 
cantilever beams is less than the width of the watercraft so as to provide 
adequate support of the watercraft. The rack assembly further includes at 
least one set of cable guides for each column of modules. The cable guides 
extend from the wall in an arcuate fashion to help position the watercraft 
in the correct column of cantilever beams. Furthermore, the cable guides 
aid in eliminating sway of the watercraft while it is being positioned on 
the cantilever beams. 
The cradle assembly is the final major component of the storage system. The 
function of the cradle assembly is to provide support for the watercraft 
while it is being hoisted between the rack assembly and the water region. 
The cradle assembly includes a set of cradle beams, guide support runners, 
and cradle walls. The cradle beams function as a base platform for the 
watercraft, and are connected via two guide support runners and two cradle 
walls. The guide support runners extend upward from the cradle beams to 
support the watercraft. The cradle walls are connected at their respective 
lower edges to the ends of the cradle beams. 
The cradle assembly further comprises a centering arm assembly that 
comprises at least one pair of centering arms and centering springs. The 
centering arm assembly aids in positioning the watercraft on the guide 
support runners while the centering assembly is immersed in the water. 
Each centering arm is connected to the cradle walls by the respective 
centering spring, and each centering arm is attached directly across from 
the other centering arm of the pair. The centering arms extend diagonally 
downward from the centering springs on the cradle walls toward the center 
of the cradle beams. The centering springs allow the centering arms to 
yield to the physical pressure that a watercraft might apply to them, but 
the centering springs also allow the centering arms to return pressure to 
the watercraft so as to direct the watercraft toward the center of the 
cradle assembly. Additionally, one end of a set of elastic bands may be 
attached to the cradle walls so that the other end of the bands can be 
attached to the watercraft to further aid the centering arm assembly in 
positioning the watercraft. 
The cradle assembly is supported by at least four cables that are attached 
to the ends of the cradle walls. The cables connect the cradle assembly to 
the trolley that is positioned on the trolley bridge. Further, the cradle 
assembly comprises four counter weights that are connected beneath the 
ends of the cradle beams that allow for correct balancing of the 
watercraft and that allow the cradle assembly to carry the watercraft from 
the watercraft's center of gravity between the water region and the rack 
assembly. 
The cradle assembly is designed to uniquely interact with the rack assembly 
to easily and quickly position the watercraft on the cantilever beams. The 
guide support runners are positioned in a peculiar manner on the cradle 
beams so that they are angled centrally toward each other. The distance 
between the guide support runners is precisely determined in that it is 
less than the width of the watercraft, yet it is greater than the distance 
between the pair of cantilever beams. This design allows the cantilever 
beams of the rack assembly to fit between guide support runners. 
Furthermore, the height of each guide runner is greater than the height of 
the cantilever beams so that the enclosed area defined between the two 
guide support runners, the cradle beams and the watercraft is sufficiently 
large for easy placement of the cradle assembly and watercraft around the 
cantilever beams. 
Once the cradle assembly is positioned completely around the cantilever 
beams, the trolley lowers the cradle holding the watercraft past the 
cantilever beams. The watercraft is left on the cantilever beams, and the 
cradle assembly then exits the rack assembly to return to the water region 
to procure any additional watercraft or to a neutral location. Retrieval 
of the watercraft from the cradle rack assembly is done in reverse of the 
previously described method.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
An embodiment of the dry watercraft storage system ("the storage system") 
100 is shown in FIG. 1. The storage system 100 is designed for storing and 
retrieving watercraft from a region of water within a system providing 
cantilevered racks for stowing watercraft. The storage system 100 
generally comprises a frame assembly 40, a rack assembly 50, and a cradle 
assembly 10. The frame assembly 40 of the storage system 100 includes a 
wall 56 comprising beams and pylons intersecting at right angles and a 
series of support columns 57 that are positioned parallel to the wall 56. 
The frame assembly 40 provides support and protection of watercraft stowed 
in the storage system 100. The frame assembly 40 further serves as a 
skeleton for wall skin 60, which can be a material of the builder's 
choice. The wall skin 60 is attached directly to the exterior of the wall 
56 of beams and pylons to provide an external protection for the storage 
system 100. 
As is further shown in FIG. 1, the two sides of the frame assembly 40 are 
joined together via a truss 62 which is covered by any convenient roofing 
material. The truss 62 joins the walls 56 to provide stabilization to the 
storage system considering the weight of the system and the force put on 
the system by the cradle assembly as hereinafter described. 
To load watercraft into the storage system 100, a trolley bridge 20 is 
connected between the support columns 57 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The trolley 
bridge 20 includes a frame having two beams extending from one side of the 
storage system 100 to the other. The frame sits on bridge support beams 23 
that are located on a track formed by a pair of rails 22, each rail 
running along a side of the building. The rails 22 are parallel and 
positioned at the top of the building near where the truss 62 joins with 
the support columns 57. The bridge support beams 23 are mounted on bridge 
wheels 28 which are aligned to roll along the rails 22 so that the trolley 
bridge 20 can be moved longitudinally in the building for placing the 
watercraft in a correct position to be inserted into a dry dock bay of the 
rack assembly 50. 
The trolley 18 is mounted on a frame having trolley wheels 29 similar to 
the bridge wheels 28. These wheels are aligned to travel along the beams 
of the trolley bridge 20 so that the trolley 18 can be caused to travel 
laterally of the building. The features of the trolley bridge 20 just 
described are well known in the manufacturing industries and are readily 
available in the marketplace. 
The trolley bridge 20 also includes three separate motors (as shown in FIG. 
9): a trolley motor 25 for causing the trolley to move laterally, a bridge 
motor 26 for causing the trolley bridge frame to move longitudinally and a 
cradle-lift motor 24 that drives four winch cable lifts that provide 
vertical movement of the cradle assembly 10. When a watercraft is 
positioned within the cradle assembly 10 as described in detail 
hereinafter, the trolley 18 can be manipulated to move the watercraft from 
the center of the storage system into a specific module of the rack 
assembly 50. 
Looking at FIGS. 2 and 9, it can be seen that the rack assembly 50 forms a 
series of modules on the wall 56 of the frame assembly 40 for the 
placement of individual watercraft. The rack assembly 50 includes a pair 
of padded cantilever beams 54 that are firmly attached to the frame 
assembly 40 and can be reinforced by braces 58 if necessary. The 
cantilever beams 54 are configured to support a watercraft that is 
positioned on top of them. The distance between the cantilever beams 54 is 
less than the width of the watercraft so as to provide adequate support 
for the watercraft. 
The rack assembly 50 further includes a set of cable guides 52 as shown in 
FIGS. 2 and 4. At least one set of cable guides 52 is positioned in each 
column of modules. The cable guides 52 are cantilevered from the wall 56 
in an arcuate fashion with the unsupported ends being arched toward the 
center of the modules. The cable guides 52 are then able to help position 
the watercraft in the correct column of cantilever beams 54. Furthermore, 
the cable guides 52 aid in eliminating sway of the watercraft while the it 
is being positioned on the cantilever beams 54. 
The cradle assembly 10, shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, is the last major component 
of the storage system 100. The function of the cradle assembly 10 is to 
provide support for the watercraft while it is being lifted by its center 
of gravity between the water region and the rack assembly 50. The cradle 
assembly 10 comprises a set of cradle beams 12 that function as a base 
platform for the watercraft. The cradle beams 12 are connected via two 
guide support runners 14 and two cradle walls 13. The guide support 
runners 14 extend upward from the cradle beams 12 to support the 
watercraft as shown in FIG. 7. Also shown in FIG. 7, the cradle walls 13 
are connected at their respective lower edges to the cradle beams 12. 
The cradle assembly 10 also has a centering arm assembly 21 that includes 
at least one pair of centering arms 15 and springs 19, as shown in FIGS. 7 
and 8. The centering arm assembly 21 aids in positioning the watercraft on 
the guide support runners 14 while they are submerged in the water. Each 
centering arm 15 is connected to the cradle walls 13 by a spring 19, and 
each centering arm 15 is attached directly across from the other centering 
arm 15 of the pair. They extend diagonally downward from the springs 19 on 
the cradle walls 13 toward the center of the cradle beams 12. The springs 
19 allow the centering arms 15 to yield to the physical pressure that a 
watercraft might apply to them, but the centering arms 15 also return 
pressure to the watercraft to direct it toward the center of the cradle 
assembly 10. Furthermore, one end of a set of elastic bands (not shown) 
may be attached to the cradle walls 13 so that the other end may be 
attached to the watercraft to further aid the centering arm assembly 21 in 
positioning the watercraft. 
Further, the cradle assembly 10 also includes at least four bumper 
assemblies 30 (shown in FIG. 9) that are used keep the watercraft from 
leaving the cradle assembly 10 during loading operations. Each bumper 
assembly 30 has a bumper arm 32 that extends diagonally down from the 
cradle beam 12 towards the end of the cradle beam 12. The bumper arm 32 is 
also joined to the cradle beam 12 by a bumper spring 38, and at the end of 
the bumper arm 32 that is not attached to the cradle beam 12 is a bumper 
34 that extends upward and out towards the guide support runners 14. A 
roller 36 is further connected to the top of the bumper 34 to ease the 
entry of a watercraft. The bumper assembly 30 is designed to allow a 
watercraft easy access to the cradle assembly 10 by allowing the bumper 34 
to be pushed down when a watercraft enters the cradle assembly 10 and then 
returning to the original position once the watercraft is completely in 
the cradle assembly 10 to keep the watercraft secured on top of the cradle 
assembly 10. 
As shown in FIG. 9, the cradle assembly 10 is supported by at least four 
cables 16 in the preferred embodiment, although chains or any other type 
of rope capable of supporting the cradle assembly 10 could be used in 
place of cables 16. The cables 16 are attached to the ends of the cradle 
walls 13 and connect the cradle assembly 10 to the trolley 18 positioned 
on the trolley bridge 20. The cables 16 in the preferred embodiment extend 
directly straight down from the trolley 18 to the cradle assembly 10. 
However, the cables 16 may extend down from the trolley 18 to the opposing 
end of the cradle assembly 10 in a crosswise fashion. The cradle assembly 
10 also has four counter weights 17 (shown in FIG. 9) that are connected 
to the free ends of the cables 16 to keep tension on the loose end of the 
cable 16 as it extends upward or downward in its vertical movement. 
The interaction of the cradle assembly 10 with the rack assembly 50 is 
shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. The cradle assembly 10 is designed to uniquely 
work with the rack assembly 50 to easily and quickly position the 
watercraft on the cantilever beams 54. The cradle assembly 10 lifts from a 
center point within the cradle that corresponds with the center of gravity 
of the watercraft. The guide support runners 14 are positioned in a 
peculiar manner on the cradle beams 12 so that they are angled centrally 
toward each other, as shown in FIG. 9. The distance between the guide 
support runners 14 is precisely determined in that it is less than the 
width of the watercraft, yet it is greater than the distance between the 
pair of cantilever beams 54. This design allows the cradle beams 54 of the 
rack assembly 50 to fit between guide support runners 14. Furthermore, the 
height of each guide runner 14 is greater than the height of the 
cantilever beams 54 so that the enclosed area defined between the two 
guide support runners 14, the cradle beams 12 and the watercraft is 
sufficiently large for easy placement of the cradle beams 12 and 
watercraft above and below the cantilever beams 54. 
Once the cradle assembly 10 is positioned completely around the cantilever 
beams 54 (as shown in FIG. 5), the trolley 18 lowers the cradle assembly 
10 holding the watercraft past the cantilever beams 54. The watercraft is 
then left on the cantilever beams 54, and the drive of the motors of the 
trolley system is reversed to cause the cradle assembly 10 to exit the 
rack assembly 50 and return to a centrally located neutral position in the 
storage system 100. Retrieval of the watercraft from the rack assembly 50 
is done in reverse of the previously described method. 
Because of the modular design of the cradle assembly 10 and storage 
performed on cantilever racks 54, the storage system 100 is easily 
automated to position and remove watercraft from the rack assembly 50 with 
minimal human interaction. Automation requires the adoption of specific 
coordinates for each module of the rack assembly 50 so that the 
coordinates denoting where a watercraft is to be deposit or retrieved can 
be specifically determined. With each module identified, the user can 
communicate the module coordinates to a standard personal computer (not 
shown) through a control panel 42 (shown in FIG. 10), which then controls 
the trolley motor 25, the cradle-lift motor 24, and the bridge motor 26 to 
determine where to position the cradle assembly 10 when moving a 
watercraft. The trolley 18, trolley bridge 20, and cradle assembly 10 can 
be further equipped with appropriate switches (light beam, laser 
controlled pressure or sail) (not shown) that will control starting and 
stopping of this invention. FIG. 11 illustrates the general algorithm used 
to determine whether a watercraft is to be moved. FIG. 12 further 
illustrates the algorithm used to move the watercraft from the water (or 
loading/unloading station) to the rack assembly 50. FIG. 13 illustrates 
the algorithm used to move the watercraft from the loading station to the 
rack assembly 50. 
Also, because of the modular design of the frame of the storage system 100, 
it is possible for the facility to be based on land or floating on water. 
All that is required to create a floating storage system 100 is for the 
lowest modules of the rack assembly 50 that form the base of the storage 
system 100 to be equipped with a floatation device in addition to the 
columns and beams of the framework assembly 40. 
Thus, although there have been described particular embodiments of the 
present invention of a new and useful Interactive Cradle and Cantilever 
Dry Stack Watercraft Storage System, it is not intended that such 
references be construed as limitations upon the scope of this invention 
except as set forth in the following claims.