Abstract:
The present invention includes a boat having a seat with a pneumatically adjustable passenger ride-height, for a given passenger and/or an adjustable passenger weight range for a given ride height range and with an adjustable rebound damping mechanism, where adding air results in a lifting of the seat, and rotating a member results in change of the rebound speed.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to improved systems and methods for supporting a boat seat. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to a ride-height and/or passenger weight adjustable shock absorbing boat seat pedestal, and methods of constructing and utilizing same. 
     More particularly, the present invention relates to a shock absorbing boat seat pedestal which uses an air filled portion, and liquid and gaseous matter combination filled portion, and methods of constructing and utilizing same. 
     The prior art includes at least the following U.S. patents: 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,465,679 issued in 1995 to Mardikian entitled “PERSONAL WATERCRAFT AND BOAT WITH SHOCK ABSORBING FLOORBOARDS;” 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,182,590 issued in 2001 to Patera entitled “PERSONAL WATERCRAFT SUSPENSION SYSTEM;” 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,880,483 issued in 2005 to Fedders entitled “ACTIVE SEAT SUSPENSION FOR WATERCRAFT;” and 
     U.S. Pat. No. 7,549,387 B 2 issued on Jun. 23, 2009 to James Joseph Funk entitled “SHOCK ABSORBING SEAT PEDESTAL.” 
     While these prior art methods have been known in the past and may have provided some utility to persons sitting in boat seats, they do have several problems, some of which are overcome by the present invention. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide a comfortable ride to persons sitting in a boat seat. 
     It is a feature of the present invention to include a ride-height adjustable pneumatic boat seat pedestal. 
     It is an advantage of the present invention to provide for simultaneous and independent ride-height adjustment and rebound speed damping adjustment. 
     The present invention is designed to achieve the above mentioned objectives, include the previously stated features, and provide the aforementioned advantages. 
     The present invention comprises: 
     A seating system for supporting a person in an adjustable elevated position above a lower portion of a boat, where the seating system comprises: 
     a boat seat having a bottom portion; 
     a boat seat base portion configured to couple with said bottom portion of said boat seat; 
     a base member portion configured to couple with a portion of a boat, which is generally lower than a predetermined boat seat height; 
     an adjustable length pedestal disposed between said boat seat base portion and said base member portion, said adjustable length pedestal comprising: 
     a first tube; 
     a second tube; said second tube at least partially nested within said first tube; 
     an air chamber disposed wholly within one of said first tube and said second tube; 
     an oil chamber disposed wholly within another of said first tube and said second tube; said oil chamber being variably disposed within said one of said first tube and said second tube; 
     a piston disposed wholly within said oil chamber and coupled to a portion of said one of said first tube and said second tube; 
     means for introducing pressurized air into said air chamber where an increase in air pressure in said air chamber results in an upward adjustment of a ride-height of said boat seat, until a maximum seat height is reached; and 
     means for adjustably restricting an oil flow rate from one side of said piston to another side of said piston and thereby adjustably limiting a rebound rate of said piston after a temporary force applied to said boat seat pedestal is reduced. 
     Other objectives, advantages and features of the invention will become apparent to those persons skilled in this particular area of technology, and to other persons, after having been exposed to the following detailed description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying patent drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a cross-sectional view of a shock absorber boat seat pedestal in accordance with the invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of the invention including the optional external reservoir. 
         FIG. 3  is a cut-away elevation view of a boat of the present invention, exposing a variant of the pedestal of  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Now referring to the drawings wherein like numerals refer to like structure shown in the drawings and text included in the application throughout. With reference to  FIG. 1 , there is shown a boat seat pedestal of the present invention generally designated  100  which includes a seat base  1  a Schrader valve  3  with an adjacent o-ring  2 . Schrader valve  3  is provided as an input location for air into the air compartment of the upper tube  24 . A high pressure air source  33  ( FIG. 3 ) could be a manual air pump, an electric air pump, a reserve air tank or other source of pressurized air, which could be coupled to the Schrader valve  3 , or it could replace the Schrader valve  3  in some applications. Inside of upper tube  24 , running from an upper location to a lower location, is a hollow shaft  15  with a rebound metering rod  4  disposed therein. In some embodiments, the hollow shaft  15  could be replaced with a solid shaft, and rebound adjustment would be omitted from involvement with the shaft coupled to the piston  17 . 
     A lower tube or body  19  is disposed near a base  20 , which is attached to the boat  300  of  FIG. 3 . Disposed within body  19  is a piston  17 , which is coupled to and moves up and down with shaft  15 . Metering rod  4  forms, or controls, a portion of a valve which regulates the rate at which fluid can flow from one side of the piston to another side. This regulation of flow rate is a rebound adjustment, which is adjusted by rebound adjuster  13 , which manipulates a top portion of the rebound metering rod  4 . Additionally, variable sized holes may be located through the piston so that flow rate corresponds to hole size. Hole size may be changed by inserting sleeves, shims, partial plugs etc. Placed atop the body  19  and inside the upper tube  24  is bearing assembly  16 , which is affixed to the body  19  and separates the upper (inside upper tube  24 ) and lower (inside body  19 ) fluid chambers. Bearing assembly allows the upper tube to pass by and allows the shaft  15  to pass therethrough. Bearing  5  and  162 ; seal  6  and o-rings  161  and  163  are shown. A bumper  7  is also shown which performs the function of preventing metal on metal collisions. 
     Piston  17  has a piston bearing  8  and a nut  18 . At the lower end of the upper tube  24 , there is a bearing  241 , a wiper seal  9  and an end seal  242 . 
     The body  19  is designed to retain oil and nitrogen, and an O ring  11  is shown as a seal, also there is a retainer  10  which holds a rubber pill  21  through which nitrogen can be added when necessary. 
     Now referring to  FIG. 2 , there is shown the pedestal  100  of  FIG. 1  with oil and nitrogen in the oil chamber  23  body  19  and air in the air chamber  22  in upper tube  24 . The oil chamber  23  may be filled with just oil and a reservoir can be provided to allow oil to escape as more of the shaft  15  moves downward into the body  19 . The oil chamber is divided into upper variably sized oil chamber  232  and a lower variably sized oil chamber  231 . As the piston goes down, such as in response to a person sitting down on the seat or the boat hitting a wave; the volume in upper variably sized oil chamber  232  is increasing and therefore has decreasing pressure, therefore the oil passes through the holes in piston  17  and/or through the valve opening variably created by the bottom end of metering rod  4  ( FIG. 1 ). If the jolt from the wave is particularly large, the speed at which the piston travels downward will be limited by how quickly the oil can pass through the holes in the piston and the valve. Similarly, the maximum rate of flow of oil will restrict the speed at which the piston  17 , and therefore the seat base  1  and boat seat rebound to being fully extended. The adjustment of rebound adjuster  13  therefore sets the amount of damping of the air shock which is formed by air chamber  22 . 
     Now referring to  FIG. 3 , there is shown a boat  300  with a variation of the pedestal  100  which has an air pressure input source  33  at the site of the Schrader valve  3  of  FIGS. 1 and 2 , and a rebound adjusting knob  130  at the site of the rebound adjuster  13 . A seat  310  is disposed atop the upper tube  24 . 
     Now referring to  FIGS. 1 through 3 , and in operation, the air pressure within air chamber  22  is increased and thereby the ride height is increased for a given passenger or the ride height is maintained for a heavier passenger, and when a person sits on the seat, the seat base goes down, the other tube  24  passes over more of the inner tube  19 , the size of the air chamber  22 , which is defined by the space inside the outer tube  24 , which is above the bearing assembly  16 , decreases. The lower variably sized oil chamber is caused to decrease in volume proportional with a decrease in the air chamber volume 
     Although the invention has been described in detail in the foregoing only for the purpose of illustration, it is to be understood that such detail is solely for that purpose and that variations can be made therein by those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims, including all equivalents thereof. 
     It is thought that the method and apparatus of the present invention will be understood from the foregoing description, and that it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construct steps, and arrangement of the parts and steps thereof, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, or sacrificing all of their material advantages. The form herein described is merely a preferred exemplary embodiment thereof.