Abstract:
A structure for mounting a rigid T-Top on the surface of a boat deck is disclosed. The structure is easily customizable to almost any boat configuration. A method for mounting the structure is also disclosed.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention is directed to a T-Top that can be installed on the deck of a boat. Generally, a T-Top is installed over the operator station. T-Tops generally are used as add-ons to boats to provide shade over a portion of the boat deck. In addition to providing shade, the frame of the T-Tops can be used to install fishing rod holders, for example, or to hold other gear.  
           [0002]    The present invention is more particularly directed to a T-Top that can be customized to fit any almost configuration of boat from standardized parts and can be installed easily by a boat owner even those who do not possess a high level of mechanical aptitude.  
           [0003]    The presently available T-Tops such as are illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,613 suffer from many disadvantages. First, the prior T-Tops all must be specially constructed to fit a particular boat. In general, the maker must cut and weld the frame for the T-Top to fit the precise dimensions for the particular boat on which the T-Top will be installed. Thus, installation is time consuming and generally cannot be performed by a boat owner who has limited mechanical aptitude. Second, given that the prior T-Tops are custom fit for each installation, the T-Top manufacturer does not have standardized parts that can be used for installation of a T-Top on virtually every size or style of boat. Third, given the disadvantages just described, the installation of existing T-Tops is expensive, labor intensive and time consuming.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    The present invention solves the aforementioned difficulties in presently available T-Tops. This present invention provides a T-Top that can be easily installed by the owner of the boat. The T-Top of the present invention is constructed from standardized parts that can be easily adapted to fit virtually any configuration on the boat. However, the standardized parts of the present invention do not require the cutting and welding of the frame necessitated by the prior T-Tops. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0005]    [0005]FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a T-Top of the present invention installed over the center console of a boat.  
         [0006]    [0006]FIGS. 2A, 2B, &amp;  2 C illustrate side, front and top views respectively of a component of the T-Top of the present invention.  
         [0007]    [0007]FIGS. 3A &amp; 3B illustrate top and side views respectively of a component of the present invention.  
         [0008]    [0008]FIGS. 4A &amp; 4B illustrate bottom and side views respectively of a component of the T-Top of the present invention.  
         [0009]    [0009]FIGS. 5A &amp; 5B illustrate front and side views respectively of a component of the present invention.  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 6A, 6B &amp;  6 C illustrate front, top and side views respectively of a component of the present invention.  
         [0011]    [0011]FIGS. 7A, 7B &amp;  7 C illustrate top, side and sectional views respectively of a component of the present invention.  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 8 is a front plan view of a component of the present invention.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0013]    The presently preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described in connection with the drawings. However, this embodiment is merely illustrative of the present invention and is not meant to limit the spirit or scope of the appended claims.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 1 illustrates a fully assembled T-Top  10  of the present invention. The T-Top assembly  10  is mounted to deck  11  between the sides  12  of the boat  14 . In this installation, the T-Top assembly  10  is mounted over the center console  16 . The construction and installation of the T-Top assembly  10  will now be described.  
         [0015]    The T-Top assembly  10  comprises two vertical support frames  18 . The vertical support frames  18  are illustrated in more detail in FIGS. 2A, 2B and  2 C. The vertical support frames are fabricated from aluminum pipe. Each of the vertical support frames  18  comprise two generally vertical pipes  20  and  22 . In addition, the vertical support frames  18  comprise a plurality of generally horizontal connecting pipes  24 . The plurality of horizontal connecting support pipes  24  are welded to the generally vertical pipes  20  and  22  thus forming a solid structure.  
         [0016]    The vertical support frames  18  are mounted to the deck  11  of the boat  14  by means of a plurality of mounting brackets  26 . The mounting brackets  26  are illustrated in more detail in FIGS. 3A and 3B. The mounting brackets  26  comprise a plurality of mounting holes  28 . The mounting holes  28  are adapted to receive a plurality of fastening devices such as bolts. The mounting bracket  26  is thus fastened to the boat deck  11  by the aforementioned fastening devices as well as a sealant and/or adhesive. The mounting bracket  26  also comprises a cylindrical top portion containing an offset through hole  30 . The through hole  30  is adapted to slidingly receive the bottom portions  32  and  34  of the vertical support pipes  20  and  22 . The reason for the offset nature of the mounting through hole  30  is so that the vertical support pipes  20  and  22  can be mounted as close as possible to the center console  16  and thus make for easier passage of people around the T-Top  10  by consuming a minimum amount of space on the boat deck  11 . The mounting bracket  26  also comprises horizontal through holes  36 .  
         [0017]    An angle bracket  19  is rigidly mounted to the top of each of the vertical support pipes  20  and  22 . In this embodiment, it is presently contemplated that the angle bracket  19  will be mounted to the vertical support pipes  20  and  22  by welding. The angle bracket  19  is illustrated in detail in FIGS. 6A, 6B and  6 C. As can be seen from FIGS. 6A and 6B, the angle bracket  19  comprises a first longitudinal surface  21  and a second longitudinal surface  23 . The first and second longitudinal surfaces  21  and  23  are joined at an approximately perpendicular angle A. The first longitudinal surface  21  comprises a first plurality of through holes  25  and the second longitudinal surface  23  comprises a second plurality of through holes  27 .  
         [0018]    A gusset  40  is rigidly mounted between each of the angle brackets  19  and the vertical support pipes  20  and  22 . The gusset  40  is illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 5B. The gusset  40  is contemplated to be mounted by welding to the angle brackets  19  and the respective vertical support pipe  20  or  22 .  
         [0019]    The T-Top assembly  10  further comprises a reinforcing grid  38  as illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B. The reinforcing grid  38  will be connected to the top of the vertical pipes  20  and  22  by means of the angle brackets  19  as described below.  
         [0020]    The T-Top assembly  10  further comprises the T-Top lid  44 . The T-Top lid  44  is illustrated in detail in FIGS. 7A, 7B &amp;  7 C. The T-Top lid  44  is presently contemplated to be fabricated from molded fiberglass.  
         [0021]    The reinforcing grid  38  further comprises an opening  48 . The opening  48  is adapted to receive a storage compartment  46 . The storage compartment  46  is illustrated in detail in FIG. 8. The storage compartment  46  is generally contemplated for use as an enclosure for electronic equipment that may be used on the boat. The present invention is particularly adapted to utilize storage compartment  46  to enclose electronic equipment since the reinforcing grid  48  and the vertical support pipes  20  and  22  are all of annular construction allowing for the easy routing of electrical cable from the storage compartment  46 , through the annuli in the frame parts and into the control console  16  on the boat.  
         [0022]    The first step in the assembly of the T-Top  10  to the boat  14  is to determine the placement of the vertical support frames  18  on the respective sides of the boat console  16 . At this point, the installer determines the placement of the four mounting brackets  26  by centering the T-Top  10  over the center of the console  16 . In addition, the installer also determines the height of the installation of the T-Top  10  relative to the boat deck  11 . If the installer desires to mount the T-Top  10  at a lower height relative to the boat deck  11 , that can be accomplished by removing part of the vertical support pipes  20  and  22  to result in a lower height from the boat deck  11  to the top of the T-Top  10 . The removal can be accomplished with a standard saw adapted for sawing metal pipe.  
         [0023]    After the vertical support pipes  20  and  22  are adjusted for the proper height, the pipes  20  and  22  are then rigidly connected to the reinforcing grid  38 . The first plurality of through holes  25  on angle bracket  19  may be used for temporary connection of the support pipes  20  and  22  to the reinforcing grid  38  by means of sheet metal screws or other temporary mounting means while the permanent mounting holes are drilled. The second plurality of through holes  27  on angle bracket  19  are used for permanent mounting of the vertical support pipes  20  and  22  to the reinforcing grid  38 . The permanent mounting is accomplished by aligning the vertical support pipes  20  and  22  to the proper position on the reinforcing grid  38  so that the T-Top  10  will be symmetrically mounted over the center of the boat console  16 . A plurality of through holes are then drilled through the second plurality of holes  27  through both sides of the reinforcing grid  38  at the selected mounting points. Bolts are then placed through the angle bracket  19  and through the reinforcing grid  38  and connected with appropriate washers and nuts. In this manner, a rigid structure is created.  
         [0024]    At this point, the storage compartment  46  is placed into opening  48  in reinforcing grid  38 . The storage compartment is generally sealed in place with adhesive in the reinforcing grid  38 . This structure, comprising the vertical support pipes  20  and  22 , the reinforcing grid  38  and the storage compartment  46  is then taken to the boat  14  for mounting.  
         [0025]    The four mounting brackets  26  are first mounted to the bottom of the vertical pipes  20  and  22 . The bottom of the vertical pipes  20  and  22  are slidingly placed into the respective through hole  30  in the mounting bracket  26 . Two mounting holes will be drilled into the vertical mounting pipes  20  and  22  through holes  36  in the upper portion  29  of mounting bracket  29 . Fastening devices such as sheet metal screws will be placed through these holes to rigidly mount the vertical pipes to each of the mounting brackets  26 . An appropriate sealant may be placed at the top edge of upper portion  29  after the joining process to prevent water from seeping down between the vertical support pipes  20  and  22  and the inside of through hole  30 .  
         [0026]    The structure is then placed at the mounting points on the surface of the boat deck  11 . The structure is then connected to the boat deck  11  by means of the plurality of mounting holes  28  on the mounting bracket  26 . The installer will place adhesive and sealant on the bottom surface of the mounting bracket  26  which will be in contact with the top surface of the boat deck  11 . Holes will be drilled through mounting holes  28  into the boat deck  11 . Fastening devices such as bolts or self-tapping screws can be used to join the structure to the boat deck through the mounting holes  28 .  
         [0027]    If desired, reinforcing rods  50  can be joined between the front vertical support pipes  20  as shown in FIG. 1. These reinforcing rods  50  provide extra rigidity to the structure of the T-Top assembly  10 .  
         [0028]    At this point, the T-Top lid  44  is placed on top of the reinforcing grid  38 . The T-Top lid  44  is joined to the reinforcing grid  38  by appropriate fastening devices such as bolts at the plurality of points  52  shown in FIG. 1.  
         [0029]    Those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the embodiments just described merely illustrate the principles of the present invention. Many modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.