Abstract:
A boat docking assembly for docking a boat in a slip alongside a dock comprises a catch adapted for attachment to a boat, an arm adapted for pivotable attachment to a dock at a pivot and connection with the catch, and a dampener adapted to resist movement of the boat away from the pivot. The assembly preferably includes a support line along the side of the boat upon which the catch slides. The dampener preferably provides progressive resistance against movement away from the pivot and reduces the boat&#39;s velocity before pulling the boat toward the dock for debarkation or embarkation.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention relates to boat line handling, and, in particular, to an assembly for use in safely docking boats alongside a dock.  
           [0002]    Docking a boat typically requires that someone on board the boat either connect a line to the dock or jump to the dock with a line or that someone on the dock assist with such a line. When only the boat operator is present, such a method is particularly difficult to perform since the boat operator must leave his or her position at the steering wheel or outboard motor control such that the boat&#39;s direction and velocity is, at least temporarily, not controlled. Such a lack of control can lead to damage to the boat, dock, pier or other boats in the area as well as injury to the boat operator. Inclement weather conditions including high winds and rain and rough water further increase the difficulty encountered by a single boat operator attempting to dock a boat and may escalate such damage or injury.  
           [0003]    In addition, for all but the most skilled boater, docking a boat alongside a dock often involves an abrupt stop to the boat&#39;s velocity and may include bumping into the dock or other boats. While such minor collisions have negligible results taken singly, over time these impacts can result in damage to the boat or dock.  
           [0004]    Therefore, there is a need in the field of docking boats for an assembly which allows a single boat operator to dock a boat safely alongside a dock without allowing the boat to drift uncontrollably.  
           [0005]    There is also a need in the field for an assembly which requires only an initial connection between the boat and dock before the assembly manipulates the boat into position alongside the dock. There is a further need for allowing such an initial connection to be performed before the boat enters the dockside position.  
           [0006]    Moreover, there is a need in the field of boat docking for an assembly which provides for dampened impacts between the boat and the dock, or, more preferably, which provides for proper docking without any impact at all.  
           [0007]    Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved boat docking assembly which meets these addressed needs.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0008]    In accordance with the present invention, a boat docking assembly is provided to facilitate docking of a boat in a slip alongside a dock or the like. The boat docking assembly of this invention overcomes certain problems and shortcomings of the prior art, including those noted above, and provides unique components which operate to satisfy a number of specific docking needs.  
           [0009]    The boat docking assembly comprises a catch adapted for attachment to a boat, an arm adapted for pivotable attachment to a dock at a pivot and providing for connection with the catch, and a dampener connected with respect to the assembly and adapted to resist movement of the boat away from the dock after connection between the arm and the catch. In certain embodiments, the dampener may by adapted to resist movement of the arm and the catch away from the pivot after connection between the arm and the catch. The assembly may further include a support line running along the side of the boat with each end attached to the boat. The support line may include a stop which is adapted to prevent the catch from sliding after contact with the stop. In such an embodiment, the catch is connected to the arm and remains substantially in the same position as the boat and support line move alongside the dock until the stop contacts the catch and the support line is pulled taut.  
           [0010]    The arm preferably is adapted for universally-pivotable attachment to the dock and to retain a specific position relative to the dock until moved by contact with the catch. The arm may also include a hook adapted to connect with the catch. In such an embodiment the catch preferably includes a loop. Of course, the catch may instead include a hook while the arm includes a loop.  
           [0011]    The dampener preferably provides progressive resistance to the movement of the boat away from the pivot after connection between the arm and the catch. In certain embodiments the dampener is positioned between the pivot and the arm and comprises a piston connected with respect to the arm and a tensioning device for resisting movement of the piston away from the pivot. The dampener preferably includes a piston housing with distal and proximal ends and the piston positioned within the piston housing, a rod having a first end connected with respect to the piston and a second end connected with respect to the arm and the tensioning device adapted to resist movement of the piston toward the distal end. The dampener may include a face plate at the distal and proximal ends of the piston housing. Each face plate is preferably secured to housing by slot rings which fit in grooves formed in the housing to prevent the housing from rupturing when the boat pulls the piston toward the distal end.  
           [0012]    In other certain embodiments, the dampener is positioned on the support line and comprises first and second clamps attached to the support line and an elastic line extending between the first and second clamps. In such an embodiment, the elastic line resists movement of the boat away from the arm after connection between the catch and arm. For instance, the elastic line urges contraction to a ‘resting’ length. As the elastic line is stretched beyond its resting length, it provides increasing resistance and dampens the force pulling the boat from the dock.  
           [0013]    The invention may also be described as a boat docking assembly for allowing a single boat operator to attach a boat to a dock. This boat docking assembly preferably comprises a support line adapted to connect to and extend along a side of the boat and including a stop, a catch adapted to attach to and slide along the support line, an arm adapted to pivotably attach to a dock at a pivot and to provide for connection with the catch during docking, and a dampener adapted to resist movement of the boat away from the pivot after connection between the arm and the catch. Such an embodiment provides that as the boat moves toward a slip alongside the dock the catch and the arm are connected, the catch slides along the support line until contacting the stop, the support line becomes taut after the catch contacts the stop, the catch pulls the arm toward the catch after the support line becomes taut, and the dampener resists movement of the boat away from the pivot.  
           [0014]    In certain embodiments, the support line has a first end adapted for attachment to the boat at the midship cleat and a second end adapted for attachment to the boat at the aft cleat. The support line preferably has at least about three feet of slack, e.g., the midship cleat and aft cleat may be separated by seven feet while the support line includes ten feet of line therebetween. In embodiments in which the dampener is positioned on the support line, the length of the support line is calculated to include the resting length of the elastic line rather than the stretched length of the elastic line (which equals the length of non-elastic line between the dampener clamps).  
           [0015]    The arm is preferably adapted for universally-pivotable attachment to the dock and is adapted to retain a specific position relative to the dock until moved by contact with the catch so that, upon departure from the dock, a user may place the arm in a position facilitating connection with the catch upon return of the boat to the dock.  
           [0016]    The pivot can be mounted anywhere on the dock allowing for easy use. Specifically, the pivot may be mounted on the topside of the dock or on the vertical surface of a substantially vertical piling on the dock. The pivot preferably comprises a first bracket mounted to the dock, and a second bracket pivotably mounted to the first bracket to allow pivoting about an axis substantially perpendicular to the main surface of the first bracket. The arm may then be pivotably mounted to the second bracket to allow pivoting about an axis substantially parallel to the main surface of the first bracket. Such a bracket assembly can be considered a universal joint. In some embodiments, the pivot may further include the ability to pivot about the third axis which is perpendicular to the first and second axes previously mentioned.  
           [0017]    The invention also includes a method of docking a boat which comprises extending a support line along a side of the boat, attaching a catch to the support line so that the catch is adapted to slide along the support line, pivotably attaching an arm to a dock at a pivot, associating a dampener with the arm to resist movement of the arm away from the pivot or with the support line to resist movement of the boat away from the pivot, moving the boat toward a slip alongside the dock, and connecting the catch to the arm while the boat moves toward the slip, the catch sliding along the support line and pulling the arm, the dampener resisting movement of the boat away from the pivot to reduce the velocity of the boat. The method may also comprising placing the arm at a specific position relative to the dock so that connection between the arm and catch is facilitated.  
           [0018]    It is preferred that the dampener pull the boat toward the dock after reducing the velocity of the boat. The dampener provides progressive resistance to the movement of the arm away from the pivot to progressively reduce the velocity of the boat. In certain other embodiments, the connecting action is performed using a pole which supports the catch until the catch connects with the arm. In yet other embodiments, the support line may include a stop such that during the connecting action the catch slides from a forward end of the support line to the stop where the catch pulls the support line taut and pulls the arm. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0019]    The drawings furnished herewith illustrate a preferred construction of the present invention in which the above advantages and features are clearly disclosed as well as others which will be readily understood from the following description of the illustrated embodiment. In the drawings:  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 1 is a plan view of a boat approaching a slip alongside a dock in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 2 is a plan view of a boat entering a slip alongside a dock and showing the initial connection between a preferred catch and preferred arm in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 3 is a plan view of a boat positioned in a slip alongside a dock after the dampener has pulled the boat to the dock in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 4 is a plan view of an arm and dampener mounted to a horizontal surface in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 5 plan view of an arm and dampener mounted to a vertical surface in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 6 an cross section of a dampener taken along the plane defined by the first and second pins in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 7 a  is a plan view of an alternate embodiment of a dampener shown connected to the support line in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 7 b  is an exploded view showing internal features of the dampener of FIG. 7 a.    
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 7 c  is a exploded view showing internal features of another alternate embodiment of a dampener shown connected to the support line in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 8 a  is a plan view of the preferred catch in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 8 b  is a top view of the preferred clamp showing certain internal components for clarity in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 8 c  is a side view of the preferred clamp showing certain internal components for clarity in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 8 d  is an end view of the preferred clamp showing certain internal components for clarity in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 9 a  is a top view of the preferred stop showing certain internal components for clarity in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 9 b  is an end view of the preferred stop showing certain internal components for clarity in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 9 c  is a side view of the preferred stop showing certain internal components for clarity in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 9 d  is an end view of the preferred stop showing certain internal components for clarity in accordance with the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0037]    Referring to FIGS. 1-3, a boat docking system in accordance with the present invention is generally designated by the reference numeral  8 . Boat docking system  8  includes a catch  30 , arm  50  and dampener  60  for positioning a boat  20  in a slip  12  alongside a dock  10 . Dock  10  typically extends from a pier  9  and often includes a vertical piling  11 . As shown, arm  50  is mounted to piling  11  through pivot  52 . Arm  50  is shown including a hook  51  which facilitates connection between arm  50  and catch  30 . Dampener  60  is shown interconnected between pivot  52  and arm  50  to resist movement of arm  60  away from pivot  52 .  
         [0038]    Boat  20  includes a midship cleat  21  and an aft cleat  22  to which first and second ends  36 , 37  of support line  53  are fixed. Support line  35  is typically kept within boat  20  and can be hung along the side  23  of boat  20  as boat  20  approaches dock  10 . Catch  30  is slidingly attached to support line  35 . Such attachment is typically accomplished by passing support line  35  through a hole in catch  30 . The hole is preferably sized such that catch  30  may slide along support line  35  until contacting stop  38  which is typically fixed at a position on support line  35  toward second end  37 . As shown, catch  30  includes a loop  31  which is designed to facilitate connection with hook  51  of arm  50 . Of course, it is understood that the invention includes an embodiment where catch  30  includes a hook while arm  50  includes a loop, or other known mating connections.  
         [0039]    [0039]FIG. 1 depicts boat  20  as it approaches dock  10 . Support line  35  has been thrown overboard and hangs along the side  23  of boat  20 . When boat  20  is near dock  10 , the boat operator, or another person, connects catch  30  with arm  50 . Catch  30  may be manually held as the boat moves catch  30  toward arm  50  or supported by a pole supported by the boat operator, another person or boat  20 .  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 2 depicts the initial connection between catch  30  and arm  50 . As can be seen, the contact by catch  30  has caused arm  50  to pivot about pivot  52 . After connection, the boat&#39;s forward movement causes support line  35  to slide through catch  30  until stop  38  contacts catch  30 . After stop  38  contacts catch  30 , support line  30  is drawn taut between midship cleat  21  and catch  30  and arm  50  is pulled in the direction of the boat&#39;s velocity. As arm  50  is pulled away from pivot  52 , dampener  52  resists the force of the boat  20 . Such resistance progressively increases as arm  50  is pulled farther from pivot  52  until the boat&#39;s forward velocity is eliminated. Then boat  20  is pulled back toward pivot  52  by dampener  52  to allow embarkation or debarkation. Such a position is shown in FIG. 3.  
         [0041]    [0041]FIGS. 4 and 5 show arm  50  and dampener  60  more closely. As can be seen, pivot  52  may be mounted to a horizontal surface such as dock  10 , or to a vertical surface such a piling  11 . In either case, first bracket  53  is mounted to the surface and is connected to second bracket  54  by first pin  55 . Second bracket  54  pivots about first pin  55  and is connected to dampener  60  by second pin  56 . Arm  50 , in turn, pivots about second pin  56 .  
         [0042]    [0042]FIG. 6 is a cross section view of dampener  60 , arm  50  and pivot  52 . As shown, arm  50  is connected to rod  68 , and may be integral therewith. Rod  68  is connected to piston  61 . Piston  61  is sized to substantially fill piston housing  63  so that piston  61  is substantially confined to linear movement. Piston housing  63  is pivotably connected to second pin  56 . Second pin  56  is connected to second bracket  54  which is pivotably connected to first pin  55 . First pin  55  is connected to first bracket  53  which can be mounted to dock  10 , piling  11  or a similar surface.  
         [0043]    The pivoting ability provided by this construction allows arm  50  to be placed at a desired position which facilitates connection with catch  30 . For instance, when a boat operator boards a boat to leave the dock he may position arm  50  such that hook  51  open towards the water and a height which is easily reached. When boat  20  returns to dock  10 , the operator may hold catch  30  at the height of arm  50  until connection therebetween or use a pole to support catch  30  at the height of arm  50  until connection therebetween. The pivoting ability further assures connection between arm  50  and catch  30  since arm  50  may pivot in line with the force exerted by catch  30 .  
         [0044]    Tensioning device  62  is positioned between distal face plate  66  and piston  61  such that movement of piston  61  toward distal face plate  66  is resisted. Tensioning device  62  is shown as a spring, though any other type of tensioning devices such as hydraulic or pneumatic pressured chambers or compressible foam or the like is contemplated. Proximal and distal face plates  67 , 66  are held in position by snap rings which engage a groove on the inside of the housing  63 .  
         [0045]    As arm  50  is pulled by contact with catch  30 , piston  61  is moved away from proximal end  65  toward distal end  64 . Tensioning device  62  provides progressively increased resistance to movement of piston  61 . At the point that the boat&#39;s velocity is eliminated, tensioning device  62  urges piston  61  back toward proximal face plate  67  and boat  20  is moved toward dock  10 .  
         [0046]    [0046]FIGS. 7 a - 7   c  depict an alternate embodiment of a dampener  90  which is connected to support line  35  rather than between pivot  52  and arm  50 . While this embodiment is not shown in FIGS. 1-3, it is understood that dampener  90  can simply be interconnected with support line  35  shown in FIGS. 1-3 and can be used with or without dampener  60  in connection with pivot  52  and arm  50 . Preferably, dampener  90  is connected to support line  35  approximately two feet from first end  36  at midship cleat  21 .  
         [0047]    In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 7 a - 7   c , support line  35  passes through a support line channel  94  in first and second dampener clamps  92 , 93 . Also connected between first and second dampener clamps  92 , 93  is an elastic line  91 , which is preferably elastomeric and most preferably EPDM rubber or a similar material. Each end of elastic line  91  is received within cavity  95  of dampener clamps  92 , 93 . When resting or unstretched, elastic line  91  is preferably about 12 inches. The length of support line  35  between the two dampener clamps  92 , 93  is preferably about 20 inches. During use, the elastic line  91  stretches, providing progressively increasing resistance until it is stretched to the length of the support line  35  between the dampener clamps  92 , 93  and support line  35  becomes taut. When the pulling force lessens, dampener  90  pulls each dampener clamp  92 , 93  toward one another and, thus, the boat toward the dock. FIG. 7 c  shows an embodiment which includes two elastic lines  91  which can provide increased resistance to stretching.  
         [0048]    [0048]FIGS. 8 a - 8   d  depict the catch  30  in greater detail. As shown, catch  30  includes a loop  31  which is preferably made of rope  81  which is connected at each end to a clamp  80 . A sleeve  82  provides rope with durability. The preferred sleeve is comprised of firm plastic. FIG. 8 b  shows a top view of clamp  80  with internal cavities  82  depicted by dashed lines for clarity. Clamp  80  is preferably formed by a top and bottom half  83 , 83  which are connected by fasteners  85 . Clamp  80  forms hole  86  which, as discussed above, receives support line  35  and enables catch  30  to slide along support line  35 . To create loop  31 , each end of rope  81  is placed in a cavity  82  of bottom half  84  (or top half  83 ). Studs  87  extend into rope  81  and prevent it from moving within cavity  82 . The halves  83 , 84  are then mated such that the studs from the other half also extend into rope  81 . Fasteners  85  are tightened so that each end of rope  81  is fixed in position within cavities  82 .  
         [0049]    [0049]FIGS. 9 a - 9   d  depict stop  38  in greater detail. Stop  38  is, similar to clamp  80 , formed by a top and bottom half  92 , 93 . A single cavity  94  is formed when the halves  92 , 93  are mated. Also formed is flange  91  which has a greater radius than the rest of stop  38  to provide a surface to contact catch  30 . Support line  30  is placed in the cavity  94  of one of the halves  92 , 93  while studs  95  extend into support line  30  to prevent relative movement between stop  38  and support line  30 . Then the halves  92 , 93  are mated such that the studs  95  of the other half  93 , 92  extend into support line  30 . Fasteners  96  are then inserted into halves  92 , 93  to fix stop  38  in position.  
         [0050]    While the invention has been described with respect to specific embodiments by way of illustration, many modifications and changes will occur to those skilled in the art. It is, therefore, to be understood that the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications and changes as fall within the true scope and spirit of the invention.