Patent Publication Number: US-2020283110-A1

Title: Watercraft accessory

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims benefit from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/814,105, filed Mar. 5, 2019, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING GOVERNMENT INTEREST 
     None. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to watercraft, and more particularly to a watercraft accessory. 
     In general, there are many types of recreational watercraft. One popular type of watercraft is a kayak. A kayak is a kind of personal watercraft that is slim and small. Various kinds of kayaks are available in the market and their designs differ with their usages. If classified broadly, the major kinds of kayaks are—surf play kayaks, fishing, and leisure and tour kayaks often termed as ocean kayaks. The design of kayaks is very significant to the purposes that they serve. For example, a leisure kayak is easy for beginners, it is light in weight and can be maneuvered easily. It is to be noted that though it&#39;s light, it is durable enough to withstand all weather conditions. Other types of kayaks are designed with other goals in mind. 
     The inherent design of most kayaks makes them difficult to get in and out of. This is especially true when an occupant has a physical limitation, such as general muscle pain or pain from physical alignments such as Lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease that can damage any part of the body (e.g., skin, joints, and/or, organs), or arthritis, an inflammation of the joints. 
     What is needed is an accessory that can be added to a watercraft such as a kayak that makes it easier for all people to use and enjoy. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The following presents a simplified summary of the innovation in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the invention. This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is intended to neither identify key or critical elements of the invention nor delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later. 
     In general, in one aspect, the invention features a watercraft accessory including a front tandem rail, a rear tandem rail, a motor mount, the motor mount adapted to snap onto the rear tandem rail, and a gear deck, the gear deck adapted to snap onto the rear tandem rail or a forward tandem rail. 
     In another aspect, the invention features a watercraft accessory kit including two tandem rails, each tandem rail including hand knobs, one motor mount, one gear deck, two paddle handles, eight pre-assembled rail anchors with sheaths, and cockpit centering tools. 
     In still another aspect, the invention features a system including a first lightweight watercraft, a second lightweight watercraft, and a watercraft accessory adapted to removably connect to the first and second lightweight watercraft. 
     The invention may include one or more of the following advantages. 
     The present invention, sometimes referred to herein as a KaTyaKit™,” is a four-piece accessory that can quickly convert two solo kayaks into a two person vessel in less than a few minutes. 
     The present invention&#39;s ease of installation is partially do to is unique articulating fasteners, its universality (i.e., virtually any identical pair of kayaks can be fitted for the KaTyaKit), its light weight, its water proofness, and the fact that modification to the single passenger kayaks does not render them incapable of functioning as originally designed. 
     An ability to attach electric propulsion makes it desirable for the physically impaired water enthusiast. 
     The KaTyaKit enhances the kayak functionality and broadens the experience of the boater. An assembled vessel is extremely stable craft for couples, great for the physically impaired (such as arthritics), great for fishermen because it is paddle free and seniors who just want a quiet leisure motorized cruise around the lake. 
     These and other features and advantages will be apparent from a reading of the following detailed description and a review of the associated drawings. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are explanatory only and are not restrictive of aspects as claimed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings where: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates an exemplary watercraft accessory affixed to a pair of kayaks. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates an exemplary motor mount of the watercraft accessory. 
         FIG. 2A  illustrates details of an exemplary motor mount of the watercraft accessory. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary Tandem Rail of the watercraft accessory. 
         FIG. 3A  illustrates details of an exemplary tandem rail of the watercraft accessory. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates exemplary fastening hardware of the watercraft accessory. 
         FIG. 4A  illustrates an exemplary Rail Anchor partially inserted into an exemplary Sheath. 
         FIG. 4B  illustrates details of an exemplary Rail Anchor  FIG. 4C  illustrates details of an exemplary Anchor Sheath. 
         FIG. 4D  illustrates details of an exemplary Hand Knob. 
         FIG. 4E  illustrates a Hand Knob and Anchor assembly. 
         FIG. 4F  illustrates a detail of a Tandem Rail Standoff. 
         FIG. 4G  illustrates a Hand Knob &amp; Standoff mounted on a Tandem Rail. 
         FIG. 5  illustrates details of an exemplary gear deck of the watercraft accessory. 
         FIG. 6  illustrates an exemplary Raised Seat Accessory. 
         FIG. 6A  illustrates details of an exemplary Raised Seat Bottom. 
         FIG. 6B  illustrates details of an exemplary Raised Seat Back. 
         FIG. 7  illustrates details of an exemplary paddle tee handle. 
         FIG. 8  illustrates a detail of an exemplary centering tool. 
         FIG. 9  illustrates an exemplary watercraft accessory affixed to a pair of kayaks with the addition of the exemplary raised seat accessory. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The subject innovation is now described with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It may be evident, however, that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to facilitate describing the present invention. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , an exemplary watercraft accessory  10  is shown affixed to a pair of kayaks  12 ,  14 . The watercraft accessory  10  typically is provided as a kit that is added to the pair of kayaks  12 ,  14 . The four-piece watercraft accessory  10  can quickly convert the two solo kayaks  12 ,  14  into a single two-person vessel in a small amount of time. The watercraft accessory  10  includes two interchangeable tandem rails  16 ,  18  with installed hand knobs  20   a ,  20   b ,  20   c ,  20   d  that secure the rails  16 ,  18  to the kayaks  12 ,  14  front and stern of the cockpits  22 ,  24 . A motor mount  26  snaps onto the rear tandem rail  16  and a gear deck  30  snaps onto either the forward  18  or rear tandem rail  16 . The motor mount  26  can support, for example, a 15 to 20-pound electric motor. In one example, typical cruising time using a 12-volt 35-amp hour deep cycle Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM) battery is approximately two hours with a two-person crew. Cruise time can be extended by using a larger battery. 
     The watercraft accessory  10  typically includes the two tandem rails  16 ,  18  with hand knobs  20   a ,  20   b ,  20   c ,  20   d , one motor mount  26 , one gear deck  30  and two paddle handles eight pre-assembled rail anchors with sheaths concealed under cockpit rim to accept hand knob  20   a , 20   b , 20   c , 20   d , cockpit centering too (see  FIG. 8 ). 
     With the provided centering tool  490  and tools available from hardware stores and online instructions, the modifications to the pair of kayaks  12 ,  14  to receive the tandem rails  16 ,  18  can be completed typically in a short time. 
     Raised seats (see  FIG. 9 )  516   a ,  516   b  are designed as an accessory essential to providing an added degree of comfort for the physically impaired. 
     The watercraft accessory  10  described above is not limited to kayaks specifically. It also should be noted that the minor modification to a single passenger kayak does not render the kayak incapable of functioning as originally designed. The watercraft accessory  10  enhances kayak functionality and broadens the experience of the boater. The watercraft accessory  10  transforms two kayaks  12 ,  14  into an extremely stable craft for couples and for the physically impaired. Moreover, the watercraft accessory  10  is great for fisherman because it&#39;s paddle free and for seniors just wanting a leisurely motorized cruise around a body of water. 
     In  FIG. 2 , an exemplary motor mount  200  of the watercraft accessory of  FIG. 1  is illustrated. 
     In  FIG. 2A , exemplary details  220  of the exemplary motor mount of  FIG. 2  are shown. 
     In  FIG. 3 , the exemplary tandem rail  16  of the watercraft accessory  10  is shown in greater detail. 
     In  FIG. 3A , exemplary details  240  of exemplary tandem rail  16  of the watercraft accessory are shown. 
     In  FIG. 4 , exemplary fastening hardware of the watercraft accessory  10  of  FIG. 1  are shown. 
     In  FIG. 4A  an exemplary rail anchor  260  partially inserted into an exemplary sheath  262  is shown. 
     In  FIG. 4B , details  270  of the exemplary rail anchor  260  of  FIG. 4 a    are shown. 
     In  FIG. 4C , details  290  of the exemplary anchor sheath  262  of  FIG. 4A  are shown. 
     In  FIG. 4D , details  300  of an exemplary hand knob  310  are shown. 
     In  FIG. 4E , an exemplary hand knob  330  and anchor assembly  332  are shown. 
     In  FIG. 4F , details  350  of a tandem rail standoff are shown. 
     In  FIG. 4G , a hand knob  370  and standoff  372  are shown mounted on a tandem rail  374 . 
     In  FIG. 5 , details  390  of an exemplary gear deck of the watercraft accessory are shown. 
     In  FIG. 6 , an exemplary raised seat accessory  410  is shown. 
     In  FIG. 6A , details  430  of an exemplary raised seat bottom are shown. 
     In  FIG. 6B , details  450  of an exemplary raised seat back are shown. 
     In  FIG. 7 , details  470  of an exemplary paddle tee handle are shown. 
     In  FIG. 8 , an exemplary centering tool  490  is shown. 
     In  FIG. 9  an exemplary watercraft accessory  510  affixed to a pair of kayaks  512 ,  514  with the addition of the exemplary raised seat accessory  516  is shown. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the recommended propulsion is a Minn Kota 12 volt 30 lb thrust electric motor powered by a 12-volt 35-amp hour AGM battery delivering two hours of continuous cruising at speed position number three. 
     In summary, the watercraft accessory of the present invention is a light weight four-piece accessory that transforms two ordinary lightweight watercraft into one safe, extremely stable and unique two passenger watercraft to enjoy. Modification to the lightweight watercraft is imperceptible. With the small commonly available tools and the centering tool provided in a kit, the modification is simple with paper or online instructions and can be completed in a short amount of time. The watercraft accessory not only transforms the lightweight watercraft into a two-passenger motorized watercraft, but it gives an occupant the option of going solo or tandem. Moreover, the original purpose of the individual lightweight watercraft as a one-person watercraft remains unchanged. 
     It would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made to the illustrate embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention. All such modifications and changes are intended to be within the scope of the present invention except as limited by the scope of the appended claims.