Patent Publication Number: US-8522709-B2

Title: Wakeboard tower with sun cover and ski tow point

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation-in-part of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/228,033 filed. Sep. 8, 2011, and entitled “Wakeboard Tower With Bimini Cover And Ski Tow Point, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/383,516 filed Sep. 16, 2010, and entitled “Wakeboard Tower With Bimini Cover And Ski Tow Point,” incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to wakeboard towers for boats. More particularly, the disclosure relates to a top structure that can be installed onto a conventional wakeboard tower and utilized without interfering with the tow point. 
     BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY 
     The sport of wakeboarding is very similar to the sports of waterskiing, kneeboarding, and tubing. A wakeboarder or person riding a wakeboard is towed behind the boat by a rope. Typically, waterskiing, kneeboarding, and tubing use a rope secured to a stern mount on either or both sides of the motor of the boat. However, in the sport of wakeboarding, the rope is typically attached to a mount connected to a tower cross member. The mount on the tower provides a much higher connection point for the tow rope and provides vertical component force on the tow rope held by a wakeboarder thus allowing the wakeboarder to more easily perform aerial stunts and maneuvers. That is, the wakeboarding experience is improved by use of a tow point that is elevated as compared to the elevation of tow points used for waterskiing. 
     The provision of a tower having an elevated tow point interferes with the use of conventional bimini covers of the type used on boats having a low tow point. Attempts have been made to incorporate bimini or other sun-shielding, covers with wakeboard towers having an elevated tow point. Such covers are not integrated with the tower and are useable at times when the boat is not in use to pull a wakeboarder. However, as the covers can interfere with the elevated tow point of the wakeboard tower, they are generally unsuitable for use when the tow point is in use. This results in undesired sun exposure and other undesirable circumstances resulting from the lack of a cover while the boat is in use to pull a wakeboarder. Accordingly, what is desired is an improved sun cover that can be installed onto a conventional wakeboard tower and not interfere with the tow point. 
     The disclosure advantageously provides an improved sun cover for installation onto a boat tower such as a wakeboard tower having a pair of opposed legs and at least one structural member extending between upper portions of the legs and a tow point extending upwardly from the tower. 
     In one aspect, the sun cover includes a frame having a forward portion including an elevated central portion, and a rear portion located adjacent to and immediately behind the forward portion, with the entirety of the rear portion being spaced relative to, that is, either above or below the elevated central portion. A gap is defined relative to, that is, above or below a trailing portion of the forward portion and a leading portion of the rear portion of the frame. A mount is provided that mounts the frame to the tower and fixedly orients the frame relative to the tower so that the tow point is accessible via the gap such that a tow tope connected to the tow point extends rearwardly from the tow point via the gap and the cover does not interfere with a tow rope attached to the tow point during use of the boat to pull a person being towed by the boat using the tow rope. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Further advantages of the disclosure are apparent by reference to the detailed description when considered in conjunction with the figures, which are not to scale so as to more clearly show the details, wherein like reference numbers indicate like elements throughout the several views, and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a sun cover according to the disclosure installed onto a wakeboard tower. 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  shows enlargements of mounting components of the cover of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     With reference to the drawings, there is shown a sun cover  10  for installation onto wakeboard tower  12  for a boat. 
     The wakeboard tower  12  has an elevated tow point  14  typically aligned with a centerline of the boat. The wakeboard tower  12  may be a conventional wakeboard tower, such as a so-called two-point tower as shown, having a generally U-shape provided by a pair of opposed legs  16  and  18  mounted to the boat as by mounts  16   a  and  18   a  on the lower ends thereof. The legs  16  and  18  are typically made of aluminum and are generally configured in the shape of an arch mountable to a boat hull so as to extend in a forward or bow direction, rising along its length. The upper ends of the legs  16  and  18  are connected by a cross-piece  20  and bracing  22 . The tow point  14  is typically mounted on the cross-piece  20  or the bracing  22  at the highest point thereof. 
     The sun cover  10  includes a frame  30  having a forward portion  32  including an elevated central portion  34 , and a rear portion  36  located adjacent to and immediately behind the forward portion  32 , with the entirety of the rear portion  36  being spaced relative to, that is, above or below the elevated central portion  34 . 
     The forward portion  32  of the frame  30  may be a concave lattice of sections of aluminum tubing welded together to provide a unitary structure. In this regard, in one embodiment, the forward portion  32  fans out from a rear edge to a wider front edge. The rear portion  36  may be a relatively planar and rectangular lattice of sections of aluminum tubing welded together. However, it will be understood that that forward portion  32  and the rear portion  36  may be configured in various shapes to provide a suitable sun cover, it being understood that the forward portion  32  and the rear portion  36  are relatively vertically spaced relative to one another, that is, with the rear portion  36  either vertically above or vertically below the forward portion  32  to enable a gap for placement of the tow point  14  as described herein. 
     The forward portion  32  and the rear portion  36  are joined at adjacent side portions thereof, such that the entirety of the frame  30  provides a unitary structure. However, as will be noted, a central gap  38  is defined either above or below the rear of the forward portion  32  and the front of the rear portion  36  of the frame. 
     The forward portion  32  and the rear portion  36  of the frame  30  are each covered with flexible fabric materials, indicated as material  32   a  and material  36   a , respectively. The materials  32   a  and  36   a  are dimensioned to conform to the respective frame portions and may be secured to the frame portions as by straps or snap fasteners or the like to tightly and securely fit over the frame sections. 
     The frame  30  having the materials  32   a  and  36   a  thereon is mounted onto the tower  12  so that the tow point  14  is accessible via the gap  38  such that a tow rope  40  connected to the tow point  14  for towing a skier or wake boarder or the like extends from the tow point  14  toward the back of the boat via the gap  38 . Thus, the described structure advantageously enables provision of a cover for a wakeboard tower that does not interfere with the tow point. 
     The frame  30  is removably mounted as by use of one or more locking pivot mounts  42  and one or more pivot mounts  44 , which enable adjustment of the cover  10  for enabling use of the cover  10  onto a variety of tower sizes and configurations. For the purpose of example, the following provides an example of mounting of the cover  10  to the described tower  12 . 
     With reference to  FIG. 3 , the lock mounts  42  include a foot  46  that is fixedly and non-movingly secured, as by fasteners, to a forward-most portion of the tower  12 , such as the cross-piece  20  and oriented to extend upwardly and toward the bow of the boat. A head  48  of the lock mount  42  is secured to the forward portion  32  of the frame  30 . A lockable pivot  50  connects the foot  46  and the head  48 . The lockable pivot  50  includes an adjustment that enables pivotal movement of the head  48  relative to the foot  46  in an unlocked setting, but can be adjusted to a locked setting to lock the head  48  against movement relative to the foot  46 . The lockable pivot  50  may be provided as by tightenable jaws extending from the foot  46  and mounted to the head  48 , which enable movement except when tightened against the head  48 . 
     The pivot mounts  44  include a sleeve  52  that pivotally mounts to a rear portion of the tower  12 , such as to the bracing  22 , and includes an extension  52   a . A fixed mount  54  is secured to the forward portion  32  of the frame  30  at a location rearward of the locking pivot mount  42 . A pivot  56  connects the extension  52   a  to the fixed mount  54 . 
     To install the cover  10 , the lock mounts  42  and the pivot mounts  44  are secured to the tower  12  and the frame  30  as described. Once installed, it will be appreciated that the cover  10  may be adjusted, preferably being adjusted so that the tow point  14  is located within the gap  38  such that the tow tope  40  is substantially at the vertical midpoint of the gap  38  and, when extending parallel to the rear portion  36  of the frame  30 , is elevated above the rear portion  36  and below the forward portion  32  and proximate the trailing edge of the forward portion  32 , preferably about vertically half-way between as depicted in  FIG. 3 . Once this positioning of the cover  10  relative to the tow point  14  is obtained, the lock mounts  42  may be set in the locked position to lock the position of the cover  10  relative to the tower  12  and the tow point  14 . In certain embodiments, the lock mount may have a quick release mechanism by which a user can unlock the position of the cover  10  and tilt the cover in a forward and/or rearward direction about the pivot mounts to provide access to the sun cover. This may be desirable if wakeboards or other boating accessories are stored on top of the sun cover  10 . 
     Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the sun cover  10  according to the disclosure advantageously provides a cover for use with wakeboard towers having an elevated tow point that does not interfere with the tow point. The disclosure also enables such a cover configured to enable adjustment of the position of the cover relative to the tower and removal of the cover if desired to facilitate transportation and storage of a boat equipped with the tower. 
     The foregoing description of preferred embodiments for this disclosure has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiments are chosen and described in an effort to provide the best illustrations of the principles of the disclosure and its practical application, and to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the disclosure in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.