Patent ID: 11008079

Abstract:
Disclosed herein is an alignment system which is tractable by amateur boat builders and flat-packable for shipping, to assist such builders in assembling plate-based boat hulls free from hull skin warping, such system comprised of (a) longitudinal and transverse skeleton elements, such elements employing half-lap or similar joints and (b) an alignment jig comprised of a horizontal plate with intruded deep slots corresponding to the thickness and location of upper edges of the skeleton elements. The jig is set atop a planar surface (i.e., concrete floor or worktable), with the slots facing upwards. The skeleton elements are inverted, mated with each other at the half-lap joints, and inserted into the slots in the plate jig. The slots and the skeleton joints work together to maintain precise location and rotation of all skeleton elements, such that the edges of the freestanding skeleton present a developable arc for hull skin panel installation.