Abstract:
An adjustable rail apparatus for a vessel includes a horizontal support member and a pair of vertical legs extending downward to an attachment unit for securing the apparatus to a vessel. Each of the vertical legs can be adjustable for allowing a height of the horizontal bar to be changed. The horizontal bar can have an adjustable length for allowing the apparatus to be mounted to a wide variety of different vessel configurations.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention relates generally to safety devices for marine vessels, and more particularly to a lightweight adjustable hand rail for offshore boats. 
         [0003]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0004]    Deck rails are commonly found on marine vessels such as cruise ships and ferries to prevent passengers from falling overboard and to provide hand rails for use in heavy seas. In contrast, smaller boats and yachts must typically rely on the raised side walls and small hand holds of the vessels&#39; outer shell to keep passengers from falling overboard. In some instances, a single curved bar is affixed to the top of the gunwale to provide something for a user to hold onto during rough seas or while walking near the edge of the deck. 
         [0005]    With specific regard to fishing boats and other sport fishing vessels, there is often no protective railing located at or near the back portion of the boat due to possible entanglements with the fishing gear. 
         [0006]    Accordingly, it would be beneficial to provide a boat rail apparatus capable of providing a safe experience for passengers without becoming obtrusive or detrimental to the activities of those onboard. It is also an objective of the invention to provide a boat rail apparatus that is lightweight, simple to use, and which is economical to manufacture. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The present invention is directed to an adjustable rail apparatus for a vessel. One embodiment of the present invention can include a horizontal support member and a pair of vertical legs extending downward to an attachment unit for securing the apparatus to a vessel. 
         [0008]    Another embodiment of the present invention can include the ability for both the Horizontal bar and the vertical legs to be telescopic in nature, thus allowing the apparatus to be mounted to a wide variety of different vessel configurations. 
         [0009]    Yet another embodiment of the present invention can include a method for installing an adjustable rail apparatus in a vessel in accordance with the above noted embodiments. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]    Presently preferred embodiments are shown in the drawings. It should be appreciated, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown. 
           [0011]      FIG. 1  is a frontal elevation of adjustable railing apparatus that is useful for understanding the inventive concepts disclosed herein. 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is an expanded view of adjustable railing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0013]      FIG. 2   a  is an expanded view of adjustable railing apparatus according to an another embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is a detail view of an attachment unit of the adjustable railing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is an expanded view of adjustable railing apparatus according to an alternate embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 5  is a top view of adjustable railing apparatus in use according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0017]      FIG. 6  is a top view of adjustable railing apparatus in use according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0018]      FIG. 7  is a flow chart illustrating a method of using an adjustable railing apparatus in accordance with the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0019]    While the specification concludes with claims defining the features of the invention that are regarded as novel, it is believed that the invention will be better understood from a consideration of the description in conjunction with the drawings. As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which can be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the inventive arrangements in virtually any appropriately detailed structure. Further, the terms and phrases used herein are not intended to be limiting but rather to provide an understandable description of the invention. 
         [0020]    Although described as for use on a boat or water going vessel, the inventive concepts disclosed herein can be equally applied to vehicles, buildings and structures of all types without deviating from the scope and spirit of the invention. 
         [0021]      FIGS. 1 and 2  illustrate one embodiment of an adjustable railing apparatus  10  that is useful for understanding the inventive concepts disclosed herein. As shown, the rail apparatus  10  can include a horizontal support bar  11 , and a pair of adjustable/telescoping leg assemblies  12  and  13 , each having a attachment unit  14  secured to a bottom end thereof. 
         [0022]    The horizontal support bar  11  acts as the top (hand rail) portion of the rail apparatus  10 . Each of the adjustable legs  12  and  13  act to define the height of the rail apparatus  10  and to provide lateral support. To this end, legs  12  and  13  are positioned parallel to each other and are secured in a perpendicular relationship to the underside of the horizontal support bar  11  via rivets or other known attachment hardware. 
         [0023]    In one preferred embodiment, each of the support bar  11 , and adjustable legs  12  and  13  can have a circular cross section and can be constructed from a hardened yet lightweight material such as metal tubing or hardened plastic, for instance, each having extremely good tensile strength. Of course, other shapes and materials are also contemplated. 
         [0024]    As further shown in  FIG. 2 , each of legs  12  and  13  are telescopic in nature, and thus can include: hollow outer rods  12   a  and  13   a ; and sliding rods  12   b  and  13   b , which can slide inside the outer rod  12   a  and  13   a , respectively. Additionally, each adjustable leg can further include a connecting structure for holding the sliding rod in a desired location. In one embodiment, the connecting structure can include fixing apertures  12   c  and  13   c  disposed both on the outer rod and the sliding rod, having screws used for locking the fixing apertures, the sliding rod and the outer rod. As such, each sliding rod  12   b  and  13   b  can be slid in the outer rod  12   a  and  13   a , respectively, by adjusting the fixing apertures  12   c  and  13   c  in order to adjust the overall height of legs  12  and  13  (See arrow A). 
         [0025]    Although described above as utilizing a fixing aperture that includes screws, the invention is not so limited, as any number of known components for securely positioning telescoping legs can be utilized without deviating from the scope of the inventive concepts disclosed herein. Moreover, although shown with two vertical legs, this is for illustrative purposes only, as embodiments having any number of vertical legs (including a single leg, for example) can be utilized without deviating from the scope of the inventive concepts disclosed herein. 
         [0026]      FIG. 2   a  illustrates another embodiment of an adjustable railing apparatus  10  that further includes a jack  20  for automatically adjusting the height of the railing apparatus. In one preferred embodiment, jack  20  can include a hydraulic jack positioned within each outer rod  12   a  and  13   a  capable of raising and lower sliding rods  12   b  and  13   b , respectively, when activated by a control switch, such as button  21 . Such a unit can be powered by a direct current DC battery (not shown) specific to the device or can run off of the vessels onboard power supply. To this end, the apparatus can be self contained or integrated into the power supply of the vessel. 
         [0027]    Although described above as including a hydraulic jack, many other known components for automatically raising and lowering the legs can be utilized without deviating from the scope of the invention. For instance, jack  20  can include hydraulic, pneumatic, DC motor, chain drive and other known elements capable of performing the required task. As each of these elements and their workings are well known in the art, no further description will be provided. 
         [0028]    The attachment unit  14  can act to secure the rail apparatus to the deck, side wall, or gunwale of a boat or other such structure. To this end, attachment unit  14  according to one embodiment, can preferably include a metal flange secured to the bottom end of each leg  12  and  13 . Each flange can include one or more openings  14   a  through which a screw, bolt or other such anchoring mechanism can be utilized to securely fasten the apparatus. 
         [0029]      FIG. 3  illustrates an alternate embodiment of an attachment unit included within the adjustable railing apparatus  10  described above. To this end, removable attachment unit  30  can include a shape that is configured to fit within the industry standard fishing rod holder  35  of a boat. 
         [0030]    As shown, attachment unit  30  can include a mounting plate  31  for securing the top of the attachment unit to the underside of an adjustable leg  12  or  13 , and an elongated rod  33  having a diameter sufficient to be securely positioned within the rod holder  35  of a boat rail  1 . Owing to the fact that conventional rod holders  35  are mounted at a diagonal angle with respect to the boat rail  1 , the attachment unit  30  can further include a leveling unit  32  having a handle and spindle  32   a  for allowing a user to adjust the angle of the mounting plate, and hence the leg to which it is attached, in a vertical position (see arrow B). 
         [0031]    Such a feature can allow the adjustable railing apparatus  10  to be removably attached to a boat without the need for screws or nails which can damage the surface of the vessel. Moreover, this feature allows the apparatus to be removed from the boat for safe keeping while not in use. 
         [0032]      FIG. 4  illustrates an alternate embodiment of an adjustable railing apparatus  10  that further includes an expandable support bar  40 . As shown, support bar  40  can serve the same function as the support bar  10  described above, but can further include the ability to expand in size as illustrated by arrow C. To this end, support bar  40  can include a hollow outer bar  41 , a removable bar  42  capable of sliding inside the outer bar  41  and a connecting structure  43  each operating in a manner similar to the adjustable legs  12  and  13  described above. 
         [0033]    Such a feature can allow the adjustable railing apparatus  10  to be utilized by a variety of vessels, each having different lengths. Additionally, by including the ability to change the length of the support bar  40 , it is noted that the space between each of the adjustable legs  12  and  13  is also adjusted in a corresponding manner. As such, when used in conjunction with the removable attachment unit  30 , such a feature can allow the adjustable legs to be spaced to fit within the existing rod holders of a vessel, without the need for custom fabrication. 
         [0034]    Although described above as utilizing particular materials and methods, other embodiments are also contemplated. For instance, one or more elements of the adjustable railing apparatus  10  can be secured together utilizing any number of known attachment means such as, for example, screws, glue, rivets, compression fittings and welds, among others. Moreover, although the above embodiments have been described as including separate individual elements, the inventive concepts disclosed herein are not so limiting. To this end, one of skill in the art will recognize that one or more individual elements such as the support bar  11 , support bar  40 , adjustable legs  12  and  13 , and/or the attachment unit  14  and removable attachment unit  30 , for example, may be formed together as one continuous element, either through manufacturing processes, such as welding, casting, or molding, or through the use of a singular piece of material milled or machined with the aforementioned components forming identifiable sections thereof. 
         [0035]      FIG. 5  illustrates another embodiment of an adjustable railing apparatus  10  that further includes one or more optional rod holders  50  incorporated into the horizontal support bar  11 . As shown, when installed in a boat  1 , the addition of the rod holders can provide increased functionality to the apparatus  10  while still protecting the occupants from falling overboard. 
         [0036]      FIG. 6  illustrates the adjustable railing apparatus  10  in use. As shown, the expandable support bar  40  can be extended (see arrow C) to suit the space requirements of the vessel  1 . Additionally, when utilized with the removable attachment unit  30 , the railing apparatus  10  can be secured to the existing rod holders  35  of the vessel, and the height of the horizontal bar  40  can be adjusted (see arrow A) based on the preference of a user. Likewise, the railing apparatus  10  can also be secured to either side of the boat  1  via attachment unit  14  as also shown. 
         [0037]      FIG. 7  is a flow chart illustrating a method for securing an adjustable railing apparatus as described above to a vessel. 
         [0038]    The method can begin at step  705  in which a user can determine a preferred location for the adjustable railing to be placed. 
         [0039]    Next, the method can proceed to step  710  where the user determines if rod holders are present in the desired location. If rod holders are not present, the method can proceed to step  715  in which a permanent attachment unit can be utilized and the apparatus can be secured to the vessel in step  720 , before proceeding to step  745 . 
         [0040]    Alternatively, if rod holders are present, the method will proceed to step  725  where a removable attachment unit can be utilized. Next, in step  730 , the length of the horizontal bar can be adjusted so that the distance between the vertical legs matches the separation of the rod holders. 
         [0041]    In step  735 , the removable attachment unit can be secured to the rod holder and in step  740 , the angle of the vertical legs can be adjusted so they are at a 90 degree angle relative to the boat deck. 
         [0042]    Next, the method can proceed to step  745  where the height of the horizontal bar can be adjusted by increasing or decreasing the length of the vertical legs. 
         [0043]    Although described above as being for use on an existing vessel, one of skill in the art will recognize that the embodiments disclosed herein can be incorporated into the design and manufacture of a new vessel so as to comprise an integral part of the vessel housing and/or side rail(s). 
         [0044]    Accordingly, by incorporating the inventive concepts disclosed herein, a user can ensure passengers onboard vessels of any size are protected from falling overboard during rough seas or sporting activities. Moreover, users can easily lower the adjustable railing apparatus when easy access to the water is desired (such as while swimming, fishing or diving, for example) and then raise the railing when underway. Finally, by incorporating lightweight materials in the construction of the device, it is possible to install the adjustable railing apparatus to vessels of all sizes without creating excessive drag or excessive weight which can affect the ballast and handling of the vessel. 
         [0045]    The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. 
         [0046]    The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of all means or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or act for performing the function in combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.