Abstract:
An aluminum boat is provided having a stringer assembly with curved stringer to support the boat. The boat further includes a keel box for encapsulation of foam at high pressure to strengthen the boat. An integral trim tab is provided to control the shingle angle of the boat. Also, a multi-piece knee brace assembly is provided to support the transom of the boat.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     “Not Applicable” 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     “Not Applicable” 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to fishing boat and more particularly to a fishing boat having an aluminum construction and internal framework capable of high performance operation. 
     Fishing boats are typically used to provide anglers with the best opportunity to catch fish. In the past, simple fishing boat hulls have been constructed from rudimentary aluminum components. While these boats are relatively inexpensive, the boats are incapable of the high performance maneuvering that is desired by serious recreational anglers and competitive fishermen. 
     Boats made from fiberglass having more complex hulls and structural assemblies have been built to achieve higher performance standards. Specifically, these boats have contoured bottoms allowing for controlled maneuvering at higher speeds. A series of frame members known as stringer assemblies are utilized to prevent the boat from overflexing or otherwise improperly distributing the forces created at high speeds. 
     While fiberglass boats are capable of high performance, a number of drawbacks are present. For instance, fiberglass is relatively heavy. Thus, a larger motor is required to power the boat. The added weight of the boat hull and motor requires a more powerful vehicle to tow the boat. In a different vein, fiberglass hulls typically include a number of imperfections that result in cracking when the boats are operate under conditions requiring high performance. Additionally, the raw materials and production costs associated with fiberglass boats is significantly greater than with aluminum boats. For these reasons, an aluminum boat capable of high performance is needed. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide a boat with a stringer assembly having curved members to prevent flexure of the boat. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide an aluminum boat having an integral trim tab to control the shingle angle of the boat at the stem. 
     Still another object of the present invention is to provide a boat having a keel plate encapsulating high pressure foam that supports the boat and aids in flotation. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-piece knee brace assembly to support the transom of the boat when stressed by the weight of the boat motor and forces created at the stem of the boat. 
     Another object is to provide an aluminum boat with a bottom having a complex shape capable of high performance operation. 
     In accordance with the foregoing and other objects evident from the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, a boat having a stem, bow, port, starboard and keel is provided having a first beam, a stringer assembly, a transom frame assembly and a first knee brace assembly. The first beam extends laterally from port to starboard. The stringer assembly has a number of longitudinal members and a stringer knee brace beam. The stringer knee brace beam also extends laterally from port to starboard and is disposed between the first beam and the keel. The first knee brace assembly has a first diagonal beam, a first top beam, and a first vertical beam. The first diagonal beam is secured at one end to the stringer knee brace beam and is secured to the transom frame assembly at the other end. The first top beam is secured to the transom frame assembly near the first end of the first diagonal beam and is secured to the first beam at the other end. The first vertical beam is secured to the first beam near the first diagonal beam at one end and is secured to the stringer knee brace near the first diagonal beam. 
     In another aspect, a boat having a hull, a keel plate, and a foam material is provided. The hull has a keel surface having a bottom and a pair of opposing sidewalls. The keel plate is coupled between the sidewalls of the keel surface to define a cavity between the keel surface and the keel plate. A foam material is placed within the cavity to provide support to the hull. 
     In yet another aspect, a boat is provided having a hull and a stringer assembly. The hull has outwardly curved sidewalls. The stringer assembly has a number of lateral members and a number of curved stringers. The curved stringers have a shape generally corresponding to the curvature of the starboard and port sidewalls. 
     In another aspect, a boat is provided having a bottom and an integral trim tab. The bottom has opposing sides. Each side has a generally planar section proximate the stem on either side. The trim tab has a base member, a bend and a flange. The base member has a lead edge, a rear edge and a top surface. The bend extends generally normally from the rear edge of the base member and the flange extends from the bend at a predetermined angle with respect to the bottom of the boat when the top surface of the base member is secured to one of the sides of the bottom. 
     In yet another aspect, a boat is provided having an aluminum hull. The hull has an aluminum bottom. The aluminum bottom has a number of strakes. The stakes have at least one substantially curved surface. 
     By providing an aluminum boat in accordance with the present invention, numerous advantages are achieved. For example, a lightweight boat is provided that requires a smaller motor than a similar fiberglass boat. Similarly, a vehicle having less power is required to tow the boat. Moreover, the aluminum boat is capable of high performance because of the design of the hull and the structural integrity provided by the stringer assembly, transom frame and keel box of the present invention. The integral trim tabs of the present invention direct the water at the rear of the boat so that the boat is particularly adept at high speed maneuvering. Also, the aluminum boat is cheaper to build and less susceptible to cracks and other imperfections than fiberglass boats. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
     The objects and features of the invention noted above are explained in more detail with reference to the preferred embodiment illustrated in the attached drawing figures, in which like reference numerals denote like elements, and in which: 
     FIG. 1 is an side elevational view of a boat made in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the boat of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a bottom plan view of the boat of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is a rear elevational view of the boat of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 5 is a fragmentary top plan view of the boat of FIG. 1 with the fuel tank removed to better illustrate the keel plate of the present invention; 
     FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along lines  6 — 6  of FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the area designated by the numeral  7  in FIG. 6; 
     FIG. 8 is an perspective view of the internal framework of the boat of the present invention; 
     FIG. 9 is a side view of the internal framework of FIG. 8; 
     FIG. 10 is a front elevational view of the transom frame assembly of FIG. 8; 
     FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an alternative internal framework in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 12 is a side elevational view of the internal framework of FIG. 11; 
     FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the integral trim tab of FIG. 3; and 
     FIG. 14 is an enlarged view of the area designated by the numeral  14  in FIG.  1 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to the drawing figures in greater detail, a boat  10  is shown in FIGS. 1-5. The boat  10  includes a transom  12  at the stern  13 , a pair of symmetrical hull sidewalls  14  and  16  on the starboard and port sides of the boat, respectively, and a bottom  18 . The components of the hull are preferably made from a lightweight aluminum. Most preferably, the hull  10  is made from a 5052 aluminum alloy or another corrosion resistant alloy suitable for marine embodiments. 
     The sidewalls  14  and  16  have a first bowed portion  20 , a second bowed portion  22  and a sharply tapered portion  24  therebetween, as is known in the art for fiberglass boats. A gunnel  19  and rub rail  21  are formed about the top of the sidewall surfaces. 
     The design of bottom  18  is also known in the fiberglass boat industry. Specifically, the bottom includes a keel surface  26  about the keel  25 , a main starboard chine  28 , a main port chine  30  and opposing secondary chines  29  and  31  on the starboard and port sides, respectively. The chines closely mimic the shapes of the chines on fiberglass boats and have relatively complex configurations characterized by substantially curved surfaces with cross sectional profiles that are half elliptical, half circular or the shape of any of a number of partial conical half sections. The bottom  18  is formed to the complex shape by a stretch drawing process. 
     With reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, a stringer assembly  32 , keel plate  33 , and a fuel tank  34  are located below a deck  36  of the boat  10 . With reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, the internal framework  38  of the boat is isolated and shown. The internal framework includes the aforementioned stringer assembly  32 , a splash well beam  40  extending from port to starboard, a transom frame assembly  42 , and a first knee brace assembly  44  and second knee brace assembly  46  tying the stringer assembly  32 , splash well beam  40  and transom frame assembly  42  to one another. 
     The stringer assembly  32  has a main stringer  48  and a secondary stringer  50  on the starboard side of the boat and a main stringer  52  and secondary stringer  54  on the port side of the boat. Each of the stringers is made from an aluminum L-beam member with the upper surface of the beam directed outwardly from the center of the assembly. 
     The stringers are generally linear and run parallel with one another. Since the bow  56  of the boat  10  is somewhat rounded, the secondary stringers  50  and  54  terminate before main stringers  48  and  50 . As shown in FIG. 9, the top members of the L-beam of the stringers form a generally flat surface upon which the deck  36  (FIGS. 5 and 6) of the boat may rest. The bottom of the stringers are shaped in accordance with the shape of a typical bass fishing boat bottom. Thus, the secondary stringers do not extend to the same depth of the main stringers located closer to the keel. Additionally, as illustrated by example secondary stringer  50  in FIG. 9, the stringer  50  has a body portion  58  with a generally planar bottom and an end portion  60  having an upwardly curved bottom as the stringer extends toward the bow. 
     Beginning at the bow, a stringer front platform beam  62  is secured to the secondary stringers  50  and  54 , and extends laterally across main stringers  48  and  50  within notches  64  and  66  in the respective stringers. The stringer front platform is preferably formed from a tubular aluminum having a generally rectangular cross section. Near the center of main stringers  50  and  48 , a fuel tank cover assembly  68  overlays the main stringers. The fuel tank cover assembly includes first and second members  70  and  72  overlaying the stringers  48  and  52  and a cross member  74  coupled between each of the members  70  and  72 . When the stringer assembly  32  is in the boat, the generally rectangular fuel tank cover assembly  68  overlays the fuel tank  34  (FIG.  6 ). 
     On the stem side of the stringer assembly  30 , a stringer livewell beam  76  and stringer knee brace beam  78  extend across each of the stringers  48 ,  50 ,  52  and  54  of the stringer assembly  32  and are received within notches and secured thereto. The stringer livewell beam  76  and stringer knee brace beam  78  are secured to the boat hull  10  at the ends of the beams extending beyond the secondary stringers. 
     The first knee brace assembly  44  includes a first diagonal beam  80 , a first top beam  82  and a first vertical beam  84 , each beam preferably formed of an extruded aluminum tube member having a generally rectangular cross section. The first end  81  of the first diagonal beam  80  is rigidly secured to the stringer knee brace beam  78  at the intersection of the stringer knee brace beam  78  and first main stringer  48 . As best shown in FIG. 9, the end  81  is angled to lie flush with respect to the upper surface of stringer knee brace beam  78 . Preferably, the first diagonal beam  78  extends at an angle α of about 43° with respect to the surface of the beam. 
     With reference to FIG. 10, the transom frame assembly  42  is shown. The transom frame assembly has a frame  86  and a number of braces  87 ,  88  and  89  formed within the frame  86 . Each of the elements is also preferably made of aluminum. The frame  86  has opposing side members  90  and  92  and opposing top and bottom members  94  and  96 . Knee brace boxes  98  and  100  are located on the interior of side members  90  and  92 . Central brace  88  is disposed at the midpoint between the side members  90  and  92 . The outerbraces  87  and  89  are directed slightly inwardly from the top member  94  to the bottom member  96 . The second end  83  of first diagonal beam  80  is secured to transom frame assembly at knee brace box  98 . The second end  83  presents an angled face for securing the diagonal beam to the knee brace box  98  (phantom lines in FIG. 9) so that the transom frame assembly  42  is held at an angle of about 22° from the normal line extending from the stringers. When properly positioned, bottom member  96  of the transom frame assembly  42  abuts the rear faces of main stringers  48  and  52  for additional support. 
     A first end  85  of first top beam  82  is secured to the first diagonal beam  80  at knee brace box  98 . At the second end  91  of first top beam  82  is secured to the splash well beam  40 . The angled face of second end  91  is welded to the beam  40  so that a portion of the second end  91  is below beam  40 . A first end  93  of first vertical beam  84  is secured to the splash well beam  40  and second end  91  of first top beam  82 , and a second end  95  is secured to the stringer knee brace beam  78 . The first end  93  lies flush with the bottom of splashwell beam  40  and the portion of second end  91  of first top beam  82  is in contact with and secured to the surface of first vertical beam  84 . The second end  95  is angled to lie flush against the surface of first diagonal beam  80  as shown in FIG.  9 . 
     The second knee brace assembly  46  includes a second diagonal beam  102 , a second top beam  104 , and a second vertical beam  106  and is secured to side member  92  of frame  86  at the second knee brace box  102  in a manner similar to the first knee brace assembly  44 . 
     By providing a knee brace assembly in accordance with the present invention, the highly stressed transom is supported by the stringer assembly in both the lateral and longitudinal directions. The support at the transom is of critical importance because of the stresses placed upon the transom due to the weight of the motor (not shown) and the high forces placed at the stem of the boat when operated at high speeds. 
     With reference to FIGS. 11 and 12, an alternative internal frame work  108  is shown. The internal framework  108  is particularly effective in boats having deeper boat hulls than typical bass fishing boats. The framework  108  includes a stringer assembly  110 , a pair of knee braces  112  and  114  and a transom frame assembly  116 . The stringer assembly  110  includes a main starboard stringer  118 , a main port stringer  120 , a secondary starboard stringer  122  and a secondary port stringer  124 . The stringers are also made from aluminum L-shaped members and the upstanding portion of each member is directed toward the outside of the boat. As shown in FIG. 12, the secondary stringer  122  has significantly less depth than main stringer  120  since the secondary stringer is supported by the tapered sidewalls of the boat and the main stringer rests on the bottom. More importantly, the stringers are outwardly curved with respect to the inner of the boat to generally mimic the curve of the hull sidewalls  14  and  16 . This curved stringer design transfers the longitudinal load advantageously to prevent the boat from flexing or otherwise deforming. 
     At the bow end, the secondary stringers  122  and  124  are securely coupled together by a first lateral beam  126  preferably welded to the stringers. A second lateral beam  128  couples each of the curved stringers  118 ,  120 ,  122  and  124  to one another. Namely, slots  130  and  132  are formed within the second lateral beam  128  for receipt of the stringers. A third lateral beam  134  and fourth lateral beam  136  are rigidly secured to either of the secondary stringers  122  and  124  and placed through slots  137  within the main stringers  118  and slots  139  within main stringer  120 . A pair of lateral short brackets  138  and  143  are located on the interior of the secondary stringers  122  and  124  near the midpoint and are placed within a notch  140  within the upper surface of main stringers  118  and a notch  141  with the upper surface of main stringer  120 . A fifth lateral beam  144  is secured to either of the secondary stringers  122  and  124  and placed through slots  146  and  148  within main stringers  118  and  120 , respectively. 
     Knee braces  112  and  114  are secured to and extend from main stringers  118  and  120  are secured to transom frame assembly  116  as is conventional in the art. The transom frame assembly may be in the shape as a chevron as indicated in FIG. 11 or any of a number of other conventional transom frame assembly shapes. Any of a number of additional lateral members may be utilized to secure the main stringers to the secondary curved stringers. For instance, an additional lateral member may be located between the knee braces  112 ,  114  and the fourth lateral member  136  to provide additional lateral support near the stem of the stringer assembly. Moreover, additional brackets may be placed within unused notches  147  in main starboard stringer  118  and notches  149  in main port stringer  124 . 
     With reference back to FIGS. 5 and 6, the keel plate  33  of the present invention is located between the deck  36  and keel surface  26  of the boat bottom  18 . The keel plate is preferably an aluminum plate having a width of about one foot. Specific reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, the keel plate  33  is located over the interior of keel surface  26  of boat hull  10 . As shown in FIG. 7, the keel surface  26  has a bottom and a pair of upstanding sidewalls. Accordingly, when the keel plate  33  is secured to the sidewalls, the keel plate  33  and the interior of keel surface  26  define a longitudinal cavity  149  as shown in FIG.  5 . The keel plate has a number of apertures  150  formed on the upper surface  152  of the plate. During construction of the boat, a high density foam material  152  is placed within the longitudinal cavity  149  defmed by the inside of keel surface  26  and keel plate  32 . The foam material is placed within the cavity and the apertures are sealed so that the foam is held at a pressure of about 50 psi to form a stiffening column through the keel of the boat. A number of support tubes  154  shown schematically in FIG. 7, are placed over the keel plate  30  and bottom  18  to support the fuel tank  34 . The fuel tank  34  is located lateral between the main stringers  48  and  52 . A second layer of support tubes  156  overlays the tank  34  and the deck is secured on the upper surfaces of stringers  48 ,  50 ,  52  and  54  of stringer assembly  32  and the support tubes  156 . As shown in FIG. 6, the cavities  158 ,  160 ,  162  and  164  formed between the boat bottom  18 , the deck  36  and each of the stringers  50 ,  52 ,  54 , and  56  are also filled with the high density foam material. Typically, the pressure at which the foam is placed within these cavities is less than the pressure achieved between the keel plate  132  and the keel surface  26 . 
     With reference to FIG. 13, an integral trim tab  168  is shown. The tab  168  has a first base member  170 , a bend  172  and a flange  174 . The lead edge  176  of base member  170  is wider than the rear edge  178 . In a preferred embodiment, the width of ledge edge  176  is ⅜ of an inch and the rear edge  178  has a width of about ⅛ of an inch. The bend  172  extends generally normally from the bottom of base member  170  and the flange  174  extends from the bend  172  at an angle  0  with respect to the top surface  180  at base member  170 . The aluminum tab  168  may be formed by a bending sheet metal or by an extrusion process. 
     With reference to FIGS. 1,  3 , and  14 , the integral trim tab  168  is secured to the boat at the starboard edge of the boat bottom  18  so that the upper surface  180  of base member  170  is flush with planar portion at bottom and bend  172  extends downwardly with respect to the stern. Preferably, the tab is welded to the boat. The angle θ of the flange  174  with respect to the top surface  180 , and the generally planar portion of the bottom of the boat to which the top surface is attached, is between approximately 1-10°. This angle, known as the shingle angle, is critical to the performance of the boat since a great deal of the pressure is exerted to boat hull  10  is at the last 10-12 inches of the boat proximate at the stem. 
     A second integral trim tab  176  is welded to the port side of the boat as shown in FIG.  3 . By use of the tabs of the present invention, the shingle is precisely and accurately defined and the performance of the boat is greatly enhanced. Specifically, the shingle angle can be accurately controlled during manufacturing and maintained in use to direct the water about the boat hull. 
     From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all ends and objects hereinabove set forth together with the other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to the structure. It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims. 
     Since many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative of applications of the principles of this invention, and not in a limiting sense.