Patent ID: 7146923

Claim:
An inflatable hull portion for a boat, the inflatable hull portion including: (a) a hull tube, at least a portion of the hull tube being made of a sheet material that is readily bendable, the hull tube also including an access opening formed at an access location in the material making up the hull tube; (b) a bladder made at least partially of a bladder sheet material that is relatively more elastic in the plane of the material than the hull tube bendable sheet material, the bladder residing in the interior of the hull tube and having a valve receiving opening through the bladder sheet material, the valve receiving opening being aligned at least partially with the hull tube access opening; and (c) a valve structure sealed to the bladder sheet material around the periphery of the valve receiving opening, the valve structure including at least a first valve and being positioned so that at least a portion of the valve structure traverses the hull tube access opening with the first valve being accessible from outside the hull tube.