Water-ski towline winch assembly
First Claim
1. A water-ski towline winch assembly in combination with a towline having at least one float attached thereto, said winch assembly comprising:
- a support member,mounting means on said support member for mounting said winch assembly on a boat,an annular drum, comprising a pair of spaced-apart inner and outer plates, rotatably mounted on said support member, said outer plate of said pair of plates being disposed furthest away from said support member and defining an unobstructed and fully exposed concavity on an outer side thereof,attachment means secured on said drum for attaching a hook of said towline thereto,drive means for selectively rotating said drum on said support member, andat least one pair of circumferentially spaced slot means formed in said outer plate for receiving said towline therein and for storing said float secured to said towline in the concavity defined on the outer side of said outer plate and between said slot means.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A water-ski towline winch assembly comprises a support member adapted to be mounted on a boat and an annular drum rotatably mounted on the support member. A handle is rotatably mounted on the support member to rotate the drum to selectively reel-in or reel-out the towline, via a stepped-down gear set. A plurality of slots are formed in the drum whereby floats secured on the towline may be positioned exteriorly of the drum in non-interfering relationship with the towline which is wrapped on the drum. A release mechanism is provided for permitting the gear set to free-wheel to troll out the towline. Two embodiments of the invention are disclosed herein with one of the embodiments (FIGS. 7-11) including a mounting bracket for vertical or horizontal securance to the hull of the boat and a support bracket attachable to the mounting bracket and having the winch assembly proper mounted thereon.
23 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A water-ski towline winch assembly in combination with a towline having at least one float attached thereto, said winch assembly comprising:
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a support member, mounting means on said support member for mounting said winch assembly on a boat, an annular drum, comprising a pair of spaced-apart inner and outer plates, rotatably mounted on said support member, said outer plate of said pair of plates being disposed furthest away from said support member and defining an unobstructed and fully exposed concavity on an outer side thereof, attachment means secured on said drum for attaching a hook of said towline thereto, drive means for selectively rotating said drum on said support member, and at least one pair of circumferentially spaced slot means formed in said outer plate for receiving said towline therein and for storing said float secured to said towline in the concavity defined on the outer side of said outer plate and between said slot means. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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- 13. In a water-ski towline winch assembly having a support member attachable on a boat, a drum rotatably mounted on said support member, a rotary input shaft, a rotary output shaft connected to said drum to rotate the same, and gear means for transmitting rotary motion of said input shaft to rotary motion of said output shaft, and disengagement means for selectively disengaging said input shaft from said gear means for permitting free-wheeling of said drum, the improvement comprising mounting bracket means for securance to a boat, a support bracket having the support member of said winch assembly releasably attached thereto, first means for releasably attaching said support bracket at a first orientation on said mounting bracket means, and second means for attaching said support bracket at a second, different orientation on said mounting bracket means.
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17. A water-ski towline drum for releasable attachment to a drive shaft of a water-ski towline winch assembly comprising
first and second laterally spaced plates, said first plate having an unobstructed and fully exposed concavity defined on an outer side thereof, a centrally disposed tubular sleeve secured between said first and second plates, attachment means secured between said first and second plates for attaching a hook of said towline thereto, a plurality of circumferentially disposed slot means formed in the periphery of said first plate for receiving a portion of said towline therein for storing a float secured to said towline in exposed relationship within the concavity defined on an outer side of said first plate and between said slot means, and means for releasably attaching said drum to said drive shaft, including means for preventing relative rotation between the sleeve of said drum and said drive shaft, but for permitting the sleeve of said drum to slide axially on said drive shaft for selective removal therefrom.
Specification