Boat sinking warning device

• US 5,130,708 A
• Filed: 03/11/1991
• Issued: 07/14/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/1991
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company, Will Boyden, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Will Boyden, Inc.
• Inventors: Boyden, Willis G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ng, Jin F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SWARTHOUT, BRENT
• Application Number:
  US07/667,217
• Time in Patent Office: 491 Days
• Field of Search: 340/602, 340/612, 340/620, 340/984, 116/109, 116/26, 114/183 R, 114/197, 114/121, 114/125, 114/360, 440/1
• US Class Current: 340/984
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 2043/006 Methods or installations specially adapted for detecting ingress of ambient water, e.g. leak detectors
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 2045/005 comprising particular electric circuits
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 2201/26 signalling anomalies, e.g. rupture of connection
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 45/08 the devices being acoustic
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 3/16 using electric detection means G01M3/045, G01M3/06, G01M3/12, G01M3/20, G01M3/24, G01M3/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/20 responsive to moisture

Abstract

The boat sinking warning device is hermetically sealed box, to be permanently installed in the bilge area of a boat, to give an audio frequency or radio frequency warning if a boat is leaking. It comprises two externally exposed conductive terminals, and an electronic circuit to sense the presence of water across these terminals and thereby continually sound an audio alarm or radiate a radio-frequency signal to a remote facility.

Claims

1. A boat sinking warning device, to be deployed permanently on the bilge area of a boat comprising:

a hermetically sealed box, with two externally exposed conductive terminals protruding from one of the vertical sides of said hermetically sealed box, an electrical connection from each of the two externally exposed conductive terminals on the internal side of the box of said externally exposed conductive terminals, the connections connecting the terminals to electronic circuitry within said hermetically sealed box, said electronic circuitry having means to detect a low resistance across said terminals and sound an alarm.

a shelf portion of said hermetically sealed box, said shelf portion comprising an extension of the top side of said hermetically sealed box for about one half inch beyond the vertical side containing said externally exposed conductive terminals, said shelf portion being in the same plane as the top side of said hermetically sealed box, said shelf portion having a length equal to the length of said top side measured along the juncture of said top side and said shelf portion,

a lip portion of said hermetically sealed box, said lip portion connected to the edge of said shelf portion extended beyond the vertical side containing said externally exposed conductive terminals, said lip portion having a length equal to the length of said shelf portion measured along the juncture of said shelf portion and said lip portion, said lip portion extending vertically downwards for about one half inch from said juncture,

means for fastening said boat sinking warning device to the bilge area of a boat.

2. The boat sinking warning device of claim 1 wherein the means to sound an alarm comprises means for transmitting a warning signal.

3. The boat sinking warning device of claim 1 wherein means to detect a low resistance across said terminals and sound an alarm comprises:

an input resistor, one side of said resistor connected to the negative side of a battery, the other side of said input resistor connected to one of said externally exposed conductive terminals and the A input of a dual input NAND gate A, the other externally exposed conductive terminal connected to the positive side of the battery, the output of said NAND gate A connected to he inputs of a dual input NAND gate B, the output of said NAND gate B connected to the clock of an RS flip-flop Z, a D input of said RS flip-flop Z connected to the positive side of said battery, a Q output of said RS flip-flop Z being connected to one input of a dual input NAND gate C, the other input of said NAND gate C being connected to one side of a resister Y, the other side of said resistor Y being connected to one side of a resistor X and one side of a timing capacitor, the other side of resistor X being connected to the output of said dual input NAND gate C, the other side of said timing capacitor being connected to the output of a dual input AND gate D, the dual input of said NAND gate D being connected to the output of said NAND gate C, the output of said NAND gate D being connected to the clock of a counter, a reset of said counter being connected to a Qoutput of said RS flip-flop Z, a lower order output of said counter being connected to the clock of a RS flip-flop W, a D input of said RS flip-flop W being connected to the positive terminal of said battery, a Qoutput of said RS flip-flop W being connected to the other input of said dual input NAND gate A, a Q output of said RS flip-flop W being connected to a reset of said RS flip-flop Z, a higher order output of said counter being connected to the inputs of a dual input NAND gate E, the output of said NAND gate E connected to a reset of said RS flip-flop W, said lower order output of said counter connected to one side of a limiting resistor, the other side of said limiting resistor connected to the base of a power transistor and one side of a bias resistor, the other side of said bias resistor being connected to the negative terminal of said battery, an emitter of said power transistor being connected to a negative terminal of said battery, a collector of said power transistor being connected to one side of a speaker, the other side of said speaker being connected to the positive terminal of said battery.

4. The boat sinking warning device of claim 3 wherein said speaker is replaced by a radio-frequency transmitter.

5. The boat sinking warning device of claim 3 wherein a radio frequency transmitter is connected across said speaker.