Spring-loaded wakeboard booster

Abstract

A spring-loaded wakeboard booster has a vertical swivel connection to the towing tower of a motorboat at its proximal end. The swivel connection rotatably supports a cylindrical piston spring assembly, which has a tow rope connection shaft at its proximal end, through which the piston spring assembly is connected by a tow line extending to the wakeboard. When the wakeboard is being towed, the force on the tow line draws the piston toward the proximal end of the piston spring assembly, thereby compressing the spring. When the wakeboard reaches the crest of the boat's wake, the water resistance drops and the spring expands, drawing the board forward and over the wake.

Claims

1. A spring-loaded wakeboard booster apparatus comprising: a wakeboard having a top surface and a bottom surface and having a proximal side and a distal side; a piston spring mechanism comprising a substantially horizontal, cylindrical spring housing, having an upper face and a lower face, and having a proximal end and a distal end, a helical spring axially longitudinally oriented within the spring housing and confined between a piston head and the proximal end of the spring housing, a piston rod, having a proximal terminus extending through the proximal end of the spring housing, and having a distal terminus connected to the piston head, wherein the piston rod is operable to move the piston head from the distal end of the spring housing toward the proximal end of the spring housing, so as to compress the spring, and a tow rope connector shaft extending from the proximal end of the spring housing and connected to the proximal terminus of the piston rod, wherein the tow rope connector shaft is operable to connect the piston rod to a tow rope extending to the wakeboard; and a swivel support perpendicularly extending from the lower face of the spring housing and rotatably attachable to a top surface of a towing tower mounted on a stern of a motorboat, wherein the swivel support enables the piston spring mechanism to rotate in a plane parallel to the top surface of the towing tower.

2. The spring-loaded wakeboard apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the wakeboard is configured to be towed by the motorboat and to ride through and upon a wake generated by the motorboat, and wherein the piston spring mechanism is operable to store an energy expended in traversing the wake through a compression of the spring by the piston head as the piston rod is pulled toward the proximal end of the spring housing by a towing force exerted on the tow rope connector shaft, and wherein the piston spring mechanism is operable to release the energy stored in the compression of the spring upon the wakeboard reaching a crest of the wake, so as to propel the wakeboard over and above the wake.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a side profile view of an exemplary spring-loaded wakeboard booster, according to one embodiment of the present invention, showing a wakeboard being towed through a wake generated by a towing motorboat;

(2) FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of an exemplary piston spring mechanism according to one embodiment of the present invention;

(3) FIG. 3A is a top plan view of the exemplary piston spring mechanism of FIG. 2;

(4) FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of the exemplary piston spring mechanism taken along the line B-B in FIG. 3A;

(5) FIG. 3C is a front profile view of the exemplary piston spring mechanism; and

(6) FIG. 3D is a rear profile view of the exemplary piston spring mechanism.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

(7) Referring to FIG. 1, the exemplary embodiment of the spring-loaded wakeboard booster 10 comprises the piston spring mechanism 12 rotatably attached to the towing tower 31 of a motorboat 17 by the swivel support 13. The cylindrical outer covering of the piston spring mechanism comprises the spring housing 14, from the proximal end of which extends the tow rope connector shaft 15, to which the tow rope 16 from the towing motorboat 17 is connected.

(8) A perspective view of the exemplary piston spring mechanism 12 is depicted in FIG. 2, which shows the spring housing 14, the swivel support 13 and the tow rope connector shaft 15, to which a turnbuckle is attached as a means of connecting the tow rope 16. The top plan view of the exemplary spring mechanism 12 shown in FIG. 3A depicts the spring housing 14 and the tow rope connector shaft 15.

(9) Referring to FIGS. 3B-3D, the internal components of the piston spring mechanism 12 comprise the helical spring 18 confined between the piston head 19 and the proximal end 29 of the spring housing 14. The motion of the piston head 19 is controlled by the piston rod 20, which has a proximal terminus 21 connected to the tow rope connector shaft 15 and a distal terminus 22 attached to the piston head 9 (by a retaining nut in this example). The swivel support 13 is rotably attachable to the towing tower 31 by a threaded connector 23 with a swivel bearing 24.

(10) As shown in FIGS. 3C and 3D, the proximal and distal ends of the piston spring mechanism 12 are enclosed by a front cap 25 and a rear cap 27, respectively, which are connected to the spring housing 14 by multiple front cap screws 26 and rear cap screws 28. The tow rope connector shaft 15 protrudes through the shaft aperture 30 of the front cap 25.

(11) Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that many additions, modifications and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention as defined by the accompanying claims.