High speed water craft

Claim 2

A power-driven high speed planing water craft having a hull, reentrant channel extending longitudinally which is open at the rear and which opens downwardly along the underside of the hull, a propeller disposed within a main tunnel section of said channel, a crosswall disposed forwardly which provides an abrupt step defining and at least partially closing the front end of said tunnel section, said crosswall constituting a bulkhead partition, an opening into said tunnel section adapted to admit gaseous medium therein above the water level and in advance of the propeller during planing operation of the craft, a cockpit compartment disposed forwardly of the bulkhead partition, an engine power unit located within said cockpit compartment, and drive transmission means which transmits drive from said engine power unit to the propeller.

Claim 3

A power-driven high speed water craft having a hull, a reentrant channel extending longitudinally which is open at the rear and which opens downwardly along the underside of the hull, a propeller diSposed within a main tunnel section of said channel, a crosswall disposed forwardly which provides an abrupt step defining and at least partially closing the front end of said tunnel section, said crosswall constituting a bulkhead partition, and in advance of said crosswall, a shallow front tunnel portion which extends along the hull sufficiently for its front end to rise clear above the water when the craft is in an inclined position during planing operation, thereby to admit air under the hull and into said main tunnel section in advance of the propeller.

Claim 4

A power-driven high speed water craft having a hull, a reentrant channel extending longitudinally which is open at the rear and which opens downwardly along the underside of the hull, a propeller diSposed within a main tunnel section of said channel, a crosswall disposed forwardly which provides an abrupt step defining and at least partially closing the front end of said tunnel section, said crosswall constituting a bulkhead partition, and in advance of said crosswall, a shallow front tunnel portion which extends along the hull sufficiently for its front end to rise clear above the water when the craft is in an inclined position during planing operation, thereby to admit air under the hull and into said main tunnel section in advance of the propeller.

Claim 5

A power driven high speed planing water craft having a hull structure comprising a body shell, planing surfaces formed by the bottom of said body shell, a recess, reentrant with respect to the contour of the planing surfaces of said body shell, providing a channel disposed within the hull structure and extending forwardly from the stern, said channel being open at the rear adjacent the stern and downwards along the underside of the hull structure, a propeller operatively disposed within and towards the rear of said channel, a crosswall, disposed forwardly of the stern, which provides an abrupt step closing at least partially the front end of said channel, and an opening into said channel in advance of the propeller adapted to admit gaseous medium above the water level during planing operation of the craft.

Claim 6

A power driven high speed planing water craft having a hull structure comprising a body shell, planing surfaces formed by the bottom of said body shell, a recess, reentrant with respect to the contour of the planing surfaces of said body shell, providing a channel disposed within the hull structure and extending forwardly from the stern, said channel being open at the rear adjacent the stern and downwards along the underside of the hull structure, a propeller operatively disposed within and towards the rear of said channel, a crosswall, disposed forwardly of the stern, which provides an abrupt step closing at least partially the front end of said channel, and an opening into said channel in advance of the propeller adapted to admit gaseous medium above the water level during planing operation of the craft.

Claim 7

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 3 wherein the channel rearwards of said crosswall comprises a main tunnel section and longitudinal side walls which define the sides of said tunnel section and flank the propeller, said propeller being housed within said tunnel section substantially completely above the level of the lowermost planing surfaces of the body shell which are effective during high speed planing operation.

Claim 8

A power driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 4 wherein the channel forwards of said crosswall comprises a shallow front tunnel section which has an open front end and which extends forwardly along the underside of the hull structure, within the contour of the body shell of said hull structure, sufficiently said open front end to rise clear above the water level when the draft is in an inclined position during planing operation, thereby to admit air under the hull structure and into said tunnel sections in advance of the propeller.

Claim 9

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 4 having a rudder system comprising a pair of angularly movable spaced-apart rudder plates secured to the hull structure, adjacent the stern, in contiguous relationship with the sidewalls of said main tunnel section thereby to provide an angularly variable rearwards extension of the latter, means linking together said rudder plates so that they remain parallel and move in unison, and control means for remotely adjusting the angular positioning of said rudder plates.

Claim 10

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 6 wherein the body shell of the hull structure, including said channel tunnel sections, is a molded lightweight unitary structure composed of glass fiber reinforced plastics material, and each of the rudder plates is composed of thermoplastics material and is adapted to flex, to provide the required angular movement, along a vertical hinge axis adjacent a leading edge portion which is secured to the respective sidewall of the main tunnel section in the hull structure.

Claim 11

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 4 wherein a vent opening into the main tunnel section is provided above the water line in the region adjacent said crosswall.

Claim 12

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 4, wherein the crosswall at the front end of the main tunnel section constitutes a bulkhead partition, and said craft further comprises an inboard engine power unit mounted upon said bulkhead partition, drive transmission means including a propeller shaft which transmits drive from said Engine power unit to the propeller, said propeller shaft being disposed wholly within the main tunnel section and within the contour of the planing surfaces of the hull body shell.

Claim 13

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 4 wherein a vent opening into the main tunnel section is provided by a shallow recess extending forwardly of said crosswall along a portion of the underside of the hull structure which rises clear above the water level when the craft is in an inclined position during planing operation, and wherein said hull structure has an uninterrupted surface extending continuously along each side of said main tunnel portion and along each side of said vent forwardly beyond the abrupt step leading into said main tunnel section.

Claim 14

In a power-driven high speed planing water craft, a hull structure, a tunnel portion of inverted U-shape reentrant within said hull structure and extending longitudinally from the stern, said tunnel portion being open rearwardly adjacent the stern and downwardly along the underside of the bottom of the hull structure, a crosswall closing at least partially the forward end of said tunnel portion and providing an abrupt step in the undersurface of said hull structure leading into said tunnel portion, a propeller housed within said tunnel portion towards the stern, planing surface portions, provided by the bottom of said hull structure, which are disposed laterally adjacent the downwardly presented open mouth of said tunnel portion and which extend below the level of said propeller, at opposite sides thereof, and inlet means adapted to introduce gaseous medium into said tunnel portion, in advance of the propeller, during planing operation of the craft.

Claim 15

In a power-driven high speed planing water craft, a hull structure, a tunnel portion of inverted U-shape reentrant within said hull structure and extending longitudinally from the stern, said tunnel portion being open rearwardly adjacent the stern and downwardly along the underside of the bottom of the hull structure, a crosswall closing at least partially the forward end of said tunnel portion and providing an abrupt step in the undersurface of said hull structure leading into said tunnel portion, a propeller housed within said tunnel portion towards the stern, planing surface portions, provided by the bottom of said hull structure, which are disposed laterally adjacent the downwardly presented open mouth of said tunnel portion and which extend below the level of said propeller, at opposite sides thereof, and inlet means adapted to introduce gaseous medium into said tunnel portion, in advance of the propeller, during planing operation of the craft.

Claim 16

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 11 wherein the bottom of the hull structure has an uninterrupted surface extending continuously along each side of said tunnel portion and forwardly beyond the abrupt step leading into said tunnel portion.

Claim 17

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 12 wherein the inlet means adapted to introduce gaseous medium into the said tunnel portion comprises a shallow channel, forming a shallow front tunnel section, which is disposed forwardly of the abrupt step provided by said crosswall and which extends along the underside of the hull structure, within the contour of the body shell of said hull structure, sufficiently for said open front end to rise clear above the water level when the craft is in an inclined position during planing operation, thereby to admit air under the hull structure and into said tunnel sections in advance of the propeller.

Claim 18

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 13 wherein the crosswall at the front end of the main tunnel section constitutes a bulkhead partition, and said craft further comprises an inboard engine power unit mounted upon said bulkhead partition, drive transmission means including a propeller shaft which transmits drive from said engine power unit to the propeller, said propeller shaft being disposed wholly within the main tunnel section and within the contour of the planing surface of the hull body shell.

Claim 19

A power-driven high speed planing water craft as defined in claim 14 having a cockpit compartment which is disposed forwardly of the bulkhead partition and which accommodates the engine power unit, flexible coupling means to connect said engine power unit to the forward end of the propeller shaft, and bearing means rotatably supporting the rear end of said propeller shaft, said bearing means and the propeller carried by the propeller shaft being housed in full shielded relationship completely within the tunnel portion within the contour of the bottom of the hull structure.