Sea Anchor

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This utility patent application claims priority back to U.S. Provisional No. 63/720,356 filed Nov. 14, 2024, the contents of which are incorporated by reference into this utility patent application.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

This invention was not federally sponsored.

INVENTORS

Clayton Cooper Pequignot, citizen of USA and resident of Devon, PA, USA, and Christopher Jay Gutzeit, citizen of USA and resident of Santa Barbara, CA, USA.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of sea anchors and more specifically, in a preferred embodiment, to a weighted sea anchor that attaches to an object to prevent the wind and/or waves from carrying the object away from a user of the object faster than the user can swim. Another preferred embodiment of the invention calls for the sea anchor to have two weights on a section, such that the anchor is unevenly weighted and the weights are attached to a bottom section of a square parachute. The sea anchor is intended for a variety of uses related to bodies of water, such as the ocean, bays or lakes, and to be attached to a wing used for wing foiling, a surfboard or stand-up paddleboard, and other water sports items.

BACKGROUND

Problem Stated

There are a number of sports performed in the water, such as wing foiling and kayaking, where a user can lose an object such as an inflated wing or kayak paddle, and have that object be blown away by the wind faster than the user can swim to recover the object. There are other water sports where an object, such as a surfboard, can be carried away by waves faster than a user can swim.

These situations can be, at best, inconvenient and costly, and at worst, life-threatening. Wings for wing foil boards can cost hundreds or on the upper end, thousands of dollars so losing a wing to the wind is never a happy event. A good kayak paddle can cost over $500 and retrieving one's paddle is often essential to getting the kayak back to land. Surfers will sometimes remove their leash when facing a large “close-out” set of waves and yet want to retrieve their boards quickly both for personal safety and before the boards get washed into jagged rocks along the shoreline. An additional concern for other water users is the potential damage from a loose board, wing or other object that could blow or be carried by waves into them. Thus, the invention not only allows a user to catch up to his/her wing, board, paddle, etc., but it also protects other people in the water or in nearby boats from collisions with the object.

Currently, there are a number of “drift socks” for boats and kayaks, which are constructed very much like a water version of windsock at airports. They have a rigid circle of metal or plastic keeping the front circular opening continuously open, with a tapered body termination in a much smaller opening at the bottom end. These drift socks function, when thrown in the water, by having larger diameter in the front allowing more water to enter than the smaller diameter opening in the back, thereby keeping the drift sock rigid but at the same time slowing down the kayak or boat to which it is attached.

These drift socks may work to slow down the drifting of a lost wing or kayak paddle, and they might work to slow down the movement of a surfboard being pushed by the waves to the beach, but the design of the rigid opening ensures that they are difficult to store in a small and compact manner. They also do not have an “automatic opening” system for use in gentle currents. As such, drift socks do not adequately meet the need as defined above.

The current invention, however, provides just such a solution for the long-felt need by providing a sea anchor which is collapsible for compact storage and yet deploys easily and reliably due to its novel design. A preferred embodiment of the invention provides a parachute that is weighted on only one side. These imbalanced weights cause the parachute to open automatically upon its release and fill with water. There can be one weight, or, preferably, two weights. This water-engaging parachute then automatically slows the progress of a water sports article such as a wing, kayak paddle or surfboard, being blown by the wind or pushed through wave action. The parachute is attached to a user or another object by a leash. In a preferred embodiment, it is built into a small compartment on a user's belt or leash cuff and can be hand-released or automatically released by the loss of control by the user of the water sport article. Not only does the parachute open automatically, but the imbalanced weights cause the parachute to dive deeper under the surface of the water, which places the parachute under tension. As it dives deeper under the surface, the drag on the article increases and gives the user a better chance of swimming to retrieve the lost article. In a further embodiment, the invention may have an adjustable drag component, either an adjustable orifice opening or bridal variable restriction that adjusts how much the parachute can open.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This summary is provided to introduce concepts related to the Sea Anchor that is the subject of this utility patent application. The concepts are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.

The present disclosure relates to a sea anchor with a water-engaging parachute which opens automatically due to its construction with, in preferred embodiments, one or more one-sided/imbalanced weights. The sea anchor opens upon its release and fills with water, thereby slowing the progress of a water sports article such as a wing, kayak paddle or surfboard, being blown by the wind or pushed through wave action. The imbalanced weights help to break the surface tension of the water's surface—without the weights the parachute may just skip along with water's surface rather than opening. The parachute is attached to a user or another object by a leash and can be hand-released or automatically released by the loss of control by the user of the water sport article. As the parachute is placed under tension, it dives deeper under the surface, thereby increasing the drag on the article and giving the user a better chance of swimming to retrieve the lost article. The sea anchor can be stored as a small, compact device that can be quickly and easily be deployed. The unique combination as described herein permits a soft, collapsible parachute to deploy quickly and reliably, and allows storage of the parachute in a compact and convenient storage location.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is attached to a wing used in wing foiling.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is attached to a kayak paddle.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is attached to a surfboard.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is attached to a wing used in wing foiling.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is attached to the user at a belt or harness worn by the user.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is attached to the user at a belt or harness worn by the user in a pouch or compartment.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is attached to the user at a calf or ankle leash cuff.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is embedded in a compartment or pouch and attached through releasable spring-action to the wing or sea kayak paddle and is automatically deployed once a user's hand is no longer holding the sea anchor in the compartment.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is built into a surf leash cuff.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is made from lightweight, ripstop sail material.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor can have the body of the parachute edge heat sealed, fused with rubberized sealer, or even sewn to the cuff of a leash.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor uses stainless steel ball weights which in a preferred embodiment weigh 6 grams each.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is made from a colorful fabric, such as yellow, orange or lime green.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor is attached to the person by stretchy leash.

In an embodiment, the sea anchor leash is attached to the parachute through heavy UV and saltwater-resistant thread.

This disclosure will now provide a more detailed and specific description that will refer to the accompanying drawings. The drawings and specific descriptions of the drawings, as well as any specific or alternative embodiments discussed, are intended to be read in conjunction with the entirety of this disclosure. The invention as described herein may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of illustration only and so that this disclosure will be thorough, complete and fully convey understanding to those skilled in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The illustrated embodiments of the subject matter will be best understood by reference to the drawings, wherein like parts are designated by like numerals throughout. The following description is intended only by way of example, and simply illustrates certain selected embodiments of devices, systems, and methods that are consistent with the subject matter as claimed herein, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the basic components of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of a person trying to retrieve a wing.

FIG. 3 is a perspective, sequential view illustrating how the invention opens up in the water once it is deployed.

FIG. 4 is a top view showing how the weights are stitched in for security.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the invention being used to restrain a kayak paddle from washing away.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the invention being used to restrain a surfboard from being washed away due to the direction of the waves.

The figures depict embodiments of the disclosure for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description of various exemplary embodiments of the disclosure is described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the embodiments are described herein in such details as to clearly communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of details provided herein is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.

It is also to be understood that various arrangements may be devised that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the present disclosure. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present disclosure, as well as specific examples, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”, “comprising”, “includes” and/or “including,” when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and/or groups thereof.

It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions/acts noted may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two figures shown in succession may, in fact, be executed concurrently or may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality/acts involved.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which example embodiments belong. It will be further understood that terms, e.g., those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

As can be seen by the previous description of the prior art and the invention itself, It would be desirable to have a sea anchor which can be packed into a very small size, be deployed easily and quickly, and then, once the sea anchor enters the water, open automatically and consistently to slow down the drift of a floating water sports item.

To this, the present disclosure advantageously fills the abovementioned needs and addresses the aforementioned deficiencies by providing the following invention, as described by the figures and this written description.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the basic components of the invention. A parachute 1, is attached to a leash 4, by the bridle 2. The bridal connects to the four corners of the square parachute. It contemplated that the parachute could have no weights, one weight or two weights, with two weights being a preferred embodiment of the invention

FIG. 2 is a side view of a person trying to retrieve a wing. This is a common occurrence in the wing foiling world, as the wing 8 has a huge “surface area to weight” ratio, and, as such, is easily blown away by the wind 5. Under normal circumstances, it would be very difficult for the user 7 to swim fast enough to catch the wing 8, however, with the parachute 1 opening up under the surface of the water 6, the movement of the wing is restrained enough for the user to catch up to the wing and retrieve it.

FIG. 3 is a perspective, sequential view illustrating how the invention opens up in the water once it is deployed. On the parachute 1 are two weights 3, which are deployed on one edge of the parachute. Because of this asymmetrical deployment, the “weighted edge” of the parachute pulls down and opens the parachute once it hits the water. The weighted edge then also “dives” the parachute deeper into the water. As the angle between the leash 4 and the surface of the water 6 increases, the drag also increases, giving the user a better chance of swimming faster than the lost item is drifting away, and thereby catching up and securing the water sports item.

FIG. 4 is a top view showing how the weights are stitched in for security. At the edge 11 of the parachute, weights are stitched into the hollow webbing between the parachute and the leash. The bridle is made from this hollow webbing, which is both lightweight and strong. There is a first area of stitching which attaches the bridal to the parachute, and a second stitching pattern that secures with weight into the hollow webbing and prevents the weight from moving inside the hollow webbing. The use of hollow webbing makes insertion of the weights—in a preferred embodiment one or two ball bearing weights—easy both to insert the weights and to secure them through stitching, which prevents the weights from sliding up and down the tubular webbing.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the invention being used to restrain a kayak paddle 9 from washing away.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the invention being used to restrain a surfboard from being washed away due to the direction of the waves 15. This situation is often encountered when a surfer or stand-up paddleboard wipes out and finds that his or her board 10 is being pushed away by waves and or wind faster than he or she can swim. When this happens, the parachute 1 opens under the surface of the water 6, and sinks lower and lower into the water, thereby increasing the drag upon the board. The sea anchor also serves to align the board perpendicular to the direction of the wind or waves, thereby presenting a smaller surface area against which the wind or waves can hit. This effectively reduces the effect of wind or waves on the board, causing it to drift even more slowly.

Furthermore, those skilled in the art can appreciate that the above description does not provide specific details of the manufacture or design of the various components. Those of skill in the art are familiar with such details, and unless departures from those techniques are set out, techniques, known, related art or later developed designs and materials should be employed. Those in the art can choose suitable manufacturing and design details.

Further, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure. It will be appreciated that several of the above-disclosed and other features and functions, or alternatives thereof, may be combined into other systems or applications. Various presently unforeseen or unanticipated alternatives, modifications, variations, or improvements therein may subsequently be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as encompassed by the following claims.

It will be appreciated that variants of the above-disclosed and other features and functions, or alternatives thereof, may be combined into many other different systems or applications. Various presently unforeseen or unanticipated alternatives, modifications, variations, or improvements therein may be subsequently made by those skilled in the art which are also intended to be encompassed by the following claims.

REFERENCE NUMBERS USED

• • 1. Parachute
  • 2. Bridal
  • 3. Weight
  • 4. Leash
  • 5. Wind direction
  • 6. Body of Water
  • 7. User
  • 8. Wing
  • 9. Kayak Paddle
  • 10. Surfboard
  • 11. Parachute Edge
  • 12. Location of weight
  • 13. Stitching to attach bridal to parachute
  • 14. Stitching to secure weights.
  • 15. Wave direction.