Motor-driven hydroplane for rescue purposes (ice rescue)

Abstract

A keel-less “vehicle” (boat, boat body, gliding device or locomotive device or boat device) is to be designed in such a way that it is equally suitable for use, preferably for rescue missions, on water and ice surfaces. For this purpose, an engine-driven locomotive device comprising a catamaran-like main body of at least two parallel, mutually spaced, inflatable tube bodies ( 1, 2 ) and a bottom ( 6 ) disposed between said tube bodies at a distance from the respective tube body underside ( 4 ) and a propeller propulsion ( 25 ) supportable on the vehicle body is suggested.

1 . An engine driven locomotive device having a catamaran-like main body of at least two parallel, mutually spaced, inflatable tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) and a bottom ( 6 ) being disposed between them at a distance from the respective underside ( 4 ) of the tube body and a propeller propulsion ( 25 ) supportable on the vehicle body.  
     
     
         2 . An engine driven device comprising a keel-less vehicle body of at least two parallel, spaced (c), inflated tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) and a substantially rigid bottom ( 6 ) disposed between said tube bodies, on which a propeller propulsion ( 25 ) is mountable in raised position ( 20 ,  21 ) and at least one gliding skid element ( 7 ,  38 ,  39 ,  40 ) being disposed on each of said tube bodies, which results in a lateral stability and steerability during the drive.  
     
     
         3 . Glidingly movable device for rescue missions on frozen ice surfaces comprising a vehicle body of at least two elongate and substantially parallel tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) having each an inner hollow space and a tube body underside. 
 a. a firm bottom ( 6 ) being clampable between the substantially parallel tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) and at a distance (a, a 1 ) from the tube body undersides ( 4 ), but below a central plane ( 3 ) of the tube bodies, for forcing the tube bodies apart;    b. a flexible bottom tarpaulin ( 5 ) being firmly connected to the parallel tube body undersides near the clamping positions of the firm bottom ( 6 ) in order to determine a maximum distance (c) of the tube bodies, the firm bottom being clamped;    c. the tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) having a bow portion and a stern portion, said bow portion rising towards the front in order to form a slide-on slope for locomotion on frozen ice surfaces.    
     
     
         4 . A device as claimed in any of  claims 1  to  3 , characterized in that the two parallel tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) are connected to each other on the bow side by means of an approximately arcuate, inflatable tube portion ( 9 ) which rises towards the front as compared with the parallel tube bodies in order to form a slide-on slope for transition from a water surface to an ice surface.  
     
     
         5 . A device as claimed in any of  claims 1  to  3 , characterized in that the two parallel tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) are designed in an obliquely rising fashion towards the bow and connected to each other in the area of the higher ends by means of a rigid transverse element ( 9   a ).  
     
     
         6 . A device as claimed in any of  claims 1  to  3 , characterized in that a lateral surface delimited by the tube bodies is filled by the substantially rigid bottom ( 6 ) which adjoins the parallel tube bodies at a vertical distance (a, b) both from the undersides ( 4 ) and from a plane of the diameter centers ( 3 ) of the parallel tube bodies and is covered towards below by a second bottom portion ( 5 ), said bottom portion ( 5 ) consisting in particular of the material of the tube bodies or a corresponding material, said second bottom portion ( 5 ) being firmly connected, in particular glued ( 5   a ,  5   b ) at least to the parallel tube bodies.  
     
     
         7 . A device as claimed in any of  claims 1  to  3 , characterized in that, the tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) being inflated, the rigid bottom ( 6 ) is clamped under bias and held in this fashion ( 6   a ,  6   b ;  68 ,  67 ) with its side edges substantially at the height of the fastening line of the second bottom portion ( 5 ).  
     
     
         8 . A device as claimed in  claim 2  or  3 , characterized in that the bottom ( 6 ) consists of several flat bottom sections ( 6 ) which are in particular made of marine plywood and which, on their edges adjoining the tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ), are jointly bordered by an approximately U-shaped portion of a first rod section ( 69 ), which, in turn, engages into an approximately angular rod section ( 67 ) which is affixed, in particular glued, to a respective tube body; or is clamped between the rod section ( 67 ) and a hard rubber section ( 68 ) which is affixed, in particular glued, to the tube body; or the firm or rigid bottom ( 6 ) may be inserted between two spaced profile elements ( 67 ,  68 ) which are disposed on the tube body or is removably held ( 69   a ) in deflated condition of the tube bodies.  
     
     
         9 . A device as claimed in  claim 8 , characterized in that the two rod sections ( 67 ;  69 ) consist of elastically resilient material.  
     
     
         10 . A device as claimed in  claim 1 , characterized in that the flexible gliding strips ( 7 ,  8 ) of wear-resistant material are provided as gliding skid elements on the underside surfaces of the parallel tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) and/or also of the second bottom portion ( 5 ).  
     
     
         11 . A device as claimed in  claim 10 , characterized in that several gliding strips ( 7 ) are disposed at mutual circumferential distances on the underside surface of each inflated tube body ( 1 ,  2 ), which is of an arcuate cross-section, and the lateral edges of all gliding strips ( 7 ,  8 ) are designed as sharp guiding edges ( 7   b ).  
     
     
         12 . A device as claimed in  claim 11 , characterized in that the sharp guiding edges ( 7   b ) are provided on a wear layer ( 7   a ) applied onto the gliding strips ( 7 ,  8 ).  
     
     
         13 . A device as claimed in  claim 1 , characterized in that the bottom ( 6 ) comprises, in an area that is in front in the driving direction, a bottom portion ( 17 ) that is swiveling about a transverse axis ( 18 ) by means of an actuating means ( 19 ) between a raised driving position and a downwards inclined rescue position.  
     
     
         14 . A device as claimed in  claim 13 , characterized in that, in the area of the swiveling bottom portion ( 17 ), the second bottom portion ( 5 ) is connected with the rising bow area of the two tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ), forming in each case a fold ( 5   a ) that permits the swiveling movement.  
     
     
         15 . A device as claimed in any of  claims 1  to  3 , characterized in that at least one gliding skid ( 38 ,  39 ,  40 ) which improves the lateral stability during driving is disposed on at least one selected longitudinal section of each of the two parallel tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ).  
     
     
         16 . A device as claimed in  claim 15 , characterized in that sections of the skids ( 38  to  40 ) are held on the tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) in especially resilient mounts ( 36 ,  37 ;  41 ,  44 ) which are fixedly attached to the tube bodies by tension forces alone that are created in the cover of the tube bodies by means of the inflation of the tube bodies.  
     
     
         17 . A device as claimed in any of  claims 1  to  3 , characterized in that the two ends of the tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) are connected to each other by an approximately upright stem plate (H), on the outside of which holds for optionally attachable or optionally lowerable support wheels ( 61  to  66 ) are provided at a distance from the longitudinal central line of the locomotive device.  
     
     
         18 . A device as claimed in  claim 8 , wherein assembly means engage in the U-shaped portion of the rod section in order to firmly connect the bottom ( 6 ) to said rod section.  
     
     
         19 . A device as claimed in claims  1 ,  2  or  3 , wherein a retainer is provided in the bow area, which points towards the underside, for engaging a lever guided on a wheel, which comprises an upwards projecting nose portion for engagement into the groove and for the one-sided lifting of the vehicle in order to be able to guide it by hand on at least one support wheel ( 62 ) that is disposed at the stern together with the lever arm provided with the wheel.  
     
     
         20 . A device as claimed in claims  1 ,  2 , or  3 , wherein the weakly resiliently stiff or substantially rigid first bottom ( 6 ) has a stiffness in the transverse direction between the tube bodies, which is greater than its stiffness in the longitudinal direction.  
     
     
         21 . An engine-driven device for locomotion on water and ice surfaces, comprising a main body which is designed in catamaran-like fashion in the inflated condition of at least two parallel, spaced and inflatable or deflatable first tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ), in which device 
 a. a weakly resiliently stiff or substantially rigid first bottom ( 6 ) is clampable or clamped between the inflated tube bodies and at a first distance (a, a 1 ) from the tube body undersides ( 4 ), but at a second distance (b) below a plane of the diameter centers of the tube bodies;    b. a flexible second bottom ( 5 ), in particular made of the material of the tube bodies or a corresponding material, is disposed below the first bottom ( 6 ) and is firmly connected, in particular glued, to the parallel inflated tube bodies near the clamping positions of the first bottom ( 6 );    c. the two inflated tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) or a tube body portion which connects their bow side ends to each other and is arcuate in inflated condition form a slide-on slope, which rises towards the front, for transition from a water surface to an ice surface and vice versa;    d. flexible gliding strips ( 7 ) of wear-resistant material are provided directly on the underside surface of each of the first tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ).    
     
     
         22 . A device as claimed in  claim 21 , wherein the weakly resiliently stiff or substantially rigid first bottom ( 6 ) has a stiffness in transverse direction between the tube bodies ( 1 ,  2 ) which is greater than its stiffness in longitudinal direction.