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Boat lift winch drive unit

Boat lift winch drive unit description/claims

This application is a non-provisional application of Application No. 60/972,864, filed Sep. 17, 2007 and claims priority from that application which is also deemed incorporated by reference in its entirety in this application.

Not applicable

I. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to a power assist system for operating a conventional boat lift or hoist system that includes a manual, wheel-operated winch. More particularly, the present invention concerns a convenient power assist system that may be selectively employed to operate directly on a manually-operated wheel of such a system.

II. Related Art

Boat lift or hoist devices have been extensively used in private boat slips in which fishing boats, pontoon boats and other types of boats generally owned by individuals are raised and supported when not in use. Typically, a boat lift includes four spaced upright corner posts and a vertically movable platform which is suspended from the posts. A manual mechanism is provided for raising and lowering the platform using a gear reduction and winch system which is operated by a manual crank normally in the form of a rotatable wheel. The wheel typically has the appearance of a steering wheel and may be 3 to 4 feet in diameter for increased leverage.

There are also boat lifts with power drives available which typically run on a.c. house current which are operable generally from switches accessed from a dock. There have been attempts to apply power to assist the rotation of circular boat hoist winch-operating wheels of manual boat lift systems. They include devices disclosed in Stenson (U.S. Pat. No. 4,954,011) and Godbersen (U.S. Pat. No. 5,287,821). These devices, however, operate by friction against the wheel and are subject to slippage and wear. In addition, those devices employ rather complicated mechanical systems in order to apply and keep pressure between a drive wheel and the boat hoist wheel.

Accordingly, there remains a need for a simple mechanical system to selectively provide a power assist for operating a conventional boat lift operated by a manual wheel-operated mechanical winch system. It would be a further advantage if the system did not rely on a friction drive.

By means of the present invention, there is provided a convenient power assist system for operating conventional boat lifts or other devices which have manual wheel-operated mechanical winch lift systems or hoists. The system of the invention is designed to directly address and turn a mechanical wheel of such a system using spokes of the wheel.

One embodiment includes a reversing electric motor and an elongate tool or drive arm mounted to be rotated by the motor shaft. The drive arm further includes spaced sets of spaced tine members attached to the drive arm generally toward the ends thereof and extending away from the motor. In this manner, when the motor carrying the drive arm is selectively advanced toward a manually-operated boat lift or winch wheel, it is designed to be aligned with wheel spoke members or the like so that the sets of tines straddle the spokes and enable the drive arm to positively rotate the wheel in either direction without the need for a friction drive.

The power assist system is carried by a support structure which is designed to be carried, in turn, by a post or support leg which may also support the wheel of the boat lift or hoist to be driven. The power assist system of the invention includes a support structure assembly removably secured to the wheel support post, preferably by a clamping assembly. The support structure assembly includes a plurality of tubular members in securable, sliding relation to each other, which enables the motor position to be adjusted and fixed in relation to the center of the wheel to be driven regardless of its height or whether it is located to the right or left of the support post or leg. In addition, the motor is mounted in a manner that allows a motor support member to be moved toward or away from the wheel to be driven so that the tines of the power assist unit can selectively engage or be disengaged from the wheel to be driven easily as desired.

The power assist system of the invention is preferably energized by a conventional 12 volt storage battery such as an automobile battery that can occasionally be recharged as needed. The battery is preferably carried in a battery frame of the same size, possibly a 24 inch frame or the like, which may be mounted to a member of the support structure assembly or to the boat lift frame itself. A sealed battery box may also be used with a mounting plate. The battery is, in turn, connected to the motor which may be any heavy duty, weather sealed direct current motor having sufficient output torque to operate the wheel which already is connected to the lift through a gear reduction system in connection with manual operation. An example of one such motor is a 1500 pound 12 volt DC electric ATV Sport Winch motor obtainable from Master Lock Company LLC of Oak Creek, Wis.

In addition, the system may be controlled as by using an attached remote control rocker switch connected to the motor and battery which may be stored on the power assist unit as by using hook and loop strips so it can be conveniently removed and the boat lift operated from either the boat or the dock. In addition, a “hands off” operating system may also be included as an optional means of controlling the system.

• Provisional Patent
• Utility Patent

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