Launch and lift apparatus

摘要

The kayak launch and lift apparatus, hence forth referred as the launch and lift, disclosed herein will enable the user to easily board and disembark from a kayak, a canoe or other small watercraft without many of the problems associated with existing devices. The present invention has the advantages of providing a means to stabilize the kayak, while the user is either boarding or disembarking from the kayak from a stationary dock or a sea wall. The launch and lift is made of aluminum and consists of: a pair dock loop grab rails that are bolted to the dock or sea wall, a slidable ladder, a pair of cradles that are attached to the bottom step of the ladder, a pair of bunks to support the kayak on the cradles, an additional outer grab rail that is used when boarding or disembarking from the kayak at the water level, and, a brake winch and stainless steel cable, that is used to raise or lower the kayak from or to the water level. As the water level changes due to changes in the tide or rain fall, the cradle is raised or lowered to accommodate the changes in water levels by means of a brake winch and cable. The brake winch is mounted on a platform attached to the dock grab rail and a stainless steel cable is attached to the spool of the brake winch, traverses two pulley systems welded to the side rail adjacent to the bottom step of the slidable ladder. An additional advantage of the kayak launch and lift is that it also serves as a storage device for the kayak, thus eliminating the need to store the kayak away from the launch site.

主权项

1. A launch and lift apparatus mounted on a dock or sea wall to facilitate the boarding onto, launching and disembarking from a kayak comprising:
a pair of loop grab rails anchored to a dock or sea wall; a guide member welded onto each loop grab rail; a slidable ladder comprising a pair of ladder side rails with a slot extending the length of a rear surface of a ladder side rails with the slidable ladder being attached to the loop grab rail by means of a guide member; a brake winch assembly to raise or lower the kayak and the brake winch assembly is mounted onto a platform that is welded to one of the loop grab rails; a stainless steel cable attached to the brake winch assembly at one end and traverses through a pulley system mounted on the slidable ladder and is fastened to a distal end of one of the rails ladder side; a pair of support cradles attached to the slidable ladder; a pair of support bunks attached to the support cradles, and an outer grab rail for additional stability when boarding onto or disembarking from the kayak.