Kit for Installing Hydrofoils on a Boat, in Particular on a Wind-Propelled Boat, and Method for Installing Such a Kit on Such a Boat

The invention relates to the field of submerged hydrofoils fitted on boats.

The invention thus relates more specifically to a kit for installing hydrofoils on a boat and a method for installing such a kit.

While boats equipped with hydrofoils, or hydrofoil boats, are becoming more widely available and increasing in number, it would nevertheless be advantageous to facilitate the recycling of existing boats by providing kits for installing hydrofoils to allow them to be converted.

“Hydrofoil” or “hydrofoils” should be understood, above and in the rest of this document, to be a profiled element for providing a lift force to the boat on which it is fitted, such elements also being known as “lifting wings” or “lifting surfaces” or “foils” and being fitted on hydrofoil boats.

Although such installation kits do exist, they generally have the disadvantage of being suitable for only one model of boat and it is necessary to adapt them extensively to be able to fit them on another type of boat.

It would therefore be advantageous to provide a “universal” installation kit that can easily be adapted according to the boat on which it is to be fitted.

The invention aims to overcome the above disadvantage and thus aims to provide a kit for installing hydrofoils which can easily be adapted to the boat on which it is to be fitted.

To this end, the invention relates to a kit for installing hydrofoils for a boat, in particular a wind-powered boat, the boat comprising at least one structural element, the kit for installing hydrofoils comprising:

With such a kit for installing hydrofoils, only the adapter part has to be adapted to the boat. To be specific, since this part provides a reference plane along which the plate and therefore the hydrofoil arms may be installed, it is possible to provide one or more plates and hydrofoil arms adapted to the type of boat to enable it to be equipped. This means that it is possible to provide a universal support kit with only the adapter part(s) needing to be adapted to the boat to be equipped.

The boat comprises at least two hulls connected to one another by at least one connecting arm, said at least one connecting arm forming the structural element, the adapter part preferably having a longitudinal housing shaped to receive a portion of the connecting arm forming the support element.

Such installation of the elements of the kit on a connecting arm of a multihull boat is particularly suitable since it ensures stable orientation of the hydrofoil arms with respect to the hulls of the boat.

According to a possibility not included in the scope of the present invention, the boat may be monohull and comprise a deck and a hull, the structural element comprising at least the deck of the boat, the adapter part having a bearing surface complementary to a portion of the deck of the boat on which it is intended to bear, one out of the adapter part and the plate preferably comprising a strap passage to allow the passage of a strap surrounding the hull in order to attach the support block to the deck.

In this way, according to a possibility not included in the scope of the present invention, the adapter part makes it possible to provide a reference plane which is, owing to the complementary shape with respect to a portion of the deck, perfectly defined with respect to the hull.

Each hydrofoil arm may be mounted on the corresponding plate using at least a first and a second ball joint arranged on either side of said hydrofoil arm with at least one of the first and the second ball joints mounted movably in translation relative to the plate.

The first and second ball joints for each hydrofoil arm may both be movable in translation relative to the plate.

The kit for installing hydrofoils may comprise, for each hydrofoil arm, an adjustment system comprising two gears meshed together and rotating as one with the first and second ball joints, respectively.

The first and second ball joints may equip an end of the hydrofoil arm which has no hydrofoil, together defining an axis of pivoting of the hydrofoil arm with respect to the structural element, and wherein there is further provided an complementary support for the hydrofoil arm on the boat on which the hydrofoil arm is mounted by means of a removable sliding pivot connection such as that provided by a strap.

These ball joints associated with the various configurations listed above allow easy adjustment of the orientation of the hydrofoil arms and the hydrofoils they comprise.

The kit for installing hydrofoils may further comprise at least one rudder blade having an additional hydrofoil, preferably a T-shaped hydrofoil.

Such a rudder blade equipped with a hydrofoil makes it possible to add lift to the kit according to the invention and therefore makes it possible to provide a particularly optimized conversion of the boat to a hydrofoil boat.

The kit for installing hydrofoils may further comprise a mounting system for mounting the at least one rudder blade on the boat, the mounting system comprising:

With such a mounting system, there is less risk of damage to the rudder blade compared to rudder blades mounted with a mounting system according to the prior art.

The invention further relates to a method for equipping a boat with a kit for installing hydrofoils according to the invention, the boat comprising at least one structural element, the equipping method comprising the following steps:

Such a method makes it possible to install a kit according to the invention and to obtain the associated advantages.

Identical, similar or equivalent parts in the various figures bear the same numerical references so as to make it easier to switch from one figure to another.

The various parts depicted in the figures are not necessarily shown on the same scale, in order to make the figures easier to read.

The various possibilities (variants and embodiments) must be understood as not being mutually exclusive and may be combined with one another.

depict a boat, in this case a catamaran, equipped with a kit for installing hydrofoils,,,according to the invention so that it forms a hydrofoil boat.

It will of course be noted that although, in the context of the present embodiment, the kit for installing hydrofoils,,,is fitted on a catamaran-type boat, it may be adapted for other types of boats, such as a trimaran, as will be shown in the embodiments below.

Note that according to a possibility which is not included in the scope of the present invention and which is described below in this document, it is possible to adapt the kit for installing hydrofoils for monohull boats.

The boatcomprises a structural element, in this case one of the connecting arms,, on which a portion of the kit for installing hydrofoils,,,is installed.

A kit for installing hydrofoils,,,according to the present embodiment comprises, as shown in:

Note that, according to an advantageous and optional possibility of the invention, shown in, the kit for installing hydrofoils may further comprise a control systemcapable of communicating with a motorized configuration modification system, not shown, and controlling said system to adapt the arrangement of the hydrofoil arms,. It will nevertheless be noted that, in a usual configuration of the invention, the arrangement of the hydrofoil arms,is adjusted manually by a member of the crew of the boat.

The support block,comprises, as shown in:

As shown in, in the present embodiment, two adapter partsA,B are provided, consisting of two half-shells sandwiching the structural element, in other words the connecting arm. The first adapter partA, the “top” part, has an L shape, while the second adapter partB, the “bottom” part, has a U shape in order to best accommodate the lower part of the connecting arm. Such a structure allows the adapter partsA,B, according to the shape of the portion of the connecting armwhich they house, to provide a reference plane, with respect to the waterline of the boat, for the plateand therefore the hydrofoil armwhich is mounted on the plate. As shown in, the U shape of the second adapter partB forms a housing such that it is placed stably on the connecting arm, as is the first adapter partA. Note that the surface of the first adapter partA facing away from the deck of the boat defines the reference plane.

Each of the first and second adapter parts is preferably made of a rigid material such as a thermoplastic, a composite, or wood.

It will of course be noted that, although in the present embodiment said surface of the first adapter partA physically constitutes the reference plane, it may be that this plane does not take any physical form, since by providing a bearing surface, not necessarily flat, the adapter part(s)A,B make it possible to ensure the orientation of the plate, and therefore of the hydrofoil arm, with respect to the waterline of the boat.

According to one possibility of the invention shown in, the first adapter partA may have a recess in order to allow the placement of an adjustment systemfor adjusting the orientation of the hydrofoil armon the plate, said adjustment systemcomprising a gear assembly in order to allow a height adjustment of the ball joint(s),, shown in.

In accordance with, in the present embodiment, the platehas a shape complementary to the adapter partsA,B. Thus, the platehas a U shape with the two branches of the U defining a housing shaped to receive the adapter partsA,B. The plateis attached to the adapter partsA,B by elastic interlocking and by translation along the axis of the connecting arm of the boat. The platethus ensures that the adapter partsA,B are firmly attached to the connecting arm. It will of course be noted that such elastic interlocking is only one example of mounting of the plateon the adapter parts; any other mounting, such as screwing, riveting or welding, may be envisaged. It should nevertheless be noted that within the framework of the invention, removable mounting is to be preferred.

Each plate is preferably made of a rigid material such as thermoplastic, composite, wood, or metal, and in particular stainless steel.

Each hydrofoil arm,comprises, as shown in, an attachment arm,by means of which the hydrofoil arm,is mounted on the plate, and a hydrofoil,as such which, being attached to one end of the attachment arm,, is intended to be at least partially submerged. The hydrofoil,is profiled in such a way as to provide a lift force when the boatmoves. Of course, although in the present embodiment the support arm,and the hydrofoil,are distinct from one another, it may be envisaged providing a hydrofoil arm,in one piece, the support arm,and the hydrofoil,then being integral with one another.

Each hydrofoil arm,may be mounted on the corresponding plateusing at least two ball joints,,. In this first embodiment, as shown in, each hydrofoil arm,is mounted on the corresponding plateusing first and second ball joints,located on either side of the hydrofoil arm in order to define a first pivot connection and another ball jointwhich is arranged at an end of the hydrofoil arm,which has no hydrofoil,, with a lateral offset to define a second pivot connection with the second ball joint. The first ball jointis mounted movably in translation relative to the platein order to allow adjustment of the “height” of the first ball joint. In this way, an adjustment of its height, using the adjustment system, allows the hydrofoil arm,to pivot about the second pivot connection and thus to adjust the orientation of the hydrofoils with respect to the connecting armand therefore to the boat. Note that, according to one possibility of the invention, the third ball jointmay be removable in such a way as to allow the hydrofoil arm to pivot about an axis defined by the first and second ball joints,when it is detached from the third ball joint.

As also shown in, a complementary supportmay be provided, for example arranged on a deck of the boat, in order to provide a supplementary attachment point for the hydrofoil arm,. According to this possibility, the hydrofoil arm,may be attached to this complementary supportusing a sliding pivot connection as provided, for example and as shown in, using a strapA attaching the hydrofoil arm,to said complementary support.

As shown in, the kit for installing hydrofoils,,,according to the present embodiment also comprises two rudder blades,each equipped with a T-shaped hydrofoil,. In order to allow the boatto be maneuvered, each of the rudder blades is extended by a bar,which is respective to it.

According to one possibility of the invention shown in, each rudder blade,is mounted on a respective hull,of the boat, and more precisely on the transom of said hulls,, by means of a mounting system. The mounting systemcomprises an intermediate partattached to the transom, and a first and a second mounting element,by means of which the rudder blade,is mounted on the hull,of the boat, the first and the second mounting elements,are mounted rotatably relative to the intermediate part, and therefore to the hull of the boat, about a rudder axis which they share. The second mounting elementis arranged along the rudder axis below the first mounting elementwhen the boatis afloat.

Note that, according to the principle similar to the adapter partsA,B, the intermediate partis adapted according to the shape of the transom to be equipped. Thus, in the kit, to allow the installation of each rudder blade, only the intermediate parthas to be adapted to the boatto be equipped, and the other elements concerning the rudder blade, including in particular the first and second mounting elements,, may be standardized.

The first mounting elementhas a pivot axisA along which the rudder bladeis mounted rotatably, the pivot axisA being transverse to the rudder axis and, preferably and more precisely, substantially perpendicular to the rudder axis. More specifically, the first elementhas, on a first portion, a through hole through which the rudder axis (rudder stock or pintle, depending on the rudder blade configuration, as discussed below) passes and, on a second portion, two other holes through which the pivot axisA passes. The pivot axisA is transverse to the rudder axis.

The second mounting elementis assembled to one out of the rudder bladeand the hull(through the intermediate part), in this case the rudder blade, by elastic interlocking. Of course, according to a variant that has not been shown, the mounting elementmay be assembled to the intermediate part, therefore the hull, by elastic snap-fastening, this elastic snap-fastening then also making it possible to provide rotatable mounting about the rudder axis. To allow such elastic mounting, the second mounting elementhas, on a first portion, a through hole through which the rudder axis passes and, on a second portion, two arms each having a cantilevered tab, the arms together defining a receiving space for a rudder blade attachment memberpreferably having a tapered face.

Note that while the first and second mounting elements,are provided in the form of two independent parts, it may also be envisaged, without departing from the scope of the invention, for the first and second mounting elements,to be provided in the form of a single part. Similarly, while the first and second elements,are mounted, in the present embodiment, pivoting about the rudder axis forming the rudder stock, it is also possible for the first and second elements,to be mounted on the intermediate part, or even the hull, by means of a respective pintle, the first and second elements then each forming a gudgeon.

According to a possibility that has not been shown, the first elementmay be removably mounted on the hull, by making the first elementfree to pivot about the pivot axisA and to disengage from the rudder axis, or rudder stock. In this way, when the user wishes to remove the rudder blade in order to put it away, they may disengage the first element and release the second element from its elastic interlocking attachment so as to separate the rudder blade,from the hull,.