Inflatable vehicle braking system

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of braking systems, and more particularly to a braking system for an inflatable vehicle.

2. Description of Related Art

Inflatable snow vehicles currently available are designed to be towed behind a powered vehicle such as a snowmobile, and to simply coast down a snow-covered incline by the force of gravity. None of these vehicles, however, employ a braking system for reducing the speed of the vehicle, or alternatively, to selectively steer the vehicle by applying a braking force to one side or the other of the vehicle.

As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need for a braking system for an inflatable vehicle, and the provision of such a device is a stated objective of the present invention.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly stated, a braking system for an inflatable vehicle, including a rigid housing attached to the deck of the vehicle and a braking lever pivotally attached to the housing. The lever is frictionally held in an inactivated position where the drag arm forming the lower portion of the lever is positioned above the lower panel of the deck. When the hand grip that forms the upper portion of the lever is pulled up, it overcomes the frictional force and moves the drag arm down below the lower panel of the deck to provide a braking force. In one embodiment, the brake system housing is matingly received and frictionally secured in an open cavity extending between the top and bottom panels of the deck. In another embodiment, the top and bottom panels of the deck are sealingly attached to the housing. A pair of housings with associated braking levers may be transversely spaced on the deck to provide braking and selective steering of the inflatable vehicle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other attributes of the invention will become more clear upon a thorough study of the following description of the best mode for carrying out the invention, particularly when reviewed in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1

is a perspective view of an inflatable snow vehicle employing the braking system of the present invention;

FIG. 2

is an enlarged cut away perspective view of the braking system installed in a sealed cavity of the inflatable deck of a snow vehicle;

FIG. 3

is an enlarged cut away perspective view of an alternate embodiment wherein the braking system is installed between the top and bottom panels of the inflatable deck of a snow vehicle; and

FIG. 4

is a sectional view taken along line

4

—

4

of

FIG. 2

with a broken line illustrating the braking lever moved to the activated position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As can be seen by reference to the drawings, and in particular to

FIG. 1

, the braking system that forms the basis of the present invention is designated generally by the reference number

10

. The braking system

10

, as illustrated in

FIG. 1

, includes a pair of rigid housings

20

and associated braking levers

40

transversely spaced on the deck

60

of an inflatable vehicle

100

. As best shown in

FIGS. 2 and 3

, the deck

60

is formed of PVC or other suitable material and has a top panel

62

and bottom panel

64

.

In the

FIG. 2

embodiment, the housing

20

is matingly received and frictionally secured in an open cavity

70

formed by a web

66

of PVC extending between the top and bottom panels

62

and

64

. The housing

20

is positioned in the cavity

70

when the deck

60

is partially inflated through valve

80

. When the deck

60

is fully inflated, the. housing

20

is frictionally secured in the cavity

70

with top and bottom flanges

22

and

24

of the housing engaging the top and bottom panels

62

and

64

as illustrated.

In the

FIG. 3

embodiment, the top flange

22

of the housing

20

is sealingly attached to the top panel

62

of the deck

60

, and the bottom flange

24

is sealingly attached to the bottom panel

64

such that the housing

20

itself forms part of the air chamber that is inflated.

As best shown in

FIG. 4

, the braking lever

40

has an upper portion forming a hand grip

42

and a lower portion forming a drag arm

44

.

The lever

40

is pivotally attached to the housing

20

by pin

26

and is selectively movable between the inactivated position shown in full line and the braking position shown in dashed line. In the inactivated position, the drag arm

44

is above the bottom flange

24

of the housing

20

and therefore above the bottom panel

64

of the deck

60

. The lever

40

is held in this inactivated position by frictional engagement of a spur

46

on the lever

40

with an indentation

26

in the housing

20

. Upward force applied to the hand grip

42

overcomes this frictional engagement and moves the lever

40

to the braking position as shown in dashed line where the drag arm extends below the bottom panel

64

of the deck to provide a braking force that slows the vehicle

100

. When a pair of transversely spaced housings

20

with associated levers

40

are provided as illustrated in

FIG. 1

, uneven application of braking force can be used to selectively steer the vehicle

100

.

Although only an exemplary embodiment of the invention has been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the following claims.

Having thereby described the subject matter of the present invention, it should be apparent that many substitutions, modifications, and variations of the invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that the invention as taught and described herein is only to be limited to the extent of the breadth and scope of the appended claims.