WO2022109005A1

WO2022109005A1 - Wake enhancing boat hull

Info

Publication number: WO2022109005A1
Application number: PCT/US2021/059684
Authority: WO
Inventors: Darren SHEEDY; Daniel Vieira
Original assignee: Montara Inc.
Priority date: 2020-11-17
Filing date: 2021-11-17
Publication date: 2022-05-27
Also published as: US20220153391A1

Abstract

A wake enhancing boat hull comprises a hull comprising a bow portion at a first end, a port hull side portion, a starboard hull side portion, and an underside hull portion, a transom connected to the hull portion at a second end of the hull, a port wake enhancing section positioned between the port hull side portion and the transom, configured to guide water to enhance the wake produced by the boat hull, and a starboard wake enhancing section positioned between the starboard hull side portion and the transom, configured to guide water to enhance the wake produced by the boat hull. Methods of production and use are also disclosed.

Description

WAKE ENHANCING BOAT HULL

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. provisional application No. 63/114,849 filed on November 17, 2020, and to U.S. provisional application No. 63/169,293 filed on April 1 , 2021 , each incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Boat hulls with enhanced wake production are becoming popular due to increased interest in wake sports and tow sports such as wakeboarding, waterskiing, and especially wakesurfing. Boats designed for these sports can utilize various mechanisms such as ballast tanks, wake shaping tabs and trim tabs to produce larger and less turbulent wakes to provide for more enjoyable wake and tow sport activities. However, these various mechanisms have drawbacks such as decreased fuel efficiency and decreased boat handling characteristics when these mechanisms are in use. Additionally, these mechanisms increase complexity and maintenance of the boat system as a whole. Thus, there is a need in the art for improvements for boats providing enhanced wake production. SUMMARY

[0003] Some embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are set forth below, and any combination of these embodiments (or portions thereof) may be made to define another embodiment.

[0004] In one aspect, a wake enhancing boat hull comprises a hull comprising a bow portion at a first end, a port hull side portion, a starboard hull side portion, and an underside hull portion, a transom connected to the hull portion at a second end of the hull, a port wake enhancing section positioned between the port hull side portion and the transom, configured to guide water to enhance the wake produced by the boat hull, and a starboard wake enhancing section positioned between the starboard hull side portion and the transom, configured to guide water to enhance the wake produced by the boat hull.

[0005] In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections include a plurality of surfaces. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are chamfered geometries. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are multifaceted recesses. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are multifaceted geometries. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are curves of variable radiuses. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are curves of a constant radius. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections comprise a concave surface. In one embodiment, wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections comprise a convex surface. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are multifaceted chamfers. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections comprise a general shape selected from a chamfered geometry, a multifaceted recess, a multifaceted geometry, a radiused geometry, a curve of variable radius, a curve of constant radius, a concave geometry, a convex geometry, or a multifaceted chamfer. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections comprise a combination of at least two general shapes selected from a chamfered geometry, a multifaceted recess, a multifaceted geometry, a radiused geometry, a curve of variable radius, a curve of constant radius, a concave geometry, a convex geometry, and a multifaceted chamfer. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections include a lower face and an upper face.

[0006] In one embodiment, the upper face of each wake enhancing section is at an angle relative to the lower face of each wake enhancing section in the range of 30 to 270 degrees. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a first direction, wherein the forwardmost portion of each wake enhancing section is farther from the centerline than the rearmost portion of each wake enhancing section. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a second direction, wherein the topmost portion of each wake enhancing section is farther from the centerline than the bottommost portion of each wake enhancing section.

[0007] In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a first direction, wherein the forwardmost portion of each wake enhancing section is farther from the centerline than the rearmost portion of each wake enhancing section, and the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a second direction, wherein the topmost portion of each wake enhancing section is farther from the centerline than the bottommost portion of each wake enhancing section.

[0008] In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a first direction at an angle in the range of 0 to 90 degrees. In one embodiment, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a second direction at an angle in the range of 0 to 90 degrees. In one embodiment, the length of the port and starboard wake enhancing sections begin in the range of 1 to 100 inches in front of the transom and extend to the transom. In one embodiment, the length of the port and starboard wake enhancing sections begin in the range of 1 to 100 inches in above the underside portion and extend to the underside portion. In one embodiment, an edge located at the intersection between the transom and the port wake enhancing section includes a radius, and an edge located at the intersection between the transom and the starboard wake enhancing section includes a radius.

[0009] In another aspect, a wake enhancing boat hull production method comprises providing the wake enhancing boat hull as described above as a design, and manufacturing the wake enhancing boat hull based on the design. [0010] In one embodiment, the boat hull is manufactured from at least one material selected from a group consisting of aluminum, steel, fiberglass, wood, carbon fiber, composite, and plastic.

[0011] In another aspect, a wake enhancing method comprises providing the wake enhancing boat hull as described above, and propelling the wake enhancing boat hull via a propulsion system through water to create an enhanced wake.

[0012] In one embodiment, the wake is enhanced for at least one of a wake sport and a tow sport. In one embodiment, the at least one of a wake sport and a tow sport is at least one of wakesurfing, wakeboarding, wakeskating, waterskiing, slalom skiing, barefoot skiing, trick skiing, knee boarding, tubing, aquaplaning, skurfing, and hydrofoiling. In one embodiment, the propulsion system is at least one of an outboard motor with a propeller, and inboard motor with a propeller, an inboard-outboard motor with a propeller, an outboard motor with a jet, an inboard motor with a jet, an inboard- outboard motor with a jet, and a sail. In one embodiment, the propulsion system is at least one of a gasoline powered propulsion device, a diesel powered propulsion device, an electric powered propulsion device, and a wind powered propulsion device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] The foregoing purposes and features, as well as other purposes and features, will become apparent with reference to the description and accompanying figures below, which are included to provide an understanding of the invention and constitute a part of the specification, in which like numerals represent like elements, and in which: [0014] Figure 1 is a first isometric view of a wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0015] Figure 2 is a second isometric view of the wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0016] Figure 3 is a first enlarged view of a wake enhancing section of the wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0017] Figure 4 is a second enlarged view of a wake enhancing section of the wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0018] Figure 5 is a third enlarged view of a wake enhancing section of the wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0019] Figure 6 is a fourth enlarged view of a wake enhancing section of the wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0020] Figure 7 is an image of an example wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0021 ] Figure 8 is an image of an example wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0022] Figure 9 is an image of an example wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0023] Figure 10 is an image of an example wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments. [0024] Figure 11 is an image of an example wake enhancing boat hull in accordance with some embodiments.

[0025] Figure 12 depicts a top-down view of a wake comparison study comparing the wake produced from boat hulls with and without a wake enhancing section in accordance with some embodiments.

[0026] Figure 13 depicts an enlarged top-down view of the comparison study comparing the wake produced from boat hulls with and without a wake enhancing section in accordance with some embodiments.

[0027] Figure 14 depicts a side view of the comparison study comparing the wake produced from boat hulls with and without a wake enhancing section in accordance with some embodiments.

[0028] Figure 15 depicts an enlarged side view of the comparison study comparing the wake produced from boat hulls with and without a wake enhancing section in accordance with some embodiments.

[0029] Figure 16 depicts a front to rear side perspective view an enhanced wake and a standard wake produced in a simulated wake comparison study in accordance with some embodiments.

[0030] Figure 17 depicts an overlaid front to rear side perspective view of the wake comparison study in accordance with some embodiments.

[0031 ] Figure 18 depicts a rear to front side perspective view of a wake in a simulated comparison study in accordance with some embodiments. [0032] Figure 19 depicts an overhead perspective view of the wake comparison study in accordance with some embodiments.

[0033] Figure 20 depicts an overhead perspective view of the wake comparison study in accordance with some embodiments.

[0034] Figure 21 depicts an overhead view of the wake comparison study in accordance with some embodiments.

[0035] Figure 22 depicts stem (rear) view of the wake comparison study in accordance with some embodiments.

[0036] Figure 23 shows a side view of images comparing the wake produced by a boat hull with and without a wake enhancing section in accordance with some embodiments.

[0037] Figure 24 shows a front to rear view of images comparing the wake produced by a boat hull with and without a wake enhancing section in accordance with some embodiments.

[0038] Figure 25 shows a front to rear view of images comparing the wake produced by a boat hull with and without a wake enhancing section in accordance with some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0039] It is to be understood that the figures and descriptions of the present invention have been simplified to illustrate elements that are relevant for a clearer comprehension of the present invention, while eliminating, for the purpose of clarity, many other elements found in systems and methods of a wake enhancing boat hull. Those of ordinary skill in the art may recognize that other elements and/or steps are desirable and/or required in implementing the present invention. However, because such elements and steps are well known in the art, and because they do not facilitate a better understanding of the present invention, a discussion of such elements and steps is not provided herein. The disclosure herein is directed to all such variations and modifications to such elements and methods known to those skilled in the art.

[0040] Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Although any methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the present invention, the preferred methods and materials are described.

[0041] As used herein, each of the following terms has the meaning associated with it in this section.

[0042] The articles “a” and “an” are used herein to refer to one or to more than one (/.e., to at least one) of the grammatical object of the article. By way of example, “an element” means one element or more than one element.

[0043] “About” as used herein when referring to a measurable value such as an amount, a temporal duration, and the like, is meant to encompass variations of ±20%, ±10%, ±5%, ±1 %, and ±0.1% from the specified value, as such variations are appropriate. [0044] Ranges: throughout this disclosure, various aspects of the invention can be presented in a range format. It should be understood that the description in range format is merely for convenience and brevity and should not be construed as an inflexible limitation on the scope of the invention. Where appropriate, the description of a range should be considered to have specifically disclosed all the possible subranges as well as individual numerical values within that range. For example, description of a range such as from 1 to 6 should be considered to have specifically disclosed subranges such as from 1 to 3, from 1 to 4, from 1 to 5, from 2 to 4, from 2 to 6, from 3 to 6 etc., as well as individual numbers within that range, for example, 1 , 2, 2.7, 3, 4, 5, 5.3, and 6. This applies regardless of the breadth of the range.

[0045] Referring now in detail to the drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate like parts or elements throughout the several views, in various embodiments, presented herein is a wake enhancing boat hull and related methods.

[0046] Figures 1 -6 depict various views of example embodiments of a wake enhancing boat hull 100. The wake enhancing boat hull 100 comprises a hull comprising a bow portion 101 at a first end (fore), a port (left) hull side portion 102, a starboard (right) hull side portion 103, and an underside hull portion 104. A transom 105 is connected to the hull 100 at a second end (aft) of the hull 100. The boat hull 100 also includes a port wake enhancing section 106’ and starboard wake enhancing section 106 (collectively referenced to as 106). The wake enhancing sections 106 can include a plurality of surfaces, and are positioned between the port or starboard hull side (102, 103) portions and the transom 105. The wake enhancing sections 106 are configured to guide water when the boat hull 100 is moving to enhance the wake produced by the boat hull 100 by reducing turbulent flow coming from the intersection of the port hull side

102, the starboard hull side 103, and the underside 104 with the transom 105. The water is guided to converge at a location that increases the quality of the wake. In some embodiments, the location where the guided water converges, and thus the wake characteristics, are further tunable with additional mechanisms including, for example, changing boat speed, changing boat ballast, altering trim tab positions, or any other similar mechanisms or combinations thereof.

[0047] The boat hull 100 includes wake enhancing sections 106 positioned between each boat hull side (102, 103) and the transom 105. Figures 1-2 show isometric views from multiple angles of the boat hull 100. Figures 3-5 show enlarged views from multiple angles of an example embodiment of the starboard side wake enhancing section 106. Figure 6 shows an additional example embodiment of the starboard side wake enhancing section 106 with a modified geometry. The embodiments shown in Figures 1-6 are merely examples, and other geometries and designs for the wake enhancing section 106 can be utilized.

[0048] In some embodiments, the wake enhancing section 106 is a multifaceted chamfer including a lower face 110 and an upper face 115. Geometries that can be utilized for the wake enhancing section 106 can comprise general shapes including, but not limited to, chamfered geometries, multifaceted recesses, multifaceted geometries, radiused geometries including constant radius curves and variable radius curves, concave geometries, convex geometries, multifaceted chamfers, or any other suitable geometry or recess, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, an edge positioned at the intersection of the transom 105 and the wake enhancing section 106 includes a radius 107 configured to further enhance the wake production by reducing turbulent flow.

[0049] A centerline of the boat hull runs from the center of the bow portion to the center of the transom. In some embodiments, such as those shown in Figures 1-6, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections (106’, 106) are mirrored geometries, wherein the geometry of the port wake enhancing section 106’ is a mirror image of the geometry of the starboard wake enhancing section 106, as mirrored across the centerline of the boat hull 100. In some embodiments, the port and starboard wake enhancing sections (106’, 106) comprise different geometries.

[0050] Points 120, 125, 130, 135, 145 and 150 are reference points to help aid in explanation. The lower face 110 is on a plane defined by points 125, 150, 135, 140 and 145. The upper face 115 is on a plane defined by points 120, 125, and 140. The boat hull side (the starboard hull side 103 as shown in Figures 3-6) is on a plane defined by points 120, 125, and 130 and in some embodiments is approximately vertical. The transom 105 is on a plane defined by points 120, 135, 140 and 145. A horizontal plane is defined by points 120, 125 and 145. In some embodiments, the lower face 110 is a quadrilateral, and the upper face 115 is triangular.

[0051] In some embodiments the lower face 110 is angled inward toward the centerline of the boat hull 100 in a first direction, where the forwardmost portion (defined by the line between points 125 and 150) of the lower face 110 is farther from the centerline than the rearmost portion (defined by the line between points 135 and 140) of the lower face 110. In some embodiments, the angle between the lower face 110 and the plane established by the boat side hull (points 120, 125 and 130), defined as the angle created by points 120-125-145, can be from 0 to 90 degrees, 1 to 60 degrees, 2 to 45 degrees, 3 to 30 degrees, 5-15 degrees, 8 to 11 degrees, about 5 degrees, about 7 degrees, about 10 degrees, about 15 degrees, about 30 degrees, about 45 degrees, about 60 degrees, or any other suitable angle. In some embodiments, the angle between the lower face 110 and the plane established by the boat side hull (points 120, 125 and 130), defined as the angle created by points 120-125-145, is preferably about 9.75 degrees.

[0052] In some embodiments, the forwardmost portion (nearest the bow 101 ) of the lower face 110 (defined by the line between points 125 and 150) can be from 1 to 100 inches, 3 to 75 inches, 6 to 60 inches, 5 to 30 inches, 15 to 25 inches, about 6 inches, about 15 inches, about 17 inches, about 20 inches, about 30 inches, about 36 inches, or any other suitable length from the transom 105. In some embodiments, the transom 105 is angled, and thus the topmost portion (defined by the line between points 140 and 125) and the bottommost portion (defined by the line between points 135 and 150) of the lower face 110 can have different lengths from the transom 105 to the forwardmost portion of the lower face 110 (defined by the line between points 125 and 150), where each length can be from 1 to 100 inches, 3 to 75 inches, 6 to 60 inches, 5 to 30 inches, 15 to 25 inches, about 6 inches, about 15 inches, about 17 inches, about 20 inches, about 30 inches, about 36 inches, or any other suitable length. In some embodiments, the forwardmost portion (nearest the bow 101 ) of the lower face 110 (defined by the line between points 125 and 150) is preferably about 17 inches from the transom 105. [0053] In some embodiments the lower face 110 is angled inward toward the centerline of the boat hull 100 in a second direction, where the topmost portion (defined by the line between points 140 and 125) of the lower face 110 is farther from the centerline than the bottommost portion (defined by the line between points 135 and 150) of the lower face 110. In some embodiments, the angle between the lower face 110 and the plane established by the boat side hull (points 120, 125 and 130), defined as the angle created by points 130-125-150, can be from 0 to 90 degrees, 0 to 15 degrees, 1 to 15 degrees, 3 to 10 degrees, about 3 degrees, about 5 degrees, about 7 degrees, about 10 degrees, about 15 degrees, about 30 degrees, about 45 degrees, about 60 degrees or any other suitable angle. In some embodiments, the angle between the lower face 110 and the plane established by the boat side hull (points 120, 125 and 130), defined as the angle created by points 130-125-150, is preferably about 5 degrees.

[0054] In some embodiments, the topmost portion of the lower face 110 (defined by the line between points 125 and 140) can be from 1 to 100 inches, 2 to 50 inches, 5 to 40 inches, 6 to 36 inches, 6 to 20 inches, 10 to 20 inches, 20 to 40 inches, 4 to 16 inches, about 6 inches, about 13 inches, about 15 inches, about 20 inches, about 30 inches, about 36 inches, or any other suitable length from the underside 104. In some embodiments, the topmost portion of the lower face 110 (defined by the line between points 125 and 140) is preferably about 13.5 inches from the underside 104. In some embodiments, the optimal length from the underside 140 to the topmost portion of the lower face 110 (defined by the line between points 125 and 140) can be determined based on all possible weight configurations of the hull 100, and is configured to have the waterline below the topmost portion pf the lower face.

[0055] In some embodiments the lower face 110 is both angled inward toward the centerline in a first direction and angled inward toward the centerline in a second direction at the angles described above.

[0056] In some embodiments the upper face 115 is angled downwardly from the horizontal plane (defined by points 120, 125 and 145) where the topmost portion (defined by the line between points 120 and 125) of the upper face 115 is farther from the centerline than the bottommost portion (defined by the line between points 125 and 140) of the upper face 115. In some embodiments, the angle between the upper face 115 and the horizontal plane (points 120, 125 and 145), defined as the angle created by points 145-120-140, can be from -30 to 90 degrees, 15 to 75 degrees, 15 to 60 degrees, 30 to 60 degrees, 40 to 50 degrees, about 15 degrees, about 30 degrees, about 45 degrees, about 60 degrees or any other suitable angle. In some embodiments, the angle between the upper face 115 and the horizontal plane (points 120, 125 and 145), defined as the angle created by points 145-120-140, is preferably 45 degrees. The length of the upper face 115 is dependent on the lengths and angles of the lower face 110 and the transom 105.

[0057] In some embodiments, the forwardmost portion (nearest the bow 101 ) of the upper face 115 (point 125) can be from 1 to 100 inches, 3 to 75 inches, 6 to 60 inches, 5 to 30 inches, 15 to 25 inches, about 6 inches, about 15 inches, about 17 inches, about 20 inches, about 30 inches, about 36 inches, or any other suitable length from the transom 105. In some embodiments, the transom 105 is angled, and thus the topmost portion (defined by the line between points 120 and 125) and the bottommost portion (defined by the line between points 140 and 125) of the upper face 115 can have different lengths from the transom 105 to the forwardmost portion of the upper face 115 (point 125), where each length can be from 1 to 100 inches, 3 to 75 inches, 6 to 60 inches, 5 to 30 inches, 15 to 25 inches, about 6 inches, about 15 inches, about 17 inches, about 20 inches, about 30 inches, about 36 inches, or any other suitable length. In some embodiments, the forwardmost portion (nearest the bow 101) of the upper face 115 (point 125) is preferably 17 inches from the transom 105.

[0058] In some embodiments, the upper face 115 is angled relative to the lower face 110. The angle between the upper face 115 and the lower face 110, defined as the angle created by points 135-140-120, can be from 30 to 270 degrees, 60 to 240 degrees, 90 to 180 degrees, 120 to 160 degrees, about 45 degrees, about 90 degrees, about 140 degrees, about 180 degrees or any other suitable angle. In some embodiments, the angle between the upper face 115 and the lower face 110 (angle defined by points 135-140-120) is preferably about 140 degrees.

[0059] In some embodiments, the port side wake enhancing section 106’ can be described similarly as above but where the port wake enhancing section 106 is a mirror image of the starboard wake enhancing section as mirrored across the centerline of the boat hull 100.

[0060] In some embodiments, a wake enhancing boat hull production method comprises providing the wake enhancing boat hull 100 as a design, and manufacturing the wake enhancing boat hull 100 based on the design. The boat hull 100 can be manufactured, for example, from aluminum, steel, fiberglass, wood, carbon fiber, composites, plastic, and any other suitable materials or combinations thereof. The manufacturing of the boat hull 100 can include a variety of manufacturing processes including, but not limited to, casting, molding (such as vacuum molding and injection molding), forming (such as thermoforming, forging, rolling pressing, bending, and extruding), machining (such as milling and turning), joining (such as welding, brazing, soldering and fastening), and additive manufacturing (such as 3D printing), and any other suitable manufacturing processes or combinations thereof, for example.

[0061] In some embodiments, a wake enhancing method comprises providing a wake enhancing boat hull 100, and propelling the wake enhancing boat hull via a propulsion device through water to create an enhanced wake. In some embodiments, the wake is enhanced for a wake sport or tow sport activity. These activities can include, for example, wakesurfing, wakeboarding, wakeskating, waterskiing, slalom skiing, barefoot skiing, trick skiing, knee boarding, tubing, aquaplaning, skurfing, and hydrofoiling, among other suitable sports or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, the propulsion system can include, for example, an outboard motor with a propeller, and inboard motor with a propeller, an inboard-outboard motor with a propeller, an outboard motor with a jet, an inboard motor with a jet, an inboard-outboard motor with a jet, a sail, and any other suitable propulsion system or combination thereof. In some embodiments, the propulsion device is, for example, a gas powered propulsion device, a diesel powered propulsion device, an electric powered propulsion device, a wind powered propulsion device, and any other suitable powered propulsion device or combination thereof.

EXPERIMENTAL EXAMPLES

[0062] The invention is now described with reference to the following Examples.

These Examples are provided for the purpose of illustration only and the invention should in no way be construed as being limited to these Examples, but rather should be construed to encompass any and all variations which become evident as a result of the teaching provided herein.

[0063] Without further description, it is believed that one of ordinary skill in the art can, using the preceding description and the following illustrative examples, make and utilize the present invention and practice the claimed methods. The following working examples therefore, specifically point out the preferred embodiments of the present invention, and are not to be construed as limiting in any way the remainder of the disclosure.

[0064] Figures 7-11 show images of an example wake enhancing boat hull 100.

The hull 100 includes wake enhancing sections 106 where the sides of the hull meet the transom 105. In the example embodiment shown in Figures 7-11 , a radius 107 is included at the edge between the wake enhancing section 106 and the transom 105 to reduce turbulent flow and further increase the quality of the wake. [0065] The boat hull 100 with wake enhancing sections 106 was tested experimentally to compare the wake production and performance to a boat hull 200 of an identical design but without the wake enhancing sections 106.

[0066] Figures 12-22 show the results of wake comparison studies comparing the wake produced by boat hull 100 with the wake enhancing sections 106, and boat hull 200 without the wake enhancing sections 106 of the present invention. Figures 12 and 13 show a top-down view and an enlarged top-down view, respectively, of the wakes produced. In the Figures 12 and 13, the bottom half of the figures show the starboard half of boat hull 100 which includes wake enhancing section 106 and the corresponding wake produced 199, while the top half of the figures shows the port half of a standard boat hull 200 that does not include a wake enhancing section and the corresponding wake produced 299. Figures 14 and 15 show a side view and an enlarged side view, respectively, of the wakes produced from a boat hull 100 with wake enhancing section 106 (top) and from standard boat hull 200 without a wake enhancing section (bottom).

[0067] As shown in Figures 12-15, the wake 199 produced by the boat hull 100 with wake enhancing section 106 is taller (larger) and less turbulent (smoother) at a point approximately one half of the boat hull length behind the transom 105. The enhanced wake 199 at this approximate location provides for a better wake sport experience for sports such as wakesurfing, wakeboarding, wakeskating, waterskiing, slalom skiing, barefoot skiing, trick skiing, knee boarding, tubing, aquaplaning, skurfing, hydrofoiling, and any other tow sport or combination thereof. [0068] Figures 16-22 show the results of another study of the enhanced wake 199 produced by the boat hull 100 including wake enhancing sections 106, compared to a standard wake 299 produced by standard boat hull 200 without wake enhancement. Figure 16 shows a side by side comparison of the enhanced wake 199 and standard wake 299, specifically the size of the surf pockets produced. Figure 17 shows an overlay of the enhanced wake 199 and standard wake 199, further comparing the surf pockets produced. The enhanced wake 199 has a larger surf pocket 198 that spans from the wake base to wake crest where the break over occurs. Meanwhile, for the standard wake 299, the surf pocket 298 is small, and the turbulent break over occurs separate from the wake crest, leading to a turbulent wake that is not ideal for wake sports. Figures 18-22 show additional views of the enhanced wake 199 and standard wake 299 produced by boat hull 100 and 200, respectively. The wake enhancing sections 106 with radius 107 of boat hull 100 produces wake 199 which is larger and less turbulent than the standard wake 299.

[0069] Figures 23-25 show images comparing the enhanced wake 199 and standard wake 299. In the example shown, the enhanced wake 199 is less turbulent and approximately twice as tall as the standard wake 299.

[0070] The disclosures of each and every patent, patent application, and publication cited herein are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. While this invention has been disclosed with reference to specific embodiments, it is apparent that other embodiments and variations of this invention may be devised by others skilled in the art without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1 . A wake enhancing boat hull, comprising: a hull comprising a bow portion at a first end, a port hull side portion, a starboard hull side portion, and an underside hull portion; a transom connected to the hull portion at a second end of the hull; a port wake enhancing section positioned between the port hull side portion and the transom, configured to guide water to enhance the wake produced by the boat hull; and a starboard wake enhancing section positioned between the starboard hull side portion and the transom, configured to guide water to enhance the wake produced by the boat hull.

2. The hull of claim 1 , wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections each include a plurality of surfaces.

3. The hull of claim 1 , wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections comprise a general shape selected from a chamfered geometry, a multifaceted recess, a multifaceted geometry, a radiused geometry, a curve of variable radius, a curve of constant radius, a concave geometry, a convex geometry, or a multifaceted chamfer. The hull of claim 1 , wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections comprise a combination of at least two general shapes selected from a chamfered geometry, a multifaceted recess, a multifaceted geometry, a radiused geometry, a curve of variable radius, a curve of constant radius, a concave geometry, a convex geometry, and a multifaceted chamfer. The hull of claim 1 , wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections include a lower face and an upper face. The hull of claim 5, wherein the upper face of each wake enhancing section is at an angle relative to the lower face of each wake enhancing section in the range of 30 to 270 degrees. The hull of claim 1 , wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a first direction, wherein the forwardmost portion of each wake enhancing section is farther from the centerline than the rearmost portion of each wake enhancing section. The hull of claim 7, wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward the centerline of the boat hull in a first direction at an angle in the range of 0 to 90 degrees. The hull of claim 1 , wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a second direction, wherein the topmost portion of each wake enhancing section is farther from the centerline than the bottommost portion of each wake enhancing section.

10. The hull of claim 9, wherein the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward the centerline of the boat hull in a second direction at an angle in the range of 0 to 90 degrees.

11. The hull of claim 1 , wherein: the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward a centerline of the boat hull in a first direction, wherein the forwardmost portion of each wake enhancing section is farther from the centerline than the rearmost portion of each wake enhancing section; and the port and starboard wake enhancing sections are angled inward toward the centerline of the boat hull in a second direction, wherein the topmost portion of each wake enhancing section is farther from the centerline than the bottommost portion of each wake enhancing section.

12. The hull in claim 1 , wherein the length of the port and starboard wake enhancing sections begin in the range of 1 to 100 inches in front of the transom and extend to the transom.

13. The hull in claim 1 , wherein the length of the port and starboard wake enhancing sections begin in the range of 1 to 100 inches in above the underside portion and extend to the underside portion.

14. The hull of claim 1 , wherein an edge located at the intersection between the transom and the port wake enhancing section includes a radius, and an edge located at the intersection between the transom and the starboard wake enhancing section includes a radius.

15. A wake enhancing boat hull production method, comprising: providing the wake enhancing boat hull of claim 1 as a design; and manufacturing the wake enhancing boat hull based on the design.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the boat hull is manufactured from at least one material selected from a group consisting of aluminum, steel, fiberglass, wood, carbon fiber, composite, and plastic.

17. A wake enhancing method, comprising: providing the wake enhancing boat hull of claim 1 ; and propelling the wake enhancing boat hull via a propulsion system through water to create an enhanced wake.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the wake is enhanced for a wake sport or a tow sport selected from the group consisting of wakesurfing, wakeboarding, wakeskating, waterskiing, slalom skiing, barefoot skiing, trick skiing, knee boarding, tubing, aquaplaning, skurfing, and hydrofoiling. The method of claim 17, wherein the propulsion system is selected from the group consisting of an outboard motor with a propeller, and inboard motor with a propeller, an inboard-outboard motor with a propeller, an outboard motor with a jet, an inboard motor with a jet, an inboard-outboard motor with a jet, and a sail. The method of claim 17, wherein the propulsion system is a gasoline powered propulsion device, a diesel powered propulsion device, an electric powered propulsion device, or a wind powered propulsion device.