Homework 1: Finding a Patent

Date issued: August 18, 1986

The idea behind this patent was to create a device which could clean the bottom of a boat hull without necessitating lifting the boat out of the water or diving underneath while it is still in the water. The device consists of a long handle, capable of being held and manipulated by a person. At the end of the handle is a section made of a different material, with a length long enough to cover the surface of a boat hull from the water to the bottom of the hull. There is a scrubbing material attached to one side of this section, meant to go against the boat to achieve a cleaning affect. In order to form to the contours of the boat, the main material of this section is buoyant, so that it bends and sticks to the curvature of the boat.