This invention relates to a device for locking a plurality of floats together to form a floating platform.

A floating platform is a necessity in many areas where various objects have to be stored or transported thereon from place to place on water by using manually or motor driven lug boats.

The assembly of several floats side by side and locking together to form a floating platform is known to the art. Usually, such floats are made of plastic and the core of each float is filled with form to give it body and strength. These floats are locked together, on assembly, by plastic pipes passing through lugs attached to the floats, each plastic pipe being a stem with one extremity threaded and provided with nuts to fasten the pipes in place in the lugs.

However, the main drawback associated with these pipes is that it is cumbersome to fix them in place because, after inserting the pipes into the lugs, the extremities of the pipes have to be fastened by nuts engaging with threads. This operation usually needs a spanner for ensuring that the nuts are securely lightened on the threads, without working losse and engaging the stability of the platform. Apart from this aspect is the time and semi-skilled labour required for completing the fastening exercise.

It is therefore an object of this invention to simplify the fastening operation and propose a locking device with is quick to fasten involving less effort and time.

The platform can be built as a single layer of floats or as a multilayer of floats one above the other, the locking being made possible by simply cutting a pipe to the required length.

The device for locking a plurality of floats together to form a floating platform, according to this invention, comprises a plurality of lugs attached to each float, each lug having a hold in it; a rigid pipe insertable into the aligned holes of the lugs of closely juxtaposed floats so as to lock the floats together, each pipe having a plurality of apertures on its extremities, to enable a flexible cord to pass through the apertures, at each extremity, thereby disabling the pipe from getting disengaged on its own, from the lugs.

This invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate, by way of example, and not by way of limitation, one of various possible embodiments of the device proposed, wherein

Fig. 1 Illustrates a plastic float with lugs
Fig.2 illustrates floats placed side by side with their respective lugs locked together.
Fig.3 illustrates a separate view a plastic pipe with cord.

Each plastic float F is provided with lugs L, each lug having a hole H in it. A rigid plastic pipe R is insertable into the aligned holes H of closely juxtaposed floats F so as to lock the floats together.

Each such pipe has apertures A at its extremities. These apertures enable a flexible cord C (preferably made of plastic) to pass tightly through them at each extremity.

With the cord passing through these apertures, the pipe is disabled from coming off the lugs L.

Preferably, the holes in the pipe are not located in the same plane, so that the cord does not lend to lip out of the apertures. It is not necessary to the ends of the cord together because it is tightly held in the apertures, especially after talking a curved path while passing through the apertures.

The pipes R can thus be easily installed in place and fixed in position, involving little time and labour. Whenever necessary the pipe can as easily be removed from the lugs by removing the cord from the apertures in the pipe.

The terms and expressions herein are of description and not of imitation, there being no intention of excluding any equivalents of the features illustrated and described but it is understood that various other embodiments of this invention are possible without departing from the scope and ambit thereof.

We claim;

1. A device for locking a plurality of floats together to form a floating platform, comprising plurality of lugs attached to each float, each lug having a hole in it; a rigid pipe insertable into the aligned holes of the lugs of closely juxtaposed floats so as to lock the floats together, each pipe having a plurality of apertures on its extremities to enable a flexible cord to pass through the apertures, at each extremity, thereby disabling the pipe from getting disengaged, on its own, from the lugs.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the pipe is made of plastic.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the apertures in the pipe are located at different planes.

4. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the cord is made of plastic.

5. A device for locking a plurality of floats together to form a floating platform substantially as herein described with reference to, and as illustrated in, the accompanying drawings.