Title: Bag-positioned hinged seals for air cushion vehicles

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Abstract: Bow and stern seals for sidewall type air cushion vehicles for containing, together with the sidewalls, the air cushion under the vehicle. They consist of a substantial number of more or less equidistant rods (or "stays") connected by flexible membranes, these rods being designed to hinge around a more or less common axis at substantially the top of the air cushion, the rods extending beyond their hinge points and being positioned by two sets of opposing air bags, one set of air bags acting on the extensions of the rods above the hinge points and the other set on the sections of the rods just below the hinge points. The membranes are attached with a large amount of slack so that the rods can rotate a very substantial amount relative to each other. As the air bags will allow the rods only to rotate a limited amount relative to each other, the membranes will not get tight, and the membranes and rods will not be exposed to the accompanying shock loads leading to membrane tear and rod breakage. The bags react upon the ship structure, which has air chambers connected to the bags with openings that can be closed off partially or completely, to change the response characteristics of the air bags and thereby of the seal.


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