Ride hardware: boat capture/launch system for water rides.
A water ride adapted for stopping and launching boats. The ride includes a flume containing flowing water and first and second sidewalls define the flume. The ride includes a boat in the flume with an interaction member extending outward from its hull. The ride includes a boat capture and launch assembly provided on the second wall, and this assembly includes: (a) a body; (b) a drive mechanism rotating the body; (c) a capture arm with a first contact surface on the body; and (d) a launch arm with a second contact surface on the body. When the body is rotated into a first position, the capture arm extends outward into the flume to catch the interaction member and stop the boat. When the body is rotated through a range of second positions, the interaction member abuts the second contact surface and a launch force is applied to accelerate the boat.
BACKGROUND1. Field of the Description(1) The present description relates, in general, to, and, more particularly, to amusement and theme park rides that are water-based attractions (“water rides”) in which a passenger boat (e.g., any watercraft carrying one or more passengers) floats in an untethered or free-floating manner in a water channel. More particularly, the present description relates to a system or assembly that is adapted to stop and/or capture a boat, such as at the end of a water ride for unloading and loading of passengers, and then launch or catapult the boat along the direction of travel in the channel at a desired velocity.2. Relevant Background(2) Water rides have long been a staple of theme and amusement parks, and it is highly likely that the demand for these rides will continue to grow in coming years. Many water ride designs call for boats filled with passengers to travel along a channel or flume with the boats floating in the water in the channel, and the boats often will be free-floating or untethered in such water rides such that the boats generally move at the same rate as the water and in the same direction of travel as the flowing water.(3) In one specific example, log flumes are amusement rides including a water flume and boats that are often shaped to simulate hollow logs, and a set of guide wheels or bumpers may be provided on the boat's hull below the water line (and extend outward from the sides of the boat) to facilitate guiding of the boat a
1. A water ride adapted for stopping and launching passenger boats, comprising: a flume assembly with a flume for containing a volume of flowing water, wherein the flume assembly includes a first sidewall and a second sidewall spaced a distance apart from the first sidewall defining the flume; a boat positioned in the flume with a hull adapted to float in and with the water in a direction of travel, wherein the boat further comprises an interaction member extending outward from an outer surface of the hull; and a boat capture and launch assembly provided on the second sidewall comprising: a body; a drive mechanism operable to rotate the body about a rotation axis; a capture arm with a first contact surface provided on the body; and a launch arm with a second contact surface provided on the body, wherein when the body is rotated into a first position the capture arm extends outward into the flume whereby the interaction member contacts the first contact surface when the boat travels in the flume adjacent the boat capture and launch assembly to stop the boat from further travel in the direction of travel, and wherein when the body is rotated out of the first position through a range of second positions the interaction member abuts the second contact surface of the launch arm and a launch force is applied to the hull via the interaction member to accelerate the boat to travel within the flume in the direction of travel.
12. A water ride adapted for stopping and launching passenger boats, comprising: a flume, for containing flowing water, defined by a first sidewall and a second sidewall spaced a distance apart from the first sidewall; a boat in the flume with a hull and an interaction member extending outward from the hull; and an assembly provided on at least one of the first and second sidewalls comprising: a support structure; a drive mechanism operable to rotate the support structure about a rotation axis; a capture arm with a first contact surface extending from the support structure; and a launch arm with a second contact surface extending from the support structure, wherein when the drive mechanism is first operated to rotate the support structure to a first position the first contact surface of the capture arm extends outward a distance into the flume whereby the first contact surface abuts and captures the interaction member when the boat travels in the flume proximate to the support structure so as to stop further travel of the boat a direction of flow of the water, and wherein when the drive mechanism is second operated to rotate the support structure from the first position through a range of second positions the second contact surface of the launch arm contacts the interaction device and applies a launch force upon the boat that is along the direction of flow of the water.
18. A water ride adapted for stopping and launching passenger boats, comprising: a flume containing a volume of flowing water; a boat in the flume floating on and driven in a direction of travel by the flowing water, wherein the boat includes an interaction member extending outward; a capture arm with a first contact surface; a launch arm with a second contact surface meeting with the first contact surface to form a single continuous surface and to define an angle that is greater than 80 degrees; a body supporting the capture arm and the launch arm; a drive mechanism first operating to rotate the body to a first position with the first contact surface of the capture arm extending outward into the flume and second operating to rotate the body from the first position through a series of second positions, wherein, after the first operating when the boat travels in the direction of travel in the flume adjacent the body, the capture arm captures the interaction member by applying a first force on the interaction member with the first contact surface that resists further travel of the boat in the direction of travel and wherein, during the second operating and after the capture arm has captured the interaction member, the interaction member moves from the first contact surface to the second contact surface, whereby the launch arm applies a second force on the interaction member that propels the boat to travel in the direction of travel at a velocity within a predefined range of velocities.