Pocket style folding boat ladder assembly

Abstract

A boat with a deck has a sidewall or railing at the periphery of the deck, a door opening in the sidewall with a hinged door, and a pocket ladder assembly adjacent the door opening. The pocket ladder assembly including a stowing enclosure and an access port on one side of the stowing enclosure facing the door opening. A collapsible ladder when in an upright compacted stowed configuration is receivable and stowable in the stowing enclosure. The ladder in the upright stowing configuration is movable laterally out of the stowing enclosure into a door opening seating position when the door is in an open position. The collapsible ladder then rotatable from the upright stowing configuration to an intermediate configuration. The ladder then further convertible from the intermediate configuration to a fully deployed configuration, where the ladder extends outwardly and downwardly from the boat deck.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A pocket ladder assembly for a boat having a passenger deck with a periphery and a sidewall at the periphery of the passenger deck extending upwardly, a door opening in the sidewall, the pocket ladder assembly comprising:
 a collapsible ladder having a plurality of sections and a plurality of rungs attached thereto, the collapsible ladder having a collapsed stow state and an expanded use state;   a stowing enclosure for receiving the collapsible ladder when the ladder assembly is in the collapsed stow state and is upright, the stowing enclosure placeable or placed adjacent the door opening; and   a extension-retraction mechanism for moving the collapsible ladder between the stowing enclosure and outside of the stowing enclosure in the door opening on the boat.   
     
     
         2 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the extension-retraction mechanism comprises a threshold plate that is extendable from and retractable to the stowing enclosure. 
     
     
         3 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the extension-retraction mechanism further comprises an extender mechanism comprising one of a track and carriage slidable thereon and a plurality of rectangular or channel shaped tubing members telescopingly connected, the extender mechanism positioned at or positionable at a lower portion of the stowing enclosure. 
     
     
         4 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the collapsible ladder is pivotally and/or slidably connected to the threshold plate to extend the collapsible ladder outwardly and downwardly from the door opening. 
     
     
         5 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of sections of the collapsible ladder telescope together. 
     
     
         6 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of sections of the collapsible ladder are foldable together into the collapsed stow state and are unfoldable to the expanded use state. 
     
     
         7 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the extension-retraction mechanism comprises a threshold plate is movable from a stow position not obstructing the door opening to a use position where the threshold plate is at the bottom of the door opening. 
     
     
         8 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 7 , wherein the extension-retraction mechanism includes a hinge positioned at a lower corner of the door opening such that the threshold plate is pivotal between an upright position at an opening to the enclosure to the use position. 
     
     
         9 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 3 , wherein the collapsible ladder comprises a post with a plurality of telescoping post segments, and wherein the threshold plate includes a receiver for an upper end of the post, the receiving having a slot for receiving a pin extending through the upper end of the post whereby the collapsible ladder is slidingly and pivotally connected to the threshold plate at the receiver. 
     
     
         10 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the stowing enclosure does not exceed 3 feet in height. 
     
     
         11 . The pocket ladder assembly of  claim 1 , in combination with the boat, the pocket ladder assembly installed in the boat, and wherein the boat comprises a door hingedly attached to a door frame defining the door opening. 
     
     
         12 . A boat comprising a sidewall having a door frame defining a door open and a door therein, the boat further comprising a pocket door assembly positioned at the door frame, the pocket door assembly comprising:
 a collapsible ladder;   a stowing enclosure for the collapsible ladder, the stowing enclosure having an opening at the door opening;   an extension retraction mechanism for moving the stowed ladder out of the stowing enclosure to the door opening and from the door opening back into the stowing enclosure, whereby when the collapsible ladder is in the door opening it is extendable out of the door opening and downward.   
     
     
         13 . The boat of  claim 12 , wherein the collapsible ladder telescopes and/or folds to a collapsed state. 
     
     
         14 . The boat of  claim 13 , wherein the pocket door assembly further comprises a threshold plate that the collapsible ladder is pivotally attached to. 
     
     
         15 . The boat of  claim 14 , wherein when the collapsible ladder is fully deployed, the threshold plated is position on the door opening. 
     
     
         16 . The boat of  claim 12 , wherein when the collapsible ladder is deployed, the door cannot close. 
     
     
         17 . The boat of  claim 16 , wherein when the door is closed, the collapsible ladder cannot extend out of the stowing enclosure. 
     
     
         18 . A method of deploying a ladder from a boat, the method comprising:
 opening a door in a door frame providing a door opening;   moving a stowed ladder having an upright stowed configuration in a stowing enclosure adjacent to the door opening into a ladder seating position in the door opening;   rotating the ladder from the upright stowed configuration to an intermediate configuration;   extending the ladder from the intermediate position to a deployed position where the ladder extends outwardly and downwardly.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein opening the door comprises rotating the door about a hinge with a vertical axis. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein extending the ladder from the intermediate position to a deployed position comprises extending telescoping sections of the ladder.