Splashing Hulls: Right or Wrong?
#252
speel chekk this fokker!
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just saying what i heard.
As for the rally where is it? Hopefully my boat will be back together by then. I want to go to the race in NJ on the 16th.
As for the rally where is it? Hopefully my boat will be back together by then. I want to go to the race in NJ on the 16th.
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#254
speel chekk this fokker!
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perhpas, if she's running that is.
so what actually happened to havasu barney???
so what actually happened to havasu barney???
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#255
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Old thread but I just saw it so im gonna add my .02. IMO to define splashing you must define a range of change over the original that would be considered not splashing. The US patent office requires a 10%(i believe) overal change in the appearance of somthing to be considered unique. This is measured by physical dimensions and other specs. In the boating world things are so much more basic than other aspects of the marketplace. take the first v-hull for example. At what point is the next hull not a copy of the original? When it is 2 inches longer? 2 feet longer? When the V has a half degree change? Explain what the difference needs to be before the new boat is not considered a "splash".
From what has been stated so far a splash is a mold popped right off an existing boat. Well what if you bought a boat, measured the boat, and constructed a mold to replicate the original without actually laying any putty on it? Would this be considered a splash? What if you hired the designer of the boat you wanted to compete with. Designers are artists, each has a distinct style and most of their designs contain certain inspirational elements. Therefore all of the boats that they consulted on would share similar characteristics.
I consider a exact copy to be just that EXACT. Not just in the appearance but in the quality and construction of the original. The whole idea of copying anothers boat in every detail on the outside but not on the inside does not constitute copying.
Now say there is a company out there that creates and builds a 30 foot cat for dirt cheap but the hull construction is garbage and yet the shape of the boat is hydrodynamically perfect. This hypothetical company has no desire to improve on its construction method and then goes out of business due to this fact. Molds are destroyed and all traces of the company disapear. You stumble on one of these horribly built boats and decide to rebuild it better. You pop a mold off the boat and change nothing visually. The only difference is under the surface where the hull is now built rock solid. You decide to go into the market with your creation and sell it for a HIGHER price than the original company sold their version. Your boat is superior in every way to the one you popped a mold off of. IS this Splashing? by the definition yes, is this a copy, no. A copy would have been built using the same cheap construction method.
Is it wrong to improve on someone elses concept/idea, i dont think so.
What i do think is wrong is passing the copy off as the original wether or not it is better/worse than the copy. Copying a Skater and selling it as a Skater is wrong.
It seems the arguement is about making a cheap knockoff of a reputable boat but not a one has commented about making a reputable knockoff from a cheap boat. this loophole is why there is such a grey area. Since boats are differentiated by not only their style/shape but by their reputation, construction methods, materials, and rigging It is very complicated to draw a line as to what a copy is.
A solution in my eyes is to allow the innovater of a specific characteristic(what makes it unique compared to its direct competition) to register this trait and have exclusive use to it. Registering the overall look of a boat is rediculous considering the scope this could be abused. Take a non boater and ask them if they can see the diff between a Mastercraft and a Malibu and they probably wont notice much. Boats have too much leway and variation in hull design to patent effectively. Move a step 6 inches farther forward and you have a totally different hull and the patent is now innefective. However if you patent the step you secure your uniqueness.
Boats are like shoes: Each one Does the same basic thing. Each one has the same basic parts. The inexpensive ugly ones last forever, the high dollar attractive ones need constant attention and care. The bargains, no matter how pretty they are usally fall apart once they get wet.
It is the total pakage that makes the boat not simply what its shape is. you get what you pay for.
From what has been stated so far a splash is a mold popped right off an existing boat. Well what if you bought a boat, measured the boat, and constructed a mold to replicate the original without actually laying any putty on it? Would this be considered a splash? What if you hired the designer of the boat you wanted to compete with. Designers are artists, each has a distinct style and most of their designs contain certain inspirational elements. Therefore all of the boats that they consulted on would share similar characteristics.
I consider a exact copy to be just that EXACT. Not just in the appearance but in the quality and construction of the original. The whole idea of copying anothers boat in every detail on the outside but not on the inside does not constitute copying.
Now say there is a company out there that creates and builds a 30 foot cat for dirt cheap but the hull construction is garbage and yet the shape of the boat is hydrodynamically perfect. This hypothetical company has no desire to improve on its construction method and then goes out of business due to this fact. Molds are destroyed and all traces of the company disapear. You stumble on one of these horribly built boats and decide to rebuild it better. You pop a mold off the boat and change nothing visually. The only difference is under the surface where the hull is now built rock solid. You decide to go into the market with your creation and sell it for a HIGHER price than the original company sold their version. Your boat is superior in every way to the one you popped a mold off of. IS this Splashing? by the definition yes, is this a copy, no. A copy would have been built using the same cheap construction method.
Is it wrong to improve on someone elses concept/idea, i dont think so.
What i do think is wrong is passing the copy off as the original wether or not it is better/worse than the copy. Copying a Skater and selling it as a Skater is wrong.
It seems the arguement is about making a cheap knockoff of a reputable boat but not a one has commented about making a reputable knockoff from a cheap boat. this loophole is why there is such a grey area. Since boats are differentiated by not only their style/shape but by their reputation, construction methods, materials, and rigging It is very complicated to draw a line as to what a copy is.
A solution in my eyes is to allow the innovater of a specific characteristic(what makes it unique compared to its direct competition) to register this trait and have exclusive use to it. Registering the overall look of a boat is rediculous considering the scope this could be abused. Take a non boater and ask them if they can see the diff between a Mastercraft and a Malibu and they probably wont notice much. Boats have too much leway and variation in hull design to patent effectively. Move a step 6 inches farther forward and you have a totally different hull and the patent is now innefective. However if you patent the step you secure your uniqueness.
Boats are like shoes: Each one Does the same basic thing. Each one has the same basic parts. The inexpensive ugly ones last forever, the high dollar attractive ones need constant attention and care. The bargains, no matter how pretty they are usally fall apart once they get wet.
It is the total pakage that makes the boat not simply what its shape is. you get what you pay for.
Last edited by NineLives; 07-26-2002 at 09:24 PM.
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