ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 17 -- United States Patent no. 12,312,049, issued on May 27, was assigned to MasterCraft Boat Co. LLC (Vonore, Tenn.).
"Aft-facing transom seating for a boat" was invented by Chadrick E. Curts (Lenoir City, Tenn.), Daniel P. Vieira (Madisonville, Tenn.), Rosemary B. Ellard (Seymour, Tenn.) and David F. Ekern (Knoxville, Tenn.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A boat includes one or more seats, which may be aft-facing. The seat includes a seat bottom, which may include an aft segment and a forward segment. The forward segment is inclined at a downward angle that extends in a direction from aft to fore such that an aft portion of the forward segment is higher than the forward...