Many prior art float systems exist which use flotation devices formed from one of a variety of conventional materials such as Styrofoam, polyethylene tubs, concrete sections poured around Styrofoam cores and others. Large concrete floats are known in which concrete forms the structural component and the flotation device is enclosed Styrofoam or air.
Flotation devices using interconnected tubing or pipe for buoyancy and methods of forming the same are also generally well-known. U.S. Pat. No. 4,834,014, entitled FLOATING PLATFORM STRUCTURE, issued May 30, 1989, to Olsen, et al., for example, describes a semi-submersible floating platform structure supported by a number of buoyancy bodies in the form of pipes closed at the ends by welded plates. The closed pipes rest in recesses in a plurality of inverted cribs or yokes that also act as buoyancy bodies. A deck structure is mounted on top of columns projected above the buoyancy bodies to form the float structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,089,176, entitled APPARATUS FOR AND A METHOD OF CONSTRUCTING A FLOATING DOCK STRUCTURE, issued Jul. 18, 2000, to Costello describes a floating dock structure formed of two sets of parallel and space apart heavy-gauge, high-density polyethylene (HDPE) tubes interconnected and sealed water-tight by a plastic joining process to form a square or rectangular configuration of pontoon floats. An overlying series of deck crosspieces completes the floating dock structure.
Other prior art devices are also known using elongated buoyancy tubes or pipes with an overlying decking. Such devices as are known in prior art generally connect the elongated buoyancy tubes or pipes transversely between spaced apart generally planar walls.
While useful in some applications, all these prior art devices are generally limited as structural supports.