Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F03—MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS; WIND, SPRING, OR WEIGHT MOTORS; PRODUCING MECHANICAL POWER OR A REACTIVE PROPULSIVE THRUST, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • F03B—MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS
  • F03B13/00—Adaptations of machines or engines for special use; Combinations of machines or engines with driving or driven apparatus; Power stations or aggregates
  • F03B13/12—Adaptations of machines or engines for special use; Combinations of machines or engines with driving or driven apparatus; Power stations or aggregates characterised by using wave or tide energy
  • F03B13/14—Adaptations of machines or engines for special use; Combinations of machines or engines with driving or driven apparatus; Power stations or aggregates characterised by using wave or tide energy using wave energy
  • F03B13/16—Adaptations of machines or engines for special use; Combinations of machines or engines with driving or driven apparatus; Power stations or aggregates characterised by using wave or tide energy using wave energy using the relative movement between a wave-operated member, i.e. a "wom" and another member, i.e. a reaction member or "rem"
  • F03B13/18—Adaptations of machines or engines for special use; Combinations of machines or engines with driving or driven apparatus; Power stations or aggregates characterised by using wave or tide energy using wave energy using the relative movement between a wave-operated member, i.e. a "wom" and another member, i.e. a reaction member or "rem" where the other member, i.e. rem is fixed, at least at one point, with respect to the sea bed or shore
  • F03B13/1885—Adaptations of machines or engines for special use; Combinations of machines or engines with driving or driven apparatus; Power stations or aggregates characterised by using wave or tide energy using wave energy using the relative movement between a wave-operated member, i.e. a "wom" and another member, i.e. a reaction member or "rem" where the other member, i.e. rem is fixed, at least at one point, with respect to the sea bed or shore and the wom is tied to the rem
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
  • Y02E10/00—Energy generation through renewable energy sources
  • Y02E10/30—Energy from the sea, e.g. using wave energy or salinity gradient

Definitions

• the invention concerns the means for extracting and using natural forms of energy, such as wind, solar, sea wave and tidal. Though presenting enormous potentials these forms of energy are difficult and at times impossible to harness because of their dispersal, lack of continuity, and other structural and climatic problems.
• the above invention solves the difficulty of extracting energy from the waves of the sea, using means and processes adaptable to the characteristics of this form of energy so as to make a simple and efficient use of it, as will here be explained.
• Subject of the invention is a plant for extracting the energy produced by the movement of sea water, transforming it into electric current.
• the alternating and discontinuous movement of waves is transferred by means of kinetic mechanisms, from one or more floats to devices for extracting this energy, either rotating or making a see-saw movement, and to means for accumulating it for continuous supply to equipment where it may be used.
• the plant comprises one or more devices having a piston which, kinetically connected to one or more floats, at each phase of alternate motion and by recycling oil in a tank, operates a hydraulic engine connected to a dynamo.
• the device comprises a pair of chambers created by the piston between the base and head of a cylinder.
• oil is drawn up from the tank into the first chamber of said pair; at the same time oil, drawn up by the second chamber of said pair in a preceding phase, passes through tubes to the input opening of a hydraulic engine, returning to the tank through a tube connected to the output opening of said engine.
• the two chambers formed by piston movement are connected, through branch tubes comprising single-acting valves, with a tube for carrying oil to the engine.
• the oil tank is connected by a tube and two pipe unions, fitted with single-acting valves, to said branch tubes in the section between the cylinder and said valves.
• the piston is connected to a float by a cable guided by a transmission pulley turning freely on a short horizontal shaft and is controlled by a return spring so that float movement is determined in one direction by the pull on the cable, and in the opposite direction by the return spring.
• the devices are laid on the sea floor and present a water-tight structure which includes a bracket to support the pulley shaft.
• the devices are installed on the sea shore and present a structure including a column to support the pulley shaft.
• the float is preferably parallelepiped in shape with a square base.
• the plant is installed on a boat.
• the device comprises a cylinder whose piston is connected to a float placed externally on the sides of said boat, enabled to move vertically by means of a rocker arm moving freely on a support fixed to said sides.
• the device comprises two cylinders and therefore two pairs of chambers formed by the pistons between the base and head of the cylinders, respectively connected by a first and second pair of branch tubes, respectively fitted with valves, to a tube carrying oil from the tank to the hydraulic engine.
• Said oil tank is connected through a main tube to two branch tubes these being connected, through a first pair of pipe unions fitted with valves, to a first pair of branch tubes and, through a second pair of pipe unions, to the second pair of branch tubes in the sections between the cylinders and their valves.
• oil is drawn from the tank into the first pair of chanbers and simultaneously oil, drawn up by the second pair of chambers during the preceding phase, passes through a tube into the input aperture of a hydraualic engine, returning to the tank through a tube connected to the output aperture of said engine.
• a chamber of varying volume is fitted onto the tube connected to the input aperture of the hydraulic engine, said chamber forming part of a device for compensating irregularities in the quantity of oil drawn up from the tank.
• Said chamber is formed in a cylinder by a freely moving piston that separates it from a second chamber containing gas under pressure.
• the gas is preferably C0 2 .
• the invention offers evident advantages.
• Fig. 1 Plant for extracting energy from sea wave movement by means of a float and devices laid on the sea floor, cross section;
• Fig. 2 As above, plan view.
• Fig. 3 Device while the float is deseeding, longitudinal section.
• Fig. 5 The plant mounted on a boat, perspective with detail.
• Fig. 6 The plant in Figure 5, cross section.
• Fig. 7 The plant in Figure 1 with devices installed on the sea shore, cross section.
• Fig. 8 As above, plan view.
• Figure 1 shows a plant 10 for extracting energy from ocean waves 11 by means of the parallelipiped-shaped float 20 connected by cables
• Figure 2 shows how the cables 21 are connected through half-rings 23 and eyeholes 22, to the rings 24.
• each cable 21 is joined by the transmission pulley
• the piston 41 in a double-acting propulsor cylinder 40 (Fiigures 3, 4).
• the piston 41 divides the- cylinder 40 into two chambers, an upper one 45 and a lower one 46, supporting the cylindrical cage 47 at the top.
• Between the bottom 48 of said cage and the disk 49 fixed to the rod 42 of the piston 41 is a helical cylindrical spring 50. It follows that, when a wave raises the float 20, the pull on the cable 21 raises the piston 41 and compresses the spring 50 ( Figure 3) while, when the float is moving downward, the spring 50 ( Figure 4) depresses the piston and keeps the cable 21 tense. It is therefore wave movement that determines piston movement.
• the device 30 also comprises an oil tank 55 with a level 57 and a cylindrical compensator 60 with a free piston 61 that divides it into two chambers, an upper chamber 65 and a lower chamber 66.
• the upper chamber 65 is filled with C0 2 .
• the lower chamber 66 is connected to the tube 88 that receives two branch tubes 80 and 85 respectively connected to the chambers 45 and 46 of the cylinder 40 and fitted with single-acting valves, 81 and 86 respectively.
• these branch tubes 80 and 85 are respectively connected by sections of tubes 72 and 74, respectively comprising single-acting valves 73 and 75, to the tube 70 in turn connected to the oil tank 55.
• the lower chamber 66 of the compensator 60 is also connected, by a delivery tube 67, to the hydraulic engine 90 whose shaft is joined by a connector 94 to the shaft of a dynamo 95.
• the oil that flows into chamber 66 of the compensator 60 is maintained under pressure by the free piston 61 , itself under pressure from the CO 2 gas in the chamber 65 of said compensator, and passes through the tube 67 into the hydraulic engine 90.
• the oil discharged by said engine returns to the tank 55 through the tube 91.
• the C0 2 compensates irregularities in the flow of oil to the chamber 66, caused by irregularity of wave movements, so that oil feed to the hydraulic engine 90 is steady and continuous. It will be seen that all the devices 30 combine to produce continuous conversion of energy from sea water into electric current that reaches land through the underwater cables 96, 97 ( Figure 1 ) making possible a continuous supply to take-off points.
• FIGS 5 and 6 illustrate a plant 110 installed on a boat 100.
• This plant comprises a device 111 inside the hull 101 and external kinematic means 112 on its sides 102 to derive energy from wave movement 11.
• These external kinematic means 112 comprise supports 113 for free rotation, on a pin 115 of the upper fork 114, of rocker arms 116, their ends outside the hull being joined by an articulation 125 to rods 118 freely sliding in supporting arms 117 fixed to the sides 102 of the boat. At their lower ends said rods 118 are connected, by supports 122, to the floats 120.
• the device 111 inside the hull 109 comprises cylinders 130, 140 served by pistons 131 , 141 that respectively create upper chambers 135 and 145, and lower chambers 136 and 146.
• the rocker arms 116 are joined by an articulation 119, at each inner end to the respective rods 132 , 142, of pistons 131 , 141.
• the plant also comprises a tank 55 for oil and a cylindrical compensator 60 divided by the freely moving piston 61 into two chambers 65 and 66.
• the chamber 65 is filled with CO 2 .
• Chamber 66 communicates through the tube 210 connected both to chambers 135, 145 of the cylinders 130, 140 by the pair of branch tubes 190 and 200, respectively fitted with valves 191 , 201 , and with chambers 136, 146 of said cylinders through the pair of branch tubes 195 and 205, respectively fitted with valves 196, 206.
• Said pairs of branch tubes 190, 200 and 195, 205 are respectively connected, in their sections between cylinders and valves, by connectors 173, 183 fitted with valves 174, 184 and by connectors 175, 185 fitted with valves 176, 186, to branch tubes 171 and 172 of the tube 170 to the oil tank 55.
• Said chamber 66 of the compensator 60 also communicates through the delivery tube 67 with the input aperture of the hydraulic engine 90 whose shaft is connected by a coupling 94 to the shaft of the dynamo 95.
• the output aperture of the engine is connected to the tank 55 by a return tube 91.
• FIG. 7 and 8 illustrate a plant 14 similar to that described and illustrated in Figures 1-4, except that the devices 30 for deriving energy from sea water movement are installed on the shore 15.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Other Liquid Machine Or Engine Such As Wave Power Use (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=11450136

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (4)

Cited By (1)

Families Citing this family (2)

Family Cites Families (8)

• 2002
  • 2002-07-04 IT IT2002MI001467A patent/ITMI20021467A1/it unknown
  • 2002-07-30 WO PCT/IT2002/000505 patent/WO2004005706A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 2002-07-30 EP EP02770167A patent/EP1520103A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2002-07-30 AU AU2002336016A patent/AU2002336016A1/en not_active Abandoned

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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