US 12,116,973 B1Granted

Ocean multitasking generator

OwnerSalvatore Deianainventor

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Abstract

An electricity generating apparatus has a turbine between two vertical water-tight towers on a floating base that may be managed to attain a buoyancy such that the towers protrude above a water surface and the turbine remains below the water surface. One tower has an upward extending air conduit with an air pump driven by wind vanes at an upper region. The turbine is adapted to be driven by both wave motion and by tide currents, and an air manifold beneath the turbine, fed with air from the air pump, feeds air to aid in turning the turbine, which in turn drives a generator in one of the towers.

Claims10

Dependent claims

An electricity generating apparatus, comprising:

a base enclosure with a top surface and a passage into the enclosure having valves coupled to a source of water and of air under pressure, the valves controllable to alter the proportion of air and water in the base enclosure, determining buoyancy of the base enclosure;
a first and a second hollow, watertight vertical tower, the towers spaced apart on the top surface of the base enclosure by a first width and extending upward to a first height above the top surface of the base enclosure;
a turbine having a horizontal axis, a length and a circular shape of a diameter D orthogonal to the axis, with a plurality of curved panels proceeding from the axis, spaced around the axis, forming a plurality of bucket shapes facing substantially tangent to an outer edge of the circular shape, the turbine having a first shaft extending in a direction of the axis from a first end of the turbine and a second shaft extending in the direction of the axis from a second end of the turbine;
a first generator in the first tower with a drive shaft coupled to the first shaft of the turbine passing through a watertight seal through a wall of the first tower such that rotary motion of the turbine turns the first generator, generating electricity;
a conduit proceeding upward from an upper end of the first tower to an air pump powered by vanes driven by wind, the air pump providing air under pressure into the conduit;
a horizontal manifold spanning between the two towers below the turbine with a manifold axis parallel to the axis of the turbine, the manifold provided with air under pressure from the conduit and having a plurality of upward facing air nozzles emitting air into water below the turbine, the manifold axis offset horizontally from the turbine axis by at least one quarter of diameter D and less than one half of diameter D, and offset vertically below the turbine axis by no more that diameter D;
wherein the base enclosure has a buoyancy such that it floats with the first vertical tower projecting above a surface of the water with the air pump and wind driven vanes projected above the first tower, and with the turbine wholly immersed in the water, such that wave motion producing vertical currents and tidal action producing horizontal currents both drive the turbine that drives the generator, and the air pump provides air to the manifold providing air below the turbine that also drives the turbine.

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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

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Abstract

An electricity generating apparatus, comprising:

a base enclosure with a top surface and a passage into the enclosure having valves coupled to a source of water and of air under pressure, the valves controllable to alter the proportion of air and water in the base enclosure, determining buoyancy of the base enclosure;
a first and a second hollow, watertight vertical tower, the towers spaced apart on the top surface of the base enclosure by a first width and extending upward to a first height above the top surface of the base enclosure;
a turbine having a horizontal axis, a length and a circular shape of a diameter D orthogonal to the axis, with a plurality of curved panels proceeding from the axis, spaced around the axis, forming a plurality of bucket shapes facing substantially tangent to an outer edge of the circular shape, the turbine having a first shaft extending in a direction of the axis from a first end of the turbine and a second shaft extending in the direction of the axis from a second end of the turbine;
a first generator in the first tower with a drive shaft coupled to the first shaft of the turbine passing through a watertight seal through a wall of the first tower such that rotary motion of the turbine turns the first generator, generating electricity;
a conduit proceeding upward from an upper end of the first tower to an air pump powered by vanes driven by wind, the air pump providing air under pressure into the conduit;
a horizontal manifold spanning between the two towers below the turbine with a manifold axis parallel to the axis of the turbine, the manifold provided with air under pressure from the conduit and having a plurality of upward facing air nozzles emitting air into water below the turbine, the manifold axis offset horizontally from the turbine axis by at least one quarter of diameter D and less than one half of diameter D, and offset vertically below the turbine axis by no more that diameter D;
wherein the base enclosure has a buoyancy such that it floats with the first vertical tower projecting above a surface of the water with the air pump and wind driven vanes projected above the first tower, and with the turbine wholly immersed in the water, such that wave motion producing vertical currents and tidal action producing horizontal currents both drive the turbine that drives the generator, and the air pump provides air to the manifold providing air below the turbine that also drives the turbine.

4 more elements