Ocean energy harvesting system

A method of extracting energy from water waves, comprising the steps of:

• a. securing a pivot point in a body of water;
• b. attaching a structure to the pivot point, said structure having buoyant side with a cross-sectional area that is larger than buoyant other side, said structure further being capable of rotating in an arc substantially perpendicular to the pivot point;
• c. orienting the structure such that wave energy strikes the side of the structure having the larger cross-sectional area;
• d. connecting said structure to a mechanical device capable of converting the motion of said structure to another form of energy;
• and
• f. attaching the mechanical device to a generator to create useful energy.

An energy harvesting system, comprising:

• a. a pivot point secured in a body of water in a substantially vertical and fixed position;
• b. a buoyant structure mounted to the pivot point so as to be capable of rotating in an arc substantially perpendicular to the pivot point, said buoyant structure having at least one side with a cross-sectional area exceeding that of other side of said buoyant structure, and said buoyant structure being positioned within the water body such that wave energy strikes the side having the larger cross-sectional area;
• c. a mechanical device connected to the structure by a drive element, said device capable of converting energy to another form;
• and
• d. a generator connected to the mechanical device to allow for the creation of useful energy.

An ocean energy harvesting system comprising a means to:

• a. place in the ocean multiple buoyant structures capable of capturing horizontal wave energy;
• b. transfer the force created by incident waves on said buoyant structures to a shared mechanical device capable of transforming force to another energy form;
• and
• c. position said mechanical device substantially away from the ocean environment.