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US 4,726,188 AGranted
Motor utilizing buoyancy forces
OwnerMartin Y. Woolfolkinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A motor utilizing, at least in part, buoyancy forces of different materials in a fluid is disclosed characterized by a piston assembly that requires only a single level fluid pool utilizing no pump to operate.
Claims1
A motor utilizing buoyancy forces as a source of the energy to generate power to a power receiving means comprising:
- (a) an enclosed hollow body positioned in a pool of liquid, said body having an opening in the upper portion of its vertical wall and a second opening in the lower portion of its vertical wall and a third opening in its bottom surface,
- (b) a piston means co-axially positioned in said hollow body comprising:
- (i) a piston head vertically movable along said vertical wall in sealing contact to form an upper cavity and a lower cavity within said body,
- (ii) a piston shaft attached at one end to said piston head and extending upward through the upper surface of said hollow body and being of sufficient length to allow said piston head to extend below said second opening, and
- (iii) a float attached to the other end of said piston shaft outside of said hollow body and having a flooding cavity and having a flooding opening and having a draining opening connecting said flooding cavity with said pool of fluid, said upper and lower cavities of said hollow body being adjustable in size upon the vertical movement of said piston head, said upper cavity when at its maximum size providing sufficient fluid displacement to result in said hollow body having a positive buoyancy when said flooding cavity is filled with said fluid,
- (c) a valve assembly operatively connected to said second opening, said flooding opening and said draining opening to independently open and close said second opening, said flooding opening and said draining opening,
- (d) a first locking means attached to said hollow body to lock and unlock said hollow float in position relative to said hollow body at a pre-determined time,
- (e) a second locking means attached to said hollow body to lock and unlock said hollow body in position relative to the bottom of said pool of liquid at a second pre-determined time,
- (f) a flexible hose attached at one end to said third opening and having its opposite end extending above the pool of liquid to allow the air to flow to and from said lower cavity to the atmosphere above said pool of liquid, and
- (g) a flexible line attached at one end to the bottom of said hollow body and extending toward said bottom of said pool of liquid and attached at its opposite end to said power receiving means.
7 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.