US 7,924,165 B2 · Electronic shark deterrent

Abstract

An Electronic Shark Deterrent provides protection from, and for, sharks and other aquatic creatures. Compact low power circuitry generates high voltage periodic pulse train bursts, disturbing the electroreceptors of the aquatic Elasmobranchi subclass. A train of thirty 33 us 250 Volt (V) electric pulses lasting one second is produced every six seconds. The device is fully portable, requiring no bulky activity impeding buoys, cords, or external power supplies. Advanced circuitry is compact enough to be worn on a watch sized band or attached to garments and recreation or safety equipment. The deterrent can be used in a fixed configuration to protect fish farms and vacation resort swimming areas. It can be affixed to offshore oil rigs and research stations to protect workers. The Electronic Shark Deterrent is compact and portable enough to be used on longlines, trawls and gillnets to reduce the numbers of endangered aquatic creatures unnecessarily destroyed as bycatch.

Claims17

Dependent claims

An electronic shark deterrent apparatus comprising:

a low voltage power supply;
a high voltage charging controller;
a high voltage capacitor;
at least one pair of probes, wherein the at least one pair of probes is in contact with a body of water;
and
a processor for generating signals to cause the high voltage charging controller to charge and discharge the high voltage capacitor thereby creating an output waveform for transmission from the at least one pair of probes, wherein the output waveform comprises high voltage pulses, each in the range of 20 μs to 100 μs, grouped in pulse bursts each having a duration of one half to two and one half seconds, the pulse bursts repeated at regular intervals, to deter sharks and other elasmobranchs from the vicinity of the at least one pair of probes.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Electronic shark deterrent

Life of this patent

Electronic shark deterrent

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims17