95results about "Buoyancy control" patented technology

An underwater apparatus for generating electric power from ocean currents and deep water tides. A submersible platform including two or more power pods, each having a rotor with fixed-pitch blades, with drivetrains housed in pressure vessels that are connected by a transverse structure providing buoyancy, which can be a wing depressor, hydrofoil, truss, or faired tube. The platform is connected to anchors on the seafloor by forward mooring lines and a vertical mooring line that restricts the depth of the device in the water column. The platform operates using passive, rather than active, depth control. The wing depressor, along with rotor drag loads, ensures the platform seeks the desired operational current velocity. The rotors are directly coupled to a hydraulic pump that drives at least one constant-speed hydraulic-motor generator set and enables hydraulic braking. A fluidic bearing decouples non-torque rotor loads to the main shaft driving the hydraulic pumps.

A wind turbine includes a rotor having a hub and at least one rotor blade, wherein the operating height of the hub is adjustable. Further, a method for operating a wind turbine is provided, which includes varying the height of the wind turbine.

A wave energy device converts the motion of waves on a body of water into a usable form of energy, for example a flow of pressurized water or an electrical current. The device includes a buoyant body for tracking the rise and fall of the wave and a working surface coupled for movement with the buoyant body and which is designed to capture and convert both heave and surge forces of the waves. The device includes a rapid deployment and retrieval capability and a capability to rotate to accommodate changes in wave direction. The device is universally attached to the sea floor, which allows the device to pitch, yaw and roll with the wave forces from any direction, thereby reducing the likelihood of damage due to extreme weather or damage to or from marine traffic in the event of an encounter.

A buoyant actuator (10) for use in apparatus (11) for harnessing ocean wave energy and for converting the harnessed energy to high-pressure seawater. The buoyant actuator (10) comprises a body (21) defining a chamber (23) having a pliant outer skin (27). The chamber (23) is adapted to contain matter and a hydrodynamic property of the body (21) is selectively variable by varying the matter within the chamber (23). The variation to the hydrodynamic property may comprise a variation to the buoyancy (either positively or negatively) or a variation to the response area (such as the volume or shape) of the body (21), as well as a combination thereof. The variation to the matter may comprise addition of matter to, or extraction of matter from, the chamber (23). The matter may comprise a solid, liquid or gas, as well as any combination thereof. In the arrangement shown, the matter comprises foam spheres (53). The outer skin (27) is drawn into a taut condition by the outward pressure of the foam spheres (53) inside, causing the actuator to assume its design shape. The volume occupied by the foam spheres (53) is in total still less than the total enclosed volume of the chamber (23) and there are interstitial regions (55) around each sphere (53). The interstitial regions (55) may be filled with fluid to adjust the buoyancy.

A series of helical Savonius turbine generators for use in the ocean, each turbine generator being an independent system, but all sharing a common mooring/bus-bar cable. An anchor connects one generator to the ocean floor, and a buoyancy device system buoys the turbines so that they can generate power from passing currents. The generators are coreless, and generate electrical or hydraulic power. The turbine blades rotate on bearings that are lubricated with ambient water. A control system separately tracks the power generation level of each turbine, and controls the buoyancy of the buoyancy device system.

The invention allows orientation of the platform (1) in order to obtain conditions of maximum efficiency in the wind turbine (16). It comprises first sensors (8) for detecting an effective rotation axis angle (δ) formed between the rotation axis (2) and a horizontal plane (24); second sensors (9) for detecting wind direction (23); platform orientation means (11) for modifying the effective rotation axis angle (δ); and at least one control unit (12) adapted for receiving a first input (13) from the first sensors (8) and a second input (14) from the second sensors (9) and, based on said inputs (13, 14), transmitting orders to the platform orientation means (11) and yaw mechanism.

The hydrokinetic energy conversion system uses, in one embodiment, a perpendicular turbine coupled to an electrical generator and a laminar water flow shroud. The ballast and buoyancy system includes hydrofoils defining lateral sides of the shroud mounted on upper and lower decks. Ballast chambers are defined in some or all of the foils and each has a gas intake port and a water ballast output port. The shroud carries a source of compressed air, valves for control of air flow into the ballast chambers. The ballast and buoyancy system includes a control system with sensors for depth, pitch, yaw and roll of the shroud which generates valve control commands. Another embodiment utilizes an inline turbine and a radial water flow shroud with a plurality of circumferential hydrofoils. Struts mount the turbine near the primary hydrofoil and braces attach ring hydrofoils together. Alternatively, ballast chambers are defined in outboard-mounted ballast pods.

A self-propelled, robotic power generating system remains submerged in deep water areas, tethered within steady-state, generally unidirectional sea currents in non-tidal areas for the continuous production of turbine-generated electricity that is transmittable by multipurpose undersea power cable to onshore electric grids. System aspects include a shore-to-system communication means to remotely manage all system functions; a sea current intake consisting of a cone-like, retractable current amplifier to significantly increase the energy density of the currents passing through the amplifier to the turbine; a self propulsion means to move the system to maintain a desirable location within a prescribed area that may be subject to meandering currents; a snorkel-like vertical air conduit for ballast control; a seawater pumping means for ballast control; a retractable marine wildlife protector to cover the sea current intake; and a remotely retractable anchor means to maintain the generating system in a target position for extended time periods.

An ocean wave energy converter (WEC) uses one or more buoyant elongated float(s) mechanically linked to a motion-stabilized, controlled-submergence depth frame by either swing or lever arms or down-sloping tracks defining and orienting the motion of the floats relative to the frame to capture both heave and surge wave energy forces. The submerged depth of the frame and attached float(s) is adjusted for optimal wave energy capture or submerged sufficiently to fully submerge the float(s) during severe sea conditions. The elongated float's compliant wave-impacting forward wall combined with total submergence during severe sea states allows the elongated float(s) to self-orient parallel to oncoming wave fronts to intercept and capture maximum wave energy per unit of WEC volume, weight and cost.

Combination of machinery and processes in the field of compound, segmented floating platform apparatus for oceanic wave power conversion consisting of a buoyant semi-submersible segment pivotally joined to an Interlinking Segment with their relative movement restricted to oscillate in one or more planes, wherein the buoyant semi-submersible segment provides means for controlled, graduated altered pitch of its main axis' facing direction between horizontal and vertical orientations. The addition, subtraction, redistribution or linear acceleration along the primary axis of components of varying relative specific gravity cause the submersible end to rise, reorienting the facing angle. Preferred embodiments include reorienting segments joined serially or radially and interlinked to second elements, and extensible lengthwise for adjusting natural resonance. Methods are disclosed for reorienting, trimming and harmonic tuning both of single apparatus and in arrays, so as essentially to compose a multitier distributed information system controlled in automatic, command, and neural network modes.

A platform for exploiting the energy of waves operating in a marine environment and floating on the sea is disclosed. This comprises a submerged portion existing below a sea surface, an emerged portion existing above the sea surface, and a partially submerged wave power transfer mechanism portion including the sea surface and coupling the submerged portion and the emerged portion.

Disclosed is a novel method, process, and system (hereinafter “method” or “process”) for deploying, stationing, and translocating buoyant wind- and wave-energy converters and/or other buoyant structures or devices, as well as farms of same. Also disclosed is a novel apparatus and/or machine comprising a farm of buoyant wave energy converters deployed by said method and/or configured to be deployed by said method.

The invention provides a movable ballast leveling control device for a floating-type draught fan. Tilting and motion response of the floating-type draught fan can be restrained. The movable ballast leveling control device comprises a movable ballast, a sliding rail, a limiting support, a leveling control server and the like. The movable ballast is provided with a power part, a brake and a locking system and can receive signals in real time to slide, brake and lock on the rail. The sliding rail is arranged according to the basic layout and an available space of the floating-type draught fan and is provided with a sliding rail body, a hinge, a lead screw and the like needed by moving of the ballast. The limiting support is arranged at the end of the rail, so that the ballast device is prevented from sliding out of the rail; and a ballast power auxiliary device is placed. The leveling control server can be installed in a basic deck or a draught fan tower tube, and according to the velocity magnitude and direction monitoring data of wind, waves and streams, a real-time active control instruction is sent to the movable ballast device.

A marine wave energy converter is described, comprising a flexible spine (1) and a plurality of blades (2) rotatably mounted on and supported by the spine. Each blade is operable, by ocean waves travelling parallel to the longitudinal axis of the spine, to angularly oscillate and thereby to drive the conversion of marine wave energy into useful work, such as into electrical energy. The spine (1) is resiliently flexible and comprises one or more elongate structural elements (3) and a plurality of connectors (5, 6) mounted along a continuous length thereof, wherein the/each elongate structural element (3) is a conduit. Each blade (2) is hingedly secured to the spine (1) at a said connector (5), so as to rotate about a hinge axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the spine.

A means for improving the motion stability of a floating, semi-submerged, or submerged body used in, multi-capture-mode wave energy converters (WECs) having two or more bodies, against wave-induced heave, surge, and pitching forces, while reducing the size, mass and cost of such bodies or bases, thus improving the relative motion and hence capture efficiency of such WECs over a broad spectrum of wave periods and wave heights. Stabilizing counter moments against wave-induced motion are substituted by strategic placement of drag plates or planes entraining seawater mass or water-filled cavities within, or attached to, the bases and/or at least one tensioned seabed-affixed cable. The base or reaction-body stabilizing means is disclosed in a two-body multi-capture-mode, deep-water, surface-deployed, wave-terminator-type WEC to concurrently increase wave energy capture efficiency and reduce the volume, mass, and capital cost of the WEC's stabilized reaction body or base.

A submergible wave energy converter and method for using the same are described. Such a wave energy converter may be used for deep water operations. In one embodiment, the wave energy converter apparatus comprises an absorber having a body with an upper surface and a bottom surface and at least one power take-off (PTO) unit coupled to the absorber and configured to displace movement of the absorber body relative to a reference, where the power take-off unit is operable to perform motion energy conversion based on displacement of the absorber body relative to the reference in response to wave excitation, and where the power take-off unit is operable to return the absorber body from a displaced position to a predefined equilibrium position and to provide a force acting on the absorber body for energy extraction.

The invention is directed to a single moored offshore marine turbine assembly having a central control vessel which includes a main vessel tethered to a control buoy. The main vessel having a first cap, a corresponding second cap and a tubular shell positioned between both the first cap and second cap. The tubular shell contains one or more vertical partitions to assist in ballasting. The control buoy includes a compressor and an air conduit which forces air into the main vessel through a manifold. A hollow suction caisson affixes the central control vessel to the ocean floor. A taut line mooring secures the suction caisson to the main vessel. Electricity is generated via a turbine shroud assembly having a conical shroud and a hydro-turbine. By attaching a plurality of turbine shroud assemblies in series via cables, a horizontal turbine array is formed resulting in a simple, economical and safe layout.

A wave barrier or wave terminator type ocean wave energy converter (WEC) utilizing one or multiple adjacent floats together forming an elongated wave front parallel (EWFP) float rotatably connected by at least one swing or drive arm to a secondary floating or shore or seabed fixed body or frame, such that the at least one swing arm is rotating about a submerged pivot point or axle on such body or frame and constraining the motion of the float(s) relative to the body or frame when wave forces are applied against the float(s). Relative to the direction of oncoming wave fronts and relative to the still water line (SWL), the at least one EWFP float is substantially forward of, and above, the pivot point such that the float concurrently moves both upward and rearward on wave crests and returns both forward and downward on ensuing wave troughs. The rear surface of the EWFP float is substantially arcuate and concave with a radius approximating its distance from the pivot point such that the float produces minimal energy consuming back waves when it is being moved by oncoming wave forces. The lower rear arcuate surface of the float can extend below the bottom of the float deeper into the water column to capture additional wave energy.