Fish Recompression Tool with Pressure-Actuated Piston

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Fish caught in deep water often have inflated air bladders when brought to the surface, making it difficult for them to return to their natural habitat, leading to high mortality rates and ecosystem damage, with existing solutions like venting tools causing injury and weight systems being time-consuming.

Innovation Solution

A fish recompression device with an internal airtight chamber, attachment member, locking mechanism, and spring that automatically releases the fish at a targeted depth, allowing it to return to deeper water, reducing the need for manual intervention and minimizing harm.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If venting tools are used to bleed off air from the fish's abdomen or bladder, then the fish can be returned to deeper water, but the fish may suffer infection or organ damage that significantly affects survival

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefish return efficiencyVSAvoidfish injury and infection

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The device extracts only the necessary function of venting air from the fish's bladder without requiring physical penetration. The elastomeric cup creates a seal around the fish's mouth and uses pressure differential to extract air through the mouth, avoiding damage to the fish's abdomen and organs while still achieving the goal of reducing bladder pressure

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The elastomeric cup acts as an intermediary between the user and the fish. It creates a seal around the fish's mouth and transmits pressure forces without requiring direct contact with the fish's body, thereby preventing infection and organ damage while still enabling air removal

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Productivity

If weights are used to return fish to deep water by weighing them down, then the fish can be returned to its habitat, but the process is time-consuming and exhausting for the fisherman

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefish return efficiencyVSAvoidtime and effort required

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The device enables the fish to return to depth on its own power by removing the air from its bladder, which provides the buoyancy that prevents it from sinking. The fish swims down naturally once the bladder is deflated, eliminating the need for the fisherman to manually lower weights and spend time operating complex mechanisms

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of forcing the fish down with weights (external force), the device works by removing the buoyant force that keeps the fish afloat. This inversion of the approach - removing upward force rather than applying downward force - simplifies the process and eliminates the need for time-consuming weight manipulation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

3Ease of operation

If fish are released at the surface with inflated air bladders, then they can be seen floating away, but they are unable to return to their deep water habitats and most die or are eaten by predators

Engineering Contradiction:

Improverelease simplicityVSAvoidfish survival rate

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The device performs the critical action of deflating the fish's air bladder before release. By removing the air that provides buoyancy while the fish is still under control, the fish is prepared in advance to sink and return to depth on its own, significantly improving survival rates compared to simple surface release

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The device securely attaches to a fish and automatically releases it at a predetermined depth, ensuring the fish can return to its habitat, reducing mortality and ecosystem impact while being easy and quick to use, thus addressing the need for a low-cost, efficient solution.

Implementation Method 1

a spring within the airtight chamber that engages the piston

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectSpring force: Spring

Implementation Method 2

reaching a water depth that results in the external pressure surrounding the airtight chamber being sufficiently greater than the internal pressure within the airtight chamber

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectHydraulic pressure: Pressure Increase

Data Source

PatentUS9675058B2Fish recompression tool

Publication Date: 2017.06.13 SEAQUALIZER VENTURES LLC

AI summary

A fish recompression tool comprises an elongate body having and internal airtight chamber, an attachment member, a locking member, a piston, and a spring within the airtight chamber that engages the piston. The attachment member may switch between open and closed configurations, such that a fish is attached to the device in the closed configuration. The attachment member configuration is controlled by the locking member, such that a locked configuration corresponds to a closed configuration. The attachment member switches to the open configuration when the piston moves in response to reaching a water depth that results in the external pressure surrounding the airtight chamber being sufficiently greater than the internal pressure within the airtight chamber and the spring force on the piston. In preferred embodiments, a plug attaches to an open ended elongate body and may be moved to set different unlocking requirements (i.e. different release depths).