Patent ID: 6102758
Filing Date: 2000-08-15
Classification: B63B

Abstract:
A buoy communication platform comprising:a spar buoy,said spar buoy having an elongated airfoil shape such that the front half has a circular profile and the back half has sides which extend back from the sides of a circle formed by the front half to a distance of at least twice the length of the radius of the circle with the extended sides curving toward each other ending in a approximate V shape where the extended sides meet behind the center of the circle, creating an airfoil cross section;an electronics pod,said electronics pod containing communications and sensor electronics,said electronics pod attached to said spar buoy;a power means for supplying power to said electronics pod,said power means being an energy storage device for storing energy,said energy storage device attached to said spar buoy;a charging means to charge said energy storage device,said charging means attached to said spar buoy;a radiating and receiving means for transmitting and receiving electromagnetic signals,said radiating and receiving means attached to one end of said spar buoy;a mooring means for securing said spar buoy at a selected location,said mooring means attached to said spar buoy at the end opposite said radiating and receiving means; andan anti-heave means for damping the heaving motion of said spar buoy,said anti-heave means being a thin flat circular disk of lightweight semi-rigid material having a radius at least as large as two times the radius of the cylindrical profile of the front side of said spar buoy,said anti-heave means attached to said spar buoy above said mooring means.