Pressure source

A pressure source to develop a stream of liquid under pressure as a consequence of the rise and fall of the surface of a body of water. The pressurizing means comprises an enclosure which bounds a chamber having a pair of portions at least one of which is movable relative to the other as a consequence of a force applied to one of them to reduce the volume of a chamber and thereby to place under pressure liquid which is contained therein. A conduit leads from the chamber through which a stream of liquid under pressure can flow for doing work. Buoyant means is floatable in the body of water to rise with its surface and to lower when the surface is sufficiently below the weight means. Force transmission means applies force from the weight means, when elevated, to the one portion. A release valve is located in said conduit, which when closed prevents flow of liquid through the conduit and thereby prevents the weight means from lowering, and which when open permits flow of liquid through the conduit and thereby permits the weight means to lower. Control means is effective selectively to close and to open the release valve as a function of whether the water surface is as high as or higher than a reference level relative to the weight means itself and opening the release valve means when lower.

This application relates to a pressure source. 
A pressure source for generating a stream of liquid under pressure for 
doing work as a consequence of the rise and fall of the surface of a body 
of water is shown in West U.S. Pat. No. 3,961,480 issued June 8, 1976. One 
embodiment of the West patent includes a buoyant weight means which rises 
and falls with the surface of a body of water, and which includes a valve 
in the conduit from its pressurizing means which is opened when the water 
level reaches a predetermined elevation. The purpose of this arrangement 
is to enable the weight means to descend without buoyant support by the 
water while it is descending, whereby it will exert its maximum weight on 
the pressurizing means. This has the additional advantage of maintaining a 
substantially constant pressure in the pressurizing means. 
The said West device functions well, and is especially well-suited for 
environments where the rise and fall of the surface is relatively regular 
and cyclical relative to a specific elevation. There are, however, 
situations in which the rise and fall may be relatively irregular or 
erratic, and in which the elevation might vary, such as with the tide. 
It is an object of this invention to provide means which will permit the 
weight means to lower under substantially the same circumstances in the 
West situation, i.e. when the weight means is unsupported by the water but 
wherein the rise and fall might be relatively irregular or interrupted, or 
related to random elevations. 
A pressure source according to this invention includes pressurizing means 
which includes an enclosure that bounds a chamber. The enclosure comprises 
a pair of portions, at least one of which is movable relative to the other 
as a consequence of the force applied to it so as to reduce the volume of 
the chamber, and thereby place under pressure liquid which is contained 
therein. A conduit leads from the chamber through which a stream of liquid 
under pressure can flow for doing work. Buoyant means is floatable in the 
body of water to rise with its surface and to lower when the surface is 
sufficiently far below the weight means. Force transmission means is so 
disposed and arranged so as to apply force from the weight means when 
elevated to the one portion. A release valve is placed in the conduit 
which when closed prevents flow of liquid through the conduit and thereby 
prevents the weight means from lowering. When open it permits flow of 
liquid through the conduit and thereby permits the weight to lower. 
Control means is effective selectively to close and to open the release 
valve, the control means closing the release valve when the water surface 
is as high as or higher than a reference level relative to the weight 
means and closes the release valve means when it is lower. 
According to a preferred but optional feature of the invention, the control 
means comprises a buoyant float carried by the weight means in such manner 
that within limits it is independently movable up and down as a function 
of the location of the water surface relative to the reference level.

FIG. 1 shows the presently preferred embodiment and best known mode of the 
invention. A pressure source 10 is shown established on the bottom 11 
beneath a body 12 of water having a surface 13 which can rise and fall 
such as by wave motion. A typical example is near the shoreline where the 
waves have not yet broken but have a substantial elevation between crest 
14 and trough 15. 
The pressure source includes a pressurizing means 20 including an enclosure 
21 having a first portion 22 and a second portion 23. The second portion 
comprises a cylinder 24 which is firmly mounted to a foundation 25 on the 
bottom. It includes a circularly cylindrical wall 26 having a vertical 
axis 27. The second portion is a piston having a peripheral seal 28 which 
makes a sliding fluid sealing fit with wall 26. This forms an enclosure 
29. The first portion 22 is movable relative to the second portion as a 
consequence of a downward vertical force applied to it which tends to 
reduce the volume of the chamber 29 and thereby to place under pressure 
liquid 30 which is contained therein. A conduit 35 (FIG. 2) leads from the 
chamber through which a stream of liquid under pressure can flow for doing 
work. A unidirectional check valve 36 is disposed in the conduit which 
permits liquid to flow out of the chamber but not into it. An inlet port 
and conduit 37 includes an inlet check valve 38 which permits flow of 
liquid into the chamber but not out of it. If desired the inlet port and 
conduit may receive liquid directly from the body of water or it may be a 
recirculating system containing a different liquid, as further described 
below. 
Buoyant weight means 40 is floatable on the surface 13 of the body of water 
so as to raise and lower with that surface. This buoyant weight means may 
be as simple as a floating log or it may be an assembly such as a boat, 
scow, or tank, depending on the specific gravity and the weight and bulk 
desired. As best shown in FIG. 2 it comprises a substantial body which is 
connected to the first portion by a transmission means 42. The 
transmission means in this embodiment comprising a vertical member in the 
nature of a cylindrical shaft which is side-supported by a spider 43 
("side support means") attached to the top of the second portion. It is 
slidable in an aperture 44 formed by the spider. Accordingly water can 
flood the part of the second portion above the first portion in the 
pressurizing means. The conduit may either be formed separately such as by 
a flexible hose as shown in FIG. 1 and taken ashore or to any other 
desired location for doing its work, or as in the presently preferred 
embodiment it may pass upwardly through the transmission member to a 
nozzle 45 which emits the water as a high pressure stream to a shaft drive 
46 which may form part of a generator for generating electricity. Any 
suitable user device can be supplied which can use a pressurized stream of 
liquid as power. Exhaust liquid 47 may either be returned to the body of 
water, or if preferred liquid separate from that of the body of water, 
such as fresh water in the system instead of salt water from the body of 
water, may be returned to a reservoir 48 through an exhaust line 49 from 
which the inlet port of conduit can draw liquid for subsequent operation. 
A release valve 50 is placed in the conduit. This is an off/on valve. When 
the release valve is closed it prevents flow of liquid through the conduit 
and by preventing exit of liquid from the chamber prevents the weight 
means from lowering even when not supported by the body of water. When the 
release valve is opened, it permits flow of liquid through the conduit and 
thereby permits the weight means to lower. Control means 55 is connected 
by linkage 56 or other means to release a valve 50 to control its opening 
or closing. 
The purpose of this release valve is to prevent the lowering of the weight 
means unless the surface is below some reference level relative to the 
weight means such as reference level 57 in FIGS. 2 and 5. This level is 
sufficiently beneath the bottom of the weight means, or sufficiently close 
to it that buoyancy is negligible, that the body of water will not 
importantly impede the lowering of the weight means or reduce the weight 
which it exerts. A convenient control means comprises a float 58, a 
vertical shaft 59 and a plate 60 which will be moved to the uppermost 
position as shown in FIG. 2 by the water when it is as high as or higher 
than reference level 57. Bypass passages 61, 62 are provided to prevent 
liquid lock as shown. 
When the float 58 is raised relative to the weight means, as shown in FIG. 
2, the linkage to the release valve closes the release valve. When the 
surface 13 of the water is below the reference level 57 the control 
changes to the condition of FIG. 5. As soon as it moves down sufficiently, 
the release valve will open and the weight means can lower. 
This device therefore constitutes a means which will permit the 
pressurizing means to discharge liquid under pressure whenever the weight 
means is elevated and is substantially unsupported by the liquid beneath 
it regardless of the elevation of the surface relative to the bottom. 
It is evident that other means can be mounted to the weight means such as a 
ballcock linkage, providing release valve 50 in the form of a ballcock 
valve responsive to the level of the water surface relative to the weight 
means. 
FIG. 6 shows that the pressure source 10 can be enclosed in a tank-like 
enclosure 65 if desired having ports 66 to permit water to surge in and 
out in response to wave action at the surface. This will protect the 
device of FIG. 1 from excessive battering by the waves and in some 
environoments is to be preferred. 
FIG. 7 shows that the release valve can be controlled as a function of 
pressure in the chamber as well as by the external level of the liquid. 
This is because a unique pressure is developed in the chamber when the 
weight means is unsuppported by the water. At that time pressure through a 
signal line 70 is transmitted to a release valve 71 which is a 
pressure-actuated valve that is closed at pressures below the chamber 
pressure which is developed by unsupported weight means, and opened at 
that pressure. Of course the release pressure can be set at a level 
slightly below so as to be certain of operation. In all other respects 
this is the same of embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2. 
This invention thereby provides a means whereby small intermittent 
variations in wave motion can generate a uniquely developed pressure and 
over a wide range of elevations not necessarily associated with an 
elevation in a tank or container. Therefore this device broadens the 
advantages shown by the West patent because of the freedom from specific 
tank or environmental heights and levels. 
This invention is not to be limited by the embodiments shown in the 
drawings and described in the description which are given by way of 
example and not of limitation but only in accordance with the scope of the 
appended claims.