Improvements in Apparatus for Raising Water and Obtaining Motive Power by the Rise and Fall of the Tide.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 31st Jan., 1899-Accepted, 11th Mar., 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Raising Water and Obtaining Motive
Power by the Rise and Fall of the Tide.
I, WILLIAM REED, Insurance Adjuster, of 110, Riverside Drive, in the City
of New York (Borough of Manhattan), in the County and State of
New York, United States of America, do hereby declare the nature of my
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The invention relates to hydraulic engineering
and its object is to provide
a new and improved tide power apparatus for forming a head of water for driving
turbines or other motors, and for other purposes.
The invention consists of novel features and parts, and combinations of the
same, as will be fully described hereinafter and then pointed out in the claims.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this
specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding
parts in all the figures.
Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of the improvement in the position at low
tide;
Figure 2 is a similar view of the same in the position at high tide; and
Figure 3 is a sectional plan view of part of the motor, on the line 3-3 of
Figure 2.
A float A of suitable dimensions and in the form of a scow, for instance, is
arranged at a suitable dock, basin or like structure B accessible to tide water,
so that the float A rises and falls with the tide. On the float A are arranged a
plurality of water receiving receptacles C, C1, C2, preferably in the form of tanks
superimposed one over the other, and supported by a suitable framework carried
by the float. The water receiving receptacles are provided with gates D, D', D³,
respectively, arranged on the sides or ends, for allowing the water to flow from
said receptacles, as hereinafter more fully described.
Alongside the structure B is arranged a water supply reservoir E, likewise
accessible to the ocean water and to be filled by the latter, a suitable gate being
provided for closing the reservoir after it is filled, and maintaining the reservoir
filled during the receding of the surrounding water at low tide. A gate Fis
arranged on this reservoir E adjacent to the float A, so that when the latter is
in a lowermost position at low tide, the lowermost water receiving receptacle C
is below the level of the water in the reservoir E, and when the gate F is now
opened, a portion of the water in the supply reservoir can flow into the water
receiving receptacle C to fill the same, as indicated in Figure 1. Stationary
reservoirs G, G1, G2 are arranged adjacent to the float A and its superstructure
and at different levels, the distance between two superimposed receptacles corre-
sponding to the rise and fall of the float A and its receptacles C, C1, C2. Thus,
the lowermost stationary reservoir G is a sufficient distance above the level of
the ocean at high tide, so that when the float A has risen to its uppermost
position at high tide, the water contained in the lowermost receptacle C can be
Pring Rd71

page_text: discharged into the reservoir G upon opening the gate D of said receptacle C.
See Figure 2. Now, on the next downward movement of the float A the second
receptacle C is brought somewhat below the level of the stationary reservoir G,
to permit of discharging the water in this reservoir into the second receptacle Ct
upon opening a gate H, arranged in one side of the reservoir G. This takes place
at low tide- that is, at the time the lowermost tide receptacle C is again filled
from the supply receptacle E, as previously described. When the float A rises
at the next high tide it brings the filled receptacle C again to the position for
filling the reservoir G, while the next receptacle C is brought into such position
as to discharge its contents through the gate D into the second stationary reser-
voir G, which latter is emptied into the receptacle C on the next lowermost
position of the float A, said receptacle C then being in the position shown in
Figure 1, that is, below the reservoir G¹, to permit the water to flow from the
latter through the gate H¹ into the receptacle and fill the same. On the next
rising of the float A, the filled receptacle C is brought above the third stationary
reservoir G2, and upon opening the gate 12 the water flows from the receptacle (³
into said reservoir G2. Thus, the water originally contained in the supply reser-
voir E is lifted by the apparatus to the uppermost receptacle G2, thus forming
a head of water which can be readily utilized for driving turbines or other motors.
It is evident that whenever the float A is in a lowermost position at low tide,
the receptacle C is filled from the supply reservoir E, the receptacle C is filled
from the reservoir G, and the receptacle C is filled from the reservoir G¹; and
when the float A is in an uppermost position at high tide, the receptacle C dis-
charges into the reservoir G, the receptacle C discharges into the reservoir G
and the receptacle C discharges into the reservoir G2, thus forming the head
of water.
It is evident from the foregoing that any number of receiving receptacles C,
C³, C may be used on the float A according to the floating capacity of the latter,
and a corresponding number of stationary reservoirs G, G1, G2 is then employed
to successively lift the water to different levels, to finally obtain a head of water
having suitable pressure.
The float A when moving downward upon the receding of the water from the
structure B is utilized to actuate a pump or other machine; and for this purpose
I provide the superstructure of the float A on each side with a rack I, in mesh
with a gear wheel I' secured on a shaft I, journalled in suitable bearings in a
framework J, supported from the adjacent ground. On the shaft I2 is secured
a ratchet wheel K, engaged by a spring-pressed pawl K¹, fulcrumed on a gear-
wheel K mounted to rotate loosely on a bearing concentric with the shaft I, as
is plainly indicated in Figure 3. The gear wheel K2 is in mesh with a pinion L,
secured on a crank shaft L', connected by a pitman N with the plunger rod of
a pump O, having its suction pipe 01 extending into the water contained in the
supply reservoir E. The discharge pipe 02 of the pump O discharges the water
pumped by the pump O into a suitable reservoir P which may be used as a head
of water for driving machinery.
Now, it is evident that during the downward movement of the float A the
rack I moves with it, and thus turns the gear wheel I', which by the shaft I*
of the ratchet wheel K and pawl K' turns the gear wheel K² and transmits its
motion by the pinion L to the crank shaft L', to actuate the pump 0, for the
purpose mentioned. During the upward movement of the float A and while
lifting the water contained in the receptacles C, C1, C2, the pump remains at a
standstill, as the rack I merely turns the gear wheel I and the pawl K¹ glides
over the ratchet wheel K turning with the gear wheel I'.
Although the mechanism shown and described is actuated only on the down-
ward movement of the float, it is evident that the upward movement of the float
may be utilized for turning machinery similar to that described.
In order to properly guide the float and to transmit the power to other
machinery, I prefer to build a column in the bed of the water and provide the
E

page_text: Hoat with a vertical shaft located at the middle of the boat, and through which
extends the said column. The operating mechanism is.connected to the column
and the float, so that the power of the rising and falling float is transmitted by
the machinery to other machines to be driven.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. A tide power apparatus provided with a float arranged to rise and fall with
the tide, and carrying a plurality of superimposed water receiving receptacles,
and stationary reservoirs at different levels and each adapted to be filled from a
corresponding float receptacle at high tide, and adapted to fill the next highest
float receptacle at low tide, substantially as shown and described.
2. A tide power apparatus provided with a float arranged to rise and fall with
the tide, a water receiving receptacle carried by said float, and a stationary supply
reservoir arranged to fill said receptacle at low tide, substantially as shown and
described.
3. A tide power apparatus provided with a float arranged to rise and fall with
the tide, a water receiving receptacle carried by said float, a stationary supply
reservoir arranged to fill said receptacle at low tide, and a stationary reservoir
above the level of the supply reservoir, and adapted to receive the water from
the float receptacle at high tide, substantially as shown and described.
4. A tide power apparatus provided with a float adapted to rise and fall with
the tide, and a mechanism, substantially as described, adapted to be actuated by
the movement of said float, to transmit power during both the up and down move-
ment of the float.
5. A tide power apparatus provided with a float arranged to rise and fall with
the tide and carrying a plurality of superimposed water receiving receptacles,
stationary reservoirs at different levels and each adapted to be filled from a corre-
sponding float receptacle at high tide, and adapted to fill the next float receptacle
at low tide, and a stationary supply reservoir arranged to fill the lowermost float
receptacle at low tide, substantially as shown and described.
Dated this 21st day of January 1899.
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
Chartered Patent Agents, 53, Chancery Lane, London.