Patent ID: 12258932

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The technical solutions in the embodiments of wave energy conversion devices will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of wave energy conversion devices. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a portion of the embodiments of wave energy conversion devices and not all the embodiments. The components of embodiments of wave energy conversion devices generally described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings herein may be arranged and designed in various configurations. Accordingly, the following detailed description of embodiments of wave energy conversion devices provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of wave energy conversion devices for which protection is claimed but rather represents only selected embodiments of wave energy conversion devices. Based on the embodiments of wave energy conversion devices, all other embodiments obtained by a person skilled in the art without creative labor are within the scope of protection of wave energy conversion devices.

A wave energy conversion device is described in further detail below to enable those skilled in the art to implement it with reference to the explanatory text. Referring first toFIG.1,FIG.1is a schematic view of an embodiment of a wave energy conversion device. In the embodiment ofFIG.1, the wave energy conversion device is a container with a housing defined as a front end on the side facing the waves, with an intake/discharge port23provided in the lower portion of the front end, and the intake/discharge port23is provided with an anti-fouling grille17.

The lower rear end is provided with a curved transition24. Hydrodynamic simulations confirm that in this area, the curved transition significantly reduces eddy currents in the bottom11of the housing, thereby increasing efficiency of drainage and energy absorption in the outlet chamber26. It also reduces the hydrodynamic impact on the device.

A rotary electricity generator2is disposed above the housing, which is connected to stator5and the rotor6of the hydropower turbine by means of a sleeve32and a shaft16provided therein. The stator5and the rotor6of the hydropower turbine are provided in a hydropower turbine chamber30at the bottom of the rear section28of the inlet chamber25.

A top19of the housing has a grate-shaped outlet chamber air vent7and an inlet chamber air vent8.

Referring next toFIG.2,FIG.2is a schematic view of the structure ofFIG.1with the top cover removed. InFIG.2, the housing is provided with the intake/discharge port23at the lower part of the side facing the waves, and the wave energy conversion device has an inlet chamber25and an outlet chamber26, and the inlet and outlet chambers25,26are open to the sea to absorb wave energy through a pair of one-way flow guiding grates3,4installed on the two chamber openings. A hydropower turbine is fitted between the two chambers25,26to convert the hydrodynamic energy between the two chambers25,26into mechanical energy. Above the hydropower turbine, the rotary electricity generator2is connected to the hydropower turbine via the sleeve32, and the shaft16is disposed within the sleeve32to convert the mechanical energy into electrical energy. This design allows the rotary electricity generator2to be placed above the housing, thereby protecting the generator2from being submerged in seawater in most cases, and prolonging its life and reliability.

The inlet chamber25has a front section27and a rear section28. The front section27and the rear section28together form the inlet chamber25. A top portion28of the rear section28is provided with a through-hole29through which the shaft16and the sleeve32provided in the rear section28are connected to the rotary electricity generator2disposed above the housing. A hydropower turbine chamber30is located at the bottom of the rear section28. A stator5and a rotor6of the hydropower turbine are configured to be connected to the shaft16. The hydropower turbine chamber30communicates the inlet chamber25with the outlet chamber26.

A cross-section of the front section27of the inlet chamber25is a quadrilateral. A longer edge of the quadrilateral is located on the front wall of the housing facing waves, and a bottom of the front section27is provided with the one-way flow guiding grate3slanting in a front-higher and rear-lower orientation. A cross section of the rear section28is surrounded by a length of helix, with a first end portion and a second end portion of the helix tangent to and intersect with the two side edges of the corresponding quadrilateral in the cross-section of the front section27. The front end of the rear section28is in fluid communication with the front section27, and the bottom of the rear section28is in fluid communication with the bottom of the front portion27. The helix is an involute helix, with the side tangent to the side of the cross-sectional quadrilateral of the front section27being an outer end and the side that intersects being an inner end of the involute helix. The top19of the housing includes with the inlet chamber air vent7.

It should be appreciated that the above embodiment is a preferred embodiment of wave energy conversion devices and that in other embodiments, the inlet chamber may be of a different shape. The inlet chamber is sufficient to be wider at the front, and gradually narrows at the rear, with the bottom surface of the rear section being connected to the outlet chamber by the hydropower turbine chamber.

FIG.3is a schematic view of the bottom structure of the device depicted inFIG.1. InFIG.3a bottom surface at the rear of the inlet chamber25can be seen with a hydropower turbine chamber30in which a rotor6of the hydropower turbine is provided. In the lower part ofFIG.3is the bottom surface of the wave energy conversion device with a hydropower turbine slurry cap33. The rear end of the bottom surface of the enclosure can be seen inFIG.3as having a curved transition24. A one-way flow guiding grate4of the outlet chamber26and a fouling grille17of the intake/discharge port23can be seen inFIG.3as well.

In some embodiments, the one-way flow guiding grate structure of a wave energy conversion device functions the same as an inlet or outlet valve as in Chinese Patent No. 200880131611.2, wherein the one-way flow guiding grate3for the inlet chamber25is opened by the external wave pressure to unidirectionally take in the water when the wave is at the crest of the wave. When the wave is at the trough of the wave, the one-way flow guiding grate4of the outlet chamber26is opened by the difference of the internal and external pressures to unidirectionally discharge the water.

Referring next toFIG.4,FIG.4shows a schematic view of the structure ofFIG.1with one side removed. InFIG.4it can be clearly seen that the one-way flow guiding grate and the top and bottom of the energy alternating chamber31and the outlet chamber26are arranged in a transverse V-shape. The one-way flow guiding grates3,4of the two chambers25,16are at an angle to the ground surface, and the angle formed therein may range from 30 degrees (including 30 degrees) to 180 degrees. The one-way flow guiding grate3of the inlet chamber25is positioned above the one-way flow guiding grate4of the outlet chamber26. Arrangements are made in the lateral vertical cross-section in a transverse V-shape progressively closer together. An inverted V-shape that changes from larger to smaller is formed in the horizontal cross-section. The V-shape herein refers to a structure that varies from wide to narrow, and the very narrow parts of the V are not necessarily connected. Internal reflected wave energy dissipation generated by the rear wall of the inlet chamber25is reduced. This setup alternates water in and out of the inlet chamber25and the outlet chamber26in turn by means of the energy alternating chamber31, which enables the exchange of kinetic energy with the external seawater in the shared space. At the same time, while the total size of the intake/discharge port23at the front of the device (including the one-way flow guiding grates3,4) remains unchanged, the cross-sectional area through the one-way flow guiding grates can be increased because of the triangular relationship. As a result, more kinetic energy in the waves is captured, improving efficiency. In addition, the design can reduce the device's draft in use.

FIG.5is a longitudinal cross section of the embodiment ofFIG.1. The structure of the hydropower turbine can be seen inFIG.5. In this figure, the hydropower turbine uses a stator5paired with a rotor6. Stator5is set in front of rotor6relative to the direction of the water flow, and stator5and rotor6have opposite angles of approach to the water flow. This pairing of the stator5with the rotor6optimizes the angle of incidence of the water flow at the rotor6, reducing the kinetic energy loss of the water vortex at the rear of the turbine, and thereby increasing the efficiency of the turbine. This enables better conversion of kinetic energy in the water flow into rotational mechanical energy or torque. In the high-speed rotating vortex, the efficiency of the hydraulic turbine is greatly improved. Experiments have proved that increasing the hydropower turbine shaft sleeve diameter to a size between 0.25 and 0.5 times of the diameter of the hydropower turbine rotor can effectively improve the rotational kinetic energy of the water flow passing through the rotor.

The front section27of the inlet chamber25is wide at the front and narrow at the back to form an inverted V-shaped water inlet structure, which introduces water into the back section28of the inlet chamber25above the hydropower turbine, and one of the slanted sides of the front section27of the inlet chamber25is tangentially connected to the side of the back part28of the inlet chamber25to make the water rotate, and this structure minimizes the reflected waves generated by the bulkhead at the back of the inlet chamber25, and a rotating body of water is formed above the hydropower turbine. Because the high-speed rotating vortex has a large moment of inertia, it can effectively reduce the swaying of the water body at the rear of the inlet chamber25, making the water energy more stable, and thus providing more stable power output.

Referring next toFIG.6,FIG.6is a schematic view of the structure of another embodiment of a wave energy conversion device with the top cover being removed. In the embodiment ofFIG.6, a plurality of wave energy converters, such as the embodiment ofFIG.1with adjacent side housings removed, are connected side-by-side to form a larger set of wave energy converters, the appearance of which is shown inFIG.7.

Although embodiments of wave energy conversion devices are disclosed above, they are not limited to the applications outlined in the specification and embodiments. It fully applies to various fields suitable for wave energy conversion devices. Additional modifications can be easily achieved by those familiar with the field. Therefore, without departing from the general concepts defined by the claims and equivalents, wave energy conversion devices are not limited to the particular details and illustrations shown and described herein.