Patent ID: 8421261

Claim:
A water wheel apparatus comprising: a stationary support structure; a water wheel rotatably supported on said stationary support structure such that said water wheel is rotatable about an axis; and at least one electrical generator including a rotor and a stator; wherein: said water wheel includes a wheel structure arranged concentrically about said axis, and blades, paddles or buckets that are carried by said wheel structure and that are arranged and adapted to be driven by moving water impinging on said blades, paddles or buckets along a water-impinged sector of said water wheel; said rotor comprises a rotor ring element arranged concentrically about said axis and connected to said water wheel for rotation therewith about said axis, and plural permanent magnets carried by said rotor ring element; said stator comprises at least one stator partial ring sector arranged in said water-impinged sector of said water wheel adjacent to and extending along a portion of said rotor ring element, and plural electrical coils carried by said at least one stator partial ring sector adjacent to some of said permanent magnets; and said stator further comprises mounting elements that stationarily connect and mount said at least one stator partial ring sector to said stationary support structure.