Patent ID: 7690900

Claim:
A fluid pressurization unit for accumulating energy from natural wave action on a body of water such as an ocean, the unit comprising: (a) a floating component having sufficient buoyancy to float on water waves and having a compression chamber with an inlet valve biased to receive a fluid at or above an intake pressure; and (b) a piston assembly slidable within the compression chamber in first and second directions, and having a piston shaft and a hollow piston head attached to the piston shaft and having a piston reservoir therein with an inlet valve in communication with the compression chamber and biased to receive the fluid at or above an output pressure, and an outlet for discharging fluid pressurized to at least the output pressure from the pressurization unit; the piston assembly performing a compression stroke when sliding in the first direction and an expansion stroke when sliding in the second direction; the piston reservoir operable as a pressure buffer to temporarily store the fluid at or above the output pressure between the inlet valve and the outlet, and having a volume sufficient to discharge the fluid from the piston reservoir during the entirety of one of the compression strokes and the entirety of the next expansion stroke, the fluid entering the piston reservoir through the inlet valve only during the compression stroke; and the piston assembly being fixable in place relative to the floating component such that relative movement between the floating component and piston assembly compresses fluid from the intake pressure to at least the output pressure.