Patent ID: 8120195

Claim:
A wave energy converter ( 93 ) for generating electricity from sea waves that move along a wave propagation direction in a sea, where the sea has a sea surface ( 20 ), a sea floor ( 18 ) and a wave energy zone that lies within a half wavelength of said sea waves below the sea surface, comprising: an elongated tube ( 12 ) that extends along a tube centerline ( 14 ) and that is bendable to enable different sections ( 50 ) of said tube that are spaced along said tube centerline to deviate in different vertical directions and in different amounts from a straight line, said tube having primarily horizontally spaced opposite ends ( 30 , 32 ) and said tube floats in said sea; a device that includes a sheet ( 44 ) of SSM (synthetic stretchable material) material ( 44 , 60 , 62 ) wrapped into a continuous tubular shape and forming walls of said tube and that also includes a pair of electrodes ( 44 , 46 ) lying at opposite faces of said sheet, said device generating electricity on said electrodes when said sheet is stretched in different amounts, with bending of the tube producing stretching and relaxation of stretching of said device, and including electric conductors ( 55 ) coupled to said electrodes to carry away electricity.