Patent ID: 8276377

Claim:
An apparatus for converting energy in a moving fluid mass having a vertically translating fluid surface to rotational energy driving a transmission, the apparatus comprising: an elongate flexible member having first and second opposite ends, first, second, and third bodies connected to in spaced apart array along said elongate flexible member, wherein said first body is a submerged counter-weight mounted at said first end of said elongate flexible member, said counter-weight submerged in said moving fluid mass between said vertically translating fluid surface and a fixed bottom surface under said vertically translating fluid surface, wherein one of said second or third bodies has a transmission mounted thereto, said transmission including a pair of side-by-side oppositely free-running one-way clutches over which said flexible member is entrained, said one of said second or third bodies generally situate intermediate along said flexible member between said first and second ends and above said vertically translating fluid surface, the other of said second or third bodies at said second end of said flexible member, and having a weight which is greater than the weight of said counter-weight, wherein said one of said second or third bodies is a fixed structure fixedly mounted relative to, and so as to be elevated above said vertically translating fluid surface, and said other of said second or third bodies at said second end of said flexible member is a float for buoyantly floating substantially on said vertically translating fluid surface of said moving fluid mass, wherein said moving fluid mass is a tidally driven body of water and wherein said transmission is adapted to harness a tidal ascent and tidal descent of said float for said driving of said transmission, wherein said adapting of said transmission includes providing a first hollow container having a vertical rise, said float and said counter-weight suspended in said first container, said fixed structure mounted over, so as to cooperate with, said vertical rise of said first container, first fluid communication means communicating a fluid flow between said body of water and a lower end of said first container.