Patent ID: 8308449

Claim:
A wave energy converter comprising: a buoyant structure configured such that upon placement on a surface of a body of water, said buoyant structure moves in response to both wave energy from the body of water and gravity; a double-acting reciprocating pump having a working upstroke and a working downstroke and comprising a housing and a reciprocating piston disposed within said housing and configured such that upon placement thereof within the body of water, said piston and said housing are maintained in a substantially vertical orientation substantially beneath the surface of the body of water, said piston coupled at a substantially upper end thereof to said buoyant structure such that substantially vertical movement in said buoyant structure is imparted to said piston; and a support structure for supporting the pump in the body of water, the support structure being coupled at a lower end to the bed of the body of water or to a submerged weight via a tether, pivot or fulcrum, the support structure comprising: a platform coupled to the pump; a column coupled to the platform; and a fully submerged float; said column and said platform configured such that upon placement within the body of water, said fully submerged float maintains at least one of said platform and said column in a substantially vertical and submerged orientation, wherein the column and the platform are coupled through a moveable relationship such that the platform can move vertically relative to the column to vary the height of the pump in the body of water.