US1315629A - Ttansen - Google Patents

Description

" E. LHANSEN.

PL ANT FOB UTILIZING WAVE POWER.

APPLICATION FILED 11116.16, l9l8.

Patented Sept 9, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

EDWARD :roaoirm HANSEN, or rnxn LAIDEPLADS, DENMARK.

PLANT FOR UTILIZING WAVE-POWER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 9, 1919.

Application filed August 16, 1918. Serial No. 250,107.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD jJoAoI-IIM HANSEN, a subject of the King of Denmark, residing at Faxe Ladeplads, in the King dom of Denmark, have invented new and useful Improvementsin Plants for-Utilizing Wave-Power,of which the following is a specification.

This invention refers to a plantforutilizi11g'wavepower by transmitting the power of the rising and falling of waves, especially coast-waves, by means of wholly or partially immersed elements disposed the one after the other, farther and farther out from the shore, the motion of these elements being transformed to a rotating movement of a shaft in common for all the said elements.

The object of the invention is to make the plant economical, reliable in run, and of great capacity. i l 1 To this end, the elements are disposed and connected with relation to one another in such a way that the series of all the elements constitute a connected chain of elements, which are held in place by means of a simple anchor or the like, with rope or chain, lying farther out. Thus the stationary building consisting of piles, beams, etc., can be reduced to a minimum, as it is not necessary a to have permanent constructions for mountin or controlling the separate elements, but

on y a lighter construction is required for upporting the power-transm1tt1ng members,

pulleys, shafts, etc, which work undisturbed above the waves and havebut small bulk.

Furthermore, the plant is extended so as a to include not only a single row of the wholly or partially immersed elements, but

there are anchored, at a certain distance ular carpet of these power-receiving elements, which rock freely up and down with the motion of thewaves, under the light superstructure for the power-transmitting members, which superstructure rests on comparatively few piles. Owing to the great number of the constantly working elements,

the motive power transferred to the engine,

6. g. a dynamo will be perfectly even, and

a the power will be great. a

,The invention is set forth in the drawing,

in which Figure 11 is adiagram ofpart of the aforesaid carpet of anchoredrows of elements, and Figs. 2, 3, and 4:, on a larger scale, show, by way of example, one form of construction of a smaller part of the plant, said figures being a top view, a side view, and an end view, respectively. a

A number of piles 5 drivendown into the bottom of the sea in rows carry a superstructure consisting of beams 6 which run at right angles to the coast and other beams 7, which run parallel with the coast. On the beams 7 there are secured shafts 8, on which, at certam intervals, there are disposed differential pulleys, or drums. From every one of the great pulleys 9 a traction member 10. is carrled to a smaller pulley 11, ending with a weight 12. The various pulleys 11 .aredis' posed onshafts 13whichlare parallel with the shafts 8 but rotatably journaled on the beams 7. The disposition of the pulleys 11 on each shaft 13 issuch that they run free in one direction but are coupled to the shaft when turned in the other direction. As the means for this purpose are well-known in many forms of construction, they are not shown in the drawing.

From each of the small pulleys 14: of the differential pulleys a traction member 15 is passed down to each of the elements wholly or partially immersed in the water. These elements may, on the plane, preferably have the shape of a rhomb, a boat, or the like, and may consist of a water-tight frame 16 open at the bottom and with water-tight top 17. The EBlOYl'lGlllZS may, however, also have another shape. Thus, 6. 9. they may be quite, hollow bodies which are charged with Water, a weight, or the like, which will hennderstood without any explanation.

of which depends upon the height of the wave, and the pulley may even be given a whole revolution. The large pulley 9 is turned through the same angle, and the traction-member 10 turns the smaller pulley 11 on the shaft 13 and thereby also this shaft through a correspondingly greater angle, which may perhaps represent two or more complete revolutions, while the weight 12 is simultaneously lifted. This process of alternately turning the pulleys 14 in the free-run and working directions passes along the whole series of elements, e. g. in a 1 direction from rightto left in Figs-2 and 3,

as each wave rolls along the whole row of elements.

Inthe form of construction of the plant shaft, a support for said shaft and said here shown there is supposed to be but one pile -5 toeaeh ten elements, and each shaft 1 3 is supposed to be in common for two rows of elements. Accordingly, the traction-members 10, which belong to the one row of elements, are passed over their pulleys 11 in a direction opposite to that in which the tiaction-in'enibers 10, for the other row of elements, are passed over their pulleys 11; or the two sets of traction-members arepassed in opposite directions around the differential pulleys; but, under all circumstances, so that the elements in the two rows, when they sink with a falling wave,

by means of the traction- members 10 and 15 tune the colrnmon shaft in the same direction, thus mutually counteracting each others detrimental cross strains on the shaft.

The elements in each row are connected with a piece of chain 18 or other jointed and easily movable connection, so that each row of elements will form a mechanically connected chain of elements, along which a wave may pass. This chain is, by means of a rope 19, or the like, (Fig. 1), connected withan anchor 20, so that the chain rides on this anchor. As the coast-waves are always at right angles to the coast, or practically so, each row of elements will automatically maintain its desired direction at right angles to the coast. Small deviations from the desired normal position of the different elements, owing to their swaying from one side to the other, will have no perceptible effect on the transmission of power to the shaft 13, as the sum of these deviations, for each row of elements or double row of elements, will practically be equal to zero.

In order to facilitate the mounting of the shafts 13, each of these may consist of sections jointed by means ofsuitable couplings 21 between the different sections as shown in Fig. 2. Then it will not be necessary to maintain an accurately coaxial position of the different sections of theshaft throughout its entire length.

The different shafts 13 in the plant may, by means of rope or chain traction, or the like, be connected with each other and with the engine, which may advantageously be placed in the center of the plant. As arrangements of this kind may be understood without any special explanation and maybe accomplished in many different ways, they are not shown in the drawing.

Iclaim: 1 1. Aplant for utilizing wave-power, comprising a series of elements immersed in the water, a shaft disposed above the. ele ments, means for transforming the motion of the elements to a rotating motion of the immersed in the water, shafts disposedabove said elements, means for transforming the motion of the elements into rotating motion of the shafts, a support for said shafts and said means, said elements in each row being, among themselves, movably connected toform a continuous chain, all chains being anchored and forming a freely undulating network on the water.

3. A plant for utilizing wave-power, comprising a series of elements immersed in the water, a shaftdisposed above said elements, means for transforming the motion of said elements into rotating motion of the shaft, a support for said shaft and said means,the said elements being, among themselves, movably connected to form a continuous chain which is anchored, and said means embracing differential pulleys.

4. A plant for utilizing wave-power, comprising a series of elements immersed in the water, a shaft disposed above said elements, means'for transforming the motion of said'e'lements into rotation motion of the shaft, a support for said shaft and said means, said elements being, among themselves, movably connected to form a continuous chain, which is anchored, and said shaft being jointed.

5. A plant prising a number of rows of elements imanchored and forming a freely undulating lnersed in the Water, shafts disposed above network on the Water, and said support 10 said elen'ients, means for transforming the having piles disposed at intervals in this motion of said elements into rotation motion carpet.

of the shafts, a support for said shafts and n tes imony hereof I have Signed my said means, said elements in each series be- 111M116 t0 h PB w IO iing, among themselves, movably connected to form a continuous chain, all chains being EDWARD J OACHIM HANSEN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner 0! Iatenta, Washington, D. 0.

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