CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. provisional patent application number 61/331 ,478, filed May 5, 2010, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The present invention generally relates to a buoy that may produce energy and, more specifically, to a buoy that may use the movement of the ocean waves to produce electricity.

[0003] It is well known in the art to produce energy by using wind power. Unfortunately, this method of producing energy is not reliable because the wind power is not constant.

[0004] As can be seen, there is a need for a method of producing constant energy without having to rely on fossil fuel. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] In one aspect of the present invention, the buoy to produce electricity comprises a submersible platform having a central opening; a housing mounted on top of the submersible platform; at least one generator placed inside the housing; a cable spool placed on the drive shaft; and a cable having one end connected to the cable spool and another end passing through the central opening of the submersible platform and connected to a weight located outside the submersible platform.

[0006] In another aspect of the present invention, the buoy to produce electricity comprises a submersible platform having a central opening; housing mounted on top of the submersible platform; at least one generator placed inside the housing; at least one transmission operatively connected to each generator by a drive shaft; at least one inertia weight operatively connected to the transmission; a cable spool placed on the drive shaft; a cable having one end connected to the cable spool and another end passing through the central opening of the submersible platform and connected to a pulley located outside the submersible platform; and a weight located outside the submersible platform and connected to the pulley.

[0007] The buoy of the present invention may convert the ocean energy into useable electricity for humans. By placing the buoy according to the present invention in the ocean, the up and down movement of the waves may produce renewable constant energy through the use of generators.

[0008] Unlike the wind power, the sea is always moving and may produce power 100% of the time.

[0009] These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective front view of the buoy according to the present invention; and

[0011] FIG. 2 illustrates a sectional view of the buoy according to the present invention taken along line 2-2 in FIG.1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.

[0013] Various inventive features are described below that can each be used independently of one another or in combination with other features.

[0014] Broadly, an embodiment of the present invention generally provides a buoy that can produce electricity or run a mechanical pump.

[0015] Referring to Figures 1 and 2, a buoy 10 may produce electricity or may run a mechanical pump. The buoy 10 may be used by people living on the coast. The buoy 10, according to the present invention, may be placed into a constantly oscillating ocean and may produce electricity which may be transferred to the shore by heavy gauge wires.

[0016] The buoy 10, or several buoys if needed, may also be attached to an offshore oil rig.

[0017] The buoy of the present invention may allow the use of fossil fuel to be almost eliminated during energy production. Also, in a smaller scale unit, the buoy of the present invention may be used to assist stranded boats by producing electricity that may run emergency lights when their batteries die, run radios for stranded boats, or may be used to charge dead batteries.

[0018] The buoy may be made in various scales to produce the voltage and amperage needed by installing the buoy with a different type of generator(s) 26.

[0019] The housing 14 may encapsulate the main components of the buoy 10 including the generator(s) 26; transmission 28; inertia weight(s) 30; sprag clutch(es) 32, tension spring(s) 34; cable spool 36; a portion of the moving cable 46; the cable alignment controller 42; driveshaft(s) 40; and pillow block(s) 38.

[0020] The buoy 10 may be made of any material that may float and may be durable, including but not limited to metal, plastic, or composite materials (e.g., carbon fiber).

[0021] The buoy 10 may be constructed having a submersible section 18, which may have a concave base, but that could be shaped in any way to allow for acceptable flotation. The center of the submersible section 18 may have a cable wedge 24 that may be built in so the moving cable 46 may be allowed to travel through the center of the buoy 10. Above the concave base may be a flat floor 20 to allow placing the mechanical components inside the housing 14.

[0022] The housing 14 may be made of, for example, similar materials as the buoy 10. The housing 14 may have the shape of, for example, a hollow pyramid.

[0023] The access door(s) 20 may be made of, for example, the same material as the buoy 10. The access door(s) 20 may be placed on the wall(s) of the housing 14 to allow access to the interior of the housing 14. The access door 20 may be connected by hinges on one end and may have a latch on the other end to allow door to seal and lock into position but to allow access to the interior of the buoy 10 when repairs are necessary. Inside the buoy 10, the moving generator(s) 26 and the static transmission(s) 28 may be mounted to the floor 16 with bolts or other easily removed fasteners.

[0024] The other moving components, such as the inertia weight(s) 30, sprag clutch(es) 32, and the cable spool 36, may need to be supported by pillow blocks 38 so their position may be static but to still allow for the rotation of components. All of these components may be interconnected by drive shafts 40 with a coupling device on either end. One end of the torsion spring(s) 34 may be connected to the cable spool 36 by a locking mechanism and the other end may be connected to a static plate directly attached to the housing 10. These connections may allow the rotation of the cable spool 36 and the torsion spring 34 may retain the rotational force to allow the cable spool 36 to reverse direction in an effort to re-spool the moving cable 46.

[0025] The moving cable 46 may be set into the cable spool 36 with a lock screw, and the extra length would be wound on the cable spool 36. The moving cable 46 may be the cable that travels through the cable alignment controller 42, which may allow the moving cable 46 to be pulled laterally on the cable spool 36 in order to allow proper alignment.

[0026] Directly underneath the cable alignment controller 42, may be a cable wipe 44, which may be bolted to the floor 16. At the bottom of the moving cable 46 may be a pulley 48, which may be mounted via a horseshoe bent piece of steel in which the moving cable 46 would be looped through. A bolt may be placed through the center of the pulley 48 to allow for rotation.

[0027] The static cable 50 may be looped through the pulley 48 and, on one end, may be fastened to the static weight 62 through the use of a loop on both pieces. On the other end of the static cable 50, a loop may be connected to the one way cable lock 52 and then the loop is connected back to the weighted end of the stationary cable 50.

[0028] The cable wedge 24 may have a simple cone shape or may have an oval cone shape to allow the cable 46 to freely and accurately travel into the buoy 10. The cable wedge 24 may be constructed of, for example, the same material as the buoy 10. At the top of the cable wedge 24 may be a cable wipe 44 and directly above the cable wipe 44 may be a cable alignment controller 42.

[0029] At the top of the buoy 10 may be an extraction ring 22, which may be made of, for example, the same material as the buoy 10. The extraction ring 22 may allow the entire buoy to be removed from the ocean for repair purposes. The extraction rings may be made of any size. In one embodiment of the present invention, the extraction ring may be made of a heavy gauge metal rod. The extraction ring 22 may be welded to the housing 14 if the extraction ring is made from metal or glued to the housing if the ring is made from composite materials.

[0030] The generator(s) 26 may allow the rotational energy to be converted into electricity.

[0031] The transmission(s) 28 may allow the low rotation to be increased to a higher rotation in a progressive manner.

[0032] The inertia weight 30 may be made of any material, including but not limited to, metal, plastic, or composite materials. The inertia weight may be dense and of enough weight to maintain the rotational momentum during an unloaded operation.

[0033] In one embodiment, the transmission(s) 28 may be omitted if the cable spool 36 may be long enough to run the generator(s) 26 at the optimum rpms to produce a proper electrical output.

[0034] In another embodiment, the generator 26 may be replaced with a pump (not shown) to supply desalination plants with sea water or to draw cold water out of the deep ocean so it may cool the ocean surface and weaken a hurricane before it hits the shore.

[0035] In another embodiment, the present invention may directly connect the moving cable 46 to the static weight 30 but this would make it more difficult to remove the buoy 10 for repair.

[0036] In another embodiment, the cable wipe 44 may be omitted, but water may enter the buoy 10, leading to the corrosion of the components or may sink the entire buoy 10.

[0037] The buoy 10 may float on the surface of the ocean in a place where the ocean swell would lift and set it in an oscillating motion. The static weight 62 may rest on the sea floor and retain its position, as well as provide retention of the moving cable 46 via the static cable 50, to allow the functioning of the buoy 10. As the buoy 10 oscillates upward, the moving cable 46 may draw out of the cable spool 36 causing the rotation of the sprag clutch(es) 32, which may be locked and turn the rest of the components. Then, the rotation may travel through the inertia weight(s) 30, and through the transmission(s) 28, which may convert the rotation speed to a suitable level to spin the generator(s) 26 and produce electricity. Meanwhile the torsion spring(s) 34 may be wound to allow the moving cable 46 to be re-spooled onto the cable spool 36 when the buoy 10 may oscillate downward. When the buoy 10 is in a downward oscillation, the sprag clutch(es) 32 may be released and may allow the inertia weight(s) 30 to continue to rotate the buoy, allowing for constant output from the generator(s) 26.

[0038] During the downward oscillation, the torsion spring(s) 34 may use the energy gained to re-spool the now free-moving cable 46 back onto the cable spool 36 so that when the buoy 10 travels upward again it may be able to rotate the entire buoy through another cycle. The moving cable 46 may exit the buoy 10 through the cable wedge 24, but before it does, the cable 46 may travel through the cable alignment controller 42. The cable alignment controller 42 may work when the oscillation is in the upward or downward direction.

[0039] The cable wedge 24 may guide the moving cable 46 so that when the moving cable 46 travels onto or off of the cable spool 36, the moving cable may retain a uniform spooling and reduce any binding caused by the cable walking over itself. Then, the moving cable 46 may travel through the cable wipe 44, which may remove the excess water from the moving cable 46, protecting the housing 14 from retaining water, preventing the sinking of the buoy and preventing corroding the components of the inside the housing.

[0040] The pulley 48 at the bottom of the moving cable 46 may have the static cable 50 looped onto it so when tight, the static cable 50 may hold the bottom of the moving cable 46 and allow the cable spool 36 to rotate when in an upward oscillation. The static cable 50 may only be loose when the buoy 10 is placed into the water.

[0041] The design of the buoy may allow the removal and placement of the buoy from a barge in a safe manner and also may allow the buoy 10 to be taken to shore for repairs if needed by removing the static cable 50 from the pulley 48. After the initial placement, the one direction cable lock 52 may be pulled downward via the cable lock weight 60 allowing for tensioning of the entire cable.

[0042] In addition, the length of the static cable 50 may be adjusted when rougher seas exist and may allow for a longer upward rotation period thus producing more power. Built into the one direction cable lock 52 may be a cable lock pin 54 connected to a release wire 56 that is attached to a release lever 60 that may allow for the cable lock 52 to be pulled towards the surface, slacking the static cable 50 and allowing for the buoy 10 removal.

[0043] In order to be able to release the cable lock 52 from the surface, a release wire float 58 that may float at the surface by means of a release wire float 58, the wire float may be pulled instead of having divers swim down to release the one direction cable lock 52.

[0044] This present invention may be manufactured in separate stages. First the housing 14 may be constructed. Then, the moving components may be installed inside the housing. Then, the static weight 62 and cable assembly may be installed to finalize the buoy.

[0045] In one embodiment of the present invention, the inertia weight(s) 30 may be moved closer to the generator(s) 26 to produce better results.

[0046] In another embodiment, an extra sprag clutch 32 may be placed before the inertia weight 30 and the generator 26 so that the transmission 28 may not produce drag and slow the rotation causing electricity loss. [0047] In another embodiment, the buoy may have up to four generators.

[0048] The buoy 10 may also be of benefit to any coastal or island power grid as well as any offshore oil rig because it may produce constant renewable electricity.

[0049] It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.