Technical field

This invention relates to an energy conversion device, and in particular, an energy conversion device for converting gravity potential energy into other forms of energy.

Background Nowadays, the energy conversion is applicable widely, particularly in the industry application. Especially, it is desired to provide an energy conversion device to convert gravity potential energy into other forms of energy.

Summary

An object of this invention is to provide an energy conversion device capable of converting the gravity potential energy into other forms of energy efficiently. To achieve this object, an energy conversion device of this invention is provided, comprising:

a liquid cabinet containing high density liquid, which comprises a side opening with a side valve on a side of the liquid cabinet at a lower end of that side and a retractable pusher configured for pushing a falling ball out of the liquid cabinet fixed at the top of the liquid cabinet on a side opposed to the side with the side opening, wherein the level of the liquid is flush with or slightly lower than the top of the liquid cabinet; a falling compartment in communication with the side opening of the fluid cabinet and including an open-closable sealing, wherein the falling compartment comprises a piston located on a side of the falling compartment opposed to the side opening , and wherein the piston is movable to and away from the side opening;

at least one falling ball;

a vane wheel having a plurality of vanes which can be rotated by hitting of the at least one falling ball after falling from the liquid cabinet;

a control unit for controlling the actuation of the side valve, the retractable pusher, the piston and the opening and closing of the open-closable sealing of the falling compartment;

a chargeable power source being capable of supplying energy for the operation of the device and configured to be charged with the energy obtained from the rotation of the vane wheel;

wherein the at least one falling ball comprises a shield, a cover lid loosely connected to the shield, and a balloon charged with a compressible gas under positive pressure which is located within the shield and under the cover lid and the top of the balloon is rigid, and wherein in the atmosphere, the weight of the cover lid is greater than the positive pressure in the balloon, and in the liquid, the weight of the cover lid is lower than the sum of the buoyancy of the cover lid and the positive pressure and the buoyancy of the gas in the balloon.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the liquid cabinet further comprises a bottom opening with a wire mesh with relatively wide pores to support the falling ball when pushed into the fluid cabinet and to allow the free flow of the fluid to a track which is provided at the bottoms of the liquid cabinet and the falling compartment so as to communicate the bottom opening with the back of the piston of the falling compartment. Preferably, the chargeable power source includes a chargeable battery.

Preferably, the device further comprises a gravity cabinet above the falling compartment for protecting the falling ball and the vane wheel from being interfered by the external environment, for example the wind or air turbulence, during the operation of the device.

It is advantageous that the at least one falling ball includes wheel rollers on the bottom of the falling ball for facilitating the sliding of the falling ball.

Preferably, the liquid cabinet comprises a pivotable plate at the top edge of the wall, between the liquid and gravity cabinets, which will rotate toward the falling compartment when the at least one falling ball is pushed by the retractable pusher. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the liquid cabinet comprises a rotatable baffle extending obliquely and upwards from the top of the side opposed to the side opening. The rotatable baffle can rotate up about a pivot on the top of the side opposed to the side opening by the pushing of the at least one falling ball on the level of the fluid. More preferably, the cover lid and the shield are made from cupper or any other convenient heavy material.

In a preferred embodiment, the at least one falling ball includes at least one sliding mechanism for relative sliding movement between the cover lid and the shield.

More preferably, the at least one sliding mechanism includes a chute member, and a cover lid slider secured on the cover lid and a shield slider secured on the shield. The cover lid slider and the shield slider are slidable within the chute member. Preferably, the device further includes a first sensor for detecting whether the at least one falling ball is floating onto the level of the liquid. The control unit may control the actuation of the retractable pusher based on the signals from the first sensor.

Preferably, the device further includes a second sensor for detecting whether the at least one falling ball has been lied in the falling compartment. The control unit may control the actuation of the side valve, the piston and the opening and closing of the open-closable sealing of the falling compartment based on the signals from the second sensor.

Preferably, the control unit further comprises a micro-processor and/or a PLC.

Description of the Figures

The invention now will be described in more detail in the flowing with reference to accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is the longitudinal cross-section schematic figure of the embodiment of the device;

Figure 2A is a side view of a falling ball with the cover lid covering on the shield, within which a balloon is contained;

Figure 2B is a side view of the falling ball in Fig. 2A with the cover lid being uncovered by means of the buoyancy of the cover lid and the positive pressure and buoyancy of the gas in the balloon; Figure 3 shows another embodiment of the invention of the device, in which a track is provided under the liquid cabinet and the falling compartment.

Energy conversion device-100; liquid cabinet 10; side opening 12; side opening valve 14; bottom opening 16, stop member 18; pivotable plate 20; rotatable baffle 22; retractable pusher 24; first sensor 26; liquid level 28; falling compartment 30; piston 32; open-closable sealing 34; second sensor 38; vane wheel 40; vanes 42; track 44; falling ball 50; shield 52; cover lid 54, inflatable balloon 56; sliding mechanism 58; chute member 60; shield slider 62; cover lid slider 64; roller wheel 66; chargeable power source 70.

Detailed description of specific embodiments

As shown in Figure 1, an energy conversion device 100 includes a liquid cabinet 10 containing high density liquid; a falling compartment 30; at least one falling ball 50; a vane wheel 40 having a plurality of vanes 42 which are hit by the at least one falling ball 50 after falling from the liquid cabinet 10 so as to rotate the vane wheel 40; a first sensor 26 for detecting whether the at least one falling ball 50 is floating onto the liquid level 28 (Figure 3); a second sensor 38 for detecting whether the at least one falling ball 50 has been lied in the falling compartment 30; a control unit (not shown); a chargeable power source 70 (here is a chargeable battery) being capable of supplying energy for the operation of the device 100 and configured to be charged with the mechanical energy from the rotation of the vane wheel 40. It can be understood that the chargeable power source is also capable of charged with energy from the external to the device. Preferably, the chargeable power source 70 comprises a power generator which is able to generate the energy, such as electrical energy, by means of the vane wheel 40 and a power storing means which are able to store energy from the generator and the external. It can be seen from Fig. 1 that the vane wheel 40 is mounted in the atmosphere. Alternatively, the energy conversion device 100 may also comprise a gravity cabinet above the falling compartment 30 for protecting the falling ball 50 and the vane wheel 40 from being interfered by the external environment, for example the wind or air turbulence, during the operation of the device.

Furthermore, as seen from Fig. 1, it is preferable that at least one of, preferably each of, the vanes 42 of the vane wheel 40 is provided with a stop member 18 which is used for stopping the falling ball 50 from moving towards ' a pivot of the vane wheel upon falling within the falling compartment 30.

Still referring to Figure 1, the liquid cabinet 10 comprises a side opening 12 with a side valve 14 on the lower end of one side of the liquid cabinet 10 and a retractable pusher 24 at the top of the liquid cabinet 10 on a side opposed to the side of the side opening 12. The liquid level 28 is aligned with the top of the liquid cabinet when the at least one falling ball is inside the fluid cabinet (or slightly lower than the top in other embodiment when the at least one falling ball is out the fluid cabinet). As shown in Figure 1, the liquid cabinet 10 may further comprise a pivotable plate 20 on the top of the side of the side opening 12. Furthermore, the liquid cabinet 10 may comprise a rotatable baffle 22 connected to and extending obliquely and upwards from the top of the side opposed to the side opening 12 and rotatable up about a pivot on the top of the side.

The falling compartment 30 is communicated with the side opening 12. The falling compartment 30 comprises a piston 32 on a side of the falling compartment opposed to the side opening 12 and an open-closable sealing 34 on the top of the falling compartment. The piston 32 is movable towards the side opening so as to push the falling ball 50 lying on the floor of the falling compartment 30 into the liquid cabinet 10. The open-closable sealing 34 is able to close and open the top opening of the falling compartment by means of a control unit. Further, the retractable pusher 24 is configured to push the falling ball 50 on or adjacent to the liquid level 28 to fall out of the liquid cabinet into the gravity cabinet.

The control unit (not shown) is used for controlling the actuation of the side valve 14, the retractable pusher 24, the piston 32 and the opening or closing of the open-closable sealing 34 of the falling compartment based on the signals from the first sensor 26 and second sensor 38. The control unit may comprise a micro-processor and/or a programmed logic controller (PLC).

Referring to the Figures and in particular referring to Figures 2A and 2B, the falling ball 50 may comprise a shield 52, a cover lid 54 loosely connected to the shield 52 and an inflatable balloon 56 charged with a compressible gas under positive pressure located within the shield 52 and under the cover lid 54. More particularly, the loose connection is slidable connection. As shown in Figs. 2A and 2B, the falling ball 50 includes at least one sliding mechanism 58 for the relative sliding movement between the cover lid 54 and the shield 52. In the illustrated embodiment, the at least one sliding mechanism 58 includes a chute member 60, a cover lid slider 64 secured on the cover lid 54 and a shield slider 62 secured on the shield 52. The cover lid slider 64 and the shield slider 62 are slidable within the chute member 60.

Furthermore, in the atmosphere, the weight of the cover lid is greater than the positive pressure in the balloon. In this case, as shown in Figure 2A, the balloon 56 charged with compressible gas under positive pressure is covered by the cover lid 54 within the shield 52. That is, the cover lid 54 is seated on the shield 52 such that the cover lid 54 and the shield 52 seal the balloon 56 with some space in some areas between them. Further, the top of the balloon is rigid.

However, the weight of the cover lid is lower than the sum of the buoyancy of the cover lid and the positive pressure and the buoyancy of the gas in the balloon. As shown in Figure 2B (with the falling ball 50 in the liquid), the cover lid 54 therefore will be moved up by means of the above mentioned factors, so the total volume of the fall balling 50 is increased (because the volumes of the shield and the cover lid stay constant but the balloon's volume is substantively increased as the cover lid will move away from the shield so as to occupy more space in the fluid cabinet).

As shown in Figures 1 and 3, the liquid cabinet 10 may comprise a pivotable plate 20 on the upper edge of the wall of the fluid cabinet (or between the fluid cabinet and the gravity cabinet (if provided)). Further, the falling ball 50 may include roller wheels 66 on the bottom of the falling ball 66 for facilitating the sliding movement of the falling ball 50.

The lid cover 54 and the shield 52 may be made from the same or different materials. Preferably, both of them can be made from metal, such as cupper. The compressible gas may be any suitable gas, including but not limited to, helium, oxygen, hydrogen, carbon oxide, NH3 or combination of any of them . Now turning to Figure 3, it shows another embodiment of the energy conversion device 100. The embodiment is almost the same as the embodiment as shown in Figure 1, except in the embodiment of Figure 3, the liquid cabinet 10 further comprises a bottom opening 16 with mesh wire (not shown in the figures) and a track 44 is provided. The track 44 is located at the bottom of the liquid cabinet 10 and the falling compartment 30 to communicate the bottom opening 16 with the back of the piston 32 of the falling compartment 30. The mesh wire is used to support the falling ball when pushed into the fluid cabinet and to allow the free flow of the fluid to the track. Preferably, the mesh wire has a plurality of pores with a relative larger diameter.

The followings are the operation cycles of the energy conversion device 100 according to this invention. When the first sensor 26 detects that the falling ball 50 is at or adjacent the liquid level 28, the first sensor 26 sends the signals to the control unit and then the control unit controls the retractable pusher 24 to push the falling ball 50 at the top of the liquid cabinet (i.e. on or adjacent the liquid level 28) out of the liquid cabinet 10 by means of the chargeable power source 70. In this case, because the rotatable baffle 22 is provided, the side of the falling ball near to the rotatable baffle 22 is stopped by the baffle and the other side (free side) keeps floating in view of the lever principle so that the falling ball 50 is oblique to facilitate the pushing of the falling ball out of the fluid cabinet. So, when part of the falling ball is above the liquid level 28, the other part will be below the liquid level 28. Then, under the push of the pusher 24, the projected upper tip of the falling ball will push and rotate the pivotable plate and then the falling ball 50 with the roller wheels 66 moves on the pivotable plate 20 till the ball 50 has been pushed out of the liquid cabinet 10 and have fallen down on one of the vanes 42 of the vane wheel 40. During the falling of the falling ball 50, the falling ball hits on one of the vanes 42 of the vane wheel 40 and makes the vane wheel 40 to rotate so that the energy of the rotation of the vane wheel (i.e. the mechanical energy) is conversed into the electrical energy by the power generator, and the electrical energy would be charged into the power storing means. Once the second sensor 38 detects that the falling ball 50 has lied on the floor of the falling compartment 30, the second sensor 38 sends signals to the control unit, and under the control of the control unit, the open-closable sealing 34 of the falling compartment 30 is closed and then the side valve 14 is opened and the piston 32 is pushing the falling ball 50 towards the side opening 12 by means of the power source 70, until the falling ball 50 has been totally pushed into the liquid cabinet 10. In the preferred embodiment, since the track 44 and the bottom opening 16 are provided, then the liquid in the liquid cabinet is in free communication with the back side of the piston in the falling compartment through the track and thus helps to push the piston 32 from the initial position of the piston towards the side opening 12 at the time of the actuation of the piston 32. After the second sensor 38 detects that the falling ball 50 has been completely pushed into the liquid cabinet, the side valve is closed, the open- closable sealing is opened and then the piston 32 is back to the initial position by means of the control unit. The fluid in the liquid cabinet is in continuous free communication with the track. When the falling ball 50 is in the atmosphere, the balloon charged with compressible gas under positive pressure is covered by the cover lid within the shield, because the weight of the cover lid 54 is greater than the positive pressure of the gas in the balloon, so the volume of the falling ball is smaller and thus it will occupy a smaller space in the falling compartment and hence the volume required to be moved during the movement of the piston away from the fluid cabinet would be accordingly smaller, so that the energy required to push it back to the fluid cabinet through the bottom opening via the track could be minimized during the movement of the piston away from the side opening to its original position. And after the falling ball 50 has been pushed into the liquid cabinet 10, the cover lid 54 is moved up by means of the buoyancy of the lid cover and the positive pressure and the buoyancy of the gas in the balloon 56 because the weight of the cover lid 54 is lower than the sum of those forces. Therefore the total volume of the fall balling is increased (because the volumes of the shield and the cover lid stay constant but the balloon's volume is substantively increased as the lid cover will move away from the shield so as to occupy more space). In this case, the average density of the whole falling ball will be decreased. So the buoyancy of the falling ball 50 is increasing with the increase of the balloon's volume arid the falling ball thus will float in the liquid up to the liquid level. The whole process repeats to conversion the gravity of the falling ball to the other form of energies, especially electrical energy.

In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 3, since the fluid in the liquid cabinet is in free communication with the back side of the piston in the falling compartment, the pressure on both sides of this piston (i.e., the side facing the falling ball and back side) will be equal after opening of the side opening valve of the fluid cabinet. The energy required to push the falling ball into the liquid cabinet is expected to be minimized.

The retractable pusher and/or piston may be pneumatically or mechanically operated.

The first and second sensor include but not limit to optical sensor, pressure sensor, touch sensor, ultrasonic sensor or the combinations thereof. Although these inventions have been described in terms of certain embodiments, other embodiments that are apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, including embodiments which do not provide all of the features and advantages set forth herein, are also with the scope of these inventions.