Abstract
This phase I proof of concept project will prove the feasibility of using many small
floating wave energy converter (WEC) omnidirectional energy point absorbers as
a surface energy attenuating dense carpet-like array to harvest electrical energy
over water areas of arbitrary shape and size. Each proposed WEC, comprised of a
radically different vibrational vertically oriented Faraday linear electric generator
(LEG) with a patented arrangement of compressed repulsive magnetic fields
radiating perpendicular to and along its entire vertical axis as well as protective
electromagnetic braking, has improved efficiency, a only one moving sliding
structure, a low ecological impact, and no hydraulic fluids. The LEG is protected
against violent motion from large waves by a repulsive magnetic and
electromagnetic braking system. WEC arrays of arbitrary size or shape are
attached by either rigid or flexible tethering to bulkheads, seawalls, and docks,
anchored to the seabed, or freely floating. The arrays can be shaped into the
form of disks, rings, strips of varying numbers of layers of WEC’s, or polygons, all
of arbitrary geometric dimensions. An array can be as simple as a single WEC thus allowing it to be incorporated into wave driven power supplies that can be used
to energize navigational or instrument buoys, or to serve as emergency power
sources for boat operators. The buoy shaped WEC’s use low cost standard
components. The WEC’s themselves can be tethered together either in a flexible
manner allowing the array to ripple with the waves or in a rigid manner causing
the array to behave like a boat structure. The WEC is simple to transport, install,
service and replace. Simple power collection circuit (PCC) modules consisting of
four different types of multiple phase AC to DC rectifying and filtering circuits
allow for the production of unipolar voltage outputs, bipolar voltage outputs,
voltage summation outputs, and current summation outputs that allow for huge
flexibility in harvesting the many AC current voltage sources emanating from each
of the many coils on each of the many WEC’s that comprise the array. By using
these four different circuits as components to build up increasingly more
complicated PCC’s serving many WEC’s each with many power generating coils,
the hierarchical PCC can combine an essentially unlimited number of separate
WEC AC to DC power sources from a large assemblage of LEG’s into one output
from which electric power is harvested from the array and transmitted to shore
by electric cables. Alternatively, if the array is located far from shore beyond the
range of conventional electric cables, the harvested electrical energy can be
converted to stored chemical energy such as lithium battery banks and then used
as needed on demand. As ocean waves propagate through the array, their
amplitude decreases as their kinetic energy is changed into electrical energy by
each successive WEC they encounter. Multiple patents describe the key
components of this ocean wave power conversion process. The pre-prototype
LEG structure has produced considerable electricity (up to 60 W) while floating in
a water environment