870 results about "Surface ocean" patented technology

A long cylinder shaped beam is submerged in the ocean and suspended horizontally by multiple floats for converting ocean wave energy. The long length (at least the distance of the crest of two waves) and heavy weight of the beam, give the floats something stable to pull against. The weight of the beam pulling at the floats is transferred back and forth, as the ocean swells move over the beam, which activate machine components that may be installed in the beam, the floats or with rods connecting the floats to the beam. An individual float will not lift the beam except when the tide raises all the floats. The floats will pull and release the tension of the weight of the beam at randomly different times. The shape of the beam is straight. The ocean surface is continuously curving up and down and the beam will not bend to the shape of the ocean surface, but the floats will mimic the undulating or curvy shape of the ocean surface, and that motion actives the machine. The energy of the floats pulling against the elongated component is then turned into mechanical or hydraulic energy.

A seismometer having a hydrodynamically efficient shaped body containing a seismic sensor or source, having a propulsion unit located and a control unit for directional control of the propulsion unit for guiding the seismometer to and from an ocean floor. The seismometer can be deployed from a surface ship, helicopter or airplane. The seismometer or surface support vessel contains a navigation unit for directing the control unit to a desired location on the ocean bottom. The apparatus provides a storage device for storing seismic data sensed by the seismic sensor. The navigation system sends a responsive directional command to the apparatus based on the current location and the desired location. Upon arrival at the desired ocean bottom location, the propulsion system acts to couple the apparatus to the ocean floor. A flight control system manages a plurality of the seismometers during navigation to and from the a ocean bottom.

A method for acquisition and processing of marine seismic signals to extract up-going and down- going wave-fields from a seismic energy source includes deploying at least two marine seismic energy sources at different depths in a body of water. These seismic energy sources are actuated with known time delays that are varied from shot record to shot record. Seismic signals from sources deployed at different depths are recorded simultaneously. Seismic energy corresponding to each of the sources is extracted from the recorded seismic signals. Up-going and down-going wave-fields are extracted from the sources deployed at different depths using the extracted seismic energy therefrom. A method includes the separated up-going and down-going wave-fields are propagated to a water surface or a common reference, the up-going or the down-going wave-field is 180 degree phase shifted, and the signals from these modified up-going and down-going wave-fields are summed.

A deepwater windpower plant (DWP) has a tension leg-type floating platform with an evacuable base for adjusting its buoyancy for installation at ocean depths ranging from 40 meters up to 1.5 kilometers and more. The DWP has a typical offshore wind turbine assembled close to shore which is then towed to a desired installation site on the ocean, and held in place by a gravity anchoring base (GAB), to which an evacuable portion or space of the DWP platform is anchored. The GAB has upwardly extending mooring tethers and a power cable which are brought to the ocean surface by attached buoys. The GAB is sunk to the ocean floor at the installation site under controlled conditions so that the GAB lands flat on the ocean floor. As the GAB sinks to the ocean floor, the mooring tethers and power cable are pulled to the surface by their respective buoys. The GAB is loaded with heavy ballast material that can be dropped from barges on the ocean surface into the upwardly open GAB below the barges.

Smooth, preferably variable-sweep fluid collection device surfaces disposed into opposition with wind, river, surf, ocean or tidal currents generate enhanced velocity fluid flows at length driven into onboard work-extracting disc turbines at advantageous angles of attack. Keyed to shafts turning freely through optionally extendable volutes, disc turbines comprising a dense population of smooth, axially fixed or adjustably spaced discs conducting preferably laminar flow between adjacent elements develop significant torque through boundary layer adhesion and viscous shear-stress between fluid layers. Exhaust of disc turbine throughput into divergent channels drafting into external currents of initially higher than ambient velocity and lower pressure may reduce turbine discharge backpressure, rapidly clear system throughput, and allow normally disadvantageous drag to be utilized to develop greater work generation. Gainfully turning with, instead of at odds to natural or anthropogenic currents provided, disc turbines utilized as disclosed may provide unprecedented renewable energy from fluids in motion.

In this disclosure, we have the following examples and teachings: A geothermal heating and or cooling system is introduced here which is deriving cooled or heated liquid via existing infrastructure of water pipe system in use for the houses and buildings, e.g. from the city water system or pipe network, or from the well water (or lake or river or sea or ocean or the like), piped or channeled to the buildings, through pipes or conduits or channels or closed enclosures. The system derives cooled liquid from existing underground infrastructure, including or for example, below-ground water pipes. The system gains a temperature advantage from the geothermal ground temperature, which remains roughly constant throughout the year in most regions. The system uses (e.g.) a storage tank to contain a working fluid and store thermal energy. In one example, multiple chambers and / or tanks are used for water heaters or coolers, with different connection and flow mechanisms. Other examples and designs are also discussed and shown here.

Embodiments described herein relate to an apparatus and method for transferring one or more seismic sensor devices to or from a support vessel on or near a surface of a body of water and a subsurface marine location. In one embodiment, an apparatus for transferring seismic sensor devices is provided. The apparatus includes a frame structure having one or more rails disposed thereon, the one or more rails comprising an elevator mechanism and defining at least one exit path for one or more seismic sensor devices, and one or more motors coupled to the elevator mechanism.

An ocean wave generator includes a buoy for floating on the surface of the ocean. A generator is mounted to the buoy. A pulley is mounted on the generator for turning the generator. An anchor cable has a first end wrapped around the pulley and an anchored second end. Upward movement of the buoy and generator due to a wave causes the cable to unwind from the pulley, which turns the generator. A spring connected to the pulley rewinds the anchor cable when the buoy and generator drop into the trough of a wave.

The invention discloses a wave, wind and light comprehensive electricity generation ship on the sea in the technical field of development and utilization of ocean renewable energy sources. Floaters are installed on the two sides of a hull respectively, the floaters vibrate up and down under the action of waves, and wave energy is firstly translated into mechanical energy and then translated into high-pressure energy of hydraulic oil through a hydraulic transition system; a perpendicular shaft wind machine is installed on a deck of the hull, wind rotors rotate under the action of blown wind, and wind energy is firstly translated into mechanical energy and then translated into high-pressure energy of the hydraulic oil through the hydraulic transition system; the hydraulic oil carrying the high-pressure energy works through impacting a hydraulic motor and drives a direct driven electric generator to generate electricity; a photovoltaic cell square matrix is installed on the deck of the hull to absorb solar energy and translate the solar energy into electric energy. The wave, wind and light comprehensive electricity generation ship solves the problems that electricity generation with ocean energy resources is high in unit cost, poor in stability and the like, and greatly improves competitive power of the development and utilization of the ocean renewable energy sources due to the high flexibility of a system.

The present invention concerns the method and installation to apply ocean energy to power generation. It is consisted of the floater, lever, chain, ratchet wheel, flywheel, generator, cable, etc. It is characterized by the fact that the float and weight fixed to it move up and down with the motion of wave, which drive the strength enlargement mechanism made up of a number of levers to travel alternately and pull the heavy flywheel to rotate constantly. By this way, the generator runs and yields electricity. The present invention has simple structure and high efficiency and can easily increase or decrease the enlargement mechanism according to the capacity of generation. This installation with low cost can be widely utilized for pollution-free power generation in the coast.

A DEMWAX™ water treatment system includes membrane modules and a collection channel. The membrane modules are submerged at depth and tethered to one or more anchors on the ocean floor. A breathing tube extends between the collection channel and a buoy floating on the surface of the ocean to expose the collection channel to atmospheric pressure. A pump pumps the permeate from the collection channel to shore through a permeate pipe. One or more permeate storage tanks can optionally be disposed within the system, for example, as part of or extending from the collection channel, to provide extra storage.

Wave energy, converters are arranged as a plurality of coupled float members arranged in a two dimensional array. Link couplings between any float member and its neighbors drive a mechanical system to convert the disorganized motion due to heaving and bobbing of the float member on the ocean's surface into linear reciprocating motion in orthogonal directions. Such linear reciprocating motion is converted to electricity in an induction system having a mover and a stator—either being an inductor, the other being a magnet. The array is preferably provided to cover large surface areas whereby energy from incident ocean waves is appreciably absorbed at the float member an converted to mechanical motion. The array may be held to the ocean floor by a mooring or anchor system immediately offshore or up to a few tens of kilometers from the shoreline. Electricity provided at the array may be conveyed to shore via a submarine power transmission cable where it may be distributed and consumed on the public grid.

A marine oil and gas exploration system used for measuring telluric currents as a natural electromagnetic energy source flowing beneath an ocean and sea floor. The marine exploration system includes a towed fish adapted for being pulled behind a survey ship. The coordinates of the ship and the towed fish can be controlled by a GPS satellite and time data. The fish includes an aerodynamic waterproof housing, somewhat reminiscent of a shape of a fish. Metal sheet electrodes of electric field sensors are mounted on the surface of a tubular nose extending outwardly from the housing. The electric field sensors are in direct contact with the sea water. Typically, the fish is towed approximately 100 feet above the sea floor. The positioning of the fish is maintained by the use of an acoustic “pinger” on the fish. The pinger transmits signals up a towed cable to the survey ship. The fish can also include a cesium magnetometer connected to the electric field sensors. The magnetometer provides for detecting low frequency magnetic components of the electromagnetic fields generated by the telluric currents flowing under the sea floor. A filtering of the magnetic component signals is used to provide a phase and amplitude references for the electric fields. The amplitudes of the electric field at each frequency are ratioed against the amplitudes of similarly filtered components of the magnetometer.

A modular unit intended for use as an artificial reef, marine habitat and / or sea wall which can be placed in stacked structures along the floor of an ocean, bay, or other body of water comprises a top wall, bottom wall, opposed side walls and opposed end walls which are interconnected to form a hollow interior. Each of the walls is formed with one or more openings whose position and size is designed to allow access of marine life into the interior of the units, permit the passage of sunlight therein, direct the flow of sea water into and through the units in a way which increases stability of the units when placed on the ocean floor, and permit alignment of the holes of one unit with those of another when stacked together.

An ocean wave generator is disclosed. The ocean wave generator includes a buoy, floating on the surface of the ocean; a generator; a pulley mounted on the generator for turning the generator; an anchor cable having a first end and a second end, wherein the first end of the anchor cable is connected to the underside of the buoy and the second end is mounted to the pulley; and a power cable, in electrical communication with the generator.

In short, the Eolic Marine Electrical Generator "GEEM" is an extraordinary invention used for capturing the huge impulse force of water or wind, to generate mechanical energy and to transform the mechanical energy into electrical energy, clean and ecological, without consuming vital oxygen thanks to the invention of immense split, self-regulating panels, radially fixed in dihedral angle to a rotary central shaft, panels which capture by shock the inexhaustible energy of the wind, the waves or the ocean currents; or fixed on rotary or flying machines of high speed, with panels formed at the same time by oscillating vanes that at a certain time of a turn of 360° will face the natural energy as a single group or panel, capturing therefrom the impulse force and converting it into rotary movement through the central rotary shaft. Said vanes in other rotation, by oscillation, will divide the panel and will align themselves with the natural vector, permitting its free passage, eliminating the turning resistance of the panel against water or wind and generating a constant rotation movement, independent of the direction of water or wind, and then transforming said mechanical energy into electrical energy by existing conventional means. The invention will allow men to renew their resources and to obtain electrical energy from anywhere in the planet such as cities, countryside, deserts, forests, mountains, seas, floating cities or spaces such as the Arctic and the Antarctic, neither polluting the environment, nor depending on costly networks or non-renewable inputs. The invention will also generate electrical energy on fleets, land vehicles or airship without consuming non-renewable fuel or destroying oxygen. Moreover, this invention replaces the internal combustion engines by eolic electrical motors, changing the scenery of the modern world and recovering the ozone lost in the Antarctic. And this invention will also be used when men in future colonize planets, without rivers or seas but with plenty of wind, to generate electrical energy without polluting this new vital space of the human race.

A seismic streamer cleaning device includes a means for converting motion of water past a seismic streamer into movement of the device as the streamer is towed through the water. A cleaning element is cooperatively engaged with the device and an exterior surface of the streamer. In one embodiment, the cleaning element includes brush bristles.

An open-ocean fish-growing platform has a submersible cage structure for growing fish, an antenna for receiving positioning signals transmitted from an external source, a position-correction apparatus for calculating a position error signal from a target geostatic position, and an ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) system for generating electric power for thruster units to maintain the cage structure in the target geostatic position. The OTEC system inducts colder ocean water from a deeper ocean depth for driving its heat exchange cycle, and is also of hybrid type using a fuel-fired unit as a heat source. The cold water effluent from the OTEC system is directed into the cage for flushing wastes generated by the growing fish. The self-positioning, self-powered open-ocean platform enables unmanned, extended marine deployment in deeper ocean waters without the need for tethering or anchoring to the ocean floor.

A moored buoy floating at the ocean surface and anchored to the seafloor precisely measures acceleration, pitch, roll, and Earth's magnetic flux field of the buoy over a limited sampling period. The system includes: 1) A buoy, 2) A mooring system, 3) An electronic data logger controlling communications between the system and the on-board remote telecommunications system, 4) an embedded computer for data input / output, temporary or permanent data storage, and algorithms to convert the measured time series data into surface ocean wave spectra and quality assurance statistics and encode the results for transfer to the data logger, 5) Sensors include one or three acceleration sensors, three orthogonal angular rate sensors, and three orthogonal magnetometers to measure the Earth's magnetic flux field, 6) A telecommunications system that links the buoy data logger and a shoreside processing system, and 7) A shoreside processing system that decodes the transmitted data, performs, quality control, and computes derived wave parameters.

A device and method for producing rotational mechanical power is disclosed which has a plurality of hinged blades attached to a central circular hub. The device may be used to convert the kinetic energy from the movement of the wind, ocean or river currents, or tidal flows into useful rotational mechanical power. The rotational mechanical power may be converted into electrical energy. Each of the plurality of blades are attached to the central circular hub via a hinge. Each blade is also fitted with a blade limiter to restrict its motion to no more than 90° relative range from the tangent line to the central hub at the point where the blade attaches to the hub. The hinges and blade limiters allow the blades to both present a surface automatically to the motive natural fluid and to generate the maximum torque in one side and minimum resistance torque positions in the opposite side relative to the motion of the motive stream. The resultant blades relative position creates a torque differential from one side of the central hub to the other causing the hub to rotate. The central hub will rotate in the same direction regardless of the direction of flow of the natural motive stream.

The anti-fouling ship paint with low biological surface energy consists of low surface energy resin, biological extract micro capsule, nanometer titania, microporous silica and solvent. The present invention has biological extracts chitin, capsaicin as anti-fouling agent through micro capsule slow releasing treatment and nanometer modified low surface energy paint and multiple anti-fouling performances. The present invention has the advantages of self-cleaning performance, corrosion resistance, heat resistance, weather resistance, etc and is used for ship as well as bridge, marine engineering member, etc.

An apparatus for converting the energy of the ocean's surf into electricity, which comprises a buoyant body that floats on the surface of the water and rises and falls with the waves, at a fixed and predetermined distance from the shore. Fixed securely to the buoyant body, is a horizontally extending shaft, in such a manner that it bears a constant height above the water's surface, regardless of water amplitude variation, and / or height of tide. Connected to the shaft are blades which are rotably mounted. Said blades will intercept the ocean at a point where the surf breaks, and shall receive the energy produced from the breaking wave. Said energy shall be converted into mechanical energy by driving the blades in motion, which in turn rotates the shaft. An electric power generator is drivingly connected to the shaft, whereby producing electricity.

The invention discloses a three-dimensional structure sound source radiation sound field forecast method under the shallow sea channel and belongs to the sound source radiation sound field forecast field. The method is characterized in that firstly, a structure sound radiation multi-physical field coupling model under the shallow sea channel is established, the sea sound propagation theory is selected according to analysis frequency range, calculation distance and shallow sea environment factors to establish a two-dimensional axisymmetric channel transmission function G, through orientation coupling solution development, a channel three-dimensional sound field transmission function is acquired, secondly, the shallow sea channel multi-boundary sound field coupling calculation theory is employed to establish a multi-physical field coupling model, a structure sound source surface speed U under the shallow sea channel under the action of multi-boundary influence is acquired through calculation, and lastly, the Fourier wave superposition method theory is utilized to forecast the sound field information P of a structure sound source at any field point under the channel is forecasted. Themethod is advantaged in that multiple bottleneck problems of high computational complexity, multiple coupling physical fields and complex channel environments existing during researching three-dimensional elastic structure sound source radiation sound field characteristics under the complex shallow sea channel in the prior art are effectively solved.

The invention discloses a device for inhibiting vortex-induced vibration of an underwater standpipe of a fish-tail imitating cowling, belonging to field of laying technology of ocean standpipe facilities. The device is used for installing the fish-tail imitating cowling which can change the direction along with the flowing direction of water flow on the underwater standpipe. The device comprises a rotary module, a cowling fixing pad, a cowling and a fish-tail flexible plate, wherein the cowling has a figure of round front part and sharp rear part, has smooth surface and is slightly like the shape of a drip. The arc part of the cowling is coaxial with the standpipe. The cowling is connected with a main pipe by the rotary module that can be assembled and disassembled conveniently so that the cowling can rotate freely around the standpipe. A small-density buoyancy material is added to the hollow part of the cowling. The fish-tail flexible plate is arranged at the tail of the cowling so as to reduce the forward flow angle of the cowling, therefore, a better effect of reducing resistance and inhibiting vortex-induced vibration is achieved. The device can effectively inhibit the vortex-induced vibration; therefore, the anti-fatigue strength of the underwater standpipe can be improved, so as to greatly reduce the engineering cost. Simultaneously the limit of certain vortex-induced vibration inhibiting devices on the forward flow direction can be overcome, therefore, the device has extremely high application values in the environments where the water flowing direction of oceans orrivers changes frequently.

The invention discloses an observation system and determining method for the resuspension quantity of deep-sea internal waves to seafloor sediments. The observation system includes a seafloor observation platform, a cable and an anchoring tethered weight. The seafloor observation platform is equipped with an acoustic releaser, a single-point ocean current meter, a turbidimeter, a high-precision conductivity-temperature-depth instrument and a sediment capture device, and the cable is equipped with a main floating body and a sub floating body; a part, located at the middle of the cable, of the main floating body is equipped with an acoustic doppler current profiler; the sub floating body is provided with the turbidimeter and the high-precision conductivity-temperature-depth instrument; the anchoring tethered weight is a gravity anchor with a square-shaped clamping groove and a fixed ring. The determination method includes the steps: calibrating the instruments indoor, placing and recovering the observation system by an auxiliary ship, reading the data of the observation instrument and analyzing the composition of captured suspended matters, and determining the resuspension quantity of the internal waves to the sediments. The observation system can be placed on the deep sea bottom safely and steadily, and can observe the full-water-depth marine dynamic environment parameters fromthe seafloor to the sea surface, and determines the resuspension quantity of the internal waves to the sediments.

A pressure wavefield and a normal velocity wavefield measured on a smoothly shaped acquisition surface by towed dual-sensor marine seismic streamers are decomposed into up-going and down-going pressure and particle velocity components on an observation level between the acquisition surface and a sea surface of undetermined shape. The up-going and down-going pressure and particle velocity components are extrapolated iteratively in steps from the observation level toward the sea surface. An image point and a reflection coefficient of the sea surface at the image point are determined from the iteratively extrapolated up-going and down-going pressure and particle velocity components.

A wave energy transducer is provided for converting the kinetic energy of waves moving in a body of water, such as waves in the ocean, to usable power. The wave energy transducer of the invention employs a pair of upright posts anchored to the floor of the ocean in a region subject to heavy wave activity. The posts are aligned perpendicular to the predominant direction of wave action. Mounting arms are hinged to the posts and extend in pairs toward shore and away from shore. Each of the pairs of mounting arms carries a paddlewheel, and the ends of the mounting arms are supported by floats. The floats hold the paddlewheels with their axes of rotation continually above the surface of the water and with their downwardly extending paddlewheel blades dipping into the water. Unidirectional drive mechanisms on each end of the paddlewheel axle are coupled to corresponding drive lines that in turn are connected to a power transducer, such as an electrical generator. Power is thereby extracted both from waves moving toward shore and from waves receding away from shore.

An offshore floating platform having at least one buoyant column with an upper end extending above a sea surface, a lower end submerged below the sea surface, and at least one keel tank disposed at the lower end. A deck is supported at the upper end the column. An ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) system is integrated with the platform in which heat is extracted from warm sea surface waters to vaporize a liquid working fluid and heat is rejected to cold water from lower depths of the sea to condense the vaporized working fluid. At least one turbine and power generator is disposed on the deck, at least one evaporator is disposed on the platform beneath the deck, and at least one condenser is disposed on the seabed or platform or keel tank a distance beneath the evaporator.

A heat insulating reflecting anticorrosive paint, in a coordinated system composed of bottom, surface and middle layer paints coated on surface of concrete or metal, is suitable for sea climate and chemical engineering air severe atmosphere, which breaks convention of making the heat reflecting surface paint in white in prior market. Surface paints in present coordinated system is added with dye infrared transparent block powder with special function or gray, yellow and brown series made of titanium yellow powder so that the color of paints is versatile, which enlarges use scale. The whole paint system has excellent heat insulating, solar heat reflecting property by rational match and good heavy-duty anticorrosive property as well as excellent weather resistance. Thickness of total dry film does not exceed 250microns. Heat reflecting effect of surface paint in various colors is similar to that of white paint which has greater reflectivity and insulating effect. Compared with a tank coating aluminum powder chlorinated rubber solvent, the tank coating the paint has inner temperature 15 DEG.. C lower, surface temperature 23 DEG.. C.