Fish cage screen and cleaning apparatus
First Claim
1. An aquaculture cage screen cleaning device comprising;
- a brush head including a plurality of flexible hook shaped finger, said brush head in operative engagement with a power output to cause said brush head and said plurality of flexible hook shaped fingers to move, said aquaculture cage screen having an inner surface and an outer surface, said flexible hook shaped fingers being sized and configured to clean the inner and outer surface of said screen in a single motion.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The device includes a screen cleaning brush with multiple fibers or cleaning fingers made from a flexible material with a hook and barb shape. The hook is designed to trap the screen strand as it passes and rotates on a flexible arm to clean the adjacent and opposite side of the strand and then flexes to release the strand. The instant invention has a unique propulsion system and navigation system that enables automatic navigation of the cleaning apparatus on the screen of the aquaculture cage. Alternative the screen cleaning can be performed with a frame having fins to assist in the directional placement of the cleaning fingers against a submersed screen.
29 Citations
19 Claims
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1. An aquaculture cage screen cleaning device comprising;
a brush head including a plurality of flexible hook shaped finger, said brush head in operative engagement with a power output to cause said brush head and said plurality of flexible hook shaped fingers to move, said aquaculture cage screen having an inner surface and an outer surface, said flexible hook shaped fingers being sized and configured to clean the inner and outer surface of said screen in a single motion. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A brush head including a plurality of flexible hook shaped fingers, each flexible hook shaped fingers including a first longer leg portion that is attached to an elongated member at one end and transitions to a generally “
- U”
shaped portion at the opposite end of said first longer leg portion, said opposite end of the “
U”
shaped portion transitions into a second shorter leg, said flexible hook shaped fingers being elastically deformable such that the “
U”
shaped portion can be transformed into a substantially straight portion under the influence of an applied force.
- U”
- 6. An aquaculture cage screen cleaning device comprising a plurality of brush heads, each brush head including a rim having a plurality of propeller blades attached thereto, wherein the motion of said aquaculture cage screen cleaning device is articulated by controlling the rotational speed of each of the rims relative to one another.
- 8. An automatic aquaculture cage screen cleaning device including one or more propulsion devices, one or more sensors and a central processing unit whereby the propulsion system is controlled by the central processing unit based on the information received from one or more sensors and enabling the cleaning device to navigate the surface of the cage screen.
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15. An aquaculture cage screen cleaning device comprising;
a frame having a plurality of flexible hook shaped fingers extending from a side surface, means for lowering said rigid frame along the outer surface of a submersed screen, said flexible hook shaped fingers being sized and configured to clean the outer surface of said screen in a single motion. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19)
Specification