Facility for refueling of clean air vehicles/marine craft and power generation

• US 5,512,787 A
• Filed: 10/19/1994
• Issued: 04/30/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Robert Dederick
• Original Assignee: Robert Dederick
• Inventors: Dederick, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Dougherty, Thomas M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cuneo, Christopher
• Application Number:
  US08/325,830
• Time in Patent Office: 559 Days
• Field of Search: 290/2, 290/4 R, 290/42, 290/43, 290/44, 290/53, 290/54, 290/55, 290/1 R
• US Class Current: 290/4.00R
• CPC Class Codes: F03D 15/10 using gearing not limited to rotary motion, e.g. with oscillating or reciprocating members
• CPC Class Codes: F03D 9/008 the wind motor being combined with water energy converters, e.g. a water turbine
• CPC Class Codes: F03D 9/11 storing electrical energy
• CPC Class Codes: F03D 9/25 the apparatus being an electrical generator F03D9/22 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F05B 2210/16 Air or water being indistinctly used as working fluid, i.e. the machine can work equally with air or water without any modification
• CPC Class Codes: F05B 2210/18 Air and water being simultaneously used as working fluid
• CPC Class Codes: F05B 2220/708 Photoelectric means, i.e. photovoltaic or solar cells
• CPC Class Codes: H02S 10/12 Hybrid wind-PV energy systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/50 Photovoltaic [PV] energy
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/72 Wind turbines with rotation axis in wind direction
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 70/30 Systems combining energy storage with energy generation of non-fossil origin

Abstract

A facility for the generation of electrical power and products for the refueling of clean air vehicles (CAV'"'"'s) and marine craft and for use by the facility and/or general market. A host of electrical power generation devices including solar panels, solar collectors, wave action generators, reverse osmosis water purification apparatus, electrolizers, hydrogen/oxygen purifiers and compressors, storage units, fuel cells, AC/DC motors and generators and the various connectors, gauges and networks used for interconnecting and dispensing the products of a combined source system are used jointly and severally in a unique siting about an elevated roadway or railway. The idealized site for this combined system is a bridge, or other elevated structures such as lock superstructures, dam faces and otherwise towering facilities. The siting structure is most desirably located adjacent a water source, be it a river, bay, tidal estuary or the like. In addition to the generation of DC electrical power, gaseous products such as may be marketed for their intrinsic value or used in the production of additional power via fuel cell operation are also marketed or used/consumed on site. Unique improvements are made in wind generators, a tidal barge generation system and a wave air generator.

Claims

1. A site system for provision of electrical and fuel products for site servicing of vehicles and marine craft comprising in combination:

an elevated structure for providing a substantial base for said site and having an upper utility area and a lower utility area, said upper and said lower utility areas demarcated and defined by a roadway used by vehicles;

at least one electrical generation subsystem selected from a group consisting of a solar panel collector, a wind generator, a barge and a water power generation means, said subsystem located in either or both said upper or said lower utility areas;

conduction means for transferring electrical output of said subsystem to electrolysis means, said conduction means including switching means for shunting said electrical output to said electrolysis means or to electrical power storage means;

water supply means;

said electrolysis means for production of gaseous products while in electrical communication with said conduction means and receptive of water from said water supply means;

compression and storage means for receiving said gaseous products;

a multi-service station network for tapping into said compression and storage means, using said gaseous products for generating electrical power and, upon demand, for dispensing pure hydrogen and oxygen product; and

an electric conversion means for generating alternating current power.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said elevated structure is sited on a river, a valley, a fjord, a highway, a canal, a bay or a channel and comprises an overpass structure.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said multi-service station network comprises one or more service modalities selected from the group consisting of a fuel cell charging station, a methane mixer-low emissions vehicle charging station and a zero emissions vehicle charging station, said modalities equipped to exchangeable rechargeable power sources.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said electrical conversion means is a motor generator subsystem that includes a battery bank.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said wind generator comprises:

an annular mounting;

rotational means over which said annular mounting may travel, said rotational means fixed to said superstructure enabling said annular mounting to rotate relative said superstructure;

a multiplicity of foramenous vanes disposed radially from an axis to individual, equally spaced points on said annular mounting and effecting, elevationally, a hemispheric silhouette, each vane of said multiplicity of vanes defined by a concave windward face, an opposite leeward face and a plurality of foramens therethrough, said vanes further comprising moveable foramen covers disposed over foramens of said plurality at said windward face so that, as said leeward face of a particular vane is presented to a wind force by said rotation, said moveable foramen covers on the windward side of said particular vane reflex and uncover their respective foramens; and

power transmission means for transferring angular momentum of said annular mounting to an electrical power generation means.

6. The wind generator of claim 5 wherein said annular mounting comprises a ring for mounting said vanes of the generator and includes a mechanism that facilitates transfer of angular momentum from movement of said ring to an electric generator.

7. The wind generator of claim 6 wherein said mechanism comprises a means in the ring that is receptive therein of belt means.

8. The wind generator of claim 6 wherein said mechanism includes an annular gear tooth array disposed on the ring.

9. The system of claim 5 wherein said rotational means is a circular array of wheels which support said annular mounting and rotatably couple said mounting with the structure.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein said barge is a barge hull for anchoring in a flow and further comprises:

a tunnel means for admitting water flow through the barge hull, said tunnel means aligned centrally and longitudinally within said hull;

a moveable bucket assembly for immersion into a water stream and comprising a belt-disposed series of arcuate vanes operatively mounted about a series of wheels in pulley fashion in alignment with and over the tunnel means, said bucket means vertically moveable between a raised position above said tunnel and a lowered, immersed position into said tunnel and with each vane of said belt-disposed series being articulated and pivotally attached at a vane root thereof to said belt;

power take-off means for extracting mechanical energy from movement of the moveable bucket assembly and for delivering said mechanical energy to an electrical power generator; and

anchoring means for securing the barge hull in a fore-aft orientation with respect to said tidal flow.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein said water power generation means is at least one subsystem selected from the group of subsystems consisting of fixed tidal mills, mobile tidal mills and wave actuated energy generators.

13. The system of claim 1, where said barge comprising:

an elongated hull having a tunnel passing longitudinally therethrough, said hull bearing thereover an essentially flat deck;

an anchor means for mooring said barge in a tidal flow so that said tunnel is in alignment therewith;

one or more vertical axis wind generators disposed on said deck, said wind generators including first electrical power generators coupled thereto, said power generators connected to an electric power network and said network connected to a battery means;

a tunnel means for admitting water flow through the barge hull and aligned centrally and longitudinally therewith;

a moveable bucket assembly for immersion into a water stream and comprising a belt-disposed series of arcuate vanes operatively mounted about a series of wheels in pulley fashion and in alignment over the tunnel means, said bucket means vertically moveable between a raised position above said tunnel and a lowered position into said tunnel and with each vane of said belt-disposed series being articulated and pivotally attached at a root thereof to said belt;

power take-off means for extracting mechanical energy from movement of the moveable belt assembly and delivering said mechanical energy to at least a second electrical power generator, said at least second electrical power generator outputting to said electric power network; and

at least one tidal mill generator disposed at an end of said tunnel means for providing electrical output to said electric power network.

14. The system of claim 13 further comprising a mobile tidal mill which is characterized by:

a truck mounting a rotary mill having a vertical axis of rotation, said rotary mill possessing articulatively mounted buckets fixed circumferentially about and radiating outwardly of an axis which turns on said vertical axis of rotation, said rotary mill movably disposable by a hoist apparatus of said truck between said truck onboard first position and a first tidal flow-immersed position; and

an articulated weir pair of panels projectable from said truck and movably disposable between a truck onboard second position and second and third tidal flow-immersed positions for urging tidal flow into contact with said rotary mill.

15. The system of claim 13 further comprising at least one water turbine hingedly disposed at an end of said hull proximate a water line thereof, said water turbine positionable between a raised, above-the-water position and an in-the-water, below the hull position.

16. The system of claim 15 further comprising an array of wave-actuated power generators staged alongside said hull and protruding downward below said water line, said array productive of electric power, said power transferrable by an electric conduction means to said electric power network.

12. A compact system for production of electrical power and electrolysis products derivable economically from wind and solar energies and comprising:

an elevated bridge structure including horizontal and vertical platform means that afford vertical and horizontal mounting of equipment thereon;

a solar collector array fixed to vertical and essentially non-horizontal supports and superstructure of said bridge structure, said array electrically in communication with a switching means;

a group of vertical axis wind generators disposed on said platform means and/or suspended thereunder, said group electrically ganged to said switching means;

said switching means for connecting electrical output of said array and said group to a gas forming electrolysis equipment and, alternatively, to a battery means; and

a water source for use by said gas forming electrolysis equipment.

17. The system of claim 12 wherein said structure comprises one or more service modalities selected from the group consisting of a fuel cell charging station, a methane mixer-low emissions vehicle charging station and a zero emission vehicle charging station, said modalities equipped provide to exchangeable rechargeable power sources.

18. An energy generating system for supplying usable power to transportation devices, comprising in combination:

a) a bridge, spanning between two parcels of land and extending over a source of water, the bridge having a roadway;

b) an electrical generation system for generating electrical power, including a solar powered generator, a wind powered generator, and a water powered generator, each mounted to the bridge respectively;

c) power storage means for storing electrical power generated from the electrical generation system; and

d) power delivery means for delivering electrical power from the power storage means to eventually the transportation devices.

19. The generating system of claim 18, wherein the wind powered generator is mounted to a underside of the roadway;

and the solar powered generator is mounted substantially above the roadway.

20. The generating system of claim 19, further comprising:

a) means coupled to receive electrical output from the electrical generation system for generating gases from water through electrolysis;

b) gas storing means for storing the gases; and

c) generating means for generating electrical power from the gases.