Not Applicable
This application includes material which is subject or may be subject to copyright and/or trademark protection. The copyright and trademark owner(s) has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by any of the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright and trademark rights whatsoever.
The invention generally relates to energy production systems. More particularly, the invention relates to means and methods of displacing road embedded components to produce energy.
US published patent application US20040012202A1 by Dobbs, published on Jan. 22, 2004 discloses a roller system placed upon a road, with the rollers generating electricity by use of captured energy transmitted by passing vehicles. A shortfall of Dobbs is that large voids in roadways would be need to implement the system, creating a risk of injury to pedestrians and animals.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,687 issued on Dec. 9, 1980 to Martinez uses a plurality of rocker plates mounted in a roadway with a complicated gear linkages system that eventually transmits mechanical movement to a electric generator. A shortfall in Martinez is the extra mechanical mechanisms to be fabricated, installed and maintained in order to convert vertical linear movement to rotational movement.
The present invention overcomes shortfalls in the related art by presenting an unobvious and unique combination and configuration of methods and components to produce power and or electricity by harnessing the energy exerted by vehicles driving over streets.
The invention overcomes shortfalls in the related art by using a specialized hydraulic system that alternates the direction of fluids in response to traffic bars being moved by vehicles. Artfully placed one way valves and other components achieve favorable results over the prior art.
A disclosed embodiment overcomes shortfalls in the art by positioning sets of road actuators that are spaced so as to not be activated at the same time.
The disclosed embodiments overcome shortfalls in the known related art by eschewing the complicated mechanical systems of Martinez and the open pit system of Dobbs.
These and other objects and advantages will be made apparent when considering the following detailed specification when taken in conjunction with the drawings.
The following detailed description is directed to certain specific embodiments of the invention. However, the invention can be embodied in a multitude of different ways as defined and covered by the claims and their equivalents. In this description, reference is made to the drawings wherein like parts are designated with like numerals throughout.
Unless otherwise noted in this specification or in the claims, all of the terms used in the specification and the claims will have the meanings normally ascribed to these terms by workers in the art.
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout the description and the claims, the words “comprise,” “comprising” and the like are to be construed in an inclusive sense as opposed to an exclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in a sense of “including, but not limited to.” Words using the singular or plural number also include the plural or singular number, respectively. Additionally, the words “herein,” “above,” “below,” and words of similar import, when used in this application, shall refer to this application as a whole and not to any particular portions of this application.
The above detailed description of embodiments of the invention is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed above. While specific embodiments of, and examples for, the invention are described above for illustrative purposes, various equivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the invention, as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize. For example, while steps are presented in a given order, alternative embodiments may perform routines having steps in a different order. The teachings of the invention provided herein can be applied to other systems, not only the systems described herein. The various embodiments described herein can be combined to provide further embodiments. These and other changes can be made to the invention in light of the detailed description.
Any and all the above references and U.S. patents and applications are incorporated herein by reference. Aspects of the invention can be modified, if necessary, to employ the systems, functions and concepts of the various patents and applications described above to provide yet further embodiments of the invention.
The disclosed components overcome shortfalls in the art as the upper transitional fluid bridge 250 between the first and second fluid pathways keeps the fluid flowing in a full circular path even when the two sets of energy bars 210, 310 are pressed in sequences that are counter productive to the intended path of fluid flow.
The figures are not to scale. The disclosed air or fluid lines and turbines may be disposed at the sides of roads, so as to not require deep excavation below streets.