Water-Powered Technology

It sounds like any place reciprocal linear motion is required it could be used.

Some questions: How much mass can be moved and at what speed (in other words, what's the power output)? What is the response time of the system? Can the motion be stopped and re-started or reversed at any point along the path? How accurately can it be positioned along the field of travel? Why is it superior to hydraulic, pneumatic or electric actuators?

Knowing some of these details may allow your product to be evaluated for suitability in a specific application.

I think I have seen a similar device in Owensboro, KY and Terre Haute, IN that used compressed air as the power source. It was on a Sliding Door about 20' tall and 16' wide and was used to open and close the door by shifting an air valve that was controlled by a fork truck operator entering or leaving the building.

The device consisted of a length of 2.5 to 3" Flat type Fire Hose that ran the length of the door travel. Attached to the door was an arm that extended upwards to the Fire Hose that had two Wide Tread Rubber Tired Wheels attached to it. The wheels were placed tightly against the hose, one above and one under it. As air was intrduced into the hose it expanded and forced the wheels to roll along the hose length taking the door with it.

Worked very smoothly and at a reasonable rate. Would have been hard to control without the Double Acting Shock Absorber that was tripped by arms at both ends of travel.

hi thanks for your reply

regarding mass moved it is variable depending on pipe size/pump pressure, we use a 3" layflat hose and have pushed 350kg at 4 bar complete with the friction of the weights on the floor travelling at approx 2mtr per 1 min ,we have never loaded it up until it would not move ,but as i saY i think this is variable .dont quite no what you mean by responce time sorry . yes it can go in reverse or forward motion on the flick off a switch to change soliniod valve .the position can be controled as soon as water stops pumping i dont think we could talk in .001 of a mm but as it has friction on the tracking which it runs on ,which is also the return pipe for the reverse operation and a guide rail, it could be quite accurate.for the aplication we are to use it for it is superior for enviromental reasons and cow comfort . there are hundreds of thousands of litres of hydro oil spread on land in the uk which has got in farm slurry and drains due to hydrualic scraper bursts also because the pipe is static unlike other scraper systems the cows feet will have less damage . look forward to you comments

adrian

The Maths to predict Torque, speed, Thrust are all extremely easy to do from first principles for this system so it would be easy to design it for a particular application. It would be a straightforward design choice to specify the system to meet any reasonable performance requirement.The big advantage over oher linear actuators is its extreme simplicity and ease of maintenance. Also potentially low cost and long life.

Thinking laterally, one could also reverse the fixed and moving parts to achieve an alternative layout that might be preferred in some applications. i.e. Hose pipe on drum carried by moving door, tail fixed to ground. I hope you have coverred this in the patent otherwise somebody else might!

Hi there, can you provide a sketch, a brief explanation, a maximum load and your contact details? I have a friend who's trying to develop a way to clean a stable, and you invention may be a possible solution.

1/. Why water? is it cause if there is a fracture, there is no toxic chemicals to clean up

2/. is water recirculated so its reused, or is it expelled during use without reticulation?

With the problems of water availability in some areas, would you be able to adapt the driving force from another medium?

hi

yes the water element is for enviromental reasons ,it is a big issue in the uk and even world wide

the water is reused its a sealed system using a none toxic antifreeze in winter months

yes i suppose other mediums could be used my need change of pump etc

thanks adrian

I am not clear as to whether or not you have taken out a patent yet on your invention. If you havnt I would take immediate steps to file a preliminary patent to cover the basic invention and any variations of it that can be concieved at this stage. By discussing the invention without patent cover you run the risk of prior disclosure that might invalidate any future patent.

In my experiance (which is vast-I have over 180 patents) you would be well advised to produce as many sketches of the invention that are needed to describe it adequately and then write a good description. Armed with these find a good Patent Agent- (get a quote first) and get him to draft and file a UK Patent Application. The initial filing fee is free but you will have to pay the Patent Agent for his work.

I am not sure where you live, but if yo have difficulty with the above I will be very happy to help. I am a retired Engineering Consultant and am fully skilled in writing Patents.

How about using a teflon floor and periodically hoist one end of the shed a few feet?

Yeah, but how would the poor cows ever be able to stand up?!

Cow sheds average about 1/4 mile long, that's a lot rolling down where?

The alternative is to get the "Farm Hand" a broom or shovel and tell them to get their butt into gear and do their job they are there for.

If they are being troublesome, a smaller shovel, and clean floor after every cow.

This is a peristaltic pump in reverse. Peristaltic pumps are used for precision metering of fluids. You should look for applications that require precision movement.

Animal sheds and sheds for produce too... bravo!

The explanation is very clear but I am affraid such devices using the force given by a squeezed hose on a roller have been already in use. You could look at all places where use of electricity is not wished and the forces are not too big. Think also that you can use several hoses in parallel to get more force if needed. The problem will also be the fatigue of the hose. May be Del who deals with pumps using the reverse principle could give you some hints for the hose type. Ask him.