Google to use flying wind turbines to propel future ships
02 December 2016
YouTube channel PatentYogi details a recent patent publication from Google that shows they have invented a new way to propel ships on water.
Already, Google is a huge player in the autonomous driving sector. It now looks like the company is expanding its footprint into the transportation industry, with a novel ship propelling system.
The patent mentions three inventors; Damon Vander Lind, Thomas Van Alsenoy and Richard Wayne DeVaul.
Damon and Thomas are kite engineers. They were working with a company called Makani Power, before Google acquired it. Makani Power made kites which are basically flying wind mills. The kites fly high above the ground to catch stronger winds, so they can produce more power than conventional windmills on the ground.
Google’s patent sees them placing these kites on ships to propel them. The kites produce power while flying and also pull the ships along with them.
PatentYogi has a theory as to why Google would want to propel ships.
Google patented the floating datacentre around 2009. The datacentres are placed in ship containers and loaded on-board. Then ocean water is circulated through the containers to cool the datacentres, this way Google saves money on the cooling process. If these ships had kites on-board, they can produce free power on the ship, as these kites are simply flying wind turbines. The stored power could then be used to run the datacentres. Also, if they want to move the ships, they can simply use the stored energy to power the rotors on the kite and pull the ships.
Video courtesy of YouTube channel PatentYogi.
PatentYogi is a patent services firm that helps inventors file patents for their inventions across the world.