Google applies for wind-assisted propulsion patent

摘要

A patent filed recently by Google proposes harnessing the company's Makani energy kite to ships in order to provide propulsion power for vessels. The application, filed with the US Patent Office on 22 September, envisions a kite carrying several turbines, tethered to a vessel by an electrically conductive wire. Propulsion power will be provided by electricity generated by the kite rotors and transferred to the vessel, and also by a mode in which the kite itself is powered to provide a pulling force through the tether.