Posts Tagged: "water patents"

2015 was a truly remarkable year for innovation and we saw major trends in self-driving cars, wearable technologies, digital wallets and much more. I hope you will enjoy this top 10 listing, which includes innovations for providing water in arid regions, wireless charging systems for electronic devices and even the collection and retransmission of sunlight. Of course, as with all of these types of lists, the criteria used for inclusion on this list is subjective, based on my own personal preferences. Please feel free to let us know if you saw something particularly noteworthy in 2015.

The story of its inventor, Harriet W.R. Strong, is a reminder of the incredible resilience that most innovators show in the face of adversity, whether those challenges are life or work-related. On December 6th, 1887, Strong was issued U.S. Patent No. 374,378, titled Dam and Reservoir Construction, from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. It claimed an improvement in collecting and retaining water consisting of a series of reversed arched dams built one above the other in an inclined channel or valley so that the water in each lower dam acts as a brace or support for the dam above; the series of dams was connected by gates. This irrigation innovation allowed for lower-strength dams to be used higher up in the dam series and worked to save water in steep inclines or valleys instead of letting it drain away.

Water sports can take on a number of strange forms. We’re familiar with water volleyball and water polo, among other games, but competitive water sports can take on many forms. For example, many Eastern rowing enthusiasts take part in “dragon races”; many of these competitions happen in China, where the sport originates, but North American cities like Toronto have played host to this event. This summer, reports from American regions like the Great Lakes indicate that water levels are higher than normal this year, enticing many to take to bodies of water where they can play various games. Today, we’ll start by taking a look at a few patents issued to inventors by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office regarding different aquatic sports. One patent protects a water polo-style goal that provides a better gameplay experience than previous designs, while another provides for netting installation that keeps a ball in play if a throwing player misses the goal. Another patent protects a new style of athletic shoe for water sports.