Water distributor tray scrubber design for licensing

[SantaMonica]

Available for licensing soon in the U.S. will be my water distributor tray scrubber design, as has been used for a few years on the SLIP.7 but can be used on the top of any waterfall scrubber:



It is diagramed more in the instructions:
https://algaescrubber.net/SLIP.7-Instructions.pdf

This design allows you to reach in from the top and remove the water distributor tray and screen together, upwards, easily and without turning off the water. It also can go easily into the back of AIO tanks, either as an add-on or as OEM. The finished scrubber can be any size, and can have lights on 1 or 2 sides, and can also have our optional upflow bubbles at the bottom to make it a combo scrubber.

Licensing will be reasonable and will be available to U.S. makers, resellers or importers, and can be exclusive or non-exclusive.

For people who still want to view the growth easily, and remove the entire waterfall scrubber with one hand, our RAIN scrubbers are preferred.

[SantaMonica]

1. Reservoir drain structure for waterfall algae scrubbers, comprising:
a waterfall algae scrubber water reservoir structure;
a waterfall algae scrubber water reservoir compartment movable from a first position which contacts the reservoir structure, to a second position, and which defines a water inlet and a reservoir compartment floor (1740), the reservoir compartment floor defining a water outlet (920);
a macroalgal attachment material suspended from the reservoir compartment floor and substantially below the water outlet;
wherein water travels from the water inlet, across the reservoir compartment floor, through the water outlet to the macroalgal attachment material when the reservoir compartment is in the first position.

2. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 1, wherein the reservoir compartment further defines at least one sidewall (1730).

3. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 2, wherein the at least one sidewall is at least 3 cm above the reservoir compartment floor;
thereby enabling water to be deeper within the reservoir compartment thus providing a more uniform amount of water flow across the length of the water outlet.

4. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 1, wherein the reservoir compartment in the first position is supported by the reservoir structure.

5. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 1, wherein the reservoir compartment in the second position does not contact the reservoir structure;
thereby enabling greater access to the macroalgal attachment material for cleaning and harvesting.

6. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 1, wherein the water inlet is located on a side of the reservoir compartment;
thereby enabling water to enter from a side location to spread laterally across the reservoir compartment.

7. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 1, wherein the reservoir compartment in the first position is disposed entirely within the reservoir structure;
thereby enabling containment of the reservoir compartment inside of aquarium filtration compartments.

8. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 1, wherein all sides of the reservoir compartment define a sidewall (1730);
thereby directing all water within the reservoir compartment to go down through the water outlet without escaping the reservoir compartment laterally.

9. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 1, wherein an upper portion of the macroalgal attachment material is disposed within the water outlet;
thereby enabling the macroalgal attachment material to be secured from above the water outlet.

10. Reservoir drain structure for waterfall algae scrubbers, comprising:
a waterfall algae scrubber water reservoir structure defining a water inlet, a water outlet (920), and at least one sidewall (1730);
a macroalgal attachment material suspended from the reservoir structure and substantially below the water outlet.
at least one growth containment wall (1810) contacting the reservoir structure.
wherein water travels from the water inlet, through the water outlet, to the macroalgal attachment material.

11. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 10, wherein the height of the at least one sidewall is at least 3 cm;
thereby enabling water to be deeper within the reservoir structure thus providing a more uniform amount of water flow across the length of the water outlet.

12. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 10, further comprising a lateral removal slot;
wherein the macroalgal attachment material can be removed laterally (1465) without requiring the user to reach into the reservoir structure.

13. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 10, wherein the water inlet is the top opening (1410) of the reservoir structure.

14. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 10, wherein the water inlet defines a pole mount coupler (420) .
thereby enabling the reservoir structure to be supported by a pole mount (410) connected to the pole mount coupler.

15. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 10, wherein the at least one growth containment wall encircles the macroalgal attachment material;
thereby preventing algal growth or water from escaping laterally.

16. Reservoir drain structure for waterfall algae scrubbers, comprising:
a waterfall algae scrubber water reservoir structure defining a water inlet, at least one reservoir structure sidewall (1730), and a water outlet border (1520);
a water outlet structure movable from a first position which constacts the reservoir structure to a second position, and which defines a water outlet (920);
a macroalgal attachment material suspended from the water outlet structure and substantially below the water outlet.
whereiby in the first position water travels from the water inlet to the water outlet structure, through the water outlet, to the macroalgal attachment material.

17. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 16, wherein the height of the at least one sidewall is at least 3 cm high.
thereby enabling water to be deeper within the reservoir structure thus providing a more uniform amount of water flow across the length of the water outlet.

18. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 16, wherein the water inlet is located on a side of the reservoir structure;
thereby enabling water to enter from a side location to spread laterally across the water outlet structure.

19. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 16, wherein the water inlet is the top opening (1410) of the reservoir structure;
thereby enabling water to enter the reservoir structure from an aquarium compartment overflow (1770) .

20. The reservoir drain structure of Claim 16, wherein all sides of the reservoir structure define a reservoir structure sidewall (1730);
thereby directing all water within the reservoir structure to go down through the water outlet without escaping the reservoir structure laterally.

[SantaMonica]

Here is a diagram showing three different Santa Monica Filtration waterfall versions available for DIY or manufacturing. The first waterfall version on the left is the "standard" one I designed in 2008 and donated as free open source to the public domain for others to build; you can see one of the original 2008 forum postings at www.ats2008.org .

This is the version that most people use to manufacture/sell because it is free open source, and it works good as long as safe low-voltage (such as 12V) lights are used; see my LEDsafety.org post. The obvious open-source feature of this version is the water pipe coming from the side of the box, going over the top of the box, and the screen goes into a slot in this pipe so that the screen and pipe come out together. The pipe does not go through the bottom of the box like the RAIN.

The second waterfall version in the middle is the overflowing SLIP tray version, which is described in the patent application below, and which has been on-sale in the SLIP.7 model since 2020. The SLIP.7 is a very small example of this design, but it can be built any size that is needed; size does not change it's function.

The main feature of this version is the "reservoir compartment" or "water outlet structure" that is the SLIP.7 tray. It removes the overhead water pipe, and allows the screen to be pulled up without disconnecting any pipes, or turning off the water. This version is available for manufacturers to license to build, sell, or import in the U.S.

The third version on the right is a round version of the SLIP tray, which operates the same except that it fits easily into standard round acrylic tubes such as for skimmers, reactors, etc. This version is also available for manufacturers to license to build, sell, or import in the U.S.

Licenses are according to these soon-to-be-filed patent claims:

http://algaescrubber.net/forums/show...ll=1#post41976

...which are a continuation of allowed U.S. patent application 16/848,779 which has a priority date of 2015, which is a continuation of U.S. patent 10,665,095:

http://www.algaescrubber.net/10655095smf.pdf

...not including the RAIN which has its own patents. All versions are available for DIY for home use, and many examples can be found on our forum at www.AlgaeScrubber.Net

[SantaMonica]

Claims have been filed, and will be published shortly.

[SantaMonica]

For those who needed the claims to be published of the lateral slot in the water distributor tray sitting on the main body, they were published today by the patent office:

https://patentcenter.uspto.gov/applications/18368174

and a copy of the pdf is here:

https://algaescrubber.net/US20240026258A1.pdf

The claims are on page 61, and the most pertinent drawings are:

figure 14 on page 12
figure 17 on page 15
figure 18 on page 16

[SantaMonica]

It's getting near the last chance to inquire about a U.S. license to sell, resell, or import from another country, any algae scrubber that utilizes my SLIP.7 pending claim features before I send cease and desist notices. Selling, reselling, or importing from another country are all specifically covered under U.S. patent laws, no matter who makes the product, or where the product is made. And having your own U.S. patent does not give you the right to sell in the U.S.

The license can be as simple as labelling the product with "Made with SLIP tech from Santa Monica Filtration". Or the simplest solution, is to go back to using my free open source design from 2008 that everyone used before (with the pipe over the top).