Elpipe patent will be granted in the US

The national phase patent applications have been working through patent offices around the world. I am pleased that I will get 20 claims in the US, as seen in this modified US patent application on elpipes. As is customary, there was some narrowing of claim 1; I had to add wheels to the minimum definition of elpipes in claim 1:

1. A modular high-voltage direct current electric power transmission system, comprising:

an elongated containment system, the conduit;

a plurality of elongated generally annular rigid primary conductors, which comprise the central portion of the segment modules, generally aligned end-to-end within the containment system;

a plurality of splice transition conductors which are connected to each end of the primary conductors;

a generally annular primary insulator surrounding each of the primary conductors;

a plurality of compliant conductive electrical splice members, one splice member located between and electrically coupled to opposed ends of the primary conductors, to accomplish electrical continuity while allowing for axial misalignment between such conductors;

a plurality of splice insulators, one such a splice insulator surrounding each splice member; and

further comprising wheels located between the primary insulator and the containment system.


Here is the actual text of the written office action (page 8):

3. Claims 1-20 are allowed
    The prior art taken either in singularity or in combination fails to anticipate or fairly suggest the limitations of the independent claim 1...

I have filed plenty of patents before, and I never had such a letter approving all my claims. As claim 1 reads, my invention applies to any kind of flexible powerline that can move like a train inside a pipeline conduit. That means that 100 km sections of MIND cable can be unwound off a ship directly into the conduit; if such a cable is transported by robots that carry the cable, that is an embodiment of my invention. To visualize how that will work...think army ants with the cable on their backs. The installation and rapid repair method works for superconducting lines, though the minimum bend radius for different superconductors varies a lot. 

The patent will publish in three months, and I intend to use that time to ready a crowd-source investment strategy to get me to the first 100kV prototype, with a complete design for an 800kV elpipe. Right now, I am on both GUST and Wefunder. In general, I am looking for a "qualified investor" under SEC rules to put in at least $25k at a very good valuation. When that happens, I can then be listed on Wefunder, where I hope to raise $1 million via crowdsource funding to get me to the first 100kV prototype and finish the international patents. This prototype will then help a more conservative set of investors to come in for $35 million to build an 800kV working elpipe.