Inventor Charles White is seeking funding for a revolutionary hydro-mechanical lever, which he has patented, which he claims could be used to generate clean power far in excess of the energy it consumes.
A mechanical technician by trade, Mr White, 47, is currently working full time to see that this and a number of other inventions that await patents will get the funding needed to enable them to be produced commercially.
"I was always fascinated with the extraordinary power of excavators and hydraulic lifts, like those on aircraft carriers or those used to lift vehicles," he told The Sunday Times last week.
"So, I tried to see how that hydraulic power could be used differently." In the late Nineties he started to prepare drawings and fine tuning his designs, and he filed his first patent in 2001.
The engine that would be powered by Mr White's hydro-mechanical lever needs to be started up using an external source, like a small engine, but once the main engine which does not consume any form of fuel or power - wind, wave, solar or nuclear - gets going, it can power a ship or a generator at a power station. He describes the engine as similar to the gearbox of a wind farm propeller.
"This engine would produce 100 units of power, while only five to 10 units would need to be diverted from a secondary source to get it going," Mr White said. "Since the engine doesn't need any fossil fuels, it doesn't emit any exhaust. It is pollution free.
"If this invention does succeed and is used throughout the world, then thousand and millions of tons of fossil fuels can be saved, enabling fossil fuels to last for more than is currently anticipated."
Originally from Birzebbuga, Mr White, who is married with three children and lives in Zurrieq, joined an aviation maintenance company in 1977. He has worked as an aviation technician and a qualified non-destructive testing (NDT) inspector and quality inspector.
He has tested jet engines and evaluated their performance after overhauls and services, and then spent ten years working as a technician with STMicroelectronics before devoting himself to pursuing his inventions.
He has done all the work related to the patent application himself, including the line drawings, filing his patent personally at the London Patent Office. He has since approached Resources Minister Ninu Zammit to help him source funding from the European Union for alternative energy projects and was advised to speak to the University Rector.
He is currently waiting for the new rector to be appointed to set up this meeting.
Since 2001 Mr White submitted three more inventions, all of which have been published worldwide, and has three other inventions in the pipeline. One is a stationary gadget, the second a modification for petrol and diesel car engines, mainly superfast sports cars, to enhance their power, and the third will help to enhance bicycle performance.
The second invention he submitted for a patent is a rotating flagpole that prevents the flag from furling. It comprises a pole whose upper portion is surrounded by an outer skin, which is free to rotate through the help of bearings and a thrust bearing supporting the weight of the outer skin.
For smaller flag poles on yachts and ships, the ball bearing can be replaced with Teflon or nylon rings. The outer skin of the flagpole rotates in the direction of the wind to prevent the flag from furling.
The third invention with a pending patent is a new tool and the fourth is a folding speed bump (sleeping policeman). The curved surface of the bump folds into a hollow in the road via hinges, which enable the road to be flat when it is not in use.
When needed, in roads near schools and other buildings that are in use during certain fixed times only, the speed bump can be unlocked and pivoted approximately 180º to present an obstacle for a vehicle to drive over. The segments may be provided with reflectors and locks to secure them in the desired position.