The oceans are an enormous reservoir of energy. One form in which that energy appears is waves. The energy in waves is derived from the wind energy that generates them. Since wind currents are produced by solar energy, wave energy is a renewable source of energy.

Humans have invented devices for capturing the power of waves at least as far back as the time of Leonardo da Vinci. The first modern device for generating electricity from wave power was patented by two French scientists in 1799. In the United States, more than 150 patents for wave power machines have been granted.

Harnessing the energy of wave motion presents many practical problems. For example, while the total amount of wave energy in the oceans is very great, the quantity available at any one specific point is usually quite small. For purposes of comparison, an wave that is 8 ft (2.4 m...