Oil skimming apparatus

Claim 1

A floatable oil skimmer comprising: a. a housing having sides and a bottom normally sealed from a body of water in which the housing is positioned for use, said housing being floatable on said body of water, b. pumping means for removal of oil from said housing, said pumping means being in communication with a body of liquid that accumulates within said housing dUring removal of an oil slick from said body of water, c. a hinged gate which forms at least a portion of one of the sides of said housing and pivotally connected at a lower edge thereof to swing inwardly into the housing upon removal of oil therefrom by the pumping means, d. additional hinged gates within said housing pivotally connected at lower edges thereof to swing inwardly into the housing upon removal of oil therefrom by the pumping means, the gates being parallel to one another, e. multiple compartments within said housing which are defined by said hinged gates, f. water removal piping in communication with the lower region of each of said multiple compartments, g. a pulley mounted on an upper portion of the housing, a line which passes over said pulley, the top edge of each of the aforesaid gates being attached to the line toward one end thereof, and counterweighting means attached to the other end of the line.