WATER & WASTEWATER
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

ENGINEERING THE CONDITIONS
FOR WATER TO RECOVER.

Robby Galletta Enterprises develops mechanical systems for water and wastewater applications. This division brings together mechanical design, hands-on development and testing to explore how equipment can be built and refined for these environments.

01 / THE PRINCIPLE

HENRY’S LAW

ROBBY GALLETTA / HENRY’S LAW DEMONSTRATION / 03:01

WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO
WITH WASTEWATER TREATMENT?

EVERYTHING.

RGE LEGEND / UNVERIFIED

THE SIPPY-CUP
LEGEND.

According to an RGE legend, Robby’s young daughter was blowing bubbles in a sippy cup while he was studying.

The story says he covered the opening and blew into it — and the bubbles disappeared.

Nobody knows whether the account is literally true. It remains an unverified RGE legend, not established historical fact or scientific proof.

WHAT IF THE ANSWER
WASN’T MAKING
MORE BUBBLES?

THE DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVE

IT MAY BE CALLED AN AERATOR.
BUT IT WAS ENGINEERED
TO DO MUCH MORE.

NOT JUST AERATION.
TREATMENT.

RGE’s development objective was to move beyond aeration toward a broader treatment system. Later chapters will examine the technical ideas and the evidence behind that objective.

01 / MATILDA DEVELOPMENT

THE CONCEPT

Matilda began as an idea on paper: a floating machine whose structure, drives and internal mechanism would have to work together. These original drawings show that idea taking an engineered form.

Concept illustration of a covered floating aerator with two drives on a pond.

An illustrated concept for a covered floating machine, with its drives and platform shown in a pond setting.
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The annotated side view identifies the proposed drives, flotation, intake and water exit. The sheet carries the handwritten date November 20, 2004. It records design intentions—not demonstrated treatment performance.

Annotated side-view drawing of a covered floating aerator with drives, flotation pontoon, intake and water exit.

Original annotated side-view drawing. Handwritten date: November 20, 2004.
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02 / MATILDA DEVELOPMENT

THE MECHANISM

The mechanism gave the concept its substance. Wheel geometry, parallel shafts and the internal arrangement had to be considered together. These drawings and patent figures reveal the thinking behind the machine.

Engineering drawing of two adjacent radial wheels with a parallel shaft arrangement.

Original drawing of adjacent radial wheels and a parallel shaft arrangement.
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Plan drawing showing the internal arrangement of a floating aerator.

Original plan drawing showing the proposed internal arrangement.
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Patent figure 2 showing two wheels within a covered floating aerator, US 7,427,058 B2.

US 7,427,058 B2 · September 23, 2008 · Figure 2. Covered machine and wheel arrangement.
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Patent figures 4A and 4B showing radial wheels and parallel shaft arrangements, US 7,531,097 B2.

US 7,531,097 B2 · May 12, 2009 · Figures 4A / 4B. Wheel and shaft arrangements.
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These figure sheets document mechanical concepts. They are presented as historical design material, not as independent evidence of treatment effectiveness.

03 / MATILDA DEVELOPMENT

FROM DRAWING TO METAL

On the shop floor, lines on paper became fabricated parts. Welded sections, channels and connections brought the design into physical form—from individual details to substantial machine components.

Welded metal components in the foreground with a large radial rotor and machine frame in the workshop.

Fabricated metal components in the foreground, with a large radial rotor and structural frame behind them.
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Fabricated metal channel pieces arranged on a workbench, with a visible 11/30/2010 date stamp.

Fabricated channel pieces laid out on the bench. Visible image date stamp: 11/30/2010.
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Close view of a bolted hinge and welded mounting plates on a metal housing.

Bolted hinge, mounting plates and welded connections on the housing.
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04 / MATILDA DEVELOPMENT

MACHINING AND FITTING

The larger machine depended on hands-on work at the bench. Machining, measuring and fitting connected the design to the parts being assembled. These photographs bring that work into close view.

Hands-on work at a milling machine in the workshop, with a visible 11/30/2010 date stamp.

Work at the milling machine. Visible image date stamp: 11/30/2010.
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The photographs record manufacturing and fitting work in progress. They do not establish machining dimensions, tolerances or operating specifications.

A shaft being measured or fitted at a gearbox on a workbench, dated 11/30/2010 in the image.

Shaft measurement or fitting at the gearbox. Visible image date stamp: 11/30/2010.
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A cylindrical sleeve being fitted around a gearbox shaft, with a visible 11/30/2010 date stamp.

A cylindrical sleeve being fitted around a shaft. Visible image date stamp: 11/30/2010.
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05 / MATILDA DEVELOPMENT

MATILDA TAKES SHAPE

The parts now begin to read as one machine. Shafts and bearings sit alongside motors, gearboxes and a large rotor, while the frame and housing give the assembly its structure. Matilda was taking physical shape.

Parallel shafts on pillow-block bearings beside motors, gearboxes and a large radial rotor in the workshop.

Shafts, pillow-block bearings, motors and gearboxes beside a large fabricated rotor.
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Two long shafts supported by pillow-block bearings on workshop stands.

Parallel shafts supported by pillow-block bearings on workshop stands.
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Metal machine frame and internal vertical supports during workshop assembly.

Structural frame and internal supports during workshop assembly.
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Open metal housing with a timber base during fabrication in the workshop.

Open fabricated housing with its base visible during construction.
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06 / MATILDA DEVELOPMENT

BUILT TO BE TESTED

The idea on paper had become substantial hardware. Seen beside the original drawing, the fabricated rotor makes that progression tangible. The next step was to put the developing machine to the test.

The wheel arrangement as drawn. This is a design reference, not a numbered test stage.
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Large fabricated radial rotor beside a motor and gearbox in the workshop.

Fabricated rotor hardware beside a motor and gearbox in the workshop.
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Built equipment makes experimentation possible. What happened during testing—and what the results support—belongs to the next chapter. These photographs alone do not establish a test sequence or treatment outcome.

Large radial rotor supported in a timber handling frame in the workshop.

Rotor assembly supported in a timber handling frame.
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DESIGN → FABRICATION → ASSEMBLY → TESTING

07 / MATILDA / EARLY MECHANICAL TEST

FIRST, MAKE IT TURN.

Before the dome was built, Matilda’s exposed wheels and shaft were connected to the drive and put into motion. This early mechanical test shows the assembly operating in the shop—an important step before the swimming-pool test.

EARLY MECHANICAL TEST / EXPOSED WHEELS, SHAFT AND DRIVE / 01:00

08 / MATILDA DEVELOPMENT

OUT OF THE SHOP.
INTO THE WATER.

Before Matilda entered a wastewater treatment pond, it had to prove it could operate in water. The first testing ground wasn’t a laboratory or a treatment facility. It was Robby Galletta’s backyard swimming pool.

There, the machine could be observed in operation, away from the workshop floor and before its first field deployment.

EARLY SWIMMING-POOL EXPERIMENT / MATILDA DEVELOPMENT / 06:19

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WATER & WASTEWATERPRODUCT DEVELOPMENT