JP2022123162A - Flying object with multiple rotor blades - Google Patents

Abstract

To safely move or land a flying object with multiple rotor blades in the event of power source trouble.SOLUTION: A flying object has multiple rotor blades that each comprise: propellers; and propulsion mechanisms for driving respectively the propellers. The flying object comprises: a main body; multiple rotor blades connected to the main body; and multiple power sources connected to the multiple rotor blades, and transmitting power to the propulsion mechanisms, respectively. Those arranged diagonally across the main body of the flying object, of the multiple rotor blades, are paired. The paired rotor blades are made into a set, and each of the power sources is connected to each propulsion mechanism in at least one set of the paired rotor blades, respectively.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to an aircraft having multiple rotors.

Conventionally, in a helicopter, which is a rotary wing aircraft, autorotation flight has been used as a method for safely landing when some kind of engine trouble occurs during flight and rotational energy cannot be supplied to the main rotor. In this regard, Patent Literature 1 discloses a system for autonomously controlling autorotation flight in a small unmanned helicopter.

JP 2006-335185 A

By the way, in recent years, an aircraft having a plurality of rotor blades (hereinafter collectively referred to as a "multi-copter" regardless of whether it is manned or unmanned) has begun to be used in industry. I am flying with multiple pieces of. Therefore, if there is a problem with the power source (e.g. battery) during flight, the energy required for autorotation flight cannot be obtained like a helicopter, so in order to land safely, there is an alternative to autorotation flight. Is required.

In particular, conventional multi-copters have only one power source, so if trouble occurs with the power source, it is necessary to move the motor and propeller (hereinafter collectively referred to as "rotor blades"). can't get enough energy. As a countermeasure, it is possible to install an auxiliary power source.

In addition, even in a multicopter having rotary blades including coaxial counter-rotating rotors having two propellers rotating in opposite directions coaxially on the upper and lower sides, means for solving the above problems have not yet been studied.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such a background, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a technology that enables safe movement or landing in a multicopter, particularly in the event of power source trouble.

The main invention of the present invention for solving the above problems is an aircraft having a plurality of rotor blades having a propeller and a propulsion mechanism for driving the propeller, the aircraft comprising a main body and a main body connected to the main body. and a plurality of power sources connected to the plurality of rotor blades and transmitting power to each of the propulsion mechanisms, the plurality of rotor blades driving the main body of the aircraft. A flight characterized by a pair of rotor blades arranged diagonally across each other, wherein each of said power sources is respectively connected to at least one set of said propulsion mechanisms for said pair of rotor blades as a set. body.

According to the present invention, especially in a multi-copter, it is possible to safely move or land when a power source trouble occurs.

It is a block diagram which illustrates the hardware constitutions of the flying object in embodiment of this invention. 3 is a block diagram showing a detailed connection configuration between a battery and a motor according to the embodiment of the invention; FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example when trouble occurs in a power source in the configuration of FIG. 2; FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a detailed connection configuration between a battery and a motor in another embodiment of the invention; FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example when trouble occurs in the power source in the configuration of FIG. 4;

The contents of the embodiments of the present invention are listed and explained. A flight object having a plurality of rotor blades and a flight method according to an embodiment of the present invention are configured as follows.
[Item 1]
An aircraft having a plurality of rotor blades comprising a propeller and a propulsion mechanism for driving the propeller,
The aircraft comprises a main body, a plurality of rotor blades connected to the main body portion, and a plurality of power sources connected to the plurality of rotor blades for transmitting power to each of the propulsion mechanisms,
The plurality of rotor blades form a pair of rotor blades arranged diagonally across the main body of the aircraft, and the paired rotor blades form a set, and each of the power sources has at least one set. each connected to the propulsion mechanism;
An aircraft characterized by:
[Item 2]
The set is two or more sets,
The aircraft according to item 1, characterized by:
[Item 3]
at least one of the power sources is connected in multiple sets;
3. An aircraft according to item 1 or 2, characterized by:

<Details of Embodiment>
A flying object having a plurality of rotor blades and a flight method of the flying object according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below. In the accompanying drawings, the same or similar elements are denoted by the same or similar reference numerals and names, and duplicate descriptions of the same or similar elements may be omitted in the description of each embodiment. Also, the features shown in each embodiment can be applied to other embodiments as long as they are not mutually contradictory.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of an aircraft 1. As shown in FIG. The main unit 10 includes a flight controller 11, an ESC 14, a transmitter/receiver 17, and a battery 18. In addition, the structure which the main-body part 10 has is not restricted to what was illustrated.

Flight controller 11 may have one or more processors, such as programmable processors (eg, central processing units (CPUs)). The flight controller 11 also has a memory 111 and can access the memory. Memory 111 stores logic, code, and/or program instructions executable by the flight controller to perform one or more steps. Furthermore, the flight controller 11 may include sensors 112 such as inertial sensors (acceleration sensors, gyro sensors), GPS sensors, proximity sensors (eg, lidar), and the like.

Memory 111 may include, for example, separable media or external storage devices such as SD cards and random access memory (RAM). Data acquired from cameras/sensors 12 may be communicated directly to memory 111 and stored. For example, still image/moving image data captured by a camera or the like is recorded in a built-in memory or an external memory. A camera 12 is installed on the flying object 1 via a gimbal 13 .

Flight controller 11 includes a control module, not shown, configured to control the state of the vehicle. For example, the control module may be configured to adjust the spatial orientation, velocity, and/or acceleration of a vehicle having six degrees of freedom (translational motions _x , _y , and _z , and rotational motions θx, θy, and θz). , ESC 14 (Electric Speed Controller) to control the propulsion mechanism (motor 15, etc.) of the flying object. A motor 15 powered by a battery 18 rotates a propeller 16 to generate a lift force of the aircraft. The control module can control one or more of the states of the mount, sensors.

A detailed connection configuration between the battery 18 and at least the motor 15 in the embodiment of the present invention will be described later. Further, if the motor 15 and the battery 18 are a propulsion mechanism and a power source, the specific configuration is not limited to these. For example, an internal combustion engine and a fuel tank may be used. ).

Flight controller 11 is configured to transmit and/or receive data from one or more external devices (e.g., transceiver (propo) 19, terminals, displays, or other remote controls). It is possible to communicate with the unit 17 . Transceiver 19 may use any suitable means of communication, such as wired or wireless communication.

For example, the transceiver 17 utilizes one or more of local area networks (LAN), wide area networks (WAN), infrared, wireless, WiFi, point-to-point (P2P) networks, telecommunications networks, cloud communications, and the like. can do.

The transmitting/receiving unit 17 transmits and/or receives one or more of data obtained by the sensors 12, processing results generated by the flight controller 11, predetermined control data, user commands from a terminal or a remote controller, and the like. be able to.

Sensors 12 according to this embodiment may include inertial sensors (accelerometers, gyro sensors), GPS sensors, proximity sensors (eg lidar), or vision/image sensors (eg cameras).

Note that the flying object 1 may have a configuration not shown (for example, a seat surface, a control device, a luggage rack, etc.) in consideration of uses such as manned flight, delivery, surveying, and inspection. The components shown (eg, cameras/sensors, etc.) may be omitted.

2 and 3 illustrate a detailed connection configuration between the battery 18 and the motor 15 according to the embodiment of the present invention and a flight method based on the connection configuration. In this example, a configuration with six rotor blades is shown. Note that the connection relationship between the battery 18 and other components (for example, the ESC 14, etc.) is not particularly limited as long as the effects of the present invention can be obtained.

The propellers 16 arranged diagonally across the main body 10 of the aircraft 1 form a pair of batteries 18, and the battery 18 can be connected to each pair of propellers 16.例文帳に追加As a more specific example, in FIG. 2, motor 151A and motor 151B are paired and connected to battery 181, motor 152A and motor 152B are paired and connected to battery 182, motor 153A and A motor 153B is connected to the battery 183 in pairs. It should be noted that each battery 181-183 may have a smaller capacity and lighter weight than conventional batteries.

FIG. 3 illustrates a case where the battery 181 fails as an example of power source trouble. Even in such a case, since the battery 18 is composed of a plurality of batteries 181-183 unlike the conventional case, the operation of the motor and propeller connected to the remaining batteries 182 and 183 can be maintained. It is possible. Therefore, the energy obtained from these can safely move or land. In addition, since the paired propellers can be stopped substantially simultaneously without being controlled by the flight controller 11 or the like, it is possible to move or land safely while balancing quickly and easily. It should be noted that, for example, the driving force of the motors connected to the remaining batteries 182 and 183 may be set larger than normal in response to the failure of the battery 181 . As a result, movement and landing by the remaining propeller can be made more stable.

In FIGS. 2 and 3, there was a configuration with six rotor blades, but it is not limited to this, and if it is possible to fly as a multicopter, for example, a configuration with eight rotor blades (so-called octocopter) or It may be more. At that time, for example, two pairs (two sets) or more of rotor blades may be connected to each battery. In the case of having four rotor blades, it is possible to move up and down or land only with the remaining pair (one set) of rotor blades. By further providing a member for the vertical movement or landing, it is possible to stabilize the movement.

4 and 5 illustrate a detailed connection configuration between the battery 18 and the motor 15 and a flight method based on the connection configuration in another embodiment of the present invention. This example differs from the previous embodiment in that each of the four rotor blades includes a coaxial counter-rotating rotor. Note that the coaxial counter-rotating rotors may be arranged on the same side, either vertically or vertically, with respect to the arm extending from the body portion 10, or may be separately arranged above and below. Further, an arm may be provided for each of the upper and lower motors, or may be shared.

In FIG. 4, each of the upper and lower propellers of each rotor blade is paired with oppositely rotating propellers arranged diagonally across the aircraft body and connected to individual batteries 18. be able to. As a more specific example, for example, the upper propeller 16U of each rotor blade rotates counterclockwise, the lower propeller 16L rotates clockwise, and the lower motor 151AL and the upper motor 151BU are paired to form a battery. 181, an upper motor 151AU and a lower motor 151BL are paired and connected to a battery 182, and an upper motor 153AU and a lower motor 153BL are paired and connected to a battery 183. The lower motor 153AL and the upper motor 153BU form a pair and are connected to the battery 183 .

FIG. 5 illustrates a case where the battery 181 fails as an example of power source trouble. Even in such a case, since the battery 18 is composed of a plurality of batteries 181-184 unlike the prior art, it is possible to maintain the operation of the motor and propeller connected to the remaining batteries 182-184. It is possible. Therefore, the energy obtained from these can safely move or land. In addition, since the paired propellers can be stopped substantially simultaneously without being controlled by the flight controller 11 or the like, it is possible to move or land safely while balancing quickly and easily. It should be noted that, for example, the driving force of the motors connected to the remaining batteries 182 to 184 may be set larger than normal in response to the failure of the battery 181 . As a result, movement and landing by the remaining propeller can be made more stable.

In FIGS. 4 and 5, there was a configuration with four rotor blades, but it is not limited to this, and if it is possible to fly as a multi-copter, for example, a configuration with six rotor blades or more good. Also, not all the rotor blades may be coaxial counter-rotating rotors, and for example, only one pair may be coaxial counter-rotating rotors.

The above-described embodiments are merely examples for facilitating understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit and interpret the present invention. It goes without saying that the present invention can be modified and improved without departing from its spirit, and that equivalents thereof are included in the present invention.

1 Aircraft 11 Flight Controller 15 Motor 16 Propeller 18 Battery

Claims (3)

An aircraft having a plurality of rotor blades comprising a propeller and a propulsion mechanism for driving the propeller,
The aircraft comprises a main body, a plurality of rotor blades connected to the main body portion, and a plurality of power sources connected to the plurality of rotor blades for transmitting power to each of the propulsion mechanisms,
The plurality of rotor blades form a pair of rotor blades arranged diagonally across the main body of the aircraft, and the paired rotor blades form a set, and each of the power sources has at least one set. each connected to the propulsion mechanism;
An aircraft characterized by: The set is two or more sets,
The aircraft according to claim 1, characterized in that: at least one of the power sources is connected in multiple sets;
3. The aircraft according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that:

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